No lies – the first trimester was not really fun. I felt more exhausted than I could imagine was possible (to the point that putting my clothes away at the end of the day felt like too much effort!); semi-nauseous most of the day – most days (but not nearly as bad as many other friends); and I had a few complications early in the pregnancy that meant forced rest (so hard for me as one who likes to measure the day’s success by what I’ve accomplished). The best advice that I got during that trimester was:

(1) to eat constantly as a way of staving off nausea (counter-intuitive though it was – it helped tremendously!)

(2) get an anti-nausea prescription when it just felt too overwhelming  – which I did at week 11 (thank you, Anne and Lisa!)

(3) rest when you’re tired (which meant frequent naps)

And now that I’m 19 weeks into this twin pregnancy, my experience of being pregnant is so much different. A few reasons why I love it (or at least prefer it to trimester #1):

• my energy really did return (not entirely – still going to bed earlier than my previous “normal” – but I can do most tasks like before)
• the nausea faded gradually and completely
• I look pregnant now and all of our friends and family know (no veiled excuses of “I’m not feeling well … let’s reschedule”)
• beginning the registry process really is so much fun (we’re registered at Babies R Us, Target, and Restoration Hardware Baby & Child) – helps us imagine the reality of these babies’ arrival this fall
• I can feel the babies move … just the tiniest of movements now that I began identifying last week (they apparently love the beach, ice cream, and Wendell Kimbrough’s music – great house show last Saturday night, Sabins!)
• and best of all … we found out their genders: TWO GIRLS!

On this last point, this was actually a surprise to me. My intuition was that it was two boys or a boy and a girl … so I was totally wrong. Seth is trying to gear up for a house full of women yet I know these daughters will be wrapped around their daddy’s little finger from day one. I must say that girls’ clothes and nursery decor is much cuter than for boys … so it’s fun to picture their room and imagine them in these tiny outfits we’re registering for.

After another doctor appointment today, she confirmed that they seem to be progressing well and that I am also healthy. It’s such a relief to be able to hear their little heartbeats every two weeks … one benefit of a twin pregnancy (frequent office visits!). A coming post will be a review of the myriads of books on twins, pregnancy, babies … Seth and I are avid readers and are seeking to prepare ourselves as best we can through education. Yet I have a feeling that no amount of reading will be able to prepare us for the overwhelming excitement of becoming parents of TWO this fall. Instant family … !