Almost 28 weeks

Yep thats our highlander

Autumn is definitely here in the Lehigh Valley with some really picturesque foilage. After a tip off from one of the locals at Shammy's work we headed to the game preserve on Sunday to make the most of the autumn scenery while it lasts. We also made sure we didn't venture into any hunting areas which is definitely a popular weekend activity in this area. It was nice to get some chill out time together outdoors as Shammy's on-call schedule seems to have stepped up a notch this month and I scored my last on-call on Saturday. Shammy also enjoyed driving our highlander across the section of the road where the local river runs across it :).

I had an ultrasound today to check on the growth of the twins and they are both doing well, they are having a face-off across my amniotic membrane, they are both sitting up-right with their arms and legs tucked in front of them ready to give each other a nudge if needed. No wonder I've been feeling plenty of activity from them lately, they particularly liked the chocolate cake I got for my birthday. I have another 4 weeks before I get another growth scan and then after that it looks like I'll be going in weekly to have them both monitored, they definitely like to keep an eye on them. I've put 2 pics in, I'm not sure though if you'll be trying to guess what parts you're looking at.

We come to the end of our series of childbirth classes this week, where unfortunately Shammy is on-call for the last session so I'll have the instructor as a birth partner, that should be interesting. They have been helpful though and I'm counting on Shammy to remember the finer details when it comes to the real deal.

We are planning a trip to New Hope this weekend, its supposed to be a unique little town on the border of Pennsylvania and New Jersey so hopefully we will have some nice pics to show you from that.

Below Baby A on the left weighing in at 2 pounds 4 ounces, Baby B on the right weighing in at 2 pounds

Birthday weekend

Well the babies room gets some extra features. I have to give Shammy all the credit for our new baby storage area. This cupboard came together quite well after I ran out and bought us a Hammer and Screw driver. We also have a cage like storage system we put into the closet which Shammy pronounced would be even easier then the cupboard you see above. Ahh it was NOT, I had to leave him to it as after a few tries and shoving wires into a disc device I decided that it was not supposed to go together at all but should be returned to the shop because it was too damn difficult, and besides I was hungry :). Three hours later Shammy had patiently put it all together and we now have a draw system in our closet, I think someone's patience one out this time.

It was a pretty relaxing birthday this year with a lovely sunny day and a cool breeze topping it off. Shammy made some fresh fruit and Chobani greek yoghurt for breakfast for me and then later in the day we headed out to a mountain resort here to have a relaxing lunch on the patio beside an outdoor heated pool. In winter it is the local ski slope but yesterday it was looking lush and Shammy and I just about fell asleep poolside. Definitely a place to take our visitors at the end of the year. It was made doubley special as Shammy was meant to be working the entire weekend but he managed to swap this for next weekend so only had to go in Saturday night instead. I thought I should also include a photo of my belly for those that have been requesting one :). I'm now at 25 weeks 1 day and from next week will be dropping one work day but I'm still feeling pretty good.

23 weeks :)

Shammy and I have been busy over the last month but we still have managed to fit in a half marathon for Shammy and a visit to his sister's place last weekend. I started doing on-call with my new job in September but due to the inconvenient hours, a call out at midnight and a 4am phone call (which really could have waited til the next morning) I have asked to be taken off the roster and the weekends where possible. This has meant that I am now only doing one weekend and one on-call a month which should work out better.

Shammy however doesn't have the same privilege and seems to be constantly on-call or working late due to a month of consults which has just ended, yey!

I have managed to gather some baby goodies from Pauline at work who had twins and also I spent a night with Ash and Krish going through baby clothes and baby gear. They were so helpful and Ash had the pleasure of loading up our toyota highlander with the gear, it came in very handy with all the seats in the back needing to go down :). Shammy then helped me organise our second bedroom which is starting to look slightly babified (if there is such a word).

The scan at 21 and a half weeks went well and both babies are the same size (14 ounces) and looking healthy at the moment which was good to hear. They are slightly smaller than if it was a single baby but this is to be expected and they had nice constant heartbeats around the 144bpm. Shammy was excited this week as he felt them move for the first time and has been asking them to hi-five him which gets a little nudge back, I had a book resting on my stomach and one of them kicked so hard it managed to dislodge the book :).

Shammy did really well in his half marathon coming in well under the 2 hour mark in 1 hr 50 mins, even in the rain, and managed to score a spot in the local paper.

We had a nice relaxing weekend at his sister's place for her birthday last weekend and got to see our nephew Aahil learn to swim, he seems to have a similar issue in the water to Shammy that his bum and legs just want to sink to the bottom but by the end of the lesson he was starting to kick his feet up.

I'm still feeling well and only a little less agile and we having birthing classes in October to look forward to, a baby shower in November and James's arrival in December. Its starting to get cooler here but I'm enjoying one of my favourite times of year.

Relaxing weekend at Niagara Falls

Shammy and I went for a trip to Niagara for the weekend, it was refreshing, fun, and renewed us for another work stint. Although I have been to the Canadian side before, I actually enjoyed this trip more as we got up close to the falls with the 'cave of the winds' tour which lets you really feel the force of the waterfall. Its a 6 hour drive from our place but we broke this up with an overnight stay Friday and arrived in Buffalo at lunchtime, giving us the afternoon to relax before heading to the falls in the evening.

Our first stop was the maid of the mist tour where you feel like the boat is going to be sucked into the horseshoe falls and you can't hear a thing and then we took a quick walk across to the island where the cave of the wind tour is held. I was most impressed that not only did we get our much needed raincoats but some cool trekking shoes to wear and keep afterwards.

It was getting dark as we descended down to the falls level so we got to see the lights reflecting off the falls as the sun set, aahhh. Shammy like a mad man decided to back into the most forceful part of the falls and was totally drenced but exhilarated. I chickened out and went for a quick dash on the less forceful side of the fall. Needless to say we know who ended up looking like a drowned rat when we finished, although luckily he had a change of clothes in the car :)

Things are going along smoothly with the 2 jobs at the moment and it makes me really appreciate a day off now. Shammy is also getting into the swing of things with cardiology and is managing to do Ramadam as well which you can imagine is making him a little tired.

I had another ultrasound today and both babies are doing well with one of them deciding that standing on its head is the new comfy position, while the other had its legs up around its armpits.
Their heartbeats have slowed down to 148 and 152bpm which is supposed to be what happens. So now we wait for the full ultrasound scan which I have scheduled for a few weeks time.
I have been feeling much better and less sick so I am really appreciating that. I have also started to move some of my wardrobe to the back as its not as comfy as its used to be, I haven't had to buy any new clothes as yet, but some adjustments to the wardrobe may be just around the corner.

An exciting day!

Today we got to see our babies in 3D and I think reality has hit a little bit more. We loved being able to see them move about, their little legs and arms and cute faces. It is also a great relief to see their little hearts beating and to be given the all clear on the nucal fold scan. They are both in good health apparently. Twin A which is positioned lower and towards the posterior being slightly larger than Twin B. Twin B has an anterior placenta, while Twin A has posterior placenta and this is apparently how they will be able to tell them apart as well as the position in my body, to the left or to the right. Twin B was in perfect position and only required a few of my coughs to move it around a little while Twin A was a little more difficult. Twin A had decided to lie with its bum in the air and nice and cosy and frankly was not interested in moving, Shammy mentioned it will be the naughty one while our Sonagrapher was convinced it must be a girl, she prodded it to try to get it to move and it just yawned stretched and went back to the same position again :).

Shammy is on call tonight and is finding these nights the most stressful with the extra responsibility of being the decision maker on what things to deal with himself and those to make the attending aware of.

I start my new job on the 26th of July which will mean I'll be doing just over 40 hrs a week, as I'll pick up 20 hrs with the new job which I'm hoping to fit into 2 days so that I at least get one free day of work a week.

We are both enjoying our new home and making the most of the weekends when Shammy isn't on call.

In these pics Twin A is on the left as you look at the picture, Twin B is on the right

The latest additions to the Ahmed family

Due 22nd January - Ultrasound at 10 weeks - big smiles all around - our 2 little munchkins are officially fetus :)

Shammy graduates

We pulled ourselves together for some graduation celebrations with Friday being the formal ceremony and Saturday the fun dinning and award ceremony. Congrats should go to my hubby, he is obviously well liked by all his colleagues and received the award from the other residents for the best cardiology resident. The night was fun even if the DJ let us down on the dance floor. One step down, yeah Shammy!!