25 Weeks! And Our Name Reveal!!

As of Thursday we have officially made it to 25 weeks gestation!! We are now at 25 weeks and 2 days today. Every day that the boys can continue to grow inside me is a blessing and I am so grateful to still be here in the hospital. I will try to write a post soon that does a better job explaining what all has happened in the last 10 days, but I wanted to let everyone know that we are still hanging in here. I want to share my story with other people going through the same thing and I also want to write it down for myself. I hope that someday I will be sharing this story with my sons and I don't want to leave anything out.

25 Weeks

Weight: ?? Apparently they don't weigh you when you are on hospital bed rest!
Due Date: August 22, 2013

Genders?: Both Boys!
Baby is the size of: A Rutabaga! (Weight this time I think)

Maternity Clothes?: Well, my wardrobe has become pajamas only now. I actually don't have any maternity pajamas, but I did send my hubby out to buy some bigger tank tops and pj bottoms. 
Emotions: All over the map. I don't think I could even explain the complicated mess that my emotions are right now. I am grateful to still be pregnant, angry that this happened to us, terrified that the babies will come too soon, hopeful that we will make it further, and sad that I am missing out on my pregnancy. Most of the time I try to focus on the hope and feeling grateful, but the negative emotions definitely show up from time to time.
Notable News or Events: Every single day feels like a notable event now. We made it to 25 weeks and that is worth celebrating! 

Movement?: Oh yes! That is one amazing thing that has happened in the last 2 weeks. My babies are moving like crazy in there and I can normally tell them apart too! I love feeling them move, it is the highlight of my day. Every time they move it is a reminder that they are still alive and that they are strong and fighters! 

Stretch Marks?: Nothing new to report on this front surprisingly enough.

Belly Button Status?: Still an innie, but definitely popping out more and more. 

Upcoming Appointments: No more appointments. We will have our next growth ultrasound sometime after May 20th though. I also have bloodwork sometime next week... 

What People are Saying: Our friends and family have been really supportive. My mom came down last week and my sister came down this week to stay a few days with me. My mother in law brought me a gift bag with 25 little items to celebrate 25 weeks. Mostly people have told us that they are praying for us and that is the best gift we could receive right now. 

The "weekly pictures" are a bit rough, but after missing 2 weeks of photos...it feels good to have some proof of this time. Apparently bed rest does not do great things for my hair...you've been warned!

NAMES!!

I would also like to take a minute to tell everyone the names that we have picked out for our boys. Rather than referring to them as Twin A or Twin B (they switched btw), I would prefer to call them by their names now. We have had the names picked out since we found out that they were both boys, but I was going to wait to publicly reveal their names until after they were born. However, given the current circumstances...I want to always call them by name. They are alive right now and they are very much individuals and I want to acknowledge this. There is a certain power inherent to naming that I don't want to underestimate. It acknowledges and respects their humanity and that's very important to me right now. When I am faced with all of the "what if" scenarios laid out rather impersonally by doctors, it helps me to call them by name. 

So, without further explanation, we will be naming the boys:

Ronan Alexander 

and

Corbin Anthony

Ronan is currently designated as Baby A on our in hospital ultrasounds. However, he was baby B for a long time. The babies somehow switched sides between 20 and 24 weeks. He is has a posterior placenta, which is how I know which baby is which. He is on my left side and is our pPROM twin. He is currently breech and is not actually the closest baby to my cervix (even though that's normally what the designation of Baby A would mean). He has always been my shy baby during ultrasounds. He is normally more calm than his brother and I imagine that he will be a very gentle child.

Corbin is currently designated as Baby B. He is our bigger baby (by about 1 oz at our last growth ultrasound) and still has his amniotic sac intact. He has an anterior placenta. He is our little show off baby. He has always been more than happy to prove that he's a boy during our ultrasounds and he is more active than his brother. He is also breech and is the closest baby to my cervix. I imagine that Corbin will be a rambunctious little boy who is full of energy and excitement.