"I'd get everything ready at home."

Still pregnant! 35 weeks and 2 days now, fast approaching that 36-week average for twin gestations. Striving to be average, I'm awesome.

My weekly OB appointment was this morning. After another successful night in his big boy room, Bean woke up around 7 am-ish and started the day by chatting with his froggy stuffed animal and the monkeys on his pajamas. I dug in my closet for the only maternity shirt that still fits without my stomach hanging out at the bottom like a bad beer belly on Thanksgiving. My Mom did everything to get all three of us ready to go, as always. (I fully expect a halo to appear on her head any day now.)

In the waiting room, Bean charmed all the young pregnant couples holding hands and eagerly anticipating their ultrasounds. They smiled as he waved his toy truck in the air and announced proudly, "Mommy! Dump truck fly!" Then he hopped across the room to throw away some trash for me when I asked him to. Will their kids be as cute, well-behaved, and smart as mine? Not a chance. But it's nice to see them have hope. I only wish I could take some credit for him. We'll see how the other two turn out, then I'll make the call.

I was uncomfortable sitting in the chair, and it felt like forever until the nurse called my name to head back. I was happy to see the number staring back at me on the scale -- I gained about one pound in the past week despite my concern that my stomach is so smushed that I can't eat enough calories. (A once-in-a-lifetime concern, no doubt.) I actually weigh about the same with these twins that I did with Bean at this point in my pregnancy. My blood pressure is still within the normal range, which is very reassuring. I don't have any other signs of preeclampsia, but it's always a worry on my mind.

The doctor came in and we talked about how the boys and I are doing. My belly measures 42 weeks now, although it looks more like 62 to me. Twin A's heartbeat is in the 140s and Twin B is in the 150s, as usual. This does surprise me every week, though, because Twin A is more hyper in the womb. I always imagine him being my high-strung child, and Twin B being extremely laid back. (With Bean falling in the middle of that scale.) Perhaps I'll need to adjust my stereotypes after they are born.

I was due for my Group B Strep screening, and since the doc was already all up in my lady bits, I asked if she would check my cervix.

"Well," she raised her eyebrows at me when she was done, "you are four centimeters dilated."

!!!!!

I had expected a centimeter or two, but not FOUR. When I was 4 cm dilated with Bean, I was in the triage room at the birth center, gripping DH's arm with white knuckles and crying, "Why does it hurt so much? How can it hurt so much?" as I contracted. A private room and epidural immediately followed.

The doctor told me that she could feel Twin A's bag of waters resting on the cervix. She guessed that my water breaking would be my big sign to head to the hospital. DH will be glad to hear this, because he is still traumatized from our early days on bedrest and seems to fear that I suddenly may drop two babies on the floor of our bedroom without warning. The doc smiled and assured me that won't happen, the boys are much bigger now.

We chatted about the logistics of getting me to the hospital and how the process works if it's during the day versus the middle of the night. Unfortunately my doc is going to be off next week, she's staying home with her son until his day care slot opens up. I doubt I'll make it that long anyway, but who knows. "Some women walk around for weeks at four centimeters," she told me. "But I'd get everything ready at home."

Back in the car, I was almost giddy calling DH, my Dad, my in-laws, and my grandma with the update. The thought of meeting the boys soon is absolutely thrilling -- even if it's a couple weeks sooner than I had hoped. But I must say that excitement is tempered by my fear of the C-section, even though my first one was completely fine. I am not so scared of surgery when it's done with general anesthesia... I just have this belief that one should be completely under when internal body parts become temporarily external. Of course in this case the spinal block is better, because I'll get to meet the twins right away. But if they try to narrate which of my organs they are violating to get them out, we are going to have a problem. I would like to hear about my babies, but let's leave the fact that you are slicing through my uterus completely out of the discussion. Thanks.

Anyway, I'm back in my bed. For now. Excited and nervous. And I still haven't learned how to use that darn camera.