I have decided to try to keep track of all the milestones for the kids on here since I seem to forget to write them down in their books! One day I will have the time to fill everything out, I hope!
Lauren: She is still our big talker/babble queen. She has many sounds and seems to know how to carry on a conversation already! She also lets her opinions be known by yelling at the dog or her brothers when they are bothering her. She is starting to stand on her own and she is actually better at it than the boys right now. It's surprising because she was the last one to roll, crawl, and pull up-we didn't expect her to stand independently first! She still loves to laugh and smile, especially at Daddy! She loves the song for Elmo's World on Sesame Street and is starting to dance-which consists of swaying back and forth. She continues to make goofy faces all day long, which makes us laugh since they are not the most attractive ones! Her other favorites include going for walks in the Choo-Choo wagon, "Magic Baby, (which Daddy invented), and when I sing "You Are my Sunshine," (which I am not sure if she likes it or is laughing at my singing)!
Sam: He has started babbling a lot more, and makes some funny noises now. He is still cruising around on the furniture and is getting closer to walking on his own. He is our monkey and loves to climb on things. Sometimes he climbs on his siblings, sometimes on toys, and has now learned to use the diaper boxes. Logan and Sam both love to push things around and have discovered where I keep the extra diaper boxes. So, Sam will push the box back and forth for awhile, and then pushes it next to the couch. In a matter of seconds, he will climb onto the box and then up to the couch! I have a feeling he will be the first one to climb out of his crib! Besides climbing, Sam loves to crawl around with his head held up high (which looks pretty funny), wave his arms around and bang them onto everything, and crawls away from Logan so he can be chased. He also likes to cuddle when watching Sesame Street and when he is tired. He is our loudest child when he is laughing-a true belly laugh! He hates loud, sudden noises and is the first to cry when someone leaves the house.
Logan: He is still our sweet boy who likes to sit back and observe everyone. He seems to be the most like me in personality traits-reserved until he is comfortable with someone, then he is all smiles! He still is the only one with a dimple, so it's easy to pick him out in group pictures! He is still our biggest and loves to eat! As I said before, he loves to push things around the room. Give him a box and he will entertain himself for a long time! If you put a pillow or a Boppy on the floor he loves to throw himself onto it, which can lead to accidents since his aim is not always the best! He loves Murray on Sesame Street, along with most music-he is also starting to dance! Daddy plays "Magic Baby" with him too, but Logan gets obsessed and will keep crawling back to play again-when it's time to take a break, he cries and cries! He is great at making his brother and sister laugh and loves to make goofy noises to achieve that. He doesn't seem to get too upset, but you can definitely tell when he is tired or hungry! He also likes to cuddle when watching T.V. or when he is tired.
Overall, they are all doing great! Lauren has 2 bottom teeth and Logan has 1 bottom tooth, but Sam is still all gums! Hopefully he will catch up with them soon! They are eating more solids and seem to be fine with all foods so far. I miss being home with them everyday, but I school started again. Luckily we have supportive family that watches them when we are working. In a perfect world, I would be able to stay home full-time, but unless we win the lottery we need money to buy formula and diapers! I can't wait until their 1st birthday-sippy cups and milk!!! We will save a lot of time and money when that happens!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Life is great!
It has been so long since I have posted on here, so I am sure nobody even checks it anymore! But I will post just in case someone stumbles onto it again!
The babies are about 9.5 months old now and are doing great! It amazes me how quickly the time has gone by-it seems like it was just yesterday that we were feeding them every 2 hours and they couldn't move anywhere. Now, they eat three meals a day and are getting into everything!
MOBILITY-Everyone can sit on their own and get into sitting position unassisted, which has made them much happier, (me too)! The boys are crawling quickly around the house. Sam has been moving on his own for a couple months now and Logan was a couple weeks after him. They are doing real crawling, not "army" crawling anymore! Lauren has just started crawling in the last week or so-although she doesn't go far, she is able to get to toys that would have been out of her reach previously. She gets so mad when the boys take off without her, but at least she is motivated to follow them!
The boys are also pulling up and cruising along the furniture, which was cute-now they pull up and start pinching us, pulling leg hair (Daddy's, not mine), and start fussing to be picked up. Sam is our climber, while Logan is usually content to just stand holding onto things. Lauren wants to pull herself up, but she isn't quite strong enough. If you are brave enough to sit on the floor with them, you will be attacked, (which is actually pretty fun now, even though they pull my hair and slobber all over me)! We had to buy some toys that they can stand with since they are not happy in the exersaucers or jumperoos anymore. More stuff-our house looks like a toy store!
TEETH- Lauren just started cutting the first tooth of the three babies! They have all been drooling and chewing on things for months, so it is nice to actually see something now! I have a feeling they are going to get a lot of teeth at once since they are almost 10 months and just now getting teeth!
SPEECH- Lauren is our most vocal child still. She loves to babble throughout the day, but her favorite sounds are na, la, and da repeated over and over and over! The boys are starting to make more noises, but not nearly as often as she does. When Sam is upset or frustrated, he babbles mamamama-guess I should get used to that when they actually understand who that is!
ROUTINES-So everyone sleeps 10-11 hours at night now-wonderful!! They take 5 bottles and 3 meals a day. We are still working our way through different fruits and veggies, but we haven't seen any allergic reactions yet. The boys seem to enjoy their food more than Lauren so far, but we are working on it. She seems to dislike different textures of foods-pureed vs. bits of fruit, but the boys don't seem to mind when we change it up!
They nap 3 times a day still, although it takes them longer to fall asleep now that they stand up in their cribs! In the mornings, they have fun "talking" and laughing before we go in to get them. It is so great that they have each other and now that they are interacting with each other, I know they will have this special bond for their entire lives.
Well, I know they shouldn't watch TV until after the age of 2, but sometimes our television randomly changes the channel to Sesame Street! Actually, we do turn it on for that show for a little bit everyday (about 10 minutes) because they love some of the songs and characters. I have a couple shows on DVR so we can fast forward to certain parts-the opening song, the letter of the day with Murray, Abby's Flying Fairy show song, number of the day with Murray, and Murray has a Little Lamb song. Murray is the big favorite here, along with Abby's song-Lauren squeals with delight during that! Anytime they are getting fussy, we flip on that and they sit and watch-a few moments of peace for us!
And we try to talk them for walks in our Choo-Choo wagon on the days it isn't too hot out-much easier to walk them in that instead of hauling out two strollers! Lauren yells and talks most of the time, while the boys sit back and chill out.
I love each stage these babies are going through, but it's a little bittersweet each time they pass a stage. I love this stage because you can see the wonder and excitement of new things in their eyes, and their innocence too. I can't believe I am so blessed to have three babies at one time-I wouldn't trade this life for anything in the world.
The babies are about 9.5 months old now and are doing great! It amazes me how quickly the time has gone by-it seems like it was just yesterday that we were feeding them every 2 hours and they couldn't move anywhere. Now, they eat three meals a day and are getting into everything!
MOBILITY-Everyone can sit on their own and get into sitting position unassisted, which has made them much happier, (me too)! The boys are crawling quickly around the house. Sam has been moving on his own for a couple months now and Logan was a couple weeks after him. They are doing real crawling, not "army" crawling anymore! Lauren has just started crawling in the last week or so-although she doesn't go far, she is able to get to toys that would have been out of her reach previously. She gets so mad when the boys take off without her, but at least she is motivated to follow them!
The boys are also pulling up and cruising along the furniture, which was cute-now they pull up and start pinching us, pulling leg hair (Daddy's, not mine), and start fussing to be picked up. Sam is our climber, while Logan is usually content to just stand holding onto things. Lauren wants to pull herself up, but she isn't quite strong enough. If you are brave enough to sit on the floor with them, you will be attacked, (which is actually pretty fun now, even though they pull my hair and slobber all over me)! We had to buy some toys that they can stand with since they are not happy in the exersaucers or jumperoos anymore. More stuff-our house looks like a toy store!
TEETH- Lauren just started cutting the first tooth of the three babies! They have all been drooling and chewing on things for months, so it is nice to actually see something now! I have a feeling they are going to get a lot of teeth at once since they are almost 10 months and just now getting teeth!
SPEECH- Lauren is our most vocal child still. She loves to babble throughout the day, but her favorite sounds are na, la, and da repeated over and over and over! The boys are starting to make more noises, but not nearly as often as she does. When Sam is upset or frustrated, he babbles mamamama-guess I should get used to that when they actually understand who that is!
ROUTINES-So everyone sleeps 10-11 hours at night now-wonderful!! They take 5 bottles and 3 meals a day. We are still working our way through different fruits and veggies, but we haven't seen any allergic reactions yet. The boys seem to enjoy their food more than Lauren so far, but we are working on it. She seems to dislike different textures of foods-pureed vs. bits of fruit, but the boys don't seem to mind when we change it up!
They nap 3 times a day still, although it takes them longer to fall asleep now that they stand up in their cribs! In the mornings, they have fun "talking" and laughing before we go in to get them. It is so great that they have each other and now that they are interacting with each other, I know they will have this special bond for their entire lives.
Well, I know they shouldn't watch TV until after the age of 2, but sometimes our television randomly changes the channel to Sesame Street! Actually, we do turn it on for that show for a little bit everyday (about 10 minutes) because they love some of the songs and characters. I have a couple shows on DVR so we can fast forward to certain parts-the opening song, the letter of the day with Murray, Abby's Flying Fairy show song, number of the day with Murray, and Murray has a Little Lamb song. Murray is the big favorite here, along with Abby's song-Lauren squeals with delight during that! Anytime they are getting fussy, we flip on that and they sit and watch-a few moments of peace for us!
And we try to talk them for walks in our Choo-Choo wagon on the days it isn't too hot out-much easier to walk them in that instead of hauling out two strollers! Lauren yells and talks most of the time, while the boys sit back and chill out.
I love each stage these babies are going through, but it's a little bittersweet each time they pass a stage. I love this stage because you can see the wonder and excitement of new things in their eyes, and their innocence too. I can't believe I am so blessed to have three babies at one time-I wouldn't trade this life for anything in the world.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Where Has the Time Gone?
So the babies are 5.5 months old and I am trying to figure out how we got here so quickly. It seems like they were just coming home from the hospital, but my upcoming return to work reminds me that they are already almost half way to their first birthday! They have grown so much, and so quickly, I am already a bit sad that so many stages are over. These will be the only babies we have, so I am trying to memorize every moment-and am taking tons of pictures to help me remember these days. It's going to be much more difficult than I expected to return to teaching. I would love to be able to stay home and teach these guys, but unfortunately we need my salary-as little as it is! Luckily our families are able to babysit for us!
We were able to get one more Synagis shot for each of the boys, and Chubby, (a.k.a. Chub Chub, Lauren), was able to get what was left over). We were battling our insurance company because they were over three months old and born at 32 weeks, so supposedly they didn't need any more RSV protection. Although we gave up that battle, our doctor's office was able to help us out-love them! So, by getting another shot, they are protected a bit more for when I go back to work next week. And we were able to get their weights, which we had a little bet on-of course, I won! Our big boy Logan weighed in at 15.1, Sam at 14.6, and Lauren at 13.11. It's crazy how big they are getting!
They have slept through the night a couple times, but usually go about 8 hours and then wake up to be fed. I can't wait until they sleep straight through, although this is much better than the 4 hours we were getting a few months ago! They all sleep in their cribs now at night and we are working on napping up there too. The boys will usually only nap for about an hour in there though, so hopefully that'll stretch out longer soon.
Sam was our first one to roll over from his tummy to his back, but his new favorite is rolling across the floor since he learned how to get from his back to his tummy. He also loves to look at me when I put him in his crib, smile, and then roll onto his tummy. Then we play the game where I put him onto his back and he continues to roll over until he wears himself out and gives up. I am a little annoyed with this game! :) He is our least vocal one, but when he is really happy we'll get some cooing out of him!
Lauren, however, is our loudest talker of the bunch-I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that she is a girl!? She will screech, coo, and make every noise under the sun, especially when we copy the sounds back to her. She is also our biggest drooler and loves to suck on her fingers-not her thumb, but fingers. And it is usually at least 2 fingers at a time! She is also the best at grabbing onto the toys on the exersaucers and jumperoos. She doesn't really bounce in those things-just grabs and spins everything on the top. She has a recent obsession with her feet that is actually causing her to scratch herself. She pulls on the bottoms of her pants to see her feet/socks/shoes better, but in the process she scratches her bare legs! It looks like she has been attacked by a cat. We will probably have to cut her nails everyday now! She does not really show much interest in rolling over and sometimes seems to have less strength than the boys-except she loves to stand!
Logan is our all around average baby. He can roll over both ways now, but needs to put more effort into than Sam right now. He has started vocalizing more now, but not as much as Lauren. He loves to jump in one of our jumperoos and will bounce himself to sleep if we don't take him out in time! He is hilarious to watch in there-he actually doesn't lift his legs, he just rolls forward on his toes and throws himself backwards over and over. The jumperoo is starting to make squeaking noises from over use! He also loves to suck on his hand, but more the top of his hand instead of his fingers or thumb.
All three are great at grabbing things and are getting better at putting things into their mouths. They are constantly drooling, all over their clothes and causing them to get rashes on their hands. They are very smiley in the mornings and can be pretty crabby in the evenings-I think we need better naps! We are still trying to get the hang of eating cereal, but they seem like they might get the hang of it soon, hopefully!
Next month we go to the cardiologist to check all the murmurs (PDA, PFO) and to the developmental clinic at the hospital to check in on their progress. I will try to post an update then.
We were able to get one more Synagis shot for each of the boys, and Chubby, (a.k.a. Chub Chub, Lauren), was able to get what was left over). We were battling our insurance company because they were over three months old and born at 32 weeks, so supposedly they didn't need any more RSV protection. Although we gave up that battle, our doctor's office was able to help us out-love them! So, by getting another shot, they are protected a bit more for when I go back to work next week. And we were able to get their weights, which we had a little bet on-of course, I won! Our big boy Logan weighed in at 15.1, Sam at 14.6, and Lauren at 13.11. It's crazy how big they are getting!
They have slept through the night a couple times, but usually go about 8 hours and then wake up to be fed. I can't wait until they sleep straight through, although this is much better than the 4 hours we were getting a few months ago! They all sleep in their cribs now at night and we are working on napping up there too. The boys will usually only nap for about an hour in there though, so hopefully that'll stretch out longer soon.
Sam was our first one to roll over from his tummy to his back, but his new favorite is rolling across the floor since he learned how to get from his back to his tummy. He also loves to look at me when I put him in his crib, smile, and then roll onto his tummy. Then we play the game where I put him onto his back and he continues to roll over until he wears himself out and gives up. I am a little annoyed with this game! :) He is our least vocal one, but when he is really happy we'll get some cooing out of him!
Lauren, however, is our loudest talker of the bunch-I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that she is a girl!? She will screech, coo, and make every noise under the sun, especially when we copy the sounds back to her. She is also our biggest drooler and loves to suck on her fingers-not her thumb, but fingers. And it is usually at least 2 fingers at a time! She is also the best at grabbing onto the toys on the exersaucers and jumperoos. She doesn't really bounce in those things-just grabs and spins everything on the top. She has a recent obsession with her feet that is actually causing her to scratch herself. She pulls on the bottoms of her pants to see her feet/socks/shoes better, but in the process she scratches her bare legs! It looks like she has been attacked by a cat. We will probably have to cut her nails everyday now! She does not really show much interest in rolling over and sometimes seems to have less strength than the boys-except she loves to stand!
Logan is our all around average baby. He can roll over both ways now, but needs to put more effort into than Sam right now. He has started vocalizing more now, but not as much as Lauren. He loves to jump in one of our jumperoos and will bounce himself to sleep if we don't take him out in time! He is hilarious to watch in there-he actually doesn't lift his legs, he just rolls forward on his toes and throws himself backwards over and over. The jumperoo is starting to make squeaking noises from over use! He also loves to suck on his hand, but more the top of his hand instead of his fingers or thumb.
All three are great at grabbing things and are getting better at putting things into their mouths. They are constantly drooling, all over their clothes and causing them to get rashes on their hands. They are very smiley in the mornings and can be pretty crabby in the evenings-I think we need better naps! We are still trying to get the hang of eating cereal, but they seem like they might get the hang of it soon, hopefully!
Next month we go to the cardiologist to check all the murmurs (PDA, PFO) and to the developmental clinic at the hospital to check in on their progress. I will try to post an update then.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Busy times 3
I did not realize how long it has been since my last post! Time has been flying by here taking care of our crew. The babies have changed drastically since they were first born. All three weighed well over 10 lbs at our three month visit, and we go again next week so I will update again then with their stats.
Our daughter is still dealing with acid reflux and floppy cartilage in her throat, (there is a technical term for it, but I have no idea how to spell it). She has her happy times and her fussy times, and you never know what you are going to get. I think she is training me for when she is a teenager! She is obsessed with Brad, already Daddy's little girl! We are going to see if we can upgrade to a stronger medicine to help her more. I hate when she is uncomfortable and in pain. There are nights that the only thing we can do for her is to sit in the rocking chair with her fuzzy blanket until she calms down. I know how painful reflux was for me when I was pregnant; I hate that she has to deal with that pain. She has not upped the amount she is eating in the past month or two either. She used to be our best eater, but the reflux is affecting that too. She usually takes between 3-4 ounces a feeding, and spits-up sometimes too. She was our first child to smile and is the most vocal one when it comes to cooing. Lately, she has been drooling non-stop, which I have learned is normal for her actual age! She needs to work on tummy time more since she is our most wobbly-headed child though. She doesn't seem to have the muscle strength that the boys do! She does love to "stand" on us though; it is sometimes impossible to burp her because she won't sit long enough.
Both boys are doing well and gaining weight like crazy! Logan has become our heaviest child and he looks like it! In the NICU, both boys preferred to look to their right sides, which their nurse worked on with them. Logan has decided to revert back to that and now has a bigger flat spot of the back of his head on the right side! We have been working on keeping him looking to the left more, so hopefully that'll solve that problem! He is great at lifting his head and keeping it up a long time. We are pretty sure he will be the first one to roll over, and probably pretty soon! This past week he has really started to smile and interact a lot more, as well as coo more.
Sam has also gained weight, but is still our smallest one by a couple ounces. He is our most sensitive one-to noise, gas pain, etc. When he is happy, he is really happy. When he is upset, you will most definitely know about it! He also has been smiling a lot more lately, especially the wide, open smiles! He is also great at holding his head up and likes to stand a lot too. Both boys eat 4-6 ounces a feeding now, which is a lot for their age.
I cannot wait for them to get a bit older and a little more independent. I am looking forward to them grasping things and rolling over soon, hopefully! Last night they slept five and a half hours during the night! I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel of lack of sleep! We want to be able to put the boys in their cribs and shut the door for the night-it'll be amazing to sleep again! Lauren will stay in our room because of her reflux and breathing issues for now. Sleep training will begin in a couple months-when they are four months adjusted.
Logan wants out of the swing, so that's it for my update for now. Hopefully I will have some impressive weights to post next week!
Our daughter is still dealing with acid reflux and floppy cartilage in her throat, (there is a technical term for it, but I have no idea how to spell it). She has her happy times and her fussy times, and you never know what you are going to get. I think she is training me for when she is a teenager! She is obsessed with Brad, already Daddy's little girl! We are going to see if we can upgrade to a stronger medicine to help her more. I hate when she is uncomfortable and in pain. There are nights that the only thing we can do for her is to sit in the rocking chair with her fuzzy blanket until she calms down. I know how painful reflux was for me when I was pregnant; I hate that she has to deal with that pain. She has not upped the amount she is eating in the past month or two either. She used to be our best eater, but the reflux is affecting that too. She usually takes between 3-4 ounces a feeding, and spits-up sometimes too. She was our first child to smile and is the most vocal one when it comes to cooing. Lately, she has been drooling non-stop, which I have learned is normal for her actual age! She needs to work on tummy time more since she is our most wobbly-headed child though. She doesn't seem to have the muscle strength that the boys do! She does love to "stand" on us though; it is sometimes impossible to burp her because she won't sit long enough.
Both boys are doing well and gaining weight like crazy! Logan has become our heaviest child and he looks like it! In the NICU, both boys preferred to look to their right sides, which their nurse worked on with them. Logan has decided to revert back to that and now has a bigger flat spot of the back of his head on the right side! We have been working on keeping him looking to the left more, so hopefully that'll solve that problem! He is great at lifting his head and keeping it up a long time. We are pretty sure he will be the first one to roll over, and probably pretty soon! This past week he has really started to smile and interact a lot more, as well as coo more.
Sam has also gained weight, but is still our smallest one by a couple ounces. He is our most sensitive one-to noise, gas pain, etc. When he is happy, he is really happy. When he is upset, you will most definitely know about it! He also has been smiling a lot more lately, especially the wide, open smiles! He is also great at holding his head up and likes to stand a lot too. Both boys eat 4-6 ounces a feeding now, which is a lot for their age.
I cannot wait for them to get a bit older and a little more independent. I am looking forward to them grasping things and rolling over soon, hopefully! Last night they slept five and a half hours during the night! I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel of lack of sleep! We want to be able to put the boys in their cribs and shut the door for the night-it'll be amazing to sleep again! Lauren will stay in our room because of her reflux and breathing issues for now. Sleep training will begin in a couple months-when they are four months adjusted.
Logan wants out of the swing, so that's it for my update for now. Hopefully I will have some impressive weights to post next week!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
One big, happy family!
Tonight everyone will be home from the hospital!!! Sam came home last night and we will be bringing Logan home tonight! It's weird to have two home right now, so I am sure I will be a bit overwhelmed (emotionally and physically) tonight when all three are here with us. We have waited so long for this and are so grateful that they have been so strong from the day they were born. Thank God that we have so much help from our families-I don't know how we would get through all this without them! I will try to update more soon and fill you all in on their little personalities and the fun we have with them!! I know some of you have access to pictures on my Facebook page, but I believe some of our family and close friends have not seen any pictures yet. If you fall into one of those categories, you can e-mail me and I will send a link so you can see some pictures. bd2178@comcast.net
Monday, November 9, 2009
Waiting
Lauren has been home for over a week now and we are starting to fall into a routine, which will soon be thrown out the window. We were told to plan on bringing Logan home over the weekend, but he is still at the hospital. When they are switched over to demand feedings without their feeding tubes they are weighed daily to make sure they are continuing to gain weight. Unfortunately, Logan lost weight Friday night, so he now has to show two days of weight gain again before being released. We are hoping that we will be able to bring him home early this week. They were moved into the step down room where there is less monitoring and is mainly filled with babies that need time to grow.
Sam had had more episodes of apnea than our other two, so they have him hooked up to additional monitors that record every breath and heartbeat for 3 days. The doctors review the data to see when he has these episodes, how long they last, etc. They do not usually count the spells they have when they are eating; mainly just the ones that occur while they are sleeping or while they are alone. He had two apnea episodes Saturday morning while sleeping that were only a couple minutes apart. His heart rate dropped down into the 70-80 range, but he did bring it back up on his own. When it happened again only a few minutes later, the nurse decided to go wake him. He will probably "fail" this test and buy himself more time in the NICU. We are hoping that a few days or a week more to mature will help him grow out of these spells. It's really scary to think that this could happen when he comes home, so we are willing to wait until he is done with these before taking him home.
Brad was finally able to visit the boys in the hospital today! It had been three weeks since he had been there, so they have changed a lot in that time. I notice changes after just missing a day of visiting, so I can't imagine what it would be like to see them after weeks. I know he missed seeing them, so I am glad we were able to go today.
Lauren is doing well at home. She has quickly learned that it is much better to sleep while being held rather than on her own! She sometimes seems to have trouble digesting her meals, so we usually hold her until she falls asleep before putting her down. She is a noisy little girl-grunting, squeeking, etc., and I keep telling her she can't do those noises after eating when she is older! She is eating better now than when we first brought her home though, so I shouldn't complain about the noises!
The babies will be one month old this week, but really only 36 weeks gestation. I can't believe it has already been this long! It's hard because the boys are still in the NICU, so it doesn't feel completely real yet. That will change as they come home! Thank goodness for the help from our families because I don't think I would be able to function at this point, let alone when all 3 are home! Brad and I actually both slept in our room last night for the first time in about 3 weeks. Oh how I missed that bed! Sleeping on the couch just isn't the same! My mom came over and took the night feedings so we could get some sleep. Hopefully we will be able to do that a bit more often!
Our girl is grunting so I'd better go see what's going on!
Sam had had more episodes of apnea than our other two, so they have him hooked up to additional monitors that record every breath and heartbeat for 3 days. The doctors review the data to see when he has these episodes, how long they last, etc. They do not usually count the spells they have when they are eating; mainly just the ones that occur while they are sleeping or while they are alone. He had two apnea episodes Saturday morning while sleeping that were only a couple minutes apart. His heart rate dropped down into the 70-80 range, but he did bring it back up on his own. When it happened again only a few minutes later, the nurse decided to go wake him. He will probably "fail" this test and buy himself more time in the NICU. We are hoping that a few days or a week more to mature will help him grow out of these spells. It's really scary to think that this could happen when he comes home, so we are willing to wait until he is done with these before taking him home.
Brad was finally able to visit the boys in the hospital today! It had been three weeks since he had been there, so they have changed a lot in that time. I notice changes after just missing a day of visiting, so I can't imagine what it would be like to see them after weeks. I know he missed seeing them, so I am glad we were able to go today.
Lauren is doing well at home. She has quickly learned that it is much better to sleep while being held rather than on her own! She sometimes seems to have trouble digesting her meals, so we usually hold her until she falls asleep before putting her down. She is a noisy little girl-grunting, squeeking, etc., and I keep telling her she can't do those noises after eating when she is older! She is eating better now than when we first brought her home though, so I shouldn't complain about the noises!
The babies will be one month old this week, but really only 36 weeks gestation. I can't believe it has already been this long! It's hard because the boys are still in the NICU, so it doesn't feel completely real yet. That will change as they come home! Thank goodness for the help from our families because I don't think I would be able to function at this point, let alone when all 3 are home! Brad and I actually both slept in our room last night for the first time in about 3 weeks. Oh how I missed that bed! Sleeping on the couch just isn't the same! My mom came over and took the night feedings so we could get some sleep. Hopefully we will be able to do that a bit more often!
Our girl is grunting so I'd better go see what's going on!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
One of three at home
Our little girl is at home with us! She came home a few days ago and we are adjusting to life with one infant. I think we are going to be pretty busy once all three are home! I was terrified and excited to bring her home, as well as sad to leave our boys at the hospital. They were able to move both boys together though since she left a vacancy in our pod at the NICU. She is not eating as much as she did at the hospital, so I am worried that she is going to lose weight when we go to the doctor this week. She was up to 4 pounds 7 ounces at discharge. Not a bad weight gain for 2.5 weeks! She hates her vitamins, even when we try to mix them with breast milk. She sleeps best when being held, which does not work well for us getting any sleep! Luckily, my mother and mother in law have been able to help out during the night shift since Brad is not allowed within a range of a few feet still. We are hoping he will be able to be more involved this week since he is feeling better and is fever free.
Our boys are considered growers and feeders at this point, so hopefully they'll be home within a few weeks. Both boys have been breathing too fast for bottle feedings sometimes, so the resident who looks after our kids ordered chest x-rays for them. It turns out they had fluid in their lungs, so they are on a 3 day course of medication to help drain it out. We are hoping that helps them regulate their breathing so they can take more feeds by mouth instead of their tubes. I visited them today and both boys are in open cribs now regulating their own body temperatures!
I can't wait for them to all be home and let our crazy new life begin. It is going to be a lot of work, but it'll all be worth it!
Our boys are considered growers and feeders at this point, so hopefully they'll be home within a few weeks. Both boys have been breathing too fast for bottle feedings sometimes, so the resident who looks after our kids ordered chest x-rays for them. It turns out they had fluid in their lungs, so they are on a 3 day course of medication to help drain it out. We are hoping that helps them regulate their breathing so they can take more feeds by mouth instead of their tubes. I visited them today and both boys are in open cribs now regulating their own body temperatures!
I can't wait for them to all be home and let our crazy new life begin. It is going to be a lot of work, but it'll all be worth it!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Update
Apparently we can never have enough drama in our lives. Brad is sick, with what I suspect is the flu-quite possibly the H1N1 virus. He has not been able to see the babies in a week now. He was working all week and not able to go at night, then Friday came down with this. I am staying with my parents, hoping that I don't also get sick. I had gone to the hospital on Thursday, and held and fed babies. I am terrified that I somehow had germs on me then and brought them with me. Then I went to the hospital yesterday so grandparents could see the babies, but I didn't hold or touch any babies-which was quite difficult. When we got home, I had a low grade fever (99.8) for about 45 minutes. It went away on it's own and I haven't had any other symptoms. I am still completely freaked out and so scared that something will happen to our precious little ones. I called the NICU last night and let the nurses know what was going on, since I did touch the blankets that cover their isolettes. As of this morning, they were all doing well. I am praying that continues.
It has been awhile since I have updated this, so I apologize. Now that I am staying away from the hospital for a few days to ensure that I am not sick I figured I should post some info.
Lauren is doing well with her feedings. She is getting 45 ml every four hours now, and she is taking some of those ml by bottle. Some days she flat out refuses to eat from the bottle, mainly because she wore herself out the day/night before! She has a small PDA that we are hoping will close on it's own in the next month. It's supposed to close up when babies are born, but it is pretty common for preemies to have this heart issue. If it doesn't close up on it's own, they will try medication first, then microsurgery if that doesn't work. Although it's common and isn't affecting her heart functioning right now, it's still a bit scary.
Samuel is also doing well. The resident called this morning and told us she heard a heart murmur with him too, so he will be getting his echo tomorrow. She said it sounds just like Lauren's, so we are expecting it to also be a PDA. He is up to 40 ml a feeding, which has increased rapidly during the past week. He was the last one off of the IV, but he is quickly catching up to his siblings on feedings! He took 20 ml by bottle today, but again is not very consistent with the feedings yet.
Logan is also doing really well and is at the same feeding level as Sam. He takes about the same amount by bottle too. During his echo last week they found that one of the valves in his heart is a bit smaller than the others, but they expect it to grow and catch up as he grows. I am not sure what they will do if it doesn't, but we'll cross that bridge when/if we get there.
Overall, they are doing very well and I am so glad we made it to 32 weeks. I am sure they would have had many more problems if they had been born earlier. I can't wait until they come home and we can really have some fun! Obviously, I will have to disinfect the entire house first! We were in the process of putting things away when Brad got sick, so the house is still looking pretty chaotic right now. I wish I could post some pictures on here, but am too paranoid. I think they are pretty darn cute and love how they already have personalities. I will try to keep updating this blog when I can, hopefully I will be too busy visiting the babies and not get sick!
It has been awhile since I have updated this, so I apologize. Now that I am staying away from the hospital for a few days to ensure that I am not sick I figured I should post some info.
Lauren is doing well with her feedings. She is getting 45 ml every four hours now, and she is taking some of those ml by bottle. Some days she flat out refuses to eat from the bottle, mainly because she wore herself out the day/night before! She has a small PDA that we are hoping will close on it's own in the next month. It's supposed to close up when babies are born, but it is pretty common for preemies to have this heart issue. If it doesn't close up on it's own, they will try medication first, then microsurgery if that doesn't work. Although it's common and isn't affecting her heart functioning right now, it's still a bit scary.
Samuel is also doing well. The resident called this morning and told us she heard a heart murmur with him too, so he will be getting his echo tomorrow. She said it sounds just like Lauren's, so we are expecting it to also be a PDA. He is up to 40 ml a feeding, which has increased rapidly during the past week. He was the last one off of the IV, but he is quickly catching up to his siblings on feedings! He took 20 ml by bottle today, but again is not very consistent with the feedings yet.
Logan is also doing really well and is at the same feeding level as Sam. He takes about the same amount by bottle too. During his echo last week they found that one of the valves in his heart is a bit smaller than the others, but they expect it to grow and catch up as he grows. I am not sure what they will do if it doesn't, but we'll cross that bridge when/if we get there.
Overall, they are doing very well and I am so glad we made it to 32 weeks. I am sure they would have had many more problems if they had been born earlier. I can't wait until they come home and we can really have some fun! Obviously, I will have to disinfect the entire house first! We were in the process of putting things away when Brad got sick, so the house is still looking pretty chaotic right now. I wish I could post some pictures on here, but am too paranoid. I think they are pretty darn cute and love how they already have personalities. I will try to keep updating this blog when I can, hopefully I will be too busy visiting the babies and not get sick!
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Babies!
After my frustration and venting the other day, my body decided it was done with being pregnant. I was having stronger, more painful contractions so we decided to go into the hospital even though my own doctor said that it didn't sound like true labor. Well, the contractions were 1-2 minutes apart when they hooked me up. The babies started out fine, but as my contractions continued they started to get a little bit stressed out. By this time it was past midnight-we made it to 32 weeks and 1 day! Luckily I had not eaten anything since 3 p.m. the day before because my doctor was on his way to the hospital to deliver the babies!
The nurse had said if they make the decision to deliver, things would go quickly-she was not kidding! They shaved my lower belly, gave Brad scrubs to wear, and we were off. The epidural did not hurt at all, but I hated the feeling of not being able to move. They started the surgery around 3 a.m. and Baby A was born at 3:07, B and C at 3:08. I am not sure who cried, but I was able to hear some of them. Their first APGAR scores were 7, 8, and 8 and their five minute scores were all 9. Not too bad! Our girl weighed 3 lb 9.5 oz., Baby B was 3 lb 8 oz., and Baby C was 3 lb 7 oz. Their lengths were between 16 and 16.5 inches. I was happy that they all weighed more than 3.5 lbs.
While the doctors were finishing up on me, I started to feel extremely sick, so they gave me some drugs for that too. I am a little fuzzy on the details of what was going on with me because I was trying to listen for the babies and what was going on with them. At some point, I started bleeding more than they would've liked. Brad said that there was a lot of blood on the floor and he had his feet up on the stool because he didn't want to get it on his feet. I remember them closing me up and having my stomach pushed on, but that's about it. I don't remember going to the recovery room or being in the hallway, etc.
My blood pressure was initially good after the surgery, but my pulse was in the 120's because of the blood I had lost. They gave me fluids and medicine to help my uterus contract, but I was still pretty groggy and out of it. One of the doctors/residents came in and helped us decide to go with the blood transfusion. I received 2 pints of blood to help stablize everything. While all this was going on, Brad was able to go see the babies and bring our parents down to see them. I was so glad everyone was able to see them and that the babies had people down there who love them so much. It was hard to not be able to go down there myself though, but I knew that it wasn't an option for me to see them yet. They were all doing pretty well at that point, so I was able to relax a little bit.
I was allowed to have Morphine every 2 hours for pain. They normally give patients a different drug and ibuprofen, but because of the bleeding I couldn't have that special cocktail. I slept a lot that first day-just couldn't keep my eyes open! I have now been upgraded to a different drug that works pretty well, although it'll be really nice when I don't have to take anything at all! I am feeling much better now 3 days out from surgery. I have been up and around since Thursday afternoon and I have taken advantage of that! My blood pressure is still iffy and they are keeping a watch on that, but hopefully it'll even out on it's own soon. I spent a little too much time on my feet in the NICU yesterday and had some high BP symptoms when we came back to my room.
As of last night, the babies are doing great! Our girl is off of everything! No breathing assistance (which she hasn't had since right after birth), and they turned off her IV yesterday because she is taking bottles so well. Her nurse yesterday said she was still hungry and interested in eating after her normal amount, so she let her keep going. She ended up eating 50cc's that time! Later she would have to eat 32 or more to stay off the IV. We were down there when she started the feeding and she had eaten 25 before we had to leave. My mom and I noticed a little, tiny fat roll on her arm yesterday! My little overachiever!
Baby B is doing pretty well too, more of what is expected of a 32 weeker. They took him off CPAP in the morning; it was great to finally see his face! He is back on the nasal canula, like his brother, and is doing pretty well. He had some residuals from his feeds, so they have not risen the amount he is receiving which is 5. He was moving constantly each time I saw him yesterday, which is pretty much what he did inside of me!
Baby C has maintained his status too. He is on his canula still, but at room level oxygen. He had been taking feedings well, but started to throw them up a lot. They started to decrease that, but then he had a massive diaper blow-out and we are hoping that was keeping everything backed up. They went back to what they had been feeding him, (10cc), and he was doing well with those as of last night.
I believe I am going to be released tomorrow. I am so excited to go home and sleep in my own bed, but am so sad to have to leave the babies behind. I wish we didn't live so darn far away from the hospital! I will try to visit everyday, but I know there will be somedays that I won't make it down here. The phone number to the NICU is going to save my sanity on those days! The NICU policy is that only parents and grandparents can visit during flu season, which I understand completely. The other part of the policy is that the grandparents can only visit when they are with one of the parents. I had hoped that if there were times I wasn't able to make it down here, that my parents or Brad's parents would be able to come and keep them company. I guess I will be in the car a lot more that I had planned on! Hopefully the bouncing doesn't hurt too much!
I have decided that I am not posting any pictures on here, so I am sorry to those of you who have followed the blog these past few months/weeks. There are just too many creepos out there! I am posting on Facebook, so you can check there if you are one of my "friends." I know our families have shared this blog with their friends to keep everyone in the loop, so hopefully they will share some pictures with those of you who fit into that category.
Time to decide what to have for breakfast! I will continue to update this blog with info on the babies. Sunday is their next weigh-in, so it'll be interesting to see who has started to gain weight back. They suspect our daughter will end up under bili lights soon, which is pretty common and not too serious. And on Monday they will all have brain scans done to make sure they don't have any bleeds going on.
Thanks for all your love and support!
The nurse had said if they make the decision to deliver, things would go quickly-she was not kidding! They shaved my lower belly, gave Brad scrubs to wear, and we were off. The epidural did not hurt at all, but I hated the feeling of not being able to move. They started the surgery around 3 a.m. and Baby A was born at 3:07, B and C at 3:08. I am not sure who cried, but I was able to hear some of them. Their first APGAR scores were 7, 8, and 8 and their five minute scores were all 9. Not too bad! Our girl weighed 3 lb 9.5 oz., Baby B was 3 lb 8 oz., and Baby C was 3 lb 7 oz. Their lengths were between 16 and 16.5 inches. I was happy that they all weighed more than 3.5 lbs.
While the doctors were finishing up on me, I started to feel extremely sick, so they gave me some drugs for that too. I am a little fuzzy on the details of what was going on with me because I was trying to listen for the babies and what was going on with them. At some point, I started bleeding more than they would've liked. Brad said that there was a lot of blood on the floor and he had his feet up on the stool because he didn't want to get it on his feet. I remember them closing me up and having my stomach pushed on, but that's about it. I don't remember going to the recovery room or being in the hallway, etc.
My blood pressure was initially good after the surgery, but my pulse was in the 120's because of the blood I had lost. They gave me fluids and medicine to help my uterus contract, but I was still pretty groggy and out of it. One of the doctors/residents came in and helped us decide to go with the blood transfusion. I received 2 pints of blood to help stablize everything. While all this was going on, Brad was able to go see the babies and bring our parents down to see them. I was so glad everyone was able to see them and that the babies had people down there who love them so much. It was hard to not be able to go down there myself though, but I knew that it wasn't an option for me to see them yet. They were all doing pretty well at that point, so I was able to relax a little bit.
I was allowed to have Morphine every 2 hours for pain. They normally give patients a different drug and ibuprofen, but because of the bleeding I couldn't have that special cocktail. I slept a lot that first day-just couldn't keep my eyes open! I have now been upgraded to a different drug that works pretty well, although it'll be really nice when I don't have to take anything at all! I am feeling much better now 3 days out from surgery. I have been up and around since Thursday afternoon and I have taken advantage of that! My blood pressure is still iffy and they are keeping a watch on that, but hopefully it'll even out on it's own soon. I spent a little too much time on my feet in the NICU yesterday and had some high BP symptoms when we came back to my room.
As of last night, the babies are doing great! Our girl is off of everything! No breathing assistance (which she hasn't had since right after birth), and they turned off her IV yesterday because she is taking bottles so well. Her nurse yesterday said she was still hungry and interested in eating after her normal amount, so she let her keep going. She ended up eating 50cc's that time! Later she would have to eat 32 or more to stay off the IV. We were down there when she started the feeding and she had eaten 25 before we had to leave. My mom and I noticed a little, tiny fat roll on her arm yesterday! My little overachiever!
Baby B is doing pretty well too, more of what is expected of a 32 weeker. They took him off CPAP in the morning; it was great to finally see his face! He is back on the nasal canula, like his brother, and is doing pretty well. He had some residuals from his feeds, so they have not risen the amount he is receiving which is 5. He was moving constantly each time I saw him yesterday, which is pretty much what he did inside of me!
Baby C has maintained his status too. He is on his canula still, but at room level oxygen. He had been taking feedings well, but started to throw them up a lot. They started to decrease that, but then he had a massive diaper blow-out and we are hoping that was keeping everything backed up. They went back to what they had been feeding him, (10cc), and he was doing well with those as of last night.
I believe I am going to be released tomorrow. I am so excited to go home and sleep in my own bed, but am so sad to have to leave the babies behind. I wish we didn't live so darn far away from the hospital! I will try to visit everyday, but I know there will be somedays that I won't make it down here. The phone number to the NICU is going to save my sanity on those days! The NICU policy is that only parents and grandparents can visit during flu season, which I understand completely. The other part of the policy is that the grandparents can only visit when they are with one of the parents. I had hoped that if there were times I wasn't able to make it down here, that my parents or Brad's parents would be able to come and keep them company. I guess I will be in the car a lot more that I had planned on! Hopefully the bouncing doesn't hurt too much!
I have decided that I am not posting any pictures on here, so I am sorry to those of you who have followed the blog these past few months/weeks. There are just too many creepos out there! I am posting on Facebook, so you can check there if you are one of my "friends." I know our families have shared this blog with their friends to keep everyone in the loop, so hopefully they will share some pictures with those of you who fit into that category.
Time to decide what to have for breakfast! I will continue to update this blog with info on the babies. Sunday is their next weigh-in, so it'll be interesting to see who has started to gain weight back. They suspect our daughter will end up under bili lights soon, which is pretty common and not too serious. And on Monday they will all have brain scans done to make sure they don't have any bleeds going on.
Thanks for all your love and support!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Drama
So I have been known to be an emotional girl, but this is getting ridiculous! Once I start crying, I can't stop! I have said it before, but I think this is my payback for not having morning sickness!
The reason for my crying this time started with my last monitoring session for contractions this morning. I felt one-the machine showed 9. Now, that's a big difference! This was the whole reason for me being put on the monitor in the first place. So, the nurse had be give myself a demand dose of the Terb. and was going to have me re-monitor later. I reminded her that today I am supposed to be taken off of everything. She wanted me to still do the demand dose and was going to call my doctor. During that 30 minutes, I managed to get out a good amount of tears. She called back and said he still wants me to stop everything. Is he nuts??? Did I not just prove the need for the home monitoring? How in the world am I supposed to know that I need to go to the hospital, which is an hour and a half away, if I don't realize I am having contractions? Does he think I like risky situations? I do not mind being taken off the medication and am fine with delivering if I go into labor rather than stopping it. I would really feel more comfortable being on the home monitor until that time though. The monitor is what sent me to the hospital almost 3 weeks ago when I didn't realize I was having contractions every 5 minutes. So now they tell me to just plan on going in when I get more "uncomfortable." I just don't want to wait too long and risk the health of the babies or myself. I may try to convince him of my need for monitoring at tomorrow's appointment-if we make it that long. I will say that I like not having any tubes/cords to deal with for this short time, but once I go to the hospital that will be over!
Sorry, but I had to vent my frustrations somewhere-maybe I can stop crying now! :)
The reason for my crying this time started with my last monitoring session for contractions this morning. I felt one-the machine showed 9. Now, that's a big difference! This was the whole reason for me being put on the monitor in the first place. So, the nurse had be give myself a demand dose of the Terb. and was going to have me re-monitor later. I reminded her that today I am supposed to be taken off of everything. She wanted me to still do the demand dose and was going to call my doctor. During that 30 minutes, I managed to get out a good amount of tears. She called back and said he still wants me to stop everything. Is he nuts??? Did I not just prove the need for the home monitoring? How in the world am I supposed to know that I need to go to the hospital, which is an hour and a half away, if I don't realize I am having contractions? Does he think I like risky situations? I do not mind being taken off the medication and am fine with delivering if I go into labor rather than stopping it. I would really feel more comfortable being on the home monitor until that time though. The monitor is what sent me to the hospital almost 3 weeks ago when I didn't realize I was having contractions every 5 minutes. So now they tell me to just plan on going in when I get more "uncomfortable." I just don't want to wait too long and risk the health of the babies or myself. I may try to convince him of my need for monitoring at tomorrow's appointment-if we make it that long. I will say that I like not having any tubes/cords to deal with for this short time, but once I go to the hospital that will be over!
Sorry, but I had to vent my frustrations somewhere-maybe I can stop crying now! :)
Monday, October 12, 2009
And the waiting continues...at home
I was ready to be checked into the hospital today; I had my bag packed of everything I would need until the babies came. We left the bag in the car for the appointment, but I told my mom to be ready to go back out and get it. Well, it stayed in the car until we got back home.
The babies all passed their BPP's today with flying colors! The ultrasound tech was amazed at how much our boys were moving during the ultrasound. I have told people that I don't think they ever sleep anymore because I am constantly being kicked on the left and middle of my belly-their hangout area! Our girl was a bit more reserved and we had to go back to watch her move once she woke up from all the commotion.
My blood pressure was higher again and the protein in my urine from the 24 hour collection was elevated (in the 700's when 300 is the cutoff for normal). My liver and kidneys are still functioning normally though, so we just need to keep an eye on it for now. I will continue to check my blood pressure at home for now.
He did not check my cervix, which I did not appreciate. It's not often that women would like to have cervical exams, but it always makes me feel better knowing where we are at with that. With us living a long drive away from the hospital, I am worried about fast cervical changes. He is taking me off the Terb pump tomorrow, as well as the home uterine monitor-I am terrified! He doesn't seem to think either thing really did anything for us, but now I have no safety net! I am not always consistently identifying contractions, so I am worried that I won't really know when we need to go to the hospital. He is also sending out an e-mail to his partners telling them that if I come into the hospital in labor, we are not going to try to stop anything at this point-we will deliver. Yikes, this is all starting to become a bit more real. I am sure if I wasn't having pre-eclampsia symptoms/issues, it would be a different story. But as of tomorrow I will be 32 weeks along, which is only 3 weeks from my scheduled c-section date. I know everyday they stay in at this point is better, but I don't know how much longer my body can hold out. I have still had consistent contractions, even with the medication. My blood pressure is high and my hands and face are starting to become swollen. I am getting to be huge! I am pretty uncomfortable at this point and looking forward to being able to do things for myself again. I would love to make it another week so we can have one more growth scan, but honestly, I don't know if we'll make it through the weekend. I obviously want to get to tomorrow for 32 weeks, and then Wednesday we have another appointment. I just can't believe we will meet these little ones soon. We have waited so long for this and been through so much to get here; it doesn't seem like we will actually meet them. I am hoping that they are healthy and big, and that they won't have to spend too much time in the NICU. I am starting to let go of the guilt of not making it to 35 weeks-my body can only take so much I suppose.
I will try to update on here as things happen, but hopefully I won't be posting anything tonight! :) Thanks again for all the good thoughts and prayers for us. I am so happy we have so many supportive friends and family members rooting for us!
The babies all passed their BPP's today with flying colors! The ultrasound tech was amazed at how much our boys were moving during the ultrasound. I have told people that I don't think they ever sleep anymore because I am constantly being kicked on the left and middle of my belly-their hangout area! Our girl was a bit more reserved and we had to go back to watch her move once she woke up from all the commotion.
My blood pressure was higher again and the protein in my urine from the 24 hour collection was elevated (in the 700's when 300 is the cutoff for normal). My liver and kidneys are still functioning normally though, so we just need to keep an eye on it for now. I will continue to check my blood pressure at home for now.
He did not check my cervix, which I did not appreciate. It's not often that women would like to have cervical exams, but it always makes me feel better knowing where we are at with that. With us living a long drive away from the hospital, I am worried about fast cervical changes. He is taking me off the Terb pump tomorrow, as well as the home uterine monitor-I am terrified! He doesn't seem to think either thing really did anything for us, but now I have no safety net! I am not always consistently identifying contractions, so I am worried that I won't really know when we need to go to the hospital. He is also sending out an e-mail to his partners telling them that if I come into the hospital in labor, we are not going to try to stop anything at this point-we will deliver. Yikes, this is all starting to become a bit more real. I am sure if I wasn't having pre-eclampsia symptoms/issues, it would be a different story. But as of tomorrow I will be 32 weeks along, which is only 3 weeks from my scheduled c-section date. I know everyday they stay in at this point is better, but I don't know how much longer my body can hold out. I have still had consistent contractions, even with the medication. My blood pressure is high and my hands and face are starting to become swollen. I am getting to be huge! I am pretty uncomfortable at this point and looking forward to being able to do things for myself again. I would love to make it another week so we can have one more growth scan, but honestly, I don't know if we'll make it through the weekend. I obviously want to get to tomorrow for 32 weeks, and then Wednesday we have another appointment. I just can't believe we will meet these little ones soon. We have waited so long for this and been through so much to get here; it doesn't seem like we will actually meet them. I am hoping that they are healthy and big, and that they won't have to spend too much time in the NICU. I am starting to let go of the guilt of not making it to 35 weeks-my body can only take so much I suppose.
I will try to update on here as things happen, but hopefully I won't be posting anything tonight! :) Thanks again for all the good thoughts and prayers for us. I am so happy we have so many supportive friends and family members rooting for us!
Friday, October 9, 2009
Pretty Soon!
It looks like the babies will be making their debut into the world sometime soon! At our appointment yesterday they all did pretty well on the BPP's, except our little girl decided to show her stubborn side again, (I wonder who she gets that from??). She did practice breathing, but not for the full 30 seconds needed to make it count. So, while the babies are wonderful again, not so much for me!
My blood pressure has my doctor a bit concerned. He was scheduling the c-section date for November 4, and said, "Oh, yeah you're not not going to make it to then," while looking at my chart. My blood pressure has slowly been rising and at this visit I had a +1 level of protein in my urine. He said that may be normal for me or it may be really elevated. So now I get to collect my urine for 24 hours!! Lucky me! And lucky Brad gets to take it to the lab on Saturday, but at least he doesn't have to take it all the way to our hospital. This way they will have the results at our appointment on Monday. I think I'd better have my bag completely packed and ready to go.
Dr. K did not check my cervix since we are so close to 32 weeks and they wouldn't do too much at this point anyway. He also said that he would be taking me off the Terb. pump during week 32 too. He joked that it doesn't really work anyway! I would beg to differ at this point, but maybe it's the whole placebo effect for me! So it appears that if the blood pressure doesn't get me, it'll be pre-term labor!
At this point I am just praying that we make it 5 more days in order to reach 32 weeks. I have always told our families that 32 weeks was my ultimate goal; anything beyond that would be a bonus. I guess I was pretty close to that! It still does not seem real to me-that we will be a family of five in the near future. Although I am constantly feeling these babies move all around inside me, I can't imagine what it is going to be like when they are out in the world. I am worried about how big they will be and how many complications they will have from being born so early. Then there are times that I think about how wonderful it'll be when everyone is home and we can really begin our lives together. And I also think about how I'll be able to actually do things for myself again-go to the store, clean my house, organize all the baby stuff, etc. I am so grateful that we made it this far, but I feel guilty that I couldn't/won't make it to 35 weeks. I know it is due to things beyond my control, but I can't help to think that if I hadn't gone up the stairs one extra time or refrained from doing those loads of laundry, maybe I could have made it to November. All I can do now is do everything I can to make it to 32 weeks, which is basically nothing! The cool, rainy weather has helped me follow the stricter bed rest-I love fall.
We will keep everyone updated, but hopefully you won't hear anything until after Tuesday next week! Thanks for your good thoughts and prayers!
My blood pressure has my doctor a bit concerned. He was scheduling the c-section date for November 4, and said, "Oh, yeah you're not not going to make it to then," while looking at my chart. My blood pressure has slowly been rising and at this visit I had a +1 level of protein in my urine. He said that may be normal for me or it may be really elevated. So now I get to collect my urine for 24 hours!! Lucky me! And lucky Brad gets to take it to the lab on Saturday, but at least he doesn't have to take it all the way to our hospital. This way they will have the results at our appointment on Monday. I think I'd better have my bag completely packed and ready to go.
Dr. K did not check my cervix since we are so close to 32 weeks and they wouldn't do too much at this point anyway. He also said that he would be taking me off the Terb. pump during week 32 too. He joked that it doesn't really work anyway! I would beg to differ at this point, but maybe it's the whole placebo effect for me! So it appears that if the blood pressure doesn't get me, it'll be pre-term labor!
At this point I am just praying that we make it 5 more days in order to reach 32 weeks. I have always told our families that 32 weeks was my ultimate goal; anything beyond that would be a bonus. I guess I was pretty close to that! It still does not seem real to me-that we will be a family of five in the near future. Although I am constantly feeling these babies move all around inside me, I can't imagine what it is going to be like when they are out in the world. I am worried about how big they will be and how many complications they will have from being born so early. Then there are times that I think about how wonderful it'll be when everyone is home and we can really begin our lives together. And I also think about how I'll be able to actually do things for myself again-go to the store, clean my house, organize all the baby stuff, etc. I am so grateful that we made it this far, but I feel guilty that I couldn't/won't make it to 35 weeks. I know it is due to things beyond my control, but I can't help to think that if I hadn't gone up the stairs one extra time or refrained from doing those loads of laundry, maybe I could have made it to November. All I can do now is do everything I can to make it to 32 weeks, which is basically nothing! The cool, rainy weather has helped me follow the stricter bed rest-I love fall.
We will keep everyone updated, but hopefully you won't hear anything until after Tuesday next week! Thanks for your good thoughts and prayers!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
31 Weeks
Tuesday marked 31 weeks of our pregnancy! I am hoping that we make it to 32-I keep telling the babies that it is so close, just stay in there for one more week!
We had another appointment on Monday for BPP because they didn't all pass last week. Baby A and B were stubborn and didn't feel like showing us their practice breathing. Also, my doctor wants to keep an eye on my blood pressure, which has increased since being on the Terb. pump. I ate some sugary cereal and a Fruit Roll-up right before going in, hoping that would help the babies move around more! Well, it worked because all three were moving around and "breathing" within 30 minutes! Baby C was holding out this time on the breathing, but as soon as the ultrasound tech asked him to breathe, he did! I told her she could come babysit anytime since he listened so well to her!
Gained a few more pounds (I'm really packing it on now!), blood pressure was a little elevated, and cervix is still the same. It was a different doctor that I hadn't met yet, but he said he doesn't think it is 50% effaced and it still has a lot of length to it. So, even though I am dialated to 1, hopefully the fact that I have a lot of length left will help us eek out a few more days. This doctor seemed confident that I will make it to 32 weeks and beyond, but then joked that he probably just jinxed me and I'll end up in the hospital again. Thanks! He may be right though. I had only been having minimal contractions last week, but this week they have started picking up again. I am hoping that they relax again, but would feel better if they could up my dose. I am pretty sure that is out of the question with my blood pressure though. He didn't seem too concerned with my blood pressure and said that I only have a trace amount of protein in my urine, so they aren't worried about pre-eclampsia right now.
The doctor I saw on Monday said that if I went back into the hospital for pre-term labor, he doesn't know how much they would do to stop it. At this gestational age, depending on the situation, they may just decide to deliver the babies. Scary! I want so badly to make it to at least 32 weeks, I don't want to think about having them out yet! I was a bit more active than I should have been over the weekend with folding clothes and helping to organize the closet-yes, I had to label shelves and drawers. I have scolded myself and have been doing real bed rest up in our bedroom for the past 2 days. All the other things can wait until after we have the babies. Brad has gotten a lot of things done, so that makes me feel a bit better. My mom has been my "room service" person, bringing me breakfast and lunch. Over the weekend I opened up all the bedding and blankets, so she has been doing a loads of laundry to help us out too. I just can't wait until I can get up and do all these things myself, but hopefully it won't be too soon!
We have another appointment tomorrow morning for BPP and to check me out, so hopefully everything is still stable. I have been bringing a packed bag to my appointments though, just in case. I have to get a doctor's note so I can get a regular flu shot-they say they want pregnant women to get the shot, but won't give you one without a note! So, hopefully everything will be uneventful tomorrow and the babies will show off again for us! I will try to be better about posting, but usually no news is good news in my world.
We had another appointment on Monday for BPP because they didn't all pass last week. Baby A and B were stubborn and didn't feel like showing us their practice breathing. Also, my doctor wants to keep an eye on my blood pressure, which has increased since being on the Terb. pump. I ate some sugary cereal and a Fruit Roll-up right before going in, hoping that would help the babies move around more! Well, it worked because all three were moving around and "breathing" within 30 minutes! Baby C was holding out this time on the breathing, but as soon as the ultrasound tech asked him to breathe, he did! I told her she could come babysit anytime since he listened so well to her!
Gained a few more pounds (I'm really packing it on now!), blood pressure was a little elevated, and cervix is still the same. It was a different doctor that I hadn't met yet, but he said he doesn't think it is 50% effaced and it still has a lot of length to it. So, even though I am dialated to 1, hopefully the fact that I have a lot of length left will help us eek out a few more days. This doctor seemed confident that I will make it to 32 weeks and beyond, but then joked that he probably just jinxed me and I'll end up in the hospital again. Thanks! He may be right though. I had only been having minimal contractions last week, but this week they have started picking up again. I am hoping that they relax again, but would feel better if they could up my dose. I am pretty sure that is out of the question with my blood pressure though. He didn't seem too concerned with my blood pressure and said that I only have a trace amount of protein in my urine, so they aren't worried about pre-eclampsia right now.
The doctor I saw on Monday said that if I went back into the hospital for pre-term labor, he doesn't know how much they would do to stop it. At this gestational age, depending on the situation, they may just decide to deliver the babies. Scary! I want so badly to make it to at least 32 weeks, I don't want to think about having them out yet! I was a bit more active than I should have been over the weekend with folding clothes and helping to organize the closet-yes, I had to label shelves and drawers. I have scolded myself and have been doing real bed rest up in our bedroom for the past 2 days. All the other things can wait until after we have the babies. Brad has gotten a lot of things done, so that makes me feel a bit better. My mom has been my "room service" person, bringing me breakfast and lunch. Over the weekend I opened up all the bedding and blankets, so she has been doing a loads of laundry to help us out too. I just can't wait until I can get up and do all these things myself, but hopefully it won't be too soon!
We have another appointment tomorrow morning for BPP and to check me out, so hopefully everything is still stable. I have been bringing a packed bag to my appointments though, just in case. I have to get a doctor's note so I can get a regular flu shot-they say they want pregnant women to get the shot, but won't give you one without a note! So, hopefully everything will be uneventful tomorrow and the babies will show off again for us! I will try to be better about posting, but usually no news is good news in my world.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Most recent appointment info
Wednesday we traveled back to the hospital for a scheduled appointment, but I did bring my packed bag in case Dr. K decided to check me back in for some reason. I was hoping that my cervix would still be stable since I had not had too many contractions since being released, except for that one session of 8. The Terb pump seems to be doing it's job, knock on wood. I am also dealing with the side effects better and some have diminished, except for the elevated blood pressure. I am afraid that is the thing that might do us in now, but hopefully it'll settle down too.
This appointment we had our first Biophysical Profiles for the babies since the previous week we were in the hospital. We did not do the Non-Stress Test portion of the BPP because they had done well on that everyday they were tested in the hospital. Of course, the babies were awake the whole 1.5 ride to the appointment and then decided they would nap during the ultrasound! Baby C was the most cooperative of the trio and showed off his "breathing" skills right away. He also passed the other portions, and received an 8 out of 8 on the BPP! His siblings did not show the practice breathing, although Baby B did hiccup for a bit. Unfortunately, we did not catch him doing that for a full 30 seconds, so it didn't count. I think our ultrasound tech jumped back and forth too much and may have missed the beginning of the hiccups! They did receive points for everything else, so they scored 6 out of 8. Technically a score of 6 or less would mean another BPP within 24 hours, but our doctor said that would be out of 10 points. He doesn't seem too concerned that they didn't get those other 2 points because they did so well on everything else, and they had done well during the NST in the hospital. He decided he wants to see us Monday though to repeat the test and to keep an eye on my blood pressure. I am fine with going twice a week-it will help my nervousness about being home.
I have now officially gained almost 50 pounds (going by pre-IVF weight), and I am really starting to feel it. It is much more difficult to get out of bed or the couch to use the bathroom. I am also more easily winded when I do move around. I think, and hope, that the babies are growing rapidly now based on how quickly my belly has been growing. I have very few clothes, shirts specifically, that still fit. Everything is too short, so my belly hangs out all the time! I have pretty much given up on actually caring about it though!
Dr. K decided that we should pick a c-section date, so he decided on November 4th. The look on my face caused him to ask, "What, you don't think you'll make it that far?" I am skeptical, to say the least. While I would love to keep them in until 35 weeks, I just don't see how my body can continue to hold out that long. I am grateful we did not have many complications up until last week, but I feel like the issues are starting to pile up and get in line for their turn on us. At this point, I am really looking at 32 weeks as my main goal and it is still 12 days away. I will be so excited if we get there, and each day after that will be a bonus in my mind. I am extra cautious about getting my hopes up of going longer than that, so we'll take it one day at a time. Even if we don't make it to 32 weeks, at least the steroid shots are in and the babies were estimated at weights between 3 and 3.4 pounds a week ago. If they are following the rule of .5 pound a week, we are close or past the crucial weight milestone-thanks Carrie for reminding me of that one!
Thanks so much to all of our family and friends that are supporting us right now-physically and emotionally. We could not get through this without all of your help and well wishes! These babies are blessed to have such wonderful people rooting for them as they get ready to enter this world.
This appointment we had our first Biophysical Profiles for the babies since the previous week we were in the hospital. We did not do the Non-Stress Test portion of the BPP because they had done well on that everyday they were tested in the hospital. Of course, the babies were awake the whole 1.5 ride to the appointment and then decided they would nap during the ultrasound! Baby C was the most cooperative of the trio and showed off his "breathing" skills right away. He also passed the other portions, and received an 8 out of 8 on the BPP! His siblings did not show the practice breathing, although Baby B did hiccup for a bit. Unfortunately, we did not catch him doing that for a full 30 seconds, so it didn't count. I think our ultrasound tech jumped back and forth too much and may have missed the beginning of the hiccups! They did receive points for everything else, so they scored 6 out of 8. Technically a score of 6 or less would mean another BPP within 24 hours, but our doctor said that would be out of 10 points. He doesn't seem too concerned that they didn't get those other 2 points because they did so well on everything else, and they had done well during the NST in the hospital. He decided he wants to see us Monday though to repeat the test and to keep an eye on my blood pressure. I am fine with going twice a week-it will help my nervousness about being home.
I have now officially gained almost 50 pounds (going by pre-IVF weight), and I am really starting to feel it. It is much more difficult to get out of bed or the couch to use the bathroom. I am also more easily winded when I do move around. I think, and hope, that the babies are growing rapidly now based on how quickly my belly has been growing. I have very few clothes, shirts specifically, that still fit. Everything is too short, so my belly hangs out all the time! I have pretty much given up on actually caring about it though!
Dr. K decided that we should pick a c-section date, so he decided on November 4th. The look on my face caused him to ask, "What, you don't think you'll make it that far?" I am skeptical, to say the least. While I would love to keep them in until 35 weeks, I just don't see how my body can continue to hold out that long. I am grateful we did not have many complications up until last week, but I feel like the issues are starting to pile up and get in line for their turn on us. At this point, I am really looking at 32 weeks as my main goal and it is still 12 days away. I will be so excited if we get there, and each day after that will be a bonus in my mind. I am extra cautious about getting my hopes up of going longer than that, so we'll take it one day at a time. Even if we don't make it to 32 weeks, at least the steroid shots are in and the babies were estimated at weights between 3 and 3.4 pounds a week ago. If they are following the rule of .5 pound a week, we are close or past the crucial weight milestone-thanks Carrie for reminding me of that one!
Thanks so much to all of our family and friends that are supporting us right now-physically and emotionally. We could not get through this without all of your help and well wishes! These babies are blessed to have such wonderful people rooting for them as they get ready to enter this world.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
For Now
I spent the day in my own bed today, and it was lovely. I was sent home yesterday evening, but was worried about announcing it to the world-didn't want to jinx it! The doctor on call for the practice we go to came into my room Monday morning and asked, "Are you ready to bust outta this joint?" I was shocked they were thinking about letting me go because I was still having runs of contractions that were 5-8 minutes apart. She decided to add in a demand dose on my Terb. pump since my heart rate has gone down a little bit. That way if I have more than 6 contractions in an hour, I can do that before we would have to go back to the hospital. The deciding factors would be the cervical check and the morning monitoring session of the babies and my contractions. She checked my cervix and found that it had not changed since I arrived at the hospital. I was relieved the hear that-I was worried about that!
As I waited for my nurses to come in and hook me up to machines, I was excited and nervous about the possibility of going home. I wanted to go home so badly, but I didn't want to risk the health of the babies of myself. I figured that they wouldn't be sending me home if it wasn't safe though, so I started to hope that the monitoring would go well. The babies did great during monitoring, which wasn't surprising since they had been great the whole time I was in the hospital. My contractions were also low, mainly just irritability (not surprising either with 3 babies in an overstretched uterus)! So it looked like I would be going home!
I have a Terbutaline (sp) pump that gives me a constant dose of the medication that is supposed to help minimize contractions. I was using the hospital's pump, but if I was going home I would have to get one through the same company that I have my home uterine monitor from. So I couldn't go home until a rep came and taught me how to use/change the pump and site. I also had to wait until Brad could leave work to come pick me up. I ordered what I hoped would be my last lunch at the hospital for a little while. The rep came and showed me how to change the medication vial in the machine, switch the site where the meds go in, etc. Not too tricky, especially since I was used to giving myself meds when we did IVF.
Brad came a little later and we were on our way! It was great to actually see the outside and not the brick wall outside my window. And then we went outside and it was cold-which I absolutely loved. I was so worried I was going to spend the beginning of fall inside the hospital! Brad had picked up frozen Gino's East pizzas for dinner-yum! I had to monitor again when we got home and I was terrified that I would have too many contractions and be sent right back, but luckily I only had 1!
It was great to sleep in my own bed-I actually slept for a couple hours at a time! I decided to camp out upstairs in our bedroom because I knew if I was downstairs I would be doing more than I was supposed to. So Brad helped bring up all my "bed rest supplies," for the day since he had to go to work. I monitored in the morning and had 8 contractions, (my limit is 5), so I had to give myself a higher dose of meds and drink 4 glasses of water. I was convinced I was going to have to go back into the hospital that day, so tried to mentally prepare myself for that. Luckily, the next monitoring session showed 0 contractions, just moderate irritability. Same thing for the evening session! Maybe this medicine is going to help me stay home a little longer than I thought!
We go this afternoon for our weekly appointment, so we'll get to see the babies again! My ultimate goal is still 32 weeks, but I am so happy and grateful that we made it to 30 weeks and had the steroid shots. I still can't believe we will meet these little ones soon. It took so much time to get to this point, it just doesn't seem real yet. It probably won't until we see their little faces and hopefully hear their cries. I will try to post a belly picture today-it has grown even more in the past week. Good for the babies, not so good for the stretch marks! :)
As I waited for my nurses to come in and hook me up to machines, I was excited and nervous about the possibility of going home. I wanted to go home so badly, but I didn't want to risk the health of the babies of myself. I figured that they wouldn't be sending me home if it wasn't safe though, so I started to hope that the monitoring would go well. The babies did great during monitoring, which wasn't surprising since they had been great the whole time I was in the hospital. My contractions were also low, mainly just irritability (not surprising either with 3 babies in an overstretched uterus)! So it looked like I would be going home!
I have a Terbutaline (sp) pump that gives me a constant dose of the medication that is supposed to help minimize contractions. I was using the hospital's pump, but if I was going home I would have to get one through the same company that I have my home uterine monitor from. So I couldn't go home until a rep came and taught me how to use/change the pump and site. I also had to wait until Brad could leave work to come pick me up. I ordered what I hoped would be my last lunch at the hospital for a little while. The rep came and showed me how to change the medication vial in the machine, switch the site where the meds go in, etc. Not too tricky, especially since I was used to giving myself meds when we did IVF.
Brad came a little later and we were on our way! It was great to actually see the outside and not the brick wall outside my window. And then we went outside and it was cold-which I absolutely loved. I was so worried I was going to spend the beginning of fall inside the hospital! Brad had picked up frozen Gino's East pizzas for dinner-yum! I had to monitor again when we got home and I was terrified that I would have too many contractions and be sent right back, but luckily I only had 1!
It was great to sleep in my own bed-I actually slept for a couple hours at a time! I decided to camp out upstairs in our bedroom because I knew if I was downstairs I would be doing more than I was supposed to. So Brad helped bring up all my "bed rest supplies," for the day since he had to go to work. I monitored in the morning and had 8 contractions, (my limit is 5), so I had to give myself a higher dose of meds and drink 4 glasses of water. I was convinced I was going to have to go back into the hospital that day, so tried to mentally prepare myself for that. Luckily, the next monitoring session showed 0 contractions, just moderate irritability. Same thing for the evening session! Maybe this medicine is going to help me stay home a little longer than I thought!
We go this afternoon for our weekly appointment, so we'll get to see the babies again! My ultimate goal is still 32 weeks, but I am so happy and grateful that we made it to 30 weeks and had the steroid shots. I still can't believe we will meet these little ones soon. It took so much time to get to this point, it just doesn't seem real yet. It probably won't until we see their little faces and hopefully hear their cries. I will try to post a belly picture today-it has grown even more in the past week. Good for the babies, not so good for the stretch marks! :)
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Still here
So I am still in a Labor and Delivery room so I can continue to be closely monitored. The babies have been doing great and have been a bit too active when we are trying to monitor them! I, however, am still having contractions. Last night they picked up to every 5-8 minutes even though I slept through them. They continued like that into the morning and they decided to up my dose of Terb. Great-more jittery and higher heart rate! I just hope it does what it is supposed to do! They wouldn't have me do the larger doses (bolus) because of where my heart rate is now-ranging from 100-130. I am not sure what will happen if this dose doesn't work-I am too scared to ask!
I was originally hoping to moved to a Perinatal room today, but maybe in the next few days. I was denied permission for a shower and was devastated. I get headaches when I don't get to shower regularly and I just wanted to feel human again, so I was not very happy when they said no. My nurse and another nurse took pity upon me and washed my hair for me with buckets while I was in bed. My headache went away! I was able to clean up in the bathroom and put on a new gown while she changed my sheets-I am going to have to write a letter to admin to let them know how wonderful she was!
So I have no idea if or when I will change rooms. I could also remain here for the remainder of my pregnancy, which may not be that long if they can't control the contractions. I miss my bed, house, our dog, and, of course, my husband (not in that order). I know this is all for a good reason and it's relatively a short time, but I still feel like it is going to take forever! 4 days until 30 weeks and 18 days to 32 weeks! Thinking we'll be lucky to make it to 32 weeks now, but I feel like 30 is within our reach. We had our second steroid shot last night, so hopefully that'll help if they come earlier.
Thanks for all your support!
I was originally hoping to moved to a Perinatal room today, but maybe in the next few days. I was denied permission for a shower and was devastated. I get headaches when I don't get to shower regularly and I just wanted to feel human again, so I was not very happy when they said no. My nurse and another nurse took pity upon me and washed my hair for me with buckets while I was in bed. My headache went away! I was able to clean up in the bathroom and put on a new gown while she changed my sheets-I am going to have to write a letter to admin to let them know how wonderful she was!
So I have no idea if or when I will change rooms. I could also remain here for the remainder of my pregnancy, which may not be that long if they can't control the contractions. I miss my bed, house, our dog, and, of course, my husband (not in that order). I know this is all for a good reason and it's relatively a short time, but I still feel like it is going to take forever! 4 days until 30 weeks and 18 days to 32 weeks! Thinking we'll be lucky to make it to 32 weeks now, but I feel like 30 is within our reach. We had our second steroid shot last night, so hopefully that'll help if they come earlier.
Thanks for all your support!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
How Quickly Things Change
I am in the hospital right now listening to three heartbeats and a constant beeping from the pulse thing on my finger. I have been here since last night because I was having contractions. With my uterine monitoring, my threshold is 4. Well, I hit that late afternoon, remonitored and ended up with 5. The company called the doctor on call and they said that I didn't have to go in unless I felt them getting stronger or other symptoms. I ate some cereal, but was still having the constant tightening. I felt horrible because I already rely on Brad to do so much for me and around the house; I knew all he wanted to do was lay on the couch and relax. Being the wonderful husband that he is, he left the decision up to me and did not try to talk me into staying home. I figured we would quick go, my cervix would be fine, and we would be sent on our way like the last 2 times. No such luck.
We were escorted up to a Labor and Delivery room, next to a woman in labor.They hooked me up to the uterine monitor for contractions, the three monitors for the babies' heartbeats, an IV for fluids, and the fun little finger pulse checker. All this after I changed into the ever-so-sexy hospital gown, which does not quite fit my pregnant belly or behind anymore! I was contracting about every 3-4 minutes at that time, so we waited for the fluids to go in to see if that helped. It only helped in a very minor way. A resident came in and said that they would do an ultrasound and then check my cervix because the doctor was in surgery. Ultrasound was good-fluid, movement, heartbeats. She pulled this enormous light out of the ceiling, which was cool and scary at the same time-it looked like it was made in the seventies. She first did the fFn test, which come to think of it, I haven't heard any results from. Hmm. Gotta love that speculum! When she first manually checked myy cervix, she said it was still up high and closed. Then, a heard her say, "Wait, you are about 1 and 50%." She must have seen the look on my face because then she tried to console me and say that woman come in at 30 weeks and are like that too. Still did not make me happy. So, they talked to the doctor on call from the practice we go to. The decided to first try Indocin to stop the contractions, which were still occuring every 3-4 minutes. So I took the pills and prayed. They worked, for about 4 hours.
In the morning, my contractions were now occurring every 1-2 minutes! Not good! I had not eaten anything since before we left for the hospital, just in case I needed a c-section. They gave me another dose of Indocin. So, a hungry, contracting, hormonal girl does not handle stress well, in case you couldn't have guessed that on your own! I had the doctor come in with 2 nurses, and a resident, all of whom I broke out into tears in front of! Junior high behavior, here I come! I just couldn't stop crying! One of the ultrasound techs from our office came down to do our growth scan and also witnessed my blabbering. They tried to console me, but I wouldn't stop! The doctor said, "Think of your happy place, " and I said, (while sobbing), "Outer Banks, NC." They all said good and ran out the door as fast as possible. Except my nurse and us tech since they had things to do with me. The doctor decided we were going to try Terbutaline next, so the nurse shot me up with a booster dose. Thought my heart was going to bounce through my chest and land on the floor! One of the lovely side effects. If this worked, they would plan on setting me up with the pump though, which has a much smaller, steady dose of medicine. Ultrasound was set and ready to scan me-in my own hospital room.
She was also consoling me (or took pity on me), and was able to help me calm down long enough to look at the screen to see the babies we are doing all this for. So, at 29w2days, Baby A weighs approximately 3 lbs. 4oz!!! I was hoping for 2.5 lbs, so I was greatly relieved by that number. Baby B is about 3 lbs and Baby C is a little less than that, but all within the normal range for their gestational age! She printed out a ton of pictures for us, (pity does wonders), and said that they looked great-moving well, full stomachs showing that they are swallowing fluid well. Yea, some good news!
I was still pretty shaky from the medicine, so just laid in my bed and watched tv until Brad came. He had taken the day off to go to our appointment, so he came back out after only a couple hours sleep-something he does not normally deal well with! He brought the rest of my things that I didn't bring with-like the computer I am updating with! In the meantime, still not allowed to eat yet and was getting very hungry! Something amazing was happening though-the contractions were starting to spread out to every 3-4 minutes, then every 5-6, etc. The doctor checked my cervix one more time before letting me order room service-it was still the same at 1 and 50%. I was so happy all those crazy contractions didn't make it worse! So they ordered the Terbutalane pump and we waited. Brad came in just as the nurse was putting it in my leg. I ate a late breakfast and we hung out. I mainly watched tv and he played on the computer for a while. The contractions continued to go down and I don't think they are showing up on the monitor right now. I know that can change rapidly though, but I am glad this medicine is working for now.
So, the word on the street is they will re-evaluate things in the morning and if I stay like this they will move me down to perinatal section where there is less strict monitoring. If that goes well, I may be able to go home this weekend! While that prospect terrifies me because my cervix changed so quickly, I desperately miss my bed, bathroom, and couch. I would still be on the pump at home and if my contractions increased again, I would be sent back here again. We requested to talk with a NICU doctor and have my anesthesiology consult while we were here. They came in and the NICU doc was pretty doom and gloom, which I had anticipated. He went through all the problems that babies at our gestational age (29w2d) would encounter. I asked if 30 weeks is our mini goal and each week and day after that is a bonus, and he agreed. So, I will feel better again on Tuesday when we hit 30 weeks, and even better when we hit 32 weeks (I hope)! The anesthesiologist came in and you could tell he had already looked up Myotonic Dystrophy! We talked about how we would obviously be doing the epidural if the c-section was planned and to avoid general anesthesia at all costs. He explained some of the other things they typically do, which will benefit me too-pain drugs injected into the spinal fluid after the c-section for 18-24 hours of pain relief! He said they would monitor my heart and breathing closely, but hopes that since I am not too symptomatic that I should be okay.
So, I decided to update this blog early tonight when things are still going well-hopefully I don't jinx anything! I will miss the shower tomorrow at Brad's work and we have to rearrange our refinance meeting for the house so the guy will come here, but as long as those babies stay inside where it is safe, it will all be worth it! They have been handling the contractions really well, at least that's what the doctors and nurses have been saying all day. I just hope they will wait a little bit longer to enter this world. I am not ready to lose my precious time with them-even if they do kick me in the lungs and intenstines. I want them to get to a safer zone so we can enjoy them at home sooner rather than spend their first few months in the NICU. I am past being scared of how we will take care of them-we will love them, everything else will fall into place. Now we just have to get another name for Baby C! Congrats to our friends (B and K-don't want to put their names in here), and I must say that I love your taste in names!
So if anyone out there in the real world gets bored, first pray for the babies and us, then send me a comment on here or facebook, or on e-mail. I have nothing but time for you all-and that'll be it for about 3 years! :)
Sorry again for typos-I am typing with an IV in one hand and the pulse thingy on my other hand-go easy on me!
We were escorted up to a Labor and Delivery room, next to a woman in labor.They hooked me up to the uterine monitor for contractions, the three monitors for the babies' heartbeats, an IV for fluids, and the fun little finger pulse checker. All this after I changed into the ever-so-sexy hospital gown, which does not quite fit my pregnant belly or behind anymore! I was contracting about every 3-4 minutes at that time, so we waited for the fluids to go in to see if that helped. It only helped in a very minor way. A resident came in and said that they would do an ultrasound and then check my cervix because the doctor was in surgery. Ultrasound was good-fluid, movement, heartbeats. She pulled this enormous light out of the ceiling, which was cool and scary at the same time-it looked like it was made in the seventies. She first did the fFn test, which come to think of it, I haven't heard any results from. Hmm. Gotta love that speculum! When she first manually checked myy cervix, she said it was still up high and closed. Then, a heard her say, "Wait, you are about 1 and 50%." She must have seen the look on my face because then she tried to console me and say that woman come in at 30 weeks and are like that too. Still did not make me happy. So, they talked to the doctor on call from the practice we go to. The decided to first try Indocin to stop the contractions, which were still occuring every 3-4 minutes. So I took the pills and prayed. They worked, for about 4 hours.
In the morning, my contractions were now occurring every 1-2 minutes! Not good! I had not eaten anything since before we left for the hospital, just in case I needed a c-section. They gave me another dose of Indocin. So, a hungry, contracting, hormonal girl does not handle stress well, in case you couldn't have guessed that on your own! I had the doctor come in with 2 nurses, and a resident, all of whom I broke out into tears in front of! Junior high behavior, here I come! I just couldn't stop crying! One of the ultrasound techs from our office came down to do our growth scan and also witnessed my blabbering. They tried to console me, but I wouldn't stop! The doctor said, "Think of your happy place, " and I said, (while sobbing), "Outer Banks, NC." They all said good and ran out the door as fast as possible. Except my nurse and us tech since they had things to do with me. The doctor decided we were going to try Terbutaline next, so the nurse shot me up with a booster dose. Thought my heart was going to bounce through my chest and land on the floor! One of the lovely side effects. If this worked, they would plan on setting me up with the pump though, which has a much smaller, steady dose of medicine. Ultrasound was set and ready to scan me-in my own hospital room.
She was also consoling me (or took pity on me), and was able to help me calm down long enough to look at the screen to see the babies we are doing all this for. So, at 29w2days, Baby A weighs approximately 3 lbs. 4oz!!! I was hoping for 2.5 lbs, so I was greatly relieved by that number. Baby B is about 3 lbs and Baby C is a little less than that, but all within the normal range for their gestational age! She printed out a ton of pictures for us, (pity does wonders), and said that they looked great-moving well, full stomachs showing that they are swallowing fluid well. Yea, some good news!
I was still pretty shaky from the medicine, so just laid in my bed and watched tv until Brad came. He had taken the day off to go to our appointment, so he came back out after only a couple hours sleep-something he does not normally deal well with! He brought the rest of my things that I didn't bring with-like the computer I am updating with! In the meantime, still not allowed to eat yet and was getting very hungry! Something amazing was happening though-the contractions were starting to spread out to every 3-4 minutes, then every 5-6, etc. The doctor checked my cervix one more time before letting me order room service-it was still the same at 1 and 50%. I was so happy all those crazy contractions didn't make it worse! So they ordered the Terbutalane pump and we waited. Brad came in just as the nurse was putting it in my leg. I ate a late breakfast and we hung out. I mainly watched tv and he played on the computer for a while. The contractions continued to go down and I don't think they are showing up on the monitor right now. I know that can change rapidly though, but I am glad this medicine is working for now.
So, the word on the street is they will re-evaluate things in the morning and if I stay like this they will move me down to perinatal section where there is less strict monitoring. If that goes well, I may be able to go home this weekend! While that prospect terrifies me because my cervix changed so quickly, I desperately miss my bed, bathroom, and couch. I would still be on the pump at home and if my contractions increased again, I would be sent back here again. We requested to talk with a NICU doctor and have my anesthesiology consult while we were here. They came in and the NICU doc was pretty doom and gloom, which I had anticipated. He went through all the problems that babies at our gestational age (29w2d) would encounter. I asked if 30 weeks is our mini goal and each week and day after that is a bonus, and he agreed. So, I will feel better again on Tuesday when we hit 30 weeks, and even better when we hit 32 weeks (I hope)! The anesthesiologist came in and you could tell he had already looked up Myotonic Dystrophy! We talked about how we would obviously be doing the epidural if the c-section was planned and to avoid general anesthesia at all costs. He explained some of the other things they typically do, which will benefit me too-pain drugs injected into the spinal fluid after the c-section for 18-24 hours of pain relief! He said they would monitor my heart and breathing closely, but hopes that since I am not too symptomatic that I should be okay.
So, I decided to update this blog early tonight when things are still going well-hopefully I don't jinx anything! I will miss the shower tomorrow at Brad's work and we have to rearrange our refinance meeting for the house so the guy will come here, but as long as those babies stay inside where it is safe, it will all be worth it! They have been handling the contractions really well, at least that's what the doctors and nurses have been saying all day. I just hope they will wait a little bit longer to enter this world. I am not ready to lose my precious time with them-even if they do kick me in the lungs and intenstines. I want them to get to a safer zone so we can enjoy them at home sooner rather than spend their first few months in the NICU. I am past being scared of how we will take care of them-we will love them, everything else will fall into place. Now we just have to get another name for Baby C! Congrats to our friends (B and K-don't want to put their names in here), and I must say that I love your taste in names!
So if anyone out there in the real world gets bored, first pray for the babies and us, then send me a comment on here or facebook, or on e-mail. I have nothing but time for you all-and that'll be it for about 3 years! :)
Sorry again for typos-I am typing with an IV in one hand and the pulse thingy on my other hand-go easy on me!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
29 Weeks!
Time is really starting to go by quickly now, and hopefully it continues that way for the sake of the babies! I have to admit that I am now starting to have mini-panic attacks when I think of how things are going to be in a few weeks. I did not allow myself to think ahead of how life would be because I was afraid something would go wrong. While that plan got me through the early times, it has not been helpful with dealing with the future! I wonder how we are going to do everything and take care of 3 little babies all at once. Obviously, we will have the help of our families and friends, but ultimately the job of parenting is left up to us.
In my heart, I know that everything will be fine and we'll get through it. But, my mind is swirling thinking about the logistics of it all. I can't wait to see their little faces, but I want them to stay inside of me to keep them safe. I want them to stay in until 35 weeks and then bring them home soon after delivery, but that also terrifies me because we are not anywhere near being ready for them at home. I can't wait until bedrest is over and I can run out to the store when we need something, but I know I will never be able to lay on the couch and watch t.v. again! So many things to think about and get done before they join us out here, but I feel so unprepared. And those who know me, know that I hate being unprepared and I have to have a plan for everything. I think that may be one of the most difficult things that I have been dealing with-not being able to completely plan out everything that is going to happen-when they come, how they will be, etc. I have just been taking everything one step and one week at a time, so to actually think ahead more than that makes my heart beat a little faster. Don't get me wrong, I am so excited to finally be in this place after our struggles. I am just afraid and nervous, about so many things! I assume everyone goes through this before becoming parents. I just wish I hadn't put off thinking about it this whole time!!
But yea for 29 weeks!! I am excited and nervous for our appointment this Thursday-growth scan and biophysical profiles. We will see how they have grown-hopefully a lot since week 25. For the BPP, part will be on ultrasound and part should be a non-stress test, although they didn't mention that when I scheduled these appointments. They will see how many movements they make, practice breathing, etc. I hope they are all overachievers! It's another late afternoon appointment and since it'll be a long one, I may not post until Friday. Keep your fingers and toes crossed for big babies!! :)
In my heart, I know that everything will be fine and we'll get through it. But, my mind is swirling thinking about the logistics of it all. I can't wait to see their little faces, but I want them to stay inside of me to keep them safe. I want them to stay in until 35 weeks and then bring them home soon after delivery, but that also terrifies me because we are not anywhere near being ready for them at home. I can't wait until bedrest is over and I can run out to the store when we need something, but I know I will never be able to lay on the couch and watch t.v. again! So many things to think about and get done before they join us out here, but I feel so unprepared. And those who know me, know that I hate being unprepared and I have to have a plan for everything. I think that may be one of the most difficult things that I have been dealing with-not being able to completely plan out everything that is going to happen-when they come, how they will be, etc. I have just been taking everything one step and one week at a time, so to actually think ahead more than that makes my heart beat a little faster. Don't get me wrong, I am so excited to finally be in this place after our struggles. I am just afraid and nervous, about so many things! I assume everyone goes through this before becoming parents. I just wish I hadn't put off thinking about it this whole time!!
But yea for 29 weeks!! I am excited and nervous for our appointment this Thursday-growth scan and biophysical profiles. We will see how they have grown-hopefully a lot since week 25. For the BPP, part will be on ultrasound and part should be a non-stress test, although they didn't mention that when I scheduled these appointments. They will see how many movements they make, practice breathing, etc. I hope they are all overachievers! It's another late afternoon appointment and since it'll be a long one, I may not post until Friday. Keep your fingers and toes crossed for big babies!! :)
Friday, September 18, 2009
And the Countdown Continues!!
I apologize to those of you who check this on Wednesdays and Thursdays looking for appointment info for not posting sooner. I was a bit tired after the day, so chose sleep over blogging! We had a good appointment, but there a lot of waiting for our ultrasound since 2 doctors were in the office yesterday. My mother-in-law drove me to the appointment and was able to see the babies with ultrasound for the first time. Then, our ride home took awhile since it was rush hour. We did stop and get some dinner on the way home though-yum!
Here's the weekly info-I did gain weight, but nobody needs to know how much I actually weigh! :) I am now measuring 44 cm, which would be equal to the number of weeks for normal pregnant women. My blood pressure is still good too. Cervix is still high and closed-yea! He doesn't measure it on ultrasound anymore, so I don't know if it has shortened, but I'll take a closed cervix anyday! The ultrasound was good too, although the babies are definitely starting to run out of stretching room now! They were all pretty calm and gave us some nice profile shots for the pictures. They all had a good amount of fluid and the membrane between the boys was moving nicely (which means that baby C has enough fluid and he isn't Saran Wrapped into is area). Dr. K came in and checked everything for himself, although he did make my MIL nervous because he was so quiet while looking at the babies. It is getting more difficult to tell who is who in there! He was starting with baby A and then moving up to find B and C. At one point the had all their heads together-like a football huddle. I fear they are already plotting against us! :) So, while Dr. K was following heads to find bodies, he was really quiet. While Brad and I know that is how our doctor is when he is looking at the ultrasound, my MIL did not and was worried that something was wrong. Luckily, he spoke up in a little bit and said that everything looks good. I asked Dr. K about getting my regular flu shot and he said if they aren't in at his office at my next appointment, I should just go somewhere local to get it sooner. I still didn't get a clear answer on the H1N1 shot-just that the CDC and other organizations are recommending it. I couldn't get him to say that he recommends it, only that usually 1 out of 5 of their patients refuse to get the regular flu shot. Brad would really prefer that I not get it and I am still thinking that it would probably be better to wait until after the babies are born. I am not in public areas, except when I go to the doctor and I am obsessive about hand washing and using hand sanitizer while I am there. We talked about how we are happy that we made it to 28 weeks and how complications go down dramatically now. He did say to not get cocky and be cautiously optomistic like we have been up to this point. I then asked about touring the NICU and he said that we may not need to worry about the NICU. I joked, "Now who's being cocky?!" While I would love to avoid the NICU, I would rather be prepared because I have the feeling we'll still be visiting our babies there for a little bit at least. I am going to have a consult with the anesthesiologist because of the risks of surgery with myotonic dystrophy, so we decided that we'll set up our tour for that same day.
Next week is our big appointment with another growth scan and biophysical profiles. I am excited and nervous to see how much they have grown-hopefully a lot! I will be 29 weeks on Tuesday and it feels like things are speeding up now, thankfully. I think this weekend we are going to be putting together another crib, (actually, Brad will be doing that), and taking some gifts out of their packages. I have to continue to work on thank you cards for my co-workers since Brad's co-workers are doing a shower for us next Friday. I am hoping to be allowed to go, but it will depend on how Thursday's appointment goes.
Thanks for everyone's support and assistance again-we really appreciate our families and friends for everything they are doing to help us through this! I can't wait until our hopefully healthy babies are here and then they can help with them too! :)
Here's the weekly info-I did gain weight, but nobody needs to know how much I actually weigh! :) I am now measuring 44 cm, which would be equal to the number of weeks for normal pregnant women. My blood pressure is still good too. Cervix is still high and closed-yea! He doesn't measure it on ultrasound anymore, so I don't know if it has shortened, but I'll take a closed cervix anyday! The ultrasound was good too, although the babies are definitely starting to run out of stretching room now! They were all pretty calm and gave us some nice profile shots for the pictures. They all had a good amount of fluid and the membrane between the boys was moving nicely (which means that baby C has enough fluid and he isn't Saran Wrapped into is area). Dr. K came in and checked everything for himself, although he did make my MIL nervous because he was so quiet while looking at the babies. It is getting more difficult to tell who is who in there! He was starting with baby A and then moving up to find B and C. At one point the had all their heads together-like a football huddle. I fear they are already plotting against us! :) So, while Dr. K was following heads to find bodies, he was really quiet. While Brad and I know that is how our doctor is when he is looking at the ultrasound, my MIL did not and was worried that something was wrong. Luckily, he spoke up in a little bit and said that everything looks good. I asked Dr. K about getting my regular flu shot and he said if they aren't in at his office at my next appointment, I should just go somewhere local to get it sooner. I still didn't get a clear answer on the H1N1 shot-just that the CDC and other organizations are recommending it. I couldn't get him to say that he recommends it, only that usually 1 out of 5 of their patients refuse to get the regular flu shot. Brad would really prefer that I not get it and I am still thinking that it would probably be better to wait until after the babies are born. I am not in public areas, except when I go to the doctor and I am obsessive about hand washing and using hand sanitizer while I am there. We talked about how we are happy that we made it to 28 weeks and how complications go down dramatically now. He did say to not get cocky and be cautiously optomistic like we have been up to this point. I then asked about touring the NICU and he said that we may not need to worry about the NICU. I joked, "Now who's being cocky?!" While I would love to avoid the NICU, I would rather be prepared because I have the feeling we'll still be visiting our babies there for a little bit at least. I am going to have a consult with the anesthesiologist because of the risks of surgery with myotonic dystrophy, so we decided that we'll set up our tour for that same day.
Next week is our big appointment with another growth scan and biophysical profiles. I am excited and nervous to see how much they have grown-hopefully a lot! I will be 29 weeks on Tuesday and it feels like things are speeding up now, thankfully. I think this weekend we are going to be putting together another crib, (actually, Brad will be doing that), and taking some gifts out of their packages. I have to continue to work on thank you cards for my co-workers since Brad's co-workers are doing a shower for us next Friday. I am hoping to be allowed to go, but it will depend on how Thursday's appointment goes.
Thanks for everyone's support and assistance again-we really appreciate our families and friends for everything they are doing to help us through this! I can't wait until our hopefully healthy babies are here and then they can help with them too! :)
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
28 weeks and a long vent-you've been warned!
We made it!!! 28 weeks and counting; let's hope for a few more weeks now! I have been counting down to this day for so long, it feels odd that it has actually arrived. I am relieved, but know that we aren't out of the woods yet. I have still been feeling pretty good lately, although it is getting more difficult to move around. It is especially tricky to get off the couch and roll over or get out of bed during the night. I usually end up having a contraction after moving, so I am trying to move without using my abdominal muscles (which is pretty tough-try it)! Since taking more Prilosec my acid reflux has calmed down a bit, thank goodness! After a night time episode my throat is sore though. Hopefully I won't have any permanent damage from it!
While I am so happy that we are at 28 weeks, I wasn't able to enjoy it as much as I had hoped. As most of you know, I am on bed rest and not able to work. Currently I am receiving a paycheck, but I don't have too many paid days off. So, I am stressing out about certain issues concerning extra paid time off that my workplace has and how to qualify for that benefit. Along with that, I am worrying about how we are going to pay our bills when my paid time runs out. We made the mistake of calling one of our credit card companies to see if we could lower our interest rate and told them our situation, including that we might have a difficult time paying that bill in a few months. Keep in mind we haven't used that card in over 6 months and have been paying more than the minimum on time for quite a long time (I was one of those stupid college kids who signed up for a credit card on campus and used it way too much for way too long). So, they said there was nothing they could do to help us except waive the $15 fee they charge to talk to someone about issues. Later in the day, I was trying to figure out a budget and signed on to check the interest rate of that card and noticed that they lowered out credit limit to within a few hundred dollars of what we owed. I called this morning and asked about the situation and the man basically told me that they did that because they considered us a risk-nevermind all the payments we make! I was not happy and after a few more comments back and forth I told him we wanted to close the account because I didn't want to do business with a company that treats their long time customers like this. By the way, they didn't waive that fee either! I am so glad the government gave them money. Apparently they forgot that not so long ago they needed help themselves-so much for helping out the customer. So, needless to say, I had a few contractions this morning!
Sorry for that long vent-gotta get it out somewhere. Unfortunately, it looks like I will be returning to work at least part time, but more likely full time this year. While I miss being at school and working with students and staff, I really felt like it would be better for our family if I stayed home this year. It just doesn't seem possible at this time, especially with the financial needs of three babies looming over our heads. These are the times that I get most frustrated about both of us having student loans from college, along with car payments and credit card bills. We were able to defer 2 out of our 3 student loan payments (still working on that last one), and that will save us over $400 a month-that'll buy some diapers! So going back to keep us financially afloat is fine, but I have to be extra cautious about germs (kindergarten students are not known for their good hand washing skills). We are also going to be putting a strain on our families to help care for these babies, so I feel guilty about that too.
All in all, I can't wait to meet these little additions to our family, and I know everything will be alright (in the words of Bob Marley). I just hate not being able to plan everything out and see visually that we'll get through this. I guess I'll just have to believe in my heart that it'll work out.
Next appointment is Thursday! I am going to do everything in my power to not stress out tomorrow or Thursday morning-I know the stress can't be good for them in there. And we are now reaching for the mini-goal of 30 and big goal of 32 weeks. It does seem to be going a little faster now! We should meet our babies within about 7 weeks now! All this will be so worth it when we have them in our arms. Thanks for letting me vent-I feel better now!
While I am so happy that we are at 28 weeks, I wasn't able to enjoy it as much as I had hoped. As most of you know, I am on bed rest and not able to work. Currently I am receiving a paycheck, but I don't have too many paid days off. So, I am stressing out about certain issues concerning extra paid time off that my workplace has and how to qualify for that benefit. Along with that, I am worrying about how we are going to pay our bills when my paid time runs out. We made the mistake of calling one of our credit card companies to see if we could lower our interest rate and told them our situation, including that we might have a difficult time paying that bill in a few months. Keep in mind we haven't used that card in over 6 months and have been paying more than the minimum on time for quite a long time (I was one of those stupid college kids who signed up for a credit card on campus and used it way too much for way too long). So, they said there was nothing they could do to help us except waive the $15 fee they charge to talk to someone about issues. Later in the day, I was trying to figure out a budget and signed on to check the interest rate of that card and noticed that they lowered out credit limit to within a few hundred dollars of what we owed. I called this morning and asked about the situation and the man basically told me that they did that because they considered us a risk-nevermind all the payments we make! I was not happy and after a few more comments back and forth I told him we wanted to close the account because I didn't want to do business with a company that treats their long time customers like this. By the way, they didn't waive that fee either! I am so glad the government gave them money. Apparently they forgot that not so long ago they needed help themselves-so much for helping out the customer. So, needless to say, I had a few contractions this morning!
Sorry for that long vent-gotta get it out somewhere. Unfortunately, it looks like I will be returning to work at least part time, but more likely full time this year. While I miss being at school and working with students and staff, I really felt like it would be better for our family if I stayed home this year. It just doesn't seem possible at this time, especially with the financial needs of three babies looming over our heads. These are the times that I get most frustrated about both of us having student loans from college, along with car payments and credit card bills. We were able to defer 2 out of our 3 student loan payments (still working on that last one), and that will save us over $400 a month-that'll buy some diapers! So going back to keep us financially afloat is fine, but I have to be extra cautious about germs (kindergarten students are not known for their good hand washing skills). We are also going to be putting a strain on our families to help care for these babies, so I feel guilty about that too.
All in all, I can't wait to meet these little additions to our family, and I know everything will be alright (in the words of Bob Marley). I just hate not being able to plan everything out and see visually that we'll get through this. I guess I'll just have to believe in my heart that it'll work out.
Next appointment is Thursday! I am going to do everything in my power to not stress out tomorrow or Thursday morning-I know the stress can't be good for them in there. And we are now reaching for the mini-goal of 30 and big goal of 32 weeks. It does seem to be going a little faster now! We should meet our babies within about 7 weeks now! All this will be so worth it when we have them in our arms. Thanks for letting me vent-I feel better now!
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