30 Week Update.

Well we are 24 days into this ordeal & have 25 to go. However, of you ask Dave he wants to go 26 more days so the babes are born on Friday the 13th.

But we can't think that far ahead just yet, I need to keep these babes cooking longer. The babes are 30 weeks & have so much of a better chance than when we first got here. They were measured at Thursday's ultrasound & Baby A is around 3lbs7oz and Baby B is around 3lbs12oz. I would love it of we could get them to over 5 pounds in the next 4 weeks.

My legs aren't fairing so well with the inactivity. Thank goodness they some action from the ALP Machine, which helps prevent blood clots.

Days are long & filled with people constantly going in & out of my room. Luckily I've had a lot of visitors to pass the time. The weekends are the toughest & I am especially jealous of everyone enjoying the amazing weather we have been having.

I am of course quickly reminded of why I am here & am extremely thankful that I have made it this long. Right now the babes are monitoring very well & Baby A's fluid is looking great. I am having contractions, but they aren't progressing just yet & fluid intake calms them down. My threshold is labor, so at this point, if the babes decide they want to come, there is no stopping them!

Thanks again for all the thoughts & prayers. Thanks also for the lovely flowers, cards & gifts!!

29 Week Update. 2 Weeks Down...5 to Go!

The babes have been monitoring really well the past couple days. I am still having contractions every now and then, but they can be slowed down by fluid intake. My nurses said that this is a good sign because if it were real labor, then the fluids would do nothing.

So pretty much everything is keeping steady. Just hunkering down & hanging out here in the hospital for the long haul!

Thanks again for all the continued support! It is so appreciated!!

10 Days Down, 39 To Go! Week 28 Update

This week has had a lot of ups and downs, but as Sunday ends, I'm even more hopeful that we will make it through this hospital bed rest.

Last Sunday the babes were monitoring well, but I wasn't. I was having too many contractions per hour & had to have a lot of fluids pushed. Dave was hoping to head to work on Monday, so he was at home, and made a late night trip back to the hospital just in case. I had myself a good little cry, but was able to make it through the night.  Morning monitoring went well & I haven't had to have an IV fluid push since.

Upon our arrival here we found out that I was fighting an e.coli infection & strain which was not responding to the first set of antibiotics I was on.  It was also a strain that was very bad for a NICU baby. Scary.  A second course of antibiotics was started on Monday and at last test the infection is gone!!

Both the babes & myself have monitored well over the week & we were so thrilled to hit 28 weeks on Thursday.  Just an extra week cooking and making it to the third trimester gives our babes a better chance.  They have however, been having some issues at night time monitoring as of recent. There have been some dips in heartrate & running a high heart rate that had me monitored 3x a day as opposed to our regular 2. I'm hoping it's just the babies being busy & jumping off the monitor instead of anything too drastic. Apparently twins aren't always very cooperative on the monitor - not to mention my own heartrate seemed to get picked up every now and then.

We got to see the babes every Monday & Thursday. There it was determined that baby A was in fact the sac that ruptured. However, even though her fluid is lower, she is still considered "Low Normal." We get to see them tomorrow. I can't wait.

I had my 1 hour gestational diabetes test on Friday & I did not pass. I was pretty worried, but knew that it was common in twins & I was in the right place to treat it correctly. The 3 hour test was schedule for this morning & I passed with flying colors. I have a strange suspition that the milkshake I had a day prior to the first test might have thrown off the results, but boy was it worth it! Thanks Dale!! :)

Another positive today: I got my IV out! Here's hoping those contractions stay away, because I really like my arms to heal up!! Oh, and the best part...I got a bed extension!! Now my feet won't get crunched up at the end of the bed anymore!!

I've had a lot of great visitors & tons of support from my family, friends, and tweeps. Thanks again, you don't know how much it means to know that you are standing by me!

So we've got 10 days down in the hospital and 39 to go!! Keep on Cooking!!

Got pics of my babes hanging up & some lovely art work by Ava

Day 6. 27w5d. 44 to go!

The last few days have been up and down. My biggest issue is I keep having contractions. The most preventative measure right now is to push IV fluids & so far that has been working. The doctors are telling me as long as the fluid works then they can hold off labor, however, if it does not, they won't stop labor.

They are continually monitoring for infection as well. That seems to be another major concernwith a rupture case like mine

After yesterday's ultrasound, they did determine that it was Baby A's sac that ruptured. Both are still looking pretty good though. Doc said that both babes are practicing their breathing which is a VERY good thing if they have to come out early.

So it's still a day to day thing we have going on here!

Thanks again for all the love and support. It means so much to us!!

UPDATE: Got some bad news - apparently I do have an infection that isn't reacting to the antibiotics that I have been given. They are changing the meds up & hope to have it cleared in the next 72 hours. This kind of infection is very bad for NICU babies, so fingers crossed that it clears soon!!

27 Week Update

Yesterday I wrote a blog.

It was very long.

It decided it didn't want to save.

I don't feel like writing it all again.

So here is the long and the short of it.

We have a countdown going. Today marks 46 Days to go. 46 days that I need to keep these babies growing inside of me.

On Thursday one of the twin's sac had a rupture. We came to the hospital & the babes got checked out right away. Their fluid levels looked ok, but I am here to stay. In the past few days, I've been hooked up to IV's, given steroids & antibiotics, & had many monitoring sessions of the babes.

Dave has been a trooper. Staying by my side & making sure the countdown is updated on my board.

So now we wait.

We hope that these babes will wait till 34 weeks. 46 more days.

Thank you to my amazing family & friends - who have texted, called, facetimed, tweeted, & visited. I don't know what our little family would have done without you.

Althought today was another challenging day, since I've been having contractions, I'm trying to stay as positive as I can!! I hope to update as much as possible on here - so that everyone knows how we are doing.

Love you all!

Rebecca

Week 26 Update

Well it's been several weeks & the changes have been dramatic!

The babes have doubled in size. At my last update they were both around 1 pound, now baby A is 2.4lbs & baby B is 2lbs. Both are measuring right on track & I'm happy to report that Baby A's femur is measuring 2 weeks ahead - long legs like mom!! So inevitably, with the babes getting bigger, so is this belly! At the beginning of my third trimester in 2 weeks, adding the babes weight together will equal the size of a full term singleton! That fact reminds me - I'm going to be huge!!

I haven't gotten really uncomfortable just yet - but I might be interfering with Dave's sleep pattern with my frequent trips to the bathroom & tossing & turning. All those books that said I would see some bladder relief during the second trimester were lying! The bathroom & I have become great friends.

I'm also starting to slow down a bit.  After running next to Ava & helping her ride her 2 wheel bike on Friday, I had to take a break because was completely winded! She made me work hard, but of course I didn't let her know I was tired :) Our weekend walks have also gotten shorter, but mainly due to constant need to find the loo!

Now, here are some baby & belly pix!

The babes are getting harder & harder to photograph! They are getting pretty squished in there, but our OWU alum (awesome right?) ultrasound tech was able to get some good ones. There's even an up close shot of Baby A's lady parts - never modest us gals!

The belly has finally risen higher, which helps me a ton!

Week 22 Update

The past few weeks have been pretty hectic, but thanks to Dave we are getting close to being prepared for the babes to get here. We decided it was smarter for us to get things done early, since we have no clue when they will come, or whether or not I will be up for "nesting" part of pregnancy.

So far we have rearranged the loft to give the babes a space of their own, set up a small nursery, & purchased a mini van. Holy shit. That's a lot.

Last week was a visit with our normal doctor. These ones have been easy so far...nice, fast, and cheerful. A quick check on babes, hello to the doctor, and we are on our way.

This week's appointment was with the perinatologist. I like these ones, because each time they do a thorough check to make sure the babes are growing properly, & that there are no complications. The babes are getting big!  Together they weigh about 2.5 lbs (which is about what a 28 week baby weighs). So needless to say, I am going to be giant. I really am appreciating my height & stature at the moment, hoping this will help in the long run!

Here are the latest pictures of the babes. Baby A is giving us a "I'm #1" - already a sports fan, I dig it.

And of course the ever expanding belly. I really felt like it grew a lot in the last week!