A little scare with Whitney

This morning, my nurse came in to do my daily monitoring for contractions and the babies heartbeats. Normally we monitor the babies heartbeats for 20 minutes, today, they searched for Whitney's heartbeat for over an hour and still could not find it. Granted she is almost always the most difficult to find, but they are usually able to find it within 10 or 20 minutes. My nurse brought in 2 other nurses, which happens sometimes, but they were still unable to find it. They decided to stop searching because all that pressing on my uterus causes contractions. They paged my doctor (well, not my OB, but the one on call) and she ordered for the radiology department to come do a sonogram. They weren't able to get anybody on the phone to come up and we were worried and growing impatient, so Craig called my perinatalogist, Dr. Koster to see if she could come and do a sonogram for us. She was on her way up here and would be here shortly. In the meantime, the nurses came back in with a 4th nurse to try monitoring again. This time, they found Whitney on the other side of my belly. They have never found her on that side so it was surprising to find her there. All the babies were on the right side of my belly and we couldn't believe my belly wasn't bulging on one side from all the babies on one side. It was such a relief to finally find her and know that she was okay. BTW, we did not have a sonogram because they were able to find her.

On another note, tomorrow is New Year's Eve. Happy New Year to you! I hope you all have a nice and safe New Year! Have fun bringing in the new year with your family and friends. Me, Craig, Tyler, Hannah, Whitney and Lacy will be celebrating the new year a couple of hours early. :) We will all be sound asleep by midnight I am sure.

A different Christmas, Drama drama drama & 29 week update

Our Christmas was okay...it was different for sure. I didn't go into labor and we had several visitors, so that was the upside. Craig brought Lacy up to spend the day with us. It was nice to have her with us rather than at home by herself. My Mom came by for a quick visit. She brought the babies several little gifts and she brought us some Christmas desserts. Craig's brother and SIL, Kyle and Michaela stopped by also and brought Christmas to us. Craig's parents stopped by and they also brought us some nice Christmas gifts. Our friends John and Angi came by last. It was so nice of them to take time out away from their family to come visit us on Christmas day. Thank you to all of you who came to see us. All in all, I felt fairly decent that day (physically), but it was a more emotionally difficult day and your company helped tremendously.

Christmas day with Lacy.



Let me preface this next portion of the post by saying I not only use this blog to keep you all updated, but also as a journal (public as it may be). Some of the things I say may not be necessarily surface level positive all the time. I try to spare you with all the negative details most of the time, but sometimes I just need to vent. Some things have been VERY stressful lately, aside from the babies. My Mom's health has been a concern along with my worry over my dog. All that being said, let me vent a little about my day yesterday.

My day was going on as normal, then about 1 in the afternoon, the charge nurse came in and advised me that the hospital was doing some remodeling and they had started on the floor I was on. She said they had painted the rooms they wanted to do first and were now ready to paint my room. She literally told me she wanted me moved by the next hour or two! I was pretty upset because obviously I can't pack up my stuff and I had nobody here or planning to be here to help me pack my stuff. She acted like it was no big deal because the nurses would be able to pack my stuff and I would be right there to supervise them. She obviously has never been on the other side of the hospital doors before. Well...my first question to her was, did this other room have a couch. We try to make some kind of arrangements for somebody to watch our dog at least once a week so Craig can at least spend one night with me a week. Not all the rooms have couches, so if this one didn't have one, that would be a problem. Second question I asked was, what about my bed. I recently got a bed that is not older than I am. My first bed was so old and rickety - it squeeked every time I moved it up or down, and it had ancient springs underneath that caused me to sink into a hole in my mattress, and it was killing my back. I can't believe a hospital this nice would have such awful beds for their patients, especially when the patient is staying/living here long term on top of carrying lots and lots of baby(ies). Anyway...after a couple of days of repeatedly telling the nurses I need a better bed, I finally got one. I think I did pretty good not saying anything for the first 3weeks I was here. So, back to my original point... the charge nurse told me that I could keep my bed and that they would wheel me down to my room in the bed. My third question was, how long did you guys know about the painting process and the need to move patients. She said they had known for quite a few weeks, but that the painters just told her they were ready to paint my room next. I was pretty upset because this was just one more thing that I have absolutely NO control over. I told her I didn't want the nurses packing my room and that I would make a few phone calls and see if I could get somebody up here to pack my room. She was cooperative and said that would be fine, but she still wanted me out of my room in the next hour or so. It wasn't that I didn't necessarily trust the nurses, but when you spend any extended length of time in the hospital, you lose ALL privacy and ALL control over EVERYTHING. There is just something about a bunch of people you don't know throwing all your stuff into a bag and treating you like "just a number" rather than respecting you as a human being and respecting your belongings. How do I know they do this??? My friend Jessica, who was here in antepartum with me for many weeks experienced this last week when she went into labor. They were packing up all her stuff within minutes after she went into labor. The nurses had told me that they allow you time to get family up here to pack it for you, but from what I can see, that is not true. Its not like they are full here and in diar need of the rooms...they have several rooms open now. All that being said, I called my MIL, Jami because I knew she had a few days off for the holiday and would probably be the person to be able to get up here the quickest. She was up here within an hour and a half or so and packed up my entire room for me. I had called Craig after calling my MIL and told him the situation and he was more upset than I was. He talked to the charge nurse who was being so pushy that I move rooms RIGHT NOW, and it didn't go over well. He said he wasn't rude to her, but her body language was very rude in return to me and it made for a very awkward situation. Most of you who know me on a more personal level, know I am not the type of person to put up with stuff like this, but there is just something about being on bedrest in a hospital that puts you in a very vulnerable position. I count on these strangers to take care of me and I don't want there to be any bad blood between us. So, I got all moved and I guess on a positive note, I have a new view (not that there is anything to look at), but at least its different. The shower in this room actually works decent as opposed to my old shower, but the door doesn't lock, which gives me no comfort in knowing I have at least a little privacy when I use the restroom. It's just as well though because I have decided to start taking my showers at night so Craig can help me. I guess this will kill two birds with one stone because I will have his help and I won't be worrying about somebody walking in on me as I would if I were taking a shower in the day while Craig isn't here. Craig got here last night and spent the night so he would be here for my appointment this morning. It was still pretty awkward and stressful with the events of the day that had taken place earlier, but it passed, we went to sleep and got up this morning for a brand new day.

If you would like to come by or call, send me an email so I can give you my new room number.

I made it to 29 weeks! Yeay! My doctor appointment this morning went well. The babies are looking great - they have good fluid around them still, good heartbeats, all their measurements look normal and their weights are ahead of schedule. All are measuring about a week ahead of time.

Baby A (Tyler) - 3 lbs. 4 oz.
Baby B (Hannah) - 3 lbs. 4 oz.
Baby C (Whitney) - 3 lbs. 3 oz.

I don't know where all these babies are fitting because I seriously don't feel big enough to be carrying 9 lbs. 11 oz. of baby and I am not seeing it in my weight gain. As far as everything goes with me, my cervix was longer this time, (32 or 3.2)which is good, but my doctor did see some funneling, which can be a progression to deliver sooner than if it weren't funneling. However, the fact that it is longer than last time is an improvement. Confusing...I know. I am borderline anemic now, so I am now taking iron for that. My contractions are still coming and going all day every day which is to be expected, but they remain under control most of the time. My comfort level is pretty bad. I pretty much have about an hour or two in the morning before my serious discomfort sets in. The longer the day goes on, the more uncomfortable I get. My blood pressure has been a little lower the past few days, but it is still in the "okay" range. My nurses will have me sit up more to make it go up a little more especially before taking my procardia, which can lower the BP even more. Only problem is if I sit up to improve my BP, it causes more contractions.

I made sure to get my pants low enough where my belly size would look more accurate. I think the past few have made it look smaller than it is. Even though I don't feel like I've grown much, I can tell a difference in the picture.



If you look at the right side of my belly, you can probably see it bulging out. This is Hannah. She likes to hang out way far over on my far right by herself. She has been causing me the most discomfort the 28th week. :)



Before Craig left this afternoon, we went by the NICU (I still have wheel chair privileges) and saw my friend Jessica's babies. She was the girl I mentioned earlier that was in antepartum with me, also pregnant with triplets. She had her babies on the 19th and she and the babies are doing great. It was so nice to see them in person and gain comfort in seeing how well taken care of they are. She had her babies at about 30 1/2 weeks and the babies all weighed and still do weigh over 3 pounds. They are so precious.

This is me and Jessica taken several days ago.



This is the highlight of my day...some days but not every day, Craig takes me on a wheelchair tour of the hospital and we usually go down to this huge comfy couch for me to lay on in the lobby. Its funny some of the looks I get from other people.



Eating is so fun!

Christmas carolers

Friday... was probably the most uncomfortable day for me so far. The babies were just pushing and poking me all day long. I just started taking procardia twice a day and yet I still had to have the terb shot to control my contractions more efficiently. I was extremely discouraged and felt like I may deliver these babies any day now. Also, I didn't get to see Craig at all that day due to work scheduling. I didn't get to see him Monday either. :( It is getting easier to not have to see him every day. We are adjusting.

My spirits were lifted when my friends Jennifer and Vickie stopped by. They brought me lunch and some yummy Christmas cookies. Later that afternoon, the Christmas carolers came down the hall singing Christmas carols. I was already somewhat down emotionally and laying in my bed doing nothing when I heard the people singing outside my room. I immediately got upset and started to cry. I got up and opened my door to listen to them for a few seconds before they made their way down the hall. Then, I waved at another antepartum mom, who was standing at her door, she waved back and we both went back to our rooms. It was so nice of them to do such a sweet thing for us.

Saturday....was much better. I didn't have too much pain and discomfort. I did have my normal contractions, but nothing too extreme. Thank goodness because I needed a break. It was a low-key day. I did some reading and computer work while listening to some Christmas music. After Craig got off from work, he came up to the hospital with Lacy. It has been a while since I have seen her. She actually acted like she knew who I was this time. I think maybe she is getting used to the hospital environment. The three of us had a good time watching the football game together. Craig is going to bring Lacy back up to see me on Christmas day--we are looking forward to that.

Sunday...Kevin, Jill and their kiddos are supposed to stop by. We will have Christmas/birthday gifts to give to them. We'll just do an early Christmas with them.

A rough day

Yesterday was a rough day with all the appointments we had and the news we received. We were a little stressed out from the doctor's appointment and I also didn't feel very good physically. I had to have the terb shot last night, so I am now on procardia twice a day. I pretty much figured my doctor would get a little more aggressive with the contractions considering my shortened cervix.

We had our NICU tour and that was very good for both of us to see the ins and outs of the NICU. The lady giving us the tour talked to a couple of parents who were there at the time and they gave us permission to see a couple of babies that were born at 28 weeks (which is where we are currently). It was encouraging to see these babies because they weren't as small as I thought. I just wish I would have thought to ask how much the babies weighed at birth. That way we could compare them to how much ours weigh now.

The neonatalogist finally came to talk to us around 5pm. He gave us a quick overview of the NICU and answered any questions we had. Also, Dr. Koster told us the NICU was full, which didn't comfort me one bit considering my cervix is shortening and it seems our babies may come sooner than expected. I did talk to Dr. Nivens and the neonatalogist about this and the neonatalogist told us the NICU was currently not full, but this was the fullest the NICU has EVER been. I asked about the probability of our babies being sent to another hospital and they both said it is highly unlikely because babies go home all the time. But, if it is full, he said they would probably be sent to Presby Dallas, Medical City or Medical Center of Plano. They all have level 3 NICU's, but we would rather them be here. This morning, my nurse said they closed the NICU last night because they got a set of twins. Hopefully, our babies will stay put for a while and we won't have to deal with this added stress of them being sent to another hospital.

28 weeks - good and bad news

Before I start with today, I'll give you a quick update of the past few days. My SIL, Lisa and two of her little ones, Victoria and Leah, came by to see me Monday. They brought me some nice little snacks and we also let the kids open their Christmas gifts up here at the hospital so I could watch them open their gifts from me and Craig.



Tuesday, Craig took me down to the lobby for my exciting wheelchair outing and I managed to leave my cell phone on the couch where we were sitting. Thank God an honest man found my phone and called Craig to come get it. I can't believe I forgot my phone...that is just not like me, but then again, I was a little preoccupied with contractions.

Wednesday, my friend Jodi brought us dinner. We had a good time visiting with her. I keep forgetting to take pictures of my visitors...I guess I am already getting the mommy brain. :)

On a good note, today marks 28 weeks, which is a huge milestone for the babies. My belly really doesn't look any bigger to me, but the babies are growing.



We took a better shot of the baby monitoring and contraction monitoring that I do every day.



Today, we had our doctor's appointment. Craig was able to come this time, which I am very thankful for because it was not the best appointment I've had. The good news is, the babies all look great, they still have good fluid and good heart rates. The cord doppler measurement for Tyler's heart was a little off, but she said it is nothing to worry about because he is still getting enough blood flow and his placenta still looks fine. The bad news is my cervical length has shortened quite a bit since last week. It is now 2.5 or 2.6. Koster wants to set a new goal for 30 weeks rather than 35 or 36 weeks. Thirty weeks would put me at January 3rd. Obviously, if I can go longer, we will...they won't be wheeling me to the OR at 30 weeks just because it is 30 weeks. Thirty weeks is just our new goal.

Later this afternoon, we are having our NICU tour and consultation. I will update you on that in a couple of days. Thanks for all your prayers and please continue to pray that these babies will stay put for at least a few more weeks.

2 week anniversary

Today marks the two week anniversary of my stay here at the hospital. Considering I haven't had the babies yet, I am going to assume the FFN test was a false positive. It does give me a lot of comfort and relief to have made it to this day. I know each day and week is still a big deal to get through, which is still very stressful, but at least I got through these first two weeks. We aren't doing anymore of those tests because it will not effect whether I go home or not. I am okay with that because I think knowing the results of future FFN tests will only stress me out more (if it is positive of course). I think it will be better to try to just take it one day at a time. The other day when Craig and my Mom were here, I started singing an old song to them..."One day at a time, sweet Jesus."

One day at a time sweet Jesus
That's all I'm asking from you.
Just give me the strength
To do everyday what I have to do.
Yesterday's gone sweet Jesus
And tomorrow may never be mine.
Lord help me today, show me the way
One day at a time.

Also, the other day, during one of my wheel chair trips around the hospital, we went in the gift shop just to look around. We saw some knick-knack plaques that had the first few lines of the Serenity Prayer on them. I told Craig we needed to get that and put it on my bedside table where I could read all day long. :)

The Serenity Prayer
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.

--Reinhold Niebuhr

Yesterday was a pretty quiet day, which was good for me because I just needed some time to rest. I had a sleepless night Saturday night and got up at 5 am Sunday morning. My day was about the same as most days...contractions off and on throughout the day, followed by increased contractions in the evening and a Terbutaline shot. I have to say, I am beginning to get used to getting that shot every day...or almost every day. It still makes me feel yukky, but I'm getting used to the routine. I think my doctor is about to change my Procardia dosage to twice a day though, so that may decrease the frequency of my terb shots.

Craig's parents stopped by yesterday for a quick visit. They had been out at our house helping with chores since Craig worked all weekend. They came by and we just visited some and watched the pitiful Cowboys game together. They also brought Craig his birthday present up here for him to open.



That is about all for now. I will update you soon.

Happy Birthday Craig

Friday was a busy day. Nothing out of the ordinary was going on with me or the babies. It just seemed like the day went by fast. I did have to have the turb shot to help bring my contractions under control, but that is nothing new. :)

Lisa and Jennifer stopped by and brought me lunch, snacks, reading material and birthday cake for Craig so I could surprise him with it for his birthday on Saturday. I guess I fell down on the job again and forgot to take their picture. :(

That evening, John and Angi brought us dinner, dessert and a Christmas poinsetta. We thank you all again for coming to visit and bringing us food and things. We feel very loved and blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family.



Saturday was Craig's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY HONEY! Due to the bad weather, Craig had to work, so we weren't able to spend much time together on his special day.

My friend Megan stopped by to visit. She is pregnant with twins!



My mom stopped by and brought the cutest little stockings for each of the babies. She also brought a cute little snowman stocking and a globe with an angel inside. She said she wanted us to have the angel to represent the angel that is watching over me and the babies during this time. Bring on the water works please! :)



Craig brought Lacy up to see me again. We try to do that once a week. I think she enjoys it. Craig brought his birthday gift and card from me up to the hospital so he could open it in front of me. Luckily, I had already bought it, so I didn't have to have somebody else buy it for me to give to him. I just had to have his Mom wrap it for me so he could open it. We also had a little birthday cake and I sang Craig happy birthday. Not the ideal way to celebrate a birthday, but we make sacrifices...that is what it is all about.





Chris and Amy also came by with their niece, Lindsey. They live in Tyler, which is no short trip. It was good to see them. Thanks for coming by. Lindsey was so cute and I can't believe how calm she was with Lacy.