After we left Dr. Wagner's office, we headed home to pack and take Charlie to my parents' house. The plan was that family would be notified when we were going to the hospital, but in order to keep some level of sanity, we requested that they wait for a second phone call from us before they headed to the hospital. We also requested that they refrain from sharing the news with anyone as we wanted to be the ones to announce the birth of our kids..more on this later..
We went home, grabbed our overnight bag, a few last minute things and the dog and headed to my parents house who live about 10 minutes from us. The plan was to surprise them when we got there, but my brother was the only one home and the first to find out that we were having the babies that evening. We called and texted family on our way to the hospital, all the time, not really in any hurry. We even debated whether or not we should stop and get something to eat, but decided against it because I wasn't supposed to eat anything before surgery.
The phone calls to our parents were pretty funny. My dad's response was full of 4 letter words, Jeremy's mom didn't quite realize what he was telling her and it took a moment to sink in.
We arrived at the hospital around 6:30 PM and were settled in the room by about 7:00. I was hooked up the standard ToCo (contraction) monitor, had an IV and cath put in and was checked by a nurse to see how things were progressing. Much to ALL of our surprise, I was at 7, pushing 8cm and wasn't really in any pain. Again, I was just uncomfortable. She left to speak to a doctor and to call anesthesia to speed things up. Jeremy and I watched a little TV (I don't remember what was on) and we watched the line on the contraction monitor continue to rise and I continued to feel more and more uncomfortable- never in any pain, just uncomfortable. At one point, Jeremy asked if I needed anything and I told him that in about 2 minutes, I was going to send him to find a doctor or a nurse. At that precise moment, my doctor, the anesthesiologist and several nurses walked in in full scrubs. Jeremy took that as his signal to go put on his scrubs.
I was wheeled into the surgical room,which was FREEZING, at 8:00PM. Jeremy was asked to wait outside until I had been prepped. "Prep" consisted of getting a spinal block (didn't feel a thing) and my belly getting scrubbed and cleaned. There were about 14 people in the room, including myself and my doctor- nurses for me, a doctor and a few nurses for each of the babies, the anesthesiologist, the room was full. While I was being prepped, I watched the nurses get the two isolets ready for the babies and realized I went to grade school with one of the nurses. Talk about a small world!
After I had been prepped, I was laying on the table waiting for Jeremy to come in. One of the nurses told me that my mother in law had stopped her and wanted her to tell me that they were there. As if I was waiting on pins and needles and wouldn't start before they arrived.. sigh...
Jeremy was allowed in at about 8:10 and the blue screen was pulled up. The anesthesiologist stood behind me and I laid on the table with my arms out to my sides- think Jesus on the cross. He narrated what my doctor was doing for me and when the time came, he told Jeremy to stand up and look- they were pulling Baby A (Lyla) out (8:19PM) . Even though I couldn't feel anything from the waist down, I felt the weight of her leave my body. She was rushed to one of the isolets and her team began working on her. I remember hearing her 'gurgle', but I wasn't concerned. I knew she was okay. I'd never been worried about her. Something told me that she was going to be fine. Then, I heard the anaesthesiologist tell Jeremy to look over the screen again because they were lifting Baby B (Jack) out (8:20PM). Jeremy peeked over the screen just as Jack was pull butt-first out of my abdomen, screaming and mad as hell. I got a quick peek at him before the nurses started working on him before I heard the anaesthesiologist ask Jeremy if he was okay. I looked up and Jeremy was WHITE. He sat down and had a wet cloth put on his neck. Poor guy almost passed out. Turns out, Lyla was still being worked on- she inhaled a bit of fluid right before they pulled her out and was having some problems breathing. We have a few pictures of her while they were working on her and she was a bit blue. The combination of seeing our blue child and watching Jack be pulled butt-first from my stomach was a bit much for him. After a short break, he was up again snapping pictures of our kiddos.
While Jack was on the table, he peed all over one of the nurses. They were able to stabilize Lyla and before we knew it, Jeremy was holding both babies. My arms were still spread out and I was being sewn up, so I couldn't really hold either of them, but I breathed them in as much as I could before they were wisked away to the Special Care nursery.
A few things that I remember about the c-section itself..
1. The spinal block didn't hurt at all- just a small pinch and that was it.
2. I felt the babies being pulled out of me. No pain, but I felt the weight of them leaving me.
3. The room is FREEZING
4. The suction container was right by my head- literally, I just had to turn my head to the right and I could see everything that they were sucking out of me. Good thing I have a strong stomach.. because I got to see all sorts of nastyness.
5. The anaesthesiologist was great. He made sure Jeremy took pictures of the babies and he even took our first family picture.
After I was sewn up, by a resident (ARGHHHHH), I was sat up and got to see an incredibly flat stomach for the first time in months. The nurses even commented on how it didn't even look like I'd just had twins. SO nice to hear :) They scrubbed me down, cleaned my belly and back. Jeremy told me later that it was pretty nasty and bloody. Nice. Then I was moved onto another bed and wheeled back into the room. I remember it was about 9:00 because the anesthesiologist requested that a certain channel be turned on because the new series "Parenthood" was beginning. Looking back, it was very appropriate.
Our parents were allowed back into the room and were incredibly hyped up. They had seen the babies pass by in the isolets and were able to catch a glimpse of them. At one point, Jeremy asked if they wanted to know their names. They were all very happy with our choices. I started to get the shakes, which continues for quite some time, as a result of the surgery. I couldn't move from the waist down, but my whole body was shaking. I was trying to drink some water and finally gave up because I was afraid I was going to pour it all over myself.
Before I was moved into the room I would call home for the next 4 days, I was wheeled into the Special Care nursery so I could see the babies. I was able to see both of them, but I could only hold Lyla. Jack was put on oxygen because his levels had dropped a bit, but Lyla was going strong. When they were born, they got hats with stickers put on them #1, #2.. I'm afraid that Lyla will never let Jack forget that she was #1 from the day they were born.
After spending a few short moments with the babies, I was wheeled into my room, vitals were taken and Jeremy and I had a few quiet moments to ourselves. By that time, it was after midnight and we were pooped. He tried to sleep on the futon in the room, but the constant checking of my vitals throughout the night kept him up. At one point, the nurse noticed that my incision was seeping and called the doctor who was on call that night. I think it was about 3AM and the doctor had to have been 85 years old. There was concern that I was going to have to go back into surgery again to have it resewn.. damn resident! They changed my dressing and watched it more closely and the fear of going into surgery again brought back the shakes. Badly. It was finally decided that it was just a pocket of fluid and surgery was not needed. Whew..
I awoke the next morning to gigantic boobs. They were rock hard and oh-my-goodness big. A nurse wheeled in a pump and I began pumping the precious gold colostrum. Every drop was important and Jeremy used the tiny syringe to get every little bit to take down to the babies. The visitors started arriving and Jeremy would take them to the Special Care nursery to see the babies, but I still hadn't gotten down there. I still had an IV and cath, and moving even the slighted bit hurt so bad. Finally my mom showed up and got me loaded into a wheelchair and she and Jeremy took me down to see my babies. They were so tiny. I breathed them in, loved on them and kissed them as much as I could.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Gone way too long
A lot has happened since my last post. I'll try to summarize my last 6 months as briefly as I can.
-December 11, 2009
I went to a perinatologist to begin fetal monitoring. During that visit, the ultrasound tech noticed that my uterus was contracting and cervix was funneling. Jeremy and I met briefly with a doctor who immediately had me admitted to St. Luke's. I was hooked up to fetal monitors, contraction monitors, given terbutaline to stop the contractions and told to get comfortable- I would be there for awhile. I stayed in the hospital until December 28th.
- December 13, 2009
Jeremy got to attend his first baby shower, because I was in the hospital. He learned the dos and don'ts of showers and did a great job opening gifts, showing them off and passing them around.
-December 25, 2009
Spent Christmas in the hospital. While this sounds horrible, it actually wasn't all that bad. Christmas came to me. My mom brought a small tree and decorated it. I did a lot of my shopping on-line and Jeremy did most of the wrapping. Jeremy attended both of our families' Christmases and brought presents to the hospital.
-January & February
were fairly uneventful. I went back into the hospital a few times. My longest visit was 3 days, shortest was 5 hours. We watched my belly grow and I continued to work from home, laying on my side, typing and editing pictures with one hand. My sister played nurse and stayed with me while she was home on break. She made my lunch, filled my water and entertained Charlie while I stayed in bed. She was a HUGE help and I was sad to see her go back to school. Although, I'm sure she was ready to get back to a much more exciting lifestyle. My brother and sister in law came over and helped Jeremy paint the nursery. My mom and sister painted a border and my extremely talented cousin painted the border to match the babies bedding. Jeremy installed a closet system and organized the closet for the babies. The nursery was finished!
-December 11, 2009
I went to a perinatologist to begin fetal monitoring. During that visit, the ultrasound tech noticed that my uterus was contracting and cervix was funneling. Jeremy and I met briefly with a doctor who immediately had me admitted to St. Luke's. I was hooked up to fetal monitors, contraction monitors, given terbutaline to stop the contractions and told to get comfortable- I would be there for awhile. I stayed in the hospital until December 28th.
- December 13, 2009
Jeremy got to attend his first baby shower, because I was in the hospital. He learned the dos and don'ts of showers and did a great job opening gifts, showing them off and passing them around.
-December 25, 2009
Spent Christmas in the hospital. While this sounds horrible, it actually wasn't all that bad. Christmas came to me. My mom brought a small tree and decorated it. I did a lot of my shopping on-line and Jeremy did most of the wrapping. Jeremy attended both of our families' Christmases and brought presents to the hospital.
-January & February
were fairly uneventful. I went back into the hospital a few times. My longest visit was 3 days, shortest was 5 hours. We watched my belly grow and I continued to work from home, laying on my side, typing and editing pictures with one hand. My sister played nurse and stayed with me while she was home on break. She made my lunch, filled my water and entertained Charlie while I stayed in bed. She was a HUGE help and I was sad to see her go back to school. Although, I'm sure she was ready to get back to a much more exciting lifestyle. My brother and sister in law came over and helped Jeremy paint the nursery. My mom and sister painted a border and my extremely talented cousin painted the border to match the babies bedding. Jeremy installed a closet system and organized the closet for the babies. The nursery was finished!
Jeremy was able to take me to my weekly doctors appointments. Around week 32, my cervix really started to thin and I was 2cm dilated. My doctor said the babies could come any day, so we prepared. The following weeks' doctor visits showed pretty much no change. At each appointment, my doctor would say "Any day now" and the days ticked on.. still no babies. Once I hit 35 weeks, I started to venture out of bed a little more and made a trip to Costco and Target. Jeremy shot video footage of me attempting to steer through Target safely. We also toured MOBAP. Jeremy learned he's not the best wheelchair driver and I'm not the best passenger. We ended up denting a few walls and I managed to drop my scarf into the path of the wheel just as we were getting on an elevator with our tour group. Untangling scarfs while trying to exit an elevator is not an easy thing to do.
-February 28, 2010
I made it to 35 weeks and was allowed to go to the shower my sister and aunt threw me. Dr. Wagner told me to finish my procardia prescription and not refill it, so the morning of the shower, I took my last Procardia. It took me all morning to get ready for the shower. I took a shower, then a nap, did my hair, then took another nap, did my make-up and got dressed. At 35 weeks and 3 days pregnant with twins, I was tired. I felt huge (having gained a whooping 30lbs), and was just plain worn out. The shower was wonderful. Tons of great food, lots of good friends who I hadn't seen a while and I was finally out of bed! I was convinced that the babies were going to arrive the following day and was totally fine with that.
-March 1 2010
No babies. I was super tired, really uncomfortable and not sleeping well at night.
-March 2, 2010
My last day of being able to 'work from home'. HR had only approved 90 days of telecommuting and this was my last day. I would begin maternity leave the following day, regardless if there were babies or not. I had my daily conversation with my boss, filled him on on where things stood on several projects and called it a day around 4PM.
I had my weekly check-up at 4:30 and on the way, Jeremy and I joked about how there was probably still no change in things and that I was going to end up carrying these kids to term. During my appointment, we discussed scheduling a c-section around St. Patrick's Day- about 2 weeks away. Dr. Wagner asked how I was feeling and while I felt uncomfortable, I wasn't in any pain . The thought of waiting another two weeks wasn't entirely something that I wanted to do, but it was attainable. I'd already spent the last 14 weeks on bed rest, what was another 2? He checked my cervix and said that maybe we wouldn't have to schedule it after all.. I was FINALLY at 5cm. I remember him asking if we wanted to have some babies that night. Jeremy had to ask him if he was serious- our doctor is pretty sarcastic and quite possibly could have been joking. He called MOBAP and scheduled me for a 9:00PM surgery, told us to go home, get our stuff and he'd meet us at the hospital.
-February 28, 2010
I made it to 35 weeks and was allowed to go to the shower my sister and aunt threw me. Dr. Wagner told me to finish my procardia prescription and not refill it, so the morning of the shower, I took my last Procardia. It took me all morning to get ready for the shower. I took a shower, then a nap, did my hair, then took another nap, did my make-up and got dressed. At 35 weeks and 3 days pregnant with twins, I was tired. I felt huge (having gained a whooping 30lbs), and was just plain worn out. The shower was wonderful. Tons of great food, lots of good friends who I hadn't seen a while and I was finally out of bed! I was convinced that the babies were going to arrive the following day and was totally fine with that.
-March 1 2010
No babies. I was super tired, really uncomfortable and not sleeping well at night.
-March 2, 2010
My last day of being able to 'work from home'. HR had only approved 90 days of telecommuting and this was my last day. I would begin maternity leave the following day, regardless if there were babies or not. I had my daily conversation with my boss, filled him on on where things stood on several projects and called it a day around 4PM.
I had my weekly check-up at 4:30 and on the way, Jeremy and I joked about how there was probably still no change in things and that I was going to end up carrying these kids to term. During my appointment, we discussed scheduling a c-section around St. Patrick's Day- about 2 weeks away. Dr. Wagner asked how I was feeling and while I felt uncomfortable, I wasn't in any pain . The thought of waiting another two weeks wasn't entirely something that I wanted to do, but it was attainable. I'd already spent the last 14 weeks on bed rest, what was another 2? He checked my cervix and said that maybe we wouldn't have to schedule it after all.. I was FINALLY at 5cm. I remember him asking if we wanted to have some babies that night. Jeremy had to ask him if he was serious- our doctor is pretty sarcastic and quite possibly could have been joking. He called MOBAP and scheduled me for a 9:00PM surgery, told us to go home, get our stuff and he'd meet us at the hospital.
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