Weekly Recap #6

This week was mostly spent at the hospital visiting the twins in the NICU. It was so weird going back there on Monday, after being discharged from the hospital myself just the day before. Weird, and sad at the same time. I absolutely hate having to drive there by myself and leave by myself. :( With visiting the twins, this was a very busy week. Here's the daily play-by-play (with pictures!).

Monday - Even though I was just released from the hospital yesterday, there were still things that needed to be done, and people I needed to feed. I went grocery shopping by myself in the AM. I seriously regret pushing myself because I felt awful. I powered through, but I probably should have waited.

And, I have some really awesome friends. Knowing how awful I was feeling for having to leave the twins in the NICU, they sent me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Ans, the emotional mess that I am, I totally cried.

Then, it was off to the NICU. Today I visited from 5:45pm to 10:30pm. I really didn't like their morning nurse from 7am to 7pm. Her care reminded me of some teachers. You know how there are really great teachers that love there jobs, and how you can tell who is only there for a paycheck? Well, I found that that extends to nurses as well. We've had some really great nurses so far, but then there are some, like this morning, who I feel don't really try. The night nurse from Sunday put their feeding tubes back in because they regressed a bit Sunday night which was really hard to hear.

Peyton

On Tuesday I drove myself to the doctor's office to have my c-section staples removed. Thankfully, it did not hurt as much as I thought it would! I went to the same Thai place for lunch that I visited a few weeks ago, Mai Thai Cafe in Wheaton. A few weeks ago, I thought the place was great, but now they don't offer table service anymore, just carryout. It was weird - and the food wasn't as good. I wonder what happened.

I visited the NICU from 12:30pm - 6:00pm on Tuesday. The twins had a better nurse this time (Jami). I was so happy to see NO feeding tubes. I was told that the twins are now on an "On Demand" schedule where they don't have to drink a certain amount of food, and they are fed when they want food. The goal is for them to gain weight on their own, without being force-fed. While I was there, Lauryn was awake alot, but Peyton has day/night mixed up and is more awake at night. Later that night from home, I called the night nurse and she said they only lost 5 grams (they are weighed every night around 9pm) which is less than 0.2 of an ounce. Their original feeding goal was 55 cc's for Lauryn and 50 for Peyton. Last night Lauren took 65 and Peyton took 60! They are doing so well!

Lauryn

Peyton

On Wednesday I was headed back to the NICU, of course. The hospital is more than 20 miles away from my house so it's quite a drive each day. I had the opportunity to stay at the Ronald McDonald House during the day (not overnight), but I mostly stayed home and played with Brayden during the day. He seems to be having a rough time lately ever since I was in the hospital. He goes into his room a few times a day to "relax" and I worry about him. He seems a little depressed so I'm trying to spend as much time with him as I can.

Lauren held in her paci with her hand - so cute! Was told that I should bring in outfits for them to take photos, and their car seats so the nurses can perform a car seat test that would last an hour and a half. They won't be going home tomorrow, but it's better if they get this mandatory test (for kids born at less than 37 weeks) done before we are discharged. All they need to do now is gain weight for 2 consecutive days and they can come home! Woo hoo! Late that night I got a call from one of the nurses (that I requested because I needed to know if they gained/lost weight) and was told that they both GAINED! One more day and they'll be released. I was so happy to hear that!

On Wednesday, I also stuck to one of my New Year's Resolutions and made a new recipe this week. I love almost everything The Pioneer Woman makes, and this week I decided to make her Salisbury Steak Meatballs from one of my Pinterest boards. Oh my word - those things, over egg noodles, are the BOMB! what's even better is that my whole family - including my super-picky-he-only-eats-chicken-nuggets 5-year-old - loved it. I'll definitely add this to my favorites rotation!

Thursday - I spent a lot of time organizing today. I put together all of the baby swings and bouncers that we had, spent some time tidying up the basement, and making sure we were just about ready for the twins to come home. Today I was asked to bring their car seats to the NICU so they can perform a car seat test. All babies born prior to 37 weeks gestation need to pass a car seat test. After a feeding, the child is placed in their car seat for 90 minutes while the nurses monitor their heart rate and oxygen levels to make sure they can handle a long car ride without slouching and cutting off their oxygen. They are almost ready to come home, ya'll! I also brought in some outfits for their photo shoot that's scheduled for tomorrow morning. They were asleep for most of the time I was there today though. :( And I was there for 6 hours! I also called the nurse to see how their weight was, to hear that they both GAINED again!!! Woo Hoo! It still isn't for sure that they will come home tomorrow though since Peyton only gained 5 grams, which is less than 0.2 of an ounce. It's all up to the doctors tomorrow.

Here's their NICU room. It's just about time be be outta here!

On Friday afternoon we learned that...

The twins can come home!!!

We got the call early afternoon and decided to pick them up later in the day. My son has been having cabin fever lately, and we feel really bad for not being around much to do stuff with him. My husband earned his #1 DAD title today by taking Brayden to the mall, that included a trip to the bouncy house place. Brayden was in heaven. He was affectionate with my husband and thanked him so many times. Then it was off to get those babies!

Bringing those babies home!

Saturday was spent mostly inside with the twins. I was so busy, I hardly even took any pictures (I did take a few though!). Talk about sleep deprived! I only left the house to buy a few more items at Babies R Us, and I had to cut my time short in order to get home before the twins were ready for their next diaper change/feeding. They are on a 3-4 hour schedule that the NICU nurses set them up on. Like clockwork, one wakes up first, and the other follows about 20 minutes later. It's great! My husband helps a lot with feedings, he's just not as comfortable changing them because they're so small. I got a few naps in late evening so I'm grateful for that.

On Sunday my dad came over for a visit. I don't know why I didn't get a photo of him with the twins. He didn't hold them, though, so maybe that's why. Lol I'm thankful that I didn't leave the house at all today. It is COLD in the Chicago area! We'll have to take them to the pediatrician either tomorrow or Tuesday, so I'm hoping it's at least a little warmer.

Daily visits to the hospital were part of my daily routine this week, but was I able to stick to any goals? Here's how I did.

• Goal #1: Eliminate soda for 1 more week. This one is starting to get easy. I really haven't craved soda lately so that's a good thing!
• Goal #2: Attend post-holiday party on Friday. Nope. I really wanted to, but the twins came home on Friday - WAY more important!
• Goal #3: Spend 30 minutes organizing the basement. I finally started this on Thursday! It's going to take a lot more time, but I'm glad I at least got it started.
• Goal #4: Organize one kitchen cabinet. Not yet. The twins were in the NICU most of the week, but this is a priority for me since they're home now.
• Goal #5: Purchase and install blackout blinds for the twins.  Not yet, but I'm positive this will get done next week.

Two out of five this week. BOO! I have got to get with it! These are the goals I hope to tackle this week.

Goal #1: Eliminate soda for 1 more week - this would be the 3rd week in a row! I've actually been feeling pretty good since I gave up soda. I think I can make it another week.

Goal #2: Make sure all Christmas decorations have been put away. We are 12 days into the new year, and we still have our Christmas decorations up. It's time for them to go.

Goal #3: Spend 30 more minutes organizing the basement. It felt good to start on this this week, I'm hoping I can get it in again.

Goal #4: Organize one kitchen cabinet. While the twins nap, I have got to get this done. My husband already took some baking items out that he wants me to store in the basement. He's starting to get impatient and I need to get it done. Shouldn't take too long.

Goal #5: Purchase and install blackout blinds for the twins. This has eluded me 3 weeks in a row. I vow to take this off the goal list this week!

I'll let you know how it went next week!

The Twins' Birth Story

My twins were born, quite unexpectedly, on Wednesday last week. I was 34 weeks, 6 days pregnant. While it's not unusual for twins to be born early, I was totally in denial, despite the contractions I had been feeling throughout the day, and still have a hard time believing that they are finally here. But they are, and I am head-over-heels in love with them. Completely Obsessed. Here's how it all went down.

Not to say that this contributed in any way to my early labor, but I was a busy girl on the Monday and Tuesday before the twins were born. On Monday, I was really tired and didn't leave the house all day since we had a pretty big snow and ice storm that day. My daughter had to work, though, and she really isn't an experienced driver. Of course she would get her car stuck in the snow - TWICE - on our block on her way home. I had no choice but to go out and help her. I didn't try and push the car or anything (my daughter and my mom did that), but I did have to walk through the snow to get to her car and tried to maneuver the car into a driveable position. Unfortunately the snow/ice was so slushy that I couldn't even get it out, but one of our neighbors noticed our struggle and ultimately did help. I was probably outside for about an hour.

Then on Tuesday, I did some heavy shopping. We had events to go to on both Saturday and Sunday that week, and I wanted to make sure we had gifts to give "just in case" anything happened. My nephew's birthday party was on Saturday so I needed a gift for him, and then we were celebrating Christmas with my dad on Sunday (we always celebrate with that side of the family the first weekend in January). Lots and lots of gifts to buy. I was kicking myself for not getting it done earlier.

That Wednesday, I had nothing special to do, no plans, and I just wanted to relax. I had a scheduled doctor's appointment at 3:30 that afternoon and that was the only event in my calendar.

I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions on and off for a couple of weeks prior to Wednesday, so when my stomach would get hard and contract throughout the morning, I really didn't think anything of it. I knew I was in need of some serious rest after the Christmas holiday, and then the chaos of the last few days, and figured I was just tired. And the contractions were nothing new.

And then they kept coming.

It got to the point where I was catching my breath with a "Braxton Hicks" contraction about every 10-15 minutes. Still thought nothing of it. I figured that I had a doctor's appointment later that included a Non-Stress Test (NST) and I'd just let the test determine if these were really contractions.

Luckily for me, my husband had a better sense of intuition than I did because he decided to accompany me to the doctor's appointment and just be late for work that day. He wanted to make sure I was ok. {Cue the "Awwww".} We took separate cars though. I drove myself - while enduring the contractions.

Still, I was in denial.

At the doctor's office, the NST showed that yes, I was having contractions every 10-15 minutes. No biggie, right?

Then, the doctor performed a cervical check that showed that I was 1 cm dilated, and 75% effaced. Damn.

Not to worry though, doc said I should head to the hospital to get started on some fluids with the hopes that the contractions would subside. Phew - they would subside right? Right?!?!

Once again, drove myself the 15 minutes from the doctor's office to the hospital. Easy peasy. Just kept telling myself that I was going to get fluids to stop the contractions. It was going to be fine.

We get to the hospital, and I was taken to a small labor & delivery room. The nurse that took me in even made me feel kinda bad for being there in the first place. You should have seen her face when she learned that my contractions were 10-15 minutes apart and I was only 1 cm dilated. She made it seem like I was wasting her time.

"What doctor sent you here again?" Eye roll. "Oh, you'll be here for a long time." Double eye roll.

Regardless of her feelings about it, she had a job to do so she started an IV, and placed the monitors on my stomach. Then we just had to wait to see what was going on.

My last belly shot.

At this point I just wanted to go home. I wanted to get out of her hair, and be back at home where I belonged.

Problem was, the contractions kept on coming. Not super tough contractions, but contractions none the less.

By the time I was admitted to the hospital, it was about 4:30. Then the kicker...

After being there for just 2 hours, the doctor came in to check me. I was 5 cm dilated.

AAAAAGGGGHHHHH! I was in early labor.

I was so shocked I started to cry. I wanted to say "No, you've got it wrong. I don't want to do this now. I'm not ready. The twins are not ready. It's way too early. I want to go home. This is NOT right!"

FULL PANIC MODE.

I was previously scheduled for a c-section for 1/21/16, and it was only 12/30/15. Not even 2016 yet. Sooooo not ready.

But, ready or not, here they come!

After that announcement from the doctor, everything kinda happened in a blur. He said he didn't want me to further progress with labor, because I shouldn't get to the point where I wanted to push. It was GO TIME!

I was given a bunch of medications at one time - an antacid (I think), some really sugary drink, and a few other pills. Then comes the part I really didn't like.

Since I was having a c-section, my husband wouldn't be with me until the babies were about to arrive.

Um, WHAT?

I needed him with me.

He calms me. He helps me. He's my rock.

And he couldn't be with me.

I was quickly wheeled out of that room to an OR. He was given scrubs to change into and told they would come for him when they were ready. I was so sad.

Then, in the OR, it felt like a bad dream. It was full of strangers. Different nurses - nurses for me, nurses for the babies, the anesthesiologist - basically just a bunch of people I didn't know.

When I was being given the spinal block, instead of leaning into my husband (like I did when I had an epidural when my son was born), I had to lean into a nurse whose name I couldn't even remember. And as my lower extremities began to numb, I was alone. All alone. It really was an awful feeling.

Then my doctor came in to start prepping and put the blue screen up in front of my face to block my view and I wanted to run out of the room.

Well, obviously the spinal block put the kabosh on that.

I hate things, anything, close to my face, and I was about to panic again.

Just before I started to scream, I hear my husband's voice in my ear talking some nonsense about Jimmy John's sandwiches.

Did I want mayo on my sandwich? I wanted an Italian sub, right? Would I want a drink with that? And other meaningless questions.

When I talked to him about it later, he said that the second he walked into the room and saw me, he knew what I was thinking and feeling. He could literally see the panic starting to rise in me all over my face. His questions were only meant to distract me from myself.

God, I love that man!

In that moment, he knew exactly what I needed.

Then, a little pressure, and seconds later...crying!!! My daughter, Lauryn, had arrived. It was 8:15 pm. And just one minute later, my son, Peyton, was introduced to the world.

It really happened that fast.

After that, they quickly cleaned up the babies, let us take a few pictures, then whisked them away to the NICU. My husband and I were taken to a recovery room where we stayed for more than two hours. And just like the reaction I had to the epidural when my son was born 5 years ago, I had an allergic reaction to the spinal block too. Itching and scratching all over. This lasted for about 3 days. All I wanted to do was see my babies.

Finally, at around 10:45 pm, I was able to see them in the NICU.

They are here, and They. Are. Perfect.

Unfortunately, their arrival included a stay in the NICU, and I'll share that story soon.

Thanks for sticking with me for this super long post. I didn't want to omit anything, as I'm going to want to return to this post time and time again. Time does a number on our memory, and I don't want to forget a second of it. These are likely my last babies and I want to remember this forever.

Enjoy some pics of their first day!

Lauryn

Peyton