Wow, so where do I begin?
So much has happened since the last time I published a blog post. Last you heard from me, I was admitted into the hospital on bedrest due to a shortened cervix.
21 days of being in the hospital; I was finally being dismissed, and as a Mom of two perfect little boys.
I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in their birth story, but after asking the question in a recent social media post, it won the popular vote. So, let's jump into it.
On Saturday, September 23rd, I woke up in the hospital for what felt like the millionth day. I was more excited for that day than any of the others because it was my re-scheduled baby shower. With things not turning out as planned (apparently babies do their own thing - who knew?!), I was both excited and frustrated the morning of. I'll go ahead and put it out there that my babies are a little stubborn - wonder who they got that from?
Moving on.
So, the morning of ran a little behind schedule because our Antepartum floor was overflowing with Postpartum patients, which meant the nurses were overly busy, and the boys decided to act wild during monitoring. Typically, monitoring takes about 20-30 minutes. On baby shower day, when I needed to be getting ready, it lasted about an hour and a half.
I now fully believe that God was teaching me patience while in the hospital. You couldn't have told me any different while I was locked up, though.
Nothing turned out as planned, and I usually don't work well with that. My Mom can vouch for that. I was not happy that morning.
So fast forward a bit, because I plan to do a full baby shower post (if you're interested). Everything turned out perfectly at the shower, but it was a pretty long day. Afterwards, my Mom and two of my girlfriends and I went down to the cafeteria for dinner. I felt completely fine, just tired from all of the days activities.
We weren't there for long when we decided it was time to get some rest. The girls left, and my Mom and I headed back to the room. I remember this part like it was yesterday. We checked in at the front desk at 6:33 and headed to my space - J727. I changed into my PJs, used the restroom, and sat down on the bed at 6:35. In the meantime, Mom was getting comfortable and taking off her shoes (important detail later in the story).
Immediately (and I mean immediately) when I sat down on the bed I felt something that I hadn't felt before. The nurses asked me every single day - any bleeding, and fluid leaking, any cramping? My answers were always no. This time, I knew something was different. I just went to the restroom, but I literally had to pee every 5 minutes, so I thought I just needed to go again. I stood up, and then it happened... just like the movies.
A gush of fluid started pouring down my left leg. I gasped, looked at my Mom in sheer panic, and then smelled my hand. TMI - I know, but I wasn't sure if I just peed on myself, or if my water was breaking. Staring down at the amount of fluid on the floor, I knew it was my water breaking.
As I'm standing there smelling my hand, with a puddle of fluid on the floor and the rest running down my leg, my Mom takes off running to the nurses station - with only one shoe on! I told you that was important later in the story. HAHA!
She's running with one shoe on, telling the nurses "my daughters water just broke!", and they respond "okay, we'll be right there" - as calm as ever. I mean, I'm sure they deal with this daily. Us, not so much.
When she returns, I'm still standing there in utter shock - with soaking wet pants, not sure what to do. A flood of nurses come into the room (it was during shift change of course!), and tell me to take off my wet pants. Ha! Yep, that's a good start.
From the time my water broke to the time the nurses came in was probably a minute or two, but it felt like an eternity. Starting at that point, my body was shaking uncontrollably and it didn't stop until after I delivered the babies. I guess I was nervous? It all happened so fast.
Once they got me settled and out of my wet clothes, nurses came in and started running tests. As if they couldn't tell my water had broken by the amount all over the floor, they also ran a quick test to confirm yes, it ruptured. Um... yeah...
They were preparing to move me back down to Labor & Delivery; put in another IV, checked if I was dilated - I didn't appear to be, but the doctor was having a really hard time seeing with the amount of fluid, and then wheeled me on my way.
In the meantime I called Chris to tell him my water had broken - he asked if I was serious - I said yes, get here, and then my Mom made the other phone calls.
By the time I made it down to Labor and Delivery, Chris was standing in my room waiting for us to come in. It was like a movie scene, seriously. The nurses wheeling me down said, that would be so sweet if that was your husband waiting for you. I looked and said, that is my husband. Of course they thought it was the sweetest thing ever. It kind of was.
They got me settled in my new space, and confirmed that they would be starting magnesium again. I was NOT excited for this. You can read my thoughts on my first experience with magnesium in this post. At least the second time around I knew a little more on how to prepare. I immediately requested a nausea patch, a cup of ice and water, and cold washcloths. With magnesium also comes a catheter, which I am not a fan of. My nurse did tell me about a numbing cream, which I was all about, so that helped ease the discomfort a bit as well.
Just as I remember from the first time; hot flashes and burning, dry mouth, discomfort, severe nausea and vomiting all reared their ugly faces again. It was going to be a long night.
Multiple nurses came in to care for me, all of which confirmed along with the doctor, that we could have babies within 24 hours, or it could be weeks. Weeks?! That sent me over the edge. How could it be weeks - my water just broke. Apparently that doesn't mean that you have babies. Who knew?! So confused.
And since they had checked me and I was not yet dilated (or at least it appeared that way), no one working at the hospital was convinced that we would be having the babies any time soon. But, since my water did indeed rupture, and as a precaution, they gave me antibiotics to prevent the babies from getting a possible infection.
The next few hours were long and miserable. I was still shaking, and dealing with all of the symptoms from magnesium, while trying to hold my eyes open because at this point it had turned into an extremely long day. With the confirmation that delivery wasn't near, I felt like there was no end in sight.
While I was trying to keep myself from going crazy from the pain and discomfort, my Mom, sister and Chris were trying to figure out their next steps. My mom was with me, my step Dad was out of town, and the dogs were at home alone. Not the perfect scenario by any means.
Of course no one wanted to miss a beat, but they also didn't want to sit around and listen to me vomit if I wasn't preparing to delivery babies soon.
I told Chris to go ahead and go home to let the pups out, and my sister decided to leave as well. At this point the doctors were confident it would be a while - a long while - so we weren't too concerned. I don't know the exact time of night that was, but I think it was around midnight.
The next few hours were long. My Mom and I were in and out of sleep; in between nurses coming in and me groaning and taking long breaths to get through the next contraction. I think at this point I may have fallen asleep for 30 minutes to an hour.
And then 3:30AM hit. I remember watching the clock, and counting the minutes between the contractions. They were becoming much more consistent, and definitely increasing in intensity. I called my Moms name a couple of times, but she was sleeping and I didn't want to wake her. I continued to count and watch the clock, and when they got to the point of major discomfort, I said her name just loud enough to wake her up. I told her they were getting worse and closer together, and she felt like we needed to let the nurse know.
The nurse called the doctor and a few minutes later, they decided to check me again. I just remember her saying - 100% effaced, and dilated to a 5. WAIT - a 5?! A couple of hours ago I wasn't dilated to anything.
My mind was racing 1000 miles a minute. A five. I am dilated to a five. My husband isn't here. Dr. Plank said that with twins it can move really fast. OH shit.
And that's when the words were spoken... it's time to prepare for surgery. My doctor wasn't on shift, so I was a little disappointed that she wouldn't deliver the boys. I was also slightly concerned that we continuously had to remind the nurses that a c-section was discussed and decided on with my doctor, Dr. Plank. My mom just knew they were going to jack around long enough for me to have the babies right in the room I was in.
They finally got it together and asked if I wanted an epidural... of course I did. I was still shaking uncontrollably, nauseous from the magnesium, and breathing through the constant contractions. I built up a horror story in my mind about getting an epidural. I'm not sure if it was what I had previously heard from friends, or the fact that I was concerned with also having scoliosis, but I was most scared for that part.
And then it happens. In walks the most cocky, young anesthesiologist, and I wasn't convinced that it was going to be a walk in the park. Much to my surprise, he was cocky for a reason. Apparently he was one of the best, and I can say that I would agree. I felt a tiny pinch; the IVs they put in hurt much worse than the epidural, and then it was over. My lower body started to go numb, and I was able to relax just a little.
Still shaking, and wondering if my husband was going to miss the birth of our boys, they wheeled me back. It is quite possible that multiple other things happened between getting my epidural and getting wheeled back, but I had been pumped with so much medication at this point my mind was foggy. It makes me a little sad that I can't remember everything clearly.
The next thing I remember is lying on the table, with a barrier raised between me and the doctors. My Mom sat beside me, and the doctor helped calm my nerves by letting me know that they would wait for Chris. And they did. I remember seeing him come into the room with his scrubs on, ready to become a Dad. He gave me a kiss on the forehead, took the last picture of us together as just two, and nervously awaited their arrival.
In the meantime, the cotton mouth was at an all-time high, and I felt like I could vomit. I asked for some water, which in turn they gave me a swab to put in my mouth - a mint flavored swab. It didn't help at all, I think it actually made it worse. To complete all of my fears, I was now vomiting in the middle of my c-section. Thank God I couldn't feel anything.
The process seemed much longer in the operating room than it actually was. They started my surgery at around 5:45AM; Knox arrived into the world at 6:09AM, and Liam followed a minute behind at 6:10AM. All of the pain, heartache and bedrest was completely worth it. We just brought two miracles into this world.
Life is a crazy thing, y'all.
Chris disappeared for a while; he was meeting his two boys for the first time. My Mom didn't leave my side, and as soon as Chris got the OK, he brought the boys over to me. Nothing will ever compare to how I felt when I saw him holding our two babies. In just that instant, my heart was so full of love. I couldn't, and still can't believe that I am a Mom.
Shortly after that the boys were taken to the NICU where they spent the next couple of weeks. I entered the hospital at 30 weeks and 1 day on strict bedrest, and we welcomed our boys at 33 weeks and 1 day. It's incredible to know how much of a difference three weeks in the womb can make. I know that God was watching over us when I was admitted on bedrest. I can't imagine the journey we would have been on had the boys arrived three weeks prior. Although it was a long and tough three weeks, I am forever grateful.
Once surgery was over, I was joined by all of our families, who were equally excited to welcome Knox and Liam. Everyone has been patiently awaiting the addition of twins into our families, and now we have them here. They are SO loved, and Chris and I have definitely been bumped down on the list. Ha!
They run our world now... and I'm okay with it.
To Knox and Liam - oh, how thankful and excited I am to be your Mom. I hope that I can be everything you ever need in life. I can't wait to watch you grow and become your own. Until then, be gentle - Dad and I have no idea what we're doing.
Much love friends. Sorry for SUCH a long post!
So much has happened since the last time I published a blog post. Last you heard from me, I was admitted into the hospital on bedrest due to a shortened cervix.
21 days of being in the hospital; I was finally being dismissed, and as a Mom of two perfect little boys.
I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in their birth story, but after asking the question in a recent social media post, it won the popular vote. So, let's jump into it.
On Saturday, September 23rd, I woke up in the hospital for what felt like the millionth day. I was more excited for that day than any of the others because it was my re-scheduled baby shower. With things not turning out as planned (apparently babies do their own thing - who knew?!), I was both excited and frustrated the morning of. I'll go ahead and put it out there that my babies are a little stubborn - wonder who they got that from?
Moving on.
So, the morning of ran a little behind schedule because our Antepartum floor was overflowing with Postpartum patients, which meant the nurses were overly busy, and the boys decided to act wild during monitoring. Typically, monitoring takes about 20-30 minutes. On baby shower day, when I needed to be getting ready, it lasted about an hour and a half.
I now fully believe that God was teaching me patience while in the hospital. You couldn't have told me any different while I was locked up, though.
Nothing turned out as planned, and I usually don't work well with that. My Mom can vouch for that. I was not happy that morning.
So fast forward a bit, because I plan to do a full baby shower post (if you're interested). Everything turned out perfectly at the shower, but it was a pretty long day. Afterwards, my Mom and two of my girlfriends and I went down to the cafeteria for dinner. I felt completely fine, just tired from all of the days activities.
We weren't there for long when we decided it was time to get some rest. The girls left, and my Mom and I headed back to the room. I remember this part like it was yesterday. We checked in at the front desk at 6:33 and headed to my space - J727. I changed into my PJs, used the restroom, and sat down on the bed at 6:35. In the meantime, Mom was getting comfortable and taking off her shoes (important detail later in the story).
Immediately (and I mean immediately) when I sat down on the bed I felt something that I hadn't felt before. The nurses asked me every single day - any bleeding, and fluid leaking, any cramping? My answers were always no. This time, I knew something was different. I just went to the restroom, but I literally had to pee every 5 minutes, so I thought I just needed to go again. I stood up, and then it happened... just like the movies.
A gush of fluid started pouring down my left leg. I gasped, looked at my Mom in sheer panic, and then smelled my hand. TMI - I know, but I wasn't sure if I just peed on myself, or if my water was breaking. Staring down at the amount of fluid on the floor, I knew it was my water breaking.
As I'm standing there smelling my hand, with a puddle of fluid on the floor and the rest running down my leg, my Mom takes off running to the nurses station - with only one shoe on! I told you that was important later in the story. HAHA!
She's running with one shoe on, telling the nurses "my daughters water just broke!", and they respond "okay, we'll be right there" - as calm as ever. I mean, I'm sure they deal with this daily. Us, not so much.
When she returns, I'm still standing there in utter shock - with soaking wet pants, not sure what to do. A flood of nurses come into the room (it was during shift change of course!), and tell me to take off my wet pants. Ha! Yep, that's a good start.
From the time my water broke to the time the nurses came in was probably a minute or two, but it felt like an eternity. Starting at that point, my body was shaking uncontrollably and it didn't stop until after I delivered the babies. I guess I was nervous? It all happened so fast.
Once they got me settled and out of my wet clothes, nurses came in and started running tests. As if they couldn't tell my water had broken by the amount all over the floor, they also ran a quick test to confirm yes, it ruptured. Um... yeah...
They were preparing to move me back down to Labor & Delivery; put in another IV, checked if I was dilated - I didn't appear to be, but the doctor was having a really hard time seeing with the amount of fluid, and then wheeled me on my way.
In the meantime I called Chris to tell him my water had broken - he asked if I was serious - I said yes, get here, and then my Mom made the other phone calls.
By the time I made it down to Labor and Delivery, Chris was standing in my room waiting for us to come in. It was like a movie scene, seriously. The nurses wheeling me down said, that would be so sweet if that was your husband waiting for you. I looked and said, that is my husband. Of course they thought it was the sweetest thing ever. It kind of was.
They got me settled in my new space, and confirmed that they would be starting magnesium again. I was NOT excited for this. You can read my thoughts on my first experience with magnesium in this post. At least the second time around I knew a little more on how to prepare. I immediately requested a nausea patch, a cup of ice and water, and cold washcloths. With magnesium also comes a catheter, which I am not a fan of. My nurse did tell me about a numbing cream, which I was all about, so that helped ease the discomfort a bit as well.
Just as I remember from the first time; hot flashes and burning, dry mouth, discomfort, severe nausea and vomiting all reared their ugly faces again. It was going to be a long night.
Multiple nurses came in to care for me, all of which confirmed along with the doctor, that we could have babies within 24 hours, or it could be weeks. Weeks?! That sent me over the edge. How could it be weeks - my water just broke. Apparently that doesn't mean that you have babies. Who knew?! So confused.
And since they had checked me and I was not yet dilated (or at least it appeared that way), no one working at the hospital was convinced that we would be having the babies any time soon. But, since my water did indeed rupture, and as a precaution, they gave me antibiotics to prevent the babies from getting a possible infection.
The next few hours were long and miserable. I was still shaking, and dealing with all of the symptoms from magnesium, while trying to hold my eyes open because at this point it had turned into an extremely long day. With the confirmation that delivery wasn't near, I felt like there was no end in sight.
While I was trying to keep myself from going crazy from the pain and discomfort, my Mom, sister and Chris were trying to figure out their next steps. My mom was with me, my step Dad was out of town, and the dogs were at home alone. Not the perfect scenario by any means.
Of course no one wanted to miss a beat, but they also didn't want to sit around and listen to me vomit if I wasn't preparing to delivery babies soon.
I told Chris to go ahead and go home to let the pups out, and my sister decided to leave as well. At this point the doctors were confident it would be a while - a long while - so we weren't too concerned. I don't know the exact time of night that was, but I think it was around midnight.
The next few hours were long. My Mom and I were in and out of sleep; in between nurses coming in and me groaning and taking long breaths to get through the next contraction. I think at this point I may have fallen asleep for 30 minutes to an hour.
And then 3:30AM hit. I remember watching the clock, and counting the minutes between the contractions. They were becoming much more consistent, and definitely increasing in intensity. I called my Moms name a couple of times, but she was sleeping and I didn't want to wake her. I continued to count and watch the clock, and when they got to the point of major discomfort, I said her name just loud enough to wake her up. I told her they were getting worse and closer together, and she felt like we needed to let the nurse know.
The nurse called the doctor and a few minutes later, they decided to check me again. I just remember her saying - 100% effaced, and dilated to a 5. WAIT - a 5?! A couple of hours ago I wasn't dilated to anything.
My mind was racing 1000 miles a minute. A five. I am dilated to a five. My husband isn't here. Dr. Plank said that with twins it can move really fast. OH shit.
And that's when the words were spoken... it's time to prepare for surgery. My doctor wasn't on shift, so I was a little disappointed that she wouldn't deliver the boys. I was also slightly concerned that we continuously had to remind the nurses that a c-section was discussed and decided on with my doctor, Dr. Plank. My mom just knew they were going to jack around long enough for me to have the babies right in the room I was in.
They finally got it together and asked if I wanted an epidural... of course I did. I was still shaking uncontrollably, nauseous from the magnesium, and breathing through the constant contractions. I built up a horror story in my mind about getting an epidural. I'm not sure if it was what I had previously heard from friends, or the fact that I was concerned with also having scoliosis, but I was most scared for that part.
And then it happens. In walks the most cocky, young anesthesiologist, and I wasn't convinced that it was going to be a walk in the park. Much to my surprise, he was cocky for a reason. Apparently he was one of the best, and I can say that I would agree. I felt a tiny pinch; the IVs they put in hurt much worse than the epidural, and then it was over. My lower body started to go numb, and I was able to relax just a little.
Still shaking, and wondering if my husband was going to miss the birth of our boys, they wheeled me back. It is quite possible that multiple other things happened between getting my epidural and getting wheeled back, but I had been pumped with so much medication at this point my mind was foggy. It makes me a little sad that I can't remember everything clearly.
The next thing I remember is lying on the table, with a barrier raised between me and the doctors. My Mom sat beside me, and the doctor helped calm my nerves by letting me know that they would wait for Chris. And they did. I remember seeing him come into the room with his scrubs on, ready to become a Dad. He gave me a kiss on the forehead, took the last picture of us together as just two, and nervously awaited their arrival.
In the meantime, the cotton mouth was at an all-time high, and I felt like I could vomit. I asked for some water, which in turn they gave me a swab to put in my mouth - a mint flavored swab. It didn't help at all, I think it actually made it worse. To complete all of my fears, I was now vomiting in the middle of my c-section. Thank God I couldn't feel anything.
The process seemed much longer in the operating room than it actually was. They started my surgery at around 5:45AM; Knox arrived into the world at 6:09AM, and Liam followed a minute behind at 6:10AM. All of the pain, heartache and bedrest was completely worth it. We just brought two miracles into this world.
Life is a crazy thing, y'all.
Chris disappeared for a while; he was meeting his two boys for the first time. My Mom didn't leave my side, and as soon as Chris got the OK, he brought the boys over to me. Nothing will ever compare to how I felt when I saw him holding our two babies. In just that instant, my heart was so full of love. I couldn't, and still can't believe that I am a Mom.
Shortly after that the boys were taken to the NICU where they spent the next couple of weeks. I entered the hospital at 30 weeks and 1 day on strict bedrest, and we welcomed our boys at 33 weeks and 1 day. It's incredible to know how much of a difference three weeks in the womb can make. I know that God was watching over us when I was admitted on bedrest. I can't imagine the journey we would have been on had the boys arrived three weeks prior. Although it was a long and tough three weeks, I am forever grateful.
Once surgery was over, I was joined by all of our families, who were equally excited to welcome Knox and Liam. Everyone has been patiently awaiting the addition of twins into our families, and now we have them here. They are SO loved, and Chris and I have definitely been bumped down on the list. Ha!
They run our world now... and I'm okay with it.
To Knox and Liam - oh, how thankful and excited I am to be your Mom. I hope that I can be everything you ever need in life. I can't wait to watch you grow and become your own. Until then, be gentle - Dad and I have no idea what we're doing.
Much love friends. Sorry for SUCH a long post!
I'm sitting here at work with tears in my eyes trying not to really cry so people don't think I'm crazy!! Such as sweet story!
ReplyDeleteAnd I can't believe your water broke as soon as we left! Crazy! At least it didn't happen in the cafeteria :)
Right?! That's what I kept telling my Mom too. How embarrassing would that have been right in the middle of the cafeteria! Haha.
DeleteThose mint things are so gross. Lol so happy for you two!
ReplyDeleteIt was disgusting! Lol.
DeleteThanks so much!