The First Eight Weeks

I can't believe the babies are over two months old now! The time has flown by! I want to catch up on the last eight weeks of their lives by sharing some of our favorite pictures!

Together in the hospital



At home at last!



Having their newborn photos taken!



Hanging out in their jammies!



Getting ready for story time!



Enjoying some sibling cuddles!



Attempting tummy time...



Smiling!



As you can see, they have been busy and growing so fast!

Birth Story---February 18th, 2011

When I left off we had just received the results of the Amniocentesis on Friday, February 11th that determined the babies' lungs' needed another week to mature and we had scheduled the c-section for the afternoon of Friday, February 18th.

That last week was relatively uneventful, as I said before I wasn't able to do hardly anything so I spent that week mainly resting.

The morning of Friday, February 18th Chad woke me up at 6 AM so that I could eat for one last time before the c-section scheduled for 3:30 pm. I asked for Fruit Loops and toast but I remember eating only a few spoonfuls of Fruit Loops because I was just too nervous/excited. Then I took a long bath because I wasn't sure the next time I was going to get a shower or bath in the hospital.

Later that day Chad said he had a surprise for me. He pulled out a small jewelry box that had a beautiful necklace with an amethyst heart pendant inside. Amethyst is the babies' birthstone. It was such a beautiful and thoughtful gift that he had picked out with my mother and it was such a loving gesture that we all started to tear up a bit. I wear the necklace everyday and I am reminded of how lucky I am to have my family.

By Noon we had everything ready to go and we were just sitting in the living room trying to figure out what Mom and Chad should do for lunch when the phone rang. The hospital was calling to see if we could come in early for the c-section as the doctor had some time open up. Of course we were delighted and we all commenced a flurry of activity getting the bags downstairs and in the car.

Our dog Sadie came with us since we had to drop her off at Doggy Daycare, where she stayed during the several days we were in the hospital. I kissed her on the head and I was a little sad because I knew this was the last time she would be our only baby.

We got to the hospital and checked in and at first I was very nervous because we were in a little recovery area with just a curtain between us and everyone else instead of a private room like I had the last 2 times I had been to the hospital. Chad explained that since I was having a surgery I had to wait in the recovery area before going into the OR and for a few hours after the surgery so I could be monitored before being transferred to my own room.

Here is my last pregnant picture:



Here we are just before we became parents:



There was a couple on the other side of the curtain that went into the OR before us, and they came back with their baby after the surgery and I could hear their baby's first little cries. It made me very emotional because I couldn't believe that in a matter of minutes I would hear my own children cry for the first time.

The nurses took what seemed like a lot of my blood for tests and put in an IV, then the anaesthesiologist came and spoke with me briefly about the epidural. My doctor also came by to talk with me and then it seemed in no time at all it was time for me to go back to the OR.

There were at least 6 or 8 people in the OR with me. Chad was not allowed to be present until I was prepped and ready for surgery and so I felt very alone even with so many people there. I remember being lifted from one bed to another and then positioned so that the epidural could be put in place. There was one doctor in particular who had such a calming manner, he walked me through the whole process of what was happening and what to expect in a way that made it seem less scary.

Having the epidural put in wasn't painful at all, but it did have quite the effect on me. I was tingling all over and eventually completely numb, and unfortunately very nauseous and I ended up throwing up several times. The nice doctor told me the nausea was due to fluctuations in my blood pressure caused by the epidural. He told me almost everyone throws up (I'm not sure if this is true or not but it made me feel less embarassed at least).

Finally I felt less nauseous and Chad was allowed to come in. He sat beside my head and held my hand. I could tell he was very nervous too.

They began the surgery and I felt nothing at all. I could hear my doctor and the assisting doctor chitchatting about different types of flooring they were considering putting in their homes and I remember thinking that everything must be going well if they were talking about flooring while doing the surgery, LOL.

Within minutes Brady was ready to be born and they told Chad to look over the curtain so he could see his son being born. Brady was born at 2:50 pm. All I wanted to do was hear him cry and I held my breath for what seemed like eternity (he didn't cry immediately) until I heard him cry. What a wonderful sound! Chloe was born a minute after her brother at 2:51 pm and she cried immediately.

Chad wasn't allowed to go over to them until they had been cleaned off and examined by the nurses and doctors but it only took a minute or two.

Here is their first picture with their Dad:



They told us Brady weighed 6 lbs 12 oz and Chloe weighed 6 lbs 13 oz and they both recieved great Apgar scores. We were so happy and relieved!

Chad brought them each over to me and I was so happy to be able to see their sweet faces! It was an overwhelmingly emotional experience and there are no adequate words to describe how wonderful it feels to meet your babies for the first time.

So that is the story of how Brady and Chloe were born on Friday, February 18th! Next post will be catching up on the last 2 months as newborns!

A Lot of Catching Up to Do

Hello everyone, I am so sorry we have neglected the blog for so long. It seemed that by the middle/end of my pregnancy we had so much to do in preparation for the babies that the blog was put on the backburner.

I want to fill you in on what happened, so I plan to do a series of posts from the past until I catch up to the present. This post will focus on the end of my pregnancy.

Most of my pregnancy I felt wonderful and I kept waiting "for the other shoe to drop". By week 28 I was definitely starting to slow down and work was becoming harder and harder to manage. I talked to my doctor and decided to stop working at week 32. My work threw me an amazing going away/baby shower and I was so touched by their caring and generosity that it made it very hard for me to leave.

By week 32 I was still walking, driving, and even going on short shopping trips by myself. Occasionally I did have to pause and sit down but I could still manage. On Sunday of week 32 my wonderful friends Amy and Ann hosted the babies' shower at our house. I felt very blessed to be able to celebrate the babies' upcoming arrival with many of my friends, including my childhood & college friend Lizzie, who came all the way from Los Angeles to be there.

Here is a picture of me and the baby shower hosts, Ann with her daughter Savannah, and Amy:



Here is a picture of the rest of the lovely ladies that attended the babies' shower:



Saturday of week 34 Chad and I decided to go out for lunch and take a shopping trip to Target and Babies R Us for more baby gear. By this time I had to go in a wheelchair since I couldn't walk for longer periods of time. That particular day Babies R Us was running a big sale and it was a complete madhouse. After navigating both stores with me in a wheelchair, Chad and I were both exhausted.

When we got home I was not feeling well at all. I started feeling nauseous and having contractions. We timed them for several hours and eventually called the doctor. The doctor on call recommended we go to the hospital and so we did. I was having frequent contractions and the doctors felt that if I progressed I would have a c-section the next morning. Because they believed I would be undergoing surgery soon, I was not allowed pain medicine or any food or water for approx. 10 hours until the next morning. In the morning they determined that I had not progressed into actual labor and so I was not going to have a c-section that day. I began to feel better by Sunday afternoon and was released from the hospital that night.

After I spent the weekend of week 34 in the hospital my mother decided she needed to be there to support me and she was in Houston by Tuesday evening. From this point on I had contractions off and on almost daily. Even though the babies were not born for another three weeks I was so grateful to have my mother there during the last part of my pregnancy. It was a really special bonding time for both of us and I will always treasure the time we had.

Here is a picture of me and my mother just before the babies were born:



By week 36 I went to my doctor for a check-up and I had not progressed at all even though I was still having contractions. Based on everything that was going on the doctor gave us the option to have an Amniocentesis (where they extract amniotic fluid) to determine if the babies' lungs were mature enough to be born. If so, they would be delivered that day by c-section. We agreed to have the test and went back to the hospital on Friday, Feb. 11th for the procedure. The test revealed the babies' lungs needed another week to fully mature so I received a steroid shot to accelerate the babies' lungs' development and we all went back home. The doctor scheduled the c-section for the following Friday, February 18th.

Here is a picture of me on the day of the Amniocentesis at 36 weeks & 2 days:



Although the last weeks of my pregnancy were difficult, I was extremely lucky to have such an overall healthy pregnancy with no major health complications for me or the babies.

Next post will be about their Birthday!