Growing like weeds

Hi all! I checked out the hit counter and noticed that people are still checking the blog regularly, so I figured I'd better post something before I get in trouble again!

The babies are doing well, they're growing like weeds. Noah is getting especially chunky! He's got a couple of chins and nice big square cheeks. We have an appointment with the pediatrician on Monday. I keep warning Noah that they're going to tell us to stop feeding him if he keeps getting so fat! (Just kidding, obviously!) Hannah seemed to have a hard time breaking the ten pound mark, but she finally has and is starting to fill out a little more. They are both getting really good about holding their own heads, managing to get their hands in their mouths, and most excitingly (I think I just made up a word), smiling and laughing. They don't laugh very often, but we can see smiles every day now. They both have very big, joyful smiles. We think they are going to be really happy babies once all of the gas problems are completely over.

People keep asking me if they are sleeping through the night yet. All I can do is laugh! It has gotten a lot better recently. Normally we are only having to get up twice during the night and they are doing a good job of sleeping between the night feedings. Five and a half hours is about the longest they ever go between feedings at night. It is still always three hours between feedings during the day.

I mentioned above that they are going to the pediatrician on Monday. This will also be their first shots. I'm not really looking forward to that, but obviously it is for the best!

As I sit back and reflect I am amazed at how quickly the time has gone. It seems like only yesterday that we were bringing them home, yet at the same time it seems like forever ago, like we've always had them. I can already tell that raising them is going to be a whirlwind experience. I just pray that we'll be able to take a step back once in a while and enjoy our special time with them.

I've attached some picures below, enjoy!

This first picture is from the baby blessing which happened on December 3rd.

The long awaited update...it only took a month!

Apparently I am in a lot of trouble with various blog readers. I was informed by my wife that one of her friends has read the last post about the birth story so many times that she knows it better than we do! I apologize for the delay...time is scarce!

The babies are now almost six weeks old. Unbelievable! The are both weighing in at more than nine pounds. It's strange to think that some babies leave the hospital weighing that much, but I'd say it's pretty good considering Hannah and Noah weighed less than six pounds when they left the hospital.

Everyone is doing great! The babies had been pretty uncomfortable all along due to gas. We tried soy formula for a while without much improvement. We recently switched to the Nestle Good Starts with Comfort Proteins. The difference has been night and day. Previously, the babies seemed to fuss most of the time they were awake. They were either eating, sleeping, or fussing. Now, however, when they are awake they are just as content as can be. There is still the occassional gas, but I think that is to be expected. I'm just glad we finally found something to help them be more comfortable. It's so frustrating knowing that they are having a hard time and I can't do anything to help. I guess I'm going to have to get used to that.

We are going through about 16 bottles a day! We make up a day's worth in advance. Since there's so many we make the formula in bulk in a Pampered Chef pitcher (the one that mixes when you lift the handle up and down) and then we fill the bottles from there. We go through a can of formula powder in about two and a half days. The diapers are flowing too, but I haven't paid much attention to how many of those we are going through. I prefer to think about diapers as little as possible!

Tomorrow will be a historic day in the babies' lives. They will begin sleeping in separate cribs for the first time. They are finally getting to the point where they are starting to wake each other up with crying and flailing about. I will miss walking into the nursery and looking into the crib only to see four little arms waving frantically. It's quite a sight!

Hannah and Noah will be attending church for the first time this Sunday. My mom has been nice enough to agree to come to church with Elizabeth to help take care of the babies. This will be most helpful! Somebody will need to fend off the hordes. :) Just kidding, we know everyone is excited to see them.

Well, I can't think of much else to say right now. I will show you some pictures below. Enjoy!

This first picture is of Noah. He makes this face all the time. To make it even funnier, he normally shifts his eye back and forth from side-to-side while he's doing it.



The next two pictures were taken during our "photo shoot" we did with the babies. In the first picture they are wrapped in the blankets that my grandma made for them. The final picture is my favorite of all time. Aren't they precious?

The Birth Story

Sorry it has taken a while to get this posted. As you can imagine, things have been a little (ok, a LOT) crazy around here. Anyway, in this post I'll provide information about labor and delivery and the first couple of days. I'll make another post later to discuss how things are going since we've been home.

The story starts with a pretty sleepless night on Thursday, October 5th. With the anticipation of the induction the next morning, it was difficult to shut our minds off. After all, within 24 hours we would be meeting our babies!

We arose around 5 am on Friday morning (the 6th) since we were supposed to call the hospital at 5:30 to confirm they had room for us. After getting the go-ahead we arrived at the hospital at 6:30. We did some initial settling in, answering questions, and other mundane things. At 8:00 am Dr. Asdell came in to say hello, break the water, and get the pitocin (drug used to induce labor) started. And so it began...

The morning hour consisted mainly of waiting for good contractions to start. They came in about every fifteen minutes to increase the dose of pitocin. After a while they decided to place internal monitors to monitor contractions and Baby A's (Hannah's) heart rate. At 12:15 pm, Elizabeth was in enough pain that they put in her epidural. When I went back into the room after they had started that, she was a new woman. She said that she felt better than she had felt in months.

My parents had arrived at the hospital around 9:30 am, and Elizabeth's parents arrived around 1:00 pm. We were all expecting a delivery in the late afternoon or early evening.

Progress was slowly being made each time an exam was performed. The babies also handled the labor very well. The problem was that they reached the maximum dose of pitocin and Elizabeth's utuerus just wasn't contracting strongly or very regularly. But, the doctor said as long as there was progress, and as long as the babies were doing fine, we should stay the course.

As the evening wore on Elizabeth got more and more uncomfortable and began experiencing back labor that she was able to feel even with the epidural block. Finally, around 11:30 or 12 that night, after 16 hours of labor, Dr. Asdell came in and did an exam. We were dismayed to hear that things had actually started to regress. Backwards progress. After that things started happening very quickly as preparations were made for the c-section.

I got into my "bunny suit" and donned my hair cover and mouth/nose guard. At 12:20 am Elizabeth was wheeled off to the operating room while I was left to wait until I was summoned. So I waited, and I paced, and I waited for what seemed to be an eternity. Finally after about 10 minutes they came and got me and took me into the operating room where I seated next to Elizabeth's head. She was not looking good. She had already vomited before I got there and that continued throughout the surgery.

The operating room was packed! The occupants consisted of Elizabeth and myself, Dr. Asdell, a resident, Elizabeth's nurse, two nurses assisting with the surgery, the anesthesiologist, two respiratory therapists (one for each baby), two NICU nurses (one for each baby) and a student nurse.

The early part of the surgery was interrupted with a "Whoa!" from Dr. Asdell, followed by a "Is everything okay?" from me. The anesthesiologist looked over the curtain and told that everything was fine, Dr. Asdell had just shocked herself with the cauterizing tool. It wasn't long after that, when unexpectedly, we heard the first cries. Little Hannah had been born. They quickly cut her cord and lifted her up over the curtain for Elizabeth and I to take a peek. She was definitely gross looking, but it will always be remembered as one of the sweetest sights of my life. At that point Hannah was handed off to the team waiting to assess her as I shed a few tears and kissed Elizabeth. About that time the anesthesiologist asked if I wanted to watch them pull Noah out. Of course I did! About the time I stood up and looked over the curtain they were pulling his head out, followed by one shoulder, then the other, and then the rest of his body. Cries again. Noah had joined us! I sat back down as they held Noah up for Elizabeth and I to admire. Again, gross...but oh so beautiful. For the next thirty minutes or so they stitched Elizabeth back up while the babies were checked out, cleaned up, and passed to me to hold. Both were determined to be very healthy!

After the surgery was complete, and while they were preparing Elizabeth to transport her back to her room, I was able to chat with Dr. Asdell. She said that Hannah was a little stinker and was face up in the birth canal, instead of face down. That would explain the back labor! She also said that even though Noah was head down, based on his position, she thinks he would have flipped sideways after Hannah made her exit and would have required a c-section anyway. So, at least it was just a c-section and not a regular birth plus a c-section.

The initial recovery period went very well. The grandparents were all very anxious to meet their new grandchildren. After about 45 minutes they were allowed to come in. It was a neat moment for us all.

After a little more time in the labor room Elizabeth was transported to the post-partum unit. As we settled in and I laid down to try and sleep I started to feel sick. About the same time Elizabeth started to feel sick. I ended up throwing up a whole bunch in the bathroom. My blood sugar was a little high, but the probable culprit was dehydration, lack of sleep, and not eating very well throughout the day. Suddenly Elizabeth was feeling really ill. She was lightheaded, seeing gray spots, and bad things like that. As all of the nurses rushed in to help her, I headed into the bathroom to throw up again. Since Elizabeth was feeling even more upset worrying about me, I agreed to go to the emergency room. I went down and told them that I basically just needed some fluids and something for the nausea. They complied and I was as good as new in a couple of hours (as much as that is possible after not sleeping for 30 hours). Anyway, back to Elizabeth....they determined that her blood pressure was dropping dramatically and elevated her feet above her head. After a while they were able to get her stabilized. They started monitoring her hemoglobin and it continued to decrease (not a good thing) over the next day. There was some concern about internal bleeding because the blood loss from the surgery seemed minimal. Finally, Dr. Asdell recommended a blood transfusion, and Elizabeth received two units of blood. After the transfusion her hemoglobin almost doubled. Dr. Asdell decided that she may have underestimated the blood loss during the surgery and over-estimated the fluid loss associated with the babies. The good thing was that after the transfusion, Elizabeth started to get some of her energy back.

The last major hurdle for Elizabeth was the horrible gas pain she was experiencing. They went through several "invasive" treatments and finally Elizabeth found some relief from that. She said it was the worst part of the surgery.

The rest of the recovery time consisted of lots of feeding of the babies. They were in the room with us a lot, but we sent them to the nursery during the night when they weren't eating so that we could try and get some sleep. That helped a lot!

Elizabeth and the babies were discharged from the hospital on Tuesday.

Here are some pictures from the hospital:

Very quick update...

Just wanted to provide a very quick update and let everyone know that the induction time has been changed from 10:30 am to 6:30 am tomorrow. We have to call at 5:30 am to make sure they have room for us to come in. It's going to be a long day! We're so looking forward to meeting Noah and Hannah!!

The countdown begins...

Well, excellent news at the appointment this morning...no more appointments until the induction on Friday! They did a non-stress test on the babies and both seem to be doing fine. We had a little trouble getting Hannah to wake up enough for the test, but that's not unusual for her, she's very laid back. Eventually, with enough poking and prodding, they were able to see enough accelerations to conclude that she is doing fine.

The best news was that Elizabeth's blood pressure was down as low as it has been for a while. In fact, it was low enough that they decided they don't need to check it anymore before Friday.

So now, the countdown really begins.

Induction time: Friday, October 6th, 10 a.m. - we should have babies by late afternoon/early evening assuming all goes well!

Update after Monday's Appointment

Keeping up with this blog is really getting to be tricky! It wasn't so bad when I had to post once every couple of weeks, but every day...c'mon!! :) Don't worry though, I'll be sure to keep everyone up to date.

The news today is mixed...some good, some not-so-good. The not-so-good part is that Elizabeth's blood pressure is back up. In fact, I think it was the highest it has been. Her diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) was 100. They want it to be less than 90. They had her lay on her side for about 30 minutes (or an eternity if you ask Elizabeth), and then rechecked it. It did go down during the resting period...that's a good thing.

They had not yet received the results of the 24-hour urine collection, so stay tuned for that.

Now the good news. 2 centimeters!!! That means our babies are going to be born this week one way or another. Since the blood pressure is back up there is a chance they will have to induce before Friday. If not, however, it looks like October 6th will be their birthday (unless they decide to come before, of course).

Elizabeth is now on modified bed rest. She can get up only to eat and go to the bathroom. She has another appointment at 9:20 tomorrow morning for another check of her blood pressure. I have arranged time off work to take her to all of her appointments from now on since I don't think she should be driving (bedrest = no driving in my book!). I stopped at the library and got her a few books, so hopefully she won't go crazy. At least it's only for a few days with a known endpoint.

Good news at the doctor today

Today's appointment finally brought some good news. Elizabeth's blood pressure is back down, her lab work came back fine, and the babies are still doing great. She does, however, get to continue her 24-hour urine collection. Doesn't it look like fun...



There was another exciting developement as well. We have an induction date!! We are currently on the schedule for induction at 10:00 am on next Friday, October 6th. There is a slight stipulation though. On Monday they are going to check Elizabeth's cervix and she needs to be 2-3 cm dilated in order for them to be able to induce. The doctor seemed pretty confident that this will be the case since she was so effaced the last time they checked. She also said, "Hopefully they'll come before then." We couldn't agree more!

Let the peeing begin...

Well, not the best news after today's blood pressure/urine check with the nurse practicioner. Elizabeth's blood pressure was still elevated, although it did go down a bit after resting for a few minutes. They did check on the babies, and they seem to be doing just fine. The nurse practicioner consulted with the doctor on call, Dr. Borhan (we saw her when we went the hospital earlier in the pregnancy). Here is the new plan:

- They drew some blood today to test liver and kidney function, the results will be available tomorrow.

- Starting tomorrow morning Elizabeth will be collecting all of her urine and storing it in our refrigerator for 24 hours. (YUK!) We will drop off the sample at the hospital lab on Saturday. They will do another blood test then to look for changes in kidney/liver function.

- Elizabeth is going back to see the nurse practicioner again in the morning.

I'll update the blog tomorrow afternoon/evening to keep everyone up to speed.

Quick update

Hi all, just a quick update on today's developments. Around 9 am this morning Elizabeth developed a headache. As mentioned in the previous post, her blood pressure was high on Monday. The doctor told her to call if she got a headache.

They were able to get her in at 1:50 this afternoon. They checked her blood pressure and it was about the same as on Monday, still a little high. Both babies' heart rates were fine, and she even made a comment about Hannah being really active. That's the first time that's ever happened! Since Elizabeth had also been having some cramping today, they did an exam and said that she was "really thin" and that the baby's head was "right there."

The nurse practicioner went and consulted with Dr. Asdell for a few minutes. She came back and said they weren't going to do anything drastic. They sent us home with instructions to keep taking it easy, take Tylenol for the headache, and come back on Thursday to have another blood pressure/urine check. So, the appointment that I mentioned for tomorrow has been moved to Thursday. I'll check back in then.

36 Weeks and STILL Counting...

It's hard to believe that another week has come and gone, and that we are another week closer to holding our babies! This last week was pretty rough on Elizabeth. I'll tell you about that, and then I'll update you on today's appointment. Don't be too disappointed, but there won't be any pictures with this post.

Elizabeth's near picture-perfect pregnancy had a little hiccup this past week. Luckily, there is no risk of harm to the babies or permanent harm to mom! She developed a condition called PUPPP, which stands for Pruritic Uricarial Papules and Plaques of Pregnancy. Translation - really, really, really itchy rash. It started out on her belly, and then over a couple of days spread to her arms and legs. Once we figured out what was going on, we called the doctor, and they agreed with our diagnosis (we're pretty good diagnosticians considering this problem affects around 0.5% of first pregnancies). Elizabeth met with a nurse practicioner at the doctor's office on Wednesday, and they referred her to see a dermatologist the following morning. He gave her a steroid shot, some oral steroids and asked her to take Claritin and Mangesium Sulfate supplements every day. Including her prenatal vitamins, she's now taking 14 pills a day. Her skin is already starting to look a lot better, but she is still experiencing quite a lot of itching. She has had several nights with virtually no sleep.

Today's appointment had a new surprise as well. The doctor noticed today that her blood pressure was starting to rise (they described it as the upper end of normal), and that she had gained more weight than expected last week. These things could be early signs of pre-ecclampsia, or (hopefully) they could be related to all of the steroids she is taking. In order to be sure everything is okay, she is going to go back in on Wednesday to have her blood pressure checked again and to have her urine checked for protein. The doctor said if it was still elevated then that we would "have to talk." I checked her blood pressure here at home this evening with our automatic machine, and it was was very similar to what it has always been. So, hopefully everything is fine and it was just a fluke. Until Wednesday she is on doctor's orders to rest as much as she can on her left side, drink lots of water, and to avoid salty foods.

Other than the elevated blood pressure things seem to be okay. Both babies' heart rates were in the 130's.

I will be sure to update the blog as soon as we know something on Wednesday. If I don't get something posted by the end of that night, you can probably assume that we had to deliver the babies.

35 weeks and counting...

Well, I'm back. If you remember from my last post, I mentioned that the next one would either be when the babies were born, or after the doctor's appointment. Everybody is apparently very happy (except perhaps Elizabeth) and wants to keep this pregnancy going for a little longer.

We had an ultrasound with today's appointment. It was definitely the least exciting ultrasound so far, because it is just too hard to really see anything now that they are so big. In fact, Hannah's head is down really low and it took some fancy wand-work from the ultrasound tech to even measure her head. Both babies appear to be doing great. Hannah is weighing in at 5 lb 3 oz, and Noah measured 5 lb 9 oz. The doctor mentioned that this is a 7% difference and is perfectly acceptable. The other good news is that both babies stayed head down (vertex), and there's really no chance of them flipping now. We did get just one snapshot of each baby. As I mentioned Hannah is really far down now, so we just got a picture of her foot. Very cute though...



Since Noah is up higher we were able to get a profile of his face...



HOPEFULLY, this will be the last time we have to look at them as a bunch of fuzzy lines on a television screen, and the next time we see them it will be in person.

Next we met with Dr. Asdell. She was very pleased that Elizabeth had made it to 35 weeks. Elizabeth is now measuring 43-44 weeks, or in other words, a whole month bigger than a full-term singleton. If you've ever wondered what a woman a month past term might look like, I'll show you. It's just absolutely amazing to me how beautiful she still looks. I think she was "made" to carry twins!




An exam was involved in this visit, but didn't turn up much hope of anything getting started anytime soon. She was dilated one centimeter and she didn't mention that she was effaced (thinned) at all. She did make a comment right when she started that she felt a head, but later said that it was still pretty high up. That would have been Hannah's head, she will definitely be the first one to join us on the outside.

Dr. Asdell did mention that if Elizabeth makes it to 38 weeks and has started to dilate then she will consider inducing at that point. She didn't make any promises. I don't think it'll last that long anyway. Elizabeth has started to notice some contractions and it seems (to me anyway) that they are starting to occur more frequently. It's all a waiting game now. It does look like my guess will be a bit off though. Regardless, they'll be here soon!

The next post will be after next week's doctor's appointment on Monday, or after the babies are born. Until then...

All showered out...

Well, they've come to an end...no more baby showers. There were four in all. That's two for each baby! Seriously, we are extremely appreciative for each and every one of them. Everyone was so generous, and we truly appreciate all that everyone has done for us.

Last Friday was the final shower. It was thrown by Elizabeth's visiting teachers from church. Here's a picture of the hostesses with the mosteses.



Everyone came here to the house, which was nice, because it meant we didn't have to lug all the gifts home afterward. We received lots of very useful gifts. At this shower we received more gear than clothes. I don't know how they all resisted the urge to buy those cute matching outfits! It's hard to pick favorites, but one of my favorites was definitely a gift from Sis. Vest who used to be Elizabeth's 1st Counselor when she was the Primary President. She made a really neat mobile with lambs. Since both of the babies already have mobiles for their cribs we are going to hang this one in a corner of the room up near the ceiling. I think it will look really neat.



Refreshments included fresh fruit and chocolate fondue and a beautiful cake from Long's Bakery (yum!).



Elizabeth had a doctor's appointment today. I didn't go again this time because there was no ultrasound. Everything went great! She is now measuring 39-40 weeks (how comfortable that must be). Hannah's heart rate was in the 140's, and Noah's heat rate was in the 150's. Dr. Asdell made a comment about Noah being much more active than Hannah. Sounds like we're in for a real treat! ;) She said to keep up the good work and that 35 weeks is a good goal. That's only 12 days away!! EEK! She did say, of course, the longer the better. So for now, Elizabeth will keep trying to hold them in (much to her dismay)!

The next doctor's appointment will be in two weeks. It will include an ultrasound and an exam. Now the question is....will she make it?

I thought it might be fun to have everyone take a guess when they will be born and see who is closest. My guess is going to be 36 weeks exactly, which is September 28th. What's your guess? You can enter it by adding a comment to the post. It's pretty self-explanatory, hopefully everyone can figure it out.

The next post will either be after the next doctor's appointment in two weeks or if something else happens in the meantime. I'll be anxiously waiting for the next post....believe me!

31-Week Doctor's Appointment Update

It's been a very busy week, so I haven't had time to update the blog since the most recent doctor's appointment this past Wednesday.

This doctor's appointment included an ultrasound. The ultrasound technician made a comment as we were getting situated that it seems like Elizabeth has been pregnant forever. I actually feel like it has gone very quickly. I'm not sure you'd get the same story if you asked Elizabeth though!

Anyway, the ultrasound went fine. Since the babies are a lot bigger now, it's a lot harder to see what's going on because they don't fit on the screen. We did get a couple of cute looks at some hands and feet (all fingers and toes were present! ;) ). Unfortunately, because they are getting so big and squished in there, we didn't get any good pictures. She did print a couple for us, but they don't really look like anything. The good news was that both babies were head-down. There's much less of a chance of them turning now, so they may be that way until birth. That would be very convenient! Hannah is weighing in at 3 lb. 9 oz., and Noah is weighing in at a very respectable 3 lb 14 oz. These weights were the 58th and 60th percentile, respectively, when compared to the normal weights for singletons at this gestational age.

Next started the waiting game. For some strange reason, the scheduling person decided to schedule an hour and ten minutes between the ultrasound and visit with the nurse practitioner. She claimed that they needed to schedule it longer because it was for twins. But we've had lots of ultrasounds and never had that much time in between. Anyway, after lots of waiting, the nurse practicioner arrived. It was the usual stuff, questions, measurements, and listening to heartbeats. Elizabeth was measuring 36 weeks (she was 31 weeks 2 days at the appointment), so almost 5 weeks ahead.

As an outside observer, I would say that Elizabeth is really starting to slow down. I can tell that she is pretty uncomfortable most of the time, and she is constantly tired. It is kind of funny though, to be sitting there and all a sudden she about jumps out of her chair because somebody just kicked her. The babies are definitely getting stronger. I have been able to feel what are definitely feet and ankles poking out, instead of just a little pressure.

I think we are both starting to get really excited. I can't wait to meet them in person, and see what they look like. It will be interesting to see what my emotions are like when they come. I've been occasionally watching a show on TLC (thanks to Tivo) called Baby Baby (even the Tivo knows we are having twins -- Tivo is just that awesome). It's a British show about families who are pregnant with, having, or have just come home with twins. Every time they show a birth I cry when the babies are born. I've never been like that before with those shows, so it must be because mine are on the way.

I also had my first definite baby dream. Well, sorta...there were no babies in it. I don't remember too many of the details now, but I remember how frustrated I was. It was something about going to the hospital, then being sent back home because of some insurance problem, then going back to the wrong hospital once we got things with the insurance straightened out. It was all stuff that wouldn't happen in real life, but man was I mad! It seems like there was something about the doctor as well...but it wasn't Elizabeth's doctor. Who knows!

I should also mention another kind deed of which we were the recipients. Elizabeth's mom came this past Monday and helped to prepare a bunch of "freezer meals" to help simplify things for a while once the babies come. They cooked up all sorts of good stuff and froze it. It is all vacuum-sealed, so it should last for a while. We are just so appreciative that she would spend her day off work to come and help us!

The next doctor's appointment is scheduled for September 6th. No ultrasound at this one, but it will be with Doctor Asdell and not someone else. Until then...

The kindness of family and friends

It's already that time again! Since the last post Elizabeth has had another doctor's appointment and another baby shower (or should I say babies shower?).

I believe I have mentioned before that we have long had a name for our little boy, but have been struggling to name our little girl. Well, we are almost completely settled on names for both babies now. As you can see in the ticker above, we are settled enough that I went ahead and put their names there. Elizabeth had narrowed it down to three that she really liked: Rosalie, Hannah, and Madeline. While Rosalie was the early favorite, it turns out that Hannah was the winner. She even seems to prefer it! One evening I woke them up and asked her if she wanted her name to be Hannah. I told her to kick me in the cheek if she did, and believe it or not, I immediately got kicked in the cheek! It is also a biblical name that has some special meaning to us. So her name will be Hannah Beth (Beth is my mom's (Karen's) middle name). Our little boy's name will Noah Alan. This is a combination of my father-in-law (Charles') middle name and my dad's (Alan's) first name. So here they are for the world to hear: Noah Alan and Hannah Beth. We'll let you know if we change our minds! ;)

The Doctor's Appointment. This one was scheduled for Monday at 10:30. I didn't go to this appointment because there was no ultrasound. She met with Dr. Asdell and got a "perfect" report! Noah's heartrate was 145, and Hannah's was 150. Also, she was told that she is measuring 34 weeks (she was actually at 29 weeks). I mentioned in the report from that last visit that she was told she was measuring 33.5-34 weeks. But not to worry, this is a pretty subjective measurement and they were made by two different people. Both of the other couples that went to our multiple's birth class seem to be having very good luck with their pregnancies, so we are counting on the same. The first couple delivered their boys at a point where neither of them needed to go to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit for the uninitiated) and they were all able to go home together. The other couple just sent us an email Monday saying that they had made it to 37 weeks and everybody was still inside and doing fine. That's one thing that is a pretty unnerving about a multiples pregnancy: you just have no idea when they are going to actually come. The next doctor's appointment is scheduled for August 23, and there will be an ultrasound at that visit. I will be sure to update the blog with the pictures soon after the appointment.

The shower. Yesterday was a baby shower for Elizabeth hosted by both of my grandmothers, my sister and my mom. There was a large turnout of over thirty people!



I didn't get to see a number of the people who came, but I was there toward the end and got to see a lot of people that I haven't seen for a while. It was so nice of everyone to come. One of my aunts and a cousin came in from Ohio, and my mom's cousins came from places like Rockville and Columbus. With gas prices these days, and with how busy everyone is, it was no small sacrifice for them to come. We really appreciate everyone who came.

The gifts completely filled up the back of our SUV with the back seat folded down! Here are before and after shots of opening the presents!





Just to name a couple of the larger items, we received the double stroller, both car seats, a bathtub, a bouncy seat, and a swing. We also got a TON of clothes, books, toys, diapers and all the other good stuff that come with babies. I think we're going to have to build an extra wing onto our house just for all of the baby stuff!

Here are a couple of shots of the stroller. It's folded in the first one, and set up with the infant car seats in the second.





Of course, just like everything else baby, it had to be assembled. (The instructions really called for the use of a hammer...I promise!!)



One of the most special gifts (they were all very special...you know what I mean) was a set of blankets that my grandmother crocheted. A few tears were shed when that gift was opened.



Well, I think that's it for now. Later!

It's raining presents

Is it possible that another two weeks could have passed?! I have a lot to tell you about today: another shower, visiting new babies, and a doctor's appointment. Let's get started!

Last Tuesday evening the women from the church in Kokomo (where Elizabeth grew up) threw a shower for her. How nice is that? She hasn't lived there since 1999, and they still threw her one. Everyone was very generous, and we received lots of nice gifts. We now have our Diaper Champ along with some diapers to be dirtied by the babies when they arrive and then placed in the Diaper Champ. We received several blankets of all different sizes. The portable swing we received will be nice because it will allow us to have two swings without losing so much floor space. We also, of course, received a lot of clothes. Elizabeth has organized everything in the closet according to size (did you expect any less?), and it seems like we have a good assortment. Here is a picture from the shower.



Since my last post two new babies have been born into our families! My cousin, Megan, had a little boy on July 10th. His name is Ethan. We got to see him this past Saturday and he is really cute (in a handsome sort of way). Elizabeth's sister, Molly, and her husband Greg also had a baby this past Friday, July 21st. His name is Shadrach, or Shad for short. We were able to go and visit with Molly, Greg and Shad at the hospital on Saturday. He is also adorable. Elizabeth and I were both able to hold each of the babies. It was quite an experience, knowing that very shortly I will have two of my own to hold all I want! Anyway, here's a picture of Elizabeth getting some practice with Shad.



We had a doctor's appointment today, so I'd better report on that now. First and foremost, everybody is doing great! Things got kicked off with an ultrasound. One of the first things we learned after that got started was that Baby B (our little boy) has flipped around and both babies are now vertex (head down). If they cooperate and stay in these positions things will be much simpler at delivery since Baby B won't have to be flipped around from the outside. OUCH! It also quickly explained why Elizabeth, and me for that matter, have really only been feeling kicks from one baby...or so we thought. It turns out that all four of the little feet are in one spot right under Elizabeth's ribs. Everything else with the ultrasound went great. Baby A (girl) is weighing in at 2 lbs. 1 oz. and Baby B (boy) is weighing in at 2 lb. 3 oz. They are both above the 50th percentile for their gestational ages. Unfortunately, since Baby B flipped around and they are now head-to-head it made it very difficult to get good pictures of their faces. I went ahead and attached a few below, but they aren't the greatest. I tried to point out some features so that you might be able to get oriented. There are two of Baby B and only one of Baby A.







We met with a midwife at this appointment because Elizabeth's doctor was on vacation. All of the results from the bloodwork at the last appointment turned out great. No anemia and no gestational diabetes! Even though Elizabeth is at 27 weeks today she is measuring as if she were 33.5-34 weeks. The midwife was really impressed that she is doing so well! Go Elizabeth! Our next doctor's appointment is in two weeks. There won't be an ultrasound at that appointment, but I'll update the blog nonetheless.

25 weeks down.... XX to go...

Wow, a lot has happened since I last checked in. I'll get you all caught up.

We got the wall decorations up in the nursery. This ended up being a two night ordeal, but now that they are up it looks great! On the wall with the cribs we have two coordinating paintings. They are from a series called "The Lion and The Lamb" and are painted by an artist in Kokomo, Indiana who happens to be a friend of Elizabeth's father. The one over the left crib is called "Love is Kind," and the one over the right crib is called "Give Thanks." We framed them ourselves using white cutom-cut mattes and frames that we purchased at Hobby Lobby. The wall hanging in between the paintings coordinates with the crib bedding. Take a look...



On the wall with the window we have a cross-stitched Precious Moments piece that has a little boy (or girl, I can't tell) hugging a lamb. On the right side of the window is a painting of Christ with some lambs. In addition to getting the wall decorations up, we were also able to get a pull-down shade and curtain rod. The valance also coordinates with the bedding. Here it is...



We had a very exciting Fourth of July. We traveled down to Bloomington for a family reunion combined with a baby shower for Elizabeth. It was a reunion for Elizabeth's mom's side of the family. Several aunts and uncles, a cousin, her parents and her brother were all there. We had a very nice time catching up. It was especially nice to see her Aunt Susie who traveled in from Connecticut.

Everyone was so generous, and we received lots of gifts. Check it out.



One special thing that we received is actually being loaned to us. It is a special blanket. The blanket belongs to Elizabeth's Aunt Susie and it was her blanket when she came home from the hospital. It ended up that all of her siblings come home from the hospital with this blanket as well. When it came time for the next generation, most of her children and her nieces and nephews had it when they came home from the hospital. The blanket tradition has never been tested by the challenge of twins, but we'll figure something out. We're not going to break such a special tradition!



As I said before, everyone was very generous. We got lots of cute matching things for them, always (almost anyway) one pink and one blue. Everything was so great!



It was my first baby shower ever, and I had a lot of fun. I even got a gift! They are matching outfits, one says "Daddy's Girl," and the other says "Daddy's Boy."



Even with all of this fun, there's still more to talk about. Elizabeth had a doctor's appointment today. There was no ultrasound at this visit, instead they did a glucose screening test to check for gestational diabetes. She had to wait around for a full hour for that test, so I didn't go to this appointment. They also took some blood to check for anemia and to make sure her blood type hasn't changed (she's Rh-negative). We'll get the results of all of the blood work on Wednesday, but I don't anticipate any problems.

During the one-hour wait, she did see the doctor. She had a new nurse midwife or nurse practicioner with her that just joined their practice. She was following the doctor around "learning the ropes." Dr. Asdell made a comment to her that Elizabeth is doing very well. (Always nice to hear.) They checked the heartbeats and the boy's was 149 and the girl's was 135 and then 142 a bit later. Since there was no ultrasound this time, she felt around a bit a said she thought the babies were still in the same positions. Elizabeth is measuring 31 weeks (she's 25 weeks today).

The next appointment is in two weeks and will include an ultrasound (yay!). Also, on Wednesday or Thursday of this week Elizabeth will go and get her Rho-Gham shot at the hospital. This is to make sure that if she exchanges any blood with the babies during the delivery, and one of them happens to be Rh-positive that she won't develop antibodies to the Rh factor. Because if that did happen, there could be problems in the future if she had another Rh-positive baby.

All in all, everything is still going great. Elizabeth is growing more and more uncomfortable, but she is a very good sport about it. I think I've mentioned before, the average gestation for twins is 35 weeks. That's only ten weeks away. Sounds scary when you say it that way. I can't wait either. I was thinking about the D-day (delivery day that is) in the shower the other day, and I almost started crying. I'm sure it will be another of the happiest days of my life, right next to the day I married my beautiful wife.

Until next time...

[In creepy Dr. Frankenstein voice] It's al-iiiiiii-ve!!

Last night was an amazing night! I was able to feel our little girl moving for the first time. Of course, Elizabeth has been feeling them move for quite some time now, but they are finally kicking hard enough to be felt on the outside.

Elizabeth called me at work yesterday to tell me that she thought she could feel them from the outside. When I got home I asked if there were any babies awake, and she said there were. Unfortunately though, I wasn't able to feel anything. She said the kicks didn't feel as hard as they had earlier in the day. Based on where she was feeling those kicks, I would guess that it was our little boy.

Finally, around 9:00 last night she said she could feel kicks again, and they were harder this time. Based on the position this time (high on the right side), it must have been the girl. I had my hand on her belly for only a few moments when I felt the first one. I continued to feel for about the next 10 minutes or so and got to feel five to ten kicks. One of them was really hard, I bet I could have seen her skin move if I had been looking instead of feeling.

I have always known that our babies are in there, but with each of these milestones it becomes more and more real. Each ultrasound has made them more real, and definitely feeling the movement now is a big step. I look forward to continuing "getting to know" them until I can finally meet them in person.

I also have a couple of pictures of Elizabeth to post finally. She spent some time yesterday getting the lambs all situated on the top of the hutch on the changing table. She did a really good job; they look so cute. The first picture shows off all of the lambs arranged. I also attached a second shot that hows off her belly and how good she looks.

A nursery for two...

The nursery is starting to look more and more like a nursery. The furniture is all put together now. There is still a lot of decorating to do, but we have lots of time. It would be a shame to get it all done at once and not have anything to do for three or four months. We're finding that it's a delicate balance between getting stuff done early to be prepared, and getting things done too early and making the wait seem longer.

It's hard to imagine the wait seeming long though. I can't help but feel like it is charging toward us like a freight train. Today marks the 23 week point. 23 WEEKS!! Considering the average twins are born at 35 weeks, that leaves only 12 weeks or three months. The weeks are flying by and it's going to be September/October before we know it.

Anyway, I have some pictures to show. We'll be getting a picture of Elizabeth and her ever expanding belly on here soon. She wanted to make sure she looked cute. I don't know what she's worried about, she always looks cute! Pregnancy is being especially good to her. I can't help but admire how beautiful she is, carrying our babies.

The first picture is of me finishing up the painting. I wanted to show it to give you some idea of how hard it is to paint textured walls! Look at how hard I am pushing on the roller. We'll be hiring professional painters from now on...or just not painting anymore.



The next step was putting together the changing table, side tables, and hutch. It looks really nice all put together. It took about three evenings to get it done. Some outside help was required to get the hutch up there too!



Once I had that all put together, I assembled the cribs. They actually went together very easily. They will be easy to convert into day beds and big boy/girl beds when the time comes. They are also very sturdy, which I like a lot. The only things I'm not so crazy about is that they don't have drop gates, and it seems to me like the babies are going to be too deep in the cribs at first. We have it on the highest setting, but it still seems pretty deep. We'll see what it looks like once we get the matresses in there.



Here are both cribs completed and in place...



I'm afraid the cats are already starting to feel upset about the changes taking place around here. To help them adjust, we went and purchased a new scratching post for them. They seem to really like it. Their favorite part is definitely the little mouse hanging from the top. It's got catnip too, so I'm sure that helps.



Well, that's all for now. Stay tuned!

Ultrasound Pictures

As promised, I'm back with the latest ultrasound pictures. Unfortunately our little boy is very squirmy and we haven't been able to snap too many good pictures of him. Here are two shots of his face, if you can even make them out.





Our little girl is much more cooperative. She even brought her hand up to her mouth for one of the pictures below. Both of these shots are profile shots.





Like I said before, the little boy is a real trouble-maker. He is in the breech position and his sister is in the vertex position (head down). Since he moves around so much he just kicks her and kicks her. I won't blame her at all if she never really likes him!

Okay, it's late again...enjoy the ultrasound pictures!

A better way...

Well, I've decided that there has to be a better way than sending out a bunch of emails every time we have an ultrasound. This is it! A blog. I'm going to try my best to keep this updated as we progress through the rest of Elizabeth's pregnancy and even beyond if I have the time and energy (big IF). It will be an easy way to keep everyone up-to-date at the same time. It's not that I don't want to be personal, it's just that time is getting more and more precious as there are so many preparations to make.

This week I have started to work on getting the nursery painted. We chose a color called 'Belle Grove Light Amber.' It's pretty much just a tan color that is slightly yellow. The first night I did all of the trim-work along the ceiling. Yesterday I did everything along the baseboard and corners. The next time I get a chance to work on it I will actually be rolling the main portions of the wall. Then after touch-ups I'll hopefully be done. Everybody keep your fingers crossed that I don't have to do a second coat.




The furniture has arrived (not so easily--more in a second) and is sitting in boxes in the guest room just begging me to be put together. Obviously, the painting has to be done and then I think we're going to clean the carpets as well. My mom (Karen) came up on Monday night to help pick up the furniture. We went and grabbed some dinner and then headed over to Babies 'R Us. After dealing with the rude manager there we went back out to get our vehicles ready when my mom discovered that the back of the truck was locked and she didn't have a key. OOPS! So she and I drove to Shelbyville and got the key then went back and picked up the cribs which were too big to fit in our SUV. Thanks Mom, we appreciate your help!

Yesterday's doctor's appointment went very well. We had to wait a bit for the doctor because she was at the hospital, but it wasn't too bad. She said everything looked good, including the cervical measurements. Nothing had changed since we were at the hospital last Monday so she wasn't too concerned. She did tell Elizabeth that now is the time to really start taking it easy. She instructed her to rest for a couples hours a couple of times a day. Don't worry, I'll live up to my reputation as the "Pregnancy Police." We will not have an ultrasound at the next appointment in a month (the first time we haven't had one), but she'll have to drink that glucose drink for the glucose tolerance test. She'll also be tested for anemia.

I had hoped to write more this evening and post the most recent ultrasound pictures; however, it is past my bedtime now as we had our class tonight. I'll post tomorrow.