34.5 Weeks

 

Because every day counts. And I apparently got something on my shirt. It's kinda easy to do these days.

34 Weeks

 

Still hanging in there!

I mentioned I was getting bigger everyday, and Mike jumped in and said every hour. 

Such a sweet guy.

(But really...he is).

The bedrest and meds seem to be working, and the babies are weighing in around 5 pounds.

Here's to another successful week!

 

33 Weeks

32 Weeks

The 32nd week of my pregnancy turned out to be a bit more eventful than I had hoped, but it all turned out alright in the end!

Such a frightening picture, but I'm just keeping it real here. Hospital life wasn't glamorous!

Last Wednesday, 31 weeks 6 days, I started feeling contractions regularly. I started timing and noticed that they were 3-5 minutes apart for over an hour. My doctor had told me that was the magic number, so I called Mike and asked him to come home so I could rest and see if they went away. We went back and forth all evening, but by the time the boys went to sleep we decided we'd better go. We got someone to watch the boys and headed out.

By the time we got to the hospital I was feeling pretty silly, because I hadn't felt a single contraction since we got in the car. Still, since we had already made the drive I decided they may as well just hook me up and check me out. Sure enough, when they got me on the monitor it showed I was having regular, strong contractions. That night I ended up getting three shots of terbutaline to help the contractions stop, and they sent me on my way.

By 11:00 the next morning, 32 weeks to the day, the contractions were starting up again. I was really hoping I was just making them up, but sure enough over the next couple hours they were still there. So, we got the boys settled with our friends and headed back up to the hospital. Sure enough, the contractions were back, and at this point we had to start thinking about more drastic measures to get them to stop as well as what to do if they wouldn't.

Since I was still only 32 weeks, the most important thing was for the girls to get steroid shots to help with their lungs. You get the shots over the course of 48 hours, and in the meantime they hook you up to a magnesium IV to help with the contractions. I had already had magnesium one time so I knew what I was getting into. That stuff is the devil's drug. But, you do what you have to do, right? I mean, I'm not going to say I didn't cry a little...ha!

Over the next 48 hours I was kind of in a drug induced, can barely keep my eyes open to talk to you daze, but I held out hope that they would magically stop the IV early. I'm not sure why I had that in my head, but I should have given it up. When they came and took the IV and catheter out Saturday night I was so excited! I was still contracting, but it was more like every 10 minutes, which they will take.

So...I may have broken down a bit when they woke me up at 3 am Sunday morning and told me the contractions were starting up again so they had to put my magnesium drip and catheter back in. I don't think it was pretty, ya'll. By that afternoon I started to go loopy again, but I prayed that when my doctor showed up Monday morning the magnesium madness would be over.

Sure enough, Monday morning, my regular doctor got back from vacation, got me off the magnesium, and got me on a kinder drug. He moved me to the antepartum wing where they could still monitor me but I wasn't as hooked up to all the machines. We pretty much decided we would do what we could to stop the girls from coming early, but we wouldn't go crazy. All of the nurses who stopped by to see how it was going couldn't believe I had been on magnesium for practically 4 days...it was intense. I am thankful to the doctors for keeping these girls safe, but those days are nothing I want to relive!

So far the new plan has worked. In fact as of yesterday (Thursday, 33 Weeks) they decided I could go home on bedrest! I am still contracting, but unless they get really strong I think these girls may just hang in there. This whole week their heartbeats and bio-physicals have looked great, and they have handled everything really well.

Whew...longest explanation ever, but I like to record everything so I remember. I am thankful to be home with my boys, and we'll see how long these girls stay put!

 

31 Weeks

 That's a whole lot of baby...I hope.

30 Weeks

Max likes to jump in the picture every week too...

The Girls' Mississippi Shower

 

On April 6th, some of my friends here in Mississippi threw an awesome shower for Addie, Emmie, and me. It was so sweet of them and another great time to celebrate before the girls arrive. We have only lived here 3 1/2 years, but I been so blessed with some awesome friendships with amazing women and mothers. When we got here we had no children, and now we will have 4...before our four year anniversary of being here...crazy. The Lord has blessed us immensely, and the women He has put in my life here have been my lifeline as I figure this motherhood thing out!

I have some amazingly talented friends. So many of them took the time to make gifts for the girls. I love this bath apron. I know it will come in handy.

 

 

29 Weeks

Nurse Gifts

With Max, I thought of doing a little something for the nurses at the hospital, but I just never figured out what. Now, thanks to Pinterest, there are tons of ideas out there! So, while my mom was here she helped me put together little bags of goodies that I hope the nurses who are with us during our stay at the hospital with the girls will enjoy! I got most everything I needed at Sam's, and then they were a snap to put together.

 

28 Weeks

On March 28, I officially reached 28 weeks...third trimester! 28 weeks was one of the major milestones I was looking forward to. Although I really want to make it to at least 36 weeks, I feel a lot better knowing that we have made it to a place where it's safer for them to come early. They still have lots of growing to do in there though!

At our 28 week appointment they were both weighing 2 pounds and 12 ounces. I can definitely tell they are getting a lot bigger in there! They had both been head down at the last appointment, but this time Addie was head down and Emmie was breach. I knew something different was going on by the way they were moving, so that made a lot of sense.

I have to say that twin pregnancy is a lot different than a singleton. Well, it's probably a combo of twin pregnancy, second pregnancy, and having a toddler and a baby to pick up and tote around all day. Ha! There are definitely a lot more aches and pains and it's getting hard to do much, but I know it's temporary and definitely going to be worth it. I'm not sure how I could get much bigger, but I'm sure I will. Here's to the third trimester!

 

27 Weeks

26 Weeks

Addie and Emmie's Texas Shower

On March 10, we had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate Addie and Emmie with our Texas friends and family. My aunt was very sweet and hosted the shower at her house, and it was so much fun! In a lot of ways I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that two little girls will be joining our family very soon, but this definitely made it seem more real. It was also so nice to see people we don't get to see all that often living so far away. It was just a fabulous day all the way around!


 My awesome hostesses.
This is my Aunt Jan, sister-in-law Amy, cousin's wife Kristy, cousin's girlfriend Ashleigh, and me.

 Entryway

 I love this sign my mom made the girls.

 Ben relaxing in his Nana's lap.


Cute banner.


How adorable are these cookies?? They are from Cookie Couture Co. in Mansfield.

 

 To you these just look like cookies.
To me, they are little drops of heaven. They are called fingerprint cookies, and I love when my mom makes them! Apparently my Grandma Sherry used to make them a lot too, because everyone at the shower got really excited about "Sherry's cookies" when they saw them.

 My sister, Hailey, and me.

Large and in charge!

 Our friend Wendy made all the yummy cupcakes, and my mom made these cute toppers. In case you didn't notice, my mom was chief crafter for the event.

 My aunt did such a good job with all the cute decorations!

 Love these cute little birds.

 

 My dad's cousin Marca and her daughter Elise.

My cousin's daughter Maddie. Poor thing has zero personality...ha!

My friend Jessica and Mr. Ben. Who is getting about 12 teeth right  now!

Micah and Katie. I was so excited these two could make it. We all lived together our senior year at Baylor along with another three girls.

 And the aftermath. We were truly blessed by everyone who came out to help us welcome our girls!