One of these days I will get around to posting my birth story. The past 2 months have been absolutely crazy!! For now, here is the birth video...
14 years ago
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
My birth story through the eyes of my sister
I was so happy to have my little sister with me throughout my entire labor and delivery. She captured the events of the day so beautifully. I will post my birth story in a few days, or rather, shall I say, when I have a second. Here is her recollection of what was one of the greatest day of my life.
I thought before it begins to dull in my memory that I would jot down the events of November 10, 2010: the day when my two precious little nephews made their first appearance in this world.
I was sitting in our lower bedroom sewing an apron when I saw a call from Adrianne. These days anytime that she would call, especially due to the rarity of her telephone calls in general, I would consider “is this it?” Sure enough, after a few phone tags, we got a hold of each other and she had been checked into the hospital that morning.
I got on it and set up dog-sitting for the pups, packed up some belongings, and waited for Robby to get out of the surf and get on home. We made our way up and about ten minutes from the hospital were held up by an unexpected pit stop. Our Honda decided a couple of exits away from a Honda dealership that it would get itself a rock stuck in its wheel and make a horrid sound. So, like the stylish aunt and uncle we are, we arrived to Kaiser in a minivan shuttle.
From my point of view, especially in comparison to labor with Karissa, this all happened rather quickly. On Karissa’s turn a few years back, I had time to watch an entire U2 concert, drive up and wait hours and hours in anticipation, only to end up back in San Diego by the time she decided to come on out.
Robby and I entered the L&D floor to see Adrianne, as expected, hooked up to quite a few monitoring devices. With the epidural in place and the Pitocin dripping, her contractions were going along as hoped. The first OB doc, whom I can’t remember the name of, so I will refer to him as "Dr. McConaughey" (sorry ladies, but I am referring to the Texas drawl, not the looks) and Dr. P each checked on everyone. After a few practice pushes, Adrianne was 10 cm and ready to roll.
Last minute, Adrianne decided she’d like me in the OR. And like her unique personality, her mind was made. It didn’t matter that the room would be jammed full with multiple MD’s, RT’s, RN’s, an anesthesiologist, etc.,…she held the VIP card and got her way. So as I was there at the start (i.e. the conception…not all of it! the IVF part), I was also there for the delivery.
Now for the real show: In a rather swift time, and after some impressive coaching on Daddy Mark’s part, Adrianne worked her little butt (yes, I’d choose another word, but after all this technically is a children’s story)…so she worked her little butt off, okay, so not so little…but she pushed and pushed and out came Preston at 1755 weighing a healthy 5’11 lbs. If you think that’s a good size for a twin at 37 weeks, just wait. As seen in previous ultrasounds, Preston’s little brother thought he’d show his older brother up by giving Mom that much more work. In a controversial vaginal delivery, little Ethan taunted everyone for four more minutes with his tiny feet teasing the OR audience. Following more amazing coaching by Mark and further astonishing pushing by Mama, Ethan was convinced by Dr. P’s shaky hands and some pointers by Dr. M to flex his head and join the world outside of the womb. Weighing 6’1, Ethan said hello at 1759.
After that game Ethan played, it’s surprising to think that it had been Preston that was so much more active in the womb. Of course, it does make sense that Preston has the higher pitch cry of the two, as if to say…just because he put on a big show doesn’t mean you can forget about all my activity over these past 9 months so easily!
After a couple suctions and getting the little guys all cleaned up, Mommy got to hold her long awaited strong baby boys.
The story could continue with details of the joyful grandparents getting to see these little guys, the only private recovery room on the unit that the Dr’s wife got, all the congratulations of Mark’s caring co-workers, a delicious welcome home steak dinner with a bottle of S. Lucia Pinot…but really that’s all just a backdrop to how elated we all are to have Preston and Ethan finally here.
----------------
Auntie Chelsea’s Brief Recollections:
I thought before it begins to dull in my memory that I would jot down the events of November 10, 2010: the day when my two precious little nephews made their first appearance in this world.
I was sitting in our lower bedroom sewing an apron when I saw a call from Adrianne. These days anytime that she would call, especially due to the rarity of her telephone calls in general, I would consider “is this it?” Sure enough, after a few phone tags, we got a hold of each other and she had been checked into the hospital that morning.
I got on it and set up dog-sitting for the pups, packed up some belongings, and waited for Robby to get out of the surf and get on home. We made our way up and about ten minutes from the hospital were held up by an unexpected pit stop. Our Honda decided a couple of exits away from a Honda dealership that it would get itself a rock stuck in its wheel and make a horrid sound. So, like the stylish aunt and uncle we are, we arrived to Kaiser in a minivan shuttle.
From my point of view, especially in comparison to labor with Karissa, this all happened rather quickly. On Karissa’s turn a few years back, I had time to watch an entire U2 concert, drive up and wait hours and hours in anticipation, only to end up back in San Diego by the time she decided to come on out.
Robby and I entered the L&D floor to see Adrianne, as expected, hooked up to quite a few monitoring devices. With the epidural in place and the Pitocin dripping, her contractions were going along as hoped. The first OB doc, whom I can’t remember the name of, so I will refer to him as "Dr. McConaughey" (sorry ladies, but I am referring to the Texas drawl, not the looks) and Dr. P each checked on everyone. After a few practice pushes, Adrianne was 10 cm and ready to roll.
Last minute, Adrianne decided she’d like me in the OR. And like her unique personality, her mind was made. It didn’t matter that the room would be jammed full with multiple MD’s, RT’s, RN’s, an anesthesiologist, etc.,…she held the VIP card and got her way. So as I was there at the start (i.e. the conception…not all of it! the IVF part), I was also there for the delivery.
Now for the real show: In a rather swift time, and after some impressive coaching on Daddy Mark’s part, Adrianne worked her little butt (yes, I’d choose another word, but after all this technically is a children’s story)…so she worked her little butt off, okay, so not so little…but she pushed and pushed and out came Preston at 1755 weighing a healthy 5’11 lbs. If you think that’s a good size for a twin at 37 weeks, just wait. As seen in previous ultrasounds, Preston’s little brother thought he’d show his older brother up by giving Mom that much more work. In a controversial vaginal delivery, little Ethan taunted everyone for four more minutes with his tiny feet teasing the OR audience. Following more amazing coaching by Mark and further astonishing pushing by Mama, Ethan was convinced by Dr. P’s shaky hands and some pointers by Dr. M to flex his head and join the world outside of the womb. Weighing 6’1, Ethan said hello at 1759.
After that game Ethan played, it’s surprising to think that it had been Preston that was so much more active in the womb. Of course, it does make sense that Preston has the higher pitch cry of the two, as if to say…just because he put on a big show doesn’t mean you can forget about all my activity over these past 9 months so easily!
After a couple suctions and getting the little guys all cleaned up, Mommy got to hold her long awaited strong baby boys.
The story could continue with details of the joyful grandparents getting to see these little guys, the only private recovery room on the unit that the Dr’s wife got, all the congratulations of Mark’s caring co-workers, a delicious welcome home steak dinner with a bottle of S. Lucia Pinot…but really that’s all just a backdrop to how elated we all are to have Preston and Ethan finally here.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
Progress & Heartbreak
This entry was written a few months ago, I just never got around to posting it:
I cannot believe the progress I have made with Karissa's room. I don't know how I did it...must have had a little help from an angel up above. I organized and labeled almost everything and put it all in her closet. The other closet has all her toys and new stuff for the boys which I will put in the other room once it is complete. I cleaned out her dresser and moved it out of her room. A few of her pictures are still on the wall. It is breaking my heart to take them down. We have put some in our room. But, what is the most heart-breaking is taking down her bed. The other day I just cried all day about it. I told Mark that when it goes, it will feel like it is no longer Karissa's room.
I did end up throwing a few things away but I kept mainly everything. Eventually, I will move everything out of her closet but at the time, my mind (and heart) could only process so much. It was very tough. How do you put memories in a box, or, in my case, many boxes?
The yellow room was Karissa's room. We kept the color the same. I finally managed to move Karissa's bed out of her room, only I didn't do it. I had Mark and my dad take it down while I was at my baby shower back in September. The last picture is one of the closets in Karissa's room. All of her things, from clothes to special keepsakes to school projects are in the closet.
I cannot believe the progress I have made with Karissa's room. I don't know how I did it...must have had a little help from an angel up above. I organized and labeled almost everything and put it all in her closet. The other closet has all her toys and new stuff for the boys which I will put in the other room once it is complete. I cleaned out her dresser and moved it out of her room. A few of her pictures are still on the wall. It is breaking my heart to take them down. We have put some in our room. But, what is the most heart-breaking is taking down her bed. The other day I just cried all day about it. I told Mark that when it goes, it will feel like it is no longer Karissa's room.
I did end up throwing a few things away but I kept mainly everything. Eventually, I will move everything out of her closet but at the time, my mind (and heart) could only process so much. It was very tough. How do you put memories in a box, or, in my case, many boxes?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Since writing the above, we have made quite a bit of progress. The rooms are done. Actually, they have been done for a while but I just haven't gotten around to taking and posting pictures. The babies will be staying in our room in the co-sleeper until they are too big.The yellow room was Karissa's room. We kept the color the same. I finally managed to move Karissa's bed out of her room, only I didn't do it. I had Mark and my dad take it down while I was at my baby shower back in September. The last picture is one of the closets in Karissa's room. All of her things, from clothes to special keepsakes to school projects are in the closet.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
NST's = a little bit of worry & a peek at personalities!
I now have to have NST's (non-stress test) twice a week until the babies arrive. Originally, I was told that because each baby has its own placenta and sac, I would not need to come in for NST's. Last week, at my routine OB appointment, my doctor informed me that there is a slightly higher risk of fetal demise (I love my OB but did he really have to say that?) with IVF twin pregnancies and that both he and my perinatologist wanted me to come in twice a week for monitoring.
So, they monitor the heart rates of both babies and also monitor contractions. From what I understand, the primary goal of the test is to measure the heart rate of the babies in response to their own movements. Healthy babies will respond with an increased heart rate (accelerations) during times of movement, and the heart rate will decrease at rest. The concept behind the NST is that adequate oxygen is required for activity and heart rate to be within normal ranges. When oxygen levels are low, the baby may not respond normally. Low oxygen levels can often be caused by problems with the placenta or umbilical cord.
I have had 3 NST's now and Baby A passes in about 5 minutes. He must have my personality! Baby B, on the other hand, is a little more chill or stubborn (oh, and he's breech too) and usually needs to be woken up with the buzzer. Yesterday, he didn't do much for about 20 minutes. I was getting a little worried. He finally woke up when the nurse zapped him with the buzzer. Once his heart rate finally accelerated, it seemed like it stayed there FOREVER!!! Even though everything is fine, I'm still worried about my little guy.
So, they monitor the heart rates of both babies and also monitor contractions. From what I understand, the primary goal of the test is to measure the heart rate of the babies in response to their own movements. Healthy babies will respond with an increased heart rate (accelerations) during times of movement, and the heart rate will decrease at rest. The concept behind the NST is that adequate oxygen is required for activity and heart rate to be within normal ranges. When oxygen levels are low, the baby may not respond normally. Low oxygen levels can often be caused by problems with the placenta or umbilical cord.
I have had 3 NST's now and Baby A passes in about 5 minutes. He must have my personality! Baby B, on the other hand, is a little more chill or stubborn (oh, and he's breech too) and usually needs to be woken up with the buzzer. Yesterday, he didn't do much for about 20 minutes. I was getting a little worried. He finally woke up when the nurse zapped him with the buzzer. Once his heart rate finally accelerated, it seemed like it stayed there FOREVER!!! Even though everything is fine, I'm still worried about my little guy.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Bubble Wrap
As the day draws closer, I find myself becoming more and more emotional about the health of my babies. However, I have absolutely no reason to worry. So far, everything is going great. My OB and perinatologist are beyond pleased with how my pregnancy is progressing. I will be 35 weeks tomorrow and have not shown any signs of pre-term labor and haven't had any other health problems, such as pre-eclampsia or gestational diabetes. I haven't had to go on bed rest and have tried my best to take care of myself. It's all paying off...the babies now weigh 5 pounds 2 ounces and 5 pounds 5 ounces! Wow!! I was hoping and praying that they would make it to 5 pounds at delivery. My OB even seems to think I will make it all the way to 38 weeks. Yikes!! I am already measuring around 45 weeks. I can't imagine how big I will be in another few weeks.
But, while my little guys are doing great, this momma is freaking out. Will one or both have seizures? Will I walk into the room one morning to find one of them blue and not breathing, or even worse, dead? Yes, I'm scared, but it's completely understandable. I don't even want to imagine walking down that road again. Right now they're safe in the confines of my belly. They are with me all the time. Just how I want it to remain...forever.
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