IV-BACK-ON

Well, we had another scare. This one we'll call C-Section Scare III - this time it's personal. It was bigger, louder, and more blockbuster-y than Monday's. I'm back on the IV and I got oxygen, 3 nurses, a doctor, and a sonographer this time. Mom was here and managed to effortlessly get Alex out of the room with the promise of ice cream. The on call doctor (I'm not kidding - Dr. Gray who, in addition to Dr. Becker, makes me feel like I'm living in a TV show) watched the ultrasound to look for movement, breathing, heart beats, and blood flow. Long story short, I'm off the monitor for now, but will go back on in a couple hours. I did much better this time - no meltdowns, no crying. I was much more concerned about their heart rates than I was about delivering teeny babies. Good news is that they recovered and tomorrow I'll be 31 weeks.

We timed Greg and it takes him 44 minutes door to door to get here from work.

That's it for tonight. The IV makes it hurt to type.

Take care,
Kris

IV-BE-GONE

Yesterday was a good day. The girls did well enough to get me off the IV - I was being such a baby about that IV. I was whining every second and I think they took it out just to shut me up.

Anyway, they still had some variables, but nothing like what we were seeing on Monday. I had a long talk with my doctor who, like me, thought Monday was going to be the day. We're all very excited that the babies turned around enough to keep them in for at least another day. Each day on in the inside saves us 3 days in the NICU. Doc did say that any more days like Monday and the babies come out. No more dorking around. If they cooperate, they will come out mid-month when I hit 32 weeks.

Lexie (floater friend) came by to visit after her doctor's office. It was great to see her- especially to see her looking like a "real person" with her hair done and carrying a purse. Her fluid is up even more and I'm super excited for her even though I know she's ready to meet Mr. Andy. I'm very anxious to meet him as well. I want to see how long he is....I'm guessing 24 inches (Sorry, Lexie)

Also, thanks to everyone who has been so kind and supportive. I have big plans to stop being so self-centered and "woe is me" when all this is over. I really do appreciate everything that everyone has been doing for us - visiting, bringing treats, taking care of Alex or Ripley, and all the prayers and good vibes. It means a lot to both Greg and me.

Take care,
Kris

IVs are itchy

We had some more problems last night with decels. They started me on an IV to try to boost the heart rates and to go ahead and get it in to save 5 minutes or so in the event of an emergency. I'm guessing that with all the extra monitoring, they'll catch something negative and operate.

In the meantime, I'm pretty much bound to my bed. I'll try to update as much as possible, but I think the frequency of these posts are going to decrease.

Take care,
Kris

p.s. my nurse was very funny last night. He was holding my hand to try to comfort me and the I realized he was stroking my veins in preparation for the IV. When I called him on it he said, "Hey, I'm multitasking." :)

I've been benched

Baby girls are both having too many variables and quick decels (likely cord compression accidents) to keep me on my current monitoring plan of 3 times a day for 30-60 minutes. I've been increased to 4 times a day for 1-2 hours each time. 1 hour if things look good, 2 hours if not so good. This means I'll monitor at 8:00, 12:00, 4:00, and 8:00 leaving me with time to float, eat, and visit with Greg and Alex.

-Kris

Did you know momo twins get tangled?

Clara's having a ton of variables today so I'm marathon monitoring. I thought I'd post really quickly before they put me back on in a half hour.

The girls won't stop moving around and they keep needing ultrasounds to find them. I wish they'd settled down and stop scooting around so much. Every time they move, I'm picturing a new knot or tangle.

The nurse practitioner came in today and made me feel worse. She kept saying how tangled and knotted all momo twins end up and I wouldn't believe what they look like and how she's so shocked every time. So I feel super anxious today. She also kept talking about emergency c-sections and how all the nurses need to be watching my heart rate strips really carefully in case today is the last day and we call it "quits" and operate. You know - I know all this stuff. It's why I'm living here. I'm perfectly aware of my high risk nature. Hearing it spoken so directly to me just makes me feel worse.

Take care,
Kris

Edited to add...Of all the posts I've done, this is the only one I regret. As I read it again, 6 months later, I cringe. The reality is that I loved my NP. She was absolutely fantastic and provided a ton of emotional support. I also happened to be the kind of patient who really wanted things told to me as they were - no sugarcoating. She just caught me on a bad day (not hard to do during the inpatient portion of this journey). Kris

Can't make this stuff up

So, security was roaming around today because some woman reported her vibrator lost or stolen. The poor nurses had to search the rooms trying to find it. Seriously?? The whole thing is bizarre.

They didn't find it.

30 weeks!

Not much to report over the last few days. I made it to 30 weeks and the girls have been doing well. They both had long periods with really high heart rates. Again, normal is 120-160. We want them to have accelerations that go up 15 beats per minute for short periods of time. This shows that they are learning how to regulate themselves (or something - I can't remember everything they tell me). Evelyn got stuck up in the 180s-190s for about 10 minutes and Clara (stinker that she is) ranged from 175-195 for 30 minutes, getting as high as 202 for awhile. The medical folks around here aren't too concerned. They said they're really only looking for decelerations. Their lack of concern wasn't really expressed to me until after they're heart rates returned to normal so I was freaking out and trying to talk them down. Neither Clara nor Evelyn seem to listen to me very well. It's good to see that they're already acting like their brother.

In non-baby news, the hospital stay is taking a toll on my body. Even though I'm not on bedrest there is nowhere really to go and I can feel myself getting weaker everyday. There's also something that happens with all the recirculated air. It feels a little like I've been living on an airplane for 3 1/2 weeks. You can't help but get the nappies and feel kind of sick all the time. Normally, I'd go complain to my floating friend, but she up and left me in favor of home bedrest so I can't park myself in her room and complain.

We got a new floater the other day and she's, how do I say this nicely.... kind of annoying. It seems dumb, but when floating is the highlight of your day and someone whose personality doesn't match up with your own invades that time, you get a little cranky.

But, all in all, if I can even complain about these minor things, it means that everything is going well.

Take care,
K