It's been a surreal and nerve-racking week but the babies are here! The story is long because of course I documented everything but I'll start by officially introducing
Baby A as
Rylee Gene
and
Baby B as
Quinn Colleen
Now let me back up to the beginning of the week . . . . It's been crazy, emotional, terrifying and amazing. I went to my first of three appointments on Monday. It was my scheduled growth scan and I was really anxious to find out if these girls had fallen back and were going to be considered growth restricted once again. I was glad to see that everything was looking good. The babies were measuring around 5lbs 3oz (baby A) and 5lbs 5oz (baby B). This put them in the 25th percentile which was amazing considering that they were both in the 8% not that long ago. I was starting to believe that maybe I could stay pregnant for another two weeks and make it to the 37th week mark. I was feeling really confident and happy with how this appointment was going but then instantly got nervous when a nurse walked in and told me that I was going to another room to get a non stress test done before the doctor would see me. This pregnancy should have taught me by now that most appointments aren't going to go according to plan. It's never a good sign when the doctor says she wants to wait to talk to me because she wants more testing or observing done first. As soon as I was hooked up to the monitors and the tech had left to watch from her own screen I gave Danny a call. I told him that I thought the appointment had been going well but that now I wasn't so sure because I was told I'd have to wait for further information before the doctor felt comfortable telling me her plan. This whole pregnancy has been such a rollercoaster ride because you never know if you're going to have a normal quick doctor visit and be told some positive things or if you're going to be hooked up to machines for additional hours with the possibility of delivering babies that same day. The babies were super active that day and would not cooperate well during the non stress test. The tech ended up coming into the room and holding the monitors in place by hand herself because Baby B kept kicking off the monitors every chance she got. Eventually the high risk doctor came in to talk to me and she informed me that everything was looking good but that she sincerely felt like I needed to consider having these babies delivered much sooner. I was really confused because she was telling me that the babies were looking great and had gained enough weight to no longer be considered growth restricted but she still had a bad feeling about keeping them in verses taking them out. She said that the risks were too high because these babies were sharing a placenta and she didn't feel confident that the placenta would hold out much longer. She told me that I could go home and think about it and to let her know by Thursday the 25th what path we decided to take. She highly suggested that I deliver no later than March 5th and that if she were me she wouldn't even wait that long. She was making me really nervous to be honest because I could tell that she was being genuine and really thought that there was a high chance of a double still birth happening if they didn't come out soon.
Even with this information I was really nervous to think that in just days I could be holding these girls. I really wanted to wait until at least the 37th week mark because I was terrified of these babies needing nicu time. Yes I know they would be very well taken care of if nicu time is needed and maybe deep down there was some level of guilt thinking that these babies would be safer outside of my body instead of within. The doctor told me that I could pick any day next week (Monday through Friday) and that they would put me on the schedule. I have such a hard time deciding what I want to eat for take out and now I'm being told that I could pick my babies' birthday? I'm horrible with decision making. After talking it out with Danny we decided to schedule delivery for Friday March 5th because it would give us a week to make sure that we felt completely ready and he could finish some projects at school he's been working on before taking some time off. Plus the idea of delivering them any sooner than that really freaked me out. It turns out that I didn't have to pick the day of delivery anyway because that day ended up coming even sooner than we thought.
Thursday came around and I was ready to let my medical team know that I needed some time because I was freaking out and the fact that these babies would be considered preemies really scared me. I told them that I needed to hear their honest medical based opinions though because I didn't want to just base my decision on the fact that I didn't feel ready and was nervous to deliver them this early. I had two appointments that day and my OB at the first appointment assured me that if these babies were to come out that they would be okay. Some nicu time might happen but the fact that they were almost delivered five weeks ago around 30 weeks gestation is already a huge milestone to be proud of. He told me that I had a good chance of these babies being ready from the steroid shots I had received near the end of January during one of our earlier baby scares. That did help me feel a little better and we agreed to put me on schedule for Friday the 5th with the idea that if anything should happen before then or if I change my mind that we can schedule these babies for immediate delivery. I left that appointment with the OB feeling good with that plan and drove to my second appointment of the day and the third one of the week. I had another non stress test scheduled and was able to be seen right away. I was hooked up to the monitors and hoped for the best. Sometimes these appointments are done in thirty minutes and other times I don't come home for close to five hours. It turned out this would not be a quick visit.
At 4:40pm I messaged Danny and told him that I was being sent up to labor and delivery for additional monitoring. I told him that Baby B had a weird dip in her heart rate and that it only happened once but the doctor wanted to watch that more closely. I got to the labor and delivery floor and that's when I knew this was getting serious. The nurse was definitely very honest with me which I appreciated even if the facts being shared with me was making me feel pure panic. I was told that the dip in the heart rate was not a good sign and that it could be evidence of the placenta being close to giving out. If there was even one more dip during that next hour of being hooked up then I would deliver these babies right away. During my first non stress test I was having consistent contractions that were being picked up and the dip happened right after one of the contractions which apparently was why it wasn't a good sign. The nurse explained it a lot better and I probably should have put her on the phone for when I called Danny because I'm not sure how much sense I was making when I called him. Danny had answered and knew right away how stressed I was feeling as I tried to explain to him that according to the nurse if there is a single sign of any more dips shown during this monitoring the girls would be delivered that night. I was freaking out. Danny remained calm and assured me that everything would be fine and to keep him updated as he figured out what would happen to our three kids at home if he needed to rush to the hospital. He called his brother Rand and let him know of the possibility of our babies being born and thankfully they were willing to help us out by taking the kids if we needed it. Then Danny waited for me to let him know what was happening on my end. An hour passed and at 6pm I told him that so far nothing was picked up during that time. I was feeling confident that at any moment the nurse would walk in and tell me I could head home. This wasn't the first time I had been sent to labor and delivery for extra cautionary monitoring and I was hoping this would end like the other time where I ended the day at home with my family.
By 6:30pm I was told that I was going to be kept for an extra hour. During that extra time there was another dip on the monitor. This time it wasn't Baby B though, it was Baby A. The same nurse that had been very straight forward with me this whole time came in to let me know the news. She said that she couldn't promise me anything but assured me that if these girls were born they would be taken care of. She knew I was worried about how small they would be and the potential of them needing help outside the womb. She told me that I was being admitted to stay overnight for further observation and that right then there wasn't talk of delivery happening right away. The doctor came in and explained that he had been conversing with the high risk specialist who didn't feel comfortable sending me home with these two dips (one on each baby) along with the current contractions going on. The specialist explained how in other countries twins that share one placenta are automatically delivered at 34 weeks because of placenta complications so I'm staying because she says we need to be more cautious. The doctor felt that we should listen to the specialist with the overnight monitoring and that we can discuss further plans in the morning but that I can feel peace going to sleep because they decided we weren't going to deliver these babies that night. I let Danny know that I wasn't going to be going home that night and that he didn't need to worry about rushing our kids anywhere because plans for their birth were being put on hold until the morning.
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| Me after four hours and wondering if I'd be going home that night. |
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| And me when I realized I'd be staying the night. |
To be honest I barely slept at all. I was so super stressed and the fact that I could feel those contractions happening weren't helping at all. Sometime around 4am I was overcome with this peaceful feeling where I just knew that I wasn't going to be going home with these babies inside me. I felt like I was going to be giving birth that day and I strangely felt okay about it. Danny reached out to me around 6am and told me the same thing. He also felt that we should go with the flow and accept the timing of their birth if this was the day that it's supposed to happen. I hadn't even told him about how calm I was now feeling and it only reassured the feelings I felt earlier now that I realized we were on the same page. We both on our own came to the realization that whatever happens things will be okay.
I was told that the high risk specialist wanted to talk to me when she got in the office at 8am. I was prepared to tell her that I will go with her gut feeling and take her best advice. I didn't see her for awhile though. Breakfast was delivered to my room and I chose not to eat it until I could see the high risk specialist. I had a gut feeling that I shouldn't eat the food in case of a possible same day c section. It wasn't until 11:30am after a couple hours of waiting around that I finally had updated news. A nurse came in and told me that I was actually going to be allowed to go home, they were just waiting for the okay from the specialist who I still hadn't seen that morning. She said the girls had looked good all morning and that I was allowed to get out of the hospital gown and back in my clothes and that she'd be back with the discharge papers. I told Danny the news and went ahead and ate my breakfast. It was now after lunch time and although the breakfast food was cold I was really hungry by that point. Danny was keeping Rand updated because we weren't sure before if the kids would need to be dropped off at their house. Then I did more waiting. Another hour had passed when the nurse came back in and apologized for the wait. She said that instead of doing nothing we might as well should get hooked back up to some monitors while we waited to get discharged. It was during this next timeframe of waiting that the monitoring took a turn.
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| Out of my gown but back on the monitor. |
After going the whole morning with the girls looking great they started to show dips in their heart rates again. I had been having contractions for the past 24 hours but they were definitely manageable and not what we'd consider full labor just yet. The monitor was showing these contractions and they were showing signs once again that the placenta wasn't doing great which was worrisome. The nurse told me that chances were high I'd be put on hospital bed rest until the babies were delivered. At this point no one except for Rand and Ashley even knew I was in the hospital. Pollyanna knew I had spent the night but she didn't know I was still there because the last update I had given her was that I was being discharged, which was what I believed was really going to happen. I knew if I was potentially going to stay longterm we'd have to let our families know of our situation because we'd need the help.
The nurse came back in and apologized for the turn of events. She was really sweet and knew how badly I had hoped to be going home the day before. I had already come to terms deep down that it was going to be baby day though so because of that nothing about how the day was going was really surprising me. I did regret eating that breakfast though because I knew I'd be getting a c section since Baby A was breeched and that an empty stomach was best for that. The nurse walked in with a wheelchair and told me that I was finally going to be seeing the high risk doctor for further info. I was wheeled into the MFM floor and was able to get an ultrasound done. I was completely uncomfortable. The contractions were picking up a lot more and I could not sit still in that chair. I felt so hot and itchy that I couldn't even focus on the cutest picture that was captured of little Baby B.
The specialist then came in and said that even though the ultrasound was looking good as far as baby's fluid levels she couldn't let me go home with the heart rate drops and the contractions that were going on. She didn't want to chance anything bad happening while at home and me being hit with the news that we ended up losing both babies. She told me that I'd be delivering them either that night or at the latest first thing the next morning. She said I could make the choice but she highly advised that I play it safe here. She was thinking I was going to say to wait until the morning because everyone knew I was scared to deliver these babies at 35 weeks and so far up until that point I was always trying to push delivery day out just a little. I told her that Danny and I had already discussed this and had come to accept that today should be the day. She was relieved to hear that and said that I'd be put on the schedule for the soonest time possible. Because I had eaten around noon I had to wait and was put on the schedule for 7pm. I let Danny know that we'd be meeting our babies after all and he hurried and got everything arranged for our three older kids.
The next several hours felt so long because anxiety was high and the unexpected of what a c section would look like consumed my thoughts. Since Baby A was still breeched it was an automatic c section for me and even though I've never had one before I did feel that it was the best method of delivering these babies, but that didn't make it any less scary. I had a nicu personal come in and talk to me about what our situation could look like with the babies being born at 35 weeks. She told me that at this stage what they'd like to see with the babies is that 1) they can breathe on their own 2) they can regulate their own body temperature and 3) I don't remember haha. I was very sleep deprived at this point and I was still trying to process everything that I had already been told. She told me that she'd have a team with me during delivery who will be there to immediately check the babies and from there they'd make an assessment to see if nicu would even be needed. Danny finally arrived and that really helped because I was no longer alone with my thoughts and we were able to go through the next couple hours together. Luckily he brought his laptop with him so we were able to distract ourselves and pass some time by watching the finale of Wanda Vision. We were told our 7pm slot was just being pushed thirty minutes and that I'd be set to deliver the girls at 7:30pm. Of course with my luck when 7:30pm came around we were told by a nurse that we'd have to wait a little longer because the doctor on call was delivering another baby at the hospital in the next town and should be here shortly. Danny and I were definitely feeling anxious but the wait was worth it because once we finally met the doctor who would be operating on me we felt so at ease. The doctor was Dr. Heather Dabling and she had the most warm welcoming spirit about her. It was what we needed because we probably had a deer in the headlights look plastered on our faces.
It was close to 9pm when I was wheeled to the operating room and got positioned on the operating table. I asked if I was even going to fit on that because that table seemed so narrow. I got the spinal tap which really hurt but luckily that pain was super brief. By the time I laid down I couldn't feel my legs anymore and I was completely numb from the neck down. They got the curtain put up and I instantly felt nauseous. Thankfully they were able to hear me and helped me by taking my mask off. The anesthesiologist put an alcohol wipe under my nose and the nausea immediately went away. Thank goodness I didn't have to put the mask back on but by that point I couldn't move my arms to place it on even if I was supposed to. I wasn't aware of anything that was going on behind the curtain and wasn't even sure when they had started. I had heard from others who had c sections in the past about how they could feel pulling happening with theirs but I couldn't feel a thing. I was just trying my hardest to stay awake for it. My eyes got so heavy that it took all the energy I had to keep my eyes open. I don't know if I was feeling that way as a result from the surgery that was happening or if it was because I was on no sleep or if it was a combination of the two. I asked Danny if the babies were already out because I think subconsciously I thought I had fallen asleep and missed the birth. Danny told me no but that Baby A would be out in just seconds. Sure enough I heard the doctor announce that Baby A was out. I didn't hear a cry at first but I did hear that she was looking good. A minute later and Baby B was out. I didn't get to see them at all because they were rushed away to be assessed by the nicu team. Danny followed them and I closed my eyes. Next thing I remember was Danny standing by my head holding both babies in his arms. Apparently twenty minutes had passed and both babies were looking really good. I don't think I fell asleep. The time probably just flew by. Baby B struggled with breathing at first and was going to be sent to the nicu but then the nicu team decided that she had recovered enough by the end of their check up and was okay to join her twin sister to come meet me. I later heard from Danny that he felt an instant connection with Baby B during her brief time of struggling to breathe. All he wanted was for her to be okay. He was able to bond with both soon after which I'm sure was an awesome experience for him. He was allowed to bring them back to the operating room where I still was.
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They put a hat with a bow on Baby A and a hat with no bow on Baby B to first help tell them apart.
Quinn was later given the her own hat with a bow which is why in some of these pictures they both have theirs on. |
Danny tried to hold them close to my head so that I could get a good look but I couldn't really see their faces. I was still laying on the operating table being put back together and couldn't even reach out to our sweet babies. The girls were taken to the nursery to be looked at further while they finished up with me, and Danny was told he could join the nurse and the babies.
After some time I was done and taken back to the labor and delivery room where I waited for Danny and the babies to come back. Danny was first to join me and he was able to tell me how he could already tell the twins apart and how cute they both looked and it made me really excited to finally see their faces. I asked if the girls looked like Addie and he said how they have their own look. He told me how baby B was almost taken to the nicu because at that point I didn't know that yet but he assured me that they both looked fine. We talked about what time would be best to finally tell our families that we had the babies but decided to wait until the next morning to reveal that we had two babies instead of one because it was getting really late. Plus I hadn't really even seen the babies yet myself and I wanted to officially meet them before having to worry about responding to any messages. Around 11pm we sent a text to Danny's family group message just letting them know that we were at the hospital and that delivery went great and that we would share more details in the morning. Then we sent two pictures. Of course they thought they were getting two pictures of the same baby but it was actually one of Danny with each individual baby.
I didn't get to see our twins until almost three hours after they were born. I was moved to the mother and baby room at 11:55pm and that's when I was finally joined by our girls. I was so exhausted but so happy to finally see and touch them. I couldn't believe that we really did have two babies and they were perfect and they were ours. They were so small and I was able to hold and love on them after what felt like a long time of waiting to do so. Danny then held one and it was so cool that we both were able to cuddle a baby at the same time. Then the nausea came back with full force. I told the nurse that was in the room with us and thankfully she grabbed a bag and held it to my face for me to hurl in because I had a baby in my arms. It wasn't pretty but then the alcohol wipe trick worked once again and I was able to feel better like before. The other side effect that I was experiencing because of the surgery was a lot of itching and mostly just on my face. I was given some medication to help with that which helped a lot. It was close to 1am before we finally were able to get some rest. The nurses took the babies to the nursery for the night so that Danny and I could get some sleep. They brought in the girls for every other feeding so that I could nurse them while they took formula for the other feedings in the nursery. It was so nice to get a big chunk of sleep in instead of having to wake up every two hours.
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| Baby A |
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| Baby B |
We finally shared our news to family and friends the next day on Saturday February 27th and it was awesome to finally let the secret out. I'm amazed we actually pulled it off and kept it in for the whole pregnancy. We are so in love with our baby girls and can't wait for everyone to meet them. Life might get a little hectic for a bit while we transition to now being a family of seven along with sleepless nights and recovering from a major surgery but it's all worth it. This whole pregnancy as hard and as uncomfortable as it got was all worth it.
Introducing Baby A as
Rylee Gene
5lbs 6oz 17in
9:18pm
and
Baby B as
Quinn Colleen
5lbs 5oz 17.5 in
9:19pm
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| Quinn had a blue little bow that fell off. |
I decided to come home one night early instead of staying the full stay at the hospital so now we are all here as a full family of seven. We're nervous yet very excited and the older three kids are so excited to have me back and to finally be with their little sisters. Life is good.
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| Rylee in pink and Quinn in white |
MEETING SIBLINGS, OMA AND OPA
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| Grandpa Thomas Gene with his namesake Rylee Gene |
FIRST NIGHT HOME
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| Rylee |
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| Quinn |
A FEW MORE HOSPITAL PICTURES
RYLEE GENE
QUINN COLLEEN
A side by side picture of baby Hudson and baby Quinn
