All things made beautiful. Its going to be a great day!

Have you ever had a really vivid but silly dream, so silly to the point that you wake up finding yourself laughing hysterically? Last night about 4:30 Ryan was snuggled up to me and I was off in dream land. For whatever reason I was dreaming and he and I were in some fitness boot camp. (Maybe that’s because he coo’s at my double chin and grabs it like you would a baby’s cheeks. It’s our new laugh…thank goodness I have a sense of humor!) Anyways we re at this fitness challenge camp and for whatever reason we were having to run and tackle those fake dummies like guys do in football. Well the first time I just ran smack into it and it didn’t budge. In my dream Ryan and I were laughing. The second time went about the same way, and finally the third time it moved but I flipped over it entirety. I just remember watching the dream in 3rd person and Ryan and I laughing at my failed attempts. Apparently I was laughing out loud because I woke up to Ryan shaking me thinking I was crying in the middle of the night as he frantically continued to say “Amanda what’s wrong?” I was awake at this point still laughing to no end. It was the weirdest thing ever…

A few hours later Ryan got up for his Saturday morning work shift only to find out about 15 minutes later that somebody didn’t mention that the guys aren’t working today. Poor babe, he was so upset that he had to get up early on Saturday morning simply because his boss or whoever failed to fill him in. I don’t blame him, I wouldn’t be happy either. He brought me back breakfast and we put away a huge load of clothes that we washed yesterday of only baby clothes consisting of only light blues. It’s sad when your kids have a stack of clothes in one color alone larger than all of the clothes in your closet. One thing is for sure they will be well equipped with onsies and PJ’s. Everyone just loves to buy baby clothes! I can’t blame them, they are cute!

Afterwards Ryan headed off to the bank and then called Dad wanting to know if he wanted to play golf today. So all the men are out of the house this morning golfing and Mom and Ashley are on their way home from Melissa’s wedding. I am so sad that I missed it and have been checking facebook just about every ½ hour to see if anyone’s posted wedding pictures yet. (Come on DG girls you are SLACKING!) Since I am here alone I have been looking at baby shower stuff for the two we are having. My aunt is throwing an all womens shower on the 13th of June for friends and what not and then my parents are doing a “Baby-Q” cookout shower for some of mine and Ryan’s relatives. It will be interesting. A lot of my relatives I haven’t seen in a while and my parents haven’t meet much of Ryan’s family besides his Mom and Ryan’s siblings. Yesterday however my Dad did get to me Grandma Judi and PawPaw Tom (Ryan’s Dads parents, Jason & Reece’s great grandparents). We went over to their old house to pick up a washer, dryer and refrigerator. We are storing it here for Ry and I and hopefully come the first of the year we will be in a place of our own and will be able to use it. We will see what happens with that. We had a plan in mind that we thought would work out, but it seems as though that might fall through the cracks. If that’s the case we will either pay rent somewhere else or possibly be moving to the Dallas area if Ryan’s Dad is able to land him a better job in that area. I am not very fond on the idea of leaving our families. If it were just us and no babies I would say sure lets more wherever you want. However with the boys on the way I feel its important that they grow up knowing relatives and family members who for the most part are all close by. I guess you got to do what you got to do. In our case we need to get stable and on our own two feet and if it means having to move in order for Ryan to have a decent job with benefits then I guess that is what we will have to do. One day at a time…

As for today, the sunshine is out. I have recently started reading to the boys because everything I read says they become familiar with your vocalizations more so around 30 weeks and on. We are just a day from 30 weeks so reading aloud has been a little past time. Lucky for them the teacher in me already has tons and tons of books for kids put away from my classroom and for little readers! Plus I really enjoy children’s stories. We have also been listening to lullaby’s. In fact as weird as it might be I am in the bathtub now soaking my feet and back, playing lullaby’s on full blast and of course updating the blog! (Go ahead and laugh or shake your head haha) Once I get out of here I might take an afternoon nap, find something to eat for lunch and go outside and enjoy the warm sunshine! I love sitting outside in the evenings. Around our house we do it pretty often. Last night Dad, Ryan and I sat outside while grilling steaks playing Wahoo for several hours. Good times, good times! Well I have been rambling long enough so I guess I’ll tune into the lullaby's and rinse my hair. Congratulations Melissa and Cole HERVEY! I Hope you two have a wonderful honeymoon and just as a side not Jason and Reece would like more friends…maybe ever a girl since everyone else seems to be having boys right now ;) only kidding, I love you bestie!

C-Section For Sure :(

Today I visited the doctor again. Ryan and I got up this morning and left at 6:30 and had breakfast at IHOP. Yum yum yum! I am only days away from 30 weeks and after visiting today Dr. Rowe seems to think that I should hopefully make it to 36 weeks if all continues as is and I don't go into pre-term labor. I asked him about my birth plan and if he thought I would have a c-section. He laughed and said "I don't think, I know you are going to have a c-section". He said hes one of few OB's who actually push for vaginal delivery with twins, but says in my case its too risky for Reece. He said without doing the c-section we are taking a risk of putting him in harms way by adding all of the extra stress rather than quickly going in and getting him out. So boo for the scar and for having to be on lock down after the surgery, but I am willing to exchange that for carrying to 36 weeks and increasing my odds of having two healthy babies.

Babies, Babies & MORE Babies :)

Today is a gloomy day outside but God works in funny ways and sent over a wonderful Mommy and her two little boys to brighten my day! I heard about Kim and her miracle babies early in my pregnancy. We have been in touch by facebook and today she came out to the house with her identical twin boys, Blake and Owen. They are by the far the happiest and sweetest little boys ever and might I add big flirts! Blake and Owen had twin to twin transfusion syndrome and Kim, like me, had a difficult pregnancy. It was so encouraging to able to talk and pray with someone who can relate to all of the joys and fears you have while having complications. In addition to its twice as rewarding to see two adorable blue eyed boys running around grinning ear to ear! God is good and I am so thankful for all of those who have been keeping the boys and I close to their hearts. I ask that you all please also pray for a woman named Kate who delivered twins at 24 weeks. Sadly baby John did not make it, but baby Hallie is fighting and holding on strong. I got this update this morning that I would like to share with all of my baby blog readers.

“I think I am learning that one thing that comes naturally with motherhood - worry. In our situation probably more than most mothers, we KNOW that God is in control and little Hallie is in God's hands, but it is hard not to find something each day to worry about with our tiny little princess. So a mother's prayer requests - that she continues to do well with the lowering of the dopamine, that her digestive tract (tummy, intestines, liver, etc.) will all be strong enough & in perfect condition to take real food (a concern after John's problems) and digest it/pass it out), that her brain bleed will resolve itself and not worsen to cause permanent damage, that her lungs and heart continue to strengthen and handle vent changes, that the doctors and nurses work with God's wisdom in caring for our little girl, that whenever it is time for her chest tube to come out she will stay skinny and not swell, that she keep peeing good, that NO INFECTIONS show up, and I'm sure I could think of more - pretty much, I guess you could summarize that I just pray God continue working miracles in her. This morning's visit was soooo good - I want a lifetime of moments like that.

The other thing that I think comes natural with motherhood is pride :) I have the cutest little girl you ever did see, and she is getting littler and littler everyday - in a good way. Trust me, I am ready to start seeing her chunk up, but with fat and not fluid. Her little perfect hands, feet, toes, nose, mouth - everything about her is beautiful and perfect to me. She is truly 'fearfully & WONDERFULLY made'. I love that doctors and nurses come over and say "good job" to her for recovering so well from the surgeries, and I love the smiles I get from them instead of sad faces.

I hear from someone new each day what a miracle my sweet Hallie is, and so I want you all to know how much Reagan and I thank you for your part in that and praying for her. We also hear more and more how scary her surgeries really were, and that all in the NICU are convinced that prayer and God were at work - this little girl has a testimony and a half, and she is only 4 weeks old. As I told Reagan on Sunday, until she can share it, it is our responsibility to do so and let people know the power of their prayers. KEEP IT UP, my awesome Christian family!!! Our God is an AWESOME God!!”

As Kim was saying to me today…while she was pregnant with Blake and Owen there were so many angels looking over her. People she didn’t even know were praying and reaching out to her. This is so true! I have found that word of mouth is often the best way to spread prayer requests so please even though I do not know Kate or baby Hallie, I am certain that like Kim and I, all prayers are appreciated!

For the rest of the day I am going to relax. I have been go go go so it seems for the last little bit. Currently I am monitoring again because this morning I had 6. I still am not feeling the contractions, but if I must re-monitor then so be it. I go back to the doctor on Friday and Ryan is taking off work to stay with me for the day because Ashley and Mom will be in Dallas at my best friends wedding!!! Melissa, I cannot believe you will be getting married in a little over 48 hours! I am so sad I can’t be there but hope to be seeing you soon and know you will be a beautiful bride and the wedding will be wonderful!

Updates

YAY GOOD NEWS…my doctor’s appointment today went really really good! I now weigh 161 lbs (holly cow, literally!) When I first got on the scale and they had to move the heavy weight from 100 to 150 I was like oh my gosh. Then the nurse moved it to 150 plus 126 totaling at 176 lbs. As it turns out my doctor thought he was being funny and put his foot on the back of the scale to throw it off. Of course when it was 161 he said “girl you have been eating now that your home!” Heck yes I have been eating. Feed me something other than your bland nasty food and this girl eats! The ultra sounds looked good as well. Reece’s artery and all of that jazz hasn’t changed. Basically same old tune just further down the road. With that being said the babies were measured today.

Jason weight 2lbs 11oz and is 28 weeks and 5 days.
Reece weighs 1lb 10oz and is 25 weeks and 5 day.

That means there’s only a 3 week gap between the two and slowly Reece is gaining on Jason. At the very start of all of this he was nearly 5 weeks behind. He is still a lot smaller, but from what we can tell besides the blood flow in that one artery he is still looking good. Its crazy to think that 6 weeks ago the doctors were saying Recce had a 10% chance of survival. Once I hit 30 weeks, which is 5 days from now, both babies have a 99% chance of survival. All I can say to this is, thank you God and thank you to everyone who is and has been praying for my little miracles! After the ultra sound they took me into another room to monitor me for contractions (again today as if this morning and tonight isn't enough) and to watch and monitor the heartbeats. After the doctor today Ashley & I awarded ourselves with marble Slab Ice Cream. So make that 161 lbs 171 because mine was huge with a chocolate covered waffle cone and extra carmel, but sooooo delicious!

Okay I have been promising new pictures and here are some from this weekend and today. I still have ultra sound pictures and will put up nursery pictures soon I promise. The scanner is downstairs and I am up so I try to avoide going up and down as much as possible. These are funny though :)

My sweet Ryan rubbing my feet for me in the evenings after being on them here and there. An extra 40 lbs will kill your feet. I swear by the time I am done they will be flat! Goodbye arches.

Random picture of my belly at 29 weeks and 1 day. Its growing and still stretch mark free. I am getting the line from the belly button as you can see. I can't even see it though unless I take a picture of it. haha

Ryan and I on Memorial Day. I tried getting some sun on my white legs. Not much luck but the sunshine sure did feel good!!!

Cute picture of Ryan & Bailey at the house!

Huffman friends Jen B and Sheila came to see me this weekend.

Baby monitor at the doctors office. Left is Jasons heartbeat and the right is Reeces.

Heartbeat monitor again.

My sister thought she was being funny lol.

Big old me being monitored!

Again, me being monitored!

TGIF

It’s Friday which means I am getting close to 29 weeks which is the mark of the 3rd trimester AT LAST! Not to mention it will be a great weekend because its Memorial Day weekend and Ryan has off Saturday & Monday as well as Mom. This evening since Dad will be home one of our good friends Shellby is coming over with her new little baby boy and we are grilling hamburgers. I really enjoy sitting outside in the evenings one everyone is home. It’s so much nicer to be on bed rest here as opposed to the hospital. Here I don’t feel locked away even though I do sit and sleep the vast majority of the day.

The boys nursery is coming along so cute! I love to just go sit in their room, but at the same time it overwhelms me a little because we have boxes among boxes of stuff stacked away in there from car seats to clothes and more. A lot of it is stuff people have generously given us that their kids have outgrown so I need to go through the clothes and start thinking about how I am going to separate and store them by age. I am having second thoughts now about the mobile. At first I wasn’t going to put one in both cribs and planned to supplement with crib toys. Any other Moms want to comment on this? When I was in child psychology I was told that its pointless to have mobiles because for one the babies can’t focus in on them and by the time they can see clearly enough crib toys are a better option because it builds gross motor skills because they have something to reach for and early cognitive skills. Secondly even if you put a mobile in the nursery regardless how high or low it is for them to see, if the objects aren’t laying flat its like looking straight up into the bottom side of a pony or whatever the object might be. SOOOO what’s your take on this? Were any of your kids just really into the mobile or could they careless and it just made the nursery that much more baby-like?

I promise over the weekend to scan all other ultrasound pics I have and to take nursery pictures and what not.

Home Sweet Home Continued...

Ok I promised to update last night but I just didn’t get around to it. I came home yesterday as I mentioned before. Dr. Rowe came in on Wednesday morning and gave me the okay to go home since the NNF test came back negative and my cervix was still long. The best part of the morning was when the ultrasounds tech was monitoring the dopplers on Reece Dr. Rowe walked in and said “We don’t need to look at A we know his is good lets just check B real quick.” That was exciting because we were look at Reece already and not Jason! Reece’s artery the last few times has been looking much better. The one still has a little resistance but is still getting better. Dr. Rowe acted surprised and said it could be that as he grows and gets strong so will all of the bodily functions that pump that blood in and out of him. Fingers are crossed that is truly the case. Obviously there is no way to tell for sure.

After getting the okay to go home Mom and Ash came up and packed me away. I rolled out of there happy! Yesterday once I got home I crawled into bed and watched Twilight. Personally, for all of my little Twilight craving friends the movie was entertaining, but what was all the hype about it? It reminded me of Harry Potter and there’s just something with imagination and fantasy that I don’t relate well to. I spent the rest of the evening eating dinner, looking at the TONS and TONS and TONS of baby clothes people have bought. I am certain that I am stocked on newborn and preemie clothes for now. I have about two drawers of onsies, little tops and bottoms and maybe a handful of clothes for after 6 months. One thing is for sure they won’t have to wear anything twice once they are first born and they will always look super cute, but after their first birthday they might only be wearing a diaper haha.

I am doing my own home monitoring for contractions. Last night I only had 1 in the hour. This morning I had 5 so I had to redo another hour just a few moments ago and only had 2. It’s much nicer though to do it at home on my own time rather than in the hospital bed. Oh and I didn’t have 7am vitals which was nice or a tray of nasty food brought to me at 7 am. Instead Mom made me an English muffin with egg and cheese, a english muffin with jam and fresh strawberries and pineapple. MUCH BETTER! I will still be going to Clear Lake twice a week for check ups and baby monitoring. I am scheduled to go next Tuesday at 1pm and then again on Friday at 8:30am. I don’t look for much to change if I do what I am supposed to at home which I will! Thanks for all the prayers and welcome home text messages and emails! Love you all for keeping us in your thought. Jason and Reece have been very active and Jason usually wakes me every morning with a nice swift kick in the side. He is one strong little boy!

Home Sweet Home

I am home,but am resting and about to watch a movie. I have updates about my discharge from the hospital but will get around to adding another entry later this evening ater the home health care arrives. Thank you for the prayers. God is good!

Am I going home? I should know tomorrow!

I hate to put it like this but quit frankly I am going to be one pissed off patient if I am not released tomorrow to go home and take my own meds and do my own self monitoring. Luckily today I only had 1 contraction and last night wasn’t anything to worry about either. A lot of people have said ohhh yay I am so glad the boys are going to be healthy. A little clarification…I am not getting to home because of there no longer be any problems with both myself and the boys. The fact of the matter is the FFN test came back negative saying nothing in the next two weeks should happen and I am nearly 29 weeks which means nothing should happen till over 30. So basically Reece is still small and while his blood flow has been looking better it’s not “fixed” and can’t be fixed. I have been here to keep me from going into labor before 30 weeks where one of both babies would not likely survive outside the womb. In response to some of your questions, yes, Reece is still looking at being small, premature babies is still likely as well as the NICU for complications.

Today was a pretty good day. Sarah was here for the majority of the morning and then my sister came up for a few hours to have lunch with me and we played Banana Grams (Thanks to Kris & Sara). I am keeping my fingers crossed that in the morning I get good news and can STAY home till it’s really time. I am sure with my family they will keep me more “bed rested” than what I need. I will be interested to here what Dr. Rowes orders are if I am released. Today I also started thinking about baby showers. My cousins in Austin, Mom/Dad/Ashley and Aunt Laurie are all talking about throwing one. One would be at my house for mainly family and then I think an all womens at Laurie’s. We were going to do just one at my house on June 20th but it turned out to be a little over 90 people if they were to all come and that just doesn’t really work out. It was interesting thinking about having everyone together. I think instead of baby showers we should place bets on who draws blood first from whom. (Only kidding, well, kinda?) Not going to worry about it though…you only have so many baby showers and only so often do you have twins and get to celebrate the rollercoaster of a ride its been.

I am on the monitor now. Of course the hospital would get new ones for antepartum right before I might be released. Monitoring now is much less of a hassle. The new monitor is much strong and it takes about 3-5 minutes to get the babies on as opposed to 30 minutes up to 2 hours like I have experienced in the past. Also this morning I could feel Jason had the hic-ups. His movements have become even stronger. I can actually sit and watch little bumps move around from time to time rather just feel it. Ashley said it’s a little freaky, and I’m not going to lie it is. At times if it’s a really hard kick or head-butt (whatever it might be) it seriously looks like the baby is going to break out of the skin! Pray that all goes well till morning and that I can continue a safe pregnancy at home please. I feel pretty certain my time has come and I should at least get out on bail!

“Maybe Wednesday”

Well the company who provide the at home health care, Matria, called and our insurance approved for me to go home and be released as of today. Obviously I haven’t left yet. My doctor hasn’t given the ok get out of here just yet so it’s a matter of waiting and seeing what happens. When Matria first called I as a little hesitant because they said that it would $82.50 a day for the equipment and my daily co-pay would be $16. I told them I would have to think it over and discuss it first before make a decision to spend another $500 a month when my hospital co-pay of $500 has already been paid. All I could think is it worth another $500-$1000 just to be home or save the money and continue to stay here. A few minutes later she called back and said the co-pay was going to be waived after talking to her supervisor. Needless to say I had already talked to Mom and the insurance should cover %100. When Matria called back the woman checked the files and yes, we are covered. Moments later the insurance company called and said they thought it was great I was able to leave the hospital (Ya, I bet they do!). My at home services have been set for today through July 18th which would put me at 37 weeks which is the longest I will go pregnant.

I paged my nurse and asked her what the plan was since the insurance company wanted to know and she said well I have heard talk but nothing official from Dr. Rowe. Around 4:00 she poked her head in and said these are the words of Dr. Rowe, “Maybe Wednesday”. On Wednesday morning he is going to do another ultrasound, check my cervix and look at all my tracings from the boys today and tomorrow and make a decision. If al continues to go as it has I should be in the clear and be able to be released by the end of the week. My fingers are crossed. It would be so nice to be able to sleep in a real bed, eat real food, and not have to put my family and Ryan driving half around the world constantly to come see me.

As for today I was in a pretty good mood clearly with high hopes. Ryan’s mom came by yesterday and brought me a super cute maternity outfit. I ended up wearing it today and even shaved my legs since it consisted of shorts haha. I ate lots of yummy food also. Mom made vegetable soup, brought me my favorite cereal and made goodies such as banana nut bread and chocolate covered strawberries. I am sure you could guess, but I am about burned with the hospital food and do not eat it. Around noon one of my roomies from college came to stay the day and night and then head back tomorrow. She overdid herself big time with baby gifts! I think she might have baby fever worse than anyone so far. However I am really thankful for all of the cute little outfits and the bouncers she bought! I have added pictures (and the outfit is my new one, cute huh? Minus my plump little face and figure haha)

Well that just about does it for now. Its nearly 7 and I am about to eat dinner and catch the season finale of One Tree Hill. My prediction for the show is that Lucas & Peyton’s baby is born healthy and she doesn’t make it. I only say that because of all the rumors of her leaving the show. I swear if she goes the show is done for! Continue to pray for my little champs and that God guides all of us in the right direction even if that means staying here rather than going home this week. …and that Ryans dog didn’t just eat someone alive. We were on the phone and he suddenly had to go and the dog was going nuts in the background. I really hate that dog and yet he loves it. I don’t understand, but whatever. I am glad only cats have 9 lives and not dogs!

Sounds like a plan to me!!!

Well I woke up this morning to Ryan who had me laughing. He gets his uniforms from work and for whatever reason the jeans they gave him were dry rotting. So as he was zipping up his pants they were slowly just crumbling off him! It was pretty darn funny. After he left I went back to sleep for a little while and was woke up around 7:30 for my Monday morning ultrasound. Jason had the hiccups really bad and it was weird because for the first time I was able to feel when he hiccupped. Jason of course was his usual self and looked great. Reece also looked really good. Both arteries appeared to have equal blood flow with just a little resistance in one. Overall both the tech and the doctor were very pleased. (Sit down for the next part)

After checking everything out Dr. Rowe looked at me and said the magical words “I might send you home”. I said “REALLY?” Basically he said well ya, here we aren’t having to do much for you that you couldn’t do at home. He said that he was going to have the nurse call today and check to see if my insurance would cover at home monitoring. I would still be on bed rest and have to take it easy; however I would be at home. They would continue to have me take the prevental and said he might even give me slightly stronger form of it than what I am taking now if I go home just in case. As for the monitoring I would have one of the machines at home and there is a way to transmit it to the doctor’s office by plugging it into your phone line. As for visits I don’t know yet what the plan is. I will be here for sure till Wednesday. If the insurance approves and if on Wednesday morning all looks good he said I would probably be home by the end of the week. YAY YAY YAY!

Goal #1 Achieved

When I first found out about bed rest and after talking with doctors and the insurance company my first obtainable goal was to keep these babies locked away till I reached at least 28 weeks. That was nearly 5 weeks ago and today marks the start of my 28th week of pregnancy. The next goal is to get to 32 weeks. That four weeks from now or a month depending on how you want to look at it. One month here in the hospital has nearly passed (tomorrow) and as miserable, bored, and lonely as I have been the last few days, what’s another month? Hopefully if all goes well and I can at least get to 32 weeks that would put Jason in the clear for pretty much everything and home pretty quickly after what will probably only a short stay in the NICU. As for Reece if I were to deliver at 32 weeks and he were to stay on the growth curve he has been on then we would be looking at his gestational age to be 32 weeks but measuring closer to 28 or 29 weeks in gestational development. That little guy needs to grow but at least 28 or 29 weeks is better than what we were looking at 5 weeks ago and not even having a chance. So for now, it looks like I need to stay locked away for another month and continue to push to reach goal number two!

Ryan finally came back a little after 8 yesterday evening. I was in a horrible mood all day long and was beyond bored. I think I broke down crying a good 5 or 6 times. Not to mention I had steam blowing out my ears because the people in the room next to me tend to slam there doors constantly. In one hour I counted the door slam 15 times! I mentioned it to one of the nurses but they said due to the latches on the doors it’s hard to control. Plus whoever it was going in and out (a visitor) was on crutches so you not only heard the door, but also the crutch noise on the tile floor making a “clackity-clack” sound. AH! It drove me nuts. The nurses said last night they had to send several down to L&D because they were 5 and 7 cm dilated. I am hoping she was one of them and is gone now.

As for today I am still kind of in a funk. Currently I am on the monitor. Ryan left to go watch the Rockets at home with one of his buddies. In about 4 hours his Mom is going to come by and then my parents will be by later this evening and Ryan tonight. My old roomie from Tyler is going to be in town on Monday around 11. I am thankful for that. During the day it is so boring. Hopefully the weather will be nice and Sarah can take me for a stroll outside and will be up for playing some games or something. We shall see. For now I am on the monitor. My contractions were slightly painful last night. They felt like a bad case of period cramps. My nurse was about 20 minutes after 9 on giving me the prevental and the 3 o clock dose was given me to a little early. I am sure the meds had worn off and that’s what was causing the rapid little mountains to pop up on the screen. If I lay flat on my side, take deep breathes and close my eyes it feels much better. So far today I haven’t had any. I have another ultra sound in the morning and possibly more pictures. They gave me a few on Thursday of feet and head profiles, but I feel like they look just the same as they did on Monday so I didn’t bother with adding them. Babies don’t tend to usually change in appearance in a matter of 4 days. Oh and no 3D ultrasound machine in the hospital, just at the doctors office so I am out of luck there  Okay I think that’s enough updates for now. They just brought me another apple with peanut butter to add to my collection…YUM.

Poor Kate :(

A little off subject, but really tabloids, lay of on Jon & Kate Plus 8. I truly feel sorry for them even if all the rumors or true. Everyone has their fair share of problems and unfortunately the kids are the one who will be stuck in the middle of it all. AOL had before and after picture. The before was when she was about 28 weeks pregnant with the 6. GEZ talk about unfair… take an now and after of me why don’t ya. The poor woman was on bed rest at 12 weeks I believe? Heck I started at 24 and am near 4 weeks and look like death won me over on days that I don’t attempt and even when I do its not very promising. On that note look at the pictures here. Prior to Novemeber I looked pretty dang good if I might add. My pictures then don't even resemble my swollen self now....poor Kate.

Such a beautiful but yet gloomy day...

Today absolutely sucks. It is beautiful outside and I feel like there isn’t anybody else even alive it’s been so quite and still all morning in the hospital. Ryan left this morning to go to work and is now off to College Station to help my Dad get Ashley’s stuff for the summer. Mom is busy at home and Ashley is house sitting for family members who are out of town in Florida. It must be nice. (…to be in FL, not house sitting lol). Everyone else is busy or too far to even stop by.

The window is tinted in my room and the sky still appears crystal blue and the sunshine is beaming through the window. If I had free reign to do what I wanted even while in the hospital I would seriously put on my swimsuit, get an Icee, take my book outside, and sit at the front entrance and just soak up the warm sunshine or a couple of hours while pouring sweat from the blistering sun. Summer time is my favorite time of the year and to be locked away from it is awful.

Last night I had more contractions. It’s so bizarre to me because lately I haven’t even been feeling them, where before it felt like mild cramps. Dr. Rowe is out of town camping and told me on Friday to be on my best behavior this weekend because he wouldn’t be on call to deliver babies. Luckily Dr. Goodrum has been around and this morning she reviewed the strip and didn’t seem to be too worried since the FFN test was negative and I am not showing signs of being ready yet. I honestly think it’s the babies and not me. Yes, I am already blaming them. They have been so rambunctious the last few days. Jason should be born with a black belt and ready to break bricks by the time he gets here. His movement is so swift and strong. At times it even makes me twitch because it’s so alarming. As for my little Reecers, he is still like my little hummingbird whose wings are fragile and delicate. I feel him in there. He moves rapidly but it feels like small flutters between my ribs. Wouldn’t they love to read this when their about 16…the “black belt brick breaker” and the “hummingbird” ha poor babies, I have already built a complex for both of them.

On days like today when it’s lonely and boring I find my mind dazing off dreaming of all the things that I wish I could be doing…and for a split second in-between thoughts I have very vivid pictures of all the little things I hope to one day do with the boys. I am excited for the baby stage, but I think I am even more excited for the toddler stage. When they are finally old enough to walk and move around and start saying cute little things and actually participate in active play will be so much fun. Ha and I am sure tiring for me chasing those two little rascals around. Dr. Rowe warned me that they are going to be little pistols judging from how active they already are. On Thursday when I had my ultrasound the tech asked if I had names. When I told her yes, Jason and Reece, Dr. Rowe laughed and said “yup get over here JR”. I laughed and said nooooo there will be no Junior or Bubba. Dr. Rowe laughed and said well hunny you’re not from Texas then. The tech, who is Hispanic, laughed and said well in Texas today its Juan and Hose. Then the two of them went off laughing saying “Ohhh there is a baby” and the nurse said “which one” in a Spanish accent and Dr. Rowe said no that’s not Juan…it was funny. Maybe you had to be there.

Ok I am rambling again…back to my doing nothing I suppose for about another 6 to 7 hours till Ryan gets here. Blah I won’t even get to go outside today because by the time he gets here it will already be dark!

The Newest Updates

I am still making minor changes but here is the current 411 for the week. I will try to keep it short and sweet.

• On Monday we had our measurement check. Jason was 1lb 15 oz and Reece was 1lb 2 oz. I spent the majority of the afternoon chit chatting with Sheila and relaxing when possible.
• On Tuesday 3 of my lovely DG sisters, Jennifer, Kristen, and Sara came to see me for the day. We had lots of fun eating Mexican food, playing games and of course opening baby gifts! Thank you girls soooooo much! I did have an increase of contractions and the nurse had to call Dr. Rowe. The weird thing about it was I felt maybe two however in about 15 minutes I had 8 which is usually not a good sign, but didn't worry because I never heard from Dr. Rowe that afternoon.
• On Wednesday Dr. Rowe and the nurse came in at the crack of dawn to do another "fetal fiber blahblahblah whatever" test. This is the same test they did a few weeks ago where they can check to see if you will go into labor within the next two weeks. The test was negative so I should be in the clear. My cervix is still at 3cm so that is good news also! (It's sad when that is one of the major highlights in your life!) I spent the rest of the day again with Jen, Kris, and Sara playing Banana Grams and talking before they got back on the road.
• On Thursday I slept till 11:30 and worked on designing the blog layout. Thank goodness for Adobe Photoshop. My free trial expires in about 20 days so I will be on the look out for a new photo/picture editing program that's equally as advanced. My contractions today were back to the normal 2-5 in an hour and the babies were difficult to monitor...or should I say baby (uh uh hummm....REECE!). My evening was interrupted with a loud uproar of the nurses signing the graduation song equipped with a graduation cap complete with the 2009 tassel, balloons, a cookie cake, and a graduation picture frame as a gift. Following behind them were Ryan, my mom, sister, and Aunt Booboo. I seriously thought my heart had just jumped out of my chest I was so so surprised. The nurses filmed and took pictures. I had good intentions of putting on a little make-up and doing my hair this afternoon. but then changed my mind since Ryans mom was the only one I was expecting and said she couldn't make it. Ha ha so needless to say I was look a little rough. I did however throw on a little make-up for the occasion after the fact.

I guess that is about it. It's nearly 1:30am and I should be sleeping. Lately I have found that at night I can't sleep because the boys are nocturnal karate choppers and enjoy practicing when its dark out. Usually around 6 I start sleeping really good till about 11 or 12 in between nurses, doctors, cafe workers and housekeeping in the morning coming in and out of my room. Ryan Shea is sound asleep. He is pulling his usual snoring routine and I have even heard him mumble a few words over there. I don't dear wake him up though. Use to I would tell him to roll over or hit him in the middle of the night...now that I can rest during the day I find it selfish to get him up knowing hes getting up early to drive to work. Sure hope Jason & Reece take after his sweet personality and good looks and leave his sleeping habits behind! On second thought never mind...if they take after my sleeping habits they will be wide awake all night long! Goodnight and I will update you again soon!

The Weekend, Pictures, Scary Stories and MORE

Earlier I posted the updates regarding to the boys size but cut it short. I was very irritable this morning with doctors and nurses in and out and then my nurse for today took an hour and half of mashing on my belly with the monitors looking for babies and clearly didn’t have much luck. I was lying pretty flat the whole time and started feeling dizzy and said we are going to have to do this later. I had her one day last week and she had lots of trouble too. I try so hard to be patient with the nurses. Most all of them are really good, but there are a few who need some extra work and I know are going to need help. I so badly want to say “look we both know your not sure what your doing so just ask for help!”, but I keep my mouth closed and let them do their job.

After I rested up for a while this morning Sheila came by for several hours and brought me chickfila as well as some hospital goodies to keep my tummy full and of course myself entertained. She is the biggest Twilight book fan I know and was curious how I liked them so far. Kortney was sweet enough to bring me the series. I am still on the first book and I am still waiting on it to get good. I have found it to be a little slow, but Sheila says keep going and it gets good. Overall its ok so far, but I am excited to see what’s to come and if this stupid vampire that everyone “fell in love with” eats the girl or not. As I told Sheila, Bella is an idiot for letting his breathe on her neck! Seriously, come on?!?

Oh another story…so last night it was time for monitoring and during the day the boys did pretty good. Reece was up high up in my ribs and Jason as the nurse said, “was in my leg”. Typically they don’t move far very quickly and stay within the general area or slightly over in one direction. Well one of my favorite nurses had me last night who knows her stuff and after about 20 minutes of not hearing a heartbeat from Reece or static indicating movement she went to go get the Doppler. The Doppler helps them detect the heartbeat and picks it up far better than the monitoring machines. Nearly an hour total had gone by and by this point I was worried. I knew we weren’t hearing anything and what we did hear was Jason off to the other side. I started getting a little panicky and said ok Karen your making me panic. From the look on her face I already knew she was and she kinda said softy I am not going to lie I am too. About 5 to 15 minutes later she moved the belts down on A and as luck would have it that stinking little munchkin had gone from the top of my right rib down to what the other nurse said was a “crotch baby” (sorry a little inappropriate…but you get the idea). I had small tears in my eyes when I heard the little thump of his heart loud and clear. With some nurses that take a while I think to myself yah they aren’t use to the boys however Karen knows all of us very well by this point and that was the first time EVER we didn’t hear anything AT ALL. It was rather scary. In the end we were able to get to strips of monitoring from both boys. I did have 6 contractions last night within the hour, but Karen said since they weren’t causing severe pain she wasn’t going to IV me and would let Dr. Rowe know. (He wasn’t too concerned either because my cervix hasn’t gotten any shorter).



I have added pictures from Mothers Day. On Friday I was told that I get 20-30 minutes outside or in the wheelchair now a day. On Saturday Ryan and Chris Mac came by before heading out to Galveston to pack up his stuff and rolled me around the entire outside property of the hospital. Ryan is a dangerous driver to say the least and like to do wheelies and nearly threw me out of the chair going over a crack by the front door. Haha. Later on Saturday evening Mom came up and brought in Zios for dinner which was a wonderful treat! We played Yahtzee and chatted until it was time to be monitored. On Sunday morning I woke up to a mother’s day card at my bedside from Mom and her on her way out to go get us breakfast. I had a wonder koloche, cinnamon roll and orange. We spent the day talking, eating lunch, out on a wheelchair ride and well entertaining ourselves at the hospital. It was great to have her here! That evening after Mom left Ryan came up and unfortunately due to all of the monitoring complications with Reece and the contractions I was hooked up most of the evening until it was time for bed.

Well I think that is all I have for now. Tomorrow two of my DG Girls, Kristen and Sara, are going to be in town! I am really looking forward to seeing the both of them. Like I said earlier I added mother’s day pictures. I also added picture of the ultrasound pictures since I do not have a way to scan them here at the hospital. Enjoy looking at my growing baby boys and ahhh, doesn’t Reece have just the cutest little nose? I am going to BEG Dr. Rowe to do a 3D at my 29 week measurement check in two weeks.

Oh yes, I added my answers to the pregnancy reflections if you care to read...

They Are Growing

Mine & Ryan’s little munchkins are growing good! Here are the every other Monday results! Both little boys meet my goals that I had in mind for them which is awesome.

Jason: 26 weeks 6 days 870grams (1 lb 15 oz)

Reece: 23 weeks 2 days 519grams (1 lb 2oz)

So from here we keep on going and hoping and praying all continues to go great! Today marks 27 weeks gestation, 3 weeks in the hospital, and 4 weeks total of bed rest. I am really tired and my nurse will be back in a few minutes to monitor so I must go...

Lifes Little Blessings

Today has been off to a great start. One of my Delta Gamma girls, Kortney, and her mom, came by this morning for an early visit for about two hours which was really enjoyable! I love catching up with all my DG’s. I believe next week Sarah W is coming to town as well as my DG little sis Kirsten and Sara E at some point during the week. Also on Monday Sheila is coming during the day…I have been blessed with lots of amazing friends. Speaking of which I would like to share a dream another friend had about the boys and I. Meagan called me the other day and said that the night before she had been praying about the boys, Ryan and I and then had a dream that felt so real…

I was going into labor and she said that for whatever reason she was there as well as my parents and Ryan. I got to have a natural birth just as I wanted and within a few minutes the first little screaming baby was out (Jason) and he was fine as could be. He was big, healthy, and screaming at the top of his lungs. Next came Reece…she said that Reece didn’t make any noise when he came out and this sent me into total panic mode. She said they didn’t show me either of the babies and quickly took them off to the NICU and I was to the point of completely tripping out. A little bit later after everyone was in the room they allowed me to go down to see the babies. She said it was the weirdest thing because I was in tears looking over them and reached out and squeezed her arm as the nurse said they are going to just fine. She said it was one of those dreams you wake up from feeling like it actually just happened and had to hare it with me. I am so gad she did because like she said she really felt like it was a message from God…and in my mind even if that is not the way it plays out it still gives me hope that my little boys are going to hang in there and beat the odds!

To think that come Monday I will have been on bed rest now for a month blows my mind. In a months time I have missed out on saying goodbye to my friends in Tyler, saying goodbye to my students and teacher friends at Jack, final going away pictures, a baby shower, senior ceremony for Delta Gamma and of course graduation which takes place tomorrow. It’s funny because I honestly do not feel like college is over and that by this time tomorrow I will have graduated. I guess part of it is because I have worked my rear end off for the last 4 years to be done on time and now with all that’s going on its overlooked and rather insignificant in the grand scheme of things. A part of me still wants to go back and relive those memories and an even bigger part of me says no, the best memories are still yet to come. I guess the reality of going from a college student for the last 4 years to a Mom with no in between is what throws it all off. Literally the night before I came home for Easter weekend I was sitting in the living room talking with my roommates and by the next week was in the hospital in Webster where I will leave and return back to life with two kids. Rather mind blowing at times…If somebody would have asked me at 18 where do you see yourself in 5 years anyone that is someone who knows would have known that it wasn’t to be married or with kids. Its funny how life never takes you where you see yourself going. It as is the future is already paved for you and no matter what roads you take you will reach your final destination no matter how many detours you try to take along the way.

Tonight Ryan is going to come back and stay at the hospital with me. The boys are still doing just the same and although I would love for them to say everything looks normal I know that that is not very likely. So for now, I am happy with no change because no change means nothing worse has happened. Ryan has been a trooper through all of this with me. I am so thankful for the times he tells me to stop worrying and to just relax even though I know in the back of his mind he is just being strong for mine and the boys sake. The time we have spent together has really added a lot of building blocks to our relationship and luckily they are all good ones. Its funny how even now we are still learning something new about each other everyday. Over the weekend we worked on a puzzle together and he turned to me and said we make a pretty good team. It made me laugh and of course smile because even though we do have our difference at times we come together in the end and do make a “good team”. On Monday night we started wrapping up the puzzle and then the nurse came in to monitor me and the boys. Ryan continued working away and then came over to me with the last piece and laid it on my little roll away table for me to finish off. Sometimes it’s the little things in life that seem insignificant that can bring a smile to your face!

Okay well I am finding myself rambling and said I was going to take a nap this afternoon before starting the Twilight series but that might not happen. I think I may shower in place of the nap and then begin reading. I have added pictures of flowers that have been sent to me, crib pictures (that I thought I had already posted but didn’t), belly shots and other baby gifts. Thank you again to everyone for your love, prayers and support. They are working and keeping my little boys safe and sound! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Baby Names

Ash (Ryans sister) added a fun little posting to the guestbook that I thought I would share and comment on.

"Ok fun facts for you today! :)

The first letters of every month starting from July to November spell out the name JASON.

J-uly A-ugust S-eptember O-ctober N-ovember

The name Jason means Healer.

I found two popular meanings for the name Reece: Enthusiasm "& Fiery."

First off I didn't know that about the months but if I can teach him the months of the year he should never forget how to spell his first name! Nice little trick to know hahaha. As for his name meaning "healer" I would like to think that he is taking good care of his little brother and thats why Reece has made it this long! As for my little Reecers he is one enthusiastic baby without a doubt. He moves around like a little firefly in my belly and the doctors laugh all the time because he can never just be still. Thanks for this Ash...made me smile and gives me hope.

As for today...nothing is new, nothing has changed, and that is still a good thing! The boys feel like they have been boxing and wrestling inside of me the last few days. My contractions on the last two monitoring sessions have been 0 and all seems to be going well. My prayer is that we can keep this up for several more weeks. I am shooting for around June 15/16th...at that point Jason will be 32 weeks and Reece will be 28. Longer would be better but its just a little goal for now

My Meme & Papa came and visited today for several hours and we laughed about all the fun the boys are going to put Ryan and I through. Plus I got a really great salad from TGIF which was a nice little change. I am feeling a little sleepy and if Ryan were here to hear me say that he would say "how can you feel sleepy...you don't do anything". Laying around doing nothing makes you just that much more tired if you ask me! Soooo I am going to watch Bride Wars on my laptop thanks to Keeley for the netflix and enjoy a movie that I have been wanting to see forever now till Ryan gets here this afternoon.

"All babies are terrific but my babies are two-riffic"

Today has been a pretty good day. Last night the boys kept me up quite a bit off and on through the night. I swear the two of them were having a boxing match. Just as soon as I would get comfortable I would get a nice swift kick in the ribs or a butt to the belly. However as the title says “all babies are terrific but my babies are two-riffic!” Both of them had terrific news in the ultra sound this morning. Jason’s fluid levels are right back on track and Reece is still fighting and holding on strong! I will have another ultra sound Thursday as usual and then measurements will be taken in one week. I am hoping that Reece is pushing a little over 400mg. That would be a blessing…the closer and faster we can get him to 500mg the better!

As for my day I spent it sleeping in between the busy morning commotion of the hospital with doctors, nurses, vital techs, housekeeping, and the café workers coming in and out. Finally about 11:30 I got up, ate lunch, hooked up to the monitor and then busted out a few magazines I haven’t gotten around to reading yet and listened to music on Pandora with my window open for some fresh air. I have been pondering the idea of what I can start doing to help pass the time and have decided that I am going to try and get back into scrapbooking which was an old hobby I found I didn’t have time for in college and use to love. However, I think this go around I am going to go digital. I have done a lot of digital work before and have even done some digital scrapbooking and really enjoyed it! Plus by going digital you can get a lot of free embellishments online and if I were to make purchases I have the ability to pick what I want right here from the computer without making impossible countless trips to Hobby Lobby. Plus I was inspired after reading an article online about keeping family photos in a 12x12 album combined with scrapbook pages along the way…what a great way to keep up with Ryan & I, the pregnancy, and of course my little munchkins on the way…WHILE PASSING THE TIME HERE!

Meeting with NEO Nurse Practitioner...

Today one of the nurse practitioners from the NICU came up and it couldn’t have been better timing because Ryan was here and I didn’t even expect her today. I guess you could say it was more of a reality check, hello, wake up Amanda this could be ugly kind of conversation. Needless to say the dark reality of what could be ahead in our journey isn’t pretty. Right now, today (5.2.09) I am 25 weeks and 6 days according to the most recent ultra sounds. Yes, I too thought this week marker the start of 2, but no, I was wrong. I took notes about various stuff so here, hope it doesn’t scare the daylights out of you like it did me initially. Again, keep in mind these are all possibilities and no guarantees.

She started with where I am right now…approaching 26 weeks what kind of odds these babies would have. To sum it up Reece if born any time in the next little bit she said there wouldn’t be anything they could do. His body would be fragile, the lungs would not be strong enough to tolerate breathing machines, and tubes wouldn’t even fit into his nostrils. As for Jason his survival right now would be 75% (maybe a little high- just a rough guess). She said of those 75% that survive 1/3 turn out as perfectly healthy little babies, another 1/3 have mild problems, and the other 1/3 have severe problems, but do allow the baby to live for a given amount of time. She said typically in order to be fit for machines a baby must weigh a little over 500mg (17.63 oz.). Currently as of last April 26th Jason was 600mg and Reece was 300mg. In a two week span of growth Reece gained 100mg. So if he were to continue at this rate he would need 6 weeks to gain weight to catch up to where Jason is right now. Aside from that I was reading online and came across this statistic as well from KidsHealth. “Due to many recent advances, more than 90% of premature babies who weigh 800 grams or more (a little less than 2 pounds) survive. Those who weigh more than 500 grams (a little more than 1 pound) have a 40% to 50% chance of survival, although their chances of complications are greater.” In general I feel as though it is fairly consistent with what the nurse was saying.

WHEN THEY ARE BORN (keeping in mind this is prior to 30 weeks of maturity): When the babies are born she gave me the warning that they try to show the babies quickly to the mother, but a lot of times due to the need of needing to stabilize the baby they do not get to show the babies off even for a second. When they are born they wipe them up and take them off for stabilizing. She said the first step is to give them medication called Surfactin (not sure on spelling but pronounced “sur-fact-in”). From there they will run a line through on of the arteries in the umbilical cord to monitor the babies’ blood pressure and to draw blood for testing. A second line will run through the single vein that is in the umbilical cord. This line is used for feeding. They will start the babies off with sugar water and slowly as they adapt they will add proteins, electrolytes etc. through the line to provide addition nutrients. Regardless of how premature or what the conditions are both babies will be put on antibiotics immediately and be monitored for infections around the clock.

LUNG DEVELOPMENT: Prior to 35 weeks babies are usually always hooked up to a breathing machine of some sort or another. In continuation to the above section the babies would be hooked up to a breathing machine now to help them because their lungs are not developed. The risks are high with breathing machines because of the amount of trauma it adds. She compared it to tapping yourself in the same spot for a long period of time. Their little lungs are constantly being pumped and this can cause chronic lung disease. It could be that the babies don’t need to go to the high level breathing machine when they are first born depending on their maturity. If that’s the case they might start out on a c-pap which is less traumatic. The babies must be a minimum of 1kg (35oz. or about 2.2 lbs) in order to come off the C-pap. If the babies were to develop lung disease or apnea from the trauma they can give them steroids once they grow later. If they are given too early it causes brain development problems. There are also other medications that they can start them on.

NUTRITION: After the babies have grown strong a feeding tube can be inserted into the stomach rather than using the line through the vein of the umbilical cord. If less than 34 weeks old the babies willmost likely be feed 3 oz. a day on the feeding tube. After 34 weeks they can be bottle feed once a day if showing signs of being capable to suck. The nurse said it is encouraged that the mother pump and bring the milk for the babies because of the vitamins and nutrition. The babies cannot be breastfeed till they have been 100% bottle trained and are no longer relying on the tube. Around 35 to 36 weeks if the baby is starting to suck the bottle then I can pump and have him suck to get use to the idea. (Poor kids- what a tease!!!)

BLOOD LOSS: A lot of little preemies need blood transfusions. She talked to use about the blood bank and if we felt safe using that blood and assured us that its been checked and monitored. She also told us we can have blood donated for the boys, but since we do no know their blood type right now you can be assured you will have what you need. IN addition to blood is only good for around 2 to 3 weeks and it takes a bit of time to be checked and processed. Needless to say if our boys need blood they will get it from the bank and if they are running low or something once we know their blood type we will go from there. (One step at a time…) She said not to be alarmed if the babies lose weight once they are born before they begin gaining. She said due to the amount of fluid drawn from them, this is often common. Along with that is not to be alarmed if the babies have jaundice. Again jaundice now days can be treated pretty easily, but they do have to wait till they are a certain age if medications need to be given. Otherwise they will be placed under lights.

BRAIN: This is the part that scares me the most. Due to the profusion (lack of blood) Reece is already dealing with he is at much higher risk of being born with brain damage or bleed of the vessels than Jason is. Basically here is the deal…the babies can be born and we think great they are doing wonderful and making progress in the NICU. Around 6-8 weeks they will do a scan (MRI) for brain damage. If bleeding is detected from the vessels before that we are looking at a whole world-wind of possibilities, operations, and developmental delays. If the results from the MRI show a grade 4 bleeding on either sides of the brain that is when they will ask if we want to continue care. What does that mean? It means the life of the boys) are completely in our hands and we have to decide if we want to give up and not put the sweet angel through pain, stress and trauma, or we continue the fight knowing that the odds are not high and the baby will live with severe brain damage. If the results come back and are lower we are not in the clear either. The bleeding blocks the drainage of spinal fluids which if they get backed up your looking at cerebral palsy, mental retardation, and learning difficulties. As the nurse said, again, we won’t know this right when the baby is born or even soon after. It can take up to several weeks/months for the baby to be stable enough for the brain scan. In addition to learning difficulties can not be detected until the child starts school. Bring on the learning difficulties if you must bring my baby any harm at all. I can handle and will help in every way shape or form I can to prepare my baby for school! Cerebral palsy and all of that stuff is again going to play a much great impact on their lives.

EYES: This was another big area of concern. Babies born prior to 31 weeks or less than 1500 mg are at risk of having problems with their eyes and will be seen by an eye specialist. Treatments are available such as laser eye surgery and medications to repair the veins that damage the retina. However if the baby is not yet stable enough to undergo these procedures the vessels could rupture and cause blindness. Typically after 30 weeks this is not as great of a risk.

HEART: There is a vein or tube or something called the heart PDA that everyone has. Babies are born with their open because while in the womb it helps with blood flow and doesn’t close till after birth. Should the PDA not close they monitor to make sure blood does not flood the lungs. This is treated with a medication and then if needed surgery. Very few babies have to undergo the surgery according to the nurse, but it does happen.

There’s a standard protocol used by the NICU that provides each baby on a certain level of care based on its gestation (and also weight in Reece’s case that has a high gestation but very low weight) which is as follows;

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Weekend Update

No changes really at this point. I am still going easy of the sugar and carbs to help reduce the fluid level for Jason. Contractions haven’t been so bad. When I have been monitored it’s been about 1 sometimes 2 or 3 an hour, but not very strong. They are keeping me on the medication for now and if I had my guess I’ll be on it till the boys are ready to get out of there! Talked with one of the doctors this morning and they are going to try and set up a tour in the next week of the NICU and have Ryan and I meet with the neo. Hopefully they can get an afternoon appointment so Ryan will already be off work…we shall see. It might be just me, but I can’t wait to see the little itty bitty babies. My sister’s professor’s wife delivered a 17 oz. baby that is in NICU and is healthy. What a miracle is that?

Also I have another prayer request. Another friend of mine is dealing with a tragic loss. Her brother was expecting twins and at 20 weeks they lost both babies due to a cyst rupturing on her ovaries. Very tragic- please also keep this Mommy in your thoughts in prayers as they deal with their loss.

The rest of my afternoon will consists of Mom being here around lunch time with some yummy chicken salad and Ryan here this evening. Last night he and I had a great time playing Battle of the Sexes. I dominated round 1 and he smoked me round 2…its on tonight!!! Stephanie and Richard are coming by tomorrow and then another ultrasound Monday morning as I start my 4th week of bed rest and my 3rd week in the hospital. Amen for holding out this long. Now lets keep out eye on the prize…goal one, 28 weeks!