One Boy, One Girl…. Two hearts beating wildly…
To put it mildly, it was love at first sight!
That’s my little tribute to Collin Raye’s song and how we feel about our little ones!
I have a lot to catch up on…
On February 8th Jerry and I saw the ultrasound tech in Dr Hartman’s office. I was about 17 ½ weeks along. The tech was a darling lady about my mom’s age named Katie, and we had a great time with her learning more about our babies. She spent about an hour with us looking over each baby and the other important stuff keeping them safe and happy. It was a fun day.
Katie first did a quick scan to check heartbeats and get an idea of where each baby was situated. And then, she looked to see what flavors of babies we were having. And, it turns out it’s a delicious chocolate and vanilla twist…a boy and a girl! I personally think it’s a perfect combination. Too many girls might throw Jerry into a whirl, and two rowdy boys at the same time might take me to the funny farm. I’m excited about the mix and think it will be the perfect fit for our family. I hope the two of them will have a great, supportive relationship without too much competition. The tech had a fun time watching the babies interact with each other. The boy would be spreading out his arms or legs, and the girl would be pushing him back over with her feet to where he belonged. Katie got a shot of them with their faces together, looking at each other. She kept talking about how great they interact and respond to one another. It was fun to watch them move and play around.
Of course the business of the ultrasound was to check the health of the pregnancy and babies. It was officially time to label and locate each baby. I had always wondered how they keep track of who’s who, and I learned something new. The baby who is closest to the mom’s cervix is “Baby A” and the other is “Baby B.” In our case, the boy is the lower baby and is “Baby A.” The girl is located very high and is “Baby B.” In fact, the two were laying perpendicular to each other like a “T.” The boy was laying up and down, low in the belly, and the girl was laying high, across the top going from side to side. They will obviously move around some and manipulate themselves over time, but based on the way things attach inside, they will remain more or less in those positions. Katie checked to be sure there was good separation between the two babies, each within their own amniotic sac with separated placentas. She looked to be sure each umbilical cord attached at a safe point in the placenta and that fluids were measuring and moving well. Everything surrounding the babies seemed to be perfect. She then went over each baby and their organs and functions. Each heart had four chambers and all the valves…pumping away in perfect rhythm. Their spinal cords and brains looked complete. They had all their internal organs and those appeared to be functioning properly. And, they both had 10 fingers and 10 toes. The tech kept saying how ‘beautiful’ they were and how reassuring things looked. We finished the ultrasound and went home with a few pictures and a CD copy of the fun day.
We were truly amazed at the miniature bodies that seemed to be perfect already. It’s a testament to me that we are divinely created. How could these little bodies, with all the functions and capabilities they will need to sustain life, be anything other than divine? Every time I get to see through that little window and watch them, I’m amazed at the miracle of life and birth. Absolutely amazing.
Our families and friends had been guessing the genders for weeks. Brooklyn and I thought it was a boy and girl. Jerry thought it was two girls. And, everyone had their own ideas and thoughts about what combination the babies might be. It was fun to hear everyone’s guess. Both Jerry and I agreed that it would be extremely surprising, based upon reproductive statistics, if we had two boys and anticipated at least one girl. A few days after we knew the official genders, we had Jerry’s family over for some ice cream and let Grandma and Grandpa open a box with two shoes—one girl shoe and one boy shoe. They had to keep a secret, though, because we were waiting a week to tell my family until my sister’s wedding reception when all my family was together. At Abby and Jace’s reception, we let Grandma Poore open the box. It was her birthday that day, so we thought it was a great gift for her to open. My family had been anxiously awaiting the news, and it was a fun way to end a great night. The cat was out of the bag now! I think it’s been fun for us and others to identify with the babies now as individuals…now for deciding on names!
About 3 ½ weeks later we went again to see Dr Hartman for my 22 week visit. This was on March 5th. Again, he walked into the room in his green scrubs and red tennis shoes. He makes me laugh. It was a quick visit. I think he was trying to catch up after having been out delivering a baby. He quickly checked the babies with the ultrasound and then went into business mode. It was a quick look at the babies and I didn’t even get a picture to take home L He checked the fluids, made some notes, and then started talking about bed rest. Shoot…I was hoping he’d forget! He wanted me to start on the 6 hrs of bed rest a day at the 22 week mark which was that Saturday, March 10th. His philosophy for bed rest makes sense, but I’m learning that it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. His main reason for bed rest is to decrease activity and pressure in order to keep the cervix competent and uterus calm so as to prevent preterm labor signs as best we can. He’d rather try early prevention than try to stop it after it starts. After signs of preterm labor start, they don’t really reverse themselves. You can try to postpone or slow the progress, but they can’t be reversed. So, I agree with his thinking for the most part. I also think that the body will probably do what it wants when it wants, so is bed rest necessary yet? I’m trying not to argue and just be obedient. And, between Jerry and my mom, there’s enough people making sure I do my job. J (Love you both!) The other thing Dr Hartman wants to do is start seeing me more frequently. This is to check the cervix and other signs of labor. We have the choice of coming in each week for an ultrasound check or every two weeks for a Fetal Fibronectin Test (fFN). The ultrasound would check the cervix and uterus, but is more frequent and less conclusive. The fFN is a lab test used to detect the possibility of preterm labor. The fFN test is more expensive, less frequent, but also more conclusive. If the test comes back negative, then the chances of you delivering in the next 2 weeks is <3%. This is more reassuring for the doctor and may help him better plan and manage the pregnancy. Either way, we will be seeing the doc more frequently, for sure. But, so far things look really good with no current indication of preterm labor or problems. Let’s hope it stays that way!
So far I have been feeling pretty good. I’m getting a big enough belly now that it’s not a ‘bump’ anymore, but rather a gigantic bulge. No questions about it now! (Although every week at church at least one person says, “I didn’t know you were expecting!” Well, yes…it’s true.) I’ve started with the usual pregnancy aches and pains. The sciatic nerve is my new best friend. I visit the potty more than I ever thought was possible in a 24 hour period. And, watching me get up or roll over is quite entertaining to watch, I’m sure. But, all that stuff is a minor trade off for the reassurance of growing babies. I LOVE to feel them kicking and moving around. When they are too still and quiet I get a little nervous. But, in time I start to feel the circus again, and am happy to feel my little ones ‘talk’ to me. Jerry’s even felt some kicks. Sometimes I’m amazed at how strong they must be to make such moves. At times I’m impressed with the action! I like to think I can tell who’s moving based upon where the movement comes from. Either way, it’s my favorite part of pregnancy. Love to feel their happy moves.
The past two weeks of bed rest have been more of a challenge than I thought they’d be. Everyone thinks they’d like the excuse to lie around for 6 hours a day, but it gets quite old really fast. When you are pregnant, laying down isn’t the most comfortable thing, either. Pretty soon your back, hips, and legs start to hurt. Your brain goes crazy thinking about all the things you ‘should’ be doing. And…pretty much boredom is inevitable. But, I’m not complaining! The six hours has been a little hard to get in each day. Some days I’m more obedient than others. It’s a blessing to have Brooklyn in school. I can be down while she is at school, and pretty much nobody knows the difference. I can’t imagine having to be down with little kids at home during the day. That would be tough. Dinner is less exciting than it used to be, and the laundry gets done a day or two later, but all in all it’s not been too bad.
I’m grateful for Jerry and all his help. I’ve worked a whole lot less than we are used to, so he’s carrying all the financial responsibilities and more of the house duties, too. He spoiles me, for sure. But, as the farmer neighbor said the other day, “That’s an expensive crop to have go bad.” Yes, farmer Layne, we are wanting to protect our crop J! Brooklyn has been a great helper too. She’s great at getting me things I need and even tells me when I need to lay down. She’s been a pretty happy girl for having such changes come about in her world. They are getting used to doing things that I need and pampering their mommy more. They are helping to make a great team. I couldn’t do it without them! I also have so many people offering to help with anything if I need it. I’m grateful to say that things are going well for now, but love knowing that my great family and friends are there for us! I really have been blessed so far and don’t have much to complain or worry about. It’s been such a great time in our lives!!
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