PIctures

Aunt Mindy and Grandpa Hursh holding Vivian

Daddy and Vivian on left and Olver on the right.

Grandpa Mike and Grammy Pam, Papaw and Granny Bender

Bright eyed Vivian in her Daddy's arms

Oliver, cool and calm

Aunt Amy

Mommy and Oliver

Vivian in her isolette

So here's the story...

Wow...what a few exciting, surprising, stressful, adrenaline packed days we've had. First and foremost, we have 2 happy, healthy babies. Vivian Marie Hursh was born at 2:32 on 6/26/2010 weighing in at 3 pounds 9 ounces. Oliver Matthew Hursh was born at 2:34 on 6/26/2010 weighing in at 5 pounds 13 ounces.

This is how it all went down...

Around 3:30 AM on Saturday morning I woke up to a "funny feeling" thinking maybe I needed to go to the bathroom, which I was doing very frequently so I wasn't too surprised. So I went to the bathroom and then realized this may be a bit of a different situation then I had ever experienced?? I thought "could it be?" Has my water broken? I assessed the situation and calmed myself quickly and woke Matt up. He suggested I call the doctor immediately (in my confusion and slight panic, I proceeded to speed dial my mom's cell phone at this alarming hour...oops :)) and they told us to go ahead and come to the hospital and they could check me out. By this point my mom had called back to make sure we were ok and Matt told her we were headed to the hospital to be assessed. I packed a few things in a bag and off we went. We got to the hospital and they confirmed yes indeed my water had broken and I would be there to stay until the babies were born. I told them I had every intention of staying pregnant until 37 weeks! They politely smiled and said let's get 48 hours of steroids in you (to help the babies' lungs) and reassess Monday morning. They also told me if I started to show any signs of infection I'd be delivering immediately. I was tucked into a labor and delivery room, got an IV for hydration and I was mentally preparing myself for a week or more of hospital stay to get my babies big and strong. Around 12:30 or 1:00 my mom came to sit with me so Matt could run home and pack a bag of necessities. I'd been having some contractions since I got to the hospital but they told me they would hopefully get them to calm down. The uterus sometimes gets irritated when the water breaks. I initially was only having them every 15 minutes or so. But about the time Matt left they were coming more like every 8 minutes and a little more intense (picture me clinging to the bedrail saying things like, "oh boy, I don't know if I can take this" "is someone trying to kill me?"). My smile was fading.

Matt hadn't been gone but 5 minutes or so and my mom said I should call the nurse and see about getting some pain medicine so I could relax and take a nap. The nurse came in and said she needed to talk to the doctor and get some pain medicine ordered and she told me the doctor would probably want to check my cervix. When I came in that morning my cervix was still closed. The doctor came in said she'd order me some pain medicine but she did want to check my cervix first. This is when the "excitement" turned on. She check my cervix and it was completely thinned out and I was 5 centimeters dilated and she could feel Vivian's butt :) She said there's no stopping the labor and I was going to be heading to the OR for a c-section right now! I had my mom immediately call Matt, who was only about 15 minutes away at this point so he turned around and headed back to the hospital. When he walked in they handed him his OR clothes and then they wheeled me to the OR for my c-section.

They quickly gave me my spinal and I was numb and no longer feeling the contractions. They got me prepped and very quickly I was ready to deliver. At this point they sent Matt in to join me. I was nervous, scared, excited, overwhelmed, but most of all ready to meet my babies. Out came Vivian and in what felt like a full minute but was more like 5 seconds we heard her cry 3 mighty cries. They whisked her away to another room to stabilize her, which is standard because they were premature. 2 minutes later with a few comments from the doctors like, "wow I can feel his head and he's much bigger!", out came Oliver with immediate loud boisterous cries! They paused and briefly held him up to show Matt and I and then he too was whisked him away to join his sister in the other room to be stabilized. Matt and I were overwhelmed with emotion, to say the least.

A few minutes later the doctor came in and told us they both looked great, healthy and active. Both babies were breathing room air. Matt quickly went to the other room to see them as they were being stabilized and came back to tell me they were perfect. 10 fingers and 10 toes....what a relief, although it didn't 'matter we loved them already. I said no less then a dozen times, "I just had two babies, I just had two babies!"

They brought the babies into the OR and I got to see them very briefly while they stitched me up. Then I was off to recovery and around 5 they took me in my bed into the Special Care Nursery (yes, this is where I work) to see and I got to hold both of MY babies! That night is kind of a blur, due to adrenaline, pain medicine and excitement but I truly believe this was the best day of my life this far. Matt and I love these babies so much and finally meeting them was a dream come true.

Both babies are now spending time in the Special Care Nursery where I am more than blessed to have my co-workers taking care of them, loving them just about as much as we do. They've been nothing but wonderful to my babies, my husband, my family and me. I can't begin to say thank you enough. They deal with me being slightly crazy, it's both a blessing and a curse to know too much :). They are both still breathing room air and overall doing extremely well for being born at 33 +6 weeks. They change so much each day. They both need to learn how to eat from a bottle and just this morning they each took their entire 8:00am feeding from the bottle. We are trying to not push them too quickly because they will just tucker out and could even take a few steps back. Steady and slow wins the race! They will be here as long as they need to be but of course we are ready to take them home today! It's possible the babies will come home at different times but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Vivian has occasional brief episodes where she forgets to breath and drops her heart rate below 80 (normal is 120-160) for about 20 seconds, sometimes she corrects herself and sometimes she needs a little pat on the bottom to remind her to breath. This is all completely normal for a premature baby and she will grow out of it, it just a matter of when. She'll have to grow out of this before she goes home. We could be here as few as a couple of weeks or maybe longer, closer to their due date (8/8/10). Like we've said from the beginning of this pregnancy, one day at a time one step at a time.

We appreciate everyone's thoughts, phone calls, love, prayers, texts, goodie bags, and treats for the babies. Please understand if we can't return every phone call but we thank you for thinking of us. We are truly blessed.

Pics

Vivian and Oliver are here!

Krista is trying to rest and I will send out a play by play post tomorrow ...... for now here is info on the babies and a picture.

Vivian Marie born at 2:32pm at 3 lbs 9 oz and 17 inches long. Oliver Matthew born at 2:34pm at 5 lbs 13 oz and 19 inches long.

Both babies are healthy and gorgeous, Krista is doing great!

Pictures

ok...so i decided not to post any pictures with the babies names just yet...let me check with Matt and I'll get back to you on that!

All bets are off...

on where these kids are!  So for the past 12 weeks the babies have basically been in the same positions, her head on my right, in breech position, and his head on my left  in vertex position or occasionally transverse.  So imagine my surprise to find out they have switched it up on me!  She is still breech but now her head is on my left and he is still vertex but his head is on my right.  I don't remember them jumping over each other??  :)

We had a good doctor's appointment today.  We met with the maternal fetal medicine doctor again and he was pleased with each baby's growth.  Our little girl is still in the 18th percentile weighing approximately 3 pounds 11 ounces (measuring about a week small).  Our big boy is measuring in the 89th percentile weighing approximately 5 pounds 1 ounce (measuring about 2 weeks big).  THAT'S ALMOST 9 POUNDS OF BABY!  That's good to know, especially when I see the number on the scale :)  So the doctor was pleased enough with what he saw he said he didn't need to see me anymore?!?!?  Really...cause you know I'm slightly crazy but if you say so doc, ok!  He actually said they'd take one more look the day I deliver to verify she's still breech before proceeding with a c-section.  (Now...this is in a perfect case scenario, of course they'll do another ultrasound if something comes up).  He also said he doesn't consider our little girl to be IUGR because she's still on the growth chart for her gestation.  He considers this to be a normal twin pregnancy.  I'll still be seeing my regular OBGYN, I see her again on the 28th.  She'll continue check my cervix each visit.  Today my cervix was still closed but softening and shorter then it has been, which she said is normal at this stage of the game.  I told her my plan was still to go to 38 weeks and she kinda gave me a little smirk and said she wasn't so sure I'd make it quite that far...a girl can dream, right?!  I told her I'd compromise at 37 :)

A fun thing Matt and I did this week was we had a friend I work with come to the house and take some "maternity" pictures.  Now some of you may have seen a handful of them on facebook which does indeed reveal the potential names.  These names are not set in stone but they are the front runners and I'd say we are about 85 - 90% sure.  I don't think we'll be able to say we are positive until we meet them....so for now stay tuned!  I caught Matt in a weak moment and he agreed to let me hang then names on the nursery wall before actually finalizing them.  It's just a tiny nail that can be removed and replaced if need be!

So starting in week 32 a mommy with just one baby should be gaining about a pound a week and half of that goes to the baby.  So for me...I guess I should be gaining more like a pound to 2 pounds a week, each baby gaining half a pound....oh my!  The babies will gain a third to half of their weight in the next 7 weeks....I think this is why my doctor looked at me like I was crazy when I said I'd like to get to 38 weeks.  With this information, I would be crazy...my big boy could be HUGE!  They now have toenails, fingernails and hair.  The ultrasound tech said she could see our little girl had quite a bit of hair!  She was trying to show us but it's just looks like a chaotic mess in there to me...arms and legs everywhere!  I'm still feeling pretty good.  I get short of breath if I eat and try to hold a conversation at the same time or walk around the house and try to talk on the phone...pathetic!  Sometimes Matt will look at me and say "Are you ok, you're out of breath?"  You trying carrying around these extra pounds buddy!  :)  I drink at least gallon to 2 gallons of water a day (no joke) so I'm in the bathroom all.the.time. and have been for months!  I can finally feel my little girl have the hiccups, she is sitting so low I can definitely tell the difference!

Movin and Groovin

This week we celebrated Matt's Grandma Bobbi's 90th birthday!  I don't have any biological grandparents still living so I'm lucky enough to have Matt's grandparents who treat me like family!  I feel lucky that my babies will have lots of family including grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends who will love them to pieces and spoil them rotten!  

I've still been feeling pretty good.  I am starting to run low on energy, even though I'm not working.  I'm doing my best to relax and keep my feet up, but like I've said before that's easier said then done!  It feels like I've been off work for 10 weeks, not 10 days!  I miss my work friends and the day to day conversation.  Some of them have gotten ridiculously long emails, text conversations and phone calls due to my talk deprivation and I for that I thank them!  My sister is done with school for the year so that's been nice having her to keep me entertained too.

We are headed back to the doctor on Thursday for an ultrasound and a check-up, I'm anxious to know how big our babies are!  Every time I go I fear they will tell me to walk down the hallway to Labor and Delivery and have myself admitted but we'll keep our fingers crossed that all is well and I'm growing these babies big and strong.  In a couple weeks I'll be turning the big 3-0.  I've said for many many years that I wanted to have kids before I was 30, but I take it back!  Matt and my mom have both asked me what I'd like for my birthday this year and my one and only wish is that I'm still pregnant with 2 big, healthy babies and that I have a nice low key day with some white cake with white icing :).

So in week 31 that babies are close to 16 inches long weighing 3.3 pounds (even though we know our big boy must be bigger then that!)...trying carrying 4 navel oranges, for me...8 (even though it looks more like I'm carrying a large watermelon under my shirt!  They can turn their heads from side to side and their arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump up with fat they need!  The babies are still moving all the time and when I take the time to pay attention, I do feel our little girl moving more then I use to.  I feel our little boy have the hiccups at least once or twice a day.  I haven't felt our little girl have the hiccups yet but maybe it's just because she's under her placenta?  I can't believe this pregnancy could be over in a little as 4, 5, or maybe 6 weeks.  I hope I never forget the feeling of the pokes, jabs, rolls or hiccups of our little babies.   Their movements, big or small, never grow old.  

June 10th, Grandma Bobbi's 90th birthday. 

Good Bye 30...Hello 31

So week 30 has come and gone but we were in a bit of transition from our old computer to our new fancy Mac so I didn't get a chance to update until today.  Today I am officially 31 weeks!  Matt and I have checked several things off of our list of things to do this weekend, the biggest check mark being we finally bought a new car.  We have been looking and looking and finally settled on something we hadn't really been looking for at all!  We bought an upgraded model of the Rav4 I already have.   I have been driving a 2003 Rav4, now I will be driving a 2010 Rav4.  The reason we needed to upgrade was the lack of rom in the back seat.  The infant car seat did not fit safely in the back seat of my old car but the new model of the Rav4 is quite a bit bigger.  We decided we don't really know what we will need in a few years so this car may just be a stepping stone to something even bigger.  It's nice to have this done.

The other big change this week is I am no longer working. 2 weeks ago my doctor told me I could medically be done working whenever I wanted to be and at the time I still felt like I was able to keep up. But, after a long day Tuesday, coming home and crumbling into bed, I called my doctor Wednesday and she said not a problem, I could consider myself done until after the babies are born.  Between the contractions, swelling, shortness of breath it was just getting to be too much on my feet for 8 hours.  I felt like I wasn't providing the best care I could for my patients or my babies.  So I am going to do my best to relax and keep these babies in as long as possible.

Went to the doctor this week and long story short, everything checked out well.  I sent up a little red flag because they asked if I felt both babies moving equally and I said no.  I've never felt them move equally and they've always said that is normal because her placenta is on top of her and his is underneath of him. (Side note* I do feel them moving all the time and it's hard to know who's who.  They've been in the same position since my 20 week ultrasound so I do my best to guess.  When our Big Boy moves you can see it, he does a lot of rolling and jabbing.  When our Little Girl moves it's still a tap or a jab that you can feel better on the outside then I can on the inside. )  So they put me on the monitor to do a non-stress test.  They could find each babies heartbeat easily but keeping them on the monitor was a bit of a challenge so down to ultrasound I went for a biophysical profile which gives them a scoring out of 8 to make sure they aren't stressed in the womb.  They measured their heart rate, muscle tone, movement, breathing, and the amount of amniotic fluid.  Each baby scored an 8 so on our way back home we went.  I fear each time I go to the doctor they are going to tell me to walk on down the hall to be admitted.  We are not ready to have these babies yet, they are not done cooking!

So in week 30 there is about a pint and a half of amniotic fluid around each baby.  This will decrease as the babies get bigger to make more room for them in the uterus.  Their eyesight continues to develop but when they are born their vision will be 20/400, which means they will only be able to see objects a few inches from their face.  I continue to feel pretty good and strangers say to me every time I'm out "You must be due any day!?"  I just smile and say  "No, I've got a couple more months, I'm having twins!" Maybe I'll start wearing a sign or a button?  Just think what they will say in 4 or 6 weeks?!