Jude and Luke's Nursery

I knew I was going to be using the white furniture I had in my room growing up whether we had a boy or girl. So it was easy to nail down that we would need white cribs and the wall color would need to be a darker color. Because I thought from the beginning I was having boys, I had in mind what I wanted and that was navy walls. So then, I just needed to find bedding that I liked. I knew I didnt want a character type theme, but more of a pattern theme... or different patterns rather. I found nothing. I even had come to the conclusion that I would just need to have my bedding made, but after looking at lots of different material I still hadn't found exactly what I wanted. Actually, thats not true. I found something that I liked but we would be looking at $1500 or more once everything was made for both beds and matching curtains.... to which I decided with that price tag I didn't like it that much.

Then one day I found this bedding on sale online. It was so reasonable that we went ahead and bought it and figured if we got it and didn't like it we could still get something else. Once we put it in the cribs to check it out, I was sold. It was simple, it was boyish, it had different patterns, and I could still have my navy walls.

Thankfully we started on the nursery pretty soon after we found out the gender so I was still able to shop and get what I wanted for the room. And thankfully the room is not huge so it didn't take much to  complete it.

Its the first bedroom you see when you walk up our stairs. I still smile every time I see it. 

Thankfulness

November is the month where everyone bombards facebook with something they are thankful for everyday. Don't get me wrong... I am very thankful for so many things, but don't find the need to put it on facebook.

As you know life for us has changed quite a bit the last couple of months. We are in uncharted territory and making the best out of a not so ideal situation. However the boys are doing great and staying put so its clearly all been worth it. Life for me has been made so much easier because of a few things. These in fact are worth sharing here on our blog. (warning: sappy words ahead)

Family: Our families have been wonderful. Offering to come clean, cook, keep me company, organize baby stuff.... we are so thankful that both families are here and so close and so willing to help.

Friends: Our friends have been precious. Meal after meal, phone calls, texts, visits... we have felt the love and support of the body of Christ for sure during this time.

Nurses/Doctors/Medicine: We are so thankful for the medical teams who have taken care of us during our pregnancy and especially during the craziness of preterm labor. Their patience, attention to detail and obviously their concern and care for us has made this experience so much less stressful. We know we are taken care of by ultimately the great Physician, but we are so thankful for the way He has used the nurses, doctors, and medicines these last couple of months.

Technology: D has always been interested in technology and the latest things that come out pertaining to it. I could care less. However.... I am so thankful for facetime, iphones, and ipads. These tools have kept me feeling in the loop with everthing going on outside of my home. I have been able to be apart of every sunday and wednesday night church service because of technology. This has been a huge blessing! I've been able to still be fed spiritually and also see sweet faces.

D: There are no words to adequately express how thankful I am for my husband. I knew I married the best, but through all of this I have seen even more how wonderful he is. He has been so selfless, patient, loving... all while cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, taking care of me and still working... and he does all of this without a single complaint. He has been my earthly rock. I didn't think it was possible to love him more... each day proves that statement wrong. I am so honored to be able to share this adventure of life with him.

Jesus: As I typed this it seemed like such a sunday school answer, but no thankful list would be complete without including The Giver of all good things. I am constantly amazed at his love and faithfulness. 

Hospitals

I've decided now after being in 2 different hospitals it doesn't matter what hospital you're in, but more importantly about the care you have while being there. The nurses make or break your experience. Thankfully for the most part we had fantastic nurses. Methodists nurses overall seemed to be younger, but just as qualfied.

We have now dealt with receptionists, case workers, triage nurses, L&D nurses, nurse educators, nurse practioners, neonatologists, OB doctors, and high risk doctors... we for the most part were pleased with all of them. It can be very overwhelming and sometimes scary especially when your babies are less than 30 weeks, but all of these people at both hospitals were gracious, truthful, and encouraging.

The only complaint we had came from our experience of when we got diverted from Baptist to Methodist Germantown. Obviously it is not Baptist's NICU fault that they were full, but having to switch to a hospital you are unfamiliar with was a little weird. We were use to walking in to Baptist's triage and in less than 5 minutes I was on a bed and hooked up to monitors plus they brought all the paperwork to me while I was on the bed getting my babies checked out. They have always been quick to take care of us. Not quite the same story at Methodist. We had to go to the hospital per our doctor's orders because I was having too many contractions that were picked up on our home monitoring system. Too many contractions plus an already shortened cervix could lead to more problems especially at 28 weeks.

Once in Methodist, we had to sit in the waiting area to be seen by the receptionist. After 15 minutes of waiting, she finally finished with the person in front of us and called us up. I sat in a chair there in front of her and filled out the paperwork. Then we had to go sit and wait even longer in the waiting area. 45 mintes to an hour from arriving we were finally in a room and getting hooked up to monitors that confirmed I was having contractions 3-4 minutes apart. Daniel Jerkins was not a happy camper. I'm sure there were other women who needed to take priority over me, but 45 min to an hour?! Thankfully the sweet nurses made up for the lack of immediate care.

Here are some random pictures we took in both hospitals...

These "boots" that aren't really boots massaged my legs to keep me from getting blood clots.

In the ante pardom wing, we got bigger rooms with a refrigerator.

And we got D hooked up with an extra long bed.

At Methodist, after the mag drip, I got to slowly eat again. Chicken broth, orange jello, and sprite never tasted so good!

When we got transferred from Methodist back to Baptist, the high risk dr. made me go by ambulance... which was ridiculous, but apparently funny.

D clearly followed right behind us. I think you can see my head in there leaning to look at him.

In Baptist triage, hooked up checking on those boys.

Poor D froze in the hospital. He kept a jacket on or a blanket on him at all times. I think we were waiting to go for an ultrasound here and he shared his blanket.

It pays to know the ultrasound tech.

When hooked up to monitors, I looked like an alien. I had 3 different monitor heads on. 1 for each baby and then 1 to monitor contractions.

Hands down, D's favorite part about Baptist Women's... their blue bell ice cream. 

We've clearly had our share of hospital time. We are so thankful for technology and medicine that have enabled us to continue to keep our boys cooking. We are also very appreciative of all the precious people who have taken care of us at both hospitals. 

Hopefully we won't have to walk back in one until it's time for the babies!

Maternity Pictures

Maternity Pictures. 2 words my husband was not thrilled to hear come out of my mouth... but oh they did. I've always known that I wanted to have maternity pictures made, but when we found out we were having twins I knew that I'd have one belly worth documenting.

I contemplated with when would be the perfect time to take them. I wanted it to be cooler so we could have great weather and pretty fall backdrops. I also wanted to still be a cute size where I'd like looking at the pics. I also wanted to wait so we could capture the great size of my twin carrying belly. Due to hot temps, preterm labor and hospitalizations... October had quickly snuck up on us and I decided we'd better take these pics or there was a chance we wouldn't get them made before the babies made their arrival. One of my precious friends from church said she wanted to do them for us for free. I couldn't pass up free... and I knew my already hesitant to do this husband would like that price tag.

Being on bed rest I realized my idea of outside fall pics were out the window but Michelle was willing to come to our hospital room or our home... wherever we were. I am so pleased that we were able to be back home, but also that our backdrops weren't random trees or places we weren't familiar with, but it was our stuff. It was personal.

I was not disappointed.

Thank you Michelle for capturing this precious time in our lives. You can check her out on facebook at Precious Memories Photography- Michelle Walker.

2 Pregnancy Must Haves... well for me

These are 2 of my very favorite things. Well, 2 things that I'm so thankful that I have had during this pregnancy.

Angel Sounds:

My sister let me borrow hers and what a sweet treat this was. While our boys were too small for me to feel movement, this little device allowed me to be able to hear them moving around as well as their precious heartbeats. I seriously used this thing everyday or just about everyday until I felt them start moving.

Pregnancy Pillow:

This pillow has been a life saver. It was one of the best investments we made. Though its not cheap, it was worth every penny. I have slept with this thing every night since my belly became a significant size... it has even traveled with us... thats how important it has been. I am a real weenie, but seriously people even you non-weenies can appreciate this fabulous invention. This pillow has helped make my resting experience so much better since I'm sleeping on my side now.... I was a belly sleeper. And since I'm in bed basically all day everyday... it has made such a difference in my comfort level.

Released

Today we went to see our high risk specialist, Dr. BK. It was a great appointment! Boys looked perfect and are weighing 3.6 lbs and 3.8 lbs. Also my shortened cervix has lengthened back up to a 2.1. So bed rest is proving to be a very good thing!

After reviewing all of my info, they concluded that I was doing so well that I could just continue my ultrasounds at my OB's office so.... we officially got released from his care. 

I will continue taking my meds to help with contractions, monitor everyday, drink lots of water and stay in bed. Crazy to think we'll meet our boys in a matter of a few weeks. We are still hoping we can make it to December.

When D put these in the car, it got very real. 

Soon 2 precious boys will be riding in those! Crazy.

30 weeks:

My favorite maternity shirt:

31 weeks:

Twin Update

After our last hospital visit, we got sent home and set up with a contraction monitor for me to use twice a day that allows the data to be sent to a 24 hour monitoring system. On Monday, my data showed I had 4 contractions. The nurse called and asked me to remonitor because they don't want me having that many in an hour. After remonitoring, the nurse called and said I had 6 that time around. She called and consulted with my dr. and they agreed I needed to go to the hospital to be checked out. As we were about to pull into Baptist, we got a phone call stating that Baptist's nicu was on diversion and in case the babies needed to come it was imperative that we go to Methodist Germantown. Even though my insurance is for baptist because it was out of our control, my insurance would see it as in network and cover it... thankfully.

After getting hooked up to the monitors at Methodist Germantown, it was confirmed that I was having contractions every 3-4 minutes. They tried giving me rapid release meds... fail. So the next best option was the dreaded magnesium drip. I heard it was brutal but if it was what needed to be done of course I was willing. It indeed was not fun. It is a muscle relaxer so it felt like I had the flu or recovering from... I was super weak and even my eyes felt relaxed like I was crosseyed. It also made me really hot... thankfully just my face and a cold rag helped that. While on the mag drip, I was not allowed to eat or drink anything other than ice chips... which is hard when it also makes you super thirsty/dry mouthed. In the middle of the night Monday night, I got desperate and drank the melted ice. Then soon after saw the reason why they don't let you eat or drink. I sat up and said, D, I think I'm going to be sick. He was dead asleep in the chair beside me. Although he jumped up quickly and slightly tripped over the blankets at his feet just in time to grab a garbage can in which I projectile vomited into and on him. :) 

After 52 hours on the mag drip, I was taken off. Thankfully it has proven to be effective. I got moved to Baptist where I am currently being monitored and so far the babies are still perfect and I've had hardly any contractions. The doctors are optimistic that I can carry these babies a while longer although we know anything can happen at any point.

Thank you all for your love, support, and encouragement.... but mostly for your prayers. We know  God created these precious boys and is more than capable to sustain them as well.