10 years and 5 kids later.....

I had my final non stress test for this week today and the girls looked great. The meaning behind the title of today's blog is that Marc and I celebrate our 10 year anniversary tomorrow.  I am a very lucky girl to be married to such a wonderful man.  Marc has been amazing through out this journey and I thank God everyday for such a great husband and father to our kids!!! I would say we have been extra blessed this anniversary with not only one baby, but two, plus our three other healthy, beautiful, wonderful kids in those ten years. The one funny thing about this weekend is that Marc had booked a surprise trip to a Sandals resort in Jamaica and we would have left today (Oh a cocktail on the beach sounds so good right now). We had always talked about returning to a Sandals resort (we stayed at a Sandals for our honeymooon) for our 10 year anniversary. We had been on our last month of trying for the fourth baby and we both felt that perhaps a fourth baby was not in our cards after the miscarriage and 7 more months of trying to get pregnant.  I have always been fortunate enough to get pregnant right away, so this was another reason we thought a fourth baby was not in our future.  Marc thought this trip would be a nice get away for both of us and something we both needed. However, we were proven wrong times two. God had other plans for us.  At the end of that month, I was pregnant.  Luckily, we were able to get our money back and we will spend a quiet evening at our house with dinner and a movie.  It is not quite the beach by any means, however the gift of two babies is amazing and there is always next year for a beach trip (if only we will be able to find somebody to take 5 kids for a long weekend :).

My next ultrasound is on Tuesday.  On Sunday, I will begin my 33rd week.  5 more weeks to go, but who is counting, right????????

6 weeks and counting

Today's appointment was a great marker at 32 weeks.  As I was told in the beginning of all of this, I would deliver between 28-32 weeks and these baby girls are showing us how strong they are!  My day started off with an ultrasound which indicated that the amniotic fluid and blood flow measurements were all in the normal range.  The growth measurement indicated that the size difference went down, woohoo.  It is truly a roller coaster ride.  The difference in size between the girls is now 21%.  Baby A now weighs 3 lbs. 10 oz. (she is in the 30th percentile) and baby B now weighs 4 lbs. 9 oz. (she is in the 56th percentile).  All good news from the ultrasound.  I then went for the non stress test and passed  that.  Last but not least I saw the Dr.  He was just as happy with the results.  He said I have a cervix of steel after he checked that (WTH).  We talked about a delivery date and he scheduled me for August 7th, which at that point I will be 38 weeks.  HOLY COW if I make it to that point I will be enormous (I already feel huge), considering my stomach is measuring at 37 weeks right now.  So, the countdown is on...July is going to one long month!!!

As always I want to thank you for the prayers and support for these girls.  We would not be where we are without all of you!!!

Pictures from Leah's wedding

One of my activities this weekend to keep me busy was to download pictures, so I wanted to post a few from the wedding.

                                   I love this picture of Leah!  She made a stunning bride!

                                  The kids did awesome walking down the aisle!

                                                       The happy couple!

The photographer wanted this picture of Leah kissing my belly.  The smile just shows how excited I was to be there for Leah!!!  Thanks for all the prayers!!

Long weekend of bed rest ahead

I was a little nervous going into today's appointment because I had quite a few Braxton Hicks yesterday.  Although the Dr.'s appointment and non stress test went well.  The non stress test indicated that the babies are doing well according to the nurse, which is great.  The Dr. checked my cervix and said I have a great cervix, it is closed and up high, which is also good. He also said I am very lucky that I have not started to swell at all :).  I am sure that is because I am stuck inside and on the couch away from the heat. So, now I will have a long weekend of laying on the couch waiting for Monday to get here to see how Baby A is growing.  The weekends are the longest for bed rest.  I think it is because I am missing out on all the fun stuff with the kids.  However, the end is in sight.....staying positive.

31 weeks!

What a great day to follow a great weekend!  I had an ultrasound to look at blood flow and amniotic fluid as well as a non stress test today.  Everything was in the normal range, yeah!  I was having a few contractions while being monitored during the non stress test, but I was not feeling them and they were not concerned.  The nurse indicated they were probably Braxton Hicks.  They encouraged me to continue to drink lots of water.  My next appointment is Thursday when I see the Dr. and have another non stress test.

On a separate note, the wedding festivities were so much fun and everything turned out perfect!  I cannot express how happy I was to be able to be there for my sister. The Cook's threw a great rehearsal, it was nice to get a mani/pedi and treat Melis and Lydia to something fun (since I am the boring mom that just lays on the couch all day) and the wedding/reception were beautiful!! Leah looked absolutely stunning!!  Melis, Tyler, and Lydia did such a great job all weekend, especially walking down the aisle.   They danced their little hearts out until midnight at the reception. Marc and the kids got home at about 12:30 and they stayed up until about until 1:00 telling me all the details.

As I was driving the kids to my mom's house today, Lydia says, " I just can't believe all the wedding stuff is over".  I thought to myself, me too! I will download some photos soon, I want to be sure I have a few days of full bed rest, since I was out over the weekend.  Congratulations to Leah and Dave, we are so happy for you!!

Lastly, thank you all for your continued prayers and support!

Let the wedding festivities begin :)

I passed the final test of this week, which means I can attend the wedding festivities the Dr. has approved.  I am so excited to be a part of my sister's special day and the days leading up to it.  I am also excited to get dressed up, get off the couch for a couple of hours and out of the house!!  Please keep the prayers coming.  I am feeling extra blessed this weekend.  I will be sure to take lots of pictures and post them next week.  My next appointment is Monday, which will be an ultrasound and a non stress test. Have a great weekend!!!!

Fingers crossed I will be toasting my sister!

After an emotional and difficult weekend of bed rest (I think the 15 weeks of bed rest and the anxiety of today's appointment were getting the best of me), today's appointment made the bed rest all worth it!The appointment started off this morning with an ultrasound, followed by the the non stress test and then the actual Dr.'s appointment.  The ultrasound went well.  The blood flow and amniotic measurements all were in the normal range.  The baby measurements were good in that Baby A did grow!  Baby A now weighs 2 lbs. 14 oz. (she grew 300 grams in 12 days) and Baby B weighs 3 pounds 15 oz. (she grew 400 grams in 12 days).  However, the size difference is still 28% between the babies.  When the ultrasound tech gave us these measurements, I was scared with the size difference, but encouraged that Baby A grew.  We then went to the non stress test and passed that test, which was good.  We were then on to hear what the Dr. had in store for us after she read the results from the tests.

I saw a new Dr. today and absolutely loved her!  The first words out of her mouth were "it looks like you guys got good results today", I was so relieved to hear those words!! She said even though the size difference is there, each baby is continuing to grow on the curve.  She said every two weeks you want your baby to grow at least 200 grams and they both grew a little more than that.  So, with the growth, blood flow measuring normal, and closed cervix she is allowing me to continue with bed rest at home and attend the wedding (as long as I pass Thursday's non stress test)!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

I was so excited and thankful to hear that the girls are doing great!  In a nutshell, she is allowing me to attend the rehearsal dinner on Thursday for 2 hours, nails on Friday for an hour and the wedding on Saturday for 4 hours (my plan is to arrive at the church at 6:00 and leave the reception at 10:00, which will allow me to toast my sister). Melis, Tyler and Lydia pray each night for their sisters and said an extra prayer last night that I would be able to go to the wedding.  They were so excited when I told them I could go (it was adorable). As many of you know I am a worrier....I had her reassure me about 3 times that this will in no way harm the babies or the growth of the babies, because of course their health comes first.  She said we air on the side of caution and she would in no way let me go to any of this if she felt it would hurt anything.  She cautioned me that I will be very tired and need to use common sense and listen to my body since I have been on bed rest so long.

Last but not least, thank you for the prayers and words of encouragement through emails and text messages to get me to the appointment today!  As I stated before Marc and I are very blessed to have such wonderful friends and family!!  Please continue to keep these girls in your prayers.  We are aiming for delivery to be between mid July and the first week of August.

An important weekend of rest ahead!!

The girls passed the final non stress test for week 29, which is great!  The next couple of days will be important for rest and prayers that the ultrasound on Monday will go well. It will be the longest 4 days to wait for Monday. It is hard to believe Leah's wedding is a little over a week away.  She has been waiting a year and a half for this date. She is so excited as she has been finalizing the plans and setting the itinerary for her day. It is all so much fun to watch!!! She told me today the weather looks to be 88 and sunny, what a perfect day.  I hope you all have a nice weekend and get some pool time in as the temperatures are going up.  As always thank you for the support and the continued prayers!

29 weeks

"You have happy babies in there", the nurse said to me after my I passed my non stress test today.  This made me smile and I hope is a good sign that next week's ultrasound is going to be a good one. I have had full days and nights of bed rest since last Wednesday and have not left the house other than the appointments (wow, has this been difficult).  I am praying this is going to make all the difference for Baby A! The ultrasound today also indicated normal blood flow and amniotic fluid levels.  This is all good news, which indicates that girls are getting exactly what they need as far as oxygen and nutrients are concerned. The next test I need to pass is the stress test on Thursday.  I will keep you posted. Thank you all for the prayers, keep them coming that Baby A is growing and I can make it to the wedding!!!