Night at the Hospital

This week on Monday we meet with our OB here in Tally. He was very supportive and had no problem with continuing to see us here so we had a doctor here just in case I go into pre term labor. Pre term labor is very common in twin pregnancies. I am very lucky that we are almost to 32 weeks. He also discussed delivery options with us in more detail. We feel very comfortable with our decision to have a C section. It is the safest delivery for the twins. However both a vaginal delivery and a C section have their pros and cons. Most of the time in a vaginal delivery you can only get one baby out safely, usually the other baby turns transverse  (which means horizontal) and they have to go in and do an emergency c section to get him out. This could potentially cause major problems with the heart functioning properly with this baby. Also you could deliver the umbilical cord first which is not safe either. With a C section it is a major surgery. There is risk of blood loss and infection for me in addition to a few other problems, but for the babies it is the safest. The babies will be out in a matter of minutes and into the hands of neonatologists if they have any respiratory problems. Tuesday we went back to Shands for an ultrasound appointment. Tuesday morning I was having contractions when we woke up at 5am but I just figured they were braxton hicks. When they still had not stopped by 10 and were getting stronger we discussed it with the nurse. They were very worried about how swollen my feet were ( which didn’t make sense they were swollen because I had not been walking on them at all) so they got the Doctor. When he found out about the contractions he called Triage and had them ready and waiting for me. I made the biggest mistake by not eating at all that morning and man did I regret it!!!! Greg asked the doctor if I could eat and he said no just in case they could not stop the contractions and they needed to do an emergency c section.  We got to triage around 11, they hooked the babies up to the monitors and monitored my contractions ,bp, and pulse. I was only 1 cm dilated and 70% effaced and my cervix was getting soft. When I was in triage a few weeks ago here in Tally I was not dilated at all and my cervix was still hard. They monitored me all day and kept checking my cervix every few hours. They were going to  see if labor progressed anymore on its own before they gave me any meds. Our doctor at Shands is comfortable delivering twins after 32 weeks. Around 6pm I was still having contractions but I had not dilated anymore. The nurse explained to me that labor was like a marathon and since this is my first pregnancy I could be dilated 1 cm for weeks. They gave me some medicine and decided we should stay in the hospital just in case it didn’t work and labor progressed. Also I finally got to eat! My amazing husband got me olive garden take out! All I wanted was pasta! He made me feel like a princess in the hospital and didn’t leave my side.  Wednesday morning they checked me again and I was still 1 cm. They monitored me and babies for a little while longer and then finally we were discharged and they sent me home with some meds to stop the contractions again if they started back up. We are so happy they were able to stop labor because we want our angels to stay in the womb a little while longer so they will be healthy and strong when they are born. However, after everything that has happened with the twins we feel very blessed they have been able to stay in the womb this long because there was a point when they thought they would have to be delivered at 28 weeks. Getting to 32 weeks is a major accomplishment! The boys are getting much bigger now! On Tuesday the fluid levels had gone back up so now we have been put back on a weekly ultrasound schedule till the end. We have a follow up appointment at Shands on Monday so we will see what the Doctor has planned. Hopefully it will be a few more weeks before we welcome our boys! It has been a stressful few days so I slept a lot today. Other than that I have only felt a few contractions. My new obsession and pregnancy craving is pumpkin pie!! I have gained 4 more pounds :( My whole body aches during the night and I can pretty much barley walk ( well waddle I call it). At least at the most we have 6 weeks left. I am still reading up on what to expect the first year with the babies. Next Tuesday we have an appointment with Tallahassee Pediatrics here in town to pick a pediatrician. So hopefully I will have lots of updates for everyone next week!!!