Not So Quiet

The past few days have certainly been far from quiet, that's for sure!!! On Wednesday after I got home from my stretch class at the hospital, I got a phonecall to come into the labour ward for monitoring of the babies. I had had more bloods taken on Tuesday morning to monitor my levels for the cholestasis I had developed. Apparently, despite the meds I was on, my levels continued to rise. I came into the hospital, thinking I would just be hooked up to a CTG machine for maybe an hour or so to make sure the babies were ok. Although both the babies were fine, I apparently wasn't - although I felt ok! In addition to the cholestasis, I also had pre-eclampsia and really low platelets. The decision was made that it would be better for both the babies and myself if they were delivered right away. Because of the low platelets, the anaesthetics team weren't prepared to give me a spinal block or epidural...I had to have a c-section by general anaesthetic.

Kason Eligh & Cohen Asher were born on May 26, 2010 at 19:52 and 19:53, weighing 2065g and 2140g. They are both in the neonatal unit, and we expect them to be staying there until the end of June. I didn't get to meet them until the day after they were born as I was admitted to the intensive care unit.
On Day 2, they both had their drips taken out and were moved into open-top bassinets (from their incubators) as they were doing so well! They didn't manage to hold their temperatures too well, though, in the open bassinets, so they were both put back into their incubators - Kason first. They did, however, by Day 3, manage to graduate off their monitors!
As of today (Day 4), Kason is still struggling a little with his temperature, so is kept in his incubator on a heating pad, just wearing his nappy. He is tolerating his feeds really well, and is on about 25ml every 3 hours. Cohen is doing much better regulating his temperature, so, even though he is still in his incubator, he is allowed out for cuddles and doesn't have a heating pad. His stomach is a little sluggish though, and he doesn't always absorb all of his feeds, so he is on about 18ml every 2 hours.


So, in general, they are both doing really well!!! I, too, am getting better, but the first couple of days weren't without problems...my incision wound wouldn't stop bleeding, so I was taken back into surgery in the early hours of Saturday morning to find the cause and repair it. It's now MUCH better and I'm starting to recover, which also means I'm able to get down to see the boys more easily!

As Promised

As promised... Front of Quilt 2:

Back of Quilt 2:

xxx

Quiet

It's been a while since I last posted...mostly because I haven't been doing anything particularly interesting or blog-worthy!

I'm now 34 weeks pregnant, feeling very hippo-like! Had a scan this morning, they are weighing about 2.1kg (4.6lb) and 2kg (4.4lb) respectively. I think those are pretty good weights, but we'll see what the OB says when we go and see him on Monday. Also hoping to get an "at the latest" date for delivery from him. We had to see a different OB a few weeks ago because of a public holiday...she said 38 weeks at the latest, and we've heard that from several sources. Just want to hear it from our OB! Will also hopefully get more of a 'plan' sorted.

In the last couple of weeks, I've managed to sew a quilt for each of the boys...I only finished the second one last night, so have no photos of that one yet!

Front of Quilt 1...

Back of Quilt 1...

(Yes, that, in the background, is a painting waiting to be hung! These pictures make it look deceptively small...it's really quite big and is too big for the wall we wanted it on, so we still have to figure out where to hang it!)

I'll post pictures of the other quilt soon!

xxx

FINALLY!!!

These:

are part of our missing package (yup, still missing!). They are what attaches the slats of our bed to the frame, and without these, the rest of the bed frame is pretty much useless! Luckily, I managed to find some replacements on TradeMe a couple of weeks ago. I got them sent to my parents place in NZ, and my wonderful Mum forwarded them onto us. They are slightly different, but they do the job. That means that we FINALLY are sleeping on our bed!!!!!!! We've had it up for a couple of days now, and it's still a novelty to walk past, or into, our room and see the bed! Oh, and let me tell you, it's SO much easier to get in and out of a bed at normal height when 31 weeks pregnant than it is getting on and off of a mattress on the floor!

xxx

Small

*Sigh* So it appears that the measurements taken of the boys two weeks ago were off, and they are not, in fact, both measuring in the 50th percentiles for size. They are instead measuring in the 8th and 5th percentiles respectively. Our obstetrician is not worried that they are small, it's not unusual for twins. Nonetheless, I don't like the fact that they are so little...I guess as long as they are both growing it's ok, but still! All their measurements are looking great, and they are growing, so that is a little reassuring. But the 5th and 8th percentiles - that's TINY.

xxx

26 Weeks

We have fortnightly ultrasounds on the boys as they are at risk of suffering from TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome) which is a really bad thing. However, at this stage, they are showing no signs - fantastic!
Two weeks ago, Twin A was measuring in the 9th percentile for size and Twin B was measuring in the 5th percentile. Neither the person doing the scan nor our obstetrician made a big deal of it - they didn't even tell us the percentiles - but both mentioned that the twins were small, and double-checked that they were, in fact, growing (which they were). The results from the latest scan we had were rather different - both twins are now measuring in the 50th percentile!!! I haven't been eating differently, or doing any more, or less, exercise, but the boys have certainly had a HUGE growth spurt in the last two weeks!!! It was so nice to walk out of the obstetrician's office relieved for once, and not worrying about the babies being small!

In other good news, our belongings have finally arrived! It has been so nice to have the boxes to unpack, and I've already baked two cakes and batch of cookies now that I have my baking things! There is, however, one package which has mysteriously vanished. It had in it our big wedding photo canvas - which we were yet to unwrap, and the plastic ends for the bed slats...meaning we can't put our bed together! At least we can sleep on our mattress now though, and the air bed has been consigned to the cupboard, where it belongs!

Been thinking a lot about Christa's husband and their two boys...it just breaks my heart that Andy is now without his high school sweetheart, and that A & T will have so few memories of their amazing mother...

xxx

Just Can't Wrap My Head Around It

Last Thursday I found out that a dear friend of mine, Christa, was killed in a car accident. Christa was only 35 and she and her husband had four children, twin girls who died at birth, and 6-year-old twin boys. She was an amazing woman with a wicked sense of humour and I will MISS her dearly. My thoughts and my heart go out to Andy, Austin, Tyler and their family.