Well folks, I'm back in the hospital. This time for the long haul. But this time, I have internet(thanks to a friend who got me a hotspot)!!! So back to blogging I go.
I went to my regular appointment last week Wednesday(at 26 weeks), and the whole day seemed to be a case of deja vu. First we did a growth scan, and the babies all looked really great. Baby A measured 2lb 4 oz(67th %tile) Baby B was 2lb (52nd %tile) and Baby C was 2lb 1oz(57th %tile). Actually, I didn't write the exact numbers down, but it was something in that ballpark. For that gestational age, those are really really good numbers, so I was a happy mama. Then it came time for a cervix check, and this is when I relived that day a week and a half before. Cervix was shorter, contractions were coming regularly(still didn't feel most of them), so they decided to admit me right then and there. Went to labor and delivery and got hooked up, and everything was the same except for the didn't put me on the magnesium this time. I practically begged them not to, and I think they knew that it wasn't active labor since I had already experienced it before.
Luckily this time I had prepared ahead of time and put aside all the clothes that still fit me as well as any toiletries or other things I'd want in the hospital. This way Spencer could just pack it up and bring it over. I'm now settled in to my long term room, and I've already been here a week. It went by quicker than I anticipated, but I have a feeling that the longer I'm here, the slower the days will drag by.
I'm getting to the point where I'm getting pretty nervous about a lot of things. I'm nervous the babies will come a lot sooner than I hoped. I'm nervous there will be long term complications if they do come early. I'm nervous that even if I do carry to at least 32 weeks, I'm going to have 3 babies, and I don't know what to do with 3 babies! I'm sure that having so much alone time is probably the root of the problem for all this uneasiness, but it's getting close to baby time whether it's next week or next month, and that is scary. I get Braxton Hicks all.the.time. I'm getting pretty sick and tired of them. It makes my stomach morph into all sorts of shapes and sizes, with the babies practically sticking out of it. It looks crazy, and feels uncomfortable. I have learned that when I get them, it usually means I need to use the bathroom, or have changed positions too quickly, or the babies are just moving too much.
Spencer and Eleanor can come visit any time they want. They can even spend the night if they want. We're trying to wait on that one though, so she can get used to saying goodbye and not think she can spend the night every time she comes. Yesterday when she came, she walked through the door, stopped, had the most excited look on her face, then sprinted to my bed. I wish I could have recorded because it was the sweetest thing ever. She loves to just sit in my bed with me, watch tv, and eat my snacks. She's getting better about saying goodbye. Most of the time if we bribe her with an Oreo, she'll gladly say goodbye and walk out the door. She's had a few nights where she has woken up in the middle of the night crying for me, and somewhat inconsolable. I told Spencer to not tell me about that anymore because it completely breaks my heart.
I haven't really gotten bored yet. I think a lot of people are worried about me getting bored, but I have enjoyed catching up on movies, magazines, and books. And the staff is always in and out all day, so really I don't even get time for a nap even if I wanted. I have to do a NST(non stress test) every day, which sometimes can take up to 2 hours(like today). They have to get all 3 babies on the monitors, and keep them on for 20 minutes. If one of the babies comes off, they have to start over. I think there has only been 1 time so far that all 3 babies stayed on the monitor for the set amount of time. Every other time, there is always one stubborn baby who is doing flips and refusing to stay on, which makes it a very long process.
Here is what the average day for me looks like:
5:45am - doctor comes in to check on me. checks my lungs, heart, and feet for swelling. asks if i've had any leakage of fluid, bleeding, or painful or regular contractions.
6:15am - another doctor comes in and pretty much does the exact same thing as the first doctor. I've asked them why they do it twice, but have never gotten a good explanation.
6:30am - nurse or medic comes in to take my vitals
7:30am - breakfast is served
8:00am - nurse comes in to give me first dose of meds. I watch Live with Kelly and Michael.
9:00 - 11:00am - things usually slow down by this point. I shower and get dressed, read a book, get my vitals taken again at some point, and if I didn't sleep well the night before, try to get a quick nap in. This is also a good time to text/call family or friends and catch up. There is also a show on MTV called Ridiculousness that is so addicting, I can't stop watching it. It's an entire 30 minutes of youtube videos. Mostly the ones where people are doing stupid things and getting hurt, but there are also funny baby ones, etc. I get a good laugh every time I watch it.
12:00pm - lunch is served, nurse gives another dose of meds. Spencer works close by, so he'll often come here to meet me for lunch. Sometimes Gary and Eleanor meet us for lunch as well.
1:00 - 2:00pm - NST time. We have found the babies to be somewhat calm during this time. I also use this time to catch up on facebook/instagram/blogs.
3:00pm - watch Ellen
4:00 - 5:00 pm- either watch a movie(Spencer's been bringing me RedBox movies), read a book/magazine. Probably get vitals taken again.
5:30pm - dinner is served
7:00pm - There is usually a tv show I look forward to at this time.
8:00pm - nurse gives another dose of meds. They'll also bring in the doppler to check all the babies' heart rates.
10:00pm - one last dose of meds. And then it's 'healing hours' for me. Which means I tell the nurses and techs that I don't want anyone coming in until 6:00am. That doesn't always work out for me. Sometimes housekeeping comes in to empty my trash, sometimes there is a medic who is filling in from a different floor who doesn't get the memo, and turns on all my lights at 4am to get my vitals. I try to be polite, but most of the time I pull off my sleep mask and say "why are you in here!?!?!".
10:30pm-5:45am - try to get comfortable, fall asleep, wake up, realize I'm thirsty, get some water, go to the bathroom, probably have a few contractions, try to relax, change positions about a million times to get comfortable again, fall asleep, etc. etc. etc. repeat repeat repeat.
So as you can see, it really isn't THAT bad. I found out I do have hospital privileges, which means I can take the wheelchair outside for some fresh air. You better believe I'll be taking advantage of that! In the mean time, I appreciate every text message, Facebook message, phone call, etc. They keep my spirits up and make every day better. So thank you! For now I'm taking it one day at a time. I have one more week to make it to my next goal of 28 weeks. Keep the prayers coming...we can do this!
I went to my regular appointment last week Wednesday(at 26 weeks), and the whole day seemed to be a case of deja vu. First we did a growth scan, and the babies all looked really great. Baby A measured 2lb 4 oz(67th %tile) Baby B was 2lb (52nd %tile) and Baby C was 2lb 1oz(57th %tile). Actually, I didn't write the exact numbers down, but it was something in that ballpark. For that gestational age, those are really really good numbers, so I was a happy mama. Then it came time for a cervix check, and this is when I relived that day a week and a half before. Cervix was shorter, contractions were coming regularly(still didn't feel most of them), so they decided to admit me right then and there. Went to labor and delivery and got hooked up, and everything was the same except for the didn't put me on the magnesium this time. I practically begged them not to, and I think they knew that it wasn't active labor since I had already experienced it before.
Luckily this time I had prepared ahead of time and put aside all the clothes that still fit me as well as any toiletries or other things I'd want in the hospital. This way Spencer could just pack it up and bring it over. I'm now settled in to my long term room, and I've already been here a week. It went by quicker than I anticipated, but I have a feeling that the longer I'm here, the slower the days will drag by.
I'm getting to the point where I'm getting pretty nervous about a lot of things. I'm nervous the babies will come a lot sooner than I hoped. I'm nervous there will be long term complications if they do come early. I'm nervous that even if I do carry to at least 32 weeks, I'm going to have 3 babies, and I don't know what to do with 3 babies! I'm sure that having so much alone time is probably the root of the problem for all this uneasiness, but it's getting close to baby time whether it's next week or next month, and that is scary. I get Braxton Hicks all.the.time. I'm getting pretty sick and tired of them. It makes my stomach morph into all sorts of shapes and sizes, with the babies practically sticking out of it. It looks crazy, and feels uncomfortable. I have learned that when I get them, it usually means I need to use the bathroom, or have changed positions too quickly, or the babies are just moving too much.
Spencer and Eleanor can come visit any time they want. They can even spend the night if they want. We're trying to wait on that one though, so she can get used to saying goodbye and not think she can spend the night every time she comes. Yesterday when she came, she walked through the door, stopped, had the most excited look on her face, then sprinted to my bed. I wish I could have recorded because it was the sweetest thing ever. She loves to just sit in my bed with me, watch tv, and eat my snacks. She's getting better about saying goodbye. Most of the time if we bribe her with an Oreo, she'll gladly say goodbye and walk out the door. She's had a few nights where she has woken up in the middle of the night crying for me, and somewhat inconsolable. I told Spencer to not tell me about that anymore because it completely breaks my heart.
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| Signing Time |
Here is what the average day for me looks like:
5:45am - doctor comes in to check on me. checks my lungs, heart, and feet for swelling. asks if i've had any leakage of fluid, bleeding, or painful or regular contractions.
6:15am - another doctor comes in and pretty much does the exact same thing as the first doctor. I've asked them why they do it twice, but have never gotten a good explanation.
6:30am - nurse or medic comes in to take my vitals
7:30am - breakfast is served
8:00am - nurse comes in to give me first dose of meds. I watch Live with Kelly and Michael.
9:00 - 11:00am - things usually slow down by this point. I shower and get dressed, read a book, get my vitals taken again at some point, and if I didn't sleep well the night before, try to get a quick nap in. This is also a good time to text/call family or friends and catch up. There is also a show on MTV called Ridiculousness that is so addicting, I can't stop watching it. It's an entire 30 minutes of youtube videos. Mostly the ones where people are doing stupid things and getting hurt, but there are also funny baby ones, etc. I get a good laugh every time I watch it.
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| 26 weeks |
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| NST |
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| Fat Tuesday (26 weeks 6 days) |
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| The Not-So-Terrible food |
12:00pm - lunch is served, nurse gives another dose of meds. Spencer works close by, so he'll often come here to meet me for lunch. Sometimes Gary and Eleanor meet us for lunch as well.
1:00 - 2:00pm - NST time. We have found the babies to be somewhat calm during this time. I also use this time to catch up on facebook/instagram/blogs.
3:00pm - watch Ellen
4:00 - 5:00 pm- either watch a movie(Spencer's been bringing me RedBox movies), read a book/magazine. Probably get vitals taken again.
5:30pm - dinner is served
7:00pm - There is usually a tv show I look forward to at this time.
8:00pm - nurse gives another dose of meds. They'll also bring in the doppler to check all the babies' heart rates.
10:00pm - one last dose of meds. And then it's 'healing hours' for me. Which means I tell the nurses and techs that I don't want anyone coming in until 6:00am. That doesn't always work out for me. Sometimes housekeeping comes in to empty my trash, sometimes there is a medic who is filling in from a different floor who doesn't get the memo, and turns on all my lights at 4am to get my vitals. I try to be polite, but most of the time I pull off my sleep mask and say "why are you in here!?!?!".
10:30pm-5:45am - try to get comfortable, fall asleep, wake up, realize I'm thirsty, get some water, go to the bathroom, probably have a few contractions, try to relax, change positions about a million times to get comfortable again, fall asleep, etc. etc. etc. repeat repeat repeat.
So as you can see, it really isn't THAT bad. I found out I do have hospital privileges, which means I can take the wheelchair outside for some fresh air. You better believe I'll be taking advantage of that! In the mean time, I appreciate every text message, Facebook message, phone call, etc. They keep my spirits up and make every day better. So thank you! For now I'm taking it one day at a time. I have one more week to make it to my next goal of 28 weeks. Keep the prayers coming...we can do this!
7 comments:
You are such an amazing inspiration. I've enjoyed catching up on your blogs, and reading your new ones. Keep up the good cooking job!
Hang in there. Baby time will be here soon. Love you- Dad
I've been following your blog since I heard the news! First, congrats! I was in long term for a couple days before our baby #4 was born at 34 weeks, so I can imagine that being there for long term for real is difficult. We are praying for you all!
Love your blog. Glad you have WiFi now. Stay positive and all will work out as God has planned. Praying for you and family daily.
What a TROOPER!!!!! We are due days apart..... But I have one in my tummy. I have Braxton hicks all.the.time too. But I can't imagine times three with busy babies!!
You are amazing! xoxo Wish I was there to help take care of those babies.
I lOVE your updates! This is so exciting for me. I'm sorry, here you are in a hospital and worrying and I'm so excited to read about your updates. But it's only cause deep down I know you are going to carry these three babies a long time and everyone is going to be so healthy!
You mentioned that you don't feel bored, I wonder if part of that is because you already have a child. I think bedrest would be really boring if you didn't have any kids and were used to a quiet life, but once you have kids it's like you NEVER get bored, again, so maybe the quiet alone time is kinda welcomed? That's my theory at least. Maybe it will eventually get boring, but I imagine you know to enjoy these quiet moments cause you'll soon be a mama of FOUR! :D
I'm praying for you all!!! XOXO
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