You guys – we have two REALLY amazing things to celebrate today. We hit 30 WEEKS GESTATION AND I GOT DISCHARGED TODAY! We didn’t think there was any chance of this happening for at least two more weeks. But I’m on strict orders to be as mellow as I’ve been at the hospital – total bed rest, only getting up to go to the bathroom and shower. Let’s hope Blake doesn’t kill me before this is over, as he’ll be the one taking care of me for the next month (if we are lucky to make it that long!)

And I’m embarrassed to admit – I’m a little nervous to be home! As much as I have wanted to leave the hospital, it has turned into my little safe zone. The babies get monitored all the time, I don’t have to wonder if something is wrong because I have people watching out for me, and I’m right there in case something does get crazy. And the nurses – I will miss them so much!

Preterm Labor - hospital bedrest

ODE THE THE NURSES ;)…

They have become my friends – they take such good care of me and even keep me company. I think I mentioned before that I’ve never been in a hospital before, and therefor never really been under the care of nurses. Let me just say – they are truly amazing people. Talk about serious GOALS. Not only do they have so many responsibilities to take care of the patients medically, but they take the time to do the extra little things that made me so much more comfortable.  One of my favorite nurses did little things like bringing me a double-cup with lots of ice water, or clipping the remote control to my sheets because she saw how often I would drop it on the floor and not be able to reach it. And they are on their feet for 12-hour shifts, sometimes at night! I was seriously just in awe of them the whole time – just hoping I’d learn something from their compassion and skill in caring for others.

…AND TO THE FRIENDS

And the visitors – that has been the biggest blessing of it all. Not a day went by that I didn’t have someone come see me. I’ve had such amazing quality time with some of my best friends. Good conversations and lots of laughs, along with so many crazy-thoughtful gifts. And this is one of my favorite parts – now that the babies can hear, I read that the voices they hear while they’re in my belly will be the voices that comfort them when they come out. So I like to think that they have already started to know and become friends with these amazing people in my life!

My friend Jess came with treats for me, Blake, and Lo!
My friend Sarah came all the way from Encinitas with a gift she loved having for her baby – a portable white noise machine!
And this Sarah – she was in town for a hot minute between Italy and Portland and made the trek from LAX to Newport Beach to see me – with super healthy juices in hand.
My cousins in Oregon, Monica and Jesse, sent the most beautiful flowers and note. Made me feel SO special!!
Charlie and Brooks came to visit, but I forgot to get a good picture with them before they left so this one of Lo perched on Charlie will have to do! She LOVES both of them. And I LOVE that they came with the most AMAZING cookies and whole box of my favorite La Croix!
Corrine is seriously one of the truest friends I know! She took time from her crazy busy life and family to make and bring us an entire Sunday dinner, all the way up from San Clemente where she lives. And she is the BEST cook – we were dying to eat it before she even got there!
Our friend Jamie came to see me, and she brought some treats I was craving – my favorite COLD bottled water and some smuggled mini Reeses for me to pick at ;). I look up to her for so many reasons, one of which is that she is such a fast, easy friend to make. She’s also become Lo’s second Mom, and her family has taken such good care of Lo whenever we have needed help.
Katelin was in town from Utah and with all of her family stuff going on she took the time to come see us. The best part was that we got to meet her little Margot – the most perfect, chill little baby. It was so fun to catch up with Kate and get to know little Margot!!
My friend Hannah came back again to visit us on Labor Day. She chatted with us, brought me some great skin products, and even massaged my legs ;).
My old friend Antoinette broought two huge baskets stuffed FULL of SUCH thoughtful things from her and her sister, Laura. Things only a Mom would know to give! And so many of the essentials I had planned on getting before I ended up in the hospital. Made me cry!!

I don’t even have pictures of all of the times Carly visited me and brought me things – and she would stay for a whole day just helping me and so that I wouldn’t be alone! But what took the cake is yesterday when she did my hair while I was in the hospital bed – cut and color! Talk about a good friend!!

AND THEN THERE’S BLAKE…

Blake has been SO kind and helpful through it all! He stayed at the hospital with me 11 of the 14 nights I was there, sleeping on that hard pull-out couch! In the beginning of my stay, he was there to help me physically. I needed help just to unhook from all of the machines and walk to the bathroom. And after I started feeling better, he was there for me emotionally and so supportive. As frustrated as I was stuck in that room, I’m sure he was exhausted trying to go back and forth, manage work, make sure Lo was taken care of, etc. I’ll stop before I get too mushy, but I’m just so grateful that I have a guy like him to help me raise these two little girls! Hospital Bedrest - 30 weeks - twinUPDATE ON THE BABIES – 30 WEEKS

I guess I should probably also update you on the babies, considering that’s why we are here in the first place! Ha! WE HIT 30 WEEKS! We have been hoping and praying to get here – this is a HUGE milestone for the growth and development of the babies. They are doing really, really well. We had a fairly uneventful 29th week – every time the babies were on the monitor they looked really good (except for the fact that they still try to hide from us and the poor nurses are constantly chasing them around my belly!) and my contractions have stayed fairly mellow. However Friday morning we were a little worried there might be some fluid leaking, so the doctor decided to order a couple tests and ultrasounds to check on that. They were able to locate the membrane between the babies in the ultrasound and see that there was adequate fluid on each side of it – 5 cm. for each baby!

They also ended up doing a growth scan, so I got to see lots of the babies – their bones, hearts, brains, kidneys, bladders. It just amazes me every time! They are still growing, although they’ve fallen a bit on the scale. Last time we measured them they were in the 50th percentile, and now they’ve dropped to 17th percentile (Baby A) and 34th percentile (Baby B). My doctor assure me that this is normal for twins at this point. She also said it’s normal that Baby B is now a few more ounces than Baby A, probably because poor Baby A has been smashed on the bottom this whole time ;). I’m comforted by the fact that they are both nearing 3 pounds – that sounds like so much more than 2 for some reason!

Baby A is so far down (her head is just chilling on my cervix ;)) that we had a hard time seeing her face, but we did get a cute shot of her foot as she kicked Baby B in the head! And we got an adorable shot of Baby B’s little nose – with her little arm across her mouth. I hung the print-outs up in my room and just stared at them – I’m weirdly obsessed with that foot and nose!

30 week ultrasound, twins

So we are headed home, and I am surprised how mixed my feelings are! One of my favorite nurses, Wendy, assured me that wasn’t so weird. She laughed and said, “You cry when you get here, and then you cry when you leave, and that’s totally normal!”

And now we work towards our next goal – 32 weeks! I just have to keep myself in bed, try not to land back in the hospital, and try not to drive Blake crazy. We can do this, right? 😉

xx

Jen