I'm Back

It's been awhile since I have posted! For anyone that still checks the blog, here is a quick update. Kai and Kamdyn are now 9 1/2 months old and are extremely busy boys! They are crawling all over the place, climbing up on anything they can and are into everything they aren't supposed to be!  They are definitely not preemie anymore. Every where we go we get the comment "Wow, they are chunky boys!" They are a little picky on their food but when they are given something they like, they chow down. Some favorites right now are sweet potatoes, scrambled eggs and apple sauce. Here are a few current pictures.

Kai

Kamdyn 

4 months old already!

Wow, time is sure flying by with these boys! They are growing like crazy and are starting to show their personalities. Both boys know what they want when they want it and will sure let us know! Almost all the time they want food (little pigs)!  They are eating 5 oz bottles every 2 1/2 hours during the day and have been sleeping through the night! We switched them to their own room right before they turned 4 months. On May 27 they were 4 months and they had their 4 month checkup on May 28. Both boys are extremely healthy! Kai weighed 13 lbs 8.5 oz and was 25 inches long. Kamdyn weighed 13 lbs 9 oz and was also 25 inches long. They are both in the 12th percentile for weight and 40th for length. We will go back to the doctor next for their 6 month checkup. 

Both boys are smiling like crazy and we can get them both to giggle on occasion. Kamdyn is usually the happier one while Kai is a little more serious.  They have both found their voices and like to give us a high pitch scream just for fun. They love to play with their hands and will usually find each others hands when we lay them on the floor together. They also love their toys and will reach for them and grab at them! 

Here are a few pictures from the last couple months. I will try to be better at posting from now on! 

2 months old and pictures

The boys are getting so big already. They had their 2 month checkup last week and Kai weighs 9 pounds 11 ounces and Kamdyn weighs 9 pounds 10 ounces.  They are both very healthy and are growing strong. Here are a few pictures from the last month. 

They got to spend the day with grandma Pam on her 50th birthday!

2 months old on March 27th!

Brotherly love!

1st at the beach!

Kamdyn

Kai

Hanging out with mom in the kitchen!

One Month Old!

The boys are one month old today! Time has sure flown by. Tomorrow also marks 3 weeks home from the hospital. We are loving having them home and have got ourselves into a nice little routine with them. As of last Tuesday, Kai is up to 6 pounds 5 ounces and Kamdyn is at 6 pounds 8 ounces. I feel that even since then they have grown so much so they are probably both in the sevens now. They are still eating every three hours during the day and we are trying to get them to go 4 hours at night. For the most part they are happy babies, but definitely have their fussy times where they just want to be held. 

Life is sure different having two babies at home, but we wouldn't have it any other way. We are so thankful that they are healthy and growing strong. We have waited a long time for this and thank god every day for these two little miracles. 

On February 15, we celebrated Traysen's 2nd birthday. We miss him everyday still and constantly think about what life would be like if he was here. I am sure he would have been a great big brother and would have loved Kai and Kamdyn so much. We know he his looking down on us everyday though looking out for all of us.  Happy 2nd birthday buddy we miss you so much! 

Here are some pictures from the past month of the twins!

We are home!

We got discharged today! I will post more later, but we are so happy to be home! 

One Week Old

What a week it has been! Kai and Kamdyn are doing great. They both ended up needing feeding tubes because they are just too sleepy to finish a full bottle. Kai takes about 50% percent of his feeds by bottle and then is tube fed the rest. Kam is taking about 40% by bottle. Yesterday and today they have started to take a few more full bottles and then stay awake for awhile after so hopefully they are gaining some strength and energy.  Kamdyn developed jaundice so he needed to be under lights for a day. They have been testing each of their blood daily since then for jaundice and so far they have been good so we may not have to worry about that anymore.  Some days they gain weight and some days they lose weight. We have been told that usually about the 7-10 day mark is when they start pack on the pounds. Yesterday they gained about 2 ounces each so hopefully we are in the upward trend. Kai is about an ounce away from birth weight and Kamdyn is just a couple ounces away.  They are considered feeders and growers right now and as soon as they can take all of their feeds by bottle, they can come home. 

Dillon and I both came down with colds and are getting pretty worn out with trying to take care of ourselves, but also trying to be with the boys as much as possible. We know they are in good hands in the nursery, but it is hard for us to be away.  We are both so happy and relieved the boys are here and are doing so well and we just hope and pray they can come home soon. 

Here are a few pictures of our handsome little boys! 

                   Kamdyn & Kai

Kamdyn

Kai

                  Kamdyn & Kai 

Family Update!

Kai Update-

Kai is doing awesome! He has not needed any oxygen support and so far has been taking bottles like a champ. As of today he is only down 2 ounces. Both Dillon and I have been able to feed him and hold him as much as we want. He isn't quite up to the goal amount of feeding but is getting pretty close. They are making up the difference with IV fluids   right now but once the IV comes out he will have to take the full amount or he will need a feeding tube. We are waiting on a couple blood results to know when the IV will come out and will go from there on the feeding.  His temperature in the issolet has started to come down. He is currently at 32.8 degrees Celsius and room temperature is 29 degrees. Both times we were in the nursery today they lowered the temperature so hopefully he will be moved to a crib shortly.  For his traumatic entrance into the world he is doing great!

Kamdyn Update-

Kamdyn is also doing awesome! He has not needed any oxygen support and is also taking to bottles pretty well. He is not quite drinking as much as Kai but is doing really well for his age. We are waiting on his blood work to come back to find out when he will go off the IV. Once the IV comes off, he is also going to have to reach his feeding goal to avoid the feeding tube. Feeding tubes will probably go in tomorrow if needed. Kamdyn took a little extra blood after his brother came out so his blood count is a little high. His skin is really red and is at a higher risk fur jaundice. His blood work today should tell us whether or not he needs to be under the light.  Kamdyn is down 4 ounces from birth right now. Dillon has changed a couple of his diapers and keeps commenting on how strong he his. The nurses have also commented on his strength as well!  His issolet is now at 32 degrees Celsius and also needs to be down to 29 degrees before he can graduate to a crib. He has chubby cheeks and is as cute as can be. 

Mommy and Daddy Update-

We are both extremely happy that we have two little healthy handsome boys. We are so in love with them already and cannot wait for them to be able to go home. I lost a lot of blood during delivery so it has been a hard recovery but I definitely made a turn for the better today.  We have tried to feed them as much as possible, but know we need to get some rest also. We have been trying to nap between feeds and pumping but with two that doesn't leave much time. I am being discharged today so we will be heading home at some point, but we will be making lots of trips to Bellingham to see them. Dillon is going to go back to work tomorrow so he can have some time off when the boys get to come home.  

We want to thank everyone for all of their thoughts, prayers, meals, treats and help at our house with the dogs. This has been a very long journey and we really appreciate everything that everyone has done for us. We would not be where we are today without you.  We continue to ask for your prayers for Kai and Kamdyn. We are hoping that they keep improving and can come home soon. We are all very anxious to get back into a "new normal" routine!

The Boys Birth Story

January 27, 2014

I woke up at 3:00 am to what felt like I was kicked in the stomach. Got up to go to the bathroom and sure enough, my water had broke. I yelled for Dillon and told him it was time! We packed up all of our stuff and headed to the hospital. At home I wasn't having contractions, but on our way they were coming about 5 to 6 minutes apart. We got checked in at about 3:40 am, got hooked up to the monitors and the doctor came and checked for dilation at about 4:30. At that point I was dilated to 6 cm and was having contractions every 1 1/2 minutes. The anesthesiologist came in shortly after to issue the epidural and then I was checked for dilation at about 6:00am. I was now dilated to a 9+. They kept telling me I was going to have the boys within the hour. I labored in the room for awhile because they just wanted to wait until I felt pressure before they moved me to the operating room. (All twins are born in the operating room just in case they need to do an emergency c-section.) We finally got moved to the operating room at 9:05am. They got me all situated and I started pushing at 9:20. Kai Traysen decided to make his entrance into the world at 10:40 am. He came out with the cord wrapped around his neck and gave us quite the scare. He wasn't breathing on his own right away and it took the doctors and nurses about 10 minutes to finally get him to breath. Scariest 10 minutes of our lives. I was trying to focus on getting Kamdyn out, but was having a hard time focusing while they were working on Kai. As soon as they got Kai breathing, I was able to focus more and Kamdyn Tobias entered the world screaming at 10:56am.  As soon as they were both born, they brought Kai to me so I could hold him and shortly after they brought me Kamdyn! What a relief to have both boys on my chest breathing in room air! They layed with me so peacefully for about 30 minutes and then the nurses brought them to the special care nursery. Dillon stayed with me until I got wheeled to my post partum room and then went to the nursery to be with the boys. 

Dillon came back to my room a little later and said that both boys were doing great. Neither of them needed any oxygen support! They weighed them and Kai was 5 lbs 4 oz and 19 inches long. Kamdyn was 5 lbs 10 oz and 19 1/4 inches. They were both put in issolets to keep warm and to be monitored.

We are so thankful that they are here and healthy. Hopefully they act like little studs and can come home soon, but we have been told to plan for a 1-3 week stay. Of course we would prefer the one week stay, but we know they are in good hands here and want them to be as healthy as can be before going home. 

My mom and sisters threw me a baby shower on Sunday. I really wanted to wait until after the shower to go into labor and the boys cooperated!  Thank you to everyone who was there and for spoiling all 4 of us!  We are now ready to take Kai and Kamdyn home!

More pictures of the boys to come! 

The BOYS are here!

Kai Traysen

5lbs 4 oz - born at 10:40 am - January 27th 

Kamdyn Tobias

5lbs 10 oz - born at 10:57 am  - January 27th

We are all doing well!  I will try and post more tomorrow. 

34 weeks and I'm HOME!

This post is a little late, but on Saturday I hit 34 weeks and was sent home!  I got discharged at about 11:30am, we sat in the pharmacy for about an hour and then headed home! I was nervous about the drive home, sitting up for 2 hours over bumps, but it went really well. We stopped for Jamba Juice in Smokey Point and made it home by 3:00. I don't think the dogs recognized me at first but once they did, they were excited to see me! Georgia barely leaves my side now! 

Being home has been great! I thought I would be nervous being home, but I think I am so happy being here that it erases all of my nerves. I had a doctors appointment on Monday for monitoring the babies and also to speak with my Bellingham doctor. She has been recommended by the Seattle doctors to let me go to 37 weeks. We were a little disappointed that she didn't say 36 weeks but we know that extra week (if I make it that far) will be best for the babies. The plan from here on out is to go for monitoring and meet with the doctor on Mondays, and monitoring and fluid checks on Thursdays.  We will also have another growth ultrasound this coming Monday. 

Dillon and I are torn on whether we want to try a natural birth or do a c-section. We go back and forth, but we know that the babies could come any day so we really need to decide. We ask for prayers that we that we are able to make a decision and be completely at peace with it. 

Going Home!

Well, as of now I am free to go home tomorrow!  I was a little nervous going into this week thinking that things would start to happen and I wouldn't be able to go home, but so far so good. The bloodwork I had this week was to test my liver function because I have been extremely itchy, but my bile acids came back in the normal range so they figure that it is just the pregnancy making me itch.  They checked the fluid levels around the babies again today and those looked good and they also checked me for dilation.  I am currently dilated between 3 and 4 centimeters so a little bit of a change from the last time, but nothing big enough to keep me here! As long as I don't go into labor tonight and the babies look good on the monitoring tomorrow morning, we should be headed home before noon!

I am extremely excited to go home, but a little nervous also.  We will be going to appointments in Bellingham twice a week to monitor the babies and meet with doctors, but other than that I will be down on the couch for hopefully another couple weeks.  I have an appointment scheduled for Monday to talk with my Doctor so we will see what she has to say about delivery.  As of now, the longest I will be able to go would be 37 weeks which is February 8th.  Some doctors don't allow twins that share a placenta to go past 36 weeks so that may change, but right now our goal is February 8th.

A few things I am excited for when I get home are:
1) See my dogs!  It has been almost 10 weeks since I have seen them so hopefully they remember me.
2) Not eat anymore hospital food
3) Sleep in my own bed
4) Watch the Seahawks game on a bigger TV
5) Eat a big Bob's Burger!  This will be happening tomorrow night!

We would really appreciated prayers that tonight and tomorrow morning go smoothly and the plan stays for going home tomorrow. 

Queen of the floor!

Today marks 9 weeks since I have been in the hospital. I am currently the longest staying patient on this floor now, but if all goes well I will be going home in 5 days!  The care here is great, but right now I just want to be home. 

We also had our final growth ultrasound today.  Last growth ultrasound was done three weeks ago and baby A weighed 3 pounds 9 ounces and B weighed 4 pounds 2 ounces. Today baby A weighs 4 pounds 15 ounces and baby B weighs 5 pounds 6 ounces! They are both a little above average on their weights for this gestational age so we are happy about that.  We have not gone over the official results with the doctors yet, but are hoping for good news from them tomorrow. 

I have a blood test in right now and we should get results back on Wednesday. I would really appreciate prayers that it comes back negative and I can still go home on Saturday. 

Here is a bare belly shot from last week! 

33 Weeks!

We made it to 33 weeks! Like I said before, I never thought we would make it this far, but here we are! The doctors here have been in contact with my Bellingham doctors and they are all set with me going home a week from today. Prayers that everything stays stable this week are greatly appreciated! When I go home, I will be going to appointments twice weekly until the babies decide to make there appearance.  

Monday will also be an exciting day. We have our last growth ultrasound and are very anxious to see how much they both weigh now! 

32 Weeks!

WE DID IT!  We made our big goal of 32 weeks.  If the babies were born at this point, they should do pretty well, but would have to spend some time in the NICU.  We would like to avoid the NICU so we are praying for a few more weeks pregnant.  The doctors this week were still talking about sending me home at 34 weeks as long as everything stays stable so we are very encouraged by that.  They would like me to get out of bed and start walking around a little bit more these next two weeks.  They know that when I go home, I won't be down as much as I am here so they want to be sure that me walking a little bit more does not make me dilate.

Everything stayed the same this week minus the fact I got my first stretch mark :(.  My contractions are still normal and the doctor did say that at this gestational age, most women will now start to be getting contractions.  I just need to keep an eye on them and make sure they do not become consistent or more intense.  I had a fluid check this week as well and both fluid levels are really good.  They will continue to do fluid checks weekly and our next big ultrasound is Monday the 13th.

Both babies are doing great too!  I think they are running out of room because they aren't moving quite as much as they have been.  It is nice being in the hospital because if I don't feel them moving as much, I can be hooked up to the monitor to make sure every thing is fine.  Being able to do this really calms my nerves and will be quite the change when I go home.

Here is my belly today at 32 Weeks!  I feel like I am getting bigger day by day!

Although we are very anxious and ready to meet these babies, we know that they need to stay cooking a few more weeks.  We ask for prayers that they stay in me and that I am able to go home in two weeks.  All of the doctors and nurses here are awesome and we would love to have them deliver the babies, but being able to deliver in Bellingham closer to our friends and family would be even better. 

31 Weeks!

Today we hit the 31 week mark! Not much has changed over the past week. Both babies look great on their monitoring everyday and my contractions have stayed pretty normal. One more week before we hit our next big goal of 32 weeks so we are hoping that everything stays the same. 

Dillon has been here with me since Tuesday so we were able to spend Christmas together. We didn't do anything too special, we are just thankful that we are still here with the babies still inside me! 

Also, thank you to everyone who sent us down some Christmas goodies. We have definitely been enjoying them!

Six Weeks Down!

Once again I have been asked to post more baby bump pictures. Here I am today at 30 weeks and 2 days. I feel like I have gotten huge and a lot more uncomfortable just over the last couple of weeks. All of the extra belly weight has put a lot of strain on my back too so physical therapy was in today to go over some stretches I can do to help that so hopefully they work.  

We also had a formal ultrasound today to see how the babies are growing.  We were definitely surprised with how big they have gotten.  Last growth ultrasound was three weeks ago and Baby A was 2lbs 4oz and Baby B was 2 lbs 10 oz.  Today, Baby A is up to 3lbs 9oz and Baby B is 4lbs 2oz! Baby A is considered in the 50th percentile while Baby B is in the 70th percentile.  Although these are only estimated measurements, we are very encouraged with how big they are.  The doctors had not seen the ultrasound report yet, but they had looked at the pictures and by the pictures they thought everything looked just fine.  They will be back in the morning to go over the full ultrasound with us.

Today also marks 6 weeks since I have been here.  Over the weekend, Dillon and I were able to talk to the doctor about the rest of our stay here.  As long as I stay stable, I should be able to go home on bedrest at 34 weeks.  At that point Bellingham would be able to deliver the twins safely if I were to go into labor.  We still have 4 weeks to get to that point so we are not getting our hopes up, but it is another good goal for me to shoot for.  It would be really nice to go home for a little bit before they are born.

Although 34 weeks would be huge, we still ask for prayers that we can atleast get to that 32 week mark!

30 Weeks!

Today we hit 30 weeks!  Things have been going really good since our last little scare.  I have still been contracting all day everyday, but they don't seem to be as consistent and strong as they were.  Both babies have also looked really good on the monitoring the last couple days.  I am very anxious to see them again on the ultrasound on Monday!

Dillon was able to come down this weekend.  He wasn't able to because of work last weekend so it had been almost two weeks since I had seen him.  He was very surprised with how big I had gotten over those two weeks.  I guess that is a good thing, it means the babies are growing!

Other than that not much new to report.  Each day is a goal met, but our next big goal is to get to 32 weeks. Please pray that these next two weeks are very uneventful for us and that we can meet our goal of 32 weeks.

Eventful Night

Last night was a little more exciting than it has been down here in awhile.  I went off my ibuprofen Sunday at midnight and have noticed that i was contracting a little more often, but the contractions were not getting painful and they weren't consistent so I was not too concerned.  Last night my contractions started coming every ten minutes apart which was not normal for me.  The nurse decided to hook me up to the monitor to make sure the babies looked fine through the contractions.  Both babies looked great, but I was still contracting every ten minutes.  The nurse was going to talk to the doctors and see what she thought and before I knew it, the doctor was in here with an ultrasound machine to make sure both babies were still head down just in case I was in labor.  Both babies were head down, which is what we want when I do go into labor.  She then decided to check for dilation.  My last check I believe was two weeks ago and I was at 3 cm.  Last night, even after all the contractions, I was still at 3cm!  The contractions I was having were not changing my cervix in any way.  It was about 11:30 pm after they were done checking and since the babies looked great and I was feeling the contractions the monitor was picking up, I was able to come off the monitors and was told just to keep track of contractions. They were not too concerned about me going into labor last night, but wanted to know if anything changed and if so, they wanted to check me again.  The contractions started to space out a little more and although I didn't sleep very well, I was able to fall asleep. Today has been a little more quiet. I am still contracting more than I was last week, but the doctors have said that this is probably my new normal without having the ibuprofen in me all day long.

We also had a fluid check yesterday. They typically do not do another fluid check after going off ibuprofen, but they could tell that I was a little nervous about the fluid so they offered to do one.  Both fluid levels were in the normal range.  The doctor who did the ultrasound was very encouraged by how both babies looked on the ultrasound and just by looking could tell that they have definitely grown since she did the last ultrasound!  Our next formal growth ultrasound is on Monday and I am very anxious to see how much they weigh now!

29 Weeks!

Not much new to report today except we have made it to 29 weeks! One more week closer to our next goal of 32 weeks.  Both babies continue to look great on the monitors. They are continuing to show their heart rate increases that the doctors and nurses like to see and are moving around a lot.   I am also doing pretty good.  The last few days I have been nauseous and tired, but that has seemed to pass and I am feeling much better. Other than that, nothing new which is a great thing!

Pictures and Other Fun Things

Today marks one month since I have been here.  Although it seems like it has been a long time since I checked in, time has gone by somewhat fast. If I can make it to 34 weeks, they have said I could possibly go home so only 5 1/2 more weeks to go!

I have been asked to post some pictures so here is one of me at 23 weeks. This was right before my last appointment in Bellingham before being admitted to UW.

Here I am today at 28 1/2 Weeks.  

Since I have been here, I have also learned how to crochet.  I have been making mostly baby hats and baby headbands and my mom has made a baby blanket and has been working on earwarmers and scarfs.  Here are a few hats I have made.  Since no one else knows the genders of the babies besides us, I have been making gender neutral hats, some with flowers and some without, just to keep everyone guessing!

 

I also had a fluid check again today just to make sure everything looked fine.  Both fluid levels were great so the plan for ibuprofen stays.  My last dose of ibuprofen will be Sunday at midnight. Today again, they assured me that if the babies are going to come early, they are going to come with or without the ibuprofen.