Train Wreck

Let me just start off by saying the girls are wonderful. Mathilde, or Tilly as we're calling her lately, and Alexis (Lexi) are blossoming and flourishing as the days pass. They're gaining weight and interacting just a little bit more with their world. They've had an exciting week traveling back and forth from home to the hospital while Mom recovers from a massive infection. That's where I come in.
Monday night I awoke to find myself bleeding copious quantities of blood. Given the snow storm and the fact that we had the girls to contend with, we quickly called an ambulance and I was whisked away to the hospital by two diminutive but fit young women. Once in the hospital it was determined that I had an infection in my uterus, and an ultrasound revealed that huge clots had formed and were preventing my uterus from shrinking back to it's normal size. At first it was thought that a 10cm piece of placenta had been left over from my C-Section, but that proved likely not to be the case. In 10 percent of C-sections, this type of infection can result.
I had an emergency D&C to remove the clots and clean the uterus and then spent the next two days in the post delivery ward with Ivan and the girls. My hemoglobin test results revealed that it had slipped from 139 to 59 as a result of the massive blood loss I had suffered. I was offered a choice between a blood transfusion and iron therapy via intravenous delivery. I chose the iron therapy. In the mean time, Ivan had to pack the girls up twice a day to return to the house to feed River and let him out. I had made a deal with the hospital that I could keep the girls in with me since I was nursing, but I could never be left alone with them since the nurses would not be available to assist me. So they tagged along with Ivan wherever he went. They fared no worse for the experience though, and I pumped enough milk so that Ivan could take "meals" with him.
We're all home today, Christmas Eve and so grateful for it. I'm tired and weak and look like Casper, but I'll recover. And I have Ivan and the girls. I am so eternally grateful for my family and I look forward to a quiet time with them tomorrow. We will enjoy Kraft Dinner and a little bit of wine for our Christmas Supper, and probably sleep until noon. (If the girls will let us. Right!) . If you were looking for a reason this season to be grateful, think of us. We just might not have made it. Merry Christmas everyone.

They're Here! Meet Mathilde & Alexis Lightwood

Greetings from the Lightwood household everyone! They have arrived at last; those long awaited Lightwood ladies. They are from left to right: Alexis Sophia Lightwood, born at 1027 on Friday 12 December 08 and weighing 6lbs 4.5oz and Mathilde Josephine Lightwood, born at 1026 the same day and weighing 6lbs 14oz. The elective C-section was quick and easy and both girls were quick to arrive in our room after some precautionary treatments in the nursery. Three days later, Mom and girls were deemed fit to go home and begin to find a routine at home. Our first night at home with the girls was tough, to be sure and sleep was seldome and fleeting. That said, today's visit from the Public Health Nurse deemed the girls to be in excellent health with no jaundice, and little weight loss.
Thanks to everyone for their phone calls and support over the pregnancy, and many apologies for not getting the info out sooner. More to follow in the near future.

38 Weeks

We made it! 38 weeks, babies are full term and ready to meet the world. Sort of... We're scheduled for an elective C-Section for this Friday, Dec 12. I'm slightly dilated, but with all the excess amniotic fluid in there, the girls are acting like little corks and just can't engage in my pelvis to get things going. They could break the water around Baby A, but there is an increased risk of cord prolapse (having the umbilical cord slip through ahead of the baby and wrap around the neck). Also, we could deliver Baby A after a really long and tough labour (first baby and all) only to have to deliver Baby B by C-section because she's slipped down into a transverse position. So, after weighing all the risks, we with Dr Carrier have decided to go ahead and safely deliver them by C-section. He will do the surgery.
We're excited about meeting these girls finally. It's been a very long pregnancy in some ways. It could be said that it slipped by quickly too though. And of course I am nervous about what Friday will mean. Ivan and I will be parents to two infant girls. The profoundness of that is still sinking in.
So, the next entry might just be a week from today if we can find a second to update the blog! I look forward to posting pictures. All the best, and please wish us luck!

37 Weeks

Wow! Here we are, 37 weeks pregnant with twins. I could have never predicted that we would have made it this far. Truth is, my body is no where near ready to give birth. How is that possible? Today's visit to the Dr (if we understood him correctly) has left us with a decision to make over the next week. We can wait. We can literally sit it out and wait for me to go into labour on my own and risk a C-section anyway, or we can call it a day next Wednesday and ask for an elective C-section. I don't think my Dr would push me in either direction, he knows how uncomfortable I am. But the girls are well above average for even a singleton pregnancy and they're only getting bigger.
As for me, I'm done. We stopped at Canadian Tire on the way home. I'm no longer on bed rest and I was thinking that maybe I could use gravity to help things along, but it seems that I can no longer walk. That's unfortunate! But as you can see from the accompanying photo, I am now too large to make use of my legs! But I can do one more week. I will do one more week.

36 Weeks

I honestly thought I would have news for you today, but after an uneventful ultrasound I'm afraid we're all sort of still in the dark! Here's what I can tell you though:
My cervix is still really long (4cm for those keeping track!), Baby A is still in a good position, and Baby B has actually moved. She is still, however, transverse to some degree. It remains to be seen whether or not she is adequately positioned to attempt a natural delivery, but she seems to be heading in the right direction. The computer was broken so whatever algorithm they use to calculate their weights could not be used, so we have no idea how big they are. Well, we know they are BIG, but how big remains to be seen.
Basically, we wait until Tuesday to find out how we will proceed.
I'm a bit of a train wreck though. It's hard to get comfortable, sleeping is a nuisance and it hurts to walk. But those things are so inconsequential in the larger scheme of things. It's sort of comical, because normally when you feel so poorly there is cause for concern. In this case, it's completely irrelevant that I feel bad, because the girls are as happy as little clams in there. They don't need to go anywhere! So with no photo to entertain you with and no news to update you with, I leave you with the same state of dissatisfaction that I'm feeling! All the best though to everyone.

35 Weeks

Well, you'd think that the end would be in sight, wouldn't you? But no, these little girls are going to hang on as long as they can. And who could blame them, really? It's warm, safe and never lonely!
Seriously, though, everything looks fine for now. I'm not showing any movement towards getting ready to deliver. Even the contractions that landed me in the hospital in the first place are just one of those things to put up with. My cervix is still locked up tight as a drum, and Baby A's head is still high. Unfortunately, it's looking very seriously like the girls will be delivered by C-section. Here's the plan:
1. I will have a final Ultrasound next Thursday which will show us the position of Baby B. She's the one in the transverse position (lying straight across my belly from right to left). Baby A is in a good position, but Baby B's shoulder position makes it unlikely that she will "fall" neatly into place once A is delivered. Because they are SO big, the option of just reaching up and pulling her out by her feet is unlikely. It's too risky; and
2. I will have another appointment with my OBGYN on the 2nd of December to make our final decision. At this time, I'll be 37 weeks. We'll book our date for the C-section (or induction if things take a "turn" for the better) around the 38 week mark.
Of course, I could just go into labour, but it doesn't look likely at this point. I'm healthy, hardly any swelling, normal blood pressure and weight gain. The girls are swimming around, gaining weight and developing as they should. We can't ask for more than that. I will take this opportunity to complain a little bit. I'm having some pelvic pain, and it's really hard to turn over in bed. And let's face it; I'm HEAVY! It's a lot of weight to lug around in the front. If I could just get them to move around to my back.....
Ivan's folks are here helping out. Ivan's still as busy as can be these days. He's handling the deluge of pregnancy hormones quite well. And I promise you, these are emotional times! Sometimes I wonder if my sanity has not flown completely out the window. I know it's time to stop watching a Baby Story. I liken it to the weird obsession I had with reading nautical disaster books while at sea. No good can come from watching other women going through labour or being sliced open while their husbands sit useless and helpless at their heads. This is one area where perhaps I could have used the mystique. But still I watch. It's a sickness, I know.
Well that's all from Tari's bed for this week. No news is good news in this case, so you should not hear more until next Thursday. I wish you all the best, and if anybody has some spare time, I could use a Christmas decorator.

34 Weeks

Whew! Made it to 34 weeks finally and we're all still hangin in there! We had an Ultrasound today and things looked really good. Baby A weighs 5lbs 15oz, and Baby B weighs 5lbs 9oz. These would be great weights for a singleton pregnancy at this stage, and so just tremendous for twins. That said, it's still a lot for me to carry around. My cervix measured long today with very little change from when I was discharged from the hospital. And finally, there is no longer an abnormal amount of fluid around either baby. We've finally shed the term polyhydramnios from our reports, much to my tremendous relief!

We're all packed for our hospital stay. I suppose we'll find out next Wednesday at our OBGYN appointment what the plan of attack is. Will they schedule a C-section in case I go beyond a certain time period, or will they just let me go on my own. It's really hard to say. Baby A is in a good position for natural delivery still, but then again Baby B is still in her unfortunate transverse position. Doctors seem to vary on how they would proceed in this case. The girls are officially big enough to be delivered naturally so that lends some hope. Time will tell.

Otherwise, the bedrest thing seems to be working out very well for us. The girls are happy, I'm rested and getting lots of knitting done. Ivan seems to have found his groove and is happy as long as I stay where I'm put! I do try my hardest to oblige him. We really do want to get to 36 weeks. Though he's starting to talk more like 38 weeks. I just nod and smile. 38 weeks!! Can you imagine? Maybe he could take over for a bit?

33 Weeks

I'm home! I was admitted to the hospital last Wednesday because I was experiencing frequent Braxton Hicks contractions and my cervix had shortened. I was put on a 24 hour course of inter venous drugs designed to stop the contractions of the uterus (and incidentally lower blood pressure). I was also administered two doses of steroid to hasten the development of the girls' lungs should they insist on making an early appearance. By Sunday, though I was exhausted from a lack of sleep and so made a bargain with my Dr that if he released me from the hospital, I would continue my bed rest from home. He agreed, providing an ultrasound of my cervix showed no further shortening and that my contractions were neither regular nor increasing in intensity.
Thankfully, my cervix had actually lengthened (bed rest works!), and my contractions were and have been inconsistent ever since. I am now happily at home in my bed where I spend all of my time.
This has to be be or will become hard on Ivan, I imagine. Each morning he gets up, looks after himself, River and then makes my breakfast and prepares my lunch for the day. This he leaves in a cooler by the bed. He then goes to work, runs errands and returns home to walk River. Once that's done, River is fed and Ivan cooks supper for us which we eat in the bedroom together. Any house work that needs to be done is done after supper clean-up. Then Ivan prepares his lunch for the next day. He also must take me to the numerous apointments that I have to attend in order to keep track of this amazing pregnancy. I wouldn't blame him if he didn't just drop me back at the hospital and leave me there one of these days! But that's it, that's what it can take to keep twins healthy and safe. I suppose it's a good warm up for their arrival!
It's hard to imagine, but really after next week they're safe to arrive. We'll try to do better than that for them, since they will surely have a stay in the NICU if they come at 34 weeks. But already they are each 4lbs 12 oz. Actually, that was one week ago, so they're probably over 5lbs now! The lowest weight that we would be comfortable with is 5lbs 8 oz. This makes them big enough to sustain a natural delivery and more likely to be able to nurse right away. Preemies have a hard time co-ordinating eating and breathing and often have to be fed by a tube. They can always learn to nurse later, but it does make it harder, and of course, I'd have to pump all of my breast milk. And I'll be honest, once the girls are here, I want to wrap them up and bring them home! So if we can get them to 37 weeks, they will be considered full term for twins and could potentially be good to go. That's 4 weeks from now. And that is a LONG time when you're as big as me!

32 Weeks

Not exactly as I had imagined it would be. Seems I`m to be stuck in the hospital suspended in a perpetual state of false labour for the time being.
This started on Saturday with Braxton Hicks Contractions and hasn`t stopped since. Finally by Tuesday afternoon I admitted to myself that it was probably time to have this all checked out. The staff brought me in, hooked me up and we watched while I had contractions. I was scheduled for a morning ultrasound for the next day.
I should point out right away that the girls are wonderful. They both weigh 4lb 12oz. Baby B still has a fair bit of fluid around her and this is probably contributing to this condition which they call "Irritable Uterus". On the down side, my cervix has begun to shorten and I am 30 % effaced. The cervix has softened. And I'm still having contractions.
So here I am on complete bed rest at St. Francois D'Assise if anyone is looking for me. :) I don't know precisely how long I'll be in here so if you are so inclined, send a little positive energy or a prayer our way that all this settles down and I can go home with all my buns in the oven 'cause Lord knows there's no such thing as rest in a hospital!

31 Weeks

Welcome to the new Blog! I thought I'd try out this format for a bit to see if it better suits our needs. It'll take me a bit to get used to it, since I've never blogged before, nor do I have much experience with other blogs.
So we saw Dr Belhumeur on Tuesday as our Dr was on vacation. This was good in a way, since his English was quite good, and we gained some new perspective. Unfortunately, we feel a bit left in limbo. Nobody really knows our pregnancy except us (and I suppose you!). The bad news is as we expected. The girls are both lying transverse (sideways) and don't have a lot of room to turn. We're not so far as to schedule a C-section yet, but that's the way it's looking. We've got our next three ultra sounds lined up (thanks again Ivan, my hero!) so we'll watch and wait and see what they do. Otherwise, there really isn't much more to report. It looks like we were confused about which hospital that we will deliver in. We are not considered high-risk here in Quebec, and so these cowboys are happy to deliver in their level II facility. So for now, it looks like we're going to have them at St Francois d'Assis. This is a bit ironic since Ivan and I have been having our ultrasounds here and each time we've expressed how greatful we were that we were NOT delivering at this hospital. I don't actually know that there is anything wrong with it per se, it just doesn't instill a feeling of security in us like the IWK in Halifax did, or indeed even the level III hospital here that we visited. It's less modern and comfortable. It's small, no parking and not set up to handle the girls if something goes wrong. They'd have to be moved to the other hospital. I just can't understand why, with twins, you would want to take the chance. Anyway, that was an emotional event yesterday that I'm just happy to have behind us. Again, thanks to my amazing husband for taking control and going to the hospital to sort this out. Can you imagine this tall handsome man in a navy uniform marching into the maternity hospital insisting that his pregnant wife be taken on and treated? Those women didn't stand a chance! In the end though, it was not to be. But a girl sure feels taken care of.