I’m up bright and early as usual, because I have two little
alarm clocks. One kicks my ribs while
the other punches my bladder. Somehow,
this wakes me up every time. They’re
getting ready to be born, since both have been “head down” for a few weeks
now. Their positions don’t matter
though, since my little passengers are scheduled to disembark by cesarean two
weeks from today. Woot woot!
My usual daily routine is a little different today, since I
have to prepare for the COLD and ICY weather outside! The roads are icy too, which makes me nervous
because we live in a hilly area. Our daughter
Kaela decided to drive home from Corvallis for the weekend, and her driving in
these conditions makes me even more nervous.
Nonetheless, I dutifully prepare for my 11am doctor appointment. My “Pee” tank is ready to go, in a large
paper bag. Poor Tom is going to have to
carry that when we get there. I have
enough extra poundage to carry…. Sorry Tom.
As we make our way to the doctor’s office, I get even more nervous about
Kaela driving home. The roads are definitely
not ideal. Luckily, Tom grew up in
Minnesota, so he handled it like a pro. Fingers crossed for Kaela.
When I first get to the office, I supply them with a fresh
pee sample as usual. But it sure seems
redundant since I just handed them a gallon of my pee! Then Tom and I head back for an
ultrasound. Tom really likes getting to
be there for these. I haven’t counted
how many ultrasounds I’ve had, but I’ve had a lot! After seeing the little guys again (they’re
pretty crowded in there!), we see Dr. Winkler.
He’s a little concerned with my elevated blood pressure, so he decides
that today they will take out my pessary and do the Beta Strep Culture. This doesn’t sound fun, but what choice do I
have? Everyone leaves the room so I can
undress, oh boy. Dr. Winkler reappears
with his nurse, and like the veteran that he is, the pessary is out within a
second. Then he informs me that he is
sending me to the hospital to be monitored.
He says it’s routine -- nothing to worry about -- but when you are
carrying multiples, you can never be too careful.
So Tom and I head over to Legacy
Emanuel. The roads are a little better,
but when we get to the parking garage, it is an ice rink! The only parking available is at the very
top, where the worst ice is. As Tom and
I are walking to the elevator, I almost fall on some slippery ice. Let me tell you, this is really scary even when
not pregnant. I am so rattled that my
first stop in the hospital is the security desk. They take one look at me, listen to my story,
and are immediately on the phone to have the ice situation taken care of.
Dr. Winkler phoned ahead so they already
had a room prepared for me. It’s now
about 1pm so I decide I should let Holly and Darren know what is going on. Instead of calling, I send a text (that is
what we do nowadays!) I tell Holly “I’m
at Emanuel being monitored just to be safe” and “don’t worry I’ll keep you updated”. They get me all hooked up and I can see I am having
contractions. Just by removing the
pessary, my uterus is saying “all righty then, let’s have these babies”. I haven’t felt any contractions up until this
time, and I barely even feel these. The
boy’s heartbeats sound awesome as usual. All the nurses are super nice. They all know my story, and how special the
births will be when it’s time. I have my
copy of the birth contract with me. I
started carrying it full time about two weeks ago. Once these boys take their first breath, they
are legally adopted by Holly and Darren.
But we have two weeks to go, right?
Tom heads back to work, leaving me at the hospital for monitoring. The wait begins…
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| Hospital selfie |
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| Tom taking secret picture before leaving. Look at my belly poking up! |
