First things first...The Birth Story!

On Monday April 27th I had an appointment with the doctor for my 34 week check up.  I felt great that day.  Better than I had felt in quite some time.  My contractions were very much under control and besides just being in pain from carrying around 10 pounds of baby I was feeling good.  For the first time in weeks I was not expecting a change at the appointment (this should have been my biggest clue!).

My last belly pic the day I turned 34 weeks.  The babies were born the next day.  

I arrived at 2:00 for my non stress test and then I was to see Dr. C after that.  They had some trouble getting both babies to show up on the NST.  We could hear both of their heartbeats and they were both variable which is good but it would not print out as two separate babies on the strip because their machine is not that great for twins.  The nurse and doctor both tried and decided to just have me run over to the hospital for 15 minutes after my exam since their machine was much better for twins.  The hospital is connected to their office so it wasn't a big deal to just walk over there real quick.  They assured me nothing was wrong and I wasn't worried because I could hear their heartbeats and they varied with their movement each time...the whole point of a NST.  

Then I went into the exam room and the nurse took my blood pressure.  It was a little high.  I think about 138/90-something.  My bp runs low during pregnancy and the highest it had been was like 112/70-ish.  I knew it was from laying on my back for 10 minutes right before that when they were trying to do the NST.  We were going to recheck it after Dr. C checked my cervix.

He came in and I laid back and he did the checking.  ;)  It went something like this.  

Me: OW
Him: Well it looks like we are the same....wait....no...not the same....
Me: OMG OW
Him:  Hmmm...So you are 3 cm dilated.  That changes things.  (I had been a 1 for weeks)
Me: OMG OMG OUCH
Him:  (Finally stopping the longest most painful cervical check ever)  How are the contractions?  Blah blah blah talk talk talk....more talk talk talk.  
Me:  (finally sitting up and shaking the stars out of my head so I don't pass out)  I have no idea what you said so you are going to have to repeat that!  

Basically I was 3 cm and since I was going to the hospital for the NST he thought we should just put me on the monitor for a little bit and check the contractions.  Fine by me.  I thought that was a great idea.  I told him the contractions had been great for the last 48 hours...only about every 10-20 minutes and not painful.  Then he told the nurse to get a wheelchair for me and they would wheel me over.  This maybe should have tipped me off that things were not going to go like I thought but it didn't.  As I was being wheeled out he asked me when the last time I ate was.  I told him and he said nothing more to eat or drink.  Then he handed me back the paperwork I had given to him earlier in the appointment about storing the cord blood.  He said take this because we may not need it (I needed him to sign it then I was going to fax it to the cord blood people and they would send me a kit for the cord blood to be banked when the babies were born).  I looked at him and told him he was freaking me out.  He told me not to freak, of course, but this was the first time I thought...hmmmmm...this doesn't seem right.

They wheeled me through the waiting room so I could tell Jenni (she had driven me there) to go get Blakely because I was going to be monitored at the hospital for a little bit.  I was very calm but she got a little panicky.  I told her it was fine and I would call her if/when I needed her to come get me.  Ha!  

When I got to labor and delivery my super awesome wonderful nurse, Susie, that helped deliver Blakely was there.  LOVE HER.  She got me all situated on the monitor and I was contracting every 5 minutes.  That didn't bother me at all because I swear I had been doing that for weeks on and off.  She asked me a bunch of questions and then made me sign a bunch of stuff.  I could tell she was prepping for babies to be born.  I asked her about it and she said she just wanted to be prepared just in case.  I agreed.  So I signed the consents for a c-section (both babies were breech).  After about 10 minutes I straight up asked her if she thought I was having babies today.  She smiled and said she thought there was a high probability that I would.  She told me that Dr. C would be over soon to check me again and if there had been ANY progress at all then we would be delivering the babies.  This is when I had my first reality check.  HOLY.  I may be having 34 week babies.  I need to call Lonnie!  I asked my nurse if I should tell him to come right now or was it okay for him to come when he got off work.  At this point it was 3:30 and he got off at 5:00.  She said you need to tell him to come now if he can.  So he did.  Then I called my mom and she left work to come to the hospital.  

I remember just sitting there thinking "is this really happening"?  I felt fine.  I was only a 3.  People walked around for weeks at a 3, right?  Why the rush to get the babies out?

A short time after Lonnie got there, so about 4:00 and about 45 minutes after I arrived at L&D, the contractions got intense all of the sudden.  My nurse was in there and as soon as the first one peaked I said "okay, that really hurt".  I thought it was just a random painful one.  No.  No no no.  From here on out they were painful.  

This was my next reality check.  Why are these all the sudden hurting oh so bad.  They were way more intense than any I had been having at home.  

Soon after this Dr. C came in to check me...maybe 30 minutes after the contractions geared up and about an hour or so after I got to L&D.  I knew this was the moment.  The moment I would find out if I was going to have 34 week preemie babes or if all this was just going to slow down.  I think deep down I knew.  He waited for my contraction to stop and then checked me.  I was almost a 6 and 100% effaced.  (I was a 3 and 80% in the office about an hour prior).  I was in active labor.  The hospital ships moms in labor out if they are before 34 weeks and not in active labor.  I was 34 weeks 1 day and definitely in active labor so I was going to be delivering there (in Hot Springs) for sure.  No one would transport me since I had had such a huge change in a short amount of time AND the babies were breech.  

I felt comfortable delivering there although I was very nervous about it.  I mean I was happy I made it to 34 weeks but that is still too early.  I worried they would have trouble once they were born.  They told me they contacted the hospital in Little Rock (an hours drive) and if there were any problems after the twins were born the helicopter would be sent immediately.  Lonnie and Dr. C contacted the pediatrician and he came to the delivery.  

Once I knew the babies were going to be born it was all really a blur.  I was in pain and things were happening fast.  I asked my nurse when we would do the section.  She said we would have babies in less than 30 minutes.  Ummm....whoa!  I didn't realize we were going so fast but I am glad they did because I think the babies were ready to get the heck out.  I was hurting so bad and I remember asking 50 times if they could take the belts off my belly.  Those were making the pain of the contractions even worse.  I was very very ready for my spinal.  

Very soon they wheeled me back to the OR and Lonnie was with me the whole time.  On the way is when I realized I was about to have major surgery.  I hadn't really thought about c-sections even though I knew it was a possibility and a more than likely outcome for this pregnancy.  I hadn't read a thing about them so I didn't really know what to expect except what you see on TV (basically exactly the same).  They FINALLY took those belts off and I got a little bit of relief in between contractions.  They gave me the spinal and it was immediate sweet relief from the pain.  A really really weird feeling but the pain was gone and I was happy for that.  They laid me down on the table and got me all strapped in and draped, etc.  I started shaking really bad but they told me that was normal.  I just closed my eyes instead of watching the flurry of activity because that was making me nervous. 

At one point, my amazing nurse asked if I could feel what she was doing.  I told her I could tell she was doing something but I didn't know what it was.  She said, "well I just put your catheter in" and I told her I definitely did not feel that!  Once that was done we were all set to go.  

Lonnie was beside me but he also watched the whole thing.  I was doing okay until I smelled the burning flesh from the device they use to cut you open.  I have been in on multiple surgeries so I knew exactly what was happening.  This smell sent me through the roof.  I knew too much and this was something I never realized.  I was having major surgery while I was wide awake.  TERRIBLE!  I mean I wanted to be awake to see my babies but let me tell you I was oh so ready for the surgery to be over.  All I could think about was what they were doing and it was difficult for me not to want to puke and/or pass out.  

After what seemed like forever, although Lonnie assures me it was only a few minutes and the whole thing went really fast, Dr. C said I was going to feel a lot of pressure as they pulled out the first baby.  

Benton Parker.  My tiny man.  Born at 5:14 pm and weighing 4 pounds 13 ounces and 18 inches long.  

The first time I saw him.  It was about 3-4 hours after he was born.  

They told me he was out and I could feel much less pressure on my lungs.  He screamed and they whisked him away to the room next door to check him out.  I did not get to see him.  

Then 2 minutes later they said I would feel more pressure as baby girl was coming out.  I immediately felt like I could breathe again when she came out.  Everyone in the room said, "oh she is definitely the chunkier one".  

Emery Harper.  Born at 5:16 pm weighing 5 pounds 7 ounces and 17 inches long.  

I remember being worried by this because preemie white boys typically have the hardest time.  So now my little Benton was a preemie AND he was the smaller twin.  Little did I know it was going to be the opposite.  She did not cry and I did not get to see her.  They whisked her away to the next room to be checked out by the pediatrician.  

Lonnie went with the babies as planned while they sewed me back up.  This seemed to take forever although Lonnie said it was really fast.  At some point while Dr. C was doing that Lonnie came back in to tell me something.  He said that Emery was having difficulty breathing and she needed a drug called surfactant.  She would have to be flown to Little Rock to get it.  He calmly explained that she was fine and this was just mainly a "precaution".  When Lonnie explains things calmly it freaks me out.  When things get crazy he gets very calm so I barely believed him that everything was a "precaution".  At this point he said they weren't sure if Benton would need to go too.  

At some point during the section, I think after the babies were out, I started having really bad shoulder pain.  They warned me of this and they gave me some pain meds once it got too intense.

Once they were done they wheeled me back to my room and there were a slew of family and friends in there.  I was in a haze.  I kind of remember talking to people but really I think everyone just talked to each other.  I mainly remember thinking I just had 2 babies.  I want them with me right now.  I want Lonnie and he was with the babies.  I just felt so weird.  I felt alone in a room full of people. 

At one point I made someone go get Lonnie because it seemed like it had been forever since I knew what was going on.  He came in to talk to me and everyone left.  He updated me and said the helicopter was almost there.  Soon after he said it I could hear it landing outside.  He said Benton was not going to Arkansas Children's Hospital and that they would bring him to me later.  He made me feel better but I was still very worried about my girl and I wanted to hold my boy.  

The helicopter crew brought Em in the room to see me once they had her all loaded up in the box that the babies fly in.  I could barely see her but I could touch her foot.  They explained all the things to me but I didn't hear a word.  I just stared at my girl.  

This is getting lengthy so this seems like a good stopping point.  I want to do a detailed post about each baby in their first few days so that is up next.