Thanks A Lot, Archer & Lyla!

Despite being close to two years old, Archer and Lyla are still doing a number on my body.  It's a good thing they're so cute!  The latest issue to arise deals with my foot.  

It all started when I woke up one morning to a sore foot.  The top of my left foot was pretty painful.  It felt like it was bruised, but there was no bruise.  I didn't think too much of it and figured it would go away.  Well, it got worse and soon I was hobbling around the neighborhood on our daily walks.  It was a good thing I had the stroller to lean on!  

I don't typically go to the doctor unless it's an absolute necessity.  Being able to walk with two toddlers constituted a necessity, so I made an appointment with a podiatrist.  I'd never been to a podiatrist before, so I wasn't really sure what to expect.  I did however repaint my toenails for the occasion.

When I got there, some x-rays were taken.  Then I sat in this chair that rose way up high with my legs out in front of me.  It was a bit strange being so high up, especially while I was all by myself in the room waiting for the doctor to show up.  I was beginning to wonder what I had gotten myself into.    

Eventually, the doctor showed up with my x-rays.  He said they all looked normal so he could rule out a stress fracture.  After examining my foot and talking about my health history, he came to the conclusion Archer and Lyla were to blame.  Apparently, some pregnancy hormones cause the ligaments in your feet to stretch and lengthen.  These stretched out ligaments can cause your arches to fall and your foot to lengthen.  I guess this is why some women end up needing a bigger shoe size after pregnancy. 

I did notice my left tennis shoe feeling more snug than usual.  I had bought some tennis shoes in a bigger size before my appointment to see if that would help with my foot pain.  Sadly, it did not.  

The doctor told me to remedy the pain I was feeling in my foot, I would need to wear shoes with arch support from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep.  He also put me on some anti-inflammatory medication, assigned me some stretches to do, and sent me home with some arch supports to put in my shoes.  

I was not a happy camper when I left the office.  I was upset about having to wear shoes all the time.  I know this sounds a bit ridiculous on my part, but I really hate wearing shoes.  And when I do wear shoes, I like to wear cute shoes that don't necessarily offer the best arch support.  

But I did try to follow the doctor's instructions.  I put on my tennis shoes in the morning and tried to wear them all day.  I might have stepped on the kids' toes a few times and it made me really hot to keep shoes on all day!  I even wore them while relaxing on the hammock during nap time with Jazzy.  Who wears shoes while relaxing in hammocks?!  

As much as it pains me to admit it, wearing my shoes with the arch supports did make my feet feel a lot better.  I only feel a small twinge every once in awhile now.  But I couldn't imagine wearing socks and tennis shoes all day long in July when it's 90 degrees.  So I decided to go buy some sandals with arch support.  

While my mom was watching Lyla and Archer, I went to DSW in search of some new shoes.  When I got there, I looked for the aisle with little old ladies in it.  Let me tell you, there are some ugly orthopedic shoes out there.  

It was incredibly depressing.  I feel like I've had a pretty positive attitude about all the changes my body has been through thanks to my pregnancy.  I've embraced my stretch marks and saggy boobs.  I've accepted the hair loss and random pains I still feel from my c-section.  But trying on ugly orthopedic shoes in DSW that day was a blow to my ego.  It's not like I'm 90!  I'm only 33 and I felt like I should still be able to wear cute shoes!  

After trying on too many ugly shoes, with little old ladies wearing hose and trying on nude sandals with velcro next to me, I did manage to find some that weren't horribly ugly.  The brand Vionic had some decent-looking choices and had the best arch support.  As much as I hated to admit it, they sure did feel comfortable.  While the two pairs I ended up buying would never have been my first choice based on looks, they don't scream "I'M A PAIR OF ORTHOPEDIC SANDALS!!!!!" 

I realize in the big scheme of things, this is a very minor issue.  I still have feet that are able to walk and carry my sweet toddlers around.  There are far worse things women have to deal with as a result of pregnancy and delivery.  And Archer and Lyla are well worth this minor problem.  I would endure anything to be able to hug and kiss them.  But it doesn't mean I won't mourn not being able to wear my cute shoes again. 

The Birth Story: Part 4

Here is the final installment of the birth story.  Here is Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.  

We left off with my sweet babies doing skin to skin with me in my recovery room.  I was so incredibly exhausted and had a very difficult time staying awake.  Eventually our babies were taken to the NICU.  It's standard protocol to have any babies born before 37 weeks taken to the NICU for monitoring.  

It turned out that our babies were healthy!  They had no breathing issues or other health concerns.  They would just stay in the NICU while I recovered and to make sure they gained weight.  Some babies who are born early have trouble latching and sucking while breastfeeding, so it was important to make sure they could do both before they came home with us.  

Since they were so healthy, the NICU nurses made an exception for us- they would bring the babies to my recovery room to visit me every so often for the next few days.  These next few days were a big blur.  I was still recovering from preeclampsia and ended up with some pretty serious complications.  

My kidneys stopped working properly and I went into acute kidney failure.  My liver wasn't working properly either.  I had to have blood drawn every 4 hours to monitor my liver and kidney function.  At one point, the doctors said I would have to be sent to the ICU if my body didn't whip itself back into shape.  

All I really remember about these few days is being completely and utterly exhausted.  The nurses kept telling me to get some sleep, but it was hard to when I was stuck with needles every 4 hours.  I also had all kinds of doctors coming in to check on me.  I have no recollection of anything they said to me.  I just remember trying to keep my eyes open as they were speaking to me.  

The one doctor that sticks out in my mind was the pediatric cardiologist.  If you remember back to this post, a fetal echocardiogram revealed our son had an Atrial Septal Aneurysm.  It was recommended that our son have an echocardiogram once he was born to check on things.  It turned out that it had completely resolved itself all on its own!  That meant Archer's heart was perfectly normal and healthy.  So when Dr. Drake came into my room and woke me up to tell me about this wonderful news, it stuck with me.  I was so incredibly relieved!  

In addition to all the blood draws and doctor visits, I was also supposed to be pumping every 4 hours to get my milk supply up.  So I also had lactation specialists in and out of my room.  Adam is the only reason I am able to breastfeed my babies today.  If it had been up to me, I would have just slept through the pumping.  Adam would wake me up, get all the pump parts assembled and get the pump going.  Sometimes he even held the parts up to my boobs for me.  For the first few days all I would end up with was a tiny bit of colostrum that Adam would swab up with a cotton swab.  He would then take it to the babies in the NICU and stick it in their mouths.  I remember thinking "what the heck is the point of all this for a measly drop or two of breast milk?"  But I was too tired to argue.  I am so glad he made sure I pumped.  After a very long while (days) eventually my milk did come in.  But it wouldn't have if Adam hadn't gotten the ball rolling.    

I can't say enough about how amazing Adam was during that rough time for me!  He took care of me and was at the NICU for the babies' care times.  He communicated to our parents.  He even would go home and take Jazzy on runs some nights.  He was my rock and stepped up in the most wonderful way.  Even though my mind was a bit fuzzy during this time, I knew just how lucky I was that Adam was my husband and Archer, Lyla and Jazzy's daddy.  

If you'll recall, I delivered the babies on Thursday, August 3rd.  I stayed in bed all that evening and the following day and evening.  Friday evening was terrible!  I had the most awful groin pain.  The nurses were a bit puzzled by it, since people don't usually experience that.  They decided it was from the weight I had been carrying around and staying in the same position for so long.  I cried from the pain and was just miserable.  

Typically, you are supposed to get up and move around after a c-section sooner rather than later.  But due to all my health complications, I stayed in bed for far too long.  When I eventually got out of bed, it was Saturday.  It was the most pain I had ever felt in my life.  I cried and moaned and wanted to just get back in bed.  But the nurse who made me get up turned out to be the best nurse during my whole stay.  She got my pain medicine changed to help with the groin pain and the c-section pain.  She got me up and moving around.  She helped me get to and from the toilet.  She wheeled me down to see my babies in the NICU.  And she did all these things with such kindness and encouragement.

My recovery was such a humbling experience.  I have never had to rely on so many people to help me do the most basic things.  There were so many sweet nurses, along with Adam and my mom to help me out.  I'm talking some embarrassing stuff too!  Things like helping me go the bathroom and taking a shower.  I remember sitting on the shower chair with Adam gently washing my hair for me because it hurt my stomach too much to stretch my arms up and thinking if this isn't love I don't know what is.  

Eventually I had to start walking again.  I would walk what felt like forever, but in reality was probably just a few feet towards the NICU.  Then someone would push me in a wheelchair the rest of the way.  There was this one seam on the floor on the way that I hated!  It would kill my stomach each time I was wheeled across it.  That soon became my goal to walk to so I wouldn't have to be wheeled over it.  

  

I continued to recover and eventually my kidneys and liver started to get better.  I was finally released on Tuesday, August 8th.  However, I didn't go home.  I went to the NICU to stay with my babies.  The NICU was a whole other experience, which I'll share all about in another post.  

I am so glad I had no idea how my labor, delivery and recovery would turn out.  It was long, scary, stressful and painful.  I knew it wouldn't be a walk in the park, but I had no idea it would be that rough.  Despite it all, it ended up being worth it.  I have two beautiful, healthy babies.  (One whose lungs work quite well.)   

The Birth Story: Part 3

Here is the third installment of the birth story.  If you'd like to catch up, here's Part 1 and Part 2.  

While I didn't plan on a c-section and was pretty terrified about the thought of being sliced open, I was very ready to meet my babies.  Once the decision was made to move forward with a c-section, everything seemed to move very quickly.  Two anesthesiologists started explaining what would happen once we were in the operating room.  I didn't really listen to what they were saying.  I just started to get very, very scared.  I started shaking because I was so scared.  I remember trying to calm myself down and just focus on the fact that I would get to meet my babies soon.  

I was wheeled into the operating room.  Adam couldn't come with me.  He had to go get suited up and would later rejoin me when things were set up in the operating room.  When I got to the operating room, I was baffled by all of the people in there!  There were two anesthesiologists, two doctors, nurses for me, neonatologists and nurses for the babies.  I heard all kinds of conversations and I remember thinking that everyone seemed a little too calm.  They were talking about their weekend plans and what their kids were up to.  I was moved onto the operating table and they set up a drape so I wouldn't have to see anything.  I was just shaking violently and trying not to burst into tears.  Eventually one of the anesthesiologists realized how terrified I was and told me that everything was going to be okay.  He told me they would make sure I couldn't feel anything before they got started.

Adam joined me at this point and I was so happy to see him.  Having him by my side made things better.  

I assumed they would let me know before they got started, but I started feeling tugging going on in my belly.  It was the strangest feeling!  It didn't hurt but I totally felt pulling and tugging.  I heard on of the doctors say that Baby A was caught in my hip, which explained why I never dilated past 8 cm.  Archer (aka Baby A) was stuck and couldn't move down the birth canal and was also blocking the path for Lyla.  

They told Adam to stand up and watch his baby being born.  I think I would have passed out if I had had to watch them yank a baby out of my stomach, but Adam managed to stay standing.  I heard lots of commotion as they pulled out Archer.  I heard him cry and they held him up for a moment.  Then he was whisked away by the neonatologist and nurses to another part of the operating room to get checked out.  

A minute later they pulled out Lyla.  I heard her cry too and saw a glimpse of her.  I remember Adam asking me if I wanted him to stay with me or go to the babies and I told him to go with the babies.  

I was so incredibly happy to hear them crying!  I started crying and remember my glasses getting all steamed up and stuck to my eyelashes and I couldn't push them down my nose because my arms were out to my side.  Adam came back to check on me and tell me the babies were doing well.   

Eventually Archer and Lyla were brought over so I could see them and kiss them.  They were beautiful!  The most prominent feeling I had was shock.  I was just plain shocked that these babies I had imagined and grown in my belly all these months were actually here!  And they seemed so big and healthy!  Archer weighed 6 pounds, 4 ounces and Lyla weighed 5 pounds, 12 ounces.  I felt so incredibly relieved that they were so big and were crying and didn't have any major health issues.  

I was being closed up while all this was going on and eventually I was taken to another room for recovery.  Adam and I had talked about how I wanted to do skin to skin with the babies as long as everything went well with the delivery.  Adam had to advocate for us and really fight to have the babies do skin to skin with me.  I am so happy he did so!  Both Archer and Lyla were able to latch on and nurse with me before they were taken to the NICU.

It was such a wonderful moment, but I was so tired I had a hard time keeping my eyes open!  A combination of being awake for so long, a long labor and all the medications made me really sleepy.  But I was so relieved that they were here and healthy!

Our babies were born at 35 weeks, 6 days and 21 hours.  They ended up being taken to the NICU and spent 15 days in the NICU as grower-feeders.  I had successfully given birth to two healthy babies!  My health, however, was in question.  I'll share more about that in the fourth and final installment of the birth story.  

The Birth Story: Part 2

So when we left off, I had just gotten my epidural.  If you want to catch up on the birth story, here's Part 1. 

I forgot to mention a few things in Part 1.  Before I got my epidural, I was also catheterized.  I didn't expect that to hurt as much as it did.  It was pretty terrible!  I'm not sure if the nurse who put it in didn't do a good job or if that's just how it goes, but it was incredibly uncomfortable.  It continued to be uncomfortable after it was in.  That was another reason I was all on board to get an epidural.  

I also had an oxygen monitor put on my toe.  And since my legs were so swollen, there were some pressure things that were wrapped around my calves.  They would get tight every few minutes and help stimulate my blood flow to prevent blood clots.  Oh, and a blood pressure cuff that would go off every 30 minutes.  So I had an iv in my arm, a blood pressure cuff on the other arm, leads stuck on my chest to monitor my heart rate, two heart rate monitors on my belly to monitor the babies' heart rates, a catheter, leg pressure things on both of my legs, and an oxygen monitor on my toe.  I couldn't move at all, which was incredibly uncomfortable.  I was used to switching up my position every ten minutes or so, but now I was stuck on my back for hours.  

Remember how I talked about how I was given magnesium because of my preeclampsia?  Well, one of the charming side effects is making you feel incredibly hot.  The nurses had warned me of this side effect and I didn't think too much about it.  But it was terrible!  It made me feel like my insides were boiling!  I have never felt so hot in all my life.  I was also on restricted fluid intake, so I was only able to have a measly half cup of ice chips every few hours.  It was miserable to be so hot and not able to have water or ice.  My throat would get so dry!  I would try to ration my ice chips, but I was so darn thirsty when I finally got my new batch that I would gobble it all down at once!  

Finally a nurse asked me if I wanted some washcloths soaked in ice water to put on my head.  Adam and my mom had been putting washcloths with cold water from the sink on me, but it felt like the washcloths had been soaked in hot water instead.  The ice water-soaked washcloths did help, but they only felt cold for the first few minutes they were on me.  I also figured out that I could suck some water out of the washcloths.  I'm sure I was jeopardizing my health by sucking up more water than I was supposed to, but I was so incredibly thirsty and my throat was so dry I could barely breathe or swallow.  I kept asking people to get the washcloths wet again so I could suck out more water until they caught on.  I looked really pretty at this point.  See below for proof.    

Around 6:15 in the morning on August 3, I was put on Pitocin.  Pitocin helps your contractions get stronger and closer together.  At this point I was dilated to 2.5 centimeters.  

My contractions were definitely getting closer together and they looked stronger on the monitor, but thanks to the epidural I couldn't really feel them.  Even though my contractions were improving, they still weren't really consistent.  The reason was because of the magnesium.  Basically, the Pitocin and the magnesium were working against each other.  While Pitocin works to move labor along, magnesium works to slow or stop contractions.  So the nurses kept cranking up the Pitocin, but the magnesium prevented it from working as well as it would have on its own.

Right around this time, my blood work showed that my blood sugar level was high.  Because of this, I was put on an insulin drip.  What's some more medicine being pumped into my body?  

I was checked several more times and at 10am was dilated to 8cm and was 85%-95% effaced.  The OB on call was pretty excited by this and said that I would probably have my babies by late morning or early afternoon!  I was very excited by this news!

However, late morning turned into early afternoon.  And then early afternoon turned into late afternoon.  Then late afternoon turned into early evening and still no babies.  I never dilated past 8cm.  And my contractions started petering out.  I honestly don't remember a lot about this day.  I had so many drugs running through my body and just remember being super tired and very uncomfortable because I couldn't move around.  I was still super thirsty and hot.  I was so ready to be done!  

Eventually, the OB on call decided to stop the Pitocin for an hour and give me a break.  The thinking behind it was that my body could rest and then give it another try.  My OB had told the on call OB how much I wanted a vaginal delivery.  So the on call OB gave me every opportunity to make that happen.  I definitely appreciated how patient the on call OB was with me.  

During my break, a nurse named Julie asked me if I wanted a popsicle.  I hadn't had anything to eat since the previous evening and just a measly amount of ice chips every few hours, so a popsicle sounded like a four course meal!  I will remember Julie and that popsicle for the rest of my life!  It was the most delicious thing I've ever eaten in all my life!  Even though I was still exhausted and kinda fuzzy from all the medications being pumped through my body, I remember thinking it was quite the coincidence that I was having twins while eating a twin pop.  My mom later told me I had asked Julie if I got to have both sides of the twin pop and that I was beside myself when she said yes.  

After my break, they restarted the Pitocin.  They cranked it up and my contractions did get closer together.  Unfortunately, I still hadn't dilated past 8 cm.  At this point, the on call OB told me I needed to start considering a c-section.  By this point I was so incredibly tired and just plain ready to be done with the whole labor and delivery.  So I agreed it was the best thing to do at this point.  

I'll save the c-section for the next part!   

The Birth Story: Part 1

Archer and Lyla came into this world pretty differently than how I imagined they would.  I pictured an uneventful vaginal birth with Adam sitting by my side the whole time feeding me ice chips and mopping sweat off my forehead.  That's not exactly how it happened.  My labor, delivery and recovery ended up lasting quite a few days.  It's a bit of a blur looking back on it, but I'll try my best to remember it how it happened.  It's far too long to talk about in one blog post, so I'll break it up into parts.  Here's the first part:    

It all started on Wednesday, August 2, 2017, when I had some pains in my left side.  I figured that I had eaten something that didn't agree with me or I overdid it that day, so I took some Tums and ignored it at first.  My mom was in town and we had been out and about earlier in the day.  We had gone to the car wash and I helped vacuum out the car despite my mom telling me not to.  The pain went away for a bit, but came back later on and was worse.  I knew that if I had pains on my right side or the top of my rib cage that it might indicate preeclampsia.  But since the pain was on my left side, I didn't think preeclampsia was the case.  The pain got worse instead of better, so I decided to call my OB's office.  It was about 7pm at this time, so I talked with the after-hours nurse first who passed along the message to my OB.  She called me back right away and I described what was going on.  She decided I should come get checked out just to be safe.  

I still didn't really think I would wind up having my babies anytime soon, but decided to bring along my hospital bag.  I thought maybe bringing it along would ensure I wouldn't need it just yet.  My mom drove me to the hospital and Adam ended up meeting us there on his way home.  I started in triage where they took my vitals, had me give a urine sample and took some blood.  I was feeling pretty good at this point and still was convinced I would be sent back home.  But it turned out that I had protein in my urine and my blood work showed signs of preeclampsia.  I was also pretty swollen at this point.  My feet and legs had been slowly swelling, along with my face and hands.  It was so gradual, that I hadn't really noticed just how swollen I had become.  

With a diagnosis of preeclampsia, I was admitted around 10pm.  My OB was just finishing up a shift, so she checked in with me before she left.  I was scheduled to have my pessary removed two days from then on Friday, but she went ahead and removed it then.  Let me tell you, it was no picnic!  That sucker was clamped on my cervix pretty tightly.  After a bit of tugging, my doctor got it removed.  There were a few nurses in the room at the time and none of them had seen a pessary like the one I had.  They were all standing around, watching the whole ordeal go down.  I really feel like that pessary was the whole reason my babies stayed put as long as they did.  My doctor also cleared out a bunch of progesterone that had collected in my nether regions.  It was quite a lot!  After all that, she was able to tell that I was 2 cm dilated.  She also checked to see the position of the babies via ultrasound.  Both babies were head down, which was a good sign.  That meant I could try for a vaginal delivery.    

Since I had started to dilate and I had preeclampsia, my doctor decided to induce me that evening.  The first step was to get some IV's started.  I was Strep B positive, so I was given IV antibiotics.  I was also given saline to help keep fluids in me.  Finally, I was given magnesium to help prevent any seizures. Apparently women with preeclampsia have a risk of seizures.

Even though I was dilated, my cervix still needed to be softened.  So my doctor inserted some cytotec to help get things moving.  That didn't seem to do too much for me, so the next thing she tried was something called Cervidil.  It's some sort of medication attached to a string that sits near your cervix.  It releases medication that helps your cervix soften.  After this was inserted, the nurse told Adam and I to get some rest.  So Adam popped in some earplugs and went to sleep on the couch in the room.  There was no way I was going to go to sleep at this point.  Not only was I excited and scared and nervous about the idea of having my babies so soon, but I was starting to get mighty uncomfortable.  

I started having more consistent contractions.  They weren't super painful, but I could definitely start to feel them.  Around 4:30 in the morning, my water broke.  I swear Archer decided that he was going to get things moving and I felt a pop as my water broke.  I'm pretty sure Archer punched through his bag of water.  Then I felt water seeping out of me.  I called Adam's name several times, but he couldn't hear me since he had put in his earplugs.  I was kinda mad at him at this point.  So I pushed the call button for the nurse.  She came in and confirmed that my water had indeed broken.  

She left and Adam was still asleep on the couch.  After my water broke, I really felt the contractions. They were so incredibly painful!  I couldn't believe the difference!  I had two contractions and then decided to call the nurse again and ask for an epidural.  I remember thinking about how I had wanted to have a natural birth.  HA!  My OB had recommended that I get an epidural when we had discussed my options earlier in my pregnancy.  I remember thinking, "Well, we'll just see how things go."  I thought I would be able to handle the pain.  I was wrong.  I couldn't push that call button fast enough!  

The nurse came back in and said that contractions are typically stronger after your water breaks.  I told her to wake up Adam at this point.  I figured if I had to be in pain, he could at least be awake!  The epidural fairy came to my room pretty quickly, thankfully.  I had been nervous about getting an epidural prior to feeling any contractions.  I wasn't the least bit nervous after I felt those contractions.  I sat up in bed and leaned against Adam as the epidural was put in.  All I felt was a tiny, little prick as the initial numbing shot was given.  All I felt afterwards was relief.  Sweet, beautiful relief. 

That relief was short-lived...as you'll find out in the next part.  

On a side note, who knows how long it will take for me to write the next part!  It's taken me a month to write this first part.  Apparently two babies require almost all of my attention almost all of the time.  Who knew!? :)

Here's a cute picture of Archer and Lyla to hold you over until part 2:  

They're Here!

Archer Jack Kral and Lyla Hope Kral are here!  Archer weighed 6 pounds, 4 ounces and measured 18.5 inches long.  Lyla weighed 5 pounds, 12 ounces and measured 18 inches long.

Our little miracles were born via c-section on August 3, 2017.  They were born at 35 weeks and 6 days, just 3 hours shy of 36 weeks.  They spent 15 days in the NICU as grower-feeders.  We're all home now and learning all about each other!  Adam and I feel so incredibly lucky to have two sweet, healthy babies!

Third Trimester

Much like any pregnancy, my third trimester has been the most difficult.  I've been pretty uncomfortable and have felt like a tank walking around.  But I've also been so excited that the babies have stayed in my belly as long as they have!  The longer they stay put, the healthier they will be in the end!  

(As it turns out, the babies almost made it to 36 weeks.  They made it to 35 weeks and 6 days, just 3 hours shy of 36 weeks.)

Here's my third trimester in photo form: 

1.  I now know how turtles feel when they get stuck on their backs.  When I switch sides in bed at night, it is quite the production!  I can't believe I don't wake up Adam as I'm flailing around on my back, trying to get enough momentum going to make it to my other side.  I don't even want to know what I look like!    

2.  My babies are BIG!  They've always measured above the norm, which is a very good thing, especially for twins.  But that also means they are HEAVY!  I feel like my legs might snap whenever I'm walking around from the weight.  And don't get me started about stretch marks...let's just say my bikini-wearing days are over.  My sweet babies are totally worth all the stretch marks.  And my sweet husband said my stomach just looks like it has really cool wood grain, much like the exotic woods he likes to do woodworking projects with.  I love him!  

3. Both babies are head down, which is great!  I would love to avoid a c-section, but will obviously do whatever is best for the babies.  We'll see what happens!  Stay tuned!

Pyogenic Granuloma

I had no idea what a pyogenic granuloma was until this past Monday.  It turns out it is another random thing that occurs with pregnancy.  

It started as a tiny red dot on my finger about three weeks ago.  I asked my OB about it and she said it was benign and nothing to worry about.  She told me to just keep an eye on it.  Fast forward two weeks and that little red dot had grown bigger.  I didn't take a picture of it, because it was pretty gross, quite frankly.  It basically looked like a cluster of raised red dots.  Every once in awhile, it would start bleeding. And that sucker bled and bled!  Since it had gotten quite a bit bigger and the bleeding was annoying, I asked about it again at my next OB appointment.  I saw a different OB since my regular OB was out of town.  Since the spot had grown in size, she suggested I get it looked at by a dermatologist.  Like my regular OB, she didn't think it was anything to be too concerned about.  

So I added "make a dermatologist appointment" to my to do list.  Usually it takes about three months to get in to see a dermatologist, so I figured I would have to make an appointment for sometime after the babies arrived.  But I was pleasantly surprised when I called my dermatologist's office last Monday.  I explained that I was pregnant with twins and could go into labor at any time.  The sweet receptionist took pity on me and asked if I could come into the office in an hour.  I was still in my pajamas at this point, which also happen to be Adam's shirts and boxers since none of my other pajamas fit.  I told her I could make that happen!  

So I threw on one of the few outfits left that fit over my gigantic belly.  I went to the restroom and when I washed my hands that stupid spot starting gushing blood.  So I had to hold pressure on it until it stopped bleeding before I could leave the house.  Adam had borrowed our Subaru Forester on this particular day because the air conditioning went out in his Mitsubishi Lancer.  It was a little tricky to get low enough to sit down in his car, but I made it.  Luckily it was still early enough in the day that it wasn't too hot out.  

I arrived at the dermatologist's office and started filling out some paperwork.  As I was filling out some information, I glanced down at my feet and noticed there was a big ol' spot of blood on my big toe from the earlier gush of blood from the spot on my finger.  I hoped none of the old people in the waiting room had noticed.  I went to the bathroom and did my best to reach my big toe to clean it off.  Once I was blood-free, I went back to the waiting room.  

Eventually I got called back and a nurse looked at my finger first.  She said it looked like a pyogenic granuloma, which is something that is common in pregnant women.  She said it wasn't a big deal and was something that they could treat.  She said the dermatologist would be in shortly to confirm this assessment and we would go from there.  

So in came the dermatologist, who was as nice as could be.  He wasn't the dermatologist I typically see, but I was just happy to be seen so soon!  He asked me all about my pregnancy and babies.  Then he took a gander at my finger and agreed that it looked like a pyogenic granuloma.  At this point I asked what exactly a pyogenic granuloma was since I had no clue.  It is basically small, round skin growth that contains a large number of blood vessels.  Since they are made up of so many blood vessels, they tend to bleed quite a bit.  He said they are common in pregnant women and can even occur on women's gums.  I was pretty happy that my pyogenic granuloma was on my finger and not in my mouth!  

Since mine was so big (6 mm to be exact) he recommended cutting it off.  If it had been smaller, they would have let it be and see if it went away on it's own.  While I wasn't pumped about the idea of cutting it off, I did want to see it gone.  Plus the bleeding was not all that pleasant.  He said since I was in my third trimester, it was completely safe for me and the babies.  

You know how I feel about needles, so I was trying to be very brave.  He explained that he would give me an injection of numbing medicine into my finger.  From there he would scrape off the spot.  Finally, he would cauterize the blood vessels to help prevent any bleeding.  He asked if I was squeamish and I told him that if I didn't see it, I would be fine.  So I turned my head and he went to town on that stupid spot.  

I did feel the shot, but it wasn't too terrible.  He was quite impressed with the fact that I didn't even jump when he stuck in the needle.  I wanted to tell him that he had no idea how many needles I've encountered this past year between infertility medicine injections, blood draws and ivs, but I just smiled.  

I couldn't feel any of the scraping or the cauterizing, but I certainly smelled the cauterizing.  The dermatologist explained everything he was doing and did it all quickly.  I just stared at the wall and kept saying "okay."  

When it was all said and done, he wrapped up my finger and told me to keep the dressing on until that evening.  At that point I could switch to a bandaid and triple antibiotic ointment after I washed it with mild soap and water.  Before I left, the nurse had me sign a form allowing them to send it off for a biopsy to make sure it was benign.  It was a bit tricky to sign my name with a numb middle finger, but I managed.  
Then I started off on my adventure home.  It was pretty toasty outside by this point and I had managed to park Adam's car in the sun.  Between being a little queasy about what had just happened to my poor finger and the hot car, it wasn't exactly a pleasant drive home.  But I made it home safe and sound!  

When I took off the dressing that first evening, it was pretty gross!  I'll spare you a picture.  It looks like there's a hollowed out hole in my finger with raw skin filling in the hole.  It did throb a bit by that evening, but nothing that was unbearable.  It hasn't hurt since that first evening, which I was pretty surprised about.  I've kept a bandaid on it since then and received the news that it was, in fact, benign. (On a side note, how cute are these Oh Joy! bandaids I got at Target?!)    

So I'm happy it's gone and isn't anything serious.  The hardest part of the whole ordeal has been trying to shave my legs one-handed in the shower while I hold up my bandaid-ed finger out of the water.  But I've managed!

Okay, I am finished with all of the weird pregnancy-related things happening to me.  I hope the last few weeks of my pregnancy will be utterly boring!  

A Trip to the ER

Let me begin by saying that both babies and I are currently healthy!  However, we did have a bit of a scare the other evening.  

On Monday evening around 5pm, I happened to look in the mirror and smile.  I'm not sure why I randomly decided to smile at myself in the mirror, but I did.  And I noticed that the left side of my mouth didn't go up like it normally does.  I thought that was a bit odd, but didn't get freaked out right away.  I referred to my What to Expect When You're Expecting book to see if it mentioned anything about a droopy face.  (On a side note, I have determined that it is best not to google medical things.  Usually, my searching just ends up with me thinking I have cancer.  So throughout my pregnancy, I have only refered to my What to Expect When You Are Expecting book or I call my doctor.) 

In my book, it talked about something called Bell's Palsy.  It said it's a "temporary condition caused by damage to the facial nerve, resulting in weakness or paralysis on one side of the face."  It also mentioned that you might have trouble blinking, which I was.  My left eye had been bothering me for a couple days. It was very teary and blurry.  I had figured it was because of my contact or I had just scratched it.  I was pretty certain I had Bell's Palsy, but I figured I should probably call my ob's office just to be certain.  Since it was after regular office hours, I spoke with a nurse.  After speaking with the nurse, she sounded pretty alarmed and said it sounded like stroke symptoms.  She said the ob on call would call me back shortly.  By this point, I was getting nervous.  What if this was something worse than Bell's Palsy?  What if I was having a stroke?  What if I had already had a stroke?  What would that mean for my babies?  What would that mean for me?  

The on call ob called me and said I should go to the ER to get checked out.  I considered driving myself to the ER, but then decided against it in case something serious was going on with me.  Adam was on his way home at his point, but I wasn't sure when he would be home.  Adam's mom lives close to us, so I called her to see if she could take me.  She said she could definitely, but Adam ended up making it home first.  

I still feel sorry for how Adam must have felt when he walked in the front door.  I told him that everything is probably fine, but that we needed to go to the ER.  We hopped in the car and made our way to the hospital.  As soon as we arrived, I checked in and was seen by a nurse quickly to check my vitals.  I was then whisked away in a wheelchair by another nurse to get a CT scan.  Apparently if you are a pregnant lady with stroke-like symptoms you don't have to wait around.  

I was starting to get very freaked out at this point.  Everything was moving very quickly and Adam wasn't allowed to come to the CT room with me.  After the technician wrapped up my belly in some lead blankets, they took some pictures of my brain.  The technician told me to stay still.  I was shaking from nerves at this point and was worried that I wasn't staying still enough.  But they were able to get the images taken.  

From there the nurse wheeled me to a private room in a wheel chair.  She told me they treat anyone with stroke-like symptoms from the top down.  Meaning they start with a CT and then move onto other labs. She said the CT technician didn't see any blood in my brain, which would have signaled a stroke, but that a doctor would double check the images.  I was very thankful she said this to me.  It did help me calm down. 

Since my initial blood pressure was a little on the high side, they wanted to monitor me for a bit to make sure I didn't have preeclampsia, as well.   

Once I made it to the private room, I was reunited with Adam.  A different nurse had me take off my shirt and put on a gown.  She added some leads to monitor my heart, put a thingy on my finger to monitor my pulse, put on a blood pressure cuff and started an iv to take some blood.  She was a pro and did all of this very quickly.  At some point I went to the restroom to provide a urine sample, but I don't remember when exactly this happened.  

Here's a really pretty picture of me at this point in the evening.  I'm thinking of having it blown up and put above my fireplace.  (Ha!  Just kidding!)   

Eventually the doctor came to see me.  He came in and said, "So I hear your face is broken."  He helped bring a little levity to the situation, which I appreciated.  He had me smile, close my eyes and raise my eyebrows.  He also touched both sides of my face, arms and legs.  After looking me over and the labs, he determined that I did indeed have Bell's Palsy.  He said it was a pretty mild case of it and that 95% of people with these symptoms return to normal.  He did say it could take anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks before things return to normal.  He recommended I take some steroids to help my face return to normal after checking with my ob's office to make sure the medication would be safe for the babies.  

My blood pressure eventually went down and no protein was detected in my urine, so preeclampsia was ruled out.  All in all, everything turned out just fine.  The babies are still in my belly and healthy.  I am doing fine, though my face isn't as cute as it could be.  I've included some pictures of my droopy face below for your entertainment.  

Whew!  Let's hope the next few weeks aren't nearly as eventful!  

Preparing for the Twins

Adam and I have discovered there are roughly one million things to do before the twins arrive.  As quickly as we can cross things off our to do list, more and more seem to be added.  But I think we are getting pretty darn close to checking off the last few items.  

I still have a ways to go in my pregnancy.  I am currently 31 weeks along and would love to make it to 38 weeks.  But there are a few different factors that might result in an early delivery.  Our hope is that the more prepared we are, the more likely I'll deliver later rather than early.  

We got the nursery completed pretty early on.  And our sweet family and friends were so generous in filling it up for us with all of their gifts.  So we feel like we have all of the baby "stuff" that we could possibly need.  

We also wanted to stock up on all of the paper goods, cleaning supplies and other products we use on a daily basis.  So we came up with a list of the things we use, everything from shampoo and toilet paper to hand soap and laundry detergent.  Then we went to Sam's Club and bought the items we could in bulk. The remaining we either got at Target or ordered from Amazon.  We filled our cabinets and put all the excess in our basement.  Although it looks a bit crazy and as if we are preparing for the apocalypse, I'm sure we'll be happy we don't have to run out to the store when we're happily bleary-eyed from lack of sleep.  

Next up on our to do list was to prep some meals we can easily prepare once the babies arrive.  I stocked up on frozen pizzas and meals from the grocery store.  I also scoured Pinterest for some crock pot meals that I could prepare in advance and then freeze.  So our freezer is pretty full at the moment, but I'm sure we'll be thankful to have decent meals to eat while we are operating on mere hours of sleep.  

One of the things that has been in the forefront of my mind is to make sure that Jazzy is well taken care of during my hospital stay.  I want to make sure she doesn't miss any meals and gets to go on her walks. Adam and I are fortunate to have family in town and my parents will be around when the twins arrive, so there will be plenty of people around to take care of our other baby.  I decided to put together this chart to help everyone make sure Jazzy's needs are met.  We're not quite sure who will be taking care of Jazzy, but wanted an easy way to keep track of Jazzy's needs in case several people break up the responsibility. Our plan is to leave this chart on the kitchen counter so people will know what's been done for Jazzy and what still needs to be done.  

From there I worked on packing my hospital bag.  I saved this task for last because I hate packing!  Plus, I didn't really have a clear idea of exactly what I would need to pack.  I found some lists on Pinterest, but I felt like some of the women who put those lists together were packing for month-long stays on a deserted island.  Luckily, when Adam and I went to tour the maternity ward at the hospital I'll be delivering at, one of the things they provided me with was a "What to Bring" list.  The list noted all the things the hospital would provide, pointed out the necessary items to bring and included optional items I might like to have. It certainly helped me pare down to packing only the necessities.  Plus, I figure if there's really something I need, there will be plenty of family around to make a house run for us.    

Even though we're getting close to being ready for the babies to arrive, they need to stay put for a few more weeks!  (You hear that, babies?!)

My Growing Family

Adam and I celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary today!  While it's only been six years since we said "I do," it's hard to remember a time when Adam wasn't a part of my life.  I love Adam a gazillion times more now than I did on our wedding day.  We have been through so much together and have come out the other side a stronger couple.  

While we take weekly photographs of my growing belly, we realized we didn't have any pictures of the two of us together.  So we decided to take some time today to take some family pictures.  While lots of them are pretty cheesy, I'm sure we'll want to look back at this time in our lives.  Plus, it will be fun to show our children these photographs someday.

Before we started, I made it clear that I wouldn't be standing in a field with a long dress or baring my midriff.  While we could have hired a photographer, we ended up going the economical route and just set up a tripod and used a remote.   

We took lots and lots of photographs!  Most of them just made us laugh, but a few ended up being keepers.  

Of course we had to include our other baby Jazzy in our family portraits.  Look at what a good little model she is.  She knows how to work it for the camera.  

I had the bright idea of trying to get a picture of us laying in the hammock.  We learned that having the camera by our feet only resulted in very unflattering views of our double chins.  But putting the camera by our heads worked out much better.  And look how sweet Jazzy is, giving her brother and sister a big hug.  

We also snapped a few of us on the front porch.  I really hope all of our neighbors watched us.  They were in for a treat if they did.  Looking at all of our photos certainly made Adam and I laugh!  

Now we can rest easy knowing we've documented our growing family.  It's pretty exciting to think about next year's anniversary!  We'll have two sweet babies to add to the photos.  Hopefully they will take a cue from their photogenic sister Jazzy.