And Then There Were Five... {Birth Story}

I'm not gonna lie to you - this labor story might make you roll your eyes.

Thats how fast and "easy" it was - fast and "easy" as in it was less than three hours from start to finish.

Just know that if I sound like I'm bragging about my labor story, in all likelihood I probably am. After having Kendry four years ago I've come to be envious of those "fast and easy" labor stories because his was anything but. Oh, I know his labor didn't rank up there with the real doozies (i.e. 48 hours of labor followed by c-section or the like); but with the exception of the epidural, all day contractions and two hours to push out a 10+ lb baby do not an "easy" labor make.

This time around was a completely different story.

But first, a photo of me at 34 weeks, just two days before I went into labor.

Now allow me to walk you through the timeline.

Friday, May 10, 2013 @ 3:00 p.m.
I was enjoying Day 3 of my maternity leave and taking it easy because I'd been feeling a little off most of the day. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law arrived with my niece and Kendry in tow and we all headed outside to the back patio to enjoy the sunshine.

4:30 p.m.
I got too hot and uncomfortable outside and moved inside to the couch to put my feet up.

5:00 p.m.
I noticed my usual sporadic contractions were actually coming continually 5-6 minutes apart, although they still weren't painful. I tracked them for 30 minutes before admitting to my mother-in-law and sister-in-law that Justin and I may have to head to the hospital for some monitoring.

5:45 p.m.
I finally concede to calling my doctor about the contractions. Not two minutes after struggling to get myself off the couch and find the phone, my water breaks.


{CUE HUSBAND PANIC MODE!}

6:00 p.m.
We kissed Kendry goodbye, leaving him in the care of my sister-in-law, and departed for the hospital. Gritman Medical Center is about 35 minutes from our house. Needless to say, hubs put the peddle to the metal. Me? I closed my eyes and tried to keep my muscles relaxed, which wasn't too difficult since the contractions were still 5-6 minutes apart and didn't hurt yet. And with my eyes closed I couldn't see just how fast Justin was driving.

6:40 p.m. (ish)
We pulled up to the hospital, where they were expecting us. A quick wheelchair ride and I was checking into my room, getting hooked up to monitors. At this point I was still chatting with the nurses between contractions. After getting heart monitors for both boys the head nurse examined me and surprisingly announced that she thought I was already fully dilated.

Say what?!

I should note that Justin wasn't in the room at this point; he was still checking me in. Poor guy had no idea how quickly things were progressing until the doctor came in with her gown already on and they starting adjusting my bed so I could push. Thats when Justin got a little lightheaded and requested a chair. What I wouldn't give to have had this whole incident video-taped just to watch a play by play of Justin.

7:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
My room was suddenly bombarded with nurses, the anesthesiologist, the ultrasound tech and the on-call pediatrician. There were questions about the gestation of the babies, did they have the steroid shots, etc. Although it is general practice for twins to be delivered in the operating room as a precaution, we were told there wasn't time for that.

Crazy, I tell ya! And yet there I was, still chatting and making jokes with the hospital staff between contractions - just like in the movies.

7:33 p.m.
Pushed through two contractions.
Welcome to the world, Jack Steven!

7:39 p.m.
Pushed through two more contractions.
Welcome to the world, Cohen Rodger!

Both boys came out crying and breathing incredibly well. Neither had any need for oxygen during our entire five night hospital stay. Due to the unknown cause of my preterm labor, the pediatrician started the boys on an antibiotic as a precaution. After a blood culture came back with a good report on Monday, they ceased the antibiotics.

On Wednesday we were headed home.

The birth story still feels so surreal, but we are so very thankful things went as smoothly as they did.

Now the real craziness begins...

{30 Weeks}

Well, well, well, the final stretch has arrived at last.

And boy am I feeling it!

Confession:

Fixing myself up and finding maternity clothes that still fit for the simple act of taking a quick photograph of the belly doesn't rate as a pregnancy thrill for me at this point, but I do it for posterity...literally.

And for you, of course.

Before you judge me for sounding like a grumpy prego, allow me to share this little tidbit of information with you: I had my 31 week appointment this morning and measured in at 40 weeks.

That's right, I said 40 weeks - as in the size I was when I delivered Kendry, my 10lb 5oz baby.

Let's take a quick look back at that, shall we?

{5/5/09}

These days you will find me a little tired and very uncomfortable, but still counting my blessings. The little boys in my belly are as active as ever and I can't wait to meet them; but first we need them to bake for at least another five weeks.

30 weeks:

And in case you are curious, the green crinkle shirt still fits. Sorta.

10 weeks:

20 weeks:

30 weeks:

I may be uncomfortable but I still have a sense of humor.

Who Am I?

Pregnancy brain does crazy things to you.

Thats my story and I'm sticking to it.

Now let me tell you about our little incident this week - an incident Justin is sure to never let me forget.

The Defense:

I have to sit down and elevate my feet fairly regularly these days. Multi-tasker that I am, I try to find something productive to do during my sitting time. Last Sunday it was clipping my coupons while sitting on the couch.

Before you pat me on the back for my effective time management skills, read on...

The Incident:

Two days later Kendry was making a fort with blankets and cushions in the living room when he exclaimed: "Daddy, look what I found in the couch!" My first thought is that it was something harmless like a three month old hot tamale candy I dropped between the cushions. (And you thought I was never messy.)

Nope.

It was our large kitchen shears. In between the couch cushions.

I may not be fit to be a mother.

Pinterest

A Family Changing Shape

Kendry is nearly four and still doesn't realize his own strength. One of his favorite things to do is sprint toward Justin or myself and literally bowl us over with a hug. Justin can scoop that rocket of energy up into a bear hug. Me?  Not so much. My center of balance is a little off kilter these days.

Truth be told, I had to stop lifting my 'baby' several months ago, for obvious reasons. If I had heeded my chiropractor's advice I would have stopped lifting Kendry at his second birthday; but really, how realistic is that for any mom?

These days when Kendry sprints to bowl me over with a hug our first point of contact is his head with my tummy. His little brothers may be familiar with headbutting before they even leave my womb.

Just before the point of impact Kendry (usually) remembers the babies and softens his approach. Lately he enjoys planting a big kiss on my tummy.

Sometimes I wonder if the little boys will recognize Kendry's voice before my own. Kendry does have some advantage with his leverage.

Ten on Tuesday

{1}

Its Red Velvet Cake time!!

{2}

Hip hip hooray for a free babysitter on Valentine's Day! Justin and I are going out for a V-day dinner for the first time in years.

Our babysitter's name is Cubbies.

{3}

Parenthood does funny stuff to you.

Back in 2008, Justin and I vacationed for a week with my brother and his brood. While riding all together in the rented mini-van, my brother turned on Moose Tunes for his toddler boys' listening pleasure. I distinctly remember Justin and I giving each other funny looks as we listened to a grown man trying to sing like a moose. Later, back in the privacy of our own home, we confided to one another that we would probably go insane playing songs like that over and over for our children.

Fast forward almost five years and here I am, driving my kiddo to daycare while singing:

"There's a chocolate moose...on the loose...dancing all around in a red caboose..."

I do, however, refuse to make myself sound like a moose while singing.

A mom must have some boundaries.

{4}

Our 2012 tax return is the mail. Booyah!

And we are soooo looking forward to our two additional deductions for 2013.

{5}

There is nothing like cleaning a bathroom drain to convince you its time to go with a short hairstyle again.

I am seriously going to hack off a few inches before these babies arrive.

{6}

Kendry loves to talk. He gets it from his momma.

After talking for five minutes straight during breakfast the other day he finally paused, took a deep breath, and commanded: "Okay, Mom, its your turn to talk now."

Between the kiddo and myself I'm not sure how Justin ever gets a word in edgewise.

{7}

I got to spend a few hours scrapping with some girlfriends on Saturday. The race is on to get the highlights of Kendry's first few years into his book. I got two pages done, which was my goal.

{8}

Its funny how things come full circle.

Or maybe not so funny.

I was a nail biter all through my childhood. It was bad enough that my parents even started paying me a monthly stipend if I could show them long nails at the end of each month.

Guess who the nail biter is in our house these days?

It is driving me crazy!

A little shout out to my Mom and Dad: now I understand.

{9}

Here are our little boys at 20 weeks:

Baby A's photo was a little harder to snap because Baby B kept photo-bombing the shot. Baby B is going to be a handful - I can see that already.

Fortunately, his photo-bombing move of pushing his face back onto the screen left us with this cool shot of his facial features:

{10}

This Week's Blessing:

My boys (the ones not presently residing in my womb) getting to feel the babies kicking my belly for the first time on Sunday evening. The look on Kendry's face when he felt it was priceless.

The Joke is On Me...Literally {20 Weeks}

Thanks to Facebook and Pinterest, we've all seen those cute pregnancy progression shots taken by super creative parents.

I especially love this one:

PIN

Early in this pregnancy Justin gave me a present. When I opened it I wasn't sure whether to laugh or mumble a semi-genuine 'thank you' before wearing it once in his presence (and his presence only) and then secretly giving it to Goodwill.

The gift?

You may have seen these crinkle shirts; if not, I'm pretty sure your nearest drug store carries them. They come in an assortment of colors and travel wonderfully because, try as you might, you can't wrinkle a shirt made merely of fabric dimples. 

Justin's grandmother is a big fan of these crinkle shirts.

She just turned 92.

The oddest funniest feature about these shirts is that they are 'one size fits all'.

Don't believe me?

Are you catching on to my husband's wacky sense of humor yet?

Justin thought it would be funny to document my growing belly in this 'one size fits all' crinkle shirt...in the lovely shade of seafoam green, no less. 

He is lucky I'm such a good sport.

In theory, it should fit me from start to finish, right?

10 weeks:

This is my "Are you kidding me?!" face - lest you think I would actually wear a shirt like this in public.

20 weeks:

Surprisingly, it still fits over the belly, which I'm coming to realize is a good thing in this house.

The other night I slept in an old comfy t-shirt that is quickly becoming too small/short. While brushing my teeth the following morning Kendry spoke up:

"Mooom, your shirt!"

In no time he was at my side, gently pulling my shirt down to cover my exposed midriff. So sweet, right?

A short time later we were all in the kitchen preparing breakfast and I heard it again.

"Mooom!"

This time I swear I heard a hint of exasperation in his voice, as if my three year old were somehow embarrassed by such a blatant act of immodesty coming from his mother.

Call me crazy but I'm pretty sure he rolled his eyes when he said it.

As he once again tugged the hem of my shirt down over the mere two inches of exposed skin he inquired:

"Who keeps doing this to your shirt?"

Justin and I enjoyed a little chuckle as his expense before explaining that our babies are simply making my belly too big for my regular clothes.

Fast forward two days, when I was once again (solely within the confines of my own home) wearing a comfy pre-pregnancy shirt that was slowly inching upward. I turned away from Kendry for a moment and heard him say:

"Mom, I like your tattoo."

Okie dokie.

I went to my bedroom and changed my shirt.

Not that I'm embarrassed by the tattoo on my back; on the contrary, I still love that I had it done. I just don't see a need to encourage my preschooler's intrigue with tattoos at this point.

For the record, these are my official progression photos.

10 weeks:

20 weeks:

Show Me Your Best Pose, Baby!

One advantage of IVF:

by 16 weeks gestation we had already had three separate photo ops with our little boys.

See how photogenic they are already?

On transfer day:

At 7 weeks:

At 16 weeks:

Baby A (bottom 16 week pic) was a bit of a sleepyhead for his photo shoot, except for willingly showing us his sex.

Baby B (top two 16 week pics) on the other hand seemed to have absorbed every ounce of the chai latte I drank on the way to the ultrasound (don't judge). He would not. sit. still. No wonder I've been feeling him since just before the 16 week mark. He did, however, stop moving long enough to give us a thoughtful pose with his hand at his chin.

See?  Photogenic!

 

At the 16 week mark both boys measured/averaged at 16 weeks 5 days.

I, on the other hand, measured at 19 weeks...and am feeling pretty darn good about it, thank you very much.

A little twin info for you, which we just learned at the ultrasound: the assignment of Baby A is given to the baby whose sac is closest to the cervix, meaning he will deliver first. Throughout the pregnancy they will be consistently referenced as A and B so as to respectively track each one's growth from now until their arrival.

Incidentally, even we will be calling them Baby A and Baby B until their arrival because:

a) we don't have names picked out yet; and
b) even once we select the names we intend to keep them a surprise until the boys are born.

Sorry, folks.

Seeing Double on a Christmas Card

If you were on our Christmas card mailing list this year, you received this announcement:

 

 

I got this idea from Pinterest (where else?), and pondered it for several weeks before creating our own version. Why the hesitation, you ask?

 

Over-analyzer that I am, I actually wondered if some recipients might think we were finally getting a dog.

Go ahead.

This is a safe environment.

You can be honest.

Is that what you thought when you saw our Christmas card?

If so, rest assured you weren't the only one second guessing our message. I have received a few inquiring emails from friends over the last two weeks.

What can I say?  I love subtlety.  Especially when it pertains to a pregnancy resulting from an IVF cycle that almost everyone (and their mother) knew we were doing.

 

~ A little mystery now and then is good for the soul ~

 

With that in mind, I'll let you in on a little secret:
 

 

 

Its time to stock up on band-aids and denim jean knee patches.

Time to trade-in for a swagger wagon that can hold all three of our boys in carseats and later, all their teammates and sports gear.

Time to succumb to the fact that I will be behind on our laundry for the next eighteen years.

 

Its also time for this momma to have a monthly mani/pedi stipend so as to stay in touch with my girly side when my house is busting at the seams with testosterone.

As for next Christmas, don't stress too much about finding a hidden subtle message.

We won't have time to be that creative anymore.
 

 

What's that?

You say you didn't receive a Christmas card from us?

Well....this is awkward...

 

Ten on Tuesday

{1}

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

{2}

We were in bed by 9:30 last night.

{3}

I fell short on my reading goal for 2012, but for good reason. Sleep has ranked a little higher than reading these last three months.

I am, however, kicking off 2013 with a bang and reading some Dr. Dobson:
The New Strong-Willed Child.

Please don't ask why I've waited until my own strong-willed child reached the age of three and a half years before finally reading this book.

{4}
This morning we made a two cupcake recipe (courtesy of Pinterest) and delivered one to a special gal on her 92nd birthday. {Kendry ate the other one.}

Happy Birthday, Grandma Ellen!



{5}

Can you really blame a kiddo for refusing to go potty on a public toilet that auto-flushes no less than six times while he is still sitting on it?

Seriously, McDonalds, use some of your millions to design a more kiddo-friendly bathroom... with non-intimidating toilets.

{6}

Crazy hat night at Awana:

As the parent helper that night I figured I should be an active participant. My viking hat was the envy of many a 3-4 year old, including Kendry who swapped me hats midway through the evening.

{Can you see the baby bump?}

{7}

Speaking of the bump, the wonderful down jacket Justin bought me last winter just ain't gonna cut it for my Alaska trip in two weeks...

unless I want to bust apart the zipper.

 

{8}

We recently introduced Kendry to the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie {circa 1990}.

Kendry has subsequently added the word "bodacious" to his vocabulary.

{9}

January always inspires the organizational side of me. With our family growing in 2013, there is no time like the present to do a little purging while organizing.

Inspired by my friend Cassie who did this last year, I'm taking on a 31 Bags in 31 Days challenge this month, with a goal of purging one bag per day of unnecesssary clutter and/or garbage from our home.

I'm already ahead of the game, with three garbage bags destined for Goodwill in the back of my car.


 

{10}

This Week's Blessing:

90% certain I have felt baby flutters the last two evenings.

Sixteen weeks tomorrow!

The Big Brother

Several of you have asked how Kendry responded to our pregnancy news.

We actually waited until Thanksgiving to tell him. Lucky for you, and for posterity, we caught his reaction on camera.

Please excuse our three year old for sounding a little self absorbed in the first video.

His life as an only child is about to get rocked and he hasn't a clue.

Let's try that again, shall we?

Straight from the kiddo's mouth: he wants a baby sister.

We'll Be Home For Christmas

No, not in Alaska, which I still fondly refer to as 'home', but our real home right here in the LC Valley.

This marks the very first year in our marriage that Justin and I will be home for Christmas.

It will be Kendry's first Christmas waking in his own bed. 

Our first Christmas around our very own tree, warmed by a fire in our very own fireplace.

Can you tell how much I am looking forward to this?

So much, in fact, that it seems to have upped my expectations for creating a perfect December for our family.

Gingerbread houses, an evening drive to view the various Christmas light displays, a baking day and the Christmas Eve candlelight service are all on the calendar.

Egg nog and hot cocoa with marshmellows are available to the kiddo on demand this month, no matter the time of day.

We're taking the time to slow down and cherish each moment, remembering the real reason of Christmas.

Google

After all, this isn't any other Christmas; this is our last Christmas as a family of three.

 

What can happen in a year...

It is with great joy that we remember back to a year ago, when we first received confirmation that we were finally pregnant!

"For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him."
1 Samuel 1:27

Kendry's very first photo (as a tiny embryo):Kendry's second photo (7 weeks gestation):

Kendry on his birthday (5/8/09):
Our precious boy today (4 months old on 9/8/09):

What a miracle God had done in our lives this year! We are blessed beyond measure!

Birth story

It has been two weeks since our little boy arrived on May 8th and I figured it was high time I post the details of his birth story. I was due on May 5th, but that date came and went. Justin took these pics of me on my due date:

A few of my friends were telling me that I didn't even look pregnant from behind. I just figured they were trying to be nice about my size, but it was actually true: On May 7th (which happens to be the birthday of both my sister Stephanie and my brother-in-law Jeff) I headed to work as usual, even though I was having slight contractions. After a few hours at work my contractions were about ten minutes apart and getting a little stronger, so I decided to head home and see if this was the real thing. I ended up having to call Justin a few times at his work because he was away from his desk. That figures, right? On my drive home I had three contractions pretty close together so I started to get excited, thinking this was really it! Justin and I arrived home about the same time and decided to just relax for a bit at home and time the contractions, but within an hour they were fading away. Needless to say, I was pretty upset and told Justin we needed to take a walk. We took about a half mile stroll and I was still feeling next to nothing. I told Justin there was no way I was going back to work (it was a little after noon), but he was considering logging on to work from home so he could still be productive. We camped out in the living room for awhile, just watching TV, and within an hour or so my contractions were picking up again. By 3pm they were about 5-8 minutes apart. Even though they weren't very strong and weren't painful at all, I decided to go ahead and call my doctor to notify him and ask what we should do. Since we live half an hour away from the hospital in Moscow they instructed us to go ahead and come up so they could check me out and see if I was making any progress. Here I am right before we headed to the hospital (of course I am making our bed so we didn't come home to an untidy house):We arrived at Gritman Medical Center in Moscow between 4 and 4:30pm and they hooked me up to a monitor to see how things were going. I was having pretty long contractions, but I still wasn't all that uncomfortable. My doctor came and talked to us and basically told me that while I was contracting and was at 3 centimeters, I didn't really look like I was in labor. He told us we could head home, but since we lived a half hour away he was willing to go ahead and get things going by breaking my water. At this point we just decided to go with that option. We were too excited to head home without a baby. So, Dr. Minudri broke my water around 5pm and we were ready to go. I promptly called my mom to let her know what was going on.

And then things got interesting... :) The doctor had told me that things could go quickly once he broke my water, or it could take awhile. Let me tell you, it did not take long AT ALL! Within a half hour I was having steady, hard contractions and could hardly move. I figured that the contractions would be spaced a little apart so I could regroup in between, but they weren't. So, my plans for a natural birth went quickly out the window. I told Justin that they should probably get the epidural coming ASAP. Of course, I think that about two hours passed between when I initially asked for the epi and when it was actually given to me. Grrr! I was at 5 centimeters right before the epi and at 7 centimeters once they got it in. Talk about intense, trying to hold still while they stick that in your back and you're having contraction upon contraction! Not to mention that the anesthesiologist had to stick me about six times to get it in. Apparently the bones in my spine are very tight so he finally had to stick it in from the side. It did not occur to me that this might be due to my scoliosis. But, it was worth it. By 9pm I was relaxing in bed and still making great progress, I just wasn't in any pain. Whew!

We relaxed and watched a little TV. Before we knew it, it was 11pm and my doctor decided it was time to start pushing. They told me for a first baby it could take about two hours, and sure enough, it did. I had hoped to get him pushed out before midnight so he could share his birthday with family members, but that just wasn't happening. Our little Kendry Dru emerged at 1:15am on May 8, 2009. The last few minutes of pushing got a little scary because Kendry had his hand lodged up under his chin, so his shoulders weren't coming out properly. All I know is that the doctor quickly told the nurses to push my legs back and they were all telling me to just keep pushing. The doctor ended up having to give Kendry a little tug, but he came out alright.
Right when they gave him to me the doctor and nurses all commented on how big of a baby he was. Of course, Justin and I really had no point of reference at this point - we just thought he was absolutely beautiful. They let me hold Kendry for about fifteen minutes on my tummy, where he did a great job at his first nursing attempt. Finally the nurse took him over to the scale to get a weight. She asked for guesses and since they were telling me he was big I guessed 9 lbs 2 oz. Boy was I wrong! The nurse started chuckling and said "How about 10 lbs 5 oz?" I was shocked! In hindsight, I am not sure that I could have pushed him out if I hadn't had the epi. This picture was actually taken after Kendry's first feeding, so the scale shows 6 oz instead of 5 oz.

Since Kendry was so big they did a glucose test on him right away to make sure his levels were okay. In fact, they were a little low so he had to do a feeding of sugar water. Daddy got to do the honors on that. They repeated the test a few hours later and he was back within the normal range, thankfully. After that he took off eating like a champ...and hasn't stopped.Today we had Kendry's two week doctor's visit and he is already weighing in at 11 lbs. We have quite the healthy baby boy on our hands. Here he is at two weeks: