We found out that we were expecting on December 9, 2013. We had already discussed having our children about 2 years apart but had not really begun planning for our next child... needless to say, we were a bit shocked to find that we were expecting for the second time.
The pregnancy started out pretty smooth. I felt great and seemed to have passed through without morning sickness, or so I thought. Then it hit me, about 8 weeks in. There was never a moment that I did not feel sick. If I ate, I felt sick and if I didn't eat it was way worse. When I went in to have my first checkup my due date was set to August 15, 2014. The doctor mentioned the possibility of hearing the heartbeat echo or hearing 2 different heartbeats. I quickly assured the doctor that being pregnant with twins was impossible since they didn't run in our family; the doctor wanted me to have an ultrasound just in case. They were booked for the day in the ultrasound department and I did not feel like driving to their other location, so I decided to schedule my ultrasound later in the week (especially since, in my mind, it was not possible that I could be pregnant with twins!)
Two days later, I showed up to my ultrasound with my mother and son who was 15 months old at the time. And there we saw it, 2 babies! What!? Yeah, I was pregnant with TWINS! I had not only 1 miracle growing inside, but 2. Unbelievable! (I am still shocked just thinking about it and they are 2 months old now...) My mind was racing and my hands were shaking. I immediately called my husband to let him know; he seemed to be less shocked than I was. I let others know by a call or text message before having a quick lunch with my mother and heading back to work. No wonder I had been feeling so sick.. There were 2 babies! The morning sickness lasted for several more months and by the time it decided to go away, it was not noticed too much since it was replaced with complete exhaustion. Every week that I got through was an accomplishment for me and I took it one week at a time.
By around 31 weeks, it began to be hard for me to get around. My hips hurt and my back was aching so bad. I was in constant prayer and tried to maintain a positive attitude. My husband would remind me almost daily that when the pregnancy was over, I would miss it. I would miss their movements and their little hiccups. I would miss rubbing my belly and watching them move. I cherished each moment, even when I was uncomfortable, and I tried to sleep as much as possible. (Definitely hard to sleep when you have a small toddler running all over over the place with what seems like endless energy!)
I continued working full time. My mom and mother in law were such a big help, especially in the last few months. They would provide us dinner and help keep the house picked up.. such a blessing to us in this time! I began working only 6 hours hours a day about 2 weeks before the twins were born.
On Monday, July 14 , 2014, (at this point, I was 35 weeks and 3 days along) I went into work and around 10 am I thought I felt my water leaking. I just ignored it thinking 'surely my water isn't really leaking.' I noticed it again about noon but I was leaving at 2 so I just continued working. When I left work at 2, I called my mom and told her that my water may be leaking but I really needed a nap before calling the doctor. She insisted that I call the doctor immediately; I called the doctor and had an appointment about an hour later. Sure enough, my water was leaking and I was sent right to the hospital. I was induced throughout the night and my doctor arrived about 10 am the next day to talk to me about the babies. Baby A was doing great, head down and ready. Baby B was breech. The doctor said that if everything continued going well with both babies (stable heart rate and able to be monitored) then we could continue with the plan of vaginal birth. She asked if I would be willing to deliver a breech baby, if they were unable to turn baby B, and I agreed - any thing to keep from having a C-Section, especially paired with a vaginal birth!
Time seemed to pass slowly in the last few hours before delivery but the time had come. The doctor and several other staff members came in to take me to the operating room. The plan was to deliver in the OR just in case something went wrong and I needed a C-Section. The room was cold, the walls were white and everything else in the room was stainless steel. My doctor was ready to deliver the first baby while another doctor from the practice was to my left keeping an eye on baby B through ultrasound. My husband to my right, I began pushing. Baby A, Avery, was born at 11.56 am. They handed her to me, she was so perfect! The doctors then attempted to turn baby B, pushing and pulling on my belly, but turning her was unsuccessful. The doctor broke my water and let me know that she was going to deliver baby B breech. The doctor began to feel for baby B's feet and when she was sure, she had me push. I was so nervous and I do not remember much about pushing, all I could do was pray. A few moments later, 12.02 pm, there she was. Bri was here and delivered breech successfully; I was so relieved that I was able to deliver twins vaginally. They let us see her for a brief moment before taking her to the NICU for her breathing.
They wheeled me back to the room and we spent time with Avery while Bri was in the NICU. I was released from the hospital on Thursday and Avery was released Friday. Bri was kept in the NICU for a total of 10 days. Thankfully, while she was still admitted, Avery and I were able to stay in a hospitality room. In this extended time, we were able to somewhat get used to having twins before adding our toddler to the mix!
Stay tuned for more updates, along with tips, on how to cope with 3 kids under two years old. Thanks for reading!
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