We just wanted to share a very quick update on the babies and on Jenna. The babies are doing very very well given the circumstances. They are fighting every second of the day but are defying all of the odds. We are so in love with them and they really are doing well. They have breathing tubes and a couple of other monitors for temperature and blood pressure but really nothing else. They love to hold on to our fingers and try not to let go. Preston's eyes are still fused shut but everytime he hears momma's voice, he fights so hard to open his eyes! They are so amazing and we beg and plead that you all pray for them along with us! We look at them and are reminded just how much work they will have to do. We really cannot do this without you!!!
Many of you have expressed a desire to come and visit us. At this point my recovery is progressing at a rapid rate and I am excited to see my friends and family. Short visits are welcome if you would please just call and we can think of a time. Please no drop ins as our schedules are busy with pumping, monitoring, NICU visits, Eva time, and sleep time. We are so grateful so many of you want to be with us during this very hard but exciting time in our lives. Please contact us directly if you want to come visit, we dont want anybody feeling like they are not welcome! We love you all!
Trever and Jenna
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
The Quads are Here!!
Hello everyone...this is Trever..the proud father to these babies. I wanted to update the blog really quick to give everyone an idea of how our family is doing. Here is a recap of the events of yesterday, Dec 30, 2008.
Yesterday morning Jenna had an appt with Dr. Albert(her high risk doc) for another routine appointment. He did a sonogram and checked all the babies and they all looked perfect. During this time we were sure we would be able to go back home since everything looked so good. Then he did a vaginal ultrasound to check Jenna's cervical length. He was very quiet as he did this and we got worried. Even by my own eyes I could tell that things didn't look right. He then told us that Jenna's bag of waters was bulging through her cervix and was in her vaginal canal....in particular it was Dahlia's bag of water. The bag of water had found the point of least resistance and decided to stretch the cerclage causing her to dilate. As you can guess, we were shocked as this was not one of the possible problems that we had ever discussed.
So they then admitted Jenna until the babies were born. By the time we got to L&D, Jenna was having contractions that were coming every two minutes. Luckily, after about 3 shots of terbutaline, the contractions stopped. Jenna was in much pain and discomfort from the catheter that they placed....and that made things even more difficult as the meds made her heart race and body shake. They decided that they would give her pain meds to calm down and hopefully relax. Jenna became relaxed and we were once again optimistic about carrying the babies to 28 weeks. By about 7pm, Jenna's contractions were coming every 2 minutes and were pretty painful. They were definitely the kind of contractions that would cause her to dilate...and keep in mind that her cervix was already at 1cm. They were able to control those contractions with more terbutaline and Jenna was getting some rest. After Eva and my mom left for the evening, at around 8:30 I stepped out of the room to give Jenna some privacy as she was going to use the restroom. Soon after I left, Jenna felt what she thought was a small water ball right inside her vagina. About this time, the nurse walked back in the room and Jenna told her that she felt like the catheter had slid out of place. Much to her surprise and shock, the nurse said is was Dahlia's bag of water and the babies needed to be delivered right away.
There was much screaming and shouting in Jenna's room as nurses, doctors, respiratory therapists, techs, and anesthesia were all scrambling to get to the OR. They were trying to calm Jenna down as she was hysterical and extremely scared. They wanted to move fast so the bag of waters wouldn't brake. Since it was such an emergency, they wouldn't let me go into the OR. I felt sick, scared, excited, and calm all at the same time......very euphoric!
So as the delivery took place I was in the hallway and nurses would occasionally stick their heads out to let me know how things were going. After about 30 mins, they began to cart the babies to the NICU. I was able to see Dahlia and Parker but they took Madelyn and Preston to the NICU via the backdoor and I was unable to see them right away. As of this time, all the babies had good vitals, good body color, and two of them even tried to breathe on their own---very huge for such a young age. After another 30 minutes or so, they brought Jenna out of the OR and into recovery. She was good, just scared still. I was able to stay with her for an hour before the babies were stable enough for me to go see them and take pictures. After another 4 hours Jenna was feeling well enough to go down to the NICU and see the babies too! We have pictures but no USB cable to upload them so I will try to get home tonight and get the cable so you all can see our gorgeous little blessings. We are so very much in love and cannot wait for Eva to meet you brothers and sisters. We love them all so much individually. It makes us love Eva even more knowing that these babies chose to come to not only us, but also to her. Thank you to all of our family and friends for your concern, thoughts, prayers, and calls.
Here are the specs for each of the babies:
Dahlia-1lb 11oz, 12 in
Preston-1lb 12oz, 13 in
Parker- 1lb 10oz, 12.5in
Madelyn- 1lb 9oz, 11in
As of the time of this post, they are all breathing room air with the assistance of ventilators. The boys are taking meds to help control their blood pressure but they say that is to be expected for a 25 week baby. The next 4-5 days are huge and will give us a better idea of the real expectations for each of them.
Thank you again for your prayers on our behalf.
Yesterday morning Jenna had an appt with Dr. Albert(her high risk doc) for another routine appointment. He did a sonogram and checked all the babies and they all looked perfect. During this time we were sure we would be able to go back home since everything looked so good. Then he did a vaginal ultrasound to check Jenna's cervical length. He was very quiet as he did this and we got worried. Even by my own eyes I could tell that things didn't look right. He then told us that Jenna's bag of waters was bulging through her cervix and was in her vaginal canal....in particular it was Dahlia's bag of water. The bag of water had found the point of least resistance and decided to stretch the cerclage causing her to dilate. As you can guess, we were shocked as this was not one of the possible problems that we had ever discussed.
So they then admitted Jenna until the babies were born. By the time we got to L&D, Jenna was having contractions that were coming every two minutes. Luckily, after about 3 shots of terbutaline, the contractions stopped. Jenna was in much pain and discomfort from the catheter that they placed....and that made things even more difficult as the meds made her heart race and body shake. They decided that they would give her pain meds to calm down and hopefully relax. Jenna became relaxed and we were once again optimistic about carrying the babies to 28 weeks. By about 7pm, Jenna's contractions were coming every 2 minutes and were pretty painful. They were definitely the kind of contractions that would cause her to dilate...and keep in mind that her cervix was already at 1cm. They were able to control those contractions with more terbutaline and Jenna was getting some rest. After Eva and my mom left for the evening, at around 8:30 I stepped out of the room to give Jenna some privacy as she was going to use the restroom. Soon after I left, Jenna felt what she thought was a small water ball right inside her vagina. About this time, the nurse walked back in the room and Jenna told her that she felt like the catheter had slid out of place. Much to her surprise and shock, the nurse said is was Dahlia's bag of water and the babies needed to be delivered right away.
There was much screaming and shouting in Jenna's room as nurses, doctors, respiratory therapists, techs, and anesthesia were all scrambling to get to the OR. They were trying to calm Jenna down as she was hysterical and extremely scared. They wanted to move fast so the bag of waters wouldn't brake. Since it was such an emergency, they wouldn't let me go into the OR. I felt sick, scared, excited, and calm all at the same time......very euphoric!
So as the delivery took place I was in the hallway and nurses would occasionally stick their heads out to let me know how things were going. After about 30 mins, they began to cart the babies to the NICU. I was able to see Dahlia and Parker but they took Madelyn and Preston to the NICU via the backdoor and I was unable to see them right away. As of this time, all the babies had good vitals, good body color, and two of them even tried to breathe on their own---very huge for such a young age. After another 30 minutes or so, they brought Jenna out of the OR and into recovery. She was good, just scared still. I was able to stay with her for an hour before the babies were stable enough for me to go see them and take pictures. After another 4 hours Jenna was feeling well enough to go down to the NICU and see the babies too! We have pictures but no USB cable to upload them so I will try to get home tonight and get the cable so you all can see our gorgeous little blessings. We are so very much in love and cannot wait for Eva to meet you brothers and sisters. We love them all so much individually. It makes us love Eva even more knowing that these babies chose to come to not only us, but also to her. Thank you to all of our family and friends for your concern, thoughts, prayers, and calls.
Here are the specs for each of the babies:
Dahlia-1lb 11oz, 12 in
Preston-1lb 12oz, 13 in
Parker- 1lb 10oz, 12.5in
Madelyn- 1lb 9oz, 11in
As of the time of this post, they are all breathing room air with the assistance of ventilators. The boys are taking meds to help control their blood pressure but they say that is to be expected for a 25 week baby. The next 4-5 days are huge and will give us a better idea of the real expectations for each of them.
Thank you again for your prayers on our behalf.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
VIABILITY!!! 3D PICS!!!
TODAY IS 24 WEEKS AND WE NOW HAVE REACHED THE POINT OF VIABILITY! We are so very excited and it feels like a dream to finally be here! It really is our first milestone and our next one will be 28 weeks! I have not been having contractions and I have felt pretty good so we are definetly thinking we can make it!
We had a 3D ultrasound today and we only were able to get pictures of Preston. He is in front of all of the other babies so he was pretty easy to see. We saw a bunch of body parts including one of the boys booties lol! It was adorable :)! Preston looks amazing. I am so happy we got to see one of the babies today! We will have another 3D ultrasound next week on Tuesday after Dr. Albert's appointment.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Countdown to 24 weeks...
It feels so good to almost be at 24 weeks. I just wanted to add a mini post and will update more on Tuesday after our 3D ultrasound. Yesterday and today I have not felt the best. For lack of better description, it feels like my pelvis is spliting in half! My hips are killing me, my back hurts and I am really sore. But despite all of this, I really am feeling optimistic about this pregnancy.
Yesterday I had a really amazing experience. Like I said, I have been very achey so I got in the bathtub to read. It was really neat because one at a time the babies started moving. I was looking down at my belly and for the first time, I could see them from the outside! It really made me feel so much more in love with them! They really became even more real to me! I am getting really excited to meet them!
I have been dreaming about them lately, and so has my mom! It is really neat to see them and be with them in my dreams! I know everything will work out really well! The other night we had our first volunteer meeting. There were alot of women that showed up and we were so greatful with it being the holiday season and all! There have been so many amazing people willing to help us!
I also wanted to add that we really appreciate the comments that we get from our readers! It helps to keep us optimistic! Hope everyone is having a great weekend!
Yesterday I had a really amazing experience. Like I said, I have been very achey so I got in the bathtub to read. It was really neat because one at a time the babies started moving. I was looking down at my belly and for the first time, I could see them from the outside! It really made me feel so much more in love with them! They really became even more real to me! I am getting really excited to meet them!
I have been dreaming about them lately, and so has my mom! It is really neat to see them and be with them in my dreams! I know everything will work out really well! The other night we had our first volunteer meeting. There were alot of women that showed up and we were so greatful with it being the holiday season and all! There have been so many amazing people willing to help us!
I also wanted to add that we really appreciate the comments that we get from our readers! It helps to keep us optimistic! Hope everyone is having a great weekend!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
More good news!
Today we had our 23 week appointment with Dr. Albert! It was super! I am just so excited to share how it went. We were extremely nervous for this appointment because more than likely Dr. Albert will be the one to admit me if anything goes wrong. And with my cervix having had decreased a whole centimeter at last weeks appointment, we were really scared about what he would say.
So we had our ultrasound and it was perfect. The babies are all measuring normally. Here are the weights for the babies:
Dahlia- 1 lb 3oz
Preston- 1 lb 4oz
Parker- 1 lb 5 oz
Madelyn- 1 lb 1 oz
Trever was so excited that his boys were so big! The doctor said I am really growing these babies well because the biggest baby (Parker) is in the 77th percentile! Even Madelyn, the smallest baby, was in the 50th percentile. It is so neat to see the babies over a pound now.
So at every ultrasound, the cervix measurement is very last. So Trever and I's nerves never let up throughout the appointment. Last week my cervix was a 3.6 and this week it grew an entire centimeter and it was 4.6!!!! We are so glad! The doctor was shocked!
So then I asked my doctor how and when he would decide to admit me into the hospital. He told me that as long as I am doing well, my cervix looks good and I am able to maintain the same level of bed rest that I am now, he would let me stay at home! Whew! What a relief! It would be so nice if I could make it 5 more weeks at home. That would put me at 28 weeks when I am admitted and at that point the babies could arrive any time. I am so greatful for how the day has gone so far!
Some of our friends came over last night and are helping Trever build a bedroom in our 3rd bay in our 3 car garage. Since all three of our extra rooms are nurseries now, we really wanted to have a room for our guests. We are really excited about that, and so greatful to our friends who would take the time to help us! It really means so much!
Here are the pics of the babies from today!!!
Dahlia
Preston
Parker
Madelyn
Friday, December 12, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Poopchi!
Yep you read it right, Poopchi is the word of the day (actually of the last week). That is Eva's new word for her beloved pizza!
We have another update for you all about the quads. I am now in my 23rd week. We had an appointment this morning with Dr. Herzog and everything went well. All of the babies look great. We were surprised to hear that my cervix had shortened down to a 3.6. The tech and the doctor still seemed pleased and cheered us on for how well they think we are doing. The doctor measured my belly and I am now measuring 37 weeks! Crazy huh? I delivered Eva at 38 weeks! That would definetly explain why I am tiring out pretty easily.
We are really excited because on the 23rd of this month we will get to have our 3d ultrasound! It will be really great to see them before I go into the hospital. Here are some pics of the babies and my enormous belly!
Dahlia
Preston
Parker
Madelyn
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
21 Weeks!
Wow! We have accomplished 21 weeks and are embarking upon week 22! I cannot believe how fast this pregnancy is going by! By week 25 I should be in the hospital until the babies are born, so the countdown is officially here. This morning we had a doctor's appointment with Dr. Albert and it went fantastic! All of the babies are growing normally and they all look perfect! We found out that Madelyn is the reason for my rib pain on my right side! Poor little girl is jammed up into my ribs.
Both Dahlia and Preston weigh 12 ounces and Parker and Madelyn weigh 13 ounces. My cervix grew from my hospital stay from a 4.4 to a 4.5 so that is exciting as well! It feels so good to know that my rest is really helping.
We are really looking forward to spending Christmas with Eva! Melonie helped Trever put our Christmas tree up. We are kind of sad we cannot do all of the Christmas lights we usually do outside this year, but that would be way to much work for Trever alone! This year would have been prime for us to win the neighborhood Christmas lights contest (we usually take second place) because the first place winner has moved!
Here are the pics of the babies from today!
Dahlia (Looking upward, middle, bottom)
Preston (looking straight at you)
Parker (looking straight at you)
Madelyn
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