Early Delivery

It's Crazy to think that less than 12 hours after my last post my babies were here! I am a planner and you would think I would have learned by now that my life never goes as planned here's my story... All day Monday I had this feeling that something bad was going to happen. My day went as usual until I got in bed to go to sleep. As soon as I laid down I felt a gush of fluid and I thought either my water just broke or I had started bleeding. I stood up and yep I was bleeding...again. It was 11:30 at night and Joel wasn't going to be home for 2 more hours. I didn't really want to drive myself to the hospital again and since this was the fourth time this had happened I decided to lay in bed and wait for him to come home. When Joel got home from work the bleeding hadn't really stopped so we headed to the hospital. We got there around 2:15am and they put me in a room to monitor the babies. They were doing great and the nurse said my doctor wanted to monitor me overnight. About 5 minutes after she left the room I started having painful contractions every minute. And with each contraction I could feel multiple blood clots. When the nurse came back in the room I told her I thought I might be bleeding quite a bit she checked, hurried out, and came back with another nurse. They didn't say much and left the room once again. They came back and told me my doctor was on his way and we were doing my c-section. WHAT!!! I was only 32 weeks! I immediately started crying and then from there a lot of it is a blur. They came in and did my epidural and were hooking IVs up to each of my arms. Then I was wheeled to the O.R. I couldn't feel a single thing during the c-section. I honestly was so out of it I thought I might die. I kept listening to the monitors waiting for mine to flat line...but thankfully it didn't:) My dramatic behavior could be the combination of the morphine, blood loss, and shock. William was born first @ 3:42am, and Ellie @ 3:43am weighing each 3lbs 4oz. I had only a moment of clarity and that was when I heard Ellie cry. I didn't even get to see the babies after they were born. They whisked them right out and Joel went with them. I started throwing up as they stitched me and I kept asking the doctor when it would all be over. At 4:15 I was back in my room and then taken to the mother baby floor. Everything happened so fast we couldn't even tell our families until after it was over. The nurses finally let me go see the babies 5 hours later after I began crying that I hadn't even seen them. I was only able to spend 10 minutes looking at them because I got sick but I thought they were beautiful even hooked up to all the machines. The rest of the day I was completely out of it and so sick to my stomach. It was hard to listen to babys' crying in the rooms next to us. I felt cheated. The week in the hospital felt like one long day. As soon as I was feeling better we went and saw the babies every 3 hours and was finally allowed to hold them once a day. When it was time to be discharged from the hospital I felt like I was leaving a piece of my heart there and I think I cried for 48 hours straight. I just felt so guilty. I am their mom and I was suppose to keep them safe and I didn't. I realize now that there is nothing I could have done to prevent this. Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us and I guess it is something I need to constantly be reminded of. William and Ellie are now almost 2 weeks old. Everyday is a rollercoaster and some days I wonder how we will get through all of this. I look forward to the day when they will be home with us. I miss them every second I am not with them. I have never experienced a love like this and I would do anything for them. Looking at pictures of them all hooked up to machines breaks my heart so here is two recent ones!

Will looking up at his Mama

Our little Ellie bean

32 weeks

Another week down! I am trying not to wish time away but I have never felt this sort of anticipation before. I know part of it is wanting to make it to the milestone of 34 weeks and then on to 36 weeks. Each milestone I hit gives me a sigh of relief. Even at 36 weeks my babies will be a month early but in the twin realm making it that far is an accomplishment. I try to keep myself busy while Joel is at work...not that I can do much while on bed rest. But last week I watched the entire second season of Downton Abbey...Matthew and Mary together at last! I finished crocheting a blanket and made my baby girl some hair bows. On Thursday, I was able to get out of the house for my first NST (non-stress test). They monitor the babies heartbeats and my contractions for 30 minutes. Baby girl hates having the monitors on and kicks at them constantly. Baby boy is a lot more compliant. I am happy to report the babies are still doing great! I will have a NST each week at the hospital from this point forward. To take advantage of our little outing Joel packed us a lunch and we ate outside on the grass. It was nice to breath in the crisp fall air and be out in the sunshine. Fall is my favorite season of the year and I feel like I have missed out on it while constantly being inside. I enjoyed watching General Conference over the weekend, especially since I haven't been able to go to church in weeks. I'm not sure there is much else to report. I'm trying to enjoy my last few weeks of pregnancy even though the bigger I get the more uncomfortable I am.

The one comment most often made when people found out I was having twins was "You are going to be HUGE!" I know I still have 4 weeks to go but thankfully I feel like I am doing pretty good with 7 plus pounds of baby.

One of the bows I made

31 weeks

It has been awhile since I have posted but one thing bed rest has given me plenty of is time. I am 31 weeks pregnant with twins and I wish I could say it has been an uneventful pregnancy. I found out I was pregnant on March 27, 2012 and after struggling with "unexplained infertility" for six and a half years it was one of the best days of my life! I found out a few weeks later I was pregnant with twins and a couple months later found out we were having a boy and a girl. I thought since I had been through so much to get pregnant that I was certainly entitled to an easy pregnancy but I was blessed to be able to experience every possible symptom. My doctor had told me I would have to go on modified bed rest at 28 weeks so I began working hard at getting things together and organized.

My time of preparation was cut short at 26 weeks. I woke up for work, had my usual dry-heaving spell, took a shower, and after putting my contacts in realized blood was all over the floor. I spent 3 days in the hospital as they worked to get my contractions under control. I had an ultrasound while I was there where they determined I had a low placenta and vasa previa (which occurs 1 in 2500 pregnancies). Although I am able to sum up my experience in 3 short sentences it was very scary and one event I was hoping to not have happen again. However last Saturday the same scenario began this time at night while Joel was at work. I drove myself to the hospital and tried to stay calm but that lasted for a whole 30 seconds. My doctor let me go home Sunday but I was back to the hospital on Tuesday with the same problems. I had another ultrasound while there and both babies are doing great weighing in at 3lbs. My doctor considered having me stay for the duration of my pregnancy but thankfully he let me go home on Friday. I have to continue to take a medication called Nifedipine to keep my contractions at bay. It makes me lightheaded, flushed, and anxious but I will do anything to keep my babies from making an early debut.

With vasa previa a regular birth is out of the question so I will be having a C-section at 36 weeks. I know it is only five weeks away, but right now it feels like months! I think it would be easier if I could use the time to "nest" and get everything ready for their arrival but being on bed rest makes this difficult. I know what you're thinking… a forced vacation laying around at home sounds glorious but after a couple days it gets old. I much rather be at home than in the hospital so I'm not going to complain too much. I am so grateful to our families and neighbors who have brought us meals and visited. All the service has made me want to do more...once I can! I am also so grateful to my wonderful husband Joel. He is such an amazing man and takes such good care of me!

We feel so blessed to be starting a family. I am so excited but nervous too. I worry about everything…will my babies be premature, will they be in the NICU for months, how will I be able to take care of two, how will recovery from a C-section be, will I be a good Mom, will my stomach be able to stretch any farther?…etc. etc. I'm sure most new Moms experience this sort of trepidation so for now I need to stay away from Google, appreciate the down time, and enjoy it being just me and my husband because before I know it I will be embarking on one of the hardest and most rewarding journeys.

I am going to try and update each week until the big day…it will give me something to do!

A year of little sleep and lots of caffeine…

Last May me and my bff decided to have a “craft day” while our husbands golfed. We made bread, a dress, and cupcakes. A week later we had our own little business called Chubby Hubby Cupcakes. It was a complete whirlwind of staying up late making hundreds of cupcakes and going to work the next day. It has been a creative and fun adventure! Also me and my bff did a couple races including the Women of Steel, Speedy Spaniard 10k, Vegas Ragnar (which included a 2am 7 mile run on a dirt trail in the middle of the desert—very memorable!) and the Halloween half marathon. In between all of that I went on two family vacations one to Lake Powell and the other to Yellowstone. Both were a blast! I also went to St.George with the girls from work—my favorite part of the trip was hiking Angel’s Landing. I ended the year with my 7 year anniversary and my sister's wedding. My sister was a beautiful bride and I stayed busy planning, catering (cupcakes and wedding cake) and being the maid of honor!

 

visit us at http://www.chubbyhubbycupcakes.blogspot.com

 

Beautiful Yellowstone

Angel’s Landing

First time as the Maid of Honor and first time making a wedding cake!

It snowed like crazy the night of our anniversary…hasn’t snowed much since:)

Hope everyone had a wonderful 2011 and may your 2012 be even better!

An EVENTFUL Vacation!

My wonderful boss took us on another cruise in January and we had such a fun time! I know this is a long post...but really it's the shortened version!

Friday January 21: I woke up at 4 am and felt so sick. The next 24 hours included throwing up every 20 minutes which was a splendid experience on both 3 hour flights, but we finally made it to Miami.

Saturday January 22: Joel and I flew standby so we arrived in Miami a day before everyone else (Thank you mom and dad you are the BEST!) We spent the day touring the city and went to South beach. My favorite color is turquoise and they had all these benches painted just for me:)



Sunday January 23: We boarded the ship feeling better and ready for a fantastic time!


Monday January 24: Since it was a day at sea we spent the day relaxing in the sunshine! It was formal night in the dining room and I had a lot of fun getting all dressed up! (Thanks Jenny for letting me borrow your dresses)




Tuesday January 25: Cozumel. This was probably my favorite day! We went on this speed boat called the Twister! We were harnessed in and the driver would go super fast and do 360's in the water. We got soaked but I have never laughed so hard! The boat took us to this private island called isla de passion (or something close to that). It had the most beautiful white sand, hammocks, volleyball, a water trampoline, and an all you can eat Mexican buffet. I loved it!







Wednesday January 26: Grand Cayman Islands. Joel, Dustin, and Dale went golfing and we took a yacht to Stingray city. The thing I loved most was the beautiful water. It was so clear that I could see the bottom of the ocean floor while riding in the boat. I'm not going to lie...I hated Stingray city. Don't take my word for it though because everyone else thoroughly enjoyed it. I just don't really like swimming with slimy, scary, huge animals. When I got off the boat and the stingrays started swarming us I got panicked and started crying (ya go ahead and laugh). I had to get back in the boat and calm myself down before getting back in. Don't let my traumatic experience scare you though, others loved it! I did kiss one... " 7 years of good luck."







Thursday January 27: Roatan. Oh I don't even want to post about this stop. The boys went scuba diving and we were just looking for a nice beach to relax at. Trying to get to a beach is a long story in itself but we ended up at the Parrot Tree Plantation. We didn't stay very long since we had spent most of our day in a van. On our way back to the ship we got hit by a car! This blue car was coming down this hill out of control going 50 miles an hour and hit us head on. I slammed my face on the seat in front of me and had my front teeth knocked clear back towards the roof of my mouth. I could probably do a very long post just on this accident but I don't want to overshadow the rest of the vacation. Just know #1 we were in a jungle and #2 it was very scary! We made it back to the cruise ship, everyone was cut up and bruised but it should have been a lot worse...and I am just so grateful we all walked away from it. Luckily I was with Dr. Nord (an orthodontist) and he popped my teeth back in place. They are still sore and I am hoping I won't need too much work done on them. I wish I had a picture of my teeth but I was in shock at the time and wasn't really thinking about a photo op:) I had a fat lip and the bridge of my nose was swollen (I guess some thought I looked like an Avatar)so picture taking subsided a little the rest of the vacation.




Friday January 28: Costa Maya. We went to a beautiful beach and had a very relaxing day. We shopped and had massages on the beach since we were sore from the previous day. After the accident, I thought I would never be able to leave the states again but I was glad we faced our fears and were able to enjoy Costa Maya. We also had another formal night back at the boat that night.





Saturday January 29: Day at Sea. We spent the day relaxing and did a photo scavenger hunt which sounds dorky but it was actually quite fun!



Sunday January 30: Said goodbye to Carnival Glory and the beautiful 80 degree weather!

2011... Already???

It has been a busy few months with school, work, and the holidays. In November we celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary and Joel's birthday. Christmas and New Year came and went too quickly and now it is 2011! Joel and I are taking the semester off of school and hope life slows down a little bit! Katie and Bridger moved out right after Christmas (she got a new job) and I miss them like crazy. I loved having them live with us and seeing Bridger everyday (Oh ya and Katie). I know I talk about Bridger a ton but he is my little buddy! The new thing he says all the time is "Kaela STOP it! Your MEAN! Hurt Bridger." So sad but I usually deserve it since its after I have been tickling him:)I always look forward to the new year and what life will bring. I hope 2011 will be a year of changes, fun memories, and more time with family and friends!
Here are a couple of pictures from the Holidays.

To get Bridger to take a picture just say "Let's see your fake smile or kissy face"

Summer 2010

I know, I know it's October but I thought I would post some pictures of this summer before I get even further behind.

LAKE POWELL-- Always a blast!


Joel and I ended up being in the worst rain/hail storm while in the ski boat. I took this picture just before all the action began.

Nice form right:)


Watching me face plant will surely make you laugh:)


Joel and I went camping for the first time together. I was a little nervous after the camp manager gave us a pamphlet on "bear safety" and told us he had removed a rattlesnake from our campsite the day before.


We made the best dutch oven dinner.

Speedy Spaniard 10K

#3 Triathlon
Bridger and Katie are still living with us and I love it! This is Bridger brushing between taking bites of his sucker. I hope everyone had a wonderful summer...here comes the cold:(