Back to the Twins!

There really isn’t much to report other than what miracles these sweet baby girls have been! Every appointments we have been to has been nothing but great news. Both babies have been growing perfectly and all fluid levels have been perfect! I have to say that this pregnancy has been very hard on my body. Everything hurts and sleeping is nearly impossible, But I can’t complain Because of the success we have seen from these girls. They are truly a miracle. Here are some “Bump” pictures for documenting. (Sorry not in order)

Florida Keys

after the trauma had settled down from Vances accident, We took all the boys down south to Key Largo for a vacation. It was much needed! Our good Friend owns a beautiful home there that we were blessed to be able to stay in, Athough I was already very uncomfortable from the pregnancy, I was able to relax and take my mind off worrying about the babies. We Fed Tarpon, went to the beach, went boating, kayaking, fishing and more! Everyone had a blast.

What a summer!

I was so motivated to keep up this blog with this pregnancy but we sure have had a busy summer... just for journaling purposes, I wil document a few things that happened this summer while the sweet twin girls have been growing inside me. Shortly after my 17 week appointment, we had a bit of a hardship. Our oldest son Vance (age 14) was long boarding down a hill near our house and had a bad wreck. He got going too fast and had to jump off. He added wrong and snapped his lead in 2 paced requiring surgery. The most tragic part is when he was in the hospital the first night, his sweet therapy dog of 5 years went out looking for him and got hit by a car and died. The Next morning as Vance was trying to raise his spirits, he asked if we could bing his dog down to the hospital to comfort him. It was so heart breaking to have to tell him that she had been killed the night before. It is so hard to watch your child suffer, even when knowing its all for their growth. We had so many tender mercies, wonderful doctors and nurses, and sweet service from ward members. Families from church brought meals, treats and games for Vance to play. His surgery went great. They inserted a titanium rod into his eg to help with healing. The rod willl come out after bout 9 months. I am so thankful that it alll went so smoothy!

17 week appointment

So I spent two weeks wondering if these girls were identical, Fraternal, 1 placenta, 2 placenta.... the curiosity was killing me.  On May 21 they did another scan and determines that they are identical and they share a placenta. It’s hard to even imagine 2 identical children but I’m so happy. Again, a nice but different doctor explained that this means monitoring every 2 Weeks and Bed rest if I start to dilate. She explained the risk of the babies sharing a placenta but I had a continued feeling of peace. I continue to grow more and more uncomfortable. The pressure is getting intense.  I feel God carrying me every day all day.

15 week appointment!

                                                      {Waiting room. I am so excited}

           After being told that these babies are in the same sac, and that this would be a VERY difficult pregnancy, I finally submit. I have spent the last 5 weeks accepting all the grim possibilites that an “extremely high risk pregnancy”. I told myself I can do hard things and spent many many moments in prayer . Even tho, I fought feelings of complete worry, I was able to find peace knowing  that I am in Heaveny Fathers hands. Well, April 29....I had my first appointment this the OB/GYN. We had an 8am appointment. I was definitely nervous but I was extremely excited because I just felt that I was going to get good news. I wasn’t even sure if they would do an ultrasound, but I was still excited. I met with this wonderful woman Doctor who, walked me through what the next few months looked like, (a lot of monitering and inpatient at 24 weeks) but she was kind and VERY positive. She then took me over to the Utrasound room to show me 2 heart beats. After she showed me both signs of life, she very quickly said, “I see a membrane separating the babies”. HUH?! I had to ask her if she was sure. She assured me a few times that these babies are NOT in the same sac. Wow. What a blessing this was. I felt so very thankful to Heaveny Father. She then went out to grab a more experienced doctor to come verify what she was seeing. This was another great, kind Doctor. He quickly verified and then asked if I want to know the gender of the baby. After I said yes, he looked at the other Dr and said, “well don’t you think that looks like a...” then together they said “GIRL!”
I can’t reallly explain the rush of emotion but it all just goes back to feeling so blessed. So then the checked the other baby and said they couldn’t get a real clear view. They both said they were “pretty sure it was a girl”. That’s good enough for me.
          We quickly went home  to tell  the boys they will be finally be getting getting a sister. I wanted to do something fun so I filled a balloon with pink paint and let them shoot arrows at it. Vance almost got it, but it just seemed a little too hard for them. Brogan finally had to get it with the pellet gun. Their reactions were not what I expected. I’m pretty sure they were in shock. It’s been surreal thinking about 1 or 2 girls coming into our home. I’ve been a boy mom for 14 years, and I know all there is to know about boys. The whole family has been thinking about how we can do better for these sweet babies coming into our home. We continue to pray for them and Me. I’m almost 18 weeks and I am very uncomfortable. It’s going to be a humbling next few months, But I am prepared. Twins are such a miracle. A true blessing from God. I’m so excited for this whole experience and all it has to offer. I feel so blessed to know so many people are praying for me. The prayers are truly felt. We go for our next scan in 4 days and  feels like a kid waiting for Christmas. I’m just so excited to see the twins again.

 Thin membrane found between the babies.

At the Beginning....

    About a year ago, my 12 year old son Brogan told me that he was going to pray for twins. I thought it was interesting because ever since I was a little girl, I felt like I was going to have twins someday. But when my brother had twins 4 years ago, I felt it even less likely that I would have them. Truthfully, I can honestly say that I have always known I would have them. This brings us to Feb 10, 2019 when I ran up to Dollar general to get some milk and and other small Items. While walking through the store, I started realizing how fatigued I was. I felt like I was wearing a wet blanket and completely exhausted. After seeing the pregnancy test on the shelf and immediately recallling the multiple times that my 9 year old, Bennett, pointed to my stomach and said, “Mom, you pregnant. It’s a fact.”.... I KNEW I was pregnant. I got excited and nervous and took 3 tests up to the counter. As I was bouncing around waiting in line, A large, happy woman behind me leaned in and asked, “Would this be good news, or bad news?”. I smiled and said definitely great news. She then said, “Well, you’re about to have twin baby girls”. I got the happiest feeling and ran home to take the test. All 3 tests were positive. Four days later, We took the Boys out for Dinner at a BBQ place in Williston. After dinner, we gave the boys a “Valentines Day” card where we told them that baby #5 is on the way. They were all SO excited and surprised. Each one of them was happy. The next day is when Brogan started saying it was twins. I would just smile and not really feed into it. I even heard him tell a friend on the phone that we had twins on the way. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind. Right around that time, Ben and I were able to go to the temple together. While in the celestial room, Ben said a quiet payer for us. As he prayed for “the baby” inside of me, I was immediately overcome and knew with a surety that there was more than one baby inside of me. I knew it from the bottom of my heart. From that point on, I was talking to the babies. Addressing them as 2 babies.
         Fast Forward to an appointment with  a wonderful PA in my ward. I asked if he could just refer me out for an ultrasound, quite frankly so I could put this twins thing to rest. I was in the ultrasound room at 7am the next morning. As soon as a layed down on the table, I jokingly told her that my son thinks its twins. She laughed as she placed the gel on my belly. As she looked around for the baby, She got a shocked look on her face and looked at me and said, “Is he psychic? There are two babies”. I just smiled, and cried, and smiled, and cried. The tears were coming because I could feel Heavenly Fathers arms wrapped so tightly around me. I quickly got Ben on FaceTime and told him the news. I think his reaction was happiness mixed with shock. I then called my mom at 4:30am her time. She said she was already awake lying in bed. Her reaction was pretty great. Also Shock. Identical twins.... I felt like I hit the lottery. Our whole famiy felt that way. The boys were thrilled. Not surprisingly, Brogan was not shocked but the other two were. What a blessing! I think Ive had every emotion run through my head.
        While we feel nothing but joy and excitement, along with the news of having identical twins, we also learn the rarity of these types of twins. As I have recently learned, there is a rare set of identical twins that come from when the egg splits extremely late, after it has been attached to the uterine wall. These types of twins share a placenta AND an amniotic sac. Along with this can come complications. I made the mistake of getting on Google where statistics and stories were quite frightening. After finding a support group online and A LOT of conversations with Heavenly Father, I have arrived at a place of peace an submission. I can do all things through Christ. All that matters is that he has already given me these two beautiful babies inside of me that will be mine for eternity. This is a joyous occasion. I look forward to bringing these babies here no matter how hard or how big the sacrifice. I can do this.
     Ive been prompted to document this journey. To record my thoughts, feeling and impressions As I go through his pregnancy. All the Hard moments, and more importantly, all the miracles along the way.