Hotel Hospital August 29, 2008

I am currently settled into my hospital for who knows how long.  The ultrasound yesterday went well.  The babies are stable and still fighting to stay inside Mommy’s tummy.  Basically, the reason for admitting me into the hospital was to make sure that should I have any contractions or go into preterm labor, they would be able to get to the babies quickly.  As it turns out, I was having some contractions yesterday.  The nurse put me on the fetal heart monitors and walks in about 1/2 hour after monitoring me and says, “Have you been feeling those contractions?”  Being a first time mom, I felt something different, but I just thought the babies were moving around.  They gave me a shot of something to relax my uterus and it worked.  The nurses also had quite the ordeal with trying to find the two different heartbeats on the fetal monitors last night.  I was up until 12:30 a.m. until the whole process was finally over.  (I should note that George soundly slept in the hospital bed next to me while I was being woken up every 1/2 hour.  I wish I had the gift of sleeping as soundly as he does.)  Nothing was wrong.  It was just that Hannah is small and the babies move  A LOT so telling the difference between the two heartbeats proved to be more difficult last night. 

I had my first pity party this morning.  It’s just hard being alone (which I haven’t been totally alone) and not knowing how long I will be in here.  I want to be out quickly, but that obviously is not the best thing for my daughters.  I was laying in bed thinking this morning about how I know that the first time I see my daughters I will know that all of this is worth it.  It’s just hard in the mean time.  Yet, I know I have to remember all that the Lord has brought us through and this is just one more hill to climb until we get to the top of the mountain.  The Lord is already teaching me what it means to sacrifice as a parent. 

George has been great so far.  I am in a private room with two beds and he gets to stay.  That is a huge blessing!  I love him and it just helps a lot to have him going through all of this with me.  Pray for him because I know that he’s sacrificing as much as I am and he is feeling stressed out, too.

I just saw my regular OB and he has told me that as soon as the perinataologists tell them it’s time to get the babies out, it’s time.  He predicted it would be another 2-4 weeks, but probably more within 2 weeks.  He also said that he didn’t think I would have made it this far and that I seemed to have “defied gravity” because Hannah’s diastolic flow has returned.  Translation: The Lord has answered our prayers and is giving Hannah more time!  Until I get more news…

Baby Shower & Baby Pictures August 27, 2008

I’m trying to tie up some loose ends today by organizing all of the pictures that we have taken lately.  Here are some baby shower pictures and the ultrasound pictures from yesterday. 

Isn’t She Lovely? August 26, 2008

This will be my last post from the comfort of my home.  There has been no change in their health since last Friday so I was sent home one last time.  Dr. Kalter did sense that I was developing twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (http://www.tttsfoundation.org/) based on Kate’s growing amniotic fluid level and her growing bladder.  He said that there is nothing we can do about it at this point nor is there any cause for too much concern because Hannah seems to be stable and doing fine.  Hannah and Kate were both very active, like always.  Both were practicing breathing (yea!) and were dancing around my womb.  Hannah was also yawning.  I’ll share a picture of that later. 

I was given a final date for admission into the hospital and that will be after my ultrasound appointment on Thursday morning.  This is due to a couple of reasons:

1) I have vasa previa and it is standard procedure at this point and with all of my pregnancy complications to admit a woman at 28 weeks in case the cervix would begin to dialate and the vessel stretching across it could rupture, threatening the babies life.

2) To more closely monitor the girls’ heartbeats and health.

Lastly, our ultrasound tech was kind enough to switch it to 4-D ultrasound and we got a picture of Kate!  Isn’t she precious?  Her hand is kind of in front of her face.  It amazes me to actually see that my baby has a “real face” and just a glimpse of what she’ll look like.  I am so used to seeing just the profile.  Anyways, enjoy!  We love you guys and are so appreciative of EVERYONE who is praying, serving us, and encouraging us.  I do have a couple of more pictures that I will probably post tomorrow.

A Pain in the Butt August 22, 2008

So the only real thing that I came away with from today’s appointment was a pain in the butt (or actually my thigh).  The babies seem to be doing very well.  Hannah is obviously still very small, but Dr. Kalter looked at blood flow, amniotic fluid levels and heartbeats.  He said that things look just as stable or slightly better than Tuesday!  He actually even saw some diastolic flow through Hannah’s umbilical cord, which means that her blood flow looked to be completely normal.  Yea, Praise God!  What I especially liked about this doctor was that he spent about 15 minutes looking at the babies himself.  He did send me to get a steroid shot (hence the pain in the thigh) as a precaution.  This shot will help with lung maturity should I deliver in the next 2-3 weeks.  If I don’t deliver, then the steroid naturally wears off and I’ll probably have to repeat the process.

He did look again at possible twin-to-twin transfusion, but said that both of their bladders were normal size and he didn’t see any strong evidence that it was the case.  He also said it is difficult to diagnose at this late in the pregnancy. 

So, once again, thank you so much for your prayers!  We seem to be safe until next Tuesday!

Ultrasound Update 8/19/08 August 19, 2008

Hello……so good news and bad news.  The good news is that the blood flow is still intermittently absent, but stable.  Kate is now up to 2 lbs. 9 oz. (our baby is a chunker).  Normal babies are around 2 lbs at this point.  The bad news is that Hannah is only 1 lb. 4 oz. and had only grown about 4 oz. in the past 3 weeks.  Her growth is starting to level off or plateau, which eventually will lead to a stillbirth.  Her amniotic fluid level is also low.  This could be due to two things, either twin-to-twin transfusion (which he still doesn’t believe is the case) or due to the placenta not working as it should.

I am going back to the doctor again on Friday, 8/22.  He told me to come with my bags packed.  However, I also have appointments set for Tuesday and Thursday of next week, but I will probably definitely be in the hospital for good on Thursday.  He is still estimating that I can make it another 2-3 weeks, which will put me around 29-30 weeks.  We really want to make it past the critical 28 week mark.  When they put me in the hospital it will be to monitor the babies’ heartbeats more closely. 

Please, please pray for Hannah (especially) and Kate.  It’s so hard for me to believe as a mother that my baby is struggling because I feel them everyday, but I know that just feeling them is not an indicator of health.  Once again, we appreciate all of the prayers, love, and encouragement you all have provided.

More on Pastor Simeon Nix August 18, 2008

I just wanted to add a little to the blog I wrote yesterday about the passing of our music and worship pastor, Simeon Nix.  It was yet another tearful and “take-your-breath-away” Sunday service as we deal with the loss of another pastor.  For those of you who have been to Bell Shoals before and heard Simeon lead worship, you know that he was anointed by God and had an amazing voice.  I really never had any interaction with him because you all know how God skipped the Schaefer family when it came to musical talent.  George and his family are close to him though as they have served in the choir and George in the orchestra for many years now.  I know that it really hit George hard.  I did want to share the one very precious moment that George and I shared with Simeon just a couple of months ago.  Our church had a music ministry reunion when they dedicated our new sanctuary.  George decided to share the good news with Simeon that I was expecting twins and Simeon was overjoyed.  He said something to the effect of, “The staff all wept for you guys when we found out that you had miscarried.  We’ve been praying for you.”  I think that said so incredibly much about not just his character, but our entire pastoral staff’s heart for ministry and prayer.  We have been ministered to countless times by our pastoral staff through prayer and notes of encouragement. 

When I first heard the news about a week ago that Simeon had suffered a heart attack I was with my mom and told her, “I’m glad he’s okay because I don’t think that our church could handle losing another pastor.”  Apparently the Lord thought differently.  When George told me that Simeon had gone home to be with the Lord, I thought, “Wow, Lord, you are really letting Satan sift our church.”  (See Luke 22:31-32)  Some people have said that this is the Lord’s judgment on our church and that God is finally getting us for all of the hate we preach.  No, these men are in heaven singing before an Almighty and perfect God.  How much better can it get?  Simeon loved the Lord and was not afraid to share that with anyone.  It doesn’t make the loss any easier, but we have hope.  I’ll be very blunt and honest for a second, some of you reading this do not have the hope of heaven because you have never accepted Christ.  When you pass away, there will be true mourning because you are not going to spend eternity with God in heaven.

I will have failed you greatly as a Christian if I do not share the good news with you.  Everyone of us is a sinner. (Romans 3:23)  I am, you are, we all are.  That is one club that has no exclusions.  Because of that sin, we are separated from a holy and perfect God.  The punishment for that sin is death.  (Romans 6:23)  Jesus Christ came as God in a human body so that he could pay the penalty for sin.  He died on a cross in our place.  He actually became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21)  It’s up to you whether or not you want to accept his forgiveness and gift of grace.  You cannot get to heaven by good works.  Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and the only way to heaven. (John 14:6)  Some of you might be wondering what happens if you die and you do not accept Christ?  Well, the Bible clearly says that if your name is not found in the Book of Life (those who have accepted Christ), you will spend eternity apart from God in hell.  How do you accept Christ?  “That if you confess with our mouth and, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” (Romans 10:9-10)  Then, let another Christian know so that they can show you how to begin your relationship with Christ.

As a church, we will continue to believe and trust God that He has good plans for us.  Please pray for Simeon’s wife, Beth, and his two children, Bre’Ana and Sterling, both 7 or 8 years old.  Pray for our pastoral staff as we now have two huge gaps with enormous responsibilities that have to be filled.  They have also lost two very close brothers in Christ in the recent months.  

 

As long as weather permits, I will have another doctor’s appointment tomorrow and give you all an update on my girls!

26 Weeks August 15, 2008

Here are a couple of belly pictures.  Enjoy the “whale watching”!

More Good News August 12, 2008

So once again I am writing from the comfort of my parent’s home after my ultrasound appointment.  Praise God!  Dr. Sloan said that nothing had changed from last week’s appointment so everything is stable.  There are still periods of intermittent diastolic blood flow through the umbilical cord (that’s for all of you medical people).  For those of you who are medically ignorant like myself, that is a good thing.  He also even estimated that I would make it to 29-30 weeks, which was an improvement from his original 27-28 weeks estimate!  I am currently 25 weeks and 5 days.  Kate has also changed positions and is now head down.  Since the beginning of the pregnancy she has always been feet down so I thought that was interesting.  They are doing what they should be doing naturally.  Dr. Sloan also mentioned that the amniotic fluids were a little low for Hannah, but nothing to be overly concerned about at this point.  They will be doing measurements at next week’s appointment.   

Just a couple of cute things that we saw through the ultrasound…Hannah had hiccups and she was practicing breathing.  They don’t actually breathe until they are outside of the womb, but their lungs start preparing for it, which is good if they are born premature.  Once again, the ultrasound tech commented on how playful they were and how much they wiggled around!

I also got to stop in and see my new little second cousin-in-law (Jeremiah) that was born on Monday.  He is beautiful and Mom is doing good!  So once again, thank you many times over for all of your prayers!  God is answering them so keep praying!

Unknown Outcome August 12, 2008

Let me start out by saying that the idea behind this post doesn’t come from myself, but from a fellow blogger.  I thought it summed up very well the unknown outcome of our situation.  The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego can be found in Daniel 3.  The shortened version is that these 3 brave young men refused to worship the image of King Nebuchadnezzar.  For this refusal, their punishment was to be thrown into the fiery furnace.  This was their response to their fate:

“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king.  But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. (emphasis mine)”                                       ~Daniel 3:17-18

I know that I have communicated a couple of times how despite us not knowing how God is going to work through our daughters’ lives, we still have peace.  God doesn’t promise deliverance from our trials.  Sometimes he chooses to deliver us from the trial, sometimes in the midst of our trial, and sometimes through our trial.  God delivered us through our trial when He took our first baby home with Him to heaven.  He delivered us in the midst of our trial when he blessed us with another pregnancy.  I’m not sure what He is going to do in this current trial.  Looking back on all that we have been through, I can finally say, “Okay, God, I get it now.”  If He hadn’t shown Himself to be so faithful over the past couple of years, I do not know how I’d be keeping my sanity right now.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a worrywart with a capital W.  Praise God that He bears my burdens though!

Our faith isn’t revealed when we can say, “God, I’ll worship you, but only if you walk us out of this fire unharmed.”  What kind of faith is that?  Faith is being fully persuaded and having a firm conviction that you can take Him at His word.  That kind of faith brings peace.  It’s definitely not easy getting that kind of faith.  That’s why James says in James1:2, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”  The goal isn’t our happiness, but that we be conformed to the image of Christ.  (A great truth one of the women in our bible study shared with me concerning Romans 8:28.) 

It’s not easy for me to type all of that knowing that I go in to face more ultrasound results tomorrow.  No matter what the results may hold tomorrow, I am now held accountable to my faith.  With that said, please pray for Hannah and Kate.  I will tell you that I already know that my little girls are fighters because they made a punching bag out of my stomach today.  I’ll keep you posted as to the results…

Ultrasound Update 8-6-08 August 6, 2008

Good news….I’m sitting here writting this post from my parent’s house, which means I am not in the hospital!  As I noted previously, I saw Dr. Fry, a different doctor than the one I normally see, but he had the following to say:

1) Hannah’s blood flow looked better or the same from Friday’s ultrasound!  Yea! 

2) Nothing looked worse.  He said that things looked good today (not normal…but good, for my situation)

3) He mentioned that Hannah had less amniotic fluid in her stomach than Kate so it could be hinting at a possible beginning of twin to twin transfusion syndrome, but the levels do not meet the criteria of it officially being labeled that now. 

So we did have a couple of new things thrown at us (twin to twin), but nothing major.  There is no point in doing new measurements because of the short length between appointments.  The difference between today’s measurements and Friday’s could have been due to measurement “error” or growth, but the numbers wouldn’t be significant at this point…so nothing new there.

I have another appointment next Tuesday morning so we’ll look to see God’s hand at work again.  I’m excited about the news today, but I am still a little cautious because I’m hearing reports from two different doctors, but I have confidence that Dr. Fry knew what he was talking about. 

My girls are little wiggleworms and have been delighting in doing interwomb aerobics.  Thanks again for all of your prayers and encouragement.  Keep praying for them, that the Lord will keep them in my stomach for many more weeks and that Hannah would grow.