Our Path to Parenthood - Part 2 - The Birth/Delivery

Go check out Part 1 to hear all about The Pregnancy.

Quick recap of Part 1: Infertility. IVF Round 2. Positive pregnancy test. Surprise its Twins! You're having girls! Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome. Surgery one - fail. Poor Outlook. Bed rest. Surgery two - success. Eat all the protein. Labor at 27 weeks! Great now you're all caught up. Here's our birth story!

Sometimes miracles come in pairs!

The first night I remember waking up with Braxton Hicks and worrying they may be actual contractions was the night of Monday, March 28th. They would be bad enough I would track them to see if I needed to call the doctor. I would drink a large glass of cold water and lay on my left side and eventually, before I met the criteria to call the doctor, they would slowly stop. This happened every night that week. Then on Thursday night they didn't stop. They technically weren't consistent enough to call the doctor based on the criteria they gave me, but I was sore and tender and starting to cramp on Friday morning. Nothing that normally worked (cold water or a warm bath) was working to ease the discomfort. Around 10am on Friday, April 1 I called my doctor. They wanted me to go to UC to get checked out, just in case. I woke Corey up and told him he needed to take me in.

Corey drove me the short 10 minutes it takes to get to UC from our house. I remember being in the parking garage (the main entrance of the hospital was under construction) trying to get to where Corey could drop me off, when the car in front of us started to back up to reverse into a spot. My calm, hard-to-ruffle husband laid on the horn and yelled out the window to hurry up. He dropped me off and in I went. The hospital had a staff member guide me to labor and delivery. I checked in and waited to be triaged. Corey met me in the waiting room. I was taken into a room and hooked me up to all of the monitors. Thankfully, the girls were doing fine. While I was showing signs of contractions, the doctor believed they were most likely Braxton Hicks, but since I was uniquely high risk, the MFM team decided to admit me, just in case. I was moved into a room in the labor and delivery. I was exactly 27 weeks.

The doctor prescribed Indocin - an extra-strength anti-inflammatory - to try to stop the labor. I was also given the first dose of steroids. The goal of the steroids is to help rapidly develop the girls lungs to hopefully reduce risk of complications during/after birth. The steroids are given in two doses 24 hours apart and don't fully take effect until at least 24 hours after the second dose. Thankfully the Indocin worked and contractions stopped pretty quickly and on Saturday morning I was moved from labor and delivery to the antepartum wing, where I would wait until they were confident labor wouldn't start again and I could go home.

Overall Saturday was uneventful. Corey brought my laptop and a bag of clothes on Saturday morning when he came back to the hospital. I finally got serious about starting a registry. Things were looking positive and I started thinking about going home. But on Sunday morning I woke up cramping with contractions. I was quickly moved back to labor and delivery and put on magnesium to hopefully stop the contractions for a second time.

Final Baby Bump Picture - 27 Weeks 1 Day

Magnesium is both a miracle drug and the devil drug at the same time. Magnesium has multiple purposes during childbirth. It can be used to control blood pressure in the mom, especially in cases of preeclampsia, to stop labor/contractions, or to help protect babies' brains during premature births. While it does a lot of good, I'm not sure there is a woman out there who would tell you they didn't mind being on it. It is awful. Magnesium makes you feel like you're being run over by a truck and set on fire at the same time. Like I said, AWFUL. The magnesium did the trick, thankfully, and my labor stopped for second time.

Thankfully, through all of the excitement, the girls' heartbeats and fetal movements remained strong and healthy. I do remember having one of the most uncomfortable ultrasounds ever on Sunday. Cleo's head was wedged so far into my pelvis and bladder it was basically impossible for them to get MCA dopplers. The poor ultrasound tech was pushing so hard with the wand her hand got sore. I was tipped in every direction and put in every position trying to get all the needed images. They were able to get everything they needed and the girls continued to do well. I was basically told to sit tight and rest. This was hard to do because I was hooked up to so many monitors it was hard to move or get comfortable. I had two heartrate monitors, one for each girl, and a contraction monitor. Then there was an IV, blood pressure cuff, and pulse ox. So many cords. There were also nurses in my room almost every 15 minutes to adjust the heartrate monitors. Cleo was head down while Stella was head up, and both girls were facing each other, which basically put their hearts right next to each other, making it almost impossible to keep the monitors on the correct baby. Several times they needed to get the ultrasound machine in order to confirm they had two different heartbeats and weren't monitoring the same baby twice.

Once we had successfully made it past 48 hours since my first dose of steroids, and my contractions had been stopped for a comfortable amount of time, they were able to stop the magnesium (around 6am on Monday AM). This also meant most of the monitors were able to come off. It was decided that if I went into labor again, we would not try to stop it. On Monday afternoon I was finally feeling comfortable enough to get up and move around a bit. Corey had gone home to grab some clothes and do some grocery shopping - so we wouldn't have to go again for awhile - and I was finally going to take a shower. Unfortunately, while I was up and moving around, getting ready to shower, I started cramping and bleeding heavily. I was in labor. Again. This time it was back with a vengeance. The doctors assessed me and decided the best course of action was to cut the cerclage out and let labor progress. I called Corey and told him to come back immediately. Thankfully, he walked in the room right as they were starting to cut the cerclage out.

Some naïve part of me assumed that because I was going to have a C-section, I wouldn't have to labor. I figured I would start labor and they would immediately take me to a C-section. Therefore, I did zero research or preparing for labor in terms of what to expect or what to do. I didn't think about the fact they would want to let the girls cook as long as possible, therefore, letting me labor for as long as they were healthy. My contractions started low in my stomach and fierce. It felt like someone was stabbing me in the uterus with a knife. Much like I didn't think about needing to labor, I also hadn't considered getting an epidural. I figured they would do the spinal block during the surgery and that was it. It wasn't until one of the nurses told me - in the middle of a more painful contraction - I could get one, the thought even crossed my mind. Almost immediately I told Corey to set a timer for 20 minutes and once that 20 minutes was up I wanted the epidural. Props to women who do childbirth naturally, but I wanted the epidural. As my nurse said beautifully (in my opinion), you don't win an award for not getting an epidural.

I got my epidural - which worked wonderfully - and was able to relax a bit. While I could still feel the contractions, they felt more like heavy pressure rather than being stabbed. Corey and I watched a lot of HGTV while we waited for things to progress. I had gone straight to 2cm dilated once the cerclage had come out on Monday late-afternoon, but progression from there was slow. Overnight Monday my body did not react well to the magnesium. I was having chest pain, almost no fluid output, and my oxygen levels kept dropping, especially if I fell asleep. Tuesday AM, about 12 hours after I had started labor, I was still only at 2 cm. Because I was reacting poorly to the medicine we discussed stopping the magnesium as they did not want to leave me on it indefinitely. However it was also important to be on magnesium during the delivery to protect the girls' brains. The doctor came to check on me one more time before stopping the magnesium and I was at 3 cm! Because things were progressing they decided to leave me on the magnesium. Thankfully, through all of labor the girls were happy and healthy, moving and grooving with healthy heartbeats.

The plan was to let me labor as long as possible. However, because the girls were so small they did not want me to dilate to 7cm because then the girls could slip into the birth canal. This meant once I hit 4cm they would start prepping me for a C-section to ensure I was on the table by 5cm. As I started getting closer to 4cm my epidural was stopped to ensure it had properly worn off before they did the spinal block. Around 3:45pm on Tuesday, April 5th I hit 4 cm. It was go time. From that point on everything happened very quickly. I was to be on the table in the OR within 30 minutes. Corey and I were prepped and off I went. I was taken into the OR and given the spinal block while everyone else prepped the room.

One of the things that is still crazy to me is how fast everything happened once I was on the table. I remember them telling me they were doing a test to make sure I was numb. Right around the same time Corey was walking into the room. I remember looking over at him to say hi right as I heard them say 'Baby A is coming out'. I don't think Corey had even sat down yet. Right as Cleo came out I heard the most beautiful sound; crying. I meant to ask if it was expected for them to cry at 27 weeks, so I would be prepared, and not panic, if I didn't hear crying, but in the excitement leading up to the C-section, I completely forgot to ask. Another thing that was unexpected was just how many people would be part of the girls' delivery. I had a team of 10 or so people on my surgical team, and Cleo and Stella each had a team of 5, or so, NICU doctors/nurses. So many people. It is amazing to me how smoothly they all worked together.

Cleo Rose - 4:27pm - 1lb 14oz - 34cm

Unfortunately, Cleo was bleeding too heavily from her umbilical cord and they were not able to delay clamp it or bring her to me to say hi. Instead they rushed her to the NICU prep area across the call from the OR. Exactly one minute later I heard 'Baby B is coming out' and shortly after we heard Stella cry. They were able to delay clamp her and bring her to me to say hello before taking her across the hall. They were able to bring Cleo over to say hi once they got her stabilized but before they took her to the NICU.

Once I had been stitched up enough, and we knew the potential for complications for me was significantly reduced, Corey followed the girls to the NICU. Cleo was born at 4:27pm at 34cm and 1lb 14oz. Stella was born at 4:28pm at 31cm and 2lbs. After my surgery was done I was taken to recovery where I spent the next 2 hours before I was moved to the room. Around 12:30am, after all IV medicine was done, I was able to see the girls for the first time. It would be 3 days more days before I could hold them for the first time. Their NICU time is a story for another day.

Stella Quinn - 4:28pm - 2lb - 31cm

Some days I feel as though I have PTSD from the last 12 months. Some days I dwell on how the last 12 months have been the hardest months of my life. That they weren't fair. That I shouldn't have had to deal with a miscarriage that put me in the hospital, and infertility, and extreme pregnancy complications, and very premature babies all within the same year. I feel like my body failed these precious girls, that I could have, or should have been able to keep them inside me longer. I am their mother. I am supposed to protect them. They shouldn't have had to spend their first months in the NICU fighting for their lives. They shouldn't have had to prove just how strong they are yet. I know I am not the only parent to feel that complete sense of helplessness, to know there is absolutely nothing I could do to save their lives, or make things better. The anxiety over the future and the challenges my girls might face sometimes makes it hard to breathe; keeps me up at night.

Other days I feel like I am doing great. I know that I am strong, and so are my little warriors. I know how supremely blessed I am to have brought home my two beautiful daisy babies. I know there are so, so many families who aren't as lucky as we are. On my good days I look at my little warriors and am in awe of what strong fighters they are. I look at my body and am in awe that it created these lives. I can look back on the last 12 months and be grateful. Grateful of all we've accomplished. Grateful for this new outlook on life. Grateful that we beat the odds. I am able to recognize that I am just a human and give myself grace. I can look in the mirror rand know that without a doubt I would go through every awful, heartbreaking, and terrible moment again just to be able to know and love these girls.

Our Path to Parenthood - Part 3 - The NICU - Coming Soon