We hope everyone is enjoying the holidays! Things here are okay. Christmas was uneventful, which is what we had hoped for. Jeff made me a delicious turkey dinner that I was able to eat (and keep down)! The only thing I wanted for Christmas was to still be pregnant and I got my wish!
We had our weekly doctor's appointment yesterday and got good and bad news. The bad news, which I somewhat expected, was that my cervix shortened a bit more. The cerclage continues to do its job, but it's a bit scary to see on the screen. Nico used to be head down, which freaked me out even more, but the sweetie decided to turn a bit so now his butt rests on my cervix. They didn't measure them again, but I was up almost 2 pounds in a week, so hopefully that means they have gained weight too. I see my regular OB today and we are planning on getting steroid shots for the boys. When women are at risk of pre-term labor, before 34 weeks, it is standard protocol to give the babies' steroid shots to help their lungs mature. I will get one shot today and one tomorrow.
Many people have asked when the dr's predict the babies might be born. There is really no easy way to answer this question. A baby is considered full term if born between 37 and 40 weeks. Any time a baby is born before 37 weeks it is considered premature. Obviously the closer to 37 weeks, the better for the babies. Babies can survive outside of the womb as early as 24 weeks. The earlier a baby is born, the more likely it is that he/she may encounter a variety of complications, many of which are life-threatening and can have some long term consequences. The dr's have told us that at this point a day in the womb is equivalent to a week in the NICU. While I feel good knowing that the babies would probably be okay if born now, I know that having 2 babies in the NICU for an extended period of time is not how I want my boys starting out their lives. Therefore, we are hoping that I stay pregnant for as much of January as possible. With my cervix so short, hospital bed rest seems to be in my near future. We'll see what the dr says today.
Oh yeah, the good news! While Nico was being very shy during our ultrasound yesterday, Blake was putting on a show for us. We were the last patients of the day, so the tech spent an extra long time with us on the 4D machine. During that time we saw Blake hiccup (Jeff didn't believe me when I told him that the babies were hiccuping inside me, now he does!), smile (he was dreaming of the yummy chocolate shakes that Jeff makes me!) and open and close his mouth. They look so much like real babies now and its amazing how we are already so in love with our sons!
Here are some pics from the ultrasound. Like I said before, Nico was being shy and wasn't facing the right way to get good shots, so they are all of Blake.
Have a fun and safe New Years! I hope 2009 brings us all joy and happiness! (and for us, several sleepless nights!)
Love,
Rebeca and Jeff
2 comments:
Good job! Keep those babies in as long as possible! You're doing great, just keep thinking positively!
I can't believe how much that baby looks like Jeff!!! Wild!!! Keep cookin mama. I know you can make it farther!!
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