Switching Over...

Now that Kaitlyn and Molly have joined our family, this blog is complete. In-Vitro has been quite the experience and in 2 pregnancies has given us 4 children. Our family is complete. :) To follow the family, you will need to read the family blog: domrese.blogspot.com

This blog will remain open and active for those friends and family that are going through similar infertility experiences and for those that want to remember the journey that brought us Kaitlyn and Molly (and Thomas and Joshua).

Thank you for all the friends and family that offered support during the experience. We could never have made it without you to lean on. Everyone should be as lucky.

1 Week Old

Can you believe it's already been a week? Last Tuesday I woke up pregnant and by the time the night was over, these two little girls had blessed us with their presence.

1 Week Stats

Molly-
Weight- 5 lbs, 9 1/2 oz (over her birth weight...hooray!!!0
Height- 20 inches
Head Circumference- 13 1/4 inches

Kaitlyn-
Weight- 6 lbs, 11 oz
Height- 20 3/4 inches
Head Circumference- 13 1/4 inches

The appointment went great. The girls were fairly easy going and took everything in stride. The boys kept pretty busy and enjoyed tormenting each other during the appointment. Last time I forget to bring snacks! Oops! :)

First Outings

Mommy has cabin fever. After 3 days at the hospital and 3 days at home, it's time to get out. Yesterday we got out of the house for a short trip to the carousel. I sat with the girls while the boys, daddy, and Ba rode the carousel. The amazing part was that Ba (Aunt Kim) got the golden ring twice in a row! After that, I was done and the girls were done, so Dan dropped us off back home and went back down for a few more rides. I didn't take any pictures of the girls at RFP as they slept covered in the stroller.

Tonight we went to Applebees for Uncle Adam's birthday. I have to admit, I was a little nervous about multiple parts of this adventure. For one, just getting out of the house takes an unimaginable amount of time. Since dinner was at 4:30, I started packing the diaper bag and getting everything laid out an hour earlier. This works well until it comes to feeding time. It's tricky to try and feed the girls and get the maximum amount of time before the next feeding, but also get enough time before traveling that they aren't spitting up (or choking on spit up) while driving to the destination. Both girls decided to be hungry (again) at 4:05. Dan got the boys in the van and got gas while I fed the girls (again) and tried to get them in car seats. I was pretty impressed that we were only a half hour late. The girls were extremely well behaved and sat quietly through all of dinner. I was nervous we'd have to do a feeding at the restaurant which in itself is not a big deal, except it takes quite a while, so occupying the boys could have been an issue. Luckily, the girls were good and we escaped the outing unscathed.

More pictures tomorrow as the girls will be a week old!

We're Home!

After a long night of pumping and running milk up to Molly she was finally released to us. We just had to convince her the drinking was better with us! She came down yesterday (Thursday) morning with the stipulation that we would spend the day at the hospital making sure she ate well and kept up on feedings. No problem! We love the hospital and were in no hurry to go home! The boys spent the day with Grandma Nancy and Dan and I spent the day with tons of doctor visits, lactation consults, etc. I did manage to sneak in a nap though! :) We finally left at nearly 7 PM and got everyone settled.

We are so thankful Molly was released and able to come home with us. She is such a great little girl, so easy going. Both were up the majority of the night enjoy a multitude of feedings. They are both great little nursers and seem to really enjoy mommy time. The boys are doing great and have so much energy! It's amazing how big they seem now with the girls home!

Currently we have shut our doors to visitors so we can have some bonding time with Molly and kind of get settled. Dan, however, would like to state that food DOES allow some exceptions! :) I'll try and update again later when we are a little more rested and a little less overwhelmed.

Blessings from God

As I sit here, I realize that my life will never be the same. I went into our regular OB appointment on Tuesday prepared to beg my way into being done with this pregnancy. It appears I didn't need to do much begging. I went from barely being dilated to a 4. He actually had to move Molly's head out of the way in order to check (sorry if that's TMI). He said that I could go home and get stuff ready and scheduled the c-section for that night at 9:00 PM. I immediately called Dan home and we prepared for the hospital.

Molly Joanne Domrese- 5#7, 19 inches, 9:20 PM

Kaitlyn Ruth Domrese- 6#14, length unknown, 9:22 PM

Both girls were taken for observation in the NICU initially for breathing too fast. Kaitlyn came down with us later that night. Molly is now being held hostage (at least that's what it feels like). Kaitlyn is a voracious eater, and has her own little personality already. She hates bright lights, doesn't like it when I eat ice, and hates clicking noises. :) She has a huge mop of brown hair that is ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE! She is an easy baby and very very cuddly. Molly is just a little petite girl. She is absolutely a doll. I have not been up to see her too often because she will just stare at me with these big eyes and clutch my fingers as if she'll never let go. It's devastating and extremely emotional. So far I am pumping and she is eating a bottle, but I have faith that if she's released tomorrow she'll become a great nurser.

We are being released tomorrow, and are hoping to bring Molly home with us. If not, we may try and stay for another day just to be closer to Molly and hope that she can get home the next day. Mere, my sister-in-law and savior, came to the hospital tonight and fed Molly one of her feedings. She needs to successful feedings in a row in order to be released. After that first feeding Mere made me feed her. It was successful too! No promises on her release, but I'm feeling much more confident in my feeding abilities and I'll fight for her release tomorrow.

I sit here, holding Kaitlyn as she cuddles and mews in her sleep. She's darn adorable. I cannot wait to put her and Molly together to rejoin them at last.

The Babies Are Coming!

Surprise! I just got home from my appointment. It went really really well. I was prepared to beg and cry for these babies to come out but it turns out I'm dilated further, so apparently I'm in labor already. The c-section is scheduled for 9:00 PM. Updates will either come tonight or tomorrow morning...as soon as possible!!!!

Stickers Galore

Almost 36 weeks...

*Thomas took the pictures in case you were wondering! Joshua AND Thomas put on the stickers.

Is it wrong to argue with the child that is in utero?

Kaitlyn and I are arguing tonight. She has decided that even though she holds the most room and is entirely stretched out that she has now run out of room. She is stretched all the way on top. Tonight she has decided to insert herself into my ribcage. Not just a little bit, but enough that I can't breathe or even move when she does it. And she's not just putting an arm or something simple, oh no, she's shoving her entire upper body up there. I'm really only comfortable when Dan sits next to me and uses his entire arm to lay across my body and push her down. She fights and squirms, but it is way more comfortable for me. The poor doctor will get an earful on Tuesday at my appointment. I'll try and get some pictures taken tomorrow to update the blog.

Hospital Round 1

Last night around 1 AM, I woke up feeling extremely nauseous. I tried to eat, drink, walk around, change position, but it just wouldn't go away. I texted Dan to come home from his buddy's birthday just in case it was food poisoning or labor. Dan then timed contractions and they were about every 2-3 minutes lasting about a minute. We decided to call my mom and have her sleep here while we got checked out.

As is the case right now, the girls are just happy to be in utero, no matter the circumstances. Monitoring at Sacred Heart showed that the contractions were steady at 6 minutes apart and that I am more effaced (70%), but still only dilated to a 2. We were released to go home at about 5:00 AM. The doctor and nurse that we spoke with both seemed to think that labor progressing was just a matter of time, so we'll see!

We arrived home around 5:30, sent mom back home and attempted a couple hours of sleep before the boys woke up. They then let us (me...Dan of course was able to ignore them) rest until about 9:30. We are EXHAUSTED!

I had a nonstress test at 10:30 this morning. Everything looks good. I was still contracting about every 6 minutes, but nothing that showed any real progress. I refused to make my appointment for next week until I talk to my doctor on Tuesday.I don't plan on still being pregnant next Friday! :)

I then went to my ultrasound. It seemed to look really good. It was a new techinician that I'd never seen before. She was extremely surprised at how low Baby A is and that you can't just see her hanging out. It was difficult to get any real good readings on her. However, both babies are practicing breathing and are moving as well as they can with the limited space. She kept saying she couldn't believe how much baby there was in there. **I will get a call this afternoon with the results of the ultrasound if anything looks new or interesting.

Now to answer questions:

**I PROMISE I'll post on Facebook when things are changing. Please do not call. We are generally dealing with the doctor or getting information. If we do not update, it's because we cannot. AND, if we are sleeping, we need it!
**Hospital visits are welcome once the babies arrive. Please call first. Once home with babies, we generally close our doors for one week to absolutely everyone. This allows us time to bond as a family and adjust to a new lifestyle. This might change as the week progresses since the boys might very well lose their mind, but we appreciate you respecting this distance for the first week.

36 Week Dr Appt

Dr. Barrong is out of town, so today I saw a nurse/midwife. Nothing much has changed (despite my efforts). I am now officially dilated to a 2, and 50% effaced. Any person reaching in likes to comment on the fact that Molly's head is so low. I find it amusing that they think I might actually be surprised by this information. Have they seen me walk? I measure at 44 weeks, so I measure at the same size as someone with 1 baby, 4 weeks overdue. I know this to be true because my skin is fully stretched. It is beginning to tear from the inside out. This happened last time as well and is the number 1 reason that labor is welcome at this point. If you put a hand on my stomach (which I don't mind you doing) you will feel Kaitlyn everywhere. That girl has the most room and yet she is pushing out at every angle. You can feel her head, her rear, her knees, EVERYTHING. This girl enjoys her space!

It seems as though I'll probably make it through the weekend and see what happens next week. I have my ultrasound and nonstress test on Friday, so I'll update then unless something happens earlier.

It's Confirmed...I'm A Catholic

We were really worried about making it through Easter Vigil tonight. I was sure I would be in labor and unable to attend, but we made it without a hitch! The Easter Vigil is about 3 hours long, so one of my class instructors brought a recliner and I sat in the back in my comfy recliner and listened to the service. When it became close to my time to be a part of the service I joined friends and family in the hard wooden pews. The contractions seem to still be fairly inconsistent, but are gaining momentum. I'd guess they were about every 20-30 min throughout the church service. Here are some pictures from beforehand. I'm currently 35 weeks, 2 days.

35 Week Appointments

Non-Stress Test- Babies did great. Molly is WAY down low. She's always so relaxed and today she was PISSED that they dare monitor her. Both babes looked good and moved around a lot and had great baseline heart rates.

Ultrasound- Again, all looks good. The ultrasound tech didn't like that Molly was so still and tried to wake her up. She zapped her a few times with the vibration thing and that ticked Kaitlyn off, but Molly was obstinate and refused to move. I think it was mostly annoying for me.

Dr Follow-Up- At this point I will be a c-section. I just don't see a way around it, so I'm trying to deal with it. I am absolutely and totally not wanting one, but it appears it's my safest route, so I'm going to let go of all of my cons (and there are a lot of them). The reason for the c-section is that Kaitlyn is still not head down and she is quite a bit bigger than Molly. They worry about a contraction making her unable to breath if she gets stuck in the birth canal. Plus, I was told I couldn't deliver anything about 7 pounds and we're too close to that weight to be safe. The saddest part of it all is that Dan will be unable to be in the operating room during the c-section. He will miss our children being born and will most likely not be the first to hold them. Dan is a "passer outer" and is worried about drawing attention away from what is important...the birth itself. Mom will come in with me, which will be neat, but I'll miss that family moment. It also means Dan will have to take off more time from work so that I can recover.

I am now dilated to a 1-2. Nothing much, but I guess it's started. We'll see what happens this weekend!

Stats-
Molly- 5#11
Kaitlyn- 6#6
BIG BABIES!!!

The Traditional Pictures

With the boys, born in October, Dan painted my stomach into a pumpkin. CUTE! This time, with anticipated April babies, Dan painted an Easter egg. It's a little harder to find body paint this time of year, so I made some using cold cream (thanks Jenn), cornstarch, and food coloring. The black is cake frosting. :)

When we did the pumpkin, I went into labor the next day (I was 34 weeks, 5 days). This time, I waited until 35 weeks exactly, just in case. :) Here's the pictures of both!

Could I get a large cup of ice please?

Yup. That's my order at Sonic. Every day. Maybe even twice a day. I realize this is a little obsessive, but it's so yummy. It's my one big craving (aside from Easter peanut M&M's) this pregnancy. I think it becomes a bad sign when they greet you at the window with, "Hello again today."Oops. They apparently look for me every day. I explained that if they don't see me that day, I might not be back. I'm hoping this need for ice will pass after the pregnancy! However, in the meantime, I guess I'll just be the most loyal ice eater that goes to Sonic. Even if it is just 22 cents every time I go. :)

On another note, things seem to be changing. Will it be soon? I don't know. When I chatted with my nurse she said within the next 2 weeks probably. I'm really working on day by day at this point. Molly has moved down even further and any more movement and she will be waving to everyone (TMI? Sorry.). They are still pretty active, so I'm hoping I'll get through Easter Vigil on Saturday evening, but I'll do my best to update as time moves on. I either have a sore back from carrying twins, or I'm contracting more than I think in my back....hmmmmm....we'll see!!

Pictures

Here are some pictures from last night, they are at 34 weeks and 3 days. I currently measure at just over 43 weeks...nice. In the last few days my belly has definitely changed. I can no longer roll over in bed without a shove from Dan or at least a good start. Getting up and down is getting more and more difficult. Breathing is becoming more of a challenge at Kaitlyn is spending a fair amount of time way up in my ribs. Joshua felt Molly have the hiccups last night. He then got the hiccups (for real!) and put his belly against my belly so Molly could feel his hiccups. It was so cute!




The last picture is me with the boys at 34 weeks, 4 days.

34 Weeks, 1 Day (Non-Stress Test #1)

From now on, Fridays are busy, busy, busy!

The morning started off with my first non-stress test. I had taken my book with the theory that I could read while they monitored the babies. No such luck. First they hook you up to the fetal monitors. Not a big deal except Baby A (Molly) is always difficult and hard to find, so once they found her they had to push down on her and hold the monitor on her at all times. Ouch! Instead of reading my book I had to sit and push a button every time one of them moved. My poor finger was so tired by the end of it. After a while, baby A wasn't moving enough (so far, she's my mellow child) so they got out a little zapper. At least that's what it looked like. It just made this huge vibration across my tummy. Baby B totally flipped out and started kicking like crazy. Unfortunately that meant she was kicking Baby A's head, so then Baby A got in on the action. After a certain amount of time the babies must get settled back down. That seemed to take forever after all the effort to wake them up. Overall...the babes passed with no problem. We go back again next week for the next one.

Next I went to my OB's for an ultrasound. It was much quicker this time since there was no measuring, just checking things off a list to make sure they are acting correctly. I know they looked at movement (again Baby A needed a little jolt), breathing (both girls are practicing breathing), amniotic fluid level (there is plenty) and position. There are 8 things because I was told they both scored an 8/8. Again, the ultrasound technician commented on Kaitlyn's amount of hair. She said it was a lot of hair because it was so clear on the monitor. Poor hairy baby! :)

I then met with my OB. After showing him my glucose numbers he commented, "Your numbers look great, you're not diabetic." Have I said this before? That test was screwy because every single time I checked my blood sugar, I've been totally fine. Not even riding the line, but totally and utterly fine. He requested that I check my blood sugar once a day, probably not going to happen, but way better than 4 times a day. He said everything looks good and that I complain way less than his other twin mom's. Hooray! It's really because I save all the complaining for Dan. :) He measured my tummy and I am now measuring 43 weeks (meaning I'm as big as someone carrying a singleton at 43 weeks). Can't really complain, am feeling great...which makes me feel that I might not be too far away.

I've done some massive nesting lately. We are almost ready for babies to come. I'll try and pack my hospital bag this weekend and we'll put in baby car seats this weekend. It's crazy that it could be this close! The boys were born 1 week from today (gestation-wise). Crazy!!!! More updates to come as things progress.