2.24.2012

3 Peas in a Pod

I received this picture last night from our wonderful NICU nurse....the first time they've been together since my tummy.  What darling angels.  WE LOVE YOU GIRLS! 

Airalyn: 2 lbs 12 oz.
Brecklin: 2 lbs. 12 oz.
Camli: 2 lbs. 9 oz.

2.16.2012

The PERFECT Beginning to our Story

 How to begin a story that would change our lives FOREVER...... It was a dark and stormy night (Nah, it wasn't).  Once Upon a Time (No way!  It was anything but a fairy tale).  It was the best of times, it was the worst of times (Okay, this one fits the most).

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times on a Tuesday night.  I was pregnant with triplets and had hit 27 weeks and 5 days.  Over the weekend, I felt different.  I was already miserable and had been home off Hospital bed rest for almost a week....but something had changed.  I could feel a LOT of movement REALLY, REALLY low and it was getting painful, the pain in my lower back was excrutiating to the point I could barley walk and I felt I needed to push....like you do when you're in labor.  I FINALLY....after 3 days of putting it off (I didn't want them keeping me again if there had been no change), I told Dan I needed to go in. 

At 11:15 pm, we called our good friend, Shaelyn to come to our house and sit with Jaeli until my mom could get out here.  My mom called  Labor and Delivery to let them know we were on our way and told us we needed to go through the ER with it being so late.  We drove up and, Dan ran in to get someone with a wheelchair.  He was a nice young man...asking all sorts of questions....ones I didn't care about and didn't want to answer....I hurt too much.  I do remember him asking how far apart my contractions were.  I told him I couldn't feel any in front....just really bad lower back pain and then the feeling I needed to push.  He rushed me up to Labor and Delivery.....they were ready for me.

They had me strip down and put a gown on.  As soon as I was in the bed, they asked me a bunch of questions and asked about my pain level.  They also wanted to know if I was feeling contractions, etc.  I told them what I could between the intense feeling of wanting to push.  The nurse checked me and we found I had dilated to a 6 and Baby A, Airalyn was BREECH and had a bulging bag of fluid. 

I've never seen an IV and so many bags hung in so little time.  They blew my first IV, but got the second one in in record time.  They also gave me a shot of Tribultalene for the contractions to slow.  They called the Doctor, Sara Wood who was on call, the anethesiologist and called to assemble the NICU team.  We were going in for a C-section.  I cried and apologized A LOT......I hurt.....and HATED the feeling of wanting to push Airalyn out.  When Dr. Wood go there, she checked me again, and confirmed I was at a 6.  She asked if we were ready to have the babies.  I lost it.  I just wanted them to be ok....I didn't really care about me. 

Wheeling down the hall to the OR was crazy....it was like slow motion as I scanned the huge crowed that had gathered for my C-section.  18 NICU personnel ALONE....that did NOT include 2 nurses, 2 doctors, my anethesiologist and others in the OR with Dan and I.  They got the epidural in...which hurt, and I immediately felt the relief of wanting to push.  THANK GOODNESS!  Now, my worry transferred to the surgery itself and my babies again.  At that moment, a NICU nurse stuck her head out of the resussitation room and said, "Natalie, we're ready here........don't worry anymore.  We're going to take good care of your babies!"  I started sobbing again.  THIS WAS REALLY HAPPENING.  Dr. Wood asked if I had felt that...."Felt what?", I asked.  "Yup, you're ready to go", she said.  She had pinched my abdomen to see if I could feel anything.  I remember getting really, really sick 2-3 times....almost throwing up, and remember Dr. Wood commenting on my tight abdominal muscles.  HAHA!  "Yeah right", I thought. 

It seemed like a long time to me before she got to the babies....but they came quickly.  Baby A: Airalyn Roma at 12:59 am, Baby B: Brecklin Barbara at 1:00 am and Baby C: Camli Karen at 1:01 am.  I remember Airalyn letting out a few whimpers and then heard from Dan that Camli had her eyes wide open like, "What are you doing to me?"  I didn't get to see them.....they were taken right to the resussitation room.  Dan showed me a few pictures he had gotten, and I started to sob again.  He then disappeared into the room with the babies as they finished my C-section....DEFINATELY the longest part of the surgery...sewing, sewing and more sewing. 

They transferred me to another room to get my pain under control, but on the way I was able to stick my head in the resussitation room and see the chaos.  Wow.   After my pain medication finally surfaced, they wheeled me to the NICU, in my bed, to see my babies.  I could not believe how small they were and how many wires and machines were around them.  Very overwhelming.

Dan and I were taken over to Post Partum and just tried to wrap our minds around what had just happened.  It almost felt like a dream...maybe the drugs were talking already, HAHA!  Dan's mom came up EARLY that morning....2 or 3 am I think, so it was nice to see family.  My mom had Jaeli, and I was glad she was being taken care of. 

We are TRULY blessed to have these 3 little ladies in our lives...well 4....we're soooo happy to have our girls.  I don't know what we would have done without all our EXCELLENT nurses, Doctors and the NICU team....they all responded QUICKLY and KNEW what they were doing.  WE LOVE YOU! 

PROMISE I'LL GET THE FIRST PICTURES OF THEM UP SOON! :)     

2.14.2012

And For All Of Those Not Possessing A Facebook Account..........

 My first time holding 2 babies.  I loved EVERY second of it!  Airalyn is on the left, Brecklin is on the right.
 Close up of Brecklin...well really all of us, but more Brecklin and me.
 Close up with Airalyn. 
 Airalyn after her bath and getting into a new outfit.
 Brecklin with Daddy.
Camli resting....sooo precious.

WE LOVE OUR ANGELS ALREADY! :)