I’m trying to think of how to keep a long story short….
I was due 1/1/08, but I ended up delivering on 11/1/07. I delivered early because around week 20-22, it was discovered that there was a blood flow problem with the cord on Baby B, and B was growing at a slower rate than A. Developmentally they were both good, but because of the blood flow issue, the docs were concerned with how long Baby B could sustain and handle being in utero. They hospitalized me for a few days at 24 weeks to do a work-up and to prepare me for the possibility of delivering early.
I went to the hospital on Thursday, November 1 for an ultrasound to check the babies for growth and status. It was decided, based on what the docs saw (growth for both babies but decreased blood flow for Baby B), that they wanted to deliver me THAT DAY. I was a little (a lot!) freaked out. I was 31 weeks and 2 days along, so it was a little early for my taste, but I trusted my doctors, and knew they would take good care of me and the babies. So, I went upstairs to Labor and Delivery and got prepped for a c-section. At 3:44 PM, Lucas Mark was born weighing 4 lbs 1 oz, 16 1/4 inches long (our big boy), and one minute later, at 3:45 PM, Charlotte Elisabeth was born weighing 1 lbs 12 oz, 12 inches long (she’s tiny, but mighty). I was in the hospital for the standard 4 days, recovered VERY well, and generally felt pretty good, although I don’t understand why anyone would elect to have a c-section unless they had to. It was a very strange experience, not to mention painful post-delivery.
Both babies did very well, although they got whisked away pretty quick to the NICU, but were behaving just as expected for babies born 2 months early. Charlotte was wee, but is very strong and did so well. Lucas was also doing great, already showing his personality a bit, as he was very opinionated, and did not hesitate to share his annoyance with you. They are both probably the cutest babies ever, but I think I might be a little biased. :) I was so thankful and happy that did so well, but it was so very hard to visit them in hospital and have to go home without them. Going home after discharge was the hardest. After 5 weeks, Lucas was able to come home on December 8, and Charlotte followed a few weeks later on December 27. I hated not having them here, but they received such excellent care, and I knew they were where they needed to be. I’ll have to post at another time some more specific feelings and memories of the NICU, particularly our relationships and interactions with some of the nurses and doctors. Amazing staff, simply amazing, and I will be forever grateful for all that they did for our little Push Pin and Mighty Mouse.
Once the babies were both home, we learned very quickly how to survive on only a few hours of sleep a night. I remember thinking that none of the caregiving for twins was particularly difficult (luckily for us, both babies came home with no residual preemie issues that needed to be monitored), but the sleep deprivation was an absolute killer. I had no idea, I really had no clue. Wow. Both babies are sleeping through the night now and have been for weeks, but I still shudder just remembering.
