And Babies Make Five

A couple of nights ago I went out to dinner with a few members of the local parents of multiples group. (Funny to think that between only 7 of us we have almost 20 kids). Not only is it nice to get out for a few hours for a little adult conversation but having people to talk with who have gone through the twinfant experience truly is a wonderful thing. Among a few of the favorite topics that parents of multiples discuss upon meeting are: (Okay the Mom's discuss this stuff. I have no idea what the Dad's talk about. I asked Patrick and he said mostly sports.  Go figure!)

1) What week did you get to and how much did they weigh (i.e. how early where your babies born.  The vast majority of twin births occur by 38 weeks. We made it to 40, placing us in the less than 2% category. Fun!)

2) Are your twins mo-mo, mo-di, di-di? (i.e. Identical or Fraternal). We don't have a conclusive answer for the boys but based on how they look our best guess is fraternal.

3) Are you considering plastic surgery, which is typically proceeded by all the gory details of what carrying twins has done to your body (I'm only partly kidding on this one. Twins have a funny way of changing the long term elasticity of your mid section.. very lovely)

4) What did you think/do/feel when you found out it was twins?

So in the spirit of sharing experiences, here's our story.

One year ago yesterday  (June 21st 2007) Patrick and I had our first OB visit scheduled. (I say "we" because he never missed an OB appointment throughout my pregnancy with Sophia. This pregnancy was no different.  I know, I know.. what a catch, right!) We dropped Sophia off with our friend Shan and headed to the Dr's office. This first visit was described as a "get to know you visit" with lots of questions and paperwork but no real tests or face to face with a doctor. 

Towards the end of the visit I mentioned to the nurse  that I hadn't had any pregnancy symptoms yet but had for the last few days been experiencing sharp pains in my lower abdomen along with a few other strange symptoms.  After further discussion she determined that the pain I was describing was consistent with an ectopic pregnancy.  Upon hearing those words my heart dropped. There is never a positive outcome for that diagnosis and in all cases the pregnancy must be terminated or risk a life threatening situation for the mother.  Although she assured us that she was just being conservative in her approach, she quickly called around and had us scheduled for an ultrasound at the hospital within the next hour.  I'm sure she counseled us further on what to expect but honestly all I remember is my mind spinning at the possibility of such a terrible reality. 

On our way to the hospital Patrick and I discussed what we would do if it did turn out to be a tubal pregnancy but I still couldn't get my mind around the fact that all we'd gone in for was a routine OB visit but could be heading home later that day having lost the pregnancy. How would we deal with that? True to my first impulse, I said a silent prayer that we avoid the worst outcome that day.

What seemed like hours later (but in actuality was probably only 30 minutes) we were admitted to the hospital and the ultrasound was underway. The sonographer began the exam very detached  (I'm sure breaking that kind of news is terrible) but after several minutes of looking in different angles announced "I don't know how to tell you guys this"..... (Okay, so possibly not the best way for her to begin her statement. We were after all been studying her every little move, word and expression for the slightest indication of what she was about to tell us).... but there are TWO of them". 

So at this point my mind is blown and I'm really struggling to understand what she just stated. Two of what?  Two tubes, two possibilities, two outcomes. Two diagnosis. Two of WHAT????

I don't clearly remember what I asked or what she said next but it quickly became evident that she meant babies. TWO BABIES. No, madam. You must have it wrong. That is not EVEN possible. So I told her "No, you are wrong. Check again!!" and which point she proceeded to not only show us the beginnings of both babies but two tiny beating hearts.

At this point the room was really spinning. I had mentally prepared myself for the loss of one baby that day but had NEVER imagined the possibility of twins. That scenario had never even entered my mind. THIS COULD NOT BE!  We were just not prepared for two babies! 

Prepared or not, there we sat looking at a dark screen and two clearly identifiable flashing heartbeats. (Wow, wow, WOW! Somebody get me a drink! No, wait! I can't even have a %&#^@ drink now!)

Funny part (if you can all it that) is that Patrick completely saw it coming and knew what she was about to say before she even finished her sentence. Although I couldn't see the ultrasound screen from my vantage point, he could and while she did her examination he was able to see the two round spheres that were very obviously different from the ultrasounds he's seen throughout our pregnancy with Sophia. Thanks for the heads up Patrick! :)

While she completed the ultrasound to check for measurement, approximate due date etc Patrick and I jabbered on in a shell shocked state. I know he mentioned the urgency of needing to get back to work QUICK! and one of us determined that we'd now need a minivan to get all the car seats to fit. The crazy things you think of when your life has just taken a major shift!

As soon as we left the hospital I called my mom at work (who was shocked) and Patrick called his mom (also shocked) and we went to pick up Sophia. (As a side note our friend Shannon, who says we looked like deer caught in the headlights when we arrived for Sophia that day, was not shocked. In fact when I said to her "You'll never believe what happened!" she responded by asking "How many are there?" I'm going to let her pick my next powerball lotto numbers.)

So here we are one year later.

Two incredibly amazing baby boys later and we couldn't be more blessed or happy.