Birth of the Twins

**I wrote this on the boys’ birthday and added a few tweaks in the wee hours of this morning (Wednesday).  I’m sure I could keep adding and tweaking forever, but I’m just going to go ahead and hit publish!**

We decided to schedule an induction for today, Tuesday, October 29th to deliver the boys.  My doctor was worried about my giant uterus and the possibility of hemorrhage.  Even though I’m not crazy about inductions, I was pretty glad for the “excuse” to have to induce those boys.  I was miserable.

Last night I went to sleep with no trouble, slept a whopping 90 minutes, and then laid awake for 2 1/2 hours.  Finally I got back to sleep and slept pretty soundly until Matt woke me up at 5:10am.  We needed to be at the hospital at 6:00.  Matt’s mom came at 5:30 to watch over our sleeping big children, and we headed out.

Even though we got to the hospital and into a room right about 6:00, it was about 8:30am before they started the Pitocin.  {For the official record, I hate Pitocin and I never want to talk about it again.}  Sometime before that Dr. Torres broke Baby A’s bag of waters.  There were just logistical issues getting started like computer stuff and IV pump stuff and who knows what else.

I was at 6cm dilated when Dr. Torres broke my water, and even with just a little Pitocin going, I was sure things were going to move quickly.  (I was wrong.)  There weren’t any hang ups or anything, it was just slower than my labors usually are by the time I get to the hospital.  One time, I went to the bathroom, and my nurse noticed how very comfortable I was in there and offered me a birthing ball!  It never even occurred to me they had them at the hospital.  I labored on that for a bit and it felt better than laying in the bed.  My nurse (Rene) had a full-time job with me just trying to keep Baby A on the monitor!  I was really feeling my contractions at this point; the nurse had been upping the Pitocin little by little.  Rene and Dr. Torres wanted me up in the bed so I could be checked.  I’m pretty sure the Pitocin was at 10 (whatevers) per minute at this point.  It was started in the morning at 2.  The contractions were really gnarly and there was just no rest from them.  When Dr. Torres checked me, I was at 8cm and minus 2 station.  She said it could be some time within the hour.  That sounded so very very long and impossible to me.

Y’all.  Here’s the truth.  I asked if it was too late for an epidural.  It wasn’t.  I begged for an epidural.  I cried.  I pleaded for them to go faster.  They prepped for one.  The epidural man was literally drawing on my back with a sharpie when I HAD to push.  I couldn’t not push.  And then the time for an epidural was done.  Only by the grace of God did I not have one.  I’m thankful I didn’t.  But I think I needed to think the epidural was coming.  I needed to know the pain was going to lessen, that I was going to be able to rest for a second, that I might be able to get ahead of the pain just a little.

So anyway, I’m leaning in to Matt on the edge of the bed, the anesthesiologist is behind me, and I am pushing.  Like I said, I couldn’t not push.  They were telling me not to push and to get back in the bed, but I was saying no.  And I was crying.  And there were most likely some curse words.  I heard my nurse yell for Dr. Torres and suddenly there were people everywhere.  I was in not a good place, that’s for sure.  I heard a voice on my right say “Jessica, I’m Kendra’s friend.  She’s been praying for you.”  {I’m crying as I type this; it was such an emotional moment and a major turning point.}  I knew my friend Kendra had a friend who worked at Kingwood as an L&D nurse.  Her talking to me was what I needed to snap out of the mega craziness and get sort of back on track for having babies!  So thank you Kendra and Catie!

Anyway, they got me back laying on the bed.  My mom and sister had left and headed to the waiting room when the anesthesiologist was in the room, so they missed all of this drama.  I told Matt to grab the camera; they were wheeling me to the OR, which is where Dr. Torres wanted to deliver the twins.  I was contracting and pushing.  They moved me onto the OR table and I’m pretty sure told me to stop pushing again.  :)  I was a pushing machine.  I remember someone telling me to wait until Dr. Torres got her gloves on!  It didn’t take much and at 11:55am Michael Philip was born!  Matt got there, scrubs, mask, and fancy hat on while I was still pushing so he got to see him born also.  (For the record, he did not have the camera.  He is fired.)  :)  I’m pretty sure my doc cut the cord, and I got to hold him right away.  He was covered in a thick layer of all that great white goopy stuff and they had me rubbing and stimulating him.  He was making little noises, and eventually someone suctioned him out so he could properly breathe and cry and all of that.  At some point they took him over to the warmer, weighed and measured him, got him cleaned up a bit and all wrapped up.  He weighed 7lbs 9oz and was 19.5in long.  I got to hold him again while waiting on Baby B to be born.  Dr. Torres checked and he wasn’t down into my pelvis yet so she was fine to wait a bit to break his bag of waters and restart the Pitocin.  A bit later he had moved down a little and she broke my water.  I’m sure I got a horrible sad face on when she said they had to restart the Pitocin.  It wasn’t so bad though.  I’m sure having one baby already out helped me immensely!  I believe I had a couple of contractions, which I moaned through before Dr. Torres suggested I push with the next one.  I wasn’t feeling that unmistakable, unavoidable need/urge to push, but I did it anyway, and it moved him down a bit.  Yay!  Mr. Michael was taken back over to the warmer while I was working on pushing his brother out.  I believe it took two more contractions of pushing hard, and Thomas Mark was born at 12:18pm!  They suctioned him, and I got to hold him for a little bit.  They took him over the warmer to be with his brother, and he weighed in at 8lbs 1oz and 19in long.  {In case you hadn’t already done the math, that’s 15lbs 10oz of baby in my body this morning.  Oh my!}

They didn’t want me to nurse the babies in the OR because I was shaking and because there were no rails on the side of the bed.  I knew I wouldn’t drop them, but I guess I can’t blame them for the concern.  :)  The babies headed back to our labor room with Matt and some nurses while I finished up in the OR.  I had to deliver two (mammoth) placentas.  Dr. Torres gave me some kind of drug that would help with the bleeding and prevent my giant uterus from hemorrhaging and she worked to get clots passing and my tears sewn up.  None of that was fun and I certainly whined, but it sure was nothing compared to laboring with and delivering twins!

I got to give Dr. Torres hugs after she finished up and headed out.  It really was so wonderful that she could deliver the boys!

That was pretty much it.  I know I left out details and skimmed over things.  I will likely add bits of information as I remember them when I blog pictures (if I blog pictures?)  :)

It was a really rough morning that got off to a slow start, but I am so thankful to be here on the other side with two amazing healthy term babies.