A Much Overdue Post!

We're home and I think we're going to make it~

As you can imagine the last few days have taken some adjustments and lots of patience, but all is well! This is the very first time I have had time to post on this blog since we've had Logan and Lucas. This journey has been fun as well as tiring, but so worth it! The boys are changing every day.

Lucas was born first weighing 6lbs 3ozs and measuring 19 inches. Logan weighed 6lbs 9ozs and was 20 inches. Big boys!!! I didn't think they would be so big. My guess the night before we had them was they would weigh 5.2 and 5.4.

Here are some of the more recent pictures. I will do my best to post as often as I can. They may be short entries, but I want to keep you updated. Thank you all for your well wishes and all of the prayers for a safe delivery of healthy little boys. The Lord has blessed us!

Our first family photo! Taken at 7:52pm on the night they were born, May 11, 2009. This was about 20 minutes after both of the boys had been delivered to our room and the first time we had a chance to really look at our babies.


Logan is on the left and Lucas is on the right. Logan has blond hair and Lucas has brown hair. They are very different, but both so sweet!


Going home. They wore their Texas Rangers outfits home. Randy is sure he has two little baseball players here!


Lucas up close. Sweet baby!



Logan holding his head up for Daddy. He was only 6 days old in this picture.


Look how strong I am, Daddy!


Dad with Lucas on the left and Logan on the right.

First Pictures Together

Logan (left) and Lucas (right) James. Everyone is doing great and we are hoping that we get to go home tomorrow. Cory is still sore and the doctor said to expect that for the next two or three weeks. So far the boys are eating and sleeping really good, only a few major crying fits. Thanks to everyone for your prayers and support, it has been a long road getting here but we could not be happier!

They're Here!!!

Lucas and Logan arrived this morning about 9:30. They are doing good but have been on oxygen most of the day. Cory got to go down and see them a couple of minutes ago and the nurses told her that we can probably bring them to the room in about two hours. She is a little sore and is finally taking a much deserved nap. These are the pictures from this morning, I'm sure we will have some more very soon.

Lucas and Logan

So, I should be getting rest because tomorrow will be such a big day, but I'm not even a little tired. I'm so anxious to meet my babies and see what their little faces will look like. In just a few short hours Randy and I are going to be parents to not just one, but TWO, sweet little boys. It's amazing. No, it's more than amazing, it's a blessing from God. So many of my sweet mommy friends have given me such good advice and support. Even some have told me how much I would love these babies, but just saying the words doesn't compare in anyway to the love and devotion that I already feel for Logan and Lucas. I haven't even met them yet, but I know that I love them more than I will ever be able to explain.

We will be completely responsible for two new lives beginning tomorrow. We will teach them everything they will know, from how to ride a bike to how to drive when they turn 16. So much fun is on the way! I'm sure some headaches and heartaches will pop up as well, but we will take them all. Tomorrow will truly be a life changing day. Thank you, Lord, for giving us these wonderful and exciting gifts. Lucas and Logan, I can't wait to meet you tomorrow!!!

Bed Rest and Stretch Marks

Well, I guess they finally got me. The stretch marks, that is. I made it all the way to 32 weeks without any stretch marks, but that's where the streak ended. I found a few the first night, and a few more the next. Then, this last week, they just started multiplying like crazy. As it turns out, that's all related to the reason I had to go on bed rest as of today.

When I weighed myself this past Friday, I had gained 32lbs since my starting pregnancy weight. I weighed again on Monday and had gained 4 more pounds. I thought that was a lot, but then again I had been at 32lbs for a little while and I figured that it was just the weight gain catching up. But, I weighed this morning and had gained another 4lbs. That means I'm up to 40lbs of baby weight! Obviously that's why I had so many stretch marks all of a sudden.

On Tuesday my feet started swelling and have done so both Wednesday and today. I wasn't feeling all that great yesterday and this morning I was moving kind of slow. But, I thought that the swelling was just part of pregnancy and that not feeling good had something to do with how big my belly was getting. After our morning meeting the nurses I work with noticed that my feet were swollen and then my boss had me get my blood pressure taken. Turns out my BP was 153/100. They had me lay down with my feet elevated for 30 minutes and then they retook it. It was 143/94. So, I called my doctor. After going to his office and doing labs with a non-stress test, it turns out that I had some protein in my urine. Not enough protein to make them admit me, but enough to have to do a 24 hour urine test to determine whether it's increasing. They said I have pre-eclampsia and the weight gain, swelling, not feeling good, and blurry vision I've been having are all symptoms. I had no idea!

This afternoon the nurse called me and said most of my labs looked okay, except for the uric acid level. I don't really know what that means, but he told me that I need to come back to his office in the morning and bring a bag just in case they admit me to the hospital. Umph. I don't want to go into the hospital...

The good news is that even if we have the boys early, we aren't that early. And, we've already had a steroid shot so their lungs will be developed. The non-stress test today showed that they were moving very well, their heartbeats were strong, and their nervous system was developed. Don't ask me how they can tell all of that, but that's what the nurse said. So, all in all, we're still very fortunate that we've made it to 34 1/2 weeks before being faced with this. There are so many others we know that have had to be on bed rest for so many more weeks than this.

But, if you're wondering, yes...it's very boring!

33 Weeks

Pictures at 33 weeks don't look that much different than the ones from 28 weeks. I can tell a difference because my belly feels much rounder and harder, but I'm not sure you can see much of that in the pictures.





We went to the doctor at 30 weeks and the boys weighed 3lb 5oz and 3lb 9oz. When we went back on Thursday last week (32 1/2 weeks) they were 4lb 7oz each. They should grow about a half pound each week until they are born. Because they are getting pretty tight for room, they may not grow quite that much, but I'm still expecting pretty good sized babies. Even if they are only 6lbs each, that's 12 pounds of baby! We still don't know what day we're going to actually have them, but I think we will probably set a date at my next OB/GYN appointment on May 5th. I do have an appointment on Monday to do a non-stress test (NST), but they say that it's just routine. The NST keeps track of the babies heart beats, how often they move, and can record any contractions that may be happening.

Hail Storm

We had one HAIL of a storm yesterday. In West Texas we tend to get some severe weather this time of year, so a hail storm every now and then is really more of an expectation than a surprise. But, yesterday we had more hail than I can remember seeing before. It started about 4:00pm, and these pictures were taken after I got home about 6:30. It had already melted quite a bit, but you still get the idea of just how much hail there was. It looked like it snowed, but it was actually little round balls of ice covering the ground.

Cribs!

The nursery is almost ready! We had one crib together, but didn't get the second one ordered and delivered until last week. Randy's parents came down on Sunday and everyone helped put it together. It's so sweet to see two cribs in the room!









We're doing a pirate theme for the room because we found this cute little crib set with two pirates. It just looked like brothers to me! I want to paint a treasure map on the walls, but I'm not sure I'm going to be creative enough (or talented maybe) to pull it off. Hopefully I can find someone that is talented and they will see my vision. My mom is coming tomorrow so that she's here for the shower this weekend, and I plan to use her to help me organize the nursery. Right now everything we've gotten is just sitting in bags on the floor or the desk. I just don't know where to start! After this weekend though, I hope it's a functional nursery.

28 weeks and counting!

I can hardly believe we are so close to the babies being here! We went to the doctor last week and he says we will probably have them between 36 and 38 weeks. So only about 8 or 9 weeks to go! Randy is busy on the nursery and hopefully it will be painted and ready to decorate by this weekend. We have both cribs and we'll go ahead and put both in there even though they will sleep in just one crib for a while. My friend, Ellen, gave me the name of a girl that does really cute decorative painting and I think I'm going to ask her if she will paint a treasure map on the wall to go with the pirate theme. I'm getting excited!



This weekend we're having a garage sale to get rid of all of the extra stuff we seem to have accumulated in the last few years. I can't believe how much we have accumulated that we don't have room for. How does that happen? I'm ready for a get rid of the junk day!!!

We have also been busy redoing our kitchen over the last couple of weeks. As soon as it's finished (just the painting is left!) I will post some pictures. And, if I can get Randy to help me figure out the scanner, I will even post some before pics so you can compare.

And here is a 22 week baby belly picture

We were 22 weeks on Sunday, so we took another picture to compare the difference from the last one. I think my tummy is growing a little...don't you?



Randy felt the babies move on Sunday night. They were pretty active and didn't seem to want to sleep much at all. I think they were wrestling in there or something! You could feel a bump, bump on the left, then a few minutes later the same thing on the right. A very cool feeling! I think I just have to get used to it and I'll be able to sleep through it.

The belly is getting bigger!

So we are, as of today, 21wks 2days along in the pregnancy. And, I felt the boys move last night for the first time! Well, turns out what I thought could possibly be the babies really was, so I have felt them for a little while I just wasn't sure of what I was feeling. But last night, I felt sure that it was actually movement because I was laying on my left side and felt a little tap, tap on my belly pushing down toward the mattress. At the time, I thought, I think that was a baby! Then a few minutes later I turned over on my right side and felt nearly the same type of movement from the other side of my tummy. I'm so excited! Today I have noticed more of the movements and even though they have probably been going on for a while I guess I'm just now recognizing the feelings for what they are. It's such a neat feeling!

Here is a picture of my belly at 20 weeks. I haven't posted it before now because I think I look horrible in it, but since everyone has been asking how big I'm getting...here you go. I know with twins I will get huge, but so far it looks like what I think a normal pregnancy would. Right?

My Favorite Christmas Card of 2008

We got lots of wonderful Christmas cards this year, but I thought this one was just too cute. It's from my friend Erin, who has always been witty and funny. This card just proves her humor!

Merry Christmas!

Get your own Elf Yourself video by clicking here!

Oh Boy! Oh Boy!

We found out yesterday that we are expecting two precious little boys! I had a feeling all along that it was boys. It took the girl doing the ultrasound all of about 30 seconds to determine that they were both boys. See the pictures below for yourself. It's pretty obvious! Now that we know what they are, we can start working on ideas for the nursery and names. I think the name part is the hardest because we keep changing our minds.

New Pictures

We went to see our OB this week and got some new pictures to share. According to the doctor everything is progressing wonderfully and the babies are looking like a text book perfect case. Yeah!!! It was really comforting to hear that. I'm sure everyone feels the nervousness during the first trimester, and for me it was no different. And, I know I have just been so tired and haven't felt well, but I have had a little bit of trouble feeling as excited as I wanted to be. That is starting to change though! I'm getting SO excited now that I'm starting to feel better! Maybe it was also that we saw the babies moving during the ultrasound that it's starting to seem a little more real. They moved during the last one too, but they didn't look like fully developed babies with arms, legs, hands and feet like they did this time. Baby A is 4 cm and Baby B is 3.8 cm. Baby A is still right in front of Baby B, so the pictures of Baby B aren't as good as the ones of Baby A. As they get bigger they will move around and we will probably loose track of which one is which. Our OB doesn't have the most wonderful equipment for this,so they are really grainy pictures. Our maternal fetal doctor does have the great equipment however, and I will be sure to post the ones we get on December 2. We will be 13 1/2 weeks when we go to that appointment, and although it's still really early, we may be able to tell the sexes of the babies. Keep your fingers crossed! You can click on any of the pictures below to view them in a larger size.

Both babies are in each picture below. It's really hard to see since they had to go so far out to get them both in one photo, but they are actually facing each other. The dark area is the amniotic fluid and the babies are really small here. Each baby and it's individual placenta is about the size of a lime.


This is Baby A. You can see pretty clearly that the head is on the right. That's a hand sticking up there. Maybe the baby is waving at us?! :)


This picture of Baby B looks a little different and it's much closer up than the ones of Baby A. The white plus sign in the middle part of the picture is at the very top of the head. You can see an outline of the little face and the arms just below.

Still feeling green

Although it has gotten a little better than when I posted last, my appetite still has been kind of spotty. It's not as bad as it could be, so I'm glad about that. Just some nausea here and there. Poor Randy is the real victim I think, because I gag just looking at his food, and that's not appetizing to anyone! More than just the nausea is the tired feeling that I have. It's like I'm not interested in being productive in any way. We get home and I'm on the couch, if not already going to bed, and I'm just worthless. Everyone keeps telling me that all of this will end after the first trimester, so bring on the second one! Being pregnant is fun and exciting, but right now I don't even feel like I have enough energy to go look at the baby stores for the cute little things out there. I'm definitely noticing a change in my waistline during the last couple of weeks. It's surprising since the babies are only the size of an olive at 9 weeks!

Hard to Eat

I think morning sickness (actually afternoon/evening sickness better describes it) has set in. It's been really hard for me to find something that doesn't make me gag since about Friday. Meat is the worst, and I'm generally a real meat lover. When my cousin Lesa and I were small I would eat the meat off of my plate and she would eat the vegetables off of hers, then we would switch when Granny wasn't looking so we could eat what we liked and still have a clean plate. I guess pregnancy has changed that! About the only things that sound appetizing are fruits and some vegetables. My books say this is pretty normal and I should start to feel like my old self again in a few weeks. But, in the meantime, going to the grocery store is not a fun experience. Randy and I went on Sunday and I thought I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I'm so excited to be pregnant, and I absolutely know that this nausea is all for a good cause, but I can't wait for this part to pass!

We went to a new doctor yesterday morning. We had another ultrasound and he said everything looked good and the babies appeared to be developing normally. Their heartbeats were much faster, 147 and 126. This past Thursday when we heard the heartbeats for the first time, they were 111 and 110. However, they had just started beating at that time. The heart starts to beat sometime between 6 weeks 2 days and 6 weeks 4 days. We were at 6 weeks 4 days on Thursday, so by Monday We were 7 weeks 1 day. Isn't it amazing how much stronger they grow in such a short period of time?!

First Pictures

I know it doesn't look like much, but at least you can tell that there are two babies!

Heartbeats

I know I should have posted an update by now. I'm sorry! I've been nervous about posting because last week when we went to have our ultrasound, my doctor made me a little skittish about announcing publicly that we were going to have TWINS! But, we had another ultrasound this morning and heard the heartbeats. So even though we are still in a very risky time frame for the pregnancy, I decided to share our very exciting news with everyone. As you can imagine, we are both elated and a little overwhelmed. I know that we were blessed with the unbelievable gift of two little babies because of all the prayers we have received. The chances of just one of our frozen embryos attaching and developing after the transfer was about 30%. The odds that both would attach and develop were less than 5%. So, as the doctor said, we continue to defy his odds! :) I want to ask for all of your continued prayers for a safe and successful journey for our developing babies. Having two is extremely exciting, but it also comes with a higher risk of complications. When we get to 8 weeks, we will feel a lot better, and then at 12 weeks we will be pretty much in the clear. Randy and I know what a great support system we have, and we appreciate you all so much. Thank you for all of your prayers. This miracle is proof that prayers work!

This morning both of the babies looked like they were developing appropriately. It was so sweet to see and hear their little hearts beat. It's just amazing that they develop so quickly from appointment to appointment! We have another ultrasound on Monday and then another on Thursday, October 30. At this point we're still going to our infertility doctor, Dr. Jabara, but we will start with our OB soon. Unfortunately having twins is considered a high risk pregnancy, so we will also be visiting a high risk maternity doctor as well.

My mom was convinced that we were going to have twins because of a dream that she had the night before we found out we were pregnant. Now that she was right about that, she thinks that it's going to be two girls. I am hoping for one boy and one girl, but have a feeling that it's going to be two boys. We won't be able to settle this until December or January, since that will be about the earliest we can tell the sex of the babies. It's going to be hard to wait that long!

My First Smell Aversion

This morning I had my first aversion to smells. My co-workers and I were mixing together peanuts, M&M's and raisins for goody bags. When the can of peanuts was opened my stomach turned and I had to leave the room. It was only a little bit of nausea because of the smell, but since I haven't been sick or had any other signs of pregnancy until today, it was really exciting that I finally felt pregnant! Yeah, I know, that's not going to last. But, for now it was one small bit of excitement for me!

Anxiety

Last night I laid awake for hours. That's strange because lateley by the time I can get in bed I'm so tired that I hit the sheets and I'm out with the lights. I think it was anxiety to blame. After all of the time and effort we have put into making this happen, I guess I never really thought I would be so nervous and scared when it actually did. Don't get me wrong, I'm very excited and giddy about it, too. I'm sure this is a normal feeling and it will pass as time does, but the anxiety is just not an emotion I had really expected at this point. This is normal, right?

I don't have to go in on Friday for another blood test. The doctor said that my hormone level is increasing so well that they don't need to monitor it anymore. And, my first ultrasound has been moved up a day to Thursday, 10/9. I'll let you know how that goes!

WE'RE PREGNANT!!!

I just want to shout it from the rooftops! I can't believe it really happened. This really is proof that God listens to our prayers! I think I was in shock on Monday. Then, Tuesday I kept thinking that I shouldn't get my hopes up because every time I do something happens. But now that we know for sure, I'm just so excited that I don't know what to do with myself! :)

I went in for a blood test this morning to confirm the pregnancy. We needed the hormone level to double from a 234 on Monday to at least a 400 or more today. My HCG was a 662! So, we really are pregnant!

The nurse told me that she was fairly sure without doing the blood test that we were pregnant because of the high number from Monday. And I know lots of people have been asking if a high number means it could be twins, so I asked her the same question. She said that a person with only one could have a high number like I did, so no, that does not necessarily mean twins. But, someone with twins is unlikely to have a low number. So, if my HCG had been low, then it would have probably ruled out twins. Since it was high though, it really could be anybody's guess as to whether both embryo's made it or just one. We won't be able to find out for sure until our ultrasound on 10/17, but as soon as we do know I promise to tell you!

Good News!

Well, we found out today that my hCG level is a positive indication for pregnancy! I say it like that, instead of saying that we're pregnant, because we won't be positive about the pregnancy until Wednesday. But, we are excited and celebrating the fact that we have such a wonderful indication this early on!

This morning while having my blood draw I asked the nurse what exactly we were looking for in this test. I told her I knew the hCG level should be above 5 to be an indicator of pregnancy, but she told me they had never really seen a successful pregnancy if the level isn't about 12-14 at least. She said it would be better to be 30 or 60, or even 100, because then we could have a very positive feeling about pregnancy. She said she would send the blood test out and get the results rushed so we could know as quickly as possible.

We were to expect her call between 10:00 and 10:30. So, Randy and I decided to meet for a cup of coffee (decaf for me!) and wait. Tammy called at 10:15...right on time! The first thing she said was, "Cory, you're pregnant." I just about fell out of my chair! She said I had an hCG level of 234! That's excellent news, because she said that a higher number like that is definitely a strong indicator. However, we do still have to go back on Wednesday to have another blood draw and make sure that number doubles to 470 or so before we can say we are pregnant for sure.

Randy and I are still in shock. We both kind of looked at each other and said, "Okay, what now?" It's crazy because every step of the way there seems to have been some sort of obstacle to overcome and we just didn't expect this part to have been so easy. I was thinking last night, as I laid awake for hours, that we are so blessed. I couldn't imagine being lucky enough to have this blessing bestowed upon us so simply. It just seemed like we needed to work a little harder than we have for it. I'm still processing the fact that on June 6, 2009, we may have a little addition to our James Family. Wow.

After Wednesday, if the blood test shows a positive result, we will go back on Friday for another one. Then, we will have our first ultrasound on Friday, 10/10. Tammy said that the first US is pretty anti-climactic because all it shows is the position of the developing fetus. They need to make sure that it's not an ectopic pregnancy or anything like that. Although it's unlikely, that's still a very small possibility. But, when we have our second US on 10/17, we will be able to see a heartbeat. Or, according to my mom, heartbeatS! At that time, when we can see heartbeats, we will know if one or both of our embryos made it. Even though I've wanted this for a long time, I realized that I'm not sure I even know what to do with a baby. How will know how to take care of one baby, much less two? But, bring it on! If it's one, that's great, but if it's two then we don't have to worry about anything else because our family can be complete. I know that the good Lord will not cast burdens upon me that I cannot bear!

Update!

My mom called tonight and they got their electricity back on a little while ago! Hooray! Luckily it hasn't been all that warm there, but temperatures are expected to rise in the coming days. Their little generator was enough to power their water well and their refrigerator so they had running water and ice, but that's not a replacement for cool air on those hot, humid days. What a relief for them to have their electricity back on!!!

Our Embryo Transfer

Today we had our embryo transfer! I'm really excited and anxious to find out if we will be parents. Originally I had decided not to post about it because I didn't want to get excited, and also didn't want to answer questions, in the event that the transfer didn't work. But, I can't keep anything to myself, so practically everyone knows about it anyway and I decided that this is much easier than answering the phone every five minutes! :) Thank you for all of the prayers and positive energy that is being sent our way. I have more than once been overwhelmed today by the wonderful support and well wishes that we have received.

So, yes, overall everything went well this afternoon. When Randy and I first arrived Dr. Preen told us that we had one embryo for sure that made it through the thawing process but he didn't about the other one making it. He explained that at this stage they should be hollow in the middle when they are thawed, but one had not expanded as well as the other. The one that did, however, looked just as good as the day it was frozen according to Dr. Preen. In the rating of the embryos, that one was Excellent or an A rating. The one that was lagging behind in the beginning ended up expanding and getting to the place it needed to be in time to make the transfer. That one was rated as Good, or B. I'm just so thrilled that we had these great results since 1 in 5 embryos don't make it through the thawing process at all. We were pretty nervous and very aware that we could very well get there and not have any embryos to transfer at all. As it happened, both were transferred in a very easy and quick process! I had to lay in an inverted position with my head down and hips up for twenty minutes, then flat on my back for another forty minutes. Then, they got me up, drew my blood for a baseline and sent me home. I'm on 24 hour bed rest per doctors orders. After 24 hours, I can resume normal activity. Randy is doing a really great job of taking care of me and waiting on me so I don't feel like I have to do anything.

My marketing team at VistaCare is bringing us dinner tonight. Christi made lasagna, Cheryl brought a salad and Molly is bringing us her wonderful brownies. I might start with dessert! I was told that my work had a prayer circle this morning to pray for Randy and I (and for our little babies!). I know that I am blessed to work with such a wonderful group of people!

I will have the blood test on Sept. 29th to find out if my hCG level is elevated. That is a pretty good indicator of whether or not we're pregnant, but two days later I will have another blood test and if the hCG levels have doubled then we know we are. I will keep you all posted on how it works out for us!