Surprise of a Lifetime, Part 2

Twins!  I think it started sinking in and now it was time to start thinking of how we were going to go from 2 to 4 girls all under age 4.  We started having monthly ultrasounds so it was fun to see them getting bigger.  The babies were pretty much next to each other when we first saw them but by the next appointment, Baby B had moved down and Baby A was tucked up on the left side.  They pretty much stayed there for the rest of the pregnancy.  Thankfully, I never was put on bed rest but I definitely slowed way down in the last trimester.  I got so large that I couldn’t get to our dryer so hubby or sweet friends from church had to help me with the laundry.

Before we found out it was twins, we had begun discussing another girl name and were leaning towards Abigail.  After we found out we had to come up with 2 names, we had to figure out first if we were going to rhyme them, have them start with the same first letter or just do totally separate.  Since we already had one name, we decided to do both of them as Biblical names.  Hannah was chosen to go with it.

My biggest concern was the possibility of having a c-section and as I got close to the end, it was determined that would be the safest delivery due to Baby B being breech.  There was too much possibility of the cords tangling to deliver naturally.  I made it to 37 weeks, which is like 40 weeks for multiples, so the doctor and I were ready to have these babies arrive.  Since my first 2 girls were born on the 14^th of the month, we thought it would be great to have the twins on that date also.  Unfortunately, that was Valentine’s day and it fell on a Saturday so we couldn’t do a scheduled c-section so we scheduled for the following Monday, February 16^th and I prayed labor would start earlier.  That didn’t happen so at 12:25 p.m., February 16, 1998, Baby B was pulled out first to be labeled Baby A and given the name Hannah.  A minute later, her sister came out and was named Abigail.  We decided the order of the names because Abigail means “father rejoices” and for us that was because she was the last one or so we thought but that is another blog post.  2 healthy babies crying their lungs out was a beautiful sound.

It is hard to believe all this took place 18 years ago because many times it seems like yesterday.  God has allowed these 2 scrawny babies to grow into beautiful young ladies both inside and out and gave me the grace to be their mother.  I look forward to seeing what God has in store for them and maybe He will even allow me to be a grandmother to twins because that would be the cherry on top!

Happy 18th birthday, girls!!  I love you!

Surprise of a Lifetime, Part 1

Positive!  That is what the pregnancy test said.  Unfortunately, I was not as excited as I should have been.  I wanted another child but having a 2 year old and a 9 month old only 20 months apart, I had desired waiting until the #2 was 18 months to begin trying for a 3^rd child.  Hubby, on the other hand, was thrilled when I told him.  I was being selfish and not wanting to go through the morning sickness and stretched out body again so soon but thankfully, God convicted me of my feelings and soon I was excited that number #3 was on their way. 

My morning sickness lasted a little longer this time around and my clothes got snug way faster but it was the third pregnancy in as many years.  I had finally gotten over the morning sickness in the 4^th month when I apparently contracted food poisoning from eating out at a salad bar.  After a night of vomiting and wishing the morning sickness would just come back, I told hubby to take me to the ER because I feared I was dehydrated.  I was so they gave me an IV of fluids along with listening for the baby’s heartbeat, which was thankfully beating strong. 

The next week, was finally our ultrasound appointment.  Hubby and I went back and forth on whether we wanted to find out the sex of the baby.  I had enjoyed the surprise we had with #1 of not finding out but hubby wanted to find out since we already had 2 girls.  We decided to find out.  The ultrasound technician got me set up on the table and started asking us questions like what did we think it was and how many children we already had.  She did a test swipe and then took the wand off.  Her questions then were things like did we have a bet since we each thought it was a different sex and did I take fertility drugs.  I finally looked over at my husband and said “Is she trying to tell us something?”  She put the wand back on and said “It’s identical twin girls!”  All that from one swipe!  We were speechless and I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry so I did a little of both.  I think we walked out of the office on cloud 9.  Neither of us would have ever dreamed we were having twins, especially identical ones!  Now we had the fun of telling family and friends.

My family was waiting anxiously to hear whether we were having a boy or a girl when we pulled up to my parents’ house.  We got out of the car, each with a ultrasound picture and one of us showed theirs saying, “It’s a girl!” and then the other quickly said, “And another girl!”  It took a few seconds for it to sink in but then the shrieks and cries of joy started.  We then made calls to other parents followed by calls to our church family.  Everyone was as shocked and thrilled as we were.  Then fun was just beginning! 

Breaks

We climbed in the car to leave Florida and headed northward, our minds wondering if there would still be some of the snow they had gotten over the weekend.  When we arrived, cheers erupted as we saw white all over the ground.  My youngest quickly donned on her gloves and coat to begin making snowballs and snowmen.  That night was freezing temperatures so the next morning there was some ice around.  I left the room first and quickly found out just how slippery ice was on a road.  Thankfully, the injury was only found with bruises on my hip, elbow and wrist.  Later that morning, as I sat with ice on my arm, I find out that one of my girls had also fallen on the ice, my youngest who had been enjoying the snow with friends but then found herself on some ice.  Down she went with thump and an arm hitting the curb.  Yep, Daddy took her off to the urgent care to confirm what was suspected - a broken bone.  This was a first for our family but she was full of smiles as she returned with a sling and wrapped up arm.

We were at the NC National Open tournament when all this happened so her sisters, Hannah and Abigail, who were timing and competing, didn't have a clue about the drama until later that day when people started asking them how their little sister was.  I did try to reach them earlier!

Other than the falls on the ice, the tournament was a good one.  Hannah and Abigail were very excited to find out they advanced with their Duo to semi-finals and Hannah also advanced with her Open.  They also received some good feedback on their ballots which was very encouraging for all of their speeches.

The youngest has decided it might be awhile before she wants to be in snow again so it is a good thing we are back in Florida where the only ice is in the freezer.  She went to get her permanent cast today so she will be styling for a few weeks.  Mama will also be getting lots of practice with her writing because school must go on.