Tucker's newest pic

Tucker's last ultrasound...he smiles.

T is for Tucker

We're already losing sleep!

T is for Tucker- and named appropriately so... we are Tuckered out! It's Janine here- bypassing my ebay money train to catch y'all up- not to mention I am freaking TIRED. I have been totally busy at work, and coming home to frantically gear up for our new arrival... They told us in childbirth class that she would start "nesting", but I feel like I've built about 20 in the last 2 weeks. The pressure to have the house spotless when our guests arrive- and not being able to use Carey as a helper is taking it's toll. I'm a little overwhelmed- oh! and PMS is putting me into BITCH overdrive. "Love wash over a multitude of things..." as Sara Groves sings... Thank God for my understanding partner and children.

We are so close now at 36 weeks and we *never* thought we would reach this point. We are nervous at any little sign of possible or remotely possible- or near impossible symptoms that could indicate trouble. I'm not helping matters any by being like, "Danger, Wil Robinson! You have swelling to your hands and face!" Proceeded by, "Did they check your protein? How much did you gain? Are you seeing spots? Is he moving ok? Do you have any discharge?" Yes- you would not believe how many times a week I ask this question. It's insane. This morning my serious gf orders breakfast from bed- she's trying to do her "kick counts" and is concerned. I fixed her the cereal with the highest sugar content (cocoa pebbles) and a tall glass of apple juice. We pushed, we prodded. I was this ***** close to doing a external cephalic version, i swear. I had a hold of his little buttocks and was trying to help him move a little :) Finally we played his song "Cody's song" by Kenny Loggins (yes, we are aware it's a little gay-er than say, John Mayer..but we are ok with that. :) And it worked... he was well on his way to 10 kicks and then some.

Carey is not loving the lugging. Of our bouncing baby boy, that is. She is having a hard time sleeping. When she tosses and turns she has to hold her belly like a bowling balland it's like she's in slow motion- poor mommy. She's eating massive amounts of food, but she is doing great weight wise- I'm proud of her for that --> I didn't do that part so well with mine. Her feet are getting bigger and she is sleeping a great bit. Overall she just can't wait to get him OUT! I think it's funny how our bodies prepare us for childbirth like that. Just a month ago she was petrified of giving birth and was saying things like, "I'm realizing he has to come out SOME way!" and now if they offered her delivery today- she'd be all over it.

We STILL don't have a middle name. We STILL don't have his room ready. We STILL don't have the bag packed all the way. We STILL don't have a birth plan... I'm a little spazzed out at this point. I'm tempted to say something positive here, but I know how silly that is, given the circumstances- we only have 2-3 weeks left!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, uh... Carey, now that atleast 14 people in the world are reading our blog- How's about a birth plan, eh???

I took some belly shots this evening- when I get time, I DO intend to make a music montage... lol... I love those things :)!

Finally got the crib put together...what do you think??

Baby Boy Is Growing!!

At ultrasound yesterday, he weighed 3lbs and 12ozs!!  He is measuring right on schedule and seems to be very healthy.  My doctor has scheduled my cerclage to come out on June 2...at 37 weeks.  It is great to be talking about 37 weeks..I remember not to long ago when his survival was questionable.  We have a baby shower on Sunday, so hopefully I will have some pictures to post then.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers :) 

88 days maximum

Wow... 88 days is the very most time my love will be "with child". Our baby boy is steadily growing. He has been more active in the daytime, whereas he used to be active at night. It never fails, though, at 11pm he decides to get busy in there. Sometimes I will push on her belly and he will play a little game with me. I push, he kicks back. I push, he kicks back. I talk to him every night. I say things like, "Hello, baby! Are you having a party in there?"- at which point he gives a good "BAM!" to her bump... After that, we play a lullabye or two and he starts to squirm. We haven't figured out if it's pleasant for him, or if he is moving away. However, my parents did it for me in utero and I did it every day for my 2 boys... so that's what baby boy gets too!
Carey's dad will come to set up the crib next week because we will be at our greatest milestone yet, 28 weeks!!! I still have a lot of work to do, clearing out the "study" of our accumulated junk...it's our "hoarder" room... ebay stuff, baby stuff and the original room stuff...sigh... it's going to be a long and hard weekend.
I have 3 papers to write for school in the next 2 weeks, which has me overwhelmed. I also have a ton of yard work to do- on top of the kid's spring break and working full time. I plan to take 2 days off so I can manage, though I don't plan on squandering the kids vacation. We usually plan something big in April and I feel guilty not being able to go.
Carey has been given permission to drive and move around more- but I think she is taking it a little futher than necessary. Although, I have to admit, I like not having to do the dishes!!! :) She isn't complaining as much about her stomach hurting this week *knock on wood*. She seems to hold some pride in being in the third trimester. She should. She made it happen by doing all the doctor said to do. She has an appt on Thursday- and I will miss little booger on the "big screen"
:( . I'll definitely try to post this one and update the blog on how big he's getting.

Almost 24 weeks!

Things are going good for now and we are almost 24 weeks :)  We are trying to keep the baby in utero as long as possible, but every week that goes by is a milestone to us because we arent sure just how long he is going to be able to stay.  I am on bedrest now and trying to make the best of it.  We finally got cable and I am watching a ton of  reality educational shows :) 

Thank you to everyone who commented on my last post about the pictures of Owen.  We miss him every day.  Please continue to pray for us..every prayer helps.

Last Blog Post

Janine posted pictures of our baby Owen on the last post.  It occured to me that these pictures of him (being so small) may make some people uncomfortable.  We have gotten used to looking at them, so I apologize if anyone finds them uncomfortable to look at.

Owen James

This is Owen about 30 minutes after birth.  He is alive here and lived to be 2 hours old. He was absolutely beautiful. He had very big hands and feet!  The color in the second pic is because they stamped his feet in ink.  Carey came home from the hospital on Friday, and went back in on Monday about 4AM.  She was discharged last night again.  We are holding onto baby "B" with all our might. We just need to hold out (at a minimum) 3 weeks!  Our family has been the best you could ask for through all of this... I hope to blog in more detail as soon as I can, so I don't forget it all...look for more soon!

Update

This is Janine here...
stopped by the house to take a shower and check on the kids...
Carey is due to come home tomorrow if all goes well tonight.  She developed pneumonia and is taking a course of antibiotics.  She has been off of the meds that make her stop contracting for 24 hours now and is doing well.  Now all we need to do is hope the cerclage will stay til term.  tomorrow we go to the high risk OB for an ultrasound to check on the cerclage and baby B.
Coming home to the ruins here is hard.  I feel like i am in suspended animation... so much to do- and no energy...
going back to the hospital in a bit.

Sadness

Carey is in the hospital. We are grieving the loss of baby "A", who was delivered yesterday at only 15 oz and 9 3/4 inches long. We had a heartbeat for nearly 2 hours and we loved him and took in every little detail while we held his tiny little body... Carey's cervix decided to dilate and thin on it's own. When she started bleeding we went straight to the dr's office where they discovered she had a "bulging bag" The amniotic sac had "hourglassed" into her cervix, with Owen still kicking as usual. After an amniocentisis to check for infection (done once for each), they calmed the contractions in the uterus. Then, her water broke. We have been to hell and back in 24 hours...A long story short, the high risk OB developed a plan to deliver Owen- who would surely die- and stich her cervix closed to save baby "B". The chances of success with all of the factors involved were slim- but the doctor managed to stitch her cervix. Carey is in bed, with major doses of Magneium sulfate to ,again,calm the uterus' contractions. the baby has a strong heartbeat and as far as we can tell, is doing fine. I have a lot of things to tend to at the moment, but when I can I will try to add more details of our journey. Please pray for baby "B" to be able to stay in utero and Carey's continued health.

Comfortable sleeping

is now something of the past I think!  My belly isnt really all that big, but I can't find any position that is comfortable and even pillows arent helping :(

New slide show.... 21 weeks

http://www.rockyou.com/show_my_gallery2.php?source=ppsl&instanceid=156476749

be sure to click on the little speaker in the bottom left hand corner!

Snakes and snails and puppy dog tails..

that's right!!  2 of them!!

Help us find a boy name, win a giftcard!

Check out the widget I made (my first) to the right...We have found perfect girls names (we aren't telling :) ) but really need help finding boys names! There is a $50 giftcard in it for you if you win! Ask your family and friends for some suggestions! We are looking for a name that isn't too common. We may be having twin boys, so names that go together MAY be considered as well. Thanks!

Baby B Kicks!

Carey has felt kicks for SURE now.. and I felt a itty bitty kick last night- it's so (I've spent 2 minutes looking for the right word) awesome, wonderful, neat, uh... sweet! Can't wait til Friday to see them again, make sure they are healthy and happy in there... getting enough to eat :)

One week...

until we find out if we are having boys or girls!!  I think I will relax a little after that....or not LOL!

Girls? Boys? Both?

Carey went to the doctor Thursday. The babies heartbeats were both heard, which was a sigh of relief for both of us. This early in the game you always wonder what's going on in there and pray everything is ok. She hasn't felt any movement yet, but is anxiously anticipating ANYTHING that feels like it :) We will get to find out if puppy and kitty are boys girls or both on Jan. 15, so stay tuned... We will take a snapshot of the belly this week (a bit late, but it just started pokin out a little this past week). Over the weekend we shared Christmas dinners with family and relayed the news. It was well received. Time sure is slipping away! The ticker says 180 days... ugh... stress...

Less than 200 days left!!

Every milestone is exciting to me in this journey!!!  Babies are still doing good as far as we know.  I go back to the doctor on 12/17 and hopefully I will get to hear the heartbeats at this visit.  I hope you guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!!

Ultrasound video- almost 9 weeks

Carey always gives me a hard time about video-ing these things, so at the beginning she is being rude (while she still can). The ultrasound indicated 2 healthy, growing babies and you can hear the heart beats towards the middle of the movie. They are still so itty bitty that it may take an expert eye to make out the legs on these little boogers!

Can't wait til Friday

We will get to see our little ones! Carey is going in for an ultrasound at 11:00 on Friday. Maybe I can save the video to show! Look for it on Friday evening!

2 BABIES!!!

Yes we have 2 babies!!  We were very surprised when we saw the ultrasound the other day.  They both look great and have strong heartbeats.  I think we are still both in shock.  They are due the day after my birthday...June 20th.  Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Holy Betas, Batman!!!

My beloved pregnant one has been eating enough for three or four... and I'm thinking is there a reason for that?  She had her third beta test today which came back at 6571.  Today is day 22. Check out the average numbers.  The numbers are looking scary- median numbers for triplets aren't even that high... but we hear betas can vary greatly (I'm still praying for one single healthy baby)  Tonight she is having "night sickness" and needs assistance.  She wants a trash can by the bed, Tums, and "No moving around!"
 I had Hayden take a picture of her belly tonight. It looks like a checkerboard.  Estrogen patches leave a stubborn bandaid type of residue in their rectangular shape.  Carey lines them up in rows :) We have a ritualistic type of cleaning every couple of days.  I "get" to use the cotton balls and Neutrogena oil on her while she relaxes on the bed. She likes it when I am in service to her- kind of like when you get a pedicure and the little asian ladies rub your feet and legs when they are through... she eats that stuff up.  ( and I received a "Hell no!" when asking to post the belly pic ;)

If I knew how to post music...

The song would be "I'm So Excited" by the Pointer Sisters... laughing...I just watched the video for the first time on YouTube. If you click the title of this post, you can see it! WOWSA! hahaha
Carey has the blood test today to confirm the pregnancy(ies). I already know she's pregnant. I think she is in disbelief, so she wont TRULY come to terms with it until the blood test comes back positive. I can't get this song out of my head.
So, I expect she will hear from the nurse this afternoon. I'm just so excited for her! For us!
We went to the movies the other night. She had her feet propped up on the seats in front of us at the $2 theater. We are the theater's biggest customers- and there aren't alot of people there on the weeknights...so it's like our own little slice of heaven :) . We bring a blanket and our own candy. Carey got nachos with cheese and jalepenos...she never ends up eating more than 2 of the jalepenos...I don't know why she gets them, really, but it's kind of cute. So, she turns to me and says, "I think this is the happiest I have ever been in my life." It makes me feel good to know she is where she wants to be.
About the unfinished post: Carey was supposed to tell you how they surprised her with a catheter, but she was a busy bee last week!
She has had a couple of bouts of morning sickness already, poor baby...she stopped to pick up some Tums this morning on the way to school. I was eating those like freakin tictacs when I was pregnant! I am so anxious for her to call or message me!!!

I havent had my blood test yet but...

If you look closely you can see it is definitely a positive :)

2 Embryos Transferred!

On Friday we had "Puppy and Kitty" tranferred to Carey's estrogen laden womb...Carey suggested we name them, but I didn't want to assign gender or get too attached. So puppy and kitty it is. The doctor and embryologist said the embryos were "beauuuuutiful."- Really. She said it that way- which made us beam (as if we had something to do with it). The doctor said you couldn't ask for it to be better, they were already hatching out of the zona. So,Carey took a valium on the way to the clinic and was feeling pretty good when we arrived. She looked like a cartoon character with her droopy eyelids, but she wasn't really animated- chillin like a villan :0) So I decided to do a photo shoot, which REALLY annoyed her. She always gets huffy when I take pictures in unusual places. I, personally, think it's cool to be able to capture a moment in time. This was a moment I wanted us to remember. The valium took a little of the fight out of her, but 10 pictures of eye rolling, 5 hateful looks,3 of us and 5 blog worthy ones later, she had enough. Shortly thereafter, her valium nearly metabolized, the doctor came in to take her back. She gave me a kiss and a hug. They said it would be about 15 minutes. About 5-10 minutes later she was being rolled back in. Both of us wondered why she needed a valium on the way to the office, but as our eyes met, I knew there was probably a good reason for it. She gave me the wide eyed look we give one another when we are trying to telepathically communicate- let the other one know something without saying it... They closed the curtain and I came to the bedside in a whisper asking "what happened in there?"...to be continued...

Cycle Day 2

Well today is cycle day 2 and my RE says we are on track for transfer on 10/02. I am starting estrogen patches and baby aspirin and lowering my lupron to 5 units today. The countdown is on again!!!

Sorry it has been so long!!

Like I said..it has been super busy around here! Here is what has been going on.

We have had a stomach virus in the house for about a week. Hayden is on round #2. He was home last week with it and I just had to go pick him up again. Pepto Bismol is awesome!!

Both boys are settling in to school pretty good. We have started a new project with them that involves them being responsible for themselves. They have to pick out their own clothes, get themselves dressed, brush teeth on their own, and do their homework on their own, etc. They said that we nag them too much, so we are going to see if it works. Mackenzie is already getting notes home from his teacher about not doing his homework, but we are going to give it some more time and see if he comes around. This seems to make the environment here more pleasant.

I have my first test tomorrow for my medical microbiology class (I know...I should be studying now). Keep your fingers crossed that I do well!

Mackenzie has a birthday on Wednesday and he will be 12..he is growing up so fast!!

Still working on house training the puppy. He is getting much better...but not quite their yet.

Embryo transfer should be in about 15 days!!!!

I am still around

just trying to get adjusted to all the new stuff going on. We are about 4 weeks away from transfer. I will try to catch up soon :)

Things are about to get crazy!

School starts next week for me and the kids!  Macks is going to middle school (first year there) and this will be Hayden's last year in elementary school.  I will be going to college also full time.  I am excited, but worried about getting everything ready.  I like to be prepared so I am trying to work out all the drop off and pick up schedules around my classes (which are different times everyday).  I think I have it figured out except for Thursday afternoons when I need someone to pick them up.  

The kids got to see their dad finally..he came home from Iraq!!  He has been there since January, so they were so excited to get to spend some time with him.  We dropped them off on Thursday and then went to VA Beach for the weekend to visit with Janine's brother.  It was a very lazy trip. We went to the beach and just hung out at their house most of the time.  We got back home Sunday night since Jan had to work on Monday.  I am going to be picking the boys up on this coming Sunday to get ready for the big week.  

I am still on Prometrium and waiting for AF to come so I can get this transfer going.   I just hope it goes fast!   Well that is all I have for now..I have to go chase down the dogs :)

Transfer was canceled :(

Only a minor setback..but still a setback.  We were so hoping that it would be this week!  I felt really bad on Monday night, and went in on Tuesday for an ultrasound and the doctor found fluid in my abdomen and my ovaries were still really swollen (the tops of them were above my belly button)!  My doctor said that if we did the transfer and I were to get pregnant that I could possibly get very very sick and she didnt want to risk it.  I don't want to be sick either, but I am ready for my baby :(  So the plan now is to transfer in about 6 weeks after my body has calmed down.  We still have a bunch of embryos.  They were freezing 4 yesterday and said that today they would have at least 10 to 12 to freeze, so we have nothing to worry about there.  My doctor has an awesome success rate with frozen, so that makes me feel a little better.  We can also schedule the transfer for a Friday when Janine can go with me (she wasnt going to be able to go this week because of work) so that is another positive.  I think this is the best scenerio, but I hate the wait!!