My Miracles

PART TWO

When I reached 23 weeks of pregnancy I went into labor for the first time. The doctors said that because of the extra fluid around Bryce my uterus was big enough that it was irritated and thought it was time for the babies to be born. I spent a couple of days at the Idaho Falls hospital where they tried unsuccessfully to stop the labor pains. Then they decided to fly me to Salt Lake and so off I went in an ambulance to the airport where I was flown to the University hospital. Once there they were completely full of patients and we spent a couple of agonizing days waiting for them to do something. The specialist finally got around to us and decided to do a procedure where they insert a small needle into the sack of the baby with the most fluid and slowly drain it off, thus relieving some of the pressure. It took them a full 30 minutes to drain off enough fluid to fit in 1 1/2 2 liter bottles. The procedure was a success but I ended up in full blown labor, which was one of the risks. Jakob had a cousin living in Salt Lake who rushed over and gave me a priesthood blessing which stopped the labor. After that they sent us home and the condition improved itself for a few weeks. I was on strict bed rest for the next 10 weeks and we made many trips to the hospital to stop the almost constant contractions. Finally at 34 weeks of pregnancy I woke up feeling very sick to my stomach. I wanted to wait, having been to the hospital for so many false alarms, but Jakob saw my level of pain and insisted we go right away. When we got there sure enough I was in real labor and it was time for the babies to be born! I had a c-section and Bryce was born October 14, 2001 at 10:42 a.m. and Brenon was born one minute later. Bryce had to have oxygen the fist few days and had a very red complexion as a result of the extra red blood cells he had from getting too much blood. Brenon needed no assistance but did have apnea spells that had to be watched for. They both spent 3 weeks in the NICU in Idaho Falls learning to eat. At one point they were planning on sending Brenon home the next day, then when we got there they said he had stopped eating and couldn't leave yet. When Bryce started eating well Brenon started eating again and they came home on the same day. I still think Brenon was waiting for his brother! The twins weighed in at 5 lbs. 10 oz. (Bryce) and 5 lbs. 4 oz. (Brenon). This was amazing to the doctors because normally with TTTS one twin is twice the size of the other. Bryce and Brenon have always been so close, they slept in the same crib for a long time and once we separated them they would both scoot to where the cribs met and reach through the bars to be by each other. At 18 months they started developmental and speech therapy because they were a behind which is common for preemies. By age 5 they were completely caught up with others their age. Brenon has had problems with his ears, but other than that they had been amazingly complication free. They are now healthy boys, pretty big for their age, and advanced in their school work. They are starting to complain about too many kids at school asking why they "have the same face" but they are still inseparable and the best of friends. I feel so blessed to have been given the opportunity to be their mother, but even more so that I was allowed to keep both of them with me on earth. They are my miracles!