Emergency Room- Take 2

With the end of summer, comes the worst time of the year...for me. Hunting season.
With me feeling better, Russ left on his first hunting outing.
I decided to go up and visit my brother in Idaho for the weekend while Russ was gone.
We had a great time as usual- I broke the news to them of TWINS because I started getting a bit sick up there and its hard to hide when you're running into the bathroom every couple of hours.
One of the nights while we were asleep, Lila started breathing funny. I wondered if she was allergic to something in the room we were in because she had been fine all day and the night before.
It got worse and worse so I got her out of her pack and play to prop her up in bed with me.
I didn't sleep at all. The next morning was a really cold one- my Dad (my parents were up there as well) wrapped her up in blankets and took her out to sit on the front porch.
She came in and I couldn't keep her awake, despite all of her cousins running around and wanting to play.
My brother picked her up and she instantly fell asleep in his arms- NOT a Lila characteristic. She hates being held when she is tired and she is not a snuggler.

We decided to head out and get her home since we had a 4 hour drive ahead of us.

I sat in back with her and she wouldn't open her eyes or focus on me.

It was cold so I had her in flannel pjs. I touched her forehead and she was on fire.

We pulled over and I got her out of her pjs to cool off and get her some fluids.

She was trying to cry but nothing was coming out so I was starting to get super worried- we were still about 3 hours away from home.

My Dad held her outside while I ran into a gas station to get her more fluids besides milk.

We got home and they had a birthday party for one of my other nieces and nephews they had already committed to so they dropped me off at home and I tried to get a hold of Russ.

Because he is generally in the middle of them mountains I can never get a hold of him. Thankfully, his buddy he was with was called to a church meeting so they left earlier than they had planned and he was on his way home.

She was still burning up, I took her temperature and it was 105. She wasn't waking up, she was drooling more than usual and when she did wake up, she was just try and cry and then fall back asleep.

I told Russ and he told me to call his sister who is an ER nurse while he sped home.

I called her and after hearing her symptoms she told us to take her to the ER.

By the time Russ got home we rushed right out and by then she was at 106 and we couldn't get it to go down. I had given her meds and stuck her under our room fan and nothing was helping.

Lila loves her Dad so so much, and when he got home and she couldn't even look at him I think it scared him as much as it had been scaring me.

We got to the emergency room and there were so many people in there it made me panic. Luckily they take those they think that are more of an emergency back first so they took her back instantly since she wasn't really responsive.

She had croup, but they think her temperature went up too high, too fast and that's what they were most worried about. They gave her some more meds and we did a breathing treatment and chest xrays and after a few hours we were able to bring her home.

We are paranoid first parents and have heard nightmare stories of babies in beds with parents and them rolling on them, so we put her in her crib and we took turns sleeping on the floor next to her crib.

Luckily the steroid or whatever they gave her bounced her back pretty quick and she was better a couple days later! So scary and sad seeing your kids sick!

End of Summer

To bid our farewell to summer, we went up to Sundance to walk around and enjoy the outdoors before we were cooped up all winter.
It was a beautiful day!

 

We sat on this little patio forever, looking at the fish and people watching.

I always keep my eyes peeled for Robert Redford thinking he HAS to just be enjoying his land like we are, but I never see him ;)

 

It was the last day the snow shack would be there for the season so we stopped on our way home and shared this teeny tiny snow cone ;)

I was super embarrassed when they called our name and saw this beast- but we did a decent job as a family pounding that down.

Summer is too fun- why does it have to go so fast?

My Girl

Everyone always ask me what I'm most scared of to have to twins.
Besides not being able to EVER go out on my own for the first little bit ( how do you carry TWO infant car seats and a 20 month old?) I am most scared about losing my time with Lila.
I LOVE spending my days with her. I have lost so many nights of sleep wondering if she is just too small to understand that I wont be able to play and read books with her all day like we do now.
She loves to look at books and we spend so much time reading books and going to the library and making things in her play kitchen, and it breaks my heart to think I am abandoning her. I don't know how I can nurse 2 babies at the same time with how time consuming it is with ONE and still feel like I am giving enough time and energy to Lila.
She is an EXCELLENT baby and I don't want her to digress.
Someone once told me the best gift you could ever get your child is a sibling. And I thought about how I cant imagine my life with brother and sister and how close we are.
I know we will be fine, but Im a little apprehensive about the adjustment.
Shes my best bud.

Side note- she LOVES to ride on her dads back like this. They do it every day :)

 

One day our babysitter called and said Lila was super fussy, and she didn't think she was feeling well.

I asked if I should leave work (I only work 2 days a week so I always feel bad when I tell my boss I have to leave, but of course I would leave if my child was sick!)

She told she thought I should.

I came and got her, brought her home and she was full of energy- I think she knew I just needed extra alone time with her :) Totally worth leaving.

Under the Sea

Once I started feeling a bit better, Lila and I started venturing out more.
It felt SO good to be upright and off of the couch!
We were nearing colder weather so we took advantage of the mountains a few times!
One night, we met up with our good friends Linds and Dave and their son for dinner and dessert around the fire.

 

Nothing better than sitting around the campfire with my 2 girls!

 One of my all time favorite pictures of Russ and Lila.

We went to lunch with my friend Angi and her son Tyce and daughter Jada. I think Tyce and Lila were flirting :)

 

Nothing says flirting like a little belly roll hanging over your pants.

We also spent a day with a few of my friends (Im so sad I didn't get a picture of everyone!) and our kids. We ran into a guy we went to high school with and he had his son that was Lilas age that was terminally ill with Cancer. They were taking him out and letting him enjoy as much of life as he could before he passed. It made me super emotional, and so sad that kids, let alone babies have to go through that. I thought they were excellent parents for taking him out to see as much of the world as possible. He passed away about a month later.

 As we were admiring this big guy he got super aggressive and started hitting the glass and running away. It kind of scared me a bit and the lady that worked for the zoo said it was no big deal, he just didn't like being looked at. My heart BROKE! This poor guy's life is being stared at every day through glass and he hated it :(

It kind of changed my mind on the zoo a bit.

 

I carpooled with Linds. We got back to her house and I had lasted as long as I could before throwing up in her drive way. I decided I should probably tell her I was pregnant- I kept the twins thing a secret still. We still hadn't told people!

We also spent the day a the aquarium with my friend Mel and her daughter that is Lilas same age!

From what I hear this place is usually crowded. We hit it once school had started back and right during the penguin feeding so we had this amazing tunnel all to ourselves!

That night we celebrated Russ getting his braces off! I asked him what he wanted for a brace-free dinner. He said he wanted snickers and a sandwich. I made him snickers salad and we went to one of our favorite local restaurants for his all time favorite Shrip Po Boy :)

 

He looks SO good!

 

Twice the babies, quadrouple the sickness!

Oh Man was I getting sick.
I truly don't think I have ever in my life been that sick.
Turns out, how my body handles morning sickness and twins is not good.
I was throwing up all day everyday. Then suddenly I couldn't even sit up without throwing up. I would lay down and the SECOND I would begin to sit up, I would already been throwing up.
I missed 2 weeks of work, and by the 4 day of not keeping any food or even ice chips down, they forced me to an IV :(
We told my Mother and Father in law a few weeks earlier than we would everyone else only because I was so sick and needed help with Lila!
My mother in law was wonderful and would come read with Lila and keep her entertained while I didn't move a muscle on the couch for weeks!
I would go in every couple of days to the clinic and they would restick my port and I would give myself an IV a couple times a day.

 

I had an IV pole at home, but my cute Dad rigged this up for me while I was at their house :)

 

Not only was I that sick, I got one of the worst head colds Ive ever had in my life at the same time.

Not exaggerating, I thought I was going to die. From not eating for weeks, laying down for 2 weeks straight and a head cold that made my head feel like it was going to explode I was spent.

I remember trying to walk up the stairs with Russ one night and thinking I literally couldn't do it. I didn't have the energy!

I was so dehydrated still, that they couldn't get my IVs back in when I would go to the clinic. I remember just crying in the clinic (Totally not like me) and just asking if there was anything else they could do as they tried to stick me for the 4th time. My arms were bruised on both sides all the way up and down, but they kept me alive!

 

I couldn't have done it without a supportive husband that took over in the evenings, a wonderful Mom who left work immediately one day when one of my ports blocked and blood was coming out (I couldn't drive), my Dad who took me multiple times during the day and would wait on me hand and foot and make me different concoctions of smoothies until I could keep it down,  and my sweet Mother in law for taking such good care of Lila those few weeks.

My amazing sister Kaysie would also drive a couple times at night to come get Lila and have her sleepover and take care of her the whole next day!

Thank goodness it only last 10 weeks instead of my whole pregnancy!

Users Conference

I was able to go to the annual users conference!
I had just found out I was having twins, was desperately sick, but I knew it was one of the last times I would ever get to go and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I work for a software company that is a software for public safety. We have 600+ Sheriff's, police chiefs, 911 dispatchers, etc etc come in to Salt Lake every fall for a conference.
They go to classes during the day, and we have meals, entertainment, and other activities for the few days there are in town.
Its fun helping with the conference and I will miss it this next coming year!
This year for our evening event we hosted a private showing of the comedian Brian Regan.
While he is incredibly funny, he turned out to be quite a jerk to most of us conference host, and some of our guest that wanted pictures with him.
One of the funny things is, he doesn't like people to eat while he is performing.
ANYONE that knows my Dad, knows that this guy is a sucker for treats! As they were taking away peoples uneaten food due to this comedian that refused to come out until it was cleared my Dad was not having it. He got a napkin and hid all his desserts! So My Dad. I chose a table near the door because I was really starting to get sick.

 

We also had a wonderful performance from KISS :)

I was super glad to be apart of this last conference (for me), super grateful for nearby restrooms, and a handsome hubby that I got to see in a suite everyday ;)

Slide City

I hope this comes back next year because we weren't able to actually ride by the time we heard about it drove downtown!

This slide was huge and covered the whole road from top to bottom!
I love summer in SLC.

This little girl had fun watching everyone go down the slip and slide.

Walking back to the car! It made me think of a fun date Russ took me on to the capital a couple years ago for an outdoor movie out on the capitol lawn! Now here we are, married and a baby. Time goes too quickly!

DOUBLE take.

My sister had twins 6 years ago.
I remember how shocked I was to hear she was having twins. From the time she was pregnant, until just a few years ago I remember saying, "Two babies?!?" to her over and over. She was respond with a tired, "TWO babies."
Never, ever, ever in my life  did I ever think I would have twins myself.
Lets rewind...
Shortly after Lilas first birthday Russ was away at a company golf tournament (which is funny in itself, I think it was his first time golfing) in Logan, a 2 hour drive from our home.
I was home with Lila and kept getting this really bad pain in my lower abdomen.
I called my sister who is a nurse after a couple hours of it not going away- I told her I thought maybe it was my appendix.
After she told my appendix were on the OTHER side of my body (duh!) she asked if I was pregnant.
I told her no, so she thought maybe I had a cysts pop on my ovaries. We have some lovely women issues, cysts on our ovaries being one of them. Since it was a Friday afternoon and my Dr wasn't in the office, she told me to call and just see what they say anyway.
It was a really pretty August day so I took Lila to a nearby park for a picnic, just the two of us.
While I was in the drive thru getting our lunch I called my Dr. office knowing they leave at noon but hopeful I could talk to someone.
They asked if I could be pregnant, I told them no, and that maybe I had a cyst burst?
She told me the first step I needed to take was a pregnancy test.
After sitting at the park with Lila and enjoying our lunch besides the occasional pain, I stopped by a nearby store for a pregnancy test. I was kind of ticked because I knew I wasn't pregnant and I thought it was such a waste of money!!
I brought home the test ( I bought a multi pack so at least I could use them again in the future) and just hung around the couch hoping it would go away.
Finally I decided to take the test, and completely even forgot I had peed on the stick for a couple of hours until it was almost time for Russ to get home and I remembered! I went into the bathroom, and COMPLETELY shocked I see a positive pregnancy test.
I called Russ immediately but he had carpooled with coworkers so I couldn't tell him.
I didn't want to tell my sister either I waited until Russ got home.
He pulled in and immediately I told him I was having bad pains, especially when I sat up, lifted Lila or turned a certain way... then I told him I took a pregnancy test and it was positive. He was completely shocked, but also didn't believe it!
He told me to call the on-call Dr again and tell them. I called them back and told them that it was positive and they said to head to the emergency room, because I could be having an ectopic pregnancy!
We went straight to the ER which by now was about 6:30. They do blood work to CONFIRM I was pregnant. We were in the waiting area just dying...wow, our kids were going to be close, how were we going to do it? Flip flopping between so excited and so shocked.
They took me back for an ultra sound to see if it was Ectopic and said I was too early to see if it Ectopic and to make sure I call my Dr first thing Monday morning so they can follow up.

6 WEEKS PREGNANT:

I call Monday morning, they get me in Wednesday and confirm I was 6 weeks and a couple of days pregnant. They did another ultra sound and no sign of a baby. The Dr said that almost all women can see a baby at 6 weeks and 3 days, but if I ovulated even a day or two off the baby wouldn't show up, but it wasn't an ectopic pregnancy. We were relieved! He wanted me back in the following week to check for a heartbeat.

7 WEEKS PREGNANT:

I went back into the Dr office for another ultra sound to be sure there was a heartbeat. They could see the sack had grown, but no baby and no heartbeat! He didn't think it was a good sign but suggested we come back a week later.
I went home and searched all over the internet for any kind of news related to not seeing a heartbeat at this stage of a pregnancy. It was hopeful since the sack had grown, but still no sight of a baby.
I was also SO sick with Lila at 5 weeks pregnant and he was a little concerned that I hadn't felt sick yet. We had to wait another week :(
After our appointment, Russ went back to work and I took Lila to Chick Fil A and to the park where they were remembering September 11th victims for a picnic.
I remember sitting on our blanket, feeling sad, but feeling so grateful to have this little girl and for no matter what Im going through, she brings out a positive energy. And then I look at the all the flags that represented someone lost and thought that I should stop feeling sorry for myself and there are lots of people that day remembering someone that had been lost in a terrible way.

8 WEEKS PREGNANT:

I was starting to feel sick! I thought it was great news! How could I be sick with no baby?!
We went in for the ultra sound...NO baby :( so of course, no heartbeat. I was totally deflated.
I struggled so hard not to cry in the office. He said I could be having a blighted Ovum, where your body still thinks you're pregnant, even though somewhere early you lost the baby. Same hormones, same sickness, and he said it could take weeks to months before you body naturally miscarries. He suggested a D & C to clean out my body and thought it might speed up the process of miscarriage. He doesn't take those lightly though so he wanted to be absolultely sure and wait until I was in my 10 week. He thought he could maybe see a mass growing in the sack, but no heartbeat and with how far along I was, basically told me not to get my hopes up.
We had a big work conference coming up for work that would have been during my 10 week so I told my boss I was miscarrying and I would more than likely miss the conference due to have this procedure done.
I had told my Mom by then. I was sick and I was sad and thought one day I would need help with Lila.
My Dad had restored his trailer and was staying up the mountains for a couple of days. He invited me to come up and have dinner and sleep in the trailer while they took Lila for a walk in the mountains. I thought It was sweet.

 

It was nice to get out in fresh air and rest. I looked out the back window of their trailer and saw them walking off with Lila in the stroller. I was extremely grateful at that moment.

Between throwing up and resting, they just took her so she could enjoy the outdoors.

10 WEEKS PREGNANT:

After a MISERABLE 10 days of emotions and being terribly sick I went in for my final appointment.
I knew everyone was anxiously awaiting results like we were. I remember right before he started the ultra sound wondering how I would react, if I had prepared myself enough. I remember hearing of other woman miscarrying, and I knew it was a very common thing, but I didn't realize how sad these woman got where they weren't that far along. I felt bad for ever thinking that because I was sad! The fear that we had of our kids being so close together made me start to think- how long will I take to recover? What if we cant get pregnant again easily and they are years and years apart?
He started the ultra sound and almost instantly BABY!!!! And a heartbeat!!! I couldn't believe it!!
I started to ask him.. "How...?" and my Dr instantly replied, "Its Unexplainable". I will forever more remember hearing him say that! ....Its unexplainable.
I was instantly relieved, instantly wanted to hug him for making me wait. That whole time waiting I didn't understand why he wouldn't just do it and put me out of my misery. I saw with my own eyes a big black empty hole!
Russ heard the good news and started to wrestle with Lila in a chair behind me as she was already getting anxious and wanted out oft he dark small room.

My Dr went to get a different angle of the baby so he could measure it and all of the sudden he says, "Wait a minute..".
AND I KNEW!!!!!!!!
Me, "No!"..."No, no, no".
Dr, " Yep."
Russ wrestling with Lila behind me, "What?! What just happened?"
Me....crying
Russ....waiting
Dr, "There's two".

How in the world we went from seeing NO baby for 5 weeks in a row to TWO perfectly healthy heartbeatin' TWINS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think we were all in shock!
He told me to get dressed and come into his office for a talk.
I got dressed, threw up, and went and sat in his office.
I hadn't been there 2 minutes and had to run to the bathroom again.
He sat us down and told us what to expect for the next little while.
They sent us out of the door with 2 "new baby" packages of diaper samples, formula samples, prenatal and I just remember looking at Russ and we both busted up laughing!
I can never begin to tell you the roller coaster of thinking I was about to have a D & C to twins measuring 8 weeks!
How could I have TWO babies measuring 8 weeks when 10 days ago we saw one big black empty hole?
I hopped into our brand new car Russ had just surprised me with (That's another fun story: I wanted a new car so bad, and Russ didn't. I found one that I wanted and we test drove it and Russ just basically said no. I walked out of our house one day with Lila and we had a brand new car sitting in our driveway! He hadn't said a word about it, just wanted to surprise me. There was a HUGE red ribbon in the truck he was going to put on but didn't.

The relevance in the new car is that I hopped in this car we had only had a month and I instantly thought- we have already outgrown this!

I called my Mom and my sister right away and they were in shock My mom didn't believe me and all my sister said was, "Ohhhh Seester." haha.

 

So here is one of the few belly shots I've ever taken- 4 months pregnant with TWINS:

 

We are so thankful for good Drs, and the faith that has been given to us to take care of these two.
While we are terrified to have 3 babies under the age of 2, we couldn't feel more blessed.