Prayer for Denniston twins

Here is a quick update on the Denniston twins:

Well, not great news to report. We got a call at 6:30am that Natalie needed emergency surgery. They found out that she had a perforation in her intestines. The surgeons just took her back for her operation. It’s just a really scary time right now. If she doesn't have the operation, they don't expect her to make it. With the surgery, she has a 50-50 chance of survival. It’s been very difficult today to watch her struggle and in pain. We are really praying that God will guide the surgeon's hands and that she will be back with us in a couple hrs. The healing process will be long for her, but she is a definite fighter. Danny and I would really appreciate your prayers this morning. She is in God's hands now. All we can do is wait and hope for the best!

 

Please continue to pray for these little girls.

Allan

6 Days Old!!

So here we are, day 6. The girls are almost a week old now and it seems like all of the days since their birth have merged into one. Since our last post we have moved into the Ronald McDonald house, which is just down the street from the hospital. This is a huge blessing and relief for us! The room is similar to hotel room only there is no bathroom, just a sink. We have a bathroom just outside our room that we share with the room next to us. There is also no TV in any of the rooms, just in the community area in the lobby. This is to encourage families and parents to visit their children and not watch TV all day. Melody and I think this is a great idea and really have enjoyed not having a TV. We have been able to talk with a few people that are also staying here and everyone is very appreciative for everything the Ronald McDonald house provides. They have washers and dryers with laundry detergent, a kitchen with some of the basic foods and snacks. All that are free of charge to the guests. All of these things have been provided through donations from businesses in the area, churches and organizations, and previous families that have stayed here. After being in this situation and fortunate enough to have the house available for us, Melody and I will be giving back for years to come.

And now what everyone wants to know....."How are the girls doing?"  

They are doing great! It seems like every time we go back to the nursery there is one less piece of equipment strapped to their little bodies. So far we have experienced and waved goodbye to a "C-pap", 2 nasal canulas, 2 IVs, 1 bililight (for jaundice) and 1 isolette! Sayla is out of her isolette and is in an open crib, she still has a feeding tube but we (really Melody, I'm not so good at it) is working on breastfeeding. Brynna is still in her isolette because she is so small it is easier to regulate her temperature in an enclosed environment. She also has a feeding tube. Brynna was off her bililight yesterday but she was put back on it today. The doctors wanted to see how she would do without it, but her numbers climbed a little higher. It seems like a step backwards but the doctors and nurses know what's best. We just spoke with a pediatrician about the progress of our girls. She says that they are right where they need to be, if not a step ahead. They have been increasing the "feeds" gradually and have reached the ideal amount. Now they are now wanting to see a gain of 0.5-1 ounce per day. 

Some of you may know this already but for those that may not, a friend of mine from high school and his wife gave birth to twins girls, Noel and Natalie, the same day Melody and I had ours. Only they were due in November. She was only 24 weeks along and the girls weighed 1.5 lbs each. The girls are at Riley Hospital right now and really need everyones prayers. This is very hard on them, this was an emergency delivery and they weren't prepared for something like this. Dan and his wife staying at the Ronald McDonald house just a few rooms down from us. I have told him we would pass along their information to everyone that has prayed for our girls so we could pray for them. Feel free to pass this along to fellow believers and lift them up in their prayers. I will try to keep updates on them as I get them.

Allan

The Grande Finale!

We apologize for the delay. We've been very busy and tired. Here are your long-awaited updates.

****

Baby A- Sayla Joy Carr- Hebrew meaning "Pause and Reflect"

born July 14 at 8:48 am, 5 lbs 3 ozs, 17.5 inches long.

Baby B- Brynna Lu Carr- Irish meaning "Strong One" 

born July 14 at 8:49 am, 3 lbs 1.7 ozs, 15.25 inches long.

*****

They're here! Two beautiful baby girls! Everyone is healthy and doing great. Melody is recovering very well from her C-section. They have her drugged up pretty well, but it's nice for me to know she doesn't feel any pain. It also adds some entertainment too. Both babies are in the special care nursery, which has been tough on Melody not being able to see them as much as she wants. It was tough for me to decide who to visit yesterday, go see our new girls or tend to my wife who just gave us these beautiful babies. So I did both, going back and forth to each one, giving Melody updates on how they were doing. Last night Melody and I were able to hold the babies for the first time! It was an amazing experience and we feel so blessed to finally have our "miracle babies" with us! It was, however, right in the middle of the All-Star game. For those of you that know how much I love baseball, I would choose holding my little girls any day over watching baseball. Maybe when they come home we can combine the two  :)  The nurses and staff here have been great. They have taken care of our babies like they were their own. I can't express how thankful we are for the people who have helped care for our girls and my wife. 

Today has been an exciting day for us all. Melody is a little more active and the twins have made huge strides. Sayla has been taken off the glucose-water solution and is on a feeding tube, Brynna will be following in her "older" sister's footsteps shortly we are told. Brynna has been taken off her "C-pap", which helps keep her lungs expanded and full. They are both doing extremely well and have each made names for themselves in the special care nursery. Brynna is known for being a little fighter and Sayla is pretty laid back until you do something she doesn't like. Then she really lets you know about it. She has a pretty good set of lungs. I went to visit them this morning and Sayla was on her back sprawled out in her crib sideways. The nurse said she tries to keep her bundled up, but she always ends up in that position. I think it's from being cramped inside Melody for so long and she is finally enjoying some freedom. :)  After I finished laughing at Sayla I noticed Brynna was tucked in nicely in her blanket except for her leg sticking out the side. They like to show off their big feet and long toes that were unfortunately passed down from their daddy. These moments are the funny snapshots of their first days of life that we will always remember.

The twins will probably be in the special care nursery for about 1 month. This is not an exact timeframe, but a general rule of thumb that the nurses go by. They base this on when the due date was. Ours was Aug. 15. It could be more or less depending on how the babies are doing. This might give us enough time to finish the nursery before they get home. Melody will most likely be discharged this Friday. We don't know if we will be going home or somewhere else. We would like to stay somewhere close to our babies and Anderson is an hour away. We have put our application in to the Ronald McDonald house and are waiting for a response. That would be great for us to stay close to our girls for so many reasons. Until then we will just wait and see. We want to say thank you for everyone's prayers during our pregnancy, God has answered our prayers and blessed us with two healthy, beautiful "miracle babies".

Pictures soon to come!!!!! Stay Tuned...

-Allan

Baby Birthday Eve

It's the night before the big arrival. I have heard people say with a sigh "All good things must come to an end." Well, thankfully so do the bad things, and this pregnancy is one bad thing I won't miss. In less than 24 hours, I will say goodbye to pregnancy and hello to our brand spankin' new baby girls! The risks of a c-section don't scare me anymore. I could bleed enough for a transfusion, they could slice an organ, they could cut one of the babies...and what else did she say? Oh yeah, they might have to take out my uterus if something goes wrong. It sounds like enough to make a person terrified. Deep down I am, but it's amazing how good God's peace makes a person feel (like those narcotics they gave me today). It's like a super power. Part of it is excitement that we are going to meet our babies and that I can recover in my own home. 

I told Allan a few weeks ago that I had a feeling I would deliver on the 14th. No one will believe me now. I should have written it down. Darn. So this is how it happened. I met yet another doctor today, a new high risk OB. He basically said "you've been pregnant long enough," then proceeded to tell me that although it is risky to deliver prematurely, it's just as risky to keep them in because Baby B's dopplers were abnormal again. This time they were reverse flow. He told me I have the option of trying to deliver as nature intended or do a c-section. Do you recall my last blog where I said "knock me out and cut me open"? That was the gist of the conversation. I didn't want to put Baby B through a lot of stress by trying to deliver under so much pressure...literally. I figure that even though there are a lot of risks involved for me during a c-section, there are more risks involved for both of us the other way. So when I gave him my choice, he said they would check the schedule for the next morning.  

So here I am in labor and delivery. I'm being monitored all night until morning to make sure Baby B is doing okay. In case things took a turn for the worse, they could do an emergency c-section. My pain meds wore off earlier and I thought that was it for sure. I think Baby A knew it was time and dug her fingernails into my uterus so she didn't have to go. That's all I can think of because the pain disappeared. haha. 

Tomorrow is the big day! We will keep this thing updated tomorrow. If not me, someone will. I will continue to write on the blog at least until the babies come home. 

I'm Over This

So the previous blog wasn't my last blog of my pregnancy afterall. I haven't had the babies yet, but I'm so ready! I'm tired all the time because I can't go to sleep. I can't go to sleep because I'm sore. I'm sore because I have been contracting so much. I'm contracting so much because I'm off my Terbutaline. I'm off my Terbutaline because they figured I would go into labor soon. Only...I'm not. I'm so miserable, and I just want to go home to my own house with my own husband in my own bed and eat from my own dishes and use my own bathroom. I've had a few emotional meltdowns, but today was the worst. Allan and I have reached our breaking point in this awful pregnancy. Until now I have tried so hard to stay positive and think "Whatever is best for the babies!" Now I feel like a horrible mother because I want them to get out right now! Allan is breaking down because he feels stretched so thin. He has so much to do, and he can't do it all by himself. All he wants to do is be with me every day, but he is restrained by his responsibilities of fixing the house and going to work. I feel so helpless and terrible that I can't be there to help. 

To add to this misery, I've developed this lovely rash called PUPP (Pruritic Urticarial Papules and Plaques of Pregnancy). I have no idea what that means other than it's a rare, extremely itchy rash that raises from within stretch marks. It happens to "1 out of 164-240 initial pregnancies," and can only be soothed with hydrocortisone cream. It eventually goes away after birth. My stretch marks look like they are going to bleed. I have to be strapped down to the monitors three times a day every day, irritating them--and my rash--even more. My belly is also so sore that I can barely shift in my bed, let alone get up to go to the bathroom. Even when I have strong contractions, I can't tell the difference because it just feels like one big humongous contraction all day. Tonight I'm supposed to get doped up on narcotics so that I can sleep for once. The nurse said it was safe and that they give them to pregnant patients all the time. We'll see how I react to strong medicine. From what I remember, we didn't get along very well. 

I used to be afraid of a c-section, but after all these contractions I'm ready to get it over with. I told Allan that now I'd rather them just "knock me out and cut me open." The pregnant moms on this floor keep having their babies. Every day I hear the lullaby the hospital plays after a baby is born, and I think, "Ok, my turn!" Seriously. I'm ready. Bring it on. 

Maybe when my girls enter their teens I can tell them the horrible stories of my pregnancy to encourage abstinence. But then I might never have grandchildren...

Running Out of Womb

Baby A 

5 lbs 8 ozs

Baby B

3 lbs 6 oz

   

The picture of baby B up there is from last week. She has gained half a pound since then. Baby A's pictures are from today. She gained a whole pound in a week! B is now 4 weeks behind instead of 3, but she is still growing.  The goal for her now is 4 pounds.

The goal for all of us is to make it to 37 weeks (two more), not tomorrow like I was told to prepare for.  Good news for everyone...especially Allan, who is sweating over preparing our house for us. Somehow in the middle of the night, little Houdini (Baby B) turned back around into her breech position. I knew she did last night because this morning I could feel her head pushing mightily at my belly button instead of her knees. That makes a c-section much more likely today than it was only yesterday. The doctors took me off of Terbutaline, the meds that "make my contractions better." So far today they haven't been any worse. I'm just twiddling my thumbs and waiting for the next thing to happen. Who knows? Maybe this will be my last blog entry of my pregnancy! But probably not...

Not Yet!

It's been a while. Some of you are probably wondering if I had the babies. The answer is no. I had a computer fatality, but a new hard drive and a loving brother solved my lack of communication problem.

I'm still at the hospital. This Two Carr Garage is getting crowded to the max. The babies are still fighting for space, and I'm still fighting for my sanity. I started my third thousand piece puzzle hoping it would keep me occupied for a week. It's coming along a lot more quickly than I anticipated. I'm just that good, I guess. haha. The doctors have more to say about the puzzles than anything else. They just come in and ask me questions I can't answer or even care to respond to anymore. They try to be cute ask me--quite often--if I'm behaving. I used to laugh, but now I just stare at them. One day they even asked me, "Babies still growing?" I said, "I don't know. You want me to ask them?" Needless to say, I'm a little cranky when I'm awakened abruptly for no good reason. Today two doctors came and yelled, "Wake up, sleepy head!" Again, I just stared at them. I get even crankier when they tell me to just hang in there and stay pregnant, then walk away. I want them to tell me that the babies will grow better outside than in and then take them.

I was supposed to have set a delivery date by now. They are saying we will tomorrow after I get an ultrasound on growth...possibly the last one until I deliver. My nurse today just said to be prepared to have the babies as early as Friday. I am 34.5 weeks now, which is good progress for a twin pregnancy. Even if Baby B is 3 pounds, she has a very good chance of survival. Our next big adventure between the babies coming into the world and coming home is their hospital stay. We'll have to make the trip to the hospital--or possibly two different hospitals--to feed and interact with them. We'll be talking to the pediatrician and the nurses about whatever complications they might have and how they are achieving their goals (breathing on their own, etc.). I'm trying to allow my mind to already transition into that phase. If I linger on the actual birth, I start to get really nervous and afraid. I just think about how quickly the delivery will pass, and I think about what it will be like to meet them and eventually hold them for the first time.

My sister just had her baby boy. It's a healthy 8 lb 3.5 oz baby. I saw a picture of the chubby little thing with his eyes wide open and my sister's hand touching him. I have to admit that I was slightly jealous, but my time will come! Seeing her baby just a few days after seeing her pregnant belly reminded me of how close I am to having my own.

Allan is both excited and frantic. He wants to make the house perfect (at least part of it) for when I come home, with or without the babies. There is still much to do. We still need a functional nursery, primary bathroom, living room, and dining room. The kitchen, master bedroom and bathroom are pretty much done. We have a roof leak above the living room that we can't find, and the nursery doesn't even have walls. The plan is to live in the part of the house that is complete while working on the other half, then renting out the apartment above the house where we currently live. We have to move out of it and store our things somehow. It is a very interesting situation for Allan and me. Normally we would heavily rely on each other to get things done. However, it is just as easy for me to help him on the house as it is for him to help me grow these babies. Impossible. If any of you are in the area and want to help, please do!