In the hospital!!!

My bedrest free streak is over. This afternoon I started having regular contractions. They weren't painful, just a tightening like Braxton Hicks contractions, if that means anything to you. Per my doctor's instructions, I decided that I should go the the hospital around 4:30p when the contractions had been going on for a couple hours and didn't not seem to be subsiding.

Well, I got the full checkup, and I'm not in labor, but I am contracting quite a bit. My perinatologist came in and said that I would be staying in the hospital for the duration of my pregnancy. I was totally shocked. I thought that at most I would be spending the night on observation, and then I would go home, perhaps with some activity restrictions. NOPE! I'm here till they come out!!!

Poor Jimbo is at home being a single dad, now. I'm sure he will do great, Bonnie is a daddy's girl anyway, but I feel bad that I'm not there to help, even if I haven't been terribly helpful in recent days.

We have a date!

October 29 at 9am. If I don't go into labor or develop a complication (most likely preeclampsia) that necessitates an earlier delivery, the quads will be born on October 29 at 9am(ish).

My OB appointment today was otherwise uneventful. I got another ultrasound and the babies still look great. Again, this wasn't a growth ultrasound, so no updates on weights, but all of the babies are moving well, have good amniotic fluid, and have good heart rates.

OB appointment today - not much to report!

I got an ultrasound today. All of the babies have good heart rates, are moving well, and have plenty of amniotic fluid. This was not a growth ultrasound, so no update on their weights, but they are all looking great! If they can stay put for another week, they will be in really good shape. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Outing to a Pumpkin Patch

Today we had a little family outing to the Rutledge-Wilson Farm Park. Bonnie had a blast seeing horses, picking pumpkins, playing with a water pump and playing in the hay. We would have gone for a hayride, but the wait was quite long and it was getting close to dinner time. First we checked out the chickens and other livestock, and then Jim and Bonnie picked out a couple pumpkins for us to take home while I rested on a bench. It was a long walk to the pumpkin patch, and I was already worn out.

The only current pregnancy news that I can add for today is that I've "dropped." Even a couple ladies at church noticed this morning. I don't know if that means much, but it helping to keep Teddy out of my liver, so I guess it feels a little better.

Bonnie's Second Birthday.

Bonnie turned two yesterday! She had a good birthday. She went to "school" during the day and took cupcakes for her class. Jim said that when they stopped at the grocery store to pick them up, she pointed to the store and said, "No, No No!" He asked her if she wanted to go to school and she nodded yes (she has yet to say the word) and then Jim said "We are going to get cake for you to take to school." Then it was OK to stop at the grocery store.

While she was at school they somehow managed to get pigtails in her hair...I've yet to be sucessful with this because I can't get her to hold still long enough. I'm not sure how they did it.

After dinner, my mom and stepfather came over and we opened presents and then had cake. Here are some pictures.

Her first set of pigtails and her new frog book:

We got her some toy makeup and it was easily the favorite gift. Playing with her "pretty" as she calls it:

When I was decorating the cake, I realized that I had bought the frosting, but had forgotten to get a new set of decorating tips (I threw away my old ones when we moved) so the writing on her cake was sort of like squeezing out toothpaste, but Bonnie didn't mind.

At first, Bonnie didn't want to cut the cake. She just stuck her fork straight in it. That's MY girl! After she realized she wasn't geting too far with that, she let me cut it. She got the first piece, of course.

I'd also like to point out that my daughter had figured out that when we say "C-A-K-E" that it means cake. She made this connection when I was making birthday plans with my mom on the phone and was spelling "cake" and she turned and looked at me and said, "Cake??" Now if we say, "Bonnie what does C A K E spell?" she will say, "CAKE!" Not that I think she understands letters or spelling, but she's figured out that the sound of us spelling it is the same as saying it.

Pregnancy update for the week of September 30.

I am officially 30 weeks pregnant on September 30th!

We are very fortunate that I have been able to carry this foursome for 30 weeks, and we are hoping to keep them cooking for another 2-4 weeks. Babies born after 32 weeks gestation have an almost 100% survival rate and very few serious complications of prematurity.

As of our last growth check on September 25th three of the four babies were over 3lbs and the fourth was just under 3lbs. My docs are very pleased with their growth, and state that they are all growing at similar rates.

I'm generally feeling OK, this pregnancy has been uneventful. I've got lots of back pain, lots of heartburn, and I'm seldom comfortable. The babies kick all the time and one of the boys just can't keep himself out of my liver, which is very painful for me.

Just in case you don't know:

• We are expecting two boys and two girls. This has been confirmed on ultrasound several times.
• Each baby has its own amniotic sac and placenta, so they are most likely all fraternal, although it is possible that either or both of the girls or boys are identical.
• We have names! The girls are Audrey and Melanie. The boys are Theodore and Oliver.

To help everyone keep up with our news....

I've been thinking about doing this for quite some time, so now that we are in week 30 of our pregnancy, I think it is high time I got on the ball. Honestly, I was waiting until I was on bed rest to do it. Well, we have much to be thankful for, because this pregnancy has gone so smoothly that I haven't been sentenced to a minute of bed rest, yet!!! Knock on wood!!!

My plan is to update the blog at least weekly, but I'm seeing the doc twice a week now, so there may be additional updates. I think this will be a nice way that I can keep concerned friends and family informed about our family, especially at times when I might not be able to make lots of calls or respond to email messages.

I'd also like to just say up front that you will not find any belly shots on this blog. While I don't mind sharing pictures with friends and family, I loathe the idea of someone forwarding a picture to someone I don't know with a note that says, "Here's a picture of a girl I know that is pregnant with quadruplets." I understand why someone would be curious, but I'm not a circus side-show, if you get my drift. If you had an unusual medical condition, would you really want people flashing your picture around saying, "Look at this guy with a purple spotted arm!"?

I promise there will be lots of baby pictures once the quads arrive!