The twins have finally made their arrival and it still amazes me that we actually came home with two babies instead of one. I do love a great deal. While I’m still recovering and we’re adjusting to the new normal that is our family of seven, it’s been a relief to find some peace and joy with what was a pretty difficult pregnancy and childbirth.
I joke that there was a buy one, get one free sale going on at the hospital. However, there were definitely added “costs” involved with having twins. The pregnancy was really rough; it made my other ones seem easy in comparison. The first trimester hit me with such extreme fatigue that I should have known there was something different going on this time. Then, my second trimester (the relatively comfortable portion of pregnancy) seemed to get cut down from several months to a couple of weeks. I was sporting a huge, cumbersome belly before hitting the halfway point.
The last couple of months have been very difficult. It was absolutely impossible to find a comfortable position, at any time of the day or night. I was forced to sleep on the couch surrounded by a mountain of pillows. Even taking a short walk felt like running a marathon. Fortunately, my doctor wrote me out of work and my claim for disability was approved, so I could suffer in the “comfort” of my home and not have to worry about other responsibilities. Then, the itching started. My doctor believes it was an allergic reaction to all of the hormones. Whatever the cause, I had something similar to hives all over my arms and legs for the last couple of weeks of the pregnancy.
I was fortunate to have uncomplicated, routine births with my three previous pregnancies. At some point during the last month or so of this pregnancy, I learned that one of the babies had flipped and was no longer positioned correctly. Twin pregnancies are monitored with regular sonograms. I went back week after week, hoping that the baby had flipped back. I even tried special “spinning baby” exercises. It never happened, so my doctor scheduled me for a c-section. I was devastated and terrified.
I spent the end of my last pregnancy miserably uncomfortable and pretty depressed about having to undergo a c-section. I read up on what to expect and talked to a few friends who had to undergo the procedure. It didn’t make me feel any better, but at least I was somewhat prepared. I’d like to say that my concerns were unwarranted, but my experience was pretty horrible. It was scary, unnatural, and traumatic. For one thing, I was horribly nauseous and gagging uncontrollably during most of the procedure. It felt like I was left out in a way – while everyone else was enjoying the babies, I got a quick look and was left to have my numb body sewn back together under bright lights, on the cold metal table.
Unfortunately, the completion of the c-section procedure was not the end of my troubles. Ever since that fateful sonogram when we learned that our “one last baby” was actually two babies, I have worried about going into labor too early and having little ones who needed special care in the NICU. I dreaded being discharged from the hospital and not going home with my babies. While normal pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, most twins are born well before that time. Most doctors will advise you to not go beyond 38 weeks with twins because, at that point, risks increase with no added benefits to the babies. Having kept the little ones growing until 38 weeks and one day, I was thankful for the high probability that they would be born perfectly healthy. Little did I know that we were still destined to spend some time visiting our twins in the NICU.
I was wheeled back to the recovery, anxious for my opportunity to finally snuggle with the little ones. Imagine my surprise to see Mr. Smith with only one baby. The first-born had been taken to the nursery due to breathing difficulties. I was able to hold the second-born for a few precious minutes, but then a nurse said that this baby looked a little blue and had to go to the nursery as well. A few hours later they were transferred up to NICU. I spent the first day and night being taken by wheelchair to visit the twins and try to feed them about every 90 minutes (they were on completely different schedules but each one needed to eat every three hours). It was upsetting and tiring, but they were mainly just there for monitoring, with teeny, tiny nasal cannulas. There were far more urgent issues in the NICU, which helped to keep things in perspective. The following afternoon, Baby A was released to stay in my room and Baby B finally joined us on the second day of my hospital stay. We were all discharged together.
But enough about the negatives, I’m more than ready to move on and enjoy these sweet little blessings who complete our family. Introducing (since we already have a Trey on this blog) twin brothers who will be referred to here as Quade and Quince, at least for the time being. They were born one minute apart and each weighed a little over seven pounds.
While I certainly wish my last pregnancy and childbirth had been more enjoyable (as much as a woman can be said to “enjoy” those things), perhaps it was just the added cost for our “double blessing.” I can live with that price, because these little lovebugs are just wonderful.
Life has already become a lot crazier, but in a good way. Goofball and Tornado adore their new brothers and can even be a little too eager at times to help out with them. Trey was unsure at first, but now either imitates the sounds they make and laughs, or gives them gentle kisses on their head. As for the c-section recovery, it’s been bearable. The great thing is that I’m finally starting to feel like myself again, ready to start moving forward with our plans for this big family. But first, I’m going to snuggle with my sweet twin boys for a little bit.
BOGO babies!!! SO CUTE!!!! 🙂
Thanks J$!!!!
Congrats and glad things turned out well and healthy even if it was a little rough for a bit.
Can’t wait to read more about some BOGO baby adventures. 🙂
Mr. SSC recently posted…Estimated Lifestyle Change Spending: Canyon Lake Edition
I’m definitely looking forward to sharing the adventures of our BOGO babies with all of you. Thanks for stopping by with the well wishes <3
Woo-hoo! Two gorgeous additions to the personal finance community. Great job, Harmony.
Awww thanks Mr. Groovy – they were worth all of the trouble.
Oh! They are so precious. The way they’re facing each other it already looks like the two are conspiring to keep mommy and daddy on their toes.
Congratulations! Glad to hear you’re recovering.
Mrs. Groovy recently posted…Sure, I’m the Fabulous Mrs. Groovy, but I’m Not All That
Yes! They are very sweet right now, but no doubt already conspiring about some future mischief. That’s actually how they were positioned in my belly too – LOL – making lots and lots of plans.
Thank you <3
Congratulations on two adorable, healthy boys! And way to go, Harmony! Carrying 2 cannot be a comfortable task, I am in awe. I hope your recovery goes smoothly (and quickly!) 🙂
also- The BOGO baby concept is awesome! I’ll have to share that with my sister-in-law (mama of twins).
Love the BOGO babies term! You must be relieved to have the pregnancy over and be able to enjoy the little darlings! Congratulations to you!
I had “PUPPS” with my first pregnancy and it was unbelievably horrible (maybe this is similar to what you had?). I hope you are finally able to get some rest and some good help!
LOL – glad that the BOGO thing is such a hit! I am very relieved and really enjoying these little guys so much. My issue was similar to PUPPS, but just different enough that my doctor couldn’t diagnose it that way. Some more help would be nice, but we’re managing so far. Thanks for stopping by with the congrats, Kathryn!
Congrats! Glad all worked out well for the babies and you! They are adorable. Enjoy 🙂
Thank you Val – I definitely agree <3
Congratulations, Harmony!!! We’re so happy for you and your family!!! Glad you are well and that your boys are well, too. 🙂
Hi Claudia! I’m so in love with these little guys.
So many congrats on your beautiful new arrivals, and on getting to the fun part. 😀 I’m sorry to hear that a lot of it was so rough, but I’m thankful that you are all home now, and everyone is healthy or healing. Sending lots of love!!!
I really appreciate the well wishes <3 Being able to snuggle with these little cuties is definitely helping me forget about all of the struggles.
YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA!!!!!!! They are ADORABLE. I am SO SORRY about all of that, but look at you! You did it! You delivered 2 healthy, 7 pound babies! WOW! And you all got discharged together… that means you were a giant success! I wish you lots of sleep and cuddles and quiet moments to just enjoy it. (And friends to help out when you don’t enjoy it!)
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! Yes, a little more sleep would be awesome, but we’re definitely making the most of those quiet moments together.
Congratulations!! I know you had a rough pregnancy this go-round, so I’m sorry delivery also didn’t go the way you’d hoped. Still, after all those bumps I’m so glad everyone is home and healthy. And of course adorable, that goes without saying. All the best for your healing.
Thanks Revanche! I’m feeling a little better – and more like myself – every single day. It’s still pretty amazing to get TWO healthy babies out of that one miserable pregnancy.
Two 7-lb babies! Nice work 🙂 They are beautiful – looking forward to reading about their adventures.
Laura Vanderkam recently posted…Starting on the summer fun list
Thank you so much Laura! I’m sure that there will be entertaining adventures every day. Keep those awesome time management tips coming – we need all of the help that we can get 🙂
Double congrats! Glad to hear you are recovering from a rough delivery. I have joked before that, while I don’t exactly dream of having twins, they’d be a two-for-one bargain! (Though I’m sure they cost more in many ways.) Best wishes for your family of seven!
Kalie @ Pretend to Be Poor recently posted…Building Community Without the Commune
Thank you Kalie <3
This is one time that I'm thankful for a high deductible insurance plan - we easily hit our max out-of-pocket with all of the extra sonograms, so the medical costs are less, in comparison to going through two separate pregnancies.
Congratulations! What a fun family dynamic to have the twins as the youngest children. I bet your older kiddos will have fun helping with them.
Thank you! And yes, it will be interesting having two “babies” of the family.
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