on the eve of my hospital release

wow!  so, we actually made it this far. the doctors didn’t think i would make it to 35 weeks, but after almost 5 weeks of laying in a hospital bed i am one day away from being sent home.  this is the eve of my hospital release!

 

in honor of such a big day, i decided to post some pictures of my stay here and to share some of my observations and thoughts on hospital bed rest when pregnant with twins…

this is me in my hospital bed 4 days ago (34 weeks + 2 days) 

• my first observation is that i am HUGE!  look at that belly!!
• my second observation is that the nurses have been lying to me!! I SEE STRETCH MARKS!!!  a sad realization, to be sure, but probably not wholly unexpected!!
• i am so grateful for cell phones and texting!  while in the hospital for an extended length of time, having a connection to the outside world is crucial to ones sanity!  (i think i was talking to my dad in the above picture)

• visits from our girls always brightened my day.  i looked forward every week to sunday when mitch and the girls come to visit me.

• when mitch calls and asks if i want him to bring mae mae or if he should leave her at barbmom’s for their sunday visit, always tell him to bring her because when he shows up without her you will regret it and be sad!
• even though mae mae is into everything and wants to climb all over me it is still better when she is visiting!  it causes a lot more stress, but it is so worth seeing her excitement at seeing me!!
• the hospital has great juice and cool straws (the little red coffee stir straws) because the girls ALWAYS have to get some while they are here.
• the nurses love our girls!

    

• showering every three days makes for very greasy hair on the last day!
• i have not fixed my hair or worn make-up for 5 weeks straight!
• laying around in bed all day makes you always look tired with puffy eyes!
• my legs have gotten really hairy with only one electric shaving the whole 5 weeks i’ve been here, thanks to nurse kim for the grooming!
• it’s easy to become friends with your nurses when you get the same nurses several times a week!!
• apparently, not all patients are happy and nice.  i have been called “the nice patient who doesn’t ever need anything” and “the happy, positive patient”!
• nurses really like nice, friendly patients!!

• i love the art work on my whiteboard.  nani and kale’a drew these for me when they came for a visit.  i love the babies that nani drew. they are so cute and tiny!  the nurses love the babies, too!  i love the cheery bright colors that kale’a put up for me to look at everyday!
• when you’re in the hospital, unable to see your family daily, it is VERY important to have a picture of them close by so you can look at them!

• i stare at this picture on my wall A LOT everyday!!!  and, without fail, it always makes me smile!
• i REALLY miss my husband!
• the longer i lay in a hospital bed the more my body starts to ache ALL OVER!  the last few nights have been especially difficult! no matter what side i sleep on my shoulder or my elbows, or my hip or my knee, or my back screams out at me in protest!
• nighttime is especially lonely!
• when i’m alone, in the dark, trying to sleep is when my mind runs wild.  nighttime is when i worry the most about every little contraction, or twinge in my cervix.

• the hospital dietary needs a bigger variety for long-term patients!  i mean, REALLY!!
• getting dressed in your clothes everyday makes me feel much better. i think i wore a hospital gown for the first 2 maybe 2 1/2 weeks before my doctor told me i didn’t have to wear the hospital gown, but could wear my own clothes!!
• free wi-fi totally ROCKS!!
• when you lay in bed all day except to get up to go potty, your muscles get REALLY weak!  it doesn’t help that i am lugging around two 6 pound babies, either!
• my belly is heavy to carry around!
• mechanical beds are a lifesaver!  it’s much easier to get out of bed!
• even though my bed is a tempurpedic, my body still gets sore, just not as quickly as it would if it wasn’t a tempurpedic!
• i would have died without the fan they gave me from labor and delivery.  the nurses like my room because it is “so fresh” and cool. 
• it’s a strange thing to look out my window everyday and see sunshine, especially now that everyone is talking about how cold it is.  i look out and it looks exactly the same as the day i came in, so i just assume it is still warm.

• one of the greatest things i love to hear from the nurses or doctors is, “the boys are looking great!!”  music to my ears!
• the other thing i love to hear is, “they are both head down!”
• twin boys move A LOT!!  i look at my belly and it is crazy to see it move so much!!
• even with good veins i.v.’s are never fun to get started.  my veins seem to roll out of the way when the nurses are trying to get a new iv line in.  twice i have been stuck in 4 different places before they actually got it in.  the frustrating thing is that they haven’t used the i.v. since i was admitted 4 weeks ago!!
• i.v.’s in the hand suck!!
• a good i.v. is worth it’s weight in gold!  i have had this one stay good since the 9th of november!
• getting woken up in the middle of the night from a dead sleep to take your medicine is not fun!  they wake me at midnight and 6 am every day!

 

the most important observations that i have made are these:

• miracles happen!
• prayers are answered!
• a good ward family is an amazing thing!
• marrying mitch was the BEST decision i EVER made, hands down!
• our girls are extraordinary!
• i don’t know how we could have gotten through this without the gospel or our knowledge and faith in our Savior Jesus Christ and our loving Father in Heaven!  SERIOUSLY!
• i know our Heavenly Father is mindful of us and He loves our family because he gave us this trial so we could be made stronger.  and i believe that we have been made stronger individually and as a family!
• faith can bring about marvelous things!
• these boys are going to be a huge blessing to our family!