Babies are doing GREAT!

I had a sonogram yesterday (I was getting antsy because it had been over two weeks since I had seen my babes on the monitor). It was also neat that my brother was here just in time to go with me. He had never seen a sonogram before. The babies are so big that it is very difficult to determine what you are looking at on the screen...a head here, a foot there...just limbs flying everywhere in organzied chaos.

Joe and I cannot tell you how excited we were to get such a good report. Our babies weigh:

Savannah(A): 1 lb, 12 oz
Ben(B): 1 lb, 14 oz
Twin C: 1 lb, 11 oz
Twin D: 1 lb, 10 oz

I can't BELIEVE how close in size they all are...and they are above the average weight for a single baby at 25 weeks!! (Check out this CHART if you are curious about average lengths and weights for each gestational week) That makes me feel good because I haven't gained a single pound in over a week.(gulp) We are still trying to get my diabetes in check...my morning dose and nighttime dose have both been increased, yet again! (Yesterday my fasting blood sugar was 60! WOW! That is low!! I immediately drank some apple juice and it increased to 113) So, my body is doing some very weird things...but I still thank God every day for:
NO contractions! The babies are moving everyday. Most days my urine is negative for protein, but every once in a while, I'll have a trace amount.
My blood pressure is a joke! My average BP is 85/45! Sometimes I ask the nurse, "Am I still breathing? Am I alive!?" But we will take LOW over HIGH ANY day! Preeclampsia STAY AWAY!!!

I'm also getting to the point where I get worn out SOOOO easily! The nurses may start monitoring my visits and phone calls...I just get SO out of breath and tired VERY easily...they want me to take it easy. So all you wonderful people who want to call or come by, it might be a good idea to call first. If I don't answer the phone, that's a good sign that I need to rest for a while. But I truly appreciate all the visits and calls! NO DOUBT! ;) Keep those prayers a comin! We are headed for 28 weeks, then full blast to 30 weeks and beyond! (kinda sounds like Buzz Lightyear off of Disney's "Toy Story", eh?)

We made it to 25!!!

Guys, I just don't know how my belly can possibly get any bigger! I'm definitely to the point where just rolling over to my opposite side takes about a full minute and leaves me huffing and puffing for the next 5 minutes!



I'm for sure getting to the point where I am completely uncomfortable! I pretty much lay on my left side all day long. I absolutely cannot breathe at all on my back. My right side is getting terribly uncomfortable as well...so, left side it is! It's funny b/c in these pics, if you look closely, you can see the indentations of the egg crate that I lay on!



We are still trying to figure out the right dosage of Glyburide that I need to be taking for my G. Diabetes. My blood sugar was almost 300 last night!! So, they increased my morning dosage from 2.5g to 5g to 7.25g! We'll get it right soon!

I like to lovingly refer to this pic as my "alien egg"...SHEESH! No more room in there guys! And I thought I was having trouble trying to eat before this?! Ha! There is hardly ANY room in there! I'm like a patient who has had a gastric bypass, yet on a 4,000 calorie a day diet! Just imagine that! Craziness!



Okay, so if you want to know exactly where Ben, Ethan, Andrew, and Savannah stand, statistically speaking, from week to week, then check out this CHART. My good friend, Jen, who coincidentally just had her adorable baby quad boys earlier this year, sent me this. Jen has been such a GREAT resource for me through all of this (her AND her husband, Brad) and I just wanted to thank you, woman! God definitely has put them in our lives at the perfect time!

OK, so back to the chart...check out the statistics for week 30! They are pretty incredible!!

Here is my tribute to all the wonderful people who have sent me packages and flowers over the past week. You guys are incredible!


Now, I must take some time to tell you about these build-a-bears that I received from some amazing people, most of whom don't even KNOW me! A HUGE THANKS to Amy, Amy, Andrea, and Debbie at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.
They made these bears, each one for each baby! I sit them in my window and look at them every day! Everyone comments on how cute the bears are when they walk in the room! NICE WORK, ladies! These bears arrived in a huge box that no one could carry besides Joe b/c it had soooooo much stuff in it: every toy you could imagine, a Dr. Seuss book, beautifully made blankets for the babies, etc. AMAZING!



TRULY blessed! Thank you all so much! (and before you comment, NO, this compliant diabetic is NOT eating the wonderful treats in these last two pics..I am generously sharing with all who come to visit me!)

Gorgeous Hospital Pics....HA! ;)

I start by saying, let us just look past the fact that Suz is: make-up-less, beautifully pudgy ;), looks like she is wearing black eyeshadow underneath her eyes, pale as a ghost, with the splotchiest (yes, I might have just made up my own word) reddish skin ever....and these are some AWESOME pics! ;)



"Help! I can't see my feet! (or my legs for that matter!)"



The twinks...pointing at my belly, probably thinking: "Thank GOODNESS its not me!" And also drooling at the thought of loving on four precious little babies ;)

My proud Papa...look at him just beaming! ;) I'm sure its hard for him to see his baby girl in the hospital.

One of my best friends since childhood came to visit me yesterday. Isn't Lauren so pretty? It was so good to see you woman!

More pics to come, but my camera battery ran out of juice. (I wonder why? Its not like I've been playing with it out of boredom and taking tons of pictures...)

UPDATES

NO PREECLAMPSIA!!! ah WOO HOO!

Yae! My 24 hour protein urinalysis came back below normal!! My BP has been BEAUTIFUL. So, all I'm really working with is the Gestational Diabetes. (I've been calling friends and family telling them, "Whelp, I got the GD"...just b/c I think it sounds funny...and, well, I think I'm funny--at least I can get a good kick outta myself every once in a while.) ;)



Positives to GD:

High birth weight babies! (Meaning, GD babies tend to get HUGE! not that mine are going to get huge, but at least it will help fatten them up a little bit! Anything helps! These babies need to be at least over 3 pounds...the bigger the better!)



Negatives to GD:

Well, I'm not really focusing on these.



They've had to change my diet all up, and I'm worried I won't be gaining as much weight as I should be. At least I don't have to eat as much JUNK anymore! It's sooooooo nice to eat fresh fruit! (without the nutella or whipped cream or chocolate!) I'm not going to say this GD is easy: I got pretty sick yesterday as my blood sugar was jumping around all over the place. At one point is was up over 200! YIKES! But the glucola test didn't help that any! Today I feel much better.



Yes, because I have such a strong family history of Diabetes, I have like a 75% chance of retaining the disease after I deliver my babies...but you know what? I am going to exercise like crazy and eat right! I actually DREAM about the day that I can run around the block and lift weights! And I've NEVER been an exercise buff...I actually used to hate it! (actually, I dream about the day I can get up and walk to the refrigerator without someone barking at me to get back on the couch!) But you know, if I DO keep the Diabetes, it's not the end of the world, folks! It will FORCE me to eat right and exercise for the rest of my life! NO excuses! (Now, I'm no Pollyanna....I know it will be difficult and I'm sure I will shed many tears...but I try to stay on the sunny side of things!) If anything, I have to take care of myself for my babies! That's plenty incentive for me!



I'm just laying here listening to Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews, Bob Schneider, John Mayer, and Jason Mraz...LOVE those guys! And I just wanted to thank all of you for your kind words and encouragement! I've gotten some incredible packages and gifts that arrived at my house and even up here at the hospital! Please bear with me (is it bEAr or bARe?..anywhoo) it might take me a while to get those "thank you" cards out, but we are forever thankful and grateful! Please know that!!



Ladies who have inquired about visiting: SURE! You can come visit whenever! Don't worry about trying to figure out a good time. Who am I kiddin? I do nothing but lay here all day! Feel free to drop by whenever! And things to bring? NOTHING! (the token answer)...as far as food and snacks go, I'm kinda skiddish about that right now...not sure what I can and can't eat. But I KNOW that I CAN'T eat simple sugars like baked sweets and candy bars...so, just bring yourself! ;) or flowers! ha! ;)



The hardest part about this is not seeing my hubby or getting to sleep with him at night. So, the weekends are fun b/c he can spend the whole day and night with me in the hospital (I'm sure that sounds REALLY fun! haha). Now, he's tried to say that he's gonna sleep with me up here, but I won't let him on work days...that's just ridiculous. That's why my mom is here! ;) And I'm still missing my baby girl dog! ahhhhh! Yes, I will have to find a way to sneak her up here or be wheeled outside to love on her! :(



This is the look I got from her every day when I was glued to the couch during bedrest...isn't she precious!

Hospital Bound...For the Long Haul :(

****UPDATE****
The nurse just confirmed that I, in fact, have gestational diabetes. We are still awaiting the 24 hour urine protein results.

----------------------------------------------------------

Whelp, many of you have heard by now...Suz was admitted to the hospital yesterday. My blood pressure (BP) at the doctor's office was 147/78 (which is extremely high for me...even while pregnant with quads). Oh yeah, that plus the fact that I had protein in my urine are beginning signs of PREECLAMPSIA (you might have heard it referred to as toxemia or pregnancy induced hypertension). And, I also had glucose (sugar) in my urine as well, which is a sign of GESTATIONAL DIABETES.


So, as I write this post, I am battling to keep this nasty orange Glucola down and not vomit. That's right folks, I'm in the middle of another Glucose Tolerance Test! YIPPEE!! My face is white as a ghost and I've got a cool compress on my forehead (mother's cure for everything! "You're tired (or fill in the blank with your personal favorite)? oh, sweetie, let's stick a cool compress on your face")

My BP has been going down ever since yesterday morning...in fact, this morning it was 85/45! Which is crazy low! The nurse taking care of me said, "I wouldn't be surprised if Dr. Tabor was trying to find anything to get you in here so he could keep a close eye on you!" Apparently, when all of Tabor's mother's of multiples reach their 24th/viability week, they seem to magically appear in the hospital for one reason or another. And you know what? I DO NOT MIND A BIT! So, this is where I stay until the Lord decides that its time for my babies to enter the world (which we are PRAYING is at LEAST 4 more weeks, when I hit week 28-- it is ridiculous how much their odds of survival and quality of life go up in those 4 weeks!)

Guess what, Tabor also has two other sets of Triplet mothers on this very same floor. One of the mother's has the exact same due date as my quads! Crazy! So now Tabor has all his little chicks in a row, where he can check on us everyday. ;) I'm in GREAT hands!

Whelp, thanks so much for your prayers! Btw, I had gained five pounds since last week! That's a record for me and the babes! I will update you as soon as possible regarding my glucose test and the 24 hour protein analysis on my urine. Throughout all of this, my little babies are fighters! They are still doing great...it is just my body that is trying so hard to carry these quads...it is really feeling over worked! I take comfort and peace in knowing that my babies are okay...my body, I can deal with...but thank GOD I'm not in here b/c there is a problem with one of the babies! ;)

(Another side note: I miss my little baby girl dog like crazy! I was NOT expecting to be admitted yesterday, so I never really got to tell her bye! :( I'm sure all you dog lovers understand!)

Suz's Haircut & 24 Week Belly Pics

So, if any of you are ever in Waco, Texas...you MUST stop by: The Cutting Edge and get your hair cut by DEBBIE! She is the BEST!--cut/color/highlights...you name it! I still drive home to get my hair done because its hard to trust anyone else...and because she does SUCH a good job! (Okay, okay..so I'm a little biased! Debbie and her kids, who are my age, have been close friends of mine for forever!)

Needless to say, my hair has been looking a little nasty lately while on bedrest. Well, Tuesday, completely out of the blue...I get a phone call from Debbie saying that she wants to come visit and cut my hair! HOW SWEET IS THAT?! So, yesterday, Debbie and her son, Eric, drove the 1.5 hours to where I live, and visited with me while she cut my hair! (She also left me with the cutest bag full of hair products, and an awesome neck wrap that can heat or cool to relieve tension in my neck and shoulders--AWESOME!) What incredible friends! Thanks again, guys!! It was SOOOO good to see you!


Debbie, sculpting her masterpiece in my kitchen!


Eric, enjoying a tasty treat! Now keep in mind, if you come to my house, my mom and aunt will immediately begin to offer sweets and drinks, etc.!




I cannot believe how high up into my chest, that my little belly ball reaches! I'll say it again: no wonder I can't breathe, I have terrible reflux, heartburn, back aches, shoulder aches, neck aches, and a new favorite...I cannot sleep AT ALL during the night. There is no amount of pillows (body pillows or regular) that can make me comfy. I toss and turn, get up every 1.5 hours to urinate, and spend the rest of my time trying to breathe through stopped up nostrils. Did I mention the intense swelling of my hands and feet--especially at night when my fluid levels are redistributing?FUN!!!


Going to the doc today at 10:15am. Cross your fingers for another good report and another week at home!! ;)

VIABILITY!!!

- As sung in the tune of: "Happy Birthday"

"Happy Viability to Ben, Savannah, Ethan, and Andrew...
Happy Viability to Ben, Savannah, Ethan, and Andrew...
Happy Viability to the Steece Quads...
Happy Viability to Ben, Savannah, Ethan, and Andrew!!!"

I'm as giddy as a little kid in a candy shop! We have been celebrating all day today!

Now, this doesn't mean that my babies would be 100% okay if I went into labor and had them tonight...in fact, I think it's only a 25% survival rate at 24 wks and even then:

At 24 weeks, approximately 40% of surviving infants have moderate or severe disability.
Disability includes cerebral palsy, developmental delay, visual and hearing impairment.

But you know what?...THEY HAVE A CHANCE NOW!!!

Super excited! Thank you for your encouraging comments today and for the continued prayers! Our next big hurdle is 28 weeks! So pray specifically for that! At 28 weeks, I think there is a 90% viability rate with a lot less chance of serious disability. (I can't remember the specific stats my doc gave me, and I haven't found any good websites on the internet)...but that's what I can remember!

A GREAT GIFT for Expecting Families

I received THE CUTEST stationery & bag tags in the mail the other day! You have got to check out this site! Maggie and Liz are sisters who began their own company, "Just For You Stationery", while also being full time moms to 6 children! WOW! I LOVE their products!

Go to: http://www.justforyoustationery.com/

GREAT GIFTS for ANY occasion! But I especially thought it was such a good idea for expecting families. I cannot tell you how excited I was when I opened the package and began looking through these adorable cards (with personalized envelopes as well!) As an expecting mom, seeing my babies names printed out on cards, just makes it all the more real! Hope you enjoy their products as much as I do! ;)

Click on each picture for close-ups. (Once again, Suz was taking pics with her camera, so they are kinda blurry) ;)
























































Joe was the most impressed with the aTm aggie stationery! ;)




I also received some adorable personalized stickers from my friend Amy! The company is called: Tickle Bellies. How cute are they? Thanks again, Amy! We LOVE them!!!





































It's just so neat to see your babies names printed on things! Tomorrow makes a full 24 weeks for me!!! VIABILITY!!! YAE!!!

Professional Pics

Thought I would share our "church directory" pictures with you. Now, once again, I do not have access to our scanner upstairs, so I took pictures with my camera of the photos...not the best quality as you will see! (See how bored I get while on bedrest??? I take pictures of pictures to put on my blog! haha) This was back in April and I was 15/16 weeks pregnant and already showing a LOT...trying to wear black to make myself look slimmer! ha! Didn't work! ;)

A full 23 weeks and still at home!!

Horray for another week at home! But more importantly, the babies are looking great! They each weigh over a pound!! (between 1.1 to 1.5 lbs) Dr. Tabor said that I've got about 5 pounds of baby inside me! I am the size of a full term singleton mom. They are all growing at the same rate and are all around the same size! My cervical cerclage is still holding strong and is the only reason I am still pregnant right now (besides the fact that God is watching over us!). ;)



I gained 4 lbs in one week! YAY! I made up for the pound I lost last week, and gained 3 more on top of that! I think all four of THESE particular pounds reside in my hands! hahaha...yes, folks...check out my "MAN HANDS!" Don't be jealous! Everybody loves "man hands", especially on women! ha!

Also, I'm sure yall have heard about the sextuplets that have been born recently...well, the doctor overseeing the care and birth of the family in Arizona is one of Dr. Tabor's associates. Pretty cool. Lots of people with higher order multiples actually move to Arizona, just to be taken care of by this man and his clinic.


I am having random, occasional contractions (which doc said are normal)..but the weird thing is: I cannot feel the beginning of these contractions...no cramping. I just feel my tummy throughout the day and sometimes it is hard as a rock, right at the top of a contraction. But I'm good as long as they are less than four contractions an hour...and I'm not even close to that. (Notice how high my belly reaches into my ribs! All the way into my chest! Yes, on my right side, UP INTO my ribs and chest, my two little boy twins like to play..very often!) Can you say: heartburn? difficulty breathing? acid reflux? When I eat, my food feels like it gets trapped right at the top of this big belly bubble.



An AWESOME story:
This is SOOOO cute! (I hope Joe doesn't blast me for this) The other night, right before we were going to bed, Joe was kissing our babies goodnight. He was right up next to my tum tum, with his cheek against my skin. He began talking to the babies and singing to them and sweet little Savannah started kicking! (I guess that could be good or bad! "pleeeease stop singing!" haha!) I could feel her from the inside and Joe could feel her tapping his cheek and ear from the outside as he was singing to her. (Keep in mind, I hadn't felt the babies awake for several hours...but as soon as Joe started talking to them and singing to them, Savannah was definitely interacting with him!) The next day I was reading my weekly email from Baby Gaga or What to Expect When You're Expecting, and the entire email was about how the babies can hear and recognize voices and sounds and will react! How cool is that?! or better yet, how cool is God?!?!

Good 'Ole Bedrest...Welcome to My Life

I start by saying, don't ever leave a BORED pregnant woman on bedrest alone with a camera...You never know what you will get! ha!

"Bedrest...not all its cracked up to be..."

"...but at least I'm at home! It's better than being in the hospital!"


"hmmm...I'm going to practice trying to hide my triple chin! (OK Suz, lift chin when taking pics..if all else fails, rest your chin nonchalantly on the palm of your hand!)"

The number one reason why going on hospital bedrest will be SOOOO hard for me...this little gem. Every day she lies in her bed, right beside me on the couch. She is no doubt, therapy for me! This is a pick of Shi baby right after a ton of company left my house! She was pooped out! PRECIOUS!

One of the not-so-bad perks of pregnancy?...Well, for some reason, my lips are SO puffy and huge! I like to refer to them as my "Angelina Jolie" lips...I know, I know I'm the spitting image of her, you don't have to tell me! Ha! (wink, wink)

My sweet boy...waiting on me hand and foot...doing laundry, cleaning the entire house, doing yard work, making me breakfast, doing almost every single thing for me!

Thank God for my mom and aunt! They are taking such a huge weight off of Joe! What a blessing...they are the most self-less women I know and are always there to take care of those in need! Aren't they adorable??? Jany on the left (mom) and Aunt Judy on the right.

New Sonogram Pics & Update from last appt.

Sorry I am so late to post after my doctors appointments. You cannot imagine how much they wear me out! Just getting off the couch, getting dressed, being driven to the hospital, waiting in the waiting room, taking vital signs, waiting for the doctor, getting the abdominal sonogram and transvaginal sonogram, getting re-dressed, getting back into the car, and being driven home....wears me out to the point where I sleep for the rest of the day. I barely manage to call my dad to let him know about the appt. and then I'm OUT for the count! So, bear with me!

Good News:
- Babies look great (heartbeats, movement, etc)
- Amniotic fluid levels looking good
- My blood pressure looks great
- No spotting/cramping/bleeding/contractions
- ANOTHER WEEK AT HOME!!!

Good and Bad News:
- I had LOST a pound this week! YIKES! I think it's because of the severe heartburn...to which he prescribed Reglan!
- Dr. Tabor said that I would not be pregnant right now, if we hadn't placed the cerclage a couple of weeks ago. SCARY to think about huh? The babies are right up against the cerclage, but it is holding well.
- As he walked out of the room, the doc told me that he has already reserved a bed for me over in the hospital...and he said it twice! So, I have a pretty good feeling that I'm about to take hospital residence for the long haul reeeeeeeeeal soon. :( (Maybe even as early as next week!)

Next Tuesday is my next appointment. Dr. Tabor will be doing an extensive diagnostic sonogram to look very specifically at each baby...so, I guess we will know if there are any abnormalities with the little ones. We'll also know how much they are weighing, etc. **We are still not out of the clear, folks! I need to be a full 24 weeks preggo before the babies stand a chance outside the womb! (and even then the odds are only like 25% survival). 28 weeks is a good number and anything after 30 weeks would be awesome! So get those knee pads on and keep those prayers coming!!

Onto the pics of my babies!

It is so extremely difficult to get a good pic of Savannah, seeing as how she is on the bottom of the dog-pile that resides in my uterus! So we were very excited to get this profile shot of her! BTW, she is going to be one of the most flexible kids you have ever met! She has no room, so her legs are constantly folded back toward her head and her knees are always at her nose! poor baby!




Ben, my sweet little active Ben...this man has PRIME real estate. He's sittin on top of the world! Because he is at the top of the pile, he has the most room to move around...and let me tell ya...HE MOVES! They could barely get a heartbeat on him because he was rolling back and forth doing 180's!


The identical twins are next! (We refer to Ethan and Andrew as "the twins" because we can't really name them now, there is no way to know who they will be grabbing out first) Baby C is on the bottom and Baby D is on the top. They are too cute and they already interact with each other all the time during the sonograms. Baby C is our "profile baby" and always gives us beautiful profile shots of him every week. Baby D is usually facing downward, but we got a good upward-facing profile pic of him this time! Also, the sonographer said that they are all getting little fat cheeks! So that's good!



I know this pregnancy is super high risk and very stressful and scary the majority of the time...but it does come with some perks! We are SO completely blessed to be able to see our babies EVERY week and get sonogram pics every week. It is amazing how much they grow from week to week. Sorry if these pics aren't the best quality...no telling when Joe will be able to scan them for me (since he is pretty much doing everything else you can imagine around the house!) so, I took pictures of them with my camera! I think they came out pretty good!

22 Weeks and in GOOD Company!

GOOD COMPANY #1
My Aunt Judy (my mom's twin) is here to play with us for the summer! My uncle brought her up from south Texas last night. Also along for the ride was my Aunt Patsy (another sister) who wanted to come and love on my belly in person! It was so nice to have everyone here for a big dinner (Collin and Ashley came over as well)...it felt just like old times at my Granny's house with tons of people around, eating lots of food, and catching up! LOVED IT!

GOOD COMPANY #2
Today, 3 of the sweetest ladies from my church in Waco made the trip up here to have a little living room "picnic" with me, my mom, and Judy. How cute is that?! The food was phenomenal and they left me with some lotions/candles/toiletries for my future hospital stay...oh yes, and a HUGE danish pastry ring from Panera Bread! (apparently, I am LOVING pastries! It's one of the few things on my "diet" that I really enjoying eating in this small time frame while I can!)

GOOD COMPANY #3
Super excited about my in-laws coming in this weekend! My babies are getting so much love and attention. Joe and I thank God every day for our wonderful families...we know we could not do this without them.

PICS FROM TODAY
Been a while since you've seen the belly? Well....enjoy! Ahhh...just imagine how comfy it is to lay with a 30 pound bag of weights tied around your waist, and not being able to move or get a good stretch. And I'm only halfway there! (to my goal weight). Oh, and my new beast??? HEARTBURN!!! MAN- is it uncomfortable!

"My gut...my gut...my gut is ON FIRE!"

My little basketball team is forming a ginormous basketball inside my belly...well, I guess it's more like a watermelon!

"HELP! I swallowed a watermelon...whole!"

This next pic is CRAZY!
How in the world am I supposed to continue to grow for another 12 weeks? It doesn't seem humanly possible! (and how funny that my "pregnancy line" down my belly is crooked?! so funny/weird...pregnancy is SO WEIRD!)

It has been a blast feeling the little ones move and kick! You can even put your hand on my belly and feel them from the outside! Every time they are moving around, I grab whoever is close and make them wait, with their hand on my belly, for the gentle thump. SO COOL! Tomorrow is the weekly doctor's appointment! Please be praying for
1) healthy babies
2) healthy Suz
3) another week at home!!!