Our babies both looked great on the ultrasound yesterday... their bloodflow measurements were pretty much the exact same as last week! Our doc thinks they may have hit that "magic" point where baby A got just enough blood to stabilize things out. That nasty blood vessel connecting the two babies can misbehave at any point, so the plan is for an ultrasound each week until our little peanuts arrive! We aren't complaining, because we love seeing them!
We are so thankful for this news and beyond excited to meet our little princesses (but not too soon!!)
Sorry, no pictures again this week... I think we might have hit our quota on pictures of our babies :)
Thank you for praying!
The VPs
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Still Lookin' Good
Our appointment yesterday went as well as we could hope for! I passed my glucose test (I assume, because I haven't heard otherwise...) and the drink really wasn't that bad! And... the best news of all: both babies look normal with respect to fluid, bladders, and bloodflow. Thank you God! Our next ultrasound is next Monday; Nate will be out of town, so my Mom gets to come along for the ride. :)
We also had a growth ultrasound, since it had been 3 weeks since the last one. Baby A is measuring 1 lb., 8 oz. (7 oz. more than the last time) and Baby B is measuring 1 lb., 6 oz. (9 oz. more than last time.) Both babies are on the growth curve! YAY!! The docs believe Baby A's growth has slowed down a bit due to the anemia, but they aren't concerned since she is still growing and remains on the growth curve.
Our echocardiogram has been pushed back to March 19, since our doctors think it's not a pressing need right now. As a high risk OB doctor, our doc is trained to look closely at babies' hearts on ultrasound, and she says that everything looks awesome! Of course, they want to have it looked at eventually by a pediatric cardiologist, just to make sure, but we are happy that there aren't any obvious abnormalities!
It is starting to feel real that our babies will be here in just a couple months! Our doc doesn't think she will let us go any longer than 34 weeks, which puts our new "due date" around the end of April. Of course, there is still a risk of preterm labor, (30% just from the laser surgery, plus probably some added risk due to the two blood transfusions) but so far, there have been no signs that labor is coming. We're hoping and praying it stays that way, and that our girls arrive happy, healthy, and and at the right time. We cannot wait! Nate painted the nursery last weekend and is building crib #2 as I write this. Our registries are made, and I am having a blast with nursery decoration ideas from Pinterest. We have started stocking up on diapers and washing all the clothes and blankets we've received so far so we don't have to do it all at once. We are so excited for the girls to get here, but we remember that each day they stay where they are is such a blessing.
Some (okay, a lot of) people have asked if we have our names picked out. We do! We are keeping them to ourselves (and a few close family members and friends) until our girls arrive. We figure we have shared every detail about my pregnancy with everybody who wants to know, so we have to leave ONE surprise!
I would share a picture of the babes, but I think they forgot to give us our pictures yesterday. Maybe Monday I'll have a couple to share. :)
Thank you all for thinking and praying for us. We appreciate it more than you know!
The Vander Ploegs
We also had a growth ultrasound, since it had been 3 weeks since the last one. Baby A is measuring 1 lb., 8 oz. (7 oz. more than the last time) and Baby B is measuring 1 lb., 6 oz. (9 oz. more than last time.) Both babies are on the growth curve! YAY!! The docs believe Baby A's growth has slowed down a bit due to the anemia, but they aren't concerned since she is still growing and remains on the growth curve.
Our echocardiogram has been pushed back to March 19, since our doctors think it's not a pressing need right now. As a high risk OB doctor, our doc is trained to look closely at babies' hearts on ultrasound, and she says that everything looks awesome! Of course, they want to have it looked at eventually by a pediatric cardiologist, just to make sure, but we are happy that there aren't any obvious abnormalities!
It is starting to feel real that our babies will be here in just a couple months! Our doc doesn't think she will let us go any longer than 34 weeks, which puts our new "due date" around the end of April. Of course, there is still a risk of preterm labor, (30% just from the laser surgery, plus probably some added risk due to the two blood transfusions) but so far, there have been no signs that labor is coming. We're hoping and praying it stays that way, and that our girls arrive happy, healthy, and and at the right time. We cannot wait! Nate painted the nursery last weekend and is building crib #2 as I write this. Our registries are made, and I am having a blast with nursery decoration ideas from Pinterest. We have started stocking up on diapers and washing all the clothes and blankets we've received so far so we don't have to do it all at once. We are so excited for the girls to get here, but we remember that each day they stay where they are is such a blessing.
Some (okay, a lot of) people have asked if we have our names picked out. We do! We are keeping them to ourselves (and a few close family members and friends) until our girls arrive. We figure we have shared every detail about my pregnancy with everybody who wants to know, so we have to leave ONE surprise!
I would share a picture of the babes, but I think they forgot to give us our pictures yesterday. Maybe Monday I'll have a couple to share. :)
Thank you all for thinking and praying for us. We appreciate it more than you know!
The Vander Ploegs
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
So Far, So Good
I'll be short and sweet today...
Our ultrasound today showed that everything looks normal. Woo hoo!
We will go back next week for more follow up, a regular prenatal appointment, and the dreaded glucose test. We are also trying to schedule an echocardiogram for the babies on the same day. Based on how long our first blood transfusion "lasted," our doctor told us she thinks there is a good chance they will want to do a transfusion again next week. Our appointment is early in the morning in hopes that, if we do need a transfusion, we can do it the same day. Ideally, we will have our ultrasound right away in the morning, have the echocardiogram while we wait for all the blood bank stuff to come together, and then have the transfusion. Of course, we are just hoping and praying everything will still be normal and we won't need the transfusion. Every time they have to enter the amniotic sacs for a procedure, it makes my risk for preterm labor greater.
Our doctor was at a conference last week, and she told us she had talked to a doctor from the Netherlands who took care of a patient very similar to me (us). Her patient required eight (!!) blood transfusions throughout her pregnancy, but she ultimately delivered two healthy babies. It was so great to hear that there are cases like ours that turn out well!
Thank you so much for praying and for all your support!
The VPs
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