"Can you count?..."

 We found out we were pregnant again on March 17th. Later that week, my 48hr bHCG (blood test for pregnancy hormone levels) QUADRUPLED (It's supposed to at least double)! We were absolutely thrilled and terrified at the same time. I worried every time I went to the bathroom that I would be bleeding and everything would end. 
     So, I have a lot of people asking what we're doing differently this time to make sure these babies get here with a heartbeat (maybe not in those exact words, but it's implied...) The day I got a + pregnancy test, I started heparin injections. This was something that, after three losses, was one of those, "Well, it won't hurt you, it'll only help you" scenarios. Basically, if I was losing babies due to an undetectable clotting problem, the heparin would probably help. 

That first week was hell. I mean really REALLY bad. It started with fevers. Then the body aches and chills. I missed a couple days of work because I couldn't get off the couch and my fevers were getting higher and higher. By the next Sunday, my fever was 103.5, so we went to the ER. My platelets had dropped 60,000, and my liver enzymes were up (probably because of the fever and tylenol use). It has a name: HIT- Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia. The heparin was making me sick!!! Talk about frustrating...the thing that had given me hope that I could have a normal pregnancy was out the window. It didn't take long for me to get better once I stopped taking it, and now I'm on a regiment of aspirin, a butt-load of folic acid, vitamin D, and fish oil. We have high hopes (and a lot of faith) that these babies are going to be just fine!
 

So the title of this post, "Can you Count?" those are the famous words spoken by Dr. Speak at my 6 week appointment. We saw on the screen the following picture:

 Yes, I can count, and I knew it was twins. We had an unsettling next couple of weeks as we went between appointments with my OB here in K-ville and the perinatologist in Columbia; every time they put the probe on my belly, wondering if there was still going to be two babies.

This picture was labled wrong in CoMo, so I tried to label over it.

 By 10 weeks they were starting to look like babies instead of blobs. Baby B usually gets the shaft because almost every time I went in before 10 weeks (s)he wasn't in a good position.

Having had just one and now two babies at a time, I can definitely say that twins is...much more difficult. Everything happens so much faster, and stretches more painfully. Somedays I just sit all day because my round ligaments hurt too bad to walk. Don't think I'm complaining, though- just comparing. And I'm THRILLED and SO HAPPY to be stretching and hurting because it means these kiddos are growing!

12 weeks 6days. 

This is the perfect example of how baby B is in a bad position for a photo-op.

14W 5D

These babies are fraternal twins which is a lot less risk. (I don't think I could handle any more risk) At 15 weeks, we're feeling grateful for all the pictures we have of our sweet little ones and that we've had so many opportunities to watch them move and kick each other in head. We're in love with our little #3 and #4 children and hope to have an idea of what their genders are next week. I have 3 more scans before I leave Kville, so hopefully we'll know for sure before we leave.

I really need to say thank you for all the support and love we've felt from friends and family; for your prayers, fasts, and words or comfort and love. Random strangers tell us that they'll pray for us, which absolutely fills my heart with love for them. 

Sometimes when I pray I tell Heavenly Father that we've already buried 2 babies and we can't do a 3rd or a 4th. These babies are perfect and we haven't had any complications and hope that it stays that way. In the next few weeks, Evan will be taking his boards and we'll be packing up and moving to Chandler, AZ for 2 years so Ev can complete years 3 and 4 of med school. We're excited and I promise I'll be better at keeping up the blog with updates for the friends far away and the friends we're leaving in Kirksville (*tear).
Much Love!

Little Blessings

So, I had just gotten home from visiting teaching [as women in our church, we visit eachother each month to share our faith and show support to one another = visiting teaching] and sent Evan off to play basketball like he does every wednesday. My puppies started getting excited at the back door and it made me nervous, so I went to lock it. To my surprise, five women were standing on my porch (at first it startled me, but I recognized them, so I recovered quickly). I let them in and they were some young women from the ward. They gave me a plate of cookies with a note:

They told me that they picked 8 women in the ward that exemplified each of the young women values: Faith, Divine Nature, Individual Worth, Knowledge, Choice and Accountability, Good Works, Integrity, and Virtue. I about cried! These young women are so inspiring to me. They live in a town where members of our church are grossly outnumbered (which, being from Utah, I'm not used to). Members of the community don't know a lot about our church and some of the things they know are incorrect. But, these youth go to school, serve/work in the community, and uphold the standards of the church and live the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

I'm definitely not writing this post to brag. This experience was a reminder to me that we can have a powerful influence on those around us when we're trying to live righteously. 

I'm only just starting to get back to my normal self after Kayden's death. It's been a long 7 months and I'm feeling better everyday. It would be easier to throw my hands up and wave the white flag; just be done trying and give up. But these girls gave me courage to keep going, to keep trying. I want the people around me to know that I believe in Jesus Christ. 

The following song reminds me that our Heavenly Father is in control; that His plan is in effect in every aspect of our lives:

 "What's mine is yours"- even my Scotlin and Kayden.   

Making New Friends, Finally

So, here in Kirksville (as mentioned in my previous post) the "townies" are those who have lived in KV for a long time. Most of them were raised here and never left, but many came for school and never left. Our ward thus-far has been made up of townies. Great people, don't get me wrong, but they're not in the same demographic as Evan and I. It's been long-awaited, but students and their young families are slowly starting to trickle into town. We've had the pleasure of meeting Dan and Kassidy from Salt Lake City, Ut. They both attended the U. They just got married last month.  We've been able to spend time with them on multiple occasions and I just found out that Kassidy was in Granite Senior Youth (symphony orchestra for our school district back home) when she was in high school. She's the same age as my sister, Julie, and Kassidy and I have many mutual friends thanks to our music endeavors in high school. It's been good getting to know new people and to have new ways to pass the time.


Ev and I toured the ATSU library yesterday. It's nice and quiet.We also saw the OMM (Osteopathic Muscle Manipulation) lab. It's HUGE. I'm most excited for Ev to start learning OMM so he can align my back and make me feel better. I'm really thrilled that he's going to be a DO. Just a few more weeks and school starts! I can't wait.


Our third anniversary is coming up. Ev has to plan it this year and I don't think he's started yet. Maybe this post will give him a little bit of motivation. I can't believe it's been 3 years. It's gone so fast and so much has happened. I feel really blessed to have such a great husband! Love you Ev

Havin' Fun In K-Town!

Yeah, maybe that's an overstatement. Fun? Maybe not. I mean, it's not missouri-bl (that was lame, but I had to use it just once) but we are struggling to keep ourselves occupied. Here are some things I have learned about my new place of residence:


I got a new driver's license and it made me sad to give up my UT one. (I naively thought they'd let me keep both)


There are A LOT of bugs here. I don't think anyone could have prepared me for this one. My mind was not capable of imagining the vast variety and quantity of creepy crawlies here in the midwest.


In just under 2 hours I can pass through 3 different states.


People that have lived here for a long time indeed do NOT like to be referred to as "townies"


Wal-mart is a staple. Not for nourishment or supplies. For SANITY. It's one of the few places in town where we can go and be around people. Hopefully that will change once school starts.


"Share the road' signs are no longer limited to bicycles. Here in K-Town, the sign has a horse and buggy on it.


Don't stare at the Amish. Apparently they're used to it, but they still don't like it.


Anyway, Kirksville isn't ALL bad. In fact there's one really cool program that, although I haven't officially seen it advertised, is in full swing. Wal-mart must host it because it's the only place I've seen it take place. It's called the "Adopt a Grandparent" program. Oh, you've heard of it? Well, here's the KV version:
    Every time, and I do mean EVERY time, we go to Wally World (2-3 times a day usually) There are elderly gentlemen and ladies sitting on benches at the entrance to the store (right next to the greeter). Evan and I have devised a theory that a person can sign up to adopt one such elderly person for the day, which entails taking them to do their shopping for the week. They get their few items and while you're doing YOUR shopping for the week, they sit on the bench and gossip about the town. (We're in the process of documenting this...pictures to come soon)


But, all joking aside, I'd like to give a shout-out to the WalMart greeters here in KV. Not only are they super nice, but they pull a line of carts out and sanitize the handles for you. If all WalMarts were like the one here, WalMart would have a better name.


We did go to Columbia for the day yesterday and I was able to go to Hobby Lobby, which helped me mellow out a little. I finally have my JEWELRY WEBSITE up and running, though. It will help occupy my time, and *hopefully* be a little source of income. Pictures of our cute house will be coming in the next couple of days. Love you all!