Saturday morning, August 28, was like any other morning. I woke up feeling pretty good despite my lack of sleep, and was ready to get showered and ready for the day. After breakfast, my mother in law and I decided to go to Costco. Although I knew I didn't want to be on my feet for a long time, Costco was always a fun outing and I was good to not stay for too long. I had been feeling recently that I needed to stay off my feet more and more, but needed to move around a bit to have some circulation through my body.
We shopped, enjoyed some free samples and headed home so that I could rest and get some lunch. I was actually quite proud of myself because the previous three Saturdays were spent in the hospital due to my being extremely nervous about the boys because I thought I couldn't feel them move as much. This particular Saturday they were all moving a ton, so I was confident that everything was great. The day went on just like any normal day. We returned home from Costco, I grabbed some lunch and sat down to relax for a bit. Jacob's family was in town, so the afternoon was spent visiting with them and enjoying some time together.
As the night approached, I headed upstairs to get ready for bed. Since I had not yet purchased the stroller that I have been wanting to get the boys, I decided to spend some time looking at strollers and reading reviews. At around 11:20, I felt a huge gush of water. I quickly jumped out of bed praying that my water had not just broken. As I stood up, I felt another huge gush of water. I quickly ran downstairs and yelled to my mother in law that we had to get the the hospital immediately because my water had just broken. She dropped what she was doing and jumped in the car. I picked up my shoes but was so shaky that I couldn't put them on (they were flip flops-do shoes get any easier to put on)?
I was shaking and crying hysterically. All I could think of was the babies and wondering if I was going to lose them. I called Jacob and let him know what was happening and asked him to call my sister and to also call our friends to come help with a blessing. I was also able to get ahold of my brother and ask him to come be with me and give me a blessing. Without hesitation, he immediately came to be with me. As we pulled up to the hospital, I jumped out of the car without it stopping completely and ran in. I didn't have any shoes on and was in a pair of gym shorts and a tank top. As we ran in, I could feel a ton of water not just leaking but gushing out. I was an absolute basket case. As soon as I got inside, the nurses got my dressed in a gown, on a bed and hooked up to several IVs and a magnesium drip to help stop contractions. I was still shaking uncontrollably. The only words I was able to get out of my mouth between the crying and shaking was "my babies, my babies. Are my babies okay?" I was completely terrified that they weren't going to make it.
An ultrasound machine was wheeled into my room along with heart monitors for the boys. They did and ultrasound first to make sure all three boys were still okay. A huge relief came over me when I saw each of my boys moving around. Although the fluid around Dalton was practically gone, he was still in there and was moving around. Sam and Drew were perfectly fine. I was then hooked up to a heart monitor for each of the boys. Listening to their heartbeats was music to my ears. As soon as we were certain that each of the boys were okay, my brother and friends gave me a blessing.
Still completely shaky, the doctor assured me that the boys were okay and that it would be best for me and the boys if I was able to calm down because it would help slow the leak of the fluid. I was trying my hardest but had so much adrenaline pumping through me that I couldn't completely stop. We also learned that the sack was torn on the bottom and it would most likely not heal. However, it was very likely that if I stayed on strict hospital bedrest, I could get several days or even weeks before the boys had to be delivered. Lori called Jacob to give him and update. She handed the phone to me and I immediately started to cry again, wishing so badly that he was there with me.
My sweet brother, David, and mother in law, Lori, stayed with me through the night. David left around 4 in the morning so that he could get some rest before having to be at church. Things seemed to have calmed down a bit so he felt comfortable leaving. I am so grateful for such a sweet brother who was so willing to stay with me through the night. I wasn't able to get any rest during the night and felt completely exhausted. I had a few visitors in the morning which was nice because it helped pass some time by. The nurses came in frequently to check my vitals and take my temperature. As the day progressed, I began showing signs of a fever. They quickly gave me a steroid shot to help develop the babies lungs, if I ended up delivering. Up to this point, I felt very confident that I would be able to hold off on delivering the boys....after all, this was not how this was supposed to happen (at least according to our plan).
An hour or so passed and the belief that I was getting an infection grew more and more concerning. The doctor (Dr. Ellis) came in and informed me that they were thinking that I might need to deliver that night, but that they would continue to watch it for the next few hours. Lori called Jacob and told him that he needed to hurry and get a flight out because the possibility of delivery was growing more and more likely.
I began getting more and more anxious and nervous about what was going to happen. The doctor came in again and asked how I was feeling. Although I had been feeling just fine, my fever continued to rise. and the decision was made that the babies had to come that night. The Perinatologist came in to talk to me about the survival rates of babies born as early as our boys were going to be born. I put Jacob on speaker so that he would know what was going on. I was crying and not in a state of mind to pass on information as critical as knowing the survival rates. Dr. Carol began talking to us and I tried my hardest to not have another breakdown. We didn't like what we were hearing. The survival rates for twins was not good, let alone triplets. My fear of losing the babies was starting taking me over and I was once again a complete wreck. I tried to calm myself knowing that Jacob was on his way, but I couldn't help it. Why was this happening? Everything had been going so well and there were never any concerns with the health of me or the babies. Up to this point, and besides the nasty pregnancy rash I had, this pregnancy had been smooth sailing.
Thankfully my sister was right by my side helping me calm down. I was then told that there was no doubt that the babies were going to be born that night and that it needed to happen within the next few minutes. At that point, Jacob was about 30 minutes outside of St. George. They tried to hold off until he arrived or at least until he got a bit closer, but they didn't feel comfortable waiting that long. They rolled me into the OR and began prepping me for the c-section. As they rolled me into the room, I was greeted by a crowd of nurses and doctors standing by to take the babies as they were pulled out. Most of their faces were a blur, but I remember my thought was "thank you for being here to save my boys". I received the spinal, which thankfully was not as bad as I had expected. They scrubbed my stomach and tested to see if I was numb enough to start. My sister walked in, all gowned up, to sit by my head as they started the c-section until Jacob arrived. They started cutting and before I knew it, I heard the doctor say "the first baby is out! Look to the left!". I looked to the left and saw a tiny baby boy and heard a faint little cry as they whisked our little Dalton by to clean him up and take care of him. "He cried! Oh my boy is alive!" I was so relieved that he cried and that he apparently had lungs that were strong for his age.
My sister talked to me constantly to keep my mind distracted as they went in for the next baby. I felt some pulling and tugging going on and before I knew it, baby boy number 2, Samuel, was out. I didn't see him because my mind was such a blur, but he cried and I was again relieved that boy number 2 was alive.
"Jacob is out in the parking lot!" I heard my sister say. As soon as I heard that, all I could think about was how excited I was that he was there. I hadn't seen him for so long and honestly sometimes I began to wonder if he was real or just a dream. I could hardly imagine him being there with me. As he rushed in the hospital and washed up, they pulled boy number 3, Drew, out. "Did he cry?!" I asked. "Yes!" I heard Elizabeth say. "Here is Jacob! I'm going to trade places with him okay?" Elizabeth said again. I immediately looked over towards the door and saw my sweet sweet husband walking towards me. I began crying. So relieved and so grateful to have him here with me. I remember that as soon as I could reach him, I reached for his hands and placed them on my face. Between all the medication and the chaos of what happened that night, I really did feel like I was dreaming. Jacob sat right next to me as I was being put back together and sewed up.
I don't remember everything I said or exactly what I did while I was being sewed up. I only remember being so grateful that the boys were alive and that they cried and that Jacob was there to welcome our boys into the world with me.
I was taken to the Recovery Room where I remained until I was able to move my legs on my own. I was so groggy from the medicine and don't remember much of what happened in there besides David, Koni, Lori and Elizabeth coming to see me, and Jacob being right next to me.
When I was finally able to move my legs, I was taken to a hospital room so that I could get some rest. Jacob stayed behind so that he could go see the boys. I was completely exhausted by the time he got back to the room and only remember him telling me a few things about the boys. Soon after, I was asleep, but so glad that I was with all four of my boys. Part Two will be coming shortly......
Drew with mom and dad
Jacob watching over Drew
Me, Jacob (holding Dalton)
My first time snuggling with Dalton
