a place called home

54 days. I feel as if I should get 54 tatooed onto my hand or wear the number 54 as a jersey number now :) I am finally home from what seemed like a never ending hospital stay and I am so glad. Sitting here in our comfy leather chair seems surreal and almost dream like. But I can't wait to wake up in my own house with my family instead of a hospital room!

Today we were happy to find the girls had their IVs removed! The girls now only have an NG tube (a tube going to their stomach) which they fill with my breast milk and a heart rate monitor. It's amazing to walk into the NICU and find they have less invasive instruments each time. They are continuing to try bottle feeding so they can begin to learn how to suck and swallow.

Here are some photos of girls "unplugged", enjoy!

https://picasaweb.google.com/LizNWalker/Girls32Weeks

The girls first photo op!

Isabella Grace right from the delivery room

Naomi Hope after her bath and visiting mom in the NICU

Josiah on his way to visit his sisters for the first time!

The girls and mom are doing really good. Naomi and Isabella are both breathing on their own which is great with only a little oxygen support. We got to hold them both for a few minutes and the nurses said they are doing great for their first day.  Josiah got to meet them and he was very excited and even sang them a song. He is going to be a great big brother. As of right now we anticipate the girls being here at least 3 weeks and possibly more and Liz should be coming home sometime this weekend. We have felt so blessed by all love and support - thank you all for being a part of our journey which is now just moving into a different stage.

They are here!

We just wanted to let you know that Naomi Hope Walker and Isabella Grace Walker have arrived! Naomi was born at 6:41 and was 3 pounds 9 oz. Isabella was born at 6:42 and was 3 pounds 15 oz. The babies are doing well from the few moments we spent with them and we will have more information after their assessment. We will post some pictures soon - thanks so much for the prayer and support!

light at the end of the tunnel

Hi everyone,

We wanted to send out an update of what's going on. Over the weekend, my contractions began to increase looking more like a regular labor pattern, but fortunately they were able to calm them down. In the morning, I hope to go to the Perinatologist to check on the girls’ weight and development. Now that we have officially reached 32 weeks, the doctors have agreed that the end is in sight. Pray for us as we begin some of the final preparations for the girls’ arrival. Pray for us as we deal with the mental and emotional reality that the girls will be coming soon. Pray for the Labor and Delivery staff, the NICU staff and everyone who will be involved in the delivery process.

Thank you for your continued support and we will let you know any news via the blog. We are excited to be able to meet and introduce our girls to the world! Love you all!

weigh in

It's official. We made it... to 32 weeks! I have to admit I wasn't sure that we would see this day but thankfully we have. This was the last major milestone my doctors wanted me to reach over six weeks ago.

Tuesday's doctor's appointment felt similiar to a boxing or a UFC weigh in (if you don't know what that is just ask my husband, haha!) I was nervous about how much the girls would weigh, how everything looked and if they would pass their biophysical profiles. Biophysical profiles are tests done on each baby to see how they handle stress similiar to what would happen during labor and gives the doctor an assesment on how they are doing. So you want to hear the stats?

Baby A or "Angel":

• She weighed in at 3.5 lbs 
• She's growing in the 30 percentile which is consistent with her growth so far
• She's still breech (feet down and head up)
• Her biophysical profile score was an 8/8! 

Check out her newest photo

So cute even if her hand is covering her other eye!

Baby B or "BB":

• She weighed in at 4.0lbs
• She's growing at almost the 50th percentile which is also consistent with her growth so far
• She's transverse (laying across my stomach)
• Her biophysical profile score was an 8/8! 

Her newest photo

So amazing they were able to catch her opening one eye!

We are very grateful to God the girls are doing so well right now. Some of the questions everyone keeps asking is what happens now? What is the next goal the doctors want us to reach? When will the girls come? And we just don't know the answers to these questions. My contractions have increased in frequency and strength so they could be here soon. But no one truly knows... so pray for us to have patience as we continue to wait. Pray for me especially as these "practice rounds" can really make me feel exhausted and each time cause me to wonder if I am finally going into true labor. We are all getting weary and I am so ready to be at home and off bedrest but know that each day helps increase the girls chances of doing better outside the womb. Keep praying for them to grow stronger and for them to continue to pass their tests with flying colors.

Thank you to everyone who has come to visit me and brighten my day! I love having the visits to catch up and learn what's happening outside these four walls. Thanks to those who continue to help provide us with delicious meals and lift that off our shoulders each week. Thank you for all the phone calls, emails, texts, cards, etc... I try to respond to them all and know that I appreciate them all. We feel so privileged to tell my nurses that I have such an amazing family and friends who care for us each week.They see your generosity and love and keep telling me that it's an amazing support that not many have in my same position. We love you guys and hope you're still ready to hang with us for a little while longer. Ciao!

31 weeks & drumsticks

This week has been a rougher week. Besides the fact that I am starting to feel really BIG (my stomach is over 37 cm), my contractions have started to increase.  I am not having enough contractions to put me into labor but they are making me feel uncomfortable & a little uneasy that true labor could be any day. Next Thursday we will reach 32 weeks, the last major milestone my doctors have wanted me to reach. Most days I feel as if I am in a time warp where the days seem to travel slowly yet when I look at the calendar I realize time has gone by fast. I can’t believe we are close to the end of September and I am still pregnant! The antepartum nurses are so excited and count down each day until next Thursday.

Happy thoughts:

·      My room has been filled with gorgeous flowers that cheer up the room
·      Many visitors have dropped by to encourage me and bring me yummy treats like smoothies, chips, magazines, gifts for the girls
·      Here are two cute videos of Josiah showing off his drummer skillz:

·  A snapshot of my belly at 31 weeks

Prayer Requests:

·      Josiah – He is still having some hard moments at home in regards to obedience and just feeling insecure. Please pray that everyone with him will continue to have patience considering all the changes he's going through.

·      Andrew and Mom- Pray for them both to have strength at the home front as they bear the burden of keeping everything rolling. Pray for them both to get rest when they need it and time off to relax.

·      Tuesday's doctor’s appointment- Pray for the girls to be at a healthy weight and the tests will reveal they are staying healthy. Pray that my contractions have not caused me to dilate any more.  

·      Liz- I am growing more uncomfortable physically each day and still long to be out of the hospital. Pray that I can deal with the physical discomforts & have a good attitude each day that I am still undelivered. Pray that I will not be fearful or anxious about not knowing when I will go into labor. The unknown date for labor is starting to wear on my mind. 

a rainy day update

Baby A - This sweet face will be worth it all in the end

Hello again from one pregnant mama and her two girls! Today has been what I would call the perfect rainy day. I got to sleep in, enjoyed listening to the raindrops, listened to some Theolonius Monk & John Coltrane, and all has been quiet so far with this almost 30 week pregnant body! It's still amazing to me that I have been "pregnant and holding" for five weeks now. The time has flown by yet seemed to go by so slowly all at the same time. 

Our news:

• We will reach 30 weeks on Thursday which is another pivotal milestone!
• Both babies are still breech and their fluids levels look excellent.
• I am still having contractions but so far active labor has not started back up again.
• Visitors are welcome again. Let me know when you would like to stop by and we will try to work out the timing. The only time I may not have visitors is if I go into a consistent contraction pattern or I am feeling like I need to rest.

How can you pray? So glad that you asked ;) 

• Pray for Josiah- He's been more difficult the last two days and it seems this journey is starting to wear on him more now with the reality that I am not at home. Pray the Lord can help Josiah to process/deal with what he can't truly understand or verbalize. Pray for him to have an obedient and joyful heart.
• Pray for me- It's starting to become more physically challenging to be on bedrest. I feel more aches and pains as we continue to grow and I long to be able to get out of the bed. Pray my attitude stays encouraged and to try to have the perspective of taking it one day at at time. 
• Pray for our family- We are starting to prepare for the babies to be able to come home. This can sometimes feel like an overwhelming task with all the day to day stress. Pray for us to feel not as on edge as no one knows if today will be the day I go into labor. Keep Andrew, Josiah, and my mom in prayer as they are continuing to live the "new normal" at home without me.

Thanks so much for staying with us on this journey! Love to all of you xoxo