cont. My "First" Mother's Day

It was the day after Mother's Day last year that I had an appointment with an obgyn to check me out. The cramping had subsided by the next day as well as the bleeding. We were so anxious to see the doctor and know for sure what was happening. We were sitting in the room with the ultrasound machine to my right, waiting for the doctor to come in. It seemed like an eternity. The doctor came in and introduced himself. We quickly reviewed what had been going on the last couple of days and then gave us the results of my blood test from the day before. He said that my BETA numbers were quite high (meaning a strong pregnancy), but decided to do an ultrasound and exam to see what was going on. I remember lifting my head up in hopes of seeing something on the screen. The doctor suggested that I just relax and let him look things over first. Greg, however, was sitting in the chair across from the ultrasound screen and could see what was being shown. After a long pause, the doctor said that he knew why I was cramping and bleeding... he quickly blurted out with, "well, there's two and here are their heartbeats." Greg and I stared at the screen in amazement and joy! I was so emotionally drained by then and felt so relieved that I don't think what he told us about the twin thing really sunk in. I was just so happy that I wasn't having a miscarriage. He informed us that cramping and bleeding is really common with multiples, and most likely from the rapid growth of the uterus and implantation bleeding (we also found out later that I had subchorionic hematoma above each sac... in other words, a "blood clot" between the uterus and placenta. Thankfully, they went away quickly).

The doctor was very congratulatory and printed out a bunch of pictures for us. I was to continue pelvic rest and see my doctor as soon as I got home for a follow up check up. We were so excited that we called our families (who were anxiously waiting to hear from us!) and told them the wonderful news. And that is how our story began...