At the appointment, Baby B had moved head down--yay! I mentioned that I had been feeling braxton hicks off and on throughout the morning, but nothing out of the ordinary. When I got into the car to head home and had a stronger contraction. Hmm. That's interesting timing, but didn't think much about it. I had another contraction before reaching home on my 15 minute drive. Now, when I say 'contraction' I mean a small tightening. Nothing major...or so I thought.
When I got home I decided to lay down and drink water to see if the contractions were because of being dehydrated. I messaged Aaron about my day and told him I was having painless contractions.
When Aaron came home early he encouraged me to call the nurse line to just double check. When I talked with her, told her I was 4 centimeters dilated at last visit and was having painless contractions about 10 minutes apart, she advised me to just go into the hospital. Just in case, she said.
We called my aunt, who was planning to stay with the kids. It was a chaotic get-pizza-on-the-table, answer-school-questions-from-kids, listen-to-noninteresting-kid-stories-about-random-things, try-to-remember-all-I'd-packed, all while trying to remain calm for the kids who thought it was just another evening in the Bryant household. They were so oblivious to the moment we were entering, it was almost surreal watching them eat their pizza and tell their stories while Aaron and I moved almost like robots through the motions of getting to the hospital.
Once we arrived I almost felt silly because I wasn't in great pain. I remember needing a wheelchair for Henry because I couldn't walk to the labor and delivery floor with the pain of the contractions. I remember trying to hold back the moans/groans (maybe screams) in the car with Elliot because Samuel and Henry were in the back seat until we dropped them off. Here I was checking in with barely any pain at all. In the midst of our small talk the nurse checking me in mentioned the doctor who was on call. My doctor! In this day and age, the chances of my doctor being on call, who knew my story and my situation, delivering my babies, was so rare! I said a silent prayer and my anxiety fell.
We were ushered back to a triage room and a nurse came in to check how far dilated I was. 6 cm. She looked up at me, "Well, it looks like your twins' birthday is June 2. We won't be sending a pregnant-with-twins mama home at 6 cm." Aaron and I just looked at each other. What else where we to do?
From that point, I was prepared for surgery. I was given some medicine to stop the contractions because the granola bar and milk I had eaten would mess with the anesthesia. So, we had to wait. We were also waiting in line to get into the operating room. My doctor was busy with another c-section. So, here we were, Aaron and I, watching the Minnesota Twins game on TV, just waiting. No pain, no crazy. Just sitting there. It was again so surreal. This is labor?
Around 8:30 the nurse asked if I wanted to walk or ride to the operating room. Um, is that even a question? I don't want to walk with this extra weight ever again! I rode.
After being prepped and losing my feeling from the chest down, the doctor began. It was the weirdest feeling knowing the babies were being delivered and all I felt were these strange pushing and pulling sensations. The doctor popped Baby A up over the blue screen. "It's a boy!"
I chuckled. Aaron smiled. Four boys. Baby A was rushed to get cleaned up and weighed. Baby A (later Theo) had his own nurse team. While they were busy out of my range of vision, the doctor pushed and pulled and pushed some more to turn Baby B so he could be delivered head first as well. "It's another boy!" Now Aaron and I both laughed. What?!?!
I lay prone and immobile on the operating table and the sounds swirled around me. It's then the tears began to fall. Baby B (Abraham) also had his own nurse team. The ladies in the room were giggling and oohing and ahhing. They dragged Aaron back and forth to take pictures with his phone. They brought the babies to my face to take pictures with me. They laughed and congratulated the babies for being so healthy. There were so many people squished into that small room, all celebrating.
But to me it was just this swirling of noise and beauty and relief and joy. And relief. Did I mention relief? I was done. It was finished. The overwhelming joy of having two babies, two baby boys, was coupled with the immense joy of no longer being massively pregnant. Wave upon wave of emotion washed over me and the tears silently fell as I watched babies and nurses and Aaron come in and out of my line of view. My nurse quietly wiped the tears away and the celebration in the operating room continued swirling around me.
Blessed beyond measure.
Theodore William.
Abraham John.
Little brothers to Samuel Emmett. Henry Carl. Elliot James.
Praise be to God.
