Another Small Miracle

Two weeks ago I had another "big" ultrasound--these will occur every six weeks until the babies are born. The ultrasound is performed by a tech, who is not allowed to tell the patient anything important. She did get to tell us genders, though. (See my previous post) On the ultrasound, I noticed something abnormal in our little girl's brain. The tech didn't mention it, and I didn't ask her about it because I knew she couldn't say anything. The following Tuesday I got a call from the genetics department to inform us that our little girl had choroid plexus cysts in her brain. They offered us another more in-depth ultrasound, since this type of cysts can be related to a chromosomal defect called Trisomy 18. The geneticist said our little girl doesn't have any other indicators of Trisomy 18, so there wasn't much need for concern. But they wanted to do another ultrasound just to be cautious. This defect can usually be ruled out by the genetic blood test; but since I am pregnant with twins, it doesn't work for us. I agreed to the ultrasound, and we scheduled it for Monday of this week.

I was able to push this concerning information to the back of my mind most of the week. The kids and I had the flu over the weekend, so that helped too. Thankfully, I was feeling better on Monday morning and ready to get the next ultrasound done. Sadly, Monday morning is when Tobin came down with the flu. My fabulous sister-in-law, Kristyn, accompanied me to the Kaiser hospital in Oakland for the ultrasound. I was pretty anxious all night Sunday, and spent a lot of time praying for peace and strengthened faith. By Monday morning I was feeling much stronger. Kristyn and I had a lovely visit, chatting and laughing. An ultrasound tech performed basically the same ultrasound on both babies that had been done just 10 days before. I watched closely, and didn't see the cysts in our little girl's brain this time. Next, a doctor came in and did the same ultrasound again, slightly abbreviated. She was able to discuss her findings, and told us that both babies look normal. The cysts are, in fact, gone! The geneticist came in next and talked with us for a few minutes. She didn't have too much to discuss, since the risk of any problem is now incredibly low. What a miracle! I am so touched by the Lord's mercies.

Today was another appointment with my regular doctor. When you are pregnant with twins you get to see the doctor every two weeks! Phew! Good thing I like him. :) Tobin, Peyton, and Maryam all came with me today. This was the kids' first time to see the babies on an ultrasound. They were so cute! They asked Tobin and me a lot of questions about the colorful posters on the wall while we waited for the doctor--can you say female anatomy lesson! They were both totally attentive during the ultrasound and talkative with the doctor. After the exam was over, I asked a couple of questions I had for the doctor. Then, I asked the kids if they had any questions. Peyton raised his hand. I told him to go ahead and ask. He looked at the doctor and said, "How do they get out?" I started laughing, and the doctor looked at me and asked, "Can you handle this one?" I explained to him that we've actually had this talk before. Then I told Peyton again how babies get out of the mommy--the super short, one sentence answer. It was so cute.

My doctor said today that I need to start planning to tone down my activities going forward. He doesn't even want me carrying heavy laundry baskets anymore. I'm not on bed rest, and he wants to keep it that way. Honestly, so do I! So now, I'm going to have to start cracking the whip for my hubby! Tobin really is a great help. I'm just going to have to save some of the bigger household chores for him to help me with in the evenings. I'm sure that's not his favorite idea, but it sure beats having a wife who can't do anything at all.