12/30/11 4:10pm

Well it is official, I (Micah) am writing this update from room 4173 at Evergreen Hospital.  Shelly has spent the day being poked, prodded, tested and poked some more.  We are now here until we get to meet our new little boys.  The doctors don't like the blood flow in baby A's brain so they are watching him like a hawk.  Shelly will be spending the coming days, weeks and months(hopefully) with microphones on her belly listening to the babies heartbeats.  Her room is nice and large and she would love visitors.  Her nurse said for her to invite her friends over for wine party for the Bachelor season opener this Monday.  I will be bouncing between the hospital, home and work.  I would like to thank everyone for offering help with childcare and food.  Being that this is day 1 I am not really sure what we need yet but Susan Gillespie is the self appointed "Help Planner" (Susan likes to be in charge) so she will be doing the coordinating.  Thanks Susan. 

Grayson and Asher are taking it well so far but it is going to take some getting used to.  I am sure they would love to be taken to see Mommy as much as possible so feel free to invite them along for the ride if you are visiting Shelly.

Thanks again for all the prayers and offers of help.  We have great friends and family.

We will keep you posted as things change.  Feel free to send Shelly a text, she has her phone.

Micah

12/28/11

So I had another appointment today here's the break down....

Baby B now weighs 1 lb 13 oz. He gained 8 oz. over the past two weeks! Everything on him looks fabulous! He just needs to keep up the good work.

Baby A now weighs 1 lb. 1 oz. He gained 4 oz. over the past two weeks! I was proud of my little guy's growth. He's working so hard! Unfortunately, he has to work so hard. Blood flow in his brain is starting to show that his little body is working really hard to compensate for the uneven blood flood from the umbilical cord...this isn't a good sign. Dr. Walker scheduled another appointment for me on Friday where unless there is a miracle (pray for one!) I will be admitted to the hospital. They will admit me to keep a close eye on my boys to make sure that A doesn't get too stressed out. As soon as he starts showing signs of distress I will be rushed in for a c-section. I will stay in the hospital until the boys are born. Pray for a long stay. I want these little ones to cook as long as possible! Pray for health for both of the boys. And pray for the boys I will be leaving at home (all 3 of them!).

So if you offered to help it looks like now is the time I'll need it. We're trying to figure out schedules for the boys so if you can help please let me know! It's greatly appreciated!!!!!

Lots of Love,

Shelly

12/1/11 11:47am

So here is the latest news about the twins…

Baby A is now 9 oz. and has had good growth over the past two weeks. Everything still looks good on him and he’s moving around like crazy. Baby B is 14 oz. and as healthy as can be. Thankfully, he’s no longer double his brother’s size. Every week both of the boys give the ultrasound tech a hard time by moving every time they try to measure something. Typical Dolen boys!

I still need to go weekly to see Dr. Walker to keep a close eye on Baby A’s growth. I was hoping to be able to cut back a little because it’s getting REALLY expensive. Pray that our insurance will cover more.

Dr. Walker said that after the holidays the babies will be considered viable. We don’t want them out that soon because it still would be really dangerous, but technically they could survive. So after the holidays I have to bring a packed bag to every appt. just in case Baby A’s growth slows. If his growth slows they would immediately hospitalize me to keep a closer watch on the babies and if the growth stops I would go in for an emergency C-section. Now, I don’t want any part of any of this so pray that none of this needs to happen!

Over all, they are doing the best they possibly can given the circumstances. I’m getting bigger by the day it feels like. My last day of work is on Dec. 16^th. Originally, I thought it was ridiculous that I would be out so soon, but this week I’ve been getting really tired and it’s getting harder and harder to complete simple tasks like putting my shoes on. It’s hard for me to see so many things that I “need” to do around the house, but not have the energy to do any of them. I just need to forget the to do list and focus on rest which isn’t so easy for this girl to do! Something else to pray about. J

Hope you all are doing well! Thanks for caring about me and the boys!

Shelly 

11/2/11 4:10pm

Ok, here is the latest….

Baby B is a chunky monkey! He’s weighing in at 7.6 oz and is in the 96% percentile, but he looks great. Baby A is still a little guy but is considered “average” at this stage in the game. He weighs 4 oz and still looks good. A is still having a lull in the blood flow from the cord, but his brain & heart blood flood are completely normal. With each pump into the cord there is a little splashing back out which isn’t good, but isn’t super bad. We just have to wait and watch. I’m in Dr. love with Dr. Walker. He totally puts me at ease. I can’t tell you all how blessed I feel to have him!

For Christmas, Asher got the boys little blankies with stuffie heads attached this weekend one is a monkey and the other is a lion. Very fitting from what we saw today on the ultra sound. Praying my little lion will continue to grow. J

Lots of Love,

Shelly

10/27/11 12:20 PM - Boy oh Boys!

The appointment couldn't have gone better. (Praise God!!) Both of the babies look great. There is no twin to twin transfusion which is awesome!! Baby A is still smaller because the cord is attached to the edge of the placenta and B's is attached in the middle so it's easier for B to get more. Everyone has enough fluid, bladders (these are both warning signs), and their sweet little hearts are pumping away. I was able to see THE twin specialist in the country and he is AMAZING! Dr. Walker thinks these babies should continue to grow nicely and have a good chance to deliver at 34 weeks. He's calling my Dr. to have her sign over my case to him so that he can see me weekly to keep an eye on the little pumpkins just to make sure things continue to go well. I'll have weekly visits on Wednesday afternoons with Dr. Walker at the Issaquah Swedish campus (how perfect is that!?! Perfect for both Micah and I to make the appts.) for the next 8 weeks. Then after that twice a week appts. with him. He says that I can work for the next 8 weeks so that puts me right at Winter Break. A nice breaking point for my class. So all and all it was a great visit. I feel so relaxed! Ahhh...time for nap!


Oh and they are.....Boys! Yes, I'm having two more boys! I'm actually thrilled!

Thanks so much for all of your prayers please continue to pray for their health!
Lots of Love,
Shelly 

10/26/11 2:06pm

Tomorrow at 7:50 is the appt. Pray, pray, pray. I keep going from calm (knowing He’s got it) to anxious. When all the what ifs creep in, I’ve been trying my best to push them out. Funnily enough every time I’m calm, Micah is anxious and then when I’m anxious he’s calm. So at least we are on alternating schedules.

*Our boys are completely oblivious to any of this and we want to keep it that way. They don’t need to worry about the babies. So please don’t say anything in front of them.

We SO appreciate all of your prayers! Keep them coming!! Someone will send out an update to let you all know what is going on.

Thanks again and don’t forget to pray!

Lots of Love! 

10/5/2011 1:01pm

Good News:

• Babies development at this stage is considered normal.
• Both of their necks are the perfect size. (They look at this to see if there are possible birth defects.)
• I’m doing great with my diet & I gained a 1 lb. (I need to continue to gain a 1lb a week.)
• They are kind of stacked. They call Baby A the one on the bottom & Baby B the one on the top. They will probably stay in these spots, but could trade.
• I can go to the “sister” clinic to see the specialists at the Swedish campus in the Highlands making it easier for us to get to the appts. Micah can easily swing over for my appts so I don’t have to hear anything scary by myself.

Things to pray about:

• One baby is bigger than the other. This could mean twin to twin transfusion which means they are directly sharing their blood supply. We were given three scenarios, 1 was scary, 2 was a little scary & involved surgery, and 3 was that they would work it out and start sharing. Pray for #3. It’s still early so they just don’t know what is happening right now so they are going to keep a close eye on the babies. I will start to see the specialists every 2 weeks so my next appt is on Oct. 19th. I also will see Dr. Moore on that same day.
• By mid Jan my body will be the size it would normally be at 40 weeks so they suggest having all my ducks in a row by then. Long-term sub, babies room ready, car seats, house in order, etc. My hope is that we will have everything ready and then nothing will happen because we’re so prepared.
• It’s overwhelming for us and we just want healthy little babies arriving in the spring.

So that’s all the news for now. Thanks for your prayers!

Apparently, the sex is already determined but they couldn’t tell what they are. Maybe in a couple weeks!

Shelly

9/29/11 10:57am

So I got an ultrasound yesterday, was just supposed to get a heart beat check but I still haven’t gained any weight (which seems impossible because my bra has gained at least 5 pounds alone!) so they wanted to see how they are doing. Apparently, it is possible my weight is just shifting and it’s okay that I’m treading right now but I need to start slowly gaining. So to aide in that I am now on anti-nausea medication to help me keep my vitamins and food down. It really works. I woke up last night when it wore off feeling sick to my stomach. It was within 5 minutes of the 8 hour wear off. How crazy is that!?!  

I got to see the little pumpkins (we’ll stick with the fall theme for now) and they look fabulous! They were kicking away. Actually pumpkin 1 was doing bicycle kicks like crazy. It was really cute! P1 seems to have long legs, but I’m not sure if was just the position of the ultrasound or not. P2 was on the bottom and I could see the heart really well. Pumpkin’s little heart is working away. Sigh of relief! Dr. Moore said that they love all the hormones that are making me so sick and that’s why they were dancing. J

My blood test results are great. No gestational diabetes at this time and everything else was great, too! We go next Wednesday morning for my Twins Ed class and another ultrasound at the specialist. I’m excited to start seeing the specialist. I’ll feel better knowing I’ve got an expert on twins keeping an eye on things.

Shelly 

We're expecting....TWINS!

Today we announced that we're expecting identical twins! It was a complete shock and a little overwhelming at first, but now we have a lot to learn and do to get ready!