25 Weeks and Counting!

Hello Outside World!
I don't really have much to report except that I am still pregnant, and I reached 25 Weeks 1 Day today!  Every day counts with these little ones.  Getting past the 24 week mark (along with their beyond awesome weights) gives the Waugh-Nuts a much better chance at a healthy survival.  This week, my body is working on growing and further developing the lungs, eyes, and ears of the babies as well as fattening them up! =)
Since I do not have too much to report (we only do the ultrasounds every 2 weeks and I literally do nothing all day), I thought that I would give you all the low-down on hospital life as well as share with all of you some of the "rules" we will have to live by once the babies arrive.  PS- To all you Grove City-ians, let me just say I am beyond jealous of you all going to Arts in the Alley this weekend.  Please eat some chicken noodles and a corn dog for me! =)  Watch for my dad in the "Chris Roach Real Estate" firetruck in the parade!

One of the many things my awesome friends and family have sent me to lift my spirits.  Thank you ALL so much for all of the cards and gifts you have sent.  I will treasure them forever!

Chris hanging out with Aleah at home

Could she be any cuter?

Hospital Life

Well, it is not all that exciting, but I watch a lot of Netflix!  The Doctors and Nurses taking care of me at OSU are awesome.  They are very supportive and encouraging and keep me company when Chris and my fam can't be here.  The first doctors come in in the morning between 6:00-6:30 to check how my night went and see if there are any changes.  From then on it is a steady stream of doctors, nurses, and other hospital personnel for the rest of the day.  In a typical day, I usually see a doctor that works in my regular OB's practice, a team of 5-6 high risk doctors that work with my high risk doctor, the nurses throughout the day, nutritionists, people taking my meal orders for the day, the people that clean the room each day, etc.  I have also met with pediatricians that work in the NICU, hospital management people,  and I can't even remember who else!  As you can see, it is a little crazy.  I also take more medicine each day than I would normally probably take in a month at home.  Lots of vitamins and folic acid to keep growing these babies!  Just yesterday, the switched me from having to do the contraction monitor 3 times each day to doing it just 2 times each day.  I keep the monitor on for an hour each time.  For the most part, just irritability shows up, but sometimes a contraction or two will show up on the monitor.  That is expected though with how huge I am!  I also get a limited ultrasound every, single, day, to check the for the heartbeats of each baby.  Since there are 4 babies, it is easier to just do the ultrasound to find the heartbeats than to try to use the monitor to do so.

For the most part, I lay in my hospital bed on my side all day every day.  I am only allowed up to go to the bathroom and to take a shower (sitting down, every other day).  Living the dream I tell you!  Because I am laying all day, I have a high risk for blood clots which is not good.  So, I have to wear these horrible compression boot things on my legs (all day and night) that hook up to a machine that pumps air into the boots to stimulate my leg muscles and get my blood in my legs circulating.  I can definitely tell I am getting more out of shape by the day!  It is much harder to lay in bed all day every day than you would think.  My body is definitely sore, but it is getting more used to it by the day (with the help of heat packs).  I am lucky to have a private room though, so that is a major plus.  The room is all decorated with artwork from Aleah and some of the decorations from my shower.  I pretty much watch Netflix or read all day.  I find that starting a series with lots of seasons makes the days go faster.

Feasting on some Roosters my dad brought me! (attractive, I know)

I have only left the room two times since I've been here (almost 3 weeks).  If/when I do leave, I have to be wheeled around in a wheelchair.  The first time I escaped was to go to the room on this floor of the hospital that has the high tech ultrasound machines to get my growth ultrasound last week.  And yesterday, the doctors pretty much ordered me to go on a short wheelchair ride outside as a reward to my body for making it to 25 weeks!  Chris wheeled me out, and it literally felt like I was breaking out of jail!  I was only outside for about 10 minutes, but it was glorious =)

25 Weeks!

Wheelchair Ride

Some funny stories (at least they entertain me)-  I pretty much cannot bend anymore.  So, every single time I want to take the leg compression boots off or put them back on (every time I have to go to the bathroom which is like every 5 seconds it seems), I have to call the nurses to help me because I can't reach!  Ugh, how embarrassing!  Also, this means I cannot reach to shave my legs!  So, my momma and I came up with the genius idea to use a men's electric razor to shave them.  So, my mom is now a pro at shaving my legs with a men's electric razor.  All vanity has left the building for me!  Since I am bedridden, I can't do anything with my hair except for put it up wet in a bun on the top of my head.  Also, I can't put any  makeup on.  I'm looking like a regular old troll these days!

But even with all of this, I am more than happy to do whatever it takes to keep growing these babies.  They say that every one day they can stay inside growing is 2 days that the babies do not have to be in the NICU growing.  I will take those numbers!  I would much rather it be me in the hospital than the babies in the hospital.  I will do whatever it takes =)

Guidelines we will Live by when the Babies Arrive

So, everything that follows will probably seem crazy to a lot of you, but, for the most part, everything we are going to do has been suggested or mandated by our doctors or pediatricians to keep the babies healthy once they arrive.  We sent this information out in an email to our family awhile back, but now that we have reached 25 weeks, I figured I would share with everyone.  Here is what we sent out:

Hello Family and Friends,

We are so happy and grateful to have each of you in our lives to support us during this crazy journey.  We are extremely fortunate to have so many people that care for us enough to send their loving thoughts and prayers every day.  Especially with how public all of our updates have been, we know that you all and many others are excitedly anticipating the arrival of the Waugh-Nuts.  So many people have already offered their assistance to help care for them upon their arrival, and it thrills us that you all want to take such a roll in their lives.

That being said, there are many precautions and restrictions we are going to have to undertake because the babies will be so fragile and small upon their arrival.  Many of these restrictions come from the hospital and especially from the NICU.  Some restrictions come from ideas that other quad moms had that helped to keep their babies healthy and out of the hospital when it was time for them to come home.

• ·         During the first 2 weeks after the babies are born, it is unlikely they will be able to have any visitors except for Chris and I.  It is unlikely that Chris and I will even be able to touch them at this stage.  This, of course, depends on their development at birth.
• ·         From November 1 through April 30 (flu season), the hospital does not allow any visitors to the NICU except for parents and grandparents.  Because the babies will likely be born sometime around this time, it is unlikely that anyone besides Chris and I and our parents will be able to visit or even see the babies (except through pictures) until they come home (likely sometime in late December or January).
• ·         Anyone that wishes to see the babies either in the hospital or during their first year of life at home will not be allowed into the house without having both a current flu shot and a current TDAP vaccine (whooping cough).  A TDAP vaccine is good for 10 years, so if you got one as a child, you will need a booster.  As crazy as this may sound, we are going to require verification (from a Doctor or Pharmacy or by some other means) that you have had these vaccines (and that they are current) prior to you coming in the house.  This is one requirement that the hospital says not to budge on.  Any small little virus that would be very easy for you or I to overcome could be deadly to the babies as their immune systems will not be fully formed even by the time they come home.  There will be a 2 week waiting period from after you receive the vaccines before you can see the babies.
• ·         Everyone will be required to remove their shoes, coats, hats, scarves, gloves, etc. prior to entering the house to visit the babies (these clothing items carry a lot of germs!).
• ·         If anyone in your home has been sick in the 2 weeks prior, we will kindly ask that you choose another time to visit.
• ·         Everyone will be required to wash their hands from the elbow down upon arrival and to do this after leaving your cell phone in your purse, car, or elsewhere away from the babies.  Frequent use of hand sanitizer will also be necessary.  If you must take a call or use your cell phone during your visit, the hand washing and sanitizing routine will have to be redone.
• ·         If you come straight from work or stop at any stores prior to your visit, you will be asked to put on a robe or hospital gown over your clothes to help ward off germs.  Another option will be to bring a change of clothes with you and change prior to seeing the babies.
• ·         If you are a smoker, we would ask that you bring a change of clothes that do not have any smell to them with you and change prior to seeing the babies.  Also, no smoking will be allowed around the house.
• ·         People will not be able to just “drop in” anytime to see the babies or to visit with us.  We will need to stick to a strict schedule which will not allow for visits at any time.  Please ask someone prior to coming over or sign up for a time on the Care Calendar to visit (information below).  Along the same lines, if the babies are sleeping, visitors will either have to wait until they wake or come back at another time.  The babies will need a schedule as much as we will.

We have set up a Care Calendar which can be found at www.carecalendar.org that will be used as a means of organizing help after the babies arrive.  This will help us stay on a schedule as well as communicate our needs with everyone that wants to help.  Because we do not know yet when the babies will arrive, there is not anything on the calendar yet to sign up for, but we will update it when the babies arrive and when they come home!

Helper Login

                Calendar ID: 189509

                Security Code: 7011

Again, we want to thank you all so much for your support and for so readily offering your help to us.  We wanted to get this information out to you all as soon as we could so that no one is disappointed when the babies are born.  These requirements as well as any others that we learn from the hospital will be added to our Care Calendar and will also be posted on the doors to the house when the babies come home.  Thank you all so much for your understanding as we are doing this to keep the Waugh-Nuts healthy and give them the best chance we can for their further development.  Keep updated with everything that is going on in the coming weeks at www.waugh-nut-quads.blogspot.com.  We will try to keep the blog updated now and when the babies come as much as possible.

Hugs and Kisses to you all, and thank you for your support and understanding,

Chris & Kacie

Thank you all for reading through such a long post.  Hoping to have many more "boring" weeks in the hospital to keep these babies growing.  The next goal is 26 weeks (next Thursday), and out next growth ultrasound is next Wednesday.  Thank you all for your continued support, thoughts, and prayers.  We couldn't ask for better family and friends!