After delivery, my boys were transferred immediately to the NICU and taken under complete oberservation, given their small size and how early they were. Here is what we remember about those first days in the NICU.
Will
Will is doing great in the first hours of being in the NICU. He began breathing on about 20% oxygen. He is on a ventilator. He is enjoying life and kicking up a storm.
Drew
Drew on the otherhand has experienced some problems. During the first 2 days in the NICU he had to have 3 blood transfusions, he had to be resuscitated at about 6-6:30am on Jan 20th with low heartrate. His blood pressure has been unstable. The doctors want a blood pressure reading to stay on average around 20-30 and Drew's kept falling to around the 10's. He had an ultrasound on his brain at 8am on Jan 20th to determine if there was bleeding in the brain. The scan came back as a grade 2 brain bleed on both sides of his brain. Preemie brain bleeds range from grade 1 to 4. Grades 1 and 2 are considered minor and usually don't cause long term damage. Grades 3 and 4 are more severe and usually lead to more damage. Then Drew took a turn for the worse and about 11am on January 20, 2012, we were immediately called into his room. Dr. Nading told us about the problems Drew had been experiencing and told us it was not good and that there really was nothing more they could do. We were given the option to hold Drew for the first time outside of the incubator. We choose to do that. After we held him again, his blood pressure and heartrate began to decline again. But luckily they were able to get it back to normal range again but it was still low. They gave us the option to unhook him and take him off of everything or to try some medicine one more time. I choose to try the medicine and see what would happen. Selfishly, I wanted Drew to get better and I would regret it if I didn't do anything about it. Unfortunately it didn't work and Drew's blood pressure and heartrate would not stay within normal range. The doctors did all they could and unhooked Drew and laid him in my arms. My baby boy, Drew, died in my arms at 12:38pm on January 20, 2012.
As a new and first time mom, it was very difficult to make that decision. We put our faith and trust in the Lord and know and have a peace that our baby Drew is in heaven and playing at Jesus's feet. Boy, are we so jealous! My husband had a great idea to sing Happy Birthday to Drew and it was so moving. We were surrounded by our parents, pastors, my Obgyn, the staff and nurses of the NICU staff and the amazing doctors of the NICU staff. There was not a dry eye in that room. After we had our time with Drew, we got him ready to be taken away. We bathed him, dressed him, changed him, and said our final goodbyes.
Even though we had a short time with Drew, we never took that for granted. He was loved by so many that he had never met. We began to grieve for our son, Drew, who has gone on to be with his heavenly father but knew we had to be strong for our other son, Will, who is still fighting for his life.
"We do not grieve as those who have no hope." 1 Thessalonians 4:13
The story continues........
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Will and Drew's birth story - January 19, 2012
William Rice Steven Penny and Jonathan Andrew Douglas Penny entered this world on January 19, 2012 at just 24 weeks and 4 days gestation. Will was born at 9:19am, weighed 1lb 1oz, and was 11 3/8 inches long and Drew was born at 9:31am, weighed 1lb 8oz, and was 12 3/4 inches long. Their story goes like this:
After leaving Jackson, TN with our bed rest plans (read previous post), we settled in at home for a 2 week wait and see what the boys would do. I loaded up on water to regain some of the fluid around Will and laid on my left side to feel him move because he was sitting so low. Drew was very active that night and of course kept me up. I didn't sleep much that night worrying about what was to come but Doug and I prayed and relied on God to take care of me and those precious boys we have dreamed of. I had several trips to the bathroom that night (due to all the water I was drinking) and also a few bits of pain which I thought was Drew having a party in my stomach.
On Thursday, January 19, 2012 at 4:30am, I felt a gush of water and ran to the bathroom. I continued to feel that gush and immediately called the on-call doctor. I was told to head to the Women's hospital to be observed. We arrived at the Women's hospital by 5am and was checked and come to find out my water had broken and I was having contractions that I didn't know was contractions. We had not been through child birthing classes and I had already requested to have a c-section when they were due. I was soon rushed into high risk labor and delivery area for further evaluation. Luckily the BEST doctor in the whole wide world, Dr Hudson, was coming in at 7am to make his rounds. He had already been notified about me so he immediately called Dr. Hoeldtke (maternal/fetal specialist) in Jackson, TN to consult him on our options. He sat with us to explain our options. They started me on a magnesium drip to stop the contractions and then we would settle in for a long wait and see permanent hospital bed rest.
Unfortunately my boys had other plans for their momma and she was totally not prepared for this. The contractions did not stop and then all of a sudden about 20 people filled our hospital room and I heard my doctor say "We are having babies today" and I yelled at him and said NO, I need an epidural. He grabbed my face, told me to trust him and that everything would be just fine. There was no time to stop this and there was no time for an epidural. My baby boys were coming regardless of what their momma wanted. So my boys entered this world, all natural and no drugs, within 12 minutes of each other. Dr. Nading took Drew and Dr. Darling took Will to the NICU for further observation.
After all that pain my boys put their mother through, we were transferred to recovery and could go and see the boys around 12noon. I was completely in shock that my boys decided to enter this world when they wanted to, so they better not be late for another event and on time for everything.
After much rest and recovery we were able to go and see the sweet precious boys I had loved already, prayed for, and delivered. I was so excited to be introduced as their MOM and Doug was so excited to be introduced as their DAD!!!!!!!!!
"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gifts!" 2 Corinthians 9:15
Our story continues, so stay tuned........
After leaving Jackson, TN with our bed rest plans (read previous post), we settled in at home for a 2 week wait and see what the boys would do. I loaded up on water to regain some of the fluid around Will and laid on my left side to feel him move because he was sitting so low. Drew was very active that night and of course kept me up. I didn't sleep much that night worrying about what was to come but Doug and I prayed and relied on God to take care of me and those precious boys we have dreamed of. I had several trips to the bathroom that night (due to all the water I was drinking) and also a few bits of pain which I thought was Drew having a party in my stomach.
On Thursday, January 19, 2012 at 4:30am, I felt a gush of water and ran to the bathroom. I continued to feel that gush and immediately called the on-call doctor. I was told to head to the Women's hospital to be observed. We arrived at the Women's hospital by 5am and was checked and come to find out my water had broken and I was having contractions that I didn't know was contractions. We had not been through child birthing classes and I had already requested to have a c-section when they were due. I was soon rushed into high risk labor and delivery area for further evaluation. Luckily the BEST doctor in the whole wide world, Dr Hudson, was coming in at 7am to make his rounds. He had already been notified about me so he immediately called Dr. Hoeldtke (maternal/fetal specialist) in Jackson, TN to consult him on our options. He sat with us to explain our options. They started me on a magnesium drip to stop the contractions and then we would settle in for a long wait and see permanent hospital bed rest.
Unfortunately my boys had other plans for their momma and she was totally not prepared for this. The contractions did not stop and then all of a sudden about 20 people filled our hospital room and I heard my doctor say "We are having babies today" and I yelled at him and said NO, I need an epidural. He grabbed my face, told me to trust him and that everything would be just fine. There was no time to stop this and there was no time for an epidural. My baby boys were coming regardless of what their momma wanted. So my boys entered this world, all natural and no drugs, within 12 minutes of each other. Dr. Nading took Drew and Dr. Darling took Will to the NICU for further observation.
After all that pain my boys put their mother through, we were transferred to recovery and could go and see the boys around 12noon. I was completely in shock that my boys decided to enter this world when they wanted to, so they better not be late for another event and on time for everything.
After much rest and recovery we were able to go and see the sweet precious boys I had loved already, prayed for, and delivered. I was so excited to be introduced as their MOM and Doug was so excited to be introduced as their DAD!!!!!!!!!
"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gifts!" 2 Corinthians 9:15
Our story continues, so stay tuned........
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Update on Will and Drew
Just wanted to update you all on the status of us and our babies, Will and Drew. I'll try to be as brief as possible but that's really not possible since I'm talking about my twin boys here.
We had a regular routine doctor's visit with Doctor H yesterday afternoon. There were some concerns that Baby Will was not growing properly so as a precaution we were sent to meet with Dr. Hoeldtke in Jackson, TN this morning. There we had an extensive ultrasound with both boys and that was reassuring to see literally everything. Both boys are functioning well and showing no signs of or as we know of of abnormalities. The only problem is that Will (baby A) is showing growth signs and low fluid levels. His bladder and other internal organs are functioning properly but his fluid is very low around the baby. As far as Drew, his fluid levels are perfect. Will is measuring 1lb 3oz and Drew (baby B) is measuring 1lb 9oz. Drew is measuring according to the place I am in my pregnancy (24 weeks) but Will is measuring smaller than where I am in my pregnancy. It was very hard to get an accurate measurement of Will because he is sitting really low, literally on my pelvic bone and is showing very little signs of movements when they poked and proded at him. Instead of being on his back, he is humped over and dangling his little legs and arms. They are in separate sacs so there was no mention of twin twin transfusion syndrome, where one twin would feed of another and that twin would die in the sace and would and cause me to deliver the other baby very early. So that's the good news. The bad news is there is a slight chance I could or am at risk for preterm labor and that we could loose baby Will or he could die in the sac if he continues not to grow. But both heartbeats are very strong (Will @135 and Drew @145).
With all that being said, I have been placed on at home bedrest for at least 2 weeks (but could be until the remainder of this pregnancy). I go back to see Doctor H in Tupelo next week for another ultrasound to confirm heartbeats are still there and to check growth again. I also will go back to Dr. Hoeldtke on Jan 30th for another intensive ultrasound to check again and to get our next steps which will be extended bedrest or who knows what. So it will be alot of back and forth between here and Jackson, TN checking on our babies and also alot of visits with our doctor here in Tupelo.
I was given a steroid shot to boost the growth of the babies and their lungs to see if that would help and if there is that chance I would go into preterm labor this could help but they would probably stop me and hold off for as long as possible. I go back for another steroid shot tomorrow with my doctor in Tupelo.
Our ultimate goal for these babies is 30 weeks so that is 6 more weeks. As first time parents to be of multiples and literally scared to death about the possibilities this might cause our babies, we are desperately asking each one of you for your prayers. We literally believe prayer is a powerful thing and our God is bigger than anything we can imagine.
So please pray for baby Will as he continues to grow more and more each day but don't forget about baby Drew too. Please pray for me as I am on bedrest and that God will give us the comfort and peace knowing that this whole situation is in his control and care. Please pray that he will calm our fears and concerns as we are experiencing now. Please pray for the doctors as they continue to take care of me, Doug and most importantly the babies. We will have a few decisions to make probably further on down the road, so please pray that God's hand will most importantly be in those decisions and guide us through that process.
So with all that being said, please pray for us as we are literally scared to death!
A great friend in our Sunday School class sent this to me today and it was so reassuring: Remember Jesus said, “In this world you will have troubles, but fear not, I have overcome the world.” Lay your worries at His feet; they are under His authority.
Our God is so great and our faith is so strong in him right now that we truly believe this whole situation is under his control and in his hands. Please continue to pray for us and the boys and we will update you once we know more.
We had a regular routine doctor's visit with Doctor H yesterday afternoon. There were some concerns that Baby Will was not growing properly so as a precaution we were sent to meet with Dr. Hoeldtke in Jackson, TN this morning. There we had an extensive ultrasound with both boys and that was reassuring to see literally everything. Both boys are functioning well and showing no signs of or as we know of of abnormalities. The only problem is that Will (baby A) is showing growth signs and low fluid levels. His bladder and other internal organs are functioning properly but his fluid is very low around the baby. As far as Drew, his fluid levels are perfect. Will is measuring 1lb 3oz and Drew (baby B) is measuring 1lb 9oz. Drew is measuring according to the place I am in my pregnancy (24 weeks) but Will is measuring smaller than where I am in my pregnancy. It was very hard to get an accurate measurement of Will because he is sitting really low, literally on my pelvic bone and is showing very little signs of movements when they poked and proded at him. Instead of being on his back, he is humped over and dangling his little legs and arms. They are in separate sacs so there was no mention of twin twin transfusion syndrome, where one twin would feed of another and that twin would die in the sace and would and cause me to deliver the other baby very early. So that's the good news. The bad news is there is a slight chance I could or am at risk for preterm labor and that we could loose baby Will or he could die in the sac if he continues not to grow. But both heartbeats are very strong (Will @135 and Drew @145).
With all that being said, I have been placed on at home bedrest for at least 2 weeks (but could be until the remainder of this pregnancy). I go back to see Doctor H in Tupelo next week for another ultrasound to confirm heartbeats are still there and to check growth again. I also will go back to Dr. Hoeldtke on Jan 30th for another intensive ultrasound to check again and to get our next steps which will be extended bedrest or who knows what. So it will be alot of back and forth between here and Jackson, TN checking on our babies and also alot of visits with our doctor here in Tupelo.
I was given a steroid shot to boost the growth of the babies and their lungs to see if that would help and if there is that chance I would go into preterm labor this could help but they would probably stop me and hold off for as long as possible. I go back for another steroid shot tomorrow with my doctor in Tupelo.
Our ultimate goal for these babies is 30 weeks so that is 6 more weeks. As first time parents to be of multiples and literally scared to death about the possibilities this might cause our babies, we are desperately asking each one of you for your prayers. We literally believe prayer is a powerful thing and our God is bigger than anything we can imagine.
So please pray for baby Will as he continues to grow more and more each day but don't forget about baby Drew too. Please pray for me as I am on bedrest and that God will give us the comfort and peace knowing that this whole situation is in his control and care. Please pray that he will calm our fears and concerns as we are experiencing now. Please pray for the doctors as they continue to take care of me, Doug and most importantly the babies. We will have a few decisions to make probably further on down the road, so please pray that God's hand will most importantly be in those decisions and guide us through that process.
So with all that being said, please pray for us as we are literally scared to death!
A great friend in our Sunday School class sent this to me today and it was so reassuring: Remember Jesus said, “In this world you will have troubles, but fear not, I have overcome the world.” Lay your worries at His feet; they are under His authority.
Our God is so great and our faith is so strong in him right now that we truly believe this whole situation is under his control and in his hands. Please continue to pray for us and the boys and we will update you once we know more.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
24 weeks
How Far Along: 24 weeks
Size of Baby: Each baby weighs over a pound; They are the length of a ear of corn
Total Weigh Gain/Loss: Gained a total of 12 lbs so far according to our last doctors appointment in December; next appointment is January 17th
Maternity Clothes: Yes pants and shirts
Gender: Twin Boys, Will & Drew
Movement: Lots of movements especially after I've eaten and are laying down; Drew has seem to nestle himself or poke me underneath my right boob sometimes and it is so uncomfortable
Sleep: I'm sleeping every 3-4 hours and then getting up to pee so I can tell that sleep is getting few and far in between but I still have a body pillow (LIFE SAVER)
What I Miss: Being able to walk up a set of stairs without being out of breath, Zumba, running, skinny jeans, tall heeled boots, and I can go on and on.
Cravings: Started craving Dr. Pepper (weird, I know)
Symptoms: The swelling has begun - hands (occassionally) and feet (when I'm on them for long periods of time)
Best Moment of the Week: We got our video monitors in this week and yes we have been hanging them and getting them set up just right
24 weeks
These are getting very "ugly" to look at but I guess I'll continue to post until I feel completely miserable
Sunday, January 8, 2012
The nursery progress
The nursery is coming along. Yes I know I'm way ahead of schedule but with twins you just never know. I'd rather be ahead than scrambling and being stressed out to finish it at the end before they decide to arrive earlier than expected. My mom is making all the bedding and it is going to be SUPER CUTE! A good and talented friend of mine did a wall painting and painted their names on wooden letters to match the bedding. It is so cute! If you get a chance and need something painted check out Glory Bee Paint Parties out on facebook. Let me tell ya, this girl is TALENTED!
Anyways here are a few photos of the nursery.
Anyways here are a few photos of the nursery.
The painting my friend did
Drew's side of the nursery. We are missing a distressed frame I'm trying to find to match their bedding.
Will's side of the nursery. We are missing a distressed frame that I'm trying to find to match the bedding.
The car seats are ready and we are just waiting a while to install them.
Drew's neck straps that I had Kim at Monogram It monogram and applique
Will's neck straps that I had Kim at Monogram It monogram and applique
My $60 glider that my sister found for me at a garage sale. We bought fabric to recover the cushions and the best husband in the world added a few cans of white spray paint. Just like new. It's in the bedroom across from the nursery.
This rocker was used by my mom to rock all of us and also my sister used it to rock her children. It has been passed down to me and again the best husband in the world sanded it down and added a few cans of blue spray paint and a clear shiny finish and it looks GREAT in the nursery. My mom is making a cushion for it.
The name plaques that the boys got for Christmas from Uncle Nic and Aunt Kim
My mom finished the minky dot sheets and we have put them on the beds. Now she will start on the bed skirts and bumpers! It's coming along! YIPEE!!!!
23 Weeks
How Far Along: 23 weeks 
Size of Baby: Each baby weighs over a pound; They are the size of a large mango
Total Weigh Gain/Loss: Gained a total of 12 lbs so far according to our last doctors appointment in December; next appointment is next weeks, January 17th
Maternity Clothes: Yes pants and shirts
Gender: Twin Boys, Will & Drew
Movement: Lots of movements especially after I've eaten and are laying down
Sleep: I'm sleeping every 3-4 hours and then getting up to pee so I can tell that sleep is getting few and far in between but I still have a body pillow (LIFE SAVER)
What I Miss: Being able to walk up a set of stairs without being out of breath, Zumba, running, skinny jeans, tall heeled boots, and I can go on and on.
Cravings: Nothing major this week
Symptoms: Nothing
Best Moment of the Week: We scheduled our 3d/4d ultrasound visit before the twins get too squished. They nursery is coming along (another post later) and we hung the letters over their beds and a gorgeous painting my friend did.
23 weeks pregnant belly shot in the nursery by Will and Drew's beds
Sunday, January 1, 2012
22 weeks on New Year's Day
How Far Along: 22 weeks 
Size of Baby: Each baby weighs 13 ounces at last doctors appointment; They are the length of a spaghetti squash and the size of a papaya
Total Weigh Gain/Loss: Gained a total of 12 lbs so far according to our last doctors appointment in December
Maternity Clothes: Yes pants and shirts; Finally got more clothes that will hopefully last me a while
Gender: Twin Boys
Movement: Lots of movements especially after I've eaten and are laying down
Sleep: Sleep is very good since I have a body pillow (LIFE SAVER)
What I Miss: Being able to walk up a set of stairs without being out of breath
Cravings: Nothing major this week
Symptoms: Nothing
Best Moment of the Week: We celebrated a quiet Christmas day and New Years Eve. We have been blessed immensely in 2011 and are looking forward to an exciting 2012 with the new additions of our boys. We also visited Doug's grandparents in Arkansas which was our last out of town trip before the boys get here.
22 weeks pregnant
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