32 Weeks-Debbie Downer Speaks

Not much has changed.  Still pregnant and happy to be.  The boys are still growing and remaining strong. There seems to have been confusion voiced by some people in my life about the fact that my doctors set a goal for me to reach 30-32 weeks before delivering. While reaching 32 weeks is reason for celebration I want to clarify that the goal is NOT to have the boys anytime soon.  32 weeks was the goal set after surgery when survival was our only goal and every day was a new milestone. In NO way do we, or my doctors, want the babies to come anytime soon.  The longer the babies remain in utero the healthier they will be.  Just to give you an idea of how important each passing week is for the development of a baby check out this chart I found on Pinterest…

We’ve come so far and I don’t take that for granted for a second!  I feel very blessed and grateful. However, we now have a glimpse of what might actually be a “normal” twin birth and hospital stay (full-term for twins is 37 weeks) and I will do everything I can to make that happen.  While there is not much I can do, there is a lot I can avoid.  For the past few weeks, every couple of days I experience a series of Braxton Hicks contractions. They don’t necessarily hurt they are just very uncomfortable, sometimes take my breath away, and definitely make my heart race. The worst though is when the contractions are combined with other symptoms of preterm labor like a dull ache in my back and abdominal cramping-honestly the cramping is the most miserable part!    Each time I experience contractions I follow the rules by stopping everything, drinking lots of water and lying down on my side. Luckily they always seem to go away. The rule is 5-6 an hour, 10 minutes apart or closer necessitates a trip to the hospital.  I’ve been using a chart like this to help me stay calm and remember the difference between truly being in labor and experiencing false labor…

While my OB has told me it’s ok to lighten up on my bedrest (meaning I can start doing small activities around the house-simple things like folding laundry-while still sitting of course) she has also made it clear I must listen to my body.  Trust me when contractions hit my body screams at me and I listen!  It’s tough though because it’s not always easy to tell the difference between contractions and other things like both babies deciding to roll around at the same time-OUCH-they are getting big enough that this is quite uncomfortable.  A lot of the symptoms I experience from IBS can also easily be confused as preterm labor.  I’m learning that the amount of water I drank earlier in pregnancy is just not enough anymore.  Dehydration is a huge cause of false labor contractions.  So if anyone wants to challenge me to a drinking contest go for it! It keeps me motivated. 

This week will bring very important appointments.  On Wednesday evening I’ll meet with my OB to talk more specifically about a birth plan.  On Thursday I will start weekly monitoring-it is exactly what it sounds like-me hooked up to monitors in the Perinatal Center for an hour.  We’ll then see our cardiologist for an update on their hearts-honestly the most important visit we’ve had in a while in my mind.  It’s been a month since we saw our cardiologist and we are very eager to hear how Connor’s heart is doing.  That appointment will then be followed by a consultation with a NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) doctor.   What I would love to hear is that our boys are doing so well that they doubt the boys will even need a NICU stay, but of course no one can predict that.  There are so many factors it will depend upon, the basic being how early they are born.  It is very likely they will spend at least a few days there regardless of size.  I just hope we don’t have to go through weeks in the NICU like so many TTTS survivors and twins in general do. 

I have to admit my nerves are on edge with the increase in contractions and worry about when the boys will come.  As much as I try to relax and not think about it, it is hard to stay distracted with so much time to sit and think on bedrest.  Bedrest is also really wearing on me-this week makes 14 weeks!  Nearly 100 days with very little freedom has really taken a toll on this independent girl.   The nesting instinct has definitely kicked in and not being able to act on it is so hard.  I worry that no matter what type of delivery I have the recovery will be incredibly difficult after being inactive for months.   If one more person tells me, “you’ll have plenty of time for that soon!” I might lost it.  Really?  I’m going to have time to get organized and go run errands once I have 2 infants!?  I think not.  I realize I should probably write my own, "what not to say to someone on bedrest" list but for now you can enjoy this list made by a woman on hospital bedrest-I am so thankful I have at least been able to be home for bedrest.

Ok enough negative Nancy & Debbie Downer for one day.  Thanks for reading and allowing me to vent.  I promise to bring back Polly Perky Pants for the next blog post-maybe.  But seriously, we really are thanking God to be at 32 weeks with two miracle babies!  We’ll keep you updated as things progress.  Please keep both Jonny and myself in your prayers-we try to take it all in stride, trust in God, and simply live day by day, but let’s face it, it’s incredibly difficult at this point.  If you want to volunteer your time helping Jonny get the house/nursery ready let us know. We won’t turn you away! 

Blessings,

Katrina  

How I Spent My Saturday-In The Hospital

Saturday started out as a day of celebration (nothing special-just our shared mood) for reaching 30 weeks of pregnancy.  Midway through the day however I started experiencing signs of preterm labor- mild low backache, cramping, a few mild contractions, etc… The same had happened the day before so when the symptoms wouldn’t go away after about an hour I decided to call the weekend exchange for my OB’s office. My own doctor happened to be on call and returned my phone call within what felt like seconds. In mid sentence as I was saying, “I doubt this is anything but…” she cut me off and insisted I not take any chances and go directly to the hospital for monitoring.  So we did.  I was soon after hooked up to 3 monitors-1 for each babies heart, and 1 for contractions.  I suddenly got very nervous when the nurse confirmed I was having contractions I wasn’t even feeling.  Blood was drawn, urine was tested (TMI? Sorry-but at this point I’m writing for other women who may have to experience this. Trust me they want details!), and an IV was put in.  A resident doctor came in-did an ultrasound on the babies (both looked good), did more than one exam (that would be TMI so use your imagination),  and then left to call my doctor to see what she advised we do.  At that point we were convinced that no matter what they said I’d be admitted over night.  Honestly, I was worried I’d end up on hospital bedrest…not something anyone wants! As the IV bag was nearly empty I was feeling so much better with barely any symptoms left.  All tests were showing it was probably just my uterus being irritable-something they say could continue to happen through the rest of my pregnancy because of the amount of weight/pressure being put on it by twins (one of the many joys of carrying twins).   Because I’m already on two medications to prevent contractions-they sent me home!  Relieved-yes.  Still nervous-of course!

So this is the life of a twin pregnancy apparently.  It was a miserable long day but we were treated so well and because it was the weekend I was actually sent to a Labor/Delivery room rather than Maternity Triage.  It’s all brand new! The rooms are huge & BE-U-tiful! Seriously, it had a Jacuzzi tub that I have to admit I wouldn’t have minded staying to use.  Since coming home though I haven’t really had any more problems.  I haven’t really mentioned contractions in my blog but I do have them from time to time-never more than 2 an hour though until Saturday.  The rule is not to worry unless you have between 4-6 in one hour.  Although they ALL tell me call if I am worried.  Having twins (and of course Twin to Twin Transfusion) makes them super cautious with me. So we’ll chalk this up to just another hiccup along the way.  Not that I needed a reminder, I didn’t, but it is motivation to keep obeying the rules of bedrest.  Although, bedrest isn’t that hard at this point considering I am always exhausted!

Since leaving the hospital I’m been drinking water like a champ-dehydration can lead to contractions.  All is well again, I’m back to normal pregnancy woes of waking up 2-3 times a night to go to the bathroom, not being able to stay comfortable in bed, heartburn, shortness of breath, you know the glorious miracle of life stuff.  I’ll take “normal” pregnancy woes at 30+ weeks over the trouble we’ve had earlier in the pregnancy any day! At this point I’m measuring at what a singleton mom would be at just over 40 weeks. Somehow being sent home from the hospital has given me a little bit more peace of mind.  Plus, reading online message boards from other women who are around 30 weeks pregnant with twins makes me realize, I’m not having nearly as many contractions as most of these women.  Maybe we really will make it weeks longer- I sure hope so…the boys have so much more developing to do.  Prayers would be greatly appreciated.  30 weeks is a milestone but it does not mean we are out of the woods for health risks. Thanks for reading.  Thanks for praying.  Thanks for loving.  

-Katrina 

One more thing- People have been asking about the beautiful necklace my amazingly sweet husband got me for Valentine's Day shown in my last post. It came from this Etsy shop.  

27 Weeks, 2 days & a good dose of Honesty!

Overall things are still going well with the boys. Baby A (the donor baby) appears to be “normal” and has shockingly defied all TTTS logic by catching up in size to his larger brother!  As of 1/24/13 both babies were measuring just over 2 lbs each! So much for being able to tell them apart based on size. All joking aside, Baby B (the recipient baby) on the other hand still has an enlarged/stressed heart.  It appears as though progress has reached its plateau and now doctors are telling us that we just need to be prepared that Baby B will likely have a longer stay in the NICU than his brother (meaning a few days longer).  They don’t seem too worried and say that most likely the problem will correct itself over the first 6 months to year of his life with little to any intervention.  Though I am not showing any signs of going into early labor at this time it was very sobering last week to hear my doctor enter the room saying, “Well the good news is we aren’t admitting you today…” Her goal is still for me to make it past 30 weeks.  My goal: As long as possible! Although full-term for twins is considered 37 weeks the average twin birth occurs at just over 35 weeks.  I’d love for that to happen for the sake of my boys. I believe it’s possible. Please pray with me that it is. 

I have now been on house arrest…ahem, I mean bedrest, for 8+weeks. As of today, I have not cooked a meal, shopped in a store, driven a car, gone for a walk, or gone anywhere outside of the house by myself in over 60 days.  People keep telling me “you’re doing a great job” and I know what they mean, I get the sentiment behind these words but all I can think is “a great job doing what?”  But I guess that’s it isn’t it. I’m doing a great job doing nothing; because that’s what my babies need right now.  Even that I’ve questioned though, I mean the surgery worked, at this point it’s just a waiting game- to see how long my cervix can hold strong, to see how much improvement Baby B’s heart can make on it’s own before birth.  I just keep reminding myself that bedrest: not only takes pressure off the cervix but also provides more oxygen and better blood flow to the babies (and a whole slew of other medical mumbo jumbo benefits that I’ve read). 

Ok, so truth is, when I hit the 7 week mark of bedrest I realized...it sucks! For those of you who are new to reading my blog, or who barely know me, yes, I said sucks.  If I’m really being honest, then you have to know that part of my hesitation to keep blogging lately has been the realization that hundreds, that’s right hundreds, of new people are viewing my blog.  If you go back to my very first post or even look at the title you’ll figure out I get a little (a lot) nervous about the thought of being misunderstood or misjudged by my words.  So I’ve been pretty intimidated by seeing the number of page views I was getting around the time of surgery.  The stories I have to tell, the words I want to share, are not simply those of a pregnant patient/guinea pig being poked and prodded by medical professionals while dealing with the very rare Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome.  I’m getting back to blogging about, well, me, my life, and whatever is on my mind.  My upcoming posts may not be nearly as important, life altering, heart tugging, or inspiring as what we’ve had to share in recent weeks but for me that’s probably a good thing because it means life is finally settling down.  This blog has always been a cathartic outlet for me, when I stop worrying about whether or not I’m being graded for my words.  So here goes…Upcoming posts will include tales of our first ever home purchase, the discovery that no two door knobs in our house are alike and that every layer of wallpaper is covering and even more interesting décor choice underneath, the gender reveal parties for our families that occurred on Thanksgiving before things went nuts, the challenge of naming our miracle babies & the pressure from others to stop calling them Baby A & B, and the struggle to try and enjoy some sort of “normal” pregnancy traditions when absolutely NOTHING has been normal. 

So for now I’ll leave you with an embarrassingly badly posed photo of myself taken last Thursday at 26 weeks 5 days pregnant-officially measuring what a woman carrying one baby would be at 32 weeks!!! THANKS AGAIN for all the love and support so many of you are sending our way through cards, prayers, meals,and on & on. 

*Note* I have been battling bronchitis since Christmas! Miserable! I am on my second antibiotic now and still struggling.  Hence you’ll notice the smile in this photo isn’t exactly a toothy grin from ear to ear.Prayers in this area would be greatly appreciated as well!!!    

24 weeks 3 days & Good News!

Today marks 24 weeks and three days of pregnancy with our amazing fighters.  It’s been a while since we updated you and for that I apologize. Thank you for staying by our sides across the miles through prayer and encouragement.  I am so happy to share that we have good news! The past few weeks of doctors’ visits have been very positive and we feel safe sharing with you that things just keep improving with the boys! 

Baby B-the recipient baby, who you should remember was the most sick, has made miraculously quick improvements! We knew that doctors were hopeful that in 4-8 weeks after the surgery we would likely see improvements with decreased fluids and healing of his heart but that progress came much quicker than expected!  As of our weekly scan on Thursday, January 3 (our 4^th wedding anniversary!) the fluid around his heart and in his abdomen is no longer visible!!  It’s gone!!! The most shocking news for us was hearing the fetal cardiologist say that his heart is no longer leaking!!!  His heart is still enlarged due to the stress that has been put on it.  As long as we can avoid preterm labor doctors are confident this will also improve. Please continue to pray for complete healing of his heart.  As for Baby A-the donor baby-the word is he looks completely normal and we even got to see hair growing on his little head in a recent ultrasound.  With every ultrasound, even the day of the surgery, the boys are extremely active to the point that it is common to hear doctors and staff say “you are going to have your hands full with these two!” The boys are even growing at a much more even rate now.  It is very rare for there to be a reversal of TTTS after surgery but of course it is a possibility so please don't stop praying now! We will praise God whether storms return, rage on, or clear up all together but we are so thankful for something to celebrate. 

In other news we are now homeowners and settling into our first home…no more apartment life for us!   Poor Jonny can finally come home from work in the evenings and relax at least a little thanks to the help from both my Mom, Jonny’s parents, and our friends Erin & Brian, who have come at different times to unpack and get us settled in.  It's a big job that I have hated it sit by and watch happen without me but I'm doing my best to follow doctors orders. Hopefully before long we can start showing you photos of our new house and scan in ultrasound pictures for you to see the grown of our little guys.  Obviously I’m not allowed to be acting as photographer-boo but as Jonny’s schedule settles down you’ll start to see more.  Also, to answer the most popular question lately, yes we are working on names so that you will know them as more than A & B! We’ll let you know when we’ve made a final decision.

As for my health, I have been battling bronchitis for almost two weeks. You would think with all the “rest” I get that I would recover more quickly but the truth is until a few days ago the miserable coughing was so bad that I wasn’t able to sleep much at all.  I’ve been put on more medications and am catching up on sleep. I of course will remain on bedrest and will be for the remainder of the pregnancy.  The rules are still-only up on my feet for trips to the bathroom, to eat meals at the table, grab a snack, etc…and only one set of stairs per day-that’s the hard one now that we live in a 2 story house! So far my greatest accomplishment has been watching the first 2 seasons of Downton Abbey in time for the start of season 3 last night. I’ve gotta celebrate the little things-right!?

Each Thursday brings new scans from doctors-we will keep you updated. Please continue to be in prayer for the improvement of Baby B’s heart, for me to kick this respiratory infection, for Jonny as he takes on all the worries of the world caring for us (meaning me, the boys, and our dog Tucker), and for many weeks to come with NO preterm labor! 

We can't thank you enough for the prayers, meals, cards, and even financial help! It is all so humbling and we will never be able to repay your kindness. 

Blessings,

Katrina 

An update on Katrina (22 weeks!) and the twins…

From Jonny:

The last week has been crazy busy/stressful for us.  Now that the laser surgery has been performed, we are in a ‘wait and see’ mode to see how the boys respond.  The main concern is to monitor the function of their hearts and the amounts of fluid in their bodies (especially in Baby B: the recipient twin).  We will be on a schedule where we receive an ultrasound every week, and an echocardiogram every other week.  One of our surgeons cautioned us that improvements would most likely occur over a 4-8 week period (we are now 17 days after surgery).  

So…on to the appointments we had Thursday.  The amount of fluid (hydrops) in Baby B’s body has decreased.  He still has a significant amount of fluid in his stomach, but he no longer has noticeable fluid surrounding his heart, lungs, or skin.  Improvement in cardiac function is very difficult to measure, because some of it is very subjective (descriptive).  One of the few objective measurements (using numbers/data) that they use is heart size.  Normally functioning hearts take up about 30% or less of the abdomen.  When a heart is very sick, it increases in size because it has trouble keeping up normal heart function.  At the time of surgery, Baby B’s heart made up 43% of the area of the abdomen.  On Thursday, the pediatric cardiologist reported that the heart had decreased to only 38% (great news!).  And even though subjective reports from two different doctors (Cincinnati vs. St Louis) are very hard to compare, he rated Baby B’s heart problems as moderate (which is greatly improved from the grading of ‘severe problems’ at the time of surgery!).  And Baby A continues to do abnormally well considering the circumstances, and the pediatric cardiologist rated his heart as nearly normal!

We are trying to be cautiously optimistic.  We know that we still have a very long road ahead.  Katrina will be on bedrest for the duration of the pregnancy, and there is still a very likely possibility of premature births and NICU stays.  She is currently at 22 weeks, and we are hoping to make it to 30-32 weeks (that’s one of the goals our team at Cincinnati set for us).  But the boys are doing about as well as could be imagined at this point in the process; based upon how severe their problems were at the time of surgery and how close we were to losing them.  We continue to be incredibly thankful that the entire team at Cincinnati Children’s came back in from their homes to perform surgery just a little before midnight.

On a side note, this has been one of the most stressful weeks of our lives.  Due to the way that the schedule worked out, after our doctor appointments on Thursday, we actually closed on our new house later that day, and moved in yesterday (Saturday).  We are incredibly excited to have a home that is big enough for our growing family, and also excited that I am only 5 minutes away from work now. 

We feel incredibly blessed by the outpouring of help and concern from friends and family.  I can assure you that we are incredibly thankful, even if we had not had a chance to respond or thank you yet.  Please continue to hold Katrina and the boys in you prayers.

Bed Rest-Day 7

Today's post is dedicated to simply saying THANK YOU! I have been overwhelmed by the support that I have received from family and friends far and wide over the past few days.  Encouraging texts, phone calls, and Facebook messages have been so uplifting. 

My Mom made the trip over to help us out. Because we close on our first house on Dec. 20 we are breaking our apartment lease! Yes, we will lose our deposit but we will also pay rent for every month our apartment sits empty. So we decided now is the time to get the rental back on the market with hopes of finding either St. Louis University or Washington University students looking for a new place to live for the new semester.  AKA-we have to be out of this apartment by January 1! So getting our current apartment cleaned up is a top priority for those we hope will quickly come to view it.  Obviously with bed rest I have been banned from housework so my Mom came to the rescue!  She cleaned like a mad woman and the apartment has never looked better. After she left last night I went to brush my teeth and thought, something is different. Me: "Jonny did you clean our electric toothbrushes?" Jonny: "No!" Yea my Mom is pretty thorough and I'm pretty blessed! Actually her timing was perfect because late last night I got an email and a girl is coming to check out the place tomorrow!! So fingers crossed & prayers going up maybe we can actually have this burden lifted from our shoulders!

My in-laws have also been AMAZING! I received these beautiful flowers from my Mother-in-law,Father-in-law, & Grammie Grandmother in law :) in a delivery the other day (yes bed rest makes you lose track of what day of the week it is)...

I also received a bed rest care package from my Sister-in-Law (Jonny's sister).  

It included: 

• Trashy magazines perfect for reading while dealing with pregnancy induced ADD 
• Body butter to prevent stretch marks
• Nutritious snack bars said to be a good complement to prenatal vitamins
• Candies that help with nausea 
• And my favorite...a Gift Card for maternity clothes that can be used online so I can find the right lounging clothes. Maybe I can finally stop wearing my husband's gym shorts because even those are getting too small! 

This morning I was blessed with some girl time with a visit from a friend I've known for years. She just happened to be driving through and needed a place to stay on a cross country trip. We laid in bed together just laughing and talking-great therapy for the soul! 

Don't get me wrong, things haven't been easy over the last week. I've definitely experienced some extreme side effects from the Procardia and even started having low blood sugar issues. Yet, most of the time my spirits have remained high and I know it is due to the support I am receiving, the prayers going up, and the blessing of an amazing partner in marriage. 

Tomorrow is another big day. We go back for a crucial ultrasound check up. My nerves are on edge today just thinking about it. I'll update you tomorrow, of course.  

Once again, THANK YOU for your prayers, love, and support! 

Bed Rest: Day 4

Over the next few days of bed rest I hope to update this blog a bit more, particularly about my pregnancy so far.  So about bed rest...my Doctors-yes plural-my boys are kind of a big deal ;) -have told me that I am allowed to wake up and get ready for my day, shower, etc...then I should be lying down for 3 hours of uninterrupted rest.  The good news is that this rest can be in the bed, couch, or even recliner although it is best that a good portion of this time be spent lying on my left side.  After the three hours are completed I can then run a few light, short, errands-Yay! Then I must return to another three hours of uninterrupted rest.  It's challenging but the more I read about the increased fluid around our babies and the effect it can have on my cervix, thus sending me into preterm labor, the more I am just fine with bed rest, as difficult as it is.

The medicine I have been placed on to reduce the fluid surrounding baby B (the recipient baby-aka larger baby) and to prevent preterm labor contractions is a bit tricky. It's basically a blood pressure medication and today I learned just what it does to me when I actually spend time on my feet! We were specifically told, "You can go to Church!"  Yay! I was overjoyed to be able to be present for the first Sunday in Advent and communion Sunday.  However, I interpreted this as meaning I could show up early and visit with members (like I normally love doing as part of my job).  Jonny on the other hand made it clear that this was not part of the plan, so we showed up just before the service, took the elevator and then took our seats.  I hated it but my body quickly showed me why I it was so important. Even without standing during the service for hymns & such, the amount of energy expended to get to church was apparently all I could handle.  Despite it all we stayed through the sermon & communion and left only a tiny bit early.  What a blessing to hear a message about Hope, the traditional theme for the 1st Sunday in Advent and exactly what we needed right now!  It's amazing to hear about Mary expecting her promised son in the midst of my own pregnancy. It's a blessing to think about all Christians joining together in the Hope and expectation of our long awaited Savior.   We continue to hope for the very best for our two little boys taking comfort that God is with us, Emmanuel!

After the service & before getting into bed for the rest of the day (thank goodness for a laptop & wireless internet) I asked Jonny to take a few pictures of what I look like at 19 weeks pregnant with twins.  I realized today that I haven't really taken any and I know I haven't shared any publicly.  So to remember this time of expectation, below are a couple of photos...

I did a little photo editing so as not to blind you with my pink sweater! 

THANK YOU to all who have been praying with us and have reached out in support! I can't tell you how much your encouragement means to us at this time.  

Love & Blessings,

Katrina 

Urgent Pregnancy Update: Prayers Needed!

Dear Friends,

Today (at 18 weeks 5 days pregnant with twins) I went for what has become a routine ultrasound (every other week) at the Perinatal Center.  Since finding out that our twin babies are DiMono-aka Identical, I have been seeing my regular OB as well as going to the Perinatal Center for ultrasounds and consultation with High Risk doctors.  By identifying that our twins are DiMono our risks became greater for both preterm labor and Twin to Twin Transfusion. To put DiMono or Diamniotic Monochorionic into laymen terms, our babies are each separated by a very thin membrane (apparently dangerously thin) and each are in their own amniotic sac (Di) yet share a placenta (Mono).  The best way to explain the risk of Twin to Twin Transfusion is to say, each baby has their own house, yet they share a kitchen, because of this the babies are being watched very carefully to make sure one is not “raiding the fridge” more than the other. If this happens one baby will grow larger at the expense of the other baby not receiving enough blood/nutrients.  There is supposedly nothing I can do to prevent this from happening.  We were told if signs were to appear that Twin to Twin Transfusion was happening the only option for their survival would be laparoscopic surgery.  The surgery would sever the blood connection between the two babies so that one cannot "steal" blood/nutrients from the other.

At our 16 week appointment the doctor actually used the word “perfect!” Both boys (yes we found out that day they are boys) were growing equally and right on track.  This morning, Thursday- November 29, we learned that things have drastically changed! Baby B is measuring 1 week bigger than Baby A.  At this point I have been put on the RX Procardia -a calcium channel blocker that has been proven to restore the proper fluid balance between two babies.  I have also been put on bed rest for at least the next week.  We were told to have low goals right now, week to week, day by day.  In one week I will go in for another check of my cervix and ultrasound of the babies sizes and fluids.  The goal:  for things to remain consistent with what they are now.  IF the babies are progressing with one baby growing larger than the other I will be sent for a referral with a fetal health center (in a children’s hospital) and we may at that time move quickly toward surgery.  The good news is that we caught this early, making me eligible for the surgery.  As the babies get bigger surgery is no longer an option. There has been success from the surgery but it is a major surgery & considered a LAST RESORT effort to save the lives of babies.

For now we are trying to stay calm & trust that God is in control though our faith is weak. Please pray for the very basic goal we have been given: that the babies remain as they are for the next week. I have been told there is nothing I could have done differently to prevent this but that now I must rest. So rest I will. Please pray for our boys. We believe in the power of prayer but need you more than ever to partner with us in our moment of weakness.

Explaining all of this in writing is so much easier than individual phone calls. We'll keep you updated through this blog.  Please don't be hurt if you do not receive a phone call. We are overwhelmed & this is the best way we know to handle things at this time.

Love,
Katrina & Jonny



Ps. On a much lighter note if you still haven't seen our pregnancy announcement from 1st trimester here it is...