Still waiting.........patiently

Max and Molly are in final preparations and should be making their debut shortly. We went to the hospital early Monday morning because Betsy was having lots of BIG contractions. The nurses admitted her to the hospital and felt that we were on our way to meeting Max and Molly. We stayed for 2 days, had some progress, but had to come home because no more progress had been made and Dr. Schroeder felt that Betsy would be more comfortable at home.



She has revised her orders for Betsy, changing them from bed rest only, to modified bed rest which means she can move around the house and go for short walks (as long as she takes her phone!!!).





We're very anxious for the big day, but understand that each and every hour that Max and Molly stay in the "oven", the better they are.


We'll keep you posted if anything changes.


Hope all is well with you and your family,


Melton's x 4

4th quarter....

Still going great!!! We visited with Dr. Schroeder this afternoon and she insists that this is an A+ pregnancy. She commented several times on how good Betsy looks and that she's extremely lucky for not having to go through all the stuff that so many mothers-to-be have to go through.

Betsy is 33 weeks 4 days along and our new goal is to make it to 35 weeks (Nov 2nd). She's feeling good, kids are moving around a lot, and the dogs are confused about why she's home all the time. Betsy says that the contractions have gotten a little closer together, but have still not had two hours of six, which would warrant me to put her in the car and drag race across town.

We'll keep you posted on how it all goes.

Hope all is well with you and your family,

Melton's x 4

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BETSY!!!

Stay, just a little bit longer.....

Betsy and I visited with Dr. Schroeder today. Betsy was extra excited because it meant that she was getting to leave the house for the 1st time in a week and a half. Early last week, we found out that Betsy had started pre-term contractions. They are consistent and small, so the Dr. decided to keep her overnight for evaluation. She was allowed to leave the next day, but with strict instructions to minimize activity and take her prescription every 4 hours. She's had a lot of support from her boss, counterpart, and lots of the Dr.'s offices that she calls on. They all can't wait to see her back on her feet and really can't wait to meet Max and Molly.


We had another ultrasound to make sure that all is well. We found that Max weighs approximately 4 lbs 8 oz and Molly weighs 4 lbs. Both of them are a little over 15 inches long, and both had heart rates in the high 140s. The exciting part (especially for Betsy) is that Max has switched positions and is now in the "head down" position. Molly is still up high laying transverse with her head on the left side and her legs on the right. This means that as long as Max stays head down, Betsy will get a chance to have a "true" birth and save the Cesarean for complications. The Dr. is happy with their progress, and still believes that this pregnancy is an A+.


Unlike previous ultrasounds, Max was quiet and reserved. He stayed in the same position and didn't move a lot while being measured. The picture above is of his back, back of his head at the right, and his left arm barely visible at the top. Betsy said he must have been catching up on his sleep, since he was up all of last night.


As with Max, Molly was quite unusual during this visit. She was kicking, waving her arms, as well as opening and closing her mouth. She would hold still long enough to get measurements, and then would take off again moving all about. At one point, it was clear to see her breathing, her diaphragm raising up and down.


Like we've said throughout the whole pregnancy, we are very excited about meeting Max and Molly. We continue to imagine what it will be like to feed them, change their diapers, as well as learn all about their personalities and see how they react to each out in the world.

With Betsy being on bed rest for the duration of the pregnancy, she's extra excited to meet them and get back to moving around. Since the bed rest has begun, we've received so much support from family and friends and we're humbled by how gracious everyone has been. We know that Max and Molly will have lots of people looking after them and watching them grow.

We have another Dr.'s appointment next week, so we'll post again soon.

Hope all is well with you and your family.

Melton's x 4

Rounding 3rd and headed for home....

Things have really started to move along quickly in the past couple of days. Betsy started to have some early contractions, small, but consistent. She went to the hospital earlier this week for some evaluation and the Dr. decided to admit her overnight and put her on some meds to slow the contractions. On a scale of 1-10, she was having contractions measuring 1 and they were happening several times an hour. Dr. Schroeder believes that she has them under control, but because of their consistency, she doesn't think the meds will stop the contractions from continuing. She does believe that the meds will limit them from becoming any stronger and should prevent them from becoming more frequent. Betsy is 31 weeks and 4 days along, so any more time we can allow Max & Molly to grow would be wonderful.

While at St. Mary's, both babies checked out great! They both had heart beats in the 140-150 bpm range and Dr. Schroeder believes they weigh a little over 3 lbs a piece and should be gaining at least an ounce a day. She also said that if they should happen to come now, they are both very viable with minimal intervention. Max & Molly would most likely have to spend some time in the NICU to help them maintain their body temperatures. They probably would be able to regulate their temps on their own, but may not be able to maintain them without assistance for a couple more weeks.

Betsy is in good spirits even though she was a little scared earlier this week. With assurance from Dr. Schroeder and all of the nurses, she's confident that all is well. She's on bed rest at home for the duration of the pregnancy, but she has Lucy and Ebby to keep her company. She's got some "projects" to work on for work, and there are lots of registration forms to fill out for car seats, stroller's, and furniture.

We've installed all 4 car seats as well as assembled the stroller. I'll be stopping by the fire department in the next couple of days to have them all inspected to make sure they are ready for Max & Molly.

Fall is definitely here in Evansville, and it's shaping up to be a very exciting time for all of us. We can't wait to introduce Max & Molly to everyone and start our lives with them.

Hope all is well with you and your family,

Melton's x 4