Last week, on February 4th, Max and Tyler turned 5 years old. Today, 8 days later, I am 26 weeks pregnant with baby #4. Although we were planning to have a forth child, this pregnancy surprised us a few months earlier than we anticipated. So when I found out that my due date was barely a week past my due date with Max and Tyler, it seemed rather ironic and very strange. I am basically experiencing every milestone of this pregnancy at the exact same time as our first pregnancy.
For the first several years of Max's and Tyler's lives, every accomplishment and developmental milestone seemed like a huge deal (and was very well documented on this blog). As they've gotten older (and once their baby sister was born), things have become busier and crazier and I haven't had as much time to reflect on the milestones. But the fact that our 26-week micro-preemies are now 5 years old is definitely something to recognize!
Because the boys were born so early, my two subsequent pregnancies have been considered somewhat high risk. I take weekly progesterone shots to prevent preterm labor and have ultrasounds every two weeks so they can monitor the length of my cervix. Maisie was born full term and completely healthy, so the progesterone definitely seemed to have worked the first time! Everything has been great so far with this pregnancy, but I had quite the flashback at my ultrasound today. As a general rule of thumb, a cervical length of more than 3 centimeters is considered normal -- less than 3 cm is high risk. Mine has always measured close to 4 cm, which is awesome. Today, the ultrasound tech's first measurement was 1.57 cm. I immediately had a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach and was pretty much freaking out in my head. After a long 20 minutes of waiting -- and wondering how I was going to manage if I went on bed rest (or worse... delivered really early again) -- the radiologist determined the length was actually right at 4 cm and everything was totally fine.
That was a long story and really not a big deal now, but the timing of it all hit me hard. And it makes the fact that Max and Tyler are healthy and happy 5-year-olds seem even more amazing. This time 5 years ago, Max and Tyler were 8 days old and had just opened their eyes for the first time. They were each eating 11 milliliters of breast milk every 3 hours through a feeding tube. We still hadn't held them yet (and wouldn't for another almost 2 weeks), and they were both receiving pretty heavy breathing support. On Valentine's Day 5 years ago, we learned that Tyler had a bacterial infection and it was very serious. His tiny 2-lb body even endured a spinal tap to test for meningitis (which was thankfully negative). Max still had a tiny hole in his heart. Those days were scary and stressful.
Now, our miracle babies are obsessed with Power Rangers, love to draw and color, pick out their own clothes and get themselves dressed every day, ask insightful questions, tell knock-knock jokes, simultaneously adore and torture their little sister, and are two of the smartest kids I know.
So today, as I feel this 26-week baby move around (and am able to picture exactly how big he/she is and what his/her skin looks and feels like), it is really weird to think back almost exactly 5 years ago and remember where we were. We had survived 19 days on hospital bed rest and were managing the NICU the best we could, but Andy and I really had no clue what we were in for. The NICU days were absolutely some of the scariest and most stressful days of our lives. The 6 months after the boys came home from the hospital were probably the most exhausting days of our lives. And the 4+ years since then have been an equal mix of challenging and amazing. Now matter how I describe it, the past 5 years have been one hell of a ride.
My sister Courtney has an amazing way with words and wrote this on her blog for their birthday:
On this day, five years ago in 2008, Max and Tyler Jones came into the
world looking for a fight, and at a mere 1 lb 13 oz and 2 lbs,
respectively, that is exactly what they got. In the 5 years that they have been in our
lives they have taught us so much. They have taught us that you are
never too small or too weak to fight. They have taught us that with a
little imagination you can create anything. But the most valuable lesson
that they have taught us is the importance of never giving up on the
people we love. Before the boys knew Bridget and Andy, their mom and
dad, they knew each other, so when it came time to separate and enter
the world they weren’t just fighting for their own life, they were
fighting to be there for their best friend. And ever since that day they
have never stopped fighting for each other, and of course, with each
other. So, to the greatest fighters I know on
their very special 5th birthday, always remember that you have something
that no other superhero in the history of the world has ever had: you
have powers that lie not only within yourself, but within each other,
making the two of you together unstoppable.
I couldn't have said it better myself. Thanks, Aunt Kooky!
So to our big boys, Tyler Francis and Maximilian Andrew: HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY! You will always be our superheroes.
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| Batman Max and Spider-Man Tyler on February 4, 2013 |
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| Face painting courtesy of their awesome mom (and a book to copy from) |
