Yesterday started off with Rebecca getting an ultrasound with the specialist. Things on that front were good but were only a band-aid to the syndrome. Zeke was not stuck again and the docs were finally able to view his bladder (a big deal when dealing with TTTS), but ultimately, something will probably need to be done soon. Therefore, we’ve started the ball rolling with all of our local team and the Fetal Care Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.

But we also had a lot of positive news yesterday, too: the chromosomal fish study came back negative, the echo-cardiogram didn’t show any abnormalities, and Rebecca got discharged from the hospital. She’s doing fine and has stopped having contractions. She’s glad to be back home where she can see Houston, relax uninterrupted, and exist peacefully, unencumbered by the degrees of medical hoo-ha she was plugged up to.

Tomorrow we have another ultrasound with the specialists in the morning. We are hoping and praying for a miracle and planning for otherwise. If the condition has indeed worsened enough to the point where action needs to be taken, we will be going to Cincinnati. My dad might be coming along as our backup. We would start the process early Monday morning, meeting with the remote team and figuring out the game plan for the week. The process is called fetoscopic laser surgery. It’s goal is to correct the blood-flow coming from the placenta, so that both babies have an equal share.

Many have been asking, “who is taking care of Houston?” Well, let’s give a hearty shout-out to grandmothers, or abuelitas, as some may call them. They rock. Especially when the come to take care of your children and cook you food. Houston has been in very good and loving hands and has been up to the following:

• He’s doing the more sign (we think)
• The daddy (or hat) sign
• The dog sign
• The abuelitas report that he’s saying “Dixie” and “uh-oh”
• He’s giving hugs to his friends
• Dancing to music
• Walking confidently
• Even running, says Gramsy

Rebecca is currently still on bed-rest at home, drinking high-protein shakes throughout the day, laying on her sides, pretty much only getting up to “take care of business.” She’s still is in high spirits and has a positive attitude about the whole thing. We ask that you continue to pray for us and we thank everyone for all their help. Most especially, we thank God, who has given us the strength to get through this thus far. Keep watching the blog for periodic updates.

So this is your friendly neighborhood Beeler posting instead of Reba, because the aforementioned lady is currently in the intensive care unit at the hospital. Don’t worry, she’s only in ICU because there were no regular rooms left for her in genpop. I’ll get to all those details in a minute. First, our twins have names! Baby A, AKA Lefty, has been given the name Charles Gabriel Dillingham, and baby B, AKA Pancho, is Stephen Ezekiel Dillingham. Colloquially, they’ll be known as Zeke and Gabriel. When they’re bad, which they’re sure to be, based on their genetic history, the full names will surely apply. Those of you up on your bible reading will recognize the two middle names. In Hebrew, Ezekiel means “strength of God” or “God will strengthen” and Gabriel means “God is my strength.” We ultimately decided on these names because our twins will need to be fighters, blessed with God’s divine grace, to make it through the ordeal they are currently faced with. Charles and Stephen are names with familial roots. Charles was the name of my paw Beeler’s daddy and also the name of Rebecca’s grandfather on her dad’s side. My name, Stephen, is inherited from my great-grandfather Dillingham.

So what went down today? Well, we were scheduled for another ultrasound at 9 a.m., with the possibility of an amnioreduction, based on what Dr. Joy found. The doc found that the condition had worsened and indeed an amnioreduction was required. We didn’t realize that with the amnioreduction, 24-48 hours of hospitalization was also in the cards. Rebecca handled the procedure pretty well, after some initial faintness. Basically, the doctor inserted a long needle into her abdomen and through her uterine wall and manually extracted about a pitcher’s worth of amniotic fluid, which vaguely resembled a light domestic lager, with foam and all. How ironic is it that amniotic fluid is mostly urine? The fluid was taken out of little Gabriel’s amniotic sac. Dr. Joy said Gabriel was upset because he was being demoted from a four bedroom apartment to a single room studio. For the most part, Gabriel stayed away from the needle (we were watching the whole thing play out on the ultrasound), but I think one time he actually came over and touched the needle. On the other hand, Zeke was relieved and we were able to get a 4-d ultrasound picture of his face, which we were unable to get before the reduction because he was stuck. Rebecca was then admitted to her room in ICU and about an hour later, she started having contractions. The contractions came on as she has having a phone conversion with her mom and she didn’t physically feel them. The monitoring devices picked up the contractions and the doctors started giving her magnesium sulfate which reverses pre-term labor. The on-call doctor from her practice, Dr. Rivard, assured us that the medicine appeared to be working. Dr. Rivard is a French-Canadian lady who looks a lot like Celine Dion. More irony? Or is it just genetic and environmental influence? Anyway, the message we’re getting from our doctors is that we will be going to Cincinnati, OH before the week is over for some laser surgery. While this type of laser surgery isn’t foolproof, it is the best type of treatment available for twin-twin. And the fact that we have this ball rolling this early is good news. We ask that everyone pray for our twins, little Zeke and Gabriel.

As you can see, Clan Dillingham headed into the studio for some more “fancy” photos. Be sure to check out all the professional pics from May 2008, which include more family photos and plenty of Houston-hamming-it-up shots!