Brace Yourself, the questions are coming!

     After posting this on facebook, I knew the flood of questions were coming so I thought I would just make one simple post to explain everything so I don't end up copying and pasting the same story a million times.   You are welcome. :)

FAQ

• What Happened?
• Around 1am on Tuesday I started getting contractions, I had no idea what they were I thought I just ate something that didn't agree with me and tried to sleep through it. After waking up four or five times with these pains and finally not being able to sleep (or talk) through them I realized what was going on and woke up Sascha immediately and we were off to the hospital. We got there around 5:30am and at that point my pain was a 9 when i was having a contraction. They wheeled me up to L&D where they started medications to try and stop my contractions and ran some tests to see if I was in pre-term labor, or just having pre-term contractions. (luckily it was the latter- I never went into active labor!!!)  they gave me a series of shots in my arm to stop the contractions (small shot that burns a ton in the same spot 3 times, 15 minutes apart.... it sucked)  then they gave me the first of 2 steroid shots in my hip so that if I did go into labor the babies lungs would have a better chance of being able to function on their own. After the shots didn't work to stop my contractions, they only slowed them, they switched me to a pill that i will continue to take every 6 hours for the next at least 4 weeks, most likely 6 weeks, to make sure my uterus doesn't get irritated again.  Even with the pill the contractions didn't stop until around 6:30pm Tuesday night, but with the pills my pain went from 9 to a 4. Girls, think period cramps just bad enough for you to stay home from school with a heating pad. I had to spend the night to get more fluids, be monitored some more, and to get the second round of steroids in the morning.  This morning they ran a few more tests to make sure that everything was okay, gave me the second dose of steroids and my TDAP shot (Sascha got one too!) when all my tests came back great they sent me home on modified bedrest. 
• Are you OK?
• Im really sore from all the shots and having contractions off and on for 17 hours and I'm exhausted from no sleep, but I'm okay and the babies are okay and that's what matters!
• What is modified bedrest?
• modified bedrest is basically, I can do things but if I can be sitting- sit and if i can be laying down- lay down. No walking long distances, don't stand for too long, no lifting. So basically exactly what I've already been doing. 
• Do you need anything?
• I have been super overwhelmed by everyone offering to help with so many different things, but right now I just need to rest. If I do need something though I will for sure reach out to those of you who have offered. 

Blood Tests, Holter Monitors, and CT Scans. Oh My!

     The second trimester has done nothing short of kick my butt!   It seems like every time one health issue is resolved, another one arises.

It started around 22 weeks when Sascha left to go to Vegas for a frisbee tournament. I started having contractions, and that's zero fun. ESPECIALLY at 22 weeks. Luckily they stopped on their own so I just went in the next morning to get a NST (non stress test) and to check the length of my cervix (and it's a healthy 3cm long if anyone is wondering) 

Then at 23 weeks I started passing out. It started while I was at the temple with some friends, then it happened again a few days later, then again, and again. 

This has been going on for about a month now with my symptoms slowly getting worse and they still can't figure out why.  They have run every single blood test they can, I've had a Holter Monitor, gotten a CT scan, my doctor has been very thorough and is super willing to work with me, yet the only conclusion we can come to is that apparently I'm Pregnant, with twins at that. My passing out and getting sick is apparently just how my body is handling the stress of being super pregnant and man do I feel SUPER pregnant. 

Here are some fun belly photos from my second trimester. I seriously feel like I can't possibly get any bigger, but I always do! 

This last one is me at 27 weeks as I officially enter my 3rd trimester!! Woo!! 

Sascha and I are incredibly nervous about their arrival, but also so so so excited. I don't think I've ever anxiously awaited anything with more excitement as I am finally getting to hold these sweet babies in my arms. 

We are finally getting our apartment all ready for its newest little residents and as stressful as that is, this nesting is NO JOKE. Saschas not a fan of it because the intense need for nesting combined with zero energy leads to me sitting on the couch asking him to do everything haha. I have to give him major props though,, this pregnancy hasn't been great to either of us. He's such a trooper for putting up with my mood swings, constant need for attention, and so many other "perks" that come with having a pregnant wife.  I picked a really good one. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Woah! We're Halfway There! (Woah! Livin' on a Prayer)

(ignore the messy apartment)

     Today makes for 19 weeks (and one day), which means only 19 weeks (minus one day) to go!! I can't believe that we are already over halfway to meeting these sweet babies that Sascha and I already love so much!!! 

     These babies are growing fast, and so am I! I read a quote the other day that said "I wish i was as fat as the first time I thought I was fat" and oh boy, I feel like by the end of this pregnancy I would kill to be this size again, but right now I feel HUGE.

     Baby Boy (Twin A) kicks, and kicks, and kicks, and kicks ALL DAY AND ALL NIGHT. Luckily, he's not strong enough to keep me up right now, but it's coming.  I'm sure Baby Girl (Twin B) is also kicking up a storm in there, but because of her anterior (in the front) placenta I won't be able to feel her until she gets just a little bit stronger!   We are anxiously awaiting Baby Boy to be strong enough that Sascha can feel his kicks from the outside, I think we are almost there! 

     The babies are each approximately the size of the original Game Boy, which is HUUGE compared to the poppyseeds that they were when we found out about them!


    I feel so overwhelmed, yet more blessed than I could ever imagine. It is so humbling to know that Heavenly Father trusts us with not only one, but two of his precious children to love and raise here on Earth.  Our little family is growing from four feet to eight, but my heart has already grown so much more than that. (insert grinch reference here)

-Kami

and then there were FOUR!

Sascha and I are beyond THRILLED to announce that our little family is growing!! 

The Vogel Twins are due this July and I don't think we have ever been more excited for anything! 

(Sorry for the super short post, but a picture is worth a thousand words right?)

One Month Down, Eternity to Go!

  

  Sascha and I have officially been at this whole marriage thing for a whole month, and what a crazy month it has been.

Here's what we've been up to:

• Sascha went to band camp with the BYU Cougar Marching Band
• Sascha started his classes, and his earliest one is 10am, which is fantastic because we get to sleep in
• I got a job working as a nanny for a super awesome family
• Sascha joined the turkey club by bowling 3 strikes in a row during his bowling class
• I got a free game of bowling for getting 2 strikes in a row with the granny bowl at fatcatz
• I've decided that Costa Vida is actually the greatest food. ever.
• We survived our first trip to IKEA (and got an awesome futon out of it)
• We finally got our records moved to our new ward, and I think we'll really like it there
• Being called Sister Vogel at church is equal parts awesome and weird
• Sascha played in an Ultimate Frisbee 3v3 tournament, and won the sky machine (who can jump the highest) for his height.
• I was supposed to play on a 3v3 team for the frisbee wives, but got really sick the morning of
• Altitude sickness has been kicking my butt (at least, that's what we think it is)
• Sascha is playing on an intramural ultimate frisbee team that consists mostly of people from Georgia, called Peach Perfect 
• We went to our first college football game, Sascha with the band and I in the student section
• We've watched 2 seasons of the show Heroes and are close to being done with season 3

and because I just love bulleted lists, here are 3 things that we have each learned in our whopping one month of marriage.

Kami:

• I kiss better than I cook
• You have to pick you battles, and most of them aren't worth fighting
• Laughter truly is the best medicine, and I married the funniest man out there

Sascha: 

•  You can't just think about yourself anymore
•  No matter how mad we are, we still love each other
•  It's hard

and Bonus!! Here are some of my favorite pictures from the wedding! (and by some, I mean a lot)

I love this day, I love my husband, and I love my marriage.

This has been the greatest month of my life, and I can't wait for oh so many more.

-Kami

The HoneyMove

     Now that we finally have Wifi in our new apartment, I can finally post!!! So for starters, we got married!! WOO. but I will post more about that later once I have more time. Let's start for now with the drive back out to Utah. With band camp for Sascha starting on Monday, we decided to combine the drive with our honeymoon for now, giving you The HoneyMove.

     This is gong to be a short post, because the drive was super uneventful and boring. We got away with no tickets this time, and I of course slept for most of it. Sascha was amazing enough to do most of the driving.  We drove from my parent's home in Aiken, SC to Topeka, KS the first day, and then we made it to Provo, UT the next.  

and to make up for the absolute lack of anything exciting in this post, have an awesome video. 

-Kami

Engagement Pictures

Sascha and I were so incredibly lucky to get Traci Monson to shoot our engagement photos here in my hometown of Aiken, South Carolina.   Here are some of my favorites :)

I love these pictures almost as much as I love the man in them, it was hard just choosing a handful as "favorites". You can go check them all out on either mine, or Sascha's facebook accounts!! 

-Kami