The Lord has heard your prayers!!! We just had an encouraging consult with our doctor this morning. He said that while we're still taking it day by day, he's hopeful the babies can go longer in utero more than just mere days. Over the past couple days we have seen a lot of positive markers in the Little Twin: his blood flow in the umbilical cord has looked much better, and he has had no severe dips in his heart rate. 

The doctor said they're going to schedule a planned C-section for 32 weeks (Mon Dec 22), though of course it could urgently happen at the drop of a hat at any point between now and then. He emphasized that the nature of the very rare type of restricted growth in this twin pregnancy makes for a very turbulent journey with good ups and very low lows leading up to delivery. The doctor underscored again that the fate of both babies is very high risk and very connected because of the rarity of the specific kind of restricted growth we're handling. 

We've also had the chance get to know some of the other "residents" (my term for the long-term patients) on the unit. We've met another precious Christian couple whose faith encourages and emboldens us, and we've had the opportunity to speak with others who don't know Christ on a deeper level as a result of the time that our very "dorm" lifestyle affords for deeper connections. 

We ask for continued prayer:

Photo: While on a little break roaming the hospital with the kids to see Christmas decorations, we ran into the Fetal Intervention team (everyone but 1) of Hope's doctors. We could not be more thankful for this phenomenal team, graced with amazing skill and remarkable personalities!