Superhero!

We have reached 24 weeks and 4 days, which is fantastic! This means the boys are officially viable and if I were to deliver now they would have a fighting chance at survival!  Fortunately at my appointment everything checked out really well, so hopefully delivery is not in the near future.  All 3 of the boys were moving around like crazy and Baby B made it especially difficult to get the Doppler of the artery in his brain, so much so that I had to roll to my side and back again for the sonographer to even get a glimpse.  Thankfully she's quick and was able to get a reading before he moved again.  All of the numbers for Baby A and C came back normal (doppler of umbilical artery, ductus venosis in the belly, the MCA in the brain, and their amniotic fluid index).  Baby B is trying to cause trouble again and his umbilical artery came back as "borderline abnormal".  All of his other numbers were fine and his umbilical artery would fluctuate between normal and abnormal.  The doctor said he is not worried about it at all, so we are trying not to as well. Apparently baby B is going to be our trouble maker! He better get it out of his system now!  My cervix also checked out well, earning me the title of "cervix of steel" from the doctor.  Dan made me laugh when we were walking out, saying "I knew you were a superhero, but I had no idea you were made of steel!". 

On another note, Madelynn is getting more and more excited for her brothers to come.  Tonight in the car she said "can you take me to the hospital to see my brothers.", we laughed and said, not yet!  We took her to a Big Siblings class designed for toddlers at the hospital last week and she did so well. She listened and followed the directions.  She even confused the "helper" giving the tour of the postpartum until.  The lady asked if she was having a sister or a brother and Madelynn just said, "No, 3!" we cracked up and then explained to the poor lady.  On our way out of the hospital, she told everyone she saw the rules to being a big sister (wash hands, hold with two hands,  don't touch the belly button and sit down!). It was really cute.  I have no doubt in my mind that she is going to be a fantastic big sister!

Here are a few ultrasound pics, we only got A and C today, like I said B is a troublemaker!

First ultrasound - 9 weeks

22 weeks 4 days - an attempt at getting all of them in one shot

22 weeks 4 days - Baby B face up toward the camera

24 weeks 4 days - Baby A profile

24 weeks 4 days - Baby C profile, Baby A tried to get in the pic too, legs or arms are by Baby C's face

Our prayer requests this week are that the babies continue to grow and stay healthy, and that my cervix continues to hold up and behave so these boys can cook as long as possible! Our next goal is 28 weeks!  Also please pray that things with selling our house works out, it's been quite the ride and we are hoping we can get it all worked out before the boys come!  Thanks for all of the thoughts and prayers! We appreciate it!

Which one is your singleton?

Today we had another growth scan along with a prenatal visit. It started out a little frustrating, but got much better as the appointment progressed. Our sonographer was one we have never had before and I was a bit nervous when she asked which baby was our "singleton", um we don't have a singleton, they are all identical, so I wanted to say, "Did you actually look at my chart?" After we clarified with her, things got underway. She was not the most gentle, but got the job done and we were able to see all three boys moving around like wild men. She tried to get us some updated face shots, but they wouldn't cooperate. Baby A was literally curled into a ball, Baby B was looking down, and Baby C was facing my back. Thanks boys!

The boys were measured for weight today:
Baby A is 1 lb 1 oz
Baby B is 14 oz
Baby C is 1 lb 1 oz

A and C are measuring where they would be as singletons, and B is about a week behind them. The doctor is not concerned about B because his growth over time has been consistent, as he has always been the smallest. As far as all of their other values (blood flow and fluid levels) were normal and the doctor is pleased. My cervix is still long and closed, so again he was happy. He said today that within the next two weeks these babies could live outside the womb with support and that's a great milestone, so for now we are content with knowing our boys are doing so well.

As far as my health, things are still going well. My fasting blood sugar has been a bit high, but all of my diet controlled numbers are right where they should be. The doctors have changed up my oral medication that I take at bed time only and I'm happy to say that I do not have to start insulin yet! I do have a pulled groin muscle that happened as a result of moving a crib about a month ago, let's just say, lesson learned and I promise to behave from now on! I did get teased about it from the nurse today, which I guess I deserved! Fortunately it is starting to feel better and I only notice it after I've been walking for awhile, which I really don't have the energy for at this point!

On another note, we want to thank everyone for their generosity and prayers. We have received so many things for the boys and just don't have words to express our gratitude. It is an overwhelming task to attempt to prepare for three babies and so we are very grateful for all of the support we have had. We also ask that you all continue to pray for us and for our boys and that they continue to grow and thrive.

Another ultrasound... (21 weeks 4 days)

We had a quick visit, and fortunately we had our favorite sonographer and our "favorite" doctor was there today. This sonographer is great, she takes her time and explains stuff, she also knew how stressed we were about Baby B, so she took the time to look up the numbers prior to going out to speak with the doctor, it was so nice! The doctor that was on this week looks kind of like Santa, so how can that not be reassuring?

Now, what you all want to hear - Baby B is back on program! All of his numbers were within the norms today, which means I can breathe for a few days. I always get anxious a few days before an appointment, and since I have one Friday, I expect the anxiety will increase again then. Babies A and C are good as well, A seems to have camped out in the bottom part of my uterus and is not sharing space with his brothers well. He is always all stretched out and the other two are always in funny cramped positions or pushing each other out of the way. It's kind of funny. Dan said "well A was obviously there first." We were just so happy to hear that our little men were doing well.

The doctor also talked to me about the goals for this pregnancy. The first goal is 24 weeks, he said that they are viable(can live outside the uterus with lots of help) at 23 weeks, but the goal is always 24. The next goal after that is 28 weeks, then we set goals for every 2 weeks after that. He also said that even if everyone looks great at 35 weeks, they will deliver at that point. He said with 3 babies sharing one placenta it is too much of a risk to go much past that point. So that means in 13 weeks or less we will be sharing the news of the triplets arrival, and Lord willing they will all be happy and healthy!

Our next appointment is Friday, and at that point we will have a growth scan as well as a typical prenatal visit. They also gave me a break from a cervix check this week, so they will look at that next week as well. Oh what fun!

Please continue to pray for our little guys! Pray that everyone "behaves" and cooperates to get past the 24 week mark. We are already totally in love with these boys, so just pray for their continued health as well as mine! Thank you all for the prayers last week, I truly felt at peace knowing God would protect our guys, and especially Baby B.