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.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Friday, March 2, 2012
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.
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.
Friday, February 24, 2012
20 weeks 4 days - Quick Update
We had a "quick" appointment today - only 45 mins!
The appointment was another doppler study, along with an amniotic fluid check and a cervical length check. My cervix is long and holding steady, so they are pleased about that. All three babies are moving around like crazy and tried to make it very difficult for the sonographer and doctor to get the measurements that they needed. Babies A and C are doing very well and everything looks normal. Baby B on the other hand is trying to be a problem child already. His umbilical artery doppler was coming up slightly abnormal, now they said not to be concerned, but I'm pregnant with identical triplets here, so of course I'm worried! They said the doppler for both his belly (ductus arteriosus) and his brain (MCA) are perfectly normal, his amniotic fluid level was normal, and his bladder was full which is normal. That all combined with his movement being normal they are not overly concerned because I am only 20 weeks 4 days and sometimes early on they can get an occasional strange reading. They said if more than one thing was abnormal that would be cause for concern, but for now they are just going to keep a close watch on it. So that means I have another doppler study and amniotic check next week.
Please pray that A and C continue to do well, and also pray that next week's scan shows that all is back to normal with Baby B. Also if you could please remember to pray for us during the next week I would appreciate it, even though the doctors reassured me, it is hard not to panic. For now I will try to remain focused on the fact that everything else was perfectly normal. Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers!
The appointment was another doppler study, along with an amniotic fluid check and a cervical length check. My cervix is long and holding steady, so they are pleased about that. All three babies are moving around like crazy and tried to make it very difficult for the sonographer and doctor to get the measurements that they needed. Babies A and C are doing very well and everything looks normal. Baby B on the other hand is trying to be a problem child already. His umbilical artery doppler was coming up slightly abnormal, now they said not to be concerned, but I'm pregnant with identical triplets here, so of course I'm worried! They said the doppler for both his belly (ductus arteriosus) and his brain (MCA) are perfectly normal, his amniotic fluid level was normal, and his bladder was full which is normal. That all combined with his movement being normal they are not overly concerned because I am only 20 weeks 4 days and sometimes early on they can get an occasional strange reading. They said if more than one thing was abnormal that would be cause for concern, but for now they are just going to keep a close watch on it. So that means I have another doppler study and amniotic check next week.
Please pray that A and C continue to do well, and also pray that next week's scan shows that all is back to normal with Baby B. Also if you could please remember to pray for us during the next week I would appreciate it, even though the doctors reassured me, it is hard not to panic. For now I will try to remain focused on the fact that everything else was perfectly normal. Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers!
Monday, February 13, 2012
The Moment You've All Been Waiting For...
Ok, SPOILER ALERT!
For those of you who are living vicariously through us, and want to wait until the babies arrive to know whether they are boys or girls, do not read any further! Well, you can read further, just don't look at the pictures below...
We know there are a lot of people that have been waiting for us to reveal the triplets' gender. Thank you for your patience. You may now skip to the bottom of the page for the big reveal!
First things first, they are healthy and sharing well. Babies A and C are 8 oz, and B is 7oz. The docs are not concerned with this difference, and all umbilical cords are functioning as they should.
They performed the anatomy scan at this visit, and everyone has the parts they should. Heart beats are strong. A and C are a little lower, so we figured we have 2 distance runners and 1 sprinter. Jen wants to add that they were able to check arteries and ventricles in the brain... It's pretty crazy what they can see at 18 weeks.
On the subject of 18 weeks, we are hopefully halfway through the pregnancy. They won't allow triplets to go passed 37 weeks, and we want to go as long as possible. Not that we don't want to see them, but at 36+ weeks NICU stays are not mandatory.
Although the babies are measuring normal, Jen is still really struggling to gain weight. I have tried my best to shove (healthy) food in front of her, but the kids are taking so many calories that it's tough for her to eat enough.
One other prayer request at the moment is that they are going to do cervix checks at our biweekly appointments. As of this week, no changes were noted! This will be one of the contributing factors when it comes to make a decision about bed rest.
Finally, just in case the pictures did not load properly, we bought BLUE balloons!
For those of you who are living vicariously through us, and want to wait until the babies arrive to know whether they are boys or girls, do not read any further! Well, you can read further, just don't look at the pictures below...
We know there are a lot of people that have been waiting for us to reveal the triplets' gender. Thank you for your patience. You may now skip to the bottom of the page for the big reveal!
First things first, they are healthy and sharing well. Babies A and C are 8 oz, and B is 7oz. The docs are not concerned with this difference, and all umbilical cords are functioning as they should.
They performed the anatomy scan at this visit, and everyone has the parts they should. Heart beats are strong. A and C are a little lower, so we figured we have 2 distance runners and 1 sprinter. Jen wants to add that they were able to check arteries and ventricles in the brain... It's pretty crazy what they can see at 18 weeks.
On the subject of 18 weeks, we are hopefully halfway through the pregnancy. They won't allow triplets to go passed 37 weeks, and we want to go as long as possible. Not that we don't want to see them, but at 36+ weeks NICU stays are not mandatory.
Although the babies are measuring normal, Jen is still really struggling to gain weight. I have tried my best to shove (healthy) food in front of her, but the kids are taking so many calories that it's tough for her to eat enough.
One other prayer request at the moment is that they are going to do cervix checks at our biweekly appointments. As of this week, no changes were noted! This will be one of the contributing factors when it comes to make a decision about bed rest.
Finally, just in case the pictures did not load properly, we bought BLUE balloons!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Quick Update
Just a quick update this week...
We had an ultrasound on Friday and all looks good. It was just a quick scan to check the length of my cervix, which is behaving nicely thank goodness and to check that the babies are sharing the nutrients well and also to check the amniotic fluid levels around each baby. With identical twins and in our case triplets, there is a large concern for what is referred to as twin to twin transfusion syndrome (or as the doctor said Friday triplet to triplet) which is when the babies develop communicating blood vessels between them vs just to and from the placenta as they should. This would result in one baby being very large and the others being much smaller, as a result one would have too much fluid to manage causing risk for kidney failure or congestive heart failure as well as hydrocephalus, while the other (or others) would have too little fluid causing poor urine output, kidney issues, anemia, decreased blood pressure and also a possibility for hypovolemic stroke. Scary stuff. There are cutting edge treatments out there, such as laser surgery if this occurs prior to the time when the babies could be safely delivered, otherwise treatment is to deliver the babies if it happens past the 26 week mark. Our doctor was very concerned when she initially diagnosed the triplets as being identical, but thankfully there are no signs of TTTS at this point. Please pray that this continues to not be an issue and that the babies share nicely! Our doctor was very pleased with how the triplets look and she's excited to find out if they are girls or boys at the next appointment on February 10th! We can't wait to find out either!!!
On another note, we watched "Life As We Know It" this weekend and saw at the end that the toddler was played by 3 actresses, turns out they are identical triplets! So, we know we always have a future in show biz! ;-)
Hopefully the next update will continue to have positive things to say, and I hope to be announcing the gender then too! Please pray that these little ones stay healthy and keep growing!
We had an ultrasound on Friday and all looks good. It was just a quick scan to check the length of my cervix, which is behaving nicely thank goodness and to check that the babies are sharing the nutrients well and also to check the amniotic fluid levels around each baby. With identical twins and in our case triplets, there is a large concern for what is referred to as twin to twin transfusion syndrome (or as the doctor said Friday triplet to triplet) which is when the babies develop communicating blood vessels between them vs just to and from the placenta as they should. This would result in one baby being very large and the others being much smaller, as a result one would have too much fluid to manage causing risk for kidney failure or congestive heart failure as well as hydrocephalus, while the other (or others) would have too little fluid causing poor urine output, kidney issues, anemia, decreased blood pressure and also a possibility for hypovolemic stroke. Scary stuff. There are cutting edge treatments out there, such as laser surgery if this occurs prior to the time when the babies could be safely delivered, otherwise treatment is to deliver the babies if it happens past the 26 week mark. Our doctor was very concerned when she initially diagnosed the triplets as being identical, but thankfully there are no signs of TTTS at this point. Please pray that this continues to not be an issue and that the babies share nicely! Our doctor was very pleased with how the triplets look and she's excited to find out if they are girls or boys at the next appointment on February 10th! We can't wait to find out either!!!
On another note, we watched "Life As We Know It" this weekend and saw at the end that the toddler was played by 3 actresses, turns out they are identical triplets! So, we know we always have a future in show biz! ;-)
Hopefully the next update will continue to have positive things to say, and I hope to be announcing the gender then too! Please pray that these little ones stay healthy and keep growing!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
15 Weeks Already
We are already having Dr. visits and ultrasounds every two weeks. We did that near the end with Maddy, but that was near the end. This is still the beginning. Or so we hope.
While seeing our unborn children every other week is exciting, it has its own emotional drain on us. We are already sleeping less, and feeling more fatigued. Jen keeps telling me that she's growing three people. I don't have that excuse.
Aside from having three identical babies, there have not yet been any alarming findings. Babies A, B and C are all measuring normally for gestational age, and the Dr. we saw this week actually called Jennifer boring. She is having to deal with gestational diabetes (we found out she, um, didn't pass the test), but her sugars have been held in check with diet so far.
Jen has been reading a number of books, as she usually does. I have even resorted to reading one, and all it's done has scared me. I'll leave it at that. That's what I get for reading...
In my typical male fashion, I have been obsessed with crossing a few big things off of our list. We now have car seats for 2 of the 3 kids, a vehicle that can hold them all, and 2 cribs set up in the nursery.
I also must say that the number of offers for help, cribs, car seats, mattresses, and everything else has been a blessing to us already. So thank you for that.
While seeing our unborn children every other week is exciting, it has its own emotional drain on us. We are already sleeping less, and feeling more fatigued. Jen keeps telling me that she's growing three people. I don't have that excuse.
Aside from having three identical babies, there have not yet been any alarming findings. Babies A, B and C are all measuring normally for gestational age, and the Dr. we saw this week actually called Jennifer boring. She is having to deal with gestational diabetes (we found out she, um, didn't pass the test), but her sugars have been held in check with diet so far.
Jen has been reading a number of books, as she usually does. I have even resorted to reading one, and all it's done has scared me. I'll leave it at that. That's what I get for reading...
In my typical male fashion, I have been obsessed with crossing a few big things off of our list. We now have car seats for 2 of the 3 kids, a vehicle that can hold them all, and 2 cribs set up in the nursery.
I also must say that the number of offers for help, cribs, car seats, mattresses, and everything else has been a blessing to us already. So thank you for that.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year! I have a feeling that this year will bring us exciting changes as well as lots of challenges! January marks the start of what looks to be lots of doctors visits. After finding out that the babies are identical the perinatologist wants to keep a very close eye on these little ones, so an appointment with ultrasound is scheduled for every other week from now until mid February. It will be nice to get to know "A, B, and C" well before we actually get to meet them.
This week marks the official start of the second trimester and holds the first of multiple preeclampsia screens, which will occur at least once each trimester. Also, Friday morning is the first glucose tolerance test. I am not looking forward to this test as the thought of drinking the orange yuck turns my stomach and I get to do this after fasting and then get to sit for 3 hours after the fact with nothing to get rid of that horrid flavor. Sounds like fun! I've already been loosely following the gestational diabetes diet because both my OB and the perinatologist have informed me of my impending "doom" i.e. a gestational diabetes diagnosis. I had GD while pregnant with Madelynn, so that combined with the current pregnancy being multiples I am almost certain to have it again, which is why they are testing so early.
After receiving the results of the test I will be meeting with a dietitian to discuss the GD diet for multiples and to help me improve calorie intake. I have not been able to gain any weight and have actually been losing weight, which in a singleton pregnancy is ok, but when carrying higher order multiples it is not ideal. Due to the possibility of preterm labor, doctors like to see mothers of multiples gain weight sooner and at a higher rate than they would otherwise see. I'm trying to remember to eat snacks throughout the day, but I've had absolutely no appetite and have been very nauseous. I'm praying that with the start of the second trimester that improves!
We have the official gender check/anatomy scan on February 10th, but I'm hoping we may find out if these little ones are boys or girls sooner! I really have no inclination as to what gender they may be so I am looking forward to the surprise!
On really cool thing about triplets... I've already felt them moving around and protesting when I squish them! It's really cool to be able to feel them already! I'm sure it is going to feel like a crazy party in there before too long!
This week marks the official start of the second trimester and holds the first of multiple preeclampsia screens, which will occur at least once each trimester. Also, Friday morning is the first glucose tolerance test. I am not looking forward to this test as the thought of drinking the orange yuck turns my stomach and I get to do this after fasting and then get to sit for 3 hours after the fact with nothing to get rid of that horrid flavor. Sounds like fun! I've already been loosely following the gestational diabetes diet because both my OB and the perinatologist have informed me of my impending "doom" i.e. a gestational diabetes diagnosis. I had GD while pregnant with Madelynn, so that combined with the current pregnancy being multiples I am almost certain to have it again, which is why they are testing so early.
After receiving the results of the test I will be meeting with a dietitian to discuss the GD diet for multiples and to help me improve calorie intake. I have not been able to gain any weight and have actually been losing weight, which in a singleton pregnancy is ok, but when carrying higher order multiples it is not ideal. Due to the possibility of preterm labor, doctors like to see mothers of multiples gain weight sooner and at a higher rate than they would otherwise see. I'm trying to remember to eat snacks throughout the day, but I've had absolutely no appetite and have been very nauseous. I'm praying that with the start of the second trimester that improves!
We have the official gender check/anatomy scan on February 10th, but I'm hoping we may find out if these little ones are boys or girls sooner! I really have no inclination as to what gender they may be so I am looking forward to the surprise!
On really cool thing about triplets... I've already felt them moving around and protesting when I squish them! It's really cool to be able to feel them already! I'm sure it is going to feel like a crazy party in there before too long!
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