Oh honey, you ain't seen nothing yet! My uterus will quickly progress to measuring at a rate 10-14 weeks ahead as compared to a singleton pregnancy!
(Pre-pregnancy weight: 116 lbs, Current weight: 125 lbs)
The Triplets
Thursday, August 30, 2012
9 week pic
Oh honey, you ain't seen nothing yet! My uterus will quickly progress to measuring at a rate 10-14 weeks ahead as compared to a singleton pregnancy!
(Pre-pregnancy weight: 116 lbs, Current weight: 125 lbs)
3 Little Gummy Bears :)
We are ecstatic after our 9 week appointment today. Everything looked perfect on the ultrasound. They are all measuring very close (9wk0d, 8wk6d, 8wk5d) which the OB said is perfect, and their heartrates were all excellent (171, 167, 162). There are also still only 3 babies (thank God!) and all are in separate sacs which is best case scenario for high order multiples. On the screen we could see their little heads, arm and leg buds, and they looked just like little gummy bears! They were even wiggling around a little bit. I will post pics but they are not as clear as watching the screen. Nothing compares to the joy and relief we felt at seeing them thriving and hearing their heartbeats and I'm sure it will feel this way each time we get to see/hear them. My OB said he would be contacting the perinatologist "before too long" to determine when she wants to see me, and said she will outline a care plan that everyone will follow after she meets with us.
It is nice walking into the OB office. This was only our second visit and already all of the staff knows we are the triplet parents and gathers around to check out our ultrasound pics and they have all been so nice. Praying that the good news will continue and we can't wait to watch our babies grow! We go back in 2 weeks on 9/13 but at that appointment the OB will just try to find their heartbeats with a portable ultrasound, so at least we will have the peace of mind hearing them even if we don't see them. I can't believe they will most likely be here in less than 6 months!! We have so much planning to do before then! Thanks for the continued prayers :)
Baby A (HR 171)
Baby C-top (HR 162)
Baby B-bottom (HR 167)
PS I am going to try out a weekly prenatal yoga class that starts tonight for an 8 week session. Will post on how it goes and try to get Brent to get a 9 week belly picture tonight! :)
It is nice walking into the OB office. This was only our second visit and already all of the staff knows we are the triplet parents and gathers around to check out our ultrasound pics and they have all been so nice. Praying that the good news will continue and we can't wait to watch our babies grow! We go back in 2 weeks on 9/13 but at that appointment the OB will just try to find their heartbeats with a portable ultrasound, so at least we will have the peace of mind hearing them even if we don't see them. I can't believe they will most likely be here in less than 6 months!! We have so much planning to do before then! Thanks for the continued prayers :)
Baby A (HR 171)
Baby B-bottom (HR 167)
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The Case of the Fruit Thief
While my husband's training has been coming along quite nicely since the 'Hot Pocket' incident, Bosley, our youngest of two boxers is proving himself to be significantly lacking in obedience. Harper, our 5 year old boxer is well behaved, gentle, laid back, and incredibly sensitive while preferring his own space. Bosley, our 20 month old is off the walls, goofy, personality plus, incredibly affectionate, prefers to be in YOUR own space, and is very very mischievous. We had just started leaving them both to roam the house while we were gone for full days a couple months ago and would come home to nothing out of place- I could almost see the shining halos around their precious little heads. But for some reason over the past few weeks, Bosley has traded his halo for horns and reverted to finding any little thing he can get into to tear up all over the living room floor while we are away. So sadly last week, it was back into the crate with him.
Yesterday, I requested that my husband pick up some apples and oranges on his way home from work (which he did without complaint ;) ) Lately I have found that when I am unable to find any food appetizing, I can always eat fruit for some reason, especially apple slices. [On a sidenote: I do not recommend ever putting apples and jalapenos in the same refrigerator drawer. Even in separate bags, all of my apples somehow ended up tasting like jalapenos which I found incredibly unnerving and unappetizing!!].
A couple days ago I made the mistake of biting off a couple slivers of apple and sharing them with Bosley who eagerly gobbled them up. When my husband arrived home yesterday with the fruit, I was just dozing off for a nap snuggled up with Bosley and Brent had to head right back out for a sports banquet. He dropped the bags of fruit onto the kitchen floor, gave me a quick kiss, and left. When I awoke from my nap, I went in search of my apples and sadly discovered them BEFORE reaching the kitchen. They had been casualties of Bosley. He had gone into the grocery bags and drug out the sack of apples and the sack of oranges, carried them separately into the living room, ripped open the apple sack and rudely left punctures all over each and every one of my apples. It appeared that he couldn't quite figure out how to get a chunk out of one without my assistance, though-serves him right! The oranges were discarded as the tough skin protected them from his greedy muzzle. Bosley, of course, managed to look incredibly bashful and adorable- as usual- and got off much easier than Brent did last week-as usual. Luckily, I still have the oranges and Brent had also bought some fresh pineapples and strawberries that DID make it into the refrigerator so I was still able to satisfy my fruit craving.
Here is a picture of Bosley caught in another mischievous act. This one he felt very proud of, however:
How could you ever be mad at this face??
The Boys together:
As for me, this week has been going a little better than last week. Yesterday I was not nauseous even without the Zofran but it was a struggle to find anything I could tolerate eating. Today I had to take one Zofran this morning after some nausea following breakfast, but have been doing well since. I continue to be exhausted when I get home from work and am trying to get a little nap time in each day. I added 'Make Way for Multiples' to my Tivo line up and watch every episode that has 3 or more babies. Watching both excites me and freaks me out. I do get a grim sense of satisfaction watching the poor mamas with 4+ babies because I can say to myself '3 will be WAY easier than that, at least!' The quad mama of newborns on todays episode averaged 35 diapers a day, that's over 1,000 diapers a month! YIKES! (Feel free to start sending donations now, jk :) )
I cannot WAIT for Thursday because we will get to see our little beans (or should I say grapes?) again. We will be 9 weeks and these little ones may be the size of grapes this week! It wasn't too long ago they were just little poppy seeds! They have flown through the seed and bean categories and will be nothing but fruit from here on out and this mama couldn't be prouder! I can't believe they have all of their fingers and toes and limbs already. There are 30 FINGERS, 30 TOES, 6 ARMS, and 6 LEGS in my belly. Hard to believe! We greatly appreciate the continued prayers! I will update Thursday after the appointment.
Yesterday, I requested that my husband pick up some apples and oranges on his way home from work (which he did without complaint ;) ) Lately I have found that when I am unable to find any food appetizing, I can always eat fruit for some reason, especially apple slices. [On a sidenote: I do not recommend ever putting apples and jalapenos in the same refrigerator drawer. Even in separate bags, all of my apples somehow ended up tasting like jalapenos which I found incredibly unnerving and unappetizing!!].
A couple days ago I made the mistake of biting off a couple slivers of apple and sharing them with Bosley who eagerly gobbled them up. When my husband arrived home yesterday with the fruit, I was just dozing off for a nap snuggled up with Bosley and Brent had to head right back out for a sports banquet. He dropped the bags of fruit onto the kitchen floor, gave me a quick kiss, and left. When I awoke from my nap, I went in search of my apples and sadly discovered them BEFORE reaching the kitchen. They had been casualties of Bosley. He had gone into the grocery bags and drug out the sack of apples and the sack of oranges, carried them separately into the living room, ripped open the apple sack and rudely left punctures all over each and every one of my apples. It appeared that he couldn't quite figure out how to get a chunk out of one without my assistance, though-serves him right! The oranges were discarded as the tough skin protected them from his greedy muzzle. Bosley, of course, managed to look incredibly bashful and adorable- as usual- and got off much easier than Brent did last week-as usual. Luckily, I still have the oranges and Brent had also bought some fresh pineapples and strawberries that DID make it into the refrigerator so I was still able to satisfy my fruit craving.
Here is a picture of Bosley caught in another mischievous act. This one he felt very proud of, however:
As for me, this week has been going a little better than last week. Yesterday I was not nauseous even without the Zofran but it was a struggle to find anything I could tolerate eating. Today I had to take one Zofran this morning after some nausea following breakfast, but have been doing well since. I continue to be exhausted when I get home from work and am trying to get a little nap time in each day. I added 'Make Way for Multiples' to my Tivo line up and watch every episode that has 3 or more babies. Watching both excites me and freaks me out. I do get a grim sense of satisfaction watching the poor mamas with 4+ babies because I can say to myself '3 will be WAY easier than that, at least!' The quad mama of newborns on todays episode averaged 35 diapers a day, that's over 1,000 diapers a month! YIKES! (Feel free to start sending donations now, jk :) )
I cannot WAIT for Thursday because we will get to see our little beans (or should I say grapes?) again. We will be 9 weeks and these little ones may be the size of grapes this week! It wasn't too long ago they were just little poppy seeds! They have flown through the seed and bean categories and will be nothing but fruit from here on out and this mama couldn't be prouder! I can't believe they have all of their fingers and toes and limbs already. There are 30 FINGERS, 30 TOES, 6 ARMS, and 6 LEGS in my belly. Hard to believe! We greatly appreciate the continued prayers! I will update Thursday after the appointment.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Training My Husband
My husband is slowly learning that refusing to facilitate the cravings of a mama pregnant with triplets can be hazardous to his health. After days of feeling an 'icky/hungry/nausea' feeling and extreme exhaustion (which Dr. Luke says is multiplied in triplet pregnancies and can last FOREVER) I was actually counting myself lucky since I hadn't actually thrown up anything. Fast forward to a few days ago- and the nausea spiraled to a whole new level complete with vomiting. Now this isn't the type of vomiting that leaves you feeling better off afterwards, if anything it leaves you feeling worse, and STARVING- yet EVERY FOOD you can think of has the appeal of 5 day old bologna stuck to the bottom of a garbage bin that has been sitting in your 90 degree garage. No exagerration. I bought ginger teas, ginger candy, peppermints, tried eating small meals, but was even vomiting fluids, into a garbage bag, in my car. A friend and sister suggested zofran to me which I called and got an order for from my OB and it has made things so much better. While I am back to the icky/nauseated feeling with food aversions that I so despised last week- at least I can keep fluids and food down *most* of the time. Anyways... back to my husband being in immenent danger- On Friday, before the Zofran, during the worst of it, I was puking and STARVING and the ONLY thing that came to mind that MIGHT be tolerable to eat was a Hot Pocket. I have not eaten a hot pocket since my college days, so who knows where that came from. So I text him to bring them home for me. He texts back that they are incredibly unhealthy and that he will do nothing of the sort. I text back that I don't care, it is the only thing I can even think about eating, and that my DOCTOR told me to not worry about WHAT I eat at this point, just to eat whatever I can. I don't hear back so I figure it is settled. I try to doze off and dream of my hot pockets on their way... I awake in an exhausted, starving, nauseas haze to my husband handing me a bottle of pedialyte (which I also requested due to the fluid loss). "Please make me a hot pocket, too." "There are no hot pockets, I told you I wasn't getting them." "You're kidding right? I told you I haven't been able to eat anything since last night- which I promptly threw up, and that the only thing I could imagine eating is a hot pocket and I have been laying here starving and dreaming about hot pockets and you DECIDED that you would NOT get them for me?????!!!!!"
Brent left the room. The bottle of Pedialyte somehow ended up with a crash on the other side of the room, and I was inconsoleably balling my eyes out harder than I can remember ever crying... over a hot pocket. Can you say pregnancy hormones x 3???
After a few minutes Brent decided it would be best if he went back to the store to get some hot pockets- after he me made stop crying and sing the "Hoooot Pockettttsssss" slogan before he would leave. Maybe next time I won't have to ask twice. Hence, the title of this post, 'Training my Husband.'
This is how Brent feels about hot pockets and thus the reason he did not want to get them for me. The way this comedian says 'hot pockets' is how he made me say it before he would go to the store b/c we had seen this video in the past!
Brent left the room. The bottle of Pedialyte somehow ended up with a crash on the other side of the room, and I was inconsoleably balling my eyes out harder than I can remember ever crying... over a hot pocket. Can you say pregnancy hormones x 3???
After a few minutes Brent decided it would be best if he went back to the store to get some hot pockets- after he me made stop crying and sing the "Hoooot Pockettttsssss" slogan before he would leave. Maybe next time I won't have to ask twice. Hence, the title of this post, 'Training my Husband.'
This is how Brent feels about hot pockets and thus the reason he did not want to get them for me. The way this comedian says 'hot pockets' is how he made me say it before he would go to the store b/c we had seen this video in the past!
From Conception to Present
On July 20th 2012, following my final attempt at conceiving through injectable medications for ovulation induction, I awoke around 7 am to take my daily HPT at 9dpo. As the faintest of second lines magically appeared on 2 separate tests- I knew. I was finally and miraculously pregnant. I rushed right in to my Reproductive Endocrinologist's office for a beta which came back at 12.5, "a little low" she said, but POSITIVE!! From there I waited anxiously for my next beta 6 days later while happily watching my HPT line darken at an incredible rate. On 15 dpo, my beta had risen to an impressive 1059 which would put the doubling rate at around 22 hours. Despite the fact that I had possibly ovulated 3+ eggs based on my follicular scans during the cycle, my RE still remained confident that there was most likely just one little bean cooking in there as I had had several mature follicles during previous cycles that resulted in nothing. My husband and I were ecstatic about having one, hopeful we would get lucky and there would be two, and prayed emphatically that there would be no more than that!
It was a long few weeks waiting for our 6 week ultrasound and I desperately wanted to see/hear the babie(s) heartrates to make sure that this was real, and to see if we were going to have one or two (but certainly more than that would be out of the question-impossible!)
Finally the day arrived and Georgia, the most wonderful ultrasound tech ever, took us back to the room. Almost immediately after inserting the wand it became apparent on the screen there was more than one sac. I became somewhat of an expert on ultrasound images after spending hours obsessing over pictures and youtube videos of singles, doubles, and more in the weeks approaching this day. As Georgia shifted the wand and nonchalantly said I see 2 sacs, and 2 heartbeats... and over here is a third sac. A flat "what." escaped my lips while my husband remained silent and wide-eyed at my side. I told Georgia, being the self-proclaimed ultrasound expert that I am, "but just because there is a third sac doesn't mean there is a baby in it right?" Her look said it all- there was a heartbeat, and oh, by the way, "I think one of the 3 sacs might have 2 heartbeats" an initial thought that she quickly changed her mind about after determining that it was just an imaging error. At this point, my knowledge of triplets from my RE and reading about a girl in the past who had lost all 3 at different stages of her pregnancy was that it is a very dangerous pregnancy, and not to get my hopes up. I was shocked beyond anything else and didn't know whether to be excited, terrified, worried, or all of the above. Georgia assured me that she had seen several healthy triplet pregnancies. Miraculously, after telling co-workers and some of my dearest patients, I heard that many people I know have known healthy triplets throughout their lives. I started to hope that maybe, just maybe, this will be ok.
Of course when I told my RE she was "obligated" to bring up the option of selective reduction, which I told her was not an option for my husband and I. After wanting children for so long, how could we ever make a choice to inject a fatal dose of drugs into one of my babies- killing him/her- to make my pregnancy/life a little easier? Absolutely not. I am reading Dr. Luke's book right now and she describes that often when learning you are pregnant with high order multiples you go through the same emotional stages that people experience with grief:
SHOCK: My husband and I felt this immediately, walking around in a daze for a week. When others expressed excitement at our news, I would sometimes say- 'At least one of us is excited! Aren't you worried too? this has a good chance of ending in disaster and heartache!'
DENIAL: For a few days I felt surely they all wouldn't make it, and we would end up with just one or two, and I hate to admit that I thought if that were the case, that would be fine with us. Surely all 3 babies in a triplet pregnancy would not survive. I have since FIERCELY changed my mind on this as through self education and speaking with other triplet parents/reading blogs have found out that I can want and even expect that all of my babies will be born and healthy. I desperately want each of them to thrive and to come into our lives and would be devastated at this point if any one of them were lost.
ANXIETY/ANGER/DEPRESSION: I definitely felt the anxiety and a bit of depression, not so much the anger- and I am sure my raging hormones are somewhat to blame. Anxiety over WILL THEY BE OK??? Will I be able to gain enough weight to support 3 babies when I have always been so skinny no matter what I eat my whole life? Will I lose my job as the primary earner- I only have 12 weeks of leave I can take before I no longer am required to remain employed by my company, and from everything I am reading, I could easily be on bedrest longer than that- especially with the physical nature of my job. Anxiety over how long I will have with the babies before I have to return to work (if I don't lose my job) since they will most likely be in the NICU after birth and may not come home until my time off is already expired? How will we afford the cost of 3 babies and childcare? If we hire an au pair, where will she fit in our small home and into our lives? And so many more thoughts.
BARGAINING: Not so much of this...
And Finally : ACCEPTANCE/ADAPTATION: My father has always been a calming voice of reason to me. He always reminds me that I am doing everything I can control to make the best outcomes, and everything beyond that I CANNOT worry about, and my Mother reminds me with faith- I must give to God- because there is no point worrying about the things you can't control- and it is simply not good for the babies. A few weeks after finding out, we are adapting. We are researching car seats, cribs, etc. I am arming myself with knowledge from books, blogs, and support groups, and I am feeling SO blessed. THREE TIMES as blessed in fact. What was a nightmare scenario had you asked us before we found out has become an incredible blessing that I would already not want any other way. I still struggle with the fear of what bad things could happen, especially since we are not even 9 weeks pregnant yet, but we are finally daring to dream about the future of these little beans, and talk about them as if they will definitely come into our family and grow into adults. Last night we stayed up late discussing what they will look like, how much we love them already, what life will be like once they are here, and already I cannot imagine, nor would I want my future any other way.
Pics from the first ultrasound between 6 and 7 weeks
Me At 8 weeks:
It was a long few weeks waiting for our 6 week ultrasound and I desperately wanted to see/hear the babie(s) heartrates to make sure that this was real, and to see if we were going to have one or two (but certainly more than that would be out of the question-impossible!)
Finally the day arrived and Georgia, the most wonderful ultrasound tech ever, took us back to the room. Almost immediately after inserting the wand it became apparent on the screen there was more than one sac. I became somewhat of an expert on ultrasound images after spending hours obsessing over pictures and youtube videos of singles, doubles, and more in the weeks approaching this day. As Georgia shifted the wand and nonchalantly said I see 2 sacs, and 2 heartbeats... and over here is a third sac. A flat "what." escaped my lips while my husband remained silent and wide-eyed at my side. I told Georgia, being the self-proclaimed ultrasound expert that I am, "but just because there is a third sac doesn't mean there is a baby in it right?" Her look said it all- there was a heartbeat, and oh, by the way, "I think one of the 3 sacs might have 2 heartbeats" an initial thought that she quickly changed her mind about after determining that it was just an imaging error. At this point, my knowledge of triplets from my RE and reading about a girl in the past who had lost all 3 at different stages of her pregnancy was that it is a very dangerous pregnancy, and not to get my hopes up. I was shocked beyond anything else and didn't know whether to be excited, terrified, worried, or all of the above. Georgia assured me that she had seen several healthy triplet pregnancies. Miraculously, after telling co-workers and some of my dearest patients, I heard that many people I know have known healthy triplets throughout their lives. I started to hope that maybe, just maybe, this will be ok.
Of course when I told my RE she was "obligated" to bring up the option of selective reduction, which I told her was not an option for my husband and I. After wanting children for so long, how could we ever make a choice to inject a fatal dose of drugs into one of my babies- killing him/her- to make my pregnancy/life a little easier? Absolutely not. I am reading Dr. Luke's book right now and she describes that often when learning you are pregnant with high order multiples you go through the same emotional stages that people experience with grief:
SHOCK: My husband and I felt this immediately, walking around in a daze for a week. When others expressed excitement at our news, I would sometimes say- 'At least one of us is excited! Aren't you worried too? this has a good chance of ending in disaster and heartache!'
DENIAL: For a few days I felt surely they all wouldn't make it, and we would end up with just one or two, and I hate to admit that I thought if that were the case, that would be fine with us. Surely all 3 babies in a triplet pregnancy would not survive. I have since FIERCELY changed my mind on this as through self education and speaking with other triplet parents/reading blogs have found out that I can want and even expect that all of my babies will be born and healthy. I desperately want each of them to thrive and to come into our lives and would be devastated at this point if any one of them were lost.
ANXIETY/ANGER/DEPRESSION: I definitely felt the anxiety and a bit of depression, not so much the anger- and I am sure my raging hormones are somewhat to blame. Anxiety over WILL THEY BE OK??? Will I be able to gain enough weight to support 3 babies when I have always been so skinny no matter what I eat my whole life? Will I lose my job as the primary earner- I only have 12 weeks of leave I can take before I no longer am required to remain employed by my company, and from everything I am reading, I could easily be on bedrest longer than that- especially with the physical nature of my job. Anxiety over how long I will have with the babies before I have to return to work (if I don't lose my job) since they will most likely be in the NICU after birth and may not come home until my time off is already expired? How will we afford the cost of 3 babies and childcare? If we hire an au pair, where will she fit in our small home and into our lives? And so many more thoughts.
BARGAINING: Not so much of this...
And Finally : ACCEPTANCE/ADAPTATION: My father has always been a calming voice of reason to me. He always reminds me that I am doing everything I can control to make the best outcomes, and everything beyond that I CANNOT worry about, and my Mother reminds me with faith- I must give to God- because there is no point worrying about the things you can't control- and it is simply not good for the babies. A few weeks after finding out, we are adapting. We are researching car seats, cribs, etc. I am arming myself with knowledge from books, blogs, and support groups, and I am feeling SO blessed. THREE TIMES as blessed in fact. What was a nightmare scenario had you asked us before we found out has become an incredible blessing that I would already not want any other way. I still struggle with the fear of what bad things could happen, especially since we are not even 9 weeks pregnant yet, but we are finally daring to dream about the future of these little beans, and talk about them as if they will definitely come into our family and grow into adults. Last night we stayed up late discussing what they will look like, how much we love them already, what life will be like once they are here, and already I cannot imagine, nor would I want my future any other way.
Pics from the first ultrasound between 6 and 7 weeks
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