Friday, October 31, 2008

Trick or Treat

Amelia went out for trick or treat around the neighborhood for the first time this year. She was dressed as Goldilocks and the three bears. Fortunately, the weather was very nice tonight, and Amelia and Mom and Dad enjoyed a little walk while Grandma D. handed out candy at the house and kept an eye on the boys.


Amelia as Goldilocks and the three bears.

The boys also got dressed up for Halloween. Thanks to the people from Jeff's office, they had these darling little jack o'lantern onesies to wear for the occasion. Look, we've got our very own pumpkin patch!

Our three little pumpkins: Isaac, Alex and Sam



Happy Halloween! Amelia with Sam, Isaac and Alex.

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Today's Challenge

Amelia came home from daycare yesterday with a tummy ache. She had a rough night, and was pretty puny this morning, so I kept her home. While she was very good, at times it was a real challenge to deal with a sick toddler and newborn triplets today.

This morning Amelia and I watched cartoons while the boys slept, and I tucked her in on the couch for a video during feedings. You do what you have to do, I guess. She perked up by this afternoon, so we did some puzzles and read some books instead of watching TV. By bath time she was ready to splash and play, so I think she's back to her usual self now.

Unfortunately, nap times did not coordinate, and two of the boys were pretty fussy from 3:30 through 6:30 p.m., so this mama's headed for bed to catch a few ZZZZs before the 1:30 a.m. feeding. Still, if they are going to fuss, I'd rather it be in the afternoon or evening than in the middle of the night!

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Someday She'll Hate Me for This Post...

Last night Amelia helped feed the babies.

Amelia and Alex

Then she saw Mom nursing Isaac, and pretty soon she was pulling up her shirt, asking to feed her baby. Tears ensued when we tried to explain that only mommies could feed babies that way.

Poor, sweet Amelia! We love you and we love how much you already want to do things for your "brodders."

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Growing Boys

We weighed the boys tonight, and they are already growing like weeds! At almost three weeks old, combined they tip the scales at almost 20 lbs.

Sam - 6 lb. 6 oz.
Isaac - 5 lb. 15 oz.
Alex - 7 lb. 7 oz.

Clearly eating every three hours agrees with these boys!

I'm still trying to teach them how to nurse. Isaac's getting the hang of things, and Sam doesn't do too badly, but Alex is pretty lazy about it. I may never get him to be much of a nurser as long as there's a bottle in the picture. And logistically, there has to be some bottle feeding involved. There just are not enough hours in the day or enough of Mom to go around!

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Before and After

For months I've been posting pictures of my ever-expanding waist. So now, if you'll indulge me for just a moment, here's a picture of the shrinkage that has occurred.


On the day I delivered the boys, I had gained 42 pounds and measured 48 1/2 inches around. When I left the hospital, I was already 4o pounds lighter. (Remember, I delivered 16 1/2 pounds of baby!) When I was at the doctor's office last Friday, 16 days after delivery, I weighed 3 pounds less than when I got pregnant.
But, for the sake of comparison, I'll leave you with this video, which we took about an hour before we went to the hospital to have the boys. I affectionately refer to it as, "How Do You Steer This Thing?"

A Waist Returns!

This morning I was celebrating wearing the first pair of real pants -- you know, with buttons and zippers and a waistband -- that I've had on in longer than I can remember.

I was showing off to Jeff, who said, "That's great honey!" He then added as lovingly as he could, "But your zipper's down."

Shoot.

Must have forgotten how to do all that in the last six months.

Saturday, October 25, 2008

We Don't Need This Kind of Excitement

I spent a few hours in the emergency room the other night, having serious leg pain checked out to make sure it wasn't a blood clot. First they drew blood and did some blood test. My numbers came back very high, which can indicate a clot, so we waited another two hours for an ultrasound tech to come check my leg and ultimately give me the all clear.

Fortunately, we had some of our wonderful volunteers coming to do the 10 p.m. feeding, so Jeff could come to the hospital and wait it out with me. While we waited we watched "House," the medical TV drama. The episode was about three people who all had serious leg problems. Was it sadistic to watch that for an hour while we waited to find out about a potential blood clot?

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Moms Are...

Yesterday the boys were two weeks old. I planned a light-hearted post that compares how I looked the day I delivered with how I look now, but that one will have to wait.

Instead, I want to post a big THANK YOU to my mom. She just left, after being here a full month before the triplets were born and these first two weeks we had them home. As you saw in previous posts, she did all my nesting and organizing for me, and helped take care of this family as we waited for the babies to come. She truly was a godsend in those last few weeks.

But that was nothing compared to these first two weeks of life with triplets in the house. From helping with three feedings a night to devising baby boot camp, and from giving first baths to working with our volunteers to handle the late evening feeding, Mom was there. She stayed long enough for me to recover from the delivery. And she was here to see the boys start to come out of the sleepy baby stage and begin to develop their own personalities. Of course, that makes leaving them all the harder.

Grandma Alice with Sam, Alex and Isaac. 10/11/08

Mom, I never thought you'd still be taking care of me when I was 36 years old, but I am so glad you were here. I love you and I miss you already. Thank you isn't enough, but it's all I have to offer. You're the best!

Christy

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Children of God

At last, I'm able to get to this post about the boys' baptism. On Saturday, October 11, we had the three boys baptized at the hospital. With cold and flu season soon upon us, we won't be taking them out much, and a church baptism probably won't happen for a few months. While they were all doing well, we wanted to be sure they were baptized, just in case. We will have a Conferral of Rights ceremony later to publicly welcome them to the church.

Wendy, one of our many wonderful NICU nurses, brought Alex up to my room for the occasion. She also served as official photographer, so we are able to share these photos. It was the first time we had the three boys all together since delivery, so it was a special time for all of us.

Father Richard said this is the first time he's ever baptized triplets, even after 15 years in the priesthood. He was probably as excited about the event as we were. Thanks to my friend, Jane, we had three beautiful little white blankets with crosses on them to serve as the babies' baptismal garments.

A Catholic baptism is a very beautiful ceremony, and it includes praying the "Our Father." If you've been following my blog, you read in an earlier post how Jeff and I pray the "Our Father" every night for our children, because it includes the prayer that never fails: "Thy will be done." I must admit that saying those words out loud while looking around the room at three strong, healthy boys -- greater blessings than we ever could have hoped for -- brought tears to my eyes.

My dad is holding Samuel Joseph, my mom is holding Alexander Steven, and I am holding Isaac Thomas. They were all baptised with water first. (Yes, that's a bottle of Ice Mountain Fr. Richard is holding -- I asked if it was the church's preferred brand now. It was blessed on the spot, so it's legit.) Then they received the oil of Chrism. The rest of the traditional ceremony, including the lighting of the candles will be done at the church when they are a little older and stronger.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Baby Boot Camp Part Three and Angels of Mercy

OK, Saturday night the babies kicked our butts. Well, more specifically, they kicked butt on Grandma and Jeff first, before I got up. I went to bed at 9 with a sleeping pill and orders to get more than a 2-hour stretch of sleep. I got up briefly at 2:30 a.m. when Amelia woke up, but was still groggy, so I just brought her to bed with me. At 4:30 a.m. I realized that there was a lot of crying going on, so I got up to help.

I found Jeff still in his jeans. The 10 p.m. feeding hadn't ended. I took over for Jeff and it wasn't until we fed the boys again at 6 a.m. that they finally all went down. Sam was the good sleeper for the night, so Jeff told him there was only one college fund and so far, it was all his!

I did what I could the next morning to get us through the day. I sent Amelia to Sarah's for the afternoon and overnight. (It's sweet that she wants to help, but SOOOO unhelpful!) And I called in my neighbors to help. A group came at noon to handle the feeding and do some things around the house so Jeff, Mom and I could all eat a meal and shower. Then a couple people came back at 7 p.m. and at 10 p.m. to help with those feedings, too.

I BELIEVE IN ANGELS!!

Mom went to bed by 8 p.m. and Jeff and I were both in bed by 10:15 p.m. The boys, after an enema to get things moving after three days, were very cooperative and went from 10 until 3:30 without waking to eat. Alleluia! By Monday morning we all felt human again.

Now my neighbors have organized to provide helpers for the 10 p.m. feeding Sunday through Thursday for the next month. That means we can all go to bed, leave the boys in capable hands, and get some much needed stretches of sleep.

The boys do seem to be settling into a schedule of sorts, and we're learning how to get everyone fed well and in about an hour, so we're making progress.

Think sleepy thoughts for the boys and Amelia...

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Baby Boot Camp -- The Night Shift

Well, our day campers were better than our night campers. The boys really gave Jeff and I the business from about 9:30 until 2 a.m. Sometimes one, sometimes two, and too often all three were have a good fuss. There simply aren't enough hands, bouncy seats and swings for that.

Jeff, my loving husband, took on the midnight feeding by himself to try to give me and Grandma a little extra sleep. It was a crazy idea, but he got most of the way through it before I realized (from the depths of sweet sleep) that more than just the one crying baby I had left him was crying and came out to rescue him from dealing single-handed with three babies who needed to burp or just fuss.

That time all the commotion woke Amelia, who wanted to get up and help. She and I sang a lullaby to baby Sam, and then I told her it was time for bed and to go ask Daddy to take her. Fortunately his crowd had calmed down by then. Amelia was up a second time about 1:30 and wanted to hold a baby. Have you ever said "No," to a very tired two-year-old in the wee hours of the morning? MELTDOWN!

We woke Grandma up then and Jeff took Amelia back to her room for rockabye and some milk. He got up with her this morning and persuaded her to snuggle up with him for an extra hour of sleep, which they both needed!

I hit the sack about 2:30 a.m., but forgot to set the alarm for the next feeding. The boys went until 6:15 before their feeding though, so I got almost four full hours of sleep.

Now their first two feeding of the day have gone beautifully, Jeff and Amelia are at the zoo, and Grandma and I both took a shower. (Insert Wonder Woman theme music here.) Time for lunch and another 20-minute nap after I prepare bottles.

Friday, October 17, 2008

Baby Boot Camp - Day One

My sister called this evening to see how "baby boot camp" was going. She thought she might need to come save the boys from Mom & Grandma!

So far, all is well, though night time is the real test. Mom and I regrouped at the breakfast table (oh, to be a coffee drinker!) at 6:30 and put the plan together. I am quite certain that wars have been waged and military campaigns launched with less planning and logistical consideration than we put into the day's schedule. Our main goal was to get everyone changed, fed, burped and back down in an hour, give or take 15 minutes.

Believe it or not, we did accomplish that 4 times today, and I nursed or at least worked with all three boys to nurse 3 times. All it took was some mom-genuity in creating a baby assembly line. Our little guys are big enough to handle a propped bottle, so we used Boppies -- or baby Barcaloungers as I like to call them.


Today the system looked like this. (I am VERY aware it could look different tomorrow. Yes, we are experimenting all the way through this. I have a feeling that will continue for years!)

* Get Baby 1 up (whoever is the most active or fussy) and change his diaper.

* Nurse Baby 1 and set him in his Boppy with a bottle while Grandma gets Baby 2 up and changes him.

* Nurse Baby 2 and set him in his Boppy with a bottle while Grandma gets Baby 3 up and changes him.

* Nurse Baby 3 and set him in his Boppy with a bottle while Grandma burps Baby 1 and puts him back to finish his bottle.

* Burp Baby 2 and put him back to finish his bottle.

* Burp Baby 3 and put him back to finish his bottle while Grandma burps Baby 1, swaddles him and puts him down in the crib.

* Burp Baby 2, swaddle him and put him down in the crib.

* Burp Baby 3, swaddle him and put him down in the crib.

* Pray that everyone goes back to sleep so you can slink off and sleep yourself. Or shower. Treasure that shower!

Are you tired, yet?

This evening we spent some awake time with the boys in addition to their evening feeding. Amelia helped throw away dirty diapers, bring bottles, and also held bottles for her brothers. It was so sweet. She's a good big sister.



By luck, maybe more than planning, the boys slept while we ate supper and were mostly (two down and one fussy isn't bad) back asleep an hour before Amelia's bedtime. That was perfect, because both Mom & Dad got to spend some time with her and get her through the bedtime routine.

Time to rest. See you all in 90 minutes.

All Right Boys, Let's Get in Line!

The boys are coming out of that initial sleepy baby stage, and suddenly spreading their feedings all over the place. Last night was rough, rough, rough! Sam slept well, but his "brodders" spent most of the night on Mom & Dad's chests snoozing and fussing while we barely slept. We can't be having that!

Today we're moving to a tight ship schedule that involves waking everyone up and starting feedings 10 minutes apart. And yes, we will prop bottles.

There's the 11 a.m. wake up call. Gotta go...

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Homecoming Photos

Sam and Isaac came home when I was discharged on Sunday, October 12. While we hated to leave Alex behind, he was in good hands, and it let us start juggling two instead of three!


Dad, Mom, Sam and Isaac get ready to leave the hospital.



Jeff makes two look easy!



And here we are on Tuesday, October 14, leaving the hospital with all three boys. What a blessing to have them all home and healthy only 6 days after they were born.



Dad, Mom, Sam, Isaac and Alex head for home together.


This photo tells the true story of bringing home three babies!



Grandma Alice tries to get all three boys to take their pacis in the van.


The Gang's All Here

The boys are one week old today, and the gang's all here. We brought Alex home from the hospital yesterday, and added him to the feeding mix last night. It was like juggling. We had learned with two, but adding that third was pretty tricky. Fortunately, they are all on a similar schedule and did pretty well last night.

I'll post pics of the five of us leaving the hospital soon, but now it's naptime for Mom.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Soon to Be Together Again

Great news! The NICU just called and they are sending Alex home tomorrow. He's eating well and the breathing issues have been resolved. I'm so excited to have him here and to start to get to know him! What a blessing to have only one triplet need NICU care, and for less than a week.

Here's a photo from Saturday evening, when we were able to get the boys together for the first time since Alex went to the NICU after delivery. More pictures of these three together will certainly follow.



Together Again:
Isaac (left), Alexander (top) and Samuel on Mommy's lap.
10/11/08

First Night Home

We survived the first night at home with Sam and Isaac, but Sam really gave us a run for our money. He guzzled nearly 60 mls (about 2 oz) at 12:30 a.m. and then fussed and cried until 5:30 a.m., clearly with a tummy ache and possibly reflux issues. Sam's doing better today, but we'll keep a close eye on him as reflux is not uncommon is preemies and Amelia had reflux, even as an overdue baby.

Isaac had his fussy time from 5:30 until about 7:30, so it was a long night. We called in reinforcements today in the form of some wonderful neighbors who were thrilled to take over a feeding and be here for a couple of hours so Mom and I could get some sleep and Jeff could go to work today. We were thrilled to have them here! We'll be working with these boys on a feeding and sleeping schedule that we can all live with. I'm just so glad that Sam and Isaac were able to come home with us.

It was hard to leave Alex behind, but I know he's in good hands. Jeff went up last night and did his 9 p.m. feeding, and will probably do the same tomorrow. I promised myself I would rest today and care for the other two boys who really need me, so I did not go to the hospital. We are still hoping Alex will come home Wednesday.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Mostly Homeward Bound

Today Samuel, Isaac and I will head home from the hospital. Alexander is going to stay in NICU a couple days and we'll probably bring him home Tuesday.

Alex has no major issues, but the NICU docs I talked to yesterday wanted to see him eating more than he was. He's used to his status as the big man who didn't fight for anything in utero, so he's a lazy eater.

The NICU nurses have been working to get him to take 35 mls in a feeding, and we've been telling him we're going to bring his brothers in to show him how it's done. He must be listening, because overnight he took 42, 50 and 60 mls in his feedings -- completely outdoing his brothers. So we'll see if that changes anything for the docs. I expect they'll want to see that kind of intake for a couple days before they release him.

This is such a minor issue, especially in a triplet birth, and for only one baby to even need NICU is a blessing beyond our greatest hopes.

We were able to get all three boys together last evening for the first time. I held them all on my lap and marveled that just three days ago all three of those big boys were inside of me. (I also marveled that I have a lap again!) They each have their own look, and it was great to put them side by and side and compare noses, mouths, ears, and foreheads.

Look, he has mom's ears.

Daddy's mouth and chin on this one.

These two have pretty high foreheads.

That reddish hair could come from either side.

We have some great pictures of the whole crew that we'll post soon.

Friday, October 10, 2008

And Here They Are

We finally got to naming the three little boys. I guess they weren't quite 48 hours old yet so I'm not feeling too badly about it. Here they are:


Samuel Joseph was born at 14:56 on Wednesday, October 8, 2008. He weighed 5 lbs 4 oz,(length TBD).


Next came Isaac Thomas, also born at 14:56 on Wednesday, October 8, 2008. Isaac weighed 5 lbs 2.9 oz and was 18.5 inches long.


And finally, Alexander Steven was born at 14:57 on Wednesday, October 08, 2008. Alex weighed 6 lbs 1 oz and was 20.1 inches long.

The boys and mom are doing pretty well. Alex will be in the NICU for a little while longer. His breathing issues have been resolved and we are just waiting for the last of the antibiotic. Big sister Amelia got to visit yesterday. The visit went really well, even if we had to work to keep Amelia from jumping on Mommy.














As you can see, the nurses have helped us keep the babies straight

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Mama's Boys

Mom reporting in here. Still no final word on names, but we'll have that all sorted out tomorrow. I was able to nurse two of the boys this morning, and they did great. I got up out of bed about 1 p.m., and that was pretty rough. But after the first time it gets easier.

While I had some side effects from the anesthesia, it worked much better this time than with Amelia, so the delivery went smoothly. We were able to see each of the babies immediately after birth and again after they were assessed. Neither Jeff nor I could believe we didn't have at least one girl in there! Afterwards I was a little shocked that my big belly was so small again.

I was finally able to go down to the NICU to see our big boy at 6 p.m. and give him a bottle. I hadn't seen him since the couple minutes right after he was born. He's doing great and has been off all breathing help since this morning. They are giving him 48 hours of antibiotics just to be safe, and once he's done with that -- tomorrow evening -- he should join his brothers in the regular nursery.

Jeff will get pictures up soon. I'm sure you'll all agree that he deserved to spend his birthday today holding his sons instead of uploading pictures of them. He also brought Amelia up to see the babies, and she was very excited about her "widdle brodders." We'll get those photos up soon, too. In the meantime you'll have to trust me when I tell you the triplets are adorable.

Time for more rest for mom now that the Vicodin is kicking in. Thanks for all your prayers for a safe delivery and healthy babies. God was certainly watching over us and our sons throughout the entire pregnancy.

Day two...

Today is day two (and my birthday). The boys (still no name assigned) are doing pretty good. It's hard to believe that two of them are out of the NICU. Baby C is still in the NICU but is doing much better today. They had to aspirate some of the air that collected outside his lung and that has helped the breathing quite a bit. If he does well eating today, then he too will be out of the NICU. Mom is doing reasonably well - as reasonable as can be expected for having major surgery. There are pictures to come, when I can get to our computer at home.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!

Christy and Jeff (and Amelia) are in trouble...three strawberry-blond-headed boys were welcomed into this world around 3:30 this afternoon!

As of an hour ago, no names were picked out yet, but here's what Jeff shared with me:

Weights:
  • 5 lbs., 3 oz.
  • 5 lbs., 4 oz.
  • 6 lbs. 1 oz.
That's 16 1/2 pounds worth of babies!

Jeff didn't recall lengths or eye color, if you're curious, but here's what's important: One baby was already out with Christy, another was in the NICU for observation but doing well, and the third is coping with premature breathing issues. Mom is doing well but wasn't out of recovery yet. She'll be up for calls tomorrow.

Congratulations Jeff and Christy!!!

It's a Good Day for a Birthday...or Three

I just finished up at the doctor's office and he decided it's time for us to finally meet these babies. This morning's ultrasound showed that Baby A is starting to lag behind a bit in growth, which is not cause for big concern. But, at 36 weeks and 3 days, there's no point in waiting any longer either.

We'll be heading to the hospital about 12:30 this afternoon and the delivery is scheduled for 3 p.m. Please pray that all goes well with the delivery, that the anesthetic is effective this time, and that the babies are all strong and healthy.

We've got someone on standby to post the delivery news on the blog, so we'll try to get the word out as soon as we can.

Thanks to all of you for following our adventure so far and for keeping us in your prayers. We appreciate each and every of you.

Early Morning Musings

Had to turn the blogging duties over to Jeff last night as I headed to bed early, early after a Vicodin to ease the pain of a newly dislocated rib. Clearly we are running out of room here! It's amazing what good drugs can do for you though.

Right now the babies are having a dance party, which I am watching with both awe and amazement. I've seen these little ones in ultrasounds a dozen times or more, and I still can't believe that there are three babies in there.

I remember the first "WHAT?!" ultrasound where they were just little tiny spots with furiously beating hearts. We watched them grow through the tadpole stage and turn into three little people who would wave their arms and kick their legs, and even suck their thumbs. As they grew, we saw tiny faces in profile and watched them kick each other as space got even tighter. And more recently, they have gotten so big and crowded that it's hard to tell what's what and who's who.

And still, despite all the sneak peeks, my size, and the seismic baby activity, I find it hard to believe that there are three babies in there. What an enormous, and overwhelming, blessing!

The ultrasounds can show us lots of things, and it is wonderful technology that allows us to "see" our babies before they arrive. But, it can't tell us who these babies are or show us whether they look like mom or dad, or perhaps have great-grandpa's red hair. That only comes at birth, and I am looking forward to that moment when I can hold all three of these precious babies in my arms and begin to get to know them.

Don't know much about you,
Don't know who you are.
We've been doing fine without you,
But, we could only go so far.

Don't know why you chose us,
Were you watching from above?
Is there someone there that knows us
Said we'd give you all our love?

Will you laugh just like your mother?
Will you sigh like your old man?
Will some things skip a generation
Like I've heard they often can?

Are you a poet or a dancer?
A devil or a clown?
Or a strange new combination of
The things we've handed down?

~ Marc Cohn, "The Things We've Handed Down"

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Waiting on Babies

We are rapidly approaching 37 weeks and Christy is moving pretty slow these days - not that we have any cause to complain about slow movement.

This has been an amazing experience so far, realizing that the fun is just getting started. I often remember that the average triplet pregnancy lasts about 32 weeks and in many cases involves some time on bedrest. We have been fortunate - Christy worked to 32 weeks, no bedrest and is now into week 36+ (still no bedrest, what would be the point now?).

So for now, no babies, but we are certainly getting closer.

Jeff

Monday, October 6, 2008

The Deadline Is Set

OK, don't get too excited, the birthday is not THAT imminent. I saw the doc this morning and everything still looks great. We scheduled delivery for Monday, October 13 at 7:30 a.m. Of course, I could go before then, but if not, that will be the day -- at 37 weeks and 1 day gestation.

I have an ultrasound on Wednesday to make sure the babies are still doing fine, though they were so active last night that they kept Jeff awake! I guess I'm so used to it I just slept right through it all. I don't think it will be that easy once they arrive!

Sunday, October 5, 2008

36 Unbelievable Weeks

It's almost impossible to believe that we're at 36 weeks today with no complications, one minor complaint (the itchy rash, which has cleared up), and the first contractions just a few nights ago. (None since, by the way.)

I thought I had surely reached my capacity for expansion, but I am still growing. Today I am 49 inches around and I have gained a total of 40 lbs. The babies should all be right around 6 lbs. now, though their growth could well be slowing down as it's pretty crowded in there.

Ever since my mom came she's said I look just like I always have from the back, but from the front I look like I swallowed an exercise ball. Hmmm... Could I possibly be that big? She also says the pictures just don't do it justice. So, this week, just for fun, we took a few pictures for comparison. You be the judge.

36 weeks and still growing!
Basketball? Maybe months ago.
Amelia's large rubber ball? Closer!


Exercise ball? Yikes!

Saturday, October 4, 2008

That Light? Maybe Not

Not one single contraction today, despite going up and down the stairs to the basement at least five times to supervise some organization down there. What can I say? Like all babies, these little ones will come when they are good and ready.

A couple more hours and we'll be at 36 weeks. Amazing! I guess you'll get to see one more round of photos tomorrow!

A Light at the End of the Tunnel?

I had more contractions last night. After 90 minutes, I'd had enough to warrant a call to my doctor. When he returned my call about 30 minutes later, my contractions had stopped completely. I had a similar experience with Amelia. I had contractions for up to 12 hours at a time for 4 days before we went to the hospital. If my contractions would keep going for even 3-4 hours, we'd probably get to the hospital and deliver.

No signs of any contractions today, even though I actually walked downstairs to the basement more than once to supervise some final organization there. Unless things really start to move, we'll have 36-weekers tomorrow, and that's also a good thing.

Friday, October 3, 2008

Moving Along?

I am running out of creative ways to tell you all that we still don't have babies, or any real signs that they will arrive soon either.

I did finally have a few contractions in the middle of the night last night. Enough to make me get up and optimistically get a few last things ready. I filled out my hospital pre-registration forms and took the deteriorating polish off my toenails. After about 6 contractions in 2 hours that was it. Still, maybe we're moving in the right direction now?

Thursday, October 2, 2008

Itch Relief!

I've been using the steroid cream the doc prescribed for two days now and I have to admit that the itching is much, much better. I still have some patches that crop up itching, and the earlier patches are still red and splotchy, but it's not nearly as miserable now. Hopefully the medicine will keep things under control for here to the end.

Today's laugh for the day is this. The babies' Libra horoscope in today's local paper starts out with: "Beware of holding on too tightly." HA!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Duct Tape? Super Glue?

Seriously, what is holding these babies inside of me still? Duct tape? Super glue? Magnetic force? A stubbornness (theirs, not mine) that will be the bane of my existence when they are two?

The doc says everything looks great, but I am showing NO SIGNS of having these babies yet. He optimistically moved next week's appointment to Monday instead of Wednesday, and is willing to schedule something for next week if the rash has me going crazy, or I show any other indications that my body's going to give up these babies. Otherwise, he'd like me to hit 37 weeks -- which would be considered full term.

Perhaps it's time to change all those prayers from, "Please God, help her carry these babies to be big and healthy," to "All right already, God. Let's meet these little ones!"