One Year Blogiversary

One year ago today I started this blog with a pretty low-key post.

I started it in large part because so many people wanted updates on the triplet pregnancy. And, I wanted to capture everything that was going on in our lives because I knew this would probably be the only baby book the boys ever have.

At the time, I had no idea how much I would enjoy writing here, first for myself and my family and friends, and now for fellow moms, moms of multiples and random visitors from across the globe. I had no idea how many new friends I would make, and how many fellow triplet moms I would connect with.

A lot certainly has changed in a year!

THEN:

Who knew it would be three boys?

Fifteen weeks pregnant ~ May 15, 2008

Amelia ~ May 2008

Amelia ~ May 2008 ~ SOOOO big! (But really, still small.)

And NOW:

Amelia ~ May 2009

Sam, Alex, and Isaac ~ May 2009

This blog has enriched my life...our lives. Thank you for being part of the journey so far. I hope you'll keep enjoying the ride!

Flashback: Telling the Family

One year ago about this time we were telling family that we were pregnant, and later, after the first trimester was over and the risks of losing one of the babies dropped considerably, that it was triplets.

We were able to tell Jeff's parents in person that we were pregnant again by putting the message on Amelia when we saw them at Easter.

Proud big-sister-to-be.

We decided to share the triplet news by video call so we could see Grandma and Grandpa D.'s faces. So, we sent this ultrasound picture for them to open during the call.

The babies say hello to the family.

Jeff's mom looked at the picture and wanted to know what three parts of the baby she was looking at. Jeff said, "Not three parts, Mom. THREE BABIES." That elicited a round of "WHAT?" from everyone, and a lot of commotion ensued. Mouths were hanging open in disbelief, and Grandma D. kept covering her face with her hands, she was so excited and shocked.

We, of course, had (mostly) adjusted to the news by then, so we really enjoyed seeing everyone else's reactions.

Jeff and I talked to my parents on the phone, but we told most of my family by email. I believe one of my brothers summed up what everyone else was thinking when he sent an email that said "holy smokes!" (Editor's note: I had to clean that up since this is a family blog!)

I waited a couple more weeks before I told my office that I wasn't just pregnant -- I was pregnant with triplets. I worked with mostly women so the news brought lots of squeals and a general "ohmigosh" reaction. The best though, was when a male colleague wandered by just after I made my announcement and wanted to know what all of the hubbub was about. Someone pointed at me and yelled, "Three babies!" He just stood there with his mouth open and finally said, "In there? Really? Where are you hiding them?"

I certainly wasn't able to hide them for long!

What a Difference a Year Makes

One year ago today we found out we were expecting not one bundle of joy, but THREE! Our reaction to the news was the topic of my second post on this blog, way back in May 2008.

My sister probably put it best when she described our feelings about expecting triplets as "manic." Sometimes we were thrilled and excited, and other times we were just plain freaking out.

The first moments after we found out about the triplets set the tone for the pregnancy. We were relieved and happy that all three babies looked great, but were immediately hit with the sobering news that there was about a 60% chance that we'd lose at least one of the babies in the first trimester. Then the discussion turned to trying to carry the babies to 24 weeks, which was minimum viability. No one ever brought that up during my first pregnancy, that's for sure! It was truly like a roller coaster ride -- scary and thrilling all at once.

But God works in mysterious ways, and here we are one year later, enjoying many blessings. We were blessed with an uncomplicated pregnancy of 36 weeks and 3 days, just shy of full term at 37 weeks. (That's not to say it was easy!) We delivered big, healthy babies and just one spent some time in the NICU for a minor issue. We were blessed to get to know better so many wonderful people who wanted to help with the boys in those first months, and we were blessed to have so many of our family members come to help, too.

I'll never forget my first sight of those three little sacs on the ultrasound screen. Even in my moment of panic, I was relieved and overjoyed to see three tiny hearts beating away madly. I fell in love with my three boys right then and there, and I can't imagine life without them.

Samuel: You were our Hercules baby, holding up your brothers for all those months. You have become a real charmer with your red hair, big blue eyes and sweet smile. You know how to flirt with the best of them!

Isaac: You endured being squeezed in the middle. You are a real talker these days, cooing and gurgling at everyone. You were appropriately named, as Isaac means "laughter" in Hebrew, and you are the giggliest baby of all.

Alexander: You entered the world as the youngest, but biggest of my babies. And you have a big heart to go with your stature. You are our joyful, jolly Buddha baby, bringing smiles to everyone you meet.

The greatest blessing of all is to have Sam, Isaac and Alex as part of our lives. Our arms may be fuller than we anticipated, but our hearts are too.

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"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9KvlZWQzRA

12 Pounds of Baby!

Today was the 32-week doctor's visit. We had an ultrasound, and the babies are all about 4 lbs. To be exact, they weighed in at 3 lbs. 15 oz., 4 lbs., and 4 lbs. 1 oz. Not only are those great weights, these babies continue to amaze the doctor by all being so close to the same size.

My blood pressure is still great, at 102 over 60, and while I didn't gain any weight for the second week in a row, we can't argue that the babies aren't getting what they need to grow. I'm now measuring at 44 weeks, which would be a full month overdue for a singleton. At this point, they won't do anything to stop labor, especially not given the size of the babies. And, the babies should put on roughly a half pound a week, so at my next ultrasound in two weeks, we should see each baby weighing in at close to 5 lbs. If you're used to singletons, that can sound small, but remember that most triplets are born weighing just over 3 lbs.

My mom and Jeff both came to the ultrasound today. Jeff hasn't been to one in a while, and in case this is the last one, he thought he'd like to take another peek at the babies. My mom has never seen an ultrasound, because they never did them back in her day, so it was a first for her. At this point, the babies are so crowded it's a little hard to figure out what's what and who's who, but the ultrasound tech was really good about pointing out faces and feet, and she even showed us that one of the babies has some hair on its head. It looked like a fuzzy little halo.

The only real question now is just how long will my body hold out before deciding enough is enough. Hmmm...must be time to ask my faithful readers to predict birthday and birth weights! That post coming soon.

An Update from the Doctor

Today's big news -- in every sense of the word -- is the results of our ultrasound. The babies weighed in at 3 lbs. 1 oz., 3 lbs. 5 oz., and 3 lbs. 6 oz. That's 9.75 pounds of baby! No wonder they are starting to feel pretty heavy. Those are great weights for 30 weeks, and most importantly, all three babies continue to be very close in size.

When you consider that triplets, on average, are born at 32 weeks, and their average weight is 3 lbs. 11 oz., you can see that our little beans are growing quite well. I actually lost a pound in the last week, but clearly the babies are getting everything they need!

In addition to big, healthy babies, everything looks good with mama, too. Blood pressure's still staying nice and low and no other complications have shown up. So we'll keep moving (however slowly!) toward the 32-week mark where the risk of long-term complications is all but gone.

We are thrilled to be here and to have mom and babies all in great shape. Hopefully things will continue to go smoothly and we'll easily clear 32 weeks, giving the babies more time to grow and get ready to brave the outside world. Thanks to all of you for your prayers and support.

In other news, my last day at work will be Sept. 5, the end of week 31. After that it will be time to just rest and grow babies, which begs the question: What comes after waddle?

Say Cheese!

Finally, here are the ultrasound pics of babies A, B, and C from 26 weeks and 3 days. We're nearly 28 weeks now, but these are probably the last clear pics we'll get of everybody since it's getting crowded in there!

Baby A was 1 lb, 14 oz. Baby B was 1 lb. 14 oz., and Baby C was 1 lb. 15 oz.

Say cheese!

"I am just amazed..."

Today I saw the doctor and had a big ultrasound to measure the babies. I am thrilled to report that my doctor's first comment was "I am just amazed at how well these babies are growing and how well you are doing."

Now that's what you want to hear!

At 26 weeks, the babies measure 1 lb. 15 oz., 1 lb. 14 oz, and 1 lb. 14 oz. We are thrilled to see those sizes and also excited that the babies are all the same size still. As singletons they would be in about the 45 percentile for weight, so for triplets they are doing fantastic. Remember that the average birth weight for triplets is 3.5 lbs.

I've gained 31 lbs., which is a little less than they want, but as the doctor says, the babies are growing fine so it's hard to argue with my weight gain. Blood pressure was great (108/70) and I'm holding up well, so my doctor told me to keep doing whatever I'm doing. Yay! Jeff and I are very excited by all of this good news.

Everything looked great, and we did capture profile pics of each baby. That probably won't happen again, as they are getting big enough that it's hard to measure and to see all the parts of each baby. We'll try to get those scanned in and posted.

We are rapidly approaching 28 weeks -- another important milestone, where viability will be up to 90 percent and the risk of long-term complications starts to diminish rapidly. At my next visit in two weeks I'll do the gestational diabetes test, and we'll have another ultrasound in a month unless something changes that warrants another close look at the babies.

I'm still hoping to carry to 36 weeks and have nice big babies, though it's definitely getting harder to carry all of them around already. But at the same time, as it gets harder I also have less time to carry them, too.

I know many of you have been praying for us during this journey. We appreciate every whisper in God's ear, and ask that you keep praying for us and the babies.

Three pounds, two ounces of babies

We had another doctor's visit today, this one with an ultrasound to measure the babies' growth. Two of the babies weigh 1 lb. each and the third one weighs 1 lb. 2 oz. All of them measure bigger than their gestational age. All great news! It is particularly important that they all be about the same size and growing at the same rate. If one starts to fall behind you have to decide how long you watch that baby not growing well to give the others the benefit of some extra days in the womb. Pray that we don't have to enter into that debate!

We brought home ultrasound pictures of the babies today, so I'll try to get those posted soon.

My doctor, who is a very laid-back guy, was practically giddy at everything he saw today. Giddy on him looks like a smile, and that's about it. He said the babies are the same size he'd expect to see if I were only carrying one. Everything with mom looks great, too. Alleluia!

I've only gained three pounds since my last visit, which is less than they want to see, but considering I had a little stomach bug for a few days, it's not surprising. These little ones demand a lot of nutrition and even missing a few days of eating can have an impact.

So far no signs of bed rest on the horizon, just the usual warning to not overdo it, to listen to my body and to call if anything seems at all odd. I can do that!

At this point the doctor and I are cautiously optimistic that I can carry to at least 34 weeks. But as a first step, 24 weeks and viability is right around the corner, so keep praying!

Another Update from the Docs

I am happy to report nothing but good news from the latest doctor's appointment today. We're at 20 weeks now, so past the halfway point and everyone (mom included) is still going strong.

I have grown 10 inches around the middle to a 39-inch "waist." I also put on 21 pounds, which meets the "20 pounds in 20 weeks" rule of thumb, but falls a little short of the 30 recommended for someone with my body mass index. I'm still working on it though. In fact, I feel a milkshake coming on shortly. I'm measuring 28 weeks pregnant, so not quite full-term, yet.

The doctor did a quick ultrasound to peek in on the babies since it's so hard to determine whether he's hearing three distinct heartbeats or the same one more than once. What we saw was three very active babies with strong heartbeats. Two babies are head-to-head, and one was actively head-butting the other. It was also kicking its other sibling in the head. Hmmmm....I'm not sure that bodes well.

I've been able to feel the babies moving since about 14 weeks, but their kicks are getting much stronger now as they get bigger and still have room to move around. Sometimes I'd swear they have a mirror ball and a DJ in there for all the activity I feel! Amelia was a busy girl in utero, too, and is even today, so I have a feeling her siblings will help her keep Jeff and I on our toes.