Wordful Wednesday: Old Pregnancy Pics

Recently I was having trouble getting my camera card to download to the computer. So Jeff grabbed another camera card to see if the problem was the card or the computer. Turned out it was the original 16 MB card that came with the camera we owned before this one.

It only had six pictures on it, including this blast from the past:

This was taken on Amelia's due date, May 9, 2006. That girl didn't arrive for another two weeks. I have no idea how big around I was in this photo, but I know I gained 31 pounds in that pregnancy.

But hold on to your hats. Compare that with this:

This was taken three days before the boys were born, when I was 36 weeks pregnant. I had gained 40 pounds and measured 49 inches around my "waist." The day I delivered I had gained another two pounds and officially measured 48 1/2 inches around.

Amelia weighed 8 1/2 pounds, and the boys weighed a combined 16 1/2 pounds. But boy did all those arms and legs ever take up a lot of extra room!

For a real kick, check out the post where I compared the size of my pregnant-with-triplets stomach with an exercise ball, or the video of me showing off my belly on the day I delivered. Whew!

Play along with Wordful Wednesday at:

© Trippin' Mama 2010

The Triplet Weight Loss Plan

Perhaps this will be the latest rage in diets. Gain 42 pounds, deliver 16 1/2 pounds of baby. Follow with three months of 24/7 activity feeding babies, nursing babies and walking around carrying babies that are getting heavier and heavier (35 pounds combined now). Add to that limited time to eat or cook anything to eat.

The plan requires enormous stamina, but the results are fantastic. My legs got a great workout carrying all that weight during pregnancy. My arms are getting a great workout now carrying these 10- and 12-pound "weights." And thanks to the many miles I'm putting on walking babies, I'm wearing a pant size that I haven't worn in 10 years. Now if all this extra skin will magically shrink back to my pre-triplet days, I'll be in the best shape of my life!

Heaven knows I'd better be in great shape to keep up with these boys...

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?"

Drumroll, Please

The results of today's ultrasound show that I am carrying an astonishing 15 lbs., 13 oz. of babies.

Baby A - 5 lb. 4 oz.
Baby B - 5 lb. 3 oz.
Baby C - 5 lb. 6 oz.

So those of you who put your money on 16 lbs. or more of baby are still in competition!

Everything else looked great. Blood pressure was 108/70, and while I didn't gain any weight, clearly the babies are getting what they need to grow.

No signs that I'll be giving these babies up anytime soon, but that could change at anytime. I asked the doc when he thought I might deliver and he picked Oct. 11, since that's his birthday. I say it's not soon enough!

So Glad to Be Boring

I went to the doctor's office for my weekly appointment yesterday, and I think my doctor is starting to feel a little left out of this pregnancy. The first thing he said (with a laugh) when he came into the room was, "You never even call me!" I asked if he wanted me to call him now and then so he'd feel more useful.

It's not entirely true that I never call. But, I've only had to call three times. Once early on when I had horrible low abdominal pain, which was my C-section scar tearing, rather than stretching as the babies went through their first big growth spurt. The second was around 20 weeks when I had an awful stomachache, which turned out to be viral, as Jeff wound up with the same symptoms. And the last time was at about 30 weeks when I overdid it a bit, wasn't staying hydrated and had a few contractions.

So, my news from the doctor continues to be boring, and boring is good! I did gain 3 lbs. in the last six days (thanks Mom!), making up for the last three weeks where I either lost or didn't gain at all. So my total weight gain is now 39 lbs. I am measuring 46 1/2 inches around, and everything else looks good. We're really hoping to see the babies weigh in at 5 lbs. each during next week's ultrasound.

At this point, they are unlikely to even give me steroid shots to boost the babies' lung development. Most doctors don't bother past 32 weeks, and certainly not once I hit 34 weeks. We're starting to be hopeful that the babies won't need much time in the NICU at all, though they will go there right after delivery for a thorough check.

Let's keep all those prayers for big, healthy babies coming. We can't thank you enough for all your support that has brought us this far!

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.

Another Uneventful Doctor's Visit

You know your triplet pregnancy is going well with the first thing the doctor says after "How are you?" is, "So what's your commentary on this week's political events?" Yes, yet again, the doc and I spent most of my appointment talking about things outside of the pregnancy. It cracks me up!

There's not much to report, which is a good thing! My blood pressure is nice and low, and I'm measuring 42 weeks, though I didn't gain any weight this week. That's stunning, because I'm still eating like a horse. I have reached the point where everyone says, "That baby must be due any day now!"

The doctor did check out my self-diagnosed dislocated rib and told me I was right about that. Ouch! The babies need to build their new addition some place else. On the plus side, I felt more rested today than I have in weeks. That Vicodin really worked. I slept 5 hours straight before I woke up. I'm surprised I didn't wet the bed! And I had no trouble going back to sleep either.

The rib's not too bad today, as long as I don't try to take a deep breath. The massage therapist helped a lot, and I'll get in to the chiropractor on Friday morning, so that should help, too. All in all, a pretty minor complaint at 31w 3d with triplets.

Dr. Star asked, as he always does, about my contraction pattern. And I replied, yet again, that I don't have a pattern because I'm not having contractions. So, he's revising his 34 week estimate and saying he's cautiously optimistic I could make 36 weeks, especially as I'm finally going to quit working and rest a lot more. But, we'll know a lot more next week when we have another ultrasound.

Now for the story of the day. I mentioned my dislocated rib to a party who shall remain nameless, and the response was, "What were you doing?"

What was I doing? I must have hurt it when I was bull riding the other afternoon...

Another Uneventful Doctor's Visit (Whew!)

Here we are at 28 weeks 4 days and all is well. I am happy to report that I went to the doctor again today and everything looks good with Mom & the kiddos. No ultrasound today. We just listened to the heartbeats.

The babies' heart rates were 137, 140 and 142. The old wives' tale says that heart rates over 140 are girls and below are boys. These little ones are making sure they remain a surprise until their birthday!

I've gained 36 pounds, though it feels like much, much more. I just can't seem to put the pounds on, no matter how hard I try. But my blood pressure is good and we'll see how the gestational diabetes test comes back. Here's the latest belly shot.

I start weekly visits to the doctor now, and my next ultrasound is at the end of the month. Then we'll have ultrasounds every two weeks. I hope to continue to have nothing but good news to share with you.

Thanks for all of the prayers that are helping me and the babies stay healthy and keep growing.

"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.

Update from the Docs

I had another doctor's appointment today. If I seems like I have a lot of those, I do. Every two weeks. All four of us are doing well. No ultrasound today, but we heard all three of the babies' heartbeats, and everyone is going strong. Interestingly enough, all three babies' heartbeats sounded different, so it was easy to tell we were hearing three different babies, not the same baby three times.

Mom's gained 14 pounds--not enough, I'm told. So, I need to step up the caloric intake. My recommended is 4,000 calories a day! I am gaining girth, though. In the last week I grew a half inch, and I'm told that's nothing compared to what's coming when the babies hit their big growth spurt from weeks 18-22. Yikes!

Mom's Night Out

Thursday night I went to a Mom's Night Out for a group for families with triplets or more. They were a great group of women, and it was good to connect with them. They answered my questions, but didn't scare me with their horror stories -- and I'm sure they all have some.

Since I just joined the group, I got a couple books and lots of other good information. Anyone expecting multiples should get the book, "When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets or Quads: Proven Guidelines for a Healthy Multiple Pregnancy" by Dr. Barbara Luke and Tamara Eberlein. And get it as soon as you find out your coming bundles of joy number more than one.

If you can't find it at your local bookstore, it's on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Youre-Expecting-Twins-Triplets-Revised/dp/0060542683/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210447048&sr=1-1.

This is real, research-based nutrition for a multiple pregnancy. Women in Dr. Luke's Multiples Clinic who follow the guidelines in this book have triplets that weigh 35% more than the national average for triplets. When you consider than the average weight for a triplet at birth is only 3 pounds, a 35% increase makes a big difference!

The good news is that I'm eating a lot of the right foods. But, I haven't put on enough weight fast enough. Early weight gain would be crazy in a singleton pregnancy, but the average triplet pregnancy is 30 weeks -- 10 weeks shorter than with just one. That means there's no time to lose. Triplets generally don't get the advantage of those last two months of time to grow. So you've got to grow them big early!

With that, I think I'll go have a milkshake...