So, I have survived 2 weeks of bed rest--only 12 more weeks to go! I am trying to get a little more used to bed rest, yet I am not sure it is anything that you can ever "get used to." I look around the house and I see things that I could be doing to help Michael yet I have been forcing myself to stay seated. Michael has been wonderful about staying on top of everything and I am learning how to do more things while sitting in a recliner. Michael and I have also been trying to tackle the nursery--it seems to be a never ending project. A friend was able to get the cribs for us this past week from Ikea in Atlanta so that is a huge blessing! We will have an assembling crib party soon :) It makes me feel good to know that we have a majority of the essentials that we need for these children--some clothes, cribs, and car seats. Michael has also been doing lots of laundry for the babies. We have formed a pretty good system as well--I fold and sort into piles by size and gender and then Michael puts them in the appropriate tub. I enjoy looking at all of the little clothes! Speaking of clothes--Michael and I also went to an awesome consignment sale this week. For those of you who are worried--I sat in a wheelchair while Michael pushed me :) We were able to find some pretty awesome deals--we mainly bought some clothes for next winter. But we now have a coat for everyone for this winter so everyone will stay warm! And we found these awesome little cars/walkers for them. It's not something we need right now but it was a good price and it was fun to buy :)
My sister, her husband, and our niece are moving to Ireland so we were also able to find some good warm clothes for her. So, overall it was a very successful consignment sale. And it was a bonus for me because I enjoyed getting out of the house and doing something "normal." Michael could improve some though on his wheelchair pushing skills--he believes I should have the same opportunities as others and likes to push me into a crowd of people :)
I am also still taking the shots and that went much better this past week. We were able to get the medication from a local pharmacy that compounds so we should be set for the rest of this pregnancy. The pharmacist gave Michael some tips on how to make the shot a little better for me. The shot is oil based so it is very thick and it burns (like crazy!) -- but she told Michael to warm the medicine up with a heating pad (we used a hot towel) and it would make the medicine thinner. So, Michael followed those instructions this past week and it didn't burn at all! I am taking Claritin as well to help with the allergic reaction I am having and that seems to be improving as well.
And now for the BEST news -- the babies are doing wonderful! We went to the doctor yesterday for an ultrasound and then to meet with Dr. Bellardo. Michael and I are getting accustomed to waiting about 3 hours at the doctor's office. They are determined that the ultrasounds take 1 1/2 hours and then they schedule the appointment with Dr. Bellardo sometime after that. We had the ultrasound first and they are just checking for growth and heartbeats. We don't have a picture that shows all 3 of the babies (in their entirety) but here is a diagram of how our babies are currently positioned
So as you can see our babies are currently stacked on top of each other. I'm not sure if they will change positions or stay like that but this seems to be where they have currently found themselves. There is also a membrane that separates each of the babies and they have their own placentas. All 3 of them have anterior placentas which means that it is in front of them. Here is a picture though of all 3 of our babies--it is just pieces of each of their bodies :)
You can't see the lettering very easily but Baby A is on the bottom, Baby B is in the middle, and then Baby C is laying up top. The babies are doing very well though! They are all growing concurrently and no one is "stealing" from the other. It's good to know that they already like to share :) So, Baby A now weighs 1lb, 3 oz and Babies B & C are 1lb, 2oz -- which is awesome! Also, they checked Baby A's kidneys and they were measuring normal this time--yay! So, hopefully he continues to go to the bathroom and does not get anymore blockage. All of the babies cooperated this time as well and allowed the ultrasound tech to get the pictures that she wanted. Baby C finally rolled over and they were able to get an awesome picture of his heart. Everyone also had a good heartbeat. I have been having these ultrasounds for a while now and I can even feel them kick now, yet I am still nervous on the morning of the ultrasound. However, as soon as I see their little hearts beat I feel instant relief. So, overall the babies are doing great and they are right on target with where they need to be. I am also steadily gaining weight (which makes them happy) and my blood pressure is still good. My cervix is still measuring "long" as well and we actually gained 2mm on my cervix this time. Dr. Bellardo said it is not possible to gain a centimeter back yet we can get a millimeter sometimes. Dr. Bellardo said that we are "greedy" though and we will take everything we can get :) So, Dr. Bellardo attributes this to bed rest and wants me to continue doing what I am doing. He said that we don't have to come back for 2 more weeks because everyone is doing so well. Dr. Bellardo even said that he was "celebrating" with how well we are doing! Yay! :)
Since I am also getting bigger I am now getting to the point where I am not really comfortable anymore. My back hurts as well as my hips when I sleep at night. However, the worst has to be the ligament pain. I checked with Dr. Bellardo about it and he said that it was a "badge of motherhood" and that the pain is only going to get worse. Dr. Bellardo said that it is partly round ligament pain and then it is also where my abdominal wall attaches--it is being stretched out. So, he said there is nothing I can take for the pain but he said I could apply a little heat to it. I guess if this is all I have to contend with I will be okay, yet I could live without the sharp, shooting pains :) I try to push Baby A over some too because he will kick at the tender spot. At least so far the pain is only on my left side so maybe it will stay like that :)
So, overall we are all doing pretty good! We only need to make it 12 more weeks and we need the babies to gain about 3 more pounds a piece! Also, thank you again to all of our friends and family who have reached out to us during this time and helped us--we truly appreciate everyone :)
I don't have many pictures of the babies this time but I have added a picture of each of them :)
So, I am 1 week down and we hopefully have 13 weeks to go! I have survived my first week of bed rest but it was definitely not on my own. I am very thankful to friends who have come by to visit or brought us food. It definitely helps the time pass more quickly and I have been enjoying the company. Michael and I were joking this morning that I have gotten the good end of this deal--he is working like crazy and I am sitting while people bring me good food to eat--haha! I do feel for Michael though--he is working almost 60 hours this week and is not getting much of a break. I know that he doesn't mind and wants to take care of us yet I wish there was something more that I could do to help. Michael reminds me often that I am being productive even if I can't tell--I am making 3 babies right now and taking care of them means that I just lay here and eat. I am so thankful for Michael though--I'm not sure I could make it through this without his support and love for me. He truly is a wonderful man and I know that he is going to be an amazing daddy.
Michael and I have been joking this week that we just need to surrender our home to these babies so it doesn't feel that they are invading it. People have started giving us things and we are amazed at everything! We think our dining room will just become Nursery #2 :) There is no way that baby swings or other items will fit in the nursery. Michael and I also came to the realization that these children already outnumber us...haha. Michael and I have to joke and laugh a lot--it's better than the alternative :)
So, what does one do on bed rest? I am still trying to figure that out myself but I have tried to develop a little bit of a routine. After I get up in the morning then I take a shower, do my hair, and get dressed just like I would do if I was going somewhere. It doesn't really make a lot of sense to do that but it helps me feel more normal and I can at least pretend that I am going to do something and be productive. Plus Dr. Bellardo said I could take a shower every day and I am taking full advantage of whatever he is allowing me to do. Then I have been taking my breakfast outside and sitting for about an hour. It is a change of scenery and it feels good outside in the morning--so after about an hour it gets hot and I start sweating so I go back inside :) Then I have just been rotating what I do next--I have been reading, watching TV, eating, taking naps writing thank-you cards, playing on FaceBook, and then eating again. In the midst of that I think that I go to the bathroom every 30 minutes--I have been drinking more and I think my bladder is shrinking. I usually sleep about 1 1/2-2 hours at a time at night before I have to get up again. By then I am usually uncomfortable anyways and I have to change positions. During the day I have been laying on the couch and some friends let us borrow their recliner so I have been trying to switch up where I sit as well. All the little things seem to help a little bit. And then friends have come over 4 times this week and visited with me so that has definitely helped change up my schedule a little bit. Michael's parents also made a surprise visit to Nashville to help Michael's brother get a new car so I visited with them for a few hours as well on Tuesday. I have been trying my best to follow all of Dr. Bellardo's guidelines--I may of broken the rules a couple times but I think I deserve credit for trying my best this week. It has been difficult to go from working 50 plus hours a week to not working at all.
It's been a little bit of an emotional week as well as I have been trying to adjust to my new way of life for the next several weeks/months. Michael and I are trying to do what is best for the babies and make decisions about stuff. I was talking with a friend on Wednesday about all of the adjustments and how life has changed. Michael and I had developed a plan of having a baby and how we could make our work schedules work together so we wouldn't have to put the baby in daycare. As we have already established--I am a planner to the very core of my being and I thought I had it planned. So, this whole process has been a rude-awakening for the planner in me. And I am having to learn to make adjustments to my plans. But as I was talking with the friend I said something without really thinking about it and then I had time later to kinda process it. I said that Michael and I had 2 choices--when we found out that we had triplets they told us about selection and Michael and I immediately said, "no!" and that these babies were a blessing and we wanted all of them. So, in that moment Michael and I made a choice--a choice that I wouldn't change--and now we have to adjust our plans and lives. So, we have been blessed with these three babies that we both love dearly. The babies have started kicking now and I can feel them moving inside of me--I'm not sure there is a greater feeling. Every time I feel them move it reaffirms that we made the correct choice even it means giving up what I planned. Even though I wouldn't change anything--it is still an emotional adjustment. I'm so thankful that I have Michael to go through these adjustments with me--he is a constant support to me and a voice of reason :)
So, we have survived the first week and we are thankful for everyone's support. So, for everyone who has called, text, sent an e-mail, stopped by, brought food, or just prayed for us we are incredibly grateful. We will return to the doctor next week to check on the babies and my health--we will update again next week and let everyone know how they are doing. We love all of you! :)
So, we have officially made it to Week 20 which is exciting because we are over halfway there; however, it also means that the bed rest begins which is not as exciting. The person who was replacing me at work started on Monday and so I spent all week taking her out and meeting all of my caregivers. It was sad to say good-bye to them and I will miss it, yet I am sure the new person will do a wonderful job. On Wednesday, I went to my practicum site for the very last time (yay!) and I did my final eval with my supervisor and then they had a potluck lunch for me which was very sweet. Some people even bought us some baby presents and it was fun to open them and see everything. We got some wonderful onesies, bibs, a sound machine, and some adorable little shoes. It was a lot of fun!
So, then Thursday came :/ It was a difficult and emotional day for me as I had to leave behind my career as well as some co-workers whom I really enjoy being with. I know that one day I will return to my career and for the time being I am taking a break, yet it was difficult to give that up especially when I just finished my Master's and I want to put into practice everything I have learned. I am looking forward to being at home with these babies for a while; however, there is always some sort of mourning when you leave something behind that you love. It was a wonderful last day though and my co-workers threw me an amazing baby shower. We went to PF Changs for lunch (one of my favorites!) and then I opened up presents. We got some amazing gifts! We are so blessed with everything that we received and everyone's generosity towards us. It was fun to open up the presents and see all of the little baby items. I am amazed at how small they are going to be when I hold up the little clothes. And then when I see bigger size clothing (like 6 months) I am amazed that they are going to get that big! I am excited to meet these three little people and be able to hold them. So, then I finished out the last things that I needed to do at work, turned in my keys and badge, and then drove home. It wasn't easy...
So, then Friday came (bed rest Day #1) and we got to go see Dr. Bellardo. However, he is thrilled that I am not working anymore. Dr. Bellardo has been my sweet little doctor/therapist for the past five years, yet now he is a lot stricter with me and firm--he knows I am stubborn and need it :) We went and had an ultrasound first to check out the babies. It is my favorite part and also a part that I dread a little. I feel wonderful after I see everyone moving and I see their little hearts beat. I have been able to feel them a little bit more yet due to having an anterior placenta (all three of them do) I cannot feel them as much as I want. Once again I have never had reason to doubt that they were not okay, yet it is such a reassuring moment when I see them on the screen. Michael and I joke that we should have a daily check-in with them and if they could each kick me one at a time so I know that everyone is still doing okay :) The ultrasound also made everything make a lot more sense because I got to see their position in my body. Baby A is in the normal position of a baby if I was just carrying one baby--so he is down lower closer to my cervix. However, Baby B and C have found their home in my upper abdomen. Baby B is taking full advantage of her space and is spread out with her legs going into my ribs. Baby C spent most of the ultrasound laying face-down on top of Baby B. It looked cute on the ultrasound though because Baby B had her head on Baby C's chest. So, it makes sense why I feel more pressure up top and it is a little more difficult to breathe. Baby C was kicking me last night and I tried to push him down a little bit--I don't mind them being up high but it would be a little nice if everyone moved a little to their right and got out of my ribs :) They checked everyone's heart out again and took pictures--we still didn't get a wonderful picture of Baby C's heart because of his positioning. The ultrasound lady tried bouncing and jiggling my stomach to get Baby C to move--yet he seems comfortable with where he was and didn't want to move. But by everything they can see his heart looks fine. Maybe next time I can jump up and down a little bit to get him to move :)
So, then we went and saw Dr. Bellardo to talk about everything. According to the reports Baby A is now 13 oz, Baby B is 11 oz, and Baby C is 12 oz. They are all growing concurrently and are on track for where a baby should be for 20 weeks which is wonderful news. My cervix is still doing well and is remaining long--as long as we stay above 3cm then it will be considered long. We got to look at Baby A's kidneys again and he still has blockage. You can see the urine on the side of his kidneys that he needs to release. Dr. Bellardo is not too worried about it yet as it can correct itself sometimes and it is fairly common in boys. However, when they are born and if Baby A still has blockage then they will have to do a procedure to unblock him--poor little guy. So, Dr. Bellardo isn't worried about it--but it would make me feel better if it was resolved next time. Overall I am doing really well though and so are the babies--my blood pressure is still great and my weight is good. We thought we would have to go to weekly visits now but since everyone is doing well we don't have to go back for 2 weeks. So, Michael and I celebrated by going to Krispy Kreme because it was their 75th Anniversary and you could get a dozen glazed for only $0.75 if you bought a dozen. Don't worry though-- I only ate a couple and Michael took them to work :)
We are still continuing with all of the medication I am taking as it seems to be working. I am having a mild allergic reaction to the shots but Dr. Bellardo told me its common and to take some Claritin or Zrytex. We are having more difficulty getting the shots though--it's ridiculous. Wal-Greens called me on Wednesday and told me that as of August 1st pharmacies are no longer able to compound this medication and you have to take the name brand. I have my prescriptions through CareMark but they denied my request for the medication because the FDA has only approved the medication for singleton pregnancies and I have triplets. My insurance says that they cover the name-brand medication 100% but I cannot get anyone to dispense it for me because the pharmacies want the doctor's office to buy it and then bill it. However my doctor's office doesn't do that because it's $3,000. So, we are back to square one again--so I am going to go through a mom & pop pharmacy here in Nashville that compounds and Michael and I will just pay for the medication out of pocket (it is A LOT cheaper than the name brand). It doesn't make any sense and we talked to Dr. Bellardo about it. It doesn't make any sense to him either but he said that they would rather pay for it in the NICU rather than in preventive care for me. I told Michael it feels like they are discriminating against my babies because I am not pregnant with a singleton. I did ask the insurance company why they thought it would help one baby but not three and they said they didn't know. Oh well--I am off of my soap box now :)
So, now I am on bed-rest. Today is Day #2 and it's okay right now but I would rather be doing something more productive. Michael made me waffles in bed before he left to go to work this morning so that was nice. I started writing some thank-you cards yesterday for the baby presents we have received. I plan on writing some more today--I want to stay on top of that. I also have to put together my practicum binder and turn it in to my supervisor--that is my goal for next week. I have some books that I can read and I watch some TV. Our Sunday School class set up a meal calendar for us to get a meal once a week on Thursday nights because it is one of Michael's late nights. We really do feel blessed by everyone's generosity. Overall, I would say that I am not that impressed with bed rest though :)
I have some new pictures of the babies as well that I will post to their pages so make sure you check it out! And if you are in the area and want to stop by--please do! I will always be here unless I am at the doctor's office :) Thanks again for everyone's support of us--we truly are blessed and we feel so loved by everyone!
So, we have made it to Week 19. As you can see I am steadily getting larger and larger--it seems to happen overnight because when I wake up and look in the mirror it looks like I have gotten bigger.This seems to only be the beginning though and I am probably going to get huge!
There has not been too much excitement in our house this week. I am approaching my last week of work which is incredibly bittersweet for me. I started packing up my office today and the person who is replacing me starts on Monday. I knew that this day was coming since I was 10 weeks pregnant yet I have tried not to think about this day too much. However, it is coming and will be here in a few days. I am still having a little bit of trouble accepting it and that I am about to be unemployed. I have not been unemployed since the age of 15. I know that my body is going to be working hard to help grow these three babies and I will be exhausted from that, yet it is still difficult to know that I will only be laying on the couch and not "contributing" to our family. I think as humans we often identify ourselves with "what we do" and when its gone then it is a little scary because that is often where we find enjoyment, fulfillment, and purpose. I know that I have a different enjoyment that is coming through these three babies and they will keep me fully occupied. However, it is still a bittersweet process for me. It is also difficult because of how much pressure this is putting onto Michael now as well--I know that he doesn't mind at all and enjoys taking care of us, yet we would appreciate any prayers about him either finding a second job or maybe a different job. It would definitely make our lives a little easier especially once we have the babies and he can help be here more instead of having to work all of the time. So, we'll see. I am trying to not focus on it too much yet it is definitely a source of concern/stress.
Good news--we now have Netflix :) We had given up our cable to help with extra expenses so we are going to try out Netflix and it came with one month free. Also, the girls at work are throwing me a baby shower on Thursday to celebrate the babies and because it is my last day. So, I am super excited for that! Also, Michael's grandma gave us what we needed to purchase all 3 car seats for the babies. So having all three car seats is definitely a blessing!
We have another doctor's appointment on Friday. We are currently getting ultrasounds every other week and it has been cool to see their progress. Hopefully they should be about 1 pound a piece this time. So, they will look at my cervix again and see how it is doing as well as Baby A's kidneys--so hopefully everything is measuring like it should and everyone is happy inside.
So, we appreciate everyone's support and prayers for us as well as your continual support...I know that we can make it though this and we are trusting that God will provide a way for us through all of this. But if you know of any jobs or anything like that then we will take all suggestions :)
