September 23 :)

We officially have babies!  At 2:45 am on Monday, September 23 my water broke. Well, Emily's water broke.  Mark and I didn't know what it was, panicked, and sped to the hospital.  When we arrived we were told it was amniotic fluid and the babies would be born that day.  My doctor wouldn't be there until 8 am, so a different doctor did the delivery, Dr. Tobey Stevens.  Luckily he wasn't a complete stranger because we had met him on Saturday night when I went in with contractions, and we really liked him.  Mark's parents and my mom met us at the hospital and at 5:38 am both girls were born screaming.  Tripp was born at 5:40 am, not screaming initially, but a couple of seconds later he started.  Mark went with them to the NICU straight from the delivery room.  I was taken to recovery, then a regular room.  About 10 hours later I was steady enough to get up and into a wheelchair so I finally got to see them!  I was nervous and overwhelmed and so tired, but they are perfect!  

Emily

Emily was the first out.  She was 5 pounds 4 ounces and came out screaming.  It was such a relief.  I didn't know if they would be screaming since they were only 34 weeks.  They took her into a side room to clean her up and start an iv because there wasn't enough room for all of the doctors and 3 NICU teams in my delivery room.  I got to see her and touch her right before they took her to the NICU.  She was perfect!  She was done whining, and looked very peaceful swaddled up in her blanket.  At the beginning she was taking regular bottles but on the second day they all had feeding tubes put in because they weren't finishing the bottles.  About half way through each feed Emily would fall asleep and you just couldn't wake her up to finish, so they would give her the rest through the tube.  It's very common for preemies to tire themselves out sucking on a bottle.  She is doing a lot better now and finishing most of her bottles.  She has the worst temper.  When she is mad, she makes sure that you and everyone in the hallway is aware that she's mad.  We thought that she would be the calm one because she was so calm in the womb, but she fooled us!  The babies are fed at 12, 3, 6 and 9, but Emily tends to wake up about 30 minutes before it's time to eat and just screams.  She has got a powerful set of lungs!  She doesn't calm down until you hold her or feed her.  After she eats, she goes to sleep and doesn't wake up again until she's hungry.  I think she looks the most like Mark out of all of the babies.  She definitely has had his weird toes!

Ella

Ella pushed her brother out of the way and came out 2nd.  She was C the whole time she was inside me, but now she is officially baby B.  She was also 5 pounds 4 ounces and came out screaming.  I got to look at her and touch her face right before they took her to the NICU and she, too, was perfect!  We have noticed that she is the most laid back.  She takes all of her feedings and then is still looking for more.  After she is done eating she stays awake for about 30 minutes and just smiles and stretches.  When she's sleeping she usually has this smirk on her face like she knows something that we don't know.  She smiles all the time!  She moves around constantly, which wasn't a surprise to me since she did the same thing in the womb.  On the 3rd day her body temperature was dropping so they put her into a warmer and she looked like she loved it!  She didn't have her swaddle anymore so she would move around constantly while she was sleeping and stretch her arms and legs everywhere.  She doesn't cry much and when she does it's a very quiet whimper and she stops when you hold a pacifier in her mouth.  We were told that the babies need to be left alone between feeds so that they can sleep and gain weight.  Not Ella.  She moves around so much in her sleep that she was losing weight at first.  They have increased the babies' feeding amounts so her weight is a lot better now.

Mark

Mark was the last one out.  He was born 2 minutes after his sisters because the doctors couldn't find him since he was under my ribs.  He was the biggest, weighing 5 pounds 6 ounces.  When they showed him to me before they took him to the NICU I couldn't believe how big he was.  He is a cutie!  He is very calm.  He doesn't finish all of his feedings, because he gets tired, but he is still the biggest.  He sleeps a lot and then wakes up to eat and that's about all he does.  He is a very quiet, peaceful baby.  His was the first diaper I changed and it was a disaster.  While I was wiping him he peed all over himself and soaked his shirt.  That same night they showed me how to bathe him and it was a traumatic experience for both of us.  He hated it, so I hated it because he was screaming.  As soon as he was swaddled back up he was quiet and went straight to sleep.  He is such a sweet baby.

Mark has been amazing since the babies were born.  He jumped right in to feeding and changing diapers.  While I was still in the hospital I was in quite a bit of pain and couldn't go down to see the babies as much as I would have liked.  Mark was there for every feeding.  He had an alarm set on his phone for 15 minutes before each feeding started and went down there, changed diapers, and fed a baby.  All this while still helping to take care of me.  He helped me in and out of the bed and cleaned all of the breast pump parts every time I pumped.  I could not have asked for anything else.  By the time I was discharged and we finally went home I think he was more exhausted than I was!  When we got home his alarm went off for feeding time and we just looked at each other and got really sad.

Mark took video of everything, including the c-section.  I watched all of the videos later to see what all happened after the babies left me.  I saw Mark holding them for the first time and it was the sweetest thing ever.  I also saw the first time I was wheeled into the room to see them and wow, I was looking rough!  I still looked like I was out of it and just totally overwhelmed with everything going on in there.  I went around to each of their beds and put their security blankets that we had bought them into their isolettes.  They were so tiny, but so big at the same time.  I was not expecting to have 3 babies over 5 pounds, so it was weird to see how big they really were.  But again, they were perfect!

I was discharged from the hospital on Thursday morning but Mark and I stayed at the hospital for the rest of the day and hung out in the NICU with the babies.  On the walk down to the NICU that morning I started crying, knowing that I was going to have to leave them that night.  Once I got into their room I walked around to all of their beds and cried for about 20 minutes.  The nurse in the room didn't say anything, but I figured it wasn't her first time seeing a hormonal mother crying in the NICU.  I know they're in really great hands there, but it was still so sad knowing I would be leaving them.  I got used to it and just enjoyed the day with them.

On Friday morning they were put on phototherapy.  They looked like they were in tanning beds.  It was really cute.  Ella and Mark didn't seem to mind theirs.  They looked very comfortable.  Emily on the other had a really rough time with it .  She hated the eye shield so she kept pulling it off and she didn't like that she could only be held for 30 minutes at a time because after 30 minutes they have to be put back under the lights.  They were taken off of phototherapy Saturday morning.  When I called at 2 am to check on them the nurse said that Emily was doing a lot better and actually resting.  She also said that all 3 babies gained weight on Friday, so that was very encouraging!  To be discharged they have to be tolerating all of their feeds, gaining weight, and maintaining their body temps.  One doctor told us it could be as early as the beginning of next week.  We don't know that they'll all be discharged together, but we will figure it out when it happens.  We are very anxious to have them home!

Right now we are trying to catch up on sleep while going to the med center every day to be with the babies.  People said that the sleep deprivation would be tough, but I don't think there was any way to prepare ourselves for this.  I wake up every 3 hours at night to pump and at the hospital I nap in their room but wake up to every little whimper, so I'm not getting very much sleep.  I asked a lactation consultant and she did say that I could have a cup of coffee a day, so I am going to have to start doing that.  It's getting very hard, but somehow we are managing!

I will update soon.  For now I'm going to lay down!

34 weeks

So this kind of scared me this morning when I woke up (just the countdown, the song made me laugh pretty hard).  While in my mind 10 days seems like 40 days, I know it's not that long away.  It's really close!  My bag is packed and ready and we are working on the bag for the babies.  We didn't think we needed a bag for them because we thought the babies would be staying at the hospital.  We saw my doctor this week and she said that if they need to go to the NICU at all, it will only be a couple of days.  So we will most likely be coming home with 3 babies on the day that I'm discharged.  It's scary because I thought we would bring them home 1 at a time and ease ourselves into it, but no!  Apparently I've done so well that that probably won't happen, which is fine, but scary!  So we went through our preemie clothes and realized we only have 1 girl outfit that isn't pajamas, so my mom has been on the hunt for a 2nd coming home outfit.  She found it last night, so now we are all ready for these babies to get here!

We were supposed to have our last growth ultrasound next Wednesday, but the doctor cancelled it because she said it's just too difficult to see which baby is which to do the measurements.  So I'm sure when we see the nurse practitioner next week she will check their heart rates, but we won't actually see our babies again until they're born.  The anxiety is killing me!  I just can't wait!!!

We plan to use cloth diapers during the day only, so every time Mark goes to the store he buys a box of disposable diapers for night time.  He did the math today and we have 2,800 disposable diapers in different sizes.  For us, that would last 75 days if we used them during the day and night.  They should last longer than that since we won't use them during the day!  We took a picture of all of them.  Mark is really proud of his collection of diapers!

The babies' Aunt Alaina bought them Bobcat onesies so that they can support her (and their daddy) as baby Bobcats.  They are adorable!

Here is my belly last weekend.  My sister was taking a picture and then Mark jumped into it.  I think it made the picture way better!

And then this is my belly today!

The date is set!

Today we went in for my weekly check and we were told that the date of my c-section will be September 30.  Hopefully my body will cooperate until then and I can avoid preterm labor.  It's less than 3 weeks away so I can totally do this!  They will be 35 weeks, 3 days when they're born, so I'm hoping they'll be breathing on their own and can stay with me in the room. 

As far as pictures go, Mark and I will post or send out pictures when we are ready.  If the babies are in the NICU, we will wait to send out pictures until they are free of all tubes and wires.  Mark and I will decide when we will share the first pictures once the babies are born and everything settles down.

Because the babies will be premature their immune systems will be incredibly sensitive and they’re at very high risk for a virus that can be deadly to preemies called RSV.  Adults and other kids with colds or the flu are how babies get RSV. Flu shots are an absolute must for anyone who comes in contact with the babies. If anyone even has the sniffles or a cough within 10 days of visiting us, or their spouse or children have been sick within 10 days, we ask that they wait to come until their symptoms are all gone. I understand that some people don’t like to get flu shots, but we can’t compromise on this, so if someone wants to help but doesn’t want to get a flu shot, then cooking a meal and just dropping it off at the door is the best way to help until the babies are older and flu season is over.  Also, we want to keep the babies away from other children for a few weeks after they come home.  We don't know how long, it will depend on their health.

Enough of the serious stuff!  I have to brag about my husband now.  At around 31 weeks the pregnancy really started taking a toll on my body.  I try not to complain, but I couldn't help myself anymore and let him know about every ache and pain I was having.  On the Friday that marked 31 weeks he came home with beautiful hot pink roses.  It did help to brighten my day.  The following Friday, I got another bouquet of flowers.  He is amazing.  In my last post I wrote about how he is putting together a video for the babies, and well, it turned into more of a production.  He wants to make our own episode of Make Room for Multiples so he has been spending lots of time on that.  He went and got a microphone so that we can do voice overs and it is really looking like an episode of the show!  He has little clips of interviews with each of us and slideshows of pictures of us.  It is so cute and I can't wait until the babies are born and it's done!  He has been amazing throughout the whole pregnancy and I can't wait to see him as a dad!  He's going to be the best :)

32 weeks

Yesterday we had our 32 week growth ultrasound and I was shocked.  A is now 4 pounds 0 ounces, B is 4 pounds 6 ounces and C is 3 pounds 12 ounces.  That means I'm carrying more than 12 pounds of babies!  The girls have each gained a little over a pound in the last 4 weeks, and little Mark has gained almost 2 pounds!  The babies are looking great from what we could see.  It gets harder to see them every time because they're just so big now.  We didn't get to see any faces because of their positions, but I'm sure they are still adorable!  I have 1 more ultrasound scheduled at 35 weeks.  I was convinced that I wouldn't need that appointment because I thought surely I would have them before then, but my doctor has other ideas.  We went over the delivery stuff yesterday and I had to sign all these papers.  I was reading all of the risks associated with a c-section and told Mark, "I don't want to do this.  We can just leave them in there."  She said that since I'm doing so well and the babies are growing, she will schedule my C-section between 35 weeks and 36 weeks.  I was not happy about that.  In my mind, I was going to deliver at 34 weeks.  It took me a few hours but I realized I can go 4 more weeks.  If they are born at 36 weeks, they could possibly come home with me and not have to stay in the NICU.  That's scary, but exciting!  So unless I go into preterm labor before then, they will be born sometime between September 27 and October 4.

This was my belly last week.  We haven't taken a 32 week picture yet, but it's definitely grown since this picture!

This was one day last week.  Sometimes I look down at my belly and freak out because its so weird.  It is never round anymore, but sometimes it's just really off!  This is how they are usually positioned.  C is doing whatever she wants and poking out near the middle, B is completely on my right side kicking me in the ribs, and A is underneath them.  

Every morning I watch Make Room For Multiples on TLC.  It's a 30 minute show that follows a woman carrying multiples through her delivery and the first few weeks of the babies' lives.  A lot of times it's about triplets and I love it!  I love seeing real women who are going through the same thing I'm going through.  Of course we all have different experiences, but at least they're similar most of the time.  It also makes me realize how lucky I am to be this far along and still be able to do things.  Some women are on hospitalized bed rest for months, or they have other children that they have to take care of while being pregnant with triplets.  I can't even imagine having to take care of other kids right now!  I don't ever have energy and can't even concentrate enough to read a book.  That show makes me feel fortunate to be in this situation, even when I think it can't get any worse!

I've been having more contractions and lots of pressure, but that's because my uterus is so heavy.  Sometimes it's hard to get out of the bed to go to the bathroom so I have to wake Mark up to help me.  I'm getting better at doing it by myself, but there are still times when I just can't.  We went to the hospital last week because I was having very painful contractions.  They set up all these dopplers and bands around my belly and she was using wash rags to try to keep the babies from moving too much.  It was like a circus act watching her do it all.  This was the final result:

(By the way, I know, I look really great in this picture.  You really don't have to tell me.) It turned out to be nothing, and the contractions slowed down on their own, but the doctor that I saw that day said that I need to constantly drink water to make sure I'm not having contractions due to dehydration.  Not only that, but I have to make sure my bladder is always empty because a full bladder can cause contractions.  So I'm sure if there was a camera in my house, it would show me making circles around the house every 30 minutes.  I stay in the living room during the day, so I sit down and drink a glass of water, get up and go to the bathroom, stop in the kitchen on my way back to the living room to get another glass of water, and repeat this about 30 times during the day.  It's fun!  I also have what I call "baby bruises" all over my belly.  I started having these really tender spots a couple of weeks ago so I asked the doctor and she said that they're totally superficial and they're basically just bruises on the inside from the babies kicking me constantly.  They don't bug me too much, but when one of the babies kicks one of the spots, it gets pretty uncomfortable.  Other than that, I'm just REALLY tired!  I thought I was exhausted during the first trimester, but that was nothing compared to this, and I'm sure this is nothing compared to how I'll feel once they're actually born, but we'll make it work!  I am so excited to have them all here and home with us.  I'm looking forward to evenings and weekends when it's just the 5 of us!

After our tour of the NICU 2 weeks ago, I was getting really nervous about the day of the delivery.  The nurse who gave us the tour said that regardless of the babies' health, they will be taken to the NICU immediately after birth.  I didn't like that.  I was under the impression that if they were breathing fine and doing ok, they could stay in my room with me, so when she said that, I got really nervous.  I asked my doctor yesterday and she said that it isn't true.  If they're doing ok at birth they can stay with me!  I'm just very nervous about what will happen that day.  I know I'm having a c-section, but I don't like that I don't know for sure if the babies will be with me or not.  I've spent every second with them for the past 7 months and I don't want them to just be gone, and then I'm left laying on a table having surgery.  That thought was what made me say, "ok, I can make it to 35 weeks if it means the babies can stay with me."  If the babies do have to go to the NICU, Mark will go with them while the doctors finish up with me, then after 12 hours, my doctor said that I would be able to go to the NICU in a wheelchair to see them.  I just hope it all works out and they can stay with me.

Mark got this dry erase board and he updates it every morning.  It is a countdown to 35 weeks and every day I get more and more anxious!  Sometimes he writes inspirational/motivational/funny things.  It keeps me entertained!

This is what it looks like today

We are all ready for the babies to get here, so lately we haven't been doing much to prepare.  We've pretty much done everything that we needed to do.  Now, Mark is making a movie for the babies.  I bought a video camera a few weeks ago to record the babies once they're born, but Mark carries it all around the house with him and records me.  He took it to our appointment yesterday, and records my belly anytime it does anything weird.  I'm sure the video will be great, but I just don't like when my face is on camera.  At the beginning of the pregnancy we read that it's common for women pregnant with multiples to have swollen faces and bags under their eyes.  I have both of these, so I don't like my face being on camera.

When we found out that we were having triplets we learned that a man Mark went to high school with had triplets.  Although they live out of town, he and his wife have been a big help throughout our pregnancy.  They have shared their story with us and answer all of our questions.  It's so nice to have people who have experienced this and now have 3 healthy kids.  They recently came to visit with their triplets and wow, it looks like a lot of work, but so much fun!  They are 2 1/2 now and each have their own little personalities.  It was very exciting to actually see them and to talk to their parents.  They have been such a big help!

That's all for now.  Hopefully I will know sometime today when my c-section is scheduled!