Merry Christmas Eve to all of you - I hope this post finds you doing well and enjoying the company of loved ones. It has definitely been a unique Christmas season this year, and will be the last "quiet" Christmas we may ever have! I can't believe that next year at this time the house will be filled with little ones.
While this week started out pretty quiet, unfortunately, it didn't stay that way. On Thursday (26 week 4 days), I went back in to CDH for a check up with Maternal Fetal Medicine. We were originally scheduled for a quick cervical length check, but ended up being due for a full growth scan on the babies which was nice since our last one was done around Thanksgiving.
The babies all continue to grow and are looking healthy, but the doctors were a bit concerned about Baby B. At Thanksgiving, the boys were all ahead of schedule and in the 70th percentile based on weight which was amazing. At this appointment, A & C are still in the 70th but B had dropped into the 50th. While 50th percentile is still very good (especially for triplets), they were a bit worried that he may not be getting as many nutrients through the placenta. He is definitely an active little boy, and both the doctor and sonographer had a hard time taking some measurements because he was moving so much. They said the movement was definitely a good sign, and that it appeared as if he was going just fine. We'll just continue to watch him more closely, but for now he looks okay.
Baby A - 2 lbs 6 oz; measuring 28 weeks 2 days
Baby B - 2 lbs 3 oz; measuring 27 weeks 3 days
Baby C - 2 lbs 6 oz; measuring 27 weeks 3 days
Well if you do the addition, I've got 6 lbs 15 oz of baby plus whole lot of fluid in my belly, so it's no surprise that my uterus thinks it's farther along than I actually am. After the babies growth scan, they did check the length of my cervix. It's still closed and was measuring 3.2 cm which is still very good. However, in the middle of the exam I had another contraction and we all watched as that 3.2 shrunk down to just 1.0 cm. Talk about scary! At that point, the MFM doctors didn't feel comfortable sending me home, so back to the hospital I went.
They admitted me again to the hospital, just two rooms down from my previous home-away-from-home. They wanted to monitor my current dose of Nifedipine for a while and then possibly increase the frequency from every 6 hours to every 4. At one point, the contractions were coming every 8 or 9 minutes, but eventually they quieted without an increase in medication. By the time Friday morning arrived, they had almost completely stopped. After meeting with MFM and my OB, they decided I was okay to return home. The worst parts of the short hospital stay was that it took three tries to get the IV in and I forgot my leopard slippers under the bed. Which reminds me that I need to call them...
So for now, I am back home but am trying to be even more cautious about movement than the doctor's have ordered. I'm still allowed to do the stairs once or twice a day, but am really trying to avoid being on my feet. The nurses advised me that even sitting up can put almost as much pressure on my cervix as standing, so it really will be just the recliner and my bed for the next 5-6 weeks. The doctors would still like to see me get to 32 weeks which is the end of January/early Feb.
At this point, the days have actually gone very quickly. It helps that I don't usually get out of bed until 10 or 11:00. I appreciate the offer for visitors, but at this point it's probably best that I just rest and take it easy. I definitely want to pass the 28 week mark, so this next week is critical. We've had several people ask what you can do to help...and so far the toughest part has been meal times - so if you enjoy cooking or want to get rid of your Christmas leftovers, just send them our way! Other than that, we're hanging in there. We realize we have so much to be thankful for, and knew all along that carrying three babies at once wouldn't be easy. This year, we're just hoping that Santa brings us six more weeks of bed rest...now go enjoy your Christmas!
“So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.” Luke 2:16-20
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