Latest photos

Five new photos today:

Two mark the passage of week 21, a photo of one of the girls in utero. We can't help but admit that she's incredibly cute.

And Mom, dressed up and ready to go.

This was also an eventful week in one regard as it had us rushing to the hospital Tuesday evening because of Braxton Hicks contractions, which tend to emerge around this time during the carrying of multiples. The doctor had advised that if they reached more than four per hour it was important to come in, and Tuesday night, that happened, so en route we were. All checked out just fine. They did a pelvic exam as well as checking the babies' heartbeats, which remain in the high 140, low 150 range, which is excellent. The rest of the week we have not faced the Braxton Hicks contractions, which is good, and we are hopeful that has now passed.

This Thursday also brought the latest check-up, and that again went well and produced a picture of each of the threesome, including the profile of one of our little girls included here.

Also here: two photos of the magic belly, one week apart, at the start of week 21 and week 22. 

Finally: A milestone: Dad-to-be arrived home from work this week to find Mom-to-be noting that she had dropped something and needed him to bend down and pick it up. She is officially too big for bending over. This is good news!

Kicks

Just now, the wife calls to the husband to come from the other room. He does.

"Put your hand here," she says.

He does. He waits. She has been feeling kicks for a few days. He thinks he feels something that is a kick. He isn't sure. He waits longer. He thinks he feels a flutter. She says that is not what she has been feel--

He gasps. "Oh my gosh," he says. For THAT, THAT was, without a doubt, a kick -- a direct hit from below against the thick of his thumb tip.

Wow.

Full Anatomical Scan

The girls danced, the boy was just hanging out, and our friendly ultrasound expert did her 90-minute look that led to another good visit to the doc's. Everyone looks great, down to their little fingers and toes. Full confirmation as well: a boy and two girls (identical twins).

They're all growing well, with each at the normal growth rate for what the doc calls a "singleton" -- which is ideal. The boy is 14 ounces, one girl is 12 ounces, and the other is 11 ounces. We could see them all rubbing up against each other and feeling around in their unique environment. As a friend said, "It's crowded in there." 

We got lots of pictures, and will be loading some here in the days to come. The word is out on campus and in the community as well, and people have been wonderfully kind, supportive and enthusiastic. And lots of volunteers for babysitting -- of which we are taking note!

Preparations in Motion

With the triple birthday moving ever closer, we have been getting to work with preparations -- finishing up painting rooms and doorjambs that have sat half done for a while, getting a nursery ready, making room on our bookshelves for children's books, finding a used triple stroller for sale (http://www.bergdesign.net/triple.htm), researching nannies, and putting to use a very helpful multiples planning book we received as a Christmas gift. Sunday night we watched a Discovery documentary DVD that was also a gift, "Multiples in the Womb," which was by turns fascinating, amazing, and, well, nauseating. The next big date is Friday's ultrasound, which will include the full anatomical scan. Are we nervous about it? Yes. Are we excited about it? Yes. It promises to tell us a great deal about the threesome, and we will report back here what we learned.

Meanwhile, we continue to discuss names, and think we are settled on two of the three. But we'll be sharing what they are on delivery day....

Boy and Girls

So, today's doctor's visit was again completely positive and included a big confirmation: the genders are indeed one boy and identical twin girls. And the ultrasound profile of the girls even shows them to look exactly alike. The boy is curled up like a cat waiting to pounce. Yikes.

Everything looks great, and the heartrates are now 150, 147, and 144, which are excellent.

We also learned about classes on breastfeeding, basic skills for new parents, and more that the hospital makes available and most of which we intend to take. Meanwhile, our research into identifying a nannie has picked up speed.

The full anatomical scan is now only one week away, and we are looking forward to that important day.

Big Belly

Today marks 19 weeks and all continues to go well, with the Mom-to-be feeling less nauseous and less tired than has been the case for months now. Meanwhile, her belly is growing to impressive proportions. We are posting two new pictures of Momma's swelling belly, one from today and one from week 15. My how the belly grows.

Latest doctor's visit

Our scheduled check-up today went well. Or, in the words of the doc, "Everything looks great." Heartbeats are all 147 bpm, which the nurse doing the ultrasound called "rare," and which we find kind of cool that all three are so much in sync. This was only a quick visit though, designed to make sure everything major is looking right on, as it is. The next ultrasound is January 16, which is the full anatomical scan.

Meanwhile, the mother-to-be is gaining weight nicely, having put on 11 pounds in the last 14 days, which is excellent. A special thanks to the good fare of the holidays! 

Naturally, a celebratory dinner of pasta and vegetables was called for. During dinner, the threesome again showed their busy side, as they tend to do early in the evenings, rolling and turning, getting their aerobics in before it got too late in the evening -- or maybe just doing a little dance to welcome the latest meal.