Friday, November 30, 2007

23 Weeks and then some (PLUS AND OLD PIC FROM 2005)

Hi everyone --- yesterday we had a great visit at the perinatologist's office. First and foremost, all three of the triplets are doing great. All three have great heart beats and amniotic fluid levels are measuring right on track. We had such a good appointment, Tanya's peri has asked her to come back every two weeks. You'll remember just a couple of weeks ago we were seeing her every week and it moved to every 10 days...now, it's every 14.

We still need to get past the 24 week hump and that will be this coming Tuesday; December 4. After that, we really need to be shooting for week 28 (at January 1) and then 32 weeks on January 29. Tanya's getting a little more uncomfortable and she's measuring 40+ weeks now.
Tanya's doctors are encouraging as much bed rest as possible each day and she's keeping up with the protein drinks.

Also, we toured the NICU at the hospital yesterday. I (Jeff) had not yet received my flu shot so I had to gown up, wash my hands, wear gloves, and a mask! Tanya, as forward thinking as she is, has already had her flu shot so she walked right in. Nevertheless, we met with Dr. Farhi; he's the NICU doc who treated Brenden in December, 2005. It was nice to see a familiar face and he welcomed us for a quick tour. You see, Tanya will be delivering the triplets at the Johnston Willis campus of the CJW Medical center while two years ago, Brenden was born at the Chippenham campus of CJW. Luckily, the NICU docs and nurses rotate between the two campuses so we're completely comfortable with the superb level of care.

Dr. Farhi briefed us on how things will probably go depending on how long Tanya carries the triplets. He mentioned two to three teams of NICU folks will be in the delivery room based on gestational age of the triplets. And, he will be talking with Tanya's OB and perinatologist as necessary up to the delivery time.

So, here's a picture of Dr. Farhi, Tanya, and Brenden when Brenden was born in December, 2005. This weekend we'll scan in some ultrasound pictures of the triplets. Hope you have a great weekend! As always, thanks for all of your support.

Tanya, Brenden, and Jeff

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Tanya's made it to 23 weeks!

Hi everyone --- quick update. Today Tanya visited her OB and all three heart beats were going strong. She's 23 weeks along today! Remember, our first milestone will be 24 weeks so we're almost there.

She's measuring 40 weeks. That means her body thinks and looks like she's 40 weeks along. She's resting a lot and drinking plenty of protein drinks.

More to come on Thursday of this week after the next visit with her perinatologist. Thanks for all of your support!

Tanya, Brenden, and Jeff

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Surprise Surprise - We're at 22 Weeks!

Hi Everyone, we got a bit of a surprise yesterday when Tanya visited her OB. He told her --- you're 22 weeks pregnant on Tuesday (today)! And, he revised her due date from April 1 to March 26!

So, what's all this mean? We're further along than we thought and that's a great thing. Since Tanya is 22 weeks pregnant, she's even closer to our first goal --- making it to 24 weeks. 24 weeks is the earliest viable gestation time; clearly not what we want, but we absolutely have to get to 24. The next milestones will be 28 weeks, 30 weeks and finally 32 weeks. Getting to 32 weeks will be absolutely wonderful. All three babies have the best chance once we get to that point. And, NICU stays are shorter once at 32 weeks. Remember --- 32 weeks is still two months premature. So, we're hoping to make it even past that!

Now, let's talk about bed rest. Tanya is physically measuring 38 weeks. That means her body looks and feels like it's 38 weeks pregnant. This is due to the volume of babies she's carrying. So, bed rest will be coming soon --- probably later this month or early December. We will find out more when Tanya visits her OB again on November 26.

We visited with Tanya’s perinatologist today. As you can see the doctor appointments are coming back to back now. The peri sad all heart beats, baby bladders, amniotic fluid measurements, and growth measurements look great. Tanya goes back to the peri in 10 days for a routine visit.

That is all for now --- we cannot thank you enough for all of your thoughts and prayers. More to come!

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

20 Weeks and 2 Days - Great Dr. Appt Yesterday!

Hi Everyone, we visited Tanya's perinatologist yesterday and got a great report. All three of the triplets are progressing well and all are measuring within a few days of each other from a size perspective. Amniotic fluid levels are all in normal range and the babies are looking great.

So great that Tanya's perinatologist, Dr. Barbara Head, told her after next week, we will be moving to visits every 10 days v. once a week. This is great news!

Tanya's next visit to her perinatologist will be on Tuesday, November 20 and they will look again at all fluid levels, heart beats (they were all three fine yesterday), etc. Then, on or about November 30, the perinatologist will look again at all these items. Following that, on or about December 11, the perinatologist will perform more growth scans via ultrasound to make sure all babies are progressing as they shoud. So, this little snap shot of the next few appointments will help us keep track of what's coming next.

You can even tell Dr. Head is more optimistic than she was even a few weeks ago. As we were leaving her office, she was giving advise on triple decker strollers and car seats. :)

More to come...thanks for all of your support, thoughts, and prayers!

Tanya, Jeff and Brenden

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

19 Weeks and 3 days - all good so far

Hi everyone, thanks again for checking on us so often. Tanya's last appointment with her perinatologist on Monday of this week went very well. All three of the triplets are in plenty of amniotic fluid, all three had great blood flow in their umbilical cords, and all were measuring on track for this stage of the pregnancy. All heart beats looked normal too. So, we go back for our weekly perinatologist visit this coming Monday for the next ultrasound.

Tanya has been taken out of work and is resting at home. She spends her time making sure she's consuming enough protein and water each day plus resting. Doctors suggest she remain horizontal as much as possible.

Thanks to everyone who has already donated almost 1/2 a garage full of clothes and baby items. There are some more folks who have offered and we're synching up with you soon. Thanks also for all of your thoughts and prayers. More to come...