Wednesday, January 23, 2008

OK...that was scary

Hi everyone, the good news first --- Tanya is 31 weeks along! Now, we had a bit of a roller coaster ride since Saturday night though. At about 7:15 PM ET Tanya started experiencing a tremendous number of contractions. We were able to get her to Johnston Willis hospital, where delivery is already planned, quickly. Nurses and doctors got her hooked up to a ton of monitoring devices and began IV fluids as Tanya was dehydrated.

Dehydrated? Yep..even though she goes through over one gallon of water each day.

Anyway, Tanya was released from the hospital on Tuesday morning, January 22. Her release happened only after doctors ensured her health was good and all three babies were looking good.
So, now Tanya is at home resting comfortably in bed. She is on strict bed rest with only bathroom privileges as ordered by her doctor.

We know the picture below is a bit hard to figure out but we could not resist posting it. During a very in-depth examination by ultrasound while Tanya was admitted to the hospital, her perinatologist's sonographer captured this photo of all three babies and labeled it for us.

More to come soon. Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers; they're all helping.


Monday, January 14, 2008

30 Weeks Done!


Hi everyone, by the time most of you read this on Tuesday, Tanya will be 30 weeks pregnant! That means, all we need is two more weeks to get to the big milestone of 32 weeks. We are elated.

Today, during Tanya's routine perinatology visit with her peri, Dr. Head noticed a contraction. Tanya was whisked over to another room where her belly was monitored for 40 minutes to ensure labor was not imminent! That was a bit nerve wracking.

All is well now and what Tanya was feeling ended up being contractions. Dr. Head ordered Tanya begin taking contraction medication already prescribed by Tanya's OB. Tanya is at home resting as of the time of this posting.

During the visit, Dr. Head's staff performed the usual ultrasounds and found all babies to be doing great. And, all amniotic fluid levels are fine. Plus, all heart beats and umbilical cords are doing great.

We have been moved to a weekly schedule with Dr. Head and that is routine. Starting next week they will be actively monitoring movement and growth of the three babies moreso than ever.

Dr. Head surprised us by printing the image below of baby C. This is a great 4D shot. And the neat thing is you're looking at baby B too! More next week. Thanks everyone for all of your thoughts and prayers.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Wow

Hi everyone, we want to keep you updated so here's the latest. Tanya's belly is measuring over 50 weeks!

Ok..that's what she is measuring. The real number is 29 weeks. That's right...she's 29 weeks along; WOOHOO! We're getting so close to 32...it's great.

All babies are doing well. Tanya's last OB visit yesterday showed no sign of gestational diabetes which is great and was a routine test. Her next Dr. visit is to her perinatologist this coming Monday (January 16). We'll write more after that.

Thursday, January 3, 2008

Our first post in 2008

First, please place the Barker and Cauthen families foremost in your thoughts and prayers. Tanya's brother Scott has suffered a sever stroke and is hospitalized here in Richmond. He has always been very interested in Tanya's triplet pregnancy and always makes the time to ask how she's doing. He's a father of three and this is a difficult time for everyone.

Today our news is bitter sweet. We visited with Tanya's perinatologist this afternoon in the same hospital where Scott is in the neurological ICU. The report is fantastic. All three of the triplets are doing very well. Amniotic fluid around all three babies is measuring just fine.

Measurements were taken and the babies' weights are as follows with a +/- 15% interval: Baby A is 2 pounds, 12 ounces; Baby B is 2 pounds, 8 ounces; and Baby C is 2 pounds 4 ounces.

Tanya is in her 28 week of gestation and her OB just the other day measured her belly at 50 weeks. Wow. That's crazy! And, Tanya has gained a total of 16 pounds. Her blood pressure is in check and at the last OB visit this past Wednesday they proceeded with the check for gestational diabetes. Nothing bad is expected --- it's precautionary.

We have attached four ultra sound photos we received today from Tanya's visit with her peri. Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers. Please do say one for Scott, the Barker family, and the Cauthen family too.

Again, bitter sweet news in this post. We wish everyone the happiest new year.

Above is a picture of Baby A looking up and to the left

Above is a picture of Baby B looking directly at you


Above is a picture of Baby C looking up and to the right

And last but not least, here's a 4D image of baby C looking slightly left. You can see his forehead and closed eyes with his left hand just to the left and in front of his left eye