Update from Specialist appointment (1-19-10)

What an experience that was....

Jason couldn't go with me today to see Dr. Rowe so Mom went to help me remember all the info he had for me. Good thing he didn't go. We had to wait for over an hour to get back there. (Not sure I could have listened to Jason's moans of complaints for that long.) This guy only comes once a month so they run a pretty tight schedule...guess they got off a little bit. I really liked Dr. Rowe. Hes really friendly and easy going. Also VERY informative.

So my appointment started around 11:45ish (and hour and 15 minutes late) and within 10 minutes I thought I was going to lose my breakfast. I guess that's why the tech kept asking me if I was ok. Apparently it's normal. The room was warm, I was laying on my back (which cuts off circulation, etc) and she was pressing on my stomach. So she had me flip to my side. I had relief almost immediately. I was in there literally for an hour and 15 minutes. As neat as it was, I was ready to be done. She checked each boys everything...heart, kidneys, liver, bones, size, weight, brain...EVERYTHING!

So here is the run down...

*The Doctor was pretty shocked at how active they all are. They moved constantly, sometimes making it hard to tell who was who. (Especially the "twins.") As I type, I'm pretty sure there is some kind of boxing match going on in there. I can already see my belly move when they kick pretty good.

*Also shocked at their size. Baby C (single) is over a pound and the other two are approx 13 ounces each. I am around 20 weeks, 5 days and they are all measuring around 21 weeks, 3 days give or take. But duh...these boys are half Respondek half McCarrell. I don't think they have a chance of being small.

*Babies A and B are defiantly identical. He verified today that having ONE placenta between the two gives that away.

*My cervix looks great. They want it to measure between 3 and 4 1/2cm. I am at 4.1, so that is awesome. He will check again next month and see if there is any significant change. That will determine if I need to be on bed rest or not.

*I need to be getting LOTS of protein and like 3500 calories a day. So it's three Boost drinks a day and lots of meat, cheese, eggs, peanut butter etc. (6, small meals a day.) I am finding it harder and harder to eat just two meals. Ugh!

*He didn't say bed rest yet but he said I needed to be a couch potato. I am totally ok with that but it will be hard with all the house addition construction going on and Peyton desperately wanting to be outside with Daddy and the guys working. Hey...but whatever needs to be done to keep these guys healthy, I'm up to it!

I go back to my regular Dr next week for a check up and will see Dr. Rowe again on February 16th.

We have some names picked out...we are going to "chew" on them for a while...see if they stick before we tell.

They took over 150 pictures during the ultrasound and printed me 10 or so. Trip B was hard to catch..his shot is a cute pic of his foot. Most were duplicate profile shots, etc. so I'm just including one of each little guy. BTW: Identical boys are A & B and the single is C.

It's official...Mom is outnumbered!

We have THREE BOYS on the way...

There not much more to say than that. They basically just checked heartbeats and sexes today. I go back on the 19th for my appt with the specialist. He will check organs, size, etc. so they didn't spend that much time on it today.

My Dr. said my BP was great. I have lost some weight but that's typical...nothing to be worried about.

I can't say I was shocked. Very excited for all boys though!

Enjoy the pics. Baby C (formerly A, they changed the letters up on me. He's the little guy in his own sac.) was super cute. He sucked his thumb. He is in a C shape on top. Boys A and B are head down.

Precious!

Is this not the cutest thing EVER?!?!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Christmas Eve 2009

Christmas morning 2009. What a cute cowboy huh?


*MORE PICTURES TO COME...

15 Week Appointment

Just a quick update...

Went to the Dr. yesterday for my 15 wk appointment. We tried to get the ultrasound tech to give us some ideas on the babies sexes but no such luck. The all had their legs closed tight. Each one had a good, strong heartbeat. Baby A's was slightly slower than the other two. Makes me wonder if that little one is the/a boy in the batch. "It" kicked the whole time during the ultrasound. At first, he was enjoying his own space, all stretched out. (Unlike the other two who have to share their "home.") In Baby C's pic, you can see A's little legs in the top right hand corner. They sure do look like long Respondek legs to me. lol We talked to the Dr. a little more about Babies B & C. Just a refresher...they are in the same sac, but have a membrane separating them. (Baby A, by itself.) Dr. Gonzales says that it is possible that they are fraternal twins, and not identical. Even if they are the same sex, they still may be fraternal. We will only know if they are identical after birth. She said it all depends on when the egg split. I suppose she means after or before fertilization. Pretty interesting.

All in all...everything looks great! All growing appropriately and I'm feeling pretty good. I see Dr. Gonzales again in three weeks for another ultrasound and hopefully will find out the sexes then. Good news...the specialist is returning to Victoria. He will be here once a month. So much better than having to travel to Clearlake. Yay! I will see Dr. Rowe on the 19th of January. My Doctor said that will be a crucial ultrasound. He will check the anatomy and development of all the babies.

13 Week Update

We had another ultrasound done on Wednesday (11-25-09.) As of Wednesday, I was measuring 13 weeks, 3 days. Everything checked out great...heard all three heartbeats and all three were wiggling around.

We go back at approx 15 weeks on December 11th. I don't think they will tell us the sex of the babies then but we will for sure find out when we see the specialist in Clearlake at 18 weeks.

My Doctor says our goal is to make it to 36 weeks. I can't imagine what I will look like by then but I want to keep these kiddos in as long as possible. She also said there is a possibility that I could go on best rest as early as the end of February. (But...it just depends on me. I could be doing great and not need to be on bed rest until later in the pregnancy.)

I am still feeling pretty good. I do get tired by the end of the day...but nothing a nap doesn't take care of. I think the excitement is setting in. I can't wait!

And then there were FOUR!

Good news...I'm pregnant. Great news...I'm pregnant with TRIPLETS! Really, I'm serious! It was a shock to us too.

We found out that we were pregnant early, well, at my first missed period. We decided not to tell publicly until we were 12 weeks along or after my first ultrasound just to be safe. I was scheduled for my first ultrasound to check measurement on 11-17-09 but on Monday the 10th, I had some cramping and spotting. It worried me a little so I called the Dr. She said to just monitor it and set up a walk in ultrasound for Tuesday, 11-11. To be perfectly honest, I was pretty confident that I was going to get in there and they wouldn't be able to find a heartbeat or something else equally devastating. I told Jason just to stay home and pick up Peyton from school.

So...they started with my ultrasound. First thing I saw was two babies. I turned my head away from the screen in shock and was about to ask. The ultrasound tech then said, "Are you on fertility drugs?" I said "no, but I just saw the screen, how many is it?" She said, "I see three!" I'm not totally sure what I said next and it might not be appropriate to blog. lol But lets just say I was in total shock. I mean, how often does this happen naturally, without fertility drugs? Umm...like one in like a million.

I got home and showed both my Mom and Jason the ultrasound pictures. Both thought it was twins until I pointed out Baby A. Jason lips went white and had to sit down. ha! It was pretty comical to hear peoples reactions when we made our phone calls.

So...I am proud to show you The McCarrell Triplets first pictures:

Babies A, B & C. B & C are identical twins.

Baby A

Baby B

Baby C

As shocked and scared as we still are, we realize and feel very blessed that God has chosen us with this beautiful miracle.