23 Weeks

So here is the belly at 23 weeks.  Please excuse the cute outfit....I just got back from a walk.  I don't feel that much bigger than last week, although I must have grown because I no longer fit in three shirts I brought with me that I was CERTAIN would fit for the entire pregnancy.  Oh well.  I just won't be very cute until I can fit in my clothes again!  I am feeling pretty well!  Although I have noticed that I have been getting REALLY tired during the day and my feet hurt SO bad!  I feel like I walk like I am a 95 year old woman.  My walk is somewhere between a waddle and an old person taking baby steps :) Oh well!!! I guess it's all part of being pregnant with triplets....bring it on! I would do anything (however ridiculous I may look) for these little guys.  They already have me and their dad wrapped around their tiny little fingers.

I have been sleeping really well the past few nights and it has been wonderful!  I usually only get up once to eat (around midnight or 1:00 am), but that holds me off until I wake up in the morning.  Thank goodness!  I need to take advantage of all the sleep I can get since I know I won't get this kind of sleep after these little ones arrive.   As much as I LOVE cooking, I no longer have the energy to do it.  I just eat whatever is easiest to throw on a plate. I am really looking forward to the time when I can cook good meals.  I also feel like anything I fix for myself isn't quite as good as it would if fixed by someone else...is that strange to anyone else but me?

I now weigh more than I ever have in my life and I know that number will keep growing.  It seems like every time I go in to my appointments I am at least 5 pounds heavier than my appointment before.  I keep telling myself it is all going to my belly.  I sure hope I am right:)  I can't wait to get back in to running.  I miss it so much!!!  I also miss lifting weights.  I hope I have a body like my beautiful sister.  She had a baby just over 4 months ago and already has the body of a super model. I'm not joking.  She looks amazing.  "PLEASE LET THAT BE ME!"  (that is me talking in my head).

I don't think I have any cravings anymore. Pretty much anything sounds good right now.  My favorites are peanut butter and jam sandwiches for lunch and frozen yogurt in the evening.....or anytime!

I feel these little guys move all the time and I LOVE IT!!!! It makes me smile every time!! I get nervous if I don't feel them kick for a couple of hours and have been in for un-announced ultra sounds just to make sure they are okay.  Between being somewhat of an anxious person at times and a new mom, I get worried about every little thing.  Maybe the fact that I am having triplets and am considered very high risk has something to do with it too:)  My doctor always tells me that it's better to be safe than sorry.  I agree and am glad we are on the same page about that.

At my last appointment they were able to get some really good photos of Sam's face on a 4D setting.  It was so fun to see his little features!  Tiny nose, hands and fingers.  We also got to see him open and close his mouth as he swallowed.  It made me cry.  I was a proud momma!  We were also able to see Drew's legs, feet and bum cheeks, but no clear picture of his face.  He was being shy. It's okay with me because with such a cute little bum, I know his face has to be even ten times cuter!  Dalton never wants to cooperate at the ultrasounds.  He is always backwards, upside down and squirmy.  As long as I know he is healthy, he can hide all he wants....eventually he will come out for me to see.

Onto another topic.....CAR SEAT COVERS!!!! Yay!  They are finally all done and I LOVE them!  I know it's hard to tell from this picture, but the orange one has white polka dots and the blue one has white polka dots.  And yes, those ones are for the twins.  Dalton gets orange and Drew gets blue.  Samuel (Sam) gets the one that ties them all together.  It is an orange, blue and brown paisley print.  Boys can sport a paisley print and still be manly, right?! Now that this project is done, it's time to move on to project numero dos.

It has been so nice to be here in St. George with family and wonderful friends, but nothing can make up for not having my Jacob here.  I know he is so relieved knowing he doesn't have to worry about me. He is so busy with school and I usually don't talk to him until about 11:30 at night. However, I hate that he is missing the appointments and that he isn't here to feel my big belly when the boys kick on top of several other things I miss about not being with him.  I think the boys know when I am talking to their dad at night.  Every time I talk to Jacob, I seem to get a kick from each of them.  They are going to love their dad so much, and I can't wait to see my Sweet Boy as a dad.  He is going to be the best!  I get several texts from him informing me of how much he wants to play with his sons!  It will truly be a dream come true to be together again as a family. It's a day I am looking forward to.

I only have between 9-11 weeks until these guys arrive!!! Technically they could be here in 7 weeks and still do really well, but of course we want them to hang out in me as close to 35 weeks as possible.  I have so much to do before they come! I have  several purchases to make before they get here and would like to have it all or at least mostly done by the end of September or first week of October.

I have another appointment on Monday the 29th.  They will do a growth scan which is a very detailed ultra sound.  With three babies to measure (they measure everything, and I mean EVERYTHING), it takes about 3 hours.  I love every minute of it though!!! I'll let you know how it goes!

22 Weeks

So here I am at 22 weeks. I am feeling these little guys move all the time and I LOVE it!  I am so relieved that everything is looking great so far and hope that things continue to go that way.  I am now counting down the weeks until these little guys come for a few different reasons.  I can't wait to get rid of this rash.  Sometimes I wonder if I will ever be normal again.  I can't wait to see my Sweet Jacob.  I miss him terribly! And I of course can't wait to hold these little guys in my arms and kiss their little cheeks! It has been fun being in St. George and seeing so many people I hardly ever got to see before.  However, I am looking forward to going back to San Francisco and being a family with all four of my boys.  

I ordered their car seats and they came a lot sooner than expected!  I love seeing three little car seats in a row and know that our little guys will soon be in them!  I am in the process of making car seat covers for them.  As soon as they are done I will post a picture.  So far I am really liking how they are turning out!  It is taking me a lot longer than expected to make them...I don't have the energy to do things like I am used to! I will eventually finish them before the babes come.

The other week I went to my brother and sister in laws home for FHE.  They have three adorable kids who were so cute during the lesson!  It made me so excited to have FHE as a family with my boys!  Jacob told me that Sacrament meeting in our ward in CA was a circus because of all the little boys in that ward and that he couldn't wait to have our boys....I love to hear him say that!  He is going to be such a great dad!

Nothing too eventful has happened since my last post. I still have a growing belly, still have this nasty rash, still eat constantly, still love to feel my boys move around! I guess it is a good thing that there isn't too much to report.....I would rather have an uneventful pregnancy than one that is full of surprises.  

Jacob and I both feel very blessed to have had everything go so well.  Especially with such a high risk pregnancy. 

I go into the doctor tomorrow and I can't wait!  My beautiful sister is in town and is going to take me.  As strange as it sounds, I would go in for an appointment everyday if they would let me.  It is my favorite thing to have an ultrasound and see my little guys!  I cry every time I see them because they are such miracle little babies.  Jacob and I waited so long to have a baby and now that we are getting three sweet boys at one time is nothing short of a miracle and blessing from our Heavenly Father.  I hope that I can be a good mother.  I had the perfect mother as an example and will try my best to follow in her footsteps.  

I think everyday about how much my mom would love to be here with us and hold and play with all of her grand kids. I know she is and will be close by when I deliver these boys. And hope that she will be proud of the parents Jacob and I will be. 

The Hunter family will have added five baby boys to the gang within one year!  My sister in law is also expecting a baby boy in January and my sister had a boy in April.  So fun!  

Here is to hoping that August and September will pass by just a little bit more quickly!

20 Weeks!!!!!

I can't believe I am 20 weeks!  Time has been flying by.  However, now I am getting eager to meet these little guys, so I hope that it doesn't make the time drag on.  I had an appointment with my new doctor and the specialist.  Let me just say that I LOVE my doctor and the specialists he works with.  I am 100% confident in them and know that I am in good hands.

Here is a little update on the boys while it is fresh on my mind.  First of all, I am happy to report that the babies look absolutely perfect!!! I had an ultrasound for 1 1/2 hours and then the Maternal Fetal Medicine specialist came in to talk to me about the ultrasound, reviewed the information gathered from the ultrasound and talked to me about a plan and the risks of having triplets.  Drew is only a couple of days behind the Dalton and Samuel....way to go little Drew!!! I was SO relieved to hear that! In the past, Drew has been about one week behind the other two, and I have been really concerned about his growth.  I think that it has been good that I have been making a conscious effort to eat a lot of protein. There were no signs or concerns of any birth defects or physical disabilities.  Phew!!! The specialist, Dr. Esplin, talked to me about the kind of twins we have.  They share a placenta, a chorion, but they each have their own amnion, meaning they each have their own sack. He checked the blood flow of each baby and each of them look great!  He talked to me about a condition called twin to twin transfusion which is where one twin receives all the blood flow and oxygen from the placenta while the other gets barely any.  It is a concern with the kind of twins we have but he thinks that we are in the clear with having to worry about that because of how far along I am  and because the twins are each receiving the nutrients they need to grow and be healthy.  

He told me to stay off my feet as much as possible and that I will most likely be on bedrest in 4-5 weeks and possibly hospital bedrest for a couple of weeks before the babies are born......Not fun, but I will willingly do whatever I need to in  order to give these sweet boys the best chance of staying inside me as long as possible.  Although we want to get to 35 weeks, he said that realistically I will deliver between 32-34 weeks which is still good.  That means the last week of October-first two weeks of November.  I have my next appointment in two weeks where they will check the bladder of the babies, making sure their bladders are functioning properly because that can be an indication of some different issues, they will also check the amniotic fluid and measure my cervix to make sure I am still good.  In four weeks I will have another detailed appointment where they will check the growth of the boys like they did today.  He also mentioned that sometime selective reduction is a concern.  However, he was almost 100% positive that would not be an issue for us because the babies all look so good.  He said we are pretty much beyond the time when selective reduction needs to be a consideration.  I broke down crying when he started talking about that...I can't bare the thought. Dr. Esplin is 100% positive I will be having a C-section.  

I feel so relieved that the boys are doing so well!  The second I walked in the door (at home), I broke down crying, thanking Heavenly Father for blessing these boys with such good health, and asking Him to bless them to continue growing and being this healthy.  

Although I am not a parent yet, I feel through this experience, I have caught a slight glimpse of the Love the Heavenly Father has for His children.  How much he wants us to make right choices here on Earth, how much he wants us to be happy and how selfless you are as a parent.  I will do ANYTHING for these boys.  I am doing all I can to make sure they are as healthy as possible, and I hope and pray that they will be healthy when they are born so that they can come home and we can be together as a family. I keep imagining how much fun it will be to all be together for Christmas!!!

We have been so very blessed.  It has been such a blessing to have the opportunity to be in St. George and in the hands of such wonderful competent doctors, to be so close to family and friends and to be so close to the hospital. As hard as it is to be away from the love of my life, it was a good decision to come here.  Thanks to my Sweet Jacob for making me come.....I kicked and screamed a little at the thought of being away from him:) It is hard for him to not be here by my side at the doctors appointments.  We both alway look forward to seeing our boys and getting an update on their progress.  It's hard to not have Jacob here to feel the babies kick, punch and move around.   

Jacob won't be out until the babies are born.  Right now that seems like it is forever away.  Especially since I can't really go anywhere or do much on my feet.  I was hoping to go to the blessing of my sweet nephew, Matthew, this weekend in Salt Lake.  That is now out of the question.  I know that being off my feet and on bedrest (when that time comes) is only temporary and its for a good reason. When I am holding my precious boys, I know I will feel like I would have gone through everything a million times over, just to have them in my life.  

Jacob and I truly feel so very blessed to have the opportunity to have these little boys.  I can't imagine life being any other way.  I know I will have days that are hard and all I can do is cry.  I know I will have days where I feel completely overwhelmed. But I also know how much I already love these boys and how blessed I feel to be their mother.  I know how much Heavenly Father is counting on me and Jacob to raise these boys to be faithful members of the church and representatives of the Gospel.  I know this experience has already changed me for the better in so many ways and it will continue to change me as I (and we) strive to be the parents Heavenly Father wants us to be.  

Jacob and I are so grateful for all of the love and support from family and friends.  Each person has helped out in ways they will never know. We will be forever grateful for them.  

It has definitely been an eventful year for the Jennings family!  Getting accepted to dental school, finding out we are expecting triplets, moving to California and getting used to how much more expensive it is than Utah, Jacob starting dental school, coming back to Utah without Jacob and soon, delivering our three precious boys!  Truly a year to remember!