I am ecstatic to say that I have reached 24 weeks with Baby #4!! She is officially considered viable! I remember what a challenge it was with the triplets just to get to this milestone. This pregnancy is so different in such a great way! I truly know the miracle of conceiving, of birth, of having healthy babies and not living your pregnancy in fear or on bedrest for the majority of it. I am so fortunate to have this opportunity to truly enjoy this experience and I am treasuring every minute of it. I love how active she is, feeling all her crazy kicks, punches, and somersaults!
On May 26 I had an ultrasound/cervical check in the PAC and she measured in at 1 lb 15ozs (what Johnathan weighed at birth at 26 weeks) which is 92 percentile and is measuring a week ahead. Looking at her weight, it goes to show that for having triplets at 26 weeks, they were actually very good weights! During this ultrasound they were able to do 4D was so amazing to see! 4D is when you see the baby live and it’s like you’re truly seeing them up close and personal. I saw her smile, open and close her mouth, move her hands all around and could clearly see the fat on her face, it was amazing!! Here are some pics.
My cervix at this visit measured a solid 4.5cm, what a blessing. So no need for a cerclage this pregnancy! As of this visit I have gained 19 lbs. In two weeks I’ll visit the OB again and have my cervix measured and in 4 weeks I’ll go back to the PAC for what may be my last big ultrasound/cervical check. B.J. will be able to come with me for this one and I think we’re going to take Mady and John too, I can only imagine their expressions when seeing their baby sister live!
Now time to play catch-up (which I’ve been writing over the past few weeks, just hadn’t gotten posted). Where has the time gone this past month???
April 23rd we took all three kids while Annabel had hippotherapy. During this session they went outside for a bit and boy did Anna enjoy riding outside! Her latest thing is at the end of the session she loves walking thru the arena! Since all 3 kids were there her instructor, Liz, offered for Mady and John to ride Bobbie. They loved it! Will definitely have to find more opportunities for them to ride, ideally where it’s not costing $90 a session!
Easter Sunday the kids did an egg hunt at my parents church, then we all went to church, then met up with my sister and her family and Grandma Hively for lunch at Stillwater, and when we got home Mady and John did an egg hunt outside and then all 3 played their little hearts out!
The weather has been nicer and the kids have been playing outside a ton – riding scooters, bikes, swinging (check out Annabel holding on to the swing with BOTH hands!!), playing in their clubhouse, playing with the neighbor kids, playing in their bounce house, and riding their roller coaster.
On April 28 I went in for another u/s in the PAC and everything lookes great! Her little heart is functioning as expected and the technician re-checked all the measurements/body parts from the 1st u/s and all of that continues to look great as well! She now weighs 15 ounces. The technician even took some 3D pics. As soon as I saw her I thought she looks just like one of the trio, who do you think she looks like??? (see 4D pics and above and let us know!)
The technician was able to measure my cervix abdominally and it measured 3.7cm, exactly what it was 2 weeks prior! Both the doctor in the PAC and the doctor I saw in my regular OB appointment after said everything looks like it should, like a “normal” pregnancy!! I have now gained 15lbs and am still all belly.
Per my OB’s recommendation I got a prenatal cradle and while it’s not the most pleasant thing to wear, boy does it make a difference in how I feel when walking, climbing steps, or lifting the kids when needed. I feel like I might actually get to enjoy this summer now and not end up on bedrest!!
Friday the 29th my parents and I took the trio to Potters Park Zoo in Lansing for the 1st time. Although it’s a bit harder to see the animals very clearly there because of the fencing, you’re much closer to them than in Detroit so I think the kids detected them better, just not as good for pictures. I think they’re two favorites were the otters swimming right in front of them (they were giving quite the show) and the lion who ended up climbing on top of the high rock and stood just like in The Lion King (I think Johnathan truly thought it was Simba up there!). The zoo is a perfect size for little ones as Mady and John walked it all but by the time we had seen everything they were tired. This time I think both of them noticed almost everything and Annabel seemed to take in more than she did previously (probably comparable to how John responded last year).
That night we finally saw our old neighbors’ new house and the kids got to play with their kids. Good times had by all! Saturday we met up for dinner with the Krohns (they came down Saturday to be here for the walk Sunday) and then went back to their hotel so the kids could all swim in the pool. They were hesitant at first but once I let Mady and John go they took right off and before you knew it Mady was swimming all over the place! She is definitely our strongest swimmer, John still needs to figure out spitting out the water so he doesn’t swallow so much. Anna wasn’t ready to get right in (to be fair the water was quite cold) but she did enjoy sitting on the edge and kicking her feet to splash.
May 1st we had our March for Babies. The weather held out pretty well and it was overall a great walk! Mady and John walked a little over half of the 3.5 miles and Anna walked about a ¼ of it. We were very proud of each of them! Thank you to all who walked with us and who donated to the cause – we were very happy to not only meet our personal goal but our team goal as well!
On May 2nd the trio started their “special” dance class at Leaps and Bounds and it was a huge hit! The class is 8 weeks long, led by Annabel’s OT (who has also treated John) with student helpers from Mott. So Annabel has a 1-on-1 person with her for the whole class! At the end of the 8 weeks they’re going to put on a production, I can’t wait! I love, love, love that this is one thing they will all get to do together because the other 2 are already branching off to more advanced events that Annabel isn’t able to do yet but this she can!! Here are some pictures from dance class on May 23rd that I was able to attend.
As of beginning of May, Johnathan is officially not in any outside therapies, not a one! Amazing! He did have a speech eval at U of M on the 19th and recommendation is for him to begin speech therapy again. While he has made great strides, he still has areas to work on and it will help him more to target those areas now rather to wait. His current therapist does not have any openings right now so we’ll be on a waiting list for a bit. Starting in May Mady added to her OT, adding one PT session a week that will be back-to-back with OT. She is starting to get stronger with her left upper extremities but still has work to do so this is the time to target it and work her hard. Annabel continues to have PT, OT, speech, and hippo once a week. Her OT and PT session is now a co-treat with her therapists, allowing them to work together for better positioning/strengthening opportunities for Annabel.
On May 6th Johnathan had his Pulmonary follow-up. Although he hasn’t gained weight or grown in height like they hoped he would, he has stayed steroid free this winter thru all of his sicknesses so that’s a major plus for his lungs! We have been weaning the kids off of the carnation/whole milk mixture and are almost completely done with the carnation! His Pulmonary doctor is willing to see how the summer goes, tracking him at his 4 year well child in August and then seeing him again in clinic in October. So overall not a bad visit, went better than I anticipated! Note: since this appointment the kids have all been eating like crazy, sleeping more, and Johnathan has surely grown in height (catching up to the girls) and I’m certain all 3 have gained weight!
Thursday, May 5th Mady started not feeling well, nasty cough and fever. She continued spiking a temp here and there for the next few days but it always came down with Tylenol. Her cough, however, stayed pretty wicked even with Albuterol treatments . On Mother’s Day Annabel started in with a bad cough and fussiness but never ran a temp. We did end up going to church on Mother’s Day and went out to lunch at Red Lobster with my parents but it wasn’t the most enjoyable meal (food was GREAT, just not kids). By Monday Mady was doing better but stayed home from school but Annabel was not so I called the doctor. Turned out she had a nasty ear infection and at first they thought it was pneumonia but ended up being bad flare-up from asthma attack. So she ended up on steroids and antibiotic. Monday night Mady was still having a tough time at night and Johnathan was acting finicky when putting his hearing aid in so I took both of them to the doctor on Tuesday. Turns out both had ear infections (treated Johnathan (it was quite the experience getting him to take his Zythromycin as him and Mady are allergic to Amoxycillin, by the last day of treatment he FINALLY took it without spitting it back at me/puking!!) but not Mady – guessing her temp may have been that but that by Tuesday she was getting better) and for Mady they started her on steroids since it was taking her so long to knock this virus. Over course B.J. and I ended up getting it too (not completely sure what’s been cold vs. allergies) and I am still stuffed up but at least my cough has lessened. Since May 5th, the 17th was the 1st night Mady didn’t wake up in terrible coughing fits.
On the 12th I had another OB appointment and my cervix measured 4.4cm, longer than it’s been in weeks! Her head was right against my cervix again so we were able to see her beautiful little brain and it looks perfect! It’s so nice having a “normal” pregnancy!! I had been feeling the baby kicking for quite awhile but around this time we were able to start seeing her movements from the outside and she’s now doing somersaults all the time! It’s so different than with the trio and I am loving this experience!! I go to the PAC again next week with a follow-up with my OB. I also have to do the glucose test in the next few weeks, not looking forward to that.
Over the weekend Mady and John started riding their 2 wheel bikes with training wheels (and having their first falls) – boy how they are growing up on us! Annabel has added a few more words to her vocabulary – she started pointing to her ear and saying ear, dress, straw, drink, toy, truck, John, attempts to say her therapists Jenny and Tracie, and she is right on with knowing MaMa and Dad now! Her other big development is that she can now climb up both sets of our stairs to go upstairs all by herself now!! Kind of scary for us but so proud of her!
We finally had a Spring family picture and a couple of individual pictures taken. They’re not the best we’ve had (lots of glasses glare) but I was happy to get some to capture this period in time (I’ll post soon). I can’t wait for the maternity and family/trios b-day pics my friend Dani is going to take!!
On May 21st Anna, Mady, John, and I went to my cousin Renee’s bridal shower. It was at Weber’s in Ann Arbor which was where my baby shower for the triplets was exactly 4 years ago on the same weekend. I was then 18 weeks with the triplets, 24 weeks with single. I wore the same dress so see how I compare in pregnancies (1st pic is single, 2nd pic is triplets). So about 5 weeks difference but pretty darn comparable! So many people think I’m much further along now than I am, guess this shows that! : )
On the 23rd we had all three kids’ IEP’s for next school year. I cannot say enough how much I love the preschool program they are in. The teacher and the therapists are just phenomenal in working with our kids, giving them the assistance they need but also pushing them to get them ready for kindergarten. We are so blessed to be in such a great district with such a great program!
Tomorrow I will be 25 weeks and will enter my 3rd trimester! Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend!!
1 comment:
Awesome awesome awesome Jamie!! So glad to read about how everyone--including YOU are doing!! The pictures are great and I hope you guys continue to improve through the summer!! Maybe we can have a PLAY date sometime?!
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