Yet another peri appointment & passed the 27 week mark!

I know I haven't posted in just over a week but there wasn't much going on that was worthy of posting about. I was in the same old holding pattern, you know...laying around. Yesterday I went to the peri so here is what happened.

My dad & I made it to see the peri right on time. This was also the visit that I had to get the RhoGam shot since I am RH-. For those of you that don't know about being RH-, this is the rundown. Basically, if you have a baby w/ an RH+ person, there is a chance that your body can begin to reject the baby creating antibodies to fight it. In order for this not to happen, one needs to get this shot several times to prevent the antibodies from developing. They only start to develop if the babies blood crosses into the mother's which is normally during child birth but can also happen in the 3rd trimester. So, now that I am officially in the last stretch of the journey, we had the shot yesterday. This is actually my 2nd one in the pregnancy b/c I also had one after the cerclage was put in at 18w 4d.

Then it was time to get weighed...7 lbs in 15 days. Not so good. My blood pressure was also taken & it was 130/60. I thought that was ok but apparently they considered this a little elevated. That is fine. My bottom # is still low & that is good.

Finally we get in w/ the peri & the ultrasound begins. My cervix is still holding strong although a little shorter than the last time. There is no funneling though. Sofi's head is also acting like a "cork" being that her head is directly pressing on my cervix not allowing anything to go between her head. She is our gate keeper!

The babies are doing fantastic. They are all measuring the exact same weight which is 2lb 4oz. The peri was amazed that they are so equal. Now, the conversion from grams made this possible b/c they are actually only a couple of grams different in weight. Really cool! They are doing exactly what their daddy has been telling them to do, SHARE! Now, Gabi's gall bladder was a bit enlarged BUT the peri said that it does not signify anything at all. She actually said, "It is really need from a dr's perspective to see the gall bladder this early. WOW!" So, it being enlarged is not a sign at all that there is anything wrong. Whew!

Then the urine results came in. I have trace amounts of protein present. Combine this w/ the slightly elevated BP & the 7lb weight gain in 15 days & there is some concern. Many reading this blog may have never heard of a condition called Preeclampsia but this is what I have, or at least I am in the very early stages of this. Basically, pre-e is when the mother's body stops working efficiently based on the stress put on her body b/c of the pregnancy. Normally, in a singleton pregnancy, this does not happen until around 35 weeks. With higher order multiples, it is common to start showing symptoms around 30 weeks. My peri is pretty thorough so I am not sure if we are just catching it way early OR if I am actually showing signs earlier than normal.

What does all this mean? Well, the end result is that the babies are going to come earlier than what we wanted. It also means that my body will be taxed & I will be going to the hospital probably in the next 2 weeks for observation b/c this is a rapidly progressing condition. The average length is about 4 weeks from the time of diagnosis. If I am lucky, we can push it to 5 weeks but that is unlikely. There is not much in the way of treatment that they can do to stop this. I am already dong what they would normally suggest, laying on my left side, drinking only water, eating little salt (ok...something I have to work on), & bed rest. I know the symptoms to look for so I should be ok for now.

So, rather than thinking I had about 5-7 weeks before these babies made their way in to the world, we now have to prepare for a bit earlier entrance. This means a longer NICU stay which we were trying to avoid by getting th 34 weeks but I also knowt hat my babies are BIG & HEALTHY so there is a good chance that they will still be very healthy when born. If that is the case, they will be feeders & growers which is fine. It will give me some time at home to get things done that I haven't been able to b/c of being on bed rest. It will also give me time to recuperate from the c-section.

Other than that, we have passed the 27 week mark & are only a few days away from hitting 28 weeks which is our 2nd goal. I have a shower on Saturday that I am looking forward to. OHHHH...I also have sitting/reclining privledges! I can recline a couple of hours a day. WOOT! That is such a relief! I am also going to be able to sit for my shower. WAAHOO!

That about wraps it up. I really appreciate all your thoughts & prayers. Please keep them coming. God Bless!