33- 34 Weeks

From the early stages of our triplet pregnancy, 33 weeks was the supreme goal. Getting three babies to that point was the ideal.  We officially passed this hurdle on last Sunday. Although things do not look the same way, it still feels like an important milestone. This Sunday marks 34 weeks, at which point the doctor’s would not try and prevent labor if it began. Jackson is still head down and so we are slated currently to try for a vaginal birth whenever I do go into labor. Two more weeks and then I will start jumping up and down- possibly literally. We need these boys to be here before January. 

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we are thankful for many things.

·         Good friends and family. They have been incredibly supportive and helpful throughout our journey. Life would be a lot more difficult without them.

·         A home and a nursery as ready as we know how to make it.

·         A supportive workplace. Our work family has been unbelievable and so accommodating to me.

·         Our pets. They are adjusting really well to all the changes in the house. We are reading and preparing as much as possible to help them through this transition. We even have a baby sounds CD so they don’t flip out the first time they hear a baby cry.

·         A new-to-us car to meet our growing family’s needs.

Preparations:

·         I am officially off work now until mid-April. I am working on curriculum at home right now. I am creating binders with daily lesson plans grouped by week along with all hand-outs, lecture notes, directions, tests, answer keys, etc. that are needed. It is going pretty quickly now that I am not working full-time as well. It feels strange not to be in my classroom, but I am not anxious about it. I am confident that they are in good hands.

·         We put up the Christmas decorations this last weekend. We wanted to have a tree this year even if we end up spending Christmas in the hospital.

·         I am plowing my way through a stack of baby books.

Symptoms:

·         Week 33 has brought with it my first signs of swelling. My feet and calves are starting to get puffy, especially if I am sitting a while.

·         My back gives me the most trouble. It aches most of the day and night if I sit too much. It is not lower back pain, but from mid-back up to my neck. Without that, I think I would be reasonably comfortable. Basically, I am way better off if I am more active so I am breaking up my time at the computer with other things.

·         I can’t reach my own toes anymore. Shaving my legs was a near-death experience. I have been relegated to the shower stool instead of baths- I am no longer able to wedge myself up out of the tub from a sitting position.

 My belly was measuring at 44 cm last week at my appt. To put this in perspective, Dr. Packham said a big full–term belly might be about 40cm.  I gained 6 cm over two weeks and who knows how many this last week. The belly has officially arrived! It has also dropped. This brought a lovely new visitor along with it- the first stretch mark. It is only about 2 inches long, but I don’t hold out much hope it will stay that way.