Worrying about the Babies!

2 JUL: This afternoon I had a bit of a scare. I got home from work and when I went to the bathroom I had a bit of bleeding. I got pretty spooked. I called the doctor as fast as I could. The nurse told me that since I was only 12 1/2 wks that I should come in and get checked out. I immediately called Rob. He came home from work and we left for the hospital. The wait was very hard. When they finally took us to the back they told me that the Ultrasound Tech had time to do an ultrasound before she went home. She was amazing! She did a one hour ultrasound. She looked for a bleed everywhere but to our relief, found nothing! She did manage to spend some time with us showing us all kinds of stuff with the ultrasound! The babies were in full motion! I was so relieved that they were all moving and squirming and that their heartbeats were all beating!!! This was an amazing ultrasound!!! We saw so much. Baby C was doing all kinds of kicking and moving!!! Baby A was the least active and did not want to be bothered--turned back on us...so cute...They were all doing very well!!! The doctor examined me and said that I just needed to rest and take it easy for a few days. She put me on bed rest for 48 hours! Here are the newest ultrasound pictures!!!

12 WEEKS

30 JUN: Today we are exactly 12 weeks! We are very excited to reach this point!!! We have an appt with our perinatologist this afternoon. We are praying that this morning was the last progesterone shot!! To date I have had 71 shots in my behind.

Our appointment went very well! The babies are all doing extemely well. They have grown and the doctor was impressed with their growth!!! The heartbeats were good and strong as well! Overall, the visit was excellent!!! We left the doctor's office feeling sooo very happy!!!

Oh, no more shots!!! My behind is so happy!!!

Our babies at 12 wks:
*Vocal cords begin to form.
*Those precious eyes begin to move closer together.
*Ears shift to their normal place on the side of the head.
*Intestines move farther in to their body
*Liver begins to function - Responsible for cleansing the blood, storing nutrients, and providing needed chemicals, this is an important event!
*The pancreas begins to produce insulin.
Guess what? Our babies average size is now at a whopping length: 2.13 inches (5.4cm) and weight: 0.49 ounce (14gm).

Baby A - Heartbeat: 163 beats per minute.

Measurement from crown to rump: 5.63 cm

Baby A is situated on my left side.

At this time, Baby A seems to be the smaller of the three babies! Don't worry, Baby A will catch up!!

Baby B - Heartbeat: 156 beats per minute.

Measurement from crown to rump is 6.75 cm.

Baby B is situated on my right side.

BABY C - Heartbeat: 150 beats per minute.

Measurement from crown to rump is 6.58 cm.

Baby C is situated in the middle!!

A Day at the Zoo

My Sweetie

My fish was this big!!!

28 JUN: Today we went to the Honolulu Zoo. It was Military Appreciation Day. The event is open to all military familes with free admission to the zoo, free lunch and even free ice-cream.
This event is sponsored by many companies and organizations. My employer donated money and was a corporate sponsor. I was given the opportunity to represent the company at this event. This gave me VIP parking and entrance to the zoo before it opened to the public.
We invited our friends to join us and we all had a great time!!!
The first thing on the agenda was the opening ceremony by the mayor, Mufi, who gave a speech. He talked about the importance of the military presence in Hawaii. I had the opportunity to meet the mayor and did not miss out on the photo op.
The zoo is not quite as those in large cities. It didnt have many animals but overall, it was lots of fun!!! They had lots of arts and crafts for the kids. Rob made me a visor! So--cute and I have to admit it helped because it did get really hot! We had a great day!

Nellie and Mayor Mufi Hanneman

A New Addition!!

24 JUN: It's a BOY!!! Our miniature donkeys are parents!!! Our Chloe gave birth to a beautful male miniature donkey today!!

The Proud Momma!

The even prouder Pappa!!!

Forrest

Proud Parents

Meagan feeding Chloe

Rob with Meagan and Andrew

Forrest and Chloe

11 WEEKS

21 JUN: We went to visit Mighty MO! This is an amazing piece of history! We were thrilled to be able to walk on board this ship. I will share a bit of history! (just because I think it is very interesting!!) We are so lucky to be able to have this here in our back yard!!

To enlarge the Navy’s fleet by 60 ships, money was allotted to build four fast Iowa Class Battleships of which the Missouri, (BB-63) was one. Affectionately Nicknamed the “Mighty Mo.” It would be the last battleship ever built by the United States. Nearly 11 months before Pearl Harbor was bombed, the Missouri’s keel was laid at the New York Navy Yard on January 6, 1941 and completed 3 years later. On January 29, 1944, more than 20,000 spectators watched as she was christened by Miss Margaret Truman, the 19 year old daughter of then United States Senator Harry S. Truman from Missouri. Senator Truman, when delivering his opening remarks at the Christening Ceremony, said, “The USS Missouri will show … the world her innate seaworthiness, her valiant fighting spirit and the invincible power of the United States Navy.” The Missouri joined the Pacific Fleet in January 1945. This invasion began on February 19, 1945. The Missouri was assigned the task of safeguarding US aircraft carriers by providing them with anti-aircraft protection. She also aided in refueling the nearby destroyers. The Mighty Mo was 65 miles from Iwo Jima when the attack began. With her 5 inch guns blazing, Mo shot down her first Japanese plane. The Missouri heavily bombarded the southeastern end of Iwo Jima. The battle of Iwo Jima was one of the bloodiest battles of the war. The U.S. Forces lost over 6,000 men and approximately 19,000 were wounded in action. The Japanese lost nearly 21,000 of their troops.

On March 24, 1945 the invasion of Okinawa began. The Missouri, in the company of two other Iowa Class battleships, the New Jersey and Wisconsin, opened fire on the island, offering support to the 60,000
American troops that had landed there. On that first day she fired 180 rounds from her 16 inch guns, striking buildings, army barracks, observation posts and an ammunition dump.

On August 5, 1945 the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan and on August 9, Nagasaki. On August 15, 1945, three years, eight months and seven days from that fateful day at Pearl Harbor, the Japanese surrendered and the war in the Pacific was over. The Instrument of Surrender was signed on September 2, 1945 on the 01 deck level of the Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay, near the city of Yokohama, Japan. Japan’s delegation consisted of 11 men who had traveled in secrecy from Tokyo. General Douglas MacArthur signed in his capacity as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Joining him as signatory was Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz along with representatives of China, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, Australia, Canada, France, Netherlands and New Zealand. The Japanese Foreign Minister, Mamoru Shigemitsu, signed on behalf of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese Government General Yoshijiro Umezu, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, signed on behalf of the Japanese Armed Forces. Hundreds of American sailors lined every inch of the Missouri when General MacArthur delivered an eloquent speech calling for “freedom, tolerance and justice.”

DECOMMISSIONED
The Missouri was moved to the Pacific Reserve Fleet in Bremerton, Washington on February 26, 1955. During her years of retirement, visitors could visit the Surrender Deck of the Mighty Mo. The Missouri also enjoyed a short but successful career portraying numerous warships in movies such as MacArthur, The Winds of
War, and War and Remembrance.

RECOMMISSIONED
In early 1984, the Missouri and her three sister battleships were recalled from retirement to serve the nation once more. On May 6, 1986 she had her formal re-commissioning ceremony on May 10 and her return
to active duty. During the summer of 1990, Iraq invaded the tiny country of Kuwait. Under General Norman Schwarzkopf’s command, the U.S. and Allied military assembled thousands of vessels, aircraft, tanks and equipment for immediate duty. At 1:40 a.m. on January 17, the Missouri launches the first of 28 Tomahawk missiles toward Baghdad.

FINAL JOURNEY HOME
After the Gulf War, the Missouri spent four years from 1992 to 1995 at the Pacific Reserve Fleet in Bremerton, Washington before she was moved to another Bremerton pier and opened to the public for visitation. Then following an intense competition from four cities to have the Missouri permanently berthed at one of these locations, Secretary of Navy John Dalton, on August 21, 1996, selected the USS Missouri Memorial Association to receive the Missouri at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This announcement was made 51 years from September 2, 1945, the date Japan ended World War II at the surrender ceremony held aboard the Missouri. The Missouri left Bremerton on May 23, 1998 and went on a 300 mile trip to Astoria, Oregon. The Missouri left Astoria for Pearl Harbor and ended in Pearl Harbor on June 22, 1998.

Our Babies at 11 WKS:

*Nearly all structures and organs are formed and beginning to function.

*Fingers and toes have separated.

*Hair and nails begin to grow.

*The genitals begin to take on the proper gender characteristics. It will be just a few more weeks before we know if we have boys, girls or a combo of both!!

*Amniotic fluid begins to accumulate as the kidneys begin to function. This fluid, consisting primarily of water, helps provide a cushion for your baby while she's nestled within your womb.

*The muscles in the intestinal walls begin to practice contractions that digest food.

Our babies are about 1.61 inches (4.1 cm) long and weighs 0.25 ounce (7gm).

10 WEEKS

15 JUN: Father's Day! The first Father's Day for my honey! We got together with our friends Christy, Randy, Cille, Carlos and the whole Carlos clan--Jessica, E.J. and Christian. We went to have lunch at Bubba Gumps! We had such a wonderful time!! The food was great and I ate so much shrimp I thought it would start coming out of my ears!!!
Our babies at 10 WKS:
*Baby is now called a fetus in "medical terms".
*The most critical part of our their development is complete.
*Their heads are now about half its length - Soon the rest of the body's growth will catch up but this area is prepared to keep up with the rapid brain development!
*Eyelids fuse shut and irises begin to develop - Eye color is also determined by this point.
*Placenta begins to function this week or next - The placenta is the organ responsible for both the provision of nutrients along with the removal of waste to keep your baby growing strong!
The babies are about 1.22 inch long (3.1cm) and weigh 0.14 ounce at the end of this week.

9 WEEKS

9 JUN: This weekend I got a cold. I was pretty miserable and could not sleep very well. Really congested. I rubbed Vicks under my nose all night!! Well, upon reading, "What to Expect when Expecting", I found out that congestion is normal during pregnancy. Why? The high levels of estrogen and progesterone in the body increase blood flow which causes the mucus membranes to swell. Those membranes produce more mucus than ever trying to keep infections and germs at bay. Also, the stuffiness may get worse as the pregnancy progresses!! Very interesting!!
I have an appt with the Nurse Practitioner at Kaiser this afternoon. It's a simple appt--just to take medical history and do all my lab work!
My sister and her family will be leaving today!!! I am sad!! We have had such a wonderful time!!
Our babies at 9 WKS:
*Baby has begun movement - While still too small for to feel, they are wriggling, shifting, and dancing already! Makes you almost wish for a window to peek in whenever you want!
*Most joints are formed now - our little ones are practicing bending and flexing.
*Fetus will curve its fingers around an object placed in the palm of its hand.
*Fingerprints are already evident in the skin
Average size this week -- length 0.9 inch (2.3cm), weight 0.07 ounce (2gm).

Our First Visit with the Perinatologist

2 JUN: We have a referral to see Dr. Keith Ogasawara at Kaiser, Mounalua. A Perinatologist is an obstetrical subspecialist concerned with the care of the mother and fetus at higher-than-normal risk for complications. As you can imagine, we are there in the High-Risk Category. For several reasons, this is an in-vitro pregnancy with multiples and the other not so obvious one---my age. Our appt was scheduled for 5pm but we were not even seen until closer to 6! We loved our doctor! Funny and very informative!!!
Ultrasound: He has a really high speed ultrasound machine. He could take a snapshot and then magnify it. It was so awesome to see our three little beans growing!!! Their heartbeats were all beating so rapidly!! Just simply amazing!!
To our surprise---without warning---all of a sudden he turned on audio and we were able to hear our 3 little heartbeats one by one!!!
Yes, I cried! It was so touching. You know it's happening but until you hear those little heartbeats....there are no words!!! it's love!!! I am in love with those heartbeats!!! I think we both are!!!
Our doctor took about an hour to talk to us about complications, responsibilities, with having multiples. There are many but we are up for the challenge!!! I still have to say on the progesterone shots, the baby aspirin every day and my pre-natal vitamin.

The Luau

My sister and her family are here! We are having a GREAT time!!! Yesterday we went out to K-bay and rented a pontoon boat! After spending a few hours at the sand bar, we drove all around the island. We were able to stop at the Mac Nut Farm. The funnest for the kids was stopping in North Shore and seeing the turtles on the beach. It was great!!! Saturday night we went to a Luau. We all had a great time! Our friends Christy and Randy joined us! Lots of dancing and Hawaiian music!!! Here are a few pics from the Luau!!

Melanie! She is such a cutie!!!

Meagan and Andrew

Sisters at Luau
















The Family: Rey, Ellie, Meagan, Andrew and Melanie
Rob and Nellie
















Our good friends: Christy and Randy at Luau

8 WEEKS

1 JUN: We are at 8 WKS! Feels so good to say that! I am continuing my daily shots and overall I feel GREAT! I still have not had any morning sickness at all!!! I consider myself very lucky!!!Aside from getting very tired very easily, I feel fantastic!!!
Our babies at 8 wks:
*Cartilage and bones begin to form - At the end of this week our babies will have completed 1/5th of the journey 'til his birthday!
*The basic structure of the eye is well underway - The position is more "newborn" like already!
*The tongue begins to develop.
*Intestines move out of the umbilical cord into the abdomen.
*Body grows and makes room - Two months along and they are growing inside and out by leaps and bounds! *The fingers and toes have appeared but are webbed and short.
Baby's length (crown to rump) is 0.61 inch (1.6cm) and weight is 0.04 ounce (1gm).

7 WEEKS

26 May: We have made it to 7 weeks! We are still very cautious! No heavy lifting or doing anything that is strenous! I actually have been too tired to do anything. I still go to work at 5am which means getting out of bed at 430am. I get off work at 230pm and by the time I get home, all I want to do is crawl on the couch with my blanket and take a long nap!! I can't seem to get enough rest....sooooo sleepy and tired ALL the time!!
28 May: Will be applying the last of the estrogen patches! YAY! These patches have left marks all over my belly--not sure if it is the adhesive or the estrogen...either way, not pleasant! I will wear these for 2 days and then I am done, done, done with them!!! Another small step!!!
30 May: We have an appt at Kaiser with Dr. Browing. This is for the consultation to get a referral for the perinatalogist. We did get an ultrasound! YAY!! We love to see our little ones!!!
Also, today, I am very happy! My little sister and her family arrive for their Hawaii vacation!!! We are so excited to have family come visit us!! I sure do hope I have enough energy to do fun stuff with them!!!
About our babies at 7 WKS:
*Elbows form - Again, taking a peek inside you could see your baby's fascination with bending and flexing. *Fingers start to develop - These digits often become your baby's first toy!
*Feet start to appear with tiny notches for the toes - It is fascinating that at less than a half inch, our little ones are already leaving "footprints" on my heart!
*Ears eyes and nose start to appear - Although they may resemble an alien life form, these all "shift" soon enough into a more normal appearance.
*Intestines start to form in the umbilical cord - Did you know that initially the intestines are not formed inside your baby's body?
*Teeth begin to develop under the gums.

Sharing the News

22 MAY: So we have been sharing our fantasitic news with everyone! I think people are in just as much shock as we are!! It is quite shocking to believe that I have 3 babies growing inside me!!! OMG! We are having 3 babies---I would like to say that the shock has worn off but I would be lying!!! In the meantime, I am still doing progesterone shots. Extremely painful but very much needed!
About our Babies at 6 WKS:
*The arms and legs continue to develop - These limbs are stretching out more and more.
*Brain is growing well - Did you know that over the course of the remaining months their brains will develop over 100 billion neurons?
*Lenses of the eyes appear.
*Nostrils are formed - The position of the nose seems to shift into its proper place as well. Soon, the nerves running from the nose to the brain appear.
*Intestines grow - Initially these are actually located outside the baby's body within the umbilical cord.
*Pancreas - Babies are now equipped to deal with digestive enzymes and take on processing the insulin and glucagons the body needs to function.

SHOCK and DISBELIEF!!!

21 May: The doctor started saying, "this is Baby A....you see the heartbeat?" the heartbeat was AMAZING. It looks like a flutter.... THEN...he said, "this is Baby B, you see the heartbeat?" and then to our surprise----he continues---- "this is Baby C, you see the heartbeat?" Rob and I looked at each other...I suddenly said the first thing that came to my mind, "are you sure??" the doctor said, "I'm pretty sure BUT I will count them for you again." Which he did...We were in disbelief!!! Shock!!! Speechless!!!!
Not sure what happened next...I guess I got dressed and we left....we carried our little printouts of the babies like little trophies that we wanted everyone to see!
We sat in the truck, not saying anything...I cried a bit...laughed, cried...WE ARE GOING TO HAVE THREE BABIES!!!! THREE!!!

Here are our ultrasound pics. In these photos, the babies appear to be relatively formless. In the middle of each sac, a light round form can be seen. In the live ultrasounds, the heart is visibly beating. Not too much to see but our babies are there!

Our first "Official" Ultrasound

21 May: Our appt was scheduled for 1:45pm in Kailua. This was supposed to be our first ultrasound! I have to admit that I was not nervous. I am quite sure it was because almost a wk ago our Kaiser doctor performed an ultrasound! (hehehe) We did not tell our doctor about it.
When the doctor came in, I was just excited to have them tell me that it was twins and that we would be "graduating" from our in-vitro doctor to an ob-gyn doctor!! The room was dark and cold. Rob sat at my side. The doctor started the ultrasound...we waited...

TWINS!

15 MAY: Our first ultrasound! We are 5 WKS, 5 days. WE see our first signs of life-2 sacs.
I have attached a pic of our first ultrasound. Two babies growing!!! At this point, the babies are smaller the size of a grain of rice: 2-5 mm in length. The doctor sees 2 babies!! We were thrilled when we saw the 2 tiny hearts beating. It really doesn't look like much--just very fast little flutters!!! We were so excited!!! We just had to call everyone we knew!!!!

Our babies at 5 WKS:

*First heartbeats begin.

*Umbilical cord develops - This is the first lifeline in utero. It bears the responsibility of pumping in oxygen, removing waste, and supplying the necessary nutrients for the remainder of your pregnancy.

*Blood is now pumping - All four heart chambers are now functioning, insuring the baby's body will receive all it needs over not only the remainder of our pregnancy but throughout life.

*Most other organs begin to develop - lungs start to appear, along with her brain.

*Arm and leg buds appear - While they may not appear to be much at this stage it is ok to dream of the future.

Concerns

15 May: We have been soooo excited. Words can not explain!!
This afternoon while I am at work I get a phone call from one of the OB nurses at Kaiser. She called because one of their docs reviewed my blood tests and felt that the numbers were extremely elevated and that there might be reason to be concerned. My heart just started beating so fast.....I tried to remain calm as I explained to the nurse that we had undergone in-vitro and that is why our numbers could be really high. She said she would discuss with the doctor and call me back. I waited on the edge of my seat. In the meantime, I had called Rob who was doing his best to keep me calm. When the nurse called she said that 2 doctors had reviewed the tests and one was concerned and one was not. The one that WAS concerned told her to tell me that he would feel more comfortable if I came in right away to get checked out. So, I said I was on my way. I called Rob and told him to meet me there at the doctor's office. I was trying to remain calm but under the circumstance, it was very difficult.
We arrived there and Rob gave me a hug and tried to reassure me that everything was fine...
Our wait time was very long. The doctor was overbooked. We waited and waited and my anxiety levels rose. We finally got put in room and waited for the doctor. We met the doctor and immediately liked him. He performed an ultrasound....

Dramatic Numbers

12 MAY: FINALLY cramps are gone!!! YAY!!!
The day of our 3rd and final Beta test. Our numbers were shocking!!! In one wk we went from 770 to 6,224!!! We were sooooo very happy!!! The nurse called to give us the results and she said that the numbers were great and we needed to set up an ultrasound for the following week. An ultrasound!! WOW!!! So, our next appt at Dr. Vu's will be 21 MAY, 1:45pm.

Cinco de Mayo

5 MAY: Okay, so we didn't celebrate with coronas and shots of tequila!!!!
Today, we had our second beta test. We are praying that our numbers doubled. Numbers doubling indicate that the embryos are doing very well!!! I went to the lab in the early morning hoping to get the results by noon!!! Dr. Vu's nurse called shortly before 11am to give results! Our numbers had more than doubled!!! I was ecstatic!!! We went from 215 to 770!!! It was hard not to go crazy reading all the websites of which many suggested that such high numbers were an indication of multiple pregnancy!!! The nurse ordered a 3rd Beta test for next Monday. This time I have to go to the Kaiser lab to do the blood test!
During this time, I have had lots of crampling and very painful bloating. I am also on estrogen patches that are actually itchy and uncomfortable. Oh, and don't forget the painful injections I get every day!!!

to EPT or not to EPT

3 MAY: This past weekend was the most hectic we have ever had. We felt completely overwhelmed! We actually started the weekend FRI night. We decided that we would EPT SAT morning. It's a pretty scary thing. We both agreed that 'maybe' tests get mixed up the lab....before we do any more celebrating we wanted to see proof for ourselves!! We went and purchased the test and anxiously waited until morning. Peeing on a stick is so much fun!
I told Rob that we had 3-5 minutes to wait. So, I set the test on the sink and proceeded to wash my hands. No sooner were my hands wet when the EPT showed PREGNANT!!! Seriously, it took about 3 seconds!!! I yelled out at Rob to come and look!!! :)
We were very happy!!! EPT had validated the results and we had seen it with our own eyes!!!

WE DID IT!!!

2 MAY: I went to work. I was nervous all morning and watched the clock very closely. As soon as it was 7am, I left my office to go to the lab to get my blood drawn for the test. I called my doctor's office and spoke to the nurse and told them that I did not want the test results given to me until 2pm when I was home with Rob. They understood, of course, and agreed to call me at home after 2pm.
That morning Rob had an appt at Ford to have the truck looked at. So, around 10am he called me and said they wanted to keep the truck for a few hours and if I could pick him up. I said yes and I left my office to go pick him up in Pearl City. On our way back to my office from Pearl City we decided to call the doctor to see if the results were in. The nurse was busy so we left her a msg. When we finally parked at my office building, I got out of the car and looked at Rob and said "should we try to call her again?"
We called again. We were sitting in my car. She said do you want the results now? We were on speaker phone.....
She said....you did it! YOU'RE PREGNANT!!!! My 1st Beta results were 215. The numbers were good and solid!!!
Rob and I sat in the car in the Lockheed Martin parking lot for a while. I cried. My manly man might have shed a tear as well. This was very emotional! We were so thankful and happy!!! Getting to this point--of finally having a positive was so incredible!! Words can not express how we felt!!!