32w6d growth scan - 13 pounds of baby!

We had what was probably our last growth scan today, since they only do them every 4 weeks. I told them that if the babies were still inside at 36w6d then they'd better take me straight to the OR and skip the ultrasound! It's getting harder to tell what parts are what on the ultrasound since the babies are so big and smushed, so we didn't get any pictures today.

Here are the stats:
Baby A (girl): 4lbs 11oz 50th percentile (compared with singletons)
Baby B (boy): 4lbs 3oz 38th percentile
Baby C (girl): 4lbs 3oz 37th percentile

So that is 13 pounds of baby! They each gained about 1.5 pounds in the last month. There is a margin of error of +/- half a pound, but I prefer to think of them as being on the fatter side. No wonder I suddenly got a lot more uncomfortable recently!

They also included what's called a BioPhysical Profile (BPP) while doing the ultrasound. They look for specific markers of the babies' development, including their movement and muscle tone, the amount of amniotic fluid, and whether they are practicing respiration. Apparently it's important for them to start practicing their "breathing" skills while in utero. They all passed the BPP (scored 8 out of 8), but Baby A was very sleepy and barely passed the practice breathing criterion. All their heart rates were good too.

Ooh - the other cool thing about today's ultrasound was that we saw that Baby A has hair! I wonder what color it will be...with Jason having dark hair and eyes, and me having light hair and eyes, we could end up with all kinds of adorable combinations.

Then it was over to the MFM's office for my regular appointment. Everything is still stable - cervix good, BP good, weight good, not too puffy yet. I'm only a few pounds away from my weight gain goal of 60 pounds. I never thought I would be trying to gain so much weight!

I have another NST scheduled for Friday, and then MFM appointment next Tuesday. We're just taking it day by day and week by week. They won't even talk about scheduling a c-section until I hit 34 weeks. So until then I'll keep eating and napping and trying to figure out how to roll over in bed without getting out of breath. :)

FAQ about growth ultrasounds

I've gotten a few questions about how the growth ultrasounds work so I'll try to answer them here. Please note I did not do any actual research to find out these answers - anything I know I got from the doctors.

1. Are the percentiles for single babies or multiples?
The percentiles are for single babies. Apparently there are no uniform stats for multiples, which I find hard to believe given the explosion of multiples over the past many years. However, I'm always reassured to know that my babies are of average size compared with singletons!

2. How do they estimate the weights?
They measure head diameter and circumference, abdominal circumference, femur length, and humerus length. Then they plug all the numbers into the computer and some sort of formula is used to spit out their weights and percentiles. There's probably always a degree of measurement error, but I prefer to believe these good weights are extremely accurate!

3. What else do they look at during the ultrasound?
For each baby, they look at the level of amniotic fluid, the condition of the placenta, organs such as the bladder and stomach (apparently if there is fluid in them it's a good thing, because it means they're swallowing fluid), heart rate, and the ventricles in the brain. They also like to make sure they're moving around enough.

4. How long does the ultrasound take?
Thankfully, I have cooperative babies and a skilled ultrasound technician. This last one took just over 30 minutes to get all the measurements needed for the 3 babies. Still, it's a long time to be on my back (even elevated), and I got really hot at one point. The tech said that's the first sign of restricted blood flow, so she had me lay on my side and gave me a cool washcloth for my face. That really helped.

Of course, then we waited almost another 30 minutes for the doctor to come in to review the results with us. Why do doctors always take so long, and what are they doing while we're waiting??

5. How often do the ultrasounds happen?
They usually like to do the growth ultrasounds every 4 weeks so they can really see the changes and trends in growth. Any earlier than that and there would be too much chance of measurement error and little change between scans. It's hard to wait that long but we're trying to be compliant. :)

Ok, I think that's it. If anyone has more questions feel free to ask!

28w6d Growth Scan

Back from another big appointment! Well, I've been back for 4 hours but had to take a 3 hour nap to recover. We had the ultrasound at 8:30am, then had a break before the 10:30 OB/MFM appointment, so Jason was able to get me a bacon, egg, & cheese sandwich from the hospital cafeteria. It was so good and totally revived me. Then there was more waiting at the OB/MFM appt. but at least they got us into a room more quickly so I could lie down while waiting. Afterwards Jason took me to the McDonald's drive through so I could get a cheeseburger and fries. I think the mild anemia is starting to get to me so I am craving beef again - just like in the first trimester. Don't worry, I am now eating a healthier snack of cottage cheese.

Ok, enough about my eating habits. Here are everyone's statistics:

Baby A: 3lbs, 1 oz, 59th percentile. We got to see her swallowing on the ultrasound!

Baby B: 2 lbs, 11oz, 47th percentile

Baby C: 2 lbs, 11oz, 46th percentile

That is around 8.5 pounds of baby! No wonder I look like a full-term pregnant lady.

Oh, and the best news - Baby C has moved down below my ribs instead of being in them! I had been feeling better the past few days but was afraid to hope that she had moved out. Let's hope it's a permanent move!

All the babies looked good in terms of movement, amniotic fluid, and placentas. The doctor was optimistic enough about how well I'm doing to schedule our next growth scan for 4 weeks from now. He feels it's realistic to expect me to get to at least 34 weeks, but of course he can't predict that with certainty. If they are still inside me 4 weeks from now, he expects they'll be at least 4 pounds, which would be awesome.

Ok, now my stats:
BP: still great at 110/60
cervix: holding steady at 3.5cm long, 1cm dilated
weight gain: getting very close to my minimum goal of 50 pounds; averaging about a 2 pound gain per week.

So the plan is to continue bedrest, continue eating lots of high calorie/high protein foods, and keep growing the babies as long as possible.

Growth Scan Update - 24w6d

The babies and I had a great growth scan today! Here are the stats:
Girl Baby A: 1 lb. 9 oz. (45th %ile)
Boy Baby B: 1 lb. 9 oz. (46th %ile)
Girl Baby C: 1 lb. 10 oz. (48th %ile)

There is only a 3% size difference between the babies, which the doctors say is a good thing. They have plenty of amniotic fluid, are moving around constantly, and have good heartrates. We got to see Baby C yawn, which was really cute.

So I have almost 5 pounds of baby in me! No wonder my belly is so big right now (close to the size of someone who is 35 weeks with a singleton).

My health is also good:
BP = 110/60
weight = let's just say I'm gaining appropriately
No signs of preterm labor

The doctors are pleased with my progress and say I couldn't be doing any better at this point. So I remain on "take it easy" status - no strict bedrest, but stay at home and off my feet as much as possible. I have some aches and pains, and I'm tired, of course, but I can't complain too much. I'm sure it will get much worse later on.

Next appt. in 2 weeks! That will give me time to figure out how to upload pictures and ultrasounds. :)