The Perinatologist...

We had our 1st appointment with the perinatologist today.  I was super nervous going in- ask Jason how hard it was to get me to just focus on getting ready so we could leave the house!  I was very worried that the doctor would be telling me one or the other of the following...

-"I'm sorry to have to tell you that one of the babies is not viable" OR
-"What was Dr. Cueto thinking?  There's not three babies in there.  There's seven!"

Either of those options would have been devastating, but in much different ways.  Luckily enough, everything turned out just fine.  This appointment differed from our last one in two very big ways- I managed to not cry until we walked out of the doctor's office, AND they were tears of joy, not tears of shock and fear!

We arrived and had to sign a bunch of forms to start with.  May I just say that to anyone who worked on getting legislation enacting HIPAA privacy policies into place- you did a great job.  It's probably tougher to get into my health records than Fort Knox if you judge difficulty based solely on how many privacy forms I signed.

Then it was on to the ultrasound with Dr. Gilbert, our perinatologist.  Jason and I were able to see each of the babes in turn and find out how/where they are laying in relation to each other.  They are definitely all in their own sacs and looking good/healthy so far.  Dr. Gilbert referred to them as Baby A, Baby B, and Baby C.  Baby A and Baby B both appear to be at 14 weeks and 3 days along.  Baby C appears to be at 14 weeks and 1 day along.  That doesn't necessarily mean that Baby C is younger or implanted later than his/her siblings, just that he/she is just a teeny bit smaller than the other two (which is normal), but only by a very, very small little bit- nothing to worry about.  That was all good to hear because according to our records, I am 14 weeks pregnant so the babies are growing as they should be so far!

We also got to hear each of their heartbeats- so loud and strong!!!  It just really reassured us to hear them- I've been really praying for weeks for the opportunity to hear them.  I think my heart may have stopped a little bit listening to theirs.  It was just a little miracle to hear my little peanuts talking to us for the first time!

Jason and I went in with a long list of questions (three pages worth!) and got a lot of them answered.  First of all, the biggest piece of news is that we will be followed exclusively by Dr. Gilbert for the pregnancy.  As a result, no more Dr. Cueto, which is a little sad but we have to do what's best for the babies.  Second of all, we'll no longer be delivering at Sutter Roseville.  Instead, we'll be delivering at Sutter Memorial, which is actually a little closer to our house.  I'm a little bummed because it would have been a neat connection to deliver the munchkins at the same hospital that two of their cousins were born at, but it's a decision that's pretty much out of our hands.

And Sutter Memorial has one really big thing going for it- one of my best friends from nursing school actually works in the high risk maternity unit there and she could very well end up being my nurse!  We've joked around for years that she would deliver my child, and now it seems like that might not actually be too far out of the realm of possibilities.  :)

Dr. Gilbert gave me the go-ahead to fly to Minnesota next week, so I'm thrilled about that.  And as of right now, I get to keep working my 12 hour shifts at the hospital!  Dr. Gilbert was very pleased with how healthy our pregnancy is and how it is progressing so far, so there aren't too many changes to the plan yet.  I'll be seeing him almost weekly from here on out, so they weren't kidding when they said this would be a highly-monitored pregnancy.

The only really eye-opening bit of news deals with potential bed rest in the future.  Dr. Gilbert did tell us that on average, moms of multiples usually spend 2-3 weeks in the hospital pre-delivery.  Not exactly what we wanted to hear, but I guess this goes along with our new reality.  Jason was probably a little more shocked than me to hear that as he figured that bed rest would only mean me being at home and not working.  None of this is a given or "for sure" by any means, but it does serve to help us better plan for the possibility and discuss how we'll handle it if it becomes a definite (Jason has already been put on alert that he'll have to go to the library a lot for me!).

All in all, a reassuring visit overall!  I'll post the pictures from today once Jason brings them home from work- he wanted to brag a little bit today...