Help Im Pregnant with Triplets!

Wow! Congratulations! I just wanted to put you in touch with a woman who is the mother of triplets and blogs nearly every day. Her kids are close to 5 now and she's real and honest about the challenges and joys of this unique grouping of children. http://lotsofscotts.blogspot.com

Hope you enjoy and are blessed!

J.,

My triplet boys are two and a half. The most important thing to know when you are pregnant, is that you need to stay off your feet as much as possible. Being on your feet with just one can increase the chance of early labor, but with three it is a great risk. My doctor demanded that I stop working by twenty weeks, which was a very good thing. I kind of blew off his advice about staying in bed as much as possible, and I went into labor at 29 weeks. I was flown to a research hospital, and fortunately they were able to stop the labor. I made it to 34 weeks, which is considered full-term for triplets.

You should try to read as much as you possibly can to prepare yourself for the things that could go wrong. It can be really scary, but you need to know. As soon as my regular OB found out that I was expecting three, she immediately referred me to another docotor specializing in high risk prenancies. Make sure your doc is knowledgeable, otherwise look for another one. You need to educate yourself, and always ask lots of questions. One good book to read is Exceptional Pregnancies: A Survival Guide to Parents Expecting Triplets or More by Kathleen S. Birch, et. al. Also make sure your husband understands the risks of this pregnancy, too. He needs to understand that you won't be able to cook, help around the house, etc.. nearly as much especially when you are farther along.

Where do you live? You should also locate your closest Moms of Multiples group. They will have lots of resources, advice and help for you.

Enlist the help of friends and family as soon as possible. With three, you never know when you will have complications and need to be hospitalized. Try to buy as many things as you can early on. We waited too long to plan our baby shower and had to cancel it because I was hospitalized. Find out who can help with feeding the babies and chores around your house. Believe me, just having someone come by to wash the dishes or do a load of laundry is an amazing help. If you can, find someone to organize all the helpers for you, so you don't have to deal with it. The first two months for you is all about feeding babies, changing diapers, feeding yourself and sleeping as much as possible. That reminds me, another good book is Babywise, their is a section in it written by a mother of triplets.

It's all about keeping them on a strict feeding/sleep schedule, too, for everyone's sanity! Make sure that helpers stick to this.

My email address is ____@____.com can email me anytime with questions!

Take really good care of yourself and those babes!

Dana

And I just remembered that you have a 21 month old. That will be difficult. Try to find helpers to take him special places, or to watch the babies so you can spend one on one time with him after they are born.

Another AND...check out The Triplet Connection. The first book I mentioned above will be sent to you if you join along with a lot of other important and educational information. There is a website, and they send a quarterly (?) newsletter with stories from other moms of trips.

And again, for each feeding, I breastfed one and the other two got formula. They took turns each time...

If you live in Macomb/Sterling Heights/Utica area then check out Northern Macomb Mothers of Multiples. We meet the 3rd Thursday of the Month from 7.30 at Trinity Lutheran in Utica on the corner of Hall Road and Van Dyke. We have a few triplet moms so they will be able to give you spot on advice for your unique position. Hopefully see you there soon! Take it easy and get used to lots of questions from curious people about the size of your bump...

My triplets are 8...two boys and a girl...you will do fine! I will give you my three best pieces of advice...
Buy a quad stroller - I liked two up, two down...in MI you will need room for coats!
Read a book about keeping up you calories while pregnant with multiples...I ate like crazy and mine were 5 lbs, 4.11 and 4.6....it makes a difference.
Gather your troops...friends, family, and neighbors - it is absolutely survivable! The first three months are hard, but after that you get used to it.
Also, people say stupid stuff and are curious - let it all roll off your back and don't waste energy getting upset about it.
Oh, and take them out! You will get the hang of it and they will learn to behave!
Best of luck!

Hi J. ~ I do not have multiples...although I would really REALLY LOVE twins...however I have had a friend hwo had triplets several years ago. The one thing I remember is that they had ALOT of help. They were assistant pastors at our church and had been their quite along time so needless to say they had lots and lots of people who jumped at the chance to help. They had people scheduled to come in two to three times a day. For while I was there on Thursday evenings. I would help feed change play with and rock the babies and I would also do dishes and anything else that they needed or asked for...sometimes they'd call ahead of time and ask if I'd run to the store for them and a few times I made their fave cookies for them. Sometimes Tara would be up and other times she'd be napping in between feedings. If you have people close to you who could do something like this for you I'd recommend using them. It was a life saver for my friend who also had a toddler too! Good luck and congrats!

J. -
Congrats!! As a mom of twins, just take it one day at a time and do what your doctor tells you. Hopefully you have medical or disability, because it's very likely you may be off work for part of your pregnancy.

Find a local Mother's of Multiples group. I'm not sure where you live, but you can find one on the National Organization of Mothers of Twins Club web site (do a google search on it). They will have MOMs who have had twins, triplets and more - and they are a great source of support.
Plus, they usually will have a mom 2 mom sale, where members will sell their gently (sometimes new), clothes, shoes, baby gear, etc. that their infants/toddlers/kids have outgrown -- so you can shop there and save yourself some money. Believe me - you'll need it for formula and diapers!

Your goal is to take care of yourself and those babies, and your toddler - and try to make it to 34 weeks. :-) If you can, I would try to get some help lined up now -- even if you can just find a high schooler who can help you out over the summer months with your toddler so you can get some rest.

Start lining up help for after the triplets are born. ANYONE who is willing to come and help for a few days or a week - start getting them scheduled. Your mom, mother in law, sisters in law, any relatives really. Any neighbors or friends will be a help too. Even if it's just for 2 or 3 hours - it's long enough for you to take a nap to get some sleep (which becomes a precious commodity!)

Try to get some meals made ahead of time and put them in your freezer (casseroles, and meals from dream dinners are great for after you have the triplets). I have 2 cookbooks that are good for that - Dream Dinners --Life just got easier and the other is called 'Dinner's in the freezer'. Anyone who offers to stop and pick up anything on their way over to see you -- take them up on it! Even if it's a gallon of milk or something easy - have them do it. It will save you time and a trip out - you'll be too tired to even think straight at times.

Save yourself some time too by ordering your diapers online at www.1800diapers.com They will accept mfg coupons just like stores do. We bought our formula and diapers mostly from Costco (Kirkland brand) because it was less expensive and we got 2% back at the end of the year.

Lastly, I can't say this enough to new MOMs,but if you are not an organized person, you'll need to learn to become one. You will feel as if nothing gets done if you are not organized when you have multiples. And you'll want to get them on a schedule as soon as possible.

You'll also want to have a pre-printed 'baby schedule' where you can write down what time each of them ate, how many diaper changes, and if you give them medicine - what time they had their medicine at. This will help not only you, but anyone who comes to help you out.

Good Luck and feel free to contact me if you need to vent or ask questions. :-)

K.
Mommy to the A Team
Alex (11), Aaron & Aidan (2 1/2)

If you're interested in the Plymouth/Canton Mothers of Multiples group, let me know and I can "hook you up". Lots of triplets and twins there to help you along the way. We have a private internet community with MyFamily.com and have lots of information and support.

And, Congratulations!

Please take good care of yourself, J.. Very exciting!

Congratulations on the triplets. My triplets will be 7 the end of June. First of all you need to get involved in a mothers of twins/multiples group. You can find your local group at www.momotc.org (state website) or www.nomotc.org (national website). They are VERY helpful. I have been part of my club since I was 4 months pregnant. Also, do everything your doctor tells you. My pregnancy was pretty much uneventful for the most part. I did get gestational diabetes and was hospitalized with contractions twice overnight after my non stress tests because I was in labor but not dialated with the first and a week later one of the babies' heartbeats was low and they thought they were going to have to take them. I did end up having my 3 two days later at 33w5d. All 3 came home at 9 days old. If you want to talk some more my email is ____@____.com. Again congratulations, you can do this (I did it with no help other than my husband who was working 2 jobs) and good luck.

Hugs
M.

hey J.
congrast on the triplets i sure hope you have some help you have your work cut out for you in a wonderful blessed way rest now because i am sure that it will not be that way in 7 mo or sooner good luck

J. - I just wanted to second the advice you got below to contact your local Mothers of Multiples group. Look it up on the website, and then there are local meetings you can attend. These women have been through it all and will be a GREAT source of information and support.

Also, I highly recommend this book:
When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets, or Quads by Barbara Luke, Tamara Eberlein

Good luck!

-J. (mom to twins - 2 1/2)

Congrats on triplets. Don't have any experience. You will be soo blessed, but very tired. Line up lots of extra help as you go along would be my advice.