Catching up...

First of all, I'm sorry that it has been 5 weeks since I have posted.  I know everyone has a lot going on, but it seems we've been busting our butts around here to do what we can to prepare for the new arrivals.  The nursery is up and going (pics soon), Michael and a friend built additional shelving in the attic to open up storage space in the basement and I've been sorting new baby items from the shower and hand-me-down clothes.  We are happy to say we feel like we have a pretty good handle on things.  By no means, am I ready for these babies to make their appearance, but I at least feel a little more prepared!

We had an appointment with the Maternal Fetal doc this afternoon and everyone is still doing well.  My cervix continues to be long and closed, which they are very happy with.  Baby 'A' is weighing in at 2.5 lbs., Baby 'B' is weighing in at 2.8 lbs. and Baby 'C' is topping everyone at 2.11 lbs.  Baby 'A' is measuring right on track for 27 weeks and 2 days, which is exactly where I am, so the other two are a little ahead of the game.  At this point, they are telling us the goal is to keep them in the oven for 9 more weeks.  ;) 

I continue to feel well and still do not have any major restrictions.   I have been told to try to take it easy as much as I can and rest when Taylor is resting.  This means I have to be a lot better at delegating tasks which isn't the easiest thing for me. My mom and Michael are feeling the brunt of this right now.  They both have been a huge help while I sit back and feel helpless.  I know it is only for the short term, but it is something I'll continue to get used to.

Since I last posted I also finished covering the maternity leave I was doing one day a week.  With that behind me I'm officially a 'stay-at-home' mommy and love every minute of it.  Taylor are I are still able to get out and about with our friends, which we both continue to enjoy.  She still has the cutest personality and is talking more all of the time.  Anticipating that a few things may change with me in the near future we have signed her up for two days a week of daycare for April and May.  Our hope is to give her stability in her daily routine before and after the babies arrive.  I'm sure this will be very hard for mommy and daddy, but we know Taylor will be just fine and will have a lot of fun.

Michael and Taylor returned home yesterday from a short trip to FL to visit Grandma and Grandpa Kamp.  As many of you know, we normally do a Spring Break trip to Siesta Key with the Kamp family.  Well this year I was told a long time ago that I wasn't able to go, but I still wanted Taylor and Michael to go.  I believe the flight down was a little challenging with trying to entertain a 21 month old on your lap for two hours.  But then it was all worth it when she saw the water, got to go on the beach and watch the sunset for the first time this year.   Michael said sunset was 'pretty special' so I'm sure that is something he'll cherish for a very long time.  Unfortunately, Taylor got sick on Monday and since then we have figured out it is hand-foot-mouth.  It was a rough few days for the whole condo, but after a full nights sleep last night and good naps today I think we're headed in the right direction.  

My girlfriends threw a 'celebration of babies' party a couple weekends ago and once again everything was beautiful.  We got a lot of things we needed and even a few fun things for the trio.  We are truly blessed to have such loving friends and family.  I just hope they are still our friends in 6 months!  :)  

Here are a few pictures from the shower:

This is almost 26 weeks

How cute is this??!?  We might have to put Taylor is a full Santa suit  :)

Beautiful cake

Taylor enjoyed this box as it was just her size.  Everyone was extremely kind to the big sister too! 

Just the three of us  :)

The official 27 week belly shot.  Spring has sprung in Central Indiana! 

We also learned of some not so happy news yesterday.  Grandpa Kamp passed away yesterday, March 21, at the age of 95.  He truly was an amazing man and we'll miss him greatly!  

Love Is In The Air

Happy Valentine's Day to you and yours!  Today Taylor and I went to our normal Toddler group at the hospital.  We had a Valentine's party and made Daddy a valentine!  When Michael got home we all had dinner together and now it is couch time.  I told him my goal a year from today would be to get all four of the kids down and share a bottle of wine.  It always helps to have something to look forward to, right?  :)

Today marks 22 weeks for the trio.  The babies and Mommy continue to grow every day.  We were at the doctor a week ago and my cervix still looks 'perfect' and everyone was doing well.  Our next doctor visit is at the end of next week for a growth check.

I'm starting to feel really big, but overall I still feel really good.  There are some days Michael and I agree my belly has grown from the day before.  I'm able to get around and do everything I want and do things with Taylor, so that is a blessing.  I've now been home with Taylor on two Monday's since I'm not teaching my classes anymore and we've had a lot of fun.  Thank you to Grandma Kamp for all of your help on Mondays for the past 16+ months!  Rest up, we will need you back in full force soon! :-)

The first Monday I was home with her she fell asleep in my arms before her nap, which she hasn't done in a very long time.  This not only brought tears to my eyes to see her sleeping in my arms again, but it confirmed I had made the right decision to quit teaching when I did.  

Taylor continues to light up our days with her adorable personality.  She has started calling us 'mommy' and 'daddy' instead of 'mama' and 'dada', which about melts my heart every time.  She has also figured out what a 'boo-boo' looks likes and gets very concerned if someone has one.  Uncle Doug showed off all of his one day and it stuck from then on.  :)

Below are a few pictures from today before we went to our party.

And our precious Tay-Tay last year...

What a difference a year makes!

The nursery continues to be a work in progress, but I plan to post pics as soon as a few more things fall in to place.

Corinthians 4-7

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."


XOXO.
Michael, Darci and Taylor

Indy Super Bowl

Michael and I had the opportunity to go downtown Indy and experience the Super Bowl festivities with his parents and my mom and Bob.  It was in the mid-fifties and sunny when we got down there around 3p.  We did not have an agenda and were able to take it all in.  I'm really glad we took the afternoon to explore such a big event in our beautiful city.  A big thank you to Nicole and Doug for taking on Taylor for the afternoon/ evening!  She had a great time playing with her friends and cousins.  

 20 weeks and celebrating at the Super Bowl festivities in Indy!!  (I'll get back to the bare belly pics in a couple weeks)

 JW Marriott, Michael and I  :)

Our CRAZY crew!

Have a 'super' day! 

Bitter Sweet

As many of you know, fitness has been a passion of mine for a long time.  Whether it is walking around the block with our family or a hardcore spin class, I enjoy every minute.  It is something I've always done for myself and have always been able to look forward to.  So today was bittersweet as I taught my last two group fitness classes at DAS.  When Michael and I made the decision for me to stay home with Taylor I thought I was walking away from DAS at that time.  However, I was asked to stay on board and teach two group fitness classes on Monday's.  With Grandma Kamp willing to watch Taylor this was able to happen.  I've been there most Monday's ever since.  Not only was it a two hour workout for me, but it was a chance to interact with adults.   It was a big benefit to me, physically and mentally.

After starting my internship with NIFS at DAS seven years ago, today I walked away from many good people and a few great friends.  I know I'll miss teaching and seeing the class participants next Monday, but in the long run I would rather walk away on own terms and not the doctor's.  Plus, I'm looking forward to spending more time with Taylor while I still feel good.  So today I close one door on an awesome opportunity and get one step closer to meeting these three babies.  I'm positive I'll have many workouts in the next few months even if they aren't in Boot Camp or Body Flex class!

Happy Super Bowl week!

Swim Lessons with Daddy

Taylor did her first round of swim lessons in January at the Monon Center.  Michael committed to taking her so they had some extra father-daughter bonding time.  Taylor continues to love any opportunity to be in the water.  Here are just a few pics from this past Saturday:

 Off to the pool...

"CHEEEEESSEEE"

 Relaxing on her back...for about 5 seconds. :)

 Taylor is enjoying pushing her babies in her stroller.

Taking a 'play off' to relax and have a little milk.

19 Week Ultrasound

So I was trying to upload our DVD from todays ultrasound and failed.  All three of the babies look great from head to toe!  Michael was out of town for business so my Mom got to go with me while Michael's Mom stayed with Taylor.  Thank you both for helping out!  My Mom really seemed to enjoy the ultrasound but I think she was blown away when the tech switched over to 4D and we could see all of the babies facial features.  We even got to see baby boy 'C' yawn... so precious.  At any rate, We are relieved everyone looks good.  

After a little bit of a melt down yesterday, I'm back to positive town and ready to get through a few more weeks.  I go back every two weeks for a cervical length check and again in 4 weeks for a 2 hour growth check.  

Taylor continues to blossom by the day.  She is starting to say apple instead of 'app' this week and today Mamaw taught her 'opal' because she wears an opal necklace from time to time.  Pretty sure she'll be getting an opal from her one day.  ;)

Michael took Taylor out in the snow for the first time this past Saturday.  She had an absolute ball and didn't want to come back inside.

Thank you all for you continued support and prayers.  We sure do feel the love!

We are starting to gather items for the nursery and hope to have paint on the walls in early February.

XOXO

'Marvelous Multiples'

Today Michael and I attended a 'Marvelous Multiples' class at IU North.  It was very informative and I'm glad we had the chance to attend.  The biggest benefit of the class was getting to see the Level 3 NICU where the babies will most likely spend some time.  They will each have their individual room, which is very different from what we were thought it would be.  The facility is, welcoming, family friendly and we feel comfortable with the babies being brought into the world at this hospital.  

We had to get geared up for the class after having a rough night with Taylor the night before.  She came down with a temperature yesterday afternoon and woke up at 11:45p and vomited for the first time.  Happy Friday the 13th, right?   We were up one more time with a fussy baby, but I feel like we escaped with one in the win column as far as the vomiting goes.  She seemed to be much better this morning when Mia kindly woke her up shortly before 7a.  :)  Mamaw was kind enough to be with her for the day while we were at class.  Mamaw also had some fun playing with Taylor's hair...

Taylor's hair in pig-tails for the first time!  

I'm 16 1/2 weeks into the triplet journey and still feeling well.  I also took it upon myself and measured the circumference around my midsection at my belly button.  I measured 38 inches around! And only half way??!?!  Does that mean I'll be 76 inches around at 32 weeks??  I promise I'll post those pictures too.  :) 

Food for thought:
- A woman of childbearing age has a 1 in 7,000 (1 in 539 with fertility treatments) chance of having triplets
- Just about 2.9% of all births in the U.S. are multiple births- there were 64,335 sets of twins, 2,370 sets of triplets, 117 sets of quadruplets, and 17 sets of quintuplets births in the U.S. in 2003 (latest data available per my book with a copyright of 2007)
- 80% of triplets go the NICU following their birth
- The average hospital stay for triplets in 30 days (typically ranging from 11-90 days)

We could only be so lucky to have three more babies that are just as happy as our Miss Taylor...

Stay warm!
XOXO