20 week update

How far along: 20 weeks 4 days

Weight gain/loss: Weighed in at 170 at this week's appointment (33 lb gain)

Maternity clothes: My black sweatsuit came from Motherhood Maternity this week. It is now my favorite outfit -- so comfy! Realizing I will need to start wearing Markus' t-shirts to bed, I have only a few that are still loose. Received my maternity belt this week as well. It has been a lifesaver and makes such a difference when I'm walking/climbing stairs/standing. 

Sleep: No major changes here. Luckily most nights I'm able to sleep on my side all night!

Best moment this week: By far finding out that the twins' fluid is now stable and equal! Prayers answered! The MFM OB we saw said all of their growth was excellent and they received great growth "report cards." Baby A is 13 oz, Baby B is 11 oz and Baby C is 13 oz. My cervix is measuring at 3 cm, which the OB said at this point "it doesn't get any better than that". She was so positive and made us feel everything is going well. She commented that I'm doing a great job and to continue doing what I'm doing. I am so grateful that I have been able to rest and take care of my body and our babies during this pregnancy. 

Miss Anything? Not being congested and having nose bleeds (thankfully none nearly as scary as the ones I had a few weeks ago). I miss being able-bodied, but I know after our miracles are born I'll start to feel like myself again. I will likely never know what it's like to carry one baby, but I have to say carrying multiples is really hard work and hard on the body. In the latter part of my 20th week, I think I've also started developing pregnancy induced carpal tunnel in my hands. My hands feel bruised and the joints are stiff and painful. Oh yay :(

Movement: SO much action! The babies are moving like crazy now. Sometimes it's like huge pieces of popcorn are popping under my skin and I see something poking through my belly. The other day there was a head or a rear end sticking out and you could clearly feel it and see it protruding out. Markus has now felt the "popcorn" a few times, too :)  Interesting fact, we found out at our regular OB appointment that the babies form a triangle shape in my belly. 

Food cravings: After watching the Food Network I really wanted a reuben sandwich. I know I can't have deli meat, so I was so excited when my mom and I went to Terra in Grand Rapids after my appointment and I got to have a reuben on gluten free bread. It was made with their own house made corned beef from a cut of grass fed beef, so that sounded OK to me! 

Anything making you queasy or sick? Eating too much at once.

Belly measurement: Biggest part of the belly is still 40.5 inches. At 20 weeks I'm measuring 33 weeks!! 

Gender: 3 Boys!!

Prayers: Baby C still has some fuzzy spots that appear to be some kind of cyst on his heart and in the brain, the OB is not concerned and commented these things are seen and typically go away. Praying this is the case and that we won't need to be concerned. Praying all babies' fluid continues to look stable!

Labor signs: No

Stretch marks: No

Mood: Overall good

Looking forward to: Seeing my sister next weekend!
Other: We found out from both OBs that our C-section will likely be scheduled right at 34 weeks on December 21! It's so nice to have a firm goal date in mind! We will try to schedule our regular OB to be the one who delivers the babies. It was also decided that to make our lives easier, we will just continue our care at the MFM OB office instead of also going to the regular OB. It becomes a lot of appointments, driving and coordinating, so we are glad this decision was made. 

20 week belly

The triplets!

We didn't get any photos of Baby A this time because he was hiding behind Baby B the whole time.