July 6 , 2012 : 16 weeks
MORE GOOD NEWS!! I think the best news we received today was in regards to Leighton. At our last appoinment they thought he might only have a 2 vessel cord (normal is 3 vessels-1 vein and 2 arteries). The vein carries blood containing oxygen and nutrients from the placenta to the fetus. The arteries carry oxygen, poor blood, and waste products from the fetus to the placenta. At today's ultra sound though they were able to see all three vessels in his umbilical cord leaving no reason for concern any longer.
As much as I was relieved to hear the good news I had to fight back tears when we talked about bed rest. Dr. Shah said that regardless of how well I am doing I will be put in the hospital at 20 weeks....thats only 4 weeks away. I hate the thought of not being able to be home with Jacob and Lexi--especially as the school year gets started. They want to be able to monitor me on a daily basis and have me nearby should anything happen. I'm not sure the hospital cafeteria is prepared to feed me as much as I have been eating lately though!!
All babies continue to grow appropriately and have healthy heartbeats. We weren't able to bring home nearly as many pictures this time though because they were all so active. Our favorites are shown below with more details about each baby.
Giovanni
The picture on the left is Giovanni showing how proud he is to be a boy. The view is from the bottom looking up at his thighs. On the right is the 3-D picture of him all scrunched up even though he has more room than any of the other babies. Giovanni measured to be an entire week ahead of schedule in relation to his size.
Brooklynn
So I thought Brooklyn would be a patient baby since she was stuck in the middle but she may have had her fill of being squished already! She did not stop moving the entire time--and it wasn't just an arm or leg moving--it was the entire body flailing around like crazy! She measured to be 4 days ahead of schedule in regards to her size.
Jade
I LOVE this picture of her face and arm--technology amazes me sometimes!! Jade was pretty patient--at least long enough to get a good picture! She measured to be 5 days ahead of schedule eventhouh she has the least amount of room to grow.
Kensley
Another picture that I can not stop staring at...the fact that you can see everything from eyelids to lips is amazing! She looks to be a petite little girl but still measured 3 days ahead of schedule. She continues to be really active but at least cooperated long enough to get a great picture.
Leighton
This is a great profile picture of Leighton's face. He of course was far too active to get a good 3-D shot but I've already targeted him to be Jacob Jr. so that should be expected!! :) Leighton measured to be about the same size as Kensley at 3 days ahead of schedule.