A Multiple Survey-Tis a Bloggie Thing! part 2

If your babies were preemie, why did you deliver early? No more room at the inn!!! I was not allowed to carry them ANY FURTHER & nobody could figure out how it was that I got to that point in the first place because I am short & not all that big physically!

Vaginal or C-section? C-section!
By your choice or the Doctor’s? I wasn’t feeling suicidal! You have to have c-section with triplets if you want to survive & have 3 babies to show for it!

Did your babies spend time in the NICU? yes

If so, why & how long was their stay? One was in 3 weeks (they thought sending one home with me to get me acclimated was being nice- ha ha ha ha ha ha- so I hauled one up to visit his siblings for another week- total stay in nicu was a month! Or rather just under amonth- they had to learn to eat & show that they were consistently growing-no real problems other than reflux & the phantom pda!

Any advice how to handle it? Nobody can prepare you for it really-watching the discovery channel can prepare you for what to expect to have your kids look like with tubes & wires coming out of them, and will show you that its normal, but when its your babies with the tubes & wires nothing can help the shock of it-you just have to take it all in stride really- and adapt- try to be nice to the bearers of less than exciting news in the nicu- they cant help it- & they know its hard- you can work with these peoples though!

What were their stats (lb/oz & inches) when they were born? Mine were between 17-18 inches long & the boys were 4lbs 5oz each & my daughter was 3lbs 15oz and the smallest of the 3-all were healthy enough-vivie always measured 2weeks smaller than her brothers and grew accordingly-so she stayed in longer-kian would stay & keep her company! Plus she charmed them all into thinking her a tiny delicate flower and had them all treating her like a china-doll which may have kept her in longer! Had to convince them that she was ok & to GIVE HER GROCERIES!!! She was only allowed the bottle the week of discharge & at my demand…no real reasoning for it which was annoying!

Did you have "help" after you have them and how long and who "helped" you out? Um, NOPE it was just me & my immediate family-son & husband- my daddy is too busy with my nieces & nephew that he is raising & couldn’t help me for obvious reasons!- I don’t have a mum or grandmum anymore that could help! Fresh out of those! But I always figured that if I cant do it myself, I don’t deserve them! So we all manage & so far so good! They are 14 months & doing great! & I still have hair!

Did your multiples have any medical problems after they were born? Typical preemie problems-developed reflux-they thought they had heart murmurs, the boys just wanted the special attention sister got for hers(which closed by itself anyways) and they all got the special reflux treatment(which to them meant a cool ride in their very own crib w/ wheels filled with fresh out of the dryer blankies to a room where you got to have an extra special bottle(of barium but they didn’t know better) and they took pictures of you to commemorate how cute you are! Yes my kids acted as if it was some sort of royal treatment-kai even drank his barium so fast he spewed it all over the crew!

Did you breastfeed of bottle feed? Bottle feed-some people say they can breastfeed higher order multiples, I just was not one of those people..

Any complications? Mine didn’t get a bottle til after about a week..

Any advice on breastfeeding? I don’t advise it with higher order multiples because of sheer time needed to feed everyone- I felt that if I had, I wouldn’t have been doing ANYTHING else but that all day, everyday which would have prevented me being able to take care of my trio by myself. There are people out there who do & swear by it though.

What items do you recommend for a mommy-to-be of multiples? A nanny? Just kidding- co-bed them as long as you can (they like it & will tell you when they are ready to be on their own) you will want one of those play-yards that are like octagon gates connected together-use a quilt or sheet for flooring it! You will want 3 bouncy seats DEFINATLY the more stuff it does the better-you can even have the kids start solids in them. We had 3 swings(start with one & see who likes it-you might get away with only one or 2) if you have room an exersaucer for each once they can stand on their own is great for snacktime & containment! But be careful, preemies seem to be smaller than everyone else LONGER and mine are stronger and can pull themselves out of their walkers & exersaucers-one can even tip his all the way over w/ the brakes on-you really have to watch that!

What are some things you consider Must Have items for new mommies of multiples?boppy pillow for feeding in your lap(saves your back) and if you have more than one, you can put a blanket over it and prop your babies in it as infants while you hold the bottles for them and feed @ least 2 at once-see my blog for more info on how to feed all 3 at once! I figured that out too for emergency’s!

What are some items you found completely useless with your multiples? We rarely used our bumbo –others swear by them though- we didn’t use the baby mittens- oh –I hated the baby bathtub-I found something that looks like a mesh bouncy seat that can fold up flat, and it goes in the big bathtub- it can sit up or recline to accommodate even very small baby’s & has a head do-nut attachment for babies- this was the best way to bathe mine in the big bathtub- I could just lay them in it one @ a time and use BOTH hands to be able to wash them quickly-I found it easier- hmm- we did manage to find uses for almost EVERYTHING – except the Johnny jump up that attaches to the doorframe-we live in an old house & the clamp wont fit our doors at all-its too small- we did better with the freestanding ones!

What items were you glad you had multiples of? Blankies! Exersaucers, swings, BOUNCY SEATS !!! feeding booster chairs are a must-can stack in the corner, or tether to a chair and also can travel in the trunk to grandpa’s house! You want the play-yard with the EXTENSION set too- the regular size just isn’t big enough for 3 growing babies who need space to learn to sit, roll & walk!

What items do you feel you wasted money on by buying more than one of? You can never have too much of anything with multiples! Buy lots of unisex colored footed pj’s! that way it doesn’t matter who wears what(which doesn’t matter unless you have to take em in public for some reason in them & then people stare at you funny!) we did manage to find uses for most everything even if it was unconventional uses!

What kind of stroller do you have (one behind other or side by side)? Oh one behind the other is a must- you cant get anywhere in that one anyways because its soo long- cant imagine having a side by side one! Although you cant take the long ones into Disneyworld-but the side by sides can go-go figure! I have a Breckenridge & a runabout.

Do you dress you multiples alike? Co-coordinating usually –the boys will be matching or at least similar-& my daughter will wear something that goes along with the set- ex.- if the boys are wearing denim she will wear her girly denim- they blend more than anything!!!

Do they have "set" colors? Not for clothes- their blankets & bottles & sippy cups do have set colors-it stems from the need to know who gets what meds dosage & who had how much to eat as babies!

What was the sleeping arrangement for your multiples? Did they share one crib, have separate bassinets or sleep together in a pack n play? We co-bedded together in bed for the first 3 months, using the other bed as a changing table till the day when my daughter let us know she was moving out by rolling over after a diaper change and going straight to sleep in her butterfly beddy-bye! Then the boys stayed together until they were nearly a year- I had a heck of a time finding another bed (Wal-Mart was out of the matching kind & I sent garage saling in hopes of finding one- turned up @ a consignment sale!) they did share a pack&play for naps at first & when traveling it worked short term @ 5 months!

What was nursery room theme? Butter yellow! Vivie had butterfly bedding and the boys had a blue & white quilt set with cars & plans & trykes on it! Very very cute! But no real theme!

What do you like most about being pregnant or being the mommy of multiples? Pregnancy was a huge learning experience about myself & what I was capable of doing discipline wise- I was told that I couldn’t do a lot of things like carry them to my set term date & I set my own goals & met them even overcoming contractions to stay at home on bed rest & not end up in the hospital & still keep the babies safe! Being a mommy of multiples is the best- it’s a challenge, but it’s the most rewarding thing I have ever done or ever will achieve!

What do you like the least? I hate the way people look at us when we are out & say ugly things like, better you than me, or when they look at the kids & say "I’m sorry" –that really upsets me that my kids will one day understand that these people are being negative towards them when in fact these kids are very special in that they were very very hard to come by & even harder to carry to term & I want them to know that their mommy & daddy wanted them more than anything in the world & went to great lengths to make sure that they were born healthy & were taken care of to ensure that they would grow up healthy & well- and that these people just don’t understand us… I really wish people would think about what they are saying before they say it- my kids are getting to the age when they can sense that what is said isn’t always positive…

Did you join a local multiple group? Tried to- but there isn’t any active locally- am working on that though! I am trying to help as many moms of multiples as I can find because there isn’t much info out there on how to do this! People tend to either not have time to write about it or keep it a secret!

Any pregnancy after your multiples? Nope, they are the END! Had myself fixed-body couldn’t do it again!! I nearly didn’t make it after delivery!

Would you like multiples again? Wouldn’t trade mine for the world, would do it again if given a do-over I wouldn’t change a thing- but again, no- I couldn’t guarantee that they would have a mummy after delivery & that wouldn’t be fair to them or my current kids!

What is your "favorite" thing people say to you when they find your were expecting multiples? You’re joking!

What is your come back, if any? Uh, nope-have the pictures to prove it!

What is your "favorite" thing people say to you when they see you have multiples? I think it’s neat that they say I’m their hero- especially when it’s a mom of a singleton who says they are having trouble-

What is your come back, if any? I always thank them & try to let them know that we are really both in the same boat- we go through the same things (just I have it triple & don’t know any better!) and try to give advice if she needs it!

How long did it take to get your baby back to "normal" after you had you multiples? My 12 year old isn’t normal yet! Triplets change EVERYTHING- I sometimes worry that he feels embarrassed by us at times- but we try to be open about it & talk about it & I try to avoid situations that would cause embarrassment for him!

Any other advice for an expecting mom of multiples? Listen to your body and do what you KNOW feels right- drink your water (not soda) and relax and understand that if you learn to just go with the flow now, you will be more prepared to handle your babies once they get here! And will be less prone to being stressed out by things that others would normally go over the edge over!

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