13 weeks - heading into the 2nd trimester!

Time for comparison!! This is me, 6.5 months pregnant with Hailey.



This is me 13 weeks pregnant with the quads! Everything is still going great! Have a doctor appointment this coming Thursday, and I'll post an update after that!

MOMs group and trip to the Dietitian

Jackson has a Mothers of Multiples group that meets weekly, 2nd Wednesday. Last week I was lucky to join them! There were 3 other women (all who had twins) that offered stories and support. We talked and got to know each other for about 1.5 hours. It was a really good time to talk to others who have been through similar times. Thanks guys!

Thursday I went to see a Dietitian at U of M. (2nd trip of the month). She helped me evaluate how I was doing already (gained 5lbs!) and where I could do better. This diet is challenging, but the better I do the better for the babies! I've been eating a decent sized snack/small meal every 3 hours and at least something every 1.5 hours. She gave me a chart with check boxes for my servings of each food group. I'm doing pretty good! Another thing is she took me off my prenatal vitamins and put me on regular old multivitamins (2 per day), Calcium/Magnesium/Zinc combo (9 per day), Vitamin C (1 per day) and Vitamin E (1 per day) for a total of 13! Personally I'd much rather take 1 prenatal but this combo is more what the babies need right now. I've come to grips with the fact that this couple of months my job is to do whatever I need to nourish these babies. What I do now will make a huge difference come November. Just finished a milkshake and chomping on Cheddar & Sour Cream chips! Already had fruits & veggies! :)

12 weeks and all looks great!!

Today we had our 12 week ultrasound on the high resolution machine at U of M's Perinatal Assessment Center! Everything looks great! Each baby has good heartbeats (152-168) and measured about the same. Baby D was 12 weeks 1 day, A & C were 12 weeks 2 days, and B was 12 weeks 4 days. We learned none are identical, they're all in their own sac and have their own placenta which is healthier for them. The sonographer scanned for about 45 minutes and it was absolutely amazing to watch them all moving! She could've scanned all day and we just watched them playing! Baby C was definitely the most active - jumping then sliding back down. Just about the entire time!! Enjoy the pictures! Next ultrasound is July 30 (15.5 weeks) and a 2 hour one!!

The babies were too big and too far apart for her to get all in one. A homemade collage!

Hailey and I taking our belly pictures! At one time she said she had 10 babies in her belly!

Belly's getting bigger! In maternity pants for sure, and still a little small for maternity shirts. We're making the regular ones stretch for now.

Baby A is at the bottom, going to be a little squished soon.

Baby B just chillin, like it's in a hammock. Hanging out on top of Baby A in the middle.

Baby C - the active one! This one is on my right side.

Baby D on the left side. This one was the only one backwards. Can already see their personalities starting to show! You can see it's hand up by the face and feet bones on the right side.

11 weeks

We've made it another week! So far I think I've gained 2 lbs. Here's this week's picture!

I ordered a recommended book online and it came today! When You're Expecting Twins, Triplets or Quads by Dr Barbara Luke & Tamar Eberlein. It has my expected nutrition requirements. Are you ready for this??? By 20 weeks it'd be ideal if I gained 45 lbs! That's in 9 weeks! I guess here's how I'll do it (each DAY!)...

Calories - 4,500
Protein - 225 g
Carbs - 450 g
Fat - 200 g

12 Servings of Dairy, 6 Servings of Veggies, 8 Servings of Fruit, 12 Servings of Grains/Breads, 8 Servings of Fats/Oils/Nuts, 2 Eggs, and 4 Servings of Meat/Fish/Poultry.

Though it's going to be hard, I've gotta each this much for the babies! Women who follow this have had babies 20% bigger than those that haven't and made it closer to term. So, I raise my bowl of ice cream loaded with whip cream & strawberries to you babies! I'm eating this for you!!

Happy Birthday Hailey!!!

Happy Birthday to my little sweetheart! I can't believe she's 3!! She has been so excited and planning her party for about 6 months! Today she celebrated at daycare-brought in Jello and had a party with her friends.

After, we met the Paulk's at Applebee's in Battle Creek. Hailey and Riley are best friends and hadn't seen each other in a long time. It was great to get together! She only got mildly embarrassed when they sang to her!

10 weeks

Can you believe it?! We're taking pictures every week! I've been feeling pretty good for the most part, still sick, pretty tired, heartburn and achyness though. A couple weeks to go til 2nd Trimester, hopefully I'll be feeling better then. We're 1/3 of the way! Quads are usually born around 30 weeks, putting us the middle of November.

We're Pregnant!

Yep, you see right! There's 4 little babies in there! There certainly has been a flood of all kinds of emotions, but it's setting in for us. Today I saw my new doctor, Dr Nugent at U of M. He specializes in multiples. I got to meet 2 doctors, a resident, and 3 nurses. I'm the only set of quads in the clinic and since they're so rare everyone was so excited to see me! I'm in really good hands. I had my first OB visit with Dr Pastoriza in Jackson, but when they found out there are so many, they transfered me right away to total care at U of M. It takes just over an hour to get there and I'm sure we'll have the route memorized with how many times I'll be seen. I'm considered high risk and will be monitored very closely. The main thing right now is to eat, eat, eat! Dr said I'd be up to a 4,000 calorie diet! Milkshakes everyday! It wouldn't be half bad but I'm still pretty sick. I have another ultrasound July 6 (on the high resolution machine!) and will know more then. At my appointment last week, all the babies had strong heartbeats and were the same size, to the day! Keep praying they stay healthy and growing strong!
Hailey is adjusting well. She's already named them and said she'd change their diapers! I'm gonna get that in writing! :) So right now, the babies names are girls: Rita & Nina, boys: Noodle & Toodle. Gotta love toddlers! She kisses my belly 4 times and has been really sweet. She told me tonight she has 10 babies - 5 boys and 5 girls in her belly and she needed to go to the dr to make sure they were all ok. She's so caring! We'll definitely keep this updated and will let you know our progress! Keep us in your prayers!