The Secret Diet

I've been totally lame with posting but energy levels have plummeted for me so using any sort of brain power has become difficult. However, I wanted to record a little bit about my diet and what all the hype is about!

It seems like every pregnancy book I've read, although full of encouragement to enjoy the time of eating what you want, still discourages gaining too much and overestimating your calorie requirements. So when I bought one of the ONLY books about triplets....I was sick to my stomach when I saw these figures:

Weight gain prior to 24 weeks: 36 pounds
Weight gain overall: 58-75 pounds
Calorie Intake: 4,000 calories
Protein: 200 grams
Carbs: 400 grams
Fats: 178 grams

36 pounds by 24 weeks?? 4,000 calories??? 200 grams of protein??? This seemed virtually impossible. Especially because when I read the book I was barely eating/drinking much of anything. By week 12 I had only gained two pounds and couldn't even think about eating meat. The reason and science behind the proposed weight gain is that after 24 weeks, you can't eat enough anymore to keep up with the calorie requirements of the babies...so they use all the prior stores you built up. Weird to think about but as I'm only one week away from 24 weeks, I can see my appetite and amount I eat slowly decreasing with each meal. There's not much room anymore! The weight gain won't extend my gestation period but apparently it can add half a pound, on average, to each baby at birth. When these babies will be around three pounds....half a pound is a big deal!

I have found myself having to rededicate over and over to this diet. I feel better when I don't eat as much, so it's hard, but I know that's exactly what I shouldn't be doing. I've stuck with it and will be EXACTLY 36 pounds heavier by next week! Goal achieved! Some staples in my diet these past 15 weeks have been:

Egg sandwiches
Mac N'Cheese
Quesadillas
Ensure drinks with protein powder
Lots of milk
Cottage Cheese
Greek Yogurt
Beef/Chicken/Tuna

I rarely ever eat out or have a desire to eat out. But basically I eat some sort of animal protein every day, LOTS AND LOTS of cheese, and milk. The meat has been hard because I've never been a big meat eater. Needless to say, I'M TIRED OF EATING! I hope it all pays off!

22 week shot. I'm measuring as big as a 30-week singleton pregnancy! I haven't grown out as much as I've grown in width this past month.

21 Week Report

Saw my specialist yesterday for the regular three-week appointment. Nothing too exciting to report but I need to report nonetheless...otherwise I'll never remember. The fluid accumulation has now resolved which was great news. The babies were VERY squirmy so he had a hard time getting the measurements he needed or profile pictures. Sorry, nothing to show. The unofficial weights from the appointment are:

Mom: 27 pounds heavier! I have 2.5 pounds of baby so obviously the rest of it has gone straight to my hips! I currently have gained the normal amount for a singleton pregnancy and am only 20.5 weeks. I have a feeling I'll be passing the husband's weight by the time this is over. :)
Baby A (girl): 12 ounces
Baby B (boy: 15 ounces
Baby C (boy): 15 ounces
The boys are totally ganging up on our girl and stealing all the nutrients! Figures. Hopefully the weight discrepancy doesn't get any bigger.

New pregnancy symptom: Heartburn. Apparently 50% of pregnant women get this so the odds are not with me. Let me tell you, never having had this before...it is horrible! It really feels like someone burned me with a curling iron right there.

Nothing seems to be able to cool me down from these hot, Texas days. I sleep with two ice packs just to cool my feet and hands. The bathroom at the hospital yesterday was so cold I just hung out in there for a while before my appointment. Ha! We did just buy a small swamp cooler that I'll just use at nights since it doesn't cool down here at all. Hopefully that will help. Seriously, I don't remember what it felt like to be cold...

In good news, the babies are much more active and I can feel lots of kicking. Mostly from Baby C on my left side but it's probably just due to his position. It's kind of fun knowing that what I'm feeling isn't stomach rumblings. Baby A's head is RIGHT on my bladder so I definitely feel her moving at times. Baby B is very quiet over on the right. He's still breech and will occasionally roll around but that's it.

I feel more tired everyday and just hope these babies are getting what they need. Things are fine though and are looking good for me to be able to attend the movie Eclipse on opening weekend! YES. Keep your fingers crossed!!

xoxo

P.S. Had my baby shower last week. Very fun! Pictures are on my other blog.
P.S.S. I got a fortune cookie yesterday that said, "A thrilling time is in my immediate future." I have a feeling that might come to pass....

Multiples Lamaze

I called this a Sympathy belly last time. My mistake. It's an EMpathy Belly. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture with Clark in it. He was in front of a class so the picture taking opportunity was a bit awkward. HOWEVER, he said that as soon as he sat down he had to go to the bathroom! FINALLY....a little bit of empathy for all my bathroom breaks. :)

I wanted to record a little bit about the lamaze class we attended. This class was only for mothers of multiples and surprise, surprise...we were the only triplets in there. Everybody else was expecting twins. We got special treatment though so no complaints.

The class took place two Saturdays in a row at the hospital where we'll be delivering.

~We talked about pre-term labor which I'm at high risk for. How to recognize the signs and what to do.

~We practiced breathing and relaxation techniques during labor. Although I'm set for a C-section, we still participated in the exercises because that meant shoulder and back massages for me! YaY! Only problem was that Clark wanted to be the one laying on the ground and getting a massage.

~We talked in detail about the process of C-sections and what to expect. Our instructor even found a C-section for triplets which was really interesting. Brought tears to our eyes. We're still unsure if the tears were out of excitement or fear! :) Those babies were out in less than two minutes though!

~We talked about preemies and some of the complications that can arise. Our babies will be small so we're expecting to be driving back and forth to the hospital for a little bit.

~We toured the NICU and got to see the PODS where the babies stay. There are 48 beds in the NICU which is huge and our hospital has the highest ranking of care for their NICU. That's reassuring and the tour was so helpful in giving us an idea of what to expect.

~Of course there was talk about epidurals which I purposely tuned out. It will all be done behind me so no reason to watch it be done to someone else. Enough said. I did meet a girl at the Doctor's office who said she LOVED her C-section because she literally could not feel one thing. So....that's comforting, I guess.


Clark even admitted to being grateful for the class. I think we learned enough to be prepared but still hold a bit of ignorance so as not to freak us out. All I have to say is that I am SOOO glad it is June and one more month is in the record books. Some other records in the books is the weather here and my weight. 100+ degree weather all summer just isn't going to cut it. I will die. It also doesn't help that I've gained three pounds a week for the past three weeks. Hmmmm...maybe I should choose low fat ice cream. ;)

I would highly recommend this class to any person pregnant with multiples. I have never taken a singleton class but the multiples class, I assume, covers preterm labor and c-sections in more depth. Being able to recognize preterm labor is super important and we spent the majority of the day on this topic. Well worth the time.

Belly shot: 20 weeks.