All is quiet in the great Pacific Northwest today, March 30th, the beginning of Kristen's 33rd week. Even though the three little Cooper kiddos seem very content for the moment to stay snuggled inside their Mommy, we did get some exciting news this morning. Kristen had the extensive ultrasound procedure that allows the doctors to measure the babies and then calculate what that means for the weight of each baby. The little boys are both 4 pounds, 8 ounces and the little girl is 4 pounds, 1 ounce. How incredible is that! No wonder Kristen is sometimes barely able to move or breathe!

Another unexpected treat today was the delivery of a special rocking chair to Kristen's room. Since she has done so well and far exceeded how long they thought she could carry the triplets, they are going to try extending her sitting up privileges. The doctor doing the ultrasound agreed she could move to the rocker and sit up for a few minutes when she eats her meals. Who knew getting out of bed and sitting in a rocker would be such an enjoyable thing! Makes sense though when you remember she has been in the hospital for 3 months and for at least the last 4 weeks of that time, they have frowned on her sitting up at all.

All in all, it has been a great day!

We can never thank you enough for your prayers and give God all the glory for the miraculous way God is blessing Kristen and the babies.

Kristen is 32 weeks today and still no babies! I know that is a huge praise, especially given her history during this pregnancy. And, I also know that every day they wait is just one more day for tiny lungs to mature, but I find myself wishing every morning that this would be the Big Day. There is no question about it - we are all on triplet watch and anxiously awaiting their arrival.

In addition to general pregnancy discomfort, Kristen is also experiencing major issues with her shoulder. She seems to have less contractions when lying flat, as opposed to a sitting position, but doing that seems to be playing major havoc with her shoulder. A medical massage therapist diagnosed muscle spasms and worked for almost 90 minutes in that area on Sunday, trying to bring her some relief. It seemed to be better yesterday but is not good at all today. Please pray especially for her today that the pain would lessen and that the doctors would be able to find proper treatment for this condition.

One very positive thing in her stay at Providence, has been her wonderful nurses, especially the gals on the day shift. They have just adopted her as their own and rush in every day to see how she is doing, even if they have been assigned to other halls and other patients for that day. These ladies are amazingly thoughtful not only with Kristen, but they even bring coffee to the room for Ben and I whenever they make a fresh pot for themselves. Gotta love that! Honestly, they can't do enough for her and have become very involved with everything from all the planning Ben & Kristen have been doing to get a nursery ready for three babies, to how they have had to buy a new car to accommodate 3 car seats in one row, to how they will care for the babies when they get back home, and on it goes. Even though the NICU in the hospital is highly rated and very prepared to handle triplets when they are born, it turns out that they have not actually delivered triplets here in quite a few years. The soon to appear (we hope!) triplets are definitely the buzz on the maternity wing.

31 WEEKS AND STILL PREGNANT! Only a few weeks ago we were praying for 24 weeks and then breathed a big sigh of relief when Kristen and the babies made it to week 28. Hitting the 31 week mark on March 16th is miraculous and we give God the glory for that. Last night brought a new round of contractions and an increase in the meds doctors are using to try and buy more days before the babies are born, but she eventually was able to sleep and so far today it appears she is in a holding pattern again. We know God's timing in all of this is perfect, but she is more than ready to have these babies!

Today was a quiet Sunday for Kristen and the babies. We watched a new video produced by several parents of triplets and quads. The stories were encouraging and informative but a little reality set in as they talked about some of the very real challenges parents face when bringing home multiples from the hospital. Everyone had a different story and a different way of handling schedules, feedings, etc., as they welcomed these little bundles of joy into their families, but it is clear some challenges are ahead!

I have a couple of new pictures this week. One is of Kristen at 30 weeks and the other is a shot of the hospital here in Washington.

Kristen and babies had another good day. She is still experiencing the usual number of contractions as she has been having the last few days. Her doctors seem pleased with the progress so far and with their success in keeping her out of pre-term labor for now. All of us are very happy that she continues to carry the babies after 9 weeks in the hospital on bed rest.

Ben surprised Kristen last night by bringing their 80 lb black lab, Fenway, to the hospital to see her. Believe it or not, the hospital here in Washington allows patients who are in the hospital for extended stays like Kristen to have visits by their pets. They recognize what a boost it for patients to see their pets, even if it is for a short visit. Kristen had not seen him since she was admitted on January 7th. Needless to say, Fenway was very excited and for the first 15 minutes alternately licked her fingers and toes and circled her bed, maybe contemplating jumping in with her and the babies! Ben got him calmed down and he spent the rest of the visit laying beside her bed and soaking up lots of attention.

Fenway has been their "baby" for almost 5 years now. He is definitely in for a lifestyle change when Kristen and Ben bring the triplets home in a few weeks!

Another milestone - Kristen is 30 weeks today! Mommy and babies are doing fine. Kristen's last day with IDEX was Friday so she is having her first week with some free time. She's growing more uncomfortable with each passing day as the babies continue to grow, but she's finally getting to start a book or two and enjoy a little down time before the big day. We say it often but it is so, so true - thanks for your prayers!

Unusually warm and sunny weather yesterday in Seattle so Kristen had a chance to sit in a wheelchair and go outside for a few minutes. She had approval from one of the doctors on duty but when the main doctor on call for the weekend found out, she was pretty upset. Kristen and Ben were a little surprised since she had been allowed wheel chair privileges at University Hospital but the staff here seems to be very cautious and protective. Based on their reaction yesterday, I doubt she will be allowed out of her room again!

Speaking of rooms, she was moved today to Room 413. One of the nurses noticed this room is a little larger and since she will be here for a while, we all got busy and moved her things earlier today.

As of today, Kristen is 29 weeks, 5 days!

Good News! Ultrasound did not reveal any short term issues for Kristen and doctor confirmed she is NOT in pre-term labor. Huge news after our scare yesterday and another praise.

Babies are growing! Most current stats:

3 pounds
3 pounds, 1 oz
3 pounds, 8 oz

Thanks for your prayers. God is faithful!

We are still waiting this morning for the ultra sound that will tell us how much the contraction episode yesterday impacted Kristen's situation. This is also the one they do every 14 days or so to measure the babies and assign their corresponding weight. We are hopeful they will all be up around 3 pounds by now.

Someone asked for the address of the new hospital, so here goes. Please note I mis-spelled the hospital name yesterday, it is actually Providence, not Provident:

Kristen Cooper
Providence Everett Medical Center - Pavilion for Women & Children
900 Pacific Ave
Room 411
Everett, WA 98201

Well, I am finally in Seattle!! :) It felt so good to finally see Kristen for myself and be able to give her a hug. She is definitely "great with child" but she looks absolutely wonderful.

Around 5 pm yesterday a nurse came in and said they had decided to move Kristen back to the hospital in Everett and that they wanted to make it happen within 2 hours. The plan had always been to move her back if she got to 30 weeks so she knew she would probably move next week - but she definitely was not planning on it happening yesterday. I scrambled to pack all her things - amazing the stuff one can accumulate during 6 weeks in a hospital - to get her ready to move, only to have a nurse come in 2 hours later saying the move would be delayed until today at 10:30 am.

Today has definitely been an interesting and challenging day. She finally was moved by ambulance this morning to Provident in Everett. Evidently, the babies did not like the move! Kristen started having contractions almost as soon as she arrived. Doctors decided she might be dehydrated, which might be accelerating the contractions, and 2 nurses tried for an hour to get an IV started. It was obvious everyone was getting more and more concerned since the contractions were pretty strong and more frequent and the staff thought it was very important to get lots of fluids in quickly. When the IV was finally in, we began to see almost immediate improvement. 3 hours later she is still having contractions but doctors are hopeful that they have slowed things down to buy her another few days. Thanks to everyone who prayed today!