Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Another Milestone

Today I am 24 weeks, which means I have reached another milestone! At 24 weeks, the fetuses are considered viable, meaning that if they were born they actually have some chance of survival----not a very good chance at this point, but at least it is a chance. Of course I am hoping to make it another 10 weeks to really improve the odds.

So far things are looking really good. At my doctor's appointment yesterday, all the babies looked great. The ultrasounds are pretty interesting at this point. The babies are getting big enough that the picture on the ultrasound is just a mess of arms, legs, and other body parts. The poor baby in the middle is really getting squashed. The ultrasound tech said that I looked better than a lot of triplet pregnancies at this point.


My aunt and I were interviewed for another newspaper article. This time it made it into the main Arizona Republic (not just the community section). If you are interested, the link is below. Just as a disclaimer, not all the "quotes" from the article are word for word what we said. In particlular, my aunt never takes the name of the Lord in vain, and probably said something like, "Oh my goodness!" rather than what was quoted. :-)


http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0517quints0517.html


I think one of the hardest things about being on bedrest is not being able to do all my regular "mom" jobs. Jayson has done a great job being a single parent to Riley while I have been gone, but I have felt bad for missing out on things I would normally be there for. This week is the last week of school and Riley had a "student-led conference" where each kid sits down with their parent and tells shows them all the great stuff they have learned this year. Jayson had a meeting during the conference and was unable to get away from work for it. We arranged for a friend to go meet with him, but Riley still felt pretty bad that neither of his parents could be there. This, of course, made me feel horrible that I wasn't there. In addition to the conference, Riley also gave a talk in Primary on Sunday (this is a two-minute speech given to the kids ages 3-12), and he had to have a biopsy on a dark spot on his scalp, which he was nervous about. All things that I would normally be there for. Fortunately he and Jayson are coming to visit this weekend, which I am very excited about.


Kaiya is also suffering (even though I don't think she realizes it) from my inability to be a regular mom. She has figured out that I am stuck on the couch and am less effective at enforcing rules. If I ask her to do something she doesn't want to do, she just walks away because she knows that I can't get up and follow her. With her new found freedom, she has been testing the limits to see just how much she can get away with. In the past week, she has colored with pink marker on the bathroom door, spilled fingernail polish on the light-colored carpet, and filled my bathroom drawer with water. I can't figure out what happened to my normally well-behaved child! Fortunately for her, she still has some "cute" moments. It is pretty adorable when she lays her head on my tummy and tries to talk to the babies. She also remembers to include me in all of her prayers. This week she said to me, "Mom, you better not go to any one's house you don't know because they will tell you that you have a big fat tummy." There's nothing like a four-year-old to tell it like it is! At least we all got a really good laugh out of it!


Below is a picture of the cutest kids in the universe (in my totally unbiased opinion) taken the week before I left for Arizona.



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7 comments:

Lynn Cameron said...

Congrats on reaching this huge milestone! Sending tons of good wishes for another 10 weeks of good health for you and the babes.

Unknown said...

What a sweet, sweet picture in the blue bonnets!

Halli Matheny said...

Hey Rachelle,
I check out your website every now and then. I'm so glad that all is going well. I am excited for you to be back in Cedar Park so I can help you with those babies. I think your aunt is amazing...my mom has MS too. You and your family remain in our prayers. Hang in there! I have a couple books I'd love to send you if you want to email me your address.
My email is matheny@iname.com.
Talk to you soon.

Sarah H said...

Hi Rachelle,
My name is Sarah and I know your mom. She's in my ward. I saw your website on my friend Karen Matsens' blog. I read all your entries! Truly amazing! You are an inspiration. I hope and pray everything goes well for you. I have twins, so I know a very teeny tiny bit of what you're feeling, but at the same time I can't imagine what is must be like to be expecting quintuplits! take care and God bless!
Sarah Henrikson

holmesfamily8 said...

I am so impressed with you and your family! I happened upon your ultrasound on U-TUBE, very neat! I am an LDS mom of 6, I just had twin boys 6 months ago. I cannot fathom going through a pregnancy with 5 babies though, kudos to you! I wish you the very best, and pray that those babies stay in as long as possible!

Kristina Plaas said...

Congrats on making it to 24 weeks! From now on, every day those babies make it "in the oven" is both a blessing and a miracle. I heard about your pregnancy from Meridian Magazine. I'm LDS and have been a neonatal nurse for over 25 years. I just graduated with a PhD in Nursing so I don't take care of babies every day like I used to, but my heart never left the NICU. You and all your family will be in my daily prayers. God Bless!

Anonymous said...

Hey Mrs. Wilkinson,

We all missed you the last couple of weeks of school. There was no comparison with the substitute teacher (not to meant to be ugly)!! I am so glad to hear that you are still doing well, considering the obstacles you have had. You and your familt are in my prayers.

Have a great day & hang in there,
Amie Wagner
ACC Student