On Sunday my friends from the ballpark converged to have a shower for me - all ladies this time, with just a few exceptions. First, there was the host and her husband, who made some excellent food for the brunch gathering. Then a bunch of my "usher buddies" who, I realized, are on average much closer to grandmother age than mother age. And finally, a few fans. Among the fans were two young sisters whose dad brought them to be part of the party, and was enticed to stay and join in the party. He didn't seem to mind being outnumbered. I tend to refer to the folks who sit in my section as "my fans"...meaning the fans who sit in my section. It was nice to realize that some of them might actually like me enough to be "my fans". It was a nice, laid back affair - lots of chatting, exchanging of advice and stories, and no silly party games. The gifts were a little extravagant - but oh, so cute and oh, so practical. Definitely a high point in the road. :)
Monday Joe and I met with a potential "night doula". The doula code seems to be "We take care of mom so she can take care of her baby" (or in my case, babies). In the case of a night doula, taking care of mom means that I get to sleep while someone else watches, feeds, and cleans the babies. She also said she will wake me to pump, clean and prep bottles, do the dishes that have accumulated during the day, do the babies' laundry, and generally straighten up a bit. She'll care for the babies in the living room so that we're entirely free to SLEEP the three nights a week she's here. And on top of all this, she seems charming. We checked her references and the families she's worked with all gave her rave reviews. She specializes in working with twins and we will be her first triplet family, but she has more experience than either of us do, so we'll learn from her. The only catch is the cost - pretty high - so we'll be welcoming any and all donations. HA! :)
Last post I listed all the things I have to monitor each day. The most frustrating to monitor is contractions. Starting this week, I've gotten a few belly tightening contractions. But they don't hurt at all, and I'm still able to move around, so I'm never entirely sure they're contractions and not just a baby having moved into a new spot. Until I try to squeeze my belly and there's no squeeze. The contractions, when they come, tend to come later in the day - after 6:00 or so. When I recognize a contraction I get all ready to do the monitoring. And during the monitoring, I might have one contraction, but definitely not the six that are the limit. I think I had three today. The frustrating part is not knowing if I'm really noticing it all. A friend who is having triplets is on bedrest now after her ultrasound showed so partial shortening and dilation of the cervix. She's also having the non-painful contractions, though she sounded like hers are a bit more debilitating than mine are. Mine just make my belly feel bigger than normal.
Tomorrow's another day of monitoring - I'll be at the ballpark. Then Friday is full of doctor's appointments - physical therapy and ultrasound and consultation. Fingers crossed!
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