Triplet Pregnancy and Birthday - Part 1

For many years, Mike and I weren't sure if we'd have more children.  About the time Brad started high school, we decided we really wanted more kids and if we were so blessed I would be able to stay home with the child(ren).  Well it took awhile, but after 3 1/2 years we were successful.  On August 17-19 I was in Tempe, Arizona, dropping Brad off for his freshman year at Arizona State University.  On August 20, 2005, back in Illinois, I took a pregnancy test, and it was positive - finally!  Even though you are wishing and praying every month, it is a HUGE shock when you finally have a positive test result. 

Mo, Brad, Grandma (Diane) and Mike, May 1997

M.A. Graduation at Governor's State University

We didn't announce anything until weeks later.  On September 12, 2005 we went to the doctor for an ultrasound, the pregnancy was about 7 weeks along.  The ultrasound  technician calmly told us that there was more than one baby!  I was thrilled, Mike almost fainted!  I just remember looking up and saying, "Thank you, God."  I prayed so hard throughout the pregnancy that they would be born with strong hearts, lungs and brains! 

We called Brad first.  He was extremely happy and speechless!  He later told me he walked across the dormitory hall in a daze and told his friends, who were totally surprised too - who gets their first sibling while in college?  Next, we visited my mom, Diane, and brother, Pat.  Before we could say anything my mom handed me a list of baby names, she knew we were hoping for a baby.  Mike said, "Why don't you pick out 3?"  She was very confused until we showed her the ultrasound picture - I'm pretty sure she cried!  After this, we drove to Evergreen Park to see Mike's Mom, Barb.  Mike's sister, Debbie, was there too.  Shock all around!  Besides telling immediate family, we waited until about 12 weeks to tell everyone else - I felt like I was starting to show.  Here's a picture of me at 36 weeks, the night before the babies were born (Title:  Just Huge!)

I stopped teaching at 21 weeks.  I was just so exhausted, even after getting a good night's sleep.  At 29+ weeks, contractions were detected.  I was hospitalized for a few days and hooked up to a terbutaline pump, a medication that intermittantly pumps "anti-contraction" medication intraveneously into my leg.  I also had to monitor my contractions twice a day.  This was a really hard time for me.  I remember crying on the phone with my friend, Kim, about it.  I was afraid I wouldn't carry the babies to a healthy weight or they would be born with complications.  It was strange to be hooked up to a tube of medicine, a slave to the bed - bedrest gets old after a week, you don't enjoy things you thought you'd enjoy doing while on bedrest! - and stuck inside every day, unless it was a doctor appointment day.  Each day was a hurdle. 

At 32 weeks I was hospitalized again for 6 days.  This time, my liver enzymes were erratic and they were concerned for my health.  After the enzymes stabilized, I was sent home again.  I spent 2 weeks at my mother in law's house (close to the hospital and our house was under renovation), then another 2 weeks at home before the big day.  Brad was on his way home for the babies' birthday.  We had made it to 36 weeks and could hardly wait to meet the kids!   

Tommy Has Surgery

Today Tommy had minor outpatient surgery to remove a dermoid cyst near his right eyebrow.  In March we noticed a bump near his eyebrow.  The cyst is a clump of cells that Tommy was born with, no explanation as to why, and the cells grew as he grew.  Surgery involved anesthesia and a "peeling" of the cyst from the bone.  Tommy did great!  He head no adverse reactions to the anesthesia, but was just a bit groggy afterwards.  He didn't even take a nap today and has been in a great mood!  He will have to take it easy the next couple of days, so the stitches aren't bumped.  We'll go to story time at the library,  take a package for Brad to the post office, and maybe take a bike ride or two (all 3 can fit in the bike trailer at the same time!).  We are very grateful for the terrific outcome and so proud of Tommy!

Tommy, June 2009

Welcome to the O'Brien Blog

Hello everybody!  I'm writing to you from suburban Chicagoland on a beautiful sunny day in September.  My husband, Mike, and I are parents of Brad, 22 and living in Arizona, and Katie, Michael and Tommy, 3 1/2 year old triplets.  I started this blog a year ago and just didn't keep up on it(gasp!). 

Now a little about us.  Mike and I met looooong ago at a watering hole called "The Scoreboard."  We happily raised our son, Brad, in Orland Park, a southwest suburb of Chicago where I was raised.  In 1999 we moved further southwest to Mokena.  Here we enjoyed family life, dinners with friends, sleeping in on weekends, and taking Brad to his sporting events. After tumbling through his teenage years (they were rather smooth until he hit 17!), we sent him off to college.  Two weeks after I left Brad at Arizona State University for his freshman year, the doctor told us we were going to have triplets!  WHAM! We were successful in our bid for more children. And boy had we hit the jackpot!

Needless to say, our lives turned upside down in many ways, expected and unexpected.  Now that they are 3 1/2, the haze has mostly lifted, we can have adult conversations when at family gatherings, and it's easy to know what the kids want - they let you know loud and clear!  On the other hand, we still don't get too much sleep, our lives are ones of constant negotiation, deal making, rule reminding, consequence/reward set up, rearranging of stuff(toys, clothes, household items, etc.), and wondering what the future holds.  Of course, we will look back on this time and with we had savored it more.  I think being in the thick of things sometimes make that difficult.  We do have so much joy in our lives, these precious times go quickly, and so far it has been an amazing journey.

Brad (19) with Michael, Katie, & Tommy (16 months)

August 2007