New Pictures of Chase

New Pictures of Austin

Update

Hi everyone. For those of you who haven't heard already, our son Brady suffered a terrible setback on Thursday, November 15. An emergency transfer was made through the night to the Dartmouth Hitchcock Intensive Care Nursery in Lebanon, NH and while he was declared stabilized by the weekend, he'd suffered severe, irreversible brain damage. We had an elective transfer approved on Saturday for Austin and Chase and by that afternoon we had our family of five together in one facility. Brady fought extremely hard but unfortunately passed away on Sunday, November 18 at 6:31 pm. Before he passed, we were able to have all of the boys baptized together and we are extremely happy to have that memory forever in our minds. Dan and I wake up each day knowing the best thing we can do right now is be strong for Austin and Chase. We are extremely fortunate to have the two of them in our lives and while we always said we'd never spoil or smother our children, these boys will not know what hit them once we get them home! Both are back to birth weight, off breathing apparatus and tolerating full feeds. Thank you for all of your support and we'll continue to keep you posted on the progress Austin and Chase are making.

Love, Rebecca and Dan

Austin Daniel Couture

Brady Francis Couture

Chase Devlin Couture

Our boys have arrived!

The big day was Monday, November 12, 2007 at 4:02/4:03/4:04 pm and before we could even digest the fact we were about to become parents, they were here!

Austin Daniel Couture (2 lbs. 12 oz./15.25 in.)

Brady Francis Couture (2 lbs. 12 oz./15.25 in.)

Chase Devlin Couture (2 lbs. 14 oz./15 in.)

Labor began at 1:30 pm. They tried to stop the contractions (which I still couldn't feel) and by 3 pm decided a C-Section was necessary.

The boys are absolutely precious and while they have a challenge-packed journey ahead of them, we're confident they will live up to the "Couture" reputation to be strong and healthy boys. They have dark wavy hair, which we think comes from my grandfather "Buppa" (Francis Devlin) and the verdict is still out on which two are identical.

Some of the pictures taken early on, as in minutes after they were born, are hard to identify. So enjoy the followng and then we'll add a post for each child.

Week 27

Our doctor's appointment on Thursday, Nov. 27 (day 5 of week 27) was as good as we could have hoped for. My preterm labor continues so I'm still on bedrest. The doctor says I'm progressing like an "average" triplet pregnancy, which sounds good to us! The good news is that for now, I can at least stay home and out of the hospital.

The boys are growing and they've all maintained their original growth curves.

Austin - 2 lbs., 6 oz.

Brady - 2 lbs., 4 oz.

Chase - 2 lbs., 8 oz.

We were able to see Chase's face during the ultrasound and he has chubby cheeks or as we call them "Couture Cheeks!" His brothers weren't facing forward so there wasn't much to see besides the back of their heads and spines.

I've officially graduated to using a chair in the shower. Thanks to a family friend who loaned it to us, I'm able to languish in the shower now and not feel guilty for being on my feet. So thank you, Mrs. Collins, for the seat!

The good news is, despite my lack of activity, Dan seems to be safe from gaining sympathy weight! We took this at the beginning of Week 27.

Week 28 is starting out well. I feel a little more tired and it's certainly getting harder to lug this belly around, but overall, I can't really complain. As a friend of mine put it recently, the last week of pregnancy is always tough and from now on, every one of my weeks will be like that. But, we will persevere and make it as long as we can!

So, who says the nursery isn't getting any use yet? One of our cats, Koka, has found the perfect napping spot - the changing table! It really is a cat's dream and even has a view! Not to worry, we're rewashing the changing pad cover but really, it's better than her sleeping in one of the cribs!

Weeks 25 - 26

I can't believe we're into the third trimester already. It's been a wild ride so far, but our goal of 32 weeks is within sight and we couldn't be happier. For now, I'm just hanging out in bed, on the couch and Dan has been wonderful at keeping my water bottle full. He's also taken on 100% of the household chores. He gets a break on making dinner a few nights a week thanks to friends and family who drop off food.

Our next doctor's appointment is on November 8 and at that point we'll be at the end of 27 weeks!

This is 1/3 of our nursery. The room isn't spacious, but it does have room for all three cribs...and a pathway for us to get in an out!

Second Trimester, Weeks 13-24

Week 13 (red shirt)

The second trimester went much like the first. I felt great and had plenty of energy. We made the best of the Massachusetts tax-free weekend and bought all three cribs and the changing table week 13.

I had an OB appointment week 14 and the doctor said I was measuring 22 weeks and then laughed. I thought it was funny then too. Now I long to be that size! We also went to a wedding at the end of week 14 for our friends Amy and Stacy. It was a beautiful event and gave us the chance to see some friends and family who we hadn't seem in a while. Amy is my oldest friend and after her wedding she moved to San Jose, so going to her wedding and seeing her happy moment in person was a very special experience. The next time she's in town, the boys could be almost six months old!

Week 15, was the week of the minivan...after many test drives and several nights eating dinner after 9 pm, we settled on the Dodge Grand Caravan. It's a gray/blue color and all the seating "stows." It drives really well and is super comfortable. "Cool" has already become a secondary factor - what is happening to us? Who am I kidding, we drove Subaru's before and one could argue they aren't cool either. Ok, so we haven't been cool for years!

Week 16 (dress was a squeeze!), we went to New Jersey - in our minivan - for our niece Sierra's baptism. That same weekend, we also met Jeff and Joanne, parents of BBB triplets. We grilled them for advice and have actually kept in touch! They were kind enough to sell us their infant stroller and car seats. I think for the first time, reality set in when we drove home with three car seats in the car that weekend!

Week 17 (black & white dress)

Week 18, we went on what we think will probably be the last vacation we'll take in a few years. We went to the Cape and really just relaxed, spent time with family and enjoyed the freedom to do whatever we wanted. The week ended with a very exciting ultra sound

discovery...three boys! We couldn't believe it and immediately realized how easy it would be to have all three babies be the same gender. This narrowed the field for names too. Having a grandaughter on the Couture side and none on my side, all the grandparents were elated to hear they were all boys. All Dan keeps thinking is, finally, someone to help me in the yard!

During weeks 19 and 20 I started to get really big. I started to work from home week 20 and knowing I was getting more and more uncomfortable, we went to visit my cousin Lynne who has a 4 y/o boy and BG 2 y/o twins. She packed our minivan with more hand-me-downs than we could have ever imagined. And then she fed us until we thought we were going to burst. And still...we managed to hit Kimball's on the way home. There's always room for ice cream!

The 21 week ultrasound gave us the best pictures. All the boys were moving - a lot - and we couldn't believe how much they really looked like babies. I know that sounds wierd, but sometimes you have to use your imagination a bit with ultrasounds. We ended the week with a visit to see our friends Caroline and Scott. She is a week ahead of me and pregnant with a singleton. Putting the two of us next to each other was a hoot!

The rest of the trimester was spent on partial bed rest. So, I tried to start closing out projects at work and become one with our recliner. By the time week 24 began, I was on complete bedrest and my life of leisure began...

First Trimester

On May 29, 2007, our dreams came true when we found out we were pregnant. For most people, this is a life changing moment...but that didn't come until June 15, when the ultrasound technician found not one, not two, but three strong heartbeats!

We got to see the babies again on June 27 for an 8 week ultrasound. Babies A, B and C were thriving!

The first trimester ended without much drama. No morning sickness, but the maternity clothes were needed already by week 8! That's when we knew it was going to be a real interesting ride!

We Finally Have A Blog!

Welcome to the Couture Trio blog. We started this site thinking it might be easier to keep everyone up to date on the progress of our triplet pregnancy. And what will be even more fun, is keeping you updated on the lives of our sons once they are born. Being pregnant with triplets has surely been an experience worth sharing and we couldn't be more thankful to have all of you in our lives to share it with. (photo: Cape Cod, 18 weeks)