The featured blogger of the week is Janét of Pitts Trips! Janét is the proud mom of 4 year old triplets Caleb, Elias, and Thomas.

Why did you start your blog?

I started early on in my pregnancy after my husband suggested it. We figured it would be a good way for friends and family to follow my pregnancy and the triplets once they arrived. While pregnant, I in turn read all the triplet blogs I could find. They served as a window for what would or could happen in my near future. They really helped put me at ease that, yes, I could get through the pregnancy and survive raising triplet babies. I hope by blog will do the same for others too. It didn’t start out this way but my blog has really turned into a hobby now and I really enjoy updating it with my boys’ milestones, funny things they say or do, and the unique challenges we face raising triplets.

Were you surprised to discover you were carrying identical triplets (tell us more)?

Absolutely! I had never even entertained the idea that I could possibly become pregnant with twins let alone triplets! There isn’t a single set of multiples on either side of our families, nor did anyone close to us have any. It was such a foreign concept that it just never crossed my mind. As soon as I found out I was pregnant I quickly contacted my doctor so I could go in for an ultrasound. I was feeling nervous because my last pregnancy, a couple of months before, ended in a miscarriage so I was anxious to see if everything was ok. We went in at 8 weeks pregnant and as the ultrasound tech was moving her wand around, we asked “so you see a heartbeat?” After a brief pause she replied slightly matter of fact, “I see three babies.” And then what we were seeing on the screen finally made sense, it was as clear as day. Undeniably there were three little peanuts there, each with their own heartbeat! We were so astounded that we were a bit speechless. Next we found out that all three were sharing the sameplacenta thereby making them not only identical triplets but also making this an even riskier pregnancy. When sharing a placenta, they could develop a potentially very dangerous condition called TTTS where the nutrients don’t get evenly distributed between them. The more babies that share a placenta the higher the chances of developing TTTS. So I lived in a fog of disbelief for the next week or two until the reality of everything really sunk in. It was both an exciting and terrifying time!

 Just how rare are identical triplets?

Don’t believe all the news stories that say it’s one in a million or even worse one in 200,000 million. Those statistics are over inflated and identical triplets, while being the rarest type of triplets, are not THAT rare. There are no official numbers but a fellow parent of identical triplets that is good with numbers and statistics calculated it to be closer to 1 in 130,000 pregnancies. So rounding up a little, there is a 0.001% chance that any woman could become pregnant with spontaneous identical triplets!

What was your pregnancy like?

Unlike what I expected, I sailed through my pregnancy without a single major problem but of course I was full of discomforts! Thankfully no TTTS and I simply went into labor at 34 weeks and my boys were born all breathing on their own and healthy.

What has been your biggest accomplishment these past 12 months?

Surviving the terrible threes time three, which by the way, was way worse than the terrible twos! Now that my boys are 4 and a half I feel less frustrated and less mentally exhausted at the end of the day than I used to just a year ago. They are really coming into a fun age with less tantrums and less fighting. I can reason with them, they are calmer and they get along with each other so much better. When out in public I no longer fear that they’ll wander off. I used to find it terrifying to take them to restaurants but now we don’t even think twice about going out to eat. You can really see them becoming civilized human beings!

Now don’t get me wrong, there is still plenty of naughtiness and fighting going on in our house but I suspect that will carry on for years to come!

What is your best advice for a new parents of multiples?

What ever difficult stage you’re in no matter how awful will pass relatively quickly. Even though at the time it feels like it’ll never end, just remind yourself that it will. I wish I had done this more in the early days because I stressed out way too much. Learning to breastfeed, sleeping through the night, learning to talk, and potty training seemed like insurmountable milestones at the time. I honestly never thought we’d get passed the newborn stage, yet here we are more than 4 years later! Time goes by so quickly when you have kids.

What question or questions do you have for the families in the community?

Bed wetting runs on both sides of our families and my boys seem to have inherited this unfortunate trait. Our pediatrician told us not to worry about it until they turn 5 but we are quickly approaching their birthday with no sign of it stopping anytime soon. They wake up wet pretty much every single morning and even have trouble staying dry through their 2 hour nap. I’d love some advice from those who have been through this. What did you do to get your older bedwetting kids nighttime trained?

What is your favorite blog post to share with the Multiples and More?

My favorites are always the ‘personality updates’ that I try to do once every year or so. I get asked all the time if my identical triplets have different personalities. They share so many similarities besides their physical appearance. All our milestones have happened within days if not a week from each other so it’s nice to sit down and really reflect on why they seem so different to me! It’s also great to read their updates from years past and see what aspects of their personality are the same and what is different about each one now. Here is my latest entry Personalities 4.5