Airport Security Officer Vickie Gilkes, aged 32, from Tamworth, gave birth to three baby boys; George, Harry and William on 27 June at George Elliot hospital, Nuneaton. George weighed in at 4lb 1oz and Harry and William at 4lb 5oz each.
‘I think I’ve found a third!’
I fell pregnant this time last year and was terribly ill with morning sickness, in a way that I hadn’t been with my eldest child, Hannah. I put it down to a stomach bug until I attended my 12-week scan.
We were completely unprepared for the news. We walked in there, excited at the prospect of seeing our second child, only to be told by the sonographer that she could see two babies on the screen. My husband and I were so shocked that we didn’t notice that she was still staring intently at the screen. Abruptly, she stood up, excused herself from the room and returned soon after, with a colleague. Moments later, the sonographer exclaimed, “I think I’ve found a third!”. We just looked at each other and giggled…
I was jealous of pregnant women with big bumps
The pregnancy itself was not too bad, once my iron levels were sorted. After the morning sickness disappeared I felt normal again and stayed like that until two weeks before the birth, when I suddenly got huge! I’m quite a small person and, throughout the pregnancy, I felt jealous of these other pregnant women I saw with big bumps. But when I ballooned towards the end of the 34th week, it felt like someone had inserted a spacehopper under me. The triplets were like a rugby team, kicking me constantly!
I went in for my planned C-section in my 35th week. The operation went really well and I came home after three days to see Hannah. The boys had to stay in the special care unit for two-and-a-half weeks; Harry needed a little help with his breathing and the hospital helped establish firm feeding patterns.
If you have no routine, you have no chance
The first few weeks went by in a blur. They weren’t as daunting as I had imagined but it was still a bit of a shock. There we were, nine months earlier, delighted that we would have one more child in our family… and now we had three!
It was hard work. My husband luckily took a month off work to help me get a routine established, which is essential with multiples or you’d go under. Hannah has been fantastic, really laid-back, and great with nappy-changing! Since we get through an astounding 140 nappies a week, it’s good to have an extra hand on board!
I’m weaning the boys now and they have all taken to it differently. Will is a natural and gobbles it down enthusiastically. George isn’t quite so sure about it and will lick the spoon rather than eat off it. Harry is somewhere in between; sometimes he’ll take it and sometimes he won’t. Weaning takes a lot of time though, even with mum’s help. Luckily a friend of mine helps out with Hannah and can pick her up from nursery on days when I am stuck trying to give the boys their dinner!
Out and about
It was a while before I attempted a trip out of the house. Again, you need to be extremely organised to even get out of the door with triplets and I never brave it on my own. Normally, I wait for my husband or mother to accompany me so I have an extra set of hands; we tend to use a double and single pushchair rather than a triple one as they’re too wieldy. Apart from the logistics of it, doing anything takes ages because we are constantly stopped by curious passers-by, wanting to ask me about the boys. My dad calls the triplets ‘granny magnets’ because of all the attention they draw!
Enjoying time together
My relationship with my husband has remained strong throughout all this. At the beginning our heads were spinning as we were constantly looking after the babies. But we got through that and now the boys and Hannah go to bed at 7pm, and sleep through till 6am, so we have the evenings to ourselves to chill out. We also take advantage of any and every opportunity to go out as a couple. This started quite early on; my mum would take the children overnight on a Sunday so we could go out and then have a decent night’s sleep.
Working: now and then
My bosses at Birmingham Airport were fantastic throughout my pregnancy. They carried out risk assessments and constantly monitored me to ensure that I was all right with the work I was doing, which mainly involved outside airfield security. I am planning on going back to work soon and the boys will be looked after by my mum, while Hannah will go to nursery.
You just have to get on with it
This has been a tiring but wonderful experience! People often ask me how on
earth I cope with having triplets and my answer is always the same: you
just have to get on with it! It’s nice to have my colleague Therese in
the same position though; we often get together to chat about our triplets,
and for me it’s lovely to look back fondly at how my boys were when they
were the same age.
Whereto next?
- Read our article about How to have constructive discussions about money with your partner
- A woman’s work is never done! How to handle the chore wars with your other half!
- Mums on a (breastfeeding) mission. Meet a group of young mums who are inspiring mums to breastfeed.
