Triplethefunplus2

Go Southwest, Young Man

2009-08-20T09:26:00.014-04:00

We’re on the road, a little late, but it’s all good!! We have 19ish hours of driving ahead of us. Stopped for Starbucks and away we go! Ty & Steph promptly fell back to sleep once we got on the road. I don’t expect to see much of Tyler this trip, except of him sleeping. He seems to sleep his way through road trips, must be nice!

Steph’s now awake and journaling, a pastime she enjoys, so it keeps her busy. Jon is insisting on driving, which I expected, but I’m glad we took off early morning, so we can see some of the country as we head from Ohio to Texas, it’s much better than trying to sleep overnight through the hills and bumps!!

Yesterday, I had to take Tyler to the doctor one last time, a day before that, he got stung by a bee, it swelled and then he had trouble breathing. We knew he had a local reaction allergy to bees, but each time he gets stung it’s getting worse, so it was time for an Epipen, just in case, especially with him being so far away. So I was able to spend his last day home, just me, him and his girl, Kait, whom I love! So it was a very nice day.

Last night we had to take the littles to my friend’s house, she’s keeping them through the weekend and then my other friend is keeping them the rest of the time for us! THEY ROCK!!  Anyways, it was time for the littles to say good-bye to Tyler. We’ve talked about this and they’ve been commenting that they would “miss Ty-Ty when he was at Texas,” but I wasn’t quite sure if they got that he was not going to be around, as in not seeing him for a long time. He’s in the front yard playing with them when it was time to go, they say their good-byes, Tyler’s crying, the littles are crying. I wasn’t expecting this, I don’t know why, I just didn’t think about it like this. We get the kids all buckled up and they want to see Ty again, he comes back to the van to say good-bye again. More tears from all 4 of them and then I start, it’s so hard! Then the little stinker that Dylan is, he tells Ty that he wanted to see him cry, so he could laugh! Little shit! Lol Then we’re off. The little ones are crying and holding their bananas. This goes on for a few minutes. Then Dylan is doing the fake cry and squeezing his eyes tight, trying to squirt out a tear…lol Then he finally stops. They are his little buddies, they worship the ground their big brother walks on. He’s going to miss them and they’re going to miss him! I told them they’d see him at Christmas, so for the rest of the time I was with them, Ayden would ask how long until Christmas, I say 4 months, he says in 4 months he gets to see Ty-Ty again…awwww…breaks your heart, doesn’t it?

It’s going to seem like a long 4 months, but I know the time will go fast for all of us. We’ll be busy with fall activities and school. Tyler will be busy adjusting to college life and baseball and enjoying being on his own. I’m honestly not worried about him being on his own. I’m mainly worried about him not getting up with his alarm for class!!!! That boy could sleep through a train barreling through his room!! Frustrating! But I’m hoping when he’s on his own, that he’ll just take care of business and get up on time!

I’ll miss him and his antics, I’ll miss his “click,” he does this LOUD, obnoxious click with his tongue and I’m sure it will be missed in time! Lol I’ll miss watching him wrestling around and cuddling with the little ones. I’ll miss his beautiful smile and his cocky little way he looks in the mirror in passing and says that I created perfection! Lol He doesn’t have a self-esteem problem, does he?!? Lol I’ll just miss him. But I’m so proud that he gets to go out and experience the world, see new things and live his life. We’ll see him, we’ll talk to him regularly, so it’s not like we’ll never hear or see from him again, it just won’t be daily, which is the next chapter in his life, the natural progression of things….and I’m okay with it…at least right now, check back with me when we’re driving back to Ohio without him…

OhhhhhhKlaaHoma - Where the winds come whipping down the plains…

Day 2 of our 5 state trek. We made it to the edge of Missouri last night, lots of little stops add up quick! Too many Starbucks (Wait! There are never too many Starbucks!!!) But my sweetie was nice enough to scope them out for our trip! The best one – RIGHT NEXT TO OUR HOTEL!!! How awesome is that!?! Every hotel should have one either right next door or in them! Our hotel was okay, it was soooo humid in the room, the blankets felt damp, it was icky! But we crashed early, so it’s all good. Ty slept on and off most of the day yesterday, he was actually awake more than I thought he would be! Lol Not much to see on that first leg of the journey, so a bit boring, but still it’s not Ohio!

Oklahoma has been fun to see so far, cows in lakes keeping cool, flat land as far as the eye can see and it’s just cool to see from this Ohio girl’s perspective…Everyone is refreshed and excited to get to Vernon, I can’t wait to see where my boy will be calling home for the next 2 years, find out what his baseball schedule is and get him all settled in. I’m hoping he’ll be home December 9, when the first semester ends, but it will basically depend on his baseball schedule, if anything, he’ll be home through Christmas and then have to leave right away to head back to Texas. We’ll figure it all out. The littles will be so happy to see him for Christmas. I told him he will just walk through the door and surprise them!!

We have about 6 hours to drive today and then we’ll be there. The nice thing is that there is a hotel right across from the baseball field at the college, so it’s nice to know when we come down for a visit, that we’ll be so close! I can’t wait to come down to see him play ball at the college level. I’m so excited for him and this opportunity he has. I’m excited that he is going to college and planning his life! I’m gonna miss him like crazy, but I’m excited for him!

Day 3, Move In Day.

Today is the day - Today’s moving in day!! He was so excited and antsy to get moved in and get this show on the road! We first stopped at all the necessary places to make sure he’s registered, pay any last minute fees and get the keys to his new home for the next 2 years. It’s tiny! He got there first, so he chose the bed by the window. He has a lot of stuff! LoL But he is one of the furthest kids here. Tyler is moving in to the athletic dorm, so he is with all baseball players, convenient, eh?
So after going back to Wal-Mart AGAIN, we got all the necessary cleaning supplies and any last minute things he would need. We finally get back to the business of moving in; Tyler unloads the van, while I start the cleaning like only mom can. It wasn’t too bad, but I feel better leaving him there with the place starting out clean…He shares the bathroom with 3 other guys, so you get the idea….

So far so good on the tears, none yet. I’m excited for him! He’s so excited and can’t wait to get us on the road home! I don’t blame him; I was excited to get on with my life, so I know exactly how he feels! He got his Christmas present early, a flat screen TV and now he’s set!

I plan to come back down to see one of his games this fall season, so it’s not like I won’t see him until Christmas. He’ll be home about December 9ish, so it won’t be so bad!

We took a tour of the area after he was pretty much settled. There really is nothing around here, not too much trouble for him to get in to, we hope! Lol This local Wal-Mart doesn’t even carry organic food…we were looking for some items and the guy we asked said he’d never heard of it! Lol We went in to the next big town and found some grocery store that screamed healthier food, so we hopped in there and we found what we were looking for, but that store is an hour away, surely not in walking distance like he needs being without transportation of his own.

We may see him tonight, he kicked us out of his room so he could get settled and unpack and just be in his new space. We’ll see him tomorrow to add/drop a class that he needs to have. Then that’s it…we’ll be heading out after lunch with him…He officially starts his college life and baseball life that evening…

Tyler ended up staying the night in his dorm, he and his roommate spent the evening rearranging and organizing the place, it’s more spacious than when we last saw it. The whole dorm smells like teenage boys live there!!

The drop is complete.

It’s 1:03 p.m. Texas Time. We’ve just pulled away and left Tyler to start his new life as a college student away from home…I didn’t cry as much as I thought I would, I think it may hit me once we get home and he won’t be there. He’s so excited and happy to be here. I’m excited and happy for him. He’s in a good place and seems to be all set up to have a great college experience. He’ll be so busy with school and baseball, there won’t be much time for anything else, plus Podunk doesn’t have much to do! Lol But it’s cute and perfect for him.

We’re headed out of town as I type. I’ve never seen so many cows and pick-up trucks in one area. Minivans aren’t that common! SUVS and pickups is the name of the game around here…It’s pretty down here, open fields and cows and we actually saw camels!! We saw more of Wal-mart than I ever care to in my lifetime! But it had what we needed and it’s in walking distance for him and I feel good about that, I can send him Wal-Mart cards and Subway cards and he’ll be happy!

½ hour down, 19 to go, we’re going to tag team the drive home and see if we can get home early. Sending a kid off to college and getting him set up is EXPENSIVE!!! Definitely have to save up for the next 4 kids to get out on their own…

Wednesday:

We made it home earlier than planned. We tag-team drove until 3 a.m., then had to pull in to a rest stop to catch a few hours sleep; 6 a.m. we were on the road again. It’s really not a bad drive, pretty much a straight shot and not too many hills or curves, so it was a nice drive. We got home about 2 p.m. on Wednesday, got cleaned up and then picked up the littles.

The emotions took over once we pulled in the driveway and walked in to the house. I just cried like a baby, seeing Tyler’s truck in the driveway and knowing that he wouldn’t be coming through the door any time soon, that we wouldn’t hear his music from the basement and YES – I even miss his “click” already!!! As long as I don’t think about it too much, I’m okay. I’m sure once we get in to our new normal, things will get better. We will be in contact with him regularly, we can text, we have facebook and email and obviously the phone to talk. He’ll be home early December and depending on his plans with his girlfriend, Kait, we’ll see him some of the time and probably be with her the rest, her plan is to get a job down in Austin, since she will be going to school down there anyways. Then he doesn’t start second semester until mid January.

Tyler called last night and I was able to talk to him for about an hour. He is lonely. He’s second-guessing the decision to move so far away. There really is nothing to do down there. Plus he doesn’t really know anyone yet. He said he wasn’t expecting to feel so lonely. Breaks my heart for him. But like I told him, once school starts on Monday, he’ll be busier with school and baseball will be more involved, yesterday morning was their first practice and it was rough, kids throwing up from the heat and intensity! I didn’t think baseball conditioning would compare to football practices! He made it through, it’s just hot down there and all the running, etc they had to do. He did get sick in the shower after practice, unexpected for him. But he’ll get used to it and learn a system to get through. He had his water bottles, so he was staying hydrated.

I miss that boy! But this is the next phase of his life and he will be fine. Once college life gets going, he’ll make new friends, get to know the baseball boys better and hang out with them. It’s just a hard transition from friends and family to not knowing anyone and no way to see friends and family on a whim…But I have faith that he’ll be fine. He’s in kind of a mini boot camp and this will definitely be good for him. Like he said, he couldn’t handle it if it was 6 weeks, but it does make you mentally stronger and who doesn’t need more mental strength! We’re going to get a web cam for our end, his girlfriend sent him one for his end, so it’ll be nice to see him “in person” and the littles can’t wait to “see” him again! They miss their big brother! Stephanie even cried as we were pulling away, she’ll miss him. Even though they act like they don’t like each other, I know they do. I hope they will communicate with texting or something and stay in contact; I will try to encourage it.

4/5 days until school starts and we can all get back in to the swing of things. The summer went by extremely fast and we had sooooo much to do, to prepare for Tyler’s big move to Texas. Now that there is 1 week left of summer, it feels like THE longest week there ever was…

I knew moving him would be hard and driving away without him - I just didn’t anticipate coming home to the “empty” house would be even harder…So all of you that may be reading and have kids going to college soon, especially the ones that won’t be close to home, the return home will be so much harder than the goodbyes at the dorm…

If you’ve read this far and it’s a jumbled mess, forgive me, I’ve just been trying to get my thoughts out and some of it may not make sense to anyone but me! Lol

Just some misc. pics...

I just bought a vacuum

2009-07-20T14:52:00.002-04:00

My son's first vacuum, that is! How excited is he going to be when it arrives! Tyler going away to college is starting to become more real every single day that we get closer to school starting. We have less than a month. I finally have the list of things he can and cannot take with him to school, for his dorm.

I can't believe this is happening. I'm so excited for him, but yet I'm dreading the day at the same time. I know he'll be okay on his own. But he'll be so far, it's 19 hours straight through from here to there. Will we see him at Christmas? We don't know yet. He might have to stay there, alone, at Christmas, because of baseball. I might just drive there and spend it with him...lol I just might.

See - I did forget something...

2009-07-16T12:33:00.005-04:00

I forgot to update on how Dylan did with his meatoplasty surgery. I'm happy to report all is well in the pee pee department!! He did great with the surgery and recovery! He was supposed to take it easy the rest of that night, because he had a caudal block, so he was numb from the waist down. That wasn't about to stop this kid! He was crawling around the living room and slithering around to get to where he needed to be and FAST!! By that evening he was up and running around, even bouncing on things (ouch!) and it was like he never had anything done!

He was missed greatly by Ryley and Ayden. It was sooo sweet how once Ayden and Dylan were reunited, Ayden took on the role of nurturer to Dylan. It was so sweet to witness.

But he is peeing normally now and my bathroom is thankful for that! Took him a week or so to stop overcompensating, so that was a whole different kind of mess, but now he just let's things go naturally and it's a lot nicer in our bathroom!!! :P

In other news - STEPH GOT HER TEMPORARY LICENSE!!!!!!!!! Now she has 6 months of driving practice and class, then she can get her license!! Not sure if I'm ready for her to be behind the wheel, so I think Jon and her dad will be helping her with this at first. I was a nervous wreck driving with Tyler and I think I'll be even more so with her...lol

Summer Happenings

2009-07-14T15:39:00.010-04:00

I can't believe it's been over 2 months since I last blogged or even visited here!! It's been a crazy busy couple of months, let me tell you!!

Where to start, I guess from where I left off. We did the March of Dimes Walk in May, with our last ever ride in our beloved Choo Choo Wagon...We met up with a fellow triplet mom that reads my blog and we walked together. I think she thinks she scared me away, because after that, I haven't blogged since! lol Not true Gina!!

Right after the MOD walk, was our NICU renunion and it's crazy it's been about 5 years since they were there!! A lot of kids turned out of it, then we released pink/blue balloons in memory of the angels from the NICU. Teeny tiny little babies to all these big kids!!

My laptop fried right after the MOD walk and I was so afraid we lost all photos from the past 6 months of our life, including Christmas! Luckily the techy's created something that can get stuff off our computer and life was saved around here! I got a new laptop for work and I've been so busy with that ever since! I am loving being back to work and being able to still be at home with the kids, have a somewhat flexible schedule and making some money! I officially ended my babysitting career at the beginning of June and while 95% of the kids I sat for were wonderful, there is always that 1....But I digress, I'm enjoying the freedom that comes with not being tied to the house. We can just get up and go if we want to, not that we do much, especially with me working in the mornings, but the option is there, if we want it!

Baseball started up and finished and then started up again. Tyler is wrapping up his summer ball and the triplets will be done with their season in a couple of days. While we love baseball, having it consume our life is hard at times, especially if there is something we want to take off and do. But since this is the last summer for Tyler playing summer ball, possibly, around here, that will free up the summer somewhat. The little ones will still play, but it will be a set schedule, it'll be during the week for a few years and Jon won't be coaching, so he won't feel obligated to skip out on a family vacation or get away, I'll be making sure of that!!! lol Been there, done that, got the T-shirt! This time around, we will be making time for family stuff, other than baseball. Granted we will still make efforts to not miss out on games, especially since we'll have 2 players on the same team, but you know!

Oh one very important thing happened since I last blogged! TYLER GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL!!! Gosh am I behind the times!! I'm so proud of him and can't wait to see what the next chapter of his life holds for him. Since he's been out of school, he's either playing baseball, traveling to baseball, working or out doing stuff with friends, we hardly see him. Which I guess is preparing us for life without him around all the time, which will be in a few short weeks. We head to Texas with him mid August and it's getting here so incredibly fast, I can't keep up!! We are having his graduation/going away party at the beginning of August and it just seems like a daunting task that I'm putting off. Feeding all those people, I've started buying and will try to make as much ahead of time, as possible. We were going to have it catered, but I'm too cheap for that, when I can make it myself for less!! lol So that's what we're doing!

Stephanie is going to the vocational school for cosmetology and she's excited about that! I hope the fresh start will be exactly what she needs to get motivated in life! did get kudos last night, in our healthy eating habits makeover. So far this summer, her hair has been about 3 different colors, so far normal colors! But I won't be surprised if it's purple or pink sometime! lol Whatever gets her through school and graduates, that's my mantra these days...

Let's see, what else? I feel like I'm missing something big, but I don't think so. Just working, hanging with the kids and waiting for a hot summer to arrive. So far it's been a very mild summer. We have the big pool up and have only used it for a week...So that's a let down. Last summer we didn't put it up, because we were gone so much with Tyler's travel ball and it was HOT! This summer we're home and it's mild...go figure...The kids are really getting it with swimming on their own, especially the boys, they are swimming under water and just little fish! I will still probably have them in swim lessons over the winter for something to do and make them stronger swimmers. I would love for them to be on the swim team, like Tyler and Stephanie did, it's great exercise and makes them so much safer in and around water! Roo loves the water too, but she's just not as in to going under yet or being tossed around the pool, like the boys are.

Oh our garden is rocking!! We've been getting a bunch of cherry tomatoes and Ryley is in heaven, she eats those things like grapes! We're waiting on the million regular tomatoes to turn and that will happen at the same time, I feel. But I plan to attempt salsa, so I can't wait!! We have been getting a ton of hot peppers and we have onions galore! It's a great little garden and so far a huge success. Maybe next year, it'll be bigger!

School starts in about a month and I think we're ready for it. Since it's been such a mild and somewhat rainy summer, it feels like fall most of the time anyways! The kids are a bit bored and miss school.

It's still hard to believe that in 1 month, we'll be driving the oldest off to school and getting him settled half way across the country...It's amazing how fast the time has gone, these past 18 years!! But I know he'll be successful in whatever he does!

I can't believe that Stephanie is going to be a junior in high school..that time just disappeared! She's growing up waaaay faster than I'd like, but that's the nature of the beast, I guess! She can do whatever she sets her mind to, she just had to believe that for herself!

The triplets will be 5 in a few short months. That is hard for me to grasp. Their time is going faster than I can keep track of. We are so busy all the time, THEY are so busy all of the time, the days just blur together! They are so bright and funny and I just love this age, it's so innocent and literal, I wish they would stay this age forever...

Well, I think that catches you up, not as much as I thought I'd have to say, but I know I'm forgetting stuff...as usual...Enjoy the pictures!!

Oh ya! We had a dog - for a week!! We named her Bella. She found us, through my MIL's house. She was lost, her owners contacted us and decided we could keep her!! We were excited, she was perfect for us - except she didn't like kids!! We found that out as the week went on, so we found her a perfect new home and one without children, it was sad, but for the best. But it showed us that a small dog would be fun for us and the kids. So in September, we should be getting a new puppy! We're excited and it should be an adventure!!

Sorry for the novel! Enjoy the miscellaneous pictures from the summer so far!

How does your garden grow?

2009-05-05T13:53:00.005-04:00

It grows when someone else plants it!! lol My back went out, yet again and so I have been unable to do much of anything! It sucks, but what can ya do? This has been a problem since the triplets were born, I have muscle separation from that pregnancy. So I have no abdominal muscles, which in turn causes my back to be weak. I need to get it fixed, but there's no time or money for it yet. Anyways, my back's been out since Friday and it sucks. We wanted to get the garden going, so Jon took charge. I think he would much prefer that I just be completely knocked out than so helpless and in the way! lol But I have to be a part of the planning and the supply purchasing, I just have to be!! So we go to Menard's and get all the stuff we need, some tomato plants and peppers. I already have seeds for the lettuce and onions. He bought the wood to build the raised bed the other day. The kids are excited about their garden! It's cute and small. It'll be fun. Wish I could have done something to help besides watch.. We also picked up a teeter totter. It spins around in circles and goes up and down. It's like a rollercoaster. It's a lot of fun until someone gets hurt. Which happened quite a few times in the first hours after having it in the yard. It might go back to the store and a safer one to replace it! Dylan is a little daredevil and loves it. He also doesn't like to stop when someone wants off. People that want off also don't realize they have to wait for it to stop before getting off or letting go!! Ayden had the most serious injury, he hit his chin and I thought for sure he needed stitches. But we got a second opinion from a nurse friend and so he was bandaged up and good to go. Right now I'm watching them have a blast with it. So far no injuries or kids sent flying through the air. So we'll see. It's for 3-12 year olds. I sure can't see a 3-year-old using this thing, my 4 1/2 year olds can barely reach the handles from the seat!

The Decision Is Made

2009-05-01T12:30:00.003-04:00

We finally know where Tyler will go to college!! He's going to Vernon College in Texas to play baseball! He got a full-ride!!!!!!! Wahooo!!! We just have to pay for meals! He was so excited when we sent him the text at school! We have all let out a sigh of relief to know that this part is done! He signed his Letter of Intent last night and I dropped it in the mail this morning. We are so excited for him!

Just 23 more days until graduation. It's amazing how fast the years have flown by. Reminds me to cherish all the moments I have with the other 4 and with Tyler. Before I know it, he'll be half way across the country...Crazy...

How's Your Meatus?

2009-04-22T20:20:00.002-04:00

I don't know how mine is, but I can tell you how Dylan's is - it's webby. The urologist likened it to having your thumb over the garden hose and making the "spray" go other directions than naturally. I pretty much knew what he was going to say - he has meatal stenosis. Meaning I have the joy of cleaning up his pee from all over my bathroom! He pees straight out and to the right, it's sheer joy to clean my bathroom 10 times a day!! It's gotta be fixed, so we can add that to the list of things to do. That will happen some time in May, outpatient, but he is going under for it...Joy. He could have it done in the office under numbing cream, but at this age, wiggle and the lower success rate of it not growing back; we opted for the other option of going under and having a couple stitches put there and the much higher success rate of it not being a problem again. Plus with his age, I worry that too much activity with his package will leave a memory that will last. He was already a bit apprehensive having the urologist looking down there and touching him. But he's a trooper, he was spelling words for the doctor as soon as he walked in and being his charming self! lol

Dylan and I got there early, hoping to get the paperwork filled out and possibly seen a bit earlier. I don't remember this waiting room being so microscopic, have they moved? It's standing room only in there and smelly. I was quite surprised at how small the place was. I remembered the examining room area, but not the waiting room, guess it must of been the new-baby-fog I was under back then. We ended up waiting about an hour before we were seen. Nice. Luckily Dylan can make friends with anyone that will pay attention to him, so he was a happy camper! lol

I did find it interesting, since I had time to sit and listen/observe the people in the room. There was this one lady that was too good for the rest of us and she made sure we knew it. She sat down in an open seat, I chose to stand near where Dylan was instead of squeezing in between people I didn't know. Some people cleared out. I was able to sit near Dylan and fill out the paperwork. She sat in the middle of one row of seats. The room started to fill up again. She didn't move, there was a seat on either side of her empty. A mom and son walked in and she shuffled herself in her seat, as if to say, don't even think of sitting next to me. Nice. Mom sat next to me and I offered to move, so her son could sit next to him, he was about 10, but she said he was fine to sit in the other spot. I just thought it was quite rude of the snob to be that way. But it's also fascinating to me at the same time how people operate.

In other news, Tyler just walked in with his graduation announcements - It's really happening! My baby is really almost done with high school and will be moving across the country for school. I won't say which one yet, until he has signed, but it's hard to believe. He has his cap and gown as well, but I told him he's not allowed to put that on in front of me because I'll cry. I can already feel it...May 24th is the day. It's getting here so fast...

Triplets are harder than Twins, Really?

2009-04-21T12:43:00.003-04:00

Now before you get your panties in a bunch, it was an attention-seeking title! lol

I picked up the kids from preschool, I had to go to the post office. I couldn't go before I got the kids, because I had to wait for a signed delivery. So I had the babysitting girl with me and the kids haven't seen her since the week before last.

Pick up the kids, get to the P.O. and we all walk in - 2 and 2, holding hands (that's the perfect scenario), it's like herding cats at this point to get them to hold hands and get through the door!! I get the package all labeled in the appropriate envelope and in to the main area we go. Constant reminders to not touch things, no licking the counter (yes, seriously), don't touch each other, blah, blah. Really? Where did these children come from and WHY are they regressing? Because they are so excited to see the babysitting girl and are a bit wound up. But I had to get this stuff mailed out ASAP.

Get that done, walk out 2 and 2, this time they are listening, because I instilled the fear of no McDonald's in them for not behaving, so they're trying to win that back (didn't work, I held my ground!) As we're walking out a lady says, "Two sets of twins?" I said, "No, triplets and a friend." I get a sympathetic look and the your hands are full statement.

Really?? Triplets are harder than TWO sets of twins?? Really? How? I would really think that having 2 sets of multiples would be more challenging than triplets. You would have two sets of kids at different ages and stages...

But whatever...pull your panties out now MoMs...lol

No Title - just miscellaneous information

2009-04-19T22:15:00.006-04:00

I great weekend. I was able to get a break away for a night. We had the State Twins Club executive board meeting and this time it was in Columbus. We stayed at the Embassy Suites down there. Nice hotel. I'll be dropping them a friendly little letter about their housekeeping staff, especially the ones that decided at 4 a.m. to start dumping trash and chatting it up and whatever else they could think to do LOUDLY in an main area, for hours! I went out in the hall to see what the heck was going on, it literally sounded like construction! So I didn't sleep. But oh well. I developed a neck ache and then headache halfway through the evening and that just sucked! Put a damper on my fun, that's for sure! Then by the time we made it to bed, to get an hour of sleep and woke to that! Nice.

After the board meeting, we went to a local outdoor shopping area, in Westerville, I think it was called Eastern. It was very nice! Higher-end compared to what I'm used to, but it was a nice little area to walk around and watch the people, there is no recession as far as they're concerned!! lol I got to go to Trader Joe's and that was great! We also went in to this fun little store called The Container Store - that would be my weakness if there was one a lot closer! lol

We were standing outside of a store deciding where to go next, this little girl came up to us and just walked in to the middle of our circle. I thought that was kind of odd, then she stood right to the edge of us and had her fingers to her mouth, I asked her if she was lost, she looked so scared. She was about 10, I think. She nodded she was, then started to walk away. I got her to tell me her mom's cell phone number and we called her. That was so awesome that she knew to go to a group of mom's and that she knew her mother's cell phone number. I had been telling mine that if they were ever lost from me to find a mom and tell her they were lost. So this was proof that worked! There were sooo many people on the sidewalks, that it would have been impossible to know where to start looking for her mother. One of our MoMs went to look in the Children's Place store that we were standing beside and luckily found her as I had just finished leaving the girl's mom a voicemail. It was just the way it should have turned out.

Today, I refreshed the little ones on who to find for help if they ever were to be separated from us, they remembered, thank goodness. I added to that, not just a mom, but any female. We were without our children, so she would have had no way to know which of us was a mom. I also wrote my cell phone number on strips of paper and gave each one to look at and learn while we were driving home. There really is no point to teaching them our home phone number, since I will be out with them if they ever did get lost, so the cell phone makes the most sense.

The little ones had their first soccer game on Saturday, I missed it. But I heard that they had a great time! I can't wait to see them next week. They have their little games every Saturday for 6 weeks. Ryley seems to be more in to it, than the boys, so we'll see how it progresses for the boys. Oh and did I mention that I was sucked in to coaching this?? Luckily one of the other mom's is also coaching and she has more experience than me, so she can have at it! lol

The little ones also have their first coach-pitch baseball practice on Tuesday. So we've added another level of business to our life. We decided to play them up instead of doing another year of the chaos of last year. So I guess that also includes practices now. Their first game won't be until the end of May. Oh and did I mention that I was sucked in to coaching this?? Yes, I am coaching both teams. But I am counting on my rocking twin MoM that has her 3 on our team to be my right-hand gal!! Got that Gina?!?! lol But it'll be fun. I'm more comfortable doing the baseball than the soccer, even though I've played soccer and softball, I've been around the baseball life for longer! So it'll be fun and busy and fun!

Oh and did I mention that I FINALLY GOT A JOB!?!?!?!?! Yep, I finally landed one. I actually got one last week, went through the orientation and ready to start, but just didn't feel it was the right fit for me. So I had a phone interview on Friday and was able to get this other transcription job and feel much more comfortable with it. So I'm so excited to finally get back in to it and get started! I will be working a split shift, morning and then at night. That will work the best for our family and still afford me the luxury of being available for the children pretty much all of their waking hours. So it'll be the best of both worlds for me and I won't have to pay a babysitter or mother's helper to get the work done! YaY Me!!

I think that's about it since the last post. Thanks for stopping by and reading!

Oh it's just another one of those days...

2009-04-12T19:21:00.002-04:00

If you have seen my sons, please send them back - these boys I have now, I just don't recognize!!

What has gotten in to my children lately? I wish I knew. They are driving me to drink. They have me rocking in the corner by the end of the day. Where are my good listeners? Where are the kids that didn't get in to much? Why are they starting now? Why are they regressing?? I wish I knew.

Ryley got a princess barbie for Easter. Beautiful long brown hair. Well now she has a choppy stylish short bob. Why? Why did Ayden think it was okay to cut her hair off? Why did the other two think it was okay to watch him do it, THEN come and tell me he was cutting her hair?

The other day Ayden got a BRAND NEW book from the library. My first thought was not to get this BRAND NEW book. But it was Thomas. It was a flip book. He was smitten with this book. So I let him get it. I told him he was NOT to ruin the book. The flaps had never been flapped yet. My kids are not destructive normally, so I thought this book would be safe with us. Uh, it lasted in our house for a day. He felt the need to go hide behind the chair and RIP IT UP!!!!!! WHY I ask you, WHY would he do that? He's not 2. He doesn't do this normally. So why now that he is just shy of 4 1/2 years old, does he think it's okay to rip up a book that doesn't belong to him? I just don't get it. I really don't. Now today, the Barbie's hair. Dylan and the Easter baskets. Dylan getting in to the clothes every chance he gets and going through them to find just the right outfit, leaving the aftermath behind.

I sent them to bed, it was time anyways. They high-tail it upstairs and get ready. I go in and Daddy walks in, I tell him to ask Ayden what he just did. He told Daddy. I asked the other two if they knew he was doing it, why they didn't stop him. Ryley says she did come tell me. I said you came to me after he was done. I asked her if she watched him. She said she did. I said if you knew he was doing something he shouldn't have, she needed to tell him and tell me. Ayden then says, "Ya Ryley, you should have told Mom before I did it." Jon and I both tried REALLY hard to keep straight faces. But we couldn't. Gawd, these kids...

So if you've seen my good listeners, can you kindly return them? I'd love to have them back, they are missed.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T16:38:00.009-04:00

Our Easter in review. We had our Canton Mothers of Multiples Children's Easter Party a couple of weeks ago. It was a huge success. Tyler was our bunny this year and he did a great job. Unfortunately my kids figured out it was Ty-Ty. Dylan figured it out, because he saw the bunny go where ty-ty came out of. Ayden figured it out because he saw his shoes under the costume...sigh...

The day before Easter, for some reason, Dylan decided that he would investigate what was in my room. I had their baskets all done and finished earlier in the week.

Never once did they bother to check things out in there, so why now? Because that is the nature of The Dylan lately. He is in to everything and anything! He's slowly wearing me down...So I'm carpet cleaning and one of them comes to me wanting to know what the Hungry-Hungry Hippos game is for...What the...I high tail it upstairs to see Ayden's basket completely emptied and Ryley's partially emptied. Why did the little stinker leave his completely intact??? So I put everyone on their beds for a time out and think about how this is going to play out. Have they figured out the Easter Bunny and the story we tell them? I can't really tell. I clean things up and tell them the blah blah about not getting in to things that don't belong to them, surprises and the whole respecting people's spaces, etc. I also talked to them about the Easter Bunny costume. Said Mom and Dad give them stuff. But the way things have been lately, they weren't listening to me, such is my life lately, completely deaf to my voice...

So now I'm just not in to Easter. I'm kind of already not in to it this year anyways. Steph isn't around. Tyler could care less. The little ones found their baskets and I'm just in one of those blah moods. But the kicker is, I don't think they realize today, that there is no Easter Bunny. I think I evaded enough that they figure the Bunny Man dropped stuff of the day before. Ryley was disappointed that she didn't get an umbrella from the Easter Bunny. So for now, I'm going to follow their lead...

We took the littles to church this morning. We were going to put them in the playroom, we got there early. So we wandered, let them see the inside of the main church area, bathrooms, etc. We decided to let them stay in church with us, since it's Easter. We sit in the very last row so we can make a quick exit if need be.

They make it through the first couple of songs and they have to go potty. What is it with these children lately and their bladders??? So I ask if they want to go to the playroom, they say yes, we all go. Hit the potty and then try to check them in to the playroom. No luck. No one there that knows how to check a kid in after services start. Nice. So we've wasted time and so we hurry back to our seats and hope for the best with them. They do not want to come back with us. But what can ya do? I'm ready to go home. I'm pissy. I'm irritated and I just don't want to deal with 3 kids that I'm unprepared to entertain during a church service. But we stay. We snag some paper for them to color on. They are being 4. We're trying to keep them from bumping the people in front of us, why they chose to sit in front of three 4-year-olds is beyond me. There were plenty of other places to sit...So now I've got the added stress of keeping my kids from disturbing them. Nice.

The kids are unhappy and bored out of their minds. I can't even concentrate on the sermon. I just want to go home and go back to bed and let this day just disappear. It's not fair to the little ones. I need to snap out of it. I can't let the older kids ruin the day for the little ones. It's the natural progression of life, I know this, but I'm just not handling it too well. I'm not ready for my oldest to move so far away and not see him on a regular basis. I know I have a few months left with him at home, but it's going so fast and I can't keep up. We hardly see him now, he's so busy or he's sleeping.

So we get through church with a few tears from them and me. Head home to get lunch. Family coming over for ham and the usual fixings. Food is good for the soul and the mood. Everyone seems to be feeling better. We color the Easter eggs after lunch and they had fun with that, probably something we'll continue to do on Easter. Then the egg hunt. We let them use their "easter baskets" to gather their eggs, that was a sight. If we can figure out the video, I'll download it. It's cold here, but the sun was shining and it wasn't to muddy out.

So the day was pretty good. The kids had fun, I think. Ate more candy then necessary, but they can today. Ryley's complaining of a bit of a tummy ache, but she's gearing up to go play outside, so it must not be too bad.

I hope you had a nice Easter. Next year my head will be out of my ass and it will be more fun for all around here. I promise as long as my children promise to reattach their listening ears!!

Can I Go Out In Public Again?

2009-04-03T16:00:00.003-04:00

Today is a new day. The other day is past, it's over, it's done. Or is it?

Spontaneous Sally here decided to take the kids to a local church's indoor playground. The one we tried the other day. It's rainy and windy and cold, so why not. We get there at the right time, not too crowded, but not deserted either. We hit the bathroom first, everyone goes. They dash in and start playing. I settle in with a book I've been trying to read, it's overdue, but I'm gonna finish it before returning, even if I own the book by the time I'm done. The kids all scatter and off playing, making new friends, etc.

Out of nowhere Ayden comes running to me with that panicked look I know so well, he's holding his butt and running towards the doors. It's times like these that having 3 out alone in places like this, is just hard. I don't have time to round everyone up to get him to the toilet in time. I can't just let him go to the bathroom alone and stay with the others, what to do. Dylan is with us and so we run out the door to the toilet, which is right across the hall and the enclosed room is glass, so I can see everything, since Roo is still in there playing somewhere.

Too late, Ayden pooped his pants. OMG are you kidding me?? He pooped before we even got out of the play area. Nice. Why do they have to wait til the last second?? So Dylan is running free in the hallway somewhere, Ryley is in the playground area oblivious that we aren't even in the same room she is and Ayden is sitting on the toilet while I toss his underwear and get a quick visual of the other 2. Welcome to my life...So I get him cleaned up. He is soooo not thrilled to have to go commando to play. I said it's either this or we go home. Do I have to start carrying a diaper bag and port-a-potty again?!?! Really.

We head back in and off they go. I sit back down and try to read some more. There is no absorbing anything that I'm reading, not sure why I even bothered. How do these mom's you see sitting while the kids play, read?? There was so much noise from the kids playing and the mom's talking to hear each other over the kids and other mom's.

Then there is my little Pied Piper, Dylan. He is such the ladies man already. He had a couple of girls following him everywhere in there. He thought he was the shit, you could tell. Those girls would have followed him off a cliff...He is his brother's brother.

I also found it fascinating with the whole twin thing. All 3 were playing in different areas at one point. Then Dylan came out of one area and Ayden came out of another, only to meet each other. The huge smile and pure happiness to see each other is just amazing to witness. It was like they hadn't seen each other in ages. They ran off together holding hands for a second. It was so sweet. I love this bond they have with each other. I hope it lasts their lifetimes. Ayden and Ryley were buddies today, probably because Dylan was too busy with the ladies, I'm sure he got a number or two in his pocket.

So it was a great time, besides losing another pair of underwear to poop. It was so clean there and spacious. Definitely a place we'll visit often.

One Giant Leap

2009-04-02T17:02:00.002-04:00

The other day I picked up the kids from preschool and we had some errands to run. It was raining all morning and I had some testing to do, I'm still at it trying to find a transcription job...Anyways, by the time I picked up the kids, it had stopped raining and the sun was shining and all was right with the world. We decide to head out for lunch before the grocery store, they all want Wendy's. That went amazingly well. They ate in record time, something not normal for my children! I decided that since they did so well, we'd head around the corner to the church playplace. Unfortunately they didn't open that up until 1:30 and it was only 12:30. So after hitting the potty there and washing off what was left of lunch, we leave. We head back over to the grocery store, since I had to get some stuff for Tyler's team snack. Promised the kids we'd head back to the playplace another day, now that we know what time they were open.

We get in to the Giant Eagle and I got the bright idea of dumping the kids off in the Eagles Nest (a daycare type place you can drop the kids for about an hour and shop in peace - did I mention in peace??) So the kids are super excited. Ayden's been in there once, so he was the resident pro. They just couldn't contain themselves, they were so excited. I sign them in, tell her they have all just pottied and should be good to go. I run - I mean start shopping. I get to the end of the produce aisle and checking out the organic section (I can still see the daycare area at this point) I hear the first call over the loudspeaker - #9 needs to return to the Eagle's Nest. Nice. I hightail it back there. Ayden has to go potty. Niiiiiceeee. So I take all 3 since my kids are still on the same poop and pee schedule - I know, right? The toilets are on the clear other side of the store. I drag all 3 to the bathroom and make everyone go. Ayden and Dylan poop. Ryley just pees. Swears she doesn't have to poop. I drag them all the way back through the store to drop them back off. Should be good to go, right? I get a few more aisles when I hear it again - #9 needs to return to the Eagle's Nest. WTF! So I get myself back there and it's Roo that has to go - AGAIN. So I drag her all the way back across the store for her to poop. Drag her all the way back and deposit her with explicit instructions that if I have to come back - then everyone's getting yanked and we won't be doing this again! So I pick up where I left off and you guessed it. Another freaking page for #9 to return to the Eagle's Nest. I was done, the cart was overflowing, I just needed to find one more thing, which has proved impossible the last few times I'd been there. So I get there and it's Ayden again. I just sign everyone out and make mention of the lost item, by now, they just feel sorry for me, so one of the workers offers to find the item I crave. I say it's not in the place, that she's assuming it is. She looks, I'm right. We hunt it down, nevermind that Ayden has to potty (which he apparently didn't, since he never mentioned it and didn't have an accident). So we find it in the most nonobvious place and I check out. Oh.My.Dear.God. Why did I think it was a good idea to grocery shop with them? I had them with me for check out and I was ready to pop open the bottle of wine on the conveyor belt!! So we leave and ya. Can you believe that? Trust me, I won't be repeating that performance any time soon. Grocery store trips will be reserved for ME time...

So that's my story of the week.

Play Ball!

2009-04-01T20:26:00.007-04:00

I have just so much to talk about and no time to talk about it. I'll get to it all, I hope...we've just been so busy and with me trying to find a job, it's just crazy!

Today was Louisville's second baseball game, but it was Tyler's first appearance on the mound today. The day started out very rainy, which is typical for the days that Tyler is scheduled to pitch. It's either rainy, very cold or snowing when he's up. No idea why, but that's our history! Anyways, by lunch, it was a gorgeous day. So I was optimistic that nature is on his side today! Windy today, but sunny and dry!

He had a terrific game!!! Unfortunately he gets a no decision, since the last out went to another kid, so that kid gets the win next to his name. Nice. Louisville 7 - Barberton 6.

Tyler had 121 pitches in 6 2/3 innings, 81 strikes, 6 runs - 4 earned, 6 hits, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts and picked off 2. So a fantastic game by him. He looked great! Jon got good video of him and once it's up, I'll share the link for anyone interested in seeing him in action. We'll be sending that off to colleges. He's still deciding, but he's narrowing it down to 2-3 schools. Someday soon!

The little ones did great at the game. Every season they do better and better, obviously. Roo ate 3 1/2 hot dogs, most of the mandarin oranges and STILL said she was hungry. They hung out with John Cook's grandma, grandpa and aunt. They swear the weren't bothered by them! lol

We went to Beatty's, the local t-shirt shop and got out newest Louisville shirts, these should last them a couple of years. I had John's number, #14, on one sleeve and Tyler's number, #16, put on the other sleeve. They freaked because there was no number on their back. I promised them that as soon as we get their baseball number for this year, we'd go back and have that placed on the back. Geesh...it took a lot of reasoning with Ayden to get him to let it go. These kids and their number obsession...

I have just so much to talk about and no time to talk about it. I'll get to it all, I hope...we've just been so busy and with me trying to find a job, it's just crazy!

Today is also a bit sad, as it's the one year anniversary of the loss of a classmate of Steph's and Tyler's, Stephen Ellenberger. There was a candlelight get together at the football stadium tonight and a bunch of kids ate at Steak and Shake for dinner, as that was a favorite place of his. It's also the one year anniversary of the bus driver that lost his life that day as well. Such a sad and preventable story...We lost 2 boys and a bus driver in 2 years, both due to speed. I wish I could say that it hit home with our kids in this town, but I still see kids driving like they aren't going to die...I wish they would realize it's not worth it, before they become another sad story...Ethan Appel will be gone for 2 years this May...

Wordless Wednesday

2009-03-25T09:49:00.008-04:00

Dylan getting ready for baseball season

Ayden strutting his stuff at a fashion show!

Ryley stole the show and really worked it at the fashion show!

Dylan had a complete ball doing this - he didn't want to get off stage!

The kids during the track class at the Y.

Roo loving on her brother, Dylan - St. Patrick's Day 2009

Before School on St. Patty's Day

Roo's first dance class - she is taking a combo ballet/tap class through the Y.

Dylan being goofy!

Some of my MoM friends at the Mother of the Year Banquet 2009

Tyler and Natalie - Hearts Dance 2009

Superbowl Halftime Show 2009

The House Band

Working with their Cool School Computer

Dylan and Daddy at the CMOMC Winter Outing 2009

Roo and her "love" John

The trips and their other brother, John Cook

Louisville High School Basketball team read to the kids at the library 2009

Ryley staying warm and cozy on a 15 degree day

(Quick word - behind in pics -these are the happenings over the last couple months!) Enjoy!

Dylan and his Kidney

2009-03-24T09:15:00.005-04:00

Yesterday was Dylan's yearly visit with the nephrologist. It started out well, really well - too well for my liking, actually. So first thing in the morning I get him to pee in a cup. Stick it in the fridge and make mental notes all morning not to forget the pee. Go about my day, getting things ready, since it's a day of one thing after another, after another, after another. So I had to pack for the whole day. Get the kids from school, eat lunch and get everyone in the van. We're early. We leave. We're half way there (30-40 minute drive) and Dylan said something about peeing in the cup. SHIT!! I forgot the pee in the fridge at home!!!!!!!!!!! So I get off the highway and turn around. I tried calling the nephrologist's office to let them know I'd be late, if they wanted me to reschedule, etc. No answer. I keep calling the entire way back home. Nothing. So I get the pee and turn around and go back. I HATE being late. HATE IT!! So now I'm stressing.

We finally get to the hospital and there are 2 parking decks. I have a 50/50 chance of parking on the right side, since I can't remember where the office is. Another reason for the repeated calling. So we park on Locust side, no luck. We high-tail it to the complete other side of the hospital, to the Considine building. Again, no luck. I catch an employee and she helps me. She calls. She finds it on the 7th floor! So we have to high-tail it back to the complete other side of the hospital to catch the orange elevators up to 7. All the while I have three 4 year olds hooked together in a chain of hands run/walking, trying to look at all the fun stuff on the walls, trying to see all the fun toys/books set up for sale on a table, trying to get me to stop to check out the atrium ball thingy...I thank the lady for escorting us to where we need to be. We get on the elevator and away we go. Only to see a sign in the elevator that they are now on the 8th floor. Umm, do you think that if you have moved your location, that you might send a friendly note to your patients to let them know or when you call to remind them of their appointment, say by the way - we moved...So I'm late AND lost. Fabulous. Oh and I still have pee in a cup in my purse...

We finally arrive. The secretary was less than receptive. Greet your new patient and say I'll be right with you. Don't leave them standing here forever. A nurse is sitting there doing nothing. So I start talking to her. She goes to check to see if they'll still see us, since we're over a half hour late. Kids have to pee. Kids have lost their listening ears by this point. We corral in to the bathroom and I am just a sweaty mess. The kids are sweaty. I'm beat. We head back out, no one is acknowledging me again. Finally another nurse comes out and gets us. Says he has a 2:30, but agreed to see us. It's 2:20. So we go back and get all the stuff done that's needed.

Blood pressure is good. Which is a great thing for my little man to have. If it's higher than normal, that's not good. The doctor comes in, while the kids are just every direction, crawling around, touching and chatting up a storm! If you know my kids, especially the boys, then you know that if you talk to them - they will talk your ear off about everything on their mind!!! lol So he's tickled by them, luckily, he's not annoyed. He asks me if they're all close in age - I said - yep they're almost 4 1/2. Takes him a second. Then he laughs. He was proud of himself for being right about them close in age! lol Whatever. lol Then he asks the usual if I watch "Jake and Kate" I said no. lol He did a great job of talking over the kids and them crawling under his legs and desk...sigh...kids...

Anyways, back to the appointment. Everything on the outside is looking good. BP, feeling his tummy, checking out his goods, etc. He asks his questions. He wants to see Dylan in a year and then he'll have another renal ultrasound, blood work and VCUG scan. This should be interesting. The last time we did this, Dylan was a couple months old, he laid still and drank his bottle. I'm not sure how a 5 year old will do with this. So hopefully he'll do just fine and won't have to be sedated or anything - if they even do that. The doctor said if all 3 of those things come back clear and his kidney reflux is gone and the other side is not seen - then Dylan will be set free from them. YAH! We still have to watch for unexplained fevers, UTI's and bladder infections. Which so far he has never had! He is discouraged from playing rugby, dirt-biking and that fancy bike stuff where they jump, etc. and sledding. He said football should be okay, but not one of his favorite sports...lol I said of all the kids for this to be a restriction, Dylan is my most likely to be involved with extreme sports! But they make guards for sports and the kidney area, so I'll be sure he has one, if he does get involved with one of those no-no sports....

I also discussed with him Dylan's urine stream direction. It's still to the right and straight out - which is oh so fun for clean up every single time he goes to the bathroom...sigh...So he wants him to see the urologist. That will probably have to be fixed. I've been putting it off. I know it needs done. Luckily the pediatric urologist is taking our insurance again, so there won't be any hoops to jump through to get him covered! A small blessing...So today I have to call them to get him seen there.

And my beef with this secretary - Good God - I think they need to have medical experience of some type to do the job of medical secretary. I give her the papers and sit down, since I was told to make the appointments for the scans, etc in a year. She hands me the papers and says goodbye. I said, I have to make appointments for these scans. She just looks at me like I'm speaking Greek. She sits down, ignoring the next patient waiting to check in. Multi-tasker - she is not...Anyways, she calls, but she doesn't even know why she's reading. So I have to tell her what my son's issue is called. I should've just called myself and set the appointment. She didn't even ask me what day of the week would work. She just ASSumed that since it was a year away, that any old day would work for me. Nice. I'll be rescheduling. But at least I'm in the books for now. She was slower than molasses and just, yah...

So that's what's new with Dylan and his kidney. Oh and he now knows he only has one. He was fascinated by this. The other 2 were also. There was a photo of the kidneys and the organs that go with it and so they got a kick out of me holding it up to where it would be on their body...lol I swear I'm going to have doctors that love numbers! lol

**ETA** Also, here's a link to the National Kidney Walk. We're going to do it next year, but our friends - the Frenznick 5 are doing it in honor of their daughter - please consider supporting them!
http://nkf.convio.net/site/TR/Walk/MichiganInc?px=1272902&pg=personal&fr_id=1790

They Are Split

2009-03-16T20:57:00.003-04:00

It's just me and the three waiting in the Starbucks drive-thru. The kids and I are talking, not sure exactly of what. But the subject turns to friends of ours that have id twins girls and a boy who was in the boys' class at school. Anyways, we're talking about them for some reason and the conversation ends, as far as I know. I'm just waiting my turn and I hear Dylan talking to Ayden about the twin girls. Out of no where - Dylan says to Ayden that "A and E are split." I'm like what? I spun around and asked Dylan what he said, if A or E had told them that, how he knew that, etc. I think I freaked him out. lol He just looked like he had said something wrong and wouldn't talk about it any longer. lol Poor kid! I was floored.

I know they have this fascination with which baby number they are (where they fall in the birth order) and how they were in my tummy and where they lived in there, etc. I have probably made mention that the boys are "the same" and from the same egg and it split. So that's got to be the only place it came from and he remembered that!! It wasn't a long drawn out discussion on reproduction and the wonders of nature or anything. It was awhile ago also. It was part of a conversation we had about how most things start as eggs and they thought that was funny and even funnier that they started as an egg.

But I thought it was amazing that he associated A&E with splitting. They are identical. So I guess he just knows that every twin set that is identical is split. So watch out all you identicals out there, if my son meets you, he may inform you that you split. lol

The Special Mother

2009-03-10T20:17:00.004-04:00

I remember reading “The Special Mother” by Erma Bombeck during my pumping times in the NICU. It was framed in the pumping room. I wrote it all down by hand and put it away to remember forever. I just found it tonight. It just brought the memories back for me. I thought it was fitting to post, since we're gearing up to March for Babies (formally known as March of Dimes).

The Special Mother

Most women become mothers by accident, some by choice, a few by social pressures and a couple by habit.

This year thousands of mothers will give birth to a premature baby. Did you ever wonder how mothers of preemies are chosen?
Somehow, I visualize God hovering over Earth selecting His instruments for propagation with great care and deliberation.

As He observes, He instructs His angels to make notes in a giant ledger.
“Armstrong, Beth, son. Patron saint, Matthew.“Forest, Majorie, daughter. Patron saint, Ceceila.“Rutledge, Carrie, twins. Patron saint… give her Gerard. He’s used to profanity.
Finally, He passes a name to an angel and smiles, “Give her a premature baby.”

The angel is curious. “Why this one, God? She’s so happy.”
“Exactly,” smiles God. “Could I give a premature baby to a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel.”
“But does she have patience?” asks the angel.

“I don’t want her to have too much patience, or she will drown in a sea of self-pity and despair. Once the shock and resentment wear off, she’ll handle it.”
“I watched her today. She has that sense of self and independence that are so rare and so necessary in a mother. You see, the child I’m going to give her has his own world. She has to make it live in her world and that’s not going to be easy.”
“But, Lord, I don’t think she even believes in you.”God smiles, “No matter, I can fix that. This one is perfect. She has just enough selfishness.”
The angel gasps, “Selfishness? Is that a virtue?”God nods. “If she can’t separate herself from the child occasionally, she’ll never survive. Yes, here is a woman whom I will bless with a child who comes in a less than perfect way. She doesn’t realize it yet, but she is to be envied.”
“She will never take for granted a spoken word. She will never consider a step ordinary. When her child says ‘Mommy’ for the first time, she will be witness to a miracle and know it. When she describes a tree or a sunset to her blind child, she will see it as few people ever see my creations.”
“I will permit her to see clearly the things I see - ignorance, cruelty, prejudice - and allow her to rise above them. She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life because she is doing my work as surely as she is here by my side.”
“And what about her patron saint?” asks the angel, the pen poised in mid-air.
God smiles. ”A mirror will suffice.”

-Adapted from Erma Bombeck

Motherhood: The Second Oldest Profession

Please support this cause that is so close to our hearts, if not us - then someone you may know that has had a premature baby or babies.

We're Saving Money

2009-02-28T13:27:00.003-05:00

I'm trying my best to save as much as possible. Especially since we are taking a 20% loss of income for at least this year. So I'm doing my part to make Jon's income go as far as possible.

This morning we've started to save about $50 a month on our phone, internet and cable bill. We went with AT&T and have it all in one set up. We have DirectTV now and so far, an hour in, we're MUCH happier than we were with Time Warner Cable! We got so sick of the freezing up, and other crap that we were paying too much to deal with! So now that's a thing of the past!

So here is another fan of the DirectTV! And for saving so much a month on these luxuries! AND I get the baseball channel and a bunch of other fun channels that we didn't get with cable.

Anyone have any other money saving ideas? I've tried to use coupons, but I just can't get that. I guess I just buy too much of the store brand or generic and that is cheaper than the namebrand. Some stuff I use doesn't have a coupon and so I just look for the best price I can.

Oh and we're also going to attempt a garden again. So any tips for that would be much appreciated also.

Do you remember me?

2009-02-26T14:24:00.002-05:00

I can't believe it's been a month since I last blogged. It's been a rough month. But nothing I care to blog about for the world to see. Nearest and dearest are aware and that's enough for me.

But we're past things now. The month of February 2009 can stay gone forever and I don't care to remember much of it. Really I don't anyways, so that's a good thing, I guess.

I've been in such a funk and just had to snap out of it. I think I'm out of it. It must be the late winter blues. I'm so sick of this cold weather, these gray days and just all the yuck of the kids being sick!! I need the sunshine. I crave the warmth. I've even taught the kids to tell daddy that we want to move to Tennessee and we don't want to live in the winter anymore! lol He doesn't answer us...lol

Anyways, the little kids have been doing well. Sick with a nasty cough for the last week or more. It has finally settled in to their ears. All 3 of them have ear infections, in their left ears. I took Dylan to the pediatrician on Tuesday. I didn't even think to have the ped check the other two's ears. When we got home that night, Ayden started complaining about his ear. I tried not to make an issue out of it, in case it's just because Dylan gets medicine. My kids enjoy their medications! lol Anyways. He had a restless night and I gave him some Motrin to get through the night. Then after he was settled, Ryley came to my bed and was complaining about her ears hurting. So I gave her Motrin to get us through the night. It was a rough night. So I call first thing yesterday morning, hoping we can just get some antibiotics called in, since we were just there, he knew the others had colds, etc. But the nurse had to make sure to inform me that they don't normally like to call in antibiotics on a whim. That ear infections are not contagious, etc. I informed her that I was aware that ear infections were not contagious and that we were just there yesterday. I made mention that I wished I would have had the ped do an ear check and she informed me that they don't like to do that kind of thing. I was clearly an idiot and just didn't know anything. My bad, I'm sorry to bother you at work with my problems. So she takes the info, says she'll call back after talking with the doctor. Get the call back, informs me yet again, that ear infections are not contagious. I inform her again that I'm aware of that. She says the doctor wants them to be seen and that they don't like to prescribe antibiotics sight unseen and something about abusing antibiotics, blah, blah.

So I take them to the appointment. Get in there. The ped has this whole thought process that I'm some drug seeking parent or something. He pretty much went through the same dialogue the nurse told me. Is this stuff scripted?? I again, said I was aware that ear infections were not contagious. Do these people not realize that I know my children? That if my children complain of an ear ache, they do indeed have an ear infection? We haven't missed that call yet! Anyways, he also says that at times the power of suggestion in siblings can cause this. I wanted to smack him. Was he really going to sit there and treat me like some unaware parent? That I'm seeking out antibiotics because I feel like it? What the hell. So he finally gets to the checking of their ears and OH. MY. GAWD. They have ear infections. Both of them. Wow. Whodathunk?? (insert eyeroll here). Then he has to switch gears and say that with multiples you can see this type of thing since they could have similar jawline structures, ear structures, etc. I about laughed out loud. Okay a minute ago it was the power of suggestion and that my kids were making this shit up. Now it's because they are triplets that they all have an ear infection in the same ear. Whatever dude, just give us the medication we seek and we'll be on our way. Next time I'm seeking drugs, I'll be sure to seek something that is a bit more fun than amoxicilllin, I promise you that!

Prayers Needed For Brady

2009-01-24T21:09:00.003-05:00

http://www.stepsforbrady.blogspot.com/

I saw this on a fellow bloggers site (Harden Triplets)

This little boy needs all the prayers they can get. He is a triplet and who has just been diagnosed with Neuroblastoma Cancer.

Please keep him and his family in your prayers!

A Big Thank You!

2009-01-21T22:02:00.003-05:00

I have the shockers of all shockers. My oldest daughter, Stephanie - aged 16, that's the key right there - she walked up to me tonight and hugged me. Yes you read that right. She hugged me. She told me she now understood. I said understood what? She said she understood all the stuff that Jon and I have been telling her. Pretty much the "blah, blah, blah" that most parents think teenagers hear. She said she saw herself in her friend, while her parents were lecturing her. She understood why we did it. Ummm, okay. I'm glad she's had this revelation, but I'm still clueless as to what brought this unprovoked display of affection. I'll take it, no doubt. But I could have been knocked over with a feather!

She didn't go in to more detail than that. But I'll take it. I truly hope that all of our blah, blah, blah has sunk in and that she will be proactive in her future and make sure her future is as positive as we know it can be.

That's all. Just wanted to share this teenage moment. It's so fleeting it needed to be documented!

What's A Little Competition Between Brothers

2009-01-21T12:57:00.003-05:00

Apparently a lot! Not to be outdone by his "little" brother, Ayden decided that he could and would write his name also. YAHHHHH Ayden!! Ryley has been able to for quite awhile, but she wanted in on the action, so I had to snap a picture of her with her name as well! lol I'm starting to wonder if these coats have any correlation to them being able to write...hmmmmmm...

Good job Gang!

We Have A New President!!!

2009-01-20T12:22:00.002-05:00

Such An Amazing Day In History!

2009-01-20T10:24:00.003-05:00

Today is a day that we will remember forever. Whether you are a Democrat, Republican or Independent. There is no way you can say this day isn't significant. There is change in the air. You can feel it. There is optimism that hasn't been with us for quite some time. We are witnessing history and it's so moving. I am feeling incredibly patriotic today. We will have our tv on all day, watching all the activities of the Inauguration. The kids are excited about it. We had our refresher lesson this morning at breakfast, they know today is the day that Barack Obama officially becomes our President. They love the fact that The First Lady has the same name as me. They were excited when they heard his name mentioned on the radio this morning. We'll be eating lunch and watching our 44th President take the Oath of Office.

There are some, that are still so small-minded and ignorant and I just find it hard to believe people still think and believe this way. Especially in this day and age. I have tried to always raise my children to treat people the same. That people are not defined by the color of their skin. They are defined by the way they live their life and the impact they leave on us. I am proud to be witnessing this great change in our American History with my children. I'm excited for their futures. I'm excited to see the changes this man can and will make.

There is no way to open the eyes of the ignorant. They believe they are right, no matter what. The best I can do is educate my children and teach them that people are not a color or a gender. That everyone is the same. There are low lifes in every race and gender. That's the way of a people - not a color.

My Baby Boy Can Write His Name!

2009-01-20T09:19:00.004-05:00

I am just so extremely excited for my littlest man, my baby #5, he wrote his name this morning. All by himself!!! He has known how to spell his name for a long time. Writing has not been something he has shown a strong interest in. But for some reason, this morning, it clicked!! We were sitting in the van, waiting to go in to school. He has his little magna doodle thing and he wanted to know how to spell bat. I told him. He WROTE IT!! I carry my camera with me everywhere, so I snapped it before he erased it forever! I then asked him to spell his name, since he spelled bat, he should be able to spell his name. HE DID IT!!

He is my little fighter. He's the reason the triplets were born when they were. He was my littlest, always has been the littlest. He has always been the last to do pretty much everything. He is our second to accomplish this great feat. So this is a very big deal for us with him.

Another Trip To The ER

2009-01-18T21:22:00.002-05:00

Ayden and I spent a short evening in the ER last night. Fun times I tell ya! He had another dislocation of his right elbow. The poor guy. This happened a couple years ago and it was horrible. He had to go through the torture of them trying to put it back in place. That is the worst thing to witness on a small child that doesn't know what the heck is going on. That time it happened when I was getting him out of the sandbox. I pulled him up - just to get him on his feet. I heard and felt the pop. I knew better pulling on his wrist. It was a sickening feeling. I thought for sure I'd broken his wrist. At the time, I didn't know it was just dislocated. Off to the ER we went. He was in so much pain. I felt so bad.

Saturday night, it was Daddy's turn to have that sick feeling and guilt. He pulled Ayden's arm, in a bit of frustration for not cleaning up. I was in the kitchen and heard him and that painful cry. I went to investigate and sure enough his right arm was not being used. I thought it might have been broken, but I figured it was dislocated. The poor little guy. Off to the ER again. This time no x-rays were needed, since he has the history. The resident tried 3 times and she couldn't do it. I finally told her enough. She said it would take some time for him to start using his arm. I told her he would use it right away if it was back in place and it wasn't. I am Mom - hear me roar!! So the doctor comes in and he gets it back in right away. We were there for less than an hour, thank goodness. He was instantly happy and ate his popsicle with it in his right hand - he even forgot which was his "sore" arm. Silly boy. But I'm glad that's all it was. I know how to reduce it, but I just can't do that to my own child. I just can't. This is a common thing in small children. My sister says they outgrow it by 7. My nephew, Jacob, had the same thing happen twice when he was about Ayden's age. Fun times...

But on an ICK note. We showed up at the local Children's Hospital and I was really grossed out and disappointed with the level of cleanliness of the ER. There was vomit (been there awhile) on the carpet. There were random tissues and a puke bucket in the waiting room. Some of the seats were stained and just nasty looking. I was afraid to touch anything there. I wouldn't let Ayden touch anything. Shouldn't a Children's Hospital be cleaner? Especially in the ER? I may think twice before taking one of my kids there again. God knows what GERMS were living in that Waiting Room...

But all is well. Jon was playing with Ayden this morning, swinging him around and such and bangs his head on the floor. Poor guy has just not had a very good weekend. I told Daddy he would be banned from touching Ayden if he keeps it up! lol Then before bed, I was putting the recliner down on the couch and Ayden's foot was there, so I started to squish his foot. Good thing it was bedtime or who knows what would have happened to Ayden next! lol

Video Works!!

2009-01-18T20:00:00.001-05:00

See below!! Thanks Loren! I did what you said previous, but it would not work. Must have been a glitch. This time it worked! Now watch out! I'll be a video posting fool!!!!

Oh and the March for Babies thingy on the right will end in a few seconds. But if you wanna donate to the cause...feel free!! ;)

Kung Fu Fighters

2009-01-16T15:21:00.009-05:00

Everybody was Kung Fu Fiiighting! Those cats were fast as lightening... Here is my son's latest and greatest of tricks. We watched Kung Fu Panda the other night and right after he started with his skills. It was the most hilarious thing and yet kinda cool to watch his technique without any formal training. I tried to get him to do it on video, so this is the best I could get, so far. I see karate in our near future. I gotta get this kid into something like that or he's gonna drive me nuts with his mad wrestling skills with his brother!

Sharing Some Good Ideas

2009-01-14T16:16:00.002-05:00

Someone on Facebook posted this on her profile. I really liked it and wanted to share it with you!

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk,
smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.

2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Buy a
lock if you have to.

3. When you wake up in the morning complete the following
statement, 'My purpose is to __________ today.'

4. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat
less food that is manufactured in plants.

5. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries,
wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts.

6. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

7. Don't waste your precious energy on energy vampires,
issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot
control. Instead invest your energy in the positive
present moment.

8. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and
dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.

9. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

10. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

11. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

12. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to
disagree.

13. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the
present.

14. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea
what their journey is all about.

15. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

16. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In
five years, will this matter?'

17. Forgive everyone for everything.

18. What other people think of you is none of your
business.

19. GOD heals everything.

20. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

21.. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick.
Your friends will. Stay in touch!!!

22. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

23. Each night before you go to bed complete the following
statements: I am thankful for __________.
Today I accomplished _________.

24. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.

So I Got This Idea

2009-01-14T14:53:00.002-05:00

I've decided in the last few weeks that I need to get back to work. Babysitting is a nice little bit of income and lets me stay home with the kids. But really, it's pocket change in this day and age. So I think I'm going to attempt to return to my roots. Return to who I was before I had the babies. A medical transcriptionist. Ummm, I've been out of that field for 5 years. I dabbled a bit in it after the babies were born and home, but my brain was mush. I just couldn't focus on it and take care of them. So I stopped working. I decided that it wasn't something I was going to do again. That my brain capacity has been severely altered due to birthing more than one kid out of my body and being drugged to the max to do that. But what choice to I have, really? Go out and get a 2nd shift grocery store job or try to get back in to the field and work from home and still be available - on a limited basis - for my family. So I'm choosing the latter. I'm scared. I'm not sure I can do it. But I'm also getting excited at the thought. I've been talking to a MT friend. I've been perusing the net and re-familiarizing myself with the biz. I loved doing the work. I love typing. I love having a tidy little income. So wish me luck. Think good thoughts that a company will consider a rusty, mentally out of shape transcriptionist as a valuable employee!

How To Get An Ohio Kid Ready For The Snow

2009-01-13T14:40:00.008-05:00

Step 1: Take pictures of the snow, since it'll be gone in an hour.

Step 2: Locate all the snowgear that you've been waiting and waiting to use.

Step 3: Announce to the children that it's time to go out and play in the snow.

Step 4: Start the layering process at 2 p.m.
Long underwear - check
2 pair of socks - check
T-shirt and pants over long underwear - check
Hooded sweatshirt over previous 2 layers - check
Snowpants - check
2 pair of gloves, with sleeves tucked in - check
Hat over hooded sweatshirt - check
Coat zipped to the brim so the kid can't move - check
Boots - check

Step 5: 2:30p.m. Send the kids outside, knowing full well they can't get anywhere fast with all the layers and bulk. Sit and take a short break after getting all hot and sweaty from bundling 3 kids.

Step 6: Enjoy the kids playing in the snow and getting some cute pictures.

Jon's idea of making a sledding trail.

Step 7: 3:30p.m. Kids are done. Ready to go in. They've had it. Nice.

Step 8: Unbundle kids and reorganize your life since you just had to tear it apart to find all the gear necessary to go outside for an hour. Enjoy popcorn and hot chocolate that is really chocolate milk, since they don't really enjoy hot chocolate, but always ask for it!

Pretty simple, eh?

The End Is Near...

2009-01-09T16:26:00.002-05:00

Or so people are acting around here. I went to the store last night, after the kids basketball, and I forgot there was a storm coming. The store was crazy! Only 2 registers open in our little grocery store and it took 20 minutes of standing in line to check out!

People always act like the world is ending when we have the threat of a big storm. For some reason though, I think our part of the world is in a bubble. I watch the news and see all the bad storms heading our way, etc. But then they fizzle out. Jon is usually glued to the weather updates and always wants us to head to the basement for cover. It's funny. One time we had a bad storm, my friend, Krista, came to pick up her kiddos and we're sitting in the playroom chatting and letting the kids play while things go flying by the window. Jon is like we need to be in the basement NOW. We're like, umm sure, we'll get there. It was funny. The storm passed and that was it. Now it's a joke...lol Guess you had to be there.

So I'm sitting here watching the snow fall. I hope we finally get enough to let the kids actually play in it. They haven't yet this season. It melts too fast. Crazy Ohio weather! Tomorrow we're supposed to get a buttload of snow, so at least we can be cozy and warm with a fire and watch the snow fall all day. Oh wait - Nope I have to be out in it in the morning, unless they cancel the kids swimming lessons. Plus we're having breakfast at The Eagles for my MIL's b-day. So we'll see if that gets rescheduled or not.

Safe travels for all who have to be out at the end of the world!

The Day Has Finally Come...

2009-01-06T14:58:00.003-05:00

I have a grown up kitchen again. The day has arrived where we no longer have child locks on the cupboards. The kids can work them. They don't get in to the cupboards and they're a pain. So I took them off. It's so nice to open a cupboard like a cupboard should be opened. I still have the habit of opening and pushing the latch down, but no latch to push!! YAH!!!!!!! Just one more step to big kidhood...sigh...

I Finally Ran Away!

2009-01-05T10:03:00.002-05:00

I finally did it! I finally started running. I've been talking about it for weeks, months - a long time. For some reason I've had a wall up about this. Just couldn't get my butt in gear to start. So I did it this morning. Took the kids to school. Jon went back to work. Big kids back in school. Had the whole house to myself!! Dusted off the treadmill and ran for a whole 6 minutes! Wahooo!! I made it for 0.35 miles. My legs feel a bit rubbery. I'm outta shape big time! Every bit of flab was jiggling like a Jell-o earthquake. It was rough. I probably would have made it longer, but there is a strange smell in the basement. It started after Tyler went to school. I noticed it upstairs in the kitchen, followed the smell and narrowed it down to around Tyler's entertainment center in the basement. Smells like something died. I can't find it or anything to cause this smell of death. I have a strong sense of smell and so this is driving me crazy. Ugh! I'll probably head downstairs and run again while the littles nap. So maybe I could get a half mile in today! lol I don't think anyone said it had to be all at once! lol

So Five Left Feet - how far have you run so far??? Have you started yet? We need to meet up at North Canton and run together - but let's wait until I don't look like a jiggling dork first - m'kay?

My Son Is An Adult Now

2009-01-02T19:46:00.014-05:00

Wow! Where did the time go? He's 18 today. I can't believe it! Where does the time go? I remember when he was born, as if it were yesterday. He was big and perfect and everything I had imagined him to be. I was in love. He has grown up in the blink of an eye. I want time to go back, I want to cuddle my little man again. I want to see his big blue eyes and blonde curls seeing things for the first time. It's a sad/very happy time. We did it. We raised a responsible young man. Someone who has a bright future. Someone kind, caring and loving. Our job isn't done, but the hardest parts are behind us. We have 4 more to go. It's an amazing job and one I feel so blessed to have.

I love you Tyler. I am so proud of you.

"Nobody tells you that if you live long enough and if you survive the inevitable stresses and mistakes, the best part of parenting is having your children in your life as adults ... your ultimate purpose is to get through the child development years to savor the pleasure of having in your life a magnificent adult with whom you have an excellent relationship ... if you're aware at the beginning how this process works, you can make better choices about the kind of memories you want to end up with."
Lois Haddad

The Best Christmas Gift Any Kid Could Receive

2008-12-31T18:00:00.003-05:00

Their very own vacuum!!! Yep, ask and ye shall receive a new Kone Handheld Vacuum! It's glorious! Every kid needs one. You make the mess - YOU clean it up! I'm done with the little messes these children create. Maybe they will have a new appreciation for clean up the next time they decide to just randomly rip something apart! Someone ripped up some stryofoam, no one fessed up - they all had to clean it up. Dylan was all too happy to get the vac and do the hard work. I gotta get better at grabbing the camera when incidents like this happen. But you get to see the end of his job.

Ryley's face on Christmas was priceless. She was so excited to open the big present from Nana and Papa, to all 3 of them. She was imagining the best toy ever as she was ripping off that paper. Then she saw it. Her fate. Her brothers' fates. Life as she knows it has ended. No more of the carefree little tornadoes! These little tornadoes will now be in charge of aftermath clean up also. So have fun kids. Make your mess. But be prepared to be sent to the corner to get your Kone!

Did You Miss Me?

2008-12-29T15:14:00.003-05:00

Wow where does the time go? It's been 3 weeks since I blogged last. Please forgive me. My laptop was in the shop for most of those 3 weeks, then we went to Kalahari indoor waterpark right before Christmas (which was a great time!) then it was Christmas. We had a very nice holiday. The kids were in amazement! They got their gift from Santa and were just thrilled with the thought that Santa remembered them. We'd been tracking him all day on that Norad Santa Tracker. They left their cookies and milk and reindeer food. We're having photo loading problems right now, so hopefully soon I can get pics from the holidays loaded and share them with you. Tyler and Stephanie had a great Christmas also. Tyler got a GPS, since the boy can't find his way out of a box. Steph got the Twilight book series. The little ones got new Leapster 2's and are loving them.

I can honestly say that I'm glad the holidays are over. I'm ready to look towards spring and all the activity that will bring us. We have Tyler's senior year baseball season. Tyler's graduation and party. The little ones activities to keep them busy. I have to start getting ready for that half marathon that I said I'd do with a friend. Not sure what I was thinking, but I will give it a whirl and see how it goes! lol So we will be pretty busy this spring. But I wouldn't have it any other way. We are going to have Stephanie's Sweet 16 party this summer instead of when her actual birthday was, this past November. I thought it would be more fun to have it outside and in the summer. With all my children born in November and January and the holidays between that, we never get to celebrate outside when it's warm!! lol So that should be fun! She seems to be interested in getting her license, so that will be keeping us busy this spring as well. Not sure if I can drive with her, but Jon can handle that task! lol

I'll be back with photos hopefully later today, but since Jon's napping with Ryley, I don't think it's gonna happen. But hopefully before next year! Ryley is sick today, so I'm praying that it doesn't spread to the other 2. Pukes and poops are no fun. The poor little girl!

HAPPY NEW YEAR FRIENDS!!!!

We saw Santa

2008-12-07T20:31:00.003-05:00

Today was the big day. The CMOMC Children's Christmas Party. I was the crazy one to say I'd take charge of it. OMG was it stressful and expensive! We had about 65-70 children inside of 24 families!!! It was an incredible turnout and one that we weren't quite expecting, but when you wish for a more social club, you get what you ask for!! Which is awesome and I'm so glad that everyone got involved and I really hope that everyone had a great time. Another triplet mom and I took care of making the food and baking the cookies. We thought it would be pretty easy to do it in the kitchen of the church. Would have been easier if the kitchen had been properly stocked to cook for a lot of people. Two small cookie sheets to make a buttload of chicken strips and sugar cookies, so that took a lot longer than necessary. We make penne pasta and sauce, we made waaaaaaaay too much of that. But we both agreed that more than enough food is always much better than turning away hungry people. We ended up donating 2 full pans of pasta to the domestic women's shelter, so it didn't go to waste!

We had Santa and all the kids were so excited to see him. He did an awesome job and hopefully he'll come to next year's party. Which we're already planning! Can't wait for next year, more low key and much cheaper!! lol But it was all good and as long as everyone had a nice time, it was money well spent!

My kids haven't loved being near Santa the last 2 times they'd seen him. We went to see the hospital tree festival and Dylan hid behind us, Ryley clung to Daddy and cried and Ayden just stood there with his arms crossed, staring at Santa and Mrs. Claus, but didn't go near them. Last night, we went to a Polar Express party with Grammy and when Santa arrived, Dylan sat in my lap and turned away, like if he doesn't see Santa, he's not there! lol Ryley clung to Grammy and when it came time to sit with Santa, Ayden let me put him on his lap, Dylan jumped on the back of my friend who took a picture for us and Ryley wouldn't let Grammy go. lol Today, at the multiples party, Ayden hugged Santa as soon as he saw him. Ryley waited patiently for Santa to call her name and Ayden just couldn't wait to sit with him again. They all went running up when it was their turn to sit with Santa. I was quite surprised and yet happy that they were "brave" enough to sit with him. He is so built up in their minds this year, that it's overwhelming for them to see him in real life!

But a wonderful time was had by all, I hope. We had fun. I'm exhausted. I'm glad it's over. I can't wait for next year. We're planning a Polar Express party and already starting the planning and I can't wait. We have a year to plan vs. a few weeks. So it should be even better than this year.

Petrucelli Triplets Information

2008-12-05T11:27:00.002-05:00

This was taken off of TripletConnection.org:

http://www.carepages.com/carepages/PetrucelliTriplets

From an email that is now going out re: the Petrucelli
Triplets:

Thank you to everyone for your overwhelming response,
concern, and shows of support for the Petrucellis in this
time of great need. We have been astounded by the incredible
response that we have received from the community in such a
short period of time and genuinely appreciate all the offers
of help, donations, financial support, and your prayers.

We know that it has been confusing that things have changed
several times regarding logistics of donations -
unfortunately, we had no way of anticipating how quickly and
dramatically the community would respond. We never imagined
such a widespread response in such a short period of time.
We literally received offers of donations from all over the
country in a matter of hours.

Right now, the most important thing for the Petrucelli's is
that they be able to focus on the recovery of their boys, who
are still in the hospital. Obviously, our thoughts and
prayers are all with them in this time of great need.

We now have established a system which we believe will remain
a permanent system for both financial donations and for offers
of physical goods. Please refer to this email for all future
donations and see the FAQ's below for any questions.

FINANCIAL DONATIONS:
For financial donations to the Petrucelli Family, the
Petrucelli Relief Fund has been established, and donations
may be made online via the following website:
http://petrucellirelieffund.com

DONATIONS OF GOODS:
All offers of donations of goods should be emailed to Doug
Davenport and it's ddavenport@dcigroup.com and he will keep a running
inventory of what has been offered. When the family is ready,
they will be able to determine what they most need and can use
from this inventory.

FAQ's

What if I have already donated money through the Petrucelli
Family Fund established by the Montgomery County Parents of
Multiples?
No problem. Your donation is very much appreciated and will
still be given directly to the family to assist with their
needs. The Petrucelli Family Fund will still be used for
funds for the Petrucelli family. However, the primary source
of relief funding from this point forward should be the
Petrucelli Relief Fund, which can be accessed via
http://petrucellirelieffund.com

What if I have already dropped off goods at Christie Leu's
house? Similarly, what if I have already mailed donations to
Karen Cohen's house?
This is not a problem. Your donations are definitely
appreciated and will be accounted for. We will track these
donations and ensure that Doug Davidson has a list of these
items for his inventory. We will continue to store these
items until we determine whether the Petrucelli's need these
items. If your items are not needed at that time, your items
will either be returned to you if you wish, or, if you prefer,
donated to another worthy organization.

How do I know what the Petrucelli's need? How will I know
what to offer Doug Davenport? ddavenport@dcigroup.com
For now, assume that the Petrucelli's will need most of their
basic household items replaced in the long term, especially
things for the children. Once the family has had some time
to regroup and the boys have had some time to recover, the
family will be able to determine what their specific needs
are and perhaps post a "wish list" of specific
items they are looking for.

What size clothes do the boys wear?
Two of the boys wear size 4T clothes, and one boy wears 3T
clothes. They are quite tall for their age.

What if I already mailed a gift card to Michelle Wizov or
Karen Cohen?
This is not a problem. Michelle and Karen are tracking all
of the gift cards and will make sure that they are delivered
to Ami Susan and Michael as soon as possible. Your generous
gifts are definitely appreciated.

I would still like to send a gift card. Who should I send it
to?
You can send gift cards to either Michelle Wizov or Karen
Cohen. Our contact information is below:

Michelle Wizov
701 Dryden Street
Silver Spring, MD 20901

Karen Cohen
8819 2nd Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20910

Please clearly mark your envelope "Petrucelli
Relief" to ensure that it is properly accounted for, and
please also ensure that your name and address are included
with the gift card, so that the Petrucellis have the
opportunity to thank you when they are able.

Where can I go for updates on how the family is doing?
The family has started a webpage through Care Pages with
Childrens Hospital. The link to the webpage is:
http://www.carepages.com/carepages/PetrucelliTriplets. You
will need to register to view the page, but there is no fee
for registration.

What if I have more questions about how I can help? Who can
I contact?
If you have additional questions about any of the details in
this email, or about how you can help, you can contact
Michelle Wizov (michelle.wizov@gmail.com) or Karen Cohen
(karen_cohen@comcast.net). We will do our best to respond
with as much information as we have available at the time.

Starbucks ~ Pay It Forward

2008-12-05T11:10:00.004-05:00

I had the nicest thing happen today! I was in the drive thru at Starbucks and when I got to the window, the guy told me that the car in front of me paid $5 towards my order! HOW NICE IS THAT????? I had thought about doing that for someone when sitting in line, but never did it. I then saw on the news a couple weeks ago, about people doing just this.

It was such a nice thing of her to do, I wish I could thank her. It made my whole day brighter! I in turn paid it forward and put $3 towards the lady behind me. The guy was like "here we go, we're on a roll!" I wonder how far it will go?

I just wanted to share this great thing that happened to me today!

If You Pray - Say One For This Family

2008-12-04T09:29:00.003-05:00

A friend of mine told us of this family, friends of hers. So Sad. I pray that all 3 boys make it through. They are intubated and sedated right now. One boy was found under a bookcase and has some pancreatic injury. They are critical and prayers are much appreciated. Such a scary thing for parents to hear about and my worst fear! especially when they were smaller, how would we get all 3 out at the same time.

Triplets Rescued from Burning House in Bethesda

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1208/574800.html

BETHESDA, Md. - Fire and Explosive Investigators from the Montgomery County (web|news) Fire and Rescue Service believe a house fire that sent 2½-year-old triplet boys in to the hospital was accidental. One of the boys is now in critical condition, while the other two are in serious, but stable condition.

The Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service believes the cause of the fire was electrical in nature and more than likely was due to a failure of electrical components associated with the hot tub, as nearby combustibles overheated and caught on fire.

The fire extended from the exterior to inside the house via several windows, as well as an attached wood frame porch. It is believed the fire smoldered and burned undetected for an extended period before being detected by the Nanny.

The family will be displaced and the damage is estimated at $500,000. Two family pet dogs also are believed to have survived, however, one is unaccounted for at this time. The house did not have smoke alarms.

Fire and rescue spokesman Pete Piringer says firefighters responded to 4806 Jamestown Road in Bethesda around 1:25 p.m. Wednesday after reports of heavy smoke coming from the back of a brick colonial house.

The housekeeper and nanny at the home, Rosa Monje, says she had just put the triplets down for a nap when she stepped out for some fresh air. That is when she noticed the giant flames. She rushed back into the home to alert the father who was on the computer upstairs.

Upon being made aware of the fire in the rear of the house, the father initially used a nearby garden hose in an attempt to extinguish the fire. While doing so, he called 911 at which time he attempted to re-enter the house to assist his three children who were sleeping upstairs. Due to the extreme heat and thickening smoke, he was unable to retrieve them.

With the fire still burning strong, firefighters went into the upstairs bedroom and rescued the three little boys from their cribs; two were taken out of a second floor window.

"It seemed to be a little while longer until they got the other boy out," said Judith Hackett, a neighbor.

"I've never seen or heard of any such disaster," said neighbor Nick Hill."[It's] just a tragedy."

The distraught father was treated for smoke inhalation and several burns on the scene. His three sons were rushed to Children's Hospital and are said to be suffering from serious burns and smoke inhalation.

Firefighters were injured, with steam burns, during the rescue attempt. They were transported to the MedStar Burn Unit at the Washington Hospital Center in D.C.

Happenings Around The House

2008-12-02T14:35:00.002-05:00

I'm in kind of a writing funk here. Can't think of much to say.

We've been really busy with school, holidays and life. All of the children are doing great!

Tyler is busy with 2 jobs, keeping up with school and talking to colleges. It's exciting and also overwhelming at the same time. So much to know and yet feeling like we don't know enough, at the same time. We are really hoping to have his school decisions made by February? I think. Hopefully we'll have a nice package for him and he can get the best education possible, while playing the sport he loves, baseball. He is planning on going into nursing. We are very proud of him and the young man he's becoming.

Stephanie is changing quite a bit the last few weeks. 16 seems to be the magic age of change. She is still in counseling and that really seems to be helping her a lot! She is working hard at school. She has a nice boyfriend. She is more helpful around the house and interacting with everyone more. She is smiling a lot more and it's great to see her beautiful smile again! She is planning to go to the local vocational school next year and is thinking of going into culinary. What a fun job to have! She is thinking of getting a job, so hopefully she'll be able to get one soon.

Ayden is getting over an ear infection. He's doing great in school. Loving his little life and is still my little cuddlebug. He is definitely a mama's boy of the 3. It's so sweet. He will just randomly come up and hug me or plant a big kiss on my cheek. I know this won't last forever, so I cherish it for as long as it lasts.

Ryley is READING!! She is such a sponge and just loves to color, write her letters and look at books on her own. I got the BOB books from the library and she just ate it up! It's like potty training a kid that is totally ready! I hope that learning always comes as easily to her and she's always eager to learn!

Dylan is well - ORNERY!! lol That best sums up this boy right now. He has that gleam in his eye and you better watch out. He is also like a little bear cub, he's ready to pounce without warning, so you always have to be on guard when he's around. He will just go and jump on Ayden and they will start wrestling, it's cute! He loves to play ball and he is the one kid that I need to have in an activity to get rid of his energy. He will keep us on our toes.

Jon's considering a promotional position, so fingers crossed that he gets it! He deserves it. It would mean less travel, which would be great for us. But he would probably have to leave earlier in the mornings. I can't wait until we can move closer to his work, so the commute isn't so long for him. Couple more years...

So that's us in a nutshell. lol Whether you wanted to know or not! lol

Our Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T20:47:00.004-05:00

I hope you and yours had a very nice day. Did you go out for Black Friday? I did not. Thought about it. But I'm done with my holiday shopping and so there was no need, except to see what all the craziness is really like! Yes, I've never gone out the morning after Thanksgiving. I've always shopped online. Next year I may go just for the sake of curiosity.

Tyler and a buddy went to Walmart last night about 8p.m to camp out to get that 50" Samsung flat screen for his buddy and Tyler wanted the xbox with the guitar hero. We thought they were going to be sleeping outside and I was not thrilled with that idea at all. He got there and called to say they were open and the electronics guy said they could stay all night, camp out in front of the PS game set up and play games all night, eat food they paid for first, etc. So they had a party all night in Walmart.

They were the first ones to get their stuff and get out of the store. So he still made it to work at the mall by 7. He was exhausted by the time he got home at 1 and he'll probably sleep all night long! lol

We spent the day at Jon's parents house. I normally cook our Thanksgiving dinner here, regardless of where we eat, that way we have all the leftovers we want. This was the first year in 17 years that I didn't cook it. I just didn't feel up to it yesterday. I even, gasp, bought a frozen pumpkin pie to take over there. I was DEFINITELY not in to the day yesterday. But it was a nice day.

Today was a different story. I made our dinner today and Stephanie helped make most of it. I was happy to spend the time in the kitchen with her. She was eager to learn and really wanted to help. Everything tasted so good and came out perfectly!

I am so thankful for my family and my friends. My family means the world to me and I am so blessed to have 5 wonderful, beautiful and caring children. I don't know what I did to deserve these 5 miracles, but I am thankful everyday for them. I am so thankful for a wonderful husband and father to my children. I couldn't make it through this crazy life without him. My extended family is small, but mighty and couldn't picture life without them! My friends are such great sources of support, in real life and in internet world. Some of I have met in real life and others I will soon and the rest I hope to meet one day. I feel blessed to know each of them.

I hope you are as blessed as I am.

Thanks for stopping by!

An Open Letter on Vaccinations by Dr. Jay Gordon

2008-11-26T23:43:00.000-05:00

Got this from a fellow triplet mama's blog. Thanks Mrs. P.

An Open Letter on Vaccinations by Dr. Jay Gordon

I don’t give a lot of vaccines.

I still give DPT vaccinations to some children, chicken pox shots to kids who haven’t been able to acquire natural immunity by age ten years or so, and I give polio vaccines very infrequently. The polio vaccines are given for what I call “emotional” reasons because my exposition of the “numbers” (2000 cases of polio out of six or seven billion people) doesn’t counteract the very strong memory of a beloved aunt or uncle who had polio in fifties or sixties. And many parents feel much more comfortable traveling to India or parts of Africa with updated polio immunity for their children and themselves. By the way, 2007-2008 statistics don’t support that discomfort, but I don’t argue much.
In 2007, there were 1314 cases of polio on the planet and 127 of them were in “endemic” countries: 873 in India, 285 in Nigeria, 41 in the Congo, 32 in Pakistan and 17 in Afghanistan.

As of July 1, 2008, halfway through the year, we’re running a similar pace with 714 cases of polio reported worldwide. Nigeria has had 353 cases, India 287.

http://www.polioeradication.org/casecount.asp (World Health Organization Site)

In 1980 I abandoned the recommended vaccine schedule. I received dozens and dozens of phone calls from moms and dads reporting that their child had received shots a couple of days ago and they were acting “a little different.” They couldn’t quite put their finger on it but their child was just not acting quite the same as before I gave the shots. They’d ask if this was okay…was it normal? Initially, as I was trained to do, I replied “yes.” After dozens and dozens and dozens of phone calls, I decided that I had better listen to these moms a lot more.

I stopped some vaccines. I delayed others.

No, I am not “anti-vaccination.”

I am aware of the public health implications of completely abandoning our current vaccine schedule, and I certainly don’t advocate that. What I really want is an honest discussion of the risks and benefits of each vaccine and combinations of vaccines for your child. Just your child. My experience is that many parents don’t have the opportunity to discuss these concepts and these details with their doctors.

Some vaccination problems are completely verifiable and a strategy of delaying vaccines is, in some small way, supported by this recent article:

Delay in diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus vaccination is associated with a reduced risk of childhood asthma.
J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2008 Mar;121(3):626-31. Epub 2008 Jan 18.

When it comes to your children and vaccines, we can and must do better.

Your newborn receives a vaccine against a disease he can’t possibly contract in the he first year of life, hepatitis B, because our campaign to vaccinate high-risk groups failed. There has been a large decrease in the number of cases—and therefore serious complications—of hepatitis B since we started vaccinating newborns. But I still believe that the risks to each individual baby far outweigh the benefits in a family where mom’s Hep B status is known.

The combination of vaccines given at two months of age is not anywhere near as safe as it could if the vaccines were given separately, the aluminum were removed and if the vaccines were given at a later age.

Now, when you discuss this topic with your pediatrician, he or she will clobber my ideas and me. So be it. I have watched children getting or not getting vaccines for thirty years. I won’t publish my data because I have none suitable for “peer review.” I can tell you that my very strong impression is that children with the fewest vaccines, or no vaccines at all, get sick less frequently and are healthier in general. I truly believe they also develop less autism and other “persistent developmental delays.”

I know that children still get meningitis and they certainly can get whooping cough. (The past two years have been very “good” for pertussis: 156 cases thus far in California for the year and a total of 228 in all of 2007.) I have not seen bacterial meningitis in a child in at least twenty years although I did have an eighteen-year-old contract the disease a couple years ago. He did well and suffered no consequences. I believe we’ve reached a point where a discussion must include the risk of vaccinations because the diseases are so rare. These diseases did not diminish by “magic” but because vaccines do work. Public health is an important topic and ignoring that aspect of the discussion is irresponsible.

The rarity of the diseases against which we vaccinate has caused me to look much harder at the side effects of vaccines. In what other area of medicine do we deny side effects? If I have to give you antibiotics—amoxicillin—for a urinary tract infection, for instance, I feel almost apologetic about the rash you might get, the diarrhea and the yeast infections that every woman knows about. When we give six shots to your six-week-old daughter, we tell you that, amazingly, there are no side effects. We know you’ve heard about seizures, “collapse syndrome,” autism and more, but these are all coincidences. I think that even doctors are having trouble believing that. Dr. Bernadine Healy was the director of the National Institutes of Health and is still a member of the august Institute of Medicine. Her article is worth reading. She is very unhappy with the government’s and the medical establishment’s decision to stop looking at the connection between vaccines and autism.
http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/brain-and-behavior/2008/04/10/fighting-the-autism-vaccine-war.html

In what other area of medicine does a 180-pound man and a twelve-pound baby get the same dose of a medication, the polio vaccine, for example? Please read Dr. Bob Sears excellent article about aluminum in vaccines. There’s far, far too much and it’s a known neurotoxin.

http://www.mothering.com/articles/growing_child/vaccines/aluminum-new-thimerosal.html

Mercury has not been removed from all vaccines. Most flu shots still contain 25 micrograms of mercury as do the tetanus boosters. This represents 30-60% of the dose a baby or child would have gotten in the “bad old days” and completely invalidates the argument that “we’ve gotten thimerosal out of shots and autism has not gone down.”

http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table.html

We must respect pregnant women who may be exposed to toxins in their food, cosmetics, flu shots, and more. We must respect babies whose immune systems should be left quiescent and natural for as long as possible so that they can develop and defend themselves. We must respect our children who should not be exposed to more environmental toxins including those in our air, our vaccines, and our water.

The Government has quietly settled over two billion dollars in vaccine injury claims and is now fighting what will be a losing battle against 5000 families who claim that the FDA and the CDC did not protect their children against doses of mercury sufficient to cause harm.

The CDC says that one out of five children have learning disabilities. I do not know why we have so many injured children now.

Let me say it again: I am not anti-vaccination.

I am proud to be going to Africa at the end of September to bring 5 million Tetanus shots to the Ivory Coast. In Africa, over 100,000 children die each year from neonatal tetanus. (In America, we average 35-40 cases per year, and the average age is sixty-one years old—a collection of older guys who probably shouldn’t be wandering around a construction site barefooted anyway!)

There are so many facets to this discussion, and they’re all important enough to merit attention from doctors, politicians, and all of us. What has led to this incredible increase in autism, ADD, Childhood and ADOL Depression, and learning disabilities, and how do we stop and reverse the trend? We need more funding and more respect for children and families. The debate over vaccines needs to move over and make way for the real research and work to begin.

Jay Gordon, MD, FAAP
7/20/2008

Preschool Conferences

2008-11-26T18:34:00.003-05:00

Last night we had our first preschool conferences. I had gotten the boys "report cards" and while reviewing these, I am convinced that she has the boys mixed up. Not big issues. And of course there were things that they supposedly didn't do or didn't respond to, that I know perfectly well they can do or know. But I also know not to hold a lot of stock in preschool report cards. The kid has to be in the right frame of mind, not be distracted and just plain feel like answering the questions or doing the task properly. So I'm not too worried about some of their "grades" they received. My bigger concern was that it seemed obvious that the boys were mixed up.

We have the boys conference first. Two kids and it lasted like 15 minutes. Everything was fine. The biggest issue she has with them, listening. They don't cling to each other, they play with other kids nicely and get along with everyone. I wondered how they did with being together. So I was glad to hear that they play with other kids and not just each other. The teachers makes the effort to keep them in different groups so they do foster other relationships. So that helps.

We go to Ryley's conference and we were amazed and not surprised at the same time, at what she has accomplished since starting school. She can write all her letters without help, her drawings are so detailed, she does great with any assignment she is given. She is very studious and a very quick learner. We knew this already, we have seriously been thinking that she will be in advanced classes when she gets to school. She has always been like this. She has really been working on teaching herself to read for quite some time. Her teacher said she is totally ready for kindergarten if she were to start in the fall. But her social skills need some work. I was surprised by this. She has really come out of her shell in the last year or so. But her teacher says she speaks barely above a whisper in class. She doesn't talk much in class. She is happy to just play on her own. She will get involved in any activity they're doing, but when it comes to the free play, she'll just play alongside the other kids. If she is invited to play with another child, she will, but then she will wander off and go do her own thing again. I know she has always done this at home, the boys have their thing and she is happy to just play independently with her dress up, her barbies or coloring or whatever she's in the mood to play. She talks to herself a lot and just really jumps in to her own world.

Her teacher said that Ryley's class is a very loud class. I said that she doesn't like a lot of loud commotion like this. I have had babysitting kids and when some would cry, she would really get upset and cover her ears or start to cry also. She wouldn't sit next to the child that she perceived as too loud for her! lol So we think that could be just her way, the class is loud enough that she doesn't need to contribute.

Her teacher asked me if we were going to participate in the program next year. I firmly think that having her brothers with her, she will probably be more social and outgoing. She is definitely her most comfortable when she has "the brothers" with her. So I think keeping them together next year will just help everyone. I can't believe the differences in the 2 classes. Well I can, but I'm kinda sad that the boys are missing out on some of the learning that Ryley has received. Her teacher had a whole stack of things from the beginning of the year to very recent, to show how far she has come since school started. The boys, we had the check list and they're doing fine. That's basically it. Oh and we also got the whole boys learn slower than girls speech from their teacher. Ummmm, I don't believe that. I believe the boys will learn just as well as the girls if given the chance. But whatever, nothing I can do about it right now..

We spent about 45 minutes with Ryley's teacher. Talking and chatting. It was nice. She then asked me about my decision on some of their vaccinations or lack thereof. She has the same feelings and her husband sells vaccines!!! So we had a nice intelligent conversation on the whole issue. She has 2 small children, herself. When we left, Jon said he felt like he should tell us to just go get coffee and come back and get him! LOL

In case you're wondering, we have refused the Chicken Pox, MMR and the flu shot. Ryley did receive her first chicken pox at 1 year old and that was the last time we stepped foot in that pediatrician's office. I was livid and just felt sick to my stomach. In the chaos of having 3 1-year-olds getting shots, without letting me know which shot was which, she was given her chicken pox and as soon as I found that out, I put a stop to all shots until I knew exactly what they were giving them. I refused the boys. I had refused Ryley's, but apparently the nurse didn't get that memo, as she had shots for all 3 of them. It was crazy. I just couldn't believe the lack of communication.

In hindsight, I should have fired that ped when I had the triplets. I had to push for the reflux diagnosis for the boys. I questioned the shape of Ryley's head and he said it would fill out on it's own. She should have had a helmet. Her head shape is still a bit out of whack, she won't be able to wear her hair pulled back in a slick ponytail without it being noticed. But it's not so bad that you really notice it normally. But I know it's there and when I do see it, I feel bad that I let her down, that I just let the ped push it off. But that first year was a blur and the really pressing issues got the most attention. But anyways, we found an awesome pediatrician and he was the one to find Ryley's heart issue (which again, the original ped should have found). Nothing life-threatening, but something to monitor. She has a bicuspid aortic valve. Which now our ped wants the boys echoed for, since there seems to be a higher incidence in twin/triplet groups for more than one kid to have, since it's hereditary. So they will be checked by the cardiologist in January. If they seem to have it, then I will also have Tyler & Stephanie tested. Steph had a murmur as an infant and was echoed and it closed, so I'm sure if she had it, that cardiologist would have seen it back then on the echo. So we'll see.

We talked to Ryley last night about talking loudly to her teacher and practiced. They said she did speak up today, so hopefully that continues! We also talked to the boys about keeping their listening ears on at school. They said they tried today. It's progress! lol

Poop Update

2008-11-26T18:01:00.003-05:00

In case anyone was wondering, Dylan's poop is clean. As clean as poop can be. My gut was in knots this morning. I called for the results and the nurse said hold on the pediatrician wants to speak to you. For the ped to actually speak to you, well that's gotta mean something, right? I was stressing for those minutes waiting for him to get on the phone. But he said the specimen was clean. And since it's clean, there isn't anything to treat and doesn't warrant further investigation right now. We need to give it more time. So if he's still like this after the holidays, we will be revisiting this situation again. He said sometimes kids digest too quickly and that makes it runny. I'm not so sure since this is a relatively new thing and not something he has had in the past. But we'll see.

On that note...I AM SO SICK OF CLEANING UP SHIT!!!!!! OMG! He didn't make it to the toilet again and instead of letting me know (during naptime), he tracked it all through his room, down the hall and to the bathroom, where he apparently turned right around and went back to his room and stood behind his door. Pants full of poop for I don't know how long. Steph went upstairs and came back down to announce that it smelled like dog poop up there. Nice. Then since Ryley naps in my room, I had to go that way to get Dylan cleaned up. She decides she's set free from her non-nap and runs down the freaking hallway, through the freaking poop!!!!!!! UGH!!! It was a mess. I about cried.

Today was just one of those trying days. I went to run some errands this morning while they were in school. Picked them up and thought it would be fun to take them to Toys R Us to spend some b-day money and fill her Build-A-Bear that I had bought, but needed stuffed. Getting through BAB went fine. Standing in line at the Chick-Fil-A was stressful for me. There were no organized lines for the 3-4 registers, people cutting and just going where ever. Trying to keep all 3 right by me while they're looking at everyone, Ryley trying to get her new bear out of the bag and trying to get our food before Christmas. UGH! Got it and Chloroxed the table down before letting them sit, meanwhile they're licking the chairs and touching anything else they come in contact with, all the while I'm barking, don't put your mouth on that, don't touch that and sweating like a pig while trying to make a clean environment for them to eat their deep fried heart attacks. They start eating and some worker comes along wanting to talk to them and gasp - wanting to high five them. Did he not just see me wipe down their hands with the purell wipes?? God knows where those hands have been. Please just move along and leave the 3 preschoolers to eat...Sigh...

Finish and go to TRU to find our new toys. Go to the potty first. Hands on your head please. Don't pee all over the place please. Wash your hands with soap please. Then I gotta pee and since the itty bitty child toilet is the cleanest since I've been there to clean it, I squat my big butt on that and thinking afterwards, this wasn't the best idea and I may not be able to get back up without some contortionist moves. But I do and off we go to scope out the newest Thomas trains and Princesses. It's not crowded, so it's great. We get to the Barbie section and meet a nice little family that recognizes them as triplets and tell me about a friend that has new triplets. I need to shout out on TC to see if they're over there yet. But anyways, spend quite a long time chatting with these ladies and it went well. Too well. We go check out and we get Slow Sally as our cashier. Really? Do you not see these THREE children reaching their limit on patience? We have the $3 off B-day coupons to use. She can't get them to work. She has done a lot of button pushing and with the confusion of that moment and trying to keep the kids from touching everything, leaving the store, etc. I just paid and left. I could feel the eyes from the people behind me burning a hole in my head, even though I wasn't the one taking forever to check us out..

Anyways, the math still isn't adding up in my head. I get everyone to the van, buckled and start to head home. Decided I have just one more stop to make and still thinking about TRU. I do the math 3 different times to see how she got her figure. It never added up with having 3 gift cards and 3 $3off coupons. So we go through BJ's and then I break it to the kids that we have to go back to TRU because we got screwed!! Not happy campers. I'm starving and I'm getting a headache. They aren't listening or cooperating any longer. If I wait, they'll tell me to take a hike for my $6. So we go back. The guy doesn't understand what I'm talking about, looking at my receipt and whips out his calculator to figure out the math also. The kids are wandering, I'm sharply telling them to get back over here. I'm leaning on kids against the register wall to keep them near me so I can concentrate on getting my $6back. Announce to the kids that I'm not happy to be back here either. He knew I was at my limit and since I should have known you can't use more than one of those b-day coupons in one transaction (in his head or he would have had it handed to him), he's going to give me my $6 back. I said, no clue on that, the cashier should have known this. But I won't make that mistake again next year!!!!!!

Get home and toss everyone in bed. They have to nap in order for me to keep my sanity and for them to get to open their new toys AND to stay up after swimming to watch the train under the tree.

Then the second paragraph happened. And long story short - Ayden got to open his new toy AND he gets to watch the train under the tree while the other 2 get to try again tomorrow...

Jon knew the day was rough when I called him at work. He came home early and took them to swimming. I'm supposed to be carpet cleaning the upstairs. I figured I'd enjoy my holiday beverage first and take in the silence that is my house right now...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nine Words or Phrases Men Need to Know

2008-11-25T17:05:00.002-05:00

Got this in an email - thought it was great and since I really have nothing else to talk about today...Enjoy!

(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.
(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.
(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.
(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!
(5) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)
(6) That's Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.
(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to a dd in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome. That will bring on a 'whatever').
(8) Whatever: Is a woman's way of saying F-- YOU!
(9) Don't worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning Thia is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to # 3.

* Send this to the men you know, to warn them about arguments they can avoid if they remember the terminology.

* Send this to all the women you know to give them a good laugh, cause they know it's true!!!

How to Catch Poop from a 4 year old

2008-11-20T12:55:00.004-05:00

Oh the fun times we have around our house. Our latest thrill is poop catching! How do you do that you wonder?

Just take a gander at this. Let your imagination do the talking.

The reason for this adventure? Dylan seems to be having some issues with his bowels. For the last month or so, he's had runny and/or soft serve ice cream kind of poop. Sometimes it's formed like normal. He's been having to rush to the potty to get there in time with quite a few accidents. It's a mess. He doesn't have any other symptoms and no new foods. He is still a 90% water/milk drinker and even still I have to keep reminding him to finish his milk. So it's not a too much juice or milk issue. So the ped wants us to "catch" his poop and run it in for a stool sample.

So the deed is done. Once the babysitting kids leave, I'll be running the poop in for testing. Hoping that it's nothing but a phase...

They turn 4 and the ears fall off!!

2008-11-19T16:41:00.008-05:00

First let me say that I have missed you soooooo much! It's been crazy busy around here with 3/4 of the household having birthdays this month, finishing up Christmas shopping and life in general. I am now 29 for the 8th time. My oldest daughter is now 16 (as of today!!) and my 3 youngest are now 4! OMG! When will the time slow down?

Plus I haven't had much blog worthy lately. At least I haven't thought so - until. Today.

Let me preface this by saying that a majority of the time, my littlest ones are good listeners, more so when we are out in public. I think it's the threats that they get before we go anywhere to behave or the wrath of mama will rein down on them. Not really, but they do get the lecture of don't do this, don't do that, be good, we know better, blah, blah. So today about brought me to my knees.

Since Ayden, Ryley and Dylan turned 4 (on Sunday) they seem to have forgotten how to listen. Not sure what happened when this magic day appeared, but WOW. I thought 4 was going to be sooooo much better than 3. I have been waiting for this day for months! 4 is the golden age - or so I was led to believe by others that have gone before me. 4 is fun. 4 is very doable. Ummmmmm, I beg to differ. 4 has brought some of this gaggle o babies to forget that I'm in charge. That what I say goes. 4 has brought more timeouts in the last - what - 3 days then it has in months. 4 has sprouted me a few more gray hairs. 4 has stolen my children's listening ears. I WANT THEM BACK!!!!!!!! 4 is now the new 2 - I'm convinced of this.

Anyways, back to my story. Today was the triplets 4 year well checks. Nothing out of the ordinary. I expected nothing less than full cooperation. I ASSumed that it would be like every other visit we have, a little loud, but nothing we can't talk loudly over to get through the appointment. Was I ever wrong. Next time I'm drinking a shot of something strong before attempting this again!! We go in, check in, arrive 20 minutes early and hope to be seen early. Not so much. Get the vitals and weights done. Which by the way - Ayden is 35.5lb and 41.5 inches. Dylan is 33lb and 40.5 inches. Ryley is 33lb and 40 inches. Good job kiddos!! Anyways. We continue on to the hearing and sight room. It's going downhill pretty quick here. We don't care for our arm "hugs" and have to do the boys twice each. Eye test gets Ayden done, but he's not looking at what he's supposed to and whatever. Then it's time to see the ped. So off we go to the examination room. They have now graduated to the paper robes. Why I don't know. It would have been easier to be in their undershirts and skivvies than those huge ass things. Dylan is hating his and wants nothing to do with it. I manage to get them to all sit on the table for a photo op in their nifty gowns. Dylan goes first. Ayden next. Ryley last. All is well. We have some issues to get followed up on and checked, but nothing major.

The noise level is slowly building despite repeated stink eye from me and shushing. Everyone has to pee, we go to the potty and pee is just everywhere. WTF! Ryley has wet underwear, I'm cleaning up pee all over the floor. They have just gone out of control. We get back in to the exam room. **I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT THEY ARE STILL IN UNDIES AND T-SHIRTS ALL THE WHILE** Then out of no where it happens - my children turn in to wild animals!! I can't even tell you what switched them on, it happened so fast it made me spin around in place, a blur of children escaping down the hallway and out in to the lobby IN THEIR UNDERWEAR AND T-SHIRTS!!!!!! (I can't believe I forgot the part about them being half-nekked!) I'm shocked they didn't just run right out in to the snow!! The ped yelling to the nurse that's being passed by these animals to stop them - me saying feel free to smack a butt or two as I'm running past her to catch my spawn. Parents in the waiting room looking at me like - ya, I KNEW this is what having multiples was like!! I have proven the stereotype to these people. They will see other multiples and remember my naked children escaping in to the waiting room and laugh. Me not so much. I wrangle them back in to my possession and get them back down the hall to our room. Evil eyes to anyone that let three 4 year olds run right past them and do nothing but laugh. It's all fun and games people...

We're back in our room. They whisk Ryley off to do her eye exam - probably to get us the hell out of there. She's freaking because of her wet butt. Deal with it baby - nothing I can do about it right now. Get the boys dressed and lecturing them on the behavior unbecoming of a Stuckey child and that they are not going to do that again. Apologizing to the ped when he finally musters up the courage to enter our room again. He says it's a ped's office, it doesn't surprise them. I said it does me and this is NOT how my children act. I don't think he bought it. Trade Ryley for Dylan and give her the shortened version of the above lecture. She, as she reminded me, didn't enter the waiting room, she stopped at the doorway. Get them dressed. Think I've got it under control enough to leave. Pay and away we go. I cannot believe it. It was crazy. It was not something I'm used to.

I want 3 back!!!!!!!!

But on another note. I got their preschool pictures back. We also had their 4 year pictures taken. They turned out cute. It was a bit of a struggle to get them to cooperate for the pictures, but it's done.

Enjoy some recent pics of the children.

Weekend in Review

2008-11-09T17:44:00.002-05:00

You have got to see Madagascar 2. Freaking hilarious!!! We took the kids to the cheap theater and they loved it. Tyler went with us. Steph wasn't interested. It was a great family day. But that movie was so funny. We went to lunch afterwards. So it was a nice day, besides my van battery being dead AGAIN! So had to get jumped in the parking lot. Jon went straight to the auto parts store and bought a new one. Hopefully that's all there is to that.

Yesterday, I met one of my online friends and that was great. We met at Grove City outlet mall. Gawd was that place packed. Lines through the entire stores to check out. Nothing was that cheap to get me to wait in lines like that. I hate shopping with crowds. That's why I've never done the day after Thanksgiving sales. No way, no how. I'm an online shopper. But this year, I may take a stab at this little tradition and probably hate it! But we'll see.

Anyways, we met for lunch and then walked around the stores. It was so nice to meet her in real life. She has 2 year old identical triplet girls. We're looking forward to getting the kids together. Finding some place half way or trading visits. It's only about an hour from here to there, so not too bad. I have actually met quite a few of my online triplet friends. And hope to meet more.

Tomorrow Jon, Tyler and I have a second meeting with a college that has expressed a big interest in him. So that's exciting. He's been getting quite a few calls from some of the local colleges. It's all so confusing and overwelming to say the least. Hopefully soon we'll have a decision made and we'll know where he's going to college. I just want it to be done.

Kids are doing much better since starting the meds. I hate medicating them. But sometimes there is no choice. Let's just keep fingers crossed that we can at least get through Christmas before we get hit with something else.

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by!

I need a bubble

2008-11-06T19:49:00.002-05:00

I finally gave in and took the kids to the ped's office. They have pretty much had the nasties since just after school started. It would tease me and seem like they were getting better - then back in full force with snots and yuck! Everyday I would resist the urge to drag them in to the germ-filled doctor's office. Knowing he would just say they have a virus and what a waste of $60 to hear those words. Well the time came, I couldn't take one more day of crusty noses, congested coughs and just having that yuck hanging around.

Ryley has a double ear infection and a sinus infection.
Ayden has a sinus infection.
Dylan has a sinus infection.

While I'm glad they have something more than a virus, because that means they'll get meds to take care of it and kick it to the curb - I'm kicking myself that I didn't take them in awhile ago and get this kicked to the curb sooner...

Oh well. It's done and they should be on the mend in a few days. FINALLY!!! Until the next round of nasty hits. Gotta love preschool.

WAY TO GO AMERICA!!

2008-11-05T09:35:00.002-05:00

GOOD JOB GETTING OUT TO VOTE! WE ALL HAVE A VOICE AND NEED TO BE HEARD! NO MATTER WHICH WAY YOUR WIND BLOWS!

For those of you that didn't bother to vote. I'm sorry for your choice. Just don't complain about anything when you aren't happy with the way things may go.

Keep moving forward. Open minds make changes. Closed minds spin their wheels.

THANK YOU AGAIN FOR GETTING OUT TO VOTE!!

We VOTED!

2008-11-04T12:26:00.003-05:00

Did you??

Not a single person in line. The kids did great. The old ladies were lovin' them! Had a bag packed with toys, suckers, M&M's and the bribe of McDonald's if they did good. All 4 of them did great (had the babysitting girl with us) and we were in and out of there in no time! The kids asked when we were going to vote, I said we already did! I think the expected us to raise our hands to vote! lol I showed them the machine and said I voted on that computer. So it's done. We're eating our McDonald's right now, drinking my FREE STARBUCKS and lovin' life. Can't wait to see the results!

Voting and Ignorant People

2008-11-04T08:46:00.001-05:00

Grrrrrrrrr!

Took the kids to school this morning. A grandma is parked beside us. Mine are starting to get out of the van and she comes around to get her grandkid out of her truck. I tell her to go ahead, since my last 2 are pokey about getting out of the van.

She looks at Roo, says "OH you're the one with the triplets." with that tone.
I said, "Yes, I am" proudly.
She says, "You poor thing." Snotty.
I say, "No, it's a GOOD thing" with that tone, don't mess with me.
She says, "Oh, Okay." like whatever you say lady...

GAWD Dammit do I hate it when people have to comment on something they know nothing about or ASSume that it's the worst life in the world!!!!!!!!!!!! WHY?!?!? Why do you want to say something so negative IN FRONT OF MY CHILDREN that understand that they are triplets, etc. WHY??

What a way to start out my day.

Oh ya and Jon saw that I'm flagged for verification when I go vote this morning. Fabulous. I get pulled out of line and checked when I fly too.

I don't think I'm taking the littles with me to vote this year. They were not the best listeners this morning and with my mood right now, I don't think I have the patience for comments from people and 4 wiggly little people to keep track of while I try to vote. So as much as I'd love to take them, I think I'll pass this year. Even though when they woke up I told them Happy Voting Day. They asked when we were going to vote...

Why I'm going gray already!

2008-11-02T22:06:00.004-05:00

Dylan - My baby #5 - My last born child - No Fear Boy - aka Creator of my gray hairs

I swear this is the kid that will keep me on my toes!!

The above image is what he did at dinner tonight with keys, while I'm sitting right next to him...I freaked out and probably scared the shit out of him more than any shock he could have gotten! The keys had rubber on them.

Gawd!!

The Post You've Been Waiting For

2008-10-30T21:46:00.005-04:00

So I know you've been counting the days until you could see the finished product. You've dreamt of this moment. It will take your breath away, let me tell you!

I spent hours making these cupcakes. My feet ache and my back hurts. My hand cramped up and may never recover! But they're done. I'm happy with them. I made some for both classes and it better be appreciated. I have visions of a not so welcome reception of my cupcakes from the boys class. They aren't expecting them and well ya know.

But here they are, in all their glory!

I know what you're thinking, ummmmm ya, what happened to the bat cupcake? What happened to the frankenstein head? Where are all the fancy freaking cupcakes?? I'll tell you where they are, stuck in the stupid magazine page is where they are! I tried that peanut butter cup bat trick. It's a trick I tell ya. Those aren't normal size cupcakes, they can't be. They gotta be giant cupcakes. There is no room for the bat and the bat doesn't stick...So that idea turned to let's just do spiderweb cupcakes, which turned to let's make them a couple different colors. So ya. I had high expectations and the above is what was the result.

Forgot to add those are spider rings on them. I figured I couldn't use only some and then all the kids want them. So let's pray that no one pops them in their mouths and chokes!!

Superhero Protection

2008-10-29T12:44:00.003-04:00

Nobody better think about messing with my house. I've got Batman, Spiderman and Superman and a mysterious red-headed girl to protect us!

I'm starting to wonder if high school has too much time on their hands...

My Nerd

2008-10-27T21:04:00.004-04:00

Dress up day at school....senior in high school...fun times

Our New Sundays

2008-10-27T16:15:00.004-04:00

http://www.firstchristian.info/

Thanks for the link from my buddy: http://jesses3some.blogspot.com/

(someone please explain to me how to do the links where you just click them in your blogs, cause I just can't figure it out!)

We went to church yesterday for the first time in quite a long time. It was great. It was different. I plan to go back. Not so sure about Jon, but he may tag along here and there. I hope more often than that, but it's up to him. The kids loved going to "church school" and talked about it all day yesterday. This place is huge and wow. It's a contemporary type of set up. Something this traditional Lutheran church girl isn't quite used to. Jeans to church? My friend, Jessica, said spaghetti straps and tank tops in the summer. I probably won't be taking it that far, but a more relaxed atmosphere could be fun. They have a traditional service early that I might attend every now and again to make me feel like it's really church! lol They even have a teen church, where they go off on their own and do their thing while we're doing ours. They have a check in system that is awesome when you drop of the little ones to their respective classes and do their own thing. There is a big screen up on the stage and a band. It was great! I'll be back.

Sorry for the crappy pictures, it was with my cell phone.

Stop Me If You've Heard The One About The Polar Express

2008-10-27T15:58:00.004-04:00

Okay, I know this probably isn't something you haven't seen yet. It came out in 2004. But I just saw it all the way through today! OMG! I watched it with the kids since we'll be going to a Polar Express viewing at MIL's work, complete with jammies and pillows. Anyways, I have seen bits and pieces of the movie and the parts I've seen were too intense for me to let my little ones watch. So I never bothered to rent it or watch it. Well I borrowed it from the library and let me tell you - we'll be buying it and watching it every year at Halloween time!! lol I'm ready to decorate the house. I'm ready to sing Christmas carols, the whole 9 yards.

Anyways, I wasn't sure how my kids would do with the intense parts of the movie. There were a lot of questions. A lot of me preparing them for what they'd see, that it was a dream, etc. So some of the scariness would be removed from the movie. I'm an over talker to my kids. Dylan was soooooo in to this movie. I swear his heart was beating 400 beats per minute. His eyes were as big as saucers and he was just glued to the screen. Ryley would cover her head with her blankie every time she thought something bad was going to happen and Ayden was just full of questions. I was ooing and ahhing through the movie, getting excited when I found out where they were going. I was in to this movie - almost as much as Dylan was! lol I started to get misty when we saw Santa, because of how in to it the kids were and how excited they were. I think they truly believed that Santa was going to come through our front door. I'm a sap. Hell, I cried last year when my 3 drove away in the barrel train at the pumpkin patch - like they were going off to college!! I'm a dork.

Dylan watching the movie - took it with my cell phone

Anyways, I recommend this movie to anyone that hasn't seen it yet. I can't wait until next August when I can sign up for the Polar Express lottery and hopefully get a spot on the train next season.

That's all, just wanted to share our afternoon with you.

8 Days and Counting

2008-10-26T21:30:00.005-04:00

Are you ready to vote?

Are you taking your kids to vote with you? I am. I am setting the example of how important my vote is and how seriously I take it. They know who's running for president - the man with white hair and the brown man. I have told them their names each time they see them. But leave it to a small child to just say it how it is...

But I can say that I'm ready for Election Day to be over. I'm sick of all the recorded phone messages. The mail. The commercials. I'm done with that. I'm ready to get on with it.

SO GET OUT AND VOTE!!!

Will Has Been Missed!

2008-10-24T14:19:00.001-04:00

Weekend Photos

2008-10-22T09:28:00.008-04:00

Not much to say today. Maybe tomorrow. So I'll share with you our weekend. We did go up to Michigan. We had a very nice time. I made it to Trader Joe's. I got some stuff. I can't wait to go back. Field trip ladies!

Before school this morning

He's so gansta!

Tyler's version of fairy tale for school.

Riding, riding, riding

Ryley, Dylan & Ayden

For Taters

Spidey-Dylan, Superman-Ayden, Little Mermaid-Ryley

Meeting Ronald McDonald

Take 5 million to get a decent shot!

This just sucks!

2008-10-17T11:46:00.002-04:00

The boys are in one class and Ryley's in another. I love Ryley's teacher and you know the story with the boys' teacher. The more we progress in to the year, the more I'm not in love with this teacher.

Anyways, they are having their Halloween party on the 31st. Ryley's class has a room mom, treat mom and game mom. Like regular school. I'm one of the treat moms. I'm making those Woman's Day cupcakes, going over the top since I can't be at the party. Anyways, I ASSumed that it was the same for both classes. Ryley's class is dressing up and having a fun day.

I get a note today stating that the boys class will have treat provided, they will not be dressing up and they will be having a fun day, not a scary day. Whatever! They are 3/4 year olds. How scary are their costumes going to be? We are spiderman and superman.

So now I have to break it to the boys that I won't be making their class the cupcakes (which I think I will anyways and act like I didn't realize sending treats home didn't mean cupcakes!) and that they won't be dressing up for their party, when Ryley will be going to school in her costume. How sad is that??

I asked Ryley's teacher if they were dressing up, just to make sure, even though I knew they were. I told her how sad that the boys class won't be dressing up. She gave that look and said she tried to talk to the teacher about it. So she doesn't like the idea either. There is another set of twins that are split and so one of their boys will go to school dressed and the other won't. So it doesn't just affect us.

Next year I am definitely requesting the 3 be in with Ryley's teacher!!

Save The Ta-Tas

2008-10-16T18:26:00.003-04:00

I saw this on someone's car awhile ago, but kept forgetting to blog it - until someone else's Ta-Ta's reminded me!!

www.savethetatas.com

I thought it was hilarious and laughed out loud when I saw it. A great way to spread the word about breast cancer with a laugh!

"No candy at this residence!"

2008-10-16T12:02:00.003-04:00

Thanks Lea! Passed on from the blog of: http://mccarthymayhem.blogspot.com/2008/10/no-candy-at-this-residence.html

"No candy at this residence!"

Sex Offenders' Homes to Be Marked With Pumpkin Symbol

ANNAPOLIS — Sex offenders in Maryland have begun receiving paper signs in the mail that read "No candy at this residence," which they must post on their front doors or possibly face a parole violation.
The signs began arriving last week in the mailboxes of the about 1,200 violent and child-sex offenders across Maryland. The signs were accompanied by a letter explaining they must stay at home, turn off outside lights and not answer the door on Halloween.
Maryland is also distributing pamphlets statewide to warn families to stay away from homes with the pumpkin signs.
"Halloween provides a rare opportunity for you to demonstrate to your neighbors that you are making a sincere effort to change the direction of your life," the letter to sex offenders reads.
"Because Halloween is a holiday in which large numbers of children interact with strangers, the concern among parents and other community members about sexual offenders in their neighborhoods is naturally intensified during this time of year," Patrick McGee, interim director of the state's Division of Parole and Probation, wrote in the Oct. 1 letter.
Maryland, which began the program in 2005, is among a number of states placing Halloween restrictions on sex offenders. Maryland's regulations are almost identical to those adopted in Missouri, where four convicted sex offenders and the American Civil Liberties Union are challenging the state law in federal court.
"We've had very good results," Wonda Adams, said a supervisor at the Parole and Probation Division and coordinator of the Halloween watch program.
"Our goal is public safety, and in keeping with that we need to make sure that the individuals under our supervision are provided with the enhanced supervision that we're committed to."

Thursday, October 16, 2008
-Associated Press

Gymnastics & Swimming Classes

2008-10-15T21:16:00.005-04:00

The kids just finished up their first session of swim classes at the Y. Dylan refused to put his head under water. It was cute. I told him afterwards that he was allowed to go under the water as long as he had the swim cap on. So he was excited about that and said he would next session. I got a lot of cute pics of them swimming. But I also missed some since there were 2 teachers and 2 of mine were at one end and 1 was at the other. But I got them the next time.

They also just finished up another session of gymnastics. For some reason Ryley's and Dylan's group leaders didn't seem too motivated to get through all the stations. It was more sitting and corralling one of the younger more hyper kid that was pretty much taking up the time. I was kinda disappointed in that. So I got a lot of great pics of Ayden doing all the stuff. Oh well.

They love both. Next session Ryley will continue with the gymnastics and the boys will do Small Stuff basketball and they'll all continue with swimming.

Our Day of Firsts

2008-10-14T13:49:00.010-04:00

Today was a big day for my trio. It was their first field trip, first ride on a school bus, first face painting and for the boys, their first haircuts by someone professional! So it's been a busy, busy morning! Of course I got it all captured on camera!

Nothing really to talk about, I'll just let the photos speak for themselves. They had a great time at the pumpkin patch, doing the hayride and picking their pumpkins. Dylan picked a green pumpkin. Ayden wanted nothing to do with the face painting. Ryley didn't want her face painted, but was willing to let them paint her hand. Dylan loved getting his face painted. It was an assembly line style with the teachers doing the painting, good idea!

It's picture day tomorrow at preschool. Jon didn't get a chance to give the boys haircuts and I'm getting to the point where the straight buzz cut isn't doing it for me any longer. Daddy was supposed to give them a cute haircut the last time, but kinda mohawked them and so he had to just buzz them. He's out of town right now and the boys were looking a little shaggy. Off to get a big boy haircut. Don't they look soooo stinkin adorable???

I saw this cute kids cutting place last year. Filed it away in my brain for another day. Today was that day. We get there and they take walk-ins. It's an adorable little place. Dylan isn't the most cooperative with daddy getting his haircut, so I wasn't sure how he'd do with a perfect stranger doing it.

He did fabulous! They sat in these cool little cars and let the lady cut their hair with pretty much complete cooperation!

The place is called: Bang Busters 4719 Fulton Drive NW Canton, Ohio 330-244-2951 (in the plaza with Fun Fortress) Go there! Take your kids! Mention us and we get free haircuts after 3 kids. You refer your friends after you go and you'll get free haircut after 3 referrals. Won't be hard with all of us multiples mamas!! lol One family tells one family, tells another and we all get free haircuts!

That's about it for the day. This week is full of photos. It's observation day for gymnastics and tomorrow is swimming. So photos galore for your viewing pleasure! This weekend we're headed up to Michigan and another pumpkin patch and some trick or treating, then the multiples club harvest party. Busy, busy week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Can You Hear Me Now?

2008-10-11T20:01:00.008-04:00

These 3 little people seem to have lost their ability to listen, at least to me. Have they become deaf all of a sudden? Quite possibly. Have I become a nag? Most likely. Do I get tired of hearing my own voice saying the same thing over and freaking over again? Oh hell ya! I really have no idea what's gotten in to them, except they are fast approaching 4.

They all have to talk at the same time. About different things. They have to get louder than the kid next to them. Making my ears bleed. They are happy, well-adjusted children, excited about their world and what they're learning from it. But really, do they have to be so loud?? They want everything they can think of spelled for them. They want to know everything about everything they see. The questions. I know it's normal. I know they are supposed to do this. But x3 and at the same time, it gets to be too much at times. I go in to overload. My brain hurts.

Anyways, the reason for my ramblings. They have not been listening to me. I tell them something, they just continue whatever it is they were doing. I say it again, louder. Get a bit of attention from them, but not what I'm looking for. I am going to count - they know what happens when I get to 3. I rarely have to get past 1 or 2. Lately, they are pushing it to 3 again. I have actually had to follow through. What the? It's limit testing time again. I hate this time.

So I tell them you don't do x and you can't do y or z. They know I'll do it. But for some reason they think I'm bluffing. Don't mess with Mama. Last night, Ayden wouldn't eat his dinner. He's doing everything at the table, but. Daddy's going to get movies at the movie store. The other 2 ate their dinner. Ryley almost didn't make the cut, but she pulled it out in the end. So off they go. Ayden's left at the table in shock that I meant what I said. He's crying, begging to go, trying to eat, but not actually eating, not making any changes. So he sits. They leave. He eventually eats, but even having them gone didn't motivate him enough to get it done, faster!

Today, Ryley wouldn't eat her lunch. She is just messing around. Completely disregarding the consequences of her actions. We were planning to go to the zoo this afternoon. She knew if she didn't eat, if any of them didn't eat their lunch, they would be staying home with Steph and taking a nap while we went to the zoo. It's not the food that I'm pushing on them. It's the listening and following the directions given to them. That I mean business and all this messing around and dragging their feet to do ANYTHING has got to stop!! So it's time to go. Ryley still hasn't changed her attitude and just messing around and acting like I'm not really serious.

I tell Steph Ryley's staying. She can't believe Mom was serious. She's crying. She's upset. She's sent to bed for her nap. I tell her we'll be back later, that the brothers are going to the zoo without her. Maybe she will take me seriously the next time.

My little Princes at the zoo. It's not a great pic, it's from dh's phone.

We get to the zoo with the boys and it's just not normal to be there with just 2 kids. I'm not used to this. The boys are so wound up and excited. Having a great time. Dashing from one thing to the next. No naps. Running on borrowed time. We get through half the zoo and Ayden has hit his wall. He is actually asking to go home. He's done. Dylan isn't far behind him. So off we go. It was a nice day. But it was strangely quiet without Ryley there. Someone asked if the boys were twins. I said no, triplets. They ask where the other one is while looking for her. I tell them she's at home. I don't think they believed me. Not that I cared.

We get home and as soon as I get in the door, Ryley comes running to me and says she's sorry and she will listen next time. Not sure if this was all her or if Steph put her up to it. But either way, I really hope that she learned from this. You make one choice and you have to live with what comes with that choice...We'll see...

Chore chart is our next project and hopefully will be something to get it in gear and stop expecting mom or dad to do everything for them. They love to help and I need to harness this enthusiasm before I lose this window of opportunity.

Meet Your Match

2008-10-09T09:23:00.002-04:00

http://abcnews.go.com/politics/MatchoMatic/fullpage?id=5542139

Haven't made a decision on who to vote for yet? Wanna see if who you agree with is who you really match with? Take this little test and find out. I was surprised by my match.

You Guys Rock!

2008-10-07T09:25:00.002-04:00

Thank you all for responding to my Trader Joe's post here and on TC. I can't wait to get up there and stock up! I am really getting in to the less is more and getting this family in a healthier way of life. Some are resisting more than others. But if it's in the house, there is no choice but starvation, right??

I am also on my workout kick and really am serious about starting to run. I have yet to actually start running, kind of afraid, no idea why! I'm building up my stamina and strength with the eliptical and the weight machines. I'm loving it and I'm addicted! I can't get to the Y often enough. Right now I'm only able to go on Monday and Wednesday mornings and in the evening when the kids are doing their activities. I am trying to get there on Saturday mornings too. I refuse to take the littles to the Y nursery if I can absolutely help it, so Jon and I are going to have to tag team it or go while their in their activities. So far that's working out. They are getting enough lovely germs from school, I don't need them getting any more yuck from the nursery. The last time they were there, they were hit with the flu and that was oh so pleasant.

I agreed to do a half marathon with a local MOM, so we'll see if that actually pans out, but I'm up for it. She runs, I haven't started yet. I have a year. I just have to get my feet to actually start running. Gotta not think about it so much, I guess...lol

But thanks again ladies!!!! Ya'll rock!

Trader Joe's

2008-10-06T12:46:00.005-04:00

I learned about this great place when I was out visiting friends in California. One friend works there. I was impressed. I visited a Whole Foods when we were in New Jersey doing our IVF. I was impressed.

So I looked Trader Joe's up last night, to see if there was one near me. Closest is Columbus and then near my BIL/SIL in Michigan. Well, I'm going to Michigan in a couple weeks. The nearest one is 10 minutes from them. I plan to go. I plan to stock up on some good stuff. In April, I'll be going to Columbus for the weekend. So I plan to go then also.

Now my question is to all the Trader Joe's lovers out there, what should I absolutely get? What should I skip? Help a girl out.

http://www.traderjoes.com/index.html

I LOVE this bag

2008-10-03T14:59:00.004-04:00

Check out my newest bag. Can you believe I picked it up at Rite-Aid?? $7.99 special. I'm in love! I am starting to become addicted to bags. It's crazy.

I fell in love with a green purse that a friend had in California. I might have taken her bag home with me, if given the chance. I searched everywhere for a purse that was green. If you know me, you know my favorite color is...green...I'm also a sucker for stripes and polka dots. I may go back to Rite Aid and get more. They are so darn cute and just the right size for me!

Anyways, I finally found one at Kohls a few weeks ago. I had to have it. Nevermind that it was more than I would normally spend on a purse. But I had to have it. I am not normally one to spend more than $15 on a purse, because I go through them so often. But this one I had to have. It's a deep green and I LOVE it.

Say It Ain't So Joe

2008-10-03T09:13:00.003-04:00

So the news is saying Sarah won the debate? Really? Were they watching the same debate that I was? Did she win because she didn't give blank stares when asked questions? Did she win because Joe kept himself in check? I don't know how they grade a debate to decide a winner...

Did you watch the VP debate? What'd you think? I think I have heard every way that Sarah Palin can say "Also" in her accent. She said it like 500 times. Ya Betcha she can't answer a question that was asked of her. She had all the buzz words ready.

Say it ain't so Joe, I don't think I could handle her being our next Pres if McCain is elected and then kicks it not long after. This ain't the PTA, ya betcha!

Irked, Bothered, Pissed or Ignore It?

2008-10-02T12:21:00.003-04:00

I picked the kids up from school this morning. The boys are in one class and Ryley's in another. I really like Ryley's teacher. She's younger, seems fresher, more something. The boys teacher is older, seems tired, like she's lost her love of the job or something or it's just her personality.

Anyways, our very first meeting wasn't the best first impression for me, as far as her having my id boys in her class. She made the comment on the fact that she'll never know who is who. Nice. That doesn't sit well with me when someone automatically decides they don't want to get to know my boys. Family or otherwise.

School starts and things seem to be going okay. That teacher was gone for about a week for her dd's wedding. So we had subs. Anyways, she comes back this week. Beginning of the week, Dylan tells me that this teacher still doesn't know their names. Meaning she calls them the wrong name, apparently. This was out of the blue, when asking how their day was, so I didn't ask for this info or even think about it by now. It's been about a month. She sees them every morning for 3 hours a day. Another indication that she's not taking the time to know my boys in her class.

Today, as she is opening the door to let them out, instead of saying anything pleasant she says to me, in that tone, talking to the child - but saying it to me, but so the child can hear type of thing - that it would be great if I could talk to the boys about looking at her when she calls their names. Nice, I'm no expert, but I know enough about child development, etc, to know that you don't do that in front of a child. It's not nice. It doesn't make the child feel good. And I personally don't think it's professional for her to do that. Write me a note. Send me an email. Express your concerns about my children away from my children.

This is a preschool where there are typicals and kids that need extra help. So patience should be a virtue for this type of preschool teacher. So to single my boys out like this, bothers me.

So the boys don't look all that proud when they come to me. I ask them about their day, etc. Keeping it light. Ask them if they had some trouble listening to Miss. Donna today. Ayden was near tears and voice crackling. Dylan did get misty telling me that she wasn't nice to him today. I asked him what happened, but he didn't have an answer for that. So whether she was nice to him or not, I don't know. I talked to them about keeping their listening ears on and that they need to look at the teacher when she calls their name.

I've stewed about this since I picked them up an hour ago.

Let this go and keep an eye on the situation? Send her a note to say I would love to further communicate about the boys through email or phone calls?

Next year they will be in the afternoon class and I think I will request that they stay together and hopefully will get Ryley's teacher.

I feel bad for the boys. They are so sweet and loving and friendly. I hate when I feel like someone isn't being as nice to them as they could be. Especially their first preschool teacher. I think it could be a personality conflict and that she's probably about ready to be done being a preschool teacher.

777

2008-09-29T22:42:00.002-04:00

Think if we play those numbers and won, we'd get paid???

This is scary and unsettling.

Then I'm reading about people that are purposely planning to let their homes go to forclosure so they can get out of the rathole they created, and move to a bigger/better house. Let the bank have the shithole I created. Doesn't matter to me. I can walk away. Everyone else that pays their bills can take care of this for me.

Nice mentality. Nice. Real nice. The Gotta Have Bigger and Better's are messing things up for everyone. Fabulous.

SNL Palin/Couric Skit

2008-09-29T09:34:00.004-04:00

The Palin/Couric SNL skit (for you - and you know who you are) in case you haven't been able to see it.

Amazing Race

2008-09-28T20:46:00.002-04:00

I have something to watch on TV! I'm in heaven!! The new season of Amazing Race has begun! I am addicted to this show!

How fun would it be to have a team of multiples mama's conquer the world??? The money would be a great bonus too!

Anyone in?

Economic Mess in EasySpeak

2008-09-28T13:43:00.001-04:00

Made it clearer for me. FYI: Bad words involved.

http://docs.google.com/TeamPresent?revision=_latest&fs=true&docID=ddv7hj34_03774hsc7&skipauth=true

26.2

2008-09-26T09:46:00.002-04:00

http://www.marathon.ipcor.com/Marathon-Training-Guide.htm

Who wants to start running with me? Yes, me, I'm considering this form of exercise. I know, I'm a bit crazy. I'm being medicated for that. So now I'm going to try to get rid of this flab and do something for me. Not for my kids. Not for my husband. But for me. I figure I can give myself a year to be ready for one. So who's with me? Come on, it'll be fun. We can run to a Starbucks and treat ourselves. Don't everyone jump up at once.

Also here's a fun site for the Multiples Mom that stop by:

http://www.multiplemomsrock.com/

Squirrel Conspiracy

2008-09-25T08:58:00.004-04:00

I swear there was a meeting of the squirrels after my fateful meeting with one of their own.

This morning I'm driving the kids to school and one is standing on its hind legs just waiting for me, in the middle of the road. Daring me to come closer. Who's gonna win this battle? Another car coming the other way, so again, no way to swerve to miss him. He is sitting there looking me straight in the eye, big ole nut in hand and waiting.

Get out of the way you stupid squirrel! The other car is apparently not going to back down to this small furried friend. I slow down and he runs off the road - MY WAY, of course - with inches to spare...Damn squirrel.

So Sweet

2008-09-22T21:34:00.004-04:00

Ryley had a follow-up cardiology appointment. She was scared about the leads they had to put on her. Her brothers were there to comfort her. It was so sweet. Dylan then was intensely watching as the nurse was pulling the stickers off her belly. The multiple bond is the best thing to witness.

Just call me killer

2008-09-22T09:48:00.002-04:00

How do you manage to run over two small animals in less than a half hour? Just drive with me!!! Can you believe that?? I was driving to pick up my MIL and I hit a bird that would not get out of the way. I look back and feathers flying. I felt sick. I have MIL safely in my van. We're leaving and a damn squirrel doesn't get out of my way. I look back and flattened. I thought my MIL was going to pee her pants from laughing so hard. UGH! There should be a law that animals have to stay off the road when I'm driving. Two animals in a half an hour. Gawd.

LET THERE BE LIGHT!!!!!!

2008-09-19T12:27:00.002-04:00

FINALLY! FINALLY! FINALLY! 5 days without power and I come home from getting the kids from school and there is power!! After I had just spent the morning transferring all of my frozen/cold food over to my in-laws house...Oh well, now I can really clean both fridges before bringing the stuff back over tonight!

You just don't know how much you miss HOT water until you don't have it. The electric I was doing fine without, it was the hot water that was sucking to be without. Next house won't be all electric that's for sure! I can vacuum my house now, instead of on my hands and knees picking up crumbs and such...crazy, I know!

The generator just finally died for good last night, most likely. We were all ready to be transients for the weekend. But the electric powers that be decided otherwise. Now let's hope it stays on for good and it's not just a teaser!

...

2008-09-18T14:00:00.002-04:00

The generator keeps stalling...is it dying? Refilled the gas. We'll be without electric until God knows when then...I won't have connection to the outside world. I won't have coffee first thing in the morning...ACK!! No signs of electric trucks anywhere in this neighborhood or town...I think they forgot about us...

Stick a Fork In Me

2008-09-18T10:18:00.004-04:00

Cause I'm soo done with this no power business!! We have a generator, but it's only running the fridges and whatever we need for a short time. It sucks. We're on day 4 of this and sounds like power won't be restored until Sunday...Nice. We sent a bunch of trucks down to Texas. They are sending some back. I still can't believe that IKE got all the way to us and knocked us on our butts like this. I can't believe part of Ohio is in a State of Emergency because of IKE. It's just crazy! We have an all electric house, so we have no hot water and that is the biggest pain. We can't cook. I did finally realize I could use the crockpot. We were able to use part of the grill to boil water to make instant potatoes and stuffing. The rest of the grill is useless, so we can grill out. Eating out is getting old. So I'll try to figure what I can crockpot for dinner tonight. It was glorious to get a shower at the Y last night. Makes you feel so much better and more human to wash your hair...

Aren't I a genius to reheat the food I cooked on the grill?? I know, slap me a high five!

The kids are enjoying this, it's not really bothering the little ones. The big ones, it's sucking for. But what can ya do? Steph is freaking about getting her hair done and straightened. I said it's power outage hair week, deal with it! She's not buying it.

In other great news, Steph decided to pierce her bottom lip with a needle last night. Fabulous...Can we see an infection coming from this? I sure can...Why can't teenagers have intact brains during this fun time of their lives?? Seriously.

What a week - so far.

2008-09-17T09:01:00.003-04:00

Wow, can my week get any better? Um let's see. Driving the kids to school this morning, hear a POP in my tire. Pull over and hear the whooshing of the air before I even get to it. Fabulous. I look at it and it's still looking good, but I can feel the hole and the air. So I freak out. Try to get us back across the highway that I just crossed, so that at least I don't have to walk 3 preschoolers across the highway and get us killed. So I think I might get us home, since we're right around the corner. No, we're wobbling now. So I pull over and call Jon. Tell him my tire exploded, exaggerate much? Unload everyone, pour out my awesome cup of coffee so it doesn't spill in the van when someone else drives it...sniff...Everyone holds hands and we're walking in the road/grass. Dodging the cars that are passing us, slowly, at least. Probably just checking out why this woman has 3 children the same age walking on the side of the road, nevermind that she might need some assistance...Anyways, we get a few feet further and some man stops and asks us if we need help. Yes, I know what you're thinking. I thought everything imaginable in that split second too. He was a business man, his car was clean and I had 3 small children with me walking on a road where people drive too fast...So I accepted his ride, tossed the kids in the backseat, which they thought was the coolest thing to ride in a car without carseats...It was just around the corner, so we were with him for a couple minutes, thank goodness. But he was nice. I appreciated the gesture and the ride. So now we're home. Waiting and wondering what will become of my tire...hopefully it can just be plugged. But seriously. What else can this week bring me? I've got what - 3 more days in this week. I'm just glad that I didn't have the other kids with me, trying to figure that out with 4-5 kids would have been a nightmare, plus we weren't driving on the highway, so we weren't going fast and we didn't crash. So we were lucky. But not lucky...

I'm also just glad this didn't happen on Monday, that day couldn't afford one more thing to happen. I started my period a week early. We had no power. We were late for school. Stop by the Y thinking I can work out and get a hot shower there. Um, no, they have no hot water, so I get sweaty on top of not showering since Saturday night. Lovely. I go to Starbucks for coffee since they have power and everyone and their brother was there too. But at least I got some coffee. I was late picking the kids up from school. I blew out my flip-flop getting them back in the van. Had to pick up Tyler from school for an appointment. Rush back by the house to get shoes. Drop off the littles at my friend's house. Get to the appointment on time. Develop a migraine while driving back, had to pull over so Tyler could drive. Get back to the kids. Shower at friend's house. Drop son off at work. Get to gymnastics - which we were late for since kids had to pee and I had to pull over to get them to pee in the van. Get to the multiples meeting - which I was late for. Leave there and start bleeding through like a slaughtered pig - TMI - I know, but what can I say - Not prepared - Get home and call it a day. C-R-A-Z-Y!

So ya, having a tire blow out happened on a much better day today...sigh...Oh and another thing, the kids woke up with colds AGAIN!

Starbucks Anyone?

2008-09-16T14:33:00.003-04:00

This is my favorite photo! Isn't it a hoot? I got the Starbucks guy to split a Strawberries & Creme into 3 small cups and the kids thought this was the best thing in the world - to have their own "coffee"!! lol

I'm so proud.

We Survived!

2008-09-16T12:29:00.003-04:00

We made it back from the trip without much of a problem. At least from the weather. Can you believe that we got hit with IKE?? Yes, here in Ohio we got 60+ mph winds mid Sunday! Power outages everywhere, trees down on houses and roads. It's crazy! We won't have power until Thursday or Friday!! We got a generator off my FIL to use and so we're able to hook up the fridges and I'm able to get the washing done, just have to take it all to the laundromat to dry. So at least there is some normalcy, until night, then ya. Bedtime at sunset.

Anyways, back to the weekend. The drive down wasn't too bad. The kids slept all night. The squirts stopped for Dylan before we left, so at least that was short-lived. Did I mention they slept all night in their seats?? Ya, it was fabulous! Steph and I were in the back with one carseat between us. The space was as big as a postage stamp. It was cozy. I slept like crap. But hey, at least the little ones slept!!!

It was hotter than sin down there with 150% humidity! But no rain. Tyler pitched 6 innings and did great! They ended up winning. We canceled our hotel there in SC and headed up to VA and stayed there the night. Much better. But by the time we got there I was ready to jump out the window! So it was good that we stopped!

While driving, Ayden decides that he's going to have the runs. So a few stops later, we're finally able to just drive! I have seen more bathrooms then I care to. I can honestly say that one in a questionable part of town, had me worried. It was locked. I go in with Ayden and it was SPARKLY CLEAN AND PERFECT!! Ayden could have licked the floor and I would have been okay with it!! It was like I had died and gone to public potty heaven!! Glorious I tell you! I wanted to hug the owner! So now that Ayden has agreed to a pull up - which I have to say both boys were in overnight - getting a kid to actually pee in a pull up when you want him too, is next to impossible!! Geez, you don't want them to pee in them and they go constantly in them. Now you need them to pee in it to save some time, they just don't do it! So I'm begging with a 3 yo to pee in his pull up and telling him it's okay this time, blah, blah. He's resisting with all his might. Then he finally can't hold it any longer and you see the relief on his face as he's relieving himself...Crazy kids! So the pull-ups were nice for sleeping, but not so much for skipping potty stops. So we finally get to the hotel and the kids were just ape shit nuts after escaping the van! We got them in the hotel room and OMG were they wild! Loud and just everywhere!

We looked for some place to eat and stopped at this seafood place that looked like food poisoning waiting to happen. The kids were crazy! I can honestly say that they have never behaved this way in a restaurant ever!! I got the salmon and a baked potato. It was okay. I fully expected to be in the ER by midnight. Everyone else got deep fried heart attacks. I fully expected everyone to be in the ER by midnight. I don't think there really was a bit of seafood inside all that yuck! Steph said after she ate that she felt like she was having a heart attack. I said it's just indigestion from the crap you just ate. Then by the time we left, her heart attack turned in to breast cancer. The little ones didn't really eat much, they were too wild, but they ate some. Fun family times!

We get back to the hotel and took them to the pool and well, Dylan decided that he needed to poop - NOW! Daddy tells him he can wait a minute. Um, no you can't tell a 3 1/2 year old that he can wait a minute to poop when they are still mastering that muscle skill...So I get out of the pool to get him to the potty - too late. He pooped. Sit him on the side of the pool, go get him a towel, stand him up and lovely brown water is running down his legs and all over the concrete. Lovely. Get him wrapped up in his towel and mine and get him up to the room. Steph is already in the bathroom and well, just not getting out that fast. I'm holding this kid in a weird way to keep the poop and poop water in. Fun times.

Everyone gets to sleep without much of a problem after all the showers and clean up. Felt good to sleep laying flat instead of in a contortionist position!

Get up and leave and head home. Drive isn't too bad. It's windy, but it's to our advantage. We hit the Starbucks, because my husband rocks and asked where the nearest one was at check out. Heaven on earth, I tell ya. Get our goodies and hit the highway. Watching Cat in the Hat for the millionth time. Then Shrek for the millionth time. We stop for lunch at Ponderosa. We are eating in high style on this road trip, seriously! Get out food, not much to pick from at their food bar. Well thank God that we were placed in a back enclosed room and basically alone. They must have heard from the seafood place. Dylan proceeds to choke on something, lately his gag reflex has been extra sensitive and he tends to stuff his mouth like he's never going to get another meal. So he goes and throws up all over himself, down the chair and on the carpet. Lovely. Can I just crawl in a hole now? Get him cleaned up. Ayden starts gagging because he likes to look and then gross himself out. He never learns to just look away. I'm telling him to ignore this, look away, don't you dare throw up too. Scrambling to get napkins to clean Dylan up. Pouring water on the carpet to try to clean this up. It's just crazy. Get him changed and cleaned up, take him to the toilet for the 50th time. I swear between the 2 boys, dressed alike - yes, I know Amy, I'm a freak! I swear the people sitting by the door must have thought my ONE boy had a serious bladder problem!! Get through the rest of the meal, Dylan's ready for dessert. Who could blame him, he just made room. Leave and head home. Home can't get here soon enough.

After a couple more potty stops, we're a few miles from home. We're in the home stretch. I can see the finish line. I hear gagging behind me. Ryley throws up on her blankie. Lovely. At least it was just on the blankie and she missed everything else. But she starts freaking out because she wants her blankie. I promised her it would be washed and dried before she went to bed. I would do it first thing when I walked in the door. That we were almost home. She was just freaking out!! Gawd. Shoot me now. I'm done.

Get home, the winds are picking up. Send the kids to play in the backyard in the wind to wear themselves out and get rid of this pent up energy. Start the laundry of every bodily fluid you can imagine in one load and Steph and I had to Kohls. Gotta get away for a break. All hell breaks loose and here we are. No power.

Can you believe that I didn't take but a few pictures and those are of the kids IN THE VAN on the way home?!?!?! I know. I can't believe it either. But have I got a picture to show you! As soon as we get them downloaded. I may have it blown up and framed for Mother's Day.

Sorry for novel. If you've read this far, WOW, you must really have nothing better to do! :) Have a great day and thanks again for stopping by!

Wish Us Luck!

2008-09-12T19:00:00.001-04:00

It's 7p.m. now, we're supposed to head out about midnight. I've got one kid that has started with diarrhea. Oh it's gonna be a fun drive...

Are You A Matching Freak Like Me??

2008-09-11T12:36:00.002-04:00

If you love to match your BBG/GGB/BBB/GGG/BG/BB/GG multiples, then have I found the place for you!!

www.cwdkids.com

I just got my catalog and let me tell you what, I will be broke for sure! I saw a set of B/G twins at Twinsday and they were matching and older than babies. I am a sucker for this. As the triplets have gotten older it's harder to find stuff for them to coordinate/match and so I just had to find out where she found their outfits. Well this is the place. OMG I'm in heaven!!

Road Trip!

2008-09-11T09:02:00.002-04:00

We're hitting the open road tomorrow night. All 7 of us!

Ohio to South Carolina in the middle of the night.
Chevy Venture that seats 7.
Two parents.
Two teenagers.
Three preschoolers in big ass carseats.
Happy pills and adult beverage stashed under the seat. (kidding.)
Son pitching 4-7 innings in one game and he's done.
Turn around and come back home.

Fun times, even if it kills us!

It's September Already??

2008-09-08T10:27:00.002-04:00

Good Lord where does the time go?

First I want to wish my hubby a Happy Anniversary! It's been 11 wonderful years and many, many more to come!! We were set to go out to dinner on Saturday, but it was a crazy busy day with Tyler's baseball game at Kent, then the Kent Air Show. I was wiped out as soon as I woke up that day! I hate days like that. I could not get it together for nothing! If you ask Ayden the highlight of his day, he will tell you, "Mommy forgot me!" Ummmm, no let's tell the whole story kid! We were leaving Tyler's game since he was done, it was ready to snow and I forgot pants for the boys. So we were going to mosey on over to Kohl's to get some pants for them. We got everyone buckled in their seats and we leave Kent State. It's 5 mph through this town (not really, it's 25 with a cop every 2 feet), so I'm making my way through the town and heading towards Kohls. We are right in front of the shopping plaza and Ayden announces that I didn't buckle his seatbelt! I about slammed on the brakes in the middle of the road and yelled, WHAT? OMG! He had the shoulder straps over his shoulders, but I must have gotten distracted by someone else and didn't finish. NICE. So I told him to yell at me or whoever if that ever happens again, to stop driving - I'm not buckled. So he yells, STOP DRIVING, I'M NOT BUCKLED!!. I said the next time, we're here now. So he gets all dramatic for the longest time afterwards and kept saying mommy forgot him. Sigh...

Tyler had a great outing, so that was an excellent way to start the day. I sat in the van with the littles, so they could play and not be annoying to me and the other people, plus it was cold and drizzly and they're getting over colds. So it was best for my sanity to keep them in the van to play so I could watch Tyler throw. He did great! Got some bad calls, but at least he did his job!

Go through the Kent Air show, it was towards the end and so not much to see, but there long enough to make the little ones happy and see planes taking off and they got to go through an army tank. Fun times! Then we left.

Got home, dinner, bathed and bed. Including myself. I was in bed by 8ish. Happy Anniversary honey! lol

But Sunday we went out to Carrabba's and then went to the dollar theater and saw Hancock. Funny movie if you've never seen it. Jon thought it was MUCH funnier than most, but that's my hubby for ya!

So that was our weekend. Very nice and got a lot accomplished.

My laptop has caught a nasty virus and is not working. I'm so sad. We took it back to Best Buy since Jon was told we had some type of protection in our plan, that he paid for, that they would take care of it. Nope, apparently we don't. But if we pay them another $190 they'll take care of it for us. Was he pissed. So we have to use the restore disc and pretty much start over and all the crap they took off when they got the laptop ready, will be put back on. Nice. So glad he paid extra for that and now we will still have it anyways. So who knows when I'll have it back up and running. Hopefully this week. I have fallen in love with that thing and love that I can take it out to the deck while the kids are playing or upstairs or anywhere I feel like taking it. It's freedom!

So that's my news. Pretty uneventful and unexciting. I'm sure you came for pictures and once I get some, I'll share them! Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

Daily Happenings

2008-09-03T11:34:00.003-04:00

Well we have the first week of preschool under our belt and they did pretty darn good for never having been in any type of daycare/school setting. Ryley was worried about her mommy, that's why she cried. Yesterday and today, she did fantastic! She was so proud of herself yesterday for not crying! Today she barely said goodbye to me before bounding up the stairs and in to school. I'm so proud of them.

Dealing with teenagers and preschoolers is a bit stressful. More so with teenagers any day of the week! Don't let anyone fool you and say that triplets are the hardest thing ever. Teenagers are the hardest thing ever! I'm getting gray hairs daily. I'm hoping that we can work through some of the issues we're dealing with right now and everyone comes out intact! I'm proud of my 2 older kids. They are great people. It's just a matter of them seeing that for themselves.

Tyler's playing fall baseball and has a bit of traveling to do this season. We're hoping some college exposure comes from this. He's a pitcher, for anyone that doesn't know. He's a darn good one, if I do say so myself! lol He has generated some interest in himself, so we'll see where it takes him. He is not sure what he wants to do, career wise, but he's kicking around a few ideas. He's not sure he'll be able to play baseball in college and carry the course load, but we'll see how it goes. I still can't believe he's a senior and that we're at this point with him already!

Not much else going on. Busy Labor Day weekend, but it was fun. The kids got to swim, at least one last time this season. Spent time with cousins, which is always a fun time.

The little ones start back with gymnastics and their first swim lessons next week. They're excited! I'm excited for them to have something to do besides be at home. I do have to say that since they've started preschool, we've been able to reclaim the house somewhat. It's not getting trashed as quickly and it's just more manageable around here. It's also nice to get a couple hours a day to myself to clear my head, collect my thoughts and just have some ME time. I'm more relaxed and not near as stressed. I'm still WAY stressed, but it's not to breaking point anymore. School has been the best thing for them and for me!!

I'll come back and upload any pics that are worth sharing from the weekend when I get them downloaded. Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!!

FFF - Black & White

2008-08-29T10:25:00.003-04:00

I'm so excited! This is my first Favorite Foto Friday! I have so many favorites that are great in color and B&W, here are a few...(thanks: http://kissthefrog4me.blogspot.com/)

These two have always had a special connection (Tyler & Dylan)

Brotherly Love

The Sisters

Tuscora Park 2007, at one of Ty's baseball games

The Brothers

Dylan so excited before his first t-ball game.

Christmas 2007

Hahahahaha

2008-08-29T00:09:00.001-04:00

Found this on another bloggers site: http://triple-take.blogspot.com/

Had to share it! LOL don't forget to turn off my music at the bottom first!

Another Day of Freedom

2008-08-27T09:40:00.003-04:00

Okay well 3 hours of it.

Today is better, for me mentally, at least. Ryley cried when she sat on the stairs waiting for her class to arrive. Her teacher asked me to give her one more hug. I did and she was just sitting on that step in a kind of ball, crying. It was the saddest sight. I scooped her up and just hugged her and hugged her. She's so brave. It's got to be so hard to be separated from people that you eat, sleep and breath with, hell you even poop and pee at the same time as these people! One of the other teachers came over to cuddle her so I could leave and the day could start. It was sad. I saw the boys at the bottom of the other steps and they were just giggling and having a grand time. Have I made a big mistake separating them so soon? Should I have kept them together for this first year? Should I have separated the boys? Oh the guilt! I'm sure after this week she'll be better.

So on to my freedom. Yesterday, I came back to the house and had left the Disney Channel on. I guess I needed to "hear" kids! Today, not so much. I can definitely get in to this bit of freedom a couple times a week. I got my Starbucks, hit the grocery store and am back here enjoying that coffee and the bagels and cream cheese I bought. I have on my favorite channel and I'm just gonna kick back and not feel so lonely. I'm gonna enjoy it dammit! So far I am. I have less than an hour left, so today will be an ease in to freedom day. I can definitely get used to this. Having time to recharge and just regroup before jumping back in to the daily grind. This is good for me and for them. I know this. But I miss them.

Have You Seen Me?

2008-08-26T10:41:00.004-04:00

'Cause I was lost this morning. Yep, seasoned mom of 5 was lost without her babies this morning...I kept it together, but I could tell that any little thing would set me off...Sniff...

Kids got up quickly and easily this morning. Smiles on their faces and ready to head to school. We were out the door in less than an hour, hope it continues that easily!

We get to school, we go in the wrong door. Nice way to start out. But it's all good. I got a couple pictures of them in front of their class. Not the ones I was hoping for, but at least I got some pics! The boys were like, Bye Mom! Too excited to care that I was leaving them. Ryley on the other hand was trying to stay strong. She had that sad look in her eyes and her chin was quivering. I made a quick exit and left.

Now what? Where do I go? What do I do? This is gonna be a long 3 hours...I'll get used to it, 2x a week, I'm sure. The other 3 days I'll have babysitting kids to keep me busy.

So I hit up Starbuck's and head on over to Kohls to return some bedding that was quite a disappointment. Then I wandered. Found more bedding to replace the return and am VERY happy with that. Got some sconces to hang on the wall to go with our room redo. Then I head home. I still have time to kill before it's time to go back to get the 3. So I figure I'll head over early and just sit in the parking lot. I'm pathetic, I know...

I get there and see the other parents lined up at the door, I'm still about 20 minutes early, so I'm not late, that's for sure. I get to the door and see my angel boys sitting on the steps waiting for their ride. Dylan sees me through the door and I could have just burst in to tears of joy at how happy he was to see me and how big his smile was. Ayden saw me then too and he gave me the same exact huge smile!! I couldn't wait to grab them and hug them both. They come running out the doors and I get the best, most wonderful double hug any mom could receive!!!!! It was glorious! I missed them. I really missed them! Ryley's class wasn't done yet, so we chatted and waited for Miss. Roo to come out.

I positioned myself to be first at the door and she happened to be the first in line and she saw me as she was coming up the stairs. She was fighting back the tears through her big smile. I'm not sure I've gotten a bigger/better hug from that girl since 3 hours earlier when she didn't want to let me go. But she did it. She made it through her first day. Her teacher said that she cried for a short time, but then did fine. She made a new friend, she was happy about that. Ryley says she's not sure if she'll go back tomorrow. I'm sure she will be fine after this first week. She said she saw her brothers during the class, so I think that helped her not feel so alone. The boys did fabulous. No worries from them. No tears and no accidents with peeing!! Wahoo!!!

We hit the McDonald's right across the street for lunch. We went in, normally we drive through and take it home, so this was a big treat for them. We get our food, find an out of the way spot to sit. They have to eat in order to get to play on the playground (yuck, btw). So they eat. An old lady walks past us to the bathroom. Comes back by. Comes over to the table as we're eating and chatting. Asks me if they are all mine. I say yes. She says all the same age. I say yes. She asks their age. I tell her. She says triplets?? I say yes. She says wow. what god bless you. I say my usual response to that, Yes he did 5 times! She laughs. She says they are so well behaved. I say thank you. She babbles something else. Says I'm a strong woman to do this. I'm nodding, like okay, you can leave now. She goes on some more about how great of a woman I must be to do triplets, blah, blah. Whatever. She finally wanders away. Luckily the boys didn't start talking her ear off. They are known to just start talking and talking to anyone that will speak to them. This time they were too busy eating. So they eat and then go to the playground after hitting the potty. A few minutes in to playing - Dylan poops his pants. Fabulous. So we go home after hitting the Starbuck's again and renting the new Little Mermaid movie for rest time. If you get a chance, rent it or buy it - it's a cute movie - Little Mermaid - Ariel's Beginnings.

So long-winded short - they had a great day and I was a mess.

Twas the night before preschool

2008-08-25T20:56:00.002-04:00

and all through the house - it's freaking 9 o'clock and they're still going strong!! They are so excited about starting school tomorrow. I'm happy for them, but kinda sad at the same time. I'm kind of indifferent right now - maybe it's a defense mechanism from the tears. These are my last babies. They are growing so fast. Too fast. They are incredible little people and I love watching them absorb something new. But can we just slow down a bit? I can't keep up with my kids. One running for the door as soon as he can. One not far behind him and would probably leave now if she could. Three more that the years will fly by with...It needs to stop. It needs to just slow down. But I know it won't. I'm trying to enjoy every day with them, some of those days are so long and I can't wait for them to end. But I do enjoy my days with them. All of them.

Weekend was kinda blah. I got the 5 end tables built and they look great for $40 or less each! So far I'm happy with my walmart specials. The desk was a bitch. Why did I try to do that myself, I have no idea. I got a piece confused several times and in the end it was STILL messed up. Oh well, a black sharpie will fix that mistake. The keyboard drawer slide thingys are upside down, so hopefully I can take those off and switch them without much of a problem. Ya right! This desk has become a pain in my ass! I had Tyler help me carry it to the office and there it will sit until someone else can work on it! grrrr... I haven't attempted the armoire since my hands are sore and blistered from the madness. But at least the end tables are done!

I decided I needed to get out of this house for awhile. It's the little ones last day before school starts for them. So we went to the zoo. Just me and the three. This is the first time I've done this on my own without anyone with me, either to help or just to go along with their kids. It was busy. It was a great day. We only got through half the zoo, since I decided at 9:30 this morning and hadn't even showered. Plus Ryley had her ENT follow up just after lunch. The kids did great and were good as gold. No pee accidents - which was FABULOUS!!! We traveled so light and it made me feel like a "normal" mom. No strollers, wagons, diaper bags or anything else, just us. It was glorious!

We stopped off to visit a great friend and her brood for awhile. It was just a kinda spontaneous day. Not one that I have often and forget what that's like...Hopefully one of many to come now that the kids are older.

It was a great day.