While dad was at church. . .

We experimented with the doorway bouncer, of which Alex thoroughly enjoyed for about 15 minutes.

The others became bored a lot sooner, but I think these will get used quite a bit in the weeks to come.

Alex also was highly entertained (and in turn entertained us) in his Bumbo for quite a while. What a day for the big boy.

I can't explain the joy I feel seeing these sweeties learn new things. They are growing before my eyes, and changing every day. There is even more hair on their heads (the boys anyway-poor Ruby). And I am thrilled that there are more ways to keep them entertained so that I can, say, take a shower, or maybe eat lunch.

Oh, and of course there is a lot of this going on. So many smooshy cheeks to cuddle kiss. It takes up a good portion of the day. (And yes, I know they are in Christmasy clothes, but hey, they still fit, and they're cozy on a cold snowy day such as today.)

I know, two posts in two days. Don't anybody fall of your chair.

Highlights as of late.

A good flight: Delta provides entertainment as far as free satellite TV, and even quizzes on individual screens in front of each seat "to keep us sane" as Britney put it. Watching TV is just about all you can do with a squirmy babe in arms, so I appreciated that. And it was a pleasant surprise since I usually fly on Southwest where such luxuries aren't present. We had a crew of KC's mom and dad, Janice and Clyde, Britney, the babies and me.

Bumbos: I was so excited to try out the Bumbos as soon as we got home. I knew they were ready for them and they are so adorable all sitting in a row. They love the new view and I think these will really come in handy. Already I've used it to put them in as I prepare bottles or eat dinner and it works like a charm.

Church: We went to church!! I know, crazy. But I had four extra adults to help me. We made it just in time to hear the opening prayer. This in pretty impressive if you take into account that we still don't get too much sleep each night, church starts at 10, and we didn't decide that we were going to try to go until 9 (this means the babies all got baths, but I went with a day-old ponytail). We only stayed for the first hour, and the babies were little angels eating the prepared bottles right when we sat down and sleeping the rest of the time. I haven't been to church since July, so it was a big day for me as well as the babies. I even put on dangly earrings again. I feel like I'm coming out of this little cave I've been in for the past several months, and it feels pretty good. (From the looks of it Ruby looks pretty mad, but she was a sweetie.)
DC: Britney and I were able to take a jaunt to DC before KC's dad left (he only stayed a few days) since we're not sure when we'd get another opportunity without the extra hands at home. She made the regular tourist type things much more of an adventure for me since I'd seen them all before. We loved the fresh crisp air, and the hot chocolate as we walked up and down the National Mall, and trying to spot things from Night at the Museum 2 (apparently a movie I MUST see). Here I am by Julia Child's kitchen in the Smithsonian.

Shopping: Britney and I also got to do some shopping at the mall/Costco without any babies and found some great things for them (including 3 little swimsuits), and perhaps ourselves. I felt like such a normal person walking through the mall like I used to. Except this time I went mostly to baby departments, and got to see three sweet smiles when I came home.


Annapolis Mall: Janice, Britney and I took the babies to a different mall. We all sttrapped a baby to us and perused our favorite stores. We got a lot of stares and a lot of questions as people realized we were all together. Mostly people were tired for us, as they should be. Again it was nice to catch a glimpse of my old lifestyle. I actually bought a couple things for me! Though most of my purchases were for the babes again, of course. And Janice treated us to Cheesecake Factory takeout for dinner! It's always nice to have a change in routine.

Cuteness: This is a part of the babies' regular daily activities (along with being naughty, but we won't dwell on that). Just thought I'd share a little of what we get to see all the time. They seriously make us laugh all day long with their new found curiosity, and little voices that chatter. It's so fun to see them recognize me as they turn toward my voice and see their giant smiles, and watch them discover their surroundings. I can't wait to see how they interact with each other.

Rearranging: the living room that had morphed into baby territory is turning back into the adultish space we once knew, adorned with baby paraphernalia of course, but still it feels good to get things back to a more civilized state. I also worked on their room, trying to get everything to fit just right with three cribs and all. Thanks to Brit for the good input as I seem to be spatially challenged. I had originally planned for only one crib until they were ready for their own, and now's that time. And while they've been living in the living room, the nursery has really accumulated a lot of stuff we didn't feel like putting away. And in preparation for three babies sleeping all night long (I can feel that this will happen soon), we needed the nursery ship-shape and ready to go.

Fun with family: What kind people I have in my life. I am constantly in awe at how willing and wonderful they are to my high maintenance family. I can get pretty cranky and stubborn with all that is on my shoulders these days, so chipper, cheerful faces are so refreshing. I'm sure my helpers are extremely tired as well, which I feel terrible about. But I have to trust that they really do want to be here to help, even if it means being exhausted. We agree that days of better sleep are on their way. Janice, and Clyde (when he was here) have been beyond helpful holding babies non-stop, allowing me to take Britney out on the town. Janice has also been great to help with housework, and meals among other things.
Britney is just a gem. She takes such good care of the babies and even helps in the kitchen. We decided that we need to keep a constant supply of munchies (doughnuts has been out favorite lately) to keep our spirits up. These babies keep us going enough to work off the extra calories. We are always laughing to tears about who-knows-what, we love to harmonize as we sing the babies lullabies or Disney songs, and we also enjoy a middle of the night serious conversation now and then when we have to rock babies for a while. We have the nights down to a pretty good routine, but we are prepared to change things a bit when Janice leaves on Tuesday. We might have to stock up on caffeine.
We also had a little birthday party for KC last Thursday as it was his 33rd! What a husband I have. I did a shortcut dessert, chocolate raspberry cheesecake NOT from scratch, but can you blame me? A special post for KC is forthcoming.
Wow it seems I'm always so relieved to get a post done. Most of this was written one-handed and took forever. And it's probably full of typos that I don't care to read through again to fix. Maybe I'll just refer you to Britney's Blog more often. Speaking of which, there's a new post you must see.

Until next time, whenever that may be.

In the meantime. . .

While I work on my next post, and wait for my camera charger to be sent from Utah (of course I left that AND my phone charger there-boo), Britney has been very efficient with her time and wrote some posts of her own. More on how much we love her later. Here's the haps.

Home again.

We are back in Maryland. We survived the flight (well, we survived security, rather. We probably used like 20 bins.) The babies had jet lag and were naughty. They are doing much better now. It's so nice to have lots of helpers. Britney and I laugh a lot. The babies are adorable. I'm glad I can start getting organized. I miss my family like crazy. I love being with KC again. I need a nap.

More later.

No matter what happens during the night. . .

I can never resist these happy faces in the morning. As soon as I unswaddle them, they feel so free and happy. It's my favorite time of day with them as the kick, smile, and coo. I look forward to it everyday.

(Give Alex a second, he just woke up, while the others had been up for a while.)



Also, check out this rattle/eye coordination. I LOVE that they are entertained by toys now. I can't tell you how nice it is to not have to hold them every second (just every other second.)



I can't stop kissing these ever-growing cheeks. Oh, how I love my babies.

Picture update

I am glad to finally get this posted. It only took me about 5 hours staring at 4 am with a few breaks to feed and hold babies. Whew. Of course, now I have a million more pictures to sort through since all these were downloaded, but I'll get around to posting the rest when I get back to Maryland along with some highlights of the trip. Here's what's been going on around here.

Christmas: It was so fun to be here with family to celebrate their first Christmas. I'm sure if we were home, there wouldn't really be a break from the daily grind to do anything festive, so I'm very glad we came to Utah. Bennett and I did have to make a run to the Instacare for an ear infection on Christmas Eve, but he was resting well with Tylenol and antibiotics after that. Since the babies were a little high-maintenance that day, the family held the traditional fondue at Cami's house. My mom and Grandma took care of Bennett and Ruby, while I took Alex to join the fun, the lucky boy. How easy it was to only have one baby! I'm so glad I got to party with everyone. And it seemed the babies wanted to stay up to see if Santa would arrive that night because they kept waking up through most of it with KC's sisters Nicole, Camille, and me. I was pretty out of it most of the day. But it was memorable, as least. And they did look cute in their new Christmas pj's.


The Blessing Day: We decided to go ahead with their blessing here since entire families on both sides were able to make it. Who knows when that will happen again. And we don't want to take them to church until at least the cold winter months are over. So, it was an extremely special experience for us. I used to listen to blessings in church and wonder if KC would ever get to bless children of his own. The babies were complete angels, seriously not a peep from one of them the entire evening, and so alert for everyone to admire. This was surprising to everyone, with their fussy habits around that time. Prayers were definitely answered. And you'd be surprised how much organization even goes into an event at home. Feedings, baths, and getting dressed were all carefully planned and timed to make sure everything turned out as well as possible. I couldn't have asked for a better night to have my children blessed with my loved ones around me. And the bonus is that KC and I got to slip away for a night at the Salt Lake Hilton. A serious luxury. Of course the babies were all screaming as we were leaving, making me want to cancel the whole thing, but my mom assured us everything was fine. I wanted to call to check up on things about 5 times before we were even 10 minutes away, but they called soon after to tell us that all was well. What great families we have. A day to remember for sure.

Everything else: Our days are pretty much filled with feeding, rocking, burping, smiles, movies, hot-tubbing, visitors, family, getting our once in a while, and hopefully naps for adults and babies. Also My sister Amber had her baby boy Brady several weeks earlier than expected, but after only a few days in the nicu he is home at last! I am so glad I got to see him. Enjoy!

Other notable albums:

Melody's pics of Christmas Eve.


Lili's pictures of Christmas (She thought it would be funny to put those horrendous pictures of me in her slide show, but oh well, it's true to life I suppose.)


KC's Mom's pictures.

Matt's pictures of the blessing.

(Thanks for the pics everyone.)

There are dozens of videos that I'd also like to get posted, but again, another time.

So far, so good.

I don't want to count any chickens before they hatch or anything, but we've had four good nights in a row with these little sweeties, and I feel like a new woman. I still have people who lovingly volunteer to take a night shift just in case. It just seems like something in these little brains of theirs finally clicked and they know when it's nighttime. They also eat a lot faster, fuss a lot less, and have fewer reflux episodes. I know we're not completely in the clear, and have more hard times to come, but I'll take any good night I can come by. It's so much easier to deal with the daytime challenges when the nights go smoothly.

It's really hard to believe me made it to this point when I really thought they would never change from wanting to be held every second of every day. I've had some pretty low moments wondering if I was cut out for this job. When even one of them had an inconsolable time, I was about to lose it, but throw a couple more into the mix and I thought my brain was going to explode. They have been these squirmy little newborns for so much longer than is normal and I was seriously doubting things would ever change. I loved them through every second of the hard months, but was just praying that things would change soon.

While I've been here I've been able to get out quite a bit to go to the store, on a date with KC, or even be as frivolous as going shopping or to the movies! But each time I left I felt like I was leaving people with these ticking time bombs ready to blow at any moment. I felt guilty at what my helpers would encounter whether it was a baby who would be starving but would not want to eat because of reflux, resulting in screaming, or a baby who was just plain mad at who knows what, resulting in screaming, etc. I always felt anxious to go home and relieve the help so that a) they wouldn't hate me for putting them through that, an b) I could help my sad little one though whatever was ailing them. Sometimes I just want to be the one to console them, as everyone knows it's hard to see your baby upset.

Anyway, these days I feel that when I leave, it's most likely that the babies will be kicking their chubby legs in the bouncy seats, sleeping peacefully, or entertaining their guests with smiles and coos as they flail their arms about in glee after a rapidly gulped bottle of warm milk that they got down without any bit of fussiness. Instead of being anxious and guilty about leaving, I feel content and rejuvenated, and can't wait to get back to my sweet little bundles. It's seriously has changed my whole outlook on life to have happier babies. I have a feeling this is going to get even more fun (as people have told me yet it was hard to believe).

So this makes me incredibly relieved as I intend to pack up and go back to Maryland in about 10 days. But I'm not crazy or naive, and know that my babies are still pretty high maintenance, so I have recruited my cousin Britney to come live with us for a couple months as my right hand woman. I'm totally excited to hang with her. And KC's mom has been kind enough to give us two weeks of her time to help out as well. Funny how I was a babysitter just a year ago, and now I'm the one doing the hiring.

These babies are truly such a joy in my life. The hard times are hard, I won't deny that. I have experienced lows I never thought I'd have when I finally became a mom, but I am only human, and was forced into quite a predicament. But I feel like I have been blessed with people in my life, my enduring family and friends, and the tools required in myself, and an incredibly patient husband to make it through this thing called mothering triplets. Heavenly Father knew what he was doing, though I doubted that a lot this past year. He's definitely helped me through every step. Yes, I think almost daily how great it would be if I could do this all on my own like most people get to, but I have learned a great deal of humility and gratitude along the way. I am thankful everyday for the undying support and love that everyone has shown this family of mine.

Oh, Ruby's big eyes just popped open, and she is flashing that toothless grin I love. I think some cuddling is in order. Thanks for putting up with another one of my rants.

Breakthrough!

The babies lasted five whole hours last night without eating! 7pm to 12am and they were sleeping during most of that time. And then they woke up to eat about every 3 1/2 hours after that, but were mostly asleep until 7 am. Whoa. This is definitely a first. So I should be rested right? Well, I was so ready for one of them to wake up at any given moment, that is was hard for me to let myself relax. And as soon as someone else was taking over the night shift, I was so excited that they slept so long that I couldn't fall asleep for a while. Kinda defeats the purpose. I'm sure I'll have no problem taking advantage of nights like that in the future if they continue to occur. And something else new is that they are so happy in the mornings, all smiles and coos, and even a few giggles. I love seeing this new phase they're in. It can only get easier, right?

Also, I have been successful in arranging for them to have their Synagis vaccine here, and they will be getting little shots in their chubby legs today at 2:20 pm! What a relief. I made so many phone calls to so many different groups, I can't even count. I can't wait to see how much these chunks weigh. Alex has got to be 12 pounds. They are seriously in 3-6 month clothes already.

I'm still trying to find the time/energy to post a few things like:

Their blessing

First Christmas

New cousins

General cuteness

Etc.

We'll see if it ever really happens.

Mommy's Vocabulary

These are words that have always been familiar to me, but never used in my daily vocabulary until now. All are used many many times a day.

Schedule
reflux
swaddle
gassy
poopy
formula
breastmilk
bottles
diapers
stinky
stirring
grunts
ear infection (which Bennett was lucky to have diagnosed on Christmas Eve.)
meds
baby magic
naps
feedings
fussy
pacifiers
burp
wakeful
fretful
sleepy
adorable
kissable


What else would you add moms out there?

Let the sleep training begin,

Yep. They are six weeks old (as if they were born on their due date) today, and according to Dr. Weissbluth, until now they weren't able to form any lasting sleep habits. Needless to say, I am excited that they are now eligible to learn a thing or two about sleeping through the night. I'm trying to be realistic knowing it might not happen as soon as we'd like, but I can at least be hopeful. Ruby already sleeps several hours during the night unassisted (she is SUCH and angel, that girl), but it's the boys that are going to need the strict routine and guidelines. Being preemies and triplets presents some unusual rules and challenges, but my drooping eyes are up for the task!

Well, wouldn't you stay in Utah for three more weeks if you had all this help?

Cause that's exactly what I'm doing. I mean, they've been very fussy in the evenings lately. So that mixed the the airport chaos, and the colds these little ones have, I just couldn't stomach the idea of going home yet. I'll only have a fraction of the wonderful help I have here. They have been getting better at sleeping more deeply and longer during the nights though, so I feel like a little more time will be just enough to get us through this. Oh, we'll miss Daddy desperately, but he said himself that we should maximize the help. I did have to make a million phone calls to finagle a way to have their Synagis vaccines (for RSV-you have to qualify, and they only ship to specific doctors for specific babies) sent to a pediatrician here. They are due for their next dose, and it was the main thing taking us back to Maryland. But, that's pretty much taken care of, so here we are for a while longer.

By the way, these babies are just blossoming these days. The smiles are abundant, and they are cooing like crazy. It just melts everyone's hearts. But mostly mommy and daddy. I'll have to show you sometime.

No time to blog.

Too many babies and only one mommy (sometimes all they want is me, which is sweetly annoying, especially with all the helping hands.)

Christmas was exhausting, but memorable.

We are so glad daddy finally joined us.

Catch up post containing adorable pictures later on will cover all happenings. If I ever get around to that. HA!

Some Christmas Miracles.

*Three napping babies (for an hour and a half without holding at all! I even took a shower, blow-dried/styled my hair, did my make-up and am now blogging in that time. I can't wait for consistent nap times.)

*A wonderful night's sleep for mom and babes. They were angels (except the poor dears all have the dreaded green nose-drip making their breathing a little labored, but still. . .) They all woke up for their feedings and ate well sans a reflux episode, and went back to sleep. I did have to cuddle Bennett on the couch, but I didn't mind dozing off and waking up to his angelic face.

*I've been getting better sleep, and getting out of the house more than I have in the last two months. My friends and family don't even know the feelings of gratitude I have for them right now. People keep filling up the schedule that we have, and I can't describe how humbled I am by such willingness.

Oh I love these babies and their sweet faces. Here's to more Christmas Miracles! And KC is coming on Thursday!

Why is it. . .

that when you are up most of the night with the kids, all you can think about is sleeping? And then, when they are finally, miraculously all asleep, your eyes are stuck wide open. It just figures. I gotta hand it to my brothers, their wives, and my parents for helping us through a very difficult night. Reflux is no fun. Crying before, after, and during feedings can really drive a person crazy. Do I see a dairy-less diet in my future? For better sleep, I'll try anything.

Smiles, sinuses, spit-up, siblings, and some sleep.

So, we made it across the country with a crew of four adults and three babies and made it intact. That was my mom, dad, sister Elise, and me. KC is staying to work until Christmas Eve, and then he is joining the fun. Though he did help us as far as he could go. It was exhausting, with the little sleep we got the night before, and all the falderall it takes to travel with children. They were great little travelers with the exception of Bennett's projectile vomiting all over me and him (which he continues to do about once a day). And of course I brought extra clothes for him, but not for me. I managed with the stink on me for the rest of the flight, and when we made it home we were greeted at my parents home with several of my lovely siblings and a lunch for us. And, they fed the hungry babies for me. Nice.

So since then we have had many kind friends and family come to see these little lovelies, and help out so much. Family members have also been so kind to take on some of the night shifts. I got seven glorious hours of sleep in a row the other night thanks to Jeff and Lili, mom and dad, and Matt and Courtney taking over that night shift. The best Christmas present there is!! It was especially nice because I have had a cold since last Sunday. I seriously can't go on a trip to Utah without something ailing me. I made my traditional trip to the urgent care in case it was turning into a sinus infection, as my colds often do. Add sleep deprivation with sinuses, raw throat, and itchy eyes, and it's great fun. So the extra help is greatly appreciated.

We've hit some major milestones with their first REAL smiles. It was so wonderful to see them look right into my eyes and smile at me for the very first time. And the most amazing thing was that they all accomplished this within the same 24 hours. Ruby first, then Alex the next day, then Bennett a couple hours after that. We were able to catch some pictures, though we had to act fast so they aren't so great. KC is missing them like crazy (even the crying-he must be pretty lonely), but I assured him that when he sees the smiles for the first time it will be just as adorable as the first time I saw them. We can't wait for daddy to come join the fun, being all rested and ready to hold babies. Maybe mommy will get a little break!

Seeing their little wonderful smiles for those few seconds somehow made all the hard times worth it. It reminded me that they will progress to other stages of life and won't stay in this newborn phase forever, though it feels like it sometimes since they have been like this for so much longer than they should be. They are about a month past their due date, so I am hoping to see some changes in their behavior in the next couple of months, fingers crossed.

Here they are:

Alex

Bennett (He's been the hardest the take a picture of. This will have to do for now.)
And here's the star Ruby. She hands them out more than anyone else. I just love seeing that open-mouth grim.

Yeah, we're nuts.

It's requires a lot of planning, and a lot of stuff to travel with three newborns for three weeks. Utah, here we come!

Mrs. Independent

I consider myself a pretty independent person. Almost border-lining stubbornly independent. Not my best quality, but it's me. Sometimes I feel like I am becoming a little bit too stubborn, and I reevaluate myself. I try to be more open minded, and remember that I don't know everything, and I do need help sometimes. But I like to figure things out for myself using trial and error, and/or a little research. I'm pretty good at getting the information I need for any given situation. If I need a suggestion, or advice, I'm definitely not ashamed or afraid to ask for it, but I have a network of resources that I like to turn to. It's a comfort to know that someone has been where I am before, so if something isn't working for me, I can ask what worked for them. I've found the best solutions to problems by asking family and friends. But unsolicited advice or an out-of-the-blue suggestion about how I'm going about doing things in my life isn't usually very welcome, and can get me a little annoyed. Isn't that pretty normal? I hope that I am never a person that just barges into someone else's daily doings telling them how to do this or that. Usually people have ideas and ways for how things work for them, even though others might disagree. Anyway, I'm a very independent person.

So naturally, infertility, a high risk pregnancy, and now a house full of babies have all been instances that have required a lot of patience. My independence has had to be put aside and I have needed a lot of assistance from others to achieve something that should be very personal. It has been extremely difficult on occasions, but obviously I am being taught a lesson here, and I realized that a long time ago.

I knew having three babies would be a challenge, to say the least. I wasn't naive about it. But I was hoping after a routine was in place, and the babies were on a schedule, I would no longer be so dependent (knowing full well that that was wishful thinking- but still). But of course after a couple weeks of almost no sleep and me still recovering from a very stressful pregnancy with postpartum hormones always about to surface, reinforcements were called in. My sweet friend Molly, who also happens to be my visiting teacher has recently had a baby herself and is well aware of the demands of having ONE newborn at home. So she knew that having three would definitely be an occasion for help from others. And when she called to ask if we needed any, she caught me in a very exhausted and needy state, making it very easy to accept her offer to send a sign-up sheet around church asking for helpers. Now, along with being independent, I absolutely hate inconveniencing people on behalf of myself. I would always rather be the one to help, than to be helped. I was the one with out kids and only a part time job for so long, that I was able to step in when I was needed, and it didn't really take away from anything too important in my life. I didn't ever really need much in the way of help from others, and I liked it that way. I like taking care of myself. So I never thought it would be so easy to accept help from others. The tables have definitely turned. Desperate times call for drastic measures. When I talked to Molly that day, I knew I had to accept, and what a great and humbling decision that has been. Several times a weeks we are blessed with friends, and others I didn't even know that well yet. They bring delicious food, and gifts and dedicate so much of their time to our family. They've been helping me just the way I need. It was hard to get used to it initially, but has turned into a very sweet and growing experience for me. Thank you so much to Molly and the many friends. I will never forget your generosity.

Well, I just heard and felt a giant explosion come from the bottom of my darling Alex (yes, I am typing one handed as I hold a baby) so I better get back to my mommy duties. Another trip to the pediatrician today (man, those co-pays are adding up).

Today, all I want. . .

is a shower,

to do a load of laundry,

and to be able to see the living room floor.

Is that too much to ask?!

Christmas card expectations too high?

Why, oh why, do Christmas cards have to be so difficult? It was hard enough to get a good picture of just the two of us in past years, but add three newborns into the mix, and it's a recipe for disaster. Trying to get one of only the kids just put me in a really bad mood and made me a very upset with my little ones for not cooperating, the poor babies. I guess I better get used to it. It's too bad though, cause they looked pretty cute all lined up in their Christmasy clothes, despite one or two of them crying at any given moment. But they looked ever cuter all lined up quietly in their swings. We probably won't get any cards out this year. The blog will have to be enough. Can you blame me?