I was a cool Mom today.

I figure that I'm a cool mom about once a month or so. Usually I do boring things like dishes and laundry, so I decided that since I actually did something fun today I'd better write about it. This is "Everett"... and Everett with Everett.

Everett and I made this scary-looking sock puppet today. He chose the buttons and yarn, and helped me cut things. He wanted the hair to be as long as his, and wanted to name him "Everett". We had a puppet show after dinner, which had the girls giggling hysterically. It involved lots of eating, burping, and "excuu-u-uuse me!" Here's a picture Everett took of me... and Everett:

Today was also Lana's first weekly therapy visit at the Children's Institute. It was really more of a consultation than therapy this time, but I'm encouraged by what I've seen so far. There was a point months ago where Lana would drink about 2 oz. per feeding with a straw (and every once in a blue moon she'd drink five and almost bowl me over), but we had a major setback after which she completely refused to drink anything by straw. Today we tried a Rubbermaid container with a straw, and Lana drank about 4 oz. of her Nutren--by herself! In less than 10 minutes! Maybe it was the novelty. Maybe it was the setting. Maybe the timing. Maybe we are being blessed, and she'll do it again! She's getting sick (Gwyn sounds like she might have croup), but we'll keep praying and see how it goes. We're hoping to gradually increase what she'll drink independently (and without movie distraction) and then completely eliminate syringe feedings. It's hard to believe that I've been feeding her this way for well over a year!

At dinner, Cary was teaching the girls about "guys" and "ladies". He had Gwyn look at pictures and say "Lady" or "Guy." Cary then told her that I was a lady. She said "No! Mama." And Cary isn't a guy either. He is most irrevocably "Dada" in Gwyn's mind. I guess we should feel really special. Gwyn has also decided that she's my buddy. I ask her if she's my sweet girl and she says "No! Buddy."

It's nice that the girls are starting to communicate really well. At snack time, Maddie informed me: "Mouth hurts today." I'm proud of my little talkers.

Lana Cuteness

Why are these pigtails so cute?  I just love Lana's chubby little baby cheeks!  She's a real sweetie (when she's not throwing a massive tantrum--we're still working on those).  She loves to hug and snuggle me.  She likes to have things her way, even when she's not quite sure what "her way" is.  She is happy to let her siblings have what they want for the most part.  She silently relinquishes toys and other items to them, but she is fiercely defensive of her blankies.  I have to be sneaky to wash them.  It's a good thing we have three of them!  When Everett was little he had one special blankie, and I actually cut it in half so that I could wash one half at a time.  Lana's blankies are the hospital blankets we brought the girls home in.  (Cary used to say those blankets had psychotic ducks on them.  Perhaps the "new parents of triplet girls and a little boy delirium" had something to do with his perception of those duckies.)  Lana is happy to play on her own or with her siblings.  It is really sweet to see her with other children.  Other little children are like her babies.  She may pat them and smile at them, but she'll almost always look at them and act like she's hugging something.  She is very social, and loves just about everybody!  She especially likes guys, and will ask most of them to pick her up.  (I know--we better watch her.)

More!

It's been almost a week since I've posted! It's been a busy week, but I guess that's pretty normal. The biggest difference between this week and those preceding has probably been the weather. It has been beautiful this week! It makes me want to spend time outdoors, and work on things away from the computer more. It rained today and it smells so nice! It has been wonderful to have the windows open and experience the fresh air all day long. I loved the feeling in the air today--that feeling that's always there on a day it's going to rain.

I have pictures to post, but I'm going to save that for another day. For now, I'll just share some good news. During lunch yesterday, Lana said the word "more" three times!!!

Now that you've picked yourself off the ground, I'll tell you what she asked for: Broccoli, noodles, and water. She has loved water for a long time, but the others are new. I normally give her very small portions of everything. This minimizes waste and avoids overwhelming her. She finished all of the noodles I gave her and asked for more. She loves broccoli! This is a food I couldn't give her much of because she would throw it up twelve hours or so later, undigested. She is on a new medication that seems to be helping her, so I let her go at it. We had tried the medication (Erythromycin) before, but she would throw up every time we gave it to her--obviously not worth it. Erythromycin is an antibiotic, but given in smaller doses just serves to irritate the stomach and cause it to empty faster. She is now, unfortunately, taking four different medications. I am supposed to dose her 6-7 times per day. We've tried cutting down or cutting out a few times, each time with detrimental effects, so we're sticking with all the meds for now and look forward to the day when she is free of all of them! She is still only consuming about 60 calories of solid food each day, but she is making progress.

The Normal Craziness

You know how we have to tape Lana's diapers on?  Well today Gwyn brought me her baby doll and some packing tape, and wanted me to tape her baby. Maddie has also asked me to tape her diaper.  I guess they think Lana is getting special treatment!

The girls had a lot of fun trying on their new swimsuits this week.  At one point, I left the bag on the floor for two minutes while I put away some groceries.  Gwyn ended up wearing her suit on top of her clothes, and Maddie underneath her clothes.  We're looking forward to using them at the Snoopy pool this summer!

And disasters are always fun to hear about, right?  Today Lana climbed out of her pack 'n' play at least eight times before she finally fell asleep (on the floor).  Before falling asleep, she removed the vent cover, put it down into the ductwork, and then proceeded to put anything that was loose on the floor or in Everett's dirty basket and small enough to fit down in there too.  I believe the final contents of that duct were a pair of underwear, pajama shorts, a plastic cup, torn-off pieces of the room-darkening shade, a sock, and a Lego man.

Yes, I know we need to get her in a crib for naps, and yes, we need to fix that vent cover!  It has already been used to create disaster. At least it was easier to take the ductwork apart this time!  Rest assured, securing that vent will be one of my first projects tomorrow!

Easter Eggs

Think about three two-year-olds dying Easter eggs. Any images coming to your mind? We actually had four children ages two and under dying eggs at our house on Saturday, and it actually went well! Thanks to Grandma, Uncle Jordan, and Aunt Celina, we had a lot of supervision. (I don't know if I would have tried it without them--thanks guys!) Here's a picture of most of the crew. Little Daniel, Cary, and Grandma aren't in the shot.

Celina, Maddie, Everett, Jordan, Lily, Melina, Emily, Lana, Gwyn, me, Rosie

Two of my girls were very patient and absorbed. They let their eggs sit in the dye and were intently observing the new experience.

Maddie wore a very serious expression the entire time.

And here's Gwyn. She did not want to leave the table when we were done.

Lana was a much more "hands-on" kind of girl. I had to periodically move the cup out of reach to avoid disaster.

She doesn't like most food, but apparently vinegar isn't so bad! She also cracked open an egg, tasted it, and decided she didn't like it. She then very carefully...

...put it back together!

And Everett did just fine on his own this year!

We had a really good time with everyone, and the kids played so nicely together. Here's Lily playing with Everett and Gwyn and Maddie:

Quacked Goose and Naptime Disaster

Sorry for the cheesy title. The children were getting a bit out-of-control before dinner today, so I decided to teach them how to play "Duck, Duck, Goose". It was really cute. After a while, Gwyn stood up every time and followed the goose around "ducking" people. Lana was wandering around the whole time. We finally got her to "duck" a few people, but when she got to Everett he leaned away. She kind of landed on his face and proceeded to squeeze his nose repeatedly. Fortunately, he was amused. The chase area became larger and larger. We all had fun. Maddie mostly sat in the circle and held her buckets. (See the previous post.)

As for naptime... The first few days of Lana being in the girls' room for naps went fairly well. They all at least got some sleep. Well, yesterday was another story. I heard them for about two hours. Finally I went upstairs and discovered that Lana had taught Gwyn a new trick. They were both standing in their cribs naked over a puddle. Maddie had apparently slept through that part of the shenanigans. Sooooo I separated the girls again today, but I think Lana had already made an impact (hopefully temporary) on naptime. Today I heard some jumping in the formerly calm girls' room. Ah, the adventures of supertwindom...

Foiled! (this time)

I decided to stop messing with the "put Lana in her pack 'n' play so that she can remove her clothing, climb out, and run amok" thing and put her in her crib. I wasn't sure how it would go with all three girls in the same room. There was a lot of carrying-on at first, but Maddie and Gwyn slept while Lana bounced around, then Lana must have fallen asleep shortly before they woke up. Thankfully, I was able to collect the other two girls without waking her. We'll see how tomorrow goes!

Two things I love to look at: sleeping children, and cute little toes!

Lana's Newest Trick

Today was a really fun day. My mom came over to be with the kids and help out, and Cary and I had a two-part date! We went out while the girls were napping for a little bit of rollerblading. I haven't done it in a long time, and I loved it! (I was questioning the intelligence of my choice of activity when we started, but it didn't take long before I was having fun.)

When I went to get Lana after her "nap" I was surprised to find her waiting at the door for me and wearing only her diaper (which was taped on). She had taken off her clothes, probably spent some time trying to remove her diaper. climbed out of her portable crib, placed everything that was loose in the room in the crib, and then who knows what. I'm glad she didn't get into Everett's dresser! (I probably shouldn't even write that because it will probably happen tomorrow.) She naps in Everett's room and sleeps in the girls' room at night. I found that when they were all in the same room they didn't nap, but it looks like we may need to try it again!

For Part II of our date, we went to see 10,000 BC. I really enjoyed it. We got a text message in the middle of the movie that Lana had thrown up. Aargh! I felt bad, but what could I do? We're still learning what upsets her little tummy. I just hope we get it figured out some day. (The emetologist parent in me had to look to see what she threw up--I know, TMI.)

And last but not least, we got Everett's hair to stay down today!!! Here is a picture of him with Gwyn:

Party Time!

On Saturday we finally celebrated the girls' birthday. Everett and I had a lot of fun preparing the cake and decorations, and at the party he said, "This is the best birthday ever!" I'm glad he had so much fun on the girls' special day.

We made tissue paper flowers for our decorations and as favors.

I put three little bears on the cake, since the girls have been little bears all winter in the coats I made for them.

Lana, Gwyn, and Maddie had a great time. Grandma and Grandpa were there, our neighbor Amy, my Uncle Dale and Aunt Mary Jo, and Uncle Jordan and his wonderful family. The girls loved having the special attention and were just thrilled with all their gifts. Grandma had the wonderful idea of helping Everett make bead bracelets for the girls, so he was really excited to give his gifts. And he got gifts as well! Check out these new shoes:

Ka-chow!

Grandma Campbell made adorable shirts for the girls.

They got a new set of books and some sweet cards from their cousin Grace and her family. ;) They have enjoyed dressing up in their new hats too.

Maddie

Gwyn

Maddie and Lana (We'll post a better picture of Lana later.)

For now, here's one from today:

Flashback to 2 March 2006

So, any guesses as to why I picked two years ago? ;)

On March 2nd, 2006, I was in the hospital recovering from the cesarean birth of three little girls. The girls were all in the NICU in incubators, but doing well with just an IV for support. I was happily chowing down on anything they put in front of me, since for the first time in months I was finally able to eat anything and more than one serving of it too! I was also wondering where my abs had gone, because they seemed to have disappeared. (I actually asked the doctor where they were.) Further information in this post would definitely be TMI!

Everett was at home throwing up, poor guy. Cary was traveling back and forth between home and the hospital, but spending most of his time with me. We were getting down to the NICU as much as we could, and trying to divide our time between the three girls. Unfortunately, they were not only in separate beds, but separate rooms. So Cary and I would try to be there at most of the feeding times, and alternate who fed which baby. We had trouble at first deciding which name would go with which girl, because we couldn't see them side-by-side. (We thought for sure that we'd be able to tell Maddie and Gwyn apart when they were together, but when we brought them home we said "Uh oh!" They really are identical!!! We finally found a difference in their ears which we used to tell them apart for a while.)

Lana

Gwyn (I think)

Maddie

That was really a marathon time in our lives. Looking back, I don't know how we made it through. We just did what we had to do and had some wonderful support from church and family members. We had meals, 8 hours of help during the day, and Cary helping me at night (for round-the-clock feedings every three hours, each of which took an hour for two people).

"So how'd she end up with all the hair?"

The post title is a question we get often. Of course, we don't have an answer for it. Here are Maddie and Lana in pigtails:

I was practicing my flute today (am sadly out of practice) and Everett was covering his ears. This is a bad sign. I will be playing at a wedding reception on Saturday, and I really want it to be nice for my friend. At this point I'm a little nervous!

Thinking Warm Thoughts

Today was cold and snowy, and beautifully sunny! If we didn't look outside it felt like summer in our house. I'm looking forward to some warmer weather and more outside playtime, so I thought I'd post these pictures.

Everett, summer 2005

Lana, Maddie, Everett, Gwyn, and Grandma, Summer 2007

I also found these of the children when they were about 5 months old:

So what resemblances do you see?