Crazies...

I feel like my posts lately are just a random smattering of thoughts rather than being centered around anything in particular. Sorry. When I go back through my pictures they are all so random and not related at all so.....hence the posts.

Bear with me.

To start off the smattering, here is the sweetest picture of Dad giving his hugs and kisses before he goes to work in the morning. The babes are already in bed when he gets home so he doesn't see them again until the next morning. They LOVE when he is around. Seriously, I cannot get the babies to laugh for me during the day. Smile, yes. Laugh, no. They just look at me like I'm crazy. Dad, however, barely has to make a funny face and they are all in heaven just giggling.

So sweet though. I love it.


What's funny about a picture of him with three babies is that whenever he and I would come home (prior to having triplets) from a big family gathering, we'd always talk about how crazy it was with the increasing number of kids in our family. It would definitely make us nervous to have kids because of all the chaos we would witness. Going from our quiet apartment with the two of us to all the noise/crying/fighting etc... was a bit overwhelming. However, I would always sweetly remind him that babies come one and a time and we would gradually be introduced to the chaos so having kids shouldn't be scary. Ha! OH THE IRONY!

What's not ironic is BYU sports. The trio just wants to say how bummed they are that the Cougars are out of the NCAA tournament. Leah was especially sad because she can't see Jimmer on TV anymore. After a few hours of crying, we finally got her calmed down.


Ok, so on to Zachary.....he's crazy. He is SO social, smiley, and giggly. But....he's crazy. He is super high energy. His legs are ALWAYS going and he usually gets pretty aggressive with any toy that he's encountered. He's also a very lean guy. When he gains weight I always wonder where it goes.

We're working on the weight gain. We tried to wean him off the thickener this past week. He actually did well and we were so excited! The reason I decided to do that now was because he was refusing his bottle and only drinking a little bit WITH the thickener. So I thought maybe he was trying to tell me the thickener needed to go. However, he has regressed again without the SimplyThick and has started crying more as well as acting like he was having some pain during/after eating. SOOO, the thickener is back and his mattress has been inclined again. I've committed to the SimplyThick again at least for another month then we'll see what we can do. The truth is that he just really doesn't have that big of an appetite. He's always moving and grooving and food is on the bottom of his list. It's a challenge to get him to eat and every four hours I'm nervous because I don't know what's going to happen. Good news is that he didn't projectile vomit at all while off the thickener! So maybe that aspect has improved but the reflux hasn't. Currently he's eating 24 oz/day IF he finishes his bottles. So my big question is if his eating habits now are indicative of how he will be later...picky, finicky, stubborn. Oh gosh.

ANYWAY, so he LOVES to stand. He's got really strong, lean legs and has always been good at standing. We created this little area he can stand in between the couch and the ottoman. He leans forward and backward and has the time of his life.


However, lots of times I'll be paying attention to another baby and all the sudden he disappears between the pillows! It's so funny because he just chills out in there until I help him back up. I tried the other two babies between the pillows and they couldn't stand on their own. So for now, that's Zachary's fun thing to look forward to everyday. Seriously, he loves it.


Caleb...he's also crazy. Not quite as much as Zachary but still crazy. Like I mentioned earlier, he's in a screaming phase. To add to that, he doesn't take a pacifier. So I have nothing to stick in his mouth to stop his madness. Sometimes I so wish he would take one but alas, it's just not his thing. Anyone out there with a non-pacifier baby? What did they like? What was soothing? I swaddle him at night so he can't really hang on to a blanket or anything.

Here are the boys playing in the exersaucers. Zachary is trying to get Caleb's attention but Caleb is too involved with what is in front of him. Caleb is a VERY serious player when it comes to toys. Instead of a third exersaucer, we have a jumparoo. Leah was in that across the room. The babies don't like it as much and really just don't get it. Maybe that time will come.


Now that I think of it, they're all a bit crazy. :) Leah is crazy about her food. Loves it. Can't wait more than five seconds for it. I'd snap a picture but usually I'm scrambling to get her bottle warm while she wails. So impatient.

Moving on to the leg warmer dance. My sister saw some adorable leg warmers and sent a few pairs to Texas for us! I've always thought they were so cute and am glad I finally got to try them out. What's funny is that Zachary's are so baggy! I'm sure you can guess the legs that belong to him!


So the key to getting the babies to smile is to recite the rhyme, "One, Two, Buckle My Shoe." Inevitably, they will all crack a smile when you say buckle. Another way is the beginning of the book, "Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?" So if you were wondering how I got all to smile in the next picture, that's how. It doesn't matter what Leah is crying about, if you start reciting one of those, she gets quiet and starts smiling. Whatever works right?


Then they all decided to break out into a synchronized leg warmer dance! "Ok everyone....right hand out!"


Alright, I'm done. Maybe I'm going a bit crazy too being around all their craziness.

I would just like to add one more thing since April Fool's day is coming up. Last year for April Fool's we announced to the majority of our family that we were having triplets. Of course no one believed us until the next day when we kept saying we weren't kidding! Pretty funny. Rest assured though that this April Fool's, no one will be getting a pregnancy call from us. :)

Here Comes the Sun...

Clark has been working diligently to resurrect our lawn. It took a beating this winter and has been overtaken by weeds. Just after a couple Saturdays, it's looking great and we're already thinking about days being spent in the kiddie pool, barbecuing, and just enjoying being out of our house....even if it's just the backyard. I'm not as much of a 'lay in the sun' kind of person. I usually cover up or hide under an umbrella for fear of getting sun burned. I'm afraid all the babies are going to be fair skinned at well. Regardless, Clark is hoping they will all be water babies and love being in the pool, splashing in the water all day. We set them all up on the counter while we're in the kitchen and rotate them so they can take turns looking out the window to the backyard. Just pumping them up for some outside play!


Like I've mentioned before, however, Leah and Zachary are EXTREMELY sensitive to the bright sunlight and wind. They can't even open their eyes whereas Caleb is totally fine. Soooo, I'm thinking the only way Clark is going to be able to play with the trio outside all summer is under a huge shaded canopy with Leah and Zachary wearing glasses and hats. Baby sunglasses....hmmmm. Zachary would tear them right off, chew on them, and probably break them somehow. Leah would do fine. I figure I should check out the options for baby sunglasses soon though. Today the babies vitamins ran out and they needed them before their bedtime feeding so we piled in the car and ventured to Target right around the corner. Perfect time to look for sunglasses and hats as well.

Getting to the store to grocery shop or pick up things here and there is quite the task with three babies. I could count on two hands the amount of times I've taken all three by myself to pick something up in the past seven months. Usually I go on Saturdays or early in the morning before Clark goes to work. BUT...sometimes I can't wait because I need milk, a Rx, formula, vitamins, etc... The stuff that all the sudden runs out without my realizing.

So I've done this several ways. Depending on whether I need room in the cart for large items like boxes of diapers will determine my method.

#1: Carry one baby in Bjorn, push other two in double stroller. No cart.
#2: Push single stroller, pull grocery cart with two babies inside (still in car seats). Limited cart space.
#3: Push double stroller, pull cart with one baby inside. This allows the most cart space. I rarely use this method and save the big items for when I'm alone if I can.


For this Target trip I used method #1. Caleb closest to me, then Leah out front. Zachary was in the Bjorn. This Target is NEVER busy so it was nice to just cruise the isles unbothered. The babes loved looking at something different besides our walls at home.


Well, I got the vitamins and also scored a couple pairs of glasses. They have velcro so we'll see how that goes. I passed buying the hats because I thought I could get a better deal elsewhere. Leah got to try on her shades first. They fit perfectly and she seemed pretty excited!


Is this girl for real?? I was cracking up. Zachary did fine with his too but was too involved in the exersaucer to give me a smile. We scored some swimsuits at the consignment sale for the boys (already have a couple for Leah) and now just need some powerful sunscreen. We're almost ready to go!!!

Wait,


is it still March?

Six Months Going on One Year...

Don't worry, I'm already planning their one year party even though they're just six months. :) This is the sight at our house when bath time starts.


Bath time became much easier as we approached the 5.5-6 month mark. I put on Elmo's Favorite Songs and take one baby at a time back to the bath. At first they weren't that interested and usually whined or cried for 45 minutes (that's how long the video is and my time goal for bathing all three babies). Now they actually pay attention which makes my life SO much easier! I'm not rushing in the bathroom and baths can, most of the time, be relaxing for the babies! Leah, BY FAR, loves Elmo the best. She is totally oblivious to everyone around her and laughs sporadically while watching. It's hilarious and I always feel bad taking her away to get cleaned. They definitely know now that after Elmo is done, bottles are next. So if the bottles aren't in mouth less than a minute after the show ends, I'm in trouble.

What's better than Elmo and hand sucking?? YUM!


At six months, we have finally put away the swings and bouncers!! We weren't using those things anymore and they were just taking up space; however, the jumparoo and exersaucers have taken their place. Why does baby stuff have to be SO big? Most of the day, though, they all prefer to be in their Bumbos so they can be upright and are definitely getting better at sitting. The had their six-month check up and immunizations last week. This went surprisingly smooth and they all did great! This time we did do things differently though. We took the Baba Buddies and after they had all been weighed and measured, we put them in their car seats and started feeding their 10am bottles. Then as each baby's turn came for shots, we burped them, handed them to the nurse, then immediately started feeding them again right after. I didn't do that last time and they all whined/cried for a while, fell asleep, and had their bottle really late after arriving back home. This threw my whole day schedule off which I'm not a big fan of. :) Soooo, the bottles were emptied, babies were satisfied, and they all had a GREAT nap (thanks to Tylenol) when we got home. Although the process at the office worked great for us, I don't think the nurse appreciated when Zachary spit up on her after we had burped him. She said she didn't care but I could tell she was annoyed.

ANYWAY, here's my six-month update for each baby. I forgot all the paperwork at the appointment so I can't remember everything exactly.

CALEB: We finally caught this guy smiling on camera!!!


He now weighs close to 19 pounds and is sticking true to the 75th percentile for his corrected age. His head size is around the 75th as well with his height lagging a bit behind. We're not very tall around here so hopefully he catches up. He is the most cuddly baby you'll ever meet and just lays his head on your shoulder when you hold him. He is SO good with his hands and quickly grabs whatever is in reach and wants to bring it to his mouth immediately. He usually is the toy stealer probably due to his huge paws and strength. We might see a ring leader emerge soon from this kid. His hair grows at an alarming rate and we've already cut it twice in six months. He has recently figured out how to scream and does it VERY well when he is excited or tired. It really is so loud when he screams and often Zachary starts crying as a result. Hopefully he'll grow out of it soon because after a while it can get obnoxious. He loves to listen to the book, "Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?" with all the sounds. He still doesn't take a pacifier but likes a burp cloth near his mouth to suck on. Weird....but whatever works.

Caleb wears a size 3 diaper but could easily move to size 4. He's growing out of all the clothes we own and wears a 9-12 month in most everything. The funny thing is that he's not really chubby. He has very few rolls but is just thick! We sure do love him though.


LEAH:

She weighed close to 16 pounds and has now moved up to the 50th percentile. Her head is in the 75th and height in the 50th. Her hair has finally started to grow! I'm so excited. It's very thin and light so it's hard to see but it is there. We seriously cannot get enough of this girl. She smiles all day long and we won't be surprised when a fly flies right into her mouth! She is very much an observer and causes little trouble around here. She lets the boys do that. She just watches everyone even when there are gobs of toys in front of her. She just waits for someone, anyone to look at her so she can flash them a gummy grin. She's still not very vocal but will laugh out loud if you get her going. Peek-a-boo seems to do the trick and the rhyme: one, two, buckle my shoe. She also loves Dr. Suess books and as I said earlier, gets giddy over Elmo. She's content to sit in your lap and suck on her hands although she does like the activity mat and jumparoo for short periods of time.

She is in size 3 diapers and 6-9 month clothing. She is chubby and petite all at the same time and just so dang sweet.


ZACHARY:


Unfortunately Zachary's weight dropped off a bit and he's back down into the less-than-third percentile. He was up in the 10th for his weight. He only gained about 4 ounces in the past several weeks despite the fact that his total ounces/day has actually increased. The pediatrician isn't concerned just because there is some growth there and he has had reflux issues. Strange though because he's eating more now than he ever has! So it all didn't make sense to me why he wasn't gaining more. The truth is, however, that he is the most active/crazy/hyper baby ever. Always moving, kicking, rolling back and forth, etc... He's seriously out of control. I'm nervous for this one. He may give us a run for our money. So I think the lack of weight gain is because he just burns through everything he eats. I even have to triple swaddle him at night because he is so squirmy. So even though he's kind of crazy, he is so fun. Definitely babbles the most out of the three but is still so sensitive to loud sounds and surprises. My favorite time of the day with Zachary is after his bath when he's wrapped up in his towel. He turns on his side, curls up in a ball, and just laughs. It's so funny.

He is in size 3 diapers by default as that's just what we have around here. They are a bit big but do the job fine. He wears 3-6 month clothing and I'm so anxious to put all of that size away very soon!

These past couple weeks Clark's younger sister has been here visiting. She was here when we went to the doc appointment so that was a HUGE help for me. She also graciously babysat when Clark and I went to the consignment sale and we even got to go see a movie as well! Besides that, it was SO great to have her here just to give the babies some much needed attention. I sure enjoyed a clean, organized house while she was around too! I'm so glad the babies got to meet their Aunt Karlee! Then Clark's other sister, Tisha, came in this past weekend to join the party. It's always nice to have the adults outnumber the babies! We're grateful she got to meet the babies as well and we all had such a fun time just hanging, entertaining babies, eating lots of Mexican food, talking, playing baby shower games (Tisha is pregnant), and watching the Bachelor finale! We can't wait for the trio to meet the rest of our family members! Thanks for coming Tisha and Karlee!


*Elmo was on pause in the picture above so they were all in a trance following the little icon that floats around on the TV when a DVD pauses. Pretty funny.

Once Upon A Time...

there were three babies who were getting tired of the same ol' same ol' everyday with their parents. They wished they could go out and play and that the weather would get warmer. Mostly, they wished their parents would stop acting so crazy just to get them to smile and laugh.

Caleb: "Let's break out of here. Mom and Dad are getting crazier by the day."


Zachary: "I'm on board. Leah what do you think? "

Leah: "I don't know guys, seems kind of risky. They'd probably find out. I actually kind of like them."


Caleb: "Well, we could easily take the hinges off the door and get out that way..."

Zachary: "Hmmm....there's got to be a better way. Let me think."

Leah: "I don't want to go!! Don't make me!"


Leah: "I just want to stay here and look into our big mirror..."


...and have daily meetings about the toys we should play with for the day..."



...and lay on our cool foam tiles!"


Caleb: "I guess you're right. This door seems pretty big anyway. I do like those foam tiles now that you bring them up."

Zachary: "I guess Mom and Dad aren't that bad. We could probably deal with them for a little longer."

THE END

P.S. We went to a consignment sale this past weekend and did pretty good for ourselves! We picked up TONS of foam tiles that we were wanting to cover our hard tile floors. Babies are rolling and will soon be sitting so if we can avoid cracked-open heads that would be great. That picture above shows only a portion of the tiles so we'll have enough to cover ALL our tile. We also got a choo-choo wagon, clothes, books, and lots of toys. We're learning that no matter how many toys we will buy our kids, they'll always want more. It's overwhelming. My point of this additional story is that my "stranger quote of the week" came from this sale. We had put our names on the choo-choo wagon but did not want to pull it around while we shopped so we told the sale volunteer worker we'd come back.

When we did, the news of 'the triplet couple' had spread among workers. One came in while we were picking up the wagon and said,

Worker: "so you're the triplet couple we've heard about huh?? You DO like tired."

Then I muttered something about how I had been up since 6am or something. Who knows. SO AWKWARD! Geeez, I'm not the 'triplet' mom I'm the 'tired' mom. Which is true but for real?! Who says that? Was it that I wasn't wearing make up? or hadn't done my hair? or that I was wearing an oversized sweat shirt? Whatever it was, apparently I'm the tired, frumpy mom now. :) I really am not offended at the comment at all but I hate when people say that. It's just a polite way of saying you look terrible. The nurses at the NICU would tell me that all the time when really I was getting great nights of sleep at home with no babies there.

Anyway, to many more awkward comments. Tomorrow is six month shots. Yikes!

xoxo

Surprise! You're Having Triplets!

March 3rd: The day we received the most unexpected news which would change our lives forever. This is the day, last year, that we found out we were having three babies.

It seems that through my reading of blogs and associations with other multiple moms that we all have very similar experiences and emotions after finding out; that the 'day' will be forever vivid in our minds. I remember our 'day' like it was yesterday.

A couple weeks prior to the 'day' I had been feeling slightly sick, no throwing up, but had a lot of abdominal tenderness. I went to the doctor to have a blood test done to detect a possible pregnancy. The doctor called me later that evening to confirm my suspicions that I was indeed pregnant. My day 13 HCG level was around 160 mIU/ml. He said that was a bit high but nothing unusual. Although uncertain, he suspected more than one fetus but said lots of women sometimes have high HCG levels with just one. I went back to the doctor two days later to do a repeat blood test. This time to make sure the pregnancy had really stuck. My levels were now around 420 mIU/ml! Typically the HCG hormone doubles every 48 hours once pregnant. Mine had more than doubled and was already high to begin with. My pregnancy was a definite positive at this point. Doctor said congrats and I planned to see him in a few weeks for an ultrasound.

I honestly don't remember the next couple weeks leading up to my ultrasound other than I got sicker and sicker by the second. I was also becoming increasingly nervous about my doctor commenting that there might be more than one in there. Of course I shrugged those thoughts aside and believed I'd have a regular, complication-free pregnancy resulting in one healthy baby.

So the morning of my ultrasound arrived. I was taken into the sonogram room very quickly but waited for the nurse for almost 30 minutes!! I was so anxious. At this point I had convinced myself I was having twins because of how sick I felt. Double the hormones right? That makes sense. The nurse came in and started the sonogram.

There it was.

One little sac with a strong heartbeat. It was incredible that a little human had been created and was starting to grow. Then the nurse excitedly announced there was a second sac with a heartbeat! "Congrats! You have twins!" were her words. I said thanks but kept staring at the screen because while she was looking at me lending her congratulations, her hand had moved.

I had seen it. The third sac. She saw my face and asked, "aren't you excited about your two babies?" I told her to look at the screen and pointed at what I saw.


Then she was silent. She was no longer offering congratulations. At this point I knew she was checking to make sure she wasn't looking at one of the first two sacs, just at a different angle. Still silent. My heart was beating out of my chest at this point. I asked if it was a third sac and she finally answered and carefully said yes. In situations like mine, doctors/nurses are VERY careful to declare things before knowing for sure. However, there was indeed a third heartbeat. Ok....this is a joke right? This only happens to OTHER people. Not me. I laid my head back on the table and covered my face with my hands. Just breathing and thinking. It's amazing what happens to your mind when you find out news like this. It spins a million miles an hour. Then I asked, "can we make sure there are just three?" Don't worry, she started looking and suspected one more sac but couldn't tell!!

Oh gosh.

Again, she was not declaring anything because she wasn't sure. I was only five weeks along at this point so things were hard to see. She said it might just be a pocket of fluid but would have the doctor take a look. Suddenly I was annoyed at her lack of urgency. I wanted her to run out of the room and grab the doctor IMMEDIATELY. She proceeded to shoot the breeze with me talking about a past patient who had quads and all four babies survived; however, that mom was a lot taller than me. Hmmm...that's nice I guess. Didn't know what to say to that. Then she left, I got dressed, and sat there for another 20 minutes! Clark was not there because he had started into a busy time at work. Thinking it would be a regular ultrasound we didn't worry about him coming. So I called him, gave him the news, and he said, "don't joke." I told him I would definitely not joke about something like this. Then the nurse came in so I had to hang up quickly. I can't imagine how he was feeling getting that news then being hung up on.

I went into the Doctor's private office and he said congrats...that I should be excited I was pregnant!! I don't think I replied. He explained that the fourth baby was just fluid but we'd know for sure next week at another ultrasound. Again as other multiple moms can relate, the doctor immediately started talking about fetal reduction (as if it's supposed to make the news less shocking)...reducing the amount of fetuses down to two or even one. Doctors typically recommend this procedure with higher order multiples (three or more) because of all the risk involved for the mom and babies. The actual reduction procedure isn't performed until around 12 weeks because doctors wait for the possibility of the body naturally reducing the number of fetuses on its own. In my case there was a 33% chance of natural reduction, or miscarriage in other words. The doctor kept talking for about 20 minutes and I just got lost in my thoughts. For a moment, reducing became a real possibility because I just wanted all this to be reversed and changed so I was pregnant with just one. So I could just be normal. All the sudden I had lept into a world of high risk and abnormality. All the unknowns, the risk of early delivery, the risk of premature disorders, the risk of bedrest, babies in the NICU, the risk of pretty much ANYTHING! Doctor was still talking. Then I distinctly remember having an overwhelming feeling and thinking, "if my Heavenly Father wants to send us three babies....then I'll do what I can to make that possible."

Decision made. My moment of insecurity had passed and I told the doctor I was not interested in reducing. Even though those calming thoughts kept coming back of this being what God wanted for Clark and me, there was still no feeling of settlement. My mind was reeling. I left the office and on the way out everyone there hugged me. They said congrats but in a consoling kind of way like they really wanted to say, "I'm sorry" as well. I quickly got in the elevator and barely made it out before bursting into tears. These were not tears of anger or sadness. It was just my way of feeling all of that emotion. Being totally blind sided and completely overwhelmed in a matter of minutes. I had a long walk to my car and once inside I locked the doors and just sat there. Not moving. Not crying. Just frozen. This went on for about an hour. I did talk to Clark but I don't remember that conversation. Once I regained composure, the first person I called was my Mom...then my oldest sister. When I told my sister the news she simply said, "well, you'll do great."

Nothing more....just that. I guess that's all you can say to news like mine. So there was no where to go but forward. I actually appreciated what she said and that she didn't get all crazed. It kept me calm and grounded. I went home and, like other newly pregnant women, hung the ultrasound on the fridge. I ignored it though. Just noticed it when opening the fridge door; still in denial that the sonogram picture belonged to me. If I looked at it for too long I would just get all worried about the endless possibilities mentioned earlier. All the hormones weren't helping either. At one point I actually turned the picture around. I got a few more pictures the next week to add to the pile and I think those got stuffed in my purse. The doctor talked about reducing again but I emphatically reminded him we were keeping all three. I got sicker and sicker as the days passed and more overwhelmed at our imminent future. The news didn't get any less shocking over the next eight weeks. We did announce the pregnancy at ten weeks although I was reluctant because of the lingering possibility of miscarriage. People knew something was up though because of my behavior and sickness. It wasn't until about 12 weeks (when I knew all three babies were here to stay) that the reality punched me in the face and I knew we needed to get on the ball with preparation. When the shock finally subsided, excitement and anticipation set in. We had so much to do and I was in no state to do any of it! We got three cribs, prepared the house for my possible bedrest, and started buying diapers. However, just a short ten weeks later, I entered the hospital on strict bedrest and fully realized what type of sacrifice was going to be required to get these babies here.

I think back over and over to this day and all the emotions experienced. I'm still in awe that it happened to us. Then I think of our three sweet miracles and tears fill my eyes because I CANNOT imagine life without them. They all wanted to come together apparently and we just got lucky because we were able to meet three of our angels at once. We thank our Heavenly Father everyday for them and know it is by His hand they they are here in our family. Our 'day' was and still is unforgettable.