The trio are at such a funny stage. They make up the weirdest stuff and laugh at each other. The thing lately is to make up names such as Deedee, Gaka, Booka, Deega, Moomi, Gigwag, etc... Then one of them will say, for instance, that Caleb's name is Gigwag, and Caleb (or whoever else is being targeted) gets super mad and insists his name is Cabee Baby. If Zachary is the victim, he gets even more mad and screams that his name is not Moomi it's Brian Zachy Back! Leah doesn't get mad rather super emotional and through her tears says her name is not Booka it's Eah Ree (Leah Marie). Anyway, it's a really funny game at first because of all the random names they come up with but eventually everyone is screaming, laughing, yelling, and crying all at the same time. My poor kids never know what to expect from me either because sometimes I laugh and try to tease the situation away. Other times I'm annoyed at all the noise and I react harshly. I'm working on consistency, believe me.
Holy cow though, they fight about EVERYTHING. Who gets dressed first, who has a dirty diaper, who ate the best, who shuts the door, who gets the dump truck, who gets out of the tub first, who empties the dryer, who vacuums, who counts the fastest, who says the alphabet the loudest, who gets to sing Twinkle Twinkle, who gets to choose a book first, etc... Because they are all at the same developmental stage, no solution is acceptable to all three. I can't reason with an older child to wait their turn or sing more quietly. They are all emotional and illogical. Further, they all constantly want our approval and attention and don't really care if they hurt the others' feelings in the process. For example, they are always more than happy to share with me or Clark but share with each other? NO WAY. Not happening. They'd rather spend the day in timeout than do that. We checked out seven toddler discipline/behavior books at the library and are doing our best to minimize the damage during this stage but it's not pretty. I've pretty much stopped doing playdates (with a couple exceptions) because playing in our own home and doing the best we can to stay out of each others' way is challenging enough. Add two to three more toddlers who have the same attitudes and toddlerisms and I'm just exhausted and frustrated after it's over. However, along with the bad comes some good. They talk and sing and run and dance and live life to the fullest. That's a great thing about toddlers. They live to have fun.
I had a little fun for myself at the end of last month. I boarded a plane and headed west to meet up with all my sisters and mom for a weekend away. I always feel strange by myself and keep looking around because someone just HAS to be looking at me. Nope. No one takes a second look when I'm not pulling a choo choo wagon and a shopping cart. I'm just another person minding my business and reading a book. I lose my identity a bit but it's kind of refreshing. The first thing I did when I landed was get picked up by my sister Emily and head to Cafe Rio. Oh yum yum yum. I ate there again at the airport when a flew out three days later. Had to get my fill!!
We stayed in SLC that night, ran on the treadmills the next morning (much to Emily's dismay, she'd rather run outside), and waited for everyone else to arrive around 11am. If there is one thing my sisters like to do, it's shop. We shopped all afternoon Friday and most of the day Saturday. HOWEVER, I actually bought a few things! This is a monumental event in my life. All my family pressures me to shop and purchase and I never do. At one point I think my mom threatened me if I didn't buy something. ;) Let me tell you, shop and purchase I did! We stopped at DSW and everyone came out with one or two bags. I bought some Croc flip flops which are incredibly comfortable. So there you go. Later in the day I bought some new blouses for church. My body just isn't the same after triplets so my wardrobe is in desperate need of a make over. So this is my start I guess.
Everyone wanted to eat at Cheesecake Factory since there isn't one in Idaho. After a full day of shopping I was happy to sit and enjoy some Thai Lettuce Wraps. My oldest sister brought her oldest daughter who is actually only 8 1/2 years younger than me. Closer in age than I am to her mom. Funny how those things happen. She fit right in though!
Whenever the kids see a picture of Emily, they always yell, "mama!!!" We do look a little alike I suppose.
Our first night all together we stayed in a two-bedroom suite, ate delicious sandwiches that my mom packed and prepared, engaged in crafting and painting a cute letter to go in our homes, and watched a movie to end the night. It only took an hour and a half to get the movie to work but we did it!
We also went to see The Host and enjoyed that. Some of my sisters had mixed feelings but since I had read the book, I knew what to expect and knew it was going to be slooooow moving. I'd see it again though! I had a great time and felt super refreshed coming home to the kids. The kids and Clark came into the airport to surprise me when I came out of the gate but unfortunately I came out another door and didn't locate them for about five minutes. Bummer. The kids acted like I had just stepped around the corner for a minute and hadn't been gone for a few days. They acted totally calm and normal. Made me laugh.
Because I was so rejuvenated after returning from our trip, when Zachary asked me on Monday if he could wear his Buzz Lightyear underwear I said, "sure! why not?" When usually I'd say, "when you learn to use the potty you can wear underwear." After a few big accidents, luckily on the tile floor, he was pretty much potty trained!!!! I can't believe all the drama I went through with Leah. I may have to endure it again but holy cow, I think potty training should always be like this! Although Zachary is stubborn and gives me grief most of the day, he took to this task like a champ. It suited his personality, his perfectionism, and was a great experience for him because it was positive! There was lots of praise and kisses and positivity and I realized that I don't give much of that to him because he pushes my buttons. It showed me how a little positivity can go a long way. The first week of potty training he was so well-behaved and happy. He was totally ready and it was something good we needed to do together. So I'm thrilled to be able to say ONE DOWN! TWO TO GO! Here he is after the first time he went #2 in the potty...
Sometimes I'll forget to ask if he needs to go or remind him to use the potty and soon enough he comes running around the corner with the bucket of pee saying he went! Luckily he's pretty careful as he runs around the house with it. He listens to his body and has no problems going in alone and getting things done. Awesome.
Since he's potty trained, we've experienced the dreaded night time potty visits. We always have to take his crying seriously now because (although he's wearing a Pull-up) he panics when he wakes up and has to pee. So much so that he's starting crawling out of his crib. Never been done before. It's definitely a scary thing when doors start opening and shutting in the night and you believe all your kids are safely in their cribs. Yikes! Point is, it's time for some big beds. We've taken a liking to an unfinished wood store near our home. We've bought some other furniture pieces there and thought bunk beds would be great to get there as well. So that's what we did! The boys won't actually use the bunk beds right now but we've set up one bed for Zachary and he was thrilled! Leah cried herself to sleep the first night he had his bed because she wanted to be in there with him. This picture was right outside the Woodland store. The kids sat on a rocker and ate some fruit snacks. Doesn't get any better!
The kids are really into Toy Story and Finding Nemo right now. They've entertained several other movies like Happy Feet, Monsters Inc, and Ratatouille but none have come close to the first two. They've pretty much left Elmo in the dust and hardly remember who he is anymore. The army men in Toy Story are a funny fascination for the trio, especially Zachary so we bought a dollar bag of army men and set up a battle zone. We had a hospital, cafeteria, bunkers, catapults, and sleeping quarters. They loved it.
More army men hanging with Leah. Unfortunately for them I think they were all lining up to go to the grocery store.
They are also really into playing doctor which has helped to an extent when we've had to go to the real doctor. They bring their tools and aren't quite so frightened to have their hearts and lungs listened to.
Leah is really into pulling her pants high...no clue.
and lastly they are totally into playing in the sandbox. They love going out there and filling and dumping their buckets. I've loosened up about how often they play in there and would actually allow them to do it everyday if weather permitted. The reason why is because I've figured out how to keep the sand out of the house. When they are done playing, I strip them down and let them run circles in the backyard while I shake all the clothes out. This way their feet are getting clean in the grass, sand is falling off them, and by the time we go inside (straight to the bath), there's hardly any sand in sight. While I was shaking clothes off, I came around the corner to find them all trying to sit in one choo choo wagon...naked. Clark thinks I should delete this picture but I promised him it was their own doing and they thought it was great. I'll decide later if it will go into the permanent blog book.
Our World Aquarium season passes expired last month so I finally was able to try out another aquarium downtown. It's significantly less expensive and significantly smaller. Maybe 1/10 the size of the World Aquarium. Other moms who have gone says it great though because no one is ever there and you could spend at least an hour just letting the kids run around and looking at the five exhibits. Unfortunately when I pulled up, there were about 18 bus fulls of kids going into the aquarium for a field trip. Ugh! I had already driven 30 minutes so I wasn't turning back but I hate situations like that because I can't pull the wagon and it's more nerve-racking to keep track of the kids. I decided to just do it since we were already there. The aquarium had two memorable features that the kids are still talking about so I guess it was worth it: a hands-on sting ray exhibit and a Finding Nemo exhibit. It was pushing and shoving room only though to see those two things. The picture below is the seahorse exhibit. No pushing or shoving here.
Last but not least, we took advantage of the summer-like weather this past weekend and went on a nature walk. Not much nature to see around these parts but there is a small wildlife reserve a few miles away so we headed there. Not before everyone was fully equipped with sunglasses and homemade binoculars (made from toilet paper rolls, paper, tape, and yarn. I was one roll short so I had to unravel the whole thing to get it out. All the while instructing the kids never to do what I was doing ;) Watch out for this bunch! They are on a mission to spot some bugs and birds with their 'noculas.'
Like I've said before, Caleb is full to the brim of passion. Doesn't matter what it is, he's passionately involved. Searching for wildlife through binoculars was no exception. The other two lost interest after a while but Caleb was going strong. Even going as far as hiding in the tall grass to see what he could spy.
After our walk we stopped in for pizza and ate it right there in the car. By the time we got home, dinner was done and everyone was exhausted. Perfect recipe for a stress-free bedtime and good night sleep. Zachary even slept the whole night without any potty calls. Pretty miraculous.
I have no words or description for this last picture other than these three make us crazy...
but we sure are crazy about them.
Aww.. crazy lil toddlers!! At least they're cute! You do so many fun things with them, and they're making great memories! You're not expected to be the same everyday with your reactions and everything bc they aren't the same everyday either! It keeps life interesting. =) Hopefully we'll be an exception to the no playdate rule soon. =) I still need to see The Host by the way...
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