C-A-L-I-F-O-R-N-I-A...

Let's start at the very beginning. It's a very good place to start...

I can't figure out how to start this post and I keep singing those 'Sound of Music' lyrics over and over. I find myself singing songs from that movie quite often actually. In fact, I just read an article in People magazine about Julie Andrews and what it was like for her to be in the movie. Pretty interesting. After that article I proceeded to almost finish an entire crossword puzzle! I have never been able to do that before. Granted it was in People magazine but still...even Clark was impressed.

March was a good one.  It came in like a lion and out like a lamb.  We had cold temps, rain, and lots of snow.  Luckily before the big snow storm we were able to complete 'U' preschool.  We colored unicorns and UFO's, hung upside down, read a book about underwear, and even let go of some balloons in the front yard to watch them go up, up, up!  It was actually pretty fun to watch the balloons float away until they disappeared into the clouds.  I wasn't convinced that the kids would let go but they were brave.  They wrote their names on them and pretended that the balloons floated all the way to space. 

Then the big snow storm hit.  LOTS and LOTS of snow in just one night.  Naturally the triplets were dying to get outside but this time I was going to prepare them better.  Since all we have on hand are cotton gloves, I wrapped Walmart bags around their hands so that their gloves wouldn't get soaked in the first couple minutes.  It worked like a charm.  They all wore my long fuzzy socks to keep snow from getting in their boots and that worked great too.  They played for almost an hour and came in to a wonderfully warm fire.  Clark was home from work and it was just a great day.  He was mortified by my glove covers but whatever.  :)

The next weekend it was warm and sunny so the boys headed to the 'boy store' and I took Leah to the doctor. Wouldn't you know....strep throat again!!!  The boys tested positive for it a couple days later and I was shocked.  I have NO idea how we keep getting it.  The boys made a cute craft at Home Depot and even brought some stickers home for Leah to make her feel better.  We had only a few days before leaving for our much anticipated trip to California so even though they all had strep, I was happy to have antibiotics in hand and three kids on the mend.

Luckily the meds did their job and everyone was feeling MUCH better before we boarded our plane.  Traveling with four year olds is awesome.  They are so excited about what is happening, they love running through the airport, they pull their own bags, and they can manage on missing some sleep.  The morning of our flight we had to leave at 4:30am so it was definitely early.  We had a direct flight to LA and arrived in the 7am hour.  Papa met us and our 11 bags at the airport and we were so excited to be starting our trip!

Our first stop was to Clark's sister Anie in Camarillo.  Miraculously the triplets all slept in the van on the way from the airport to her house which was PERFECT because we still had a big day ahead of us full of sun and sand!  We headed to the beach and it was a beautiful day for it.  The triplets were in heaven just running from the waves and searching for shells with their cousins.  Of course  Clark got to work digging a giant hole for a hot pot.  In our ten years of marriage, he has never been to a beach without digging a hole.  It's just his thing.  By that evening we were totally worn out but glad we were hanging with family.

The next day was Sunday so we attended church, went on a walk, read stories with Gram, ate pulled pork, and then headed out for the sand hill.  Just a few minutes down the road on Highway 1 is a gigantic sand hill that you can climb and sit at the top to look over the ocean.  It is HARD work getting up there so everyone was huffing and puffing.  However, once we got to the top it really was an incredible view.  The kids dug in the sand, slid down on their stomachs, and we all just chatted for a while.  I originally did not want to go because I was tired of being in the car and didn't want to deal with sand messes.  It was so fun though and I was glad that I got pushed out the door.  The triplets are still talking about it!

The next day we headed down the coastline to Anaheim.  On the way we drove through Malibu and stopped at Santa Monica beach and pier.  We set everything up and the kids started playing.  Little did we know that this was the craziest spot on the beach.  It was so busy!  Of course the triplets didn't care but when Clark tried to dig his hole, every kid in the area wanted to join the fun.  So he quickly abandoned his project because all the other kids starting caving in the walls.  Poor guy. 

We played there all afternoon then headed to our four bedroom presidential suite in Anaheim!  Talk about living a life of luxury.  It was an awesome hotel room!  Our balcony was 11 floors up and we could even see over the top of Disneyland.  We waited up to watch the nightly fireworks but were sorely disappointed when we only saw a couple.  Oh well!  We cooked some pizza in the oven, the kids took a GIANT bath, and we settled down for the night in preparation for our trip to Legoland the next day.

Legoland was SO much fun.  It was perfect for the kids' age and wasn't super busy or overwhelming like some amusement parks can be.  We stayed at the park from open until close and tried to do every possible thing we could with the energy we had.  The kids could go on almost every ride, with an accompanying adult, and they had a blast! The first ride we went on was the Coastersaurus.  It still remains the favorite ride of the day from what the triplets say.  Unfortunately there was a 60 minute wait so while Gram waited in line, the kids played in the nearby dino digging area.  They discovered a huge dinosaur fossil and loved brushing away the sand to see what it was.  In no time it was our turn for the roller coaster.

We then moved on to the fairy tale brook (fairy tale characters made completely of Legos), Lego car driving, a helicopter ride, and the Sky Cruiser.  The Cruiser also had a 60 minute wait but luckily there was an area where kids could play with Legos while the adults waited in line.  Again, in no time it was our turn.

Other adventures from Legoland included seeing Darth Vader, the jousting horses (kids did this ride three times), family slide race, the bouncing beetle, flying airplanes, eating ice cream, and rocking back and forth on a huge ship.  I think the kids just felt so special because they could go on all the 'cool' rides.  They each got a Lego key chain and also built a Lego person to take home.  What was so nice was that in the late afternoon the temperature dropped and some clouds moved in.  The cold front happened to coincide with the kids playing in the water park so they didn't last long in the chilly water.  However, we all felt energized and were able to go on the Coastersaurus a couple more times before leaving the park.  It's crazy how much the sun can drain you.  We opted out of the hotel that night and decided to drive straight back to Anie's to sleep.  It worked out great because the kids fell right asleep in the car which allowed for good conversation and we also didn't have any traffic since it was late at night.  The day was perfect!  Not to mention it was St. Patrick's Day and we all wore AWESOME green shirts.  Made locating each other really easy actually!

We woke up the next morning in Camarillo and were able to spend a bit more time with Anie and Spencer and even got to walk Elle to school.  We didn't stay long though because we had a long drive north to Brentwood.  



It was so nice to finally reach Brentwood and we were all ready to get out of the car!  The next couple days were spent relaxing, playing at parks, hiking, going to Cinderella with just the girls, playing in the hot tub, visiting old friends (no pics of dinner or our Sacramento visit....darn!), going to the dollar store with Gram Rox, checking out books from the library, eating lots of cookies and brownies, riding the Razor scooters, helping Papa with a project, going to the farmers market for kettle corn and getting balloons from the balloon lady, and seeing a bunch of really cool airplanes at a local airport with Clark's friend Britton. 

The kids were in heaven with the toys at Gram's house since she kept all of Clark's old toys.  Caleb was dying over the bucket of ninja turtles and during the week that we stayed there, all three kids never got bored.  It was just a really enjoyable time and the weather was fantastic!  I sure didn't miss the humidity back in Texas!

 

With three days left in our trip, we all headed out for one last excursion on the coast.  We were lucky enough to take the maiden voyage of Gram and Papa's new RV.  We drove down to Monterey and camped right next to the beach.  The waves at this beach were a LOT bigger and exciting than our previous beach trips so Caleb and Zachary were laughing hysterically as the waves would recede and then quickly chase them up the beach again.  This made for some anxiety for me though because as they would race up the beach, often times one of them would trip in the wet sand and the water would over take them!  I was worried they'd get swept out to sea!  :)

We were nervous when we pulled in the first day that it was going to be too cold/windy to enjoy the beach but the following day was absolutely gorgeous.  It was hot and there was barely any wind.  Clark got to dig a five foot hole which made him incredibly happy.  No one bothered him so he did some quick work.  After finishing, he spent the rest of the day catching crabs and sand dollars in which he had a lot of success!  There were also huge sand dunes so a better part of the day was spent climbing and jumping down those.

Besides going to the beach, we also went to the nearby aquarium.  We had a behind-the-scenes tour because Clark's parents are members so that was fun.  The tour guide talked about how the aquarists wear capes and masks when they feed rescued otters so that the otters don't start associating food with humans.  Caleb and Zachary tried the cape and mask on and held a stuffed otter.  It was hilarious!  Leah politely declined participating.  The tour was a little boring at parts but the kids got some stuffed Octopuses out of it so everyone was happy!  We hit up all the good exhibits, their favorite was the Open Ocean, and left to go eat lunch at Bubba Gumps.  None of us ordered seafood which was kind of comical.  Macaroni and cheese and pizza please!

Our nights during the camping trip were awesome since we cooked on the RV stove and had plenty of warm sleeping areas in the RV.  There was a great little tree that the kids enjoyed climbing, a playground to play on, and we even cooked smores.  We won't talk about the tin foil dinners...  :)

The RV trip was a HUGE success and so much fun.  We hope to be able to do it again soon!

After packing up and heading back to Brentwood, we got to work on laundry and packing for our trip back to Texas.  Everything came to an end so quickly...of course.  We thoroughly enjoyed our vacation and are so grateful for all the planning and coordinating that went into it.  We were also super impressed with how well the triplets did.  They really were troopers with all the driving and flying.  Certainly makes us excited for future family vacations since it's only going to get easier!

They were so excited to get off the plane in Dallas that they literally sprinted and when they came out of the gate door, everyone waiting to get on our plane was staring and laughing and someone yelled, "that is the cutest thing I've ever seen!"  The triplets continued to sprint through the whole airport until we reached the escalator going down to baggage claim.

Now we're back and working toward getting our house ready to sell in a few weeks!  Crazy!

I'll end with a gem from Leah.  Because of all the driving and flying we did, Clark and I encouraged the 'Quiet Game' quite frequently.  Surprisingly the triplets are very good at it and always willing to play.  When we count down from five to start the game, we tell the kids to say a few last words.  Leah always quickly says, "I love you Mom.  You're my best girl!"  As if it were her last dying breath before all goes quiet, those are the last things she wants me to hear.  So cute and endearing.

Love is in the Air...

Today the kids and I returned from an outing and I came in from the garage. Only one kid followed me inside. The other two stayed in the van and argued about who was going to be the last one out. Almost 15 minutes later they were still in a stand off. I didn't want to intervene but I was afraid it was going to get physical so I went out there and gave some incentive to whoever would be flexible.

That is our lives in a nutshell. Equality and justice are what our four-year-olds are all about right now.  Why did he get more?  She said the prayer last time.  I want to go out first!  What were you just doing with him? 

Nothing goes noticed around here.  Special treatment is not tolerated by four-year-olds apparently.  Sometimes I hesitate to sit and play with Leah when she is being left out from her brothers because the second I sit down, the boys literally spring over to us and won't continue playing anymore.  They can't bear the thought of something happening without them.  Anyway, the dynamic is tricky at this age and jealousy is rearing it's ugly head.  We've managed to avoid MANY arguments through our 'kid of the day' program.  The kids are very respectful of the schedule and when it's their turn to choose prayers, books, go first, run an errand alone, go to work with Dad, etc...  But it's still hard for the other two who desperately want the same treatment.  I'm hoping this jealousy stuff runs it course quickly but maybe it will never go away.  We might still be doing 'kid of the day' when the triplets graduate high school!

Regardless of all that, I am immensely enjoying this age and am so optimistic of days ahead.  The triplets continue to make me laugh.  Zachary has taken a liking to wearing layered clothing similar to his four underwear incident.  Two shirts, two pants.  That sort of thing.  Always makes me laugh when I find out and he says, 'I was tricking you Mom!' 

We had a really fun month.  It was my parents last few weeks here in the area and of course Valentine's was much anticipated.  But before all that, we did a few fun school activities I wanted to document.  Christie and I got lazy one week and decided to go to the zoo instead of do any school.  Plus it was a beautiful day and admission was only $5!  So we drove the 40 minutes and had a good time with friends. 

The week before that we were focusing on the letter 'R'.  Once school stuff and playing was done, we spontaneously decided to head to Red Robin to really drive home the letter of the week.  Perhaps it was really just for Christie and I not to have to make lunch but either way, it was awesome.  Not sure why it took us all the way to letter R to go out to eat though.  I'm bummed we haven't taken more advantage.  :)

We also opted out of school another week this month so that Hazel could throw her Valentine's party!  Games, heart pizza, pink popcorn, cookie decorating, etc...  The kids were in heaven.  Zachary could barely play any of the games knowing that sugar cookies were just sitting on the table not being eaten!  He waited patiently though and it was worth it.  Hazel threw a great party and after exchanging Valentines, we headed home full of sugar. 

Then the day that we all love finally arrived!  Again it was a beautiful morning so we laid a blanket out and opened all the goodies that were sent from cousins and grandparents in the mail.  The triplets had a blast and certainly felt loved.

Unfortunately we didn't see Clark that day but he and I made sure to celebrate the next night with pizza and a movie.  Clark literally worked day in and day out this month.  He even spent two nights at a hotel just minutes from his work.  That way he didn't have to commute back and forth losing time before his deadline. 

It was so nice having Grandma and Gramps around to break up the monotony and provide babysitting when needed.  So even though Clark worked more this busy season than he ever has, everything went just fine here at home. 

I made a book for my Mom's birthday full of memories from all my siblings.  It included a lot of pictures to, some from when my Mom was in high school.  I was so excited to give it to her but I knew once that time came, that it would be time for my parents to go back to Idaho.  Her birthday arrived and we all went out to eat at Pie Five.  Afterwards we came home for strawberry shortcake.  She blew out her one candle while we sang and then we dug in.  The kids were SO excited about Grandma opening her present that she didn't get to eat much before I presented the book.

A couple months ago the kids were looking at some pictures on the ipad with Grandma.  They came across a scanned picture of my Mom that she's not very fond of.  Of course she questioned why in the world I had that picture and what I planned to do with it.  I said that I might be making some sort of poster present for her birthday.  I played up the joke and even presented her with a covered piece of large cardboard just to make her nervous.  So she opened that first and the triplets thought it was so funny that we tricked her.

Once my parents left, we chased away our blues by playing in the snow, cutting hair, visiting Clark's work, buying silly putty and going to KidMania and Metroplex Gymnastics.  They made it home safely but not without having to drive through a massive snow storm.  We are SO grateful that we were able to spend so much time with them these past few months.  Not to mention all the little house fixes and mending responsibilities that they accomplished for us.  We are definitely grateful for all that!

 

So we're back to the grind again, just trying to stay warm during this cold Texas weather.  The kids are dying to play in the sandbox and just don't understand that even though the sun is out, it's just too cold.  Caleb begs to wear shorts (see snow picture) every morning and who am I to stop him?  He always says, "I promise I won' get cold!"  

We'll see about that when we move to Michigan this summer!

Dejavu...

January was just one big dejavu. I look back at the month and can barely remember what we did which is sad because my parents are here and I want to make sure we are making the best use of our time with them.

Here's the recap... 

Week 1: It took us a whole nine days into the new year to make a trip to the doctor. Leah developed a fever, stomach ache, and sore throat. After three days of that, I took her in and she tested positive for strep throat. After seeing the doc, she received a sucker and sticker.  We headed to the pharmacy, which happens to be brand new, and went inside to look around.  We found all sorts of fun goodies in there!  90% off Christmas ornaments caught our attention and Leah came home with her meds and some mini stocking ornaments to put on the tree next year.

Week 2:  Zachary developed a fever, stomach ache, and sore throat.  After three days of that, I took him in and he tested positive for strep throat.  We went in on the same day, at the same time, with the same doctor as I had done one week earlier with Leah.  After seeing the doc, he received a sucker and a sticker.  We headed to the pharmacy and went inside to wait for the Rx.  As expected, we found all sorts of post-Christmas goodies in there, now close to 99% off.  10 cent coloring books caught our attention and Zachary came home with his meds and six books for everyone.

Week 3:  BAM!  All three kids developed head colds and the snot started running.  Tissues, snot, tissues, snot, tissues, snot, tissues, snot.  When I was a kid I always got grossed out when I'd ask for a tissue and my Mom would pull one out of her purse or pocket that looked like it had been there a while.   Usually I would say 'no thanks' and suffer through the runny nose.  During week 3, I officially turned into my Mom.  Tissues in every nook and cranny.  Some used, some not, but most times I could care less as long as I had one within arms reach to wipe all the sneezing and dripping going on.  Yeeesh!

Week 4:  Everyone seemed to be coming out of their colds although coughs even now are STILL lingering and keeping kids up at night.  Caleb developed a fever, stomach ache, and sore throat.  His fever disappeared and he seemed relatively happy.  Good appetite and everything.  His eyes were super blood shot though and his congestion had gotten significantly worse.  I decided to play it safe and go have his ears and lungs checked.  He tested positive for strep throat.  I was shocked!  Really.  I thought he had sneaked by without catching it and in the past he ALWAYS develops the horrible scarlet rash with his strep throat so I wasn't expecting it at all.  I think his strep was in the VERY beginning stages and we caught it before it really took hold.  He got a sucker and stickers and we headed to the pharmacy to get the meds and look at all the goodies.  Unfortunately the Christmas stuff had been cleared out and Valentine's stuff was on the shelves for FULL PRICE!!  I mean...I don't buy anything now unless it's almost 100% off.  So we'll wait and go to the pharmacy, meds or not, to get cheap Valentine's goodies.

So there it is. I've been giving bubble gum flavored Amoxillin twice a day for the entire month of January.  SURPRISINGLY Clark and I have not gotten sick.  It really has been a HUGE blessing.  Clark was on his way after Week 1 but after a weekend of R and R, he seemed to come out of it.

Unfortunately my parents have not been so lucky.  They have each had their separate trips to urgent care for antibiotics, z packs, and steroids. I was hoping they'd have a healthier winter here in the warmer climate but they couldn't seem to escape their winter colds.  Amidst all the sickness, however, we still managed to see Grandma and Grandpa everyday in January.

After the holidays we all fell into a groove and figured out a good schedule with the kids.  Monday, Wednesday and Friday are the days when one kid gets to go over to Grandma and Gramp's apartment for a couple hours in the morning.  Then Grandma and Gramps come back in the late afternoon for bedtime and story time.

It's so funny when I drop the 'kid of the day' off at my parents apartment.  He/she is literally so excited to go and has a huge bag full of puzzles, markers, and games.  Whoever it is usually expresses to Grandma and Gramps that he/she doesn't want to come back our house.  Leah told them she wanted to live at their apartment forever.  I can't help but get a little sad that they don't want to come back but I am also very grateful that they are experiencing ALONE time for the first time in their lives.  The kids are receiving one-on-one attention for two hours!  Unheard of!  And it is also really peaceful over at Grandma and Gramps.  So I can't blame any of them for not wanting to return to what can be a very tumultuous  environment here at home.  Four year olds are all about equality and possession which can make for a lot of tears and fights during the day.

Anyway, the point is that it has been a really good experience for the kids to have some alone time.  Usually I take the other two kids and go grocery shopping, back home to play, or to the library (to visit our friend Billy the statue).






January gave us a few REALLY beautiful days.  It was so nice to get out of the sick house for a bit.  We went to both nature preserves in town and enjoyed walking in the trees and exploring.

On the really really nice days we made sure to chop some wood because in Texas, the cold days come around fast.  The boys got to help Clark out with his chopping and felt so cool doing such a big boy activity.  In the pictures you can see that the boys brought out their own plastic axes to chop wood.  They quickly learned that the giant sharp ax was what they wanted to use.

During our most recent nice day (about 80 degrees), the kids played in the sand and ran around in the yard all afternoon.  It ended up being pretty darn hot and eventually all their clothes came off and they ran through the sprinkler.  I had to find and hook up the hose because it had been put away for the winter!




But then, in true Texas fashion, we are indoors the next day sitting next to the fire.  One rainy day I decided to make some slime which the kids have loved!  1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup clear washable glue, and 1/2 cup liquid starch.  Done.  They eventually get covered in it but it all washes away in the washing machine.  Super fun.



This past month we did two weeks of school (because of sickness) and covered the letters P and Q.  P day was at our house and we took 'P'ictures of each other which ended up being really fun.  The kids LOVED being the ones taking the pictures and Hazel even snapped a pretty good one of Leah and me.  For the picture I took, they were all trying to make hearts with their hands and it didn't matter how many I took, someone was always closing their eyes!  I can imagine it is hard for a four-year-old to look in one place, smile, open eyes, and make a hand heart all at the same time.  I couldn't be too mad at them.  

The great thing about this January is that for the first time in years....it actually went by fast!!  Usually it is so painfully slow with Clark working his long hours but it has been a fun, busy month (besides all the dejavu doctor visits).

I'll end with this little gem from Leah.  She does this really cute thing whenever we go on walks.  She collects sticks and finds a patch of dirt to 'plant' the stick.  The she proclaims that the stick will soon grow into a tree.  One time she made a huge forest of sticks.  It was actually pretty cool!  Her caring for and planting the branches is so sweet and innocent.  I just love to watch it.