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Hey!

About a week ago, Don hinted that my habit of generally prefacing a conversation with "hey" (as in- hey, can you grab that... or hey, what is that...) is slowly getting on his nerves. I have tried to stop and have caught myself a few times lately, but for the most part, I thought it was going pretty well.
That is until we heard Lucas say "hey" about a hundred times today (no exaggeration!). Since Luke doesn't have a huge vocabulary, the word "hey" seems to nicely cover everything he wishes to say. Once he did say, "hey, move!"

On another note, Don and I had a date night Friday night. We caught the movie "Knocked Up". That movie is over two hours long! But it was a great movie, one we would definitely rent to watch again. Afterwards was a late night dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. The whole night was fantastic and we are glad we took the opportunity to get out when we could. Many thanks to my Mom for a night out much needed!

Today we took the boys and met my Mom and Matthew at one of the water feature parks around town. Out of the four children, Wyatt was the only one running into the water! The others were not so sure about the cold weather, even though it felt about 100 degrees outside. After about 45 minutes, Matthew got a bit more into it and would put his feet over the sprays, but Jaxon and Lucas still weren't too thrilled to be there. But HEY, we got some cute videos and memories, so that is all that counts!



And here is Matthew getting a bit more comfortable with the water

Mommy Brain

Recently, I have begun a class online to help me with my scrap booking. This week we are working on journaling (writing about the photo, where we were, what makes it special, etc). I have scrapped about 20 pages, but really have only journaled a handful of them- nothing pops in my mind to say. I see the picture and can remember when it was taken, what was going on or who we were with, but nothing else happens in my brain.

This is where "mommy brain" comes in. I converse with 3 toddlers every day who have but a vocabulary of maybe 100 words between them. My vocabulary has been simplfied to teach them simple words and actions. The news in not on, except if we keep PBS on and forget to turn it off during dinner, and mostly I chat with my friends online more so than the phone. I wonder how many words a day I speak to an adult, or how many conversations I am having with adult people everyday, that don't concern the kids.

Also, in taking care of the three of them in the past two years, my mind has been in survival mode. All about multitasking and getting things done. What is for dinner, has Jaxon pooped in the past 2 days, what is Wyatt trying to say, etc. The chance to really think a situation through and enjoy the actual colors of the sunset or feelings that are felt during day to day activities just really doesn't happen.

In that train of thought, I am convinced that there are parts of my brain which have been unused for the past two years and that I need to start exercising my vocabulary and really thinking about my surroundings, not just skimming past it all just to be sure we are all surviving. Mommy brain - blah.

Cootie Update

The boys are generally healthy, so why do I feel like they have been sick for so long? Maybe because I haven't been able to work out for the past week and a half because I refuse to bring my sick kids in to share their latest germs. I couldn't take them a few weeks ago either because everyone had diarrhea for days. Part of my refusal could also be the guilt I would feel when they cry as I drop them off, wondering if they should just be home. I really need to get out of the house!

Anyhow, Jaxon seems to be the most affected by the Roseola. It could be that since he is the only one with the beautiful rash, he may have the worse case, even though his temp never hit over 103, where his brothers were both over 104. Wyatt is still a bit cuddly, and I am not complaining. He is so flexible and just loves to snuggle. Jaxon looks and acts just like he is not feeling well at all. Poor guy just does not want to be bothered and has the most pitiful cry when he wants something that his brothers just took from him. Once in a while he perks up and plays like crazy with his brothers, but then comes crashing down and just needs a bit of snuggling to regroup. Hopefully in another day or two, this will be out of the house!

Laurie Berkner

Since the boys have been babies, we have videos on the television. At first it was Baby Einstein, then it was Baby Signing Time (which I totally recommend by the way- my boys are still signing for more food, milk, please, etc). After watching these videos hundreds of times and having dreams of E-I-E-I-O in my head, we decided to try something new. After hearing about the Laurie Berkner Band from about 3 other blogs and the Triplet Connection, it seemed like a good direction to go in.

Making a few stops at the mall and WalMart, we couldn't find her DVD and I didn't want to pay $6 shipping when I knew it only cost about a dollar to really mail off Ebay. Finally at a trip to Target I had our video. We have this one, and the boys LOVE IT!

We have had the DVD about a month now, and decided to take a few videos of the boys singing and dancing to it. Enjoy!

We are the Dinosaurs!


Jaxon being Jaxon and then he sings along at the end


Wyatt with the oh-ahh, oh wahhh.

Feeling Blue

Luke woke up last night with a temp of 101.5 crying for water. Poor little guy let me cuddle him for a bit, and then let me know he wanted his bed by telling me "nye nyte" over and over again. This morning when he woke up, he had an ear temp of 104.7 , so I called and got him in at the Doctor. Have I ever mentioned that our Doctor is off on Friday, Saturday and Sundays? Why do my boys ALWAYS get sick on Fridays? Luckily the Doctor in the office seemed to have it together and even though we can't figure out any specific reasons Luke has a temperature (no ear infections, throat is not raw, etc.) I still felt better when I left the office. Luke's temp was about 101. then.

After nap time it was a good thing Don was home. Jaxon had a bit of a temp also, so he joined in on the Motrin/Tylenol regimen. He was all about his daddy, hanging on to Don to the point of Don carrying him all around with him. Dinner was great, all the boys ate fine and Jaxon perked up a bit before bed, until he fell off the couch arm where he was perched and knocked his little noggin next to the little scuff he already has on his forehead.

Wyatt is still tooting along at full speed. He seems to be feeling fine and is staying cool. His addiction to the telephone (any telephone) is getting worse. The was he throws a fit when we take it away (like if it rings or we have to call someone) is laughable. Wyatt will take about 5 marching steps backwards then throws himself on his bottom. It is the cutest temper I have seen, may even be worth sending it in to AFV for a $10,000 contender.

Mostly they are all doing great. Unfortunately biting has made a come back, but most of the time we don't notice someone has been bit until bed time and we are undressing them and see the marks on a shoulder or arm. They will be watched much more carefully in the next week to be sure it is nipped (!) in the bud.

The Side Yard

Not selling our house yet has set off a whole train of activity around here. Since our destiny seems to be stuck here, we need to make this house and yard a bit more usable for the boys. The side of our house is not being used and it would be nice to have a sand/play area over there. But first, the wall needed to be extended and then it would have to be fenced in.

Don and his buddy Mitch (who also helped us build our planters a couple years ago) started a side wall project that would be half block and half iron fencing. When that was done then Don had to move over to the new end and gate it all in. And when that was done, then Don and my Dad would build the boys a new sandbox. That is LOTS of work for poor Don. LOTS.

It all get scrambled up and the fence, sand box and the gate all got their finishing touches about 20 hours before the party was to begin. It all looks beautiful and Don has sworn off any more digging as long as we own this house.

Birthday Party

So much has been going on lately that there hasn't been time to blog. Getting ready for their birthday party has been all time consuming. So until I can catch up a bit, here are some pictures of their birthday party..

May 22,2007

Happy 2nd Birthday to Wyatt, Jaxon and Lucas! It is a wonder how I can not remember what the first 28 years of my life was like before they came along. Happy Birthday boys!

See Saw

One of the birthday presents the boys got from my parents is this great see-saw. It can be used by just one to all three of the boys at the same time. You can tell by this video that they love it, even though they don't quite have the right rhythm yet. Make sure you turn your sound up.

Gym good and bad

The good: The gym is going well. I like having another option for what we can do with our day, especially since I know the boys will be active while playing there.

The bad: When I pull into the parking lot Luke realizes where we are -tears start falling. He pleads "bye-bye" in an attempt to make me drive somewhere else. Jaxon catches on and it is a complete meltdown. I untangle all three out of their car seats and car while praying they don't run off while I reach in to get the other two out. Since Jaxon and Luke are still having a meltdown, I end up carrying the both of them (kicking my sides and screaming in my ears) into the daycare, while shepherding Wyatt down the million mile sidewalk to the door. Once in, Wyatt will look completely betrayed and outraged and the boys all try to escape out the door as soon as I put them down. The nice girls will take the boys and their waters to the play area while I squat down and get as close to the wall as I can while I sign them in. Then I BOLT out the door.

The good: They have a 15 minute rule. If the boys cry more than 15 minutes, they will call me back and there will be no work out that day. I have yet to be called back because anyone is still crying.

The really good: Imagine my surprise when I called to make an appointment to bring the boys in Friday and they knew who the boys were -and even said they were "cute" (I made sure she knew I was talking about the screaming trio). The girl also said when I drop them off, the crying only happens for about 2-3 minutes and stops once they are distracted with a story or a song.

The best part: I really like going to workout and am glad I don't have to feel guilty about it.

2 years ago

Two years today, I was a bit over 31 weeks pregnant with the boys and had just recently checked into the hospital. Looking back, I can see that I had no idea what the future would bring us.

Three boys...wow.

I remember when I was pregnant I could always feel Wyatt moving. His little fingers would just be taping and rubbing, day or night. Jaxon was a bit of a mover, such a busy baby. Lucas on the other hand was just hanging out, relaxing and not much of a mover. In fact, the doctors office sent me to the hospital once after a visit because "baby c" wasn't moving around at all.

We had our names picked out for the boys, but wanted to wait until we met the boys to name them. Life was going to change so drastically for us, but we couldn't possibly imagine the millions of little ways it would happen.

Bay-bee

Little baby Reagan came over for a visit today. For the next few weeks my mom will be watching her while school is still in session. I was a bit nervous about this initially. The boys LOVE my mom. They are very confident that their Nana loves them, bringing her books to read (which she always does) and climbing and prodding all over her body (Luke loves her earrings). Just today I watched Wyatt sit on her lap like she was a chair, literally just plopping down on her legs without a second thought. All this made me a bit worried they would be a bit jealous of a new baby in Nana's arms.

I had a doctor appointment this morning and decided I would bring Luke, since Luke would listen best to me out in public and he also seems to blossom under a bit extra of one on one time. The other two boys and Reagan were staying here at the house with Nana. The boys did great, keeping themselves busy and behaving well while I was gone.

As soon as we walked in the door when we came home, Lucas was asking "bay-bee?, bay-bee?". I wish I could type in the tone he said it, as the end of the word baby would go up to such a high pitch note in his little voice. He was so curious about Reagan! When it was time for Reagan to have her bottle, my mom held Reagan in her arms with all the boys surrounding the baby. Lucas -in true Lucas fashion- took charge of Reagan, patting her little head, rubbing her hair and giving her little kisses on her temple. He just couldn't get enough of her. They are all so gentle with her and show absolutely no jealous behaviors at all. It is so beautiful to think we will be able to see their little cousin relationship grow through the years.

Noooo!

Do you want to go in and see Belle? Nooo! Come over here and let me change your diaper... Nooo! Let's put our toys away...Nooo!

Oh yes, the no bug has hit our house. Luckily for all five of us, they are still cute enough to pull it off with a gorgeous toothy grin when they say it.

Weekend Warriors

We had a slow and relaxed Saturday. Big plans to go to another fair got scratched when we realized it was just too windy to drive oven an hour away, just to have to worry about it being too much for the boys. Instead we went to The District for their Spring Fling and art show.
We have been working with the boys trying to let them walk with the wagon (instead of always in it) and Lucas was having a blast walking on his own. He did very well staying close by, preferring to "help" Don with the wagon by pushing the back of it as Don pulled it along. After a half hour or so, we let all three of them run in the grass area and get some of their boy energy out before we headed home.
Today was not so relaxing. This morning we took a trip over to Star Nursery to buy some new plants. Don has been working on a side fence area and we needed to replace the boganvillias that died when we had a freeze this winter. Once the boys went down for a nap, Don and I headed outside and worked on the yard for a full 3 hours. We have a little motivation to get it all done before the boys birthday party in a few weeks.
So now both the yard and our backs look a bit more pink =) Pretty in the yard, but not feeling so pretty on our backs.

Fun with Matthew

For the past two weeks, my nephew Matthew has been staying at my mom's house. Since she comes over a couple times a week, he has been here, too. The boys have been too young to catch his attention in the past few visits- but this time it has been different. I think it is because he is here alone and he is paying them more attention then before. All four of them are interacting more, playing together and the younger boys love to watch everything Matthew does. They think little things Matthew does is hilarious, and try to imitate most everything he does.

Earlier this week, Matthew had dinner and then spent the night at our house. After dinner we went into the backyard where all four boys sat at the little picnic table and ate watermelon for dessert. Afterwards, they rode the little cars around the backyard and played on their climber. For the first time ever, they went in order, actually lining up to go up the steps and down the slide. Lucas, ever the "enforcer" would try to help the kids go in front of him- pushing their little bottoms higher (even Matthew's) to speed up the process.

Tonight we met Nana and Matthew at the San Gennaro Festival for dinner. After a hearty dinner of 2 bowls of pasta, a corn dog and corn on the cob (that is just our boys) we walked through the amusement park area. Matthew went on a few rides and the boys loved to wave to him when they would see him on it. First the little Dragon roller coaster, then the airplanes and finally the fun house. Matthew was so excited on the rides and would happily wave with a huge smile on his face. After getting Sponge Bob painted on Matthew's arm and Elmo painted on the boys hands, we called it a night and headed home. It has been so much fun having Matthew around!

Lucas' Transformation

An amazing thing happens when we put the boys in their cribs. Lucas instantly comes out of his shell. Suddenly he is this carefree, big smiling, little imp. He will stand up each arm raised holding the sides of his crib and jump like nobody's business. If he feels like letting us into the fun, he will raise his foot up so we can barely reach him or maybe even tickle his toes.

His little smile is so contagious and his brothers -in cribs one on each side of his- will start jumping and giggling along with him. Usually Luke gets a bit braver and will drop his hands from the sides and jump freely, not holding on to anything. His little upper body starts twisting and he will do a bit of a dance in one place.

Eventually things slow down, I will tell them time to go to sleep and try to coax Luke into a laying position. He will seem to settle a bit and bend down to lay forward, but then he will fake me out with an attempt at a somersault. After I get a hold of his little pj's and lay him down, he will look over at Jaxon to see if Jax is getting ready to sleep or not. If it seems his brothers are headed off to dream land, he will put his little thumb right in his mouth, pulling his blanket up around his shoulders and chin and relax his little body.

What gets into that child when he gets into his little crib? It is because it is his domain? Is it the bounce? Is it because he is between his brothers cribs and has their full attention? I love to see his little face light up and the mischievous twinkle in his eyes. What ever it is, it is a beautiful transformation.

Splish Splash

While the boys were playing out back on Friday, I had accidentally spilled water on our patio. Even though it was no more than half a cup of water, Lucas and Wyatt immediately were drawn to it. Wyatt was asking, "wa-der, wa-der?" and Luke would put his hand in it and rub the water on his face. Seeing Wyatt was about to copy Luke, I took off Wyatt's white shirt and then decided to take off Jaxon's and Lucas' shirts, too.

The water had evaporated in about 2 minutes. Since they had their shirts off and it was getting hot out, I took the sand and water table out of the garage and filled it up with water in the back yard. The boys couldn't get enough of it, Jaxon loved to just throw his hands down in it to splash and Wyatt would stick his face in the water to blow bubbles. Lucas thought it was fun to stick his mouth in just enough to drink it.

Eventually, even though it was about 85 degrees out, the boys started to get chilly and it was lunch time. Here is one of the videos of them playing out back.

The Gym

Yesterday we had our first gym day care experience. After parking the car and getting the boys shot records together, it was time to go in. Each child had their own water bottle tucked under one arm and with their free hand, they held our hand. The five of us walked up to the door while Don and I were telling the boys they were going to go play while Mommy and Daddy worked out. Once we were in, there was no initial panic from Luke like the day we first looked around. The woman behind the counter opened the half door at the entrance leading to the kids area and Wyatt walked in like he had done it 10 times before. Jaxon was a bit hesitant, but once we told him to go with Wyatt, off he went. Luke was a bit unsure -walking with Jaxon and then we could tell he was having second thoughts. The nice woman working there picked Luke up as his back arched to throw a bit of a fit and Don and I made a run for the door.

We were a bit anxious and wondered about only working out a half hour to ease the boys into daycare, but Don had an appointment with a trainer, so it would be about an hour before he was done. While working out, I would look up at the screen to check up on the kids and all seemed to be going well. After Don finished his appointment, he met up with me and together we walked over to the daycare area. All three boys were playing nicely. Wyatt was getting ready to pick up a little doll, but saw us out of the corner of his eye. His eyes got big and he gave us a smile and then got back to playing. Luke was climbing on a little foam step and Jaxon was just sitting, playing with a toy he had. No tears when they saw us or anything! They just walked right over to us and with their water bottles in tow, we all went back out to the car.

So we all survived! The woman at the counter said they did great, Luke cried only for a few minutes, no longer than five, and then he was content to play with his brothers. Walking back out to the car, I couldn't help but feel we had passed a huge milestone! No stroller or wagon was being used and all that alone time we just had! Don and I were just amazed at how fast they adjusted to not being around us and are so thankful they have each other everyday. Whew!

Line 'em UP!

Wyatt has a new little "thing". He loves to line up his cars. Whether it be side by side or front to back, he will take as many cars as he can get his little hands on and line them up one by one. If Lucas or Jaxon take a car out of his line up, he will either freak out or calmly place one in the now empty spot. We are not sure why he started this, but it makes me wonder what goes on in their little minds...