Bumps and Bruises

All the pulling up sure is creating lots of bumps and bruises on the kids. No matter what we do to protect them, they seem to end up with a new bruise every few days.

Time To Eat

It's funny to see everyone when it gets close to time to eat lunch or dinner. They start lining up and crowding around the gate to go to the dining room for their meal. It's like seeing cattle come to the barn at feeding time.

Where Have My Babies Gone?

There have been some big changes this month. I guess we have toddlers now and not babies. For the longest time, it seemed like no one was going to crawl. Little Man started, but the girls couldn't seem to figure out how to do it. This has all changed. In the last few weeks, all 3 have started crawling everywhere. They love to stand and try to pull up on anything they can. It's nice to see them grow, but I miss my babies.

Sad Article

I guess this article caught my eye because I'm a parent now. It discusses the amount of time typical working parents in the UK spend with their children daily. Only 19 minutes. The amount of time can't be much better in the United States.

Out and About

Over the past few months, we've been doing a better job of getting out with the kids. Sure, we've been going to church, short trips to the park and stores and some street festivals, but I'm talking about going to restaurants to eat, extended periods at the park, things like that. It doesn't sound like that big of a deal, but it is. We have to plan what we need, pack it, get it loaded and then get the kids ready and loaded into the van. A short trip very quickly becomes a half day event. Here's a recap of some of our outings.

A few months ago, our first adventure at a restaurant was going to a barbecue place. (Yes, DML, you know where we're talking about.) They have picnic tables outside so it was easy to leave the kids in their car seats, put them on the table and enjoy our barbecue sandwiches. The kids enjoyed their Cheerios and the attention of the other diners.

One day we spent an extended period at the park. We pushed the kids around and just made the best of a day outside. That day we decided to count the comments we received from people. Within 30 minutes, we heard 22 comments from people about triplets. This has to be the funniest thing we heard - "Are they natural or did you do drugs?". How do you reply to that? "They're only 90% natural and 10% artificial." The best part of the day was meeting a mom with 5 year old quadruplet boys and a 7 year old daughter. It was fun sharing stories.

Last night, we went to a local pizza restaurant. This was only the second time we've been inside a restaurant to sit and eat. The kids were well behaved most of the time. After about 40 minutes, they started to get restless and we had to leave, but not before Little Man spilled a container of Cheerios on the floor. We hope the people cleaning the restaurant aren't too upset about that.

Photos Added

3 + 4

After Triplets, Woman Delivers Quads.

Oh my!

Moo

After the one year appointment, we started the transition from formula to whole milk. It's gone smoothly. Blondie has to drink Pediasure once a day to help her increase her weight. It has a higher calorie content than whole milk. With all 3 drinking whole milk every day, we go through so much milk we're wondering if we should get a cow.

Cell Block 3

We've finally installed all the gates to keep the kids in certain areas and out of other areas. It was too much to handle trying to keep them corraled. It's like having a little prison. Little Man watched the father install one of the gates, and within minutes of the installation, he was at the gate trying to open it using the foot pedal that he had seen the father use. He's a crafty little thing.

Another Back Update

I'm happy to report that the herniations aren't severe enough to require surgery or bed rest. I'm starting physical therapy to help the situation.

1 Year Appointment Update

Here are the weights and lengths from the appointment -

Little Man - 18 lbs 13 oz, 28 1/2" long
Squeaky - 20 lbs 1 oz, 28 5/8" long
Blondie - 15 lbs 13 oz, 27 1/4" long

The worst part of the appointment was the immunizations. There were 4 and 1 was really painful. They still have sore legs today.

1 Year Appointment

Tomorrow is the one year appointment. More immunizations. A time to check on growth. A time to check on this virus that has all of us, including the parents, in it's grip.

Another Virus?

It seems that another virus of some kind is working it's way through the kids. Per kid, it seems to be about 48 hours of fussiness. They're wanting to sleep a lot during that time and eat very little. Are all kids this sick? It seems like ours get any type of illness going around.

Confusion Again

What happened when they turned 1? It seems like the things that made them happy, helped them eat, etc. have suddenly changed again. We're working on getting the new solutions.

Another Great Video - Outside Looking In

Here it is.

This one shows what it's like when you go out with multiples. Some curiosity is normal, but some people just go too far. We've always felt the stares and heard the comments, but this is an interesting view just to see how people really act. And yes, we've heard comments like the ones in the video.