A Long Winded Update

Very long winded. I have alot of people to update about. This post won't be all about babies this time. Not all about. but some. Ok, still alot. :)

Things are going... well, I guess I could lie. But I won't, they are going "as well as can be expected with triplets". It seems that everything lately, is not meeting up to what I thought it would be. There is this "Reality Stick" that keeps smacking me upside the head. And it hurts. And it's random. All the sudden, **smack** there it is. And did I mention that it hurts? Don't get me wrong, things are good, just different. Different than I thought it would be. Three babies, is, well, HARD. (See, there is that damn reality stick again) I figured, we've had 6 kids. How hard can 3 babies be? Um, yeah, really hard. But, on the other hand, I'm not so sure it's just the babies. Adding 2 toddlers into the mix does make things even harder. 2 toddlers that are bored stiff at home all the time, and have just had their entire world rocked 3 times over.

People ask me all the time if we have any help at home. I'm not totally sure how to answer that. Do they mean a husband? Or if the other kids help? Do they mean outside, hired help? Family? Friends? I kind of just say "well, kinda, but no, not really". I mean, we do, but not really. I'm not sure if that is a lie, the truth, an actuality or just an emotion. Aaron and I and the kids are pretty much on our own, for the most part, with the situation. We don't have a nanny, or family that comes in daily. Friends have been amazing and have come out of the wood work, literally, to bring meals. That has been so so helpful. I have a few friends, who, I honestly, don't know how we would have made it through these past 8 weeks without. Our friends call, regularly to check on us, to make sure that I am staying sane (where admittedly, there have been a few times that I have had to be talked down from a total meltdown) But, for the most part, I'm not sure why, most don't call. I'm not sure if they are afraid of us needing/asking/expecting too much of them so they stay away, or if it's because they think that I am too busy to talk, even if on the phone for a few minutes, or if our situation is also just too overwhelming for even them to deal with, I don't know. And I won't ask. But, it is nice, believe it or not, to be asked if we are ok. Yeah, we may lie, but it never hurts to know that people are thinking of us (even if it is to think that we are crazy). I don't want to make this a "poor me" post, but it does get lonely over here in triplet/toddler world. The older kids have school for an escape. Aaron has work. Me, the toddlers and the trio, we just have each other. And sometimes, we need others. Even if its just a small connection. Without strings. Without needing something of me, because, let's face it, I'm hopeless when it comes to favors right now. Please don't ask me to send an email, make a phone call or anything remotely related to anyone but my immediate family right now. My overwhelmed mommy brain cant take it. (Ask Aaron, the poor man has been witness to a temporary moment of complete and irrational insanity and thankfully, so far it has been just the one) So, just keep in mind, if your reading this, that it just takes a phone call. (not every single day, mind you, I don't need a babysitter, just a voice once in awhile that can hold a conversation and one that likes to hear and ask about the babies, yes, they are my favorite subject right now. Am I asking just too much? ) I mean, I'm not opposed to visitors either. Yes, I may be too busy to talk, it may be loud here, with 3 crying babies, (and heck, maybe even 2 crying toddlers) but I will know that you tried. I will feel human. I will feel like I have family that cares.
( And also let me clarify, that if you are a loyal blog follower, and I don't know you personally, I don't expect a phone call from you, I mean, you could I suppose if you really wanted to, but the post is more aimed at the people who feel it is written for...Just wanted to clear that up. A few comments had me thinking that maybe everyone now thinks I am now the Phone Call Nazi. lol. )

Now, onto the real reason for my post. (I warned you that it was long) My beautiful and amazing family.

Annie. She is being a very typical 3, almost 4 year old. She loves her new sisters immensely. But she's too, has had her life "rocked". She's realizing that sweetness does not get you things in life. Being assertive does. So we have seen some more assertive behaviors from her (notice, I am trying to refrain from saying aggressive) Not bad, necessarily, she's just not the calm, docile, sweet little thing that she was. Is it the babies arrival or her just becoming a little girl? Only time will tell. Her new favorite behavior is to throw herself, with great force mind you, onto the ground as she's frantically trying to tell us what is bothering her. And as you can imagine, we cannot understand a word of what she is trying to say, which makes the tantrum even worse because she is frustrated. Hence, goes the circle. If we can get her calm enough to understand her, she remembers why she was "fitting" and it starts again. Oh, the life of a 3.85 year old. If it weren't for these "fits" we would have the perfect 3 year old. But, everyone has something right?

Delilah. Where to start? She is so funny. So polite. Says thank you all the time. And cute? Oh my, is she cute. And she loves dogs. Still. Anything dog related gets her smiling. She, though, knows just how to get under Annie's skin. And she likes it. She thinks it's funny to watch her sister flail around on the ground like a fish. So, of course, she will do things to evoke this behavior. All I see while this is going on, is the trio learning some not so fun behaviors. Oh, Lilah will be the best of teachers. I cannot wait.

Juliette. Same ol' same ol'. Sports. Soccer. Basketball. Indoor soccer. You name it, Juliette does it. I do believe she's determined to bypass the stigma that her name suggests. She loves sports and is good at them. I think that she tries so hard to live up to whatever Joseph does. And of course, Aaron loves it. She also started playing in band this year. And she's good at that too. Her report grade? STRAIGHT A's! She even got invited to the the "Straight A Luncheon" at school . Were we proud OR WHAT!?!? She is beyond social. If she's not at a practice or game of some sort, she's hanging out with friends. And she is the best big sister. She is so helpful with the toddlers and the babies. That girl can handle these babies like no other 10 year old I've ever seen. Its awesome.

Noah. 12 years old. Already. Still sweet and kind. Not as social. He's the type that likes his few close friends, but it perfectly content to hang out at home and play video games. He is still playing in the band, although, he is starting to tire of it. I'm pretty sure he will do shop or something else next year, which is ok. He needs to try out new things. He really wants to do shop. His report card too, STRAIGHT A's. Ok, one B+ but that was in PE so I'm counting it as an A. :) He also, is playing soccer, he loves it, but I think he does it purely just to do an activity, he is for sure not as intense about it as his siblings.

Joseph. A sophomore in High School. I won't go too into his grades, let's just say they aren't straight A's but hey, it's high school, sophomore year, and we all remember that age right? Permit, drivers license, girls . He's doing fine, so we don't worry. He too, plays soccer. Loves it. Still. Since he was 4 years old. That boys been playing soccer for a really.long.time. He's an overall great kid, loves life, his family and his friends. He's happy. Not too much else to elaborate on. But OH! Wait, one huge thing! He started doing HIS OWN LAUNDRY! Yay! (Ok, not a huge deal in his life, but way huge in mine!)

Madeline. A Senior. Need I say more? I have a SENIOR in high school. Feel old much? I sure don't feel old enough to have an almost adult child. But I do. She will be graduating soon, and heading to college. Then Beauty School. She will be the best Beautician. She's so talented with hair. Already. I can't wait, free haircuts. But with that, comes the experiments for school. Who will be brave enough when that time comes?

As for the trio? They are good. Growing. Getting chubby little cheeks. According to my friend Miranda, Rosalie no longer looks like a naked mole rat,she now resembles a Pound Puppy. You gotta laugh at that one. Since it's true :)

We are still attempting breastfeeding, It's going very very good. All 3 girls can take a full feeding now so I tandem 2 and bottle one at each feeding and rotate. The only issue now is a cracked nipple. Ok, I say cracked, but really there is a tiny hole in my nipple and it hurts more than labor, I kid you not. So, right now, that boob is out of service until it heals. I still have to pump on that side, but no tiny little mouths allowed until it feels better. These babies have the suction power of a vacuum!

Rosalie, She is so so cute. And getting so big. She now weighs 6# 4.oz. She cries now. Alot more than before. But her cry is still so cute. Its a definite "Waaaa" cry. Like on TV. It's so hard to not smile when she cries.

Gwendolen. Remember the diva from my earlier post? Well, she still has a sense of that but not so much now. Her cry is still demanding but not as high pitched. I took all 3 girls to the chiropractor the other day, and he did some adjusting to her back where her gallbladder is. He said that the gallbladder has alot to do with heartburn and that might have been her problem. I'm not sure if it was or not, but she has gotten much much better. She still goes from 0 to 60 in 1 second flat but now she relaxes just a tad to see if we are coming with food or not. She is up to 6# 11oz. Almost the size of a real newborn baby!

Emilia. Sweet sweet Emilia. She is just now starting to cry. Just a little. One little waaa and she stops. Looks around, if she sees us, she's good. If not, another waaa. She's so funny. Her cry is so sad, it just makes you want to make her ok. Maybe she needs to tell Gwendolen that if she cried nicer, things would happen faster. She is up to 7#6.7oz. And she is solid. Built alot like Noah, looks alot like Noah and her temperament is alot like Noah. Funny how that is.

The babies all seem to be developing at their actual age. We were told that they might be a bit behind and to expect them to develop at their gestational age. Maybe, they are behind but just a tad, not noticeable. The Dr's say it will balance out completely by age 2. They are actually 8 weeks old. Gestationally, they are just 18 days. They are already tracking with their eyes. That is not something that an 18 day old baby does. They are all starting to hold up their heads.

Overall, they are perfect. More than perfect. They are our dream come true and it's so amazing to be their parents. They are such a gift, as are all of our babies. I'm not sure what we did to deserve such perfect kids, but whatever it was, I am thankful to God for them. Thankful every single minute of every single day.