This is why I am fat (and Happy New Year!)

I love the "happiness."

Happy New Year Coke. I can't drink you anymore in 2011! 

Where do I begin?

Wow. I don't even know where to begin.  I've wanted to post an update almost every night for two weeks. It's just that by the time I think of it or sit down in front of my computer, I'm too tired to think straight.

We spent an entire week where our whole family was sick. That pretty much sucked. I was most disappointed that we had to cancel the girls' therapy for an entire week. So by the time we start back up in January, the girls will have gone three weeks without therapy. I've still been working with them every day. They are really blossoming. Morgan and Sophia are repeating (or trying to repeat) everything we say. Even Rachel is saying a new word almost every day. It's really fun listening to them talk all day long.

We had a nice and busy Christmas. It was next to impossible to get any pictures of the girls all together. We put them in the cutest little Christmas dresses too. I'll post a few pictures once I get them uploaded off of my camera.

We've had some home ownership excitement/drama. Our oven/microwave unit broke last night. At least it stopped working after Christmas dinner. haha... It has been giving us issues for over a month now so I knew this was coming. The lights in the microwave have been flickering and the oven has been taking twice as long to cook food. Anyway, boring story short.... we had to buy a new one. I was beyond to shocked to see that these oven/microwave insert units are super expensive. We ended up paying $2,400 for the unit and installation. We bought a GE since the current one we had was a GE and it worked for 20 years! It's always something though.  At least we are still able to get the kitchen floor replaced next month as planned. This has been one expensive year! Yikes!

Oh and the new unit won't be installed until January 3rd or 4th. I've got to get by with no oven or microwave until then, which isn't going to be easy since I use both just about every single day. I might have to get a toaster oven since my kids like things in the "stick" variety. You know... fish sticks, french toast sticks......Oh how I wish I could get them to eat real people food!

Not much else going on. The days are busy and my house is almost always a mess, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.  I'll post some Christmas pics in the next couple of days!

The longest 16 weeks

I was going to title this post, "the longest 16 weeks ever." Then I decided to drop the "ever" because my pregnancy was the longest 35 weeks EVER.  It was also the longest 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and so on weeks EVER!

Okay, not that I've cleared that up............ I can move on to the good news!

I finished my semester at school. I know I took two classes and only completed one, but it was the hardest thing for me to just complete the ONE class. It seriously kicked my butt. I've been so stressed and so tired lately. I totally took on too much over the past few months. I'm glad to have this semester behind me. A small part of me would like to take another class next semester and continue taking one class each semester until I'm done. However, the logical part of me says that that would be a bad idea at this point. I'm simply stretched too thin with the girls' schedule right now to even consider it. I'll re-evaluate things and possibly take another class next Fall. For now, the girls' therapy and all the work that comes with it is first on my list of prioritiies!

Speaking of.... Our schedule is about to get even busier. We're going to have either a therapy session or a play gym class going on every single morning of the week, except Thursdays. We've added a food therapy session to our OT and speech each week. We've also started going to what they call "motor gym." It's basically a big play room for the girls to run around in and climb on structures and jump in a ball pit..... everything there is stimulating. They get to feel different textures from slimy to cold to whatever. Then we have circle time where they sing songs followed by a snack. This past week was our first time going and the girls loved it. I'm so proud of them and how well they are doing.

So Rachel's surgery has been scheduled for January 7th. The doctor didn't have any open times before that date since he only does surgery on Fridays. So much for him saying the 10th or 17th of this month. Oh well. I'm glad we get to wait until after Christmas.

Okay.. I can barely hold my eyes open. I finished the final exam for my class a little while ago and just HAD to come and say... I AM DONE! WOO HOO! (and I'm too tired to proof read this so if I rambled OH WELL!)

It's time for Rachel's surgery.....

We had Rachel's check up this morning for the growth on her ankle.  The pediatric surgeon has decided that it's best to remove it now. It kind of freaked me out that he made that decision so quickly, but the growth has doubled in size in the last two months. It's now growing kind of funky to the side too. It looks different than it did the first time before the last biopsy. Last time it would sometimes bleed, but this time it's kind of dry looking.

I wasn't surprised that he made this decision. I knew it was coming. I'm thankful that we don't have to wait another two months wondering when it will be. I'm supposed to hear from the scheduling clerk in the next couple of days. Dr. D said she would likely have the surgery either on the 10th or the 17th. I really wish we didn't have to go through this. I so sad that my baby has to have surgery where they are totally putting her under. It's an outpatient procedure so we don't have to stay overnight. I know she is in good hands, but it's hard not to worry. I just want to get us both through this.

I was so emotional today. The thought of Rachel going through this just breaks my heart. I'm so thankful for my girlfriends tonight. I just got home from a fun night out with three other triplet moms. I really needed them after a day like today!  I will update with more info after I find out when exactly the surgery will take place! Time for me to sleep!

The pudding post

These pictures were actually taken back in October. I've just been so busy that I forgot to post about our "adventures with pudding." During their therapy, the girls get to explore all sorts of textures and such. During one of our sessions, they played with pudding. It was so easy that I decided to do it again by myself.....during the girls' dinner. HAHAHAHA... What was I thinking? During their therapy, we had one adult per child and kept the mess under control. My bright idea of doing this alone....Well, you can see from the pictures why I won't be doing this again any time soon. These pictures don't even show half of the pudding damage. 

I gave each of the girls a couple of tablespoons of pudding and a spoon to play with. They are all learning how to get the food to their mouths using spoons and forks. Sophia and Morgan are a little better at this than Rachel is right now, but she's going to catch up soon. 

Here is Rachel. I was surprised she actually ate some of the pudding. 

Sophia getting nice and messy for me.

And Morgan chewing on the spoon. The girl loves to chew on anything. 

 My three little mess makers!

Since this was only their second time "playing" with pudding....OH MY GOSH did they make a mess. I was on my own with them and really didn't think it would be that big of a deal. They ended up getting it all over their hands. Then they touched their hair, their ears, their eyes, the tray, the chairs....... Then they all started clapping their hands. YES, clapping their hands which were COVERED in pudding. Pudding went flying all over the room. It was all over the floor, on the cabinets, and even on my dining area light fixture.  It was crazy. At first, I started crying because I was so overwhelmed like a big fat sissy! Then I just went into clean up mode. I ran straight up the stairs to start a bath for them. I stripped them down in the kitchen and cleaned them up the best I could before getting them all upstairs to the tub. 

By that time, I was laughing. I couldn't believe how messy it got! Once I got them all cleaned up, I plopped them in front of Elmo while I cleaned the kitchen. Lesson learned people!!!!

ANd since this picture was taken about 6 weeks ago.... they have gotten much better with a spoon. This activity was mostly just to explore texture. Needless to say, I haven't tried to do this one alone again!

Our little hoarder

If you're looking for Sophia, you can usually find her sitting in this chair surrounded by toys. We call her our little hoarder because she loves to pile clothes or toys with her in that chair. She's too funny. 

What a difference a day makes

It's funny to me that one day I will literally be crying my eyes out from being overwhelmed and stressed out, and the the next day, I'm happy as can be. What an emotional roller coaster this motherhood thing is.

I knew today would be better. I looked forward to today all day yesterday because I knew I'd have help. I sometimes jog with a friend in the morning. We take the girls in the triple jogger. So I jogged with her from 9-10am. When we got home, I had about 20 minutes until my sister came home to help me for the morning. I'm so lucky to have a sister that helps me so much. Just having an extra set of hands during lunch makes a huge difference around here.  She left when the girls went down for nap.

My mom came an hour after that and folded my laundry. See what happens when I call my mom crying? She comes over the next day and folds my laundry. I'm a lucky girl! When the girls woke up from nap, we took them to the mall. I needed to get out of the house. The girls did great. We walked around, bought some fun stacking cups at the Learning Express store, then had an early dinner in the food court. The girls had cheese quesadillas from Rubios. Mmmmm Rubios!

Oh how I love the days when I have help. On the days when I am alone for over 10 hours, I get so stressed out that I end up sweating the small stuff. I'm so thankful for today. I've got another 10 hour day on my own with the girls tomorrow, but at least I feel refreshed after having such a good day today!

Thanks mom and sis! You made a world of difference for me today! Love you!

Just another day......

Today was one of those days that I thought I wasn't going to make it.

 Every third Wednesday, my multiples group has a coffee chat/play date. I haven't been able to go lately because the girls have therapy Wednesday mornings. I really wanted to go today. The girls therapy isn't until 10:30 and the coffee chat starts at 9:30. I had the brilliant idea to go from 9:30-10am. I'd have plenty of time to get the girls home and ready for their 2 hours of therapy.

I should know better than to try and pull this off. My husband even looked at me like I was an insane person for even discussing the idea. I didn't listen.

I started getting us ready at 8:30. And by that, I mean getting them dressed, their hair brushed and pony tailed, and their shoes on and then trying to find a spare 5 minutes to put make up on and get dressed myself. You'd think this would only take a few minutes, but when I bring their clothes out they take them and run. Same with socks and shoes. Then usually when I'm done putting the third kid's shoes on, the first one already has them off.

You can see where this is going.

I needed to leave by 9:15. At about 9:20, I was putting Sophia's shoes on her. Well, I should really say...wrestling with Sophia to get her shoes on. She was fighting me every step of the way and ended up kicking me in the nose. That's what I get for trying to put her shoes on her when I'm sitting on the floor and she was on the couch. And to make it even more fun, I got a bloody nose. So I called my friend and told her that I wasn't going. She enticed with me with my favorite Starbucks drink and suddenly I was loading the girls into the van. Of course I had the wrong stroller in the van so I had to change that out as well.

I got there at about 9:45, which meant I had about 15 minutes to stay and chat. It felt like 5 minutes and I was leaving. Oh well.... better luck next time right?  Nope!... I learned my lesson. No trying to be supermom on a day the girls have therapy.

As I was getting the girls out of the van in the garage, Sophia decided it would be a good time to touch the dirty/black dusty tire rims. She got it all over her cute tan pants and pink shirt and her hands. At this point, I had about 10 minutes to have the girls ready and relaxed for their 2 hour therapy session. I almost pulled it off. I had Rachel and Morgan ready, and Sophia was in just a diaper when Amy and Trish (our OT's) arrived. I had even gotten Sophia's clothes in the wash machine just didn't get new ones on her yet.

 I have to admit I was crying when Amy and Trish showed up. It was...woe is me, this is so hard, my husband has been working 6 days a week, I'm exhausted, I need more help, I don't know how I'm doing this tears! It was just a day when I was so overwhelmed with everything.

Therapy went really good. We read books, we drew with chalk, played with the parachute, the activity balls and tunnel. The girls are so cute because they get so excited. The only part I am uncomfortable with is that Amy is keeping an eye on Rachel and watching her for signs of autism. Today was the second time she mentioned that some of the things Rachel does is similar to what autistic children do. She's 98% sure Rachel just has some sensory type issues and not autism. She just wants to be 100% sure. It's just once in a while, Rachel goes off into la la land and doesn't participate. She also doesn't warm up to the equipment and activities that we do in therapy. I know the possibility of Rachel being autistic is very slim to none, but it's still hard for me to hear what I am hearing. I'm focusing on the fact that she has shown amazing improvement in the past month or so.

They ended up taking a pretty good nap. I took a little cat nap myself. I was determined to have a better rest of the day. It's crazy how the morning sets the tone for the day. We had an "off" morning, which lead to a pretty fussy afternoon. As soon as the girls woke up, they started fighting over books, toys...you name it. They always want the same thing at the same time. Doesn't matter if I have three of something! So I turned to my trusty red monster friend, Elmo.

Then my mom called.... and the tears started flowing again as I told her about how stressed I was. Bet she LOVED that phone call!

When Elmo was over, I decided that Starbucks would make everything better. I loaded the girls up and we headed out. As we were driving, Sophia started to say, "light....light." When I got to a red light, I turned around to look at her and see what she was pointing at. She was pointing at the sun and squinting her eyes....saying "light light light." Only it sounds more like "ly-yeet" So precious pointing at the sun and saying that. She totally warmed my heart and made everything better............ until dinner time, but that's a whole other entry.

I think the reason I was so emotional today was because I've just been on my own with the girls so much lately and I need to get a little break. I'm behind in school, behind on housework..... and just can't seem to get my act together.  Bob has been working way too much. The game he is creating for Facebook is really starting to wear me down. 6 days a week mostly alone with the girls is just difficult and this has been going on for months now. He's almost done so I know things will get better soon. It's just getting there that is the hard part.

I've rambled on way too long.... Time to get some sleep. Here's to a better tomorrow!

Halloween 2010

Yes, I know Halloween was two weeks ago. But here goes anyway.........

I had the best idea for Halloween this year. (okay, it wasn't my idea....I think every triplet mom I know has done this.) I was going to dress the girls up as the three little pigs. I bought the CUTEST costumes from another triplet mom I know online. I was even planning on decorating the choo choo wagon as a house made of straw, a house made of sticks, and of course one of brick. Bob was going to be the big bad wolf. It was supposed to be really cool. 

As you can see, it didn't work out. Here are my excuses! 

1. Bob was camping the weekend of the Halloween party (hosted by my multiples club) that we were going to go to. My mom was sick and I would have had to take them alone. At 5pm. (that's their dinner time!) So I didn't go....

2. Morgan wouldn't keep that piggy hat on anyway. 

3. Our friend's daughter got married the weekend that they normally host the coolest Halloween party in the history of Halloween parties. So their party was a wedding. Except we had to wear nice clothes instead of costumes. It was a fabulous wedding by the way. 

4. On Halloween, I had planned to take them to the church carnival. However, my mom was leaving the very next day for a week in Texas to visit my step-siblings so she couldn't go with me. (Bob would rather chew on his hand than take 3 almost two year olds anywhere.) Then I found out they were having a helicopter drop candy for all the kids. Mine would have been screaming holy terror from the noise of a helicopter and we would have had meltdowns times three! And no, I didn't take them trick or treating in our neighborhood either. I just didn't see the point in trying to take 3 toddlers out who can't say trick or treat or eat the candy. We'll go next year for sure. 

So now that my excuses are out there... Here is as far as we got with putting their costumes on.

Here's silly Sophia

Rachel was the only one who would leave the piggy hat on for longer than 30 seconds. She actually wore it for over 30 minutes.

Here's Morgan. As you probably can guess, that hand was pulling the hat off. I was lucky to get this picture when I did. 

I've decided that since I spent the money on the costumes, I'll just save them for next year. The piggy suits are pretty big anyway and I can always add length to them if I need to. (Okay I don't sew, but my mom can, so I guess I should say she will add to them.) (Note to my mom: You know you want to. Oh and thanks in advance. hehehe)

 So yeah, look for the three little piggies making their appearance in 2011!

And just for fun.... Here they are last year on Halloween. I can't believe how much they have grown. 

Time sure flies!

No wonder I drink wine at night....

Okay, so I don't drink wine every night. But let me tell you, there are days when I absolutely do open a bottle!

Over the past month or so, Bob and I noticed that Rachel seems to soak her diaper up about two times faster than Sophia and Morgan. She also drinks more juice and milk than they do. It's not unusual for her to finish her sippy of juice and then go looking to steal one of her sister's. She will often finish theirs once they've put it down for a moment. 

I didn't really think anything of this until a friend of mine was talking about the symptoms of type 1 diabetes because her daughter has it. Frequent urination and thirst were just a couple of the symptoms that caught my attention. Bob's brother has diabetes and was diagnosed when he was 3 years old. So knowing that it's in our family and then learning some of the early signs, we decided to have Rachel screened for it. Her pediatrician agreed, but also wasn't very worried about it since children with diabetes tend to have a big appetite, and we all know Rachel does not! 

So yesterday was the day for the test. It was supposed to be a simple urine test. It turned out to be anything but simple. Imagine collecting a urine sample from an active toddler still in diapers! They have these toddler urine collection bags that stick onto them under their diaper. It's supposed to catch all the pee pee!

I decided that since my sister was coming over to help me yesterday morning, I'd go ahead and attach a bag to Rachel and take it in while my sister watched the girls. That plan failed because when I went to remove the bag, it had leaked out all over her diaper. I decided to put another bag on her and then load everyone up in the van while giving them juice sippy cups to drink. I figured Rachel would pee again by the time we got to the lab. My plan was to have my sister sit in the van with the girls while I ran the um, sample, inside. I didn't want to just take Rachel alone with me because I didn't want to have to deal with strollers or carrying them and such.

Rachel downed about 10 ounces of juice by the time we took the ten minute drive to the lab, but she still hadn't gone pee. I decided to make a Starbucks run while we waited, so off we went. At least another 20 minutes went by.......and Rachel was still dry. I picked up more juice while I was at Starbucks, so the girls were drinking a lot. Sophia and Morgan both needed their diapers changed....but not Rachel! We sat around in the parking lot at the lab just waiting, and waiting.....and waiting. 11:30 starts to roll around and the girls were getting hungry. I didn't plan the morning well at all. I thought we'd for sure be home in time for lunch. I didn't have any food for the girls other than some bunny graham crackers. So off we went to the nearest drive thru and picked up some very healthy nuggets and fries. Oh and milk. At least milk is healthy! Rachel only ate the crackers. I felt bad, but she loves those crackers and was a happy camper.

I can't say the same for me. I tend to get all freaked out when we are off schedule, and we were certainly off schedule. I was winging it for sure. I couldn't believe that it had turned into such an ordeal just to get a urine sample. Rachel simply would not pee!

I knew the lab closed at 1pm for lunch. By about 12:15, I got into desperate mode. We had made it so far, and I wasn't about to give up. I was out of juice and almost out of my sanity.......We took one last little trip to a grocery store to get some more to drink and to pick up some "Rachel approved" food. It was all pretty much pointless though. We got back over to the lab about 10 minutes before 1pm and Rachel still was dry as can be. She probably drank over 18 ounces of juice and water too. I decided to just give up. I went into the lab and picked up a couple more urine bags so that I could keep trying.  I figured that if I actually got anything that day, I'd just run it back over to the lab after the girls' nap. They were all in serious meltdown mode anyway since they are usually in bed by 12:30 every afternoon. It was so frustrating.

Wouldn't you know that Rachel peed on the way home, but most of that leaked out too! UGH! I ended up putting yet another bag on her  (this time attached it WAY too far up her poor little behind) and sending her to bed like that. I was determined for it not to leak. When she woke up from nap, I finally got a good enough sample to take in. I learned a good lesson. Only put one of these things on an active toddler when they are going to be SLEEPING! My sister had gone home when the girls went down for nap, so I was on my own getting this sample back to the lab.

It was just one of those crazy days where I felt so stressed out just trying to get this done. When you add three toddlers to the mix, it's never simple! At least the lab techs got a good laugh at/with me. I came in pushing this giant stroller, three toddlers, and holding a bag of pee! The girls looked like hot little messes too. I was in such a hurry to get out of the house that I didn't bother to brush their bed head hair and none of them had shoes. We looked a little bit ghetto. lol.....

It was all worth it. About an hour after we got back home, I got an email from Rachel's doctor. The test for diabetes came back negative! She's as healthy as can be! I'm glad we went through the trouble of getting her tested though. Now I can breathe a little easier and I don't have to worry about why she soaks her diapers so quickly. I think she drinks a lot because the girl doesn't like food!

So yeah..... It was a definitely a wine day!

Letting go....

Almost 3 years ago, I received an email one morning from a long time friend. K was my best friend from the age of about 14 on.

When I read the email, I was in shock. She said we had grown apart and that she thought we should part ways as friends. 

I had known that things weren't the same with us anymore. We were both newlyweds and starting new chapters of our lives. I knew something was off, but just figured that because our lives were changing, we'd get through whatever rocky time it was. She was like a sister to me. I truly considered her family. Even if we did grow apart, the thought of not being in each other's lives never crossed my mind.  

I thought it would be temporary. Maybe she'd change her mind and I'd hear from her. News of my triplet pregnancy even went her way, but I still heard nothing. A couple of months after the girls were born, I tried to reconnect. I got no response. I've tried to connect with her several times over the past couple of years, but again, no response. 

It's been really difficult for me to let go. Wondering why K did this has made me doubt myself and doubt the kind of friend I am. It's actually killed some of the confidence I once had. It made me question if the friendship I had with her was even real. It has made me weary about building new friendships. It's crazy how much I have let this affect who I am over the past few years.

I'm finally at the point of being tired of feeling this way. Why have I let this affect me so much? Why have I given this one person control like this? I miss her, but it's just not worth it to me anymore.

It's time to move on. Starting right now.

Parking Lot Pumpkin Patch

The girls had their first trip to the pumpkin patch today. Well, okay not a "real" pumpkin patch. It was more like an unpaved parking lot with pumpkins in it. There are a couple of really great (or so I hear) pumpkin farms both within about 45-60 minutes from us, but since the girls wouldn't know the difference right now, I decided to save that trip for next year. They ended up having a blast. My mom and niece came with me, so we were able to let the girls out of their choo choo wagon to play. They ran around all over the place and had so much fun. 

Here are a few pics from our afternoon.........

Sophia and Morgan

Sophia

Sophia, Tiana, and Morgan

Silly Morgan thinking she could lift that big pumpkin!

Morgan

Rachel

Rachel ran almost the whole time!

Sophia is reaching for a pumpkin. Too cute!

I was so happy that we stayed so close to home. The girls were just so excited to run around outside and to see all the pumpkins, they wouldn't have cared if we were at a fancy farm or not. They lasted about 20 minutes before the cold wind picked up and it was time to go. I absolutely adored watching them light up while they were exploring. We brought three little pumpkins home with us. One for each of them. But then of course, Sophia thought they were all for her! Silly girl!

Overall, totally fun afternoon. I think we're going to have a really fun holiday season!

So much going on..

There has been so much going on lately that I don't even know where to begin. First, I wanted to show off my cuties. Let's see....... The girls started therapy, we got two bathrooms upstairs tiled, I just got back from another mothers of multiples convention weekend, we sold the girls' high chairs and moved them to booster seats..... Um.. The list could go on and on. So that's my explanation of why I haven't had much time to blog lately.

So......

The girls ended up qualifying for LOTS of therapy. To sum it up, they are all getting occupational therapy for their fine motor skills and to learn things like, eating with a fork and spoon, brushing their teeth, washing their face etc. They are also all getting speech therapy. Then on top of all of that, a speech therapist who specializes in food issues for babies who were preemies is coming in to help all three of them eat better. Rachel needs the most help, but Morgan and Sophia need help too. They have been eating the same foods for months and will not eat anything new. Morgan and Rachel are going to get some physical therapy as well. Morgan is pigeon toed and Rachel is still a very choppy walker. Right now, we have two therapy sessions a week with two therapists here at the same time. Next week, we will have three sessions because it will be our first with the physical therapist. We've been doing the occupational and speech therapy for two weeks now. It's taking a bit longer for the food and physical therapists to get here because our case has to be approved and budgeted for, which won't be a problem, it's just going to take up to 30 days. 

I have to admit that I was surprised that the girls need so much. Yes, I knew we were behind. I just didn't realize how far. They scored very low in speech and communication. Rachel's receptive language was "masters 3-6 month skills" and showing signs of 9-18 month skills. Sophia and Morgan were just a bit higher in that they "master 9-12 month skills" with signs of emerging 12-18 month skills. In most other areas of speech, they scored in the 12 month range. I thought that because I made it to 35 weeks in my pregnancy, we wouldn't have any issues with development. However, the therapists keep reminding me that even though I made it quite far, Rachel was only 3 pounds at birth and Sophia and Morgan were not much bigger at 4 and 5 pounds. They were a lot smaller than most babies born at 35 weeks. Even multiples. 

It's been difficult for me to see or hear about other toddlers the girls' age. I'm human and compare my kids to other kids constantly. I worry that we'll never fully catch up and wonder why my girls don't do "such and such" like other kids do. The hardest part is hearing what good eaters other kids are, or that they are pointing to their belly button or whatever, or GASP... peeing on the potty already. I've literally had to tell myself to STOP IT!!! The fact of the matter is that all kids are different. My girls are likely doing things that other kids aren't doing. I think it's just human nature to be envious or to make comparisons. I just can't let myself get upset over it. I have to focus on the positives! I've been doing the best I can with my cuties, and I'm just happy that we're getting help now. After just two weeks, I've already noticed progress! 

So much more to talk about it, but like usual.....I've run out of time! Will try and post more often!

When Mommy's away....

Bob posted this picture on his Facebook page last weekend. I was working all day at the clothing and equipment sale for my multiples group, so he was on triple toddler duty. This pic cracks me up. The room is a mess, Rachel doesn't have any pants, they are still in their jammies, and Morgan's hair is in desperate need of a brush and a pony tail. You can see Sophia's legs in the background. Oh well, at least they were all alive when I came home! 

I'm a drop out again....

Five months ago when I signed up for two classes at school, I was in a place where I thought I could do it all. My days seemed calmer back then. During their naps, I would eat lunch, read, play on the internet, prepare something for dinner or whatever. I just wasn't as stressed as I am now.

Now at 20 months old, the girls are exhausting me again. It's a very exciting and fun stage that they are in, it's just a challenge for me every day. By 12:30pm when it's time for nap, I'm completely wiped out. I usually end up eating something for lunch and then taking a nap. If I don't take a nap, I pass out and die. The end.  hahahaha....

Back in May, I thought I'd have the time and energy to do school work during nap time or at night... or on weekends. Turns out...It's just more than I can handle right now.

The solution? I'm halfway through this semester. My Human Development class isn't difficult at all. I'd actually call that class easy. I'm going to finish it for sure. However, my Anthropology class is kicking my butt and leaving me with bruises and a bad taste in my mouth. I bombed the first test with an awesome 65% . Let's face it. I don't have ten hours a week to read 60 pages and memorize things that I don't even agree with. Seriously, the book is telling me I came from monkeys! No joke! So I dropped that class. And I'm out...word to yo mutha.

So that's not all. After the girls went to bed tonight and I sat down and worked on the Hum. Dev. class for an hour, I decided I'm not going to school next semester. This wasn't the right time to try and finish. I'm not in a rush to go back to work at all, so why am I kicking my own butt trying to do this now?! There just simply isn't a reason for me to stress myself out over this. Bob and I have never planned on me going back to work until the girls are well into elementary school or possibly later anyway. There's plenty of time for me to finish later.

I'm a little sad that I couldn't just stick this out, but my girls come first! They don't need a mommy who is always tired, busy, and stressed! So until the girls are 4 or 5 years old, I'm just a student of the mommyhood. Not the collegehood! And I'm okay with that!

Rachel update

We had the follow up appointment with Rachel's pediatric surgeon today. He confirmed what I thought. The tumor is growing back. Not only is it growing back, it is also not healing normally from when it was cut off and biopsied by the dermatologist. Dr. D now agrees that it is a "Spitz Nevus" and that we do need to go in and do a more invasive procedure to remove it 110%. The thing about these growths is that if they are not fully removed, they grow back. When they do grow back, they can be harder to biopsy. They can show possible malignant behavior without truly being malignant. Because of this, it can sometimes lead to treatments that are questionable. We don't want to get to that point.

It's confusing. Right now, the plan is to see Dr. D again on December 1st and plan the surgery for sometime between Dec-Feb depending on how the growth is doing. Dr. D wants it to heal just a bit more before he does anything. If he were to remove it all right now after just having done the original biopsy a month ago, the tissues will be too irritated to be able to biopsy the current growth. It's hard for me to explain. I really trust Dr. D's opinion and knowledge on this. He's operated on these types of growths numerous times and knows what he's doing. I really do feel at ease with him.

So that's where we are. I have had a pit in my stomach all day thinking about the day she will have to do the surgery. I'm really not comfortable with the fact that she has to be put under anesthesia. At least she is up to 24 pounds and 1 ounce! That's really good for her!

It's going to be an outpatient surgery. I can be with her when she is waking up. I'm going to need a lot of prayers and comfort while they have her in surgery. Just thinking about it now makes me feel so uneasy. The only thing that made me chuckle was that Dr. D told me how they start to administer the meds to put her to sleep. She will have to drink some tylenol that has sedatives in it. All I can say is good luck getting her to drink that. It's not going to be a fun day at all. I'm going to try to just put this at the back of my mind for now. We're just going to have to wait until her follow up appointment in 2 months and see when she will be scheduled. So surgery is definitely needed, it's just a matter of when. Ugh!

Life is never boring!

Welcome to our day. The girls are just a few days shy of 20 months old. I simply cannot believe that in just four short little months, we'll be celebrating their second birthday! They have grown so much. It's unbelievable. In the Spring, I was going through their clothes and put some size 18 month stuff away to use this Fall. I was just SURE they wouldn't be in a bigger size even though they would be older than 18 months. The girls have always just seemed small to me. Imagine my shock when I pulled these clothes out and realized there was no way any of them would fit. Not even Rachel! The girls are so tall now! I cannot believe I've been buying clothes in the 24 month and 2T sizes. 

Anyway... Just wanted to share some cute pics of the girls that I snapped a few days ago. Here are Rachel and Sophia fighting over their new laugh and learn chair. My dad picked this up at a yard sale and gave it to the girls. They LOVE it and fight over it all day. It's too funny.

Morgan offering me some juice from her sippy.

 Our happy little Rachel

Sophia playin with the pig and cow puppets and making a silly face

I tried to get a pic of all three looking at me. They were out of "position" as soon as I backed up to try and take the picture. *sigh*

I know I write about our hard days more often than not. I tend to use this blog as an outlet for me as well as a journal about the girls. I like to keep it real and write about the raw truth and not just the peaches and creme part. The truth is, there are days when I want to pull all of my hair out and run away. That's real life.

The truth is, whenever I am away from my girls for just a few hours, I miss them like crazy. I love seeing their smiling little faces. I love it when I lay down on the couch, they all climb on me and we snuggle up and watch one of their shows together. I love it when I open the door when they wake up in the morning or after nap and they start running back and forth in their cribs with excitement and hold their arms up for me. Even though this is the hardest job I've ever had, I wouldn't trade it for the world. My girls ARE my world!

How do you think high chair boot camp is going?

Yeah.... It's not going so well. We really did give it our "all" for quite some time. This pic shows an excessive amount of food on the floor. We had a rough day today. lol... They did learn a little from the boot camp. Usually, they only toss about a quarter of what you see here.

They know not to throw food. Sometimes it's a lot. Sometimes it's a little. Once in a while, it's none at all. It depends on whether I'm trying to get them to taste a new food or not. Either way, we just stopped taking them out of their chairs. We're almost done with the initial evaluations for the therapy that they're going to receive. So far, I love the therapists we have met. All three of them are such a good fit for our family. They know about the issues we've had getting the girls to eat and how picky they are, and they are excited to help us. I'm going to hang on until we can get some advice that applies to where my girls are with their development. I think we'll be more successful that way!

Stay tuned.... One of these days, I'm going to post a pic of clean NEW tile floor!

I smell like curry and other stuff

I really do smell like curry.

I just returned from a fabulous girls night out with some of my friends. We sat in an Indian restaurant for over 2 hours. I really should change my clothes. I can still smell my dinner. Maybe it's my breath haha. Oh well. I had such a great time, it's worth it to reek of curry.

So much has been going on over the past week. I don't know where to begin. 

I just realized I never did an "18 month update" about the girls' recent well baby (or um technically well toddler) appointment. For every check up, I fill out a questionnaire for each one of the girls regarding their development. There's always a list of questions like, "Does your child stack at least 3 blocks," and "Does your child say more than 5 words?" You know, developmental questions. For the first time at one of these check ups, I had to answer "no" to a lot of the questions. I've been around other little ones their age, so I knew we were a little behind. I was so happy when their pediatrician decided to refer us to the county development program to be evaluated in ALL aspects of development. I've been trying to get the girls into this program for months, but I was told that because our insurance covered certain therapies, they couldn't see the girls without a referral. Well, we GOT the referral! 

So last week,we had a couple of days of evaluations on the girls (just two hours in the mornings). The therapists came to our house, which was awesome. I can't imagine trying to get them all somewhere for something like this without meltdowns. The speech evaluation was cancelled because the therapist was sick, so we'll be rescheduling that one. 

The first day was pretty rough for me. I had to watch my sweet little girls pretty much fail most of the tests the therapist did. The tests were pretty simple. For example, she had three coffee cups and hid a ball underneath one of them. They were supposed to lift the cup and find the ball. Rachel grabbed two cups and ran off into the corner and banged them together. Morgan picked up a cup and tried to eat it, and Sophia copied Rachel and took two cups and banged them together. Another task was to put these round pegs into a hole. Rachel took the peg and ran off. Morgan kept handing the peg to Amy, our therapist, in her "you do it" motion. Sophia just took the peg and banged it against the piece of wood that the holes were cut in. They did pass some of the tests, like being able to get into a toddler chair and sit down. Sophia almost scribbled with a pencil. I thought they didn't pass most of the tests because I haven't shown them how to do these things before. However, Amy told me that these are all tasks that a 19 month should be able to pick up and do after being shown once. There were other skills tested that I'm not going to list. The girls scored so much lower than I thought they would. 

I thought we were only 3-4 months behind. Turns out it's much more than that. For fine motor skills, Rachel is at a 10 month old level and Sophia and Morgan are at an 11 month old level. They scored around 15 and 17 months in other areas, but I can't remember what the name of those areas are. I didn't write anything down and I was too busy trying to hold back tears because I felt like I've failed my children by not teaching them more. I'm over that now though. I know this isn't my fault. I know that it's very common for multiples to need therapy in certain areas. Besides, the fact that we are so far behind gets us 100 percent approved for the therapy. I'm so thankful that this is finally happening for us. I've known we've needed some help for quite some time. I feel incredibly blessed to know that we're going to have so much support. I have several friends who have gone through this program and give it rave reviews. I'm so thankful that we're in the process of getting started. I just feel at peace now knowing that the girls are in such good hands. I know we'll catch up soon. 

Other than all the development stuff this week, I've still been trying to find the right contractor for the right price to do the work in our bathrooms and kitchen. One of our friends who does tile is hopefully coming soon to put a bid in. I had one contractor come on Thursday last week. He took a bunch of measurements, but hasn't gotten back to me on the price yet. I just want to get this work done. Shopping for someone to do it has not been fun at all. 

School has also been keeping me on my toes. I am kicking myself for taking two classes while trying to take care of the girls too. I didn't realize that even though I don't work full time outside the home, I still work full time (you know....running my own day care! haha).  So this has been like working full time and going to school!  My Anthropology class is kicking my butt. It's boring to me so I really have no interest. I have a test next week and I'm totally freaked out over it. I spent almost 5 hours at the library today studying, which I must say........was pretty awesome. I got to sit in a quiet room for hours! Today was my first time going to our local library and I absolutely loved it!  I did feel super old though. They have several "quiet study rooms" that are separated with glass windows. I can honestly say I was the only one over 30 who was using one of the rooms to study. I think everyone else was 19 haha! Oh well. When I was 19, I was the worst student ever. Sometimes I get frustrated that I didn't go to college when I was younger, but that was no one's fault but my own. I'm proud of myself for going back now! Anyway, I think I'm going to enjoy my Saturdays at the library. I spend the entire other 6 days a week with the girls. It's not going to hurt them if Mommy goes to the library for 5 hours on the weekends! 

With all that said.....wow, it's getting late. Time to get some much needed sleep. Oh and I must admit that I had to stop and take a shower before finishing this entry because.....even my hair smelled funky! Who can sleep if they stink? I can't!

Our Sweet New Ride

We did it. We bought a Chevy Tahoe. At first, I thought the inside wasn't much bigger than the cargo space of our van. But then I realized that the whole reason we wanted an SUV was so that we could have other passengers with us from time to time. We're not expecting to go anywhere too far for at least another year, so this didn't need to be big enough to fit either of our triple strollers. Our girls will be out of the stroller stage when that time rolls around. It will fit 3 umbrella strollers just fine if we really must use strollers. (The triple stroller would fit if we removed the back row of seats too.)

I usually do NOT like driving bigger vehicles. I used to run over curbs and such when I would drive Bob's old Dodge truck. (I can't tell you how many times I almost backed into things!) This Tahoe handles so much better than that truck did though. I drove it around a lot this afternoon when I went to the other side of town to buy some climbing structures off of Craigslist for the girls. I totally fell in love with this SUV. In fact, I secretly want this to be MINE! However, I will still happily drive my minivan. I am much more comfortable driving a smaller vehicle anyway. 

We already have one extra carseat that I got from a friend. We're not sure if we'll get two more or just switch out the carseats when we want to take the Tahoe somewhere. The Tahoe is really meant for Bob right now. He's going to enjoy it during his upcoming camping trip. I'm glad he was able to get what he wanted. He's been talking about this since May!

I can't believe how excited I am over this purchase! I will really miss our old car. It was meant to be our family car, but having triplets certainly changed that plan! I'm glad that both of our vehicles are now perfect for our family! Plus, this is just one sweet ride!

Busy isn't busy enough....apparently.

I thought I was busy before I started school. Now the word busy means that I can't see straight. It's all doable though. My class deadlines are on Sunday and Monday nights, which is great for me because I've been doing most of the reading during the week. Then I do the assignments, discussion boards, and everything else that is due on the weekends when Bob is home.

Bob's been working a lot too. On top of his full time job, he's also working hard on a video game he's creating with a partner.  Get ready Facebook, you're about to get a whole new game. Well, in about two more months. Since it's hard to get any work done at home, he's rented a small office space a few minutes from our house to get work done during his spare time. It's an investment for sure, but the game could eventually be the start of something that could be big for our family. I'm super proud of him. 

So he's trying to get extra work done and I'm trying to find quiet time for school work. I'm going to go the library every weekend for about 4 hours.....at least that is the plan. I'm keeping up okay. I just may lose my "A" status on my transcript, which is fine with me if I can just finish the classes! 

Is that all? Nope! We're also getting ready to finish our kitchen makeover that we started last June. I've had a couple of quotes to replace the floor in the kitchen and our three bathrooms. I am so over the carpet in our bathrooms. The carpet in the girls' bathroom has been both pooped and pee'd on. (By the girls of course.......Aren't you glad I shared that info?) When we start potting training, we simply cannot have carpet in our bathrooms. Plus, carpet in bathrooms is icky. So yeah, in the next couple of weeks, our current floors are going to be ripped out and new ones installed. It's gonna get messy!

If that's not enough..... We're also planning on buying a "new to us" SUV. Our teeny minivan just isn't cutting it and Bob doesn't want to drive his car anymore. We want both of our vehicles to fit the whole family. The minivan only fits us. We'd like the SUV to be big enough that we can fit the whole family plus a couple of other passengers. We're planning trips to the zoo, future vacations, and other outings where we'd like to have someone come with us to help with the girls. It's just not possible with either vehicle right now. I'm so tired of buying vehicles though. Bob and I were laughing tonight. We've been together for a little over 5 years and this will be the 4th vehicle we will buy together. We're not picky, our circumstances just keep changing. Also, one of the cars we bought right before we got married was a crappy VW Passat that broke down all time even though it was less than 3 years old! So yeah, this weekend we will start our search for the perfect family SUV so we don't have to buy any more cars for several years!

Even though we're super busy, it's totally worth it. I don't love that I've chosen now as the time to continue school, but now just makes sense. Unless Bob's video game makes us some big bucks and leads him to other projects, I'll be going back to work some day. So it just feels right to finish what I started years ago. 

High Chair Boot Camp

Because yeah… boot camp is hard….. or so I hear. Really, I'm told it sucks, um grass minus the g and the r. (See? I'm doing really well with this not cussing thing.)

As I complain about constantly, the girls throw so much food on the floor at meal times. I think it's just become a habit. They even throw food they like, just to watch it fall to the floor. Especially Sophia! She likes to make sure I'm watching before tossing her cheerios or whatever she is eating. Then she laughs at me when I tell her not to do it. It's awesome! Morgan likes to pretend she's going to take a bite and then she tosses it over her shoulder and doesn't look back. She's even got this arm thing going on where her head will be facing toward me and I see her little arm just fly up into the air to the side…. then there goes her cracker, or egg, or whatever she doesn't want. She does it with such grace and style too! She's going to be a dancer for sure!

Then there is Rachel. She pretty much only throws food she isn't going to eat. If it's something she likes, it usually stays on her tray until it enters her mouth. However, we all know she is the picky eater anyway. Did you hear she's also a food therapy drop out? That's right! She refuses to go. Haha… okay kidding, I have decided to ditch her therapist. Frankly, I don't like the woman and she's completely not understanding of the fact that I have more than one toddler to feed. I'm not convinced anymore that Rachel has issues that I can't fix myself. I think she's just picky.

Okay, so back to my point. The food war continues. They're still winning, but I think I'm gaining some ground. This past Saturday, Bob and I implemented "High chair bootcamp."

Dum, da, da, daaaaaaaa.............

What is high char bootcamp? Well, it's a made up name for us to get the girls to stop throwing their food. My friend, and fellow triplet mom, has been coaching me on what to do. If one of the girls throws any piece of food off of their tray, we take them out of the high chair and put them in the "pack in play" play pen on time out for one minute. We tell them they are on time out because they threw their food on the floor. After their minute is up, we put them back in their high chair and we say we're going to try again. We say, "eat your food, do not throw it on the floor." (Cheerfully, of couse.) If they throw something on the floor again, we take them back out of their chair. Yeah….it's made for some very long meals around here, but they are starting to get the point.

We started on Saturday morning, and much to my surprise, not one of them threw food during breakfast. It was a first. I started to wonder if they heard us talking about our master plan the day before. hahahaha….. At dinner time that night, Sophia was taken out of her chair 3 times. When put back in her chair after her third time out, she didn't throw a single thing for the rest of the meal. We've also given them less pieces of food to lower the temptation and break the habit. Morgan has been put on time out a few times too. We decided that we're not doing this with Rachel yet. She's still not eating many finger foods anyway so she really doesn't throw that much at all. We'll work on her later if it is a problem. Anyway, today was the third day and I'm happy to say that our floor is much cleaner. They still forget and toss some over the side, but then I can tell they know they've done it! They look at me like… "Okay mom, take me out of my chair." Sophia has also caught herself pre-throw and then stopped herself from doing it. She's utilizing the cup holder in the tray now. If she doesn't want something, instead of tossing it over the side of the tray and onto the floor, she's just putting it in the cup holder area. It's fine with me! Less for me to sweep and she's really learning her lesson.

I'm not expecting things to be perfect, but WOW…what a difference a few days makes. We're going to keep doing this until we can sit down and eat like civilized toddlers. (Do civilized toddlers really exist? HA) Seriously though. I've been avoiding play dates recently because the girls' food throwing had gotten so out of control. I just didn't have the energy to deal with it. Now that we've started boot camp, there's no turning back now! We're going to see this through!

My next goal is to get rid of the high chairs and put them at the table using their booster seats. I'm not going to do that until the food throwing stops! Hopefully, it stops soon. I want my kitchen space back!

We're on our way for sure!

Who's bright idea was this?

I just finished week one of school. I have fifteen more weeks to go. It's going to be just a bit more work than I thought it was. I don't know why I got the bright idea to take two classes while taking care of (gasp) 19 month old triplets. (Can you believe the girls will be 19 months old in jus a couple of days?!)

I'm determined though. Well that, and I spent over $500 paying for the classes and the books so I am going to finish these classes no matter what! Too bad I didn't feel that way when my mom was paying for school back when I was 18. Sorry Mommy!

I've been studying or doing homework almost every single night since the first week started. My original plan was to do the school work during nap time, but that quickly fizzled out. I'm too busy doing laundry, washing dishes, eating lunch, folding clothes, or even trying to sneak in a shower while they sleep. I just can't focus during the day. This night time studying thing is really going to cut into my Fall tv line up. HA! Good thing Dancing with the Stars has a terrible cast this season.

As challenging as it may be to do this, I'm happy that I'm doing it!

Hopefully, I'll still be able to say that ten weeks from now when I'm burnt out.

The results are in

I'm happy to report that Rachel's biopsy was BENIGN. I'm so relieved.

However, the diagnoses is a little confusing. The reason it took so long for the results to come in was because Kaiser had to send it down to UCLA because the pathologist here wasn't sure of the diagnoses. UCLA diagnosed it as a Spitz Nevus. This is almost always a benign growth. The bad thing about it is that they always grow back unless they are totally and completely 100% removed.

In order to remove it completely and make sure all of the Spitz Nevus tissues are removed, Rachel would have to undergo a more invasive surgery. This time, they'll have to knock her out to do it. I feel very unsettled about having my 23 pound baby go under anaesthesia.

So based on the results of the pathology report, we were referred to a pediatric surgeon.

We were able to see the surgeon (Dr. D) yesterday with a last minute appointment. I'm so thankful that we got in yesterday because I feel so much better about everything. Dr. D isn't 100% convinced that doing surgery is the right thing to do at this point. He told me that based on what he has seen on previous cases, he's not certain he agrees with the Spitz Nevus diagnoses. He agrees the biopsy was benign, which is the most important thing at this point, but he wants to wait and see before doing an operation on an almost 19 month old.

We've decided to follow up in 30 days. Dr. D wants to see how Rachel heals. He says kids surprise us sometimes and heal much better than we would think. If it really is a Spitz Nevus, it's going to grow right back. If it was just an abnormal benign growth, it will heal. Since the dermatologist never took any photos, Dr. D feels like we're better off waiting. He wants to make sure she needs surgery before we just go ahead with it this soon. There is no harm in waiting.

Dr. D also expressed extreme frustration with the dermatologist for cutting the growth off of Rachel while she was awake and being held down. He said we should have just been sent straight to him instead of putting Rachel through that. I was surprised because doctors tend to cover the rear ends of their "own kind."

Either way, I feel good about where we stand. I think waiting is the best option all around.

Forgive me for waiting so long to report the results. I started school this week, my dad was in the hospital (he's okay), and the wait for Rachel's results was mommy torture! These issues were not a recipe for a blog entry!

Rachel's surgery

I'll start by saying that I'm so relieved that the growth has been removed from Rachel's ankle. Whatever it was, I'm just glad it's off of her.

I was so nervous yesterday morning. I could barely sleep Sunday night. I got the girls up, fed them breakfast, and then got Rachel ready to go. (My mom and step-dad watched Sophia and Morgan.) Bob went with us to the appointment. The stress began as soon as we got there.

We arrived about 10 minutes before our 9:15am appointment. When I went to check Rachel in, we were told that she doesn't have an appointment. Me.... freaking out....said, "um, yes we do." The clerk quickly said, "well she's not on the schedule today." I was about to go off when I remembered I had tucked the appointment card away in the diaper bag before we left home. I pulled it out and showed her that we DID have an appointment that day. She grabbed the card and asked us to "wait a second."

I was totally fuming! I was there on the date and time that they had told me to be. I had had anxiety for the past week leading up to this appointment. We got a babysitter for our other two and Bob had taken the morning off work. I wasn't going to leave until they removed the stinkin tumor. I didn't care if I had to stay there all day. It was THE day!

I don't know why she wasn't in the computer. Totally their mistake. They ended up, of course, doing the procedure anyway. I think she was on the schedule, just not in their computer system. Who knows......

So they put some numbing creme on Rachel's ankle then covered it and sent us on our way for one hour while the stuff numbed her up. We ended up going to Starbucks for breakfast and to kill some time. It was strange that it was Bob's first time in a restaurant with the any of the girls. He still refuses to take them out to eat anywhere. (Nerd!) I think he had fun playing with Rachel. He kept trying to feed her part of his croissant and she kept tossing it on the floor. I'm sure the Starbucks employees loved that!

We returned to the office and got called back to the surgery room. We ended up having to wait another 30 minutes before the doctor came in to start. Bob held Rachel down while they gave her a shot to finish the numbing job. Rach pretty much started screaming. I think it was more from being held down than it was the shot and the procedure. It lasted all of about 6 or 7 minutes and she was done. Poor thing screamed almost the whole time while I rubbed her head and tried to calm her down. She did really well once it was over. Poor little sweetie. I hate that she had to go through that.

The doctor isn't sure what this growth is. He sent it off to the lab for a diagnoses and biopsy. He doesn't think that it is anything to worry about. We should hear from him in about a week. It's hard not to worry about it. All I can say is that I'm glad it's not on her anymore.

She did really well yesterday and today. The only time she fusses is when I have to clean the area they cut, apply anti-biotic ointment, and re-bandage it, which I am supposed to do once a day. Otherwise, it hasn't slowed her down one bit. She has been taking steps for the last 3 weeks and over the past several days, she's really just walking all over. I was afraid the surgery would send her back to walking on her knees, but it hasn't at all.

I'm really proud of her. She was so exhausted yesterday that she was asleep within 5 minutes of putting her down for a nap.

So now we just wait.....and wait... seems like forever. I hope this week will go by quickly!

Thanks to our friends and family for all the prayers. We definitely feel all the support!

Quick Rachel update

Rachel's surgery went very well today. She was such a trooper and I'm so proud of my little girl. We have to wait about a week for the biopsy results.

I'm exhausted and am going to sleep, but just wanted to post a quick update here. I'll be back with the full story in a day or two.

Thanks to all of our friends for your support and prayers. We are truly blessed.

Our very own park

I'm so excited. The girls have their very own park right in our back yard. My step-brother was getting rid of this structure because his kids have outgrown it. My dad brought it down for the girls last year. We weren't sure we were going to be able to use it this summer. The landscaping in our backyard was not swing set friendly.

My awesome dad came down and worked really hard in our back yard for several days to put this in for the girls. He had to remove a tree that was surrounded by a ton of bricks. Then he and Bob flattened the ground and installed the structure. We're also going to remove the tree behind it, but that won't happen for another few months. Right now, we're just really enjoying this set. There isn't a park anywhere in our area that has three toddler swings! I'm really loving that the girls can all swing at the same time now.

They are full of smiles while swinging. Sophia gets especially excited when I put her shoes on her. She says, "owwwsiighh" over and over again..... (meaning OUTSDE of course... hehehehe.)

Here they are swinging!

Weeeeeeeeee!

Here's my dad admiring his work! Great job Grandpa! The girls LOVE their swingset!

I'm just so happy that we have a safe place to play outside now. No more guilt about not being able to take them to the park! We own the park now. hahahaha....