Happy Anniversary and other musings

Hi everyone (if anyone still checks this blog).  This is Carl. I just wanted to post a few quick thoughts, and this seemed like the best place to do it.

First, while not directly kid-related, I want to wish my lovely wife (and the normal author of these posts) a Happy Anniversary. It's been 8 wonderful years since that extremely hot day in Kansas that we celebrated our love with our family and friends. In some ways it's gone really fast. In other ways, it seems like we've known each other forever. Being a Tuesday today, and given that both of us had to work, we really didn't get to celebrate our anniversary. But, we hope to soon (thanks in advance Grandma and Grandpa!), and I just want to tell Shannon "Happy Anniversary!". I love you.

Second, kid report.  We've all been fighting the crud that is going around, but everyone is rebounding well.  Since our last post, the triplets turned 1 and Joshua turned 4. My how time flies. The triplets birthday was extremely fun, and we'll try to get some pictures posted before they turn 2.  Joshua's birthday was a grand celebration with friends at Chuck E. Cheese's, and he had a blast!  He continues to ask when we can go back.  :)  Joshua has had a busy summer of field trips with his pre-school, and he is having a great time. Matthew, Paige and William continue to learn and grow. All are walking very well (the boys often are nearly running when they go), and they are working hard to figure out how to tell us all the things that they have to say. All 4 keep us on our toes and we're having fun watching them figure everything out.

Third, and finally for tonight, a request.  One of Joshua's recent field trips was to go roller skating (yes, Mom went with him and showed off her 1980s-era skating moves). During the skating party, the DJ lapsed into 80s music. Now, being children of the 80s, we wouldn't complain about that at all. Joshua, however, latched on to his new favorite song there.... We Will Rock You by Queen.  Don't get me wrong, I love the song, and the band. But as he continually requests that I play it on the way to work every morning, we've realized that we need to work on expanding his horizons with other classics. Not kids' songs, per se, but just quality music. So, this is where the request comes in. If you were creating a playlist to play for a 4 year old who is just getting his feet wet with real music, what would you put on it? We have lots of ideas, but I thought it would be fun to get other people's ideas as well (again, if anyone is reading this). We have managed to work some Beatles into the repertoire (Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da and Yellow Submarine seem to be popular (with Joshua knowing a lot of the words to Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da already) and Vertigo by U2 was fairly well received this morning, though I'm not sure Paige was crazy about the guitar riff.  Anyway, I have fond memories of listening to my parents' music as a child (Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Gordon Lightfoot, Tom T. Hall, various Broadway musicals, Rodger and the Tempests, etc.) and I want to try to recreate that fun for my kids. So, leave a comment about what you play for your kids, or what music kids really like in your experience (again, looking for non-kid specific music; LOVE Justin Roberts, but we've already got that covered). :) 

If you've read through this far, thanks for sticking with us even though we are terrible at getting this site updated. And, thanks again to my wife for making me the happiest man in the world for the last 8 years as her husband.

Take care everyone. And God bless.

-Carl

Like sands through the hourglass...

I know, I know, I am remiss in my blog postings.  I just can't seem to find the time.  And if you think I'm joking, here's just a little tid bit to tell you how behind we really are.  Just last week we sent our CHRISTMAS presents to our dear friends in Seattle.  They were good sports though & told us they were proud of us for already getting Christmas 2010 taken care of. :-)

The babies are now 10 months old & quickly approaching toddlerhood.  All three crawl at lightening speed and Matthew has even taken a few steps.  They passed their 9 month check-up with flying colors.

Our pediatrician said that while she would never wish babies were slow to hit their developmental milestones, for our sake it wouldn’t have been so bad if the triplets had at least hit them on time or on the late side of normal as opposed to early. The boys are hitting 12 month (chronological) milestones & Paige is right on at 9 months.  They are all well on to the regular growth charts so no more adjusting ages necessary!  Here are the stats:

Matthew
19 lbs 8 oz (started at 4 lbs. 6 oz)
28 ½ inches (started at 18 inches)

Paige
17 lbs 10 oz (started at 5 lbs 2 oz)
28 ½ inches (started at 18.5 inches)

William
20 lbs 4 oz (started at 4 lbs 14 oz)
28 inches (started at 18.5 inches)

 
They had just come off battling a nasty stomach bug at their 9 month appointment so we are sure those weights are much higher now!
 
Joshua is almost 4 and is already getting excited for the move to his new room at day care (the Senior Brokers room!).  He also is starting to grasp that he will change schools eventually and is asking us to drive him by the local grade school where he'll attend kindergarten.
 
Carl and I have come out of mourning over the Jayhawks loss to UNI in the NCAA tournament as we're buoyed by the thought of only 2 more months of formula!  We will break free from the Enfamil chains soon!
 
And finally, in the we might just be that crazy department, later today we're packing everyone up and driving to Kansas for Easter.   Yep...7 hours...in a car...with four children.  I'll let you know how we survive.  But really, could it be that bad with these cuties???
 

 

Tigger was a Texter, but I'm just not a Tweeter

I am not a good blogger. The true bloggers of the world are out there, day in and day out, posting at least every 24 hours. They even tweet and link their tweets to their blogs so all of cyberspace (or at least all of cyberspace that cares) can see what antics and shenanigans make up their daily lives.

I could say that I don’t post daily because I don’t have time. But if you just glance at the blog roll over at “I Love Multiples” you will see a whole host of bloggers with triplets that post daily. Yes, I’m a slacker.

So why am I here? What is this blog for? Is it, as originally intended, to update far flung friends and family on the harrowing adventures of raising four children? Is it a way for me to prove to myself that I can still string together a couple of coherent thoughts on less sleep then I ever imagined? Is it my version of a baby book? (Since God knows those three beautiful books we bought for the triplets aren’t going to see any ink, well, ever.)

My guess is that it is somewhere in between. So, until I figure it out, enjoy these pictures.

(And did you know Tigger was a texter? TTFN! Ta Ta for Now!)

This is an old one (September 2009) but we worked so hard for it I just had to put it in!

Go Huskers!  Go Jayhawks!  Go Hawkeyes!

So cute, Paige!

So cute, Joshua!  Go fix that sink!

So cute, William!

So cute, Matthew!  Now where are you going to go?

We're coming for you, Mom!

Matthew:  I think they are going to put us in there together!

William:  No WAY!!!

Matthew:  Told ya.

I'm doing quite well, thank you.  How are you?

A freind told me there aren't enough (any) pics of the parents on the blog. 

Here's one to prove we're still standing....at least today. :-)

What becomes of the broken hearted?

Dear 15 year old Joshua,

I imagine by now you are probably at least as tall as I am. If genetics have smiled on you then you still have Dad’s metabolism as well as his athleticism. I imagine that your beautiful brown eyes have only gotten more striking with age and that your intellect has grown in-kind. You’re bouncing real basketballs now instead of the red & black Spiderman Nerf ball you held so dear when you were little, and I am confident that you no longer need Dad or I to lift you up to make a basket.

I’m also sure that around this time you are probably experiencing your first true broken heart. You won’t remember, but when you were three you told me your heart was broken and you asked me to fix it. You didn’t really understand what having a broken heart meant, it was just a phrase you had heard in a book we were reading to you. But now you understand and I so wish that I could take my index finger, make a small heart on your chest, give you a kiss and tell you it was all better. You believed me then, but I know you wouldn’t believe me now.

What I will tell you is that life will move on. It won’t be easy, and it won’t be fun, but time is a great healer. As your Grandma always says, “this too shall pass.” Being 15, I don’t expect to hear more than a, “hmph” from you when I say this, but I’m going to say it anyway.

Then someday when you are 36 and your three-year old son asks you to fix his broken heart you’ll remember your first true broken heart with a bit of whimsy. You’ll look down at the eager face of a three-year old who still believes that you can fix anything, and you’ll want to just wrap him up and insulate him from everything in this world that could hurt him or cause him any pain. You can’t, of course, nor should you. And that realization will tear you up inside and hurt more than any broken heart ever could. Given that you’re 15 you can’t fathom being 36 but, trust me, it happens in an instant.

As for what you are feeling now, it will get better – I promise. But until it does, just know that I love you and that I once fixed your broken heart. And if I could, I’d do it again.

Love,
Mom

Blog 365? No Way!

Some of the blogs I follow are participating in the 365 Blog Challenge, i.e. posting something every day in 2010.  I can't even begin to think about that...I'm still trying for once a week!  Maybe in 2011 when everyone is a little older and the chaos is slightly more controlled...maybe.

But, I am going to try and post more often and with a few more pictures.  So, with that, I thought I'd share just a couple Christmas pics.  Isn't everyone cute???

Matthew, Paige & William looking as identical as I can make them!

The big boys!  Joshua with his favorite cousins in all the world, Coty & Quinton.

2009 Redux

There aren't adequate words to describe 2009 for this household.  A year that doubled the size of our family in three short minutes. 

So many changes.  So little sleep.  So much to be thankful for.

So with that, here are some scattershot thoughts on this - our most monumental year.

• Thanks first to God for giving us four amazing, beautiful, healthy children.  Although I do look forward to the day when I can discuss with him the logic of sending three of them at one time! 
• Besides being the best husband in the world, Carl has now earned a second doctorate in formula preparation.  By last count he has prepared approximately 18,260 ounces of formula in the past seven months.  (98 oz/day; 665 oz/week; 2,660 oz/month).
• Joshua - no longer my baby.  You are smarter than we are and we love it!  Who ever thought my pregnancy pillow would take on second life as a giant worm?
• Matthew - our mover and shaker.  I'm waiting for the moment when I turn around and you are running across the room at me.  It won't be long. 
• Paige - the Zen baby.  I appreciate your amazingly calm disposition, sweetheart.  But your brothers are on the move and you need to learn to hold your own.  Taking the book back from William last night was a good start!
• William - my gentle giant.  I can't wait until you can sing the songs along with me.
• Haley the dog - Don't worry, Joshua still corrects me when I say we have six members in our family.  Despite your tense relationship lately, he loves you.  You'll be running around the yard together soon.
• Did you know that the nurses in Mercy's NICU are angels?
• A person can function on an average of 4 hours of sleep a night.
• We have the best families in the world.  Their support has been amazing.  Enough said.
• Everyone knows that baby laundry spontaneously regenerates.  Just imagine that cubed.
• On a related note, laundry is more fun when done in a fancy new cranberry red front loading washing machine!
• Professional house cleaners are not a want - they are a need.
• You can fashion a dinner out of eggs, breadcrumbs and peanut butter.
• Take me down to ExcerSaucer city where the toys are great and the babies are pretty!
• Do not wrap your three-year old's Christmas present in a baby diaper box.
• I remember 1999 turning to 2000 like it was yesterday.  Great conversation with great friends, much port wine and child-free frivolity ensued.  While I will see midnight this New Year's Eve, I highly doubt port will be involved.  (Unless you want to make the trip out, Jaz?  Then I'm sure we could find a way to incorporate port!)
• How can a decade pass so quickly yet an hour with a crying baby in the middle of the night seems to last an eternity?
• At the end of the next decade of this millennium my babies will be 13, 10, 10, & 10 respectively.  When I think about it that way, time can't go slowly enough.

A Christmas Scene

FADE IN:

JOSHUA AND MOM ARE SITTING AT THE KITCHEN TABLE EATING DINNER AFTER FINISHING A ROUSING RENDITION OF RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER.

               JOSHUA
     Mom, who’s Glee?

               MOM
     What do you mean, sweetie?

               JOSHUA (EMPHATICALLY)
     Mom, who’s Glee?

               MOM (TRYING TO FIGURE OUT CONTEXT)
     Honey, I don’t know what you mean.

               JOSHUA (GETTING ANNNOYED)
     Mom, WHO’S GLEE???

MOM RUNS THROUGH LYRICS OF RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER IN HER HEAD AND IT HITS HER, "AS THEY SHOUTED OUT WITH GLEE."

               MOM
     OHHHHH!!!...as they shouted out with glee! 
     Honey glee isn't a person in the song.  It means that they were happy! 
     Glee is another word for happy!

               JOSHUA (TRYING TO PROCESS THIS IN HIS 3 YEAR OLD MIND)
     That’s dumb.

MOM LOOKS OVER AT DAD AND THEY REALIZE THAT THEY ARE IN SERIOUS TROUBLE - THE THREE YEAR OLD IS SMARTER THAN THEY ARE.

FADE OUT.