Friday Photos

Today  I was going to blog about the boys' laughter and how I enjoy hearing them crack each other up. Considering the last 5 minutes have been filled with whining, crying and fighting though I'm having a hard time focusing on my chosen topic. Instead I'll just share a couple of pictures from the park yesterday. Hopefully the boys will be in better moods soon!

Jackson

Tyler

Shameless Plug: Looking for something for Father's Day? Might I suggest the Just For Dad Combo from my Etsy Shop! Orders must be placed by tomorrow (Saturday) night!  

 

A Letter to Moms of HOM

Dear Moms of Higher Order Multiples,

Now this may ruffle a few feathers, but I'm tired of hearing, witnessing and reading (5/2 - note by "reading" I am referring to activity I've witnessed on certain message boards, not individual blogs) your whines and complaints about how terrible the general public is to you. Do you honestly not understand what joy your children bring to others?

When someone asks you if you have triplets don't sigh, roll your eyes and answer "yes" like it's the worst thing in the world to have triplets (I know that's not your intent, but it's how it comes off). I actually had a fellow mom of triplets do those very things to me last week when I ran into her and her triplets and asked (looking for confirmation) if her kids were triplets. I saw the slightest hint of regret when I then pointed to my own triplets (one on my hip and two at my feet) and joyfully said "Me too!".

Perhaps because you are too preoccupied with avoiding questions, stares and photo ops to care that someone may be asking because they have triplets themselves and are just looking to make a connection with another mom. Or because they are a triplet themselves (I met a grown triplet at The Children's Place last week and I could tell she was hesitant to say something to me likely because she'd had her head bitten off by other moms in the past). Or because you simply have made their day by having your adorable children out in public.

I find the majority of people who run into me and hold me up briefly from whatever errands I was running merely want to gush because they're excited. They should be! My kids are pretty darn cute and pretty special! I think it's wonderful and totally appropriate for people to get excited when they see HOM (Higher Order Multiples). If you recognize their genuine excitement for all that it is (just excitement) perhaps you could return their smile with a smile of your own instead of sighs, rolled eyes or even flat out ignoring them.

And while I'm on my soap box - chill out about the pictures. Honestly, it's not like the picture could in any way be taken as innapropiate. What are you so worried about? Most of us have blogs and plaster the web with our own pictures anyway! If the sweet old man wants to take a picture with his cell phone so he can show his wife, let him. It's probably making his day and will make his wife's. No need to be so rude.

Basically, just think twice before you respond rudely to people. If you force yourself to respond with a smile perhaps you'll truly begin to respond joyfully to people. Believe me, venturing out with your little zoo is a lot more fun and a lot less stressful when it's done with a joyful heart.

Sincerly,
A Mom of Triplets Who Actually Enjoys Talking To People

Let's Get Ready to Rumble!

So my post yesterday that was just chalk full of love and sweet moments came back to bite me later in the day. Here are the cliff notes of what went down at about 4:15pm.

Chase is happily playing with a toy.
Tyler comes and steals said toy.
Chase decides to bite Tyler's shoulder in retaliation.
I decide to rescue Tyler from the clutches of Chase's jaw.
Chase is less than thrilled with this and decides to try to bite Tyler's feet.
I then hoisted Tyler up higher so that Chase couldn't reach his feet.
Chase then decides to turn on Jackson (who had since wandered into the kitchen to see what all the fuss was about).
I then set Tyler down and rescue Jackson, considering he is completely innocent in this ruckus.
Tyler is now angry about being set down and decides now would be a good time to head butt the back of Chase's head. Repeatedly.
I set Jackson down and do my best to separate the mob.
Separation does not work, so instead I observe a squirming, whining, crying pile of arms and legs.
About 30 seconds later Chase discovers Tyler has dropped the toy in all the chaos, so he scoops it up and takes off.
Tyler takes the opportunity to wrestle with Jackson. See?


At about 4:35pm Tyler wanders back into the kitchen and decides he must play with my slipper right now, even though I'm wearing it.
I calmly take the slipper back and tell him he can't have it right now.
Tyler now acts like it's the end of the world. See?


Ahhh what a fun 20 minutes it was! Hey, at least I got a picture of Jackson "playing" with one of his brothers!

Today is the last day of Cans for Comments! We're up to 35 comments. Let's finish strong!

Pushed to the Limit

Blogging has been a great source of release for me. Not only do I get to brag about my kiddos but I get to continue to utilize my writing skills. (For those unfamiliar with my background, I was a radio ad copy writer before and during my pregnancy.) Brace yourself now for a little venting from this tired mama.

Yesterday I reached my breaking point. In the early months of having three tiny babies in the house I reached that breaking point several times, but it's been quite a while since it happened. The last two days have been horrible. The boys somehow reached a state of being over-tired, were super crabby and driving each other and me crazy.

I expect Wednesdays to be bad; it's a long day here at the house. Nick leaves for work at his normal time but then doesn't get home until well after the boys are in bed for the night. Usually on Wednesdays I just tread water until bed time and then I collapse on the couch for a few minutes before cleaning up the house. This past Wednesday bed time couldn't come fast enough and I thought with relief "at least tomorrow will be better". Unfortunately I think it was worse....

It turns out the boys woke up quite early yesterday morning. I didn't know this until I spoke to Nick mid-day, but it sure explained a lot. Tyler and Jackson had been crying, whiny and clingy all morning and were driving me up the wall. Chase, thankfully, was in pretty decent spirits. I prayed for a nice long afternoon nap so that the boys would be in better moods in the afternoon. No such luck though! The boys were up and ready to go less than 90 minutes after I had put them down. I knew I was in trouble then.

The afternoon consisted of one precious moment - Chase was chasing (hehe, that sounds funny) his brothers around the house and when he would catch them he would hug them from behind. Awww! From there things went down hill.... Tyler thought the chase game was fun but decided to kick it up a notch. He thought it would be fun to chase Jackson, tackle him and then try to bite him if he tried to get away. This upset Jackson a great deal and then it upset Tyler when I pulled them apart. This "game" went on for a good 30 minutes. By the end of the 30 minutes Tyler and Jackson were wound tightly and rarely stopped crying and/or whining. It was then that I decided today was not the day to try to go without a Diet Coke.

By 5pm I was at my wits end. I called Nick at 5:10 to make sure he wasn't running any errands then I broke down crying. When Nick arrived home 10 minutes later I was kneeling on the living room floor crying, while the boys whined around me - until they saw Nick. Then all was well in the world.

I had a moment of irritation when I realized Nick never sees just how bad things get here because as soon as he comes home, all is forgotten and the boys are full of giggles! I then remembered I should just be thankful the crying and whining had stopped.

If you've made it through this whole post, than congrats. I promise to be in a better blogging mood on Monday, when I'll be handing out a couple of blog awards!

Laundry

Look at my cute laundry!

It started out with just one load of laundry. Namely, Chase and Jackson fighting over one basket. Jackson was pretty much sitting on top of Chase (who was in the fetal position at the bottom of the basket) and Chase was not happy about it. As soon as I took Jackson out of the basket, Tyler tried to climb in. Again, Chase was not happy about it which he communicated to me through a series of pathetic sounding whines.

I quickly took action by running down to the basement to fetch 2 more laundry baskets. Everyone was happy with the set up for about 20 minutes, but now, even as I type this, Chase and Jackson are both trying to sit in the same one. The grass is always greener on the other side!

And now, some cute pictures I took of the boys at lunch yesterday!

Jackson

Tyler

Chase