Boating and Island Adventure

On Lake Oachita near Hot Springs, Arkansas, my aunt and uncle treated us to the kiddos first boat outing. We all had a blast. 

"Train Park"

Yesterday, in a useless attempt to ensure afternoon sleepiness among the minions, we hit up one of our favorite parks. Formerly known to my kiddos as "Castle Park" because of the wooden turrets, the addition of a wooden train to Donovan Park in 2013 called for a nickname change to "Train Park." Indeed that is where they played almost the whole hour we were there. 

Located on Heights Blvd, the gated park is surrounded by mature trees and shady areas for picnicking, swinging, or a respite from the wicked summer sun. 

In addition to the beloved train, the park has play areas for both big kids and little tots. 

Also, did I mention that it's gated? A great relief for this mama who constantly counts to five whenever I take my brood into public by myself. 

They may not have worn themselves out to my satisfaction, but we had a great time!

And one last photo, because, Frederick!

Long Time Away...

I can't remember the last time I posted here.

Life.

My life with triplets overwhelms me so many days.

Today they celebrate 28 months in our arms. The time flits away, but never as fast as I wish it away, and this makes me sad.

It's day in and day out of endless, tiring, thankless work. They cry and cling to my legs and beg to be held. They fight with each other. One takes, and bites, and pinches. The others fight back or meltdown. One by one they scream like little baby birds, knowing whoever makes the most noise, has the most need, will be fed with my attention. At some point of every day I cannot move because all three of the little ones are in some way touching my body or on top of it, the only way to quell all of their tears. When they act like this, I cannot tend to anything or anyone else in the house. My heart breaks a little for the older two who are left to fend for themselves when I'm stuck under the weight of three toddlers.

Too many days I let the weariness settle into my bones. I don't want to spend my days dreaming of the days when my children will be more self sufficient, only remembering these trying years as a blur crayon-covered walls.

And so I bring myself back to this blog, hoping to capture those moments that leave me smiling. Without a record, and the simple act of jotting down our memories, will I only look back and see the struggles and not also the joy?

Today. We managed to leave the house, play at Pump It Up, eat lunch out with my parents (only somewhat disastrous, I think), and hurried home for the quiet bliss of nap-time...which never happened. Napless afternoons when I don't have the chance to recharge, straighten the house, think about dinner, and have time for Frederick and Charlotte certainly make the day seem longer.

So, before I forget them, I want to remember the smile on Dominic's face as he followed Frederick from one inflatable structure to another and the little girls grins as the came down the slides with big sister Charlotte.

I want to remember how Charlotte protested at helping unclog the toilet, and how Dominic looked up innocently and told me that "nobody" brought Fred's iPad out of his office, even though he, Frederick, and Cecilia were gathered around it (apparently learning how to tie knots).



I sneaked off for a few minutes after dinner to check my email and read a few pages of my book before Eleanor jumped on top of me and proclaimed, "I found you!" I asked her if I'd been hiding and she said, "Yeth!" (little lisp, I love you!) We talked for a little while before she demanded, "hug!" and gave me the best hug, letting me know that I am the most special person in her whole world and making me feel like I was also the most special person in THE whole world. She then declared that she needed to go find Cici and that was that.

And then, just now, I think inspiring me to pull up this page for the first time in ages, Cecilia awoke and cried out for me. When I pulled her from her bed her little arms wrapped so very tightly around me. I offered her some milk and tried to tuck her back in bed, but she was shortly back in my arms again. I laid her down in the middle of our bed, next to a sleepy Fred, and the two of them curled up snugly together, and it made my heart so glad to see them there together - so sweet, and calm, and beautiful, making up for all of those moments lacking in the chaos of our days.

Yes, the fleeting moments of childhood race by, but I refuse to be overwhelmed and forget them.

18 Months Old

Not sure where the time has gone. 

I wish I still had time for blogging. No luck. Maybe someday. But here are my cuties.

Baby's first birthday

So it was kind of a smash cake fail. 

But my babies were one on November 2nd. Hard to believe, no? They have grown so much!

Halloween

 Last minute dress up for the trio. Eleanor, Dominic, and Cecilia. Ellie really loved wearing the chick costume. These girls are girls girls! They also love to put on shoes. 

6 today!

Today Charlotte turned 6 and started first grade.

Where has the time gone?

Has it been 9 Months already?

Ahh, trouble in the bath tub! Fred has his hand on Cecilia because she insisted on standing up. Trying to bathe three babies is a bit of playing whack-a-mole trying to keep them on their bottoms.  They are 9 months old. They crawl and pull to a stand. Cecilia stands on her own for a few seconds. Dominic says a grunting version of "uh-oh." Cecilia and Eleanor clap. Eleanor waves and signs "All Done!"

I'm kind of regretting the "all done" sign, as she used it today in her car seat. Apparently, she was done and wanted out! Poor thing, I didn't want to acknowledge her sign as I had no where to put her. She was not pleased with me.

Fred took the above picture as we left for the hospital on November 2nd - at 37 weeks 1 day. The below picture is 37 weeks and 1 day later! 

And to stop those of you who might say I didn't really get that big, see the below, never before published photos. I. Was. HUGE.

Yes, that is my belly extending up above my boobs and hanging down between my legs.  Wow, I don't miss that!

Look at these beauties! Love them. They have all been mobile since they turned 8 months, and at 9 months they are REALLY moving quickly, often in three different directions.  Other times they travel as a pack around the house, wandering together from one room to the next. Don't worry, they are not always left to roam - when not under a watchful eye they are sent to baby jail.  Which, for now, they actually like.

Charlotte is an awesome big sister. She loves these babies!

Frederick mostly still tries to squish them, but he's a ham, and we love him bunches.

Happy Fourth of July!

Road Trip(let)!

What is summer without a two week road trip?!

In June we packed up and went on vacation.  Or at least as much of vacation as I'm going to have for a while.

5 kids and 3 adults in a minivan across 8 states. Good times! Well, we made memories at least, though through the whole state of Georgia (when the adult:child ratio dropped by a person) on the way home I kept repeating that we will NOT be doing this again in two years. (I'm feeling more optimistic at the moment.)

Truthfully, Fred thought I was crazy as we loaded the car before dawn on day one, but he's now confident that shorter road trips will be a breeze.

We learned some good lessons. Maybe I'll add them in another post.

I did learn to expect to hear "You have your hands full." All. The. Time.
But that is going to happen with five kids including triplets, especially if you look like this:

We saw some beautiful sites.

We kicked back and relaxed when we reached our destination.

We delighted in spending time as a family.

And even let Frederick take a few photos.