16 weeks!

This pic is self-explanatory! Adorable onesies

from my great-aunt and uncle in PA

Wow, can you believe it? The boys are 16 weeks old now, so it's probably time to start calling it 4 months. It seems like a tiny miracle that we've all made it this far, but as they grow, I think we're all starting to get used to the idea of living and working together. When the babies were first born, of course I knew they would grow up and develop, but I guess that with lack of sleep comes lack of brain power and I never had the vision to see that things would be different. I thought, "How can I go without sleep for months?" and "Will they ever do anything?" Well, I have some answers now that are heartwarming for a first time parent!

Sleeping is hugely improved. Last night, Luke woke up around midnight. They went to sleep at 9 pm, so this was not when he was supposed to get up at all. He had been doing this for a couple of days, so I let him cry for about 15 minutes then he went to sleep. Then, around 2:15, Eli got up. I let him go for a while then tried to chill him out by rocking him with a pacifier. This didn't work so well so I gave him a small snack at 3. After that, he slept with the rest of the guys until 7 am. So two events all night - not too bad. I long for the days of easy bedtimes and zero events through the night, and I know that this will come eventually (maybe when they're 10??). For now, with three babies, I consider myself lucky! Daytime napping is still not very consistent - it's hard to get them all to sleep at the same time so that I can get some things done. They generally start out well but as the day progresses, napping gets more sporadic. I'm hoping this will change once they can start eating cereal.

As for the "doing stuff", I'm amazed at how they've changed. They have toys that hang above their bouncy seats and play gyms, and they all bat at those pretty accurately. They will sometimes hold a rattle and try to eat stuffed animals that are around. They love their fingers and play with them a lot; when that gets boring, they try to eat their fingers. All three are babbling now, which is one of our favorite activities! Zach probably does the most, then Luke, and finally Eli. We encourage it every time they say "Goo" or "Ahuuu", and in the back of my mind, I wonder if I'll ever regret the encouragement. I mean really, if we have 3 kids that talk as much as me, poor John will never get a word in!

Luke, Zach and Eli in hand-knitted camo sweaters

made by a friend of a friend - aren't they sweet?

The other major events we've been having aren't anyone else's ideas of major, but it's our lives! My Mom's friend Mary came to visit, so I have to give a shout out to the staff at HCQU, who have followed the triplets since before they were born and are always so kind and supportive. Hey everyone!

Dulcy with Zach, Robin with Eli, Mary with Luke

I went to a dinner with a bunch of triplet and quad moms one night. That was both encouraging and deeply disturbing. I'm really not sure if I left more or less secure, but at least I got information! One thing that really disturbed me was talk of duct-taping diapers on. Really? That and all that it implies scares the... well, let's not go there. At least I saw a lot of normal-looking, healthy-looking women who still had hair, and their kids were generally older than mine. And I got out for a night, which was fun.

Mom and I took the boys on their first field trip to the Arizona Rock Museum. This is a 1/4 mile walk that takes you past original Indian pictoglyphs, which are like hieroglyphics but just pictures that the Indians either painted or etched. Some go back 7000 years. It was really cool, and the boys did their best at being good and looking cute. They still seem to be the main attraction wherever we go. A nice lady took our picture (Since I forgot the camera) and said she'd send it to me, but I haven't received it yet.

Oh, we also had another photo shoot with a budding professional photographer. I've attached some of the pictures - I think they're great! The boys are really getting to be little hams - they're so used to having a camera in their faces it doesn't bother them at all!

Finally, the biggest event - my Mom left on Saturday. I'm officially on my own during the days, and this is my first day. So the real reason for this blog is to ask for prayers! Seriously! I think the fear of the unknown is the worst for me right now, because I've never had the babies alone for more than 3 or 4 hours. I can handle short chunks of time, so I'm just going to focus on getting through hour by hour, instead of the big picture. I have a lot of people who have offered support, and I will take them up on it if I need to. I'm not sure what this will mean for blogging - things may start to take a decidedly darker tone! I hope not. I love these guys so much, and I've learned over the last 4 months that things change, get better, and with God and my friends and family with me, we can handle anything, as evidenced by us surviving this far!

Eli, Zach (top), and Luke

Zach

Luke

Eli

Amigos Update

Hi all! Sorry it's been so long since my last post - I hope everyone is well! We are just truckin' along here, so I haven't had a lot that I thought would be interesting for you all to read, but the boys are definitely changing all the time. I thought I would go describe a day and let you all know what we do and how life goes for the boys.

The boys get out of bed at 9 am (I'll write more about the sleep situation later!). They are generally so happy when they wake up - it's my favorite part of the day. Here are pictures of each baby smiling:

Luke

Eli

Zachary

They eat and I wash and dress them each separately while the others are in their bouncy seats. I usually put on a Baby Einstein video while this is happening. I know, I know - I don't want them to become little couch potatoes but I don't think they're all that impressed with TV yet anyway. They just like the bright lights and music. After they've all been changed and are ready for the day, it's nap time. Nap time isn't really going so well yet. Sometimes one or more sleeps right after they eat, and sometimes one or more stays up for an hour or so then sleeps. We're trying to work on getting them to nap at the same time, because that would free up time for me to do stuff, like blog!

They eat again at 12 - we are on a every three hour feeding schedule. After this feeding time I usually try to read to them in their bouncy seats. We have two books we read most - "The First Read and Learn Bible" and "The First Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes". I'm starting to memorize the books so that I can make eye contact and try to hold each boys' attention. They seem to like it pretty well, actually. Then they usually play on their play mats for a while, and I try to give them some belly time. This is important for babies who don't sleep on their stomachs. It helps them to build their neck and upper body muscles so that one day they can crawl. They used to hate it, but it's not so bad any more. Today they were on their tummies for about 10 minutes, and Zach and Luke did really well lifting up on their arms and turning their heads around from side to side. Eli wasn't that into it today but he's pretty good too. Here's a pic of them on their mats, although this is an old picture. They're a lot bigger now and can only go one to each play mat (or else they kick each other too much!).

Zach, Eli and Luke

If they have a rough time sleeping, we put them in a swing or hold them one at a time. I try to spend equal time with each baby, and I think it usually evens out over the course of a day.

We also have been taking some excursions now that my Mom is here. We have gone to the mall twice. That's an experience! People just stop and ask questions and check the babies out continually. I really don't mind because I never am really that into shopping - I just want to get me and the boys out of the house every once in a while. I think we bring joy to people in different ways. Older people think it's such a blessing and a lot of people have never seen triplets before. For the young people, I think they're just happy it's not them, and maybe they don't think their life is so tough after all!! People are so nice though. We also take them on walks on the wash. The wash is a small ravine area that's designed to capture rain water when it rains so that the streets aren't flooded. We have paved sidewalks on either side of the wash and it's only a couple of blocks from our house. The boys don't like it all that much - they usually sleep - but again, it's good to get some fresh air once in a while.

They also like to play dress up in Mommy and Daddy's favorite sports gear. OK, they don't like that any more than they like anything else, but here are some cute pics!

Eli (doesn't love getting his pic taken), Luke (always alert) and Zach (never really seems to care!)

Zach, Eli and Luke (see above caption!)

John is home for the 6 pm feeding and he plays with the boys a lot after this. They love to talk to their Daddy - Zach babbles the most, then Luke and then Eli. They each have really distinct voices - it's so cute! Every third day I give them baths and they have come to really enjoy bath time; well, about as much as they like anything! They were really good last night, and when they're really good, it's such a fun time.

We feed them for bedtime and put them down to sleep at 9 pm. Since this blog has grown so long, I think I'll save the sleeping discussion for next time. Stay tuned!

Big events coming up are professional pictures Friday and Grandma Lee, Grampa Jay and Great Grandma Britt coming to visit on Sunday. Of course the Super Bowl on Sunday as well. FYI... they boys have put their odds on the Saints, and I think it's a pretty good bet! More to come soon, I promise!