The other day I was talking to a friend and I said, "Many days I feel like I'm drowning," and she responded by saying that's what I should tell people who ask me, "How do you do it?!" She's right. When I look back on this past summer I realize that it was fairly easy with our trio as they were beginning to be mobile, which made them happy, but they weren't yet fighting over things and they didn't have strong opinions. We were lucky that Alexis, Jack, and Faith were fairly easy infants, and this past summer, as 12-14-month-olds, they were perfectly content to ride in the stroller, go along on a shopping trip, or just hang out on the floor at home exploring whatever toy was in reach. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case, and many days I find myself wondering if I'm going to make it through the day, or at least until Micah gets home at 5:45.
The thing is, although everything is "triple the cuteness" with three toddlers, it is also triple the demand. There are three 18-month-olds that follow me around the kitchen when I'm trying to get a meal on the table saying "up." There are three 18-month-olds that want to play with the exact same toy at the same time, and they don't understand how to share. There are three 18-month-olds that are learning to communicate by talking, but when they are frustrated the easiest thing for them to do is cry, whine, scream, or even bite to get their point across. There are three 18-month-olds that are learning how to climb, but that don't understand what is dangerous and what their limits are. There are three 18-month-olds that want to sit on Mommy's lap at the exact same time, and they definitely don't want to share that space with anyone else. As a result, there is a lot of frustration in our house from both the toddlers and the adults.
Although there are many times that I stand and watch our babes play and think about how lucky they are to have each other since it is a unique experience to be a triplet, and they love to make each other laugh, there are also many times throughout the day that I feel badly for each of them as they rarely get one-on-one attention since most of the time it's just me and them, and they often make each other cry. It breaks my heart that I can't clone myself so that they each get the love and attention they need throughout the day.
I'm sure the dynamic between Alexis, Jack, and Faith will change many times throughout their lives, and as their parents we are lucky to have a front row seat. This means we alternate between delighting in their adorable interactions and playing referee, which I know is true for most parents that have multiple children, but I believe this is even more intense for parents of 18-month-old triplets.
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| When grocery shopping this morning they were all losing their patience, so I picked out three boxes of cereal that I thought would help. WRONG. They all wanted the box that another had, which meant I was breaking up fights during the rest of our shopping trip while trying to avoid the nasty looks from those that seemed to think I shouldn't take three toddlers grocery shopping. What else am I supposed to do, people?! We have to eat! |
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| A tender moment this afternoon when they decided to sit next to each other on the floor. They often move around the room together (they are all playing under the table, they are all playing in the corner, they are all running around the island in the kitchen, etc.), which means there are a lot of moments for cute pics. (L to R: Jack, Alexis, Faith...wow! The girls look so much alike here I had to zoom in to figure out who was who!) |
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