ONE NAP:
A few days after our trio turned 18-months-old they made the switch from two naps to one nap. All three had been super fussy for a couple of weeks when I got them up from their afternoon nap, so I decided maybe it was time to make the switch. It seemed to be what they needed as they now seem more well rested when I get them up. On a great day all three will sleep for three hours (which is amazing for me since I can get so much done!), but most days at least one will wake up after two hours (or less). Now if they'll just sleep through the night consistently...
SANS STROLLER:
There have been several occasions in the last month that we didn't use the stroller when we went into a building. When we had more babies than adults, a stroller was necessary, but now that we have three fairly proficient walkers we are able to grab them by the hand and walk! This is huge since they like to be independent and aren't always happy to sit in the stroller, plus it saves us an extra step when getting them from the car to the building. We need to snap a pic of this, but obviously it's a bit hard when we're outnumbered.
NEW SCHEDULE:
Along with one nap came a new schedule. We now have larger chunks of time to get out of the house and do something since our day is not restricted by a morning and afternoon nap. Here is our basic schedule (plus / minus 30 minutes):
7:00 Wake, bottle
8:00 Breakfast
9:00-11:00 Play (at home inside or outside, or go somewhere such as the zoo)
11:00 Lunch
12:00-3:00 Nap (or shorter)
3:00 Snack
3:30-5:00 Play at home or go to the store
5:00-5:45 Dinner prep for me (if the kids can't entertain themselves I turn on a show or call my parents on FaceTime to help keep them occupied)
5:45 Dinner (when Micah walks in the door or a few minutes before if the kids can't wait)
7:00 Bottle
7:30 Bed
MUDROOM PROGRESS:
Micah's mom came back to town for a few nights to help us make progress on our mudroom. We've realized that we are so busy trying to stay on top of our day-to-day responsibilities that it is difficult to get anything extra done. Luckily, Karen likes to paint so she happily came down to help. If she hadn't come I'm sure it would still be awhile before it got painted, so we are very thankful for her help. Plus, it's always nice to have her visit!
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| Watching Grammy paint |
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| It's white! Now we just need to put up more hooks for the kids' jackets and other stuff. |
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| Cabinet doors will be added to this side |
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| While Karen was visiting we took a break from painting to see Santa |
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| The girls were actually quite frightened by the visit, but Faith was brave and really took a good luck at the man! |
Our friends Val and Dan had their third baby boy on December 11th, and we happily volunteered to take care of their two older boys (6 and 4) while they were at the hospital. It was fun to have the boys at our house as we got to see a glimpse of what life will be like with older kids, but it was an eye-opening experience to have five kids at our house for two nights. I now have an even greater respect for my fellow triplet moms that have older kids at home. There are just so many more logistics to figure out, and I didn't even have to bring anyone to school as another friend did that for us. If we had five kids we would definitely need a bigger vehicle too, but right now I'm feeling pretty content with our three.
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| Our kids did a lot of watching while the boys were staying at our house |
MY BIRTHDAY:
I had another birthday and this year our kids got to help us eat the cake (or at least a tiny bit of it). I was truly shocked by Micah's blog post birthday gift, and I love it!
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| Micah went into work late so I could start my day with a run, which is how I wish I could start every day! I planned to stretch after my run, but the kids had other plans. |
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| 31 vs 32 |
CHRISTMAS EVE:
We opened our family gifts on Christmas Eve morning since we left Christmas Day for Michigan. I'm sure next year will be more exciting since the kids will have more of a clue what is going on, but it was still fun as they somewhat understood the concept of opening presents. We had our friends Dan, Val, and their three boys over for dinner on Christmas Eve, which was a lot of fun and helped the day feel more like a holiday in the midst of packing for our trip. I think we should make this a tradition Dan and Val!
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| Lexi with my travel mug from Micah |
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| "Really Mom, do you have to take a picture of everything we do?" |
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| Jack trying out the dry erase crayons |
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| We had an unknown mug theme this Christmas. I got Micah this mug that our friend Jen made. |
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| Faith really got into it. |
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| Opening the bags of bricks from my brother's family |
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| New chairs from Grammy and Grandpa |
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| Christmas Eve dinner with great friends. The 13 day old babe is not pictured :). |
CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION:
Since we traveled to Michigan on Christmas Day, we celebrated Christmas with my family on December 26. We had our traditional appetizer dinner, followed by opening presents, doing a re-make of us all singing the 12 Days of Christmas (long story), and we even played a couple of games after we put our kids to bed. Everyone had a great time, and it was the one day everyone was healthy on our trip.
SICK, SICK, SICK:
I actually started getting a sore throat on the night of the 26th and I was hoping it was just because I was tired from traveling the day before, but then it got worse. This has been such a strange sickness as there were a few times during our two weeks in MI that I thought I was getting better, only to feel worse the next day. Micah caught it a couple of days after me and the kids were soon showing signs too. My dad also caught the bug, but somehow my mom remained healthy. Being sick almost the entire time we were in Michigan definitely put a damper on our trip, but I was thankful we were there instead of at home since I had so much help with the kids. I didn't wash a single booster seat tray or make dinner the entire time we were there! Now I need a re-do with a break from those things while I'm healthy.
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| My mom and I made play dough for the kids thinking this was a good sick / cold weather activity. We knew there was a good chance they would taste it, but we never expected both girls to vomit afterwards! I think being sick made them prone to gagging (I felt this myself). I snapped this photo right before everything went downhill quickly. Needless to say, we won't be trying play dough anytime soon! |
Despite being sick, Alexis, Jack, and Faith were able to see their cousins Brayden and Adelle almost every single day we were there (Kyle, Jodi, and the kids just took the risk of getting sick themselves and help wipe runny noses, which was appreciated!). I love that Brayden and Adelle actually want to hang out with their baby cousins so much even though they are 9 1/2 and 8, so there is a huge age difference. I'm sad that we don't live closer so our kids can grow up with family nearby, but I'm glad that we are able to make the most of the time that we have together.
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| Being entertained on NYE after dinner |
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| The cousins hanging out |
FIRST TIME IN SNOW:
We were prepared with snow pants for Michigan, so we were disappointed when there wasn't any snow during the first 9 days of our trip. During the last 5 days there was plenty of snow, but sadly it was super cold so we really couldn't spend a lot of time outside (plus, as I said above, we were all sick anyway). But we were determined to get the kids in the snow so we bundled them up for a 10 minute play session outside. They seemed a bit confused by the cold, white, wet stuff, but they definitely had fun too.
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| It was so cold that we went out in snow pants before it even snowed! Here is Alexis. |
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| Jack |
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| Faith |
WORST FEAR REALIZED:
Every time I get in an elevator I think, "What if we get stuck? I'd panic!" I'm a little bit claustrophobic so being in an elevator without windows is slightly terrifying, and I thought being stuck would put me over the edge. Well, this actually happened in the Atlanta airport on our return trip from Michigan to ABQ, and I lived to tell you about it! I think having the kids with me kept me calm (or actually just made me laugh because I knew I might cry otherwise), and I just went into "mom mode" and started handing out snacks so everyone would be entertained while we waited for help to arrive. We were only in there for about 10 minutes so it actually wasn't that bad, but I certainly don't want it to happen again!
NEW WORDS:
Although there isn't a long list of words that Alexis, Jack, and Faith are saying, everyone is really trying to talk which is super cute. Alexis will repeat quite a few words. Jack will surprise us by suddenly saying a word really clearly. And Faith will talk our ears off, but right now only she knows what she is actually saying :).
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