Pregnancy Comparison Thus Far

It is impossible not to compare my current singleton pregnancy with my triplet pregnancy. Although the triplet pregnancy had great results as we now have three wonderful children, I am thankful every day that this time around I am only growing one baby inside of me. Pregnancy is tough, whether it's one baby or three, and I can't imagine trying to take care of Alexis, Jack, and Faith while being pregnant with triplets as eating and resting were practically a full-time job the first time around.

These are some observations I've made between the two pregnancies so far:

• The first trimester of my current pregnancy felt hard, especially because Alexis, Jack, and Faith no longer nap and I needed a nap most afternoons (Jack gave up his nap during the first trimester, much to my chagrin).  There were many days that I turned on a movie for the kids just so they would be entertained while I napped. Even during the second trimester I still need a short nap occasionally, so I sleep on the couch while the kids watch a short show. During the first trimester I spent most evenings resting once Micah got home from work (I'm thankful for a husband that was willing and able to put the kids to bed most nights by himself for weeks!). 

•  I think I felt "good" for about a month of my triplet pregnancy...maybe between weeks 15 and 20, which is after the first trimester and before I started getting really big. So far the second trimester of this pregnancy has proved to be somewhat easier. Unfortunately I had two colds and a stomach bug between weeks 15 and 20 (I don't think I EVER had even a minor cold when I was pregnant with triplets as it was much easier to stay away from germs before I had kids), which depleted my energy, but even with those sicknesses I was able to care for our kids while being pregnant. Now I'm 23 weeks along and lately I have felt much better (knock on wood!), although I have come to realize that I probably won't ever have my "normal" energy level until I'm not pregnant. Plus, I'm just plain exhausted at the end of every day since I'm taking care of three rambunctious, strong-willed 3-year-olds.

• Up until a couple of weeks ago I could still wear some looser fitting non-maternity tops (and even at 23 weeks I have a couple of looser non-maternity tops that I've purchased since becoming pregnant that I can still wear). I can also still zip my winter coats, although I probably only have a couple of more weeks left of being able to do that. I gained so much weight with the triplet pregnancy that this would not have been possible, so I love that I can still squeeze into some of my "regular" clothes. 

• Multiple people have told me I'm still "tiny." Although I have been gaining weight steadily, and I will most likely go over the recommended max weight gain of 35 lbs (the holidays definitely didn't help me keep my weight gain in check!), compared to my triplet pregnancy I am tiny. As of 23 weeks I had gained 46 lbs with the triplet pregnancy, but with this pregnancy I've gained just over 20. I don't feel small since 20 lbs is significant, but the difference between the weight gains during the pregnancies is huge.

• I have to eat often, but not nearly as often or as much as the triplet pregnancy. I literally had to force myself to eat with the triplet pregnancy, since I was told that the more weight I gained the better off the babies would be, but this time around I eat when I feel like it. 

• My cravings are different this time around, although I'm sure that happens with different pregnancies for everyone. I loved Kraft Mac n Cheese and McDonald's during my triplet pregnancy. Since having kids, I no longer make Kraft Mac n Cheese because I've realized it's actually a bit gross, but my kids love Annie's. I've had an abundance of mac n cheese over the last couple of years because of the kids, though, so this is NOT something I crave. I also have only had McDonald's on road trips as it really doesn't sound that good (generally we don't eat much fast food). BUT this time around I have had too many Twisters Bandito Breakfast Burritos to count (they only cost $2 and they are the perfect little size for a second breakfast, so I didn't feel too bad going through the drive thru often during the first trimester). We also ate pizza once a week during the first trimester (I might have kept this up if heartburn wasn't a factor now). 

• During my triplet pregnancy I ate ice cream almost every single day because I was told it was a good way to get more calcium and fat. This time around I've only had a tiny amount of ice cream as I correlate it with massive weight gain during pregnancy. 

• Like my triplet pregnancy I have heartburn, but so far it is very mild compared to my triplet pregnancy. I'm hoping that it doesn't get any worse as during my triplet pregnancy I had to sleep sitting up most nights, which was miserable.

• I was hopeful that I would keep running and climbing during this pregnancy since that was something I longed to do during my triplet pregnancy, but that hasn't worked out for me this time either. I was way too exhausted to do these activities during the first trimester, and now I find it hard to find the time and energy to do these things along with taking care of Alexis, Jack, and Faith. Also, when I have tried running and climbing it just didn't "feel right" since my body has gone through a big change already. Instead, I'm trying to make sure I keep moving and at least go to the zoo and parks with the kids so that I'm getting a lot of walking in. I honestly don't get much downtime in my day since Alexis, Jack, and Faith require a lot of attention and supervision, so I'm pretty sure I'll be in better shape at the end of this pregnancy than I was at the end of the triplet pregnancy (just squatting to pick up millions of toys strewn about the house is more than I did during my first pregnancy!).

• I felt movement early on with this pregnancy, but I wasn't confident it was the baby until 20 weeks when it suddenly became much more obvious. Between 20 and 21 weeks I started seeing the movement. But I still don't feel movement as much as I'd like to and I think this is because I'm comparing it to my triplet pregnancy when I felt movement all of the time. I have to keep reminding myself that I had three babies dancing in my belly the first time around, so it makes sense that the movement feels much less frequent this time.

• I feel much more relaxed about my current pregnancy. During the triplet pregnancy I had a lot of time to think since I wasn't working and I spent my days growing babies, reading about triplets and triplet pregnancies, and preparing for their arrival. This time I'm honestly too busy to think about the pregnancy very much since Alexis, Jack, and Faith demand a lot of attention. It's also not a high risk pregnancy like the triplet pregnancy, so there isn't much to worry and think about. Also, we have most of the stuff we need, and we know we can survive without other things if we don't have them right away, so there is zero prep that needs to be done besides picking out a name! I'm actually getting weekly emails to update me on the pregnancy and I'm paying attention to the fruit / vegetable size comparisons. I was much too stressed to read about fun things like this during my triplet pregnancy.

I have been taking weekly pictures and I've enjoyed comparing my photos to the same gestation in my triplet pregnancy. Thankfully, overall I think I look much more rested and much smaller. The triplet pregnancy took a huge toll on my body, and I think this pregnancy is helping me understand how difficult it really was for me. In the photos below, the triplet pregnancy photos are on the left and the current singleton pregnancy photos are on the right.

16 weeks

17 weeks

18 weeks 

19 weeks

20 weeks

21 weeks

22 weeks 

23 weeks

3.5 Years Old

Where have the last six months gone? It honestly feels like the last six months have slipped through my fingers as I spent about half of the time not feeling well due to the first trimester of this pregnancy and various sicknesses (that I caught from our preschoolers). Although I would say the first six months of our babes' lives were about survival because we were so sleep deprived, and it is so much work to take care of three infants, this past six months has been about survival as well as I've spent a lot of the time feeling exhausted and / or sick and Alexis, Jack, and Faith have tons of energy. I'm hopeful that I'll stay healthy during the next half of my pregnancy so that I can savor these next 19 weeks with Alexis, Jack, and Faith before our family changes drastically with the addition of our new baby boy.

Anyway, this post isn't about me being pregnant (I plan to write a different post about that soon!). This post is about Alexis, Jack, and Faith and how much they have changed over the last six months as they are creeping closer to age 4 than 3!

These are their first ever school pics and we were shocked with how well they turned out. They also look so old!

Three-Year-Old Stats
We actually had all three kids weighed and measured at the doctor's office today as Jack was due for a growth check. Since Jack is small for his age, the pediatrician wanted to make sure that he stayed on "his curve," so at his 3 year well check she asked me to bring him back in six months. Today she was happy with his growth and although he is barely on the chart for boys his age, she isn't concerned. I was happy to see that he is growing at about the same rate as the girls.

WEIGHT

Alexis: 28 lbs 10 oz (gained 2 lbs 3 oz in six months)

Jack: 26 lbs 3 oz (gained 1 lb 9 oz in six months) 

Faith: 28 lbs 6 oz (gained 2 lbs 3 oz in six months)

HEIGHT

Alexis: 38.5 inches (+1.25 inches in six months)

Faith: 39 inches (+1.5 inches in six months)

Jack: 36.5 inches (+1.5 inches in six months)

Size clothes: The girls are growing out of their 3T clothes and into 4T. I seriously can't get over how long their legs are as most of their 3T pants are an inch too short! Jack is finally growing out of his 2T clothes and is wearing a lot of 3T, although there is room to grow and they will fit for awhile.

Eating: None of our kids are big eaters, but Alexis and Faith seem to have become less picky over the last six months. In fact, if I make something for Micah and I that I assume they wouldn't touch, they usually end up asking for bites of our meal. Jack is still the most picky, but he is willing to tolerate many more foods now than he did six months ago, even if he doesn't necessarily like it. I have to admit that we often use treats as bribes to get them to finish their dinner and we often ending up feeding them bites (especially Jack), but it works most of the time, and since we are always stressed about how little our kids weigh we feel like a few chocolate chips is worth giving to them if they finish their meal. Fruit is still a favorite food. Vegetables, as Alexis likes to say, "Are not my favorite," but they are usually willing to eat the few bites that I put on their plates.

Naps: Six months ago we were struggling to get the kids to nap, but I could almost guarantee that Jack would sleep and the girls seemed to take turns sleeping. During the past six months, though, the girls gave up napping completely and it got to the point where I didn't actually want them to sleep since that meant they wouldn't fall asleep at night until 9:30 p.m., which isn't helpful. And, in the beginning of October, Jack stopped napping and he hasn't taken a single nap since. Unfortunately for me, Jack stopped napping when I was 9 weeks pregnant and I could hardly hold my eyes open in the afternoon, so there were many afternoons that I turned on the TV for the kids and put myself down for a nap. I'm sure this didn't help Jack want to nap since he felt like he would have way more fun staying awake! 

Quiet Time: Although I've accepted that the kids aren't going to nap, I am trying to enforce a "quiet time" most afternoons. I haven't been as consistent with this as I should have been for a variety of reasons, but I do think it's important that the kids learn how to entertain themselves and look at books quietly since they spend so much of their day playing with each other. Right now I am having them go in separate bedrooms and I sit in the hallway in the middle of them. I turn on music and set a timer for 15 minutes, but if anyone comes out of their room or talks to me the timer either stops or is reset. Right now, Jack is fine with this but the girls have a much harder time and they seem to think it's some sort of punishment. Hopefully they will figure out how to do quiet time soon as it's nice for me to have at least a short amount of time to myself each day too!

Bedtime: Six months ago I wrote about how much better night and morning was going since we put the girls in separate bedrooms at the end of March (Alexis was temporarily moved into the guest room). Since it was going so much better, we didn't have any plans to put them back in the same room, but at the end of September / beginning of October we had a string of family and friends visit so we put Alexis in Faith's room for a couple of weeks. Now that the girls aren't napping, they are completely exhausted by the end of the day, so being in the same room at night wasn't a problem during those two weeks. Instead of moving Alexis back into the guest room when our visitors were gone, we moved her twin size bed into Faith's room for good and the girls have been sharing a room ever since. It ended being about six months that the girls were in separate rooms, and I'm glad that we had the extra space at the time we needed it, but I'm also glad that they are able to share agains since it's nice to have a designated guest bedroom.

When our kids were still napping, bedtime was at 8:00. Now that naps are gone completely, though, we have moved bedtime up to 7:00. This has been nice for me since I'm so exhausted at the end of the day, but it does mean that Micah sees the kids for an hour less each day and that evening activities are more difficult since the kids completely fall apart if they are up past their bedtime. We are using "OK to Wake" clocks for the morning (a green light turns on when the kids may get up the morning...we have this set for 7:00 a.m.) and, although they don't work 100% of the time, the kids do try to stay quiet in their rooms until they see the green light (and they are so proud of themselves on the mornings that they see the light turn on!). 

Unfortunately, it seems like Micah or I (or both of us) are waking up to someone crying about 4-5 nights a week. It's usually one of the girls that is having a bad dream or needs to go potty (they have a small potty in their room but they usually want help with their pants in the middle of the night). Jack occasionally wakes up crying because of a bad dream. There's not much we can do about the kids waking, but at least it usually doesn't take us long to get them back to bed and I fall back asleep the second my head hits the pillow (Micah tends to have more of a problem getting back to sleep so I try to be the first to pop out of bed when I hear a noise).

Words: Many people have commented on how well our kids speak, so I guess they are fairly easy to understand and they definitely have a lot to say. These days they all love to ask us what letter things start with as they have become quite interested in the alphabet since they started preschool in September. Now if we could just get them to talk over each other less, since it's quite chaotic when three 3-year-olds feel like they have something important to say at the exact same time!

New Things: 

• Everyone is potty trained! Woohoo! When we started potty training at the end of March I had no idea that it would take us until the end of October to be *almost* 100% day-time potty trained, but since Alexis, Jack, and Faith are individuals they all trained at their own pace. The girls both wake up dry most of the time at night too, so we plan to focus on that next.
• Sharing is still hard, as it is for most kids, but they are getting so much better at it and this Christmas we aren't buying three of every toy! This feels like a huge step. 
• Another reason we aren't buying three of every toy is that the differences between the girls' interests and Jack's interests have become even more apparent in the past six months. Although the girls really enjoy playing with cars and trucks, they often pretend that they are characters such as a mommy, daddy, and child. Jack often talks about "bad guys" and he is interested in swords and fighting invisible enemies. Jack loves doing "guy things" like hanging out in the garage while Micah works on a project, while the girls like to rock their baby dolls.
• Jack has an imaginary friend that he occasionally talks about named "Howard." He will randomly say that his "boy" or "friend" is doing something with him. We think it will be good for him to have a little brother since he might be getting this idea from watching the girls play together, but for now the occasional imaginary friend is amusing.
• Jack refers to his grandparents as the "Jeep grandparents" (Micah's parents) and the "golf cart grandparents" (my parents). This is very telling of his interests.
• 3.5-year-olds are wild, silly, and loud, and our house feels like a madhouse sometimes. We have found that when we do something one-on-one with a kid they are much so much easier to handle as they feed off of each other when they are together.
• They find humor in things such as movies, silly things older kids do, and things each other do. I love to hear them laugh, and for some reason understanding jokes and such makes them seem older. 
• Phrases we hear around the house include, "You're being rude" and "Don't be mean to my sister." They love to parent each other and stick up for each other. I'm sure it's only the beginning.
• This isn't something new yet, but we plan to turn Alexis, Jack, and Faith's car seats forward facing when we get our new family vehicle (our current vehicle doesn't safely fit four car seats). Although they technically could have been turned forward facing once they reached 20 lbs, I have read that it is safer to keep children rear facing as long as possible and that it is ideal to leave kids rear facing until they are 4 years of age since that is when their bone structure is ready to handle a head-on impact. For the most part, having them rear facing hasn't been a problem, but it is hard to referee conflicts and they often put their legs in each other's space which becomes problematic. I think it will be good for everyone when they are forward facing.

Current Schedule:

Of course we still have our general mealtime and bedtime schedule, but I can honestly say that this is the least scheduled we have been since our trio was born. In some ways this is so freeing since we don't have to worry about being home for nap time and such, but in other ways I feel completely lost as there is a lot more time to fill in a day without naps. Our general schedule is as follows, but it can change quite a bit from day-to-day:

7:00 Kids wake up

7:30 Breakfast

8:00 Help kids get dressed, brush teeth

8:30 Kids watch a show while I shower and get ready (unless it's T / TH since the kids have school and I don't want them to watch TV before they go, so I try to wake up early to take a shower before they get up)

8:45 / 9:00 Leave our house (we need to leave around 8:45 on school mornings, but we generally leave later on non-school days)

9:00-12:00 Preschool on T / TH, or  Botanic Garden, Zoo, Park, or errands on non-school days (morning snack while out)....or we just stay home (on Fridays we have gymnastics from 10:45-11:15 so we can't do much that morning)

12:30 Lunch

1:30 Quiet Time 

*After quiet time I'm a bit lost, especially now that it's getting colder outside. They usually play inside for awhile, sometimes we run an errand or go to the park. We also will do more structured activities like baking or play doh. I also usually end up turning on a show at some point either to give myself some rest time or to stop the kids from acting so wild and crazy.

5:00 Start making dinner

5:45 Eat dinner (as soon as Micah gets home)

6:15 Change into PJ’s, snack, read

6:45 Brush teeth

7:00 All in their rooms ready to be tucked in (Micah and I used to tuck in each child together, but now we start in opposite rooms and then switch since this helps them all to stay calmly in bed)

The hardest part for me about the current schedule is that I don't have much time to get stuff done around the house like I had when the kids napped. Although I can usually clean up the kitchen and do some laundry while the kids play, I never know when a disagreement will come up between the kids or when someone will need help in the bathroom. Preschool mornings are great since I can do errands that I don't want to do with the kids along, and I sometimes spend time at home cleaning / picking up, but I definitely miss the days that I had a couple of hours to myself every afternoon to tackle my "To Do List." I know that the kids will only get more independent from here, but I'm finding this stage difficult since I don't have much energy in the evening due to pregnancy.

Soon to be "Big Brother and Big Sisters:"

Maybe it's the pregnancy hormones, but thinking about the fact that this is my last post like this before our family changes completely with a new baby has me a little teary. The next time I'll write a post like this the kids will be turning 4 and there will be an infant taking up a lot of my time. Alexis, Jack, and Faith are our babies, and it will be strange to think of them as being a big brother and big sisters since we still so clearly remember how tiny they were when they were born. We know that they will be great "bigs," but our lives have been so consumed by the three of them for the past 3.5 years, so it's hard to imagine life any other way. I know that our hearts will grow with a new baby, so I'm not worried about splitting my love for my kids with another child, but everything from the pregnancy to preschool has been so intense with Alexis, Jack, and Faith so it will be strange when our "triplets" aren't the center of our focus anymore. I'm sure that in time we will say we can't imagine life without the new baby, but until then I want to savor the moments that we have with our three firstborn children as they made us a mommy and daddy.

Interview Questions at 3.5-Years-Old

I asked these same questions in June when Alexis, Jack, and Faith turned 3. I thought it was interesting to see how much more sense, for the most part, their answers made only six months later.

•What is your name?
Alexis Joy Howard

I don't know ...Jack Micah Howard 

Faith Elizabeth Howard

•How old are you?
A: 3 1/2

J: 3

F: 5 [she REALLY wants to be "all of her fingers"]

•When is your birthday?
A: In June

J: In June

F: In June

•How old is Daddy?
A: I don't know

J: I don't know

F: As big as me

•How old is mommy?
A: I don't know

J: Bigger

F: As tall as me

•What is your favorite color?
A: Red and orange 

J: Black and white

F: Pink and red

•What is your favorite food?
A: Mac n cheese

J: Quesadilla 

F: Broccoli and chicken

•Who is your best friend?
A: Daddy

J: Micah [aka Daddy]

F: Daddy

•What is your favorite song?
A: Twinkle twinkle little star

J: Twinkle little star

F: Twinkle little star

•What is your favorite animal?
A: Polar bears

J: Tigers

F: A lion says Roar, that's my favorite animal

•What are you scared of?
A: Dark forest

J: Dark forest [I think he heard A's answer]

F: Polar bears

•What makes you happy?
A: Daddy

J: You [Mommy....I got one vote! Daddy is definitely the favorite these days]
F: Micah [Daddy]

•Where is your favorite place to go?
A: Chicago

J: To the zoo

F: To your parents house [Grandpa and Grandma Snyder]

•What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: A Spiderman [This was her Halloween costume, but she has never seen anything Spiderman related]

J: A grown up

F: A mama

•What is Mommy's favorite thing to do?
A: Clean the house

J: Play

F: Pick up the toys when we mess them down

•What is daddy's favorite thing to do?
A: Play with us

J: Play too

F: Pick up his sweater and go to work 

Are They Triplets?!

Today we went to the lab near our house for a routine blood draw for Jack. We have been going in the late afternoon so that there isn't much of a wait since waiting is hard for 3-year-olds. Unfortunately, today the wait was a little longer than usual due to one patient holding up the line, but during our 20 minutes we managed to make the day of three older ladies.

Since we go to the lab every one to two weeks, the kids know the routine. After pulling our number from the machine, they all grabbed a magazine from the table and quietly sat down in seats in near me. Immediately the first older lady asks me, "Are they triplets?" I tell her that they are and then she goes on to say how beautiful they are and such. After our short conversation, she sits and watches them while we wait.

Apparently the second older lady, who was sitting only a few seats away from the first, didn't hear our brief, but loud, conversation and a few minutes later she asks, "Are they triplets?" I respond that they are and she goes on to tell me that they are beautiful. She then asks how old they are and when I tell her they are 3-years-old she starts telling me that she can't believe how well-behaved they are and how sane I am (it is not the first time someone has used this word to describe me when they find out I'm a triplet mom!). She continues with the compliments and then the kids start realizing that they have the spotlight.

At first the girls get up and start doing some twirls (they are really into dancing these days). Both older ladies are delighted by the entertainment. The second older lady asks me several more questions about them and the girls talk to her a little, and then a third older lady sits down and asks me, "Are they triplets?"

All of a sudden, the kids have an audience of three and Faith starts singing, "If You're Happy and You Know It." It was adorable, and I couldn't help but smile and laugh to myself, while at the same time I was starting to get worried because our wait was getting long and I know my 3-year-olds pretty well.

As I feared, all of the attention got the kids a little excited, and suddenly my "well-behaved" children were running around our section of the waiting room in circles giggling. I was afraid this would end in disaster quickly as someone was bound to fall, plus I'm pretty sure all three older ladies didn't approve of this behavior in a waiting room, so I quickly stopped the kids and suggested that they sing another song.

Much to the delight of the three ladies, all three kids sang "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" together. By this time I was sweaty and nervous as personally I don't enjoy all of the attention in public and I wasn't sure how much longer I could keep the kids relatively calm. Thankfully, at this moment our number was called and Jack quickly had his blood drawn.

We wandered out to the car afterwards and one of the kids announced that they had a poopy diaper, so I had to change that in the parking lot (one of them is still giving us a hard time with poop potty training). As soon as I finished that another kid announced that they had to poop and they could not wait until we got home, so I had to break out the travel potty.

This bike rack outside of the building is part of every single visit to the lab as the kids are convinced it's a jungle gym

Most of the time our trip to the lab is quick and easy, but today was a bit out of the ordinary. I'm glad that the kids behaved fairly well for the short time we were at the lab so that they could make the day of at least three people, but I'm also glad that their being triplets is becoming slightly less obvious as they get older since the questions and attention get old fast!

P.S. I'm excited that I'm finally getting some energy back after being unable to do anything in the evening for the last couple of months! I'm hoping to post to my blog more regularly again, but I also need to motivate myself to get things checked off of my very long "To Do" list as it kept growing despite my being exhausted.

Pregnant with a Singleton!

Although many friends and family know, I've never written about our infertility journey. Without getting into too many details, after trying to conceive on our own for awhile for our first baby, we saw a fertility doctor. After a variety of tests, it was determined that IVF was our best option.

We were both wary of IVF for many of reasons. We wrestled with the idea for many months, and talked with our pastor and close friends about it, before deciding that it was the right decision for us. We started our first IVF cycle on November 1, 2012, and our lives were changed forever.

Although many fertility doctors want to produce as many eggs as possible from an IVF cycle, we had determined that we only wanted about 10 eggs. Based on statistics at the time, this would result in about four healthy embryos since not all eggs are able to be fertilized and not all embryos develop properly. Although at one point our doctor wanted to increase my meds so that there were more eggs, we held strong to our original plan. In the end we had 10 eggs and four became healthy embryos (we had done our research and the math!).

The reason we didn't want more embryos than this was because we were committed to using ALL of our embryos. In our "dream family" we would have three children, and statistically four embryos would result in three babies, but if all four miraculously resulted in children we would be okay with that as well. Both Micah and I are planners, and we thought we had it all worked out.

When we were ready to do our first embryo transfer in mid-November 2012, we decided to transfer two embryos instead of one. Although the national recommendation for a 29-year-old female (my age at the time) was one embryo, my doctor suggested that we transfer two since they weren't considered to be "high grade" embryos and he wanted to increase our chance of success. We were told that there was a chance of twins, and a "less than 5% chance of triplets" if two embryos were transferred, but all we could think about was that we really wanted this first transfer to work and we were hoping for one baby. A few weeks later, though, we found out that both embryos did take and one actually split, so I was pregnant with triplets.

We were in shock for weeks, maybe even the whole pregnancy! We wouldn't change anything if we could go back because we can't imagine our life any other way now, but obviously triplets changed our lives completely.

During my pregnancy and after our triplets were born, our two extra embryos were in the back of our minds (even more on my mind than Micah's since I am the primary caretaker of our kids and I am the one that gets pregnant). Since we had so much success with our first IVF transfer, it was hard not to wonder if both remaining embryos would become babies, or if any would split and we would have multiples again! These thoughts were overwhelming as we cared for our three new babes, and then as they became toddlers and things got challenging in different ways. We didn't want our kids to be too far apart in years, yet it was hard to fathom how I would manage being pregnant while caring for our triplets.

Eventually, though, things started to feel a little bit easier with Alexis, Jack, and Faith. By age 2 they were no longer considered delayed and they were becoming more and more independent every day. The thought of being pregnant and having a baby became (slightly) less daunting, so this past January, when our trio was 2 1/2 years old, I started the IVF meds again so that we could transfer ONE embryo.

When I received a positive on the pregnancy test from that transfer, Micah and I were a little freaked out. That meant that we had the potential of having FIVE children (or more if any embryos split) because we still had one frozen embryo. It was overwhelming to think about, but in the end we knew that God had a plan and we would just take it one day at a time. Unfortunately, at about five weeks gestation it became clear that my HCG level was dropping and it became obvious that this was not a viable pregnancy. I miscarried at six weeks.

We were sad that my second pregnancy resulted in miscarriage, but we still had the remaining embryo to transfer. Although my six week pregnancy was short-lived, it takes about six weeks to prepare a woman's body for a frozen embryo transfer, so the first two months of 2016 were quite stressful as I pumped my body full of hormones and experienced the beginning of a pregnancy. I definitely felt like I needed some time off from IVF meds before we transferred our last embryo, so we decided to wait until late summer so that I could focus on a running goal and enjoy my summer with Alexis, Jack, and Faith.

In late June I started the hormones necessary for an IVF transfer and we transferred our last embryo on August 5, less than one week after I ran / hiked the 26.2 mile Sandia Crest Trail with Micah. I was happy that I had accomplished something on my bucket list, and I was ready to see what happened with our last frozen embryo from November 2012.

Thankfully, the embryo transfer worked and I am currently 13 weeks pregnant with a singleton! It is hard to explain all of the emotions involved in IVF because the process puts a huge strain on the mother both physically, mentally, and emotionally. In addition to the stress of IVF itself, it is crazy to realize how much time I spent thinking about our two frozen embryos and wondering how I would ever manage taking care of Alexis, Jack, and Faith plus another child or two. Although I still wonder what that will look like, I now feel much more at peace with it all and I am excited to experience a singleton pregnancy, birth, and everything else that will (hopefully) feel much simpler with one than it was with three.

Camping at the Great Sand Dunes

My parents have been traveling in their RV for several weeks visiting numerous national parks, but this past week they took a break from the parks and spent time with us in Albuquerque. When they were planning their trip we decided that we should camp at the Great Sand Dunes National Park at the end of our week together as they have never been there and it is about 4 hours from our house. Unfortunately, my 4Runner was rear ended the Thursday before my parents arrived, and my car was at the shop for an entire week getting a new tailgate and rear bumper. Because our only vehicle that holds three car seats was in the shop, and we weren't sure when it would be finished, we didn't know if we would be able to camp until the last minute. Thankfully, our car was finished on Friday at 5:30 p.m., so we left Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. for the Sand Dunes.

We gave the kids sleeping bags for their birthday so they have wanted to camp all summer, but for various reasons a camping trip hasn't happened for us. The kids were really excited to camp, but we weren't sure if they truly understood what camping was since they haven't been since they were 16 months old (we went once when they were 13 months and once when they were 16 months). Luckily, they were still excited once they saw our tent set up with their sleeping bags inside! After spending some time setting up our campsite and eating lunch, we headed over to the dunes.

Alexis

The rock wall around the campsite made a perfect road for their cars

Faith and Jack outside of our tent

Alexis testing out her sleeping bag

No camping trip is complete without a ukulele

Micah's parents joined us for the dunes and dinner as they live less than an hour from the park. The kids were ecstatic to have both sets of grandparents in one place as that has only happened a handful of times. They enjoyed running around and playing in the sand, and we went on a short walk up the dunes (they go on for miles so going to the top would take about five hours). 

Alexis left, Faith right

Walking towards the dunes. In the past we've been to the park when the water was flowing down from the mountains so the kids didn't want to leave the stream, but the ground was dry this weekend so we explored further into the park for the first time.

Sitting on top of a small dune

Trying to make sand angels (it was impossible to keep their heads out of the sand so I finally gave in)

Everyone enjoyed a simple dinner followed by s'mores on the campfire, before the Howard grandparents left for the night and we got the kids ready for bed. We tried to put the kids in the tent by themselves, but they were much too excited to settle down and sleep. So Micah and I went to bed fairly early and once we were in the tent the kids fell asleep within minutes. 

Dinner at our campsite

A campfire is slightly more enjoyable with 3-year-olds than 2-year-olds, but they still have a lot to learn about the dangers

The view of the sunset over the sand dunes from our campsite

The kids enjoyed the elements of s'mores one at a time instead of in sandwich form (less mess that way!)

Faith and Alexis tucked in for the night

Jack was excited to sleep in his sleeping bag!

The nighttime low was in the upper 30's, so we were prepared with layers and warm sleeping bags. Although I was worried about the kids during the night, they seemed to be warm enough and I was the one that was cold. Next time I need to dress myself warmer!

Overall, everyone slept well in the tent and we woke up around 6:45 in the morning. A major perk of sharing a campsite with my parents was that we could hop into their warmer RV in the morning instead of trying to eat breakfast outside in the cold. We were also able to use their bathroom instead of walking to the public one, which is a huge advantage when camping with three 3-year-olds.

Breakfast in the RV with a view of our tent

After a morning walk around the campsite and taking down our tent, we headed over to Micah's parents' house for a late breakfast (and a shower for me!). In a way it feels like we "cheated" at camping since we took advantage of the luxuries of my parents' RV and we had a hot breakfast waiting for us at Micah's parents' house, but we DID successfully spend a cold night in a tent with our 3-year-olds so I think we can say we camped for the first time with the kids in two years. We look forward to more camping trips with our camping loving kids in the future.

The view from our campsite in the morning. It was a chilly morning and we were thankful for our winter clothes!

Alexis spent hours sweeping the dirt at the campsite...haha.

The kids burned some energy playing with the balls at Grammy and Grandpa's house

One last pic before we started our drive back to ABQ

Things Kids Say, Big Kid Beds, and Preschool

Since we started potty training six months ago, our kids seem to have grown up by years. Just today when I was in the church restroom with Alexis and Faith they both insisted on going into their own stalls and doing everything by themselves because, in Faith's words, "That is what my teacher lets me do at school." Wow. You are 3-years-old and suddenly you don't need help getting onto the big potty or pulling your pants back up? Of course, this isn't how they act all of the time as they are only 3 and sometimes they want help with e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g., but I almost felt sad sitting in my bathroom stall alone as the girls seemed so independent (but then I realized I was using the bathroom alone...amazing!).

When Alexis, Jack, and Faith were babies I couldn't wait for them to grow up. We felt like we were in the baby stage forever since they were born two whole months early and they were slightly delayed in some areas during their first two years of life. Looking at them and listening to them talk now it's hard to imagine that they were ever delayed, and we are very thankful for that, but some days I want time to slow down as our three babes have become kids.

All three kids say surprising, thoughtful, and funny things all of the time, and I haven't been very good at writing it all down, but here is a question they each asked recently:

• Alexis asked, "Is it Thursday or Friday?" while eating dinner one day. Suddenly time has become relevant to her since she goes to school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Micah and I were both shocked when she asked this question as it made her seem so much older than 3!

Alexis looking really grown up at lunch

• Jack asked, "What's this?" while pointing to his hair after I mentioned that a classmate had black hair. He wanted to know what color his hair was since I was describing someone else's. Blonde isn't a word we say very often, so it makes sense that he wanted to know.

Someday Jack will grow into this guitar that I bought for $3 at the multiples club garage sale

• Faith asked, "Can I sing Baa Baa Blacksheep with a girl in the song?" She realized that we were always singing about the "little boy that lives down the lane," but she wanted it to be a girl like her. I told her she could sing it however she wanted. Wow. Such deep thoughts for a 3-year-old! 

Faith loves to say, "Mom, take a picture of...." This time she wanted a pic of her doggies but I insisted that she was in the photo as well.

In the last few months, all three kids have transitioned from their crib daybeds into twin size beds. Jack inherited Micah's childhood bunkbed set and we bought the girls twin beds from Pottery Barn (we got a great deal as they were 50% off after a sale and a coupon!). They LOVE their "big beds" and I honestly think they sleep a little better in them. We love that we can lay down on their beds with them when we tuck them in at night or when they are having trouble sleeping during the night.

Jack was so excited for his bunk beds (his guitar blanket was made by his Grammy).

Faith got her bed once she was almost 100% potty trained, and she was so proud.

Alexis was thrilled to get her big bed as she was the last one to get it. We used potty training as an incentive, although she has regressed a bit since then. Such is life with kids sometimes.

Micah let the kids go on Jack's top bunk for the first time last week and they thought it was the greatest thing.

The kids started preschool a month ago. They are going on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9-12. I know many moms are sad when they drop their child off at preschool for the first time but, although I felt a twinge of sadness on the first day, mostly I was excited. It's been harder and harder to get things done around the house since the girls rarely nap, so I don't have a chunk of time in the afternoon like I used to have, and it's difficult to run errands with three kids no matter what their ages. So although preschool is a sign of our kids growing up, I mostly see it as an opportunity for our kids to learn to listen to other adults and interact with other children while I can get a few things done. Also, I am better able to focus on our kids if I don't have things hanging over my head like the grocery store and my volunteer accounting work.

Alexis

Faith

Jack

This was taken on the first day right before they walked into their classroom, so they were all a little nervous. Their backpack cubbies are behind them.

The first day...the girls are in yellow and pink and we were still convincing Jack that he was going to have fun. 

Tuesdays and Thursdays are very similar, except that on Tuesday they have Chapel and on Thursday they have music. The school also has special events and last week a petting farm came to the school. The kids loved it!

All three kids seem to enjoy preschool and they are learning a lot. Faith has been 100% confident from Day 1. She has not shed even one tear upon drop off and she has comforted her siblings when they were having a harder time. Jack was pretty teary for the first few weeks and there was even one morning that I had to pick him up from school 90 minutes into the 3 hour day because he wouldn't stop crying. I was nervous that he wouldn't want to go back to school after that, but this past week he has not had any issues. In fact, he walked into the classroom both mornings with a smile! Alexis has been a little emotional many mornings, but her teachers tell me that she calms down very quickly after I leave. I'm hoping that she will soon be as happy and confident as Faith and Jack. I know that they are all having a great time as they tell me many stories and they are very proud of the artwork that they bring home.

His teacher told me that she repeatedly told him, "Jack, paint over the tape," so that was the inspiration for his title.

One downside to having triplets in preschool is three times the snacks. Each child is assigned a day to bring the snack for the whole class (they also get to be line leader and bring show & tell on their day), but there are only 11 kids in our preschool class so our kids make up over 25% of the class...which means I get to supply over 25% of the snacks! I'm sure once we get into the routine of bringing the snack almost every single week it won't be that big of a deal, but right now the thought of it is a little daunting.

Although 3-year-olds are tough in many ways, we are really enjoying this stage too. It's fun to have conversations with our kids and we are truly able to enjoy some activities with them now. I'm sure that Alexis, Jack, and Faith will continue to grow up at an astonishing rate from now until they are adults, which is overwhelming to think about, but it also makes me excited to see who they each become in the future.

They all love to take photos of us, and this was taken by Jack on our anniversary.

The last gate was taken down in our house.

Gate free!

We won't be able to do this forever, but for now we still bathe them at the same time.

In August the kids started taking a gymnastics class for 30 minutes on Fridays. All three love it and it's fun for me to watch.

On Labor Day we drove to Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument and did a short hike. It was super hot, but the kids were troopers.

If Alexis or Faith get upset about something, they often hang their head and sulk. It's quite dramatic so it's hard not to laugh sometimes, but it's also quite frustrating as they'll do this for the silliest reasons.

Right now they are all enjoying their "new" tricycles. If only our backyard patio was bigger for riding.

The kids were really excited about the hot air balloons at the Balloon Fiesta on Saturday, although they did seem to enjoy them more from afar as it was less overwhelming and they could see so many at once.