So I didn't do a very good job of keeping up with blogging through 2013! Of course I have a lot of other things going on, and just never remembered to write. This year, 2014, I'm going to start posting a photo each day! I'm not following any rules, just a photo take from that day, whether it's on my cell or with the actual camera...I'll post something!
2013 was a great year! We celebrated 8 years of marriage, and now have a 4 year old who is in Pre-K and 3 2 year olds!!! We've be adjusting to a new schedule of Emmalee in Pre-K, Papa Walt, cousin Julie and Sister In-law Heather are all helping watch the trio while I drop Emmalee off and pick her up each morning! It is really such a blessing to have these willing people so close by to help out! Also mixed into that schedule is Speech Therapy for Noah & Lyla and Lyla is also getting weekly visits from a Special Education teacher to help with focus and transition.
Our 2 weeks of winter break are coming to a close, bitter sweet, since it's fun having everyone home all day, with a break from the everyday schedule, but Emmalee loves school and the trio love Mommy to themselves!! We don't live a very exciting life, but it's full and we enjoyed so much seeing so many family and friends we don't get to see regularly this holiday! Sad it's over, but excited to see what 2014 will bring us!!!
Happy New Year
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Monday, September 30, 2013
What's New???
So again, I am a slacker, and not keeping up with blog posts.
Sure I spend several minutes sporadically throughout the day on the computer, but those are spent checking and deleting emails, responding occasionally if need be, checking Facebook to see what other amazing parents and friends of mine are up to on any given day, responding to new hat ideas and sales, paying bills and catching up on some current events, who has time for blogging?
As you can see my blog has had a little face-lift, isn't it pretty, thanks Sabrina for dolling me up! Now to put it to use!
So it's been about 2 and a half months since my last post. Shameful, I know. And as you can imagine so much has happened, or not happened in that time frame.
Emmalee turned 4 in August and had a glorious princess party! She was shown such love by family and friends, it was wonderful! One of the biggest milestones in her life started just a few weeks ago, she has entered the world of formal education! Yes folks, we have a pre-K student in our midst! She, of course, loves school, as any child of mine would and should! (Says the teacher locked away inside me.) She goes everyday, for 2.5 hours in the morning, I drop her off and pick her up and so far, so good! I think we're finally into the routine and can call it our "normal". It took a few weeks, but we're adjusting well to waking up and actually getting ready for the day! It's rather refreshing!
During this new experience for Emmalee I've been offered amazing support from a few giving individuals! My father-in-law, retired for a few years now, has been coming over 3 days a week to watch the triplets while I drop Emmalee off. Some days he hangs out, other times he goes and runs a few errands and then come back so that I can pick her up on my own, without packing up the troops! One day a week my husbands cousin, and well frankly, she's become one of my closest friends over the past few years, packs up her 1 year old twins and comes for a morning-long play date! She's there for drop off and pick up, so again, I don't have to load up the van! And on Fridays my awesome sister-in-law has this day off from work, and pops over to help out! The other day she even made the trip to the Pediatrician's office with me to help control the kiddos while we got their flu shots. I just have to say how thankful I am to have these 3 amazing and giving individuals to help me out! I have only taken the trio with me once so far, just so I could get the feel of things and see how they behave...as long as I bring some graham crackers or goldfish, I think we'll be good if we don't have coverage!
Another new thing is beginning for us, we are welcoming Early Intervention into our lives. Lyla and Noah have been accepted into the program and will both having a visiting speech therapist, and Lyla also needs a little work on focus and direction, so she'll be working with a teacher. I am looking forward to seeing them make great strides in their language and communication development over the next 6 months!
And one last NEW thing, my crocheting venture celebrated a year "in business" last week! Thanks to Facebook and word of mouth and that SHARE button, I've got over 600 "fans" and have sold over a hundred hats! Right now the Halloween buzz has hit, and I've been coming up with new designs from requests from new clients and old friends! I am excited for the new things coming and also creating those fun favorites!
Sure I spend several minutes sporadically throughout the day on the computer, but those are spent checking and deleting emails, responding occasionally if need be, checking Facebook to see what other amazing parents and friends of mine are up to on any given day, responding to new hat ideas and sales, paying bills and catching up on some current events, who has time for blogging?
As you can see my blog has had a little face-lift, isn't it pretty, thanks Sabrina for dolling me up! Now to put it to use!
So it's been about 2 and a half months since my last post. Shameful, I know. And as you can imagine so much has happened, or not happened in that time frame.
Emmalee turned 4 in August and had a glorious princess party! She was shown such love by family and friends, it was wonderful! One of the biggest milestones in her life started just a few weeks ago, she has entered the world of formal education! Yes folks, we have a pre-K student in our midst! She, of course, loves school, as any child of mine would and should! (Says the teacher locked away inside me.) She goes everyday, for 2.5 hours in the morning, I drop her off and pick her up and so far, so good! I think we're finally into the routine and can call it our "normal". It took a few weeks, but we're adjusting well to waking up and actually getting ready for the day! It's rather refreshing!
During this new experience for Emmalee I've been offered amazing support from a few giving individuals! My father-in-law, retired for a few years now, has been coming over 3 days a week to watch the triplets while I drop Emmalee off. Some days he hangs out, other times he goes and runs a few errands and then come back so that I can pick her up on my own, without packing up the troops! One day a week my husbands cousin, and well frankly, she's become one of my closest friends over the past few years, packs up her 1 year old twins and comes for a morning-long play date! She's there for drop off and pick up, so again, I don't have to load up the van! And on Fridays my awesome sister-in-law has this day off from work, and pops over to help out! The other day she even made the trip to the Pediatrician's office with me to help control the kiddos while we got their flu shots. I just have to say how thankful I am to have these 3 amazing and giving individuals to help me out! I have only taken the trio with me once so far, just so I could get the feel of things and see how they behave...as long as I bring some graham crackers or goldfish, I think we'll be good if we don't have coverage!
Another new thing is beginning for us, we are welcoming Early Intervention into our lives. Lyla and Noah have been accepted into the program and will both having a visiting speech therapist, and Lyla also needs a little work on focus and direction, so she'll be working with a teacher. I am looking forward to seeing them make great strides in their language and communication development over the next 6 months!
And one last NEW thing, my crocheting venture celebrated a year "in business" last week! Thanks to Facebook and word of mouth and that SHARE button, I've got over 600 "fans" and have sold over a hundred hats! Right now the Halloween buzz has hit, and I've been coming up with new designs from requests from new clients and old friends! I am excited for the new things coming and also creating those fun favorites!
Monday, July 22, 2013
Triplets turn 2!
We took our first family vacation last week! Andy has family in Falmouth, Kentucky, so we went and stayed with some of his cousins and visited with as much family as we could! We had a wonderful time, felt right at home with Stephanie and Steve and their boys, Austin and Joshua. Our kids got a lot great and they felt right at home too, sleeping like they do at home!! I think that was my biggest worry, being in an unfamiliar place, would they really sleep through the night in Pack N Plays??? So glad they did!
We also celebrated Owen, Lyla & Noah's 2nd birthday when we returned from vacation! I still cannot believe they're 2 already! Where does the time go??? Being home with them, the days are very, very, very long, but the months, and now YEARS have flown by!
Owen was born first at 10:14am on July 16th, 2011 weighing 4lb 10.5oz, two years later he's a whopping 27lbs! He has done a lot of things first up to this point. He's the one that is talking the most, and he's the tallest and weighs the most! He's also my little challenger, always giving me a little attitude, but then turning around with the sweetest kisses and hugs. He's become quite attached to his "doggie" which is actually a zebra, and we found a larger version of this at the Cincinnati Zoo while we were on vacation!
Lyla was the 2nd to arrive at 10:24am, weighing 4lb 5oz, and clocked in at her 2 year visit at 23lbs! She is our little peanut, skinny as can be! She is my little flower child, flitting around the house on her own plain of existence. She gets so focused on one thing, she cannot be bothered, but when she wants your attention, she sticks to you like a baby monkey holding on to it's mommy! She loves her siblings, and eats like a champ! In Kentucky she loved just being allowed to run, which was very difficult for me, she is an explorer for sure!
Noah was the last to arrive, at 10:25am, weighing 4lb 3.5oz, and today he's up to almost 25lbs! He's all boy, that's for sure. Running, and running, and flipping and falling all day long! If it can be climbed, Noah will climb it. He really loved Kentucky and meeting all the family, he's such a little people person, I really hope that never changes! He has recently started to be more cuddly, and I just love it because he literally never stops moving. So when we get those occasional hugs and kisses and cuddles from Noah, they're deeply cherished!
My oh my how they've grown and changed and blossomed into these amazing little individuals! I am so excited for the growing they will do while they are 2!
We also celebrated Owen, Lyla & Noah's 2nd birthday when we returned from vacation! I still cannot believe they're 2 already! Where does the time go??? Being home with them, the days are very, very, very long, but the months, and now YEARS have flown by!
Owen was born first at 10:14am on July 16th, 2011 weighing 4lb 10.5oz, two years later he's a whopping 27lbs! He has done a lot of things first up to this point. He's the one that is talking the most, and he's the tallest and weighs the most! He's also my little challenger, always giving me a little attitude, but then turning around with the sweetest kisses and hugs. He's become quite attached to his "doggie" which is actually a zebra, and we found a larger version of this at the Cincinnati Zoo while we were on vacation!
Lyla was the 2nd to arrive at 10:24am, weighing 4lb 5oz, and clocked in at her 2 year visit at 23lbs! She is our little peanut, skinny as can be! She is my little flower child, flitting around the house on her own plain of existence. She gets so focused on one thing, she cannot be bothered, but when she wants your attention, she sticks to you like a baby monkey holding on to it's mommy! She loves her siblings, and eats like a champ! In Kentucky she loved just being allowed to run, which was very difficult for me, she is an explorer for sure!
Noah was the last to arrive, at 10:25am, weighing 4lb 3.5oz, and today he's up to almost 25lbs! He's all boy, that's for sure. Running, and running, and flipping and falling all day long! If it can be climbed, Noah will climb it. He really loved Kentucky and meeting all the family, he's such a little people person, I really hope that never changes! He has recently started to be more cuddly, and I just love it because he literally never stops moving. So when we get those occasional hugs and kisses and cuddles from Noah, they're deeply cherished!
My oh my how they've grown and changed and blossomed into these amazing little individuals! I am so excited for the growing they will do while they are 2!
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Oh Hey!!! Did you know I Crochet?
I learned to crochet years ago from my mother! We'd do simple blankets for our Barbie dolls and such. Years later I made a blanket for each of my kiddos and Andy. I tried my hand at hats, and with many Youtube tutorials and the book Crocheting for Dummies I figured it out, and now sell my creations! I have made several different hats for all different ages! You can find my hats on Facebook or Shutterfly.
Right now I'm celebrating reaching 500 Facebook fans by doing a Minion hat giveaway! See post HERE.
Come on over and enter to win!
Right now I'm celebrating reaching 500 Facebook fans by doing a Minion hat giveaway! See post HERE.
Come on over and enter to win!
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Reclaiming Our Living Space (well almost)
So having a lot of children means we have a lot of toys. And a lot is really an understatement. We have way too many. We often go through what we have a weed out the things we know they don't play with, and things that are babyish, since they are toddlers now and don't really need teething rings!! HA! Basically the toys have taken over our living space.
When the littles were itty bitty, we had a playroom. But then we separated Lyla from the boys, so we lost that playroom. Recently we decided it's time to reclaim our living room from the hurricane of toys. We moved Emmalee in with Lyla, she's got a "big girl bed" (twin mattress/box spring on the floor), and we started going through the toys in what used to be Emmalee's room! For a couple months, it's just been a mess. We are quite the procrastinators, and really, there's just not enough hours in the day. So my mom helped me out yesterday, and we got it done!
They went in after nap, and were just amazed at being allowed to enter that room, it's been off limits for so long!
Of course they brought toys out to the living room, but mostly they played in the play room, and were even interacting with each other, which they rarely do! It was trashed in 15 minutes, but the best part is, I can close the door! It feels great to see my new carpeting in my living room, which is normally covered with toys!
Before: This is all I could find, and this is MILD compared to what was usually on the floor:
After: Of course it probably won't stay this clear, but it won't be anything like it was!!
Now to keep my counter space clean...that's another battle! I am a piler...I just keep adding to the pile, and occasionally weed the pile, but it always comes back!
When the littles were itty bitty, we had a playroom. But then we separated Lyla from the boys, so we lost that playroom. Recently we decided it's time to reclaim our living room from the hurricane of toys. We moved Emmalee in with Lyla, she's got a "big girl bed" (twin mattress/box spring on the floor), and we started going through the toys in what used to be Emmalee's room! For a couple months, it's just been a mess. We are quite the procrastinators, and really, there's just not enough hours in the day. So my mom helped me out yesterday, and we got it done!
They went in after nap, and were just amazed at being allowed to enter that room, it's been off limits for so long!
Of course they brought toys out to the living room, but mostly they played in the play room, and were even interacting with each other, which they rarely do! It was trashed in 15 minutes, but the best part is, I can close the door! It feels great to see my new carpeting in my living room, which is normally covered with toys!
Before: This is all I could find, and this is MILD compared to what was usually on the floor:
After: Of course it probably won't stay this clear, but it won't be anything like it was!!
Now to keep my counter space clean...that's another battle! I am a piler...I just keep adding to the pile, and occasionally weed the pile, but it always comes back!
Monday, June 24, 2013
To the Zoo!
Today we took our first trip to the zoo!
I often see pictures of friends with their kids out and about and wish I could get mine out more. It's a problem when I constantly talk myself out of going everywhere. Having three 1 year olds is not-so-manageable on my own. We take walks around the block, and they go great. But packing everyone up to leave the house and be out in a public place with many other people is very intimidating to me!
Today my niece Nicole accompanied us on a trip to the zoo. She's 16 and all of my littles love her, and I knew it'd be a lot easier to have her around to keep her eyes on Emmalee while I pushed the triplets around in the stroller. Everyone loved it! Emmalee loves the zoo, and goes often with Nicole and her mom (Emmalee's Aunt Heather). This was the triplets first time at the zoo! I was worried about that "seeing past the fence" problem I remember Emmalee having her first time at the zoo. Lucky for Owen & Noah, the stroller was a decent height so they could see over most barriers! Lyla, well she's always in her own world, and today was no different. My favorite part was seeing the sea lions. We saw them from above, and I think even Lyla saw them, and then we went into the building below where we can watch them swim. Owen LOVED it!
There were many stops to strap Lyla back into her seat, she's mastered the Houdini escape method! And graham crackers kept the whining at bay. It was quite hot, even at 10am, but they really did well! We even had an early lunch because Emmalee was so hungry from burning all that energy!
I would say this was a successful trip to the zoo, and I even have confidence that I could take them on my own if I wanted to! (They wouldn't be getting out of the stroller at all!)
I often see pictures of friends with their kids out and about and wish I could get mine out more. It's a problem when I constantly talk myself out of going everywhere. Having three 1 year olds is not-so-manageable on my own. We take walks around the block, and they go great. But packing everyone up to leave the house and be out in a public place with many other people is very intimidating to me!
Today my niece Nicole accompanied us on a trip to the zoo. She's 16 and all of my littles love her, and I knew it'd be a lot easier to have her around to keep her eyes on Emmalee while I pushed the triplets around in the stroller. Everyone loved it! Emmalee loves the zoo, and goes often with Nicole and her mom (Emmalee's Aunt Heather). This was the triplets first time at the zoo! I was worried about that "seeing past the fence" problem I remember Emmalee having her first time at the zoo. Lucky for Owen & Noah, the stroller was a decent height so they could see over most barriers! Lyla, well she's always in her own world, and today was no different. My favorite part was seeing the sea lions. We saw them from above, and I think even Lyla saw them, and then we went into the building below where we can watch them swim. Owen LOVED it!
There were many stops to strap Lyla back into her seat, she's mastered the Houdini escape method! And graham crackers kept the whining at bay. It was quite hot, even at 10am, but they really did well! We even had an early lunch because Emmalee was so hungry from burning all that energy!
I would say this was a successful trip to the zoo, and I even have confidence that I could take them on my own if I wanted to! (They wouldn't be getting out of the stroller at all!)
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Stroll for Strong's Kids
We walked for the NICU on June 1st! Without the NICU my babies may not be as healthy as they are! This walk is done by hundreds of people for such an amazing cause.
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
"I Can Fix It!!!"
A couple weeks ago I ordered Wreck-It Ralph to add to our large library of DVDs. We have watched it every day since. Emmalee LOVES this movie! She loves Ralph and understands that he just wants to be a good guy, but that he's got a job to do! She loves that he tries so hard to get a golden medal of honor, and finally when he does, she cheers for joy! She loves little Vanellope von Schweetz and her goofy personality, and how Ralph helps her out. She hates the cybugs, but who doesn't!?
Today when I picked her up from preschool she ran up to me, usually she hides so she doesn't have to leave, and says, "Mommy!!!! I have a golden medal!" Sure enough the kids each was adorned with a foam & tissue paper golden medal on a Mardi Gras bead necklace! The little things are so huge! Of course the foam ripped when Emmalee was getting into the van to go home, and there were buckets of tears, even though I assured her I have a hole punch at home and we can fix it! "Just like Felix says," I told her, "I can fix it!!!" So we did, and she wears her medal proudly!
If you haven't seen this movie and have played any video games, arcade games especially, when you were a kid, you need to check it out. It's a great movie, and I'm not even sick of it....YET!
Today when I picked her up from preschool she ran up to me, usually she hides so she doesn't have to leave, and says, "Mommy!!!! I have a golden medal!" Sure enough the kids each was adorned with a foam & tissue paper golden medal on a Mardi Gras bead necklace! The little things are so huge! Of course the foam ripped when Emmalee was getting into the van to go home, and there were buckets of tears, even though I assured her I have a hole punch at home and we can fix it! "Just like Felix says," I told her, "I can fix it!!!" So we did, and she wears her medal proudly!
If you haven't seen this movie and have played any video games, arcade games especially, when you were a kid, you need to check it out. It's a great movie, and I'm not even sick of it....YET!
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Mother's Day!
I love being a mom! And this picture sums up our lives at this very moment...and I love almost every minute of it!
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
2nd Time is a Charm!
I took the kids out today before lunch! This time, less rock-eating, and running with sticks and crying! This is all thanks to the new playhouse that Grandma & Grandpa got for them last night for an early birthday gift for all 4. This kept them in one area, Lyla of course had to be the odd girl out, and sit sniffing the green onions she keeps finding!!! But it was much less stressful than the last time! I figured if I want them to learn not to do all the things that I don't want them to do, then we have to keep going outside so they can learn!!! Plus it's supposed to get raining this week, so we'd better get outside as much as we can!
Here's some of my favorite shots from playing outside this morning.
New playhouse from Grandma & Grandpa!
Peek-a-Boo!!!
Lyla sniffing her onions!
Emmalee's pretty smile!
A worm!
Mr. Investigator!
He needs more arms!
This is going to be a fun summer!! :)
Here's some of my favorite shots from playing outside this morning.
New playhouse from Grandma & Grandpa!
Peek-a-Boo!!!
Lyla sniffing her onions!
Emmalee's pretty smile!
A worm!
Mr. Investigator!
He needs more arms!
This is going to be a fun summer!! :)
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Rocks. It's what's for Dinner!
So I have a little bit of anxiety when it comes to doing things on my own with all 4 children outside the home. I over came the fear of going to the store alone, and took them all to Target one day earlier this year. (see photos below) I also have been taking Emmalee to a preschool class at the high school up the street 2 days a week for several weeks now, and have to load/unload/reload/unload the kids to drop her off and pick her up. I can do it! But it sure is exhausting.
Now that the weather is warming up, I decided to take them for a walk around the block yesterday before lunch. This went amazing! I pushed the Littles (this is what I call the triplets instead of calling them triplets) in the triple stroller, and Emmalee walked next to them. It was a perfect walk, and everyone was happy and took nice naps (minus Emmalee who is boycotting naps right now). I thought since the walk went so well I would try bringing them in the backyard on my own. To many of you, this may sound silly, but I have some serious anxiety about bringing them out for several reasons.
1. We have a raised deck off the back of our house and the Littles don't do stairs, and there's no way I'm going up/down a flight of stairs 3 times.
2. Even if I did that, what would the other(s) do while I was grabbing the next one from inside???? Not safe to leave them alone just yet.
3.We have a side door, which only has 4 steps, but they're all wonky and, again, the Little don't do steps, and again, what do I do once I bring the firs 2 out?
Okay, so the back door was out, side door it is. I got everyone ready, 8 socks, 8 shoes, 4 sweatshirts, diapers changed, and potty break, then I grabbed the smallest 2, (Lyla & Noah) and let Emmalee lead the way, while Owen waited patiently, in the doorway. I put them down on the driveway, and ran back in quick to grab Owen & closed the doors behind us. I come down the last step and Noah & Lyla are already to the grass, they move so fast! They played so nicely for about 10-15 minutes, all staying close by me, and then Lyla found some rocks. I guess we don't feed her enough delicious food, so she started stuffing this handful of small rocks into her mouth!!! BLECH!!!! I scoop them out and meanwhile Noah is as far as he can go, luckily we have a fenced-in yard, and clutching sticks in both hands, while he has another clenched between his teeth. I assess Lyla's mouth, it's empty, except for some dirt, eh, she'll live, and I run over to Noah. I pull the stick out of his mouth and get the little wood chips out of his mouth so he doesn't get splinters in his throat, and look back to Lyla, who is sitting on the ground straddling a patch of green that has grown through the driveway. I run to her, she has onion greens hanging out of the side of her mouth, we have wild onions growing somewhere, and in this random little spot in the middle of the driveway...and she thought it was hilarious! So I held onto Lyla for a little bit. Emmalee and Owen were playing nicely, not eating anything they shouldn't, so I went to sit with them, Lyla in my arms, Noah, still clutching his sticks, followed close behind. Lyla squirmed her way out and I let her run, and she went right back to that patch of onions. Time for dinner. Emmalee wasn't happy about going back inside, so after promising we'd come back out after we had dinner when Daddy would be home to help, she came in.
Ugh, that was more work than it should've been. I can't child-proof everything, so hopefully they'll stop putting EVERYTHING in their mouths soon. Or we'll have to wait until Daddy gets home every evening to go outside. That'll make a long summer. At least I gave it a try! I think we'll stick to a walk around the block for now.
Now that the weather is warming up, I decided to take them for a walk around the block yesterday before lunch. This went amazing! I pushed the Littles (this is what I call the triplets instead of calling them triplets) in the triple stroller, and Emmalee walked next to them. It was a perfect walk, and everyone was happy and took nice naps (minus Emmalee who is boycotting naps right now). I thought since the walk went so well I would try bringing them in the backyard on my own. To many of you, this may sound silly, but I have some serious anxiety about bringing them out for several reasons.
1. We have a raised deck off the back of our house and the Littles don't do stairs, and there's no way I'm going up/down a flight of stairs 3 times.
2. Even if I did that, what would the other(s) do while I was grabbing the next one from inside???? Not safe to leave them alone just yet.
3.We have a side door, which only has 4 steps, but they're all wonky and, again, the Little don't do steps, and again, what do I do once I bring the firs 2 out?
Okay, so the back door was out, side door it is. I got everyone ready, 8 socks, 8 shoes, 4 sweatshirts, diapers changed, and potty break, then I grabbed the smallest 2, (Lyla & Noah) and let Emmalee lead the way, while Owen waited patiently, in the doorway. I put them down on the driveway, and ran back in quick to grab Owen & closed the doors behind us. I come down the last step and Noah & Lyla are already to the grass, they move so fast! They played so nicely for about 10-15 minutes, all staying close by me, and then Lyla found some rocks. I guess we don't feed her enough delicious food, so she started stuffing this handful of small rocks into her mouth!!! BLECH!!!! I scoop them out and meanwhile Noah is as far as he can go, luckily we have a fenced-in yard, and clutching sticks in both hands, while he has another clenched between his teeth. I assess Lyla's mouth, it's empty, except for some dirt, eh, she'll live, and I run over to Noah. I pull the stick out of his mouth and get the little wood chips out of his mouth so he doesn't get splinters in his throat, and look back to Lyla, who is sitting on the ground straddling a patch of green that has grown through the driveway. I run to her, she has onion greens hanging out of the side of her mouth, we have wild onions growing somewhere, and in this random little spot in the middle of the driveway...and she thought it was hilarious! So I held onto Lyla for a little bit. Emmalee and Owen were playing nicely, not eating anything they shouldn't, so I went to sit with them, Lyla in my arms, Noah, still clutching his sticks, followed close behind. Lyla squirmed her way out and I let her run, and she went right back to that patch of onions. Time for dinner. Emmalee wasn't happy about going back inside, so after promising we'd come back out after we had dinner when Daddy would be home to help, she came in.
Ugh, that was more work than it should've been. I can't child-proof everything, so hopefully they'll stop putting EVERYTHING in their mouths soon. Or we'll have to wait until Daddy gets home every evening to go outside. That'll make a long summer. At least I gave it a try! I think we'll stick to a walk around the block for now.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
One Flu Over the Cuckoo's Nest
So the flu bug hit our household, hard. And I, lucky for me, was the ONE and ONLY not to get it! This is wonderful for several reasons...I have to take care of all the sickly children, whether or not I'm sick, and it fairs much better for everyone if I'm not! Mr. Herzog got very sick, and when that happens, he's of no help, luckily he recovered quickly and took an extra day to help with the sick kiddos. An among other things, I have a girls weekend planned this upcoming weekend with my mother & sisters! (Unfortunately my mother also go hit with the bug, hopefully she's feeling better come Friday morning!) Sickness is never fun, but even less fun when you have several sick children and there's not much you can do, except hold the bucket, and try your best to keep them hydrated! We made it through, everyone's back to eating normal food and hopefully we'll never get it again!!!
Friday, April 19, 2013
1+1=8???? WHAT?
Today's a blog-worthy day! We had our first get together with another set of triplets! I met another mom through a facebook group stemmed from thebump.com, and we met up for a triplet mom dinner when she was pregnant with her little ones! She's got boy/boy/girl just like us, and a 4 year old son! We have had dinner with other local triplet moms on several occasions, but this was our first visit with all of our kiddos. She came to our house, since we didn't have daddy backup, and my kids would just run a muck! It brought back lots of memories of the 4 month old stage, and I sure don't miss it, minus the immobility part...I do miss that! This will hopefully be the first of many "play" dates to come!!!
Noah & Lyla loved Austin!!!
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
One of the Scariest Days of My Life.
I wanted to get into more detail about Owen's initial reaction to peanut butter, but that was too much for my last post...it needed it's own.
JAN 5, 2013 Andy's on call for work, so it's like any normal weekday for me & the kids at home. Owen always had an aversion to PB, whenever I'd offer it on toast to the kids, he'd spit it out and refuse to eat it. So I just started giving him an alternative, buttered toast or whatever.
For lunch I gave Owen a bologna sandwich, which he disassembled and threw on the floor. Lyla & Noah were give PB&J, with strawberry jelly. Owen took a quarter of Noah's sandwich and tasted it, I never gave them jelly before (who needs that mess when you have 4 kids to clean up?!) and he loved the jelly, and continued to eat the sandwich. I thought nothing of it, actually was pleased that he'd finally started eating PB, and this was how to get him to get that extra protein in his diet!
I cleaned them all up and they were playing before nap time. Owen's face at this point was getting red around his mouth, and he was rubbing his eyes a lot! It was close to naps, so I was holding him and he kept putting his head down. When I would put him down he'd get irritable and rub his eyes and soon, within 10-15 minutes the redness spread all up his face and there were white blotches around his eyes. This is when I knew something was wrong. I had no Children's Benadryl, which is what some of my mom friends in an online group suggested I try, so I called the Pediatricians office...NO ANSWER. Mind you, this is a Saturday afternoon, 1pm-ish, and they have closed for the day, but they are supposed to have an on call service who can get you in touch with an on call nurse! NO ONE ANSWERED! I called my sister in law, who ended up coming over, because Andy was out on a call.
I didn't want to take him to the ER, he wasn't struggling to breathe at this point, just irritable and had a crazy face rash. So my niece & I took him to Immediate Care, who we called on the way to make sure we were doing the right thing by going to them and not the ER. We get there, I sign him in & we wait. After only a few minutes he's getting very fussy and then he vomits all over him & me. We get as cleaned up as possible, they take us to a room b/c now we are stinking up the waiting area, and Owen is starting to wheeze.
Andy shows up, fills out the paperwork for insurance & meets us in the exam room. His rash had spread to his trunk at this point maybe 30-40 minutes after he had eaten the PB&J. They gave him steroids, Benedyrl, and he had to do 2 nebulizer treatments. It was so scary. We spent a few hours there, doing the treatments and just waiting to make sure everything was working. I just couldn't keep my emotions in check any longer, and felt like this was all my fault. I knew he didn't care for PB, why did I let him eat the sandwich? I know I didn't know that he had an allergy, but he could've died! I am so thankful we have family close by and they were able to come help me.
He now has an EpiPen we have to take everywhere we go. He had an allergy screening and he's positive for peanuts, tree nuts & eggs. We had him tested for eggs b/c he acted the same when offered eggs. We have had to change our shopping habits, making sure not to buy anything that was processed on machines or in a facility that uses peanuts or tree nuts.
It's going to get "easier" as he gets older, to manage his allergy. He will be able to understand one day what nuts can do to him, and he can make sure to be vocal about it. But for now, We're all he's got. When we go out, if some one had PB on their hands and pushed a shopping cart and Owen sits in it, he could easily get it on his hands and rub his eyes or put them in his mouth, causing a reaction. We never leave the house without his EpiPens, Benadryl & wipes, to wipe anything he may touch, or his/our hands.
It's always been something I asked when I bring dessert or any food to some one's house that I may not know that well, "Does anyone have any food allergies?" I never thought I'd be the one dealing firsthand with a food allergy. Now when we go some where I make sure they know of Owen's allergies. I haven't gotten to the point to feel ok asking some one to make sure their menu is homemade, etc...such as a birthday party, there's cake/cupcakes, from a bakery, where nuts are used. Owen cannot have those cupcakes, because what if? It's not worth the risk to me, for him to have a cupcake. This is why I bring food for my children that I know is safe.
Looking ahead, we'll have to figure out how school life is going to work out. I know that some schools have tables for the allergy kids, so that's good. He will obviously be bringing his own lunch from home until he's old enough to know not to eat certain things. I hope that parents of his classmates and his teachers are supportive and understanding. I know how inconvenient peanut allergies are in the school setting...but this is my son's life we're talking about!!! We'll cross those bridges when we get to them!
JAN 5, 2013 Andy's on call for work, so it's like any normal weekday for me & the kids at home. Owen always had an aversion to PB, whenever I'd offer it on toast to the kids, he'd spit it out and refuse to eat it. So I just started giving him an alternative, buttered toast or whatever.
For lunch I gave Owen a bologna sandwich, which he disassembled and threw on the floor. Lyla & Noah were give PB&J, with strawberry jelly. Owen took a quarter of Noah's sandwich and tasted it, I never gave them jelly before (who needs that mess when you have 4 kids to clean up?!) and he loved the jelly, and continued to eat the sandwich. I thought nothing of it, actually was pleased that he'd finally started eating PB, and this was how to get him to get that extra protein in his diet!
I cleaned them all up and they were playing before nap time. Owen's face at this point was getting red around his mouth, and he was rubbing his eyes a lot! It was close to naps, so I was holding him and he kept putting his head down. When I would put him down he'd get irritable and rub his eyes and soon, within 10-15 minutes the redness spread all up his face and there were white blotches around his eyes. This is when I knew something was wrong. I had no Children's Benadryl, which is what some of my mom friends in an online group suggested I try, so I called the Pediatricians office...NO ANSWER. Mind you, this is a Saturday afternoon, 1pm-ish, and they have closed for the day, but they are supposed to have an on call service who can get you in touch with an on call nurse! NO ONE ANSWERED! I called my sister in law, who ended up coming over, because Andy was out on a call.
I didn't want to take him to the ER, he wasn't struggling to breathe at this point, just irritable and had a crazy face rash. So my niece & I took him to Immediate Care, who we called on the way to make sure we were doing the right thing by going to them and not the ER. We get there, I sign him in & we wait. After only a few minutes he's getting very fussy and then he vomits all over him & me. We get as cleaned up as possible, they take us to a room b/c now we are stinking up the waiting area, and Owen is starting to wheeze.
Andy shows up, fills out the paperwork for insurance & meets us in the exam room. His rash had spread to his trunk at this point maybe 30-40 minutes after he had eaten the PB&J. They gave him steroids, Benedyrl, and he had to do 2 nebulizer treatments. It was so scary. We spent a few hours there, doing the treatments and just waiting to make sure everything was working. I just couldn't keep my emotions in check any longer, and felt like this was all my fault. I knew he didn't care for PB, why did I let him eat the sandwich? I know I didn't know that he had an allergy, but he could've died! I am so thankful we have family close by and they were able to come help me.
He now has an EpiPen we have to take everywhere we go. He had an allergy screening and he's positive for peanuts, tree nuts & eggs. We had him tested for eggs b/c he acted the same when offered eggs. We have had to change our shopping habits, making sure not to buy anything that was processed on machines or in a facility that uses peanuts or tree nuts.
It's going to get "easier" as he gets older, to manage his allergy. He will be able to understand one day what nuts can do to him, and he can make sure to be vocal about it. But for now, We're all he's got. When we go out, if some one had PB on their hands and pushed a shopping cart and Owen sits in it, he could easily get it on his hands and rub his eyes or put them in his mouth, causing a reaction. We never leave the house without his EpiPens, Benadryl & wipes, to wipe anything he may touch, or his/our hands.
It's always been something I asked when I bring dessert or any food to some one's house that I may not know that well, "Does anyone have any food allergies?" I never thought I'd be the one dealing firsthand with a food allergy. Now when we go some where I make sure they know of Owen's allergies. I haven't gotten to the point to feel ok asking some one to make sure their menu is homemade, etc...such as a birthday party, there's cake/cupcakes, from a bakery, where nuts are used. Owen cannot have those cupcakes, because what if? It's not worth the risk to me, for him to have a cupcake. This is why I bring food for my children that I know is safe.
Looking ahead, we'll have to figure out how school life is going to work out. I know that some schools have tables for the allergy kids, so that's good. He will obviously be bringing his own lunch from home until he's old enough to know not to eat certain things. I hope that parents of his classmates and his teachers are supportive and understanding. I know how inconvenient peanut allergies are in the school setting...but this is my son's life we're talking about!!! We'll cross those bridges when we get to them!
Let's Try This Again!
I guess you could say I'm not so great at this whole blogging thing. Well, I'd like to make it a goal to become better at it! I am going to write at least once a week, if not more. We'll see if that happens!
My last post was back in August of last year. It's now April, and A WHOLE heck of a lot has happened in the past 8 months!
Emmalee turned 3 right after my last post, on August 25th, and she has changed so much! She's a good big sister, even though sometimes it's quite obvious she wishes she had me all to herself still. She started a little preschool class in March and she really loves getting out of the house for a couple hours 2x a week! She is also taking a dance class every Saturday. The class is 3-5 year olds, all girls in her class, and they do a little tap and ballet. It's really good exercise, and she really enjoys it, although she really doesn't seem to be cut out for dancing, just like her mother wasn't! HA! She challenges my patience every single minute, but despite that, she is my favorite 3 year old, and she always makes us laugh!
Owen is just amazing! His vocabulary surprises everyone around him! He's so observant and inquisitive! "What's that?" "Ohh, look at that!" are his favorite phrases to date. He said yesterday as we watched 2 large wild turkeys walking through the yard behind us, "Wow! Look at that! Where'd they go?" (Emmalee kept asking where they went, and he joined in!) His curly hair is hilarious and adorable, and still has a tint of red to it! In January we discovered that Mr. Owen has an anaphylactic allergy to peanuts. Such a life-changing thing it is, to have a food allergy. Checking all the labels, making sure there's not anything in this food that could potentially KILL your child. We watch our little man so closely now, and make sure everyone around him knows not to share food with him.
Lyla is a free-spirit! She flits around the house with one arm leading the way, humming and singing her own tune! She always has a greeting ready, "Hi!" Short and sweet! She recently has started answering me if I ask her; "Lyla, are you sleepy?" "Yes." "Lyla do you want to go to bed?" "Yes." It's really funny, I'll have to try to get it on video! She clings to my side for most of the day, which makes my job a little difficult! It's hard to do the dishes and such when you have a screaming child with snot coming down her face looking at you! So I choose snuggles!
Noah is the personification of ENERGY! He just never stops moving!!! He's here, he's there, he's EVERYWHERE! He loves to climb furniture, and if you're in it, he'll climb you too! He has a whole lot to say, but just doesn't have the words yet. He's got a few of the basics, "Hi" "Bye" and even started saying "All Done!" recently. Once he can talk, he'll be just like Emmalee, never quiet, and always moving!
Life is never dull in our household, that is for sure!
My last post was back in August of last year. It's now April, and A WHOLE heck of a lot has happened in the past 8 months!
Emmalee turned 3 right after my last post, on August 25th, and she has changed so much! She's a good big sister, even though sometimes it's quite obvious she wishes she had me all to herself still. She started a little preschool class in March and she really loves getting out of the house for a couple hours 2x a week! She is also taking a dance class every Saturday. The class is 3-5 year olds, all girls in her class, and they do a little tap and ballet. It's really good exercise, and she really enjoys it, although she really doesn't seem to be cut out for dancing, just like her mother wasn't! HA! She challenges my patience every single minute, but despite that, she is my favorite 3 year old, and she always makes us laugh!
Owen is just amazing! His vocabulary surprises everyone around him! He's so observant and inquisitive! "What's that?" "Ohh, look at that!" are his favorite phrases to date. He said yesterday as we watched 2 large wild turkeys walking through the yard behind us, "Wow! Look at that! Where'd they go?" (Emmalee kept asking where they went, and he joined in!) His curly hair is hilarious and adorable, and still has a tint of red to it! In January we discovered that Mr. Owen has an anaphylactic allergy to peanuts. Such a life-changing thing it is, to have a food allergy. Checking all the labels, making sure there's not anything in this food that could potentially KILL your child. We watch our little man so closely now, and make sure everyone around him knows not to share food with him.
Lyla is a free-spirit! She flits around the house with one arm leading the way, humming and singing her own tune! She always has a greeting ready, "Hi!" Short and sweet! She recently has started answering me if I ask her; "Lyla, are you sleepy?" "Yes." "Lyla do you want to go to bed?" "Yes." It's really funny, I'll have to try to get it on video! She clings to my side for most of the day, which makes my job a little difficult! It's hard to do the dishes and such when you have a screaming child with snot coming down her face looking at you! So I choose snuggles!
Noah is the personification of ENERGY! He just never stops moving!!! He's here, he's there, he's EVERYWHERE! He loves to climb furniture, and if you're in it, he'll climb you too! He has a whole lot to say, but just doesn't have the words yet. He's got a few of the basics, "Hi" "Bye" and even started saying "All Done!" recently. Once he can talk, he'll be just like Emmalee, never quiet, and always moving!
Life is never dull in our household, that is for sure!
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