The Carney Quartet

Yes, we're alive and well

2010-10-14T13:47:00.004-05:00

I am speechless as to the length of time that has passed since I last posted. Even my blog's background is no longer showing up...how sad is that?

I am going to make this one short because I have got to give the babies, well toddlers by now, a bath and then pick up Lucas, yes he's in school now AND potty trained. Things have really gotten more busy in the Carney household but I will hopefully talk about that some other time. I even have tons of pictures to post (first haircuts, first swim in the pool etc.) but that, too, will come with time (not too much I hope).

So here are a few now pictures of our Quartet:

They are so grown up sitting at the table

Two pictures of Lucas in his school uniform. On the first picture he's holding a "Schultuete" which Oma and Opa from Germany gave him. This is something that the German kids get on their first day of school. The bag is filled with things like school supplies and candy.

And here are the three toddlers. They will of course always be my babies
no matter how old they are.

And one last thing: I have been keeping up to date with most of the blogs I follow but on a somewhat irregular basis. So don't think I have abandoned you just because I haven't been leaving a comment :-)

Lots of love

Birthday Boy

2010-05-13T00:53:00.007-05:00

Luckily everyone was well enough again (see my previous post) to celebrate Lucas' 4th birthday. I let him unwrap Oma, Opa and Onkel Pascal's presents after he got up in the morning but he had to wait to open up ours until Daddy got home from work so we could all enjoy our little birthday boy together.

It is so funny to watch him unwrap presents since he takes his sweet time to do it and then all you hear is "wow", "yay", "mommy, open please" - it's like he really appreciates every single present he gets. Now, will it stay that way? Who knows, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

His birthday was on a Friday so on Saturday we went to Chuck E Cheese to celebrate it properly since it's one of his favorite places to go. Somehow Lucas woke up on the wrong side of the bed that day since he didn't want to have anything to do with Chuck E as you can see in the following picture.

But his mood changed when it was time to open up presents as you can see.

Overall we had a wonderful time at Chuck E Cheese. The trio was very well behaved considering they were stuck in their high chairs most of the time. The only negative thing I have to say is that they kind of push you since you only have 90 minutes. So it went like this: eat, get crowned, blow out candles, eat cake, unwrap presents and then get moving since the next party is waiting.

And here is a picture of Lucas' newest toy. He loves to give the babies a ride in his new Ford pick up truck. He has gotten really good at driving it but we did have some minor accidents. I think every single one of us was already run over even our poor Germany Shepherd Jo-Jo got pinned in between the fence and the truck but no worries, no humans or animals where seriously hurt or killed in the process.

Bites, Bugs and Sex Offender

2010-05-13T00:15:00.004-05:00

I know, the title of this post is very strange but it will all make sense to you.

Let's start off with the bites part since in fact that's how our month of April started off with. We have been spending a lot of afternoons outdoors since the weather has been absolutely beautiful. That however has changed a few days ago since the temperature is now in the 90's and it's extremely humid. Needless to say, the summer has officially started.

Back to the bites.....we had this huge ant pile in the backyard and I made sure that none of the kids would get too close to it since those ant bites hurt like crazy, will leave you with a blister and will take weeks to heal completely. I was putting on Noah's shoe which he had taken off when I heard Julie screaming and you guessed it, she was in the ant pile. I ran, picked her up, took her sandals off and wiped those nasty things off her poor little feet. Thanks to rubbing alcohol and some lotion for insect bites she had heeled rather well but you can definitely still see the bites. I stopped counting at 15 on one of her feet...it was just too heartbreaking.

This picture was taken at the annual NICU reunion which took place at our local hospital. Notice Julie not wearing any shoes since both of her feet were still trying to heal from those bites.

Lucas and Daddy were not in the picture since they both stayed home which brings me to the bugs part of my post.

Daddy came down with a nasty stomach virus on the morning of the NICU reunion. About 36 hours later Noah caught it, then Tyler and then mommy. Somehow Lucas and Julie did not catch it and I can't even tell you how thankful I am for that. I won't go into details about this nasty virus but this was the worst stomach bug I have ever had. The hardest part was taking care of two sick and two healthy children while Daddy had to drag his sick self to work. The entire bug hung around our house for a whole week. I pray that we shall never see it again.

Now, last but not least, who doesn't want to receive notification in the mail that a convicted sex offender has moved into your neighborhood? I for sure didn't! I think it's already bad enough that he lives in our neighborhood but to top it off, he also lives within 1/2 mile of our elementary school. But what can you do? Move? Yes, one of these days......

Look who's 4!

2010-04-30T12:55:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday sweet Lucas!!

Hope you will have a wonderful birthday my baby boy

We love you more than you'll ever know

Mama and Daddy,
Tyler, Julie and Noah

Growing up too fast

2010-04-14T00:17:00.006-05:00

It's hard to think of the triplets as no longer being infants but toddlers. I'm just so amazed as to how quickly all of my babies have grown up. Lucas will be 4 at the end of the month and Tyler, Julie and Noah are difficult to keep up with and are getting into EVERYTHING. But I still love them all the same :)

Tyler: The last to walk but the first to sit up and crawl. Since he is the tallest he will crawl onto everything so I have to be very careful with him. He loves to eat and if you are not careful he will eat the food off your plate or whatever else he can find (I actually caught him chewing on a closed pack of PEZ candy). He is otherwise very laid back and loves to hang around mommy 24/7.

At his 15 months check up Tyler weighed in at 24 lbs 9 oz. His height is 31 inches (I actually think he is closer to 32 but he wasn't cooperating) and his head circumference is 18 1/2 inches.

Julie: She was the last to sit up and crawl but was the second to walk. Julie is such a sweet baby and can do no wrong. She loves to play by herself but don't underestimate her. If the boys try to take a toy away from her she will fight for it with her dear life. She's also a bright little girl - she learned very quickly how to clap, wave and even throw her arms up in the air when I say "touchdown". Julie is also our most emotional triplet and since she's my only girl I don't know if that's just a girl thing or if that's just the way Julie is.

At our 15 months check up Julie weighed in at 22 lbs even. She is now 30 inches tall and her head circumference is 17 3/4 inches.

Noah: Our second one to crawl and sit up but our first one to walk. I think Noah is a little explorer and he is very curious. He loves to watch his big brother play and tries to imitate him. He actually studies the toys to see what they can do or what he can do with them. He loves to play with those big Lego looking blocks and stacks them on top of one another and if he doesn't succeed he gets frustrated. He'd rather try to work on something over and over then give up - he is definitely very determined. Noah is also our funny little man. He loves to laugh and it doesn't take much to make him burst out in laughter.

At the 15 months check up Noah weighed in at 23 lbs 3 oz. He is 30 3/4 inches tall and his head circumference is 17 3/4 inches.

Lucas: There is so much to say about my big boy but I would sit here all night trying to put it in writing. Lucas will turn 4 at the end of the month and he has been progressing tremendously. Even though he is still not fully potty trained he is determined to conquer that task - just at his own time. His speech has improved and I think that he is very close to where he should be at his age. He will start PK in the fall and will continue to go to speech therapy through our local school system.

The one thing I just love about Lucas is that he is still such an affectionate little boy. He loves to come sit next to you, loves to give and to get hugs and kisses and will tell you that he loves you all day long.
I love you all so much my sweet babies!

Spring Time

2010-03-22T00:25:00.005-05:00

Spring Time has finally arrived or at least I think so. It turned cold again Friday but it's supposed to get up into the 70's again this week so I assume that this was the last of our winter.

I try to take the kids out as much as possible since it's just been absolutely gorgeous and they all LOVE to be outdoors. Not only does it feel nice to be outside but there are also new things to be discovered such as grass, leaves, rocks etc. Some of it ends up in their mouth so mommy is constantly running from one kid to another pulling who knows what out of their mouths while Lucas is crying out for me so he can go high high high on the swing. People who pass by our house must think that I am running a daycare!

So here are a few pictures of one of our first outings.

Julie

Tyler

Noah

Julie and Lucas

Guardian Angel

2010-03-05T00:41:00.003-06:00

This post has been long overdue but I just haven't found the energy to write about this. Not only was this a horrific experience but having to deal with the insurance company has been anything but fun.

So here we go.....On February 8th, 2010, my husband was involved in a bad car accident on his way home from work.

I was in the middle of feeding the babies when the phone rang so I couldn't get to it in time. I saw it was Onstar that called but they didn't leave a message so I didn't bother returning the call. A little while later I received a text message from my husband's phone that he had been involved in a car accident and was on his way to the hospital. Needless to say I was a bit freaked out since I had no other information as to his condition etc. I immediately called Onstar and they transferred me to the lady who actually spoke to my husband right after the accident. She was also the one who got me in touch with the local emergency operator who was able to tell me to which hospital he was brought to.

To make a long story short, my mother in law rushed over to watch the kids so I could go to the hospital to be with my husband. All I can say is that he had a Guardian Angel watching over him side since he got away with "only" bumps and bruises. Here are a couple of pictures of what our SUV looked like.

I might also add that we didn't find out a whole lot about the accident until we received a copy of the police report two weeks later. All my husband remembered was someone swerving into his lane and hitting him head on.

Come to find out the person who hit him was arrested after the accident since he was driving drunk having had a blood alcohol level of .261! To top it off he also did not have insurance.

So the past few weeks as my husband has been recovering physically and mentally from the accident I have been dealing with our insurance company which has been rather draining.

But no matter how difficult it has been we are so very thankful that he walked away in one piece.

Swing Time

2010-02-02T00:24:00.004-06:00

Thanks to our kids' wonderful grandparents we were able to purchase this awesome swing set. It took an entire weekend of hard work on Daddy's side to put it together but it was all worth it when we saw the huge smile on Lucas' face and the laugh and giggles from the babies when they were swinging for the first time.

Here is the front view of the swing set. It has three swings, a tire swing, a rope ladder, a slide, a climbing wall (opposite side of ladder), a wheel and a telescope.

Tyler

Noah

Julie

Lucas

One year stats

2010-02-01T01:31:00.003-06:00

About two weeks ago we finally took the triplets to their one year wellness check up. It seems to be that we are behind schedule on everything but I'm going to have to blame this on Daddy's new work schedule. I don't want to take the triplets and Lucas to the doctor's office all by myself so it has to be scheduled around Daddy's work and that is not an easy task at times.

Anyways, here are the stats as of January 18th, 2010:

Tyler: 22 lbs, 8 oz and 29 3/4 inches long

Julie: 20 lbs, 4 oz and 29 1/2 inches long

Noah: 21 lbs and 28 3/4 inches long

My, have they grown!

Some Firsts

2010-01-12T00:55:00.010-06:00

So many new and exciting things have happened within the past couple of months with the kids that I don't even know if I'll be able to list them all in one post. All I can say is that they grow up way too fast!

Here's Lucas on his first set of skates. Daddy had bought those and they are quite neat since they grow with you (size adjustable) and they come with three settings - from completely locked rollers to rollerskating all the way.

This is a picture of the babies first Thanksgiving. We packed up the entire family and went to Granny's and had some very delicious dinner - adults and babies enjoyed it alike. All of the kids were so worn out from playing all day that they went out cold in the living room as you can see. Lucas always sleeps with his thumb in his mouth and a hand down his pants by the way.

Tyler, Julie and Noah's first birthday! I don't know why they look so silly in the first picture but this was one of the better ones showing their homemade birthday cakes. We also got them each a balloon but unfortunately you can only see the weight thing holding them down..oh well. This picture and their little celebration was actually two days after their actual birthday.

This picture was taken on their actual birthday. Lucas was definitely in the birthday spirit since he got to help them unwrap their presents. Unfortunately their birthday was just a big mess.

A few days prior to their birthday Daddy's best friend of many years passed away. Kevin fought brain cancer for most of his life and he ultimately lost his battle at the young age of 44. His funeral took place on the triplets first birthday. We went to the funeral in the morning while Granny watched all of the kids for us. It was a cold, rainy and very emotional day. When we got home, we celebrated Tyler, Julie and Noah's birthday but that didn't last too long either since we had to get ready for our first road trip to Houston.

I have no idea why I scheduled my appointment with the German Consulate for the day after their birthday but I did. So off we went on a 5 hour long road trip to Houston only to get my passport renewed. The trip went well and all children were very well behaved. Here's a picture of what it looks like to have three one year olds lined up in the backseat (Lucas is in the 3rd row by the way).

The triplets first birthday outside the hospital. They were born prior to Christmas in 2008 but unfortunately had to spend that Christmas in the NICU/SCN. This year we celebrated at our house and had Granny over for dinner. We actually unwrapped presents three times (once on Christmas eve, once on Christmas Day when Santa dropped some presents off and a third time when Oma, Opa and Onkel Pascal's package from Germany arrived). These pictures were taken one of those days.

And if you wonder, yes our house pretty much looks like a bomb exploded in it all the time. I can straighten up as much as I want to but they will pull the toys back out as soon as my back is turned.

Tyler, Noah and Lucas in their "moose" outfits that Granny gave them for their first birthday. Julie was wearing the same as well but she would not cooperate for the picture.

And here is Lucas on his first scooter he got for Christmas!

All three babies are now walking - Tyler and Julie while holding on to things and Noah without any assistance. And can I tell you that they get into everything?

And last but not least an update on their teeth - Tyler 7 (4 top, 3 bottom), Julie 4 (2 top, 2 bottom) and Noah 6 (4 top, 2 bottom).

I know I am forgetting things but I'll put them in posts to come.

Tyler

2010-01-05T22:29:00.005-06:00

Last but not least! One year ago today our Baby A Tyler, who was and is the biggest triplet, finally came home. Our family was complete at last.

The reason he stayed in the NICU/SCN for that long was simple: he was too lazy to nipple and decided that he could get the same yummy food through his gavage. That's when mommy decided to have a serious discussion with him on New Year's Eve and told him that he'd better get his ducks in a row so he could come home. And five days later he finally graduated from the NICU/SCN. Happy Graduation Day big boy!

What a year this has been. I had no idea what to expect even though I had cared for Lucas but having a singleton was an easy job compared to caring for triplets.

The first three months were the hardest with having to feed them every 3 to 4 hours, change diapers, etc. and pump milk somewhere in between all that. Luckily I had my husband home for the first 10 weeks who would feed two babies while I pumped after feeding one. After he returned to work I gave up pumping completely.

I can't say it has been easy taking care of three infants and one toddler all by myself during the day but somehow I managed. I can't even begin to explain what a blessing they are and what a journey this has been and I know there will be many more ups and downs along the way but I can't wait to see what my four miracles have in store for us in the years to come.

Tyler - First Christmas 2008

Tyler - Days after his First Christmas at home 2009

Noah

2009-12-31T11:09:00.003-06:00

One year ago today our little Baby C aka Noah graduated from the NICU/SCN after spending 14 days in the hospital.

It was a bitter sweet day for us since we were thrilled to bring Noah home but it was heartbreaking at the same time leaving our last baby boy Tyler behind not knowing when he would be coming home. I remember feeling like I had abandoned my baby even though I knew that he would be in very good hands and it was just a matter of time until he would say farewell to the SCN as well and go home to be with his brothers and sister.

Here is Noah on Christmas Day 2008.
Julie (left) and Noah (right), united again and ready for their first Pediatrician visit after their release from the hospital.

And here is Noah now; the picture was taken a couple of days ago.

Happy Graduation Day Noah!!

Look how far you have come!

Julie

2009-12-29T23:10:00.002-06:00

One year ago today, our smallest triplet Julie aka Baby B graduated from the NICU/SCN and finally made her long awaited trip home with Mommy and Daddy. Although it was very exciting it was also a little scary since she weighed less than 5 pounds when we brought her home. But things went very smoothly and she was a very good sleeper from day one.

Here's a picture of Julie on Christmas Day 2008

Here's a picture of Julie taken just a few days after Christmas 2009.

What a difference one year makes!

Happy Graduation Day Baby Girl!

Happy 1st Birthday!!!!

2009-12-17T01:44:00.004-06:00

It is hard to believe that Tyler, Julie and Noah are turning one today. Where has the time gone? It seems just like yesterday that I gave birth to the three of them, having to juggle three babies in the NICU, a toddler at home, recovery from the c-section, pumping and the list goes on and on.

And now? They are thriving one year olds who love to get into everything. I can't take my eye off of them for one minute without catching them doing something they are not supposed to and Lucas is not helping any. He's teaching them some bad habits already, sigh. It is definitely never boring at our house.

I know I have been terrible at updating the blog but I'll try to do better as long as my laptop will cooperate. After all, IT is the reason for many blog-less nights! I will definitely post some more with some recent pictures in the near future.

At the same time, I would like to wish all of my fellow BBC December 2008 baby friends, especially little Grayson, a very Happy 1st Birthday as well!!

Sick and silly kids

2009-11-10T00:37:00.009-06:00

As I had mentioned in my previous post we had two little men who weren't feeling too well. Come to find out Lucas developed strep throat which turned into the flu and I cannot even begin to describe how sick he has been. The hardest thing was getting him to drink any kind of fluids and trying to get him to take his antibiotics and keeping it down. Today was the first day that he was somewhat back to his normal self.

Tyler caught a cold and has fortunately not had any fever and is doing rather well except for a constant runny nose and a little cough. Julie and Noah had a little bit of a temperature the last two days but are otherwise doing just fine. I'm hoping that this virus is moving its way out of our house.

Since everyone is starting to improve and I need some cheering up I am going to post some of my favorite silly pictures I took within the last couple of weeks. They always put a smile on my face and I am happy to be able to share them with all of you. Enjoy!

No idea where Noah is planning on going

New way of using a pacifier Julie?

Sock eating baby #1: Tyler

Sock eating baby #2: Julie

Our Halloween Zoo

2009-11-04T01:10:00.006-06:00

Here are pictures of our little zoo that we took trick-or-treating and then to the State Fair on Halloween night.

Unfortunately trick-or-treating was rather dull since people decided to neither decorate their homes nor to give out any candy. I just don't know what happened to our neighborhood - it just didn't use to be like that and I don't want to think that our poor economy has anything to do with this.

At least the fair was nice and we finally got to enjoy some more of this beautiful cool fall weather. Lucas went on his first Merry Go Round and Ferris Wheel rides and had a blast. But I think his favorite thing was seeing and petting the little farm animals. He even got to ride a pony and was yelling "Hee Haw" throughout the entire ride. The babies just checked out all the surroundings and started fussing when it was getting close to feeding time. But mommy was able to quiet them down in no time by feeding them some fresh made funnel cake. Those babies will eat just about anything!

Unfortunately early Sunday morning Lucas started running a fever and couldn't keep any Tylenol down or anything else thereafter. His fever is finally gone and his stomach is starting to settle down a bit but a nasty sore throat has taken its place. Poor baby is just not the same energetic little boy I'm used to - he is definitely miserable. On top of it Tyler is not feeling well either. He couldn't keep his last bottle down last night and he's been very lethargic. Let's cross our fingers that he will not develop any fever and it was just a 24 hour bug and that the other two babies will stay healthy!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween!

Noah aka cute leopard

Tyler aka Granny's lil' stinker

Julie aka moo moo

Lucas aka roaring Dinosaur

This is the best I could do with four kids! Tyler wanted to crawl towards us and Julie was checking out the attic door I assume.

Enjoying the outdoors

2009-10-22T01:38:00.006-05:00

Fall has finally kicked in so we packed up everyone for a day outdoors to enjoy the cool and sunny weather. We first went to the Louisiana Book Festival where Lucas got to enjoy some face painting and had the chance to visit with one of his favorite TV characters "Martha". Mommy and Daddy didn't get to see a whole lot since we had to keep an eye on our active 3 year old and we were stopped many of times to be questioned about our babies.

I think that maybe in the future I will post a sign on the stroller saying something like this: "Yes, they are triplets. No, they are NOT identical. Yes, we have our hands full but our hearts as well. No, don't feel sorry for us because we are loving every minute of it except when you stop us while we are trying to spend some family time!" I can actually picture myself carrying a huge sign (like the ones you see on Bourbon Street telling you that you will go to hell for being a sinner).

Anyways, after the Book Festival we went to our City Park for the very first time. It was beautiful and all but Julie got to enjoy some swing time. Tyler and Noah were on a swing for the very first time and had a blast as you can tell from looking at the pictures. Lucas got to enjoy the entire playground and we even got to see lots of doggies play on the doggy playground right next to it. It was a perfect ending to a beautiful day!

Lucas getting his face painted - he got a black spider

Lucas greeting Martha

Julie before she took a little nap in the park

Noah on the swing (we put both boys in one swing)

Tyler on the swing

All of my men together!

TV Appearance

2009-10-09T12:05:00.003-05:00

I received an e-mail the other day notifying me of Lucas' appearance on Sprout TV's PICME show which will air today, October 9th, between 4 and 5 pm CST! I am so excited for him and can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees himself on TV. PICME is an animated show that uses a face shot of a little boy or girl on their show to tell a little story.

I had uploaded a picture onto Sprout Online a few weeks ago so that Lucas and I could play with the PICME application online and I gave them permission to use his photo for the show and voila, he was chosen, yay. Unfortunately we have no way of taping the show but we will be using our camcorder to catch his reaction and part of the show. And I almost forgot, our local newspaper will be mentioning his appearance as well. I'm really happy that Lucas gets a few minutes of fame since people tend to overlook him since the birth of our triplets over nine months ago. Way to go baby!

PS - Julie is finally sitting up on her own and crawling. She and Noah love balloons and race to get to the nearest one. They are just too funny. I also have to watch Noah very closely because he will take off and sneak into the foyer to stare at the fish tanks.

PSS - I am currently without a laptop (again) since the motherboard blew up again. I don't know what kind of junk the geeks decided to install but if it's not repaired right this time they better beware......(to be continued)

PSSS - GEAUX TIGERS!!!!

9 months update

2009-09-30T11:35:00.008-05:00

Tyler, Julie and Noah turned 9 months old on the 17th and I know I say it all the time but where has the time gone? We took them to their 9 months check up which went and they are all healthy with the exception of Tyler having been put on an iron containing vitamin since his Hemoglobin was a little on the low side. They also received their Hepatitis and Flu vaccinations which they took like champs, well almost. Here are their stats as of September 19th:

Tyler - 19 lbs 3 oz, 28 3/4 inches

Julie - 16 lbs 14 oz, 27 inches

Noah - 17 lbs 7 oz, 27 1/2 inches

Julie and Noah are in their lower percentile of their growth chart and Tyler right below average. The pediatrician is however satisfied with their growth physically and developmentally considering that they were born 7 weeks prematurely.

Unfortunately the day after our doctor's visit all of the babies started having diarrhea which lasted for several days and made their little behinds blister even though I was always making sure their dirty diapers were changed. I don't think I have ever changed that many diapers in my entire life!

Anyway, as I said before, they are all growing as expected but our little Julie has yet to manage to sit up on her own nor crawl. She does however scoot around and let me assure you that she is almost as fast as the two boys. Needless to say I am certain that she will be up on her knees in a matter of a couple of weeks if even that long. They all love to stand up, however Tyler is the only one so far who will pull himself up into a standing position.

And these are all the updates as of right now and I will leave with some recent pictures I took.

Lucas and our German Shepherd Jo-Jo

Noah

Tyler (yes that is a bruise on his forehead - he hit the floor while attempting to crawl over Lucas' little couch)

Lucas and Julie

Sleeping Boys

2009-09-23T14:55:00.004-05:00

Celebrations

2009-09-14T03:26:00.007-05:00

Gosh, I have really been slow posting and this time I can't blame it on a broken laptop. I just don't know where my motivation has gone. Maybe it has to do that those kids just keep me busy all day long. They are at a point now where you constantly have to watch them. If they are not rolling, scooting or crawling all over the place, they are doing other silly things like chewing on Lucas' toys, stealing each other's pacifiers, wrestle each other in ways that at times looks rather hurtful. But it is still so much fun to watch!

Last Sunday we went to my friend Stacey's daughter's 1st Birthday party and we all had a wonderful time. We got to spend quite some time outdoors and Lucas got to ride his first real pony. He definitely enjoyed himself especially since there were lots of farm animals and other kids to play with. The babies were on their best behavior as usual and everyone was asleep in their car seats on the way home.

Lucas' first pony ride!

Abby's 1st Birthday!

We had our little party of our own again the day after with the party hats!

A few days ago we also celebrated our 16th anniversary and we got to enjoy some alone time having dinner at a restaurant while Granny watched the bunch. That was only the second time since the triplets were born that we had some alone time. Wow, how our life has changed in our 16 years of marriage. I can't wait to see what the future has in store for us now that we have our amazing Quartet.

That is all for today...I am tired and need to get me a few hours of sleep before the first feeding of the day will be calling for me. I wouldn't want it any other way though :-)

Geaux Tigers!

2009-09-05T16:27:00.003-05:00

We will be cheering on our favorite College Football Team - the LSU Tigers! Well, I'm not so sure about the kiddos since the game doesn't start until 21h30. But the important part is that we are all showing our team spirit today. Geaux Tigers!

Best Buddies

2009-09-03T03:58:00.003-05:00

Lucas and Tyler (little Julie in the background as well as Noah's legs)

End of Summer Blog Party

2009-09-02T00:35:00.006-05:00

Multiples and More Blog Network are giving away tons of stuff at their End of Summer Blog Party. Everyone is invited and you do not even have to have multiples. Check it out by clicking on the button below.

Personally, I am glad the summer is almost over! I am looking forward to some cooler weather so that I can actually spend some time outside with all the kids. I have experienced two extremely bad summers here in Louisiana with Hurricanes Katrina in 2005 and Gustav in 2008. During both hurricanes I was pregnant which made things even more uncomfortable than it already was. Unfortunately hurricane season is not over with the end of summer but we will begin to get a little break from the heat and humidity.

Happy End of Summer!

Five

2009-08-27T01:49:00.003-05:00

That is the total number of teeth the triplets have gotten. Tyler still has two, Julie has one and Noah has two as well and both of Noah's popped out at the same time. It seems like they grew overnight and we have been so fortunate that they have not had any problems such as fever or diarrhea (knock on wood).

Lucas is adjusting well to having speech therapy twice a week and it seems like his speech is improving by the day. I just wish there was one word that would go away - the word "no". I truly hope this is just a phase that he's going through where everything is being answered with no or else I'll be in a mental institution in no time. I am trying hard not to think about having three toddlers telling me no in a couple of years. If I haven't grown grey hair by then it'll definitely happen at that point.

But even with all the "no's" Lucas is still a good boy and an awesome brother. Those babies love him dearly and our days have turned into nonstop chatter. Noah and Julie are down with the "da, ba, ga, ma, ay", only Tyler thinks it's funny to do a kind of screech. Needless to say, there is never a dull moment around here.

Here's a picture of screech

Where to start?

2009-08-20T01:06:00.004-05:00

Wow, it has been way too long since I've updated our blog but there is a simple reason for that. My laptop's motherboard went bad and even though we have a desktop computer I didn't have the patience to do any sort of internet activities except for checking e-mails and doing online banking. The reason, that thing is just too darn old and slow. So the laptop went off to be repaired (free of charge since Mommy was smart enough to buy an extended warranty) and 3 long weeks later, tah dah!

I don't even know where to start since it seems like so much has been going on with all of the kiddos.

Lucas had finished his evaluations at the local school board and qualifies for free speech therapy through the district which he started on Monday. What's really neat is that he is in group therapy which I believe will encourage him to use his vocabulary even more. He's been doing so well since he started therapy through one of the local hospitals back in October. We decided to continue therapy there as well and concentrate more on his articulation.

The babies are also doing extremely well. Tyler now has two teeth on the bottom. It's just too cute when he shows them off with his big smiles. He is also sitting up on his own and just gets too bored being on his tummy or back and thus sits all the time. He also scoots a few inches here and there to get closer to us or nearby toys.

Noah has started crawling and I'm sure he'll be an expert in it in no time. Miss Julie however is taking her sweet old time and is content rolling on the floor and looking cute. She is neither interested in crawling nor scooting or even sitting up. Therefore she is doing really well holding her own bottle. I guess each at their own time.

One thing that I find rather amusing to watch is Noah and Julie picking up their own pacifiers and putting them in their mouths. They are real experts and it amazes me every time I see it. However if they are too close to one another and both suckers are nearby, they will go for whichever one they can get their hands on - Noah might have a pink sucker reading "Daddy's Little Girl" and Julie a blue one. It can also get ugly though - I witnessed Noah taking Julie's sucker right out of her mouth to use as his own. Payback was rough though when big brother Tyler got involved - he pulled Noah's sucker out which landed right in front of Julie which she immediately picked up to use as her own. Oh and Tyler does not use a pacifier since he is content sucking on two fingers.

I'm sure I haven't covered all of the news but I think this is a good start. To end this first post in a long time I will include some recent pictures. Enjoy!

Our four little angels

Noah with baby food leftovers

Tyler

Lucas enjoying some cold water on a hot day

Julie

Boys will be boys

2009-07-21T13:34:00.005-05:00

I have no idea why the boys have such bad "highchairside" manners. Who would think to be fed while having a foot up on the tray? And not one of the boy triplets, no, both do it. I don't even want to think what they will do when they actually have to sit at a table to eat.

Tyler

Noah

But on the other hand...look how sweet Noah can be. Lucas had decided to bring some of his stuffed animals out of his room to share with the babies.

And I don't want to leave out sweet little Julie. Here she is with her leg huggers that we received a while back for entering a contest. They are so cute!

Then and Now...

2009-07-19T18:29:00.007-05:00

A look at the past seven months in images

TYLER

A few hours after birth

At 3 months

At 7 months

JULIE

A few hours after birth

At 3 months
At 7 months

NOAH

A few hours after birth

At 3 months

At 7 months

GROUP PHOTOS

Mommy and Julie, Noah and Tyler (hours after birth)

Lucas (almost 3), Tyler, Julie, Noah at 3 months

Lucas (3), Julie, Tyler, Noah at 6 months

First Tooth and First Fight

2009-07-10T13:31:00.002-05:00

We have a tooth! We noticed last night that Tyler has gotten one of his bottom teeth, yay! No wonder he is trying to chew on anything in sight. I tried to take a picture but he and his tongue would not cooperate.

Also, as I was feeding Noah I watched Lucas and Tyler having a little confrontation. Lucas was lining up his cars neatly next to the blanket where Tyler was playing. Tyler figured that since the cars were within his reach he'd grab one and pull it towards him. Well, Lucas was not happy whatsoever. This happened a few times and I thought it was rather funny. A few very pitiful Noooo's by Lucas later Mommy fortunately was done feeding Noah and grabbed Tyler away from the toys. Lucas - you better get prepared for this baby since it will only get worse!

And in case you wondered why Tyler has a bruise under his eye - we don't know how it happened. The boys were on the floor and we can only think that Tyler possibly either bumped into the foot of our coffee table or maybe onto one of Lucas' toys since he does scoot but we never heard any screaming. When we picked him up, voila, we noticed the bruise. My poor little man.

Silliness, Cuteness and Stylishness

2009-07-09T00:26:00.006-05:00

SILLINESS

Lucas walking in mommy's shoes

Noah banging on Julie (don't even want to think about what they'll do in a few years)

CUTENESS

Sweet little Julie

Sweet little Tyler and Noah

STYLISHNESS

Stylish Tyler with a nice bruise and a silly Lucas in the background making a lovely face

Stylish Julie

Stylish Noah

What a month...

2009-06-30T14:35:00.007-05:00

June is definitely one of our busier months. With Father's Day, Mama and Daddy's birthdays as well as a lot of other family members' birthdays it has just been insane.

We spent Daddy's birthday out at a restaurant with some close friends and family. Father's Day was celebrated at home and Daddy got two special t-shirts so that people who are unable to grasp that we are in fact parents of triplets will get the message by looking at his shirt. My birthday was Sunday and we were invited to our friend's house for some yummy BBQ. Thank you guys for having us over and for the awesome food you guys cooked and to my wonderful mother-in-law for the very very very yummy desserts!!

The babies are doing great and are now eating sweet potatoes and carrots. They seem to prefer the carrots and I don't blame them - I don't care for sweet potatoes and had actually never heard of such thing until I moved to the US. Lucas however loves them.

And last but not least...I received three leg huggers (http://www.leghuggers.com/) as part of a giveaway advertised by Multiples and More Blog Network. I can't wait to try them on Julie and I promise I will post pictures as soon as I do.

Here are a few pictures to finish up the month of June!

The infamous T-Shirts I mentioned

Our FREE leg huggers

Julie loves those two bears which she also loves to pull down

I swear they are trying to tell me to get lost

All worn out after trying to escape the blanket

2009-06-25T15:11:00.003-05:00

I've been so busy recently, and this is a little late, but I wanted to wish a great big Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there. This is my third official one as a father. I am so thankful for my family. They have helped me pull through more than anyone will ever know. I lost my father shortly before our first son was born and did not get to spend my first father's day with him here, but my family helped it to be the greatest. I know he's looking down on us, so here's a big shout out to you dad. Happy Belated Father's Day!

-Daddy of the Quartet

They are 6 months!

2009-06-22T14:12:00.010-05:00

Wow, where has the time gone? The triplets turned 6 months last Wednesday and are doing so well. They are all rolling like crazy, laughing a lot and eating sweet potatoes which they actually seem to enjoy, only to mention a few things. I think that it won't be too long and all of them will crawl. Tyler is already on his knees with the booty up in the air trying to scoot forward.

On Friday we went to the pediatrician's office for their 6 months check up and immunizations. They were all smiles and laughter until they got their shots. But they didn't cry for too long and oddly enough, all of our kids don't get upset for more than a couple of minutes after they receive shots nor do any of them run fevers or are fussy afterwards. They are really awesome happy babies or at least I think so. Therefore they grow horns when they become toddlers - okay, just kidding, somewhat.

Here are their 6 months weights and heights:

Tyler: 17 lbs 2 oz - 27 inches

Julie: 13 lbs 13 oz - 25 inches

Noah: 14 lbs 13 oz - 25 1/2 inches

And here are some pictures of our sleeping beauties!

Noah with some sweet potatoes cheeks

Tyler - what can I say? That boy is always all over the crib!

Miss Julie who even smiles in her sleep

Silly Girl!

2009-06-15T01:07:00.002-05:00

Nope, I will NOT let go of his hand, ha!

He loves Chuck E

2009-06-09T01:23:00.003-05:00

Lucas loves Chuck E Cheese since there are so many fun things to do and he can be around other children his age. We took him last Friday and it almost seems to become a ritual with us to take him there. I guess in some ways it also gives us a chance to spend some time with just him since Granny is sweet enough to watch the babies for us. Thank you Granny!

One thing I love about that place is this machine that takes a picture of you and prints out a drawing. We always make sure and get one with either Lucas and Daddy or Lucas and I. Here's the one we took last Friday.

Oh the fun of blogging...

2009-06-04T03:45:00.004-05:00

I was just about to go to bed when I decided to check our blog one more time and read any updates. And voila, I was "invited" by fellow blogger Brandy to take part of a meme (and yes, I had never heard of meme either before today).

Here are the rules (thank goodness for copy and paste):

1) Go to your photo files

2) Pick the sixth folder (open)

3) Pick the 6th photo

4) Write a story about the photo

5) Tag six people

Wow, they couldn't have picked a better folder! The folder I had to open actually contains my brother's pictures from his tour to Afghanistan. So I really can't say much about this picture except that it was taken somewhere in Afghanistan and it looks like it's some sort of store. Enjoy!

Since I have no idea how to link names with their blog addresses, here are just the names of the people being tagged:

Max - follower #16 (don't know who you are but kitty looks familiar)

Mary

Beth

Shannon

Louise

Heather

Signed: The Triplets Mama

First Rice Cereal

2009-06-01T01:01:00.005-05:00

Since the babies are close to turning 6 months we decided to try some rice cereal on Saturday. The first time was pretty messy as was the second but we are slowly but surely getting the hang of it. Or at least we think so! I actually believe that Lucas was more excited watching his brothers and sister trying out the cereal than they were.

Noah and Julie seem to be doing alright but Tyler just doesn't seem to like it. He makes the funniest faces when he eats the cereal (I don't blame him). Well, all I can say is "You better get used to it"!

Here are some pictures of their first cereal feeding.

Noah and Lucas - obviously prior to eating

Tyler

Julie

I will show you...

2009-06-01T00:57:00.003-05:00

how to crawl! Lucas is trying to teach Tyler and Noah how to crawl. It's nice to have such a wonderful big brother!

Almost forgot!

2009-05-29T01:23:00.003-05:00

This is just a short post to proudly announce that all three babies are officially rolling. Watch out world, here they come!

And as we also like to say down here: Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Our boys

2009-05-26T14:41:00.005-05:00

Since I have had several posts of "just" Julie I figured it was time to post some "boys" pictures.

Here is Lucas with his potty-scar. It is starting to look better now and he has not given up on figuring out this whole potty training thing.

Here's big Tyler after his bath. His hair stands up in the middle like a punk rocker! Rock on lil' man!

Little Noah after his bath. Don't ever let those puppy dog eyes fool you!

Our Pride and Joy

2009-05-22T00:36:00.005-05:00

We took Lucas to Chuck E Cheese last Saturday since he has shown interest in potty training again. It's a slow progress but we will eventually master it (gosh I hope so!). Before I write about our experience at Chuck E Cheese, let me explain Lucas' bandage on his cheek.

Poor baby fell off the potty and hit his cheek on the side of the bathtub. He has a pretty good bump and small cut and his cheek is already turning all kinds of colors. We had been quite fortunate with bumps, cuts and bruises within his first three years so I guess it was meant to happen.

When we were at Chuck E's, there was a little girl (maybe 5 or 6) who was at one of those game tables crying, so Lucas walked up to her and gave her a big hug. It came out of nowhere - we were just walking along when he suddenly turned around and walked towards her. I was so proud of him and I hope that he will stay as kind and goodhearted when he grows up to be a man.

Julie and Noah

Tyler who is about to start crawling

Tyler, Julie and Noah

Noah and his puppy dog eyes

5 Months Already

2009-05-18T18:50:00.005-05:00

That's right...the triplets turned 5 months yesterday. Time seems to be flying by these days. Today was such a beautiful day that I took all 4 kids outside. I put the babies in their bouncers and let Lucas run around the yard. They all really enjoyed themselves.

I also decided to cut some nails while I was outside. I never thought it would be that hard to cut 30 finger nails but those little hands and nails are so small. You are scared you will cut one or all of them. And I do have to admit that I snipped poor Lucas and Tyler's fingers before. I felt pretty bad when it happened..poor babies. So needless to say I will never do manicures or pedicures professionally!

Here's a picture of the babies in their bouncers today.

Noah, Tyler, Julie

Kayleigh Anne Freeman

2009-05-17T17:40:00.005-05:00

Kayleigh Anne Freeman

06/23/2008 - 05/11/2009

When An Angel Goes To Heaven

(Daliah McBride)

When an angel goes to Heaven God stands with open arms

to cradle and to comfort her, to keep her safe from harm.

When an angel goes to Heaven precious memories are left behind.

Of innocence, warmth and that special smile forever in your mind.

When an angel goes to Heaven she tells of wonderful times.

How Mommy, Daddy, Sister, Brother and family were loving and so very kind.

When an angel goes to Heaven she misses your gentle touch.

She asks God to be sure to tell you she loves you very much.

When an angel goes to Heaven she asks even one more request

that God will comfort those she loved and to know she's with the best.

When an angel goes to Heaven a part of you goes, too.

Knowing you will be joined with her again, when your journey here is through.

Daddy loves bath time

2009-05-16T16:47:00.009-05:00

Today was bath day for everyone. I just love these days. Since I've gone back to work, this is one of my chances to spend quality time with everybody. We are planning on taking Lucas out tonight for some play time, so I am very excited about that as well. Today, after bath time, the babies were all worn out, so here a some pics I took afterward. Enjoy.

Noah, tuckered out after his bath.

Tyler, struggling to stay awake after his bath.

Julie, smiling in her sleep after her bath.

The Art of Potty Training

2009-05-15T00:36:00.003-05:00

I NEVER thought it would be this difficult to potty train a child! We have been trying for a while now to potty train our now 3 year old son Lucas. However, we made a big mistake by starting shortly before the triplets were born. Hence, no success.

Fortunately, Lucas started showing interest again...yay!! But somehow I have yet to figure out how to successfully train him to properly use the toilet. Here is our current status:

Things he does really well:

pulls down his pants/shorts and pull-ups
moves the step stool in front of the toilet
places his toilet seat properly on the toilet
sits on the toilet.

Things he does really well that I however could live without:

runs around naked throughout the house
pee-pees over the seat onto the floor
doesn't want to put his pull-ups and pants/shorts back on
has mommy find a cup in the toilet and juice on his shirt
has mommy find a pair of socks in the toilet
has mommy find Lucas with a foot in the toilet
has mommy find Lucas with his head in the toilet and the top of his hair wet

So needless to say, it's going rather well.

Any suggestions/comments/ideas and smarty pants remarks are welcome, I suppose.

Enough Already!

2009-05-12T00:53:00.005-05:00

I honestly think that my kids are tired of having their pictures taken!

Julie
Tyler

Noah

Lucas, Noah, Julie

Pretty Girl

2009-05-09T03:40:00.004-05:00

Can't say No

2009-05-09T03:24:00.003-05:00

How can you ever say no when you get those looks?? (I know Tyler looks a little freaked out but I still couldn't resist those eyes)

From top to bottom: Tyler, Noah, Julie

The Mischievous Boy

2009-05-08T14:17:00.003-05:00

This is what he looks like

Customer Service

2009-05-08T01:59:00.004-05:00

What ever happened to good customer service? This blog is really intended to keep friends and family informed on our family but since it does involve a little family member I think I can share this experience with you all.

So I get our cellular bill in the other day and notice that the bill is $25 higher than normal. I take a closer look and voila - somehow there were two purchases on my cell phone. One was for $9.99 and the other one for $14.99 and both were for some sort of downloads. Needless to say I'm really too cheap to buy something that expensive for my cell phone and I had an idea that it might have been this mischievous 3 year old that torments our house (yep, I am talking about you Lucas, mwah!). And in case you wonder, we subscribe to one of the bigger wireless providers which my son oh so lovingly calls tee-tee (I'm now voting to change it to poo-poo). Anyways, here is a summary of my telephone conversation. Oh wait, before I begin I almost forgot - I was able to get a refund on the $9.99 charge online but it denied the one for $14.99).

I told this very polite lady that I had a charge on my bill for a download and had no idea what it was and informed her that I was 100% certain it was my 3 year old toddler who LOVES to play with my cell phone and had accidentally made this purchase. Immediately I was informed that it was impossible since he would have had to go through security questions over security questions in order to make a purchase (I am now indirectly called a liar). I have to admit that I have purchased a ring tone a few months ago and all it takes is for someone to click "confirm", purchase? "confirm" and again "confirm" using the same ole' button. So, you mean to tell me that my 3 year old - who not only knows how to push my buttons - can NOT figure out how to press one button over and over again? Please!

Again, I tell the lady that I don't even know what was downloaded onto my phone since it must have been my 3 year old to which she promptly interrupted me with the question "What were you trying to download"? Okay, either you are a moron since I just told you that I didn't know what was downloaded or you're actually trying to trick me into admitting something I didn't even do (I am still a liar). I tell her politely that I was NOT trying to download ANYTHING since it wasn't ME who was making that purchase but my 3 year old. Of course she completely ignored my statement and told me that she was able to get approval to have the charge removed. The reason? According to her I did not remember making the purchase.

Now you all know that I am a mother of four small children and I might get forgetful every now and then but to forget making two purchases on the same day on my cell phone having to answer "tough security questions"???? Yeah, sure, I would forget that!

Anyways, to make this long story a bit shorter - she offered to sign me up for this buyer protection thing - I'd get a four digit code which I would have to enter before I make a purchase - to which I happily agreed to and it's free of charge. She also told me to keep that number in a safe place and away from my son (smarty pants who still considers me a liar). I tell her that I'd be more than happy to but that I can assure her that my son would probably figure it out anyway by typing in random numbers which he loves to do if he's not shopping for who knows what. I know you moms know what I'm talking about, right? Ms. I-don't-believe-a-word-u-say did not see how that could possibly happen (sigh).

I can only assume that this woman I spoke with today has no children since I received a phone call 30 minutes later (I had completed a short survey at the end of my phone call and left a comment about my customer service rep) from another tee-tee employee who absolutely understood what I was referring to since she had four children of her own. Hallelujah!

If you made it to the end of this post, congratulations since it was way too long!

Random Cuteness

2009-05-06T22:23:00.006-05:00

Happy Tyler
Noah with a very uncooperative Lucas

Julie with a somewhat uncooperative Lucas

Noah and Tyler on a roll!

Julie, Noah and Tyler who appears to be high

Julie being girlish

Lucas' Birthday cake

Goldfish do float!

2009-05-05T01:01:00.003-05:00

In case anyone has ever wondered if Goldfish crackers float in a fish tank...THEY DO! Daddy took Lucas to Wal Mart on Sunday and bought him some of those Goldfish crackers. Two of them were set free by Lucas and landed in our 30 gallon fish tank. They floated until they were triple the size and then peacefully settled down on the bottom of the tank until Daddy rescued them.

I never thought my life would get this exciting!

Scoot N' Roll

2009-05-02T21:17:00.003-05:00

We now officially have a scooter and a roller! Noah loves to scoot around the floor and Tyler is now rolling over from back to tummy. It is so amazing to watch and I would have thought for sure it was going to be Noah to roll over first but big boy did it.

Little Ms. Julie is taking her sweet time and likes to just hang out in one place and observe everything. It is so amazing how different the triplets are.

If mommy could just get over this darn flu she'd be able to write some more.

Wheeeeee

2009-04-30T17:53:00.006-05:00

Look who's 3!!!

Happy Birthday Lucas! We hope you have a wonderful birthday, baby boy!

Love,

Mama, Daddy
Tyler, Julie and Noah

Au naturel

2009-04-29T01:32:00.010-05:00

Isn't there anything more pure and beautiful than a baby au naturel? Or in this case au naturel with a diaper.
It also melts my heart to see the babies look at their daddy (he's the one holding them) with such love.

From top to bottom: Noah, Julie, Tyler

Poll: Look alike?

2009-04-27T01:34:00.009-05:00

As many of you know we get a lot of questions and comments when being out with our kiddos, in particular about our triplets. And as much as I would like to share our experiences over and over with everyone, I am trying hard to protect the innocent ignorant.

However, since we get a lot of comments about the triplets looking alike, I thought it would be a good idea to ask a wide range of people from all over the country.

Do our triplets look alike, somewhat alike or do they just have completely different looks, i.e. having to put on a colored bracelet in order to tell them apart?

Personally I think that two of our babies have some similarities but I would never have a hard time determining who is who. But of course that is their mommy speaking.

First visit to Pediatrician

2009-04-24T17:05:00.002-05:00

with all four of the kids!

We decided to take all four of our children together to the Pediatrician: the Triplets for their 4 months check up and shots and Lucas for his 3 year check up and immunization. As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, Lucas started to whine a bit. He had never done that before but we had just gone to the doctor a few days before and he had gotten a shot so he was not happy to be there (I don't blame him).

Overall, they all did rather well. Of course they all cried a bit when they received their shots and fortunately we don't have to go back for another couple of months with the triplets. Anyways, here are the weights and measurements of all of our babies:

Lucas: 27 pounds - 38 inches

Tyler: 14 pounds - 25 inches

Julie: 11 pounds - 23 1/2 inches

Noah: 12 pounds 1 ounce - 23 1/2 inches

I am also happy to report that Lucas is doing well again and the triplets are growing like they should. Overall a good visit. Will post some new pictures soon!

Motherhood

2009-04-24T02:03:00.006-05:00

I really haven't been in the mood to post but that's probably because of lack of sleep and I will get into that in a minute. This will definitely be a melancholic post so bear with me.

Thinking back, even just a few years, I didn't think I ever wanted to have children. If it wasn't for the love I have for my husband and his love for children, I probably would have never had any. I didn't dislike children but I just didn't know "what to do" with a child. If they looked at me at a supermarket, I'd look away. If I saw a child cry, I could have cared less. In all honesty, I cared more for animals than I did for children. I know it sounds harsh but that is how I felt BEFORE I had my own. Now I know what a blessing, a miracle and a gift a child truly is.

Why am I telling you this? It's simple, I care! I follow quite a few blogs and I have to admit that I get attached to the precious babies all those mommies and daddies are writing about. I have been there with them through good times and bad times, through laughter and tears. And if they allow me to continue to follow their blogs, I will be reading their stories for many years to come. This has just been a heartbreaking week for two families: Mia's parents who lost their little girl a year ago today and sweet little Kayleigh who has already endured so much in her short lifetime and is now fighting even harder to stay alive.

This brings me to why I'm so physically and mentally exhausted. I have been up with Lucas who was quite sick the last few days. Nothing major, just a stomach virus. But it breaks my heart when I see one of my babies being so miserable. He was running a fever of 102 and we could not get it down. Every time I was able to get some Tylenol in his little body, he'd vomit it right back out. He was shivering and his body was burning up and there was little I could do to make him feel better. I took him to the doctor and he received a shot of Phenergan for nausea. That shot just absolutely knocked him out but it did take care of his nausea. We were still not able to get his fever down even after giving him two suppositories. At 6 am yesterday morning I was finally able to give him some more liquid Tylenol which FINALLY brought his temperature down. His fever is now gone and he is finally able to keep his liquids and some food down but he is still not back to his normal self. Poor baby still looks like he is drugged out of his mind which is no wonder after not having eaten in days nor been able to keep a whole lot of fluids down but getting all these meds to make him feel better.

I just love my babies so much and I couldn't imagine what life would be like without them. Being a mom to them is truly the greatest gift!

Busy Easter Weekend

2009-04-19T14:50:00.005-05:00

Easter Saturday - if there's such a thing - Victor and I had our first afternoon off. Thanks to three lovely and wonderful family members G, L and M, who offered to watch the babies and Lucas for us for an afternoon, we got to spend some alone time.

So, off we went to Babies R Us where we spent way too much money for things we really didn't need and then to Toys R Us where we spent a LOT of money but this time for a good cause - Lucas' upcoming 3rd Birthday. After spending all this money we were quite hungry so we went to Chili's. It was actually nice to have a meal without having to watch a toddler or making sure babies are comfortable. And let me tell you, that El Nino I had was just what I needed - yummy. After we finished eating we still had a little bit of time left so we decided to go to Target and there, too, waaaaaay too much money was spent. Let me assure you that Babies and Toys R Us as well as Target will not have to file for Chapter 11 thanks to the Carney Family!

Anyway, I would like to again thank the three amazing people who took on this incredible task of caring for three babies and a toddler while we got to spend some alone time!!!

azsssxscdcxx ccc (shout out from Lucas while I had to get up to get him some juice. Now I think he did that so he could play on my laptop)!

And since I am in such an appreciative mood, there's one more person I want to thank: Granny! Granny is always there for us and she comes to our house once a week to watch the babies so that I can take Lucas to speech therapy.

Now on to Easter Sunday. We were invited to Granny's for lunch and we actually managed to show up by 3:30 pm. Uhm, well, by the time Lucas finished collecting Easter eggs in the backyard, all of us getting cleaned up and so on, it was 3. We had a wonderful afternoon and got to spend some time with Victor's brother and his sons aka our nephews. But let me tell you, I was beyond exhausted when we got back home after being around 7 children for a few hours.

A couple of pictures from Easter Sunday

Tyler, Julie and Happy Lil' Noah

Lucas discovered those "hard to find" eggs

It must be comfortable

2009-04-14T16:43:00.005-05:00

That is the only explanation I have for these pictures

Frohe Ostern

2009-04-12T01:06:00.006-05:00

Liebe Oma, Lieber Opa, Lieber Onkel Pascal,

Wir wuenschen Euch von ganzem Herzen ein Frohes Ostern und moechten uns bei euch ganz doll fuer die schoenen Oster-Geschenke bedanken! Die Klamotten haben uns so gut gefallen, dass die Mama gleich ein Bild von uns gemacht hat.

Viele Gruesse auch von unseren Eltern uns ganz viele "bisous"!

Lucas, Tyler, Julie und Noah

First video upload

2009-04-08T04:00:00.006-05:00

I finally decided to try and post a video - this one is of silly mommy trying to get the babies to laugh. Well, needless to say, they really weren't in the mood, Julie was asleep and Noah got so annoyed that he spit up a little bit at the end. But I'm sure I'll look back in 20 years and have the biggest smile on my face. So here we go!

Did I mention...

2009-04-07T02:37:00.004-05:00

that our babies now sleep through the night? Well, actually they have been for the last three or four weeks but I've been a little worried about saying anything since I didn't want to jinx it.

However, we will have to work on the time a little bit - even though mommy really doesn't mind since she's a night owl. They are sleeping from about midnight until 10 - 11 am straight. I will try to move the last feeding up by maybe 30 minutes every night so that they can at least get to bed by 9 pm. Currently their last feeding is at 11 pm so I wanna shoot for 8 pm being their last feeding of the day. I'm sure they'll adjust better to that time than I ever will.

They are doing really well overall. All of them are laughing and I think that Noah will be rolling over before we know it. He is already on his side most of the time so it's just a matter of time.

The only real difficult thing at this time is the one-on-one time with each baby. They all love to be held and talked to and get any kind of attention possible and it is so hard to provide it having three. But I think we're doing alright considering and when they get old enough to walk and run and climb, they'll be all over me I guarantee it! Hey, enough TLC for everyone, yay!

Clifford the Big Red Dog

2009-04-04T17:49:00.001-05:00

There's no place like....

2009-04-04T17:46:00.003-05:00

an empty diaper box!

Quote of the Day

2009-04-04T02:44:00.001-05:00

This is the conversation a mom had with her child behind us at Barnes & Noble:

Child: Mommy, look at the babies! (referring to our triplets)

Mom: Yes, and did you count them? There are three!

Child: Oh wow!

Mom: Yes, aren't you glad I got you a dog?

Sweet Innocence

2009-04-02T02:03:00.008-05:00

Hey mama, what's happening? What milk? We just chillin'

I swear I didn't drink the milk this time!

My lips are sealed!

I don't know anything! Now let me finish my pop tart and movie

I don't know whatcha talking about mommy

Two Year Anniversary

2009-03-30T20:56:00.006-05:00

It was exactly two years ago that Lucas' cleft palate was repaired. The plastic surgeon did an amazing job and Lucas was such a trooper. He has always been a trooper when it came to his surgeries. He just amazes me in so many ways. And even though you can't quite talk yet, mommy is so proud of you! You try so hard and you have come so far. I couldn't ask for more, my sweet little man.

Easter Bunny

2009-03-30T20:25:00.007-05:00

We went to our NICU Family Reunion yesterday afternoon and had a wonderful time. The weather was perfect and a lot of families showed up. They had a lot of children activities and Lucas discovered the space walk and we couldn't get him off of it anymore, especially the big slide. We met another triplet mom whose kids were now three and spent quite some time talking to her. We also saw one of the triplets primary nurses - it was so nice seeing her again. She took such good care of our babies in the NICU and you could tell that she genuinely cared about them.

When we finally did get Lucas off the slide we visited with the Easter Bunny and got some cute pictures. The Easter Bunny definitely had his hand full!

I also wanted to write an update about my visit to the Pediatric Surgeon today with Noah. The surgeon was not able to locate a hernia so Noah will not require surgery, yayyyy! We will have our pediatrician check him again at our next visit at the end of April but it all looks very well.

Group photo

2009-03-25T01:35:00.006-05:00

Here are a couple of pictures I took of all of our kiddos. Unfortunately only half decided to look at the camera at one time, ugh! Lucas was obviously not interested in having his picture taken but you better believe he was ready to hold his brothers and sister. Grrr, those terrible 2's and to think I'll have that times three in a couple of years.

Lucas (wish you could take a closer look at those gorgeous eye lashes) holding Tyler, Julie (looking at the camera) and Noah

Lucas (mommy taught him that look) holding Tyler, Julie and Noah

I'm hoping to get a good family photo this weekend. We are going to see the Easter Bunny on Sunday at our NICU Reunion so we should be able to have someone take a family photo. I am actually looking forward to it since we will be able to see some of the doctors and nurses who took care of the babies after they were born.

Third round of Synagis

2009-03-23T19:34:00.003-05:00

The triplets received their third Synagis vaccination today and all did really well. We have one more round to go in April and we are done - at least for this season. I assume that the pediatrician will decide whether they will need those vaccines again before the new RSV season begins in October.

The nurse had to weigh the babies in order to give them the correct amount of Synagis and this time I remembered to write them down so here we go:

Tyler: 12 pounds 7 ounces
Julie: 9 pounds 5 ounces
Noah: 10 pounds 5 ounces

They have all more than doubled their weight in three months, yay! I am so proud of them!

I was also able to set up an appointment for Noah with a pediatric surgeon for Monday afternoon. I'm still hoping that it's not a hernia so that he won't need surgery.

Brotherly Love

2009-03-22T21:21:00.005-05:00

Whenever Lucas is not an active, running-all-over-the-place toddler he enjoys loving on the babies. They definitely love their big brother, every move he makes their heads are turned towards him. It's so adorable to watch! Here are a couple of picture of Lucas holding his brothers. He got really upset when we took them away from him to feed them.

Lucas and Noah

Lucas and Tyler

Noah sitting in his Bumbo

Julie sitting in Noah's Bumbo

Not such a good visit

2009-03-20T17:28:00.005-05:00

We took our three little ones to the pediatrician today for their 3 months check up. They have all grown and the doctor is really happy with their sizes as well as their developmental growth. Tyler now weighs over 12 pounds, Noah is almost 11 pounds and Julie is almost 10 pounds. They told us the exact weights and lengths but we both kind of forgot since we got some other not so good news. They also each received their second Hepatitis B shot as well as their Rota virus vaccine. A few tears were shed but overall they did really well!

Now to the not-so-good news. The doctor thinks that Noah has a hernia. We have to schedule an appointment with a pediatric surgeon next week to find out if it is in case a hernia. If it is, Noah will need surgery to repair it. We have been through several surgeries with Lucas and it is not a fun matter. So needless to say I am a little sad and it breaks my heart when I look in those big round puppy dog eyes of Noah and think about him having to go through surgery.

Some cute pictures

2009-03-19T14:17:00.003-05:00

Tyler, Julie and Noah - it's so difficult to have all three look in one direction!

Julie spending some quality time with Granny

Lucas holding Noah while Abby is watching

Tyler being Tyler

Triplet sucking thumb incognito

Three months young

2009-03-17T17:49:00.002-05:00

The triplets are three months young today - Happy Birthday sweet babies!! Oh and Happy St. Patrick's Day! We are taking them to their pediatrician on Friday so I will be able to get some weights and lengths put up again.

We had a very special visitor today. Aunt Stacey came by with her precious little girl Abby who is 14 weeks older than the triplets. It was such a wonderful visit and so good seeing both of them. I can't believe that we are both mommies now - we used to be a couple of wild gals at one point! We traded our dancing shoes in for some diapers, didn't we Stacey? But it's all well worth it. It just would be nice if we could see each other more often. I really miss you guys!

I'm gonna put up some pics soon, too. I really should take some more of today since all three are dressed in green which was by accident according to daddy. No matter what, they look quite adorable but of course I'm their mommy and I think they always look fabulous!

I survived!

2009-03-15T15:29:00.003-05:00

Yay, I survived the first week of daddy being back at work and having to do it all alone! The first week just being two days that is. It really does not matter if it's days or weeks anyway since I will be having years and years to come and I am looking forward to seeing those little buggers grow.

The babies actually sleep from about midnight until 9 am, getting their last feeding at around 11 pm and their first bottle at 9 am. I am hoping to be able to put them down earlier and that they will continue to sleep through the night. It surely makes things a whole lot easier on all of us.

Last night Lucas and daddy got to spend some quality "men" time. They went to see Monster Jam here in Baton Rouge and Lucas was so excited when he saw those big trucks. If you know Lucas, you know that he LOVES trucks and cars and really anything that has tires. They both had a great time and Lucas was knocked out by the time they got home. Mommy in the meantime got to clean the house a little bit. It is definitely a whole lot easier when you don't have a toddler running around your feet while trying to clean. But don't worry Lucas, mommy would rather spend time with you than do those awful chores! :-)

I haven't heard it all...

2009-03-14T14:38:00.005-05:00

Just when I thought I heard it all - well I haven't. I am talking about comments people make when seeing my triplets. Here is what we were asked last night while shopping for a new washing machine and dryer (yes, my life is sooo exciting!): All at the same time? What? Say again? Now, what's even more sad is the fact that we were asked that SAME question twice - by two different people in two different stores!!

I am glad daddy is such a nice guy and answered all those questions people asked.

Real work is about to begin

2009-03-11T22:18:00.002-05:00

The babies are now almost 3 months old and besides a lot of little sleep it really has been rather easy having to take care of three babies at once. However, this is about to change.

Yes, it's that time! Daddy is going back to work tomorrow. He was supposed to return on the 23rd of this month but was asked to come back earlier. I knew the time was gonna come but I'm just not ready yet for him to go back to work. I really would have liked to have had the extra week and a half.

So the real challenge for me is about to begin. I am sure everything will be fine but definitely more busy. This will be an interesting journey having to take care of three babies and one toddler. Let the fun begin!

Please - Don't EVER ask me

2009-03-11T16:52:00.003-05:00

Now that we get to leave the house more often, we get stopped a lot and also get a lot of questions about our triplets.

To give you an example, here are some questions I absolutely hate being asked:

1. Are your babies identical? Uhm, noooo....did you notice the hairband or the pink outfit and the other two wearing blue outfits? If they are of different genders, they can NEVER be identical!

2. Did you plan on having three? I had no idea you could actually plan such a thing! If I had known, this is what I would have ordered - The girl/boy combo, extra healthy, no complications, no stretch marks, no labor pain and total natural birth on the side.

3. Are they natural? That is really none of your business! I don't ask about your sex life, now do I? I also wouldn't ask a singleton mother if her baby was naturally conceived, with assistance or via adoption.

4. Do you ever watch Jon & Kate plus 8? Why?? I don't have eight children. Why would you want to compare my family of 6 to a family of 10?

I am not writing this to offend anyone who reads this blog. I would just like to educate people about questions that might be inappropriate to parents of multiples.

Oh so different...

2009-03-08T21:21:00.006-05:00

Our "thinker" triplet Julie

Our "funny" triplet Noah

Our "hungry" triplet Tyler - Got Milk?

Road Trip!

2009-03-08T17:09:00.006-05:00

We took our first road trip yesterday since it was Lucas' parrain's birthday. Happy Birthday!! The weather was just absolutely beautiful - sunny, upper 70's, blue skies - you get the picture. Parrain's dad barbequed so we were all hanging out outside enjoying a beautiful day. Lucas of course had the time of his life running around and playing with other kids. They even found some toys that they gave the kids to play with. By the time we left, Lucas was so worn out that he fell asleep in the car within two minutes of putting him in his car seat.

The babies also did really well. They woke up shortly after we arrived for their feedings and then stayed awake for quite some time. We are so fortunate that we have such good and laid back babies. Lucas was the same way when he was a baby. We were so worried when I was pregnant that we would have the complete opposite of Lucas. Phew, we lucked out yet once again. But I have to say that we were all quite exhausted when we returned back home. The nice weather, chasing Lucas all day and taking care of three babies was a bit of work but we had a great time.

3 Things That Made Me Happy Yesterday

2009-03-07T02:26:00.006-06:00

Well, it's supposed to be Happy Friday so I will write about what made me happy Friday on Saturday - if that makes sense; it does to me so bare with me.

1. My triplets smiling and cooing - it is such a big milestone and even though they have been doing it for a little while now, it just melts my heart.

2. Lucas' smile when he put on those newly bought and washed "Cars" pj's.

3. Our checking account balance - Uncle Sam gave us a partial tax refund, yay!

Obviously my children's smiles mean a lot to me - they really do make me happy. I can't wait for them to start laughing.....

Booty-Licious

2009-03-06T19:14:00.003-06:00

A picture is worth a thousand words....

You Go Girl!

2009-03-04T17:17:00.002-06:00

I am so amazed by our smallest triplet Julie! She is by far the best eater of all three - that was also why she was the first one to come home from the hospital. This morning, she finished her 5oz bottle in 5 minutes then burped and went back to sleep. Now, the boys are our messy eaters and it takes our big boy Tyler usually 30 minutes to finish his 6oz bottle. Hmmm.......

You go baby girl - mommy is so proud of you!

New pictures

2009-03-01T19:05:00.007-06:00

Here are few more pictures I wanted to share. We actually packed up Lucas and all three babies last night and went out to eat. When we got to the restaurant we ran into some dear friends of ours and ended up having a wonderful, fun-filled night out. The babies were on their best behavior - as well as Lucas - and the two boys slept throughout our stay whereas Julie had to scope out the environment for a little while. And yes, we did have some ah's and oh's when people realized we were there with triplets.

Tyler - Julie - Noah

Tyler being cross-eyed (he was "working on something"). He will hate me later on in life for having taken this picture!

Julie in her "going out" outfit

And lil' Noah!

Synagis vaccination

2009-02-25T21:33:00.003-06:00

This will just be a short post. All three of the babies received their second round of Synagis today, yay!!! Of course they shed a few tears but I'd rather have 10 seconds of crying and tears than days in the NICU with pneumonia.

We had the sweetest nurse who administered the shot at our house and she was just amazed as to how big the babies are and how well they are doing. That is always a nice thing to hear considering they were born at 33 weeks and 1 day. They all put on weight since our pedi visit last week even if it's just a couple of ounces!

Mardi Gras...enfin!

2009-02-24T01:43:00.003-06:00

N'oublie...pas, aujourd'hui c'est Mardi Gras. Joyeux Carnaval!

Und auch an meine Deutschen Freunde: Helau!! Bin ja gebuertige Meenzerin!

Today is one of my favorite days - Mardi Gras. Unfortunately we couldn't celebrate Mardi Gras this year since our babies are still a little too young for the parades. But for fun, I'm posting a picture of last year's Spanish Town Parade (well actually it's a picture of Lucas at Spanish Town).

He doesn't look happy on the picture but he actually had a good time.

Good News, Bad News

2009-02-20T17:24:00.006-06:00

We finally received the call yesterday afternoon that the babies' bloodwork turned out just fine. What a relief! However, we still don't know what caused those bruises. We will keep a close eye on it. So far, none of them have gotten any more bruises.

I had to go in this week to see my ob/gyn to have my blood pressure checked again since it was still elevated at my 6 week visit. Well, it is now through the roof so my doctor put me on some blood pressure medicine and I have to go back in a month to have it checked again. Can I tell you that I feel quite old now? I've been on thyroid medication for years now but now I'm also on blood pressure medication - before I know it, I will have to count my 50 million pills a day and put them into one of those pill organizers. Hmmm, I am getting closer to 40...that must be it!

The babies are now more awake and are starting to make the funniest sounds and faces. It's so much fun watching them. They are also smiling a lot, although that might still be gas pain but I beg to differ.

Lucas is still being an awesome big brother. His granny gave him a boy baby doll for Christmas so the doll gets to enjoy a bottle, being burped and even gets his nose cleaned! It melts my heart and it was so adorable when I found the baby doll bottle in the bottle warmer yesterday. It's amazing how he learns all these things just by watching us.

Noah and Julie enjoying some play time (don't know why the picture is turned)

Tyler and his sucky

Julie and Lucas enjoying some brother-sister time

Noah after a nice warm bath

and Julie before her 2 months check up

2 months pedi visit

2009-02-18T01:30:00.004-06:00

So, the babies are officially two months old - I just can't believe it. Where has the time gone? It is just flying by too fast which makes me a little anxious since Victor will have to go back to work in about a month. I'm sure things will be just fine but it's nice to have the extra hands.

We took the babies for their 2 months check up today (actually yesterday since it's 2 am the next day) and boy, have they grown!! Here are their weights and heights:

Tyler - 11 lbs (5lbs4oz @ birth) and measuring 22 1/2 inches (19 3/4 @ birth)
Julie - 8 lbs 11oz (3lbs13oz @birth) and measuring 21 inches (17 1/2 @ birth)
Noah - 9 lbs 4oz (4lbs5oz @ birth) and measuring 21 1/2 inches (17 @ birth)

According to their growth chart, Tyler is average and the two "little" ones are on the lower part of the chart but they are on it! The pedi was very very impressed and happy.

However, there's one thing that concerned all of us a little bit. All three of the babies have had some small bruises on their little arms. We thought they got their arms pinched by one of our watches when we are holding them. That is a concern and so we took all three to the hospital for some blood work (complete blood count). We will get the results tomorrow (well today actually) so I'm hoping and praying that everything is fine.......

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T23:33:00.003-06:00

To Lucas - Thank you for being such a wonderful big brother. I know life has changed as you know it but please know that I love you more than ever! Happy Valentine's Day "my big man". I love you so very much!

To Tyler, Julie and Noah - Happy 1st Valentine's Day!! I love you my sweet triplets!

To my darling husband - I don't even know where to start. To 15 years of marriage - what an incredible journey it has been. Thank you for being such a wonderful husband and father to our four amazing children. Thank you for everything you did while I was pregnant - I don't know how you did it but you did an amazing job! I didn't have to worry about anything but growing those babies. Thank you for taking the time off your job to help me through the first three months of life with triplets plus a toddler. Thank you for getting up at night to get the bottles ready for the babies. There is so much more but my mind is a complete mess right now due to lack of sleep..LOL. Happy Valentine's Day - I love you!

Congratulations!!!!

2009-02-14T15:40:00.002-06:00

What an exciting week it has been! Congratulations to Kami and Nick on the birth of their quadruplets Sloan, Rocco, Madden and Jagger on February 12th, 2009. Happy Birthday Lambe babies! I had the pleasure of meeting Kami and Nick at the Marvelous Multiples Class at Woman's Hospital back in October '08.

I would also like to congratulate Tracy and her husband on the birth of their triplets Ethan, Leah and Logan, also on February 12th, 2009. Happy Birthday sweet babies! Tracy made it to almost 36 weeks (that is aweseome for triplets!) and all her babies weighed in at over 5 pounds!

Oh so comfi...

2009-02-11T18:20:00.000-06:00

I thought those pictures were just too adorable!

Somehow Julie always ends up with her little hat covering half of her face. They are all little wiggle worms in their sleep.

Here are little Noah (top) and big boy Tyler (bottom) just as comfi as can be.

Winter in Louisiana

2009-02-11T16:40:00.000-06:00

This has really been an odd winter here in Louisiana. We are used to having temperatures change from the 20's/30's to 60's/70's at night time and 50's to 70's during the day which has us constantly switch from heater to A/C and vice versa. BUT to have snow in December - and not just a little snow, a few inches - is insane!

Anyways, I am talking about the weather since Lucas, Victor and I have a bad case of the cold. As of today, the babies are still healthy and I am sooo thankful they received their RSV shots because I would be even more worried about them getting sick. Lucas was the first one to get it on Friday. Poor baby was having a runny nose and running a fever but he is much better now. I was hit the hardest and I still haven't gotten my voice back all the way. Either I sound like I whisper or I sound like a female version of James Earl Jones, scary! We are all just hoping that whatever bug we caught will go away quickly.

As I was saying, the babies are doing well and we have an appointment for next Tuesday to bring them in for their 2 months check up. Only poor little Julie has some bumps on her little head that seem to be spreading onto her body. We think that it might be infant acne but will have the pedi check it out next week. It doesn't seem to bother her though. Oh wait, I also forgot to mention that Noah and Julie both have an umbilical hernia but it has already decreased in size thank goodness.

Just for fun I am posting a picture of our "snow day" here in Louisiana - it's Lucas and Jo-Jo, our German Shepherd.

Life is good...

2009-02-04T23:46:00.001-06:00

The babies are 7 weeks today and I swear they are getting bigger and bigger by the day. They still don't let us sleep more than 3 hours at a time - no wait, let me take that back, Noah doesn't let us sleep any longer than that. He is the one that will start fussing after 3 to 4 hours, at times I think just because it has been 3 or 4 hours since he last cried. I am saying that because sometimes when we get him out of bed to feed, he falls asleep. Poor Julie and Tyler are then rudely awakend by a diaper change before being fed, too, since all are on the same feeding schedule.

It amazes me though how when one cries, the other two don't. People always ask and assume that when one fusses, all of them do and I'm here to tell you that it's not the case. Don't get me wrong, there are times when two cry at the same time but very very seldom does it have anything to do with being awakened by another baby.

All three are now more awake, yay! So, they get to spend some time in their bouncers or on Lucas' little couch for some belly time or with mommy and daddy and big brother. They definitely are working on those neck muscles, their sight as well as grabbing. It is amazing how they learn so quickly.

Lucas is doing fine as well. His speech therapy is definitely paying off and he is picking up on his vocabulary. However, we were told to have his ears checked again since it seems that there might be some fluid built up again. It is kind of frustrating since we have already had tubes put in and replaced at least 3 times and his hearing checked three times as well. Some of it is expected though due to the cleft palate. It is however a little bit frustrating since no one really knows for sure why he isn't talking yet. Of course I blame myself in so many ways, should have could have done more. We are hoping that he will catch up when he starts preschool; I think it will also help tremendously just being around other children his age. We shall see but no matter what, I am very proud of him for what he is already capable of doing!!

Here are few more pictures of our four little ones.

Lucas (all packed up to go..., uhm,...no idea)

Julie, just chillin....

Tyler, just chillin...

and Noah! Just chillin' as well

RSV shots

2009-01-30T21:04:00.001-06:00

After finally receiving the "ok" from our insurance company, a nurse from Woman's Hospital's Home Health Care came out today to administer the RSV shot to all three of our babies. In case you don't know what RSV is or stands for, I will add a description below this post.

Of course we had to complete all kinds of paperwork first and I felt like I signed my life away as usual. Unbelievable how many signatures are required especially when you have triplets since EVERYTHING has to be done separately for each baby. After completing the papers, the nurse then checked the babies' vital signs and weights. And here are their new weights at 6 weeks:

Tyler: 8 pounds 13 ounces (5lbs4oz at birth)
Julie: 6 pounds 11 ounces (3lbs12oz at birth)
Noah: 7 pounds 11 ounces (4lbs5oz at birth)

I am pretty sure the pediatrician will take them all off the 22 calorie formula at their next visit since they are gaining weight extremely well. I won't complain since it is very difficult to find!

After all three babies were checked and weighed, the nurse then administered the shot. They all cried for about 10 seconds which broke my heart (I can't stand seeing any of my babies in pain!) but fortunately they all got their pacifier dunked into some sugar water which made their shots a little "sweeter." Of course there's not such thing as making any shot sweeter but it put my mind at ease. After about 5 or so minutes, the nurse checked the babies' temperatures and heart rates and left us with some sleepy but hungry babies. I am happy to report that they are all doing well and you couldn't even tell they got such a "big" shot today!

RSV:

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major cause of respiratory illness in young children. RSV causes infection of the lungs and breathing passages. In adults, it may only produce symptoms of a common cold, such as a stuffy or runny nose, sore throat, mild headache, cough, fever, and a general feeling of being ill. But RSV infections can lead to other more serious illnesses in premature babies and kids with diseases that affect the lungs, heart, or immune system.
RSV is highly contagious, and can be spread through droplets containing the virus when a person coughs or sneezes. The virus can also live on surfaces such as countertops or doorknobs, and on hands and clothing. RSV can be easily spread when a person touches an object or surface contaminated with the virus. The infection can spread rapidly through schools and child-care centers. Infants often get it when older kids carry the virus home from school and pass it to them. Almost all kids are infected with RSV at least once by the time they are 2 years old.
RSV infections often occur in epidemics that last from late fall through early spring. Respiratory illness caused by RSV — such as bronchiolitis or pneumonia — usually lasts about a week, but some cases may last several weeks. Doctors typically diagnose RSV by taking a medical history and doing a physical exam. Generally, in healthy kids, it's not necessary to distinguish RSV from a common cold. But in cases where a child has other health conditions, a doctor might want to make a specific diagnosis. RSV is typically identified in nasal secretions, which can be collected either with a cotton swab or by suction through a bulb syringe.

Almost 6 weeks already!

2009-01-26T15:56:00.011-06:00

Gosh, time is flying by. I can't believe that the babies are almost 6 weeks old. They grow up way too fast. Tyler, Julie and Noah are doing really well and growing like weeds. Their feedings are still every three hours except at night when we try to add another hour which works most of the time. Out of all three, little Noah is our fussy one and does not want to wait an extra hour to get his bottle.

Here are a few pictures of the little ones. Lucas absolutely adores them and he helps us out any way he can, like burping them or holding the bottle! Such a big boy!

Top picture is Lucas holding Julie. Second one is the triplets (duh!) Tyler, Julie, Noah. Underneath is Lucas holding Tyler and last but not least Lucas holding Noah.

Our routine right now kind of looks like this: Victor gets the feeding bottles ready, changes Noah's diaper and feeds Noah. I then usually change Tyler's diaper and feed him unless Julie wakes up before he does which is very seldom. Finally, whoever finishes feeding their baby first gets to feed the last baby which is usually Julie. She is our slow yet "clean" eater, the boys are quite messy. The feeding and changing can take anywhere from 40 to 90 minutes but we're lucky and usually finish within an hour.

Our triplets

2009-01-26T15:56:00.010-06:00

In late 2007 we decided to try for another baby. Unfortunately we again couldn't get pregnant on our own so in March of 2008 we decided to seek help from our fertility specialist, Dr. Lu, again. Since we all knew that IUI worked for us with Lucas, we decided to take that route again. Our first try was unsuccessful. In May we went in for the second try with IUI and this time were successful.

I went in for my first ultrasound at the beginning of June and it was discovered that we were having twins. Wow, twins, exciting and a bit scary. I mean we always said we wanted to have two or three children so twins wasn't too bad. During our second ultrasound, the tech saw a spot on the screen in addition to the two sacs. But since it wasn't formed well, she thought it was just some bleeding. Well, during our third ultrasound there was no doubt, three sacs, three heartbeats - we were pregnant with triplets! I remember just wanting to cry. How am I supposed to care for three babies PLUS a 2 year old? I was actually devastated and didn't want to tell anyone about the news. Eventually I got over my selfishness and started to get excited. Maybe we'll be lucky and have a girl. But no matter what, I knew it was going to be a high risk pregnancy and I just wanted the best outcome for our babies.

I was suffering from morning sickness throughout my first trimester. It was miserable. On top of that I would have light bleeding every so often which scared me. Luckily, everything was fine with the babies and I was told that it tends to happen during triplets pregnancies. My second trimester was the most comfortable one. I would see my ob/gyn every other week and was also referred to Maternal/Fetal medicine which I saw every three weeks. It was fun to go to those visits since they always did an ultrasound so I got to see the babies quite often. We eventually found out that we were expecting two boys and a girl....whooooo hoooo!!

My doctor often told me that I was his most boring triplet pregnancy ever since I really didn't have any problems and didn't complain much. The only problem I had was the gestational diabetes again, ugh! This time they decided to put me on meds right away. Exercise was out of the question being pregnant with triplets. They had to adjust the meds a few times but it all worked out at the end. At 20 weeks I really started to show and by 24 weeks I looked like I was full term. That's when the babies really kicked into gear and started growing rapidly. Things were getting more uncomfortable, too. It was hard to turn in bed, getting out of bed or out of a chair. Walking was exhausting after a few minutes and breathing was also getting more and more difficult. Towards the end I thought Baby C was actually inside my lungs.

During my prenatal visit on December 9th I had an elevated blood pressure. I was sent to the lab to have some blood drawn for HELLP. They did find out that those blood results were abnormal and so I had to go in a few more times to have it checked to make sure there weren't any changes or else they would have had to get the babies right away. They did put me on strict bed rest at that point. At my next visit on the 15th of December, I still had an elevated blood pressure plus they found some protein in my urine. I had also had some problems with my blood sugar being in the 40's at night time for a few days so my doctor decided to have me admitted into the hospital. I had to do a 24 hour urine test, vital sign check every few hours, ultrasound, blood work etc. Anyways, my blood pressure remained high so they decided to schedule my c-section for the 17th of December at 7 am. I was 33 weeks and 1 day in gestation.

Tyler Neal was born at 7:25 am weighing 5 pounds 4 ounces, measuring 19 3/4 inches.

Julie Marie was born at 7:6 am weighing 3 pounds 12 ounces, measuring 17 1/2 inches.

Noah Aiden was born at 7:27 am weighing 4 pounds 5 ounces, measuring 17 inches.

They were all doing fine and did not require any respiratory assistance! All had to stay in the NICU until the 25th of December and were then downgraded to the Special Care Nursery. The reason for them being in the NICU/SCN was to feed and grow and to make sure they could hold their temperatures on their own. Julie was the first one to come home on December 29th, followed by Noah on the 31st of December and last but not least Tyler on January 5th.

Those pictures were taken the day before my c-section - 33 weeks pregnant.

Top picture is Tyler, second Julie, third Noah and last all three together on their way to the NICU.

AFM posts from BBC

2009-01-21T02:12:00.005-06:00

11/13/2008

I am almost 29 wks and really haven't had many issues except for Gestational Diabetes. That however is no news to me since I had that during my son's pregnancy. My dr had put me on a diet and exercise program which worked fantastic and since I lost weight from all that healthy lifestyle I actually looked better the day after giving birth than I did before I got pregnant. Now, with this pregnancy, my peri and ob did not even bother with diet and exercise and just put me on meds. They want my bs to be below 100 in the am (fasting) and below 120 after meals and the meds are doing their job even though they have to be adjusted from time to time.
Other than that I have aches and pains which are bothersome and at times painful but nothing to worry about. I still chase my 2 1/2 yr old around the house and carry him at times. My ob actually refered to me as having the most boring triplet pregnancy he has ever experienced which I consider a compliment LOL.
Now to my babies: at my last maternal/fetal medicine visit Baby A (boy) weighed 2.15 lbs, Baby B (girl) and Baby C (boy) weighed 2.5 lbs each. I have plenty of fluid in my sacs and my cervix is nice and long. They are very active and kicking up a storm inside my belly. So, all is well thank God.
I can't wait to read more of your stories and I will definitely keep you posted on my pregnancy!
Savvy - 28wks4days BGB

12/3/2008

I saw Maternal/Fetal Medicine last week and here are the weights of my babies : Baby Boy A - 4lbs 9oz, Baby Girl B - 3lbs 4oz and Baby Boy C - 3 lbs 3oz. They said that everything looks great and we even got to watch all 3 of the babies breathe on the u/s. It was amazing! Today I saw my ob and he too said everything looks wonderful - I haven't even started dialating and that he expects me to go at least another 2 or 3 weeks. I am definitely more than ready to greet the three munchkins
Savvy - 31wks2days (BGB)

12/12/2008

I am 32w4d and had an u/s Tuesday. Here are the babies' weights: Baby A (B) 5lbs 5oz, Baby B (G) 3lbs 12oz, Baby C (B) 3lbs 14 oz. They are doing fine and everyone is very happy! Unfortunately though my bp was up and my Peri and OB decided to put me on bedrest (1st time in my pregnancy). They also ordered blood work for HELLP which came back abnormal and had them concerned. I had to go back the following day to retest and luckily it didn't increase too much so they decided not to hospitalize me. I had to go back again today for a bp check and blood work. My bp was back to normal and my blood work is stable so I just need to continue being on bedrest. I go back to see my ob on Mon and I think we will discuss a delivery date. He will be going on vacation the week of xmas and I think he wants to deliver before he leaves and my peri does not want me going beyond 35 wks which would be 12/30. So, we shall wait and see and I will definitely keep you guys posted.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Savvy - mommy of 2 1/2 yr old Lucas and preggo with triplets 32w4d

Our firstborn Lucas

2009-01-20T02:24:00.003-06:00

So, back in 2005 we were actively trying to get pregnant with the assistance of our fertility specialist Dr. Lu. We went through two cycles of Chlomid unsuccessfully. Our third attempt doing an IUI resulted in my first pregnancy. We were so excited and thankful that it didn't take us too long to get pregnant. Here are a few pictures of Lucas' u/s.

And also a picture of me being 7 months pregnant. I will post a picture of me being pregnant with triplets later on.

I had a pretty uneventful pregnancy up until I was 29 weeks when I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I then had to go see a dietician and go on a strict diet which also included some sort of exercise. So, Victor and I went out for a walk every night for about 20 to 30 minutes. I never felt better and I ended up losing 7 pounds by the time Lucas was born. Lucas was born on April 30th, 2006, at 4:25 pm, weighing 6lbs 3.4 oz, measuring 20 1/2 inches. He was born via c-section since labor was not progressing and his heart rate was dropping during each contraction. Here are a few pictures taken after Lucas' birth.

Lucas being cleaned up in the OR

Mommy feeding Lucas for first time with a special bottle. Lucas was born with a cleft palate.

A close up of Lucas eating

Lucas at 3 months old

Where to start.....

2009-01-16T22:38:00.000-06:00

I really have no idea where to begin! I was first introduced to blogging while pregnant with our triplets back in October of '08 and discovered how wonderful it was to follow along some amazing multiples pregnancies on the web. I think that this is a very nice way for our family and friends to keep updated on our amazing journey of parenthood.

Okay, now that I have explained myself for no reason, here's a brief history of "just the two of us:"

I was born and raised in Germany and my husband was born and raised right here in Louisiana. We met in 1991 in Germany where he was stationed through the US Army and in September of 1993 we tied the knot.

In October of 1994 I made the big move to the USA to follow the love of my life. It was one of the saddest days in my life however - having to leave my family behind. It's been over 14 years but I must admit that my heart still aches for "home". Especially now that we have four children, it would be so nice to have my parents and brother here so that they would get to know all of our babies better. But we make the best of it and BT (before triplets) we would go to Germany for Christmas and my family would travel to LA every other year. I don't know yet what our travel plans will look like since it will no longer be that easy nor cheap to travel overseas. We will figure it all out though - we always have!

In August of 1995 my husband was diagnosed with testicular cancer. From one day to the next, our world fell apart. You just don't think that this would happen to you until it does, especially when you're in your mid 20's (he was 25, I was 23). The doctors told us that they had to remove one of his testicles and since the cancer had spread into his lymphnodes that he would have to undergo chemotherapy. They also advised us to consider semen banking since no one knew whether he would still be able to reproduce due to the chemotherapy - so we did. After the surgery and four months of heavy doses of chemotherapy, the cancer was "gone." We are happy to report that he has been in remission since December of 1995 and we pray that it will remain that way.

Now, let's scroll forward a few years to when we actually decided to have a child. It was sometime in 2003 or 2004 when we considered trying. Well, unfortunately we were not as lucky as the many teenagers who have unprotected sex just that one time and end up preggo. No, we had to seek help from a fertility specialist. We went to see Dr. Peter Lu in March of 2005 for the very first time. After meeting with him, we just knew that he was going to be the best choice for us. Oh, and was he ever! Not only did he succeed in getting us pregnant with our son Lucas in 2005 but also with our triplets in 2008.