Then & Now

Then...nervous about how our trio was doing as they were transported to the NICU.
Now...nervous b/c of how many bumps they seem to accumulate on their head.

Then...discovering what a mother's love meant.
Now...experiencing what a mother's love means.

Then...Sofi weighed in at 4lb 9oz & 17.5" long.


Now...Sofi weighs in at 20lb 13oz (50%) & 30.5" (90%) long.



Then...Gabi weighed in at 4lb 4oz & was 17" long.


Now...Gabi weighs in at 22lb 6oz (75%) & is 30.5" (90%) long.


Then...Ian weighed in at 4lb 1oz & was 18" long.


Now...Ian weighs in at 18lb 15oz (5%) & is 30" (60%) long.



Then...my belly the day we met our beautiful babies!



Now...my belly today after having 3 beautiful babies!




Then...life was just about me & Todd.
Now...life is about having 3 children & feeling fulfilled.

Then...having our parents support us unconditionally.
Now...having our parents be the most wonderful grandparents in the world.

Then...not knowing who our pediatrician was.
Now...loving Dr. Nguyen & appreciating her kindness & understanding!



Then...not knowing what life really meant.
Now...understanding the meaning of life.

God gave us the chance to be parents to the most wonderful babies in the world. We are honored & thank Him every day for blessing us w/ Sofia, Gabriella & Ian. Thank you for following us on our journey!

The day before, a year ago...

I have to write this post. Every mom does but rather than writing it tomorrow, I am writing it today b/c I remember the anticipation I was feeling a year ago today. I woke up knowing that this would be the last day of bed rest & monitoring. I even let myself get up & walk around. We were all anxious & trying to take up time. Our good friend, Julie, came over to have dinner & take pics of me & the big belly.


This is what Daddy was doing waiting for the big day, LOL!




Somehow, we managed to sleep that night albeit not very well. We were both so excited about finally meeting Sofi, Gabi, & Ian. We wanted to "see" our children & who they looked like. We were also TERRIFIED. We wanted them to come out healthy. We were hoping & praying for little to no NICU time but knew that realistically many things could go wrong.

Too many mixed emotions. Not enough time to deal w/ them b/c as slowly as the time seemed to be going, it was also flying by. Tomorrow we were going to meet our babies, our 2 daughters & our son.

First Birthday Cards

It is official! The kids all got their very own FIRST birthday cards! My aunts Helen & Jos sent the trio birthday wishes all the way from Holland. THANK YOU! The triplets are one of a kind on both sides of the family so this is a very special event. We are very thankful to have our family all over the world following their progres.

I had to take pics of them opening their envelope & looking at their cards. Needless to say, sharing was an issue although they each had a card. Please forgive the nakedness. We were battling fevers at the same time & didn't want them in anything but diapers.




This is Daddy's way of hanging out w/ the kids while they didn't feel well. SOOOO CUTE!


On another random note, this post has taken 3 days to finish b/c our internet/cable/phone has been out again. Comcast sucks!

About my diaper cakes...

I know, here I am posting AGAIN about my diaper cakes. I am TOTALLY not going to promote my business here but I am doing a give-away, albeit small. I would love for everyone to go check out the cute bows I made & am giving away. Yes, I am trying to bribe people. I cannot lie.

http://divinediapercakes.blogspot.com/2009/03/hair-clipbow-give-away

I would also like to thank another wonderful triplet mommy, Kelly, for kindly making us beautiful favor tags for the kids' b-day party. She is also a work-at-home-mom & has a store on Ebay as well as her own website. Please check them out!

http://stores.ebay.com/Forget-Me-Not-Favors

Canceling the party :(

Yep, you are reading right. We are canceling their b-day party. Seems as though things in my life never come easy. Hmmm, that may explain me having triplets, LOL! You won't find me complaining though. I have learned from every trial & tribulation I have gone through.

The reason? All THREE babies are sick. It started w/ Sofi & now Ianchito & Gabi are running low grade fevers & have massive runny noses. Who knew babies could make so much snot? Really!?! Todd & I have busted out "Operation Kick the Sickies in the Ass". I'm full out working on keeping the data organized. I've got the white board split in to 3 & keeping track of meds & temps. Todd is the runner, going to the store for things we need. Sweet hubby went to Wal-mart while I fed the kids & got a thermometer (ear), Motrin, & Klenex w/ lotion. We are both tag teaming the kids. Can you imagine THREE sick babies? HAHA! It is a ball!

Here are my 3 sick babies. We are keeping them w/ just diapers on (good thinking Daddy!!!!). With what Ian went through w/ febrile seizures, we are doing everything possible to avoid them.



We will have their 1st birthday party, just not on Saturday! The show WILL go on!

Sofi had a big day!

With the good comes the bad. Yesterday was a big day for Miss Sofi. She started to really walk. Not a couple of tentative steps, but real honest-to-God steps while balancing herself & concentrating really hard. After trying all day to get her on tape, it finally happened when Daddy got home.



Sorry for my appearance b/c as well as walking, Sofi ended up sick. Long story, not even worth getting in to but she officially has a "virus". Her nose started running (clear) yesterday morning & didn't let up all day. More than just teething runny nose too. It was like a cold. I was concerned about it all day & was taking temps of all 3 kids. You know I'm going to be overly precautious b/c of what we went through w/ Ian. Finally, right before bedtime she got a fever. I called the nurses line & we were given an appt at the after hours clinic. So, instead of getting to go to bed last night, Sofi & I went to the dr.

We did a strep/flu quick test to make sure we weren't dealing w/ either. Her ears are clear & so are her lungs. She has a bit of a red throat. The pedi said the virus was mild. Thank God for little favors.

Now we are waiting to see if the other 2 get it. Ianchito is teething really bad, working on 3 upper teeth so it is hard to tell w/ him. Gabi is ok so far. Say a little prayer that we somehow manage to keep them healthy.

The tutus are finished!

YIPPEE! I have finished the girls' b-day outfits! How come it is always harder to dress girls than boys? All my boy got was a shirt. Hmmmm? Anyway, I know you all are DYING to see the tutus so here they are in all their glory w/ the matching shirts.


Sofi is going to be in yellow & Gabi in the teal. I tried the tutus on yesterday & although they are a little big, they fit the girls perfectly. I can't wait to put their shirts on them!

Tomorrow is our 1st physical therapy session for Ian, 2.5 mths after all this began. Pretty long, huh? I guess that is what happens when you work w/ a state program. I'm curious to see what they say w/ his progress over the past 3 wks since the assessment. He is doing quite a bit better. At this point, he rather be standing than sitting or laying on the floor but he still can't quite pull himself up although we are practicing. It is the same process we went through w/ the girls. I put my fingers on the couch & he grabs on & pulls himself to standing. If my fingers aren't there, its a no go. He is also pulling himself in to the bouncy chairs which is what the girls did when they were learning to pull up. I am confident in saying that we are on the right road!

The girls are crazy as ever. Gabi has begun to say some words. They are bye-bye (yes, this time w/ meaning behind it), baby, bu-un (button), Mama, & Dada. She is also signing all done, eat & more as well as milk & waving bye.

Sofi is our mover & shaker. The girl has begun to take steps. She is on the verge of really walking on her own, having taken up to about 5-6 steps at a time. She loves to walk around holding just 1 finger. She is also practicing how to stand on her own w/o support.

My kids are growing up & every day is so much fun!

Too much to do!

Um...where do I start? The kids b-day party is NEXT WEEK! I've got too much to do & not enough time. REALLY! So far, I have the following to somehow manage to get done by Saturday...

*Make birthday shirts (Ok, this task has been ALMOST completed.)
*Make TWO tutus (Did I mention that I'm not sane?)
*Make & decorate favor bags (I think I may have taken on too much.)
*Order the birthday cupcakes (Yes, I know. I am late!)
*Make finger food trays (Cheaper to make than to order. I'm on a budget!)
*Create slideshow of the kids' 1st year (I'm certifiably insane.)

That is only the b-day stuff. I still need to clean the house, deliver a diaper cake, put a present or 2 in the mail, have Ian's PT session on the 25th, and somehow manage to take care of my children PLUS pay attention to my husband. WHEW! I think I have a long week ahead of me!

I think I have mentioned the theme before, rubber duckies. The colors are teal & yellow so I had to make matching outfits. Yeah, I'm a dork but this is only happening once in our lives & in theirs. The girls shirts correspond w/ the same colors their tutus will be. In other words, yellow & white tutu w/ white shirt & yellow ribbon and teal & white tutu w/ white shirt & teal ribbon.

The girls' shirts.


They have "Miss March" in rhinestones across the front. I wanted to be a little different.


I couldn't find a teal shirt for Ian so I had to go w/ lt blue. He gets to be #1 b/c he is the ONLY boy, tee-hee!


Oh, forgot to mention that I decided to also try my hand at hair bows (to match the diaper cakes). Why do I put all this crap on myself? Uh, yeah...I work better under pressure.

Hmmm, now that I mentioned the bows, I should really share a picture! I don't do bows in the girls' hair but I am going to do a give away on the diaper cake blog so I not only made the bows for the cakes, but a couple of extras.

These 4 go w/ diaper cakes.


These 2 will be given away.


I think I have a headache.

Tutus & Bows

Ok, let me preface this blog by stating that I am not a girly-girl. I don't know if you can pick that up from what you read about me but I'm just not all in to the girl stuff, most of the time. I do have a Louis Vuitton fetish although I don't own much more than a purse, key fob & wallet. I don't really do girly bows or get super dressed up. When I was a kid, I was a total tomboy.

With that said, I decided to help a friend out & let the girls model her tutus & bows. OH.MY.GOD. My girls are adorable all dressed up! I totally didn't think it would be something I would get in to & maybe not for every day stuff but I am definitely going to have to figure out how to get the girls to wear some of this stuff, LOL!

Sofi got to model the red tutu & bow. I think she looks beautiful in red!





Here are my girls in pink!








Just a blurb about the maker. Her name is Kristy & like me, she is a SAHM. Just as I am doing w/ diaper cakes by selling them, she does this w/ her tutus & bows. She does an excellent job! She is also just starting out. She does have an Ebay store w/ a couple of her products on there. Please check it out!

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/myfairyprincessbowtique

Ongoing battle w/ mastitis

Yep, ongoing. Won't go away w/ only 7 days of meds so we are doing 10 this time around & hopefully it will kick it in the ars. This time it was b/c of clogged ducts & that is b/c I am weaning. I also got a fever for 24 hrs. The good thing? I got to nap yesterday AND it has killed my supply on the right side so dropping down to 2 pumps a day was EASY. My goal is to be done w/ the pump on April 7th so we don't have to rent it for another month. I have a little hand pump that is excellent, the Avent Isis if anyone is interested in knowing.

I know I have blogged about this several times & there are some readers that are thinking, "Get over it already." Well, I am happy to say that I am actually ready for this. I feel like I have fulfilled my commitment to my children by supplying them w/ breast milk for this long. I have suffered in many ways but each time was well worth the reward. I have enough milk stored in the freezer to provide them 75% of my milk until they turn one & then it is on to whole milk! I will, however, continue to BF Ian as long as he wants.

Other than that, things have been going well around here. The kids are becoming quite good at feeding themselves. Of the 3, Sofi & Ian will eat ANYTHING. Gabi, not so much. She refuses veggies, even new ones she has never tried like asparagus. The other 2 gobbled it up. I will continue to put the veggies on her tray & hope that 1 day she takes interest in them again.




Ian has progressed even more. He is now getting good at his pincher grasp once again. Mind you, he was the 1st to really be able to use this grasp at about 7 mths old which was way ahead of the curve. It is still hard, as a parent, to know that he is behind when he was actually the baby that was ahead of them all in the beginning. He is also babbling quite a bit more. He is repeating syllables & having "conversations" much like his sisters do w/ differences in tone & pitch.

We are also getting ready for the big 1st birthday party. We have decided to invite family & friends that have supported us throughout this 1st year. The theme: rubber duckies. I am in the process of making the kids their b-day shirts. I'll have to take a picture when I finish them. They are turning out really cute!

That is it for now!

Our 1st "big kid" bath!

This is an ode to the blue infant bath...


We loved you little bath. You have contained our trio for the past year & can't believe that we are putting you to rest. It has been joyous seeing our children pee in the water & try sitting up on their own while grasping for every item around the kitchen sink. Unfortunately your time has come to an end. You can no longer contain our children, try as you may. They are ready to go beyond your perameters & test the...dum, dum, dum...BIG BATHTUB (voice echos as this is being said). We thank you very much for your service & hope you do for another baby as much as you have done for us. You will be missed!


Ok, now for the real story, LOL! The kids needed a bath & I was dreading taking out the bathtub & getting the whole kitchen wet so I told Todd I thought it was time to put them in the big bath. The reason we have been waiting is b/c Ian hadn't been sitting well enough until recently. Todd was still worried about him falling over so we went ahead & decided we would use a Bumbo chair for him right now.

Sofi went in 1st & after a squeal, she started laughing & grabbing for the toys. Then went Gabi. She smiled right away. Finally we put Ian in the tub. They had a BLAST! They were so happy getting the rubber duckies & the turtles & chewing on them that they didn't even notice their hair getting washed. It was great! When it was time to get out, Sofi started crying. Poor doll! She wanted to stay in the water & splash around. The other 2 weren't too upset but you could tell they wanted to stay in there. Oh well! Our next bath is Mon or Tues so they can play again!




I also want to add this picture of Ian & I from this morning. It is my 34th birthday & he was just loving on me. I didn't realize how much he resembles me until now, especially his eyes!



Oh, ok...a few more pics!

Tia Jesse reading to the kids.


Sofi is all comfy in the corner w/ all the pillows & blankets. She is our snuggle bug!


My bookworms!