15 Month Well Baby

Seems as though we are going to the ped's office quite a bit now days but this time it was a scheduled visit. I've been dying to find out how much our Gabi girl weighs. It was a good visit overall. We even got to ride in the elevator w/ our ped, Dr. Nguyen. We love her!

So, here are the kids stats. WARNING: Big & tall girls advisory!

Sofia ~ 24 lb 8 oz (, 75%), 32 3/4" (, 97%)
11.11 kg, 83.18 cm
Gabriella ~ 26 lb 2 oz (, 90%), 32 1/4" (90%)
11.85 kg, 81.92 cm
Ian ~ 21 lb 9 oz (, 15%), 31 1/2" (60%)
9.78 kg, 80 cm

Ian made a vast improvement since his 12 month well baby exam. He went from the 5% in weight to the 15%. We were very concerned that he wouldn't gain. The truth is he is my best eater. I think his metabolism is sky high. Dr. N seems to agree. Also, he still hasn't shaken that ear infection so now we are on some heavy duty stuff for 5 days, similar to a z-pac. Fine w/ me. That explains why he has been waking up in the middle of his nap for the past 3 days. Today he slept for 2.5 hrs along w/ his sisters!

Gabi is doing fantastically, talking quite a bit. Counting, yes...she is. Albeit not always starting from one but she does count. I'd say her vocabulary is over 20 words, easily, if not more. Do I sound like I'm bragging? Uh, yeah. I am. She also has a little lesion on the back of her thigh. It's been there since she was born but we are going to a dermatologist to get it checked out. If anything, to have a baseline in case it gets worse. I'm not really worried about it.

Sofi, well...she is our mover & shaker. She is completely advanced in gross motor skills. She may not be saying as much as Gabi but she makes up for it in movement. God, does she ever. I told Todd last night that she is going to be the one we are waiting up for in the middle of the night. Ug. I dread that day. As always, she is the healthiest of the crew. I swear, that 2 hrs of oxygen she had the day she was born has catapulted her forward in physical skills.

I managed to get the girls dressed up really cute today. They even kept a bow in their hair. I made them last night to match their outfits. I've got to tell you, I'm not one to put the girls in matching outfits but I do like to coordinate them. Thanks to Grandma Donna, they had these really cute outfits from Old Navy!


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Alrighty, I'm off to bed!

PT & OT sessions plus some creative child proofing skills.

So, it has been a little busy around these parts. Eh hem. Someone (Ian) is deciding that teething is going to interfere w/ their only nap of the day making it hard for me to accomplish anything. We also had 2 therapy sessions yesterday. Both went well considering we had to deal w/ all the kids. Normally Bill & Donna come over to take care of the girls so that Ian has our undivided attention but b/c Bill is recovering from shingles (please keep him in your prayers for recovery), we had to have the girls along w/ us.

The morning session was OT w/ our coordinator, Stacy. Ian really likes her. I'm going to have to get a picture of them together the next time. She is a cutie & full of energy. Anyway, he is doing impressively well. She is very happy w/ his overall improvements & is glad to be able to work more on the fine motor skills w/ him. She did say that we need to get him to try & learn some words & gave us some ideas to do so. He says mama, dada, all done (a-du), cat (da or ga), knob (do or no), & a couple of other things but you can probably see the pattern...da. Da everything although there is a definite difference when he says each one. If we don't see improvement by 18 mths, we are going to call in a speech therapist to evaluate him. Personally, I think that w/ 2 sisters who talk A LOT, he is sometimes left out. I know he will catch up & am not worried at all.

Then we had our PT session, again w/ the girls in attendance. It was a bit easier this time as they played by themselves for a bit of the time. Sonia was very happy about his fluidity in transitioning from laying to sitting & pulling up. He even stood by himself for a good 10 seconds a few times. She also worked w/ getting him to walk behind a walker. The problem is that there is no resistance. We solved that problem! We put a 20 lb weight in the walker & WAA-LAA! There is now plenty of resistance. Just since yesterday, Ian has improved quite a bit. I'm working on getting video.

We are still on the line about the braces for his ankles. She sees a marked improvement & said that b/c his issue isn't severe, we aren't crunched for time. We have the opportunity to try & strengthen his ankles. IF he does end up needing them, it will only be for a short period of time & only during waking/playing hours. YAY!

Todd got these pictures today of Ian & Sofi sitting together. You can see that I cut some bangs for Ian to see since I can't pull his hair up in a ponytail. I like the long, shaggy look. Must be b/c my dad has long hair.


I had to post this picture b/c Ian' expression is priceless. Anyone want to leave a comment w/ a good caption?!?



I also had to get creative w/ child proofing since the kids have learned how to turn the tv on & off. I put part of our superyard gate infront of the tv & the stand. Then I took one of Todd's gadgets (strap w/ 2 hooks & a thing to make it tighten) & weaved it in to the gate & hooked it to the back of the tv stand. Don't worry, the tv is tethered to the wall, just in case. Another rigging Todd came up w/ that works very well!



Oh, 1 last thing. Gabi cut her eyelid last night. She slipped in the bathtub. I swear, it is a huge ordeal to give them all baths at the same time. They all want to stand up & walk. This is the consequence. Sorry the picture is blurry. Luckily, I followed Todd's 1st aid skills & immediately put ice on it. No bleeding & not very deep.


Tomorrow is a big day. We go for our 15 month well baby. I can't wait to see how much Gabi weighs! I'll be updating tomorrow.

Helping Daddy

We have slowly been working on kid proofing everything. It is quite the cat & mouse game b/c just when you think you are finished, the kids find something else to get in to that you would have never thought about. When you have 3 kids working together, pretty much everything can fall victim to their tiny hands.

Daddy decided that he was going to put matching socket covers over some of the sockets in the living room. The kids HAD to be part of it. Seriously, it was the most interesting thing they had ever seen. It was so cute. I wanted to run out & get each of them a tool belt.



We also got in the baby pool & as much as the kids had fun, it was tiring. We figured since we are in our own backyard, who needs bathing suits. Oh, well I do. I mean, the KIDS don't need them. We doubled & made it their bath as well. That was fun! Please don't mind me. I was just there for safety purposes & this picture was the one that covered me the best.


I know I have mentioned this already but the kids are really starting to mimick our actions, not just sounds & gestures. Gabi sat behind Sofi today, picked up a brush & tried to brush her hair. I sat there watching this happen & was thinking that my babies aren't babies anymore. Not only that, Sofi grabbed a paci for herself, then promptly grabbed another one & gave it to Gabi. I watch in amazement. WOW. They really are little sponges!

Just another fun filled weekend.

Yep, all about having the fun! We didn't do a whole lot yesterday outside of what we normally do. We did all hang out in the baby pool for a good hour. The kids did really well in it this time around. So much more manageable than the last time we were in it. Of course, I hung out in the water w/ them. It was nice & cool, better than sitting outside of the water wishing I was in it.

We did grill after the kids went to bed & Todd made some killer potato salad & macaroni salad to go along w/ the hot dogs & hamburgers. YUM! I was so full. Don't worry, the kids got some hot dogs for lunch today. They really liked them. It is the 1st time they got some. I'm not big on hot dogs b/c of what they are made out of & how they are preserved so it really is a treat.

The kids have been all over the place, really getting comfortable on their 2 feet, at least the girls are. Ian is getting there & crawling really well on his hands/knees. He is also quite the climber! Better than Gabi but not quite as good as Sofi.


Besides always being on the move, I have noticed that the kids are now mimicking us quite a bit in the social sense. For instance, if I'm patting one of them on the back, they will want to do it as well. Sofi in particular. You can't really tell in the picture below but she was hugging Ian & kissing him on the cheek, just like how I do it to them. PRECIOUS! I have a feeling we will need to get baby dolls very shortly. I can already see them "tending" to the stuffed animals. Next thing I know they will be getting engaged, married & having kids of their own. Time needs to stand still!


Momma's health report...I have scheduled the ultrasound for my thyroid next Tuesday. This next week is shaping up to be very busy. That on Tuesday, 2 sessions of therapy on Wednesday for Ian, & Friday is their 15 mth well baby. I see that there will not be much down time. Ah, and so is life.

They sucked the life out of me.

Seriously. What won't go wrong? Not that I really mind but it kind of explains some things, I suppose. I have been losing hair & just never feel like I am totally awake. I just thought it was all stuff left over from, oh...I dunno...having triplets. I chalked up being worn out b/c of taking care of my munchkins all day long. I thought the hair loss was b/c of my body still not being back to normal since I am still lactating. You know, those pesky hormones, right?

Right. Hypothyroidism. I swear, I was as healthy as a horse before I got pregnant. That is why I say they sucked the life out of me. I'm not a complainer. I just want to blog about it b/c I want others to know that their body can be perfectly perfect before pregnancy & then go wonky after.

It's not even a big issue. I will probably end up taking a pill for a very long time but I'm not going to complain if I'm going to get more energy out of the deal. I just want to get everything "fixed" & be good.

The kids are doing wonderfully. Sometimes I am just in awe of what they are figuring out w/o too much guidance from us. They are amazing!


This is Ian's face after some avocados.


The girls are learning to share. Sofi was giving Gabi a stuffed animal <3.

Our new toys!

Ok, so one isn't really a "new toy" just something new to play on. The kids LOVE the fireplace. I can't keep them off of it so I decided what the hell, I'll let them play on it. They can pretty much get up & down off of something like that w/o falling over & banging their head so I'm not worried about an injury. I stay close by just in case but for the most part, they like to sit up there like big kids.


Another "new toy" is the climber/slide/swing combo our neighbor, Brittney, gave us. She is a sweetie & b/c of her, we have gotten some pretty cool toys. This was outside but since we can't seem to get any cooler than 100* now days, we haven't been outside in a week. So, I decided to clean it off & bring it in to the playroom. Brilliant if I do say so myself!

The kids LOVE to climb all over it. Now, I have learned that the swing isn't such a good idea so it has come off. And, the slide is now at the end which is much lower than original. This allows the kids to climb up & still slide down.




The kids are getting smarter every day. It is amazing to see them soak things up like a sponge. Their vocabulary increases daily. Their movements more fluid. They are little people, no longer babies. Their looks have completely changed. What a miracle life really is!

4th of July Photo Shoot

So, I have been playing "photographer" lately. Like I really need another hat to put on, right? The camera is Sheila's step-daughter's Rebel & I love it. I told everyone to save all their presents for me & pitch in to buy me either the Rebel or Nikon's version which is called D40 or D60. I really want a decent camera seeing that I will be taking lots & lots of pictures for the rest of our lives. I know it isn't a permanent thing b/c it will eventually outdate & I'll need a new one but for now, it will do.

Gabi (Sheila took these pics b/c she wanted to play w/ the camera as well.)






Sofi (I shot Sofi while Sheila kept Ian & Gabi busy.)






Ian (I shot Ian while Sheila kept the girls occupied.)