This post is long overdue -- Owen is Four & the Triplets are TWO!

Time is flying by and we are having tons of fun!  Here's a quick update on all our kids...

Owen turned FOUR in December.  We celebrated his birthday in style with a big bash at Recreation Unlimited (an indoor showroom for a company that makes swingsets, trampolines, etc.).  Owen was surrounded by a bunch of his friends and both sets of his grandparents.  He had a blast and loved all of his presents, particularly his 4 foot tall remote control train -- he plays with it every day to this day and in 4-year-old time, that's a long time.  At his four year check up, he weighed 39lbs and was in the 40th percentile for weight and about 65th percentile in height.  He's definitely starting to get lankier. Owen still loves to be snuggled and is one of the sweetest 4 year olds I know, and I'm sure I'm not biased one bit.  He's getting 4-year-old 'tude though and often thinks he can get away with setting rules for Mommy and Daddy.  Recently, we've been reminding him 2 or 3 times a day that he is not in charge and that it's ok if he doesn't like our rules, he still has to abide by them.  He loves his brothers and sister and while he often gets frustrated with them, he mostly does a good job sharing.

January was a rough month -- nearly 2 years to the day after Owen was hospitalized with pneumonia when I was almost 30 weeks pregnant with the triplets, Mason was hospitalized with exacerbated wheezing/asthma most likely caused from RSV.  If you'll remember, RSV was the reason we weren't able to celebrate the babies' first birthday with a party last year.  Mason spent 3 days in the hospital on and off oxygen but was a trooper throughout.  We were able to get through that hospital stay with help from our amazing friend and nanny, Sarah.  There aren't enough words to thank her for
everything she does for us.  Mason was released on Saturday evening and he and I got home around 7pm.  Earlier in the day, Grant vomited but seemed to be better, albeit with no appetite...not necessarily a good thing.  By Sunday morning, Grant worsened.  He refused to eat and vomited a couple of more times and was very lethargic.  On my way to taking him to the pediatrician's office that evening, fearing our second hospitalization in a week, I called in reinforcements -- Nana and Papa agreed to hop on a plane that evening.  Thank goodness for weekend sick clinics -- while we where there, Grant tested positive for RSV (damn bug got us again!) and a double ear infection and we were sent off for a chest xray.  He along with the RSV and ear infection, he had pneumonia. With antibiotics in him, he seemed a little better on Monday, but he spiked another fever Tuesday evening and woke up screaming around 11pm and took a while to calm down.  Nana and I took him back to the doctor on Wednesday.  As it turned out, his ear infection was no better, so he was put on a second antibiotic.  His poor tummy.  His breathing seemed worse that evening and we actually ended up taking him to the ER, but while we were there, he perked up and we were able to go home.  Talk about a bad week..... Over the next week, Nana and Papa stayed with our kids so that we could keep them out of daycare and so that we could try to keep Sarah's kids well.  They slowly got better and we were forced to say goodbye to Nana and Papa again.  Thankfully, they were already planning on coming back in a couple of weeks to celebrate the big upcoming birthday.

February was a big month for us -- the triplets turned two and were finally healthy enough for us to celebrate their birthday the way we wanted to celebrate their first birthday, with a big bash for everyone who has helped us so much over the last 2.5 years through the pregnancy and afterwards.  We had over 30 adults and almost as many kids in our house and everything turned out great.  All the kids got along (though there was a bit of a fight over the Thomas Train in the basement, but that's a daily occurrence around here, so I don't count it) and we had more than enough food for everyone to enjoy. 

Triplet's 2 year stats:


Mason - 29 lb 6.4 oz (65%), 34.25 in (38%) at 2 years (actually 2 years, 1 month b/c their appt was late)
up from 26 lb 10.4 oz (60%), 32.5 in (54%) at 18 months

Grant - 26 lb 9.6 oz (29%), 34 in (32%) at 2 years 

up from 24 lb 7.2 oz (29%), 32 in (38%) at 18 months

by comparison, Owen was 28 lb 1 oz (50%), 34.5 in (49%) at 2 years 

Mayleah - 22 lb 6.4 oz (2%), 32 in (6%) at 2 years 

up from 20 lb 6.4 oz (4%), 30 in (8%) at 18 months

Funny how consistent the triplets are -- Mason has always been the heaviest (even though there was only a 3oz difference between him and Grant at birth) and the longest by about a half inch and Mayleah has always been the smallest.  Our pediatrician thought they were all doing great! We had Grant re-evaluated for speech therapy last week since he's not talking much, so he will join his brother in getting some special attention from a speech therapist once a week starting in May. 

Mason is doing very well.  He's talking more, though it's difficult to understand him, but it's extremely cute when he sings songs.  He still loves the itsy bitsy spider and is starting to try to sing his ABCs.  His favorite activity is to sit in someone's lap while they read to him, but he also loves to chase Owen and Grant up and down the hallway while they all push a car, shopping cart, or fire truck.  He's one sweet little monkey -- never refuses a kiss and is now remembering to say 'thank you' anytime you give him something.  In his cute little voice, 'thank you' sounds like 'dee do'.  He loves Thomas the train (and most other kid's shows) and talking a ride in our choo-choo wagon. 

Mayleah is one sassy, daring little girl who can eat more than both her brothers combined most of the time though she's 4 pounds lighter than Grant and 7 pounds lighter than Mason.  She loves to jump and climb and can now jump from the ottoman to the couch.  She climbs on the kid's table and if you're not giving her enough attention or answering her first stern call, she doesn't hesitate to pull up a stool while you're sitting at the table so that she can stand on the stool and be at eye-level to get your attention.  She often tattles on on her brothers.  Though her words are difficult to understand, she's always able to get her point across.  She calls Mason 'Ba' -- it's very sweet.  I haven't quite figured out what she calls Grant yet, but she has no problem saying 'Owen'.  Maymay LOVES dogs and shouts 'Doggie, doggie' anytime she sees one.  She must have all the stuff animals in her bed at all times, along with 3 or 4 blankets.  Sometimes it's difficult to find her in her bed, ala ET amongst all the stuffed animals.  ;o) 

Grant is all boy yet loves his snuggles just like his big brother.  He LOVES dirty.  And 'dirty' is one of his favorite words, which he repeats over and over again as he's throwing dirt on himself.  He went through a phase where all he wanted to eat was cheese, but thankfully he's branched out a bit from that.  Though he's not talking as much as his siblings, he's constantly on the move.  Like Mason, he loves the train table and Thomas but Grant's most favorite thing is cars -- at least he usually has either a car or a ball in one or both hands and typically has to have one or both when he goes to sleep.  He also LOVES chocolate and doesn't care much for dinner time (both traits he shares with his big brother Owen).  Grant continues to be the shy one of the bunch, something I think he gets from his Daddy.  This summer he has 2 minor medical procedures planned - replacing the tubes in his ears and having a small hernia in his groin repaired.  I'm sure all will go well, but we'd appreciate thoughts and prayers for event-less procedures and quick recoveries.  

We are planning our first big family vacation to Florida soon -- can't wait for all the kids to experience the ocean and Disney.  Should be a fun, but exhausting, week!

Have a lot more to update -- we now have 2 wonderful nannies, the kids are out of daycare for now, Nana and Papa will be heading back to Indy in May, and updates on me and Aaron soon, hopefully!

18 months old today (3 months ago) --- Now they're almost 21 months!

I started to write an 18 month post and never finished it -- here is it, completed, along with an update at nearly (gasp!) 21 months.  Since their 18 month birthday, the babies have started going to "school" with Owen 2 days a week and stay home with our new nanny (whom we love more than words can say) the other 2 days.  The first few weeks at daycare were rough for the babies and pick up and drop off are still a bit hectic for mom and dad, but over all things are going VERY well!

Mason -- first born of the three, is such a sweet, sweet little man. He continues to enjoy playing alone, but is also getting more assertive with his brother and sister. He's doing much better walking with his fancy-dancy elmo orthotics. He can even get up on his feet all by himself in the middle of the room now, but typically will only do it by request. Mason is still a lady's man -- and usually flashes big smiles to strangers while using his big brown eyes to woo them. He's got a ton of hair and even had his first official cookie cutter haircut last month. Mason's adding to his vocabulary, too -- he signs 'more', waves bye-bye, blows kisses (he's the quickest of the 3 to do this if you ask) says 'mama', and 'doggie'. Now at nearly 21 months, Mason was discharged from physical therapy through First Steps a couple of weeks ago--this is a HUGE milestone for him.  He still wears his orthodics but is doing great with walking and even running though he continues to be very cautious.  He started speech therapy last week, but that one session, along wiht our new (absolutely AH-MAZ-ING nanny, Sarah), he's starting to say more words!  We've recently heard him say 'Owen', 'open', 'go', 'all done', 'head' and 'ba-ba'.  We are very proud of his progress and can't wait to hear more! Mason LOVES books -- and will bring you book after book for you to read to him as long as you're willing to do so. 

Mayleah -- Maymay, as we call her now, is surprising us everyday with how much she understands. Yesterday, while I was in the playroom, I asked her to go get a book that was in the kitchen. She immediately walked out of the playroom, went to the kitchen, and returned with the book. She's not saying many more words than Mason, but she's definitely acknowledging that she understands more than he does. Her favorite thing to do now is to put her arms out to the side and say 'where'd it go?' but it doesn't sound at all like 'where'd it go?'. It's very cute to say the least. She definitely has opinions about everything, but mostly she's just happy to be held. She loves to be held and will pitch a royal fit if you put her down before she's deemed that it's ok to be put down. I've heard her say 'mama', 'baba', she can roar like a tiger, she attempts to say 'woof', and she signs 'more', 'please', 'again', waves bye-bye, and blows kisses.  At nearly 21 months, she's added a lot to her vocabulary -- she often asks 'where'd daddy go?' if she can't see him, she loves to look up at the sky and announce 'sky' and 'birdie' and will pretty much try to repeat anything she's asked to repeat.  She can point to and name her eyes, ears, eyebrows, head, toes, and mouth.  She has an adorable little voice -- one that reminds both me and Aaron of the little girl on Monsters, INC. She continues to LOVE her 'ba' (her paci) and has increased her love for both giraffe and bear. She's still what Miss Sarah calls a 'tree frog'....meaning that she loves to be held and would pretty much let you carry her around 24/7 if you could.  She's a smart little cookie and gives the best looks when she knows that she's in trouble. 

Grant -- the official 'baby' of the 3, definitely remains the biggest bully of them all.  He always wants what the others have and LOVES to follow Owen around imitating everything he does.  If he doesn't get what he's trying to rip from one of his sibling's hands, HE pitches a fit like someone just stole that same item from him. He loves to push cars and trucks and race with his big brother.  Grant is also very affectionate.  He loves snuggles and tickles and has an amazing laugh.  Grant's not saying a lot more than Mason and Grant, but still does well with signing 'more', 'please', 'bye-bye' and milk.  At nearly 21 months, Grant has become a big fan of the word 'NO' and says it in a long, drawn-out, nasaly tone.  It's hysterical! He also says 'Oh-no!', loves blueberries (buh bee, as he says), raspberries, cheese, and grapes but really doesn't like to eat a whole lot more than that (ok, maybe honey bunnies, poptarts and trader joe's version of the nutrigrain bars are at the top of his list, too). 

All the babies love to play 'ring around the rosie' with Miss Sarah, and love the version with Papa, too, where instead of falling on the ground, they all fall on him.  They also love to sing 'head, shoulders, knees and toes.  They're big fans of elmo and sesame street and of course, all of owen's favorite shows, too....including Toy Story 3 (big suprise!)

Speaking of Owen -- he's got a big birthday coming up soon.  We can't wait to celebrate, though I still can't believe that he's going to be 4 years old! Owen is doing more and more letter recognition and can even spell his own name!  He loves to tell stories and often tries to tell us and his siblings what to do -- he can be quite bossy!  But, he's also a very sweet, gentle, sensitive and caring little guy.  I'll try to post pictures from his birthday party soon afterwards.

I'm off to bed -- here's hoping to more frequent blog posts......at least more frequent than every 6 months!

The kids are really enjoying our warmer weather.  They turned 15 months this month -- very hard to believe.  May finally reached 19lbs at her 15 month check up, Grant was up to 22lb 12 oz and Mason was 23lb 4oz.  They're doing great, but we are moving forward with First Steps evaluations for speech for all 3 of them since they're not saying much.  I'm not concerned...I'm sure in just a matter of a few months I'll be wishing they would go back to not saying much.  ;o)  Mason is trying to walk, sometimes.  He can walk and he does, just only when he really wants to (which isn't very often).  May is testing her boundaries and figured out how to climb UP the slide and climb the latter on the play house.  Grant LOVES to swing and walk around the backyard with a blue bat -- I call him Baby Bam Bam when he does this because he looks just like BamBam from the Flintstones.  He also loves to give hugs to mommy and daddy but is quite the bully with the other kids.  May is a major drama queen when she doesn't get her way and will fling herself on the floor and cry like her heart has been broken, but when she knocks her head on the table, not even one fuss or tear.  too funny.  Mason is doing better at asserting himself and isn't afraid to tell the world when he's not getting his way and really enjoys his alone play time when Grant isn't trying to steal his toys.

Owen is loving his new school -- he's in a classroom full of boys and the best part....the firetruck playground.  He often asks to go to school on the weekends and fusses a little when we tell him it's not a school day.  He's vocabulary and imagination is running wild --- tonight he told me that "it's good to have a blanket to make sure you don't shiver".  Where did he learn the word shiver????  He's starting to recognize more letters and numbers and often asks what letter a word starts with.  He's also into telling stories and recently told me a big tale about how dinosaurs come to play ball in our back yard.  Very cute.

We're all looking forward to a visit from Grandma and Grandpa this Father's Day weekend and then the big Rudolph Family reunion (and some vacation time for me!) over the 4th of July.

See the links below for some recent pics.

Pictures from May 2010

Chocolate Chip Cookies


Monkey Joe's

wow

I've been a very bad blogger lately -- things have just been incredibly crazy.  I've been doing well keeping up with posting pictures to facebook, but I know a number of my family members aren't on FB and don't check very often, so for those of you who don't, I'll post a link to some pictures here.

I'm very much looking forward to spending my mother's day at home tomorrow with all my babies.  This year has been a whirlwind to say the least but I'm not complaining.  I'm happy to be a mom to 4 kids under the age of 4, have a wonderful, supportive husband, and a flexible job (though currently pretty stressful).  Life is good!

I promise to have some more info about the babies' birthday and their current stats soon.  Just too much to do these days!

For now -- Mayleah and Grant are walking running around, acting like toddlers, and seeming to grow every day.  Mason has taken a few steps but is still relying on crawling for the most part...he's getting there though.  I'm betting he'll be walking in a month or so.  They're very happy babies for the most part -- love to give lots of hugs and kisses and I eat up every one.

For now, here are links to picture on facebook (you should be able to access these even if you don't have a facebook account):

Most recent pictures from this morning

First taste of watermelon

Easter weekend

Playing outside



Hope that tides you over for the next couple of months.  ;o)  Seriously, I'm going to try to do at least 2 posts a month....just gotta work on finding the time.

love you all!
Very busy, but happy, MoM

Just trying to keep our heads above water

So much to catch up on .... I still have lots of posts to do on Christmas, resigning from Lilly, my new job, the babies' first birthday, our fight with RSV, losing Bailey and Winnie (our dogs) and their return home all within a very upsetting 5 hour period, Bailey's trip to the ER vet after his 5 hour jaunt with Winnie, and a tummy bug.  Plus, a visit from Nana and Papa, GG Kathy and Poppy, and Grandma and Grandpa.  It's been a busy year so far and not nearly enough time to blog or take pictures.  But here are some of the best from the last few months. 

 

The last picture is from the babies' first bath together in the tub.  They had a blast....Mayleah especially.  She was the dare devil of the three.  She kept standing up and thought it was hilarious when she slipped and fell down.  I think we're in trouble...

Catching up-- Owen's 3rd birthday

Wow, I can't believe it's been 3 years since Owen joined our family and a year since his 2nd birthday party.   He's getting to be such a big boy and is the best big brother to triplets that parents could ever ask for.  His favorite things are still firetrucks, police cars, and ambulances, but over the past year he's also learned to appreciate cars, especially Lightening McQueen from the movie Cars.  This year, we through him a big bash and invited a number of his friends from school.  He was overwhelmed by all the presents, and after he opened the garbage truck that his friend Christian gave him, the present opening at the party stopped.  All the boys at the party thought the garbage truck toy was absolutely fabulous.  It was pretty funny, actually.  Nana and Papa were here for the celebration, as was Owen's Grandma (Aaron's mom).  He had a great time at his party on Sunday and on Monday, Aaron and I both took the day off work so that we could spend the entire day with Owen and do everything he wanted to do.  We started the day by heading out in the in snow to Cracker Barrel for pancakes -- Owen, Aaron and I used to do this every other weekend or so before the triplets came, but we haven't been since the babies were born. Owen's favorite breakfast is pancakes, so he greatly enjoyed his breakfast that morning.  Then we went to Monkey Joe's for some bounce house time.  After that, we went to RideMakerz in the mall so that he could make a car.  We had a great day with him!