You better be good, you better not pout...

Boy, with those stipulations the triplets are in for some stockings full of coal.

They are into everything these days, and "No" does not really stick with them. They love to climb onto the dining room chairs (which are actually stools), pull baby wipes out of the package every chance they get, find a phone, remote, or anything with buttons and run away with it, and clammer at our legs to be picked up, even when you are already holding one.

Gabbi is still ahead of the game and likes to "help out" whenever she can. She'll bring me a diaper when I have one of hte other kids down to change them, even if I already have a diaper. She'll point out when a door is open that shouldn't be, and she is now refusing to eat with her fingers and demands a spoon/fork and plate, even though she really can't use them yet.

Nate is hot/cold, he's either all smiles, or he's pounding his head (literally pounding) on something, the floor, his crib, a toy... etc... It's quite awful to witness and I can't help but wonder if he's killing some much needed brain cells for later. The doctors say it's normal and that it's a self soothing technique... but when it happens at 3:30 in the morning... it's all but soothing for the rest of us.

Jack is a tank. He rumbles and stumbles around the house with little regard for how he will stop. He'll often bowl one of his siblings over and take a nose dive himself. But he just gets up smiling and keeps on rumbling around.

Sophia is in first grade and doing great! She's been a really big help around the house lately, I'm hoping once Christmas is over it continues, and it's not just a ploy to brown nose Santa. She is reading really well, and likes to read everything... EVERYTHING... signs on the road, contents of packages in the pantry, your e-mail over your shoulder.

We took them for Santa pictures, and of course none of them wanted anything to do with Santa. We then took them to dinner afterwards at the Cheesecake factory, and they finally made it uncomfortable for us to go out for dinner. Jack was quite content, but Nate was anything but happy and was tossing his food left and right, and Gabbi was doing the same thing until she got a plate and spoon, and then she sat perfectly content, even though there wasn't much eating being done.

Snow came heavily here, especially for Western Washington and while Sophia has had a blast, the little ones really aren't that keen on it. Probably because we don't have the right attire for them all yet, and so one false step and their little hands are submerged in a snow bank, and then it's no smiles from there.

They are wonderful and I love them to death, but they have definitely reached an age of self declared independance and stuborness. Serentity Now!!

I'm going to try and post a compilation video of the pictures we've taken recently over the holiday vacation.

Summer 08 Comes to an End

Thanks to Cori for capturing great pictures all summer long of the kids. Not as many of Sophia in here as I'd like, but then again, she was out playing all the time with her friends, which is the best a summer can get :)

The little ones are into everything these days, any door, gate, cupboard left open the kids know about before anyone and they make a beline for it. When things get quiet... it's time to worry.

Gabbi is picking up more words than the boys, and can already say "eat", "What is it?", "Who is it?", "Dog" which comes out "Go -d" because Kim has been trying to teach her to say "Go Dawgs" so she things that any dog is a "Godawg"... silly Kim, "GO Cougs" is so much more natural ;)

All the kids like to give hugs now, and it melts my heart when I get home from work as they all come up and give me a hug. Of course they also now have huge seperation anxiety when anyone, I mean anyone, leaves out the front door. They throw themselves at the windows by the door and cry till the person is out of view.

We don't get as many looks out public these days, as I think it's less obvious that the kids are all the same age. Even though they are the same height and weight, they must not look as "Triplet-ish" as they did as babies.

The First Haircut(s)

So we finally broke down and decided to get the kids some haircuts.

Gabbis didn't need to change much, but both Jack and Nate were starting their mullets going pretty well. It was kind of sad to cut Jack's curls, but we cut 'em of and he looks pretty sharp.

The video here shows the pictures from that day, and I think you get a pretty good story from it.

Gabbi wasn't really sure what to think, and put on her pooh lip pretty early on... even when she was all done.

Nate was typical nate, and put on his big smile, surrounded with looks of confusion.

Jack... Jack needed to hug mommy and make sure she was okay with what was going on (wink, wink)

at the end you'll get a good glimpse of sister Sophia and her up-do from mommy for Whack Hair Day at a camp she attended.

What else is new...

All the kids are walking now, some more than others, and they are a riot. Any open door, nook, or cranny they think they can "escape" they beline it for. They truly desire to be anywhere but where they currently are.

They are learning their sign language bit by bit, and so far have "More", "Eat", "All Done", and "Milk" partially down to one degree or another.

They love playing in the pool, especially Jack who loves to splash and splash and splash.

They love going for walks and rides in the car... and are pretty easily entertained just by seeing new surroundings.

Cori is doing a good job with pictures, so I will have fuel for my blog ;)

Puddin' Paintin'

I thought I'd try something new and post a collage of pictures video instead of invidual pictures... let's see how it goes ;)

Cori, the wonderful nanny you hear so much about, decided that an activity for the kids was a good idea. So in the spirit of Bill Cosby she let them do some Puddin' Paintin'. Gabbi stayed pretty much her fairly clean self, and Nate and Jack did themselves proud by using their faces and hair as a canvas as well.

Right after my last post of the kids being healthy for a month... they all got sick :( and we had goopy eyes and runny noses everywhere.

It also coincided with my trip to visit my mother and sister in Yakima. Sophia had a cough, Nate and Jack had goopy eyes sealing shut when they slept, and Gabbi was alright... until we got home and then it was her turn. You'll see a picture of her in the video where she looks a little under the weather... thats how we all felt for a number of days.

Sophia learned to ride her bike without training wheels tonight... good for her! She learned like in 30 minutes... 25 on the 4th, and then 5 minutes tonight and boom... she was off.

Not much new has happened with the kids since the last post... they are all about the same, but Gabbi is walking, but chooses only to do it sporadically.

Nate is still all smiles, and seems to like to stay up later then the other kids.

Jack is super happy in the mornings... and super crabby at night.

All Near Walking... What are we in for?

It's been over a month since my last blog on this, shame on me, but kudos to those of you still sticking around awaiting something new and exciting!
















The kids are doing great, and I think we went a whole month without any of them sick (YEAH) (Knock on wood).



Here's how things are shaping up:








Nate: Pretty quiet and content, until he gets pushed over by Jack that is. He's quite the eater and will eat pretty much anything put in front of him. He's caught up to Jack and Gabbi in the near walking category, which is a nice surprise because it took him forever to learn to crawl. Nate also has the most teeth, I think Sophia counted 6 (some are still coming in) but of course this makes him look a bit goofy when he smiles :)









Jack: Jack has become the most needy of the three at this point. He's learned to whine when he wants something and likes to be picked up and cuddled, which isn't so bad is it. Jack is a fussy eater and if you want him to try something you need to force it into his mouth the first time, and then after he realizes it's not bad, he'll feed himself from then on. Jack is also the bully right now, and always wants what the other kids have... that used to be Gabbi's MO, but now it's Jacks. Jack is all smiles in the mornings, and loves to jump up and down in his crib. His smile is infectious and you can't help but pick him up and snuggle him.









Gabbi: She has become the petite eater. She doesn't take handfuls of food and stuff it into her mouth like the boys, but instead eats one piece at a time. Her tray, chair, and floor area are compartively clean compared to the boys. Gabbi no longer seems to be "Crabby Gabbi" or "Grabby Gabbi" but instead she had jumped ahead to "logical Gabbi". One day Nate had her favorite toy, and rather than go and just take it from him, as "Grabby Gabbi" would do, she instead took another toy, set it down next to him, and waited for Nate to set down her toy. Sure enough, Nate set down the toy that Gabbi wanted, and picked up the other toy, where Gabbi proceeded to pick up her desired possession and scurried off with it.













(Jack and Gabbi watch the dogs)






The kids all really love to watch the dogs whenever they get a chance, and you'll hear little screeches as the dogs go runing past the window the kids are looking out of.









Sophia is quite the big sister as I'll often go out to find her reading to Jack, Nate and Gabbi in the morning in their cribs, or playing with them in the family room while Kim and I are getting ready. She really is a huge help. Sophia is about to finish up Kindergarten, and has been tearing it up this year. She's reading really well, and had a speaking part in a recent performance for her class. She also had her second ballet performance, which these pictures show a bit of, she's the second from the left.

The hardest thing now is trying to change the kids diapers in a reasonable fashion. Now that they are all moving, and now that they are all getting their own need for mobile freedom, it has become quite the task. Jack and Gabbi scurry for the wipes container at any chance and will be pulling out yards of wipes before you even catch on they have it. The butt cream is a highly desired object by all three kids and they all make a beline for it whenever they see it. Getting the kids to lay still while you change a diaper is nearly impossible, as they flip, and flop and move everywhere, so it's all you can do to hold onto them to keep them in one place so feet and stuff aren't dipping into the poo. Then to cap it off, the two kids whose diaper is not getting changed, find it entertaining to try and come over to see what is going on with the diaper that is getting changed. One will grab for the wipes (much needed wipes I might add), while another is grabbing for the soiled diaper(s), and the one being changed is arching their back in a very advanced wrestling maneuver that I have yet to learn how to overcome. Kim and I often break a sweat these days while changing diapers...



Toodles for now... I'll try and be better about updating... really I will.

Big Numero Uno!!!!

(Sophia, "helping" nate on his walking toy)



Jack, Nate and Gabrielle celebrated their first birthday... and they each celebrated in their own ways!





Hard to believe it's been a full year since the triplets were born, and we awed at their fragile little bodies of 3.1 lbs (Nate), 3.7 lbs (Gabbi), and 4.1 lbs (Jack)





They were hooked up to machines, and had little tubes out of them, and looked more like science projects than human beings.

(Nate... back in the day)


And now... one year later... they are definitely 3, very REAL, individual human beings.





Jack, was the first one out at 10:00 am on that April 29th morning. He is the biggest of the three and very determined to be able to do all his sister can do. His current hair style reminds me of the father off of Everybody Loves Raymond. Not a resouding testament... but just a reference.


(Sophia, Daddy, and Gabbi in 2007)

Nate, was second out at 10:01, and the smallest at his 3.1 lbs. He was the one that held out the longest on his own lung power, before he finally joined the others with some medical support. He was also the first one to give us a scare when they had to do some more care for him... but he hung in there, and is in every way awesome!





Gabbi, technically the youngest... but the most advanced in her skillset. She was the first to crawl, the first to stand, and the first one to demand that she needs attention. She is so much the spitting image of Sophia at that age (picture wise, not personality wise) it will be very interesting to see how she resembles Sophia later on.





I've included some pictures from their first birthday...
(Gabbi, Nate and Jack, with mom waiting for something exciting to happen)




The Cake Ordeal:


Kim had gotten each of them their own cake. It was a matter of timing to get them with their hats on, and their cakes in front of them before we figured they'd be dismantled.





Gabbi... just stared at hers, and the people around... not really too interested in the cake itself. I finally dipped my fingers in some and gave her a taste to get her started... but still, relatively uneventful.





Nate... he knew what to do... he dug in, and as you can see, enjoyed the cake and the moment. The quietest of the bunch currently... Nate knows how to party it seems.




(Nate shows us he's not afraid to get dirty)


Jack... not happy with the whole cake scene. Maybe he's a pudding guy, but he really did not dig the cake. He fussed and cried the whole time, and even my attempt to give him a taste he refused.





The party was great, and my wife knows how to entertain. We had grandmas, and sisters, and cousins and friends, and it was a great time. The weather held up for the most part and some kids even took home a gardner snake as a parting gift.





Now they are all moving. Gabbi is close to walking, Jack is crawling like a nut, and Nate has figured out the crawl himself. The next year will be very interesting indeed, and I'm sure my joy... and grey hairs will continue to mount.





Thanks to all everyone for all your support... it has truly been a wonderful blessing for us.








(The trips enjoy their new ride)

A Visit to the Park

Once again, super nannies come through as Cori and Jaime take the kids to the park and deliver on the pictures.

Here Nate and Jack got each other's back.













Gabbi sports her new do.
















The kids are progressing nicely... Nate is finally first at something as he is getting the first tooth, and actually 4 at this point!



Gabbi is moving like a champ, which means that anything left on the floor, ends up in her mouth... need to be very careful.

Sophia shows her St. Patty's day pride!







Unfortunately this week they all have caught Hand-Foot-Mouth virus which means they will be crabby for the next week or so, but oh well.







Gotta run, got company to visit enjoy.

Good God, they're moving!

I finally broke down and had our nanny take some pictures of the kids so I would have some pictures to post to the blog. Thank you Cori for making it easier to do my blog :)

The kids are a little over 10 months now, and doing great! We fought sickness (constantly) for a while there, but now the volume of snot and diarea has decreased immensely!!!

Here are pictures of Nate, Gabbi, and Jack(in that order), and then one of them with their very helpful big sis Sophia.

Gabbi is crawling and moving around quite well. Jack is rolling around, essentially where Gabbi was too weeks ago, and Nate is starting to roll side to side, so looks to be about a month away from crawling if he follows his sister's path.

The pictures above can be a bit misleading as they did not get standing up by themselves, but they do enjoy it.

Pretty soon they will all be moving, and then we will REALLY have our hands full.

Side note of some humor: Safeway has phased out the formula we were buying for the kids. The Safeway brand (which has the exact same formula as it's government regulated) is $14 compared to the $27 of the Infomil (spelling?). So we have been buying whatever Safeway brand formula we can find. Our zealous nanny, Cori, took it as a mission and returned with 17 cans of formula... which should tide us over until the kids are off formula, in about 2 months. WAY TO GO CORI!!!

I'll try to update more often... but for some reason I don't seem to have much time :P

Twice in one week???

I know, I'm getting crazy with the blog now :P Just kidding, but I thought I'd give an update on the different personalities of the kids.

Jack: Started out kind of urpy (I'm sure it's a word) for his first few months, but now he is all smiles and laughs at absolutely everything. Sophia loves to dance for the kids because of how much Jack laughs. He is also our best sleeper through the night... could be because he is the biggest. Jack also has a bad gag reflex... if you give him something he doesn't like... he gags like he's going to throw up... such the melodramatic.

Nate: He has always been the quieter one. His cry is fairly soft, and he is pretty easy to please. He is the only one that likes the binky (pacifier) these days. He is not too hip on lying on his stomach, so we need to work on that so he can start crawling (yikes). Nate looks a lot like my baby pictures (poor kid) but I think he is adorable!

Gabbi: Definitely ahead of the curve with the others. She was the first to sit up, the first one to move (she rolls around now), and the loudest. There is no doubt about it, when Gabbi is unhappy, everyone is unhappy. Thus the original nickname "Crabby Gabbi". Now she is at the stage where she keeps taking whatever one of the other kids is holding. So she has earned a new nickname "Grabby Gabbi".

The picture here is of the kids with our nanny Cori, and their very close friend Ryan "Rhino" O'Loughlin (middle one on the bottom) in their matching outfits.

Rhino is 3 days younger than the triplets, but you couldn't tell by the way he motates around the living room... giving us a glimpse of what we are in for X3.

Winter Wonderland

Cory, our wonderful nanny is doing all she can to help me continue my blogging by providing me with pictures of the little ones on new adventures.

Here Cory and her sister Alex took Sophia, Jack, Nate, Gabbi and Maddie out to play in the snow. They seem to like it, don't you think?

The kids are doing great! For the most part they are sleeping through the night, with the occasional waking, but definitely managable.

Sophia is an incredible big sister for them, they are so lucky! The first thing she does each morning is come down and say hi to each of them and gives them hugs and kisses. She then proceeds to play with them until her breakfast is ready. So sweet.

Jack and Gabbi are starting to get to big for their car seats, and the other day we had an issue with trying to fit Gabbi on the stroller in her carseat, and her feet hung out over the edge so much that it got stuck under the one in front of her... not good.

Jack laughs at everything... he is easy to crack up, and Sophia loves to make him laugh. Nate and Gabbi laugh as well... but not nearly as much as Jack.

Sophia's doing great in kindergarten and her reading is really taking off. She just had her first dance recital, and I think she actually hammed it up a bit... we're talking potential here!

Sophia and Maddie pose