*updated* Plenty of Sun... and rain

This will be a really fast post because Tom ran down my computer's battery and it is flashing angrily at me. I'll try to post coordinating photos when I have more battery in the morning.... (ok pictures are up! with some new stuff too)

We spent the morning at the local fair... oh it was fun but HOT HOT HOT. I think the temp was 94 when we left at one o'clock? The girls were miserable by then and I knew it was time to go. Abby loved the baby ducks and the kittens. She told me that she wanted the black one... we had to move on so I didn't give in....She also got her face painted. I think she would have rather painted the lady's face...

My mom, sister and brother were all there too along with an aunt and uncle/cousins so we were quite a group! Though I had plenty of help with the girls which was great. In the Expo building they had a booth with these 'pillow pets' Abby was so excited when she saw me (she had been walking with my sister...) that she took my hand and said... "come here mommy! Look!" She kept trying to walk off with them. I still feel a little bad i didn't just get one... but seriously how many stuffed animals that girl has... we'll see. I may give in yet...

The girls all napped on the way back in the cool van and I managed to get all three in the house without waking them up (yay me!) It was really nice to take a cool shower and not have screaming kids at the door... or trying to get in with me.

Abby has a new found love in playing with my hair. She probably did for like 30 minuets or so today just brushing and brushing and pretending to put preeties in. At one point she went into the bathroom and was digging around. I kept asking her what she was looking for and finally I got it. "Mommy I need a cut to cut the hair..." She was looking for a scissors to cut my hair. I had to explain to her that only mommy cut's hair (and normally i only cut Feebee's hair at that...)

*note to self: Keep all scissors out of reach*

Kiley and Kara shut themselves in the nursery today. When I came to get them they were both playing with the carseats. I wished they liked sitting in them as much as they like crawling into them. They are starting to play together better and better. Which is probably trouble for both of us. 

Kiley crawled out of the highchair... yes seriously. I went to get clothes for both of them while they were eating their snacks and when I got back she had her feet on the tray and was holding onto the back of the highchair. The little wiggle worm!!! Good thing I didn't take long to find clothes for them!

We attempted to go swimming with my brothers and sister tonight. But with our luck the one pool was closed early for this week only and by the time we drove to another town their pools were closing in 30 minuets. Abby was sad but we got ice cream and took a bath when we got home to try and make up for it a little. That girl would live in the water... I hope we get a chance to go play again sometime soon.

Round 2

Oh do they fight, oh do they cry and pinch and push each other over and munch on feet and hands and ears or whatever else... but oh do they love each other too!

My precious girls.

Well it's back for round 2 of antibiotics & mommy vs ear infections. I wish we could beat these darn things! It seems like the girls have been sick foreeeeeeever. They bumped K&K up to the next level and moved Abby onto a whole new range of antibiotics to see if that would help. Mommy would really like to sleep again! Plus the days aren't so crazy wonderful with three girls with ear infections. Abby & Kara have one in their right ear and Kiley has a double ear infection. Loving this other doctor I've been seeing lately. Good grief she remembers me and get's right down to the point! FINALLY someone who just listens to me!

The hardest part of the appointment actually was getting the meds. They sent them to the hospital pharmacy a few floors down so that it would be easier for me since I had to take the girls in by myself (that was fun). So here I am in a little store with candy and toys and cards and various medical equipment with two fussy babies and a vivacious toddler. Thankfully Abby was on her very best behavior and just sat... seriously just sat in the waiting chairs. (Hallelujah!) The babies prowled the shop just a bit so I could fill out paperwork and then we were on our way, baby on each hip and Abby close by in tow. I bought her a thing of apple juice for being so good and helping me out. I don't know how else I would have survived that....

(Kiley... haven't edited it yet but it was too cute not to share)

Today was hard. They were miserable which made me a little miserable but that is how it goes sometimes. Poor Abby must really be bothered by her ear she slipped on the steps twice and just was a little more of a handful then she normally is. We did a lot of things to try and pass the time but I think we will need to find a place to go tomorrow or we will all go insane. It's hard when the weather is so hot and humid because we wear out so fast. We did three walks though and played with chalk, played in the sandbox, swings and 'bike' ... she also helped me make homemade pizza and muffins. She loves to cook! She also did the sweetest thing today while I was editing photos. She came and sat on my lap and played with my hair like she was braiding it or putting preeties in it. "Almost done honey, it's ok" It was hard not to laugh, but oh was it sweet. That was my favorite thing with her today.

Oh and she slept in her big girl bed for nap and didn't even play in her room! 

Of course for night time she wanted to go back into the crib... and was very very very insistent that she be returned to the crib. So I gave in. Maybe it's a comfort thing. I got her new bedding and she loves it. We even cleaned up her room a bit to try and create some more play space. Kiley and Kara had a blast playing in all of the stuffed animals and clothes. They kept laughing and laughing. We played down there for quite awhile. Now if only the rest of my basement were as clear! Garage Sale!!!!

Kiley and Kara have discovered that you can go UP stairs now... creating issues with the deck stairs and being downstairs. Suddenly I have to make sure they don't decide to climb when I'm not looking. 

I'm noticing they are starting to do things the same way at the same time. Now this is as close as I could get the picture but seriously they were both holding their left foot... the same way. Once in awhile I'll say something to them and they'll both turn to me, with the same movements. Almost like they choreographed it. There are certainly moments when I am surprised at how identical they are... even if in my eyes they are complete individuals who happened to share mommy. :o)

Two Videos... as a bonus

Abby and her cousin playing together.

Kiley laughing at her bottle... she loves to laugh.....

Busy weekend & more to come

I've got my pj's on and am just about ready to hop into bed. All three girls are all tucked into their beds finally and so far so good. I hope they sleep ok, we have to get up in the morning to make another lovely doctor run. Abby is saying her ears hurt now and the way the babies are tugging on them and not sleeping I wouldn't be surprised. Kara ran a temp Friday night and the girls were up constantly Saturday and Sunday night (not to mention very little napping) So they are exhausted and I am exhausted and we have had enough.


Speaking of doctors... still haven't heard a word on Abby's test results. At least we are going in tomorrow so that I can 'bug' them about looking at those. Thankfully I've felt a little better after spending the weekend down at Tom's parents. Once I realized that a huge part of my anxiety and sadness was related to past circumstances, and I was able to talk to Tom about it, pray and cry a little.... suddenly I wasn't feeling this deep pit of grief and fear. Thankfully!

We found out that Abby, Kiley & Kara will have another cousin this coming Spring. It is exciting news even if they aren't so sure what it means yet. Someone else can have the baby that I can hold! :o)

Overall the weekend was good. We did some swimming, lots of playing and just had a good time spending the weekend together. Abby's favorite (and only so far...) cousin was there and brought along his mom and dad. They play together so well and absolutely love each other. There were a few moments of "Anything he can have I want more..." the overall opinion is that in the end... they are friends. Two is just a hard age... and sharing is a tough lesson.This coming weekend we are heading back down for the church's 125th celebration. It sounds like it could be a lot of fun... I hope the girls are all feeling better by then! I also hope it doesn't rain... we've had enough rain!

I love spending the days with my girls (even if they can stress me out sometimes) I'm really going to miss that as I start school again. Suddenly textbooks will fill up a good portion of my day. But I'm doing it as much for them as I am for myself and Tom. It will be a hard year but it will be so worth it in the end. And it won't get any easier. I try to convince myself that it will fly by and soon good things will be here to stay. But I'm still dreading school like a 6th grader....

Kiley and Kara are really chatty now. They love to spend time climbing all over me and still speak the 'raspberry love language' often. They had mashed chicken noodle soup for supper tonight and absolutely loved it. It is exciting to see how much they love to try new things. Something new for me! Baths are a much loved activity and they get so excited the moment they hear the tub start running that they flock like a herd of wild horses to the bathroom door. It is so much fun to watch them play together now too, or talk to each other from across the room in their separate cribs. They had more fun trying to eat the grass than swimming I think (above picture) But it was still fun!


Abby is slowly becoming more and more my companion and it is amazing and also a little hard to believe she is growing up. She loves to chat with people on the phone and often ends the conversation with "Thank you Grandma (or Daddy or Grandpa etc) Bye!" We are unsure of the potty training thing yet though I wonder if she is slowly starting to get that diapers are something babies have. We are having more issues with her taking them off lately.

Not the most flattering picture of Kara here... but I find it hilarious that she likes to ride in her carseat like this... like handlebars. Perhaps I'll get a better picture of it later :o)

Well I think that is it for updates :o) Hopefully I'll remember, or have time to post more later!

sigh

Well ... it's 5:30 on Friday. No test results till Monday now. Ugh! I'm trying to stay 100% positive and not worry and not think about it because it's probably very very very unlikely that there would be anything unusual about the test results... but I'm still the mom, she's still my little girl... and I still can't help but feel a little crazy.

Which reminds me of how important the receptionist job is... I did it and technically am still a receptionist/scheduler at the clinic she got her tests done at... but one that I talked with today upset me a little. I tend to be very polite and friendly when I ask them questions (because I know how hard that job can be...) but she was very short with me and completely dismissed my concerns. I'm a worried mom... I'm sorry you have better places to be than your job... I tried to be patient and maybe I was too patient and waited till 4:45 to call you... but the idea of waiting all weekend to get the results is maddening go me.

Sorry... I needed to get that off my chest a little. I'm really frustrated and feel like burying my head in the sand... or staining my fence... or just crying...

Abby in other news took a 3 hour nap today. Wow! I gave her Tylenol before her nap and apparently it helped her sleep better. She was exhausted. Of course the other two take turns at napping so I had at least one baby all day. We went to Walmart and Lowes today to pick up a few things... me alone... with 3 kids. We got a lot of looks because I had Kara riding in the Beco and Abby & Kiley riding in Hawk.

We did pretty well until Abby saw the shopping carts at Lowes. For some reason she was irate that I would not let her sit in the carts... not sure I still understand that. But I guess that is toddler for you. They want what they want and that is all that matters.

Kara and Kiley are both trying to stand on their own now. It's for very short periods of time. They are growing up so fast.

I'll try to write more later. I need some coffee for now... and a mommy break.

Nothing Yet...

I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to post in awhile. Those of you who didn't already know we took Abby in this morning for an Echo and EKG to rule out any abnormalities of the heart. She passed out on Monday and they want to be sure it wasn't related to her heart. If these tests come back normal they will possibly do an EEG to test for any seizure activity in the brain.

So far we have not received any news on the results and it looks like it will be tomorrow before we hear anything (hopefully). Abby did very well even if she was very sad and a little scared while they did it. She kept saying "Mommy hold you?" and "Almost done" (repeating the last one that we were telling her) She looked so sad and little on the table but they did an awesome job. She watched Elmo while they did it and took lots of pictures of her heart. I guess we will know one way or another hopefully tomorrow.

Life is good

Grandma Jo came to visit us today and we had a lot of fun. I cherish whenever I get an extra hand, even if it is only for a few minuets. She brought sweet corn and Abby sure loved helping to shuck the corn and of course...

.....eating it (notice the partially stained fence in the background. Too bad it had to rain again!) It took me almost 4 hours to do the north side of the fence and start on the west side. Plus 2 cans of stain. I forgot that I would be doing BOTH sides. Hopefully it lasts 5 years like it said it would! I don't want to do that anytime soon. Abby looked out the window this morning and said "OH MAN! There's more rain outside!" hahahaha she has it figured out....

Kiley is still up and it is 11:30pm... yes I'm so thrilled. We have decided that she enjoys being the only one up and so has a good time exploring all the toys without threat of older sister raining down upon her to steal back her toys. She is hopefully going down soon... I'm tired!!

When Kara get's excited she stamps her right foot up and down. It's hilarious. She gets so excited about this Elmo piano and will scream when it starts playing. She has also started bouncing up and down to K&K's favorite show "Word World." There is a goofy string to her that is for sure! (isn't she adorable in that dress!)

(Kara was mad... but so cute that Abby wanted to hold her babies)

(Before)

Goodnight! Kiley is asleep!

Saturday!

There is nothing better than having the girls all play together. Watching them laugh and smile is the best. I'm so glad we are finally getting past the ear infections. K&K have even been sleeping better, they are getting up 1-2 times a night instead of 4-5+

Yay!

I've been afraid to mention it because I figured that once I did the sleeping would end. They might be getting in some new teeth though because they are chewing hard on everything and a little miserable (Kiley especially)

We had a quiet Saturday at home and spent some time down at my parent's place. Abby had a lot of fun ringing the 'ding dong' (doorbell) and setting off the dog barking like a crazy thing. She thought it was hilarious.

I kept trying to go inside and she would say "No mom, hafta stay inside!"

K&K are starting to try more new foods. They really enjoyed 'chicken noodle soup' when I mashed up the noodles the other day and gave some to them. The three girls can down an entire can themselves! Soon I will have to make more than one! No wonder grocery bills keep going up! (Kiley below)

I started the project of staining our backyard fence. That is going to be some project! But it is a necessary one and will be very nice when I'm done with it. There is something very theraputic about painting something too... and I wanted to get it done before school started.

Yikes school.

Did I ever mention that Abby calls waffles "cockles" ... it makes me laugh but it is one of her favorite breakfast dishes. She seemed to be in a much better mood today than she has been lately! YAY! The light at the end of the tunnel!

(Kara got me... lol)

"Mommy it's for you"

Abby walked in through the screen door, hair disheveled and sticky from the Popsicle she had been eating out on the deck. I was on my way out the garage door to grab a roast to put in the crockpot for supper when I heard her calling "Mommmmy"

I turn around to see that in her hands is one of my clematis flowers... a beautiful light purple vine creeper that I had rescued from the distressed section last year. My first reaction, my first thought... was... "Oh no! Abby! You aren't supposed to pick mommy's flowers!"

She looks up at me with those dark, soul searching eyes and says "Mommy it's for you!" In a way only she could. 

My heart melts instantly and I'm still a little ashamed that my first instinct was to scold her for picking it. After all... what good are flowers if you cannot share them? So I gave her a hug and we put it in a vase on the table. She was so thrilled and I can't help but smile when I see it.... she was showing her love.

I love you too sweetheart... more than life itself

Picture Time!

I'm exhausted after another day at home with the girls. Hoping that tomorrow they will be feeling much better! Eek the creepy dog toy went off again. Note to self. Turn that off before bed!

Abby now pedals for short walks on her 'bike'. She is so happy about it that she tells everyone she passes that she can pedal!

I'm still feeling under the weather too. If the girls don't feel better it would be nice if at least I would! One of the babies is really coughing, I wonder if I need to check on her. Poor things feel so miserable still. What a nasty bug we picked up. again.

The heat index was 103 today with the humidity. I was going to do a family session but we rescheduled because the weather was so miserable. A storm came through about an hour ago but it is still lightening right now too.

It was fun (once the Tylenol kicked in) to watch K&K chase Feebee around the house. Silly babies were prowling the rooms for her! They would laugh and laugh when they found her finally.

(kara)

Well here are some pictures that I promised, I might rub some vix on the girls to see if that helps them sleep better. I can actually hear all three of them coughing really bad right now... might be another long night here...