Lilypie First Birthday tickers

Monday, December 3, 2012

Off to see Santa

Jim and I took the kids to see Santa over the weekend.  
Santa remembered us from last year....(I hope that was a good thing   haha)

Here are a few pics from the day.

Campbell having lunch before meeting Santa

Travis excited to see Santa

Piper enjoying lunch too!

The only picture we could get of the three of them in one place!

 Getting ready to go see Santa!


Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Go Cowboys!

Although the Oklahoma State Cowboys lost this weekend to the OU Sooners (UGH), we still have the cutest cheerleaders and best future quarterback in the Big 12!!!!





Friday, November 2, 2012

Friday, October 26, 2012

We have WALKERS!!!!!

Sorry for the lack of updates but we have entered a new phase in Tripletville......the girls are walking!
Although they are 1 year old, their "adjusted age" is only 10 months so we never expected them to walk this soon.
In other news, Travis is out of his helmet having 'graduated' with a perfect little round noggin....we couldn't me more proud.  ha.

Until next time....a Few recent photos/videos:

Piper, Campbell and Travis wanting to go outside and play


Campbell



Travis, Campbell and Piper waiting for lunch!



T loves his bath time!!

Piper and Dad



T jumping for joy that Obama 'won' the last debate!!!



C, T and P watching the debates.



Kids learning to use spoons!






Campbell taking a few steps

Typical morning in the playroom. . .

Friday, August 10, 2012

Updates

Just a quick update on our household:

 Piper was the first to start crawling (about a month ago) and is now pulling herself up and standing every chance she gets.   Initially, she fell about 90% of the time and luckily we were there to catch her (save for a few minor head bruises).   Now, she knows how to pull herself up and get herself back down.   When held by her hands, she is putting one foot in front of the other and is making great strides.   She will be walking (God help us) before her first birthday which is no small feat since her adjusted age will only be 10 months at that time....Go Piper!


Campbell started crawling last week.   She had been tempting us that she was ready for a while by getting up on her hands and knees, tongue out and a fierce look in her eye that she was going to do it...and then would sit back down in frustration (for her and for us!).   We always had our video phones ready to capture the first crawling moment....to no avail....again and again.....until this past week and here is the result of her very first crawl...


 

Travis is a little behind his sisters in the crawling department (as all boys are we are told).  He loves to stand and jump but, until recently, didn't have any desire to actually crawl.  However, as he sees the girls crawling and moving, he has an new found desire to be mobile.  He is rapidly closing the gap and will be crawling shortly.      He is our best eater (no surprise) and our best sleeper (lazy boy) and is always happy.    He is the only one still wearing his Doc Band but should have that off before his birthday next month.  Here is a picture at his last Doc Band appointment...I think his little noggin looks great!



All kids have been cutting teeth the past couple months but, truthfully, they didn't really fuss about it...so we consider ourselves lucky.   Piper and Travis currently have four top teeth coming in so we shall see if their chill attitude continues.   All are babbling and cooing and jabbering up a storm so there are lots of funny noises made by them each day as they discover their voices.

A few random photos:

Campbell playing peek-a-boo with her blanket


Piper trying to get out of Baby Jail


Their friend Valen came over for a swim!


Travis with Grandma





Monday, July 2, 2012

Friday, June 22, 2012

Doc Band Calendar

We have been asked to participate in the Doc Band Calendar for next year....
this is the shot they like....


Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Our First Fathers Day

Seems I always start off my posts with apologies these days as I rarely get the chance to post.   So many things are going on in our world, that it's just hard to find the time.   All parents (especially parents of newborns) understand this but I feel like apologizing nonetheless as I feel bad that I want to keep everyone updated on our journey.

Kids are doing great.   Piper and Campbell will be getting out of their doc bands (see earlier post) this weekend and Travis will have his on for another few weeks.   They have really responded well to the treatment and they haven't seemed to mind wearing them at all.

Piper is crawling!  OMG   Our lives will NEVER be the same!   Although having three kids is no picnic, at least they haven't been mobile!   Now, we put Piper down and by the time we turn around, she is on the move (mainly in circles but we know it's only a matter of a few days where she will really get the hang of it and we are in real trouble then).   Jim and I feel she is classic middle child in that she doesn't require as much attention as the older or younger of the triplets.   (She is also the child that steals toys when no one else is looking and hopes that the older or younger one get's blamed!  ha)   The doctors told us to wait until now to determine eye color.   Piper has darker brown hair and beautiful hazel eyes just like our donor.   She also has THE most infectious giggle (usually with a tongue hanging out).

Campbell is right behind Piper in the crawling.   She is still the baby that gives us the most.   The most smiles, the most giggles and the most attention but she is also the one that gives us the most sleepless nights.   She sleeps very well for about an hour at any given time and then needs to know that we are near.   Sometimes it just takes a gentle touch to remind her that we are there for her and she goes back to sleep.  Other times, she needs our FULL attention and nothing less will do (thus the sleepless night on occasion).   She has light blond hair and bright blue eyes that will melt your heart.

Travis, our blond hair brown eyed boy is our sweet gentile soul.   He takes having two (very) active sisters in stride and only really fusses when he is on his Tummy or when he is hungry.   Otherwise, he is still the most chill of the three.   The girls like to spend time in their cribs together...but they don't like it when we put him in there with them.   He is a big boy and, as boys do, he likes to kick and push and play hard....and the girls just don't want anything to do with that....so, he often plays by himself in his own crib.    (Jim keeps suggesting that we have another boy to keep Travis company but that isn't EVER going to happen!!!) 

All in all, we are a happy family with three beautiful, healthy, rapidly growing trio that a year ago were just a fantasy on an ultrasound screen.   We thank Ashley, Momo and Cora for all they did for us last year and we thank our family and friends for sharing in this incredible journey with us.   We look forward to many many more Father's Days to come.  Hope yours was as fun as ours.  

Piper and Campbell enjoying the backyard
  
Travis at the doctors office showing off his head!

Kids and their Doc Bands...

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Doc Bands for Everyone!

All is going great in our world.  The kids are growing so fast, we can't believe the difference one week makes.   They are eating solid food and starting to 'scoot' so we know that crawling is just a few weeks away and then we will really be in trouble.

At our last pediatrician appointment, the doctor noticed that Travis had a very slight form of Plagiocephaly (misshapen head).   It is very common for multiples of 3 or more to have Plagiocephaly of varying degrees .   One would assume this is due to the lack of space in the womb while the babies are growing resulting in a limited ability to perfect a symetrical round head.   Plagiocephaly is also common for babies who spend a lengthy period of time in the NICU.  Lastly, with the "Back to Sleep" program to avoid SIDS, babies are only put to sleep on their backs which can result in a 'flat head' which is a form of Plagiocephaly.  Since our babies were both 'cramped' in the womb and had lengthy NICU stays, we knew that at least one of them would likely require treatment to correct the shape of their heads.

Treatment involves the baby being fitted for a 'Doc Band".   Basically, the Doc Band is made of an outer hard plastic shell with a soft inner plastic liner.  The hard shell keeps the round parts of the head round by keeping constant pressure on those areas while the soft inner liner allows the flatter parts of the head to expand where needed.   You can learn more about Plagiocephaly and the Doc Band at http://www.cranialtech.com.

Although all three of our kids qualified for treatment, we were very lucky in that they all have very mild cases.  In fact, to the naked eye, Piper doesn't seem to have any issues at all.

They wear the bands 23 hours a day for as long as it takes for the head shape to correct.   Most kids this age wear the band for as little as a few weeks to a few months depending on the severity of the Plagiocephaly.   Since our kids have very mild cases and, given their expected growth spurts from their recent graduation to solid foods, we don't expect them to have their bands longer than 4 weeks or so.

The good news is that they have adapted very well to their bands and don't seem to notice that they are wearing them (see pic of Campbell below).

Here is just a few pics of the kids with their bands (and their attempts at eating solid food!)

Playtime after lunch

Travis showing off his Doc Band


Piper sporting her LSU jersey!
Campbell naping during lunch!
/
Lunch!!!
Some have asked me "Why do you want to put your kids through the 'humiliation' of wearing the bands?" or "Why would you take your kids out in public wearing the bands?.  Won't some people stare?"   My answer is this:   During one of the many doctor office visits during our pregnancy, I noticed a very young child wearing one of these white bands.   Initially, I thought there was something "wrong" with the baby.   I thought perhaps he had suffered some sort of brain injury or head trauma.   I felt so bad for his parents and for the baby.   I found myself looking away and avoiding eye contact for fear I would have been accused of staring.    I was ignorant, of course,  as I later learned that these bands were (mostly) used to correct cosmetic features in these children.  These parents, at the risk of people 'staring',  were doing nothing more than giving their kids the best chance of being their true (physical) selves and isn't that the job of a parent anyway???

So, in the hopes of educating other people out there (after all, that is what this blog is partially about), we are putting our kids out there for the world to see.  We think they are beautiful....Doc Bands and all!   We hope in doing this people will learn what these bands are all about.

So if/when you see a child with a band on their head, don't be afraid of it.   Educate your friends, family and children about it.  If the child is old enough, let them know that they look 'cool' or 'pretty' in their band.   It will make a world of difference in that child's life....

Happy (Belated) Mothers Day!!

Sorry this post is late.  We were traveling to Mississippi for a High School Reunion this weekend and didn't have a chance to post until now.
Given that our kids have two Dads, Mothers Day will have a 'special' or 'different' meaning for us than for most.
Although there isn't a 'mother' in the kids lives, they are lucky to have wonderful women in their lives not the least of which is their Grandma M.
Grandma M has been an Amazing support to us from the very beginning of our journey from sending us goodie baskets (see prior posts) with clothing and handmade burp cloths to all the beautiful handmade quilts for each of the kids.  She is a constant source of support for us and our kids absolutely love her!
While we were away this weekend, we couldn't think of anyone better suited to stay with the kids than Grandma M.   Although they have very busy lives themselves, we very much appreciated Grandma and her husband Blair's willingness to drop their plans and stay at our house to watch the kids while we took our first trip away from them.

So we celebrated GrandMothers Day this past Sunday and we hope that there are many more Mothers Days with Grandma M.  

As you can see by the picture below, our kids love their Grandma!


 
Thank you Grandma....we love you.

Friday, May 4, 2012

8 Month actual - (6 Month adjusted) Update

Piper - Travis - Campbell
We know....we know.....we are BAD bloggers!!!!   so much to do, so little time....but we are loving EVERY minute of our life.   The above photo was taken this morning right before breakfast....it's hard to be in a bad mood (or tired) when you wake up to these little faces every morning...

Quick Update:

The kids are eating solid food!  Travis eats everything (and a lot of it).   Piper likes most things (especially sweet potatoes) and Campbell either likes it or she doesn't and if she doesn't she will let you know it!

They have been sleeping through the night for a couple of months now so we are all happy in the morning (including the Dads!)   Piper likes to roll over and sleep on her stomach every night while the other two are happy on their left side (Travis sucking his thumb and Campbell with a pacifier).

Piper is getting her two lower front teeth so, at the moment, she is drooling and gumming everything in sight (including her brother/sister's hands and feet!) 

All else is good in our world...hope it is in yours.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Random Thoughts and Photos

We are on day 4 of all three kids sleeping through the night!~   7pm - 7am!  We have a life again!!!!
We can't believe we finally made it (and yet most people think we are lucky they are sleeping through the night this early)  Either way, we'll take it!

In other news, Piper has found her laugh, Campbell has found her tongue and Travis has found his thumb....we're so proud!

Travis and his smile....
Piper looking perplexed

Campbell and her tongue


Travis 'finding' his thumb.





Friday, February 24, 2012

5 Month actual (3 Month adjusted) Update

We can't believe the kids are 5 months old already.  They are growing like crazy.   Travis is over 12 lbs now, Piper is over 11 and Campbell is bringing up the rear at just over 10 lbs.   Health wise, they are doing great.  Campbell hasn't had a reflux incident in over a month so she is off all medication and rapidly gaining weight...she will have caught up to her brother and sister by the next update.
They are all becoming much more 'social' and responding to our cues by grinning and smiling all the time.   Campbell is still the most alert.  She doesn't sleep much during the day as she really doesn't want to miss a thing going on around her.  Piper is still the best sleeper and Travis is the best eater.
We are now on day 3 of all kids sleeping through (the majority of) the night.   They get their last bottle at 11pm and we don't really hear from them until 5 or 6.  It's been great for us (and the nanny) to get a good night's sleep.  We will be eliminating the 11pm bottle in a few days and we hope that will be the end of our sleepless nights (ok, we can dream can't we?)
Bubbles came to visit us and the kids last weekend and we had a great time.   The kids took right to her and we miss her already.  Momo is coming to see us this sunday.  We have missed our daily talks with her and can't wait to spend some time with her and the kids.  Until the next update (I promise to be a better blogger), here are some recent photos:

Campbell loves her puppy hat



















Travis on a stroll to the Museum
Piper after lunch (she's happy!)
Nap Time
Piper with her doll from Grandma



















Campbell with her dog from Grandma
Travis with his toy from Grandma