What has happened to time?

~ hunt2005 ~ 2 Comments

I thought time travel hadn’t been invented yet. Boy was I wrong.

Wow, so today we signed up for parents night out here at the daycare on base. You see, this base is AWESOME. They do a FREE drop in night the first night of the month here at the CDC (child daycare center, NOT center for disease control, though the two are easily confused for the other!) and you take your kids (if they get a spot, which is coveted and requires being there within 2 minutes of signups starting) and get a night to go on a date, get groceries, sleep… whatever is more important to you… and they have the kids there with their trained daycare workers. It’s incredible. You only get to use it every other month, and so if you miss a month you HAVE to get in for the next or that’s two months without it.

So part of the trick for us, with triplets, is that we take up 3 of the 8 slots in the infant room. I mean, seriously, how insane is that?? So when signing them up this month we got in just barely (got the last three spots), which will be wonderful for June. And then I realized. This is their last time in the infant room.

SAY WHAT?!

My babies will be 1 before the next month’s PNO, and even then we can’t use it again until August anyways. Which means the next PNO they will be in the toddlers room.

How does that happen??

Today I’m joining Multiples Monday over at Capri + 3 (You should check out this blog, Theresa’s got a great story!)

multiples monday with capri +3

3 years

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Wow. I made sure when we went to the San Diego Zoo a few weeks back to take pictures that I remembered taking on our last trip there back in 2009. Boy, am I glad I did!! Check out this collage of Aiden from 3 years ago to now…

Attack of the babies

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So far tonight: We’ve been mobbed at the dishwasher by three curious babies, they’ve stolen the one pacifier and chased each other down for it, and Val has finally learned how to get out of the sitting position (too bad, I enjoyed putting her somewhere and knowing she was stuck!).

And a few pictures for your viewing pleasure:

The good, the bad, and the ugly…

~ hunt2005 ~ 2 Comments

So I’m always complaining about outings when you have triplets and the attention you gather. I thought I’d share this weeks “good, bad, and ugly,” of having triplets in Monterey!

The Good:

Okay, so we were at the Farmer’s Market. I was loading the kids up and saw the car next to mine had a license plate that read “H <3 Quads.” I thought, “No, couldn’t be!” So, I peaked into the window, and saw four matching carseats. Ding ding ding! We have a winner!
I wrote this note about how I had triplets and it’d be great to meet and as I was putting it on the window, they walked up. We chatted for a while. Too bad, they are actually moving fairly soon. Two seemed identical, two fraternal (but I wasn’t about to ask!).
THEN! the triplet mama we met at the easter bunny pictures a few weeks back walked up with her choo choo wagon!
I love this multiples world…

The Bad:

Ugh, all of the questions about gender, conception, gestation, etc etc…. gets old after a while… I won’t bore you with the same complaints I normally have…

The Ugly:

The lady at the aquarium. We had the double strollers, so the girls were in one and Jace was in the other. I approach as a lady asks Steven, “Are the girls twins?” He replied, “No.” She frowned, said “Too bad,” and walked away. Really? My girls aren’t cute enough to at least smile at unless they’re twins/triplets?? Lol.

That ties with the people who thing it’s twins and an older boy baby. Because it’s humanly possible to carry babies that are only a few months apart. I mean, he’s bigger, but not THAT much bigger….

Thankful

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It’s 4/20 and you know what that means? No, no, get your head out of the gutter. Not THAT.

It’s the anniversary of my husbands commissioning into the US Navy. It’s been 5 years now.

In that five years:
~We have lived in 4 states (not counting the one we left to join the Navy).
~We have birthed 4 children.
~We have gone through 3 years of sea duty and over 18 months of separation.

But we are lucky.

He did not miss a single birth of our children.

He has not missed any major life-altering events (minus an ultrasound, but, hey, that phone call to the Ombudsman to tell that there were THREE babies makes for a GREAT story).

The separations make the time together all the more important. In the two years we lived in Ohio, we never LIVED as much as we do now. We take every opportunity possible to travel and make memories as a family, knowing that there will be times that we cannot.

We have survived 5 years. Here’s to the future, the adventures to come, and who knows where it’ll take us!

(Subball 2011)

More Easter goodies

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For your viewing pleasure, some shots from Easter day:

Family after church:
At our Easter Brunch on base:
The bunny cups of doom. When they fall, the lid pops off. What do you get with cups like that and 3 9 month olds? Lots of spilled water.

Brotherly love:Jacen:
Jaina (and her newly discovered wheat allergy):Val and her photogenic self:Sisterly love:Family portrait:

March of Dimes: March for Babies

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If you know me or have had a discussion with me at all in the past about the fundraising groups at races/marathons and their objectives versus the reality of what they do, you’ll know that I normally don’t support them. The fact that if I raise the $2000 required by them, they will pay my airfare to a race, put me up in a hotel for two days, pay for my race entry fee, and include a nice dinner and a qualified trainer through the process, means that out of that amount, maybe only 25% (if that) of the funds I raise would actually go to the group I’m trying to help.

There are two exceptions to this for me.

1) Fisher House.

http://www.fisherhouse.org/

Have you heard of the Ronald McDonald houses? Fisher House is the same thing, but for military families. Their goal is “Providing a “home away from home” for military families to be close to a loved one during hospitalization for an illness, disease or injury.”

They were a lifesaver for us in all ways possible immediately following my C-Section. We remained there for two weeks, during which time they provided toys and even some meals (they had food on hand for breakfast and lunch, and dinners would be dropped off by volunteers) while we were battling the NICU and recovering. There is no way that I could have driven an hour each way from our house in Keyport, WA, to be available to nurse my babies when they were able or spend the amount of time that I did.

I will never be able to repay them for our FREE stay, but I hope to be able to pay it forward to other families in the future. I’ll eventually run my first marathon with their team shirt on and hopefully help the fundraising effort for other families to be able to continue using this amazing resource for many years to come.

2) March of Dimes

http://www.marchforbabies.org/hunt2005

The second organization that is near and dear to my heart is the March of Dimes. While we didn’t have to use any of the resources that they provide, thanks largely to the Fisher House, Tricare, and an amazing and supportive community and family, many families do. Many don’t have the resources we do. Many don’t have healthcare that paid for 100% of the $1 mill+ hospital bill. Many don’t have the knowledge base to understand what is going on, and aren’t prepared for a NICU stay.

In a lot of ways, we were lucky to have triplets and then go to the NICU. We were prepared. We knew from day one that a NICU stay of some length was most likely going to happen, and we were ready for it. When I delivered, there wasn’t a shock or worry as they were wheeled away because I knew it was coming. Most NICU families aren’t so lucky. Many have a traumatic birth, many have complications that led to that happening, and sometimes the child is whisked away by ambulance or chopper to a completely different hospital while the mother is left in recovery unable to see them for hours or even days.

Steven and I are going to be running in March for Babies and raising money because we care about healthy babies. We care about the families going through the process. We hope that by even just raising a small amount of money, some families burdens will be lessened, even if just by a little.

Your gift supports March of Dimes research and programs that help moms have full-term pregnancies and babies begin healthy lives. And it’s used to bring comfort and information to families with a baby in newborn intensive care.

Thank you for your support!

To make a donation, visit my personal Web page at
http://www.marchforbabies.org/hunt2005

If you would like to learn more about March for Babies,
visit the Web site at marchforbabies.org.

Would you like to see what March for Babies is and why I’m walking?
Click here to see the video.

Jacen’s a big boy!

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Jacen has been trying to figure out how to sit up by himself for a few days, but would always get a foot stuck or fall over. All of a sudden today I turn around because he’s laughing at himself and he’s sitting up!

Attack of the babies

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Steven thought it would be funny to add all the babies to my lap and see what happens. Lets just say it doesn’t work nearly as well as it used to!

And the big brother has taken a fascination to writing/drawing. His latest exploit? Showing us what not to do. This was his gentle (or not-so-gentle) way of telling us to stop talking.

Other than that, I cannot believe another month is down. Today the babies sat at the table with us for breakfast and ate french toast sticks, gold fish, puffs, and some fruit, and it was just this surreal moment when they didn’t look so much like babies anymore. How did that happen??