My Boy Crazy World!

Halloween Preview

2007-10-26T18:58:00.001-07:00

I just couldn't resist sharing the boys' Halloween costumes. We went to a Halloween themed birthday party last weekend for their friend Dominic and came in costume....despite the temps being in the mid 80s! From left to right is Cameron as the Star Wars Clone Trooper, Ryland as Buzz Lightyear, Mason as Woody, and Cole as the space alien from Toy Story. I am enjoying what might be my last year picking out the theme for the triplet's Halloween costume...I'm sure they will have their own opinions by next year (as if they don't already!!)

Our Night Out With Bono!

2007-10-16T20:58:00.000-07:00

So the honor of being "Student of the Week" would not be complete without a little extra homework (for me, really).....Cameron brought home a stuffed monkey named Bono one day last week and told me as part of his reward for being student of the week, we needed to go out somewhere and celebrate with Bono (oh yeah, and write a page about it complete with a photo) to return to class the next day.

Nothing like a little impromptu night out with my 4 boys (and let's not forget Bono) at Chuck E.Cheese! Hmmm...next time I'll think twice before getting all excited about this honor! Anyways, I actually have some photos to share so it warranted a post.

Super Cam!

2007-10-04T19:27:00.000-07:00

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, they didn't......matter of fact they have completely done a 180 and there is no one more amazed than me! I have written here and there about some of the behavioral challenges we've experienced with Cameron, most recently in school, and now I have an exciting update. As if a light switch was flicked on 2 weeks ago, that child has not had a bad day in school since then. He has received 1-4 (the max) tickets every day at school for the past two weeks for good behavior. I would say probably 4 of those days he earned 4 tickets, which is extremely hard to do.

He has gone from "Class Clown" to "Golden Boy" seemingly overnight. I have no idea to what I owe this amazing transformation, but I am overjoyed. In fact, at tomorrow's weekly Friday Spirit Assembly for the entire elementary school, Cameron will be recognized as the student of the week from his class. He really has worked hard for this and deserves this so much! I got completely choked up and my eyes welled up with tears when I read the note the teacher sent home inviting us to the assembly so we could watch him receive his award. I know this doesn't seem like a big deal to most people, but this honestly felt like a day we would never experience with him and I couldn't be prouder of him. In fact tonight, he commented to me that he was really proud of himself for doing so well in school......and with that, the dots have FINALLY been connected.

News Link for Fire

2007-09-13T12:18:00.000-07:00

Not that it is a large article or anything, but here is the online article about the fire yesterday in the Riverside County Press Enterprise.

http://www.pe.com/localnews/temecula/stories/PE_News_Local_D_webflames.1e19234.html

This is just so sad that this family lost everything. It is hard to sit in my family room without repeatedly looking out my back patio door....it's just one of those images that I know will be burned in my mind forever.

Here Come the Firetrucks....AGAIN!!

2007-09-12T17:26:00.000-07:00

Oh boy, has today been an exciting day! I feel like I've been hit by a truck, complete with pounding headache, as I come off the major adrenaline rush that filled my lunch hour. As I was talking to my mom on the phone earlier, I was walking into the family room and turned to look out my back patio door only to see the most gianormous huge (cannot emphasize the largeness enough!) billowing clouds of black smoke less than 100 feet away. I can only describe it as being like a HUGE WIDE TALL tornado funnel but instead made up of black smoke. I could only make out half of the neighbors house diagonally behind us (and our homes are close together) because the rest was enveloped by these sinister thick black billowing clouds dancing high into the sky above.

Horrified, I abruptly hung up the phone just as our neighbor across the street began to frantically pound on our front door. I ran for the door, only for him to affirm the obvious that there was a huge fire behind our house. Cameron was in school but the triplets were all downstairs with me, so I quickly grabbed each barefooted boy and threw him out the front door. Luckily, a quickly gathering crowd of bystanders each grabbed a boy and ran across the street with him. I grabbed my shoes and purse and ran outside just behind them. I jumped in my car and drove to where the triplets were waiting with their newfound stranger friends. Everyone helped me to pile them into their carseats.

The next 10 minutes or so, we watched as firetruck after firetruck after rescue vehicle piled into our little 3 cul de sac community. I am not kidding when I say that nearly 30 fire vehicles came racing to the scene. The first trucks actually missed the turn for the street behind ours and instead pulled to our house....that's how close the fire looked to our house. Neighbors started gathering and we quickly tried to account for people and pets in each neighboring house. Even before the fire trucks arrived, our tiny streets quickly got clogged with nosey people that just had to see where that enormous fire was coming from....I have truely never experienced such a spectacle before (even when taking the triplets out in public LOL!)

I could see it was getting increasingly difficult to even get out of our now logjammed streets so I opted to go to Cameron's school with the triplets and wait the half hour there until he got dismissed. By the time I returned, the fire was mostly out with only smokey hot spots here and there. It turns out the fire was at the next door neighbor of the house diagonally behind ours. I got to check out the damage from a deck of our neighbor's house that was directly behind the fire. The entire house is gutted....there is NOTHING left inside. The shell is still standing but the roof is partially collapsed. I walked over there this afternoon with the boys and there are still tons of firefighters and firetrucks camped at the scene looking for hotspots. One truck has it's huge ladder extended up to the top of the two story house where a few firefighters are piece by piece dismantling the house. As of last check, the cause of the fire is unknown. Ironically, the house that burned is the only house in our community that is (was) identical to ours right down to the color of shutters.

The family that lives (or lived) at the house was fortunately not home at the time of the fire and I am unaware of any injuries or missing pets. The homeowners were there by the time I walked over later and they obviously are in shock. I will try going back later to see how I can help. I believe they have 2 small children as well.

I must say it is a day like today where your life can really flash before your eyes. I was certain when I walked out of my house today that I would never walk back in it based on the severity of the neighboring blaze. I walked out with my kids and the clothes on my back and that was all that mattered to me. I know I will hug my boys just a little tighter tonight and I hope you will do the same with your loved one.

Cameron's First Day of Kindergarten!

2007-08-20T17:22:00.000-07:00

The day I have been anticipating for quite some time now is finally here....today was Cameron's first day of kindergarten! It was a day of mixed feelings...so happy for him that he will be learning so much, making so many new friends, and opening a new chapter in his life. I can say that managing 3 boys, instead of 4, during the week as Cameron attends his full day kindergarten program will definitely reduce the stress level for me somewhat (though Cole seems to be amping up his efforts to make up for that reduction....that's another whole post!). Cameron needs the mental challenge that the more structured school environment will provide, not to mention he is a very social guy that has had to resort to playing with a bunch of 2 year olds all summer long.

Grandma E. came over this morning to watch the triplets so Anthony and I could take him to school together. The day was very brief...maybe 2 hours long....as the purpose was primarily as an orientation for the parents and a quick test run for the kids. Judging from the comments and stories at entirely inappropriate times, I would say the teacher will have her work cut out for her this year. I guess for her sake, it is good that she is expecting a baby in December and will get a nice few month long hiatus in the middle of the school year. Cameron's teacher seems very nice and he seems to like her so far.

Cameron already knew 2 people in his class...one girl he went to preschool with and another boy that lives across the street from us. Much to my dismay, Cameron spotted another fellow preschool alum on the playground when all 7 kindergarten classes converged on the playground for recess. This would be his potty mouth partner in crime from his pre-K days.....and here I *thought* we might finally move on from that chapter!! But no, the all things potty marathon is to be continued for another year I am afraid!

Enough jibber jabber, here's the pics:

Here's Cam getting ready for the short walk to his first day of kindergarten (too bad it was 100 degrees on that walk home!)

Cameron was the first person to arrive in his new classroom. That's his teacher (Mrs. M for blogging purposes) greeting him at the door and giving him his name tag.

Here's Cam's new home away from home for the next year.

And finally, here it is....the new family away from home for the next year (Cam is sitting just below his teacher)

July 14, 2007

2007-08-06T17:04:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I'm a little delayed in posting this, but Ryland was the first of the triplets to become potty trained on July 14th. Although the most reluctant to practice wearing underwear, Ryland totally blindsided me by agreeing to wear underwear three weeks ago and never looked back. He used the potty 6 times that day (mostly on his suggestion) and remained completely dry all day (other naptime/nightime). From that day on, he continued to use the potty with no accidents during his waking hours. The only thing he would not do is poop on the potty, which he requests a diaper for.

I must say other than several interruptions a day to celebrate and do the whole potty dumping/hand washing ritual, Ryland's potty training has been entirely effortless on my part. (Unlike big brother Cameron....kind of glad I didn't have a blog back then to document that laborious task!) Ryland has experienced one potty training relapse so far. We went to Legoland amusement park two weeks ago and after nearly falling into the toilet in the public restroom, we urged Ryland to go ahead and go potty in his pull up. Despite repeated protests on his part, Ryland finally exclaimed "I DID it!!" Well, he did it AGAIN and AGAIN and AGAIN after that....once he knew that was an option to go in his pants, he took the liberty of going that route a few more times.

I am happy to report we seem to be mostly back on track with only a few accidents. In fact, I think his renewed interest may actually have to do with a public restroom obsession (definitely did not get that from his germaphobe parents!)....a recent mini family vacation provided him ample opportunity for him to express his desire to try out every new public facility we entered. Mason would immediately parrot Ryland claiming that he needed to use the (public) restroom too.....unfortunately, he will have to master the at home potty before we let him indulge this fancy!!!

And on a final potty training note, Ryland pooped on the big potty for the first time today....didn't think you'd read a potty training post without a little TMI, did ya?!

Mason Has Potty Power!!!

2007-07-09T17:05:00.000-07:00

Just had to share the exciting news that probably only the mom of a 2 year old can appreciate, but Mason peed on the potty for the first time today.....YEAH! I have been talking A LOT about potty training, underwear, big boys, and everything slightly related to this topic for a little while now, but I have definitely ramped it up in the past month. I have quietly suggested they try underwear on, but I always hear a loud and adament NO UNDAWAH MOMMY! in response. If I specifically ask Ryland if he wants underwear, he says "No! Mason wannn undawah!" If I ask Mason, he defers to Cole....and on and on!!!

With Cameron successfully potty training at 3.5+ years old, the bar for potty training is pretty low in this house! Nonetheless, the small fortune we have spent in the last 2.5 years on diapers and wipes for the triplets is enough to make a mom dare to dream. Each of the boys has sat on the potty chair on many varied occasions, but not one has left behind a token of their efforts. I was beginning to have visions of my one day 16 year old boys driving around the neighborhood with a trusty pair of Depends strapped on their hind ends!

Within the last week, we purchased a new Baby Bjorn potty chair (to add to our plethora of other potty chairs & seats) as well as a new dvd titled "Potty Power." We watched the dvd for the second time today (although 3 times in a row!). I bought M&Ms two days ago for potty training incentives and have been talking a lot about them. So is it the new chair?....the new dvd?....the M&Ms?....to what do I attribute this monumental occassion?!?!

The day started quite unusually. For probably the fourth time this month, I brought down 3 pairs of "Cars" underwear along with 3 diapers and their clothes for the day. I asked who wanted to wear underwear, fully expecting to get shot down once again. To my surprise, Cole and Mason actually said yes, they wanted to wear underwear today. (Ryland continued to demonstrate his underwear-phobia.) Both boys wore underwear for about 6 hours. Cole wet his twice during that time, but only slightly as he seemed to catch himself and started crying each time and told me "I pooped! I pooped!" (why this kid continues to call pee poop is beyond me.) Mason, on the other hand, remained completely dry in his underwear the entire time. Throughout this time frame, I kept putting them on the potty chair and continuously asked them if they needed to go.

After 6 plus hours of Mason holding his pee, I started to feel like I was torturing him so I suggested we put a diaper on (so he could FINALLY relieve himself!) and then go to nap. I put him on the potty chair one last time, continuing my motivational pep talk. Within a minute, Mason jumped up with an alarmed look on his face and yelled "I peed!" I cautiously peered into the bowl and alas, there were a few drops of pee in there! I clapped, started singing, dancing, you name it.....then I encouraged him to sit back down since I knew he had to have more than that after six hours. He immediately produced an abundant supply.....and the celebration was on!! M&Ms o'plenty (which he kindly shared with Ryland and Cole), lots of potty praising, a house meeting for all the boys to come over and check out the masterpiece in the potty, a phone call to daddy at work to tell him about the big event.......I have certainly set the celebration bar high!

The only person who was disappointed was Cameron. Earlier today, I had asked him if he would pee on the potty chair so his brothers could make the visual connection of what they were supposed to do with it. (I told him I would give him a few M&Ms for this!) Cameron agreed and sat down on the chair, only to tell me he had to poop instead, was that okay?! "No way!" I told him....go to the big potty to do that business as there is nothing worse than cleaning poop out of a potty chair. He was upset and continued to argue with me that he wanted to poop in the chair. Needless to say, I won that argument and our little simulation plan backfired. Consequently, when Mason later peed on the potty chair, Cameron was quite upset that his services were no longer needed and there would be no M&Ms in his near future!

I realize that today's events may not be any indication of potty training success in the near future, but the dream is alive now! There IS hope!!!

Our July 4th Festivities

2007-07-06T15:19:00.000-07:00

While most people are out whooping it up and fighting the crowds on the 4th of July, we prefer a low key day of relaxation......after all, we have the crowd built in! Grandma Elaine and Grandpa Frank came over to enjoy the feast of BBQ ribs that Anthony prepared along with plenty of sides and dessert. With Grandpa's birthday being on the 5th, we kept up our annual tradition of celebrating his day of birth a day early too. Since making Grandpa's cake the day before (Me...not the triplets that is!), the triplets could not stop talking about eating happy birthday cake. It was the first thing they blurted out when they opened the door for Grandma and Grandpa...."Eat cake! Eat cake! Eat Happy Birthday cake Gwappa Frank!!"

While we intended to let the boys swim in their baby pool that afternoon, the scorching 100 degree heat prevented the parental units from supervising this activity outdoors. The boys didn't mind...instead they tackled and jumped on Grandpa like he was turning 8 rather than 68. (Better him than me!) The evening commenced with the grandparents taking Cameron to see the local fireworks display. Anthony and I are waiting until the boys are old enough to be ASK to be taken to this activity before we embark on that adventure.....until then there's always the Macy's televised display that works for me!

Just Pictures!

2007-06-13T14:36:00.000-07:00

Cam and his Leapster

Cole kickin it in his booster chair

Mason showing off his "cheeeese" smile

Ryland keepin cool in the shade

Cameron inventing more ways to enjoy his scooter

My beautiful boy Cameron!

Beautiful little bro Mason!

This is for all my recent posts that contained no pictures!

Graduation, the Tooth Fairy, and Summer Fun!

2007-06-11T16:46:00.000-07:00

Today, Cameron is officially a graduate of preschool. While I stayed home with the triplets, Anthony skipped work today to attend the hour long graduation ceremony at Cameron's preschool. The children put on a little show, each received an individual award, and then finally received their "diploma" from Pre-K. Just when I thought the preschool had sucked every last dime out of us, I found out for a mere $28 plus $5 shipping plus $.50 credit card processing fee LOL I can purchase a DVD of the event....which I somehow feel compelled to do. If only I had thought to arm Anthony with our video camera. Cameron was named the "most social" for his individual award. I think this might be another way of saying he talks too much. I was such a shy child that it's hard to believe I have such an extroverted son. Hopefully he will make lots of friends because of it.

Cameron receiving his "diploma" from the preschool director

Cameron styling in his graduation cap

Cameron the constant goofball!

After the graduation, Anthony and I and all four boys headed over to a post graduation pool party at Cameron's friend Luca's house. You should see how much gear is needed for 6 people to attend a pool party...we even had to stop at Target on the way to buy extra beach towels and flotation devices. We had a great afternoon!

Anthony in the pool with Cole and Mason

And in other news, Cameron lost his first baby tooth yesterday. Since visiting the dentist last month, we had been warned that Cameron might start losing some baby teeth soon and a bottom front tooth very soon. Cam has been wiggling the tooth ever since and managed to wiggle it free last night while we were hanging out in our backyard with the neighbors enjoying some margaritas. On that note, if you like margaritas you might want to check out Jose Cuervo's top shelf golden margarita ready made in the jug....it was super tastey and so easy to just pour over some ice and enjoy.

All four boys in our pool!

Ryland

All the blondie boys: our 4 plus the neighbor!

We have enjoyed many family outings recently. We are making more of an effort to take the boys out as a family. The triplets took their first trip to the beach 2 days ago when we attended the first birthday party of my friend Casey's daughter Emma. The triplets really couldn't have behaved better during our 4 hour outing but once again, Cameron was the challenge. The boys enjoyed watching a rescue helicopter take off from the parking lot with an injured surfer. My boys would live outside if I let them! They love sand, water, sunshine, and everything that goes with it. So much for dream of vacationing at resorts....looks like we're all about camping and RVs in this famiy!!

The triplets at the beach

Fire Trucks are Cool....Until They're Coming For You!

2007-05-24T16:19:00.000-07:00

Here's a date for the scrapbook: May 10, 2007. This would be the date of the triplets' first trip to the emergency room. Let me preface this by saying the boys are absolutely fine and healthy! But, alas, the story:

Anthony and I were talking in the office while the triplets were playing and running around in the living room right behind us. As I turn around and peered out the door to check on the boys, my heart absolutely stopped. All three boys are kneeling on the floor playing with a bunch of blue pills scattered all around them. As I run towards them, I notice that Mason has blue all around his mouth and on his tongue. We quickly assess that the boys had gotten into Anthony's gym bag on the couch that contained among other items a bottle of Tylenol PM WITHOUT a childproof cap.

Anthony dialed 9-1-1 and was quickly connected to Poison Control. Less than 3 minutes into the conversation, sirens could be heard getting progressively louder. At this point, there were 18 pills we could not positively account for, though Anthony knew it wasn't a new bottle of Tylenol. The boys couldn't be happier as the giant red fire engine pulled up in front of our house, with an ambulance following closely behind. As all 3 boys stood in the doorway ewwing and ahhing at the marvel of the truck, about 7 or 8 paramedics clad in black converged upon the front porch. Suddenly, the fire truck lost it's luster!

As Anthony and I attempted to reconstruct what happened for the paramedics, the boys began crying hysterically as the men in black attempted to gather their vitals. We soon discovered several more pills under the couch, leaving just 9 unaccounted for. At this point, we decided to transport the boys in our car rather than take the extra time to move 3 car seats into the ambulance.

As usual, the ER was busy and you would think we were there for a routine doctor's exam as NO ONE made any attempt to help us quickly. (Although we later found out one of the paramedics had phoned ahead to let them know our situation and that we were on the way.) Note to self: If you want to be seen quickly in the ER, you better arrive on a gurney!

The next 5.5 hours were some of the longest of my life. Three 2 year olds in a totally non-childproofed room with nothing else to entertain them but the medical paraphenalia lining every wall. At one point, Cole had one of those gel covered suction cups in his mouth....the thought of whose sweaty disgusting body that just came off of continues to haunt me! Note to hospital: Please put childproof latches on your red hazardous waste bins!

As per the Poison Control protocol, the boys each had to drink a bottle of charcoal apple juice that was black like ink. Apparently, it tastes pretty bad too because the boys soon refused to continue drinking it. (though Cole consumed about half of his bottle.) The remainder of the charcoal concoction was orally given by syringe. I suppose this beats having to get their stomach pumped. The boys had blood draws done after a 2 and a 4 hour interval to measure the amount of Tylenol in their system. It took 2 men and 1 woman to restrain Cole to even draw his blood......apparently those NICU days of getting stuck so many times were not such a distant memory for him. Luckily, NONE of the boys showed any levels of Tylenol whatsoever.

The next morning, as I changed Mason's poopy diaper, I completely forgot that the doctor said to expect black poop for a few days. As Ryland stood next to me supervising the diaper change, he pointed to Mason's dirty diaper and exclaimed "Apple juice!" Boy, I'm sure going to have some confused kids for a while.

Needless to say, I am adding more childproofing paraphenalia around the house. Unfortunately, Cole (as usual!) has already figured out the new childproof door handle lock that we put on the door leading to the garage. Cameron was in the garage knocking on the door the other day, so Cole went over and pulled up the Fisher-Price parking garage to stand on so he could turn the deadbolt to the unlocked position, then proceeded to push the childproof lock in and over so he could push the handle down and let his brother in (with no hesitation...as if he had done it 100 times before!)

So this was our first trip to the ER for the triplets....but unfortunately probably won't be our last with Team Triple Trouble, especially with Cole at the helm!

$18 Has Me Back In Business

2007-04-21T14:56:00.000-07:00

After all the hours of troubleshooting (by the cable guy and Anthony...not me since I'm clueless!) my computer is back in working order. Turns out the problem was an $18 ethernet card....not the internet service...not the $90 modem we replaced...just the stupid e-card! I cannot complain as I was merely inconvenienced and didn't experience any of the firsthand frustration involved in diagnosing and fixing the problem. Lucky for me, Anthony used to be a network administrator back in his Ohio days so he is pretty useful in that department.

So, where did I leave off....Easter?...Christmas?...it feels like ages ago. The boys continue their non-hereditary joy of singing around the house. This week they awoke from their naps singing "No more, no more, no more sleep! No more, no more, no more sleep!" as always to the tune of the ABC song.

Master magician Cole, who has figured out how to unzip his crib tent and get out of the crib again continues to define himself as the exhibitionist of the group. Those fingers so adept at unzipping the crib tent are equally efficient at unzipping his pajamas or disrobing whatever attire he may be donning! It's often not enough for him to take off all his clothes, so he'll take it a step further and remove the diaper too. He is such the helper boy around the house that I am of the mindset he thinks he is helping take some of my diapering workload over (or at least that's what I tell myself in that moment of anger as I'm greeted by my stark naked son standing in his crib!)

Mason is officially the enthusiastic greeter of the group. If he hasn't seen you in five minutes or longer, he will greet you like his long lost best friend upon re-entering the room. It really doesn't matter who it is (dad, mom, grandma, the mailman)...he doesn't discriminate. It sounds so happy and genuine that it really does brighten the day. Mason seems to have the most sentimental attachment to people. Sometimes he cries when Anthony leaves for work. Lately, at the triplet's language stimulation class they attend, the boys have been going to class without me in attendance. It's becoming heartbreaking to watch as Mason cries now when we walk through the entrance "I no wannn circle time!" followed by loud sobbing as he clings to me.

Ryland continues to seem like the oldest of the trio, even though that title really belongs to Mason. Ryland just seems to display a different level of maturity....though I'm seeing that gap close a bit as the boys get older. Ryland in many ways seems like a mini Cameron. He seems to idolize him the most and mimic his action packed moves and play style. He seems to be the most middle of the road and balanced of the trio, which I wouldn't say is necessarily good or bad...just depends on what we're talking about.

With each passing day, Cameron continues to seem more like the elementary school kid that he soon will be. His vocabulary and use of expressions seems pretty mature for his age and really always has. He continues to surprise me daily with his knowledge. And no......I'm not talking about the time he yelled "I'm going to kick your ass!" across the parking lot to his friend Ty as Grandma picked him up from preschool...that would be a different story. Ever since Cam became playground buddies with this character Ty, that phrase has been thrown around in his verbage from time to time and it's really ticking me off!

Cameron really does have such a sweet side. He is a very polite child..frequently remembering his please and thank yous without being prompted. He has always had a gentle way with babies and younger children and even seems to treat little girls with a tender kind of respect and gentleness that is so incredibly sweet. If nothing else, I am grooming him to be a great boyfriend or husband one day! My favorite time of day with him is at night, sitting on the couch watching tv and hanging out with he and Anthony after the triplets have gone to bed. That's when he likes to cuddle with me and often tells me he loves me. He really is such a charmer, which could explain why little girls have been known to give Cameron their phone number at the playground (true story!)

I wish I had pictures to share, but it seems my photo software is the only thing not up and running yet on the computer. Maybe next time?!

No Pic....No Post!

2007-04-09T15:53:00.000-07:00

In case you've been checking in wondering what happened to the blog happy Heather, I'm still here but without a computer. I've managed to borrow Anthony's work laptop to keep up with the basics (e-mail, ebay, shopping, etc.)...but no blogging. I don't have the software on the borrowed computer to upload photos, so therefore I don't blog. I could blog daily still, but what fun is it without the photos??? Easier for me, boring for you! So I'm sparing you the monotony of endless paragraphs of type and just not posting!! LOL

The past week or more has been busy as always. There was the triplet's first encounter with sidewalk chalk in the driveway...this was great fun until Mason decided to deface the side of my car (shhh....don't tell Anthony.....he already hates the idea of sidewalk chalk or anything messy for that matter!)

The boys and I also spent a fun morning at the wineries....actually we were doing a photo shoot. Cole's speech teacher, Sara, is moving soon and will be pursuing her side business of photography full-time, so she offered to take the boys' pictures in exchange for using them on her website. We milled around the grounds of two local wineries before business hours taking advantage of the great scenery. I hope to put a slide show of some of the photos on my blog once my computer is back up and running.

We also had a nice Easter weekend. We met up with our friends Tony and Renee and their son Dominic at a local Easter egg hunt on Saturday. Mason even collected an egg with a prize winning number that he got to trade in for a large stuffed duck. Cameron won a stuffed duck last year but his was much smaller. Cole and Cameron were the only ones that collected all their own loot. Grandma and I were busy piling candy into Mason and Ryland's buckets....they unfortunately didn't grasp the concept until all the good treats were gone. Their combined last minute effort did yield a bucket full of suckers though.

All four boys got lots of goodies in their Easter baskets. Cameron even said this was the best Easter EVER and that he liked it even better than Xmas....hmmm, was there a crack pipe in that basket?! I suspect the only reason he said that is because he cannot for the life of him remember what he got for Christmas. I suppose that's what happens when you get too many toys!

So there it is...another week of my life gone, yet accounted for in a nutshell.

The Barnyard Door

2007-03-29T17:06:00.000-07:00

Just a typical week here in my boy crazy world! Another gloomy day Monday lent itself to another private outing at the park....just us and the sanitation workers who were thankfully there to empty the overflowing cans that my boys couldn't stay away from. It sure didn't help that the overflow contained Thomas the train party paraphenalia (YES, one man's trash IS another man's treasure!) Mason and Cole alternated trying out a big boy (or girl...my brain doesn't think that way) swing for the first time so I could push all 4 boys at the same time. It worked out pretty well, though I wasn't nearly as quick as the boys would have liked. In my defense, it's not easy running in sand!

The triplets are continuing to excel in their weekly speech therapy sessions. Mason and Ryland chatter more than any old lady I know and what Cole doesn't verbalize, he makes up for in other accomplishments....though he's becoming quite chatty too. Cole doesn't appear to have inherited Anthony's color blindness (jury is still out on the other 2). As he sorted colored objects into cups during speech this morning, he decided to add his Eggo waffle he was chowing for breakfast into the yellow cup as he annouced it was YELLOW! He also took the liberty to pair up his teacher's foam talkboard objects by category. He picked the tree to go with the flower, the cat to go with the dog, and on and on until all the pieces were put away in relevant pairs. Cole is my little underdog...for the boy that had the greatest medical obstacles and longest stay in the NICU, he continues to amaze me with his brilliance. Watching him blossom is such an amazing experience! (Sniff Sniff)

Cameron has always been quite the little comedian. If only I had this blog back in the day to record his hilarious one liners. Today when I picked him up from preschool, he and his classmates were outside playing. As I meandered towards him, I notice something amiss as he ran around bouncing a ball. His ENTIRE fly and button of his pants were completely undone...hangin open. I discreetly pull him aside and let him know about the state of his dress. "You mean my barnyard door is open?!" Cameron blurts out. Barnyard door....that's a new one! Even better, when asked if his barnyard door had been open for a long time, he replies yes. Okay, so is anyone watching my kid at preschool at all? Should I be alarmed that no one even notices this ridiculous site? Back when I was a kid, it was embarassing to be caught with your fly open. Not so anymore...or at least not so in Cameron's world. He definitely is a confident child....maybe a little too confident LOL!

Parenting....never a dull moment!

Mom's Time Out Wine Tasting

2007-03-25T16:18:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was able to enjoy a much needed afternoon out while Anthony stayed home with the kids. I went wine tasting with my friend Casey (the crazy girl that talked me into moving across the country to California with her ten years ago) and her husband as well as 2 other friends. I liken the experience to adult trick-or-treating. As usual, we had a blast. I had taken many photos but unfortunately most involved closed eyes or decapitated subjects (don't worry...their heads weren't really cut off, only in the photo.) Here's what I was left with.

Casey and I

Casey (who thankfully did not buy these for her hair!)

Casey tending bar in the VIP room of the winery they just joined (membership DOES have it's privileges!)

And we're calling this lunch! Our great intentions of "just grabbing a sandwich at one of the wineries" quickly turned into this miscellaneous plate of wine munchies that were our only sustenance for the day. (Peanuts that tasted like Doritos, crackers, hard salami, various cheeses and some darn yummy Honey Mustard potato chips)

Checking Out the Animals...While Everyone Checks US Out!

2007-03-23T17:26:00.000-07:00

Today, we ventured out of our comfort zone to go to the Wild Animal Park along with 3 of my friends and their 2 year olds. I swear by the time I pushed the triple Runabout Stroller up the gianormous mountain they call a parking lot, I was cursing myself for buying an annual membership online last night. I can't even make it out of the stinkin parking lot without feeling like I'm going into cardiac arrest. Thankfully, that was the worst incline we met today....probably because we avoided the lions altogether since they were at the bottom of a steep hill. It was fun to show the boys elephants, gorillas, and other animals that they only see in their picture books.

Ten minutes into our outing, the boys had already had their pictures taken by 2 complete strangers. We stopped to let the kids out to run at the gorilla exhibit only to have more spectators gawking at us than the animals. It's okay to look, but for heaven sake people, standing way to close in our personal space staring endlessly without blinking all the while holding up pedestrian traffic is out of line in my book! My friend Renee even told one man that they all had different fathers just to stop his comments in its tracks...what do you say to that one?!

Anyways, I was able to snap a few photos while we were on display. Here's one of the triplets. I'm pretty sure Mason is picking popcorn off the filthy ground that he is then going to eat.

Here is our group photo of the kids.

Here's Mason trying to scheme up a way to get that water bottle from Morgan. (Or maybe he just wants to be close to her!)

Ryland and Dominic are chowing popcorn.

All in all, this was a great outing and I definitely needed the exercise I inadvertently received. Now if only a total moron didn't park SO close to my car that everyone (me included) had to be loaded in on the passenger side.

Somewhere Over the....

2007-03-23T17:20:00.000-07:00

Yes, that would be a giant brilliantly colored rainbow hanging out behind our neighbor's house. Cameron was getting ready to leave yesterady on one of his Cam and Gram weekends when he noticed this in the distance. He came running back inside, yelling for everyone to come take a look. Cameron quickly pointed out that this is his first real rainbow he has ever seen. So, here I sit, recording another first!

Reminiscing....Pint Size Cam

2007-03-22T18:08:00.000-07:00

As I was picking out pictures to add to the blog, I thought I would check out some pictures of Cameron when he was the same age as the triplets are now.....you know, back in the day when I was a leisurely mom of one. Here it is....Cameron at 2 years old. Question is, what the h#@* was I thinking buying him a skateboard when he just turned 2? In my head, I am picturing each of the triplets tearing up the house on skateboard. Clueless first time mom...that's what I chalk it up to. Boy, was I clueless.

I'm still not sure that Cameron can ride that skateboard, though he may be at a more appropriate age to try. He is very fast and talented on his scooter though. That helmet still fits too. Considering he's going to be a big kindergartener come August, it may be time to graduate the cutesy zoo animals though.

One of my favorite things Cameron would say around this age was "I like peanut butter and jelly (basically just fill in the blank here).....DO I???" ending on a super high note. "I like matchbox cars daddy...DO I????" You get the idea. That was his favorite expression. He also called excavators "ecadooders"....he loved construction vehicles.

Okay, thanks for taking a trip down memory lane with me!

TMI: Synchronized Pooping

2007-03-20T13:57:00.000-07:00

For anyone out there reading this and contemplating whether their twins (or triplets) might be identical, save yourself the $200 for the DNA kit and ask yourself this all important question....Do the subjects in question poop at the same time as one another each day?? Forget blood type, hair color, eye color, and the like...... it's in the poop. Mason and Ryland are in tune, but stylistically have their differences.

Mason is a public pooper so to speak. As long as he doesn't have to disrupt playtime, there's no shame in his game. He doesn't care who's looking so long as the good times continue to roll without interruption. Perhaps he will be a great multi-tasker?! Just don't ask him if he wants to use the pot, for which you will get an emphatic NO and a stern fist shaken in your direction.

Ryland seems to understand there is a proper place to poop and it's sure as heck not amid a crowd of people. He seeks out every private locale in the near vicinity to mark his territory. Kind of like the neighbor in Home Improvement, you only see a head peering from behind some form of barrier. Today I needed to get something from the pantry for lunch...only to step into Ryland's aromatic cloud of stink as he was *hiding* behind the kitchen table. He was so mad I stepped into his *private pooping zone* that he prompty closed the pantry door behind me as I stepped in for a gander. I felt like I had to ask permission to come out!

Pooping aside, the boys are very interested in the potty chair these days. They particularly like demonstrating the many uses of the urine receptacle.....makes a great hat, carrying bucket for matchbox cars, or sometimes it's fun to strategically wedge your foot in it so that it gets stuck. Oh yeah....they do sometimes like to sit on it during diaper changes and make a faucet blasting full force sound effect as they sit on it naked. It will be so sad the day they actually pee in it and can't wear it as a hat anymore. (at least that's where I'm drawing the line!)

So, my final deep thought of the day......how is this synchronized pooping thing going to work once they really start potty training? I guess we'll need to get another chair to put in some out of the way corner!

Enjoying the Inclement Weather!

2007-03-20T12:32:00.000-07:00

Since last night was the season premiere of Dancing With the Stars, my Heather time was dedicated to living life (if that's what you call vegging on the couch) rather than writing about it. But don't worry, you won't miss a beat...

I have found that leaving the house does wonders for the boys' behavior (and thus mine!) so despite our inclement weather (temps in the low 60s and overcast skies...lol) we braved the elements yesterday to hang at a local playground. Apparently others were not so brave as we had the park to ourselves for the almost 2 hours we were there. I'm sorry, but we southern cali people are just a touch spoiled rotten! I was LOVIN it....no funny stares, no silly questions, and no recounting the story of how our triplets came to be for the zillionth time. (which ironically I think is the reason my mom loves to go to the park!)

The triplets were fun and easy to manage. Knock on wood, they have been really good on our recent outings. Cameron....well...that's another story. Here he is fleeing my makeshift timeout bench as I attempted to take his picture. (almost like he knows I'm going to terrorize him with these memories someday when he has children of his own that behave in a similar fashion.)

Not surprising at all, Cole was all over every piece of equipment. Cole is our little stunt man/climber/thrill seeker. Whether leapfrogging on tall ascending steps, running along a concrete barrier, or attempting to climb down the ten plus foot direct dropping rock climbing wall (which Cameron won't even climb UP), he is quite the Fear Factor prodigy! Later at home I caught him climbing his toys shelves and as our eyes met, Cole verbalized exactly what he knew I was thinking, "Dooonnnn't Faaalllll!" He knows THE LOOK!

Ryland, like in most aspects of his life and personality, was right there holding the middle ground. He takes every risk on the equipment that he reasonably should at this age...no major apprehensions. Then there's Mason.....he would climb the stairs to the slide only to climb back down when he reached the top. He would get into a swing only to immediately discover he would rather have 2 feet firmly planted on the ground. He tends to have more anxieties about new situations and people. He had a blast zooming his matchbox cars on the "Finger Parks" though.

Truth be told, the hi-lite of the whole outing for all four boys was when the street sweeper truck drove by. Judging by the hearty smile and enthusiastic waving of the driver, I would say that having four devoted admirers lining the sidelines of his route like parade goers, it may have darn well been the hi-lite of his day too!

Fast forward to this morning, the boys had "chicken" for breakfast. Yes, that's right, they all wanted to eat "chicken". Could they possibly be asking for the leftovers from last night's dinner? After putting my super sleuthing skills to work, I figured out that "chicken" was actually "Corn Flakes." Now why did they have to put that darn rooster on the front of the box??

I had another proud mom moment this morning. Ryland was the first triplet to say a swear word. As Anthony accidentally knocked my decorator wrought iron key rack off the wall, sending it scratching down the length of the wall, he blurted out S.O.B. (and he didn't use the initials either) Ryland quickly and proudly exclaimed "Son of a bitch!" Did I mention they are coming a long way in their language development?!

Havin Fun in the Happy November Bounce House!

2007-03-18T20:48:00.000-07:00

Well, here I am enjoying a little late night blogging therapy while Anthony and Cameron bond over some Spike tv....now there's some quality programming for all you men that aren't already stuck to the tube watching sports. Hey, the way I see it is this frees me up for a little "Heather" time ebaying, shopping online, reading e-mails, and now add blogging to my list of cyber addictive behaviors!

Today was more of a glass half full day. Anthony took the triplets to neighbor Joe's house to hang with his son that's just a month younger than the boys while I had free reign of the house.....and what did I do??? I CLEANED! Okay, not so fun but sure beats playing bumper vacuums with Dusty the talking Playskool vacuum as the boys attempt to "help" me out. Aren't kids supposed to be afraid of the vacuum cleaner anyways?!

Before dinner we attempted to wear the kids down for an early bedtime by inflating the Little Tikes bounce house. Yes, the lovely bounce house that was supposed to be a BIG present for the boys' birthday or Xmas but that Anthony blew up for them one late November day as I left the house for a mere 30 minutes to run an errand. But to his credit, he DID wait until I got home to let them go in it so I could see the expression on their faces. I'm pretty confident the only priceless expression that day was mine!! Anyways, the boys had a blast jumping tonight, though Cole was more interested in checking out Cam's set of wheels.

How's this for a face only a mother could love?!

Speaking of wheels, here is the custom bike that Anthony has been building since before the triplets were born. Anyone like to buy it? You can even pick the color of paint! The only stipulation is that it probably won't be ready for another ten years.

Mason has decided to read up on the matter in case he inherits the project later on down the road. Mason is our car/train/anything with wheels fanatic. He has even been known to say "Cool bike!" upon seeing a chopper that catches his fancy.

Okay, time to sign out for the night. I am hoping to catch the last 20 minutes of our netflix movie from last night that I just couldn't stay awake until 9:30 to see the end of....pretty sad stuff!

Finger Painting Fun!

2007-03-17T12:32:00.000-07:00

I hope I'm not setting the bar too high for myself by posting again today, but pardon me while I enjoy the honeymoon phase of blogging...this too shall pass!! For those happening upon my site and expecting to hear the juicy details of a pre-pubescent girl's love life, I'm sorry to disappoint. If you are interested in hearing about the life of a 35 year old married woman with 4 kids, then let the good times roll....LOL

Here is a pic of the boys taken today....let's just say the day didn't start out this way though! Upon my usual morning ritual of lowering each boy out of his crib, everything was going A-okay until I got to Cole. "Poopy!" he says with a puzzled look on his face as he extends his little ET finger out to me. Yes indeedy, it was poopy! What started as a #2 headed too far north out the top of Cole's pajama bottoms quickly became a poopy finger painting masterpiece on the front of his pj top! I strategically whisked him away to the master bath for a clean up all the while avoiding the 360 degree potential poop encounter. Okay, so we're washing ALL the bedding today. Mason (aka Blankie Boy) actually handed me his prized possession to add to the wash as I dumped the remainder of the bedding into the wash machine. This was a first...blankie washing is usually so tricky to figure out how to get the nearly 2 hour process accomplished without anyone noticing anything missing. (Good thing Ryland has a nearly identical blankie to Mason's and he isn't nearly as obsessed with it!)

Soooooo....run upstairs to flip laundry. I should know by now if I ever want some good blogging material, just leave the triplets alone in a room for a few minutes. I come downstairs to find a bottle of water Cameron left on the kitchen counter emptied all over the toy box and wood floor below. Better yet, this green tissue parachute Cameron made in preschool was sitting in the middle of this puddle with green dye streaming out in every direction. Who's the culprit? Well, that would be Cole with the 2 matching bright green hands, giant green Ronald McDonald mouth, and now green finger painting all over his brand new shirt. I'm not sure if he was playing pat-a-cake with Ryland or what because it's all over Ryland's hands too. Happy St. Patty's Day!

Did I mention that when the laundry was done and I was pitting out as I wrestled with 3 mattresses struggling to stretch the fitted sheets over all 4 corners that the triplets broke out of the baby gate downstairs and made their way upstairs to observe my goings on?! (As if I might be up to some mischief too while not in their presence?!?) No biggie....let's just spend the next 15 minutes or so trying to corral everyone into the desired direction of the downstairs family room.

After reaching our desired destination once again, the triplets decided it was time to do laps around the kitchen island on the trikes again. The boys love to Fred Flintstone it around their make believe track....who needs pedals? Cole decided to change the routine up a bit by pushing the back of Mason's trike....that was sure to make the inevitable face plant that much more accelerated and painful.

Not to be outdone by his little brothers, Cameron continues to push the envelope on a daily basis. Does this shirt say it all or what? Anyone know of a good military school for 5 year olds...maybe a scared straight summer camp? I think we're in the market!! I bought Cameron a new glue stick the other day and he immediately whipped off the the cap and started sniffing it. "Mom, this smells really good!" he proudly exclaims. Grrreat....my 5 year old is already a glue sniffer!

So there it is, another day in the life. Come back again soon....if you're brave....VERY brave!!

Joining the Rest of the World

2007-03-16T14:57:00.000-07:00

I decided it was time to get with the times and start my own blog....FINALLY! Life passes by so fast I thought a record of day to day life might be the best way to capture the moments. With a 5 year old son and 2 year old spontaneous triplet boys, every day is a new adventure. The good, the bad, and the ugly....that's what I'm here to share.

I'll start with a pic of the triplets. I took this a couple weeks ago. The boys LOVE their accessories. They refused to take off their jackets and hoods even though temps were getting into the 70s.....they're also the only 2 year olds I know that ask to wear hats and sunglasses and actually keep them on. My theory on that is they know if they're wearing them, we might actually be going somewhere which is a somewhat rare occasion.

Well, it's 3pm so it's time to go shower for the day. Yes, that's right, I'm JUST NOW getting ready for the day. Maybe we'd go more places if I could get my act together and shower at 5am so I could be ready for the day before the boys wake up. Maybe tomorrow?!