32 weeks x2

The pregnancy lasted 32 weeks (almost 8 of those in the hospital). Today the boys are 8 months old... or 32 weeks (4 & 5 weeks of those spent in the hospital). The last 8 months have gone much quicker since the boys joined our family, and I fall a little more in love each day. What a privilege each moment continues to be to live in this home and be with these wonderful little angels... all 6 of them. And of course my wonderful other half too!

The boys roll all over on the floor and often get stuck under things and in between things. Sitting up is still a work in progress as well as finger foods. They are all about 17-18lbs and together are eating about 9 containers of food a day + a box of 8oz cereal every 2 days + 75oz of bottle every day. 

(That's about 270 containers of baby food, 15 boxes of cereal, and 24 cans of formula every month). 

I just love how chubby they are getting!

Paxton

Creighton

 Weston

 They are amazing!

Easter Weekend

We had our first road trip with the triplets, and I was thrilled to discover that I finally got babies that will sleep in their carseats! On our 4 hour trip to Cedar City they hardly fussed at all, and were easily soothed with toys, songs, & bottles. Very awesome! Our girls would all scream for hours and hours during any car trip, and it now seems worth all those hours of stress to have these wonderful little road trippers.

We enjoyed introducing the triplets to many of Mark's family who hadn't yet met them due to our winter quarantine, and we also enjoyed spending time with all the others again. It was a great break for me being able to just take care of kids (with Mark there!!!) and not worry about all those things that my dear sister-in-law took on... like food, planning, entertaining, etc. Not to mention the break from laundry! It was a great weekend.

Cousin Fun on Easter

Birthday Singing to the soon-to-be 15 year old!

An afternoon at the park

(there were more cousins there, but of course I forgot to get the camera out until 1/2 had left)

Our Easter Baskets were filled a little early before we left for our road trip and the girls got plenty of candy and a few books.

TV Appearance #2

So weeks ago (before RSV and Spring really arrived), my cousin, Jane, text me about how I save money on diapers. After texting for a while she told me that she was actually doing a favor for a friend who was looking to do a story about saving money on diapers. A few weeks later Courtney Orton from Studio 5 was in my home filming an interview. I am no expert, and I am not sure I had anything entirely new or original to say, but they did a good job putting together the piece and making us look interesting! Click on the link below to be able to view the clip on their website (or read the story)

Diapers on a Dime

Early Easter

We put on our Easter clothes a week early since it was the boys first day of going to all 3 hours of church (and it was our first time being late with the boys, so we took the walk of shame, because the bench we require is the VERY FRONT one where we can fit us all. Oh well, it was destined to happen eventually). But I must admit, the boys (and girls actually) were angels today! Mark took Creighton with him to teach Sunday School (with Stake visitors no less), and I took Paxton and Weston in a double stroller with me. We skipped Sunday School so I could try to walk/rock them to sleep and then we went to Relief Society. In order to actually fit into the room we had to open the double door, and Jen Brewer had to help me remove chairs so we had a spot big enough for the stroller to park. However, the boys were wonderful (despite not sleeping any more) and sat in their stroller the entire time with limited help from me! Mark reported that Creighton was held for only a little during Sunday School and then he too sat in his stroller the rest of the time! It was a good first experience, despite feeling a little awkward maneuvering it all as mom.

 

Creighton, Paxton, Weston

After a lot of smiley shots it was time to break it up with something silly.

This last week I also took on the crazy task of making new Easter baskets for the kids. The girls needed this little mom activity, so it was a good pay off to watch them have so much fun putting the buckets together. They turned out great, and despite being a little larger then we wanted, that ended up being a positive when the boys could fit inside them!

 And a few weeks ago we (just a day before the RSV set in) we went to Disney on Ice. It was fabulous fun. It featured Cinderella, Tiana, and Rapunzel. All done very well, but Rapunzel's amazing hair was a favorite part. They did dancing in it like ribbon dancing from the ceiling!

Light at the End...

Today all the boys finished all their bottles and food for the first time since March 9. A HUGE relief to me, and the first sign that we really are coming to the end of this RSV adventure. Last night we put the boys Vicks rub on the bottom of their feet (like a study suggested), and while it did not stop the coughing fits, the boys didn't wake up with their coughing fits, so we all slept pretty well! 

Weston, Creighton, Paxton

At the peak of the worst nights we were up all night, sometimes I would wake Mark up so I could sleep for an hour. And some nights we both were up with multiple babies just dozing in and out as the boys allowed in various chairs and positions. They would be awake struggling to breathe, so I would be suctioning their noses every 45 min - 1 hour, while also trying to keep them calm so they wouldn't go into a coughing fit, start crying, and create even more drainage and coughing. I even had my mom track down a new (and rather disgusting) invention: The Nose Frida.

You essentially put one end in their nose and you suck the other end with your mouth to get out all the "stuff" (it doesn't reach the sucker person due to a filter). I had heard about them but never thought I would be convinced to try using one... until RSV.
Review: AMAZING! Highly recommend for any baby with a cold. Less traumatic for baby then the bulb syringe, and it got more out.

So far Paxton is the only one who got an ear infection, but as I sit here Creighton is in my lap struggling with sleep. So he may be joining that band wagon soon enough. During the days they struggled to eat, sometimes only eating 1/3 of normal intake. Coughing fits would send my nerves to the edge as they struggled to catch their breath. And when you held them you could hear their wheezing as they breathed. But after various doctor visits, and lot's of phone calls with questions, things seem to be improving. During the day the boys were extra fussy and loved to just be held. So I began a new way to accommodate this need, and it has worked like a charm.

 We have to trade, frequently, who rides where, and I can only hold all 3 for a few minutes unless I am sitting down. Above is Weston in the wrap and Paxton on my hip.

I spent plenty of time worrying about them and going in and putting my hand on their back or chest just to count their breathing and make sure it wasn't too fast. I was constantly looking for signs of hypoxia (breathing fast, not eating, fatigue, chest moving in a way that was different called retractions, etc.). I learned that the boys have settled into favorite sleeping positions, each unique!

 Creighton - back, Paxton - side, Weston - tummy with bum up in air

One fussy, sunny afternoon I though a walk might help calm them, so we broke out the choo choo wagon!

This ride only lasted past 2 houses before Paxton was screaming to get out. Weston wasn't too keen on it either. But Creighton enjoyed the ride, so it wasn't a total waste. 

Ella and I also got RSV, but since we are over 2 years old it is called bronchiolitis, or just a bad cough and cold. I am starting to feel better and coughing less, Ella is slowly getting better as well. Makaela got a stomach bug on Monday, then Ella got that on Tuesday. And somehow Thea has escaped it all! But as Mark pointed out, there are perks to them all getting sick together so we just get through it rather then enduring months of illness one at a time.

So we are well, and I am grateful for all your thoughts and prayers. We avoided hospitals!!! Hurray! I feel so blessed to have such healthy boys and girls, and such wonderful friends and family. We are doing great, and my regular days feel much easier now.

RSV Found Us

I had suspected Creighton's "cold" was more serious an hour into it's first symptoms Friday night. So yesterday we hauled all 3 (and of course Ella), in to see the pediatrician where he confirmed our suspicions and diagnosed the ever evil and dreaded, RSV (aka: Respiratory Syncytial Virus).

What is RSV?
It is a viral infection, often called bronchiolitis. In adults and older children it appears as only a severe cold, but in infants under a year they become more ill as the disease moves into the lungs and causes severe cough and wheezing. This can often lead to hospitalization and/or oxygen to help them through it. Infants who get RSV are more likely to develop asthma later in life. Almost all of them will go on to have subsequent wheezing episodes with other respiratory viral illnesses, especially in the recovery time.

So what now?
Our pediatrician has started all the boys on Singulair (an asthma medication), to try and limit damage to the lungs. He thinks this will help prevent hospitalization, and decrease subsequent wheezing episodes as well as decrease the odds of having asthma later (there are limited studies to show this, but we are happy to try it).  We are also suctioning... a lot. We use nasal sprays up to 10 times a day and suction, suction, suction to help their breathing. In fact, we have a prescription to go to a "suction clinic" when it gets worse. This is where you drive to a clinic (we would go to Primary Children's Medical Center) and the clinic does nothing but suction secretions out of clogged up kids, mostly infants with RSV (apparently). You go at least daily to get them cleared out and breathing better. Another intervention to help avoid hospitalization. We are also sleeping them all in elevated positions and using a humidifier. We are watching for signs for hypoxia (low oxygen in the blood), as this is what would drive us towards more doctor visits, oxygen, or hospitalization. There is also a higher likely hood that someone will develop an ear infection due to all the secretions they are having.

So as for us...
Well, Creighton is on day 4 of his course and Weston & Paxton are on day 1. It is usually a 14-21 day ordeal, with the worst of it happening about days 7-10. Creighton is wheezing and I find it difficult to not check his breathing hourly (even at night). I was initially upset that after all this staying in and avoiding people it was all for not. But our doctor was quick to point out that RSV in these older, chubbier boys is better then 10 lbs ago. They will be more able to fight it and hopefully avoid hospitalization. I have never had RSV despite having all fall babies, and my girls did not stay inside away from people like these triplets have. How frustrating. No one has been sick in our house for weeks, so I have no idea where they got it from. It is a very contagious disease so it would not have taken much. I have had to let go of trying to figure out the "how" because it was driving me insane. Forward and onward we go. I feel like we are walking into a dark cave, and I hate dark caves. But the only way through this is through it, and I wish I could run, but we can't. This will be a daily battle, and hopefully we come out with minimal scarring.

We thank you for your thoughts and prayers, and I will do my best to keep everyone updated.

A Day in the Life

One of the most common questions I get asked is, "how are you doing?" or "How do you do it?" So, for better or boredom, I have decided to post what happened during a day around here. It is nothing fancy, nothing unusual, and is in fact what most every stay-home mom is probably doing. I just take a little longer because I have to do many things 3 times over. So if you've ever wondered what a day is like around here... below is day in the life of us.

4:00am - Weston is put back into bed after being awake with a bad diaper rash in a bad diaper
4:50am - Paxton wakes up screaming, he is stuck in the corner of his crib. I re-position him.
5:15am - Paxton still screaming, so I get him so I can cuddle him back to sleep.
6:10am - Creighton (often the early riser) wakes up. He is talking and cooing and making me smile despite my half awake brain.
7:10am - Creighton is ready to have some attention, Weston is awake also.
7:30am - Girls are awakened by Mark, I get the boys changed & going on their bottles (letting Paxton sleep a bit longer), fix breakfast, pack lunches, scripture study done.
8:00am - Paxton wakes up, so we change his diaper and start his bottle and move Weston and Creighton to the play mats. Then finish getting the girls ready for school. Mark leaves for work.
8:30am - Girls leave for school. I eat breakfast.
8:45am - Feed the boys something solid.

9:10am - Creighton & Weston go down for a nap, clean up the baby eating area, read Ella a book as part of deal to motivate her to get dressed, and then help her get going on her "hideout" for the day (interpretation: a place where she will hide a bunch of things collected throughout the day that will eventually take us a while to put away. Today it is behind a chair).

 9:30am - Paxton down for his nap. Start laundry for the day, and realize that I left the yogurt & milk on the counter... oops.
9:50am - Ella is ready for a "snack" (she eats better aft 9a, just like her mom. not a morning stomach). We have some talk time.
10:10am - Clean the kitchen, put my room back together for the day, change/hang the laundry
10:20am - Head to exercise room... stop and watch Ella sing. Dance with her and help locate a microphone so our show is now more serious.
10:30am - Start exercising with Ella by me. We enjoy an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.
11:05am - Paxton screaming. He has soaked himself and his bedding in spit up. Change the bedding, get all boys dressed & lotions applied (eczema meds for P & W), and am grateful for the quickwash feature that will get the boys blankets done sooner rather then later.

 11:35am - Bottle time
12:00pm - reading time with the boys, singing time. Ella is there to help.

 12:30pm - lunch time for Ella, laundry calling me again
12:45pm - nap time for boys (oops, Creighton started without me)

1:00pm - Laundry, clean up Ella's book mess in her bedroom, chore time around house

1:50pm - Play with Ella, find some toys she chooses. Weston wakes up. Show on for Ella (and Weston) while I shower and change laundry.
2:35pm - Sit down
2:35pm and 10 seconds - Paxton starts screaming. Bring him down to play barbies & princesses with us.
3:15pm - Creighton wakes up. Haul everybody upstairs.
3:30pm - Paxton gets another new outfit, all diapers changed, and bottle time
3:35pm - Girls home from school (one of the blessings in my life: neighbors who help them get home if the weather is not fit for walking)! Snack time, report about day while we entertain boys.Then start homework, piano, and after school "to-do's."
3:50pm - boys need some attention, Ella is starting to get a major collection of at least a dozen items in her hideout.
4:00pm - boys restless, change activities. Back to girls.
4:15pm - boys restless again, holding Weston, Creighton & Paxton get a new activity. Convince Thea she wants to play with them for a while as a "break." She invents "baby school" for boys with Ella as her assistant. Awesome.
4:30pm - Makaela ready for dance, help her get out the door (another major blessing - people who drive her and my other girls to and from dance!).
4:45pm - Boys fussy, Thea & Ella done. Thea back to her "to-do's" while I am getting solids ready for fussy babies and checking to make sure Ella is not getting into trouble.
5:00pm - solids again for boys (*Triplet Fact: we are going through 124 jars of baby food a month, and 72oz of baby cereal).
5:30pm - boys done with solids, serve up a wonderful dinner brought to us by some gracious neighbor for Thea & Ella while boys work on eating crackers.
5:45pm - clean up boys, take to room, fill bath tub for boys
6:00pm - Begin bath time
6:35pm - Screaming, clean, babies dressed and bottles given. Room picked up, Ella & Thea done with dinner, Makaela home and ready for dinner. Scoop her dinner while she watches babies eat bottles, then we switch and she eats while I finish feeding boys and tuck them into bed.
6:45pm -  Mark home!

(oops! forgot to take pictures at the end of the day... got a little too crazy)

The rest of the evening is filled with normal stuff for the other kids, including books, bedtime, bath's & showers, and Mark & I eating dinner. I also work in the evenings and finish the laundry, and Mark will exercise and make the next days bottles. Then we collapse into bed, hopefully before midnight, and count our many blessings that helped us make it through another day.

Each day is a little different and things change all the time. Every day is a little different in the schedule, but I just woke up and recorded one day so that at least a snapshot could be recorded. If you hung in there through this post... well, wow. The days are constant. There is constantly someone or something needing me, but I am fairly certain that is the case of most mother's, especially mother's of 6. So I don't claim this day to be exceptional in any way, shape, or form, but it was our day, and maybe now you can better picture what life is like in our home of triplets + 3. And when I say "I'm fine." I really mean it. We are tired, but fine, thanks to the help of others and banding together as a family.