Happy Eighteen Month Birthday babies!

Wow, I cannot believe that eighteen months have gone by since my three babies were born. It seems like just yesterday (most days anyway!). These days seem much more difficult then when they were infants. Back then it was crazy because you knew what the day/night had in store for you, unlike these days. Now, you never know who's going to be in a good/bad mood, who is going to whine/scream/throw food/push another/steal a toy/hit each other, etc. But at the end of the day, when they giggle, play nicely with each other, give each other kisses, etc, it wipes away all of the chaos.

We've developed a pretty good schedule. The kids wake up around 7ish and talk to each other for awhile until we get them up around 7:30 am. We are usually up, diapers changed, dressed, and out the door by 8ish. I pick them up in the evenings around 5:30 (we walk home if it's a nice day!), eat dinner around 6 pm, play for an hour then to bed by 7:30. The routine still calls for bottles before bed. It's a hard habit to break and I have to admit I haven't really tried too hard because around 7 they specifically ask for milk. They drink their bottle, brush teeth (they LOVE this task!) then go right to bed. They all sleep through the night 99% of the time. How do you argue with that?! They are down to one nap a day, usually for about two hours.

They all are great eaters too. I don't think there's anything that they've tried that they don't like. Some of the favorites are:

Main dishes: chicken, turkey meatballs, spinach pasta

Veggies: peas, lima beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans

Fruit: bananas (nanas), pineapple, strawberries, blueberries, pears

We recently started music class and the kids all love it. We've been going for the past two weeks and everyone has gone because my parents have been here to help. It's so cute to watch their different personalities around other kids. Ryan will sit in your lap or stay close by while Brooke and Jack run around the room, going up to other families, interacting with other kids. Kyle has gone with us and is starting to come out of his shell too. Who would have thought the little ones would help him open up! School and siblings have been great for Kyle...well, most of the time the babies are good for him :-)

Here are some details about each of the triplets. Notice there isn't a picture of the three of them together as no one will sit still and not touch the other!

Ryan

Weight: 23 lbs 2 oz (14% percentile)

Height: 32.25" (40% percentile)

Teeth count: 10 (the third molar just came in)

Favorite words: Elmo, bubbles, up, mama, dada, hi, bye, ama (grandma)

* Ryan is the quietest of the three. Still very shy and looks down when someone he doesn't know very well talks to him.

* Talks the least but has about 5-10 words in his vocabulary. Is the only one that actually says Elmo :-)

* Ryan loves the toy that someone else has but is currently into the vacuum, ride-on car, making towers with blocks (mostly because he likes to knock them down!) and playing with the bat/balls. He's actually hit a ball with the bat a few times. He's taking after his big brother!

* Ryan seems to be the whiniest of them all lately and rather needy. I always say that it probably has to do with him getting new teeth...hopefully that's the case!

* The BEST eater. Sometimes even Ryan eats more than Kyle! I'm not sure if he ever gets full as he is always asking for more. I still can't believe he only weighs 23 lbs!

Brooke

Weight: 22 lbs 1 oz (17% percentile)

Height: 29.2" (2nd percentile)

Teeth count: 7 teeth

Favorite words: No! (while shaking her head - imagine that!), hi, bye, bobo (Elmo), bubbles, baby, milk, RyRy (Ryan) and Kykle (Kyle)

* Brooke always seems to wake up in a good mood. She will be standing up in her crib and I'll open the door and she'll wave and say, "hi! hi!". She'll then greet her baby brothers, then go into Kyle's room saying "Kykle, Kykle, hi! hi!"

* She is very sweet and gentle and loves to hug and kiss. When we get in the van each morning, she'll say "bobo! bobo!". She wants to watch Elmo and when you turn on the movie, she'll look at the screen and say, "hi! hi!" and blow kisses to Elmo. Too cute.

* Brooke's favorite things to do are read books (she mostly chooses Elmo books), play with the barn/animals and do puzzles. She also loves to dance. I still have to try and capture it on video because it's so cute how she moves her arms and shakes her hips :-)

Jack

Weight: 21 lbs 11 oz (5th percentile)

Height: 31.75" (30th percentile)

Teeth count: Working on his 12th

Favorite words: Mama, dada, maynay (Macey), papa, hi, up, out (when he sees you in the am, he wants out of his crib!), bubbles

* As you can see from his sweet smile, Jack is very laid back and easy going. He can easily entertain himself which is a great trait!

* Sometimes he likes to stir up trouble and is fully aware that he's not supposed to do something but wants to get a rise out of you. i.e. splashing the water in the dog bowl, sticking his finger deep up into his nose, running down the driveway towards the street, standing on the table/toy box/couch and many more that make you so mad but you end up laughing under your breath.

* Jack (and Ryan) both like to kick the ball and really love to be outside. Jack will stand at the back door and say "out, out!". He loves the outdoors and just running around the backyard and playing on the new playscape.

* Jack's favorite things to do are play with Kyle's bat cave (Kyle's pretty good about sharing it), Matchbox cars and playing with the shapes toolbox.

Sometimes I look back and can't believe that we've all survived these last eighteen months. It's been a fun, trying, adventurous time. They say God only gives you what you can handle, right?! He must be up there, looking down on our crazy life, laughing. God sure does have a sense of humor :-)