A Family Affair

January 28th, 2009

Tomorrow the babies are going to see our chiropractor for the second time. All five of us are getting adjusted. It's a family affair! Here are a few pics of their first adjustment. We noticed a great improvement in the babies' demeanor. They seemed happier and slept better. We are very thankful to Dr. Jeremy Shaft for working with the babies.

This and That

January 28, 2009

Hello All!

I thought I better get a post in before we leave for Florida. That's right! We are packing up the triplets, hopping on a plane and heading to Florida.

New things are happening every day at our house. All three of the babies are doing a great job sitting up and Aidan is seriously thinking about crawling. He gets up on all four and rocks. That boy is ready to go.

The babies are sleeping well at night, but napping....forget about it. I am so jealous of all of the mothers out there that get to enjoy a couple of two hour naps during the day. We are lucky to get a random thirty minutes here and there. But as long as they continue to sleep through the night; I'll take it.

The babies really enjoy each other's company. One of my favorite things to do is sit them in a circle and put a bunch of toys in the middle and just watch them. It is so much fun! Aidan loves to take toys away from whomever is sitting near him. Brooklyn is becoming irritated with this and I kept help but laugh. Calahan (also known as "Happy Feet")loves to read. They all like to screech and talk to each other. It is the sweetest thing and I try hard to take in every moment so I can remember these times when they are older.

We can't believe the babies are almost 10 months old. The time is flying by and I am not ready for them to grow up yet.

Enjoy the pictures!

Merry (late) Christmas, Happy New Year...

January 7, 2009

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, etc...

I haven't updated the blog in quite awhile and I apologize. My friend Jen called me today to make sure everything was o.k. so I am sure there are others that are wondering the same. I have no excuse for my absence other than the holidays, 3 BABIES, facebook (I'm addicted), 3 BABIES and a lousy cold.

Our holidays were wonderful and we hope yours were the same. The babies did well with their first visit to see the big guy in the red suit. The triplets also did a great job with traveling to their Nana and Papa's house for Christmas eve and traveling to their Grandma and Grandpa's house for Christmas day. They enjoyed spending time with all of their relatives: cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.

Things have been rather uneventful and that is the way we would like to keep it. We have a busy week of doctor visits next week for synagis shots, 9 month check up and audiology appointment (for Cal). We will also be visiting our good NICU buddy, Adelyn, who will be having surgery at U of M. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

As for the individual babies, here are a few highlights:

Aidan rung in the new year with a new tooth! He was up at night for a week and a half before that little bugger finally popped through. How many teeth are there? Times three babies? OH BOY! Aidan is sitting up on his own and he loves to grab his brother's bib to pull him closer. Aidan loves to grab new toys and investigate/chew on them. He loves to splash around in the bath tub.

Brooklyn lets us know what she wants and when she wants it. She isn't a big fan of the whole napping during the day thing and she prefers a later bedtime than her brothers. She loves to be on her tiptoes and thinks her brothers are pretty fun to watch. Her favorite time of the day is when her Daddy comes home from work. She beams when she hears his voice and the smile she gives him when she sees him lights up the whole room She is also sitting up and loves bath time.

Calahan is the smiliest baby ever. He is very sensitive to his sister's loud screams and to new faces. He is content most of the time and an absolute joy to be around. Calahan is doing a lot of talking these days. He loves to splash around in the bath and can get the whole kitchen wet in minutes. Calahan loves to watch The Monkey Doos! In December I took Cal to the doctor and he had some x-rays done of his lungs. Everything looks fine. We are taking him to a pulminologist just to be sure.

All three of the babies are handling their cereal and vegetables very well (perhaps a little bit TOO well). The babies have eaten rice cereal, oatmeal, peas, green beans and sweet potatoes so far and they love it all.

Paul and I have never been so full on love. Aidan, Brooklyn and Calahan light up our worlds every day. God sure did know what he was doing when he blessed us with these three miracles and we are eternally grateful that he chose us to be their parents.

Again, I apologize for my lack of postings and I can't make any promises that I will do better. But I can promise you that we think of all of the friends and family that have been so helpful to us and we wish you a fabulous 2009!

So proud!

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Today our Aunt Melissa graduated with her masters degree from Oakland University. We are so proud of her! She loves us so much. Aunt Melissa loves to spend time with us. She tries her best to see us every weekend and she likes to cuddle with us. She always reads books to us and she teaches us lots of stuff (she is very smart). Aunt Melissa loves to take naps with us. Our Mom tells us she is the best sister and that we are all very lucky to have her in our lives.

We want to bring her some happiness on her special day. We love you Aunt Melissa! Way to go! Congratulations and thanks for loving us the way you do.

Love,
Aidan, Brooklyn and Calahan

Dood Elves

Please scroll down to the bottom of the blog to see our little elves.

It Takes a Lot of Doing

December 9, 2008 - 8 months and 1 day old

Aidan, Brooklyn and Calahan wanted me to let you know they have a new cousin...Ryan Allen. He is precious!

Yesterday the babies went for their second synagis shot...twice. It takes a lot of doing to get three babies ready and out the door. Feeding schedules need to be altered, diapers changed, clothes on, diaper bags packed, winter hats, put babies in their car seats, warm up the car, put strollers in the car, lug babies in car seats out to the car, get to the doctor's office, get strollers out, get babies out, you get the picture... Anyhow at our 11:30 am appointment they told us that the synagis was not there; someone had overlooked ordering it. So we headed back home and repeated the above tasks again at 3:00 pm. I am not complaining because these shots cost $3,12o EACH and I am thankful that we are taking preventative measures to keep these babies healthy. I am merely saying it takes a lot of doing...

A big thanks to Debbie for accompanying us. Shots are NO FUN!

Anyways the babies are doing great! Aidan is leading the pack at 19 pounds, Brooke surpassed Cal again at 18 pounds and Mr. C is a healthy 17 pounds.

The triplets are learning and doing new things every day. Today we tried oatmeal for the first time and everyone loved it. As you can see from the pictures, these babies love anything you put in front of them.

Aidan is so predictable. Everyone morning like clockwork he wakes up at 5:20 am. We snuggle in the rocking chair for awhile and then he is ready to eat. After he eats he plays in his favorite exersaucer. Exactly one hour and 2o minutes from the time he wakes he is ready for a nap. But not before he takes a big huge poop. I love this routine. Aidan is so inquistive and so much fun to be around.

Brooklyn hasn't been as smiley as she once was. I am guessing that it is just getting too difficult to lift up those heavy cheeks. She is still "squealing" quite a bit. She loves to watch Daisy. She likes to try and pet her. Sissy is so in love with her Daddy. She manages to pull those cheeks up whenever he is around. Her favorite pasttime is still sucking on her lower lip.

Calahan is definitely the smilest boy of all. He is so happy and so smart. The other day Brooklyn was fussing in her crib and I asked the boys if I should give Sissy her paci and Calahan responded "Yeah!" right on cue (Debbie is my witness). Then I was playing back a video I had taken of the babies and my voice was saying "Say Hi" and Cal let out a big "Hey!". Brilliant baby, I tell you!

We are having a blast and hope that you are enjoying every day too. Happy Holidays!

RSV Season

Dear Family and Friends,

We’re writing regarding a very important matter: RSV. For those of you who
plan to visit us over the next few months, and even if you are not, please take
a few minutes to read this letter.

We want to start by saying thank you for the outpouring of support we have
received from everyone. So many people have done so much for us, and
every bit of help we have received truly is appreciated. We are experiencing
the biggest challenge of our lives, and we’re lucky to be surrounded by so
many family members and friends who have shown us so much love and support.

We’d also like to share an important topic that we recently discussed with our babies’ pediatrician. If you are not aware of RSV, respiratory syncytial virus, you are among the majority. Most people have not heard of RSV, even though nearly every child has had the virus by age two. For full-term babies, RSV typically is not any worse than a common cold, but for preemies, the virus can be quite different. Babies born earlier than 36 weeks are at the
highest risk for serious complications like pneumonia, bronchiolitis, and other sometimes fatal complications. Our babies were born premature at 29 weeks, are multiples, and had low birth weights; these are among the highest risk factors for contracting RSV and developing serious complications. This website offers a great visual comparison of a preemie’s lungs compared to the lungs of a full-term baby: http://www.preemiecare.org/LungsTrees03-4.pdf

Preventing the spread of RSV is very difficult. Thus, we must be vigilant about keeping our children safe during RSV season (October through April). The virus is spread through physical contact, in the air via a cough or sneeze, or by touching an infected object. The virus can live as long as six hours on hands and up to twelve hours on objects, and it spreads very easily, especially from child to child. Studies have also shown that infants pose an even higher risk of spreading RSV to others.

You may ask, “Can’t they fight it off and build up their immune system? Kids need to get sick, right?” The simple answer is NO. Since our babies were pre-term, they did not acquire the necessary immunities to fight off infection. If they contract RSV, they could be hospitalized and develop serious complications. We’ll be asking our visitors to follow a few guidelines to help prevent the babies from contracting RSV or any other illness.

We ask that all visitors do the following:
1. When you arrive, please wash your hands and use hand-sanitizer as needed before touching the babies.
2. Please, if it is possible, get a flu shot.
3. Please refrain from coming over if you are currently sick and have not been symptom-free for at least 5 days, if you live with someone who is sick, or have been in close contact with someone who is sick.
4. If you smoke, we ask that you change your clothing and refrain from smoking prior to visiting, as a preemie’s lungs are very sensitive to smoke. Most RSV sites recommend against passive smoke exposure.
5. If you are parents to a baby or toddler, please refrain from bringing them to our house during RSV season.

Unfortunately we will not be attending many events during RSV season. Our goal is to make it through this and the next RSV seasons without the babies contracting RSV or any other serious illness. Their lungs are still very fragile until they are 2-years-old.

Please understand that this letter is not meant to offend anyone, just simply to provide an explanation. We hope you understand, and we appreciate your help keeping our babies safe.

We are also providing several resources with additional information about RSV below.
http://www.preemiecare.org/rsv_resourceshtm.htm
http://www.preemiecare.org/rsvfaq.htm
http://www.preemiecare.org/rsv2.htm
http://www.mostonline.org/preemieBB/viewforum.php?f=82

Love and best wishes to all!
Paul and Kristin

Here are a few final words from Brooklyn...