Second birthday

Yesterday was the kids birthday. I wrote an entire post last night but I've lost it! Never mind. I'll try again.

So this weekend we've taken the kids to the park, soft play centre and Heeley City Farm. The kids had a great time and we were exhausted! Luckily we had lots of help outdoors from both grandma's, Aunty Amanda, Aunty Chrissie and we were also visited by Aunties Andrea and Ted with their families, Uncle Gareth and David. It's been a busy weekend. Ooh and they got birthday wishes on cbeebies thanks to my mum sending in a card. 

The kids have lots of new presents, new clothes and, it looks like, another cold! We are blessed. 

It seems a good time to review their progress. 

Charlie

Charlie is now 22 pounds. He loves trains, cars, saying 'ready, steady, go!' and singing. He hasn't quite mastered walking in one direction as he gets distracted by..well....everything. He's a lot more affectionate than he used to be and is very often smiling. He is often found on the sofa checking that the view remains unaltered.

Lex

Lex is now 24 pounds. He loves counting, his cow, cars and singing. He almost walks in one direction now. His emotions are very close to the surface and he smiles and tantrums often. He is cuddley too and is rarely found not holding a spoon.

Beth

Beth is 19 pounds. She loves fuss, role playing (putting toys to bed, tea parties etc), jigsaws and doing whatever you tell her not to do. She gets quite frustrated (and hitty) at times but is also capable of really sweet affection. She is the only one who kisses and hugs others. A few days ago she kissed my sore hand (from washing them so much!) better spontaneously. She loves her cuddles too and is often found wherever there is fuss to be had. 

We went back to Jessops a few days ago for their two year old check up. We were hoping they would all be discharged but it was not to be. Both boys are growing and developing well so they are discharged. Beth is developing well but isn't putting weight on quick enough. So we have to take her back in four months. 

So their second year of life is over. In some ways it has got easier as we do get sleep more often, but not as much as we'd like. It's not as lonely as the first year as I get to leave the house alone if only to work. We're working on getting more adult only time - Matt's started going gaming again and I'm hoping to sort a regular night out too. 

Days are a mix of great joy, laughs, singing, telling off, separating fights and exhausted tv watching. We still see ourselves as extremely lucky, just knackered as well! Happy birthday my beautiful children. We love you more than all the monkeys in the world. 

Freedom and Wheezing

So this post was supposed to be a 'look at us acting like normal people' post and if I had written it last weekend it would have been. 

Last weekend Matt and I had a night off. My mum and sister Julie came to look after the kids - and furnished with a detailed written routine they let us free into the wild.

I know I'm supposed to say that I worried the whole time and kept checking my phone but I totally trusted them so I just relaxed. Besides Julie sent helpful 'they are all ok' updates that set my mind to rest. 

We stayed at the East Lodge Hotel, which is lovely, in a very posh room. The food was lovely and it was a bit like the old days for us. Which was also lovely. 

It was a bit touch and go at one point whether we would get the chance to go as Charlie was quite wheezy but he rallied thankfully. 

Unfortunately this didn't last and Thursday we had to take him into A and E. Now it's Saturday night and instead of a glamorous meal like last week I'm typing this in the dark on the ward next to his cot. It's 8.52 and, by complete coincidence, International women's day. Happy women's day to you all. 

We're hoping he can come home tomorrow. The other two have been missing him badly. Beth keeps pointing to his cot and high chair and saying 'Char Char?' Lex just looks extremely sad and when I showed him a picture of Charlie he just said 'buh bye.'

We skyped today so they could see each other and I think that helped but this separation isn't good for anyone. 

Sorry not a chirpy update but it's been a hard few weeks. 

Valentines day

Two years ago today I hit 24 weeks pregnant and the triplets were viable. That was the day we really knew for sure we were having triplets! 

And here they are today. 

Happy valentines days gorgeous kiddies and their lovely daddy. Xxx

Wrestling with creativity

Charlie has taken up dancing. Last week I heard the patter of tiny feet in the living room, as I was cleaning up the kitchen, and when I looked in he was dancing across the floor, swirling around and grinning. He's also even more into music in general - his new favourite thing is to take two maracas and drum anything he can find. He still sings scales to me, hitting the same notes every time. He is very resourceful - he hasn't quite got the pointing thing himself yet but one song I sing to him says 'point to the ceiling, point to the floor' - he comes over and moves my hand to point at the right place. Lateral thinker! I'm taking them all to music class on Friday and I hope he's going to love it.

Beth has taken up singing so she should love the class too. You can recognise some of the songs - the hand movements do help. It's super cute but impossible to film as she stops as soon as you turn the lens towards her. All three are enjoying drawing but Beth has a little game she only plays with mummy. If I draw a picture on the magnetic drawing board she will take the stylus, scribble all over my picture then look at me very solemnly and say 'Oh no!' She's been doing great with the whole walking and listening to mummy thing - she walks through the park right next to the buggy with no reins and stops whenever I say. The boys are a lot more random but we are working on that.

Lex loves drawing. He takes it very seriously and is very deliberate with his stylus. He's also the first to be speaking in sentences - his favourites being 'it's a ball!' And 'it's a cow!' Occasionally we get 'where's it gone?' generally because he has thrown either the ball or the toy cow! He's always the first to run at me, arms up when I get home, and loves being tickled. I know when he particularly loves a song I'm singing or a book I've read as he claps at the end. It's just like being famous but without the media intrusion. 

I read somewhere that about 18 months kids start realising they are an individual and start asserting their independence. Ours have been to a certain extent but lately especially the boys have changed. They have started fighting for attention, toys, food, whatever - wrestling each other. They have also started playing peepo all over the house. This evening Lex popped up over the side of the bath causing huge giggles in Charlie and Beth, who were in the bath. So I think they have all realised they are individual people so the sharing quotient might go down a bit but the playing should go up.

They are very much toddlers now and have left babyhood behind. It's lovely to hear them speak, to understand more easily what they want and to have jokes with them. When I get home from work I get out of the car and they all jump on the sofa to watch me through the window. I see their three smiling faces lit up in our warm house, and Matt behind them and think 'wow, I'm so lucky.'

A Christmas tale of bugs and spoons

Unusually for us it's been a busy month for visiting but that's Christmas for you. We went down to Borehamwood in early December to see Matts mum and lots of friends. 

It's our first weekend away where I think no one went to hospital so that's a big plus. We had a really lovely time. 

Then, of course, it was Christmas. I had been trying to prepare the kids by telling them the true meaning of a Christmas - presents - but they didn't really get it. 

They did understand that if we reached for the advent calendar they got chocolate so that went down well. Beth particularly has discovered a taste for it.

The weekend before Christmas matts mum came up and we ended up in A&E again with Charlie. Luckily he wasn't admitted this time. 

My mum came up for Christmas and it was a very busy present opening time. We had to do it in 3 shifts! Thanks so much to everyone who was so generous. The kids were giddy as kippers. 

Boxing Day my sister Julie came up with her clan. It was great to see them and watch the kids with their cousins. A few days later pretty much all of us came down with a sickness bug however which wasn't really the plan. 

Still it did mean I haven't put on as much on over Christmas as I'd expected to so every cloud...

New Years Eve, after a visit from my cousin Alison, we were still feeling a bit broken so we stayed in, watched 'Alpha Papa' and were in bed before 12. Rock 'n' roll! 

What else? Well I have applied for an MA and PhD and I am really pleased by my new spoons. Life is good (i.e. No-one is ill at this precise moment). 

Snot and hobbling

The title might give it away but it's been another kinda crappy few weeks. When last I wrote we were recovering from a stomach bug. Soon after that we went to Clarkes to buy Charlie his first walking shoes. 

I know that photo looks like it was taken in 1898 but I think the printer in Clarkes was running out of ink. Charlie looks super cute though. 

On that trip Matt was pulling the buggy out of the car and managed to damage his back. A few days later it was still bad and a trip to the GPs had him signed off for 2 weeks. He was also banned from lifting anything, including children. 

This left me. And Izzy a few days a week. So that was a tiring few weeks! 

Finally Matt's back got better and that weekend the kids all came down with colds! Sunday night at 2am I was driving Charlie into A&E as he was wheezing again. Luckily he wasn't admitted but it was a pretty tiring night!

Anyway in other news - 

The kids are still super cute as you can see. They are mastering the whole walking thing, climbing and moving onto running.  There are completely clear words coming from them randomly.

Beth has taken up reading books. See below...

http://youtu.be/xz_zipPW6OY

Sorry but embedding video seems to be a dream at the moment. Just click on the link. It's worth it.

Charlie has decided he doesn't believe in socks but he is all for glasses. 

Lex has decide family is for wimps and only climbing or cbeebies will please him.  We are working on this...

Matt's brother Andrew visited with his partner Jackie and it was lovely to see them. They are great with the kids and the kids love them. Charlie demonstrated his glasses love to them. 

We also met our friend Amanda at a soft play centre (and Uncle Chris came too). The kids were so excited and loved it. We did too but man were we tired by the time we got home!

So it's not all been crappy really. Remind me of this. 

It's been a bit of a week

The babies have changed - into toddlers. In the last few weeks they have become more communicative, more emotional and more into climbing. Some of it is wonderful and some of it is crazy difficult. 

I've discovered that the best thing to do when I'm having a day with the kids is to take them out. They don't want to be in the buggy anymore. They want to be out and about. 

I've started going to a toddler group - one for twins and multiples - so I'm not the only freak in the field. I've been twice and I think it's going to be great for all of us. 

I've also managed to meet up with some friend who had twins at the same time we had our kids. It's so nice being able to talk to people who understand the wonders and horrors of having more than one kid at the same time. 

Both of the above have been because a friend figured out how I could load the car with the kids. I am quite short (not remarkably short but really quite short) and this doesn't help in putting three kids in a Ford Galaxy! I could get them all in their seats with help of a portable stool (yes really) but I couldn't flip the handle down on Beth's middle seat because you need to be tall enough to press a button on both sides at the same time. I just couldn't reach so I've been basically homebound for months (ever since the kids were let out). Anyway Ruth, another twins mum, said 'why not do it from the passenger seat.' I'd never thought of that!'

So now me loading the car involves carrying out 3 kids, standing on a stool and then climbing in the passenger seat to flip the handle down. Only then can I drive away.

Anyway the reason for the ramble above is that last Friday I was due to meet a friend at a soft play centre for the first time. I was really looking forward to it. Thursday night though Lex was very full of cold and, super emotional because of it - as a result no-one got much sleep so I had to cancel. Grandma Cunnington came up to stay - after Filey we should have be warned what might happen...

By 3am the next night Lex was wheezing badly so we rang the out of hours doctors and were advised to take him into the Children's Hospital. 

Matt took him into the hospital and he was admitted. I swapped with Matt the next day and spent the next night in the hospital. They were talking about Lex coming home when Matt rang to say that Charlie was wheezing! 

So we ended up with Lex on a ward, Charlie downstairs in A&E and Beth at home with Grandma. In the end Charlie was admitted and Lex was released. 

So at that point we had Beth and Lex at home with mummy and grandma, Charlie in the children's hospital with daddy. Whilst putting the two kids to bed Lex did a very good impression of the Exorcist and mummy and grandma cleaned up lots of returned milk. 

I then went to pick up Charlie and Matt. We were all super grateful that the nightmare was over. Grandma went home, after a lovely visit. 

Tuesday night I started to feel extremely ill. It turned out we'd brought home a stomach bug! Oh the joy. Grandma also took it home with her. 

Luckily Wednesday Izzy, the nanny was working so she bleached everything while I lay in bed. Beth was ill that day. 

Thursday began with Charlie being violently sick and after cleaning this up, with Matt, I realised I forgotten to wish him happy birthday! So Happy birthday Matt! 

On the bright side Charlie decided to strike out for the great unknown in the centre of the room on Matts birthday. Here's the link to video proof (I'd google how to embed the link but I'm tired!): http://youtu.be/nEimd7FWdZk

Friday it looked like we were out of the woods. The kids seemed happier and we even had visitors - Jo and Chris - it was fun until Matt started to feel ill...

So now it's Saturday. Matt has been in bed all day. I took the kids for a walk today and an old lady took the time to say 'Oh dear! I hope you are not having any more!'

It's been one of those weeks...