How blogging is like middle school...

In middle school we all feel a little awkward, don't we? I mean, we're all moving on from elementary school and things are different. We're growing up, and finding our clique. I feel awkward as a blogger. I want people to read my blog, I want people to think I'm interesting, but I feel kind of invisible in the blogosphere.

I thought being a mommy of triplets would give me an edge when it came to blogging. I also thought I could find other moms of multiples who blog and feel less alone in the parenting world. Don't get me wrong, I have mommy friends, and they are wonderful, but sometimes I wonder if some of the issues we've had with the boys are unique just to us, or are common among multiples.

I try to network. Follow blogs, follow fellow bloggers on Twitter and facebook, leave comments, get word of my blog out there. Am I missing something? Do I need some sort of gimmick like giveaways and prizes? I feel like I still know so little about blogging. But I just don't feel like I'm generating much traffic. So I am asking those of you who do read my blog, how can I improve? What would you like to read about, or what would make my blog better?

Now, on to mommy stuff....
The only way we can get the boys to do any sleeping is by having no furniture in their room. I feel terrible about that, but it's what keeps them from injuring themselves so much. They figured out a very long time ago how to flip out of their cribs, so we upgraded to toddler beds, which they did great with for awhile, but then they figured out the toddler beds aren't very heavy, so they started flipping them on each other and pinning each other under them, so we took the beds out, and set up pack-n-plays which they figured out how to halfway disassemble, and they were flipping them and getting tangled up in them, so now they have mattresses on the floor. At least they can't really cause too much bodily harm that way, right? I wish we had the room that we could put them each in a room of their own.
We bought the boys water guns last week. They love them. I was a little surprised that they needed no lessons in how to use them, so I'm not really sure where they learned how to use a trigger, and how to aim. They have really good aim. Their daddy told them to get me, and next thing I know I'm getting hit with a stream of water right between the eyes.
Daddy also taught them how to shoot my elastic headbands. 100% boy stuff. I love it though.
You would think I would have learned by now to not underestimate how smart my kids are. They are always surprising me though.

Musings of a maiasaura.

First, just in case I'm not the last person to learn what a maiasaura is, let me tell you. A maiasaura was a dinosaur. The word actually means "good mother lizard." So, a maiasaura was a dinosaur thought to be a good mom.

Now, I have plenty of less than picture perfect moments as a mom, but I still consider myself a good mom. Take this very second of time into consideration. I am typing this with a two year old on my lap. He's playing with the mouse, messing with the keyboard, and being a general two year old. But he's happy. So what if it's slowing me down or making me have to proof read several hundred times while I still type.

Last night my husband and I were making cookies together, the boys were actually in bed and asleep at a reasonable hour, and the house was reasonably clean. The thought occurred to me, "Wow! We've got this parent thing about figured out." I told me husband my thought, and he quickly reminded me that we still have a lot to learn. And he's right.

This morning we were watching Dinosaur Train on PBS, and they were learning about maiasauras. And I could relate myself to this dinosaur, as I'm sure most moms could. And I was thinking about something I read recently about moms having to know about dinosaurs because one day they will have to answer their kids' questions about what their favorite dinosaurs were and why. And even though I don't know much about maiasauras yet, that will be my answer. I like them because they were known for being mommies. Keeping their little hatchlings close to the nest and safe.

We all know that being a mom means more than just keeping our little ones close to home and safe. But I still feel like a fairly kick ass mom on most days, I'm raising triplet boys and somehow I've maintained some shreds of sanity, and I have a happy, healthy family. Some days I don't know what I'm doing, but we manage. We all go to bed every night with full tummies and smiles.

This calls for oreos and a bottle of wine.

What a week.

I have been stressed beyond belief this week. Mainly due to the fact that my children really seem to be trying to kill each other. They don't even seem to fight, they just flip beds on each other, throw things at each other's heads. And really? It's only Wednesday?

I love my boys. I'm sure one day we'll all laugh about this stage of their childhood. But until then, I feel like I've been locked away in some sort of asylum. Constant loud noises. Fighting with every inch of their being to never sleep again.

I must mask it well. Somehow I've managed to keep the house clean since Saturday. That's a record. I've managed to cook real dinners every night this week, except Monday. Monday was manic, I forgot about having to thaw chicken for dinner until 5 PM.

The moments when I don't have someone whining in my face are lovely, but the few instants when they've let me get down on the floor and tickle them until they can't stand it anymore have been what's gotten me this far in the week.

I understand they are kids. Kids come equipped with a supply of energy that lasts until they have kids of their own. We had plans of going to the park today, but they fought naps for too long, and by the time naps were over, I was too tired to get them to the park. I want to buy them a swing set. One with a big slide, they love slides. That way they can have their own personal park in their own backyard.

Have I mentioned that our stroller doesn't turn anymore? The front wheels for whatever reason won't turn. So taking them on walks or walking to the park is that much more tedious. When we have corners to go around, I have to lift the back of the stroller and pivot it around. Not really an issue, just a little extra work, no big deal. But I already get the "What a freak" looks when I take them on walks, so when I'm doing the stroller pivot, oh yeah, I'm the freak of the town. I know I shouldn't complain, I mean, at least I have every physical capability of taking them for walks.

The twos are wearing me out. So many things to love about this age, but I feel like I would be able to enjoy them so much more if I weren't absolutely exhausted everyday. I wake up exhausted.

They amaze me, though. They are strong, they are tough, they are smart and really, they are good boys. They have been sharing so well lately. And they help me out too. This morning, after pouring and smashing their cereal into the floor, they helped me vacuum it all up. When they do something naughty, they really do try to make it right. I'm so grateful for that.

But tonight, I really just needed to vent while sipping wine from the bottle and munching on oreos. I feel much better now.

Why begrudge your blessing?

I am a mother of triplet boys, so I completely understand that being a mommy is not always a big sunshiny, happy, sunflowers and rainbows moment, I also know that pregnancy isn't always fun either. Lately I've been getting really annoyed at how much mothers complain about being a mom. Having kids is a blessing.

At an early age I was told that I would never be able to get pregnant or have kids. I always said that if I couldn't have kids of my own, I would adopt. It never made sense to me why so many people who genuinely wanted kids couldn't have their own, and how many women had kids, but seemed to hate them.

Obviously, the doctors who determined that I would be infertile were wrong, seeing as I have 3 little boys who started their little lives in my tummy. Still, it really irritates me when people make such negative comments about becoming parents. If you really didn't want to be a parent, don't have sex. If you must have sex, make sure you take the every precaution to not conceive if you aren't ready to grow up and be the parent that every child deserves!
Again, I realize that pregnancy and parenting aren't always super fun, but it is preventable.

I went through an unusual pregnancy, in that, I was growing 3 babies at once. My body is basically ruined, I was uncomfortable, moody, hormonal and down right bitchy to my poor husband. As a mother, I get stressed out, worn out, emotional, and down right bitchy when I just can't take the feeling of everything and everyone depending on me for everything. Do I wish I didn't have my family? No! Sometimes I wonder how things would be different or easier if I had ended up having my boys one at a time, but my wondering always ends with this: Had my boys been born separately, they wouldn't be who they are. I wouldn't trade them for anything.

I don't feel like a victim because I am a mommy. And I hate when people talk about how miserable their children make them, or how their pregnancies have messed up their lives. Children are gifts. They are intended to teach us patience, kindness, love, and understanding on a whole other level. They learn everything from us, so what are people who have such hateful attitudes about being parents teaching them?

I was unmarried when I got pregnant. My kids' father and I were, and still are, very much in love. We did get married, a little sooner than we thought we would. But I'm grateful to have happy, healthy boys. They push my buttons and make me crazy, but I love them for that. They make me human. They make me know that it's ok to not be perfect, they'll love me anyway. And I love them.

I don't really know the point of all this, except that it really annoys me when I hear people act like having kids is the end of the world. In my opinion, having kids is just the beginning of the best world.

One happy, but tired, lady

Some of my best memories growing up were Christmases and summers with my cousins. Even though we lived 2,000 miles apart, when our families got together for holidays, we were basically all best friends. Well, the older cousins, were best friends and the younger cousins were best friends. I was a younger cousin, and my two cousin-friends were Katie and Chelsey. One of my favorite memories was my 8th Christmas. I got some toy, probably really expensive, but I remember the box. The box it came in was HUGE. I don't remember playing with the toy, but I remember Katie, Chelsey and I getting in that box and playing, riding it downstairs, rolling each other around in it, and in all the fun, we got candy canes stuck in our hair.

I remember that so well today because I had the pleasure of watching Chelsey's son today. I watched my boys play with their (2nd) cousin and they were all best friends today. We got out the train set, and after giving up that endeavor, I watched Ethan and Devin play in the box.

It is so fun to watch my kids make the same kinds of memories with their relatives that I made when I was a kid. I also think that it's so cool that my kids and my cousin's son get to grow up in the same area, they have more of an opportunity to be friends. Maybe I think that's such a novel idea and amazing because growing up I lived in GA, and my cousins lived in either FL or CO or NE.

And we're back... again.

Considering I haven't blogged since before THANKSGIVING, I figured I should.

I blame not keeping up with this on the fact that my office, until today has been upstairs, and with three little boys who we don't really let upstairs, it's hard to sneak up there without them wreaking havoc downstairs. So today, while they napped, I unplugged my computer, cleared my desk, and hauled everything downstairs. Then was the challenge, I moved the desk down by myself too. Not as terrible as I thought it would be. Then I cleared a path through the toys, and got the desk where I wanted it, set up the computer, then cleaned the front room. The reason this is the first time my "office" has been set up down here is because our downstairs consists of: our bathroom, kitchen, two bedrooms and a front room. Our front room isn't especially large, but it serves as our dining room, tv room, playroom and now, my "office" as well. We make it work though.

Now, to talk about things that have gone on in the past four or five months.
Not long before Christmas, Ben's grandfather lost his battle with cancer. So we had a pretty rough December. The boys had a pretty crazy awesome Christmas though. They each got a pair of pajamas for Christmas, and everything else was toys! So after Christmas, I had to go buy a new toy storage system, because two toy boxes just aren't enough! January 20th marked their 2nd birthday! We were at least smart enough to request that if anyone bought them anything, to please buy them clothes. We also bought them goldfish. The fish didn't last long. In fact, the first one died the night we brought them home.
We got some unusually nice weather a few times during February, so we played outside, only to be stuck inside again soon after due to snow and wind.
I'm finally to the point where I'm really comfortable taking them around town with me to run errands. They sure think they are pretty big stuff all crammed into one shopping cart riding through the store.
I'm amazed at how verbal they are now. And they're actually saying real words, putting full thoughts together, like "real" sentences!! I'm trying to think of actual things they've said recently, and I'm drawing blanks at the moment. But sometimes they say things and it stuns me. I think, "You're not big enough to know how to say that."
We're making pretty good progress with potty training. I decided that I'm finally ready to really commit the time and energy it takes to potty train 3 boys at once. And today, Ethan made it ALL morning in his big boy undies with no accidents. A little bit before lunch he had an accident, and he was SO upset. It kind of broke my heart a little bit to see him so upset and embarrassed that he peed his pants. I wanted to sit down and cry with him, but at the same time, I was so proud of him. He gets it! He gets that big boys stop what they are doing and go sit on the potty. He gets that everybody doesn't go around in diapers, and everyone isn't going around peeing all over the place. About a week ago, before getting in the bath tub, Marcus pooped in the potty! I got super excited and let out one of those excited squeals for him, unfortunately, it scared him and for a second he thought he was in trouble. I had to give him candy before I convinced him that I was actually very happy that he'd pooped in the potty.

So that's a pretty short version of our life since November. Since I now have all day access to my computer, I hope to be more diligent to my humble little blog.

Terrible 2s. times 3.

Yep, that's right. The boys are entering that lovely stage we know as the Terrible Twos!
I literally can not get any chores done during the day unless Ben is home. The *second* I turn my back, they are tackling each other, into everything, trying to climb out windows, climbing up on the dinner table, shredding tissues or wipes or coloring books, pulling off all their clothes, etc. Also, the sound I listen to 90% of the day is an orchestra of whining and fussing. It's quite impressive really.
BUT, for all the chaos they create, there are still glimmering moments where they are angels. And sometimes, they're destroying things, but they really believe they are helping out, that I just can't be mad at them. Today for instance, I was doing dishes, or trying to and keep them off the table, and out of the windows, etc. I go back into the front room to peak on them, and they are pulling all the wipes out of the wipe pack, I'm getting ready to tell them how much trouble they are in, and stop when I notice the reason they are pulling ALL the wipes out. They were cleaning the floor! LOL! So yeah, now I have about a million wipes to pick up, that are basically unusable now, so I have to throw them out, but my floor is kind of clean.

I also am being very careful how I deal with their terrorism of our house. They have started being copy cats. They tell each other no, and sometimes will spank each other, because yes, when their behavior warrants it, Ben and I do spank our children. And I tell them they are grounded sometimes out of frustration, which means nothing since they aren't quite 2 yet. But I had to laugh, they know what being grounded means. I was getting them ready for bath time last night and Marcus looks up at me, points his little finger, and says in a stern toddler voice, "No! Gound! No fair!" (I guess he must have learned about the fair on some kid show, or maybe he was telling me I wasn't being fair?) Anyway, I decide to play along, and by the end of the conversation, not only could I not go to the fair, I wasn't even allowed to go to the store, not even if DADDY said it was ok! lol.

As nuts as they make me, and as much as they wear me out, I sure love those little critters!