It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

We've already had our white Christmas in Colorado during our early December vacation. The flights both ways to and from Colorado were from hell (that's another story), but the entire trip while we were in snow land Vail and Steamboat were like a lovely dream and we weren't quite ready to come home.
It was fun to hang out with Steve and Meredith and Greg's parent's all together in Vail since we won't all be together for Christmas. We had so many people we ended up getting a house and the Arabelle condo. The Arabelle at Vail Square was right by the gondola and made skiing the easiest ever to hop right on the mountain. The ski school center was literally next door to our elevator. Starbucks was also across the elevator and I enjoyed my Carmel Apple Spice drink every day after skiing. Yum.

It was so amazing to see Caden on snow skis for the first time. Greg and I both had been waiting for this moment and dreaming about it since he was a baby, that we could hardly believe it when we were watching him during ski lessons. I really was so proud of him that he was out there just trying because I know it is so much to ask of a five year old to wear the long underwear, puffy ski coat and pants, helmet, gloves, hat, goggles, ski boots in the freezing cold and NOT an EASY sport to learn. Especially when you are from Houston and only wear shorts and sandles then run out the door.

The girls stayed indoors most of our vacation because it was so cold and they were just getting over runny noses. Plus, we skiied so much that by the time we got back to the house it was starting to get dark. We did get them out on sleds once we got to the house in Steamboat. They looks so darn cute in their hot pink snowsuits and Harper could have sat on the sled another hour just content as could be. They liked snowballs being thrown at them by everyone and laughed. Caden had fun making his own sledding trail up the hill. The hardest part is always making your own sled trail going up, but the ride is worth going down so you just want to do it again. We had to bribe him to come inside because we were getting cold and were ready to eat lunch.

We just had Christmas weekend with my parent's and brother's family this past weekend and it was fun and wonderful to host. With 14 people in the house, it was nice to have our big backyard and playground for the kids to run around. The weather was so nice and perfect and in the 70's. Sunday we got a weather shift and today it was in the 40's.

We are happy to not be traveling any more this year and be home for Christmas. We don't know where 2009 will take us, but I am for sure many adventures await The Mathews Family.

Caden is FIVE!

I can hardly believe my baby boy is five years old. We had a great birthday party at The Little Gym. Since we went to Disney World twice this year and Caden talks about it all the time, I found a place that did a cute Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cake and cupcakes for the kids. The girl's loved playing with the big kids and trying to keep up running around everywhere. Harper even was trying to do the crab walk and was scooting on the floor. It was so funny and AMAZING to watch them take directions at one years old!

People keep asking me about Caden going to kindergarden next year and if we have decided where he will go. I get a bit nervous every time I think of him going to kindergarden next year. It really is making me a bit teary to think we won't have our Monday's and Friday's (days not in Pre-K) to spend together going to lunch and fun activity or play dates. We are still trying to decide on private or public school for next year. It is a tough choice and the price of private school is something to consider as well. I am thinking of going on a tour of the elementary school he would go to next year and just see how I feel about it. Sometimes a mommy's gut feeling makes the decisions along with a lot of prayer! If any of you reading this would mind praying for us, I feel we could use some peace about this decision. THANKS!

Serenity Now

Not sure if I have mentioned our little motto stolen from Seinfeld. Serenity Now... Insanity Later. We'll we were in need of a bit of Serenity Now, so we packed up the kids and Oakley and headed for the lake house. We took off the boat cover and headed out to Captain Jack's. The restaurant is actually called Eldorado Jack's, but Captain Jack's sounds so much better so we re-named it. They have docks to pull up your boat and eat outside with a perfect lake view. It is just so much fun and really makes us feel like we are on vacation, plus Caden's favorite part is they have a really cool life size pirate outside and give you free ice cream cones. That will cheer anyone up from a stressful week. The weather was PERFECT.... like a Colorado summer day in the mountains.
We were surprised to see additional restaurants and tons of docks being built near Captain Jack's - including Sam's Boat restaurant, a BBQ place not open yet, Starbucks, CVS pharmacy, and Double Dave's pizza. This summer should be even more fun with more options of where to eat lunch or dinner.

I think the girls liked being back in one room together at the lake house. It was like a sleepover party. They talked and talked for a LONG time during their morning nap time and were laughing so finally we gave up and let them come out and play and put them down a bit early for their afternoon nap. By then, it was sweet dreams and Greg and I took turns playing with Caden so we each got an hour nap. Ahhhh... It made me think of college days and how lovely it was to take an afternoon nap on the weekend and there was no time limit.
Caden is getting such an amazing imagination with Lincoln Logs. I was getting him a snack and I went in to the living room and he had them all lined up and was making train tracks with a train station and had it all figured out. He said, "It was a lot of hard work and took me a very very very long time." I was very proud of him for not building a log cabin like the picture. I love that he uses his brain to build the non-traditional out of traditional toys. It is so much fun to watch him when he doesn't see me.

Apples to Apples

We play a game at our house. We ask the girls to point out people in our family. We'll say, "Where is Caden?" and they point and say "Daden". "Where is Oakley?" and they say "Doggie". "Where is Mommy, Daddy" and they are really good at this game. This weekend, when we asked "Where is Addison?" Greg noticed that Emery has decided to call Addison, Apple. We say, "Where is Addison" and she points to Addison and says "Abble" which is what they say when they see an apple. So much of their babbling sounds like nothing, but Emery is for sure saying Abble for Addison. I guess Gwyneth Paltrow and I both have a baby girl named Apple!

Family Photo Shoot in The Woodlands

My good friend Tanya for Cozy Impressions Photography out of Austin took these amazing family photos of our crazy family running in all different directions! She had her twin boys when she and hubby Rick lived in The Woodlands and I always thought- wow, there is no way I could never do that. I learned I can do that and handle one more baby and an older boy running around.
I remember Greg and I learned how to give a baby a bath by watching and helping them give their boys a bath. They were the first babies we had held when I was pregnant with Caden. Funny how life works out and never would have imagined me with four kids and Tanya with baby 5 on the way. These pics will only be online until Nov. 11 (I think), so enjoy while you can.

http://cozyimpressionsphotography.com/Mathews/

Action Packed Halloween Weekend!

This weekend for Halloween, Caden had three costumes. Our friends The Marsh's and friend Ling hosted a fun Halloween party out at their new property, so Caden wanted to be a skeleton mummy. For his soccer game, they asked the kids to wear a superhero costume under their jersey so Caden work Spiderman. That afternoon he went to a Halloween birthday party and work his knight costume.

Emery went as Snow White, Addison was Cinderella, and Harper was Ariel. About ten minutes before the Halloween party I told Greg he should wear his pirate costume. So we looked everywhere and finally found it in a box of sweaters up high in the closet. We found my pirate costume too, so I figured I would get into the spirit too.
Caden had his last soccer game and soccer trophy ceremony and party. The season went by so fast that we are thinking of signing Caden up for Spring soccer too. We went to two of Caden's classmates birthday parties and then had cake at our house for Fran/Gran before they left for Las Vegas.
We are partied out for now... resting up for Caden's 5th birthday in two weeks!

Update and Grand Cayman Video - October 2008

I know it has been since April since I've posted anything. We have been busy and these past couple of months have been full of roller coaster moments! We moved to a brand new house in September and less than a week later our new home was damaged by Hurricane Ike. A week after the hurricane, we went to Disney World (for the second time this year) for a week and had a BLAST! The day before we were to leave we got the sad news that my step-grandfather Charlie passed away. My dad decided not to go with us and he went to Tulsa to be with my grandma. My mom went with us to Disney and we couldn't have gone without her help. I am so thankful she was there to share those special memories with us and we missed my dad not being able to go this time. When we got home from our Disney trip we found out Greg's college roomate Jordan and his wife Kari lost their son Drew to a complicated illness. Our hearts are still full of sorrow for their loss, as we had just seen them in April on our other Disney vacation with them and their sweetest easy going baby boy Drew. If you read this....We love you Jordan, Kari and Peyton. I cannot imagine losing a child and we ask God to bring peace and comfort to your family.
After a week trying to get our home put back together again and unpacking suitcases, it was time to pack for another vacation a week later to Grand Cayman with Greg's parents! Grand Cayman is our FAVORITE beach. We've been several times, and this was Caden's third trip and the girl's got their first stamp in their passport. The girls and Caden LOVED the beach and loved the buckets and shovels I brought for them. Emery kept trying to eat the sand, but by the fourth day, I think she stopped. She showed no fear of the ocean and would walk right in and had no idea that it got deeper so we had to really keep close to her. Harper wanted me to hold her in the ocean or sit in my lap on the beach and was a momma's girl this week. Addison loved playing in the water on the floating ring hammocks with Daddy. She cried when she would have to get out. Caden went on his first snorkeling adventure and we went on the coolest spacey looking glass bottom boat. That was so amazing. Greg and I were treated like royalty at our couples massage and we went to the best atmosphere restaurant on the island, The Grand Old House, right over the water at sunset. We had a wonderful week there and look forward to going back as soon as possible.

Here is our most recent vacation photos in Grand Cayman I put together on One True Media.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Peter Pan vs. Captian Hook

Caden has been interested in Peter Pan and Captain Hook and all the sword fighting for a long time now. When he was two (almost three) he was Peter Pan for Halloween and last year he was Captain Hook. Caden and Greg were playing Captain Hook and Peter Pan sword fighting this morning. Here is how the conversation went:

Sword fighting...
Caden: Daddy, close your eyes
Greg: I'm not buying that Captain Hook!
Caden: No, I am Peter Pan, You are Captain Hook!
Greg: Well, you close your eyes then Peter Pan!
Caden: I'm not selling that!

Here is another favorite saying that Caden came up with while sword fighting about a year ago. Greg and I still use this one because it cracks us up.
Greg: You're going down Captain Hook!
Caden: You're going up Peter Pan!

We just got back from Disney World and he was so excited to see Captain Hook and Mr. Smee and get his picture with them. Caden had his sword with him and Captain Hook took it and stabed Me. Smee in the stomach. Caden thought that was very cool.

Germ Fest

We went to the mall play area with the girls and Caden for the first time this week. Caden has been a lot, but I've been extra cautious with the girls since it has been RSV season. Now that the cold/flu season is pretty much over, I thought it would be fun to venture out with them a bit more because they are getting bored at home. The play area "the tree" is a germ fest for sure with all the kids running around. The girls weren't sure what to do at first when we placed them in the middle of this pretend rubber plastic world and sat there for a second with a look of uncertanity. After about a minute, they loved every second climbing all over the pretend flowers, crawling through the logs, trying to make it without being stepped on by bigger kids. We went with their friend Jake who is about 6 weeks older. He is walking, so he more mobile than the girls.
Emery so far has taken the most steps on her own and seems to like walking on the playroom carpet more than downstairs tile. Addison and Harper are close, but not quite ready to walk yet.

Listen To Your Heart

Caden and I were having a "Mommy and Caden Day" and we had gone to Incredible Pizza to play games and eat lunch. I thought this would be a fun thing to cheer him up since he had the soft cast on his hand. After two hours of fun with friends, we were on the way home and I wanted to look for some shoes really quick. I asked Caden if he minded if we stopped at the shoe store for 5 or 10 minutes. He said, "well, if my heart tells me it is okay". I smiled and asked if his heart said it was okay to go to the shoe store. He smiled and said, "My heart is telling me it is boring".

Medical Drama

Well- we had our own medical drama this afternoon and visited the ER. Caden got his fingers stuck in the boat door to the engine. Greg and his dad were going to replace some fuses and were shutting the engine door so Caden could get on the boat. He did the silent cry for a couple of seconds, then cried as we made our way inside the house then decided to go to the First Choice Emergency Room in The Woodlands. He cried all the way there about 45 min. from the lakehouse. I was crying too and really trying not to but couldn't help thinking of my little boy's perfect little hand getting all smashed up and him in so much pain. I didn't even finish filling out paperwork and Caden was seen immediately. He got x-rays and nothing is broken (thank you Lord) and it is just REALLY swollen and the skin is scraped up pretty bad and cut up but he didn't stitches. They put a soft cast with the splint and ace bandage around it and told us it could. They said if he is still complaining about it really hurting in the next couple of days then to take him to orthapedist to check out his growth plate. They said x-rays don't show everything since he is so little. Caden is proud of his "cast" kind of like his cousin Bailey and could hardly wait to tell him about it. Caden told the ER doctor that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up. The doctor was wonderful with him and all the nurses were so kid friendly and gentle. We told them we would probably be back sometime in the future since we have triplets at home. We pray healing for our sweet Caden and petition prayers for his hand to get back to being strong.

Lights, Camera, Action!

Today Addison, Emery and Harper shot their first local TV commercial. It is also going to be shown in movie theaters before the movie starts, so they will be TV and movie stars. We will definately have to go to the mega stadium no matter what is showing so we can see our girls on the big screen. I have been a bit nervous because I wasn't sure how it was going to go since they all had ear infections last week, but they were their normal selves. It was good because if they got a little fussy, they said that is okay because we want a little of that too. They were in it with a set of four-year-old twin girls. I already knew their mom from my multiples group. They let us take several breaks so they could check the footage and the the babies could be held awhile or get a snack. It was much more easy going than I expected. The marketing group will mail us a dvd and email us a copy when it is edited and ready so we can share with our family and friends. Start popping the popcorn...

Addison Speaks

Addison has been listening to her sister's talking and decided to officially voice her thoughts today. I thought Addison's first word would be mama since she has been sounding out her "mmmm" for awhile now. She seems to have listened to Emery and her first official word is Uh Oh. I hope that isn't a sign of things to come! It must be a family thing, because while Danny and Wendi were here, all I heard our nephew Avery saying was Uh Oh over and over.

Lunch

Greg's parents and his brother Danny's family are in the Bahama's this week on vacation. Poor Bailey who is five-years-old has a cast on his arm, so won't be able to swim or play in the sand too much.

I asked Caden where he wanted to go to lunch with our friends. He said, "Let's go to the Bahamas for lunch." I suppose that would be fun, but I don't think that could be arranged today.

These Feet are Made for Walkin'

This morning Emery took her first steps to Greg! He said he just had a feeling she would (just like Caden's first steps), so he got on the floor with her and had her hold the table then let go and she took two steps by herself. I got out the camera to video it, but the next few times she tried didn't go so well. Then Addison was crawling in my lap (they always do this when I am holding the camera) and right when Emery took steps again, Addison's hand went over the lens so you can't see it. We just laughed knowing this was so typical!
I think it was so special that both of us were there for Caden's first steps and for Emery's first steps. Hopefully we will both be able to be there for Addison and Harper's first steps.

Happy First Birthday Girls!

The girls are one years old now and this has been a WILD year! Their birthday party was very fun and we had Kindermusik come out and entertain all the babies. Their cake had three lollipops on the top with their first initial. Emery seemed to dig into her cake the most and won the messy award. Addison was her delicate self and took her time, but seemed to enjoy eating cake for the first time. Harper acted like she ate cake everyday and ate it just as she would eat Cheerios.

Addison- 18 pounds and is in the 10% for weight, 27 1/2 inches tall, not officially saying any words yet but makes the m sound like ma ma, loves to shake her head no, she plays peek a boo with her blanket, she crawls up stairs and pulls up on tables, waves bye bye, has two bottom teeth, and loves bath time especially with Caden.

Emery - 19 pounds and is in the 10-25% for weight, 26 1/2 inches tall, head is 17 inches around,

says da da, ma ma, uh uh when something drops on the floor (instead of uh oh), She took her time liking whole milk in a sippie cup, but after two weeks has no problem at all. She loves cheese, can walk easily around the coffee table holding the table and has stood by herself for 20 seconds but isn't ready to walk yet. She loves to be chased, crawls very fast and can crawl up stairs, steals Harper's pacifier for fun but doesn't really suck on it, smiles easily with her two bottom teeth.

Harper - 21 pounds and is in 50% for weight, 28 1/2 inches tall, head is 16 3/4 inches around, says ma ma, bye bye, duck, da da, dog/doggie, waves bye bye, likes to use her new walker and is confident walking around holding the table or sofa, still the only one of our girls who takes a pacifier (at bedtime), crawls up stairs, always the first one to dance to music when it come on.

I am so proud of all three of my girls and how far they have come in one year. We are so blessed with three beautiful daughters and amazing son Caden!

We Love Birthdays

I had just put the girls down for a nap and was trying to keep Caden busy since it was so rainy outside. Play-doh is a great indoor activity and wonderful for developing his creative side. I have Caden use educational plastic placemats for craft time so it doesn't get on the table or carpet. He happened to get the placemat with the world map today. I was in the other room and I heard Caden singing the happy birthday song. I didn't think much of it because the triplets birthday is tomorrow and we had been singing that song all week. Then I heard him sing, "Happy birthday dear India, cha cha cha, happy birthday to you... cha cha cha". Yes... the country India on the map! He had made a birthday cake out of Play-doh and was using a toothpick for the candle. We love to celebrate holidays and birthdays in our family, so I guess I need to add the country India to our list.

Got Milk? A lot of milk?

Now that the girls are on whole milk, my grocery cart has been full of six gallons of milk per week just for the kids! Caden LOVES MILK and so I buy him two gallons a week and buy the girls four gallons a milk a week.

On Sunday we had the girls' baby dedication at church. My parent's and Greg's parents and Nana attended to make the event extra special. We were surprised with the huge cake at the reception in the atrium. We were so busy holding babies, I think Caden was the only one in our family that ate any cake. While we were on stage none of the girls wanted to keep their bow headbands on and kept pulling them off. I was so glad I brought a burb cloth with me because Addison spit up on the stage floor right during the presentation. Greg held Addison and Emery while I held Harper. We went out to a nice brunch after church and the girls were so happy to sit in their high chairs at the big table.

Wednesday night was our Survivor Life Group Party for the girls. We celebrated that we survived the triplets first year. Everyone brought something to share to eat and we had a double layer cookie cake that was yummy. The girls didn't get to enjoy the party for long, because they needed to get baths and get to bed by 8pm. They didn't eat any cookie cake because they are waiting for their birthday party on Saturday.

Last week, Caden started a tumbles class and really enjoyed getting out some extra energy. This class is different than when he did it before because now that he is older, the parent's can sit and watch the class or they can leave them and come back to pick up after class. I had so much fun watching Caden and they played so many fun games. He listened very well to the teacher for being his first class. There was another little girl that was distracted and she tried to influence Caden into running off during the class time, and I could see the little angel and devil on his shoulders. Do I obey the teacher and do the activity with the other kids, or do I run off and play with this little girl? He listened to the angel. Good for him!

Having Four Kids is a Snap

On Monday, the girls had their RSV synagis/shots. Greg's mom and his great aunt Dorothy were about to go to Orlando, but they were so kind to help me at the dr. office before going to the airport. I had all four kids with me to get to the dr. dressed and ready to go before 8:30am, so this was a big help once I got there. Greg helped feed them breakfast and dressed before he went to work. To comfort one baby after shots is difficult enough, so three babies crying after shots is impossible by myself.

I decided on the "cold turkey" method of transitioning formula to milk after talking to the nurse at the pediatrician office. I also decided to do it all at once and get it over with as far as going from formula in bottles to whole milk in sippie cups. Emery is still deciding if it is worth the effort of holding her own sippie cup and isn't thrilled with the taste of whole milk. Harper was kicking her feet with joy, she was so happy to have a new sippie cup with new milk. Addison loves the new change. The girls aren't finishing their milk in sippie cups like they usually did with formula, but it takes awhile to adjust their tummies.

Valentine's Day was greeted with Addison having a low grade fever (maybe due to teething) not wanting to sleep in her bed from 12 am. Greg and I took turns with her, so we could hardly function yesterday, but we pushed through our Valentine's Day and met eachother for relaxing lunch at Olive Garden with no kids. Greg brought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers and that was a nice surprise. He had given me a scarf and although it was 71 degrees, I wore the scarf around my neck and felt the extra warmth because it was something he had picked out for me.

After lunch and running errands, I picked up Caden at ABC-123 Club, and he was so excited because he learned to snap with his fingers. He wanted to call Daddy to tell him and he held my cell phone up to his fingers so he could snap. We were all very excited since it is just one of those things that once you learn how to do, you can do it forever.

For Valentine's evening, I had booked us a couple's massage and had our nanny Beatriz watch the kids. I had given Caden a bath and put him in pajamas at 5:30. He was really wondering why he had to wear pj's since it wasn't dark yet. He didn't take a nap yesterday, so I knew he would be tired and didn't want to worry about him falliing asleep in his play cothes. All the kids were still awake when we got home, so we enjoyed playing with the girls and Caden. I was holding up a duck to Harper and was reminising and telling Beatriz that Caden's first word after mama and dada was duck. Right then, Harper said "duck" as plain as ever. I could hardly believe it and asked her to say it again, and she did so I told Greg to come upstairs and he got the camera and got it on video. It is interesting because we have noticed that Harper and Caden seem to have this special connection and now it is extra special since they share the same first word!

I suspect Addison might be getting an ear infection because she didn't sleep Wed. night and this morning she has been very fussy if I set her on the floor to play. She only wants to be held, but won't let me hold her sitting on the floor. She wants me to stand up all day with her in my arms. At least she is the lightest in weight, but it is still hard to get all I need to get done. I just made her a dr. appointment because I want the dr. to check her ears for infection before the weekend.

Too early for popsicles?

One of our favorite movies is Groundhog Day. There is a part where they are driving crazy late at night in a car (living like it is their last day) and Bill Murry's character gets pulled over by the police. He pretends the cop is taking their order and asks "too early for flapjacks?" Caden had asked for a popsicle for a snack this morning and I was wondering if it was too early in the season for popsicles. I guess I always thought it was especially reserved for summer until I came to Houston. It is a warm day, so Caden is eating a popsicle right now and it is February. So, I determined it is never too early for popsicles.

I love our unpredictable weather and this season of Houston winter. Do I need a winter coat, umbrella, shorts? When I was dating Greg in the summer, his family has asked if I wanted any hot chocolate. I had never heard of drinking hot chocolate in the summer, but why not, especially if it is a reason to eat mini marshmallows? Yesterday we had 70 degree weather and then we had a huge thunder and lightning storm with hail. It doesn't hail that often at our house, so Caden was very excited and loved the lightning and was running all around the house to look out the different windows to get the best view.

Yard Makeover

We decided it was time to get our yard cleaned up after not raking leaves all fall. Our yard people come and just blow the leaves in the flowerbeds and don't take them away, so it was really overdue. We had a lot of dead bushes and overgrown limbs and plants that just needed taken out and replaced with new plants. We are going to add more grass in our backyard in March.

After the mulch was put in the flowerbeds, Caden walked in the door after being outside and said, "woo-wee, that is stinky dirt." I guess we all forget how stinky that is at first. He loved the yard makeover and thought the flowers were so pretty. I told him the dirt was called mulch and he said, "flowers just LOVE that stinky stuff." I said, "Oh, really... how did you know that?" and Caden said, "Daddy told me."

38 Years

Today is my parent's 38th wedding anniversary. They were married in 1970. They have stayed together this long with two kids and they said they never imagined they would have eight grandkids. Life is just full of surprises. It is especially interesting that they met in the student center at Oklahoma Christian College (now University) while they were playing pool. My dad said he was eating black cherry ice cream (I think that is right). Greg and I also met in the student center at Harding University at the bowling alley (it was a summer registration scheduled event.... we aren't really that into bowling).

We are approaching our ten year anniversary this summer. I thought ten sounded like a lot until I talked to my mom about their 38th anniversary... now that is a lot of miles of traveling life together!!! Greg and I dated three years before we were married so that counts for something too... so we've been together almost 13 years! We have always said we would go to Europe for our tenth, but at this time in our babies lives, we will probably have to put that dream on hold. Some dreams are worth putting on hold!

Ready or Not, Here I Come!

Caden's favorite game is hide and seek! We've been playing this for about a year now and it just keeps getting better. He is so good about being still and quiet in his hiding place. We even had to make up a new rule that if we can't find eachother after a couple of minutes then we will ask if the hider can "beep" to help the seeker.

When I dropped off Caden at preschool yesterday, the teacher told Caden the class was going to play the game duck, duck, goose. Caden immediately asked if they could play hide and seek. The teacher sweetly said she was sorry because hide and seek wouldn't really work well in their small classroom.

One time we were playing hide and seek and Greg was hiding and Caden was seeking. Our dog Oakley was walking by and and Caden went up to Oakley and asked her (in a very high pitch voice) "Oakley, did you eat Daddy?" It was so funny the game was over!

I Believe I Can Fly

Ahhhh... the thoughts of a four-year-old. Caden asked me to help him over the baby gate. After he was on the other side he said, "I wish I had wings so that I could just fly over the gate. And then you would say "I can't believe you are flying."

Addison and Harper both love to fly in the air. They really laugh when Greg tosses them high in the air and catches them. We learned Emery is not the dare-devil and does not love being tossed in the air.

I asked Caden some favorite questions today. Here is what he said.
Favorite color - green
Favorite food - watermelon
Favorite drink - milk and Gatorade too
Favorite tv show - Little Einsteins
Favorite movie- Shark Boy and Lava Girl

Ma Ma

Addison is still waiting to talk. She loves to nod her head "no".... and will mimic us when we nod our head no too. We have fun asking her questions for her to say no to. "Addison, are you going to ever break your cerfew? Addison, are you going to smoke, drink, do drugs or date bad boys?" It is pretty funny!

I walked in the kitchen and Harper looked at me and waved and said for the first time "ma ma".... and right then my heart melted! I couldn't wait to hear it again, so I picked her up and kissed her and said "ma ma" and waited.... then she said "ma ma, ma ma" so I knew it was really her saying it.
After Emery has been saying da da for weeks now, it was music to my ears to hear one of our girls say, mama for the first time

Last week, Emery stood without holding anything on her cute two feet for 10 seconds. She loves to hold on to our round coffee table and this morning she went all the way around. We have to be careful about leaving our drinks on the table or anything else. One of Greg's co-workers said they trained their baby to walk by putting Cheerios all around the edge of their circle coffee table then would put a Cheerio on the sofa so they would learn to go from the table to the sofa. It kinda reminds me a ET with the Reeces Pieces!

I am laughing because at this moment, Caden is yelling "Mommy is prettier than mermaids." Well... I will take any compliment from my kids with pure happiness!

Caden Had A Lightbulb Moment

Greg keeps funny voice messages with Caden singing or saying the pledge etc. on his cell phone and this morning we were listening to an old voice message I left for him around Christmas and I had to remember to blog it before I forgot.

Caden was walking in my bathroom and fell on the tile floor. Of course I was worried and I said "Caden, are you okay? You slipped."
Caden said, "Hey, Jesus slipped in a manger."
Trying not to laugh, I said, "Oh- actually Jesus SLEPT in a manger. He went to sleep in the manger. He didn't slip."
Caden had a HUGE smile on his face, and I could actually see the lightbulb go off in his head, he said, "OOOOOOHHHHH."

Getting Involved

When Caden was a baby, I was in a MOPS group (Mothers of Preschoolers) and it was really fun to get out of the house for adult conversation and meet with other moms and get good advice and share stories about our kids. I stopped going when we temporarily moved to Steamboat, Colorado for a couple of months. One of the moms in my WMOM group is president of a MOPS group and I heard they had an opening to join. I just signed up for the spring session of MOPS am excited about getting involved again.

I have been attending the WMOM (Woodlands Mothers of Multiples) group meetings for a little over a year now. I am on the egroup for Space City Triplets, but only have been to one meeting since they meet deep in the heart of Houston at Womens Hospital. These groups have given invaluavable advice to get us through the triplets pregnancy and first year. One of the girls in the group even mailed me boxes of girl clothes since she had three girls too.

Our church is having a Womens Ministry Dinner tonight so you have the opportunity to decide what ministries you would like to be involved in for the year. I am trying not to overcommit myself, but at the same time contribute to what I feel God is calling me to do. Right now I am not really in charge of anything since our lives are a bit full with the babies.

Hot Diggity Dog!

I love my dog. I hate the dog hair in my house. The shedding hair from our black lab Oakley has been driving me pretty much insane keeping it off of everything. It is impossible to keep it from getting all over the girls clothes since they are crawling all over the tile and Oakley is an inside dog.
Our friend's Rick and Tanya have an cute yellow lab Maggie and got her shaved to lessen the dog hair in their house. I finally decided enough was enough and on Monday I took Oakley to the groomer for her $70 haircut. I think I pay around $40 for my haircut, so I was a bit shocked when they told me the price. I have to say it was well worth the price! Our house has so much less dog hair this week. Oakley is a hot dog with her new hair-do!

Speaking of hot dogs... I have only offered Caden a hot dog on a few occassions (like birthday parties, picnics, etc.) and he has turned his nose up to them and wanted a different choice like a hamburger. Today we went to Pump it Up (inflatable play place) with my friend Amy and her daughter Abby then after went to James Coney Island because it was across the street. I wasn't really sure if Caden would eat a hot dog, but I wanted to give it a try. Amy was saying that Abby REALLY LOVES hot dogs and she would probably eat one every day if she let her. Well, we get up to the counter to order and Caden says to the lady "I'd like a hot dog and my friend Abby would like a hot dog too". It was very sweet. Caden ate half his hot dog and he and Abby ran around and chased and bonked eachother on the head with these blow up tubes with hands on the end- one of the strangest kid's meal prizes I've seen.

Babble, Babble, Babble.... Party Girls on the Go!

This morning Harper woke up saying "ba, ba, ba".... Her first official babbles. Every time I would try to get Harper to say "mama" she would open her mouth and pop her lips together but no sound would come out. It was SO CUTE! Now she is so happy to say "ba, ba, ba..." over and over. Emery has been babbling saying "da, da, da" for weeks now, but Addison is waiting to do her own sound apparently. She makes the "mmmmm" sound, but I can't really say that is saying mama. Addison LOVES to wave, so she is super friendly.

With three girls, our lives will be FULL of chatter, giggling and pink glitter sooner than we can imagine. I went into a new store in Market Street that was full of pink everything, glitter and feathers. It is a spa for little girls called Sweet and Sassy. They even have a pink limo that says "Party Girls on the Go" that will pick you and your friends up and take you to the spa. I suppose I should get that printed on the side of our Lincoln Navigator... not sure how Caden would feel about that!

The Lake House

The weather was so warm for January and Greg was getting anxious to get out on the boat so we just decided to go to the lake house before we got too busy. I spread a blanket out in the back yard and enjoyed watching the girls climb all over Greg while he was trying to relax. Harper seemed the most interested in the grass and leaves. Emery is becoming a really fast crawler. She was crawling toward the bathroom and she saw me coming and laughed and started crawling really fast like I was chasing her. Harper and Addison tag teamed Caden and trapped him in a corner as he was riding his big wheel. Caden was laughing so hard!

The girls are getting so big and it is amazing to watch Caden really playing with his sisters. I often imagine what it will be like when they are a little older and hope that they will learn kindness and respect eachother.

What's for Lunch?

Caden is coming up with some creative meals. For lunch today Caden asked if he could have a goldfish cracker sandwich. I said yes, but he had to have ham or peanut butter in the sandwich too. So, for the first time I made a peanut butter and goldfisth cracker sandwich on white-wheat bread. A few months ago, Caden had decided he didn't want jelly on his PB&J sandwich anymore so I have been making just peanut butter sandwiches. (I really didn't want to give in on that one, but I just wanted to make sure he would eat his lunch at school). At least he is changing it up a bit! Like father like son.... Greg likes crunched up potato chips on his sauce only pizza.

For a snack he wanted a carrot and a pop tart. He is probably the only kid in America who doesn't eat the middle part of the pop tart (with the icing and sprinkles) and only eats the breaded edges.

Once the girls hit 9 months, a whole new world of eating opened up. They started eating Cheerio's and can eat biter bisquits and meats. Since they don't really have teeth to chew, they can't eat as much as most 10 month olds I imagine. As far as the girls eating habits go, the only food none of them like the chicken lasagne or the oatmeal with cinnamon and apples. I figured it must be the cinnamon they didn't like since they eat oatmeal and applesauce without any problems. Harper and Addison will pretty much eat anything. Emery is the most cautious eater and has to think about a new food before taking another bite. Emery always tries to grab the bowl while you are feeding her and if you leave the bowl for a second on her tray, it ends up spilling everywhere. This has happend at least twice with me feeding her and I had to change her outfit. She is so fast! They love holding the spoon and would try to feed themeselves and make a huge mess if I let them.

What are the girls getting into now?

Here is an update on the girls and some things I wanted to record.

Crawling (belly off the floor)- Emery was the first to crawl down the hallway on Dec. 5. Harper followed exactly one week later on Dec. 12. Addison decided she liked rolling across the room since it took her longer to figure that out, but she figured out the joys of crawling Dec. 28 (on my dad's birthday). They don't like their exersaucers as much any more since it restricts their freedom to crawl around the house. It was strange when I was in the kitchen today and I assumed Oakley (our dog) was next to me and it was Harper coming to say hello.

Teeth - Difficult to record exact date since they slowly arrive. As of today Jan. 4, Harper is showing her bottom two teeth and Emery is showing one right bottom tooth. I remember Caden getting his first two teeth at the same time just like Harper. Addison isn't showing any teeth yet.

Babyproofing - We had to order a special baby gate for the bottom of our stairs and it hasn't gotten here yet. This week, all three girls learned to climb the first couple of stairs. I spent a couple of hours going through all of Caden's toys ard re-organizing the playroom to get all the tiny pieces moved out of the room. I am constantly watching the floors and coffee table to make sure the babies won't put little things in their mouths. They like to try to re-program the remote control for the tv.

RSV Synagis - Once a month the girls get RSV synagis (shots). They retail in price for around $2400 for each girl, each month... whew! Their first synagis was in September, so they had their fourth one Jan. 2. It is recommended that preemie babies get this to protect them from getting RSV. On Wedensday they got weighed before their shots since the amount of medicine is based on weight. Addison weighed 17lbs. 5 oz. Emery weighed 18 lbs. 9 oz., and Harper weighed 20 lbs. 12 oz.

How do you get to Heaven?

Since we are busy getting the babies fed and to bed, Greg and I take turns putting Caden to bed and last night was Greg's turn. This is the story Greg told me this morning. As they were getting ready to say prayers, this is how the conversation went:

Caden: How do you get to heaven?
Greg: After you die, then you can go to heaven.
....long pause....
Caden: If you die then you can't drive, and if you can't drive to heaven, how do you get there?
Greg: God picks you up and carries you.
Caden: God can bring people back from the dead because He can do everything.
Greg: Yes that is right, God can do everything.
Caden: I can't do everything, but I did bring that dragonfly back from the dead.

Caden had saved a dragonfly out of the pool and he flew away. Caden thought he had brought it back from the dead. Greg had to explain how the dragonfly really wasn't dead, but it was almost dead and only God could bring it back to life. Caden still thinks he was dead and that he saved him. I suppose God uses doctors everyday to save people and I guess yesterday He used Caden to save a dragonfly.