July 2007

We can hardly believe it is mid-summer with July 4th right around the corner. We took the boat out Sunday and Caden rode on our new big tube with Mommy, then wanted a turn with Daddy and then wanted another turn with Uncle Steve. We think he would have stayed on it all day if we let him, but we needed to get back home to Aida who helps us watch the girls.
The big 4 month doctor check-up was today. They were given the okay to go on normal baby formula and not the preemie Enfacare since they are growing so well. We had expected to be on that formula for 6 months so this is great news. The doctor also told us we could start rice cereal in the evening two weeks after we give the girls the new formula. Roll out the high chairs! Yikes... that will be messy fun. Dr. Chandler doesn't want us to start stage 1 baby food until after their 6 month visit in August. Here are the official stats:
Addison is the smallest at 11lb. 2 oz and is in 5% for weight, She is 21 3/4 inches tall and in the 3% for height. She has had the most apnea and bradycardia alarms and needs to go until Aug. 18 without any episodes for her to come off her monitor. That seems like forever but hopefully time will fly by quickly.
Emery is 11lb. 12 oz and is in 10-20% for weight, she is the tallest at 22 1/2 inches tall and in the 3-5% for height. She has to go until July 18 without any episodes to come off her monitor.
Harper started out as the smallest and is now the biggest at 13lb. 2 oz. and is in the 25-50% for weight. She is 22 1/4 inches tall and in the 3% for height. She was given the green light and can be taken off her monitor! YEAH- one down two to go... we can hardly believe it.
We are feeling a mixture of emotions because these monitors are such a blessing and curse --- usually a curse as we trip over the cords and the alarms go off and we try not to curse! It seems like we always do this when the girls are crying and we are in a hurry to feed them and the loud alarms are going off--- just a little chaos from time to time.
They also had their shots today so they enjoyed a long nap... when do we get a nap?

Summer is Here- June 2007

Summer is here and Caden is becoming quite the swimmer. We try to let him swim at his Gran and Pop's pool a few times a week and he loves it. Caden started summer preschool at Stonebridge Church and he likes his teacher Miss Heather. They have a big castle in his room and he thinks that is fun.
The girls are still on their apnea monitors. It has been awhile since their last episode, so hopefully their pediatrician will let them get off the monitors soon. We'll know more at their four month appointment at the end of June. Harper is getting so big compared to Addison and Emery. We think Harper looks so different from the other two girls and she is the first to show her independence by rolling over. On May 31, Harper rolled from her tummy to back for the first time. She seems to be the strongest. They are all melting our hearts by smiling more often. They still haven't discovered their hands yet.
We celebrated our 9th anniversary June 6 and got last minute tickets to see our favorite comedian Jerry Seinfeld then went for some dessert with our friends Mike and Bryana at Hard Rock Cafe downtown. It was nice to have an evening out without children. On our anniversary, we bought Greg's dream boat. Greg is calling it our fifth child. We are trying to come up with a name for the boat... "Life after Triplets" or something funny.

Separate Beds

The title above does not refer to Mommy and Daddy even though having three babies in the house is sometimes stressful. Instead, we have moved the girls into their own cribs. We began to notice last week that the baby that was still in the crib when the other two were being fed was pretty content and appeared to be stretching out. So we tried putting each girl in their own crib. The transition was pretty easy.
The girls are almost 14 weeks old and are getting bigger. We are constantly asked how much they weigh now, but we haven't been to the doctor since their 8 week check-up and won't return to the doctor until their 16 week check-up.
Mommy, Daddy, Caden, Addison, Emery and Harper have made several excursions outside the house now. We have eaten with their Gran and Pop at the Carlton Woods country club three times (once for Easter, once for Mother's Day and once for dinner). We also went to our friends' house (the Meredith's) for dinner.
About two or three weeks ago, the girls started making eye contact with us and this week, the girls started to charm Mommy and Daddy with their smiles. It is a lot of fun to hold the girls and see a toothless-smile being shared with us.
Our efforts lately have been to try and get the girls to sleep as long as possible at night. Addison seems to be our best sleeper as she consistently sleeps over 6 1/2 hours each night and has slept over 8 hours a couple of times. Emery is doing great too. She also sleeps over 6 hours most nights and has reached 7 1/2 a couple of times. Harper has been too interested in eating to worry about sleeping a long time. It appears that she has hit a growth spurt as she now looks bigger than the other two (not combined, just bigger than each of her sisters). She routinely sleeps 4 hours at night but sometimes sleeps 5 or 6 hours in the morning. So, maybe her internal clock is a few hours off.
While their sleeping times above might suggest that the nights are uneventful, please remember that there are still three babies and that their schedules have not been synchronized just yet. This means that a baby is still being changed, fed, or burped most hours of the night. Mommy and Daddy are very thankful for our night help that ensures we are still able to sleep in one bed.

Triplets 2 months old

On Tuesday, April 17, the girls had their follow-up appointment to the neonatal optomologist to ensure that their eyes were developing normally. While all three girls passed, the experience was not a pleasant one to witness.
On Thursday, April 19, the girls had their two month old appointment at their pediatrician. We were very interested to learn their weights since Mommy and Daddy were used to receiving daily updates on their weights when the girls were in the NICU. Addison weighted in at 6 lb. 8 oz, Emery at 6 lb. 14 oz and Harper at 6 lb. 10 oz. What a surprse! We were expecting the girls to be right around 6 lbs.
Up through today, the girls had to be fed every three hours. The doctor now cleared the girls to start sleeping as long as possible between feedings at night. This will be an interesting transition as we will have to wake up the other two once the first one awakes.
Reinforcements arrived on Monday, April 16 as Misty's aunt Sandra (Nina) came in to assist us during the week. She came at a great time as she helped with both of the girls' appointments. Caden had a lot of fun with Nina and kept asking about Dude (Misty's Uncle Albin). She knows that she is welcome back anytime.
Also, Misty's Grandma Billie arrived on Wednesday and helped us with the girl's second doctor's appointment. Caden enjoyed playing catch with Great-Grandma and showed off his singing by performing a few of his favorite songs.

Home Sweet Home

The girls came home April 1, so they have been home a little more than a week now and we feel so blessed to be home as a family. The girls are all on apnea monitors, so we are dealing with all the cords and loud alarms. We have to pick them up in one arm and carry their monitor on the other shoulder like a purse, so it can be a little tricky.
Caden keeps saying he is so glad his sisters are home. He is a great big brother and is very gentle with them. His playroom is being taken over with baby swings and bouncy seats, so he probably isn't too happy that he now has to be more careful in the playroom. He is such a good helper and we are very proud of him.
April 3, the girls had their first big outing to the pediatrician's office. Dr. Chandler was very pleased the girls looked so healthy and she is treating them as regular newborns rather than preemies. Addison weighed 4 lbs. 15 oz., Emery was 5 lbs. 5 oz. and Harper was 5 lbs. 2 oz. Mommy packed the diaper bag with six diapers and used all of them at that appointment!
The main question we get asked is if we have family or friends to help us. Greg's parents, Richard and Fran (Gran and Pop) only live about a mile away from our house and help play with Caden and now come over to help with the bottle feedings whenever we need an extra hand. Misty's mom (Grandma) lives in Rockwall outside Dallas, so she came for the babies first week home and played with Caden. We hired two great nurses from the hospital to help us at nights so we can try to keep our sanity during the day and rest at night! The nurse on duty comes around 10:45 pm and stays until 6:45am. Michelle has experience with triplet girls as a night nurse and is a baby/mom nurse at the hospital and also teaches classes. Ryan is our other nurse and he helped take care of our girls in the NICU. So far, it is working out great.
We've had lots of family visit this week. Greg's brother Steve came from Denver for Easter weekend to meet his new nieces and introduce us to his girlfriend Meredith from Kansas City. Greg's other brother Danny, wife Wendi and their three boys Taylor, Bailey and Avery came from Virginia and are here all week. Caden has had so much fun playing with his cousins. It won't be long before there will be three little girls running after all their boy cousins and big brother.

Triplets Fifth Week in NICU (March 24-30)

On Sunday, March 25 Harper finally hit the 4 lb. mark, Addison was 4 lb. 3 oz, and Emery was 4 lb. 9 oz.
This seems to be FINAL EXAM WEEK for the girls. Sunday Mommy and Daddy watched the car seat safety video, Monday the girls had their eye exam which was normal but needs to be re-checked in one week, Tuesday they had their hearing test which they passed and received a certificate. Wednesday they passed the big car seat challenge where the girls had to be in their car seats for one hour without their monitors going off. Friday was training day for the monitors. This week Addison and Emery both had apena or brady episodes, so they will have to come home on monitors. Harper needs to make it to Sunday without any episodes to come home without a monitor. We had been praying that all three girls wouldn't need monitors. The more we have thought about it, we feel like this may be God's way of helping save their lives and He is providing the medical technology that will help them and us one day. It looks like two and possibly all three will need monitors for at least six weeks and this may depend on our pediatrician's decision too.
On Saturday night, Mommy, Daddy, Addison, Emery and Harper will stay in the care-by-parent room. It is a special hotel style room in the NICU for parents to do a trial run to see what it would be like at home. Hopefully we can bring home all of our girls home Sunday!
Addison, Emery and Harper... Welcome to the real world outside the hospital. May God's angels always surround you as you begin your journey. We pray we will have the strength to raise sweet and beautiful girls and not let you date until you are at least 21. Don't worry...big brother Caden will be watching out for you too!

Guestbook - Pregnancy Blog

We had so much fun telling people we were expecting triplets. The majority of people didn't sign our guesbook with comments, but just called or emailed their congratulations to our private email. The following are comments from the guestbook of my pregnancy blog and I wanted to transfer them to this current blog. One day I'll have to add in all the email comments too.

Amy Bewley
Fri, March 23, 2007
Was just checking in on your progress and I see you had the babies:-) Looking forward to seeing pictures of your beautiful girls!

Aisling GambleCalgary, Alberta
Mon, February 26, 2007
Congratulations on the birth of the girls. Just got the news from Carolyn Wesley. She sent pictures too. Gorgeous!!!!

Sandra SmithCLovis, NM
Fri, February 23, 2007
I just heard about the girls being born! Wow...I have tears of joy. God is sooooooo Good. God bless you all. Love, Sandra

Aisling GambleCalgary, Alberta
Thu, February 22, 2007
Hey guys!! Thought I'd check in and say hi. Misty, hope you are feeling well these days and taking it easy. This time 2 years ago, I was at home, doing nothing, just waiting for the big day.

Sharon BaconRockwall, Texas
Fri, February 2, 2007
Misty, Happy 30th Birthday!!! This is going to be a wonderful year for you! I am so proud of you! We love You!!! Love, mom & dad

Amy BewleyNLR, AR
Wed, January 17, 2007
We are so excited for you and I hope you are able to make it to 34 weeks. You all are in our prayers!

Clara Gillett
Tue, January 16, 2007
We are so happy that the girls are doing well. You are ALL on the prayer list for our Wednesday night ladies class. These women know how to pray. Love to all 6 of you, Aunt Clara and Uncle Bill PS Abbie Withouse (can't remember her last name) is expecting a boy(Charlie) in April. I will give her your e-mail. Vickie was really excited about the girls.

Anita JaegerRockwall, TX
Mon, January 15, 2007
They all look beautiful! Best wishes to you all and prayers for a joyful life for all of you together and strength and wisdom to help you through! What a blessing!!

Jennifer EnsorBrentwood, TN
Sun, January 14, 2007
I love the names you guys picked out. They are just beautiful. Can't wait to meet those girls.

Grandma Sharon BaconRockwall, Texas
Fri, January 12, 2007
I think you look just beautiful! Can't wait to hold all three of you!!! Love, Grandma

Aisling GambleCalgary, Alberta
Thu, January 4, 2007
Happy New Year guys...and what a year 2007 is going to be for you. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas.

Steve GambleCalgary, Alberta
Mon, January 1, 2007
Hi guys! Aisling told me about you guys expecting triplets a while back, and we met briefly when you were visiting Jordan Clark. Isn't it fun! Awesome you are having girls......perhaps our boys will meet your girls in the future at Harding? hmmmm, just a thought. Keep up the good work, and feel free to ask any questions you may have directly or via the boys blog site. http://gambletriplets.blogspot.com/

Matthew EnsorBrentwood, TN
Fri, December 29, 2006
Hey Guys...Just thought I'd drop in for an update...Sharon and John showed us some amazing pictures...Talk to you soon hopefully!

Troy & Carrie LakeyKansas City, MO
Tue, December 12, 2006
WOW!! Crazy! That's great news, guys; glad to hear it. Congratulations! We'll definitely be praying for you!

Aisling GambleCalgary, Alberta
Fri, December 1, 2006
So great to see the u/s pics and know that the girls are doing so well. Have a fantastic time at Disney World...it might be the last big trip you take for a while! LOL

Laura LightRolla, MO
Mon, November 20, 2006
Hey Misty and Greg! We're praying for you and those 3 special blessings every single morning. Let me tell you----Girls are Grand!!! (and only thing better than 3 girls is 4!) :-) I can't tell you how excited we all are around this house. We're praying for you too, Greg. And now that we know that they are all girls, we better say a few special prayers for Caden! Won't he be a proud brother! We love you guys! Kenny, Laura, Jenna, Clarissa, Rebecca and Meredith

Aisling GambleCalgary, Alberta
Mon, November 20, 2006
3 girls!! Congrats!! At least Greg already has Caden so he won't be totally outnumbered (I am the only female in our house - even when the dogs are included!! LOL). Think of you guys every day and praying that the pregnancy continues to go well. Have an Happy, Happy, Happy Thanksgiving, as I know you will.

Sharon BaconRockwall, Texas
Mon, November 20, 2006
Life is so full of surprises and that's what makes it fun! Caden is so cute pretending to hold his 3 little sisters and gathering up his little letter toys to give to them!!!

Ron, Wendi, Lainey, & Jackson SissonMemphis , TN
Sat, November 18, 2006
Congrats! How exciting! We are expecting baby #2 (a boy, Jackson), in March but I bet you will deliver before me! We will be praying for all 5 of you!

Jennifer EnsorBrentwood, TN
Fri, November 17, 2006
Wow! Three girls! Congratulations. Just like that you guys already passed Matthew and my two girls. You are going to have so much fun!! Good luck with the name game. Maybe we will see you at Christmas? Jen, Matthew, and Vail

Lorisa LittlejohnDallas, TX
Fri, November 17, 2006
YAYYYYYYYYY! I think God is complimenting you two- I can't think of another couple that would be better parents of three baby girls and a precious little boy. Love you and miss you.............I can't wait to meet them! Praying for you.....(P.S. have you considered Lorisa as one of the six names you'll have to choose? : )

Patrick & Amy BewleyNLR
Thu, November 16, 2006
Wow!! You two beat the odds!! All three girls will melt your heart. May God bless all of you with good health throughout. I am still shocked that there are three little babies in tiny Misty! I would love to see pregnancy pics as you progress:-)

Patrick & Amy BewleyNLR
Thu, November 16, 2006
Wow!! You two beat the odds!! All three girls will melt your heart. May God bless all of you with good health throughout. I am still shocked that there are three little babies in tiny Misty! I would love to see pregnancy pics as you progress:-)

Aunt Marilyn & Uncle Lawrence McshanOrange, TX
Thu, November 16, 2006
Three Girls - all at one time!! Wow!! We pray for your family everyday, but with 3 little sisters we better say some special ones for Caden! I'm sure he will be a wonderful big brother to all of them!!

Sandra SmithClovis, NM
Thu, November 16, 2006
''Girls just want to have fun!!! '' Good thing they have an awesome big brother to keep all the bad boys at bay. I pray for you often and tell everyone else to pray also. I'm so proud that you guys are taking good care of yourselves. Wow...3 girls....Love, Sandra

Patti Ensorabilene, texas
Thu, November 16, 2006
that is wild...congrats....girls are alot of fun...until they become teenagers...haha not really....hope to see you soon. patti

Aisling GambleCalgary, Alberta, Canada
Fri, November 10, 2006
Hey Misty (& Greg). Thanks for the link to your site. It's going to be so great to follow along with you guys, knowing that I went through the same process just 2 years ago. Hopefully you'll be able to find out what the little ones are - it took 3 seperate ultrasounds for them to confirm it was all boys for us. Take care. You know how to reach me by email if you have any questions or just wanna chat. Aisling (Steve, Keegan, Josh & Connolly)

Karen and Robert BaillieSYDNEY AUSTRALIA
Wed, October 25, 2006
Congratulations, what wonderful news. We are thrilled for all of you. We look forward to seeing more baby pics. Love and warm wishes Karen and Robert

Leslie PiggClarksville, tn
Fri, October 20, 2006
What a wonderful doctor's visit and a great report! I bet ''Baby A'' is a girl for sure, if she was hamming it up for the camera! I am so happy that things are progressing so well and we'll be continuing to pray for your health, Misty, and the development of the three babies. Love you guys!

Billie EnsorRuidoso, NM
Thu, October 19, 2006
I love being able to be able to keep up with your progress for such a super exciting event. Thanks for keeping me posted. You are on my mind just about every day. Love you all so much. Josh and Naci were due Oct 17. We are still waiting on that little Jude.

Grandma Sharon Ensor BaconRockwall, Texas
Thu, October 19, 2006
WOW!!! Life just keeps getting better! This is one of the most exciting things that has happened in my lifetime! I am so proud of you for eating good food and getting plenty of rest! I heard Greg and Caden are taking good care of you and have given you a lot of surprises - ssshhh!

Amber KnaussWylie, TX
Sun, October 1, 2006
Wow Guys!!! Congrats!!! We'll plan our 15th reunion soon so yall have time to find a babysitter!!! :) Seriously, three new blessings. Thats awesome. Take care, Amber

Jordan ClarkCalgary, Alberta
Tue, September 26, 2006
That's a funny way to tell me Greg! Wowzers! What wonderful news... one more and your family could field a baseball team - ha! (I don't imagine Misty wanted to hear that). Take care of yourselves and rest lots. Love Jordan, Kari and Peyton

Sandra SmithClovis, NM
Sun, September 24, 2006
I have tears streaming down my face. I am so shocked! What a delight. God couldn't have chosen two more precious people to send these babies to. How can I help? Misty, please rest, rest, rest. Call me to help anytime. Greg, Misty and Caden I promise to pray God's glorious blessings on all of you. Love, The Favorite Aunt, Sandra

Marie ClementNashville, TN
Sat, September 23, 2006
Congratulations you guys! We are excited for you..we will keep you in our prayers! God Bless! Matt and Marie Clement Caleb, Ian and Riley

Amy SchlupCO
Sat, September 23, 2006
WOW, WOW, WOW!!! Congratulations. Your house will be overflowing with joy, love, and excitement. You guys are awesome and I am sure you will be great parents to your new additions. Caden will be a lucky big brother too. God Bless You!

Michelle NoelNorth Little Rock, Arkansas
Wed, September 20, 2006
Congratulations Greg and Misty! We are so happy for you! Wow, what a blessing from God! :) Love, Tommy and Michelle Noel Claire, Emilyn, and Allie

Sara SelbyBartlesville, OK
Wed, September 20, 2006
We are excited for you! Wish we lived closer! We miss you and you will be in our prayers. You have a special family and we're so glad God has blessed you with 3!

Ling NeeleyTomball, TX
Wed, September 20, 2006
How awesome! I'm so happy for y'all. Lifegroup is just going to be one BIG happy family.

Leslie PiggClarksville, TN
Wed, September 20, 2006
You got me last night, sister! I am still completely conusmed with thoughts of your THREE...such surprises and such blessings!! As I've told you, I absolutely hate that I'm not in the Woodlands to be of more ''physical'' assistance but I will certainly be of ''prayerful'' assistance! Love to you guys...Leslie

Laura LightRolla, MO
Wed, September 20, 2006
WOW!!!!! That's incredible!!! We'll be praying for healthy babies and healthy mommy! I guess this means it will be a while before we get to see you.. :-( Love you guys! Laura, Kenny and girls P.S. Lucky girl--you'll catch up to us and only have to suffer through pregnancy twice instead of 4 times! LOL!

Sharon BaconRockwall, Texas
Wed, September 20, 2006
WOW! What a shock! We love you! You family just received three more of God's greatest gifts! Caden is going to have fun with all of his new playmates (brothers/sisters)!!! We are going to have fun too! Greg and Misty you are both so special!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOW

Carolyn Wesley
Wed, September 20, 2006
Congrats! Congrats! Congrats! All our love and prayers, Carolyn, Bryan and Alyssa

Micah EnsorLos Angeles, CA
Wed, September 20, 2006
OH SNAP!!!! What are they putting in the water out there? Congratulations!!!