Summer

Max and Alex try and figure out why the jeep isn't working.

First swim of the season!

Who gave the baby a cookie?

Alex "baptizing" Emerson in the water table!

Emerson swimming in the water table.

Max analyzing the water.

Alex digging in the dirt.

Emerson is a big boy...he ate 2 whole peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! Hey, I was impressed!

Austin up to no good!

Summer

What a week. Austin finished school and is now home full time. He will be attending some summer activities but basically he will be home. Because he's home it's a little easier for me to take the boys out in the yard and even for walks. Yes, I take all 5 out by myself! I am super mom!

We spent every day this week outside. The weather was HOT. At some points close to 90 degrees. Not that I really minded since we opened the pool Memorial weekend. Up to this point was just to cold to go in. Well, not anymore. The pool is 78 degrees and the water is fine. Austin has been in several times and I am quite impressed with way he's swimming. He's not a pro yet(he still needs some floatation devise) but he's working on it. Of the boys only Max has been in. It's hard to take more than one in at a time. I am hoping for some more ridiculously warm days to allow it to heat up even more. Than we are all in! The boys pretty much just play in their water table. By play I mean stand or sit in. What a sight that is.

Austin is still in "school mode". He has devised a lunch plan that consists of three levels. A lunch, B lunch or C lunch. Every day he chooses what each lunch consists of and than he tells me what to make. I humor him of course but I really don't have time to be a short order cook. He is really into making lists and 'research" he has a notebook he carries around and takes research notes on things around the house. To read it it doesn't make much sense. But he knows exactly what it means. Whenever he starts getting under my feet I tell him to go do research, and he does. He went with my Dad to see the dinosaurs at HSBC arena on Saturday and he had a blast. I am so glad he has such loving grandparents who spend quality time with him.

The triplets are unbelievable. They are talking so good now. Alex can talk your ear off. He has some babbling but he is speaking several sentences. I love when I drop something he picks it up and says "here ooo go". Max is really starting to say a lot of words. "I did it" is his favorite phrase. It's great when I'm not in the room and I hear someone cry. Max says "I did it". I know who to blame! Emerson is starting slower than the other two. He does count though. "Un, two,wee" when he goes down the slide. I am not forcing them to talk. I have learned from raising Austin that we teach them to talk just to tell them to be quiet. I will let them go at their own pace.

Is this one beautiful baby or what?

Griffin is so smart. He is so incredible for 5 months. He loves to hang with his big brothers and has started to "play" with them. He smiles and laughs at how funny they are. He cracks up at Austin. I'm not sure why he's so funny, but he is! He is the king mimicker! He mimics everything I do. He will stick out his tongue, blow raspberries or blink when I do. This is unbelievable for such a little baby. I know I'm impartial but so what, he's my last baby and I am enjoying every minute!

All 5 boys playing dinosaurs.

Friday my mother watched all 5 kids by herself for the first time. I thought for sure we would find her tied up in the basement. But she handled it well. David and I attended my cousin Megan's wedding and enjoyed the time with just adults. Hopefully my kids didn't torture my mom too much and she'll be fine for the next time.

We ventured out to Kenmore Days this week. The carnival was interesting. We walked from our house which doesn't seem long but ended up being a 45 minute walk to and from. We needed the exercise but where exhausted by the time we got home. We basically stayed to eat and stock up on carnival junk food than headed home. I haven't let the boys see fireworks yet for fear of them freaking out. besides they are still on a schedule and staying up until after 10pm wouldn't work for any of us.

My garden is unbelievable. I am shocked at how big the plants are. All the rain and sunshine are making for a phenomenal harvest this year. Not bad for thinking I would kill it all in a short time! I can't wait for the first tomato and green pepper!

Happy Father's Day

My crew!Happy baby, eating his first biter cookie.

random peacock!

Bear!
Giraffes

My baby, staring at me from the stroller...too cute!

Lunch...Stinner style!

This goat was viscious! Bahhhh!

What???

Happy Father's Day

Father's day is always special to us. We (the boys and I) always go out of our way to make it a very special day for David. We have a tradition of spending the day at the Zoo. This year was no different. We got a later start than usual. We decided to give the boys a nap first. I have to say this must be the right combination because the boys where amazing. They where happy and involved. The all seemed to notice the animals. Alex of course said everything was a kitty. He meowed at absolutely everything. It was so cute. Emerson started to notice and it was almost like a light went on in his little head. It was amazing. Max laughed at the seagulls and at the little rat like creatures in the small animal house. He just cracked himself up. Austin had to explain every animal he saw to the boys. I'm not sure they understood but he enjoyed telling them. We had our annual picnic lunch and it was lovely as always. The seagulls kept close watch and I watched the kids. I could just see the newspaper headlines now..."Mother and Father of 5 attacked by killer seagulls at the Buffalo Zoo!". We saw a parrot walking around with his trainer. At one point he just stopped his little routine and stared at us. I bet he was thinking..."hey look, triplets!" All in all it was a great day. The boys where good and David seemed to enjoy himself!

Max and Emerson cleaning the new playset.
Alex was soaked.
All done!

When I get a thought in my head, I'm not satisfied until I find what I need or say what I think. My obsession of the week was to buy the boys a Little Tykes play set. You know the one with the slides and tubes. I obsessed about it. I didn't want to buy new...they are over $300. So I kept a close eye on craigslist and ebay. I had a couple of bites but way too expensive. I really didn't want to spend too much since we already have a large swing set. So I decided to garage sale. Well, Saturday was awful! It was pouring rain and humid. Everything was soaked but there where garage sales believe it or not! I drove around looking for signs and went to about 3 before driving by an amazing garage sale that had exactly what I had in mind. We spent Sunday scrubbing the set and letting the boys help. They where soaked but loved every minute of it. They where so excited when it was finally all up. I can't wait for them to get to the point where they can play with it on their own. We are hoping to get the recycled mulch laid down this weekend. It's all here but we are having a hard time finding barrier wall. Oh well, we'll think of something. Now for some rest! I'm exhausted!

Exhausted

Emerson needs help adjusting to his coolness!

Alex is too cool

Maxim crackin up at sesame street.

I love when Griffin falls asleep with his mouth open!

Griffin is bouncing up a storm!
Austin hanging from his swing set

Exhausted

I'm not usually one to admit to be tired, but this week has been exhausting. I spent the week catching up on appointments. I had a doctors appointment than a mammogram. In the midst of those to invasive appointments I also was preparing for a garage sale. I had to clear this house of the clutter that seemed to overtake every closet, storage space and dresser drawer. The attic, garage and every place in between where just stuffed full of kids stuff. so after a week of planning, organising and sorting I was finally ready on Saturday morning to reveal my gently used baby items (and household crap) to the masses. Well, much to our surprise there was a block sale on the next street and the sign was right at our corner. I would say that drew 90% of our crowd. I was thrilled. By the end of Saturday our inventory was cut in half and there was money in our pockets. I decided to be a little rebellious and stay out until the early evening (most garage sales end around 3pm) and I was glad I did. I got a steady stream of buyers until around 6pm but I was truly exhausted by that time and I missed my children. They where in and out all day but I had very little time to devote to them and just wanted to sit and play. But by the time I cleaned and reorganised, it was bath time and off to bed for them. I also decided to open back up on Sunday. The day started out light but by the end I was selling the boys old clothes for $10 a bag and $25 a diaper box. Let's just say my inventory dwindled down quickly. When all was said and done we made enough money to pay for the recycled mulch that goes under the swing set(my ultimate goal) and got rid of a ton of stuff making room for the stuff that is to come.

The boys where all sick this week still. They had serious sinus issues. Green nasty slime, coughing and trouble sleeping. Between taking care of the 5 of them and preparing for the garage sale I almost didn't notice that I too was feeling under the weather. Emerson seemed to get the sickest out of the boys. He has been down right miserable. Max seems to take it all in stride as well does Griffin. Alex had trouble sleeping and Austin was a trooper. I on the other hand was feeling really bad by Monday, probably because of all the dust from the attic and being outside during the weekend. When I say being outside I mean because it was literally snowing down on me from the cotton wood. WOW, I could feel my head throbbing and my eyes swelling. On Monday I ran my fingers through my hair and noticed a lump. I immediately called the doctor. I was of course fearing the worst. Well, it turns out I have a major sinus infection that spread to my lymph nodes. Very curable, THANK GOD! I am on my second day of antibiotics and am still not feeling better but I'm surviving.

Austin is almost done with school. I still have not planned all his summer activities. He is asking to have play dates with his friends and possible an end of year pool party. I'm not sure how I feel about all of that. Play dates I don't mind but 22 kids in the pool, makes me a little nervous. We'll have to see how it goes. We all need to get healthy and than we'll see. I am enrolling him in vacation bible school and that's the only definite so far.

My pansy's! So pretty!

My amazing blooming garden!

So let's talk about the garden! My amazing garden. It is so beautiful and yes...in BLOOM! I am so proud! My tomato plants actually have little tiny tomato buds on them. The squash leaves are huge and don't get me started on the pumpkins. I can't wait! St. Francis seems to be keeping the animals at bay. I haven't had any plants lost to furry thieves! After spending $5 on tomato's this week I am very excited to be able to make a salad from my garden soon! Oh yeah and my flowers...WOW! Usually they would be dead by now. Well, they are big and beautiful. I got so many comments on my landscaping at the sale. Maybe the farmer in me has finally come out, or maybe it's just beginners luck! We'll see!

I worked hard on my patio and it paid off! Look at my roses!!!!! My pansy's and impatients are beautiful! I know I am tooting my own horn but in general my gardening skills are pathetic!

After all that I still wonder...Why am I so exhausted?

Who Knew?

This is my new favorite picture. The three with backpacks on waving goodbye to Austin as he leaves for school!

Alex cleaning the floor

Awwww Austin and Griffin!

Emerson repairing his car!

Maxim vacuuming the hard wood floor!

Who Knew?

Who knew gardening was so much work? I thought it was supposed to be relaxing. Instead I seem to stress about watering, weeds and little creatures trying to dig their way under my fence. Aside from some mild frost bite to a couple of plants, all is great with the garden. I see the plants grow and thrive and I am almost in shock. I usually kill everything green. I have to say, I'm quite impressed with myself. That's not all, you should see my flowers, wow!

As a mother how do you know when your child is manipulating you? I've realized lately that my children are master manipulators. Case in point, I walked in the living room to find Emerson standing on the end table, dancing. I calmly walked over to him(I wanted to scream in terror), and just as I approached him he jumped to the couch. I said "Emerson, don't go up there you're gonna get hurt". I started to walk away. He went back to the top of the coffee table. UGH! As I turned to him he smiled largely. I got right in his face and said "Emerson, you're gonna get..." right then my child gave me the biggest kiss right on my lips. He jumped back onto the couch and started to laugh. I just walked away. I guess he got what he wanted, because when I turned around he was again on the table! Another situation, Alex was up last night (due to a cold)pretty late. I was cleaning up the kitchen from a dinner with friends and family. All the desserts where still on the table. Now, Alex should have been in bed, but somehow this child manipulated me into giving him a cookie, left over cherry crisp and some sweet bread. I don't know how he did it but he did. I realize they learn manipulation from us and they are very good students.

Most people know I have OCD when it comes to cleaning. I obsessively clean my home and my children. Not to the point I need medication or anything like that, but I enjoy cleaning. I have decided to divvy up responsibility to my children now. I mean, come on I have a whole cleaning crew just waiting to be trained. So, I have taught my children to clean. I bought them a broom, mop, duster and other cleaning accessories all their size and I let them just go with them in the downstairs. Much to my sup rise, Alex mopped, Max vacuumed and Emerson dusted. It was a beautiful sight. I'm so proud!

Wille, Barend and Aunt Kathy playing with boys on the swingset. It's much easier with so many adults helping!

On Sunday we had some visitors for dinner. Family friends Willie and Barend as well as Aunt Kathy. It's always a pleasure to see Aunt Kathy, she is such a huge help with the boys. At one point she was up in Austins Playhouse. This is no small feet, trust me! I'm not sure how she got down but I'm sure she was sore the next day. Wille and Barend where great. They love my boys and my boys love them. Willie is such a warm loving person. You can tell she really cares about the kids. They where playing with them on the swing sets and Barend even postponed dessert for some movie and snuggle time. They are like grandparents to our boys. Alex was so excited to see them, he immediately jumped in Barends arms. We love talking to them and spent a couple of hours after the boys went to sleep just talking about old times. Thanks guys for a lovely day! Aunt Kathy and Austin blowing bubbles in the tree house!

I can't wait for summer to get in full swing. We are almost done with the yard. We are just waiting on the recycled mulch for under the boys swing set. The pool is open and the garden is blooming. Bring on the BBQ's and day trips. We're ready!

Speaking of summer, we are getting ready for a garage sale. Have you ever gone through all your boxes and bags in your attic or basement? WOW! We have so much stuff. We are mostly getting rid of all the little baby stuff. Griffin is growing so fast that I almost can't keep up with him. We really don't need all the "things" we had for the triplets either. So, we've decided to purge our storage and make some space, you know...simplify. This is easier said than done! I just want to raise enough money to pay for the recycled mulch for under the swing set. That is a huge expense but well worth it for the safety of the kids. Hopefully, the garage sale will be this weekend or next. I need 2 or 3 more days of sorting, than we are good to go!

I would like to send out congratulations to my Nanny, Deb! On June 9th she became a grandma for the second time to a beautiful baby boy! Welcome to the world baby Grady and congratulations to Grandma Debbie, Grandpa Dan, Mollie and Jason!

Boys will be Boys!

Max on the chair.

This baby is so amazing!

I am in love!

Alex and Griffin

Emerson and Alex battling with pin wheels.

Boys will be boys!

Since I posted so late in the week last week I really have very little to report. The boys are still feeling under the weather. The runny noses have slowed down but the coughing persists. Alex seemed to get it the worst. He lays down and immediately starts coughing. I know how they feel. My sinus' are so bad this season. Maybe because it's 80 degrees than 40 than 80 and so on... The baby got over his cold quickly. He seems to be going through a growth spurt. I had to buy new diapers so I know he is definitely getting thicker. He is rolling all over the place and loves to be in his walker. He laughs at his big brothers so hard. They must be extremely funny to a baby of almost 5 months. He is kissing now and I just love that. You know that big opened mouth slobbering. My favorite. He is such a joyful happy baby. We are very lucky.

Well Maxim has decided he can no longer be contained. He has finally escaped from his crib. I thought we headed it off when we lowered it to the lowest position. Well, that lasted a month. Now he can flip himself right out. Yesterday I was changing the sheets on all the beds and when I turned around, Max was behind me. Considering when I left him he was in the living room I was a little confused. I put him back in the living room and he went up and over the fence. Oh Well, 22 months of them being contained. I guess I should feel lucky.

Emerson is a dare devil. He climbs on the back of the couch, than throws himself backwards on to the cushions. Sometime he ends up on the couch, sometimes on the floor. I catch him on the couch and on every table in the house. I have even had to rid the living room of all lamps because they tip them over and break the bulbs. We are screwed!

Austin is outside most of the day. This makes life a little easier. He will play on his swing set and ride his scooter. He likes to explore and look for bugs. What a typical boy. He is already starting to say he's bored though. Time to get him enrolled in something.

By the way, I contributed to an article in this Saturdays Buffalo News. It was about the Jon & Kate television program as well as the affects of multiples on a marriage. For those of you that didn't see it, check it out. http://www.buffalonews.com/185/story/687234.html

Our Garden

My husband clearing the land!
All done mulching and clearing.
All fenced in. Safe from animals and kids!

Side 1 Complete
Side 2 a work in progress.

All Done!
My Garden! I love the walkway. It was under all kinds of ground cover and dirt. It took me half a day to uncover it, but so worth it.

Our Garden

I'm so excited! My garden is now complete. My husband busted his hump last weekend clearing the yard, cultivating the ground and erecting a fence. It was my job this weekend to plant the garden. Well, I am happy to say after 5 hours of raking and digging, bug dodging and ant smashing I am officially done! The garden came out beautiful!

I did a ton of research on the Internet on what to plant and where. I made sure the tomatoes where separate from the peppers(they will contaminate the taste) and the pumpkins where separate from everything since they climb. I got garden stakes to hold up delicate plants, cages for tomatoes to grow tall and a trellis for the pumpkins(they will take over if you don't).

I planted them all in direct sunlight(or as direct as you can get in Buffalo!). I watered them thoroughly and gave them their first drink of miracle grow. If all goes well and I don't kill them we should have a feast of fresh veggies in 4-6 weeks! I have never felt so domestic!

So here's a rundown of what I planted:

26 Tomato's including Beefsteak, cherry and cluster

10 Zucchini

2 Eggplant

18 Green Pepper

5 Sweet Banana Pepper

6 Pumpkin

12 Cucumber including 2 Burpless

8 Squash including Butternut and Straightneck

I know it's quite an undertaking but I wanted to try. If half of these plants survive and bare fruit I will think our garden was a success! We'll see. I even went so far as to buy a St. Francis statue to keep the animal at bay. I don't really believe in that but I thought "what the heck, it can't hurt". We need all the divine intervention we can get.