Hailey had surgery today. She did wonderful! We had to be at the hospital for 7:45am. We told all of them in advance what the plan was. We were having a 'special' day with Hailey while Hannah & Emily had some special time with Grandma. We dropped Hannah & Emily off to Pete's parents at 7:15 and headed off with Hailey.
She was a trooper! She had the cartilage on her neck removed (this was originally thought to be a skin tag but turned out not to be) and she had the nevus sebaceous on the back of her scalp removed. I was able to go into the OR with her and be with her until she was asleep. They put her to sleep with a mask before putting her IV in so that was great in itself. Once she was in the recovery room we were allowed back in to be her while she finished waking up and got ready to come home.
The ONLY time she cried was when they took the EKG leads off of her and took out her IV. That was it! For the rest of the time she was very cooperative and although she was apprehensive (and asked to go home before the surgery) she was a trooper. We got her home and she wanted to EAT. And eat she did. She ate a whole grilled cheese sandwich (her request) and 1/2 bag of Cheetos.
Hannah & Emily are staying the night at Pete's parents and we are going to spend some real extra time with Hailey tomorrow. She seems to be dealing with this fine. She hasn't complained at all and actually seems to be soaking up the extra time she's getting.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Happy Easter!
What a fun day we had! The girls really were into Easter this year and it was all so much fun. We put together baskets (sand buckets and pails really) last night. Then we filled a whole bunch of plastic eggs and hid them all over the living room and up the stairs.
Usually when the girls wake up - Emily is sleepy and groggy and needs about 30 minutes to open her eyes. But this morning Pete and I were in bed and we hear Emily at the gate to their bedroom "Mommy! Daddy!" I say "yes Emily?" She screams "THE EASTER BUNNY CAME!" Haha there were 3 eggs right outside of their door so they could see them when they woke up. It worked :)
We got up and went on an egg hunt then they went through their baskets. We had some breakfast, headed to church, had lunch here with my family then took naps then headed to Pete's parents for dinner with them.
The best thing about lunch here today was that Joey & Andy did ALL of the shopping...AND ALL OF THE COOKING! Plus - a majority of the cleaning up. LOVE IT!
Now it's time for some R&R before bed.
Usually when the girls wake up - Emily is sleepy and groggy and needs about 30 minutes to open her eyes. But this morning Pete and I were in bed and we hear Emily at the gate to their bedroom "Mommy! Daddy!" I say "yes Emily?" She screams "THE EASTER BUNNY CAME!" Haha there were 3 eggs right outside of their door so they could see them when they woke up. It worked :)
We got up and went on an egg hunt then they went through their baskets. We had some breakfast, headed to church, had lunch here with my family then took naps then headed to Pete's parents for dinner with them.
The best thing about lunch here today was that Joey & Andy did ALL of the shopping...AND ALL OF THE COOKING! Plus - a majority of the cleaning up. LOVE IT!
Now it's time for some R&R before bed.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Vegas 10 years ago
10 years ago today Pete and I were in Las Vegas. Getting married. 10 years has brought us many many many changes. We have since moved 3 times...from Plainville, to New Britain, to Cromwell to our current destination of West Hartford. We had some pets which included a boxer named Dexter, 3 cats...Frisky, Smokey and Gizmo and then Little Lilly the gold fish..the only one left. School. We had many jobs between the 2 of us and we spent many weeks on vacations. Hawaii, Florida, Virginia, Cape Cod. 3 years ago we had the girls. That alone brought with it some major life changes.
Before we had the girls we talked about what kind of parents we would be. What we wanted to take from our parents and rebuild on with our own kids, things we wanted to start new, things we definitely wanted to leave behind. Obviously we never thought we'd be doing it times 3!
We have been through some really rough times as well. Especially the past 2 years. We found ourselves out of energy and patience for each other. We needed to use this energy and patience for everything else that was going on around us. We found ourselves living together but not living with each other. We soon realized we were losing each other to those around us. And we stopped, talked and found a way to fix it.
10 years of marriage is hard work. It's not all romance and bliss. There are days when we can't stand to talk to each other. There are many differences in how we think things should go. There are times when we want to just give up and walk our separate ways.
But 10 years of marriage is also how we became strong enough to make it through these times together. If someone asks me how I feel when Pete's around I can easily say "I feel that I can conquer the world with him by my side." We support each other while giving each other the space we need to be individuals.
There are days when we drive each other absolutely crazy. But without these days...we wouldn't be able to be crazy about each other.
I love you Pete. And here's to the 'next 100 years'......
Before we had the girls we talked about what kind of parents we would be. What we wanted to take from our parents and rebuild on with our own kids, things we wanted to start new, things we definitely wanted to leave behind. Obviously we never thought we'd be doing it times 3!
We have been through some really rough times as well. Especially the past 2 years. We found ourselves out of energy and patience for each other. We needed to use this energy and patience for everything else that was going on around us. We found ourselves living together but not living with each other. We soon realized we were losing each other to those around us. And we stopped, talked and found a way to fix it.
10 years of marriage is hard work. It's not all romance and bliss. There are days when we can't stand to talk to each other. There are many differences in how we think things should go. There are times when we want to just give up and walk our separate ways.
But 10 years of marriage is also how we became strong enough to make it through these times together. If someone asks me how I feel when Pete's around I can easily say "I feel that I can conquer the world with him by my side." We support each other while giving each other the space we need to be individuals.
There are days when we drive each other absolutely crazy. But without these days...we wouldn't be able to be crazy about each other.
I love you Pete. And here's to the 'next 100 years'......
Thursday, April 21, 2011
A week off!
I took a week off from blogging...sorry! I don't want to fall too far behind because there's too much that would be missed. The summer is here and we are having a lot of fun!
We took the girls fishing for the 1st time over the weekend. There was a fishing derby at a nearby park so we headed over there and let the girls fish. They had fun but it was cold and windy so we caught fish and left! Hailey caught 2 fish, Hannah caught 1 and Emily got to reel one in (LB was kind enough to catch one and let her have the pole lol). I think we'll enjoy it more when it's not so cold.
After the fishing derby we came back to the house for some lunch and cake for Andy's bday...Happy Birthday Uncle Annie!!! (This is really what the girls call him lol).
Mon & Tue I had 5 kids for the day...I SHOULD INDEED have my head examined. It wasn't really bad actually. I had my 3 plus Alex & Carl (both of them are 9). It works out better to have a buddy of the same age so the 2 of them kept each other busy for the time they were here. Monday we went grocery shopping and then hit up 2 different parks. Tues we all went to the mall for 4 HOURS. Needless to say they were all pretty tired by the days end :)
The girls are getting very creative and imaginitve these days. They very much enjoy making up stories about things that are going on. For example - at this very moment they are sitting on the bench in the kitchen. I asked what they're doing and Emily replied "Waiting for the neighbor to come over. She's taking our picture." They like to go upstairs and empty the linen closet of all towels and washclothes. Then they take them all into the hallway so they can 'shower'. They play doctor, they pretend to have tea parties, they cook and clean and have fun! This is a very fun age for me to be home with them. I love that I'm here to see all of this and be part of it with them.
We took the girls fishing for the 1st time over the weekend. There was a fishing derby at a nearby park so we headed over there and let the girls fish. They had fun but it was cold and windy so we caught fish and left! Hailey caught 2 fish, Hannah caught 1 and Emily got to reel one in (LB was kind enough to catch one and let her have the pole lol). I think we'll enjoy it more when it's not so cold.
After the fishing derby we came back to the house for some lunch and cake for Andy's bday...Happy Birthday Uncle Annie!!! (This is really what the girls call him lol).
Mon & Tue I had 5 kids for the day...I SHOULD INDEED have my head examined. It wasn't really bad actually. I had my 3 plus Alex & Carl (both of them are 9). It works out better to have a buddy of the same age so the 2 of them kept each other busy for the time they were here. Monday we went grocery shopping and then hit up 2 different parks. Tues we all went to the mall for 4 HOURS. Needless to say they were all pretty tired by the days end :)
The girls are getting very creative and imaginitve these days. They very much enjoy making up stories about things that are going on. For example - at this very moment they are sitting on the bench in the kitchen. I asked what they're doing and Emily replied "Waiting for the neighbor to come over. She's taking our picture." They like to go upstairs and empty the linen closet of all towels and washclothes. Then they take them all into the hallway so they can 'shower'. They play doctor, they pretend to have tea parties, they cook and clean and have fun! This is a very fun age for me to be home with them. I love that I'm here to see all of this and be part of it with them.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Alarm
From yesterdays post - someone left a comment about the alarm. And I don't think I've posted about it but it's something I want documented for sure.
I'm not sure how long we've been doing this but it's been quite some time now. When the girls are in time out - we set the alarm on our phone to go off when their time out is over. When we have to leave somewhere - we give the girls the option of 'leaving right now? or in 5 minutes?' which of course they always choose the 5 minutes. We set the alarm on our phone and when the 5 minutes is up - time to go. If they even start to argue I remind them that THEY made the choice to leave in 5 minutes. We could have left before :) But usually there isn't any arguing (if so it's going to be from Emily).
If I need to get someplace in a hurry and I don't have time for them to dilly dally around getting ready - I set the alarm and say "You have 5 minutes to get your shoes on, have what you're bringing in your hand and be at the door." I set the alarm on my phone. When the alarm goes off - whoever is ready GETS A PRIZE! Yay!!! Whoever isn't ready gets help from me. I don't yell at them for not being ready but they do miss out on the prize. (Usually a handful of mini marshmallows or a twizzler). You would think it would cause a meltdown to give one a prize and not the other. Sometimes it does. But that can usually be averted with some soft words of encouragement by reminding them that they CAN get a prize...next time. And that next time they can try harder to get ready. When the same situation occurs - I remind them "Hey...you didn't get a prize last time. Try really hard to get ready on time today so Mommy can give YOU a prize!!!" I know it sounds so freakin' Marry Poppins but trust me...it works. And when I find something that works - I don't mess with it.
I love the alarm. For the amount of times it 'creates' a meltdown - there are 20 times when it saves us one. It also ensures that someone doesn't get left in time out too long! LOL
I'm not sure how long we've been doing this but it's been quite some time now. When the girls are in time out - we set the alarm on our phone to go off when their time out is over. When we have to leave somewhere - we give the girls the option of 'leaving right now? or in 5 minutes?' which of course they always choose the 5 minutes. We set the alarm on our phone and when the 5 minutes is up - time to go. If they even start to argue I remind them that THEY made the choice to leave in 5 minutes. We could have left before :) But usually there isn't any arguing (if so it's going to be from Emily).
If I need to get someplace in a hurry and I don't have time for them to dilly dally around getting ready - I set the alarm and say "You have 5 minutes to get your shoes on, have what you're bringing in your hand and be at the door." I set the alarm on my phone. When the alarm goes off - whoever is ready GETS A PRIZE! Yay!!! Whoever isn't ready gets help from me. I don't yell at them for not being ready but they do miss out on the prize. (Usually a handful of mini marshmallows or a twizzler). You would think it would cause a meltdown to give one a prize and not the other. Sometimes it does. But that can usually be averted with some soft words of encouragement by reminding them that they CAN get a prize...next time. And that next time they can try harder to get ready. When the same situation occurs - I remind them "Hey...you didn't get a prize last time. Try really hard to get ready on time today so Mommy can give YOU a prize!!!" I know it sounds so freakin' Marry Poppins but trust me...it works. And when I find something that works - I don't mess with it.
I love the alarm. For the amount of times it 'creates' a meltdown - there are 20 times when it saves us one. It also ensures that someone doesn't get left in time out too long! LOL
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Unexpected things
I do my very best to prepare the girls for things that we're doing, things that will be happening and making sure they're aware of what's going on. But I can't always predict things and there are many times when unexpected things come up. How we handle them depends on the situation but I'll tell you this...they are amazing at keeping up and keeping cool.
Yesterday I went through the drive through of the bank to make a deposit. (I've actually NEVER taken them into the bank...I think I go in maybe once or twice a year myself). The ATM refused my deposit and said my acct was restricted. We had to GO INSIDE THE BANK. UGH It's a Monday morning, there are tons of old people that just love to pinch cheeks and the girls have never been in a bank before so they won't know what to expect.
Ok - brief explanation to the girls and inside we go. They were really good. We got into the office (we couldn't stand in line to see the teller - we had to be 'personally assisted') and I sat them all down. I got my business taken care of and they were pretty good about it. (I won't say amazing because they thought the chairs were monkey bars and decided to hang all over them like little monkeys but they are 3 y/o so some rules don't apply).
Long story short about my acct is that there was some fraudulent activity on my card to the bank froze my acct. It's taken care of now and whoever tried to steal my $ should have actually just asked me for some cuz I don't keep any in the bank :) I HAVE TRIPLETS - I'M BROKE! Haha...joke is on them. Situation cleared.
Scene: playground. The kids are playing. I ALWAYS say to them "Do you want to leave right now or would you like 5 more minutes?" Of course they choose 5 minutes and I set my alarm on my phone. This WORKS and I don't mess with the system when I find something that works. I don't have to drag them out of the park kicking and screaming and threatening them. They hear the alarm and we all leave. But on this particular day Hailey pooped her pants. (Later she told me because she wanted to keep sliding down the slide...ugh!). No 5 minute rule applies when you have a kid with a load. I looked at them and said "We have to go right now. No warning, no timer, no alarm. Right now." Hannah said "But I need 2 more minutes please mom." I replied with "Hailey pooped her pants. We can't stay - we need to go home." They all said "Ok!" and off we went. No tears, no crying.
A year ago these 2 things would have caused me anxiety, panic and I would have had 3 meltdowns on my hands. I love how far the girls have come and I love that they can handle the instant changes to fit our needs. I love that I can take all 3 of them out with me and not worry about 'needing' help. Some days - I prefer to take them alone anyway.
I'm proud of my little kiddos :)
Yesterday I went through the drive through of the bank to make a deposit. (I've actually NEVER taken them into the bank...I think I go in maybe once or twice a year myself). The ATM refused my deposit and said my acct was restricted. We had to GO INSIDE THE BANK. UGH It's a Monday morning, there are tons of old people that just love to pinch cheeks and the girls have never been in a bank before so they won't know what to expect.
Ok - brief explanation to the girls and inside we go. They were really good. We got into the office (we couldn't stand in line to see the teller - we had to be 'personally assisted') and I sat them all down. I got my business taken care of and they were pretty good about it. (I won't say amazing because they thought the chairs were monkey bars and decided to hang all over them like little monkeys but they are 3 y/o so some rules don't apply).
Long story short about my acct is that there was some fraudulent activity on my card to the bank froze my acct. It's taken care of now and whoever tried to steal my $ should have actually just asked me for some cuz I don't keep any in the bank :) I HAVE TRIPLETS - I'M BROKE! Haha...joke is on them. Situation cleared.
Scene: playground. The kids are playing. I ALWAYS say to them "Do you want to leave right now or would you like 5 more minutes?" Of course they choose 5 minutes and I set my alarm on my phone. This WORKS and I don't mess with the system when I find something that works. I don't have to drag them out of the park kicking and screaming and threatening them. They hear the alarm and we all leave. But on this particular day Hailey pooped her pants. (Later she told me because she wanted to keep sliding down the slide...ugh!). No 5 minute rule applies when you have a kid with a load. I looked at them and said "We have to go right now. No warning, no timer, no alarm. Right now." Hannah said "But I need 2 more minutes please mom." I replied with "Hailey pooped her pants. We can't stay - we need to go home." They all said "Ok!" and off we went. No tears, no crying.
A year ago these 2 things would have caused me anxiety, panic and I would have had 3 meltdowns on my hands. I love how far the girls have come and I love that they can handle the instant changes to fit our needs. I love that I can take all 3 of them out with me and not worry about 'needing' help. Some days - I prefer to take them alone anyway.
I'm proud of my little kiddos :)
Monday, April 11, 2011
Just funny
The girls are say SO MUCH MORE these days. And they say the funniest things in and out of context. So here are a few:
Emily "Mom! You didn't STOP at that stop sign!"
Hailey "You can't fool me..."
Hannah (at Denny's after we ate breakfast) "We can't leave yet. I need to clean off the table."
Today I was cleaning the bathrooms. I told the kids to play in their room until I was finished. I walked by their bedroom and caught a glimps of them HUDDLED in the middle of the room. I then hear Hannah whisper "Let's go tickle mommy. Shhhh" WHATTTT?!?! They HUDDLED!!!!!!! I'm in deep doodoo....
This weekend the girls planted a raspberry bush with Pete. They are suppose to water it every day. I have watered it. This is why we don't have a pet. But I will enjoy the raspberries just as much if not more than they will so I'm ok with this.
We were also at the park over the weekend and the girls made a friend. She was wearing the same shoes as Hailey so they named her "Matching Shoes". My girls were running around the park yelling "Hey Matching Shoes..come on!" Today we were on our way to the park and they said "Is Matching Shoes gonna be there?" I swear it sounded like they were part of an Indian tribe.
Emily "Mom! You didn't STOP at that stop sign!"
Hailey "You can't fool me..."
Hannah (at Denny's after we ate breakfast) "We can't leave yet. I need to clean off the table."
Today I was cleaning the bathrooms. I told the kids to play in their room until I was finished. I walked by their bedroom and caught a glimps of them HUDDLED in the middle of the room. I then hear Hannah whisper "Let's go tickle mommy. Shhhh" WHATTTT?!?! They HUDDLED!!!!!!! I'm in deep doodoo....
This weekend the girls planted a raspberry bush with Pete. They are suppose to water it every day. I have watered it. This is why we don't have a pet. But I will enjoy the raspberries just as much if not more than they will so I'm ok with this.
We were also at the park over the weekend and the girls made a friend. She was wearing the same shoes as Hailey so they named her "Matching Shoes". My girls were running around the park yelling "Hey Matching Shoes..come on!" Today we were on our way to the park and they said "Is Matching Shoes gonna be there?" I swear it sounded like they were part of an Indian tribe.
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