18-months ago today ...

... our magnificent trio made their appearance in to the world. It's unbelievable a year and a half has already passed since that incredible day in October of 2004. I'm sprinkling some of our favorite photos since the babies arrival through this posting. No rhyme or reason, just a handful of the million pictures that bring a smile to our face and make us realize how far we've come on this amazing trip ... of parenthood!

I'll kick this off with how things are going on OBW (Operation Bottle Wean). It has been a tad bit rocky. The babies had only one bottle yesterday - at night just before they went to bed. That was officially our "Last Bottle". William and Carolyn both sucked down about 14 oz ... 1 8-oz bottle, filled up (almost) twice. Elizabeth, always the peanut, took about 12 oz.

This morning, I packed up all of their bottles and nipples in a bag, and moved them out to the garage. I figured this was a good thing to do because the babies know that their bottles reside in a basket on our counter and now when they look - - they're gone. Besides, it means that if I do start to crack ... I'll have to go out in to the garage, sort through a bunch of stuff ... find the bottles ... find the nipples ... and then WASH everything. I don't like to be inconvenienced, so I thought the harder I make if for myself - the better. (Note: I didn't throw the bottles away, because ... well, you never know. If circumstances were just right [or wrong], I might snap like a twig and I'd be in really bad shape if I had to run to the store and buy all new bottles. Does this mean that I don't have much confidence in myself? Probably!)

I put the babies to bed with a sippy cup filled with ice water last night and again, tonight. They were quite fussy and I attributed that to the fact they hadn't consumed much fluid during the day. At first I was apprehensive putting them to bed with a drink, but I figured - it's water ... and if they get thirsty, they have it right there. Besides, in an instant they went from being very upset to being very happy ... and that's all that matters. Everyone polished off their sippy cups before they fell asleep and William had a diaper breakthrough at 10 PM. As I was changing his diaper and putting him in dry pajamas - I felt a renewed sense of confidence. Maybe they weren't completely parched after the first day of OBW ... perhaps they could survive without bottles. Hmmmm.....

There was a lot of fussing going on today and I think that there were two primary reasons for this. First and foremost, the weather was dismal and rainy and we weren't able to go outside and play. Considering we have a brand new sand box and slide in the backyard that is clearly visible from the playroom - seeing what you want and can't have typically creates crankiness in any normal human being. Adding to the fact that we're in the midst of OBW ... that didn't help our spirits, either.

Tonight we gave the kids dinner with their milk in a sippy cup. They didn't even bother trying it - the cups were flung straight to the floor. Everyone and I mean EVERYONE was either crying ... or on the verge of tears. Mom and Dad included. It was rotten awful. I was ready to run out and grab the bottles from the garage ... but I kept hearing our pediatrician's words "It's not going to get any easier, the longer you wait!"

UGH.

Double UGH.

Triple UGH.

But, and this is the fascinating part ... we put them to bed ... and there was NO crying. None at all, whatsoever. They did have their sippy cups - so that probably helped ... but Charlie and I both looked at each other and said ... "So, that's IT?! Does this mean we're weaned?!" I guess so! Although I'm still not sure if and when their milk consumption is going to go back to the staggering levels it was while they were on bottles. (Doesn't it figure that we just bought another 8 gallons, and they've barely had a cup across all three of them today?? I'll need to find some good recipes that call for Vitamin D Whole Milk ... before everything expires on April 27th!)

Another interesting thing about today (other than OBW), was that I finally agreed with Charlie that having someone come to help clean the house might not be a bad idea. I use to be able to clean the house, no problem, in 3-4 hours. Now ... it takes me about 2 days to accomplish the same task. I don't know if it's because we've acquired a lot of stuff since we've had triplets ... or if it's because the kids are hot on my tail pulling out everything I just put away and creating havoc as I go. It's probably a little bit of both.

Needless to say, I finally came to my senses and could see the benefit in having some one come in and lend a hand. (Relinquishing control over our housekeeping has always been a tough pill for me to swallow. What can I say - I enjoy cleaning!) At 9 AM this morning, two women arrived on our doorstep, mop and cleaning supplies in hand. They surveyed our baby war-zone and split up ... one took on the kitchen, the other tackled the rest of the house. The woman in the kitchen spent THREE hours cleaning. THREE HOURS. She scrubbed the floors, the cupboards, the countertops, the oven, the stove tops ... everything. I was in awe. Not even on a good day, would I have cleaned the oven and I certainly wouldn't have spent THREE hours in one room. I'm not a slob by any stretch of the imagination ... but THREE HOURS cleaning our little kitchen. I was impressed.

The downside was that the babies didn't nap too well while the cleaning crew was here (which didn't help the overall fussiness we had going on). They loved having the distraction of two new people in the house. Although I tried putting the kids down for a nap, it was largely unsuccessful. I stuck all three in their cribs (with their sippy cups) and had to go back in a minimum of 15 times to put all the stuff that they'd thrown out of their cribs, back in. I've decided it's a lot harder to let your kids cry-it-out when you have a house full of strangers than when you're alone. I think they know that, too.

After what felt like my umpteenth time going in to the nursery, I jumped on the computer to check my e-mail and heard one of the women say "Well, hello little one ... where did you come from?" I turned around and there was William smiling at me.

WHAT THE... ????

I hadn't heard any crying - not a boom, not a crash, not even a little thump. And here he was walking out of the nursery with a big smile on his face as if to say "Surprise!" Good Gawd. I honestly started to have hot flashes this afternoon thinking about the fact that our baby now knows how to escape from his crib. This is going to seriously interfere with ... EVERYTHING. The crib was always my safe spot. I knew that when I put them there - they'd STAY there. And now ... I figure it's just a matter of time before William teaches his sisters how he did his Houdini move.

When I told Charlie tonight that William knows how to climb out of his crib, he looked at me with absolute terror and said "Oh my God, what are we going to DO?!" I told him that we could convert the cribs to toddler beds so that we wouldn't risk them falling out and getting hurt and he said "No, no, that won't work. Isn't there something we can do to keep them IN?!!" I suppose we could look in to crib tents. Although, come to think of it ... the person that suggested the crib tent as a "great" device ... is the same one that suggested the "safety" harness.

Here we are, still reeling from weaning - - and we get flung this NEW zinger that we've got a crib escape artist on our hands. Geez. It's always something...