Little Mechanics

Today Jon was in charge and he decided it was time to get the kids "jeep's" out for them to drive around. They had a blast and all night long they have been begging to go out and drive their jeep's again. He snapped these great pictures of the kids "working" on their jeep's and Jon said he took them for our friend Denny! It was nice to see that the kids are finally getting the hang of driving these jeep's. Last year when we got them out they had no idea how to steer so they kept banging into the curb and each other. Needless to say we put them away until this year. I am really looking forward to summer (if it ever gets here). These kids are getting so much bigger everyday. We laugh a lot around here and that is good for the soul.

Oh and tonight as we were walking into the house I said "phew, why does it stink in here" to which KJ replied "because you have the toots mommy". Jon spent a good 2-3 minutes laughing so hard he could not talk. The things he teaches them when I am at work!!!!

A is telling it on the mountain

Here is a video clip from a few weeks back that Sue took of A singing. Since I am so slow at posting these days I thought this would be a great treat for all of our fans at The Erickson Five!

Enjoy!

Grandma's and Nightgowns!

Edited to add these photos from Grandma Carol: Here are my superheros Batman Kendrick and Spiderwoman Ella! Too cute. Check below for a vacuuming Batman!!!

I can't believe it has been over a week since I have updated this blog. Life has been busy like usual but in this past weeks time I have accomplished a lot. We headed up north so I could attend my annual Mothers of Multiples Convention and Grandma and Grandpa Erickson volunteered to watch the kids. One of my good friends (a fellow Triplet Mom) volunteered to ride up with me so I did not have to be alone in the car with the kids for 4 hours. It was such a blessing as she was able to crawl in back and help the kids out whenever they needed something. Grandma Erickson rode back home with me and we just dropped her at the airport tonight so she could go back home.

There have been a few silly things said these past few weeks that I wanted to document and share with all of you.

The kids have been really into doing puzzles so last week when we were running errands, we picked up a couple of puzzles for the kids at Target. When we got home we had to get them opened up right away so they could start working on them. A little while later, KJ came into the kitchen and wanted to let me know that he only had one piece left and asked me to come in the living room. When I walked in there I realized that the puzzle was complete but there must have been an extra piece in the box. I explained that they sent an extra piece and that it did not fit into the puzzle because it was extra. KJ shouts out "Silly Targets, they gave us an extra piece"!

A few weekends ago the kids stayed over night at Sue's house because we had a wedding to go to. Here is what Sue sent to me in an email: After dinner, the kids are usually anxious to take turns with dishrags and brooms to help clean up. However this time Ella as was casually sauntering away, Kristin stopped her and asked if she was going to help clean up. Ella informed her "I am NOT the cleaning lady" and left.

Last night, Aimee put on her nightgown when it was time to get ready for bed. To give all of you a little history, Aimee loves to wear nightgowns (just like Dora's Grandma does) and Ella HATES nightgowns. So Aimee decided to ask Grandma Carol if she wears nightgowns and Grandma responded "yes". Aimee then asked "do you have Dora on your nightgown to, Grandma?" Grandma replied "No" so then Aimee asked "So do you have Grown Ups on your nightgown then Grandma?"

Ella was going to have a sleep over with Grandma Carol last night so when they were getting ready for bed she said "and whatever you do Grandma don't let your nightgown touch me in the night because I don't like nightgowns"!

Here is a quote that Grandma Carol sent over last night:

I forgot to tell you another KJ quote - the second time when he put on the batman costume he was asking where the "wings" were, if his cape was the wings. I told him "no, he didn't have any wings." He then asked "if you push me, will I fly?"

Good Ole Furnace...

Last week our furnace decided it was time to die. We knew that the furnace was on it's way out but we thought we could to summer and replace when there was not a dire need for it. We were wrong. We spend last Tuesday through Friday with out any heat in our house. This was not good since it has been an unusually cold April around here.The temperature in our house was between 58-61 Degrees. Yikes it was COLD!

Thank goodness we have a fireplace that kept us somewhat warm. The kids seemed to do okay with it. Jon said on Thursday that Ella and him were putting together a puzzle and she got up, went to the closet and put on a pair of mittens. Of course, don't feel too bad for her as when I got home she was running around the house without socks on!

Here are some pictures of us all by the fireplace trying to keep warm. As you can see even the cats were cold!
The good news is that we have a new furnace and A/C unit so we are set for this summer and the heat! Our old A/C was almost 40 years old and the A/C guy could not believe that it was still running. Let's hope for those kind of results with this new Furnace and A/C!

Dancing Cooks

My Friend Sue captured these videos at her house this weekend when the kids were helping her cook! Sooo cute!



I love the way that KJ twists in this next video. Sooo cute!

Oh and Aimee (my curly hair girl) insisted that Sue put curlers in her hair. That is why she is wearing them. Too funny!

Little Bakers

As I have mentioned before, our good friends Sue and Denny like to have play dates with the triplets. This past Sunday was one of those play dates. This is such a blessing for all of us as Sue and Denny have the patients to do things with the triplets such as baking. They are always making cookies, bars, their own lunch, dinner, and lots of fun stuff.

When I went to pick the kids up on Sunday they had baked some bread. Sue said they all did a great job and when she turned around after they were done and it was time to clean up, Aimee was licking all of her fingers. She has learned that dough tastes soooo good. Hopefully she won't get any worms! With the influence of Sue with her baking and Grandma Mary with her cooking maybe I will have some chefs some day. I need to spend some more time in the kitchen doing some cooking. Although, from the looks of it these kids will be able to make Jon and I dinner in no time!
Both Jon and I are happy that these guys get the exposure to these kinds of things. I know the kids really enjoy it as just tonight Ella came up to look at these pictures and she told me all about her bread making experience. She said it was fun and that her fingers got all sticky! Oh and Sue, if you are reading this, we ate the bread with dinner the other night and it was yummy! Thanks a bunch!

Blast From The Past in Photos

Grandma Mary just got a new computer so I was helping her get it all set up the other day. We downloaded a bunch of pictures from her camera onto her new computer and she had some photos from about 3 years ago. These pictures really brought back some memories.

I decided to share a few on my blog because it is so amazing to look back at these. For me it is hard to remember my three "babies" as they are getting so big now. In some ways I miss this stage and it is bittersweet to know that my kids are not babies anymore. In some ways, I don't miss these days because life is so much easier with the kids helping themselves a little more now.
Before I had kids, I always used to ask my friends and family who were parents what their favorite age group was with their kids. Now that I have my kids I realize that there is not really an easy answer to this question. So far I have loved every stage and with each new stage it brings new joys and new concerns.
I would say that so far the most challenging stage for us aside from newborn, has been the threes. What an incredibly awesome but challenging age three can be. It is the age where your kids turn into little people but yet they still need a lot of direction that they don't think they need.
I have come to discover that parenting at every stage is challenging but always very rewarding. What an awesome gift to have children and raise them in this wild and crazy world.
Just as I tell all my family, friends, and even strangers, if I were given the chance to go back and change anything...I would not change a thing. God blessed me more than I ever could have hoped for with these amazing children. Yes, I lose my cool and think I suck at parenting at least once or twice a day but in the end as I lay my head down on the pillow at night my heart is full and I Thank God for this amazing experience.

Trike Season

Today has been the warmest day yet this spring! When Grandpa got home from work he got the kids trikes out of the rafters of the garage so they could ride them around the driveway. Then Grandpa took the kids for a walk/trike ride around the block. It feels great to finally get some weather that is nice enough to do that kind of stuff. It has been a very long winter.

I thought the above picture was great of Grandpa with his grandkids. I had to post it.

In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lion

Okay so this post is mostly just to complain about the fact that Winter is not ending for us. Typically the saying is that March will come in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. However, since it has been snowing for almost 24 hours now and we have a fresh foot or more of snow on the ground, March is going out like a lion!

YIKES....is winter EVER going to end? I sure hope so. The girls do too because every day they want to put their shorts and t-shirts on and they are so disappointed when I tell them that it is still too cold outside to be dressed in shorts. BUMMER.

I gotta get to bed....I am freezing as the furnace just turned down!

Typical Sunday

I decided it was time to talk about what we typically do on Sundays. We belong to the same church as my parents and my brother. My parents like to go to 7:30 AM mass. I know you will all think I am crazy when I tell you that we meet my parents at church for 7:30 AM mass. However, I should tell you that the only way that this can happen is for one, two, or all three of the kids sleeping at Grandma and Grandpa's house the night before. If Jon happens to be out town then I will sleep at Grandma and Grandpa's house too.
If you can believe it, there are some advantages to going to church so early. First, early mass is a shorter service so instead of the kids sitting through an hour or more of church, it is about a half hour. Second, since we go so early, they are very good about snacking on their cheerios and juice during church and this keeps they quiet and still. Third, since we go to church so early, when we head out to one of our favorite breakfast spots, there is never a wait for us.
Usually after church they have refreshments in the back which includes doughnuts, juice, and coffee. If the kids are good in church then after they get to pick out a doughnut to have. Also, when Grandma and Grandpa are in charge of the refreshments, they love to help get the room all set up. Grandpa has been taking them one at a time to the bakery before church to help pick up the doughnuts. They LOVE to do this with Grandpa. After they eat their doughnuts we then get the broom and dust pan and sweep up our mess. The picture above shows the kids at work cleaning up their mess. Usually there is a big fight over the broom. After church we head out for breakfast at one of the local restaurants. We all really enjoy this.
After we are done with all of our morning activities, we usually head over to our friends Sue and Denny's house. They like to take the kids for us on Sundays. The kids love to be at their house and Sue does so many fun things with kids. It is a blessing to have them in our lives to give us all a break once in awhile. The kids love to go because Sue usually has something fun planned to do with the kids.
While Sue and Denny have the kids this is usually when I get the grocery shopping, laundry, and errands run with out three little people with me. Having that time really helps all of us out a lot. I usually pick the kids up around dinner time and then we head over to Grandpa and Grandma's house for Sunday night dinner. Grandma Mary is an awesome cook so we all enjoy her dinners. Usually Uncle Tony and our good friend Jane are there too.
Sunday's are great days. We all enjoy them and we have been getting to church a lot this year. I love that as the homily usually gives good reminders for life and how to live.

GG DEL Was In The House

We were blessed to have GG Del here for a visit. She was able to come for 10 days and I think we all really enjoyed her company. When it was time for GG Del to go home, the kids asked why she had to leave and wanted to know if she could just stay. I melts my heart to know my kids love her so much. GG Del is very special to not only me but to all of us.
GG Del stands for Great Grandma Adele. She is my Dad's mother although my kids don't get that as they asked GG Del when she was here if she had any kids. I tried to explain it all to them but I am not sure they truly understood.
I love my Grandma Adele for so many reasons but the biggest reason is that she is a strong but simple woman. My Grandfather passed away in 14 years ago. At the time they had been married for 52 years. I still cannot imagine what that must have felt like for my Grandma. To have your life partner for all of those years and then having to move on with out that person. I think we were all worried about how my Grandma would do since she did not have a drivers license and she depended a lot on my Grandpa to driver her where ever she needed to go. I am happy to report that she survived and thrived. She is an amazing woman and at the age of 86 she still goes to exercise class (she walks to class) 4 times a week. She also volunteers her time at the high school as a hall monitor, sings in the church choir, plays cards about 5 days a week, and loves to watch reality TV. Survivor and Big Brother are her latest favorites.
Growing up, we lived about 5 hours away from my Grandma and Grandpa so we did not see them very often. I don't remember being very close to them but all of that changed when I went to college. I selected a school that was only an hour away from my Grandma. This ended up being great for both of us. My grand father passed away the fall of my Freshmen year at college. I am disappointed that I did not get to know him even better than I did before he passed away but I think that event helped my Grandma and I become close.
I would go to visit her a lot when I was in school. Especially when I was feeling homesick. We would play cards, make dinner, and sometimes even go to church or out to eat together. It was during these visits that I learned so much about her and her life. That is when we got close and I realized that we both thought a lot alike. We would always solve the worlds problems over many games of cards.
After I moved home from college, I did not get to see her all that much but we would still keep in touch. Jon and I got married and she was the only Grandparent on either side that was able to attend the wedding. Jon and I were so grateful that she was there. She loved Jon from the first time she met him and I remember her telling me that he was "just like us". She always felt comfortable around Jon and I am always so grateful that they really enjoy each other.
Grandma Adele was in town visiting when we got the big news that we were expecting triplets. I am glad that she is part of that memory. She did not say much for the first few days after we announced the news but I think she needed some time to process it. I know she was very nervous for us, the babies, and my health.
Now that the kids are here and they are all doing well, she is a proud Great Grandma to them. We gave her the nickname of GG Del as it was easier for the kids to say. She loves to come and visit and we love to go and visit her. I am so grateful that my kids have had a chance to get to know their great grandma. It is so much fun to watch the bond that they have formed with her. I love how proud she is of the kids and she really gets involved with them when she is here. I have pictures of her dancing with them and reading books.
Grandma Adele is doing very well. She has her mind, her health, and lots of family and friends. However, it is always hard for me to say goodbye to her after our visits. I love her so much and I just wish she was closer so we could see her more often than we do. It was amazing to me to see how hard it was for my kids to say goodbye to GG Del this time too. Just today I was talking to GG Del on the phone and all the kids wanted to talk to her too.
We are all so lucky and blessed to have Grandma Adele (AKA GG Del) in our lives. I have learned and I am still learning so much from her.

Happy Easter 2008

I know this is a few days late but Happy Belated Easter everyone! We had a great day despite all of the snow on the ground.
The kids were so excited when they woke up and found that the Easter bunny had come and hid the eggs and left baskets full of treats. They were thrilled when Daddy pointed out that the bunny had left it's tracks on our patio. We spent a good hour having fun and then it was time to get ready for church.
I have to say that these kids were adorable in church. My dad described the girls as "strutting "to the pew as they knew they were looking good in their Easter best! Church was awesome and we all got a good chuckle out of KJ as he put on his sister's Easter hat. I think everyone got a good laugh at that one.After church we headed over to Grandma Mary's house for brunch and when we got there the kids were surprised to see that the Easter Bunny had been to her house too. They spent the next 45 minutes trying to find all of the eggs. KJ took a header into the fireplace when searching for eggs to that was a big bummer but at least he was OK and did not need stitches. At first, Grandpa Al thought he would for sure need to go to ER. It was a bad fall.
The kids blessed us with a long nap on Easter too so we were all able to get some rest and then of course play some cards. Oh and not to brag but the women kicked the guys butts that day in cards!It is a bummer that this Easter was so snowy for us but we are all so blessed to have each other.
Happy Easter 2008!

Tales from the Hot Tub

This morning we were all over at Grandma Mary's house. It was a beautiful morning as it was snowing and all of the trees were white. Uncle Tony called and said he wanted to come over for a hot tub.

When he got there I agreed that I would go out with him. Then all of the kids wanted to go too. They needed a bath this morning anyway so I carried each of them out to the hot tub. My parents keep their hot tub cooler than most so it is safe for the kids to be in for a short period of time. Heck, when I was pregnant with them I sat in there daily due to my doctors orders.

We were all amazed to see that the kids grew so much they are now tall enough to stand in the hot tub. It is also really apparent that they have been in swimming lessons all winter long because they were loving the hot tub and there was no fear at all. At one point Ella went under the water and when she came up I asked her if she was OK. Then she said to me with a touch of sarcasm, "I just went under the water mommy"!

It was a fun morning and we were all grateful that we did not have to be going to work. The commute to work on a day like today is HORRIBLE!


Happy Friday!

Future Singing Careers

Here is a special treat of Ella (and Aimee) singing in the bath tub.




This might be more of a Christmas Song but in the spirit of Easter this week I just wanted to share.

Today Ella asked me why it makes God mad when people litter? I explained that it is not nice to be a "litter bug" because God made this earth beautiful and when people litter then it makes the world less beautiful. She then asked if on Saturday we could go down to the freeway and pick up all of the garbage. I told her that the freeway was probably not a great idea but we could walk around our neighborhood and pick up all the litter we could find. Heck if nothing else it will be good practice for finding the Easter eggs on Sunday.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is always a big deal to us. My mother is half Irish so that means we are all Irish. The kids really got into "Green Day" this year. Grandma Mary of course went crazy with all the St. Patrick's Day shirts, hats, and other unique "green" items.
On Saturday night I was out for a Bachelorette Party for one of my friends and I was even drinking some green beer. It is always so much fun to celebrate this Holiday. I know it means a lot to Grandma Mary as she is so proud of her heritage. Her parents built and ran an Irish restaurant for many years. It still is standing today and it still one of the towns best places to eat.

Rain Boots Are Our Friend!

Today's weather was very nice so I insisted that we all get outside to enjoy the somewhat warm weather. The kids were so excited and not only found their rain boots but put them on instantly. Then they insisted that they wear their rain coats. I love the rain coats so I was cool with them wearing them even though the sun was out and shining brightly.

Once we got outside they LOVED running through and stomping in the puddles. We took a long walk and found some really big puddles for them to run through. They were all soaking wet by the time we got back home but they sure had a great time.We stopped and visited one of our neighbors and they were so polite and good. He had some gifts for them and they were thrilled. Especially KJ because it was a "Boy" necklace with a scorpion on it. So boyish and just what he needed.I love days like this. Spring is in the air and that is so exciting.

Home Safe... but cold

Aimee and I returned from our trip safe and sound. We had a nice time but it always amazes me how much I miss the other two kids when I am away with just one. For that reason it makes it emotionally hard for me to be away but I we still had fun. I have lots of fun pictures to post but I am too darn tired after the day that I have had today.

I returned to a very cold house. Then I quickly realized that the furnace in our house was not working. Therefore we spend the day in a 50 degree home trying to stay warm. We are trying to decide if we replace or repair our 15 year old furnace right now. We are not sure what to do but we hope to have an answer by tomorrow so we can warm up!

A Little Adventure

Tomorrow morning Aimee and I are off to visit a very good friend of mine. I have not seen this friend in over a year so I am really looking forward to the visit.
Last year Ella came with me on this exact same trip. As a mom of triplets, it is always nice for me to get this one on one time with my kids. It is actually a vacation to only travel with one of the kids. I also think that it is a vacation for the kids too.
I am sure I will have lots to update on when I get back.

Ella's Skating Debut

Today was Ella's turn to have a date with daddy. She decided that she wanted to go ice skating. Big thank you to Grandma Mary for taking Aimee and Kendrick and awarding Jon this date with Ella.
Jon said that Ella did a fantastic job at ice skating and from the video clips it looks like they both had a great time on the ice. Jon did not realize when he was recording the clips that you can not rotate the movie so you will need to tilt your head to the side to be able to watch these clips.

Even though they are not straight I still thought there were great and I wanted to share. I love how encouraging Jon is with Ella. Telling her that she is doing a great job and being so patient. Another good reason why he is such a great daddy.

260

This is the number of posts that I have done on this blog. I cannot believe that I am already at 260!!! I was amazed when I noticed that number today.

I get such mixed emotions about this blog. Some people think I am crazy for doing it, some people love it and talk to me about it all the time. I get nervous about who is reading it and exposing my family to harm because of it but then I remind myself that I am careful about what I put on my blog. I use this blog as a way to look back and show my kids what activities we did when they were small. To give them a glimpse of how we raised triplets and stayed sane. I really wish my mom would have had a "blog" when I was growing up. It would be great to look back and see all the activities and have a glimpse of "our" world through her eyes. I guess I don't necessarily need to make all of this "public" but knowing I have an audience makes me stay devoted to posting on this blog. It is kind of like when you are on a diet and you have to get on a scale for someone else to see.

This blog has become an outlet for me. It helps me to reflect on what is going on in my life and in my family's life. I have thought about changing the blog name and making it even more private which I might do one of these days but for now I am going to keep plugging away at this one. If nothing else just to remind me of where we have been and reflect on what we have going on now.

The other day Jon said he ran into one of our neighbors at the Gym. She told him that she really enjoyed the blog and that he must be a great husband and father because I write so highly of him. So for that neighbor...you are right. Jon is an awesome husband and father and even though he did not say much about it, I am sure it made him feel great that you took notice.

To my fellow blog readers! Please comment one of these days so I know my audience!!! How about if I say Pretty Please with sugar on top!!!! I would love to beat my old comment record of 7 comments!

So 260 and I am still plugging away. Who would have thunk it that night long ago when I started this blog journey. My only regret is not starting it earlier!