10 Ways I've Changed Since Becoming a Mom to Triplets

A lot of things change when you become a parent.  Right after our 2nd ultrasound when we found out we weren't having twins, but TRIPLETS, I vividly remember saying to my husband as we stepped on the elevator, "Our lives are never going to be the same."

I've never said a more true statement.  I didn't know what life with triplets had in store but I knew we would not be able to live the same life we had been living.  Not only did the things around me change (i.e. 3 babies and a house that looked like a daycare) but I have also noticed that I have transformed as well.  Here are just some of the ways that I have changed since becoming a Mommy 3.5 years ago.

1. I am more efficient.  I conquer tasks with a different attitude.  I get things done as quickly as possible but at the same time preparing for the next step.  I feel like I always have to be one step ahead.  This goes for house cleaning, dressing the kids, and getting my own "stuff" done.  I seriously don't have any time to waste.

2. No mommy judging.  I know my pre-bab(ies) self and I couldn't help but judge how parents were raising their kids.  I would tell myself, "My kids would never act that way... Or I would never let my kids eat that... yadda yadda yadda."  Let me tell you, I have changed 100% on my opinions about how other parents raise their kids. Honestly, you don't know how hard it is raising a tiny human until you are.  And now that I'm the Mommy that may give in when I know I shouldn't OR feed my kids a treat right before dinner (because I promised them hours ago, but I  forgot until they so loudly nicely reminded me)... I realize that every parents loves their children and they are doing what is RIGHT for that situation.  You may see a Mom letting her kid do something you wouldn't but you don't know what went on behind the scenes or why they are even in that particular scenario.  Sometimes, its a last effort.  Sometimes, the Mom or Dad needs a break. Or, sometimes it may be for the child's own good... it just doesn't look that way to you.  I've now learned to put all judgement aside and just support one another.  Parenthood is hard.  Period.

3. I have less patience for adults.  See #1.  This doesn't mean that I'm rude to other adults, I just figure out tactics to make conversations go a little quicker.  I'm not talking about my family or friends, but more along the lines of the AT&T guy, or the lady selling me insurance on the phone, or the 5 complete strangers that stop me to tell me "Your hands are full" at Target.  I'm nice but to the point so I can maximize my time.

4. I am a Multitasking queen.  I've found that I never had a large enough chunk of time to be really productive with a project, so I have many tasks going all at once and I tick away at each one as efficiently as possible.  I can also know what my kids are doing (most likely climbing on me) while I clean, fold laundry, or work on one of those projects.

5. Sleep is no longer a priority to me.  I've learned I function pretty well when sleep deprived.  My pre-bab(ies) self used to NEED at least 8 hours of sleep a night (most nights 9-10), but now I'm pretty happy with my 6.5-7 hours (with getting up at least once in the middle of the night).  I've learned to let it go (cue Elsa) and stress less about sleeping.  If I did stress about it, then I'd be more miserable.  I've come to terms with the fact that my children are just bad sleepers.... which leads to poor sleep for me.  I accept it for what it is.  

6. I truly appreciate silence.  My house is never silent.  It is filled with a pleasurable amount of giggles, a dash of questions, an unimaginable amount of crying, and a WHOLE lot of high pitched screaming... with some dog barking thrown in the mix.  Silence is almost never heard, but when it is, I notice... and its AMAZING.

7. I don't mind being soaked in the bodily fluids of my own kin.  The day isn't complete unless I've been sneezed on.  Spit up, pee, poop, snot, spit... whatever.  Doesn't bother me anymore.  It is like an immunity I've built up.

8. Mom-guilt is a new feeling for me. I have to be fair and sometimes someone just wants a snuggle and I can't give it to her or I want to have dinner with my girlfriends and I leave 1 with an ear infection at home who just wants her mommy.  Its hard.  Its really really hard.

9. My priorities have changed.  I think this happens for all parents.  Everything else takes a step down when kiddos are around.  

10. I didn't realize how much I could love 3 tiny humans. I mean, seriously, I would give my life for them and it makes me tear up just thinking about them getting hurt in any way. They are (most of the time) sticky, unreasonable, independent, and sometimes just down-right mean to me... but I love them so hard.  And I know they love me back.

Triplets Back to School 2016

The girls (and I) are sooo excited to go back to school this year.  They are doing Wednesdays and Fridays this year from 9:15-1:00 at a Methodist preschool close to our house.  The girls were thrilled to go to school this morning.  They love wearing their backpacks and getting to eat out of their lunchboxes.  We listened to Katy Perry's "Roar" on the way to school this morning and all got pumped up for the big day.  They went to school there last year, so drop off was a breeze and now I'm sitting at home and enjoying a little silence (and blogging).  Here are photos from this morning.

Here are little interviews I did with the girls yesterday.  They were a little more successful than last year.  I also had them draw self-portraits of themselves and check out Sam's .... I think we have a little artist on our hands.  Just love these!

And now I'm going to enjoy my last hour of quiet before I go pick up my girlies who I miss so much!

Tips for Traveling to Disney World with TRIPLET Toddlers

 You may think we are crazy for taking 2 year old triplets to Disney World back in April, but I do not regret it one bit.  We actually set our expectations low and everything went so much better than I thought it would.  Here are my top tips for traveling to Disney World with 3 toddlers in tow.

1.  Go right before their 3rd birthday.  Did you know that kids are free 2 and under?  That saved us $1000 right there.  This was the ideal time for a toddler.  They were old enough to understand and comprehend the "Magic" yet still young enough to save us a little money.  They got into the parks free and they also ate at all the buffets for free.  It was the PERFECT time for my girls.

2.  **FAST PASSES**  This is my ultimate tip and I have to split it into multiple parts.

A:  Get fast passes. Period.  We saw so many people waiting in lines that if they had gotten fast passes wouldn't have to.  Who wants to wait in lines with 3 toddlers?... not us.  The most we ever waited was 20 minutes to meet Ariel and that was because we hadn't mastered our fast passes yet.

B: Kids under 3 don't have to have fast passes.  That's right.  They just go through the line with YOU even though the ride or meet and greet is for them.

C:  In combination with B... With most of the rides, more than one "under 3" can go with 1 adult.  We had 5 adults, so by using fast passes, the girls were able to go again and again with different adults in our party.  For instance, Brian and I would go on Dumbo with all 3 girls, then MeMe and Grandpops would take them immediately after that with their fast passes, and if 1 or 2 of the girls wanted to go a third time, Nana could take them on Dumbo.  We did this multiple times in the 3 days we were there and it worked out great.

D:  Once you have used your 3rd Fast Pass, and as soon as you scan your Magic Band to get in the Fast Pass line on any ride, pull out your phone to begin booking your next fast pass.  We could normally get a fast pass for a ride that was 30-45 minutes later.  Perfect timing after the kids have rode the ride 2-3 times, a bathroom break, and walking to the ride.  This was the KEY for us to hardly wait in any lines.

E: Most of the time the cast member would let us through if it was 10 minutes before our Fast Pass time.

F:  You only need 1 Fast Pass to get all 3 children in for meeting characters.  For instance, those hard to get Fast Passes like Meet Anna and Elsa; only one Fast Pass popped up so I was able to grab it for myself.  While walking up to the cast member to scan Magic Bands, I asked if it was okay for me to bring my husband since I was taking 3 toddlers.  She said of course, and let us all through.  Having Brian there wasn't going to slow down anything for Disney, if anything it was going to speed things up to have another adult to wrangle toddlers.  The girls were able to meet their favorite characters more than once and each time got better for them because they were more comfortable.

3.  Take help.  It would have been really difficult for Brian and I to take the girls by themselves.  Especially with potty breaks and 1/3 being scared of some of the rides.  We brought 3 grandparents.  They enjoyed being there for the girls' first time to Disney and we enjoyed having them there to help us along the way.

4.  Pack your kids favorite foods and snacks.  My girls are so picky, so bringing food I knew they would eat saved us from tantrums and spending money on food they wouldn't eat.

5.  Strollers.  We brought a double and a single umbrella stroller.  My MIL made these beautiful signs for them so they wouldn't get lost in a sea of strollers.  We attached some personal battery operated fans to keep the girls cool.  It was definitely a necessity while we were there.

6.  Go to at least one character meal.  The toddlers are free once again.  The cost was a little steep for adults but the food was really good and the characters were always great with the kids.  We did Park Fare at the Grand Floridian and The Tusker House for lunch at Animal Kingdom.  Both had amazing food.

7.  Get to the park before it opens so you can watch the opening parade.  It gave the girls a good glimpse at what they were about to experience.  Also, we did breakfast in the room or on the go every morning.  We didn't want to waste an hour or so finding a restaurant to sit down and eat.

8.  Catch the parades.  Some of the girls' favorite memories are seeing all the characters at the parade.  They still talk about Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather and Maleficent's Dragon.

9.  Nap or not to nap?  I had plans to take the girls back to the hotel 2 of the 3 days in the park.  Did that happen?  Nope.  I had every day planned out, even to the point of what order we were going to ride the rides.  We followed it for the most part, just packed in A LOT more.  The girls took turns napping in the strollers the first 2 days and then miraculously on the 3rd day, they all napped for 2 hours at the same time in their strollers.  It was perfect.  All of the adults got to sit and rest.  I enjoyed some ice cream and got re-energized for the rest of the day.  The girls slept hard so we found a cool, dark, and quiet spot.  They were ready to go and happy after that.  We were at the park that day from 9-9:30 PM and the girls did amazing.

10.  Do what interests your child.  We rode Dumbo a million times.  My husband said he had never met characters before and it seemed like that was all we did.  They loved the sand pit in Animal Kingdom so we camped out there for awhile.  Its not about doing everything, its about keeping a smile on your little ones' faces.

11.  Give in.  I'm not one to give in very much to my kids and we run a tight schedule, but something about Disney made me "Go with the Flow" a little more.  For instance, to keep everyone in our group and around us happier, I gave in and carried Samantha a large portion of the time we were there.  She is definitely a Mama's girl and would kick and scream if we tried to put her in the stroller when she didn't want to.  I took one for the team and hauled her around Disney World.  My back might have hurt a little more and my legs were worn out, but it was totally worth it for a happy child.

12.  Don't be afraid to let your kids try new things.  The girls were a smidgen past the height requirement for Barnstormer.  It is a short and thrilling first roller coaster.  Samantha rode it 7 (Yes seven) times because she LOVED it.  Taylor would have rode it that many times but our first stop there she was sleeping.  Mallory rode it twice.  The first time she was petrified, but after watching Sam ride it again and again, she built up the courage to do it again and had fun.

13.  When you get home, make them photo books.  I gave them each their own photo book for their birthday with highlights from our trip.  I used the same template but switched out individual photos.  The girls love them and even this morning Taylor was reliving her wonderful time at Disney World.  They were only 2 when they went, but I'm hoping these books will help them remember some of the special memories they made at Disney World.

14.  Take a little time to yourselves.  If you are lucky enough to have reinforcements like we did, enjoy a little kid-free time and ride the "Big" rides.  Brian and I were exhausted by the end of that day, but the last few hours alone were a lot of fun.

Enjoy the moments with your little ones.  Remember their faces when they see Cinderella's castle for the first time or their giggles on their first roller coaster.  Stay up late to see the Parade of Lights and eat ice cream while you talk about meeting your favorite princess.  I'm so beyond happy we decided to make this trip.  It was unforgettable and something I will treasure forever.

June 7, 2016 (Third Birthday)

My girls are 3!  T H R E E !  I can't believe how fast time goes.  Their birthday was actually 2 weeks ago but here is a recap of their special day.

Brian and I woke them up.  We sang them Happy Birthday first thing.  Then we took them downstairs so they could open their gifts from us.

I made them each their own book from our Disney vacation.  Here is Taylor "Kissing" hers.

Then, each of the girls had an opportunity in the prior week to get each other birthday presents.  It was so sweet watching them get excited about giving to their sisters.

Then it was breakfast time.  After pancakes, we let them eat a piece of their tie-dyed cake Dad made them the night before.

After breakfast, we got everyone ready and headed to Wet n Wild Splashtown in North Houston.  The girls had so much fun and I think it was the first time that Brian and I weren't stressed the whole time during a family outing.  The girls behaved and we all had so much fun.  They loved doing the water slides in the smaller kids zone... over and over and over again.

Back at home the girls got in a nap while MeMe and Grandpops arrived and set up this...

They spent hours refurbishing my old Barbie doll house.  It turned out so adorable and it made me want to play before the girls woke up.  I did snap a few photos of everything set up all cute before 6 little hands got to it and destroyed it in 4 seconds flat.

They had to pull everything out.  They loved it so much and I can't wait to watch them grow up playing with my childhood doll house.  Its pretty special.

After they got to play with the barbie house, there were more presents to open from Nana and then we headed to dinner at their favorite restaurant.  What is a 3 year old's favorite restaurant you might ask?  Well, its Freys, a restaurant with a huge backyard and lots of balls to play with. They technically won't eat any of the food, but they sure love to play.  

The girls birthday was so much fun and I think everyone enjoyed themselves.  They had their birthday party on June 11 and I'll share photos from that in my next post.