A nighttime update

First and most importantly, the boys are sleeping better at night. YAY! Right now put the babies to bed after their 9 pm bottle. Then we wake them up to feed them again at midnight. After they go back to bed following the midnight feeding, we let them sleep until they wake up on their own. The last several mornings that has been 6:30 am. I get in bed around 1:00 after completing the midnight feeding so that's 5.5 hours of sleep for me. It's not my good old 8 hours...yet...but we will get there. Not only are they sleeping for a longer stretch of time, they are going down more easily and I haven't had to go to their nursery several times throughout the night. I swear, a few times it felt like I went in there 50 times. Not too long ago, Stokes woke me up by crying and I went in, gave him his paci, soothed him back to sleep, and went back to my room. No sooner did my head hit the pillow than the cries started up again. Those nights are so tiresome! They are getting much better about soothing themselves so we dont have to get up as many times. Thomas and I will let them cry for a few minutes before going to check on them and they often quiet right down. I am so glad that we are moving in the right direction towards a good, full night's sleep.

The big update for this post though is that we have separated the triplets. Now they each sleep in their own crib. They are growing so much and Thomas and I conceded that it was time to split them up. When they all slept in the same crib, we put them head to toe the width of the crib. More and more often when I would go in to wake them up, someone's head would be touching the railing - not in a dangerous way though! It was becoming apparent that they wouldn't fit very much longer. I decided that we would have to do the big switch on a weekend night so Thomas could help me if the boys didn't take very well to sleeping alone. During the week I try to handle most of the nighttime stuff so Thomas can get decent sleep. Last Saturday, the day they turned 5 months old, we chose to pull the trigger on a whim. We quickly gathered all the toys and things in the unused cribs and put them away. We put the boys to sleep separately and crossed our fingers that it would go okay. Whadaya know...they did just fine! I was so relieved that they transitioned so well.

Here are some pictures I took today of them napping in their own cribs.

William

Ryan

Stokes (he was supposed to be napping, but you can see his eyes are open - but at least he was quiet!)

Proof that they are outgrowing their previous sleeping arrangement. Not that you didn't believe me but I wanted an excuse to take one last picture of them like this! ;)

Snow days

We got snow 2 days ago and then yesterday the roads were bad due to the melted snow turning into ice overnight when the temperature dropped. School was out yesterday and I just know there were a lot of excited kids in this town! We didn't go out and play but I couldn't pass up an opportunity to get a picture of the boys on a snow day. Yes, I did just shuffle around the hat and the blanket each time I took one of them out! 

Ryan

William

Stokes

(Not happy at this moment!!)

5 Months Old

Today is the trio's 5 month birthday! Five months is their actual age; their adjusted age is 2 months. When I refer to "adjusted age" I mean how old they would be now if they were born full term on November 24, 2013. They were almost exactly 3 months early.

They have come a long way in these last 5 months and we have witnessed some miraculous and incredible changes. I feel like in the last 3 months since they've been home their growth and development has been going at the speed of light. We are so thankful for our beautiful, sweet, and amazing triplet babies.

Over the last month, Stokes has really started smiling a lot. Every now and then we can get a smile out of William as well but he doesn't give them out quite as freely as Stokes does. Seeing my babies smile is probably the cutest thing I have ever seen. I can't wait for Ryan to crack a smile and I hope it will be any day now!

By the way, we went for another eye appointment yesterday and...drumroll, please...Ryan has two mature eyes!!!! Hallelujah! All 3 of my boys have mature eyes, which means that they are no longer at risk for blindness due to retina detachment. Whoop whoop! This does not necessarily mean they have perfect vision. They are still at risk for lazy eye, astigmatism, nearsightedness, etc. due to prematurity, but this news is another hurdle over which they have passed. We don't have to go back to the eye doctor until the boys are a year old. 

Here are a few pictures of the 3 Peerys (that used to be in a pod) at 5 months old. Of course they were not in the mood to smile when I had my camera out.

Ryan

William

Stokes

Boppy tummy time makes them tired :)

Stokes is happy when his dad is playing with him

Our 3 little farmers - after we took their official 5 month picture with their elephant, we put them in these cute overalls

I don't have a smiley picture of William just yet, but here's one of Stokes taken a few days ago

Happy 5 month birthday, babies!


 

Going for a stroll

On Monday we had the nicest weather! My mother-in-law, MaSha, was planning to come Tuesday to help me while Thomas was out of town for work and I was on my own for the day on Monday. Sometimes when I am taking care of the boys by myself I feel somewhat empowered. It is a great feeling to know that I can do it, especially when everything is running smoothly. I was feeling pretty good about the day and experiencing a little cabin fever from being inside all the time. I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous, sunny 60 degree weather and take the babies on a walk, solo! I know that probably doesn't sound like a huge deal, but it kind of is when you have three! :) And it was my first one...hopefully the first of many!

The logistics of going for a walk are pretty crazy. It's a mini-workout before the walk starts. We don't have a triplet stroller for many reasons, so I have planned in my mind what I would do if I had to go somewhere with them without help. The answer? Push a double stroller and wear a baby. Of course! So that morning I finished the 9 o'clock feeding, got the boys changed (diapers and clothes), got in some tummy time and I had pumped and we had about an hour left before the next feeding. I knew it was the perfect opportunity for a walk on a gorgeous day and took advantage! I took the boys downstairs one by one. In case you're wondering, that is a lot of up and down stairs, which is the norm around here. I used to carry 2 babies at a time up and down the stairs, but now that they're getting bigger, I feel better to do it one at a time. I got all 3 babies situated in a seat downstairs and realized that I would probably need a sweatshirt, even though it wasn't too cold. I ran back up and got my sweatshirt and my Ergo carrier. Then got back downstairs and realized I needed hats for the boys...back upstairs and down again. During this time, William started fussing so I went ahead and strapped him on in my Ergo, which he likes. He calmed down. I got hats on the babies then went out to the garage to set up the stroller. It's a double Snap n Go and it literally just folds out and you snap car seats into it. I typically keep the strollers in my trunk, so I got it out (of course the single stroller was on top, so I had to get that one out, then take out the double, then put the single back in and shut the trunk). Then I unfolded the stroller and got it ready for the car seats to snap in. Next I opened up the van doors and crawled in to get 2 car seats. Keep in mind I am wearing William in my carrier this whole time and trying not to disturb him too much when I am jostling around with all this equipment. Luckily he was asleep and didn't mind a bit, although I am sure it looked pretty comical. At this point I took the car seats inside, 1 by 1, since I am holding William, and then got Stokes and Ryan buckled in and a blanket tucked over them. I was feeling a little out of breath already although the actual walk hasn't started. I felt like I have already gotten some cardio in, but my work was not yet done! Next step was taking the car seats, with a baby in them, out to the garage and snapped into the stroller...you guessed it...1 by 1. Two more trips in and out and we were finally ready to go! At this point it was 11:30, we had used up 30 minutes with all the preparation and we had about a half hour for the walk so we could be home in time for the 12:00 feeding. We set off and the day was absolutely beautiful. I got out my phone and start returning calls and I was feeling accomplished! It took all of about 3 minutes before I got winded, but hey, you gotta start somewhere! The phone calls were short lived because I needed to breathe - haha - but in my defense, I had not worked out since we found out I was pregnant with triplets last April! Then I had to start from scratch to literally just walk again after 5 weeks of bed rest and completely losing all muscle and cardio endurance. Right after I put my phone away, I pulled up my sweatshirt sleeves and was actually sweating. It turns out I didn't need the sweatshirt afterall, but then I couldn't take it off because I was wearing William, but I digress. Ok, so we made it once around the small loop in my neighborhood (yes, it is a little hilly....well...at least not totally flat) and we were feeling good, apart from being a little sweaty, I mean glowing, and out of breath! The babies were sleeping and probably enjoying the fresh air and I was glad not to be cooped up inside and I know I needed the exercise! We still had 15 minutes until 12:00 so we went for loop #2. I cannot tell you how much I was enjoying this walk. The weather could not have been better. I was, in fact, enjoying the walk so much with the sun shining and cool, fresh air in my lungs that I did not even notice that Stokes' blanket had fallen off somewhere along the way. Oopsies. 

We were getting close to home when my phone rings and it's Thomas. He came home from work for lunch so that he could help with the 12:00 feeding and grab a quick bite to eat. He apparently went inside and didn't hear anything and ran upstairs to look for the babies and me only to find an empty house. He kinda freaked out. My van was there and no one at home, so I can see why he was worried. Plus I didn't call him with a heads up because I thought we would be back before he got home and then I could brag about my accomplishment. So I answered the phone and let him know that we were ok and just on a walk and almost back home. We rounded the corner and made it back to the house and Thomas was outside waiting on us. I got him to snap these pictures to capture this triumphant first solo walk! I was really glad he was there so he could help me get the babies back inside, fold and put the stroller back in the van and get the car seats back in the van. I also got him to drive around the loop to find the blanket we dropped since I was kind of exhausted and didn't have time before the noon feeding began.

I know this was a long story about a short walk but it was a big deal for me! I felt a sense of liberation knowing I could take them out on my own. Not that I would want to take them somewhere like say, a doctor visit, but just knowing that I could is important to me.

You may be wondering why I took them out during cold and flu season since I am such a stickler about keeping them away from germs. Just so you know, our pediatrician said open-air type activities are fine, weather permitting, but we need to stay away from indoor retail stores & restaurants with lots of people and anyone with germs or is sick. So basically we aren't hiding from nature germs, just people germs! Does that make sense?

I am already looking forward to spring and warm weather so we can try more triplet adventures, because everything's an adventure with triplets, even just a walk around the block! ;)

Stokes' monitor

Throughout this blog I've made several references to Stokes' monitor but I've never really explained much about it. So here it goes.

I'll give you a little background. The boys were all on caffeine beginning right after they were born. The caffeine basically acts as you would expect - to keep them going, very similar to adults drinking coffee in the morning. It was a little reminder for their heart to keep beating, their lungs to keep breathing and all other body functions to continue working as they should. From what I understand, the caffeine is pretty much standard for a preemie NICU baby. As the boys grew, their dosages of caffeine got proportionally bigger as well. Once it was determined by the nursing staff and doctors that the babies' systems were mature enough, they would begin weaning the caffeine until it was no longer needed at all. Although some babies are still on caffeine once they go home from the NICU, my babies were all off before they got discharged. As part of the NICU protocol, they want the babies to be off caffeine for at least a week for observation before leaving the hospital. Stokes, unfortunately, was not off caffeine for an entire week before he got discharged. Because of that, we had to get him set up on a home monitor. The purpose of the home monitor is so that we will be made aware if he has any bradychardia episodes (heart rate slowing down or speeding up beyond set limits) or apnea (not breathing).

The NICU worked with a home healthcare company to get the monitor set up for us. The company sent a rep to the hospital to bring the monitor and to train us on how to use it. This appointment was set after Ryan was already at home, so I was unable to go to the training, since kids are not allowed in the NICU (even kids that have literally been discharged for 1 day). So Thomas and MaSha went and got trained on how the monitor works. MaSha took great notes and the two of them were able to get me up to speed.

There are 2 stickers that attach to Stokes' skin under his arms. The stickers connect to leads that plug into the monitor. You have to make sure you turn the monitor on and off before removing the leads from the monitor cable. If you don't, the alarm will sound and trust me when I tell you that it's loud.

Stokes with his stickers and leads

What it looks like when he's "plugged in"

The leads plugged into the monitor cord -  it's easy...black goes in black & white goes in white, just like TV cables :)

There are numerical limits set for both heart rate and breathing. I believe the low end of the heart rate limit is 80 beats per minute, so if Stokes' heart slows down to 80 bpm or lower, the monitor will go off. Same thing if it starts beating too fast, although that hasn't been an issue for us. The apnea alarm will sound if he hasn't taken a breath for 15 or 20 seconds (I'm not sure which). When the alarm goes off, it is a loud beeping noise. It will only continue while the episode is happening and will stop once the problem has been fixed. For example, if Stokes' heart rate drops for say 10 seconds, the alarm will sound for 10 seconds and then once his heart is beating normally again, the alarm will stop.

The monitor has a bunch of different lights and the lights will light up depending on what's going on. If we're not in the room and the alarm goes off, we can tell what is happening by looking at the monitor panel and checking to see which light is on. There is a light for heart rate drop, heart rate going too fast, apnea, or just a disconnection with the leads. We simply press the reset button after an episode to reset the lights and start over.

The monitor panel next to the crib where we keep it

Not sure if you can see but there are illustrations of a heart beating too slow & too fast and a set of lungs with an "x" through them, indicating apnea.

When Stokes does set off his alarm, it's almost always a heart rate drop (brady) or a disconnection. Sometimes the stickers fall off his skin and we wouldn't know since he's wearing his clothes or pajamas. If the sticker does fall off, the alarm would go off and we would see the disconnection light and would know to check his stickers or make sure the leads are plugged in all the way and the cord leading in to the monitor isn't loose. When Stokes bradys, he corrects it himself without us having to intervene. What I mean by that, is that if his alarm goes off in the middle of the night, I spring out of bed and start off towards the nursery and before I even get to his room (very close to my room), the monitor has stopped beeping and his heart rate is back at a normal pace. I check the monitor lights to confirm that it was a brady, reset the monitor and go back to sleep. If by chance he didn't correct his heart rate drop on his own, which has happened once or twice since he's been home, I would just have to pick him up and vigorously pat his back to wake him up and remind his heart to start beating again. This probably sounds scary, and it is, but we got used to it with all 3 of them in the NICU when it happened fairly frequently, especially when they were first born.

Lately when his alarm goes off, he usually has spit up. From talking to my pediatrician, his bradys may be reflux induced. Poor guy. The alarm has actually been going off less now that he's on Zantac to treat the reflux.

Per our neonatologist's suggestion, we really only hook Stokes up to his monitor at night or when we aren't in the same room with him (on occasion). So really, he's only hooked up at night. The theory is that if we're with him during the day, we will be able to tell if something is wrong. He would start turning blue and we would be able to key in on it and begin the back patting and stimulation. He seems to do well during the day and a few times when we've forgotten to turn the monitor on at night he has made it through just fine.

Once a month a rep from the monitor company will come over and download his results from the monitor. They, in turn, send the download to our pulmonologist who can read the results and make an assessment. The pulmonologist will get in touch with the pediatrician to keep them up to speed and I will get a call from the pediatrician's office to let me know what's going on. Supposedly when the download is being assessed, the doctor or whomever is reading it can tell if it was a true episode and the severity, or a case of a disconnected lead or other non-serious occurrence. According to last month's results, Stokes had 50 heart rate drops and a few minor apnea spells. I was very surprised to hear the number 50. That is almost twice per day. Hmmm...that does not seem right to me. Yes, it did go off some, but we weren't running in there constantly to check on him and reset the monitor. I told the nurse on the phone that the number seemed rather high to me. Regardless of whether the number 50 is accurate or not, they felt he had too many episodes to take him off his monitor and wanted him to stay on it another month and reassess. I am OK with that because I would rather be safe than sorry. The monitor is only really a very minor inconvenience and it's definitely one I'm willing to deal with for the safety of my son. That being said, I'm not totally convinced that his monitor is really "needed". It hasn't been going off very often and when it does, he self-corrects before I get a chance or even need to intervene. I am more than happy to cooperate based on what the doctors say though. We got another download late last week and the results should be in the process of getting analyzed so we can see if he did better this month and if the monitor can come off.

Food for thought...all newborns have immature body systems, even if they are full term, and it's common for them to have irregular breathing patterns. Healthy, full term babies are not put on monitors, but I can't help but wonder...if they were, would they set their alarms off and self-correct? The same goes for Ryan and William. Since they're not wearing monitors, we will never know. Literally, the only difference between Stokes and his brothers is that he was on caffeine a little longer than they were. Anyway, he's doing great and I have confidence in him that he will be just fine in the long run. We will wait to see what the most recent download results are and I'll keep you updated as to whether he has to stay on for another month or whether we can kiss the monitor goodbye!

On our very vest behavior

The triplets have been on their very vest behavior lately.

Gees, these boys are so "punny"!

This week we went to a NICU development follow up clinic. We knew it would be a long appointment because the neonatal doctors told us in advance so Thomas took a half day off work so he could be there with me. We met with a nurse, an occupational therapist (OT), and a few others. The nurse had an extensive background and previously worked in the NICU for years. She had a wealth of knowledge and was very helpful! She told us she thought William has reflux, which probably explains a lot of his fussiness and crying. She even called our pediatrician to let her know that we needed a prescription for reflux medicine. Stokes and Ryan were already on reflux medicine so now all 3 boys are taking it. Apparently reflux is fairly common in babies and even more so in preemies. Overall the boys checked out well with lifting their heads and using their muscles during tummy time, but the OT noticed a flat spot on Stokes and Ryan's heads, which indicates that they prefer to lay facing the right. I got some homework for positioning to help round out their heads and some neck stretches to use on Ryan. We will have a follow up sometime in February to check it out again.

The good thing about the development clinic is that they do everything based on adjusted age instead of actual age. The boys are 4.5 months actual, but only 1.5 adjusted . They gave me growth charts based on adjusted age, which is awesome! At the pediatrician, our growth charts are based on actual age and the boys are not really even on the chart, which is discouraging. On our adjusted growth chart, the boys are all looking great for weight, length and head circumference. YES!!!

Here are there updated stats:

Stokes - 10 lbs, 12.5 oz, 22.25 inches
Ryan - 10 lbs, 5.4 oz, 23 inches
William - 11 lbs, 22.5 inches

We also went for their 4 month appointment at the pediatrician this week. We talked to her more about the reflux issues, I got a lot of questions answered, and they got their vaccinations. It was 4 shots in the legs and 1 oral vaccination. It was very, very sad to witness. I have decided that I will not attend any other vaccination appointments...ok, that is not true, but I definitely didn't like it and have to fight back a few tears myself when they were crying so hard. Fortunately, they calmed down shortly after it was over and slept a good bit that afternoon. They did seem extra fussy the next day, which I attributed to the shots.

We made it through another week and TGIF! Thomas actually has to work most of the weekend for the annual sales meeting and my Aunt Kathy is here with me to help out. Thank goodness! We sure will miss Dad this weekend though.

SAHM

SAHM = Stay At Home Mom

And...it's official. I formally resigned from my position at work to stay home and take care of the boys. This was a very hard decision for me to make. I really enjoyed my job and loved the company I worked for and that chapter of my life has been closed (at least for now). I never ever saw myself as a SAHM, and never really aspired or hoped to be one, but then again I never thought I would have triplets! If I had a healthy, full term singleton I know that baby would go to daycare and I would be back at work. That's just how it would be for our family in that scenario and I would be perfectly satisfied with it. But the boys have weakened immune systems due to their prematurity so daycare is out of the question for us. Not that we could afford it anyways! Have you priced daycare for three infants?!?! We have and it's not pretty! We thought about getting a nanny, but just didn't feel that it was the right decision for our family at this time. So here we are and my resignation is with HR. 

I was extremely hesitant to make the final decision about not going back to work, although my heart was swaying me this direction from the beginning. To shut the door on my career right now feels like I am losing a piece of myself. And it's scary. What if I decide to go back to work in five years when the boys are in school and I am so behind the times, technologically speaking? What if I can't find a job that I like and am good at? What if I lose my business accumen and "know how" while I am at home with three babies? The "what ifs" could go on forever. Suffice it to say that I am nervous about this life change. 

That being said, both Thomas and I feel like it's the right decision right now. I am not sure that I am cut out for this long term, but if we realize I'm not, we will cross that bridge when we get to it. For now the only timeframe we've made is to stay home until the boys are a year old. 

There is a lot of pressure that comes with staying home. If you are going to do it and not be a financial contributor to the household, you'd better be a darn good mom and keeper of the home! Of course I have some insecurities about this. This is the most important job ever. I am in charge of three lives 24 hours a day! What if I stay home and my boys aren't well behaved? What if they are actually holy terrors? Will it look bad if my house is a mess and it's technically part of my job to keep house as a SAHM? I think I have mentioned before that I am a worrier, and this decision of a new path in life is no exception to get away from my inclination to worry. But then I think about how worried I would be to leave my preemie babies in the care of someone else while I went to work. There is definitely no "right" answer to the work vs stay home debate, but I just hope that this decision works for our family for this time in our lives.

Staying at home is hard. I have learned that already and they've only been home for two and a half months. Not to mention that I have had help for the vast majority of that time. It's a busy, sometimes stressful, non-stop, tiring, thankless job. In my household it definitely feels like a 2 or 3 person job. Everybody tells me it will get easier. I don't want to wish the time away but I need to hold on to that thought that it does get easier. I remember right before the boys were getting discharged, our neonatologist said that we just needed to make it through the first three months and it would start getting better and easier. I think it definitely will be better once winter (and RSV season!) is over. I hope by that point I have enough guts or confidence or whatever it takes to take the boys out by myself. Whether it's to run errands, go to the pool or park, or visit with friends and have play-dates, I think just being out will be helpful (and potentially stressful, but whatever!). Right now we are trapped in the house apart from doctors appointments. I have been advised to keep the boys away from all public environments until RSV season is over to limit their risk of infection and illness. I rarely go anywhere by myself, even when people are here to help because the boys are eating every 3 hours during the day and I am pumping almost that often as well. I don't say that so you'll feel bad for me. I have had lots of offers to get out and many people are willing to watch the babies for me but it's difficult for me to do for whatever reason. The times I have gotten out of the house sure have been great though haha! But I've gone off on a rabbit trail and am now getting back to the fact that being a SAHM is hard work, plain and simple. Ask any mom or dad that does stay home and they'll agree. There just isn't enough time in the day to do everything I need to do. I'm sure no one has ever said that before! :)

Despite the challenges of staying home, it's a blessing that I will be at home with them, at least for their first year, and I am so glad that I won't miss any big milestones during that time. My heart breaks for moms that hear about their baby's first laugh, first word, first steps, etc from their daycare or their child's caregiver. I am so glad that I will witness all of those miraculous firsts. I am so excited that my babies will know me better than they know anyone else in the world. I am positive that I will never look back and regret this time with them!

So anyway, I am officially a SAHM now. Although I am terribly apprehensive and nervous about it, I just have to look at my sweet boys to know we are making a good decision. I mean, who can resist these faces?!?!

Triplet bathtime

Let me start off by saying that we give the boys a bath twice a week. We used to dread bath nights because the babies hated the bath and would cry the whole time and the entire experience was traumatic for parents and babies! They've started to like the bath a little better though. And by saying they like it a little better, I mean that they don't cry the whole time, maybe only 25% of the time they're in the bath! Haha! Every now and then we get a lucky break and a baby won't cry at all during bath time, just afterwards when he's getting his lotion and pajamas on. So we're not jumping at moving towards every day or every other day for bath nights. Plus, it's a lot of work to bathe 3 babies!

We've chosen to do baths at nighttime prior to giving them their last bottle before going to bed. We had hopes that the bath would calm the boys and get them more ready to have a nice, good sleep, but instead it makes them cry and get all wound up. Oh well! Part of the reason they're crying could be because it's almost time to get another bottle and they're hungry. We can't do it right after a bottle though due to the risk of spit ups. I think they're getting used to the routine though and eventually they will probably like it and look forward to their bath before bed.

We use the guest bedroom and bathroom for baths and although it's probably an inconvenience to our guests that are staying with us, it works out better that way. I wouldn't mind using our bathroom but our master bath has his and hers vanities and neither counter is long enough for us to put the baby bath tub on it. We can't put the baby tub in the bathtub yet because it would hurt our backs to bend down that far for that amount of time. I do think it will be fun when the boys can sit up in the bathtub to get their baths!

We've chosen to do the assembly line method for bathing. I took pictures of each step the other night to give you an idea of what bath time is like. It's a two person job and I'm glad to have Thomas around to help. I could definitely do it by myself but it would take a heck of a lot longer!

Step 1: Get all materials and the triplets laid out on the guest bed. I typically put a towel down underneath the babies in case of spit, poop or pee (all have happened!). Then I get a diaper, diaper cream, onesie, sleeper and towel for each baby and lay them all out. Add in the baby lotion and we're good to go!

All the baby gear laid out on the bed

The babies awaiting their bath

Step 2: Thomas (or other helper) gets baby #1* undressed down to his diaper. At the same time, I get 3 wash cloths, baby wash and the bath tub out and ready. I then put lukewarm water into the bath tub.

*We don't go in any particular order. Baby #1 is just whichever baby is randomly first on the bed. In this post, Stokes is baby #1, Ryan is baby #2 and William is baby #3, which is, coincidentally, their birth order.

Stokes ready for his bath

Step 3: Thomas brings baby #1 to me with diaper on. I take the diaper off at the last minute and put the baby in the bathtub and start his bath. While I am giving baby #1 a bath, Thomas is starting to undress baby #2.

Me bathing Stokes

Stokes' bath time pictures

Ryan getting ready for his bath

Step 4: When I am done bathing baby #1, I let Thomas know and he brings the towel over to the bathtub and I place the baby in the towel. Thomas then takes baby #1 back to the bed and starts drying him. While he is doing this, I pour out the bathwater and refill the tub with clean, lukewarm water.

Thomas bringing Stokes to the bed after his bath

Stokes in his towel

Thomas drying Stokes

Step 5: When I have the bathtub refilled and ready, I go and get baby #2, remove his diaper and put him in the bathtub. Then I give baby #2 a bath. At the same time Thomas is working on baby #1. Once baby #1 is dry, Thomas will put on a new diaper, baby lotion and pajamas.

Ryan ready to go to his bath

Ryan's bath time pictures

 

 

Step 6: Repeat steps 4 and 5 but with baby #2 and baby #3.

 

Ryan in his towel

 

 

William's bath time pictures

Me giving William a bath

William in his towel

 

 

Step 7: Once all 3 babies are bathed, I dump the bath water and rinse out the tub, gather the wash cloths, put the baby wash away and then help Thomas with lotion application, pajama dressing, etc that hasn't been done yet.

 

Although we typically dress each baby as the next one is getting his bath, on this evening, we left all the babies in their towels with the thought of getting a cute picture of all of them. If you haven't noticed on this blog, it's very difficult to get a picture where all three babies are happy. Usually at least one of them is mad or crying!

 

Pictures of the triplets in their towels

 

 

The babies in their pajamas

 

The whole bath process takes us about 30 minutes. We have actually gotten faster and more efficient over the last 2 months, but it still takes that long. If I had to do it by myself, it would take significantly longer as I wouldn't be able to multitask by dressing and bathing babies at the same time.

 

After the bath, we wind down and feed the babies once again before they go to bed. For this feeding we turn off the overhead light and just use the lamp in an effort to promote nighttime and sleep time.

 

Me feeding Ryan and William

 

Thomas feeding Stokes

 

William ready for bed

Ryan ready for bed

 

 

Stokes ready for bed

 

Night night, babies!