Bumblebee Triumph

Okay, so I said I was going to add a little variety to the blog. Something I like to do when I have time... ha, ha, ha... is read quotes. I thought it would be fun to share some on the blog with a little reflection or story to go with them. I found this one and I couldn't pass it up.

"Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumble bee doesn't know it so it goes on flying anyway."
-Mary Kay Ash

I bet you can't guess who this makes me think of? Some of you already know that way back when, at about 21 weeks into the pregnancy, we were told by doctors that Molly would not survive the pregnancy. Well, she obviously missed that conversation, along with many others, because she is certainly alive and loving life! Shellie, you picked the perfect Halloween costume for Molly :-)

I guess we should call her Bumblebee instead of peanut!

What I say to you is, go for it! Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do something, because the only way to truly know, is to try!

Things I've Learned

Okay, so I've been running this through my head for days now and I'm finally getting to it. Some of you know that I would love to write a book that shares our story with the triplets and all that surrounds it. So of course, I start reading up on how to write a book....and it says that one of the most important things you can do is write. Write about anything. And read. You know, in all my spare time :-) So, I've decided to have a little fun with the BLOG in hopes of one, making it more interesting, and two, practicing my writing. Bear with me as I tread this new ground. I will try to be funny at times, emphasis on try, reflective at others, and sometimes just plain old me. Plus, the pictures are becoming a bit redundant, I'm sure! This will add variety!

I've decided to call this first post of my new endeavor "Things I've Learned"

What have I learned from my time with multiples?? I've learned......

*how to bathe and diaper three babies in under 10 minutes

*that one baby was a walk in the park

*who my real friends are

*how to accept help

*to turn the computer off and go to bed

*that I'm capable of way more than I ever thought

*that children are forgiving

*how to have faith

*that prayer works

*to toss out schedules and rely on routines...afterall, babies are unpredictable but love predictability

*to put a diaper on a sitting baby

*that size doesn't always matter

*that "normal" is a relative term

*how to celebrate the smallest victories

*that perfect comes in different shapes and sizes

*to let the house go...sometimes

*that sweeping the kitchen floor three times a day is to be expected

And lastly, I've learned....

*that patience and flexibility are equally virtuous!

If you become too focused on the "What's supposed to happen", you will likely miss your child's cue of what he or she needs to happen.

So, in answer to the ever-asked question "How do you do it?", that is it. I rely on routines and systems, and I pay attention to my children and what they need, not what they "should" need.

Alright, task accomplished. I hope I didn't bore you and that you found some enjoyment from reading my reflections. Till next time......

More Photos

We spent the day out in the yard Friday and Saturday trying to start and finish some projects. My sister Tori came over to hang out the babies so I could help Tim. Here are some pictures she took.

Molly looking as cute as ever!

Hailey practicing her phone skills. She actually puts the phone to her ear when you say "Hello"!

Megan posing by the wheelbarrow of rocks. She helped us out by sweeping dirt into holes.
Andrew, the ham that he is! He is coming to love the camera!
Given the daily driving I'll be doing this coming year to get Megan to school, we figured she might as well learn how to drive :-)

That's all for now! Not much else to report other than Molly is doing well with her feeds. She is up to 12 lbs. 10 oz. now. At least that was the last weight we got yesterday.

Forgotten Facts

I forgot to mention one other skill Hailey has accomplished.....waving Bye Bye! It's incredibly cute :-) And, we now have 6 teeth. Andrew has two bottom and two top, although we aren't sure if the top ones are his front teeth or his incisors. Hailey has two bottom ones. We think Molly is working on a bottom tooth, but it could be a while still.

Play Time and more!

It's been a while since I actually updated you all on how the babies are doing. It is starting to feel weird calling them babies, because they are growing so fast and quickly becoming kids instead. They are definitely keeping me busy and no, it's not easier now that they are out of the "newborn/baby" stage. But manageable nonetheless! Here is what they have been up to:

Hailey is close to standing on her own. She also now nods her head yes and shakes her head no. She claps, but only once or twice at a time. She has become quite social and will practically go to anyone for a snuggle. She is clearly a daddy's girl, but I come in a close second. Her cognitive development is coming along quite nicely, and she is figuring out concepts like in/out, on/off, and open/close. If it weren't for her size, you'd never know she was a preemie!

She figured out how to wear Megan's slinky as a boa! She is definitely going to be a girly girly!

She's also learned how to turn on the faucets when she wants something or isn't getting her way! It's cute now, but I'm sure in the future it won't work so well :-)

Andrew is just all boy! He's into every cupboard, is trying to figure out how to open the gates, and pretty much doesn't let anything get in his way. He has a few words, well we think they are words. He says "dada", "mama", and "ah duh", which we think is all done. He can sign for more, but usually just screams! Andrew is cruising along furniture and doing his best to crawl. I've noticed that if he has a destination in view where he will be pulling up to standing, then he crawls on all fours. Otherwise, he sticks to the army crawl. It's actually kind of funny because sometimes his legs get going too fast and he topples over on his head! Of course, he just picks himself up and keeps going! He's a ton of fun and definitely keeps me on my toes!

Here he is clapping, a trick he is very proud of!

As you can see from this picture, he loves the camera and has become quite the ham!

Molly continues to improve every week, doing more and more things. We seem to have made some good progress on her feeds. As you know, she was back on her feeding tube, which at first, I was very disappointed and discouraged about. But then I realized that I could use the time to our advantage. So, what I did was gradually bump up the volume of her feeds until she got to 120 mL per feeding, which is 4 ounces, 6 times a day. Not only did she tolerate this with no problem, but she also started to gain her weight back and get stronger with each day. She is currently off the feeding tube (going on 48 hours) and is doing quite well. Most of her feeds she finishes the 4 ounces, sometimes she stops at 90. The important thing is that she is happy, healthy, and gaining. That's Molly for ya! As for her physical development, she is doing some nice pivoting on her tummy, rolling all over the place, and if interested in a toy, can sit for about 2-3 minutes. The problem with sitting is that she is very tight through her torso and hip region, so it's a bit uncomfortable for her to be bent at the hips. But she is getting better. She is also doing her fair share of fighting for toys and making her presence known. Not that it was an issue before :-) The other fun thing with Molly is that she is starting to cuddle up my shoulder. She never did this before, I think because she didn't like things around her face. But now when she is tired, she snuggles down and I love it!

Molly sitting at the play toy! She loves this toy and will sit for a few minutes playing.

I had to capture this shot of Molly playing with her toes!

Family Shots!

One last thing, remember a while back when I shared the story about Hailey on the stairs? Well, the gait alone no longer keeps Hailey or Andrew off the stairs. They have both figured out how to open it and head on up! So, we now have to make sure it is latched, not just propped shut!

So, that about wraps it up for the McCann triplets!

Bath Time

Well, I figured out a way to get all three babies in the tub at the same time while putting limits on how far they can get from me. Hailey does a great job of just sitting and playing nicely, but Andrew is an animal and wants to be all over the place. Molly still isn't ready to be in the big tub, so I worked it out by putting her in the baby tub, leaving just enough room to close Andrew and Hailey in at the other end. Take a look!

This certainly makes bathtime a bit easier! And funner for the babies as well!

Wagon Ride

The other day the physical therapist brought this cart to show how it can be used for practice with walking. She usually puts a sack of potatoes in it to keep it from tipping, but Molly seemed to work just as well. Although Hailey and Andrew aren't quite ready for walking, it was fun just giving them rides.

One of Hailey's newest tricks is letting go while in the standing position. She is getting closer to standing without assistance. The cutest part is that she knows she's doing something special, because she gets this big grin on her face!

I think having one of these carts just for pictures is necessary. Look at this priceless pose!

Sunny Days

Well, finally some sunshine! We found a nice spot in our backyard where there is a good amount of shade in the evening, so the other night we took the babies out and let them play on a blanket. We got some cute pics!

Isn't he a handsome fella!

Molly has to wear a sun hat even in the shade! Her eyes are very sensitive to light.

Hailey is pretty sure she's ready for the play toy. She may be a future gymnast!

Wheeeeeee!

Look how nicely they play together :-)

Megan is using dirt, water, and weeds to create hamburgers! She has a very clever mind :-)

Congratulations Aunt Tee Tee

This past Monday Megan and I braved the elements and attended my sister Tori's graduation. She took on the nickname Aunt Tee Tee when Megan was little because that is how Megan pronounced it. It was very cold and blustery at the ceremony, but thankfully the White River Ampitheater has a roof. Tim stayed home with babies and all went well. Here are a few pics!

The graduating class...look closely, Tori is looking right at me. Her dad was texting her to turn around so I could get a picture. Of course, I took the new camera and used the telephoto lens.

Here is my mom, stepdad Jeff, brother Ben, brother-in-law Tom, sister Elizabeth in the furry hat, and sister Brandi way to the right.

Elizabeth, Brandi, and Megan

Tori on her way to get her diploma!

It's official....she's a HS graduate!

Now it's on to Life Pacific College in San Dimas, California! Way to go Tori!

The Farm

Today I took the kids down to my sister and brother-in-law's place where they are building a new house. Megan has always loved going there and often calls it "The Farm" because they have lots of animals. She hasn't been down for a while because they haven't been living there during construction. Plus, they have 10 new ducklings that Megan just had to see. So, we ventured out and I thought I would share a few pictures.

Meet the ducklings....

Molly was very curious about this little moving thing.
Hailey was quite eager to pet the duckling!
Just as with the zoo, Andrew was enthralled with the animals.
It's not very often that Molly sees things smaller than her that actually move!
Meet Bubba, the goat...
Megan always wants to feed Bubba when she goes to Auntie Brandi's house.
Molly isn't quite sure about this.
Andrew wants to be Bubba's friend. They share a namesake, sort of!
Meet the resident criminals....let me share a sad story!
These two ducks are former ducklings of the former mother of the new ducklings. I say former mother because she is no longer with the Gwin family. They aren't quite sure exactly what happened, but shortly after the babies were born, Angel, the mother, passed on due to injuries thought to be inflicted by the above suspects. The suspicion is that these two hoodlums were trying to get to the babies and Angel did what any good mother would do....she sacrificed to protect her children. Well, when Mr. Gwin returned home and found the victim, the two suspects were quick to make their exit. Given the facts surrounding this unfortunate event, it isn't hard to draw the likely conclusion! Tell me, what do you think? Fortunately, the ducklings have a safe home under a nice warm heat lamp and doing just fine. As for the suspects??? Their fate is yet to be determined!

....two steps forward

Well, in true Molly fashion, she is proving to be quite the champ. I may be jumping ahead, but I think she is doing wonderfully well and has recuperated very nicely. Not only is she back to her spunky, joyful self, but she is currently eating better than she was before she got sick. We'll see if she can keep it up. She pulled her tube out at 2 this afternoon, but it turns out it wasn't a problem, as her last 4 feedings have all been by mouth, and were 90 mL, 105 mL (x2), and 115 mL. That's more than she was taking per feeding before the pneumonia. Anyway, she gained another 2 1/2 oz. from yesterday, so something is working. I'll keep the news coming!

Molly Molly

Well, I'm very excited this evening so I had to get on and post. Some of you know that Molly had to go back on her feeding tube because she wasn't eating well and was losing weight. The pneumonia really wiped her out and she basically had no appetite. Needless to say, things around here have been a bit tense on that front. However, tonight we have reason to be happy! Maybe it's a learned response from having babies that clung to life on a day to day basis, but the little things can really be cause for celebration. Molly has gradually been increasing the amount she takes by mouth, about 60 mL, but tonight, she finished her whole 3 oz. bottle! Even though she was tired and ready for bed, she pushed through and came out a champ! So, though a small event to most people, for us it's a huge step in the right direction! Not only that, but twice yesterday she ate a little more than a teaspoon of pureed mango and applesauce! She's becoming quite curious about how things feel and taste in her mouth. Keep praying and sending positive thoughts that this re-visit with the NG will be short term!

Thanks everyone :-)