Four Boys, One Bedroom

When we first moved to Michigan (pre-Owen), we gave Colin his own room, thinking that he'd like some space from the "babies" (because in Chicago they all had to share a room due to lack of space). He started in his own room but soon decided he wanted to be back with his brothers. I'll never forget how one night before bed, he finally told us this and asked, "So when can I move in with them??" We said, "We didn't know you felt this way" and, "anytime." He wanted to move into their room right then and there. So we moved him in with his brothers, right then and there, and the four of them have shared a room ever since.

But now change is in the air, at least as far as sleeping arrangements go. Colin's moving to a twin bed, Owen's taking over his toddler bed, and Colin will be moving into Owen's room (which he's now thrilled about because there will be more "office space" in there). You know how important office space is to a six year old.

Still first, I wanted to capture this moment in time.

This moment in time, when there were four little beds all lined up in a row. When those four little beds were filled with little boys wearing footy pjs, who all insisted on sharing a room together.

By the way, my sister in law Madeline, made these pictures for us. I didn't ask her to but she knew that I was searching for what to put on this wall, and felt inspired to paint. Then she surprised me with them. I cried when I saw them. She is so thoughtful and so creative and I think they're perfect for the boys room. She'd noticed that #millerboysfive is often a hashtag I use on instagram when I post a picture of the boys and and went from there. We love them Madeline!!! And we love you!!!

And yes, the boys room is always this clean. ahahahahahahahaha

St. Patrick's Day and the Elusive Leprechaun!

This week is even more busy than a usual week and because of that I'm giving myself grace (something I'm working on). In the past, we've had fun celebrating St. Patrick's Day with all things green at dinner (a tradition that my mom did when we were growing up). But with everything going on this week, I threw Colin in a green shirt and patted myself on the back. Wearing a green shirt would be enough.

Then I found some clean green shirts for the other boys and myself and felt even better. I thought, "Alright, we're all in green. Done."

When we picked up Colin after school, he excitedly flew into the van as soon as the door slid open and announced that, The Leprechaun messed up EVERYTHING at his school! He turned the toilet's GREEN! He messed with stuff in his classroom! And worst of all, he took gold and left silver instead. Furthermore, he announced, the trap that he and his friend build did not work! It almost worked.... but alas, the Leprechaun got away.

He was SO excited about all the Leprechaun happenings at school...... and it was contagious.

"Guys. Did anything strange happen around here?" Colin asked as we pulled into the driveway.

"YEAH. I think SO!" said Finn, and all the boys ran inside to investigate.

The younger boys and I had been home all day because Carter was sick. But when they all walked in, Colin noticed some OBVIOUS Leprechaun shenanigans. Evidence 1: The place was a mess. (Yup, must be the Leprechaun). Evidence 2: There were popcorn crumbs all over the kitchen floor. (Again, clearly the doings of the Leprechaun and not a result of Carter, Everett, Finn, Owen and I gorging on a mid afternoon snack without time to sweep up.)

After surveying the evidence, they ran downstairs to build traps. I sat back and watched them in action, feeling like I'm the luckiest person in the world, to be a part of this moment in time with them, where everything is magical and Leprechauns really exist.

One of my little Irishmen. He's posing but also doing a hula dance. Because, why not?

12 Month Photo Project- September

Finny. I know I posted this same picture in the previous post but I don't care. I love this picture of him. He's so sweet. And shoeless. 

Everett, having a ball picking apples!

Owen. This is a picture taken with my craptastic, shattered i phone. But I like it because it's so Owen, right now. We'll have a morning adventure with the trips and on the way home, he just can't help it, he always falls asleep. 

Colin, loving life and obsessed with wanting to build a tree house in the back yard. He talks about it all the time and occasionally will take a piece of wood and start hammering it into the trunk of his chosen tree. Today, Chris and Colin looked at options on the computer, you know, to get a sense of what he's thinking for this treehouse. As a side note, this is the one he said was most closely aligned to his vision:

Yeah, I'm turning this one over to Chris. 

and this.... this is such a Carter look. I found a few pictures on my phone and one on my big camera of this same face. In this picture, he's at the ready! Ready to help Colin build that treehouse. 

The Good Stuff

It was a rush to get out of the house.

Earlier in the day, the boys and I had driven by the airport (as in one runway, small plane, Holland airport) on our way to The Nature Center. And we noticed a sign that said, "Paragliding, July 11 and 12". Also, there were a bunch of RVs set up on the runway.

So we stopped to see what was up!

"We're all gathering to go paragliding tonight around 6:30."

So tonight after dinner, Chris and I loaded the kids on our bikes and headed over to the airport.

I'm so glad we did!

In fact, I'm shocked at how few spectators there were. There couldn't have been more than 15 of us, non-paragliders watching, but none the less, our boys LOVED watching the action.

Chris is having more fun than his face shows.... :)

I mean, have you seen this sport up close?

It involves machines like this, which by the way, this man made himself, flown by no more than a lawn mower type motor. Some had wheels but some people simply put on a backpack motor, which looked like a giant fan, ran down the runway and took off! It seemed insane! And our boys clapped wildly, certain they'd try it as soon as they got old enough.

We stayed for a long time, watching the paragliders all buzz through the air and then the boys started tackling each other and poking blades of grass into each other's ears.

It was time go home.

After bath and pj's, Chris snuck downstairs to knead pizza dough for our "after the kids are in bed pizza indulgence" (I always get more dough if he kneads it!). I stayed upstairs with the boys, with the intent of calming them down for bed.

The older boys share a room and have their beds all lined up against one wall. It looks like this:

Well, someone got the idea that their bed was one of the "paragliders" and took off. Then Everett wanted to know if I wanted to fly with him. How could I resist??

Before I knew it, we were all flying through the sky, me riding with Everett and Owen riding with Colin. All of us laughing and calling out to each other "Don't fall out!" and "Don't go too fast" (of course we did both over and over).

I looked over at Finn, who earlier in the day had a classic overtired and head turning tantrum at Target where he ended up just laying on the floor screaming and crying while the rest of us waited until he was able to continue our shopping. It was so sad and frustrating.

And now. Now there he was checking the propeller on the back of his toddler bed, laughing and flying through the air. We all were.

"Remember this, because THIS, this is the good stuff", I thought to myself. And so I write,

I dance like J Lo

Earlier today, while Carter, Finn and Everett were napping and only after Colin watched 'Peep and the Big Wide World', he let me watch highlights from American Idol last night. We ended up dancing our fool heads off to J Lo's performance of 'I Luh Ya Papi'. True story.

After a few minutes he turns to me and says with absolute conviction, "Mommy, you dance exactly like her!!"

Her, being Jennifer Lopez.

So there you have it folks. Five years olds don't lie. I dance exactly like J Lo.

I thought to myself, "This is the BEST!"

And not three hours later this same little darling's head hit my nose at incredible speed when he slammed into my body. Not on purpose. He was just trying to escape a lion (Carter) but I wasn't expecting it because I'd been looking at Owen and wondering if he was hungry or tired. In all seriousness, I thought I broke my nose and sat with ice on it for as long as I could.

I thought to myself, "This is so HARD!"



But before I knew it, it was almost 6 p.m. and this was was the scene around here:

Finn chasing me with a hairbrush and brushing my hair into my face. Then I'd surprise him and once he laughed so hard he little literally fell over. It doesn't take much to make Finn laugh.

Colin, watching a little T.V upside down and intermittently right side up to work on a bristle block creation.

Owen and Carter playing a game of "Grab my leg and laugh"

Everett, settling into his usual spot during meal prep. That kid steals so many bites of whatever I'm preparing! There's only one main counter space though so I have nowhere else to go. Sometimes it really bugs me but mostly I think it's cute. And I like that he keeps me company.

Lot's of kids around us,

Which is a blessed way to end a day and start the weekend, for sure.

P.S: Tomorrow is Chris's birthday and I can't wait!!! I'm very excited to give him my gift and I really hope he likes it. If you want to follow on Instagram, I'll likely be posting some pictures from the day.

Have a great weekend everyone!

12 month photo project: March

Have you heard of The 52 Project? I feel inspired by other parents who are taking a photo of their children every week. I think it's really neat. I'd love to do this but I'm not sure I'd be able to keep up weekly photos, so I've decided to try for once a month! 

My goal is to take a picture once a month, of each of my boys. Hopefully the photos will capture something unique and special about them. 

But here's the deal, I'm not going to do much, if any, editing to the photos because I just feel like I don't have time for anything these days. My initial goal is just to get out my camera once a month, move around the house with it, and capture my boys. I'm excited to look back on these over the next year and see how the boys change! So here we go, March:

Colin, LOVES his new shop vac. He begs me for stuff to vacuum with it. Even vacuuming out our disgusting mini van didn't deter him. I can't wait to remind him of this when he's a teenager and this vacuum is but a distant memory to him.

Carter, with those blue eyes. Carter asks "Why?" or often it sounds more like, "Whyyyyyyyyyy?" after almost anything someone says. It cracks us up and sometimes by the end of the day, drives us nuts. He really does want to know the why behind everything though! Hmmm, maybe a budding scientist like his grandpa? Although Carter himself says, "Me shy", he has made huge strides, attending swim lessons without any tears and also going to the kids area of the gym so I can exercise. 

Finn. This is such a Finn face right now. Mid laugh, and/or about to say something hilarious. The other night in the bathtub, he was staring off and so I asked him what he was thinking about. "Bout how Jesus loves me since I was born." Oh, okay, typical bath time thoughts. Yesterday, I asked the boys what meal we should make Daddy for his birthday. When I got blank stares, I followed up by asking them to think about what food Daddy really likes. Suddenly a light bulb seemed to go off in Finn's head. "I know! Let's make him salt!"

Everett, has been very attached to his bag lately. In it, he carries the things that are important to him, like play-doh, a notepad, a pencil, his luvies and occasionally he'll sneak in a snack too. Last night, after it was lights out and time for sleep, I thought I saw motion by Everett's bed. Upon closer inspection, there he was sitting up, peeling and eating an orange that he'd stored in his bag. You never know when you'll get hungry I suppose.

Owen, is motoring around and pulling to stand every chance he gets. He's one of the guys and he knows it! Always wanting to be where the action is at, this one.

Another trip around the sun

I turned 37 years old on Wednesday. I actually had to think about how old I was and confirm with my dear friend Taber who practically shares a birthday. Her birthday is the 4th and when we lived close enough, we'd always celebrate together. For our 21st we actually rented out a bar and had quite a party. That seems a lifetime ago now. When I asked her what she was doing for her birthday this year she said, "Going to T's!" (our old favorite bar).

"Really?!" (I was impressed)

No, not really,  "I'm having cake with Chris and the kids" 

"Me too!" (and yes, we both married Chris's!)

Anyway, celebrating my 37th birthday surrounded by my husband and my children sounds just right. On Wednesday I had to work and I came home to find the house completely decorated. As I drove down our street and started to approach the driveway, I saw lots of little eyes peering out through the windows. On watch duty.

Then as soon as I pulled in the driveway, the eyes disappeared, and I could picture them all running around yelling, "She's here! She's here!"

Before I was even on the front walkway the door was swung open and the boys were yelling stuff about my birthday and the house and presents. They surrounded me in hugs and I almost lost my balance.

They make me feel so special.

So lucky.

The first present I opened was a can opener. I was thrilled because we need a can opener! And it was just what I expected, little gifts from the boys. Nothing fancy. That's OK because I don't need fancy. Their eyes at the window and the running around yelling "She's HERE!!", and them opening the door and the hugs that threw me off balance was ENOUGH.

But then I opened the second present and before I tell you what it was, I should tell you that I don't cry when opening gifts. I just don't.

But when I opened it I cried.

Inside the messily wrapped, kid colored and way over taped paper, was an apron covered in my children's hand prints.

I can only imagine the chaos and hard work involved in coordinating an activity like this with our five boys! I mean we're talking ten hands, including three two year olds and permanent paint! That is a dangerous combination!!

And yet, Chris tackled it. And it made this mama very happy.

This too shall pass....

Well, I thought I was impervious to this wicked cold but it turns out I wasn't. This mama went down for the count almost the minute everyone else was well. Funny how that happens huh?

I started to feel really awful, just about the time the massive snow storm blew in, which meant that our nanny couldn't get to our house yesterday and also that the boys were stuck inside, bouncing off the walls, bored and fighting. Oh how slowly the minutes seemed to go by.

Actually, Owen is still congested, which means that he's still not sleeping well. Last night at 2 a.m I found myself pacing the bedroom trying to soothe him, not understanding what the catalyst of his complete misery was. Upset stomach? Congestion? Needing to burp? He wouldn't even nurse. He just cried and cried. The only thing that really helped was singing "Skinamarinky dinky dink" on repeat. Over and over and over again. Being sick myself, my joints ached as I gently bounced him and my throat hurt as I sang to him. Every part of my being was willing him to fall asleep so that I could crawl back in bed myself.

Eventually he did fall asleep. He literally just suddenly, in a split second, fell dead asleep. And not a few seconds later, so did I!

This too shall pass, this too shall pass, this too shall pass......

On a lighter note, here's a picture of the older boys that I took on New Year's Eve. Most of them are running fevers in this picture. Maybe it was the fevers that made them think sitting in a highchair eating rice chex was something worth fighting over? In this pic, it's Colin's turn. Silly boys!

Cranes!

We finally made it to Cranes this year!

Last year we went a little earlier in the fall season. I was in the early stages of pregnancy and remember feeling soooo sick! Still, we had a good time and vowed to return this year.

We did, but just barely! haha! We arrived the very last hour, on the last day that Cranes was offering hay rides and cow train rides! Seriously, we were the last hay ride to go out!

Of course the boys didn't know or care that we were the last riders, they were just excited to be there!!

We had so much fun!

Yup, that's Chris along for the ride too!

The toughest job you'll ever love

That was (maybe still is) the slogan for the Peace Corps when I joined, what seems like a lifetime ago. However, I think it can be applied to parenthood too!

Our days have been busy, busy, busy...... which means that blogging has taken a back seat lately. 

Our days have been busy and the night's have been long, as the boys all seemed to pass around a cold which interrupted their sleep.

Sometimes, the days feel challenging and overwhelming. Maybe you can relate?

From the minute that the triplets were born, what has always helped us get through overwhelming days is remembering to live in gratitude. Maybe that sounds cheesy but it's true. If we can live in gratitude then it's much easier to delineate what's most important and what can be let go. It helps us remember what a privilege it is to care for our children day in and day out. We are so grateful for these boys and the experience of multiples, even though they constantly keep us on our toes and have us asking questions like, "When was the last time you showered??" or "What day is it?" to each other.

At the end of very busy days, I sometimes get sad about how fast time is flying. Since our kids aren't really spaced, the baby/ toddler experience isn't spread out over a period of time. Soon we will be out of this phase of four in diapers, five in car seats, and living off little sleep. People excitedly tell us, "Soon you'll be done with this phase!" True, but then..... we'll be done with this phase. We'll be on to other exciting phases with the boys, but the baby/ toddler phase will be over. For good. I want to savor this time, to enjoy it in all its crazy glory while it lasts. 

At the end of every day, after Chris and I collapse on the couch and mumble something like, "When is the last time I showered?" or "How unbelievably hard was bedtime tonight?!" the conversation always turns to "How cute/ funny/ exciting was it when ____ did/ said/ discovered ___?" 

Five littles running around brings lots of work.... but the flip side is that it also brings lots of love, affection and hilariousness.

Lots of hilariousness.

Blurry, but it's my only picture from today when the trips and I had fun snuggling in our bed before their nap. We read a few books and played peek a boo with the covers. It was one of those times when I thought, "This is the good stuff".

Our Morning at the Apple Orchard

This morning we went apple picking. 

My little worker bees, without hardly any help, picked 35 pounds in about half an hour! They loved it!

Owen hung out in the Ergo and helped me take some pictures.

Carter, can't wait to get started!

Everett

Finn

Colin

Finn

Colin and Carter

Now off to make some apple sauce!

The key to not losing my mind, is somewhere at the farmer's market

Let me set the stage.

We are just leaving the farmer's market. I've fed Owen just enough to tie him over until we can get home and I can nurse him more comfortably. We get the boys out of the stroller, load them up, buckle them in and unload all of our fruits and veggies. Jordyn lifts the 10 ton stroller into the back of the van.

It's noon so the boys are hungry for lunch. It's been somewhat of a trying morning so I too am looking forward to lunch.... because lunch is followed by nap-time and nap-time is when I re-fuel.

"Umm, where are the car keys?"

We look everywhere in the car. The keys are nowhere.

We unload the massive stroller and search it completely.

No keys.

Where could they be?! And seriously, what kind of mother am I that I can't keep track of car keys. I see no other mother in this parking lot unable to leave because she's lost her keys. No question that I'm not the most organized mom on the block... not even close. Never will be. But I should be able to take my kids to the farmer's market without loosing the car keys! Right?!

"Boys, do any of you know where Mommy's keys are??"

"Farmer's market?" Two of the triplets say. Colin and Everett say nothing.

"What does that mean, farmer's market? Where in the farmer's market? Did you see the keys??? Tell mommy." But I know it's useless to try and ask these questions of a two year old! I'm getting nowhere talking through this with them so I venture back into the market.

I return to every vendor we bought from (which today, were a lot!). No one has seen the keys.

I run over to the grassy area, where I nursed Owen and the boys ate apples on a picnic blanket. Surely the keys are in the grass somewhere. I'll pick them up and we'll be on our way.

But they're not there. They're literally nowhere to be found.

Finally, I'm directed to go into the Civic Center, which is next to the market and where lost and found items are often turned in. I race in (hurrying because I'm just sure the hungry boys are a mess waiting all this time in the car). Once at the office I ask if anyone has turned in keys.

"Sorry Ma'am, no keys here. Do you want to leave your name and phone number in case someone turns them in?"

I am on the verge of tears at this point. I speed walk back to the car and see Jordyn standing outside the van rocking and bouncing Owen who is now fussy. The van is rocking with boys ready to go home.

"They're nowhere Jordyn" I say feeling completely defeated.

"This is SO weird! How could they just disappear?!"

The boys are all staring at me wide eyed. Perhaps they are wondering if this is the moment Mommy loses her marbles.

"Guys, you don't have Mommy's keys do you? Of course you don't... they wouldn't even fit in your pockets....." 

and then I see the bulge in Finley's right pocket.

"FINLEY JOSEPH DO YOU HAVE MOMMY'S KEYS IN YOUR POCKET?!?"

I don't even wait for the answer.... in a second I am lunging across the car seats and my hand is already reaching in his shallow- but- apparently- big- enough- to- hold- my- van- keys, pocket.

The keys!

The keys were in Finley's pocket THE WHOLE TIME.

I have no clue how he got them or how he squeezed them into his pocket. Nor do I think he was purposely not telling me that he had them either. He's two.

Oh Finn...... :-)

Finn loves to pretend to be asleep....

but he's not.... he thinks it's the funniest thing in the world....which to us, it kinda is.
(and that's my arm holding a pacifier in Owen's mouth on our trip two weekends ago)