Snack Queen!

One day while cleaning up stuff in the kitchen before dinner, Natalee decided she wanted to try every snack in the cabinet. She would pull one box or container out and bring it to me and I would give her one or she would just do it herself. She went through so many boxes and was so happy so I didn't bother to take anything away from her.

Needless to say, she didn't eat much of her dinner that night but oh well, as you can see she could use a few more snack foods in her life to gain some weight, so I didn't mind!

A Selfless Act.

Are you a donor?

I know this topic can be a little controversial but it is something near and dear to my heart.

The simple, selfless acts of others to save people most likely we will never know.

Last week on Good Morning America there was a segment on bone marrow transplants and about how people are always needed to be matched with proper candidates needing transplants. There was a sweet story with a young mom who had cancer and a college student who were meeting for the first time after he was a perfect match for her many years earlier.  I cried listening to their story, and I immediately went to the website to register for bone marrow transplants.

Unfortunately, because I have had blood clotting issues (hemorrhaging at the triplets birth) I am not an eligible donor. Err!

I truly believe in the blessing that organ and tissue donating can be. A selfless act. From as small and donating blood to body parts and organs, everything can make a difference to someone that is need. After all, we don't know when we will need something that someone else could provide us. I have received blood transfusions (again, after the triplets birth since I lost so much blood) and I am forever thankful that our medical system has this readily available.

And then, I was watching ABC's NY Med last week and the episode featured a man getting a heart transplant and it brought back flooding memories of a few years ago. It wasn't a very fun time for my family. My mom wasn't around much because she was traveling back and forth to Tampa, FL and then to Emory University in Atlanta, GA to be with her brother and advocate for him through and through.

The story quick and short is that my uncle (my mom's only brother and my only blood relative on my mom's side who is still alive) had a massive heart attack (I was in my second year of college) and had immediate quadruple bypass. He had every complication known to man including an allergic reaction to the blood thinner hepburn, and in turn lost some fingers and toes along with the numerous other things. He almost died many, many, many times. Kidney failure, liver failure, infections, ect, ect, ect...the doctors didn't give much hope and many times we thought we were about to loose him, but God worked a miracle. My uncle survived but his heart was very weak.

After many, many months, and long battles fought, he was finally put on the heart transplant list. The way a transplant list works is that you basically have to be dead to get the organ, and he wasn't far from dead when he finally received the wonderful news that he would be a recipient of a new heart on July 5, 2007. We rushed from MD down to Emory University where he was at to be there and walked in the door right after he came out of surgery. The surgery of course lasted many hours, but days later my uncle was up walking around and became quite healthy again. It was literally nothing short of a miracle!

But that's not what this post is really about. It's not about the story of him, it's about those who give. Those who give life. Those who give life to people they will never know.

You see, I watched that episode about the heart transplant and saw how lucky, how appreciative, how extremely thankful, how humble the man who received the heart was. He knew the gift he had been given. He simply said, "I need to do some good because someone gave me a heart. He didn't give me a heart to go sit on the beach in Florida." And that is what made me write this post.

I know that when my time comes to meet my Creator, I would like doctors to take whatever they can from me and my body. If I can make someone else's life better or cure them from sickness, then by all means, please do. And I know this isn't for everyone but it is for me. It is something I truly believe in. For that I am sure of. I can only hope that I will save lives because I chose to give to others.

And I would hope that those who receive from donors are appreciative and make the very best of the gift they have been given.

Unlike someone I know. Remember that story I told you about, the one about my uncle, the only uncle I have on my mother's side. So many people fought on his behalf, gave up their lives and a man who lost his own life chose to be a donor to give my uncle a heart. You would think that going through a heart transplant would make someone believe and live a gracious life, but in turn he lives a selfish, un-Godly life with none of his family. I guess even when you change the heart, the person is still the same. He proves this more and more true as each year passes. It's so upsetting to me and so sad.

I constantly think of this quote by Aesop: "No act of kindness, however small, is wasted." I can't help but think that this unknown man's gift of his own heart, the organ that gave him his life, was simply wasted on someone who didn't deserve it. Wasted on a man who knows no selfless act, only selfish ones.

I know that isn't right to think or say that, but it is the way I feel about my uncle. I am saddened that he is not in my life, my mom's life, my children's lives because I have many fond memories of him when I was a child and a teen. But then again, he is a changed person than who is was and there isn't room in my life or my families lives for selfish, un-Godly people.

And I know that if I were ever the recipient of someone else's selfless act, I would use my life to give back more than ever and to cherish those around me because I was given a second chance. A second chance of life because of someone else. How do you repay such a selfless act? The act of giving life.

I hope you choose to give life. And if ever you are ever a recipient of life, live that life to the fullest, giving to others.

Claire's ER Trip!

Last Wednesday the twinsies were at my mom and dads house while I took Natalee and Emily to the doctors. My mom took the girls outside to play for a few minutes until she noticed the girls were getting eaten alive by mosquitos. She immediately brought them inside and when I got there she showed me where Claire had been bitten. It didn't seem to bother her much so we went on with our evening. The next morning I noticed the bite but it wasn't much of anything. When she woke up after nap, the bite had become red and hot and was greatly swollen. It felt like she had a tumor hanging down from her ear to her chin. She was itching it and clearly it was bothering her. I gave her some bendryl and put some hydrocortizone cream on it to help with the itching but it just kept looking worse and worse. I put a call into the doctor and she said to come in the next day but if Claire developed a fever to take her to the ER.

I thought it would start looking better and I asked my MIL to come over and take a look at it too. When Tim got home he even said how weird it looked and how he didn't like it all, which of course made me way more nervous because he always seems to never freak out about anything so since he was worried, I became ten times more worried!

The next few hours, the area got worse and worse and by 9pm, Claire had developed a low fever, but a fever none-the-less. I called the doctors answering service and waited for the doctor to call back and she said to go to the ER. We just couldn't take the chance that it wasn't a big infection and could be possibly affecting her breathing since it was right on her neck/throat/lymph nodes. Claire was acting fine other than the occasional itching at the site.

We arrived at the ER a little before 11pm to a packed waiting room and it wasn't until five minutes before 1:00AM that we were brought back. By this time the redness was all over her chin and inching up to her other ear and spreading down her neck. She had scratched it so badly that she now had marks from that too.

Finally when the doctor came in he felt the area, looked in her throat and felt all around in her mouth and determined that her breathing was okay. He confirmed that the bite had developed an infection and was most likely cellulitis. He said he couldn't believe how much swollen tissue was infected...lovely, rihgt!? He put her on an anti-biotic twice daily and said to keep giving her the benadryl and tylenol to stay comfortable. He also said that there have been so many cases of just really bad bug bite infections this year and she just may be prone to them! :(

Playing with Grandma in the wee hours of the morning in the ER....

After a few days, she was back to normal. However, on Monday night we went outside to do chalk and go for a walk (of course had plenty of bug spray on) and when we came inside Claire had 9, yes NINE, bug bites on her! Three on her face, 2 on her arms, 2 on her leg and 2 on her hand!!!

By Tuesday morning they were all red, hot and swelled up! I couldn't believe it! I called the doctor and since we have an appointment already for today (Wed) scheduled for flu shots, if she doesn't get a fever before then, the doctor will take a look.

Last week we were at the doctors twice, the ER once and now the doctors again today! I told them they should just put a room in our name. I swear I don't go three days without talking to either the nurse or a doctors about something...and trust me, I am NOT the first one to freak out about every small thing, it's just having four kids makes so many issues that come up!

My poor girl! I hope she is not going to be one of those little one's that just gets eaten alive while playing outside. What do ya'll use for bug spray on little ones? Anything good out there? I have been told that Avon has a really good one with no deet in it...? Apparently the stuff I have isn't nearly strong enough to keep the bugs from not wanting my sweet girl! I kept telling her the bugs bit her because she is constantly biting her sisters still...but apparently that didn't scare her because she is still biting them and the bugs are still biting her!

Catch-up!

Hey ya'll! I know I said I would never take another vacation from the blog but things just got crazy around here (imagine that...) and I just let the blog slip....again!

So here is a catch-up...finally!!!

We are back from a week at the beach and although I could stay there forever, real life awaits and we had to come home! Oh well....counting down until next year! Many, many, many photos and blog posts to come all about vacation!

I had wanted to schedule a whole bunch of guest posts for while we were gone but I just got too busy and never scheduled them, so now I am going to be posting a few each week and you are in for some treats! I have some awesome ladies with some great posts so stay tuned!

I have been so busy trying to get our house back in order after we got home late Friday night and finally managed to open the computer for the first time in almost two weeks. TWO.WEEKS. That is a record for me and to say I didn't miss it at all would be the complete truth! I love getting away from the computer and phone...we rely TOO much on it and it's just so nice to not be bothered with any of it once in awhile! Emails, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Blogger are NEVER that important and if you think so, you need to re-evaluate your life! How nice it was to take a vacation from all of it (and I don't even have Twitter or Instagram...and never will!)

I won an awesome blog makeover worth $65 dollars from Stephanie and I could not have been more excited. I was literally smiling for days whenever it would cross my mind. It is starting to come to life and to say I am speechless is an understatement! I absolutely LOVE IT!

I'm having a Scentsy and 31 Party in September and I am eagerly planning the food and details. Nothing too fancy, but just a fun time with some awesome ladies! Here's a photo of Emily in one of the 31 bags at the beach...silly girl...I don't know how she got in there...

Last week I had to take Claire to the ER in the middle of the night for the first time and of course that made me super tired and pushed me backwards a hundred feet in getting things done but my little girl needed lots of snuggles and that was most important. She was a brave girl! Details on the blog tomorrow.

Our garden (the one we share with my MIL) is out of control. The tomatoes are so yummy!  I may be eating a plate of them covered in mayo almost daily. Yummm. We also made some homemade chili with peppers and tomatoes from the garden this weekend. And I cannot wait to try our HUGE watermelon too!

My SIL, Megan has moved back to MD for at least 6 months! We couldn't be more happy to have her in our lives only 5 minutes away for awhile. She left MD for NM the week after Tim and I were married so she hasn't been around for awhile and I am thrilled that the girls will be getting to know her and that she can be in their lives for awhile. Also, with her wedding approaching, the holidays and their birthdays...I am so glad she will be here during the best months of the year.

Oh and speaking of the holidays and birthdays...I am already in the beginning planning stages of the girls "Two-Two" Birthday Party! I cannot believe my little girls are going to be two! I think the first year was such a blur with triplets, that it didn't hit me as hard as it is this year. I cannot fathom that two years has almost gone by. I don't even remember life before them!

I miss cooking and I am so looking forward to some of my favorite fall recipes and to try some new ones. Almost all of my favorite foods are wintery-type foods so I cannot wait to put on sweaters and start cooking and baking warm dishes. Saturday is the 1st of Sept and everything fall is coming out!

I have a lot of moments that I regret not becoming a teacher and it always rubs me so much during the whole back-to-school-time. I never thought about being a teacher in high school, college or in grad school but I think I would have been a good one. I always wanted to be a nurse, and when that failed, teaching never crossed my mind but I cannot seem to shake it now. I don't regret my 2 degrees in social work and sociology...I love it and MISS it a lot. I swore on everything I am that I would never, ever, ever, EVER go back to school EVER, for anything, EVER, but now I almost want to see what it would take to become a teacher. Maybe I wouldn't need that much since I already have a Master's Degree in a not-so-crazy foreign subject in relations to teaching. I don't know, just a feeling I have. But I will not be home-schooling my children. No. Never. Not for this Momma. I'm sure their are benefits to it, but the public or private school (most likely I will have them go to a Montessori school) world is the way for my children right now.  

Ok...so stay tuned, lots of scheduled posts coming this week and next!

Emily: You are SEVEN Months Old!

{ Yes, I know this is very late, but I am posting it where it goes. And I somehow lost the "7 Month" sticker for her onesie, probably because I had it out for two weeks before I took the photos...opps! }

Emily June, you are SEVEN months on August 26th!

Once again, where has the time gone?! Seven Months?! 7! Geeze Em, slow down! I need my baby still and you are growing so big, so fast!

You are probably around 18-19 pounds.

You wear some 6 month clothes but your 9 month clothes fit you perfectly at the moment.

You are such a good baby! I swear everyone we talk to asks me if you are always so happy and so easy-going, and the answer is YES! You cry only when you gets shots, when you are not with your Momma and of course when you don't get your way! You hate to have a stinky diaper too and you will fuss until you make sure Momma knows something is not right!

You are very, very attached to your Momma. You won't even let Daddy feed you and will scream, but the minute I come to your rescue, you are all smiles and giggles. I kinda love it though because your sisters could have cared less if I was around and sometimes I felt like they didn't even really know their own Momma. But you, you girlfriend, you, KNOW!

You love to "talk" to us all the time and we love it. You are very, very vocal in the car now. You sounds like a little bird or monkey back there!

You sleep through the night in your own room wonderfully, from 7:30pm to 7:40am, every single night. You may wake up and turn over and cry for a minute, but you go right back to sleep. You still prefer to sleep on your tummy and you move all over your crib. You sleep with your pink bear lovie and your binki.

You can put your binki in your mouth all by yourself now. I can't believe it! You do it so quick and easily!

You grab for EVERYTHING! You want it and want to taste it! You love toys and anything that you can put into your mouth. You love eating and chewing on your hands!

You are an awesome eater! You eat everything and anything! I have given you squash, carrots, green beans, peas, sweet potatoes, sweet potatoes and corn, applesauce, pears, peaches and bananas. You love peaches and all veggies but you aren't the biggest fan of fruit quite yet. You also have oatmeal banana cereal each day. You are still eating Similac Sensitive formula.

You have been moved to a big girl car seat in the car finally when your big sisters got their new car seats!

You roll over a hundred times a day.

You are almost sitting up on your own. You can do it for about 30 seconds and then you fall to the side.

You are trying to push yourself up to crawl. You stick your butt up in the air, but haven't been able to figure it out quite yet, but I am sure it will take you no time at all when you do...and you'll be off!

You are the messiest and biggest drooler I have ever seen.

You hardly ever spit up anymore.

Your two bottom teeth are getting ready to pop through and they are causing you so much pain but with a little Tylenol, love from Momma and a cold teething ring, you are back to your happy self.

We call you Em, Emmy-Lou, Bay-boo, Emsie, Emmie and pork chop.

You are listening for your name now and as soon as you hear it, you turn your head to see where someone is calling you. I love it! You find me and then you give me the biggest grin ever!

Everyone says you have the smallest feet and it's so true! They better grow soon or I don't know if they are going to hold up your chunk-a-chunk thighs, girl!

Emily, I love you more than you will ever know! You are such a blessing and such a miracle to us! We don't know what we would have done without your sweet addition to our family! You have totally completed us.

Thursday { Randoms }

It seems I have been doing more of these random posts. I like the way they feel. I love just getting my thoughts out there. 

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This past weekend, Tim and I took Emily up to PA to pick up some things that we forgot back when we were up a month ago and grab some other stuff that had accumulated for us. Traveling with one child is like pure heaven. I swear, why do people ever complain? Haha, I know every child is different, but we didn't even remember Emily was with us both up and back (about 2.5 hours one way). She never made even a peep! I thank the Lord for an easy, happy healthy baby! And I thank Him also everyday for a wonderful MIL who can take care of all three rambunctious girls by herself for an entire day! :)

It's my assumption that Emily is going to be bigger than Natalee very, very soon. Natalee doesn't seem to gain weight and Emily seems to gain a pound a day! We had someone ask us last week (for the first time) if we had two sets of twins. I'm sure it won't be the  last. She was a whopping 16.8 lbs at the doctors yesterday { 65th % }.

After watching all the gymnastics (which I LOVE) I may have begun to practice summer-salts more and more with the girls, which they LOVE. Hoping for at least one gymnast out of these four little ladies! In fact, Natalee will be perfect...she's so tiny!

Speaking of gymnastics, I had tears running down my face the other night watching Team USA win Gold! I couldn't stop smiling! When I was 10 years old, after the "Magnificent Seven" won gold, my parents took me and my sister to see them. I still have the t-shirt with their autographs on it, it seriously seems like yesterday. I was obsessed with that and ice skating, and then we saw Team USA ice skate after they competed 2 years later and got more autographs! However, I didn't get to meet Nancy Kerragan, who was my favorite ice skater back then!

I am almost completely packed for the beach in terms of all of the girls stuff. I have had to hold out on a few outfits because we have some fun events this weekend and need to wear some of the stuff I want to take, but other than that, I have almost all of it washed and ready. They have more clothes and shoes than most grown women I bet. I swear, it's insane, but I am so thankful!

Dairy seems to be bothering me big time lately. I can't seem to eat anything dairy without lots of issues and being up all night!

Since I was little I have always been freezing and ever since the day I got pregnant with the girls I have been sweating non-stop. I swear it is no fun. I feel like a middle-aged woman in menopause all of the time. Constantly sweating and everyone else is freezing! I hope it goes away or I can figure out why my hormones are terrible!


My hubby wants to play golf numerous times in Myrtle Beach while we are there and I am not kidding that every moment he is gone away from us, I am getting every moment back by myself, at the pool with a pina colada and good book! Oh yes hunny, you better believe me!


Claire is obsessed with ranch dressing. Whatever I put it on, she eats in five seconds. Contemplating putting it on every single item I give her. Must say, I have no idea where she got it from!


Yesterday I had my friend Meg { who has 3.5 year old trips } watch the girls during nap time for me while I took Em to the doctors and Natalee slept on a twin bed and never moved an inch! I cannot wait to move her to her toddler bed, which I swore I wouldn't do until she was like 17. The more contained, the better, but she may be an exception from her crazy twin sisters! This is the bed we got FOR FREE from a facebook friend and I must say it's adorable and I am desperately looking for two or three more:

I'm glad to finally be able to give back some time in my local Parents of Multiples group by taking on the role of NICU Support Coordinator. It seems appropriate due to the fact that most of my entire life I was determined to be a NICU nurse and then couldn't pass chemistry to save my life { true story - I tried three damn times }! As hard as the time my children spent in the NICU was, I have said numerous times that I am FOREVER grateful of the men and women who saved my children's lives and treated us like their own. They are angles and deserve a special place in heaven. I am honored to take on such an important and rewarding role to help and support other parents during such a scary time.


Getting my hair cut on Monday and it cannot come soon enough! Err, it's getting long {at my standards of long } and it's terrible!


I swear it seems like my phone never seems to stop ringing. I can't stand it! I hate being on the phone a lot. When I have a minute I just want to sit and listen to silence, not be on the phone! Does anyone get that...it's not to be mean, it's just with a house full of kids, I cherish those quiet moments!

I am getting SO many people wanting to guest post and I am so thankful to each and everyone of you!!! :)