The Triplets are turning 2 today!

I cannot believe that we have made it through 2 years! I will not say that it has been easy...but they really are amazing and we would never trade any one of them in if we could go back...maybe just stagger them a bit. They have made such advances in the past months. They are running, jumping, walking up stairs, writing with crayons, no more bottle, wrestling, talking better, and so much sassier. They made it into the terrible twos about two months ago with the tantrums and they are getting better at them every week.

Mike still has a flair for the dramatic and he throws himself on the ground for attention. He is adorable and he knows it and he will grin at you and nuzzle up to you for a hug or for a snuggle. He is very affectionate and he thrives off of attention and positive feedback. He is still very delayed in talking, but he is getting better each week and he gets his point across with the words he does have and with activity and actions. He has the most vivid made up language of the three and when he is feeling chatty he is amazing - we just don't know what he is saying. He is the wrestler of the group and he is known for tackling his brothers from behind. Lately he has also taken to putting his blanket over his head and walking around...we are not sure what that's about...He does not use a pacifier. Mikey is a blanket boy - everywhere, all the time. He wheres his blanket as a hat, scarf, shawl, drags it, carries it...you get the idea, he needs it. His brothers take it and use it as trade whenever they need Mikey to give something up to them.

Konrad remains the feistiest with his short temper and impatience. He is goofy and a joker with adults, he is always laughing and playing, but he is easily insulted by his brothers. He is very interactive and he is the most advanced in his ability to communicate and speak. He repeats everything we say and he even comes up with his own surprising statements...we definitely have to be careful around him. He is the smallest boy by about 6 pounds and that is frustrating for him because he gets toys taken away from him (and when Mikey tackles him frequently since it works better with Konrad verses Zach). He still bites his brothers as defense, it is main form of defense and his brothers wear the marks to prove it...lately he is starting to take his biting on the offensive to get things away from his brothers - creative but not ideal. Konrad is also the most sneaky, he is in some ways the leader or the instigator. He writes on the wall with crayons, his brother write on the walls with crayons. He jumps on the couch, his brothers jump on the couch...you get the idea.

Zachary is still our most laid back and gentle child. He is very affectionate and he likes to be held and touched. He is trying so hard to communicate right now and his speech is advancing rapidly. He will run up to us and stand in front of us and try to talk so hard repeating his words and staring at us - willing us to understand him - then when he makes eye contact and notices how much we are paying attention he gets bashful and looks down or gets embarrassed and runs off, but he keeps trying. He is very active and he is still the biggest of the three. Mikey cannot really tackle him effectively, but he tries. Zachary loves to be tickled and played with although he still does not play with his brothers as often as Mike and Konrad play together. He loves to play tag with them and hide and seek and they will all chase each other around the house screaming and laughing which is hilarious. Zachary is also the most determined and intense child. He will persevere at a task until he figures it out - even for hours. We call him our velocaraptor since he tests the enclosures.

They have grown so much and they are pretty amazing! We are very lucky parents and we have survivied 2 years which we think is quite an accomplishement!

Fall Fun!

At the State Fair with Grandma Debbie and Grandpa Tom, Scott, Darcie and Jamison

Konrad and Grandpa Tom at the Zoo

Grandpa Kurt and Konrad and Grandma Carol and Zachary checking out the scene

Daddy and the boys at the Apple Orchard

At the Apple Orchard waiting for a Hay Ride with Grandma Carol

Grandma Debbie and Mikey at the Pumpkin Patch

Konrad was very excited about his pumpkin

Mikey found a baby pumpkin

Zachary wants ALL of the pumpkins, or as he says "ball" "ball"

Exploring the giant pumpkins

Uncle Kurt reading with Zachary and Michael

We are busy and loving it this fall! The boys are running around and looking like toddlers and not babies at all! They are all starting to talk and spend most of their time chattering away and running around after each other. They love to go outside and run around with each other. They are so curious and into everything. All of them can say and sign "More", "all done", "bottle", "night night", "please", "thank you" and they all say "ABC" and some numbers too. Konrad is the most ahead with speaking and he clearly says, "let's go" and "go outside" or "change my butt"(not my favorite but very funny). He is starting to say sentences more often than one word and when you can understand what he is saying, it is always so surprising to hear how right on he is in his commentary. Michael and Zachary are coming along with their speech. They have animal sounds and basic words like "mommy", "daddy", "hi", "bye", "bottle", and "juice" down, but they have not advanced to putting words together or sentences yet...at least not ones that we understand. I have faith that they will get there and I try not to compare them or rush them. Physically, Zachary has gone from the most behind to the most ahead. He is running, climbing, walking backwards and his fine motor skills are also very ahead. Konrad is fast but clumsy and his rush to get things done can sometimes cause him trouble and frustration since he is prone to falling and tripping. Michael is a bit unsteady on his feet too sometimes, but unlike Konrad who runs anyway, Michael is cautious and careful about how he does things. Michael is determined and he will make his way to what he wants in the end...he is also very manipulative and so he often tries to get mommy or daddy to bring him to what he wants verses having to work hard to get there.

Their personalities are shining through these days. Konrad is lively and goofy and emotional. He is precocious and sassy and he asks lots of questions. He is extremely tuned in to his environment and he is shy and quiet in new situations or around new people. When he is happy and comfortable his comments, body language and facial expressions are entertaining to say the least. He loves to dance and play and wrestle his brothers...although he is still slightly prone to biting when he is frustrated with them. He is intelligent and interactive and very determined to keep himself a part of whatever is going on in the room. He does NOT like to be left out and his most challenging lesson is "wait your turn". Despite his fiery personality, Konrad is very attentive to the rules. When he takes a toy, he will give it back to his brothers with very little prompting and he knows when he does something that he is not supposed to because he always says "no no" right afterwards and then cries.

Michael is smart, sensitive, a bit dainty and delicate, and very emotional. He is cautious in his physical actions and very precise when he picks things up, reads a book, or eats his food. He is the cleanest eater I have ever seen, even more so than some adults I know. He needs to be comforted and touched and he relies upon positive feedback. Much of what he does is based on the resulting attention that he will get. He is aware of his brothers, but much more so of the adults in the room. He is very competitive with his brothers, Konrad especially and he will push himself into the center of anything that interests him. If we are reading to his brothers, he will come and push himself onto our lap and take the book. If we are showing his brothers a toy or feeding them a snack, Mikey will weasel his way into the center of the group. He is very much the flirt and he loves to get attention and he acts out to get it if it isn't coming. He has started a new phase of whining and dramatic whimpering that works on almost anyone but mommy. I can't blame people, he really is incredibly adorable with his cherubic little face, puppy dog eyes, and pouty lips...he can even whip up real tears sometimes. Its just that if we give in, he keeps doing it.

Zachary marches to a different drummer at his own pace and to his own beat. He is calm, gentle, loving and affectionate. He plays well by himself although he will play with his brothers or adults too. He is interactive and curious. He is not the least bit shy or hesitant with new people or surroundings. He will lay his head on a total strangers lap and smile gently, it is hard not to be won over by his loving smile. Zachary is a hider and a searcher and he is almost obsessive about looking inside cupboards, drawers or nooks and under furniture. I am not sure what he is looking for, but I suppose he will find it. He is repetitive in his actions and when he finds something he likes- a ball, a duck, a certain pacifier, a toy or a block - he clings to it and carries it with him for days. He is the most determined of my children and he gets what he wants through strength and repetitive perseverance. He has only recently realized that he is stronger than his brothers. He doesn't really have a temper like Konrad or emotional outbursts like Mikey so his strength is not really a threat but more of a benefit when his brothers try to take things from him. When he does do something physical toward his brothers, they don't even have a chance of stopping him...so they generally wait until he has turned the other way or gotten distracted to steal his stuff.

All in all, I find my boys, and they are truly becoming little boys, amazing. They are a wonder to watch and I love them so very much. They are affectionate and lively and they keep both Mike and I very busy all day (and sometimes all night) long. The past few months have been a delight. They are much more manageable in public now that they are walking and more distractible/entertainable. We take them on adventures every weekend and it is almost more much fun watching them see the world then it is seeing it for myself.

19 months, wow!

They boys are GREAT! They are healthy and happy and running around all day long. They are all talking to each other and they are even starting to include us in on the secret since we are starting to be able to understand them. Konrad has expanded his word list to include: night (as in nigh, nigh momma), apple, oval, purple, more, bottle, juice (aka water), milk, grandpa, grandma, baby, and book...he may have some more but these are the newest and clearest. Mikey says: more, all done, dog, banana, and "mmmm" after every bite and "ahhh" after taking sips of milk or water. maybe a few others...but not too many yet. He sure does chatter and babble alot to his brothers though so at least someone knows what he is saying. Mikey is probably our cutest and most precise sign language baby, his sign language more, please, and all done are about the cutest friggin things ever. Zachary is starting to really speed up his language since he started walking. He says banana, more, all done, night night, daddy, "A, B, C", and circle. They all love flash cards and we are working on letters, numbers, colors and shapes. 

All of the boys love to sing and dance, we put in the nursery rhymes and rock out!

Mikey is a reader, he loves to read to us, look at the pictures and tell us what he sees (at least we think that's what he's saying).  Konrad likes to steal Mikey's books and read them...I am not sure how interested he would be without Mikey to motivate him. Zachary likes animals, especially ducks. He will read patiently if there are ducks involved :)  All of the boys love the texture books right now. It is pretty funny to watch them turn the pages so excitedly and then touch and feel the velcro or sand paper or fuzz. 

We are transitioning to milk and sippy cups from bottles and formula...so far so good. I am not getting too worried or exact about how we do it, as long as we make it there by two years old. Mikey is very attached to his blanket and Zachary is starting to get attached to a puppy that we have. This is good since we will eventually have to take away the pacifiers and if he has some sort of replacement for his paci-animals I think it will be better. Konrad doesn't seem to need or attach to anything specific yet. He likes his brother's things, but nothing that he absolutely has to have. 

All in all things are great right now. The boys are growing and learning so fast and another month has passed...19 Months have come and gone and 2 years old here we come, I cannot believe it.

Zachary is always smiling!

...when he isn't "teething" on the furniture

and he loves his puppy!

Mikey loves his flashcards

and reading!

sometimes he reads to his brother.

Konrad is practicing his juggling skills

and he likes the flash cards too. He is saying "obal" for oval.

18 months

I can't believe how fast (and some days how slow) time goes by. My boys are 18 months old, walking, signing to us, singing, dancing, starting to talk, and getting smarter every second it seems.  They are at the age where everything seems to be fast forwarding and every time I look they seem to have grown or changed....sometimes many times a day! We are truly blessed to have them. The first several months were rough but 18 months is a good age for triplets if you are ever planning on having any :) 

Mikey

Konrad

Zachary

Walking Mikey - ready to bolt

Running Zachary - always on the go

Excited Konrad - cheering and clapping

All better :)

Phew! We are all better. The sickness has passed. It took almost three weeks for all signs of runny noses, coughs and whining to pass but finally the boys are cured!  We have an interesting left over side effect with Mikey in that he still wants to sit on our lap all the time, not a bad one. The boys are all completely walking now, crawling is rare.  They are even running at times and it seems like they can't decide whether to run or try to crawl when they want to get somewhere fast. They are all singing their ABC's and Old MacDonald and a bit of Twinkle Twinkle Little Start which is really funny to watch. They touch noses and say nose and sometimes they can figure our eye or ear. They are starting to recognize their ABC's on flashcards, but so far no fluent words or clear talking yet.  We are waiting patiently for them to figure it out! One major milestone every few months is enough I suppose. We are starting to encourage them to use spoons and cups by themselves...it is going okay. They are so smart and so funny right now. They run around in their cribs and laugh at each other before bed at night. Mikey and Zach even mimic each others arm movements and then laugh and laugh when they get it right. Konrad will wheel his crib (his is the only one on wheels) across the room so that he can touch his brother's hands and then the giggling really starts.  We put them to bed and then watch "baby TV" for a good hour every evening, they are so entertaining in there! They continue to grow so quickly.  We haven't taken many pictures lately, but here are a few.

Mikey trying to get the camera

Konrad wrestling for a try to get the camera

Zachary watching it all

We paid in spades for our weeks of healthy babies

It has been a very rough few weeks at the Huber house. Mike and I went to New York City for a wedding a couple of weekends ago. It was our first time away from the boys and it was a nice break. We returned home to three "starting to get sick" babies. And then they did. By Thursday night we were in the ER with Zachary and another croup flare up. This one was scary and  he was really working hard to get air in and out. They gave him steroids and breathing treatments and sent us home with the whole "there is nothing else we can do" speech. We went home with our wheezy, stridorous baby and we had a rough night...that turned into a rough 8 days and counting...the other boys got sick too and we had 5 or 6 days of high fevers 104's and 103's and coughs and runny noses. Zachary and Konrad ended up with ear infections as well. Our babysitter got sick as well, so they must have all gotten it together while we were gone. Mike and I did some creative work scheduling and we rallied our troops of extra babysitters and family to cover the days we absolutely had to work. We are starting to come out of a very, very long 7-10 days and I don't think that Mike and I will be going our of town again too soon...we paid way too dearly to the parent gods this time, lol. 

On a positive note, all of the boys are walking as their primary mode of transportation. They are so cute toddling around the living room. They are even starting to run a bit when they get excited. They legs and heads are bumped and bruised from all of their furniture and floor tackles, but they don't seem to mind at all. Their molars are almost in and they are starting to talk and sing and interact with each other and with us much more. When they are sick and clinging to us with snotty noses and whiney voices, they really are quite amazing...of course they are amazing then too but not the good king of amazing...We are blessed to have them, we know this, but sometimes we get little reminders of how really, really good the good times are and how challenging the bad times are. I will update with a good photo update soon...but they have been just too pitiful to photograph lately and we have been to wrapped up in them, to even think about it, lol.

blankies, binkies and lots of teeth

My poor babies are cutting their molars. I don't know why or how but their back, big teeth are coming in as their next set instead of more little ones. Mikey is cutting all four, top and bottom at the same time and Konrad is cutting the top set. Zachy won't let my hands in their to feel but my guess is that he is too...their bums are red, their moods are grumpy and they are drooling all over the place and eating anything that will fit in their mouth.  Mikey is walking pretty much all of the time now, he is so steady on his feet. Zach is still half and half and Konrad is walking primarily upright on his knees and sometimes on his feet...we don't know why, but its cute.  They are all starting to talk so much more, they are so amazing right now its like you can see their brains expanding and connecting the pieces of the world around them. They are all getting so aware of each other, us and how we all fit in with each other and they are learning to manipulate and test their environments. We are starting to feel the winds of the terrible twos blow our way as they begin to test boundaries and each other, but we are truly in a wonderfully pleasant period of time right now. The past few months has most definitely been the most "easy" so far in our triplet experience...we are told that it gets harder again when they are fully talking, wrestling, fighting and walking, but in the mean time we are thankful and loving this stage. They are reading books and pointing and signing words and saying words and singing and stacking blocks and dancing with each other and clapping for each other's accomplishments and saying "no no no" when one of them does something that the adults usually say no to. They are just incredible at this age. They are becoming truly attached to their pacifiers/binkies in Zach and Konrad's case and blanky in Mikey (aka Linus)'s case. We haven't quite gotten rid of the bottles, but we are closer than we were a few weeks ago. The boys can drink out of the sippy cuos and we could probably cut the cord as it were but...bottles are so much easier for us than sippy cups that right now I think it is more a matter of mommy and daddy not figuring it out than babies not figuring it out any more (she says sheepishly out loud for the first time)...something has to be easy, right?  We are definitely appreciating this time as a good time in our lives and we love watching our boys discover the world around them. They find such joy in the little things.

Mikey reading a book

Konrad reading (and eating) his book

Zachy stacking blocks

All of their lovies (blankies and binkies all around!)