june 14, '10

Just wanted to update after our monitor appt last week...Peyton is off of the monitor except during the night. Kendall and Chase are both still on the monitor. Our next appt is July 19. Girls are all doing well and all have officially outgrown their newborn clothes! We're wearing the 0-3 month stuff - very exciting! Their baptism will be during 10am mass on Sunday, June 27. I will just unhook Kendall and Chase during the ceremony and leave the monitors in the van until after mass since someone will be holding them anyway. Trey is also doing well. He is riding a bike with training wheels and rides a regular scooter at Diana's! We're looking forward to his bday! We had our first official picture session at Penney's. Quite an eperience! Thankfully Trey is so good for the sessions b/c it was tricky trying to get everyone to cooperate at the same time. I don't think I'll do that very often, and I'm looking forward to my "home" session with the photographer for next time. All for now. No pic updates as I'm once again on my laptop, sorry!

May 20, 10

The triplets had their 3 month ped. appt today. Peyton weighs 9lbs 3 oz, Kendall is 7lbs 6 oz, Chase is 7lbs 12 oz. Chase is the longest at 22". I now have the OK to switch to regular formula, so will finish all the Enfamil that I have and then probably move to Good Start b/c I liked it the best with Trey. Dr.Chesek wants them to remain on the Prevacid for reflux and continue taking the vitamin. She was very pleased overall! Some quick notables: Kendall has the longest eyelashes and likes to get the others riled-up, Peyton definitely does her own thing and I believe she will be a leader whether anybody chooses to follow or not, and Chase smiles and laughs the most. Also, last night after going to bed at their normal 10:30pm - 11:00pm Kendall slept until 5am, Chase until 6am, and Peyton until 7am! I could only hope they keep that schedule, but I know better. :) I have new pics, but I'm typing on my laptop, so I'm sure it'll be a little while until I upload to my PC and post more....

May 8, 10

Triplets home just over a month now. They are thriving, but still on monitors for heart/lungs. Peyton weighs over 8 lbs, Chase over 7lbs, and Kendall over 6 lbs! We return to West Penn on June 10 to find out if we need to continue with the monitors. It is very chaotic and minutes turn into hours turn into days, but in the midst of alll that, we've hit two milestones: all 3 girls are turning over from their belllies to their backs and all 3 girls will smile and laugh with you! Trey has hit a milestone himself: he drives the John Deere tractor all by himself with Derick walking next to him. Yes, he's not even 2...it's another indication of things to come and another reason we cannot deny he's his father's son! All for now, but I'd like to send a shout out to all of you who continue to lend a hand to us - this would be virtually impossible without help! Happy Mother's Day!

April 14, 10

Just a quick note to let everyone know that the girls have officially been home a week! They are doing really well with the help of all of you that continuously lend your time and support! They've had their first pediatrician appt and everything looks good! Trey is a helpful big brother; He often helps hold their bottles while we feed and will cuddle with the girls. Yesterday as I was feeding Chase, and he was holding the bottle with me he said, "Peyton"! :) All for now!

April 5, 10

The girls are coming home tomorrow! All three are coming tomorrow morning. They just turned 8 weeks yesterday. They will all come on monitors, but otherwise are doing very well! Peyton is 7lbs 6 oz. Kendall is 5lbs 8oz, and Chase is 6lbs 1oz!!! They are officially out of preemie clothes and wearing all their "newborn" stuff! I will have limited access to my computer b/c I can't be more than 5-10 seconds away from the monitors and my office is downstairs, but my sister will keep the blog updated for me. Please feel free to text me so that I know there is actually another world outside the walls of my house, just don't always expect a response! ha ha ha. Since I won't have daily access to the online Google "help" calendar, I've asked Melanie (at school) and Joni (my sister) to help with that and keep it accurate. Thanks a bunch, everyone, for all your prayers so far! They're working!

March 18, 10 (second post)

In case you didn't realize it, in addition to the new blog below, I finally updated pictures of the girls! Today is their 6 weeks bday, and although I took pictures, I don't have them uploaded yet. The pictures posted were taken on their 5 weeks bday. Also, I recently realized that I have comments from Jen G and Deanna H. This blog thing is new to me, so I don't even really know how to respond, I tried and it posted to myself! Sorry, ladies!

March 18, 10

Since I last blogged: Peyton weighs 6# 8.5oz. and is 19.75" long, Kendall is 4# 15oz. and 17" long, and Chase is 5# 5oz and 18" long. As you can see, all girls are growing well. Everybody has increased their feedings and are taking approx. 1.5 - 2 ounces of formula, which is what a newborn would typically take. The girls celebrated their 6 week birthday today! I took the video camera in for the first time to record this special day! All girls are now in open incubators and Peyton no longer has her feeding tube and is eating every 4 hours instead of every 3. I don't expect the other two to be far behind, but for now they still need to be tube fed every so often. The biggest news to report is that as of tomorrow the girls are moving to the Pediatric Specialty Hospital inside the Children's Home built by the Leximeux Foundation. Most people refer to it as TIC (Transitional Infant Care). Basically, it's a step between the NICU and home. The facility is amazing (I toured it last week), and the same neonatologists that care for the girls at West Penn care for them at TIC. The make their rounds there once a day. The benefit of moving them is that developmentally they need the most peaceful sleep they can get and the most serene environment possible, without all the noises and disturbances of the NICU. They will have mostly natural light, so they'll start to learn the difference between day and night, too. The doctors have been encouraging us to move them, but it took us a little while to get on board. ;) Dr.Lanieri, one of my favorites, is rounding there all next week, so that makes me feel even better about the transition. It's tough to leave the comfort of the care and nurses of the NICU. I've grown so accustom to the routine and have shared the first weeks of their lives with the people there, so although I know it's time, it's also with a heavy heart that the girls and I have to leave them. Having said that, I couldn't be happier with their progress, and am so glad we are one step closer to home!!!