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So my neighbor down the street told me a funny story about her son’s Kindergarten open house.   The kids had an assignment to make a poster about their mom (or Dad).  She was embarrassed that her son said that her favorite activity was ‘Taking a nap on the couch”. LOL!

Now this is funny; if it is not about you. 

Curiosity overtaking me, TripletDad and I asked our kids to tell us what they think our favorite activities are.  They were very quickly listed things for daddy, “working in the yard, playing guitar, exercising!” 

Now I have a lot of interests: reading, new-found knitting, my club meeting with Sacramento Mothers of Multiples...But, what was listed for mommy?  After some coaxing and some “Umming” and “uhhhing” they came up with (I kid you not), “Giving hugs” and “Giving kisses”. 

OK, while this is not bad or embarrassing, we knew they were reaching for anything to say.  But after a moment more one said, “doing the computer”.  So I said, what am I doing on the computer?  Thinking a moment another finally came up with, “selling bibs.”

OK, I think I need a life. And I need to show it to my kids.

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So, what is it that I do all day as a WAHM, what makes me so busy, what takes me out of town on business occasionally? I think the time has come for a little self-serving “Yeah Me!” - Happy Dance moment...

Time to ‘fess up; TripletDad and I created and patented the SnugEase Bib. We designed it when the triplets were babies and we were so frustrated with bibs that let the dribble, spit-up and drool down their necklines and onto their shirts.  I hated changing onesies after every bottle even though I had used a bib.  Every bib we could find, no matter how it was designed, managed to gap at the neckline.  I just wanted a bib to do the job it was intended for; to keep the baby dry.  Was this too much to ask?

Well, when we couldn’t find what we wanted, we designed it, patented it and eventually got a factory and started producing it.  It’s been a long struggle to get this bib to be well known.  But I am on a mission to make this our Break-Through year.

And the first big break is coming to a mailbox near you... Because we got our SnugEase Bib into (drum roll please) ONE STEP AHEAD catalog!!!!!  WooHoo!!!

So if you get this catalog, open the May - August edition find that SnugEase Bib and tell your neighbor, “Hey – I know that triplet mom who makes this!”

If you want to learn more about it go to www.snugease.com.

I was out of town on business last weekend (L.A. Baby Show, I'll blog about that later).  As I was getting ready to leave I told my daughter with the wiggly tooth to please not loose it while Mommy was gone.  I told her it was because I wanted to be here for all the excitement of the Tooth Fairy (TF) and I didn’t want to miss out.  But really I was worried about TripletDad taking on TF duty. This tooth has been wiggly for almost a month and it has been very stubborn – to the point that the adult tooth is almost halfway grown in behind it!

So on Saturday I called my husband to check in and say goodnight to the triplets.  He told me that she had lost the tooth an hour before dinner.  I told him where the TF keeps her treasure (Gold coin dollars) and where our kids keep their TF pouches; so he was all set to go.

I called on Sunday while packing up the show and getting ready to head for the airport.  I was too afraid to ask how he did with TF duty and I didn’t want to pester him if it went badly. I got home way after the kids were tucked in that night.  But TripletDad fessed up with his story. 

He had tried 3 times to get the bag out from under the pillow and each time she had stirred and seemed to almost wake up, so he gave up and figured he would try in the morning. (I found out later that he had let her put it under the pillow instead of the way I do it which is to put it there for her – strategically so I know where it is and it is off to the side, not dead center)  So in the morning, she came out to breakfast and didn’t say a word.  TripletDad thought she had forgotten about it and took it as his chance.  He made the switch and then went to the kitchen.  Casually he asked her if the TF had come.  She said, “no, my tooth was still there.”  He said, “Are you sure? Maybe you weren’t quite awake and you only dreamed she didn’t come”  She ran to her room and this time found the treasure.  He thought he had gotten away with it but...

When I woke her up for school on Monday morning she told me, “Mommy the Tooth Fairy came while I was eating breakfast!”  LOL!  She's a smart one.  How much longer will the trusting innocence last?

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So a few weeks ago it was giving the cat a trim. You know, because my daughter is five and trimming something with scissors is a milestone.

Last week, after TripletDad worked harder than he had in years to bring Spring to our yard, the brand new flowers got de-petaled in one stealthy afternoon!  The kids loved the pretty flowers and decided to make confetti soup with all the colorful petals.  We had a big long talk about how we enjoy the garden and that, yes, we can occasionally cut the flowers and enjoy them inside, but that the way we enjoy them most is to let them fill up the flower bed.  I explained to TripletDad that I had done the same when I was about five to my mother’s flower beds.  This was a learning experience for them to understand that if they pick all the petals today, that’s it – no more colors in the yard for a long while during the time it takes for the plants to grow more. He still made them empty their piggy banks to pay for the damaged plants.

Then, because none of the triplets had done it yet and I guess this is ‘our time’ for childhood milestones, my son swallowed a non-food object.  He was home from school sick and I was diligently making him drink lots of liquids using a straw-top cup in bed.  He was playing with this little chain he takes everywhere.  I guess he was experimenting with how it fit in the straw and dropped it in.  Then I heard him calling for me, “my chain’s gone!”  I went in and he told me that his cup was empty and that his chain had been in it, but now it’s gone.  He finally admitted that he felt it go down when he swallowed.  So after a quick call to the advice nurse (I love the ease of using Kaiser!), we were under orders to poke his poop for the next few days until we were sure it had made the whole journey through he body. Luckily it only took two days (all the while my imagination was getting the best of me envisioning panicked trips the ER with twisted up intestines...). 

And why was all this happening to us, all right now?  Is this the result of bad parenting or not paying enough attention? No, these are normal childhood events.  Every parent has one or more of these stories to share. And because we have three active kids who are all the same age....the only answer I can give TripletDad is to just shake my head and say, “Because they are five...”

The photo was actually taken before TripletDad worked on the yard.  I'll post a new picture of the blooming yard when I take one.