HomeTales From a Triplet House
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Sick Child (a Haiku)
My Mother's Daughter Literacy in Bloom! Soccer Mom? Sam I Am I’m a Costco junkie... My Head is Spinning... I need a 'do-over'... Bicycling to school...another milestone. My summer book report. February 08 March 08 April 08 May 08 June 08 July 08 August 08 September 08 October 08 November 08 December 08 January 09 'Be careful how you interpret the world: it is like that.' - Erich Keller 'I do not pretend to understand the universe. It's a great deal bigger than I am.' - Tom Stoppard 'Chaos often breeds life, where order breeds habit.' - Henry Adams 'When you can laugh at yourself, there is enlightenment.' - Shunryu Suzuki 'My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither; but to just enjoy your ice cream while it's on your plate.' - Thornton Wilder This one was on my quote-a-day calendar the day after I found out I was carrying triplets. 
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I found myself at the crossroads of my house: between my kitchen/family room, facing the doorway to my living room, the hallway to the bedroom at my left. I was poised on the balls of my feet, my to-do list having a shouting match in my head, vying for priority - I needed to go into the living room and unpack the leftover inventory from my last sales trip, I needed to go to the desk behind me and enter the new stores into my accounting system, I needed to go into the kitchen and wash the breakfast dishes, I needed to go down the bedroom hallway and move the laundry from washer to dryer and I needed to pick up the phone that was ringing (probably another salesman - but maybe another new store?).
What a strange sensation to have my body trying to go in 5 different directions at once! Trying to decide which needed my attention first had the effect of looking like a statue while actually fighting to move. It was only an instant, but long enough to illustrate just how much I have to cram into each day being a WAHM ,trying to grow my own business. Finally a small voice from down the hallway broke through the to-do cacophony in my head, "Mommy? I'm still thirsty...". Oh Yeah, my son is home sick from school and needs more Gatorade. "Mommy's comming!" Priorities restored, I head to the kitchen to fill his cup.
Woohoo! My son ditched the training wheels for good tonight!
I knew he was close so I suggested a trip to the park after dinner. We headed up there with all three kids and their bikes - two without training wheels. Daughter1 learned a couple weekends ago. She just came up to me and asked to remove her trainers. We went to the park the next Saturday and worked on it for an afternoon. She got the riding-by-herself part down but then we were too tired to work on starting and stopping alone. Sunday we worked on it on the sidewalk in front of the house. About 30 minutes and that was that, one bike rider down, two to go... That Sunday afternoon, my son whispered in my ear that he wanted his trainers off too. So I happily complied and we spent some time running up and down the block - me all hunched over and hovering. It's been a couple weeks since then and he was finally ready to try again. He was out in the backyard this afternoon trying to ride by himself on the short walkway between the house and the fence. Hence my after dinner suggestion. Well, let me tell you, teaching a child to ride a bike really brings to the surface what the progression of motherhood is all about; helping him get started - running behind the bike holding onto the back of his seat - letting go and running to stay beside him in case he needed to be caught - then finally standing back and letting him zoom off across the pavement legs peddling furiously as he goes faster and faster. "Remember to use your brakes!" I yell with my heart in my throat just as, grinning from ear to ear, he skids to a stop laying tread like the dare devil boy I see him growing into. Wow. Motherhood. What a rush!
With Mother's Day 2008 fast approaching, I thought it might be fun to share something I wrote after last Mother's Day. My kids were 4 and it was my best Mother's Day yet and started a new tradition. Read on...if you dare:
********** We started a new tradition for Mother's Day - visit Mother Nature for Mother's Day. Up ‘til now I always requested just a picnic lunch at the park to hang out and play with the kids and take pictures. This time, on Saturday, TripletDad said, 'Let's pack an overnight bag and go somewhere like we used to before kids'. So, being adventurous in nature, and enjoying spontaneity, I agreed. We ended up at Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Park because we had never been there and we had thought it was closer than the Redwoods (HaHa!). Anyway, we walked to see one tree (3rd largest – The Grant Tree). The kids did great walking the short trail and loved exploring (especially thanks to Rachel Coleman’s songs on Signing Time vol.8 The Great Outdoors). But We learned that the largest tree in the world was just South of us and also this weekend was the start of the open season for tours of the
- Then I had to go potty. So I got dressed and snuck out. No flashlight. No problem. I found my way and got back. Once undressed (this means in my nightgown), I got back in bed. - Then Daughter1 fell out of bed! I put her back in bed and got back in my own (MOM-skill #2 – rescuing kids when they fall out of bed). - Then Daughter2 started whimpering and sniffling; she was having a nightmare. So I got out of bed to soothe her (MOMskill #3 – soothing nightmares). She woke up and said she had to go potty. - So I got dressed again, wrapped her in TripletDad's jacket and carried her to the bathroom (MOM-skill #4 – bathroom trips in the night). I made sure to stop and have her admire the mountain night sky (MOM-skill #5 – take time for the small moments, even at inconvenient times). - When I got back, Daughter1 woke up and said she needed to go. TripletDad rolled over and mumbled that he thought that would happen. Helpful. - So I wrapped her in TripletDad's jacket and carried her to the bathroom. Again, I did my motherly duty to take a moment and share the night sky with her. - When I got back, TripletDad had to go. So he went by himself. Being a guy (in other words, without MOM-skills), he refused to navigate in the dark and had to find a light first. So he discovered that a cell phone works great as a flashlight. Since I had already made the walk three times without one (MOM-skill #6 – navigating in the dark so as not to disturb my family), again, this was very helpful of him. But that's OK, I was the one who couldn't sleep. -Finally back in bed again (now it was close to 12:30), I tried to sleep again. Suddenly, Daughter2 fell out of bed! (Sierra and Carley were sharing a bed) I ran over and picked her up. I got back in bed again. - Then Daughter1 fell out of bed for her second time! Picked her up, got back in bed. - Then Daughter2 started having the nightmare-whimper again. So I decided that if I was going to spend my whole night over dealing with the girls, I should just climb in with them. So I did (MOM-skill #7 – the ability to sleep in bed with squirmy kids). - Sierra snuggled up and settled down, and I finally felt like I could sleep. - Both daughters fell out one more time each (what the heck?!). - After Daughter1 fell out for the 3rd time and Daughter2 seemed in a good sleep, I got up and went back to my own bed, thinking that maybe Daughter1 needed the room. I think I fell asleep around 2:30 AM. Woke up at 6:30, but felt alright. I was actually happily contemplative about how I got to take care of all my kids’ emergencies, exercising my MOM-skills on Mother’s Day weekend. How appropriate, right? So I said to TripletDad (I am aware of how you will all gasp at this), “Wow, I think I handled every mom thing last night and yesterday. All I need to make this complete is some barf”... Yes, I actually said that with an innocent smile on my face! Keep reading... - After a breakfast of donuts and GoGurt, Daughter2 says, “Mommy, my tummy hurts, I’m gonna throw up”. TripletDad and I exchanged looks as I held Daughter2's hair back and she ralphed in the trashcan. Now my Mother’s Day was complete (MOMskill #8 – dealing calmly with barf without barfing myself). After that, everything was fine. We bought chewable Dramamine for the winding drive to the caves. The kids did great on the .5 mile, treacherous walk down to the cave. They did great during the tour and on the way back up. They did fabulous during the .5 mile walk to the Sherman Tree and I told them that now they can honestly say, “I’ve seen the Biggest Tree Ever!”, which is what they say about everything these days, just insert a different noun for the occasion. I was so proud of them and so happy to be their Mommy. I get sad about how fast they are growing and sometimes especially when they surprise me by handling something I wasn’t sure they were ready for (i.e., hiking). But I am also so happy that they are big enough to share things like camping and hiking like real Little Troopers. It was a great Mother’s Day weekend. To be repeated next year and the year after and so on (but hopefully without all the MOM-skills tests). Post Scripts: *To TripletDad’s credit, he did listen for me everytime I left to visit the restroom, and he opened the door for me everytime I got back to the cabin so I wouldn’t have to fumble with my key. He also commented on how we couldn’t have gotten through the weekend, so pleasantly, without all my MOM-skills to keep us all calm during the stressful parts. I love him! **When I asked Daughter1 how she liked me sleeping with her (I actually never do that at home), her comment was “when I tried to turn on my tummy, there was no room for this elbow” as she held out her right elbow. Too funny. ***When I asked the girls if they remembered falling out of bed, they denied it vehemently. No memory of the events in question! Sigh...sometimes MOM-skills go unnoticed and unappreciated. I guess they will find out when/if they have their own kids someday, LOL! . ********************** This year, 2008, we are going to the Redwoods. I have a reservations staying in a cabin with an indoor bathroom (MOM-skill #9 - Learn from your mistakes. LOL!). I'll let you know how it goes. |
