School is just around the corner.....

We are FINALLY ending the five week break between the Summer session and the Fall Session of the Triplet's "Daddy" day out program they go to two days a week. The house was a mess and the yard a jungle... until the CFO took yesterday off. We both went to re-orientation at the day out program and met a great family that we hope to have dinner with sometime next week. Then we went to lunch at IHOP. BTW, if you ever want to eat somewhere that does not get busy for lunch IHOP seems to be your place. We got home, the kids went to bed, I took a 30 min nap, OK it was more like 45 min but who is counting, before heading out to tame the jungle and the CFO started cleaning.

We had friends from Houston coming in town last night (1am) with their two kids and we had to get things in order. I am still not happy with the yard but it took me three hours to do what normally takes me one hour. We have had a ton of rain so the grass was thick and high. I had to dump the bag every two passes on the yard.

A few of the pics from the In-Laws Alaska trip for you....

The great thing about democracy is that it gives every voter a chance to do something stupid. Art Spander

Al

The Triplets end an era for parents....

OK, we always knew the kids would change our lives... but THIS is REALLY HARD...

We have sold our motorcycles:( The CFO's went away with it's new owner Tuesday night and mine is leaving next Tuesday... with a Pastor no less.... talk about a message from God! We had such a great time with our bikes in Seattle! Now the decision comes whether or not to sell the gear. I alone own two jackets, chaps, pants, rain pants, a jump suit, and three or four pairs of gloves. Well, we are starting Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University in two weeks at church so I guess the timing is right. Stupid logic... Sell what you don't need or don't use... it goes against Manhood! No more toys for us big kids, for a while. Don't worry, we will ride again when the kids are out of the house or at least when we can leave them home alone:)

Some pics so you can appreciate what we are loosing.... they are.. were.. beautiful bikes! Mine was the silver one and the CFO's was black and blue.

Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example.

Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

Al

A rare photo of the family Unicorn

The backpack dilema is solved!

As you may remember I was dwelling on which backpack to choose.

Deuter Cross City or the
Lowe Alpine Airzone Active 28 Day Pack

Both arrived about a week ago and I have been wearing them around the house. Yes, I know that tops the geeky scale. The truth hurts some people but I have learned to live with it:) So I decided to field test them. I wore the Deuter pack to the Science Center last Friday and it was just as hot as my cheapo bag from my school days. So then I switched and wore the Lowe Alpine bag to go and meet the CFO at the mall with the kids for lunch. What a difference! No sweaty back! The straps on the Lowe Alpine are not as comfortable and the bag's compartments not as handy but if my back is hot and sweaty I don't care about the other features.

So now I have my new diaper bag! I am sending the other one back this week. Before and after shots for you. The CFO did a great job of getting back into shape and is staying there.

Right before their birth.....

All of us Christmas 2007

If you are wondering what the kids are looking up at it... there was a big Spinning Christmas Tree we were looking at when we visited the Gaylord Texan. I think William was calculating the torque required to spin a tree of that size:)

Adventure is just bad planning.
Roald Amundsen (1872 - 1928)

Al

Be a man.....

I have had quite a few laughs taking the kids to the Science Center here in Birmingham. I am usually the only guy there. Since I still have one more week till their two days a week "school" starts up we have been going 1-2 times a week. The kids love it and they are great "off leash." I have only had to carry someone once. When it is time to go I get out their walking rope (suggestion from the Jon and Kate plus eight show) they grab a color and off we go. We get lots of comments... Oh, how cute, I need one of those, what a great idea... Another great idea from Jon and Kate plus eight is to dress them in bright color so you can track them down easily.

Back to being a man... I see some guys there with their kids. VERY FEW look like they want to be there. That is a subject for another post. What I want to address is that you can still be a "guy" and hang out with kids, change diapers, wipe snotty noses, smell for poopie diapers, etc... Here are some of my suggestions to other Dads.

• You never know when the kids will wake up in the morning - take your shower/shave the night before
• Your hair looks silly because of bed-head (reference above point) - cut your hair every-other week with a #2 clipper. It is hard to make hair that is 1/2" long look bad. If you are married, have kids (much less multiples) and you are still worried about your hair you DON'T GET IT!
• The diaper bag is, well, a diaper bag. It probably has some girly print on it - buy a backpack, check that, a REALLY cool backpack.
• You are embarrassed by driving the mini-van - park close to SUVs and laugh at them as they try to squeeze their kids in through the doors while you easily get everyone in through the sliding doors. A cocky bumper sticker is also a nice touch... Mine says "You can't scare me, I have triplets."

So, in short you can not only be a man and stay at home with kids but you can also have the ultimate one-up-manship on other guys. Be the guy that makes all the moms go home and tell their husbands about.

A great picture of my girls.....

The one serious conviction that a man should have is that nothing is to be taken too seriously. Nicholas Murray Butler

Al

A busy Saturday

We had a great Saturday but it was a busy one. After breakfast we had an appointment at a pottery party. No, it is not Tupperware. This is much more expensive:) It is a great way to make keep sakes for yourself or for gifts with your kid's hand prints. You first choose the pottery you want. They have a WIDE selection from $14 to $85. Then they help put your child's hand print(s) on it in a color of your choice. You can also add little phrases. One of the pieces we got was a coffee mug for the CFO with "You can't scare me, I've got triplets" on it.

So after an hour of finger painting we went to Sam's Club to have pizza for lunch. I feel bad going sometimes as it seems that when I go to order I am interrupting the employee's more important tasks like talking to other employees:) A sloth could beat these people in a foot race and their service lacks "service."

We then headed home and put the kids down for a nap. Addison had other plans so I got her settled a little later and missed my nap time. But I did get a lot done. Jackson woke up about 3:30 and we went to the grocery store. Everyone asked about William and Addison. Jackson enjoys his one on one time!

After dinner we had baths and off to bed!

It is hard to believe how far we have come in 23 months

"The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be."
Paul Ambroise Valery

Al

Tags, tags, tags, tags.....

Sing the title to the Spam, spam, spam, spam Monty Python skit. Side note.... You may or may not know this but this skit is is how "Spam Mail" got it's name. Back to my point... The CFO got some great deals on 3T kids clothes. So since I am a bit particular about things I won't let the kids wear the clothes until they are washed. The CFO is fine with this as it means that I then get to take the tags off and everything off of hangers. I might be willing to pay more for clothes that don't have tags on them. I found one shirt that had three different tags on it and two of them were in the seams. You know what that means... you can only get one side of the plastic tag holder out. I mean come on! If Hanes can come up with tagless underwear can't we do something similar for price tags on kid's clothes? You could probably save the rain forest simply by not putting tags on kid's clothes. And don't even get me started on the hangers these clothes come on. Who ever uses a hanger that holds two shirts and a pair of shorts? The crazy thing about the hangers is that there is someone with a Ph.D. somewhere designing this stupid things:)

This series is from William's second haircut. He doesn't mind the haircut until the blow dryer comes out.

In real life, it is the hare who wins. Every time. Look around you. And in any case it is my contention that Aesop was writing for the tortoise market. Hares have no time to read. They are too busy winning the game.
Anita Brookner

Al

Who is that cute kid?

Jackson discovered his reflection in his spoon. He has always been a bit vain but who can blame him:)

Mistakes are a part of being human. Appreciate your mistakes for what they are: precious life lessons that can only be learned the hard way. Unless it's a fatal mistake, which, at least, others can learn from.
Al Franken, "Oh, the Things I Know", 2002


Al

Back to "normal"

My voice held out through my talk at Church last night and is coming back. The triplets will be disappointed. I think they liked me having to whisper to them. Not sure if we are headed to the YMCA or the Science Center today yet. I hear noises from the kid's room, gotta run.

I love these pictures from early on. Their personalities are the same. In the last one Addison is playing "Super Girl" flying away with the two "Red Headed Bandits."

There are two kinds of people, those who finish what they start and so on. Robert Byrne

Al

Out numbered and sick

I lose my voice about once or twice a year so I knew it was bound to happen... it has:( It is bad for two reasons.

• #1: I have triplets and I now whistle to get their attention. It actually works very well. Something good might come out of this. Between whistling and a little sign language we made it through the day yesterday.


• #2: I am supposed to talk tonight at church. I will try and conserve my voice and pray about it today and we will see what happens.

I don't feel that bad I just sound like I am going through puberty again:) I might start whispering to the kids all the time as they were more quiet than normal yesterday. If I whisper to them, they usually whispered back. Nice change from the glass shattering, dog whining, ear drum splitting screaming I get sometimes.

Here are a few of my favorite "baby" pictures of theirs from 4/07. Our Nanny Kelly took the first two. Yes, the coffee cup is empty.

A diplomat... is a person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you actually look forward to the trip.
Caskie Stinnett, Out of the Red (1960)

Al

Kindergarden on TV?

We don't let the triplets watch too much TV. OK, probably more than I should but when it is usually just when I am cleaning up after meals, giving baths or getting everyone ready to go somewhere. Well, I guess that is most of the time:) Anyway, until recently Sesame Street was the only program we let them watch. We have started watching Noggin a little bit. I about fell down laughing when between shows it said "Noggin is like preschool on TV." Then I laughed even harder when it said that the show helped with "Intrapersonal" skills as well as interpersonal skills. Does a TV show really make kids feel better about themselves? WOW! I can just stop praising them and sit them in front of the TV. What's next?... treating depression with TV?

Things change fast... these are from back in March of this year.

There is nothing worse than aggressive stupidity.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 - 1832)

Al

Jackson got the all clear!

Jackson had his last check up with the Orthopaedic Surgeon yesterday and got the all clear from his bone infection! No more antibiotics. Crazy morning.... will post more later...

Al

Monday, Monday.....

Last week was tough on everyone. The CFO was working crazy overtime due to it being the end of the fiscal year for the company she is with. She worked till about 8 or 9pm each night which meant she did not see the kids much. Weeks like that are tougher on her than me. The in-laws came down Friday night and flew out Saturday morning for an Alaskan cruise. They borrowed our camera so I will be sharing some older photos this week. On a separate note, my Mother-In-Law wanted me to explain in my blog that it is not her side of the family that is late for things, duly noted:) We went to the YMCA's pool last night for the first time with the kids and they loved it! One funny thing happened... Jackson tripped while he was in the baby pool and his head went under. After I grabbed him he came up choking a little on the water but yelling YEAH! and clapping his hands:) Jackson has another check-up on his foot today so keep us in your prayers.



The kids did some more racing this weekend.



In view of the fact that God limited the intelligence of man, it seems unfair that he did not also limit his stupidity.
Konrad Adenauer


Al

I am in awe....

We went back to the Science Center again on Friday and everything went great again. But I have been outdone.... A mother was there alone with her 8 month old twins and her 3 year old. To top it off she had both of the twins out of the stroller crawling around AND she fed them there while watching her three year old.

Playtime!

But, she did not have a cool backpack like I will soon, HA!

Al

Backpack dilema

OK, I have wasted enough time on this backpack deal.

Deuter Cross City
Lowe Alpine Airzone Active 28 Day Pack

So I am pulling a play right out of the "How to Behave Like a Man Handbook"..... order both of them! BTW, the CFO will learn this little inconsequential fact when she reads this:) I love you honey... Yes, I will return the one I don't like.

On a separate note... Hey, I am A.D.D. deal with it:) If you have not noticed I have a touch of paranoia about me. So I am now a little nervous about the Anodized Aluminum Calphalon cookware that I use. In the words of my Father-in-law, "they are toxic!" Yes, I have spent a small fortune on it but when it comes to preventing Alzheimer's, I am open to suggestions. So I am looking at some new cookware - out comes the GEEK again. I have done about 20+ hours of research on this one. I think I have a resolution, the set I want is the All Clad Copper Core set but since I now am an income drain on the family, that is out. I am going with Cuisinart Stainless Steel set. So, I finally decided what I want. Now to the price..... I think I have the trifecta! I can buy it at Bed Bath and Beyond, use a 20% off coupon, and buy it with gift cards from my Discover points saving another 20%!!!! So if my math is right a $199 set will cost me about $130. Another plus is that they are dishwasher safe!!! Of course this offsets the time caring for the new cast iron griddle I bought (with miles from Capital One) that must be cared for:)

Let's play chase.....

A boy has toys no matter what age or occupation,

Al

Bring out the GEEK....

I am a self-confessed GEEK. Yes, I watched "Dr. Who" on Public Television growing up and I even went to computer camp one summer. So when I get a chance to geek out I am all over it. With the kids not using the stroller much any more the diaper bag of choice is my backpack. The problem is that it gets HOT wearing the backpack I have when I am chasing the triplets around. So the CFO has authorized me to purchase a new one, my birthday is coming up. Now the hunt begins....

There is so much to consider and my wants are many:
Affordable - did I mention that we are on one income? :)
Well vented back panel - I am hot natured and I get grumpy when I get hot.
Ability to carry three water bottles (sippy cups) on the exterior - save me from fumbling around for them and they don't get stuff wet when they leak
Mid sized - too small and I can't be prepared for all contingencies, too big and I look like a bigger geek than I am
At least two compartments - diapers, wipes, creams, zip lock bags, first aid kit, hand sanitizer etc.. in one. Change of clothes, snacks, extra water, walking rope, washcloths, etc.. in the other.
Removable or stowable hip belt - you rarely use it but I would hate to cut it off and need it later.
Top carry handle - when you got to grab it and go; e.g. when the kids run off.
Lightweight - all the crap I carry is heavy enough - see "at least two compartments" above.
Sternum strap - keeps the shoulder straps together for more comfort
Shaped shoulder straps - comfort is key
Bungee cords for carrying jackets, or a Gloworm - yes, it may make me look like I will fall over backwards but looks are secondary when you are a stay at home parent of triplets

After about 8 hours of online research I think I have in narrowed down to two packs. Both with pros and cons. And no, I am not paying full price. I might be a geek but I am a cheap geek:)

Deuter Cross City
Lowe Alpine Airzone Active 28 Day Pack

I will let you know the results.....


The triplets help with the mail again.



You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance.
-Franklin P. Jones

Al

PS My next geek search is for kid potties. Potty training is right around the corner.