Triplets Plus 1-The Harrigans

A few free hours

2009-11-28T11:38:00.000-08:00

My sister-in-law, Cindy, and my neice, Ana, are currently at my apartment baking a cake with my girls and painting the girls' fingernails. They are giving me a few blissful hours to run some errands. The girls's Dad only has them on Dec. 12 (his choice). This is my only kid-fee day before Christmas so Cindy was kind enough to help me out. Thank you Cindy and Ana!!!

My lovely neighbor sent us a Thanksgiving card with a $50 gift card to Wal-Mart in it. I'm going to use it to get gifts for the girls. Megan wants a new winter coat, a new comforter, Breyer horses, and a few good books to read. Brigid wants transformers, Bionicals, and some Hannah Montana stuff. Abigail only wants Ariel stuff, a few toy horses, and some Hannah Montana stuff. Caroline wants toy horses, Care Bear stuff, and some Hannah Montana stuff. (I seem to be using the word "stuff" a lot.)

Tuesday was Caroline's Star Student of the Month award ceremony. She got one last year too. She was sooo excited and I am soooo proud of her. Unfortunately one person was notably absent (again). I keep hoping at some point that he will realize what he is doing to the girls. I think his dislike for me is so strong that it interferes with him being with the girls. It is sad really. And Caroline was disappointed. As am I.

I took the girls to Light-Up Louisville on Friday evening. We braved the cold (30s) and enjoyed Christmas carols and seeing Santa. When the fireworks and lights were over megan turned to me and said, "That's it? We stood out in the cold for this?" Lovely. I imagine after seeing Thunder Over Louisville this definitely paled in comparison.

Well off to shop and then home to put up the tree. Yea!!!

A few tidbits

2009-11-18T10:35:00.000-08:00

My Facebook friends have heard these stories but I wanted to post them here too.

While I was sleeping two weeks ago, Brigid, who was sleeping with me, cut a big chunk out of my bangs. Lovely. There truly is no rest for the weary. :)

Abby came home from school last week and said, "Caroline had a really bad day." I asked what happened. Abby said, "I bit her in the bathroom and I had to go to time-out."

Sitting at the dinner table one night after Abby lost her first tooth, Megan asked me if the tooth fairy, Easter Bunny, and Leprechaun were real. She said, "I know that Santa Claus is really but these other guys? I mean, c'mon. It seems kinda strange that we let strangers into our house to leave money on the table. Is it really you Mom?" Then she sat for a minute and said, "Naw, it can't be you 'cause you never have that much money in your wallet." There is something to be said for Megan's wisdom. :)

The vacuum fairy visited my house on Monday. My vacuum (which was only 1 1/2 years old) died. I asked to borrow my brother's vacuum because almost 4 weeks without one had me with some very dirty carpets. He said my sister-in-law would bring it to me on Monday and I said I would return it on Tuesday. When I got home there was a brand new vacuum on my kitchen table. Thank you Cindy!!! You guys rock!!

And one last wonderful thing: Caroline is Star Student of the Month for November in her 1st grade class. I am so proud of her. She was Star Student last year too. Such a great kid.

A previous post

2009-10-31T12:12:00.000-07:00

I copied a portion of a previous post from over a year ago. Here it is:

I told Megan today that it is time for some really GOOD things to happen. I am so over the bad stuff. I have had my fill of the bad stuff. Enough, God. I give. I am ready for the good stuff to come. I've waited patiently and I think it is my turn. On a scale of 1-10 I have lived a lifetime of 3s. I'm ready for some 8s, 9s, and 10s. I'm not asking for all 10s. Just one or two now and again. Seriously, ( sorry Grey's Anatomy I am stealing your word) just how much bad can someone take? And my favorite phrase: I know that God doesn't give you anymore than you can handle, I just wish God didn't think I could handle so much.So here's to everyone that lives a life of 3s. Hold your chin up. It will get better. I know it will. And when it does get better let's remember what if feels like to live through a 1 or 2 and be forever greatful and appreciative and thankful that a few 9s and 10s have fallen our way.

I felt it's time that I update this. I'm finally living those 7s, 8s, and occasionally 9s. And sometimes even a 10! YES!!!. And it feels damn good. I look back to where I was when I posted this and can't believe I've come this far. Work is going well and I am happy there. It's been almost 8 months in the same place. I have a relatively clean apartment, a new van, and my wonderful girls. My 7s and 8s might not be other people's ideas of what an 8 is but for me life is grand. Even with Caroline's stitches in her nose (from an accident at Daddy's house), Megan being a teenager (at age 9), Abby's double ear infection, and Brigid's temper, life is good. All 4 girls are in Girl Scouts, Megan is cheerleading and we are as always super busy. This week alone saw Megan's theater class, company at the apartment (twice), a birthday party, Girl Scouts, an inservice Tuesday night at my school, pumpkin carving, Halloween parties, and Parents Night Out at my school until 11:45 last night (which means I worked from 9 a.m. until 11:45 p.m.). Let's not forget homework, housework, and errands. We are tired but happy. And just so thankful.

Monday night my sister-in-law, Cindy, brought over dinner, dessert, gifts for the girls, and did some laundry. I was so happy! Thanks Cindy!! My girls loved the surprise!!!!

Last Saturday another teacher at my school offered to come over and help with the girls. I had her come and have lunch with us instead. And this Thursday evening another teacher is coming over to watch the girls so I can grocery shop. All this for free. These lovely ladies are single or married without kids and don't know how I do it everyday so they offer to come help. I sometimes can't believe how lucky I've been to find such a great place to work.

Now my next goal is to put some money together to finally get my computer fixed so I can blog in the comfort of my home. :)

Happy Halloween everyone!!!!!!

A Saturday in October

2009-10-10T08:57:00.000-07:00

I am sitting in a blissfully quiet library surfing the web. Thanks to Katie, my girls are dancing their hearts out at a Hannah Montana dance clinic at Manual High School. They are there from 9-2 p.m. lunch included. Abby, Brigid, and Caroline were thrilled to death to be there. Megan was a little nervous. Once she got there and saw a friend from her class, she was overjoyed. Brigid was in her performing element. When I left she was laughing and dancing. A great sight to see. Caroline was even dancing which greatly surprised me. Abby was feeling very shy. They are learning two H.M. dances and will perform them at half-time on Fri. Oct. 16 during the Maual/St. X football game. I can't wait. I will be there with the video camara and still camara. That is one minor/small drawback to being a single parent. I can't video and take pictures at the same time. That's ok. Be on the look out here for pictures next week.

Last night I cooked a rather large dinner. I didn't intend it to be that way but I was so hungry I kept adding things to the meal. Last night was seafood night. Since the girls all like different seafood it was one of only a few meals where I will cook different main courses. Brigid and Caroline like fish sticks. Abby likes deep-fried clams. Megan likes popcorn shrimp. I had steamed mussels with garlic/olive oil pasta. Yum. I cut up zucchini and squash and served that fresh. Then we had bananas, kiwis, and watermelon. Everyone finished quickly which left Caroline and I in the kitchen. This is the usual routine at night. I was always the last one at the table as a kid and now Caroline is taking my place. Since it is usually just the two of us left I get to talk with Caroline one-on-one. This is a big deal in our house. This is the time when I get to hear Caroline talk uninterrupted and I get to hear just how delightfully odd she is. She kept saying how happy she was that she was eating kiwis and watermelon. She wanted me to call her Dad and tell him how she ate FIVE slices of watermelon. And then right in the middle of things she said this sweet little nugget: "Know what Momma? I'm in the habit of loving you." And that one sentence seems to describe Caroline exactly. Not "Momma I love you" but "I'm in the habit of loving you." It's single moments like these that make me so glad I am the Mom to these 4 lovely ladies. The writer from Louisville Magazine asked me what was it that was so great about being a Mom to triplets plus 1 and I had a hard time answering. Not because I don't find exquisite joy in being their Mom but because there are so many little moments like these that fill my soul. It would be easy to say it's because they are smart, kind, or loving. But the harder explanation would be explaining these precious little moments. "I'm in the habit of loving you." Wow.

Conference day was last Tuesday. This always makes me nervous because I always feel I have to explain things to the girls' teacher. Like I feel the need to make excuses for any shortcomings that I am sure are my fault. I met with the Abby, Brigid, and Caroline's teacher first. She said the girls are doing so well. Brigid is reading on a 3rd/4th grade level. Caroline is reading at a 2nd grade level, and Abby is right on target for the beginning of 1st grade. I am so proud of them. They work so hard and it shows. It makes me feel good to know that what I am doing is working. The guilt will always be there about making the choice to be a single parent. I hear lots of comments that they are well-behaved (unless we are in a grocery store which is a whole other matter entirely). Then it was on to Megan's conference. How nice it was to hear that Megan is reading on an 8th grade level and according to her teacher is "delightful." She really is.

Now for the "yucky" part of this post. Since the girls were going to this Hannah Montana thing today I was trying to find all their H.M. t-shirts last night so I could make sure they were clean and ready to go for today. I found Caroline's t-shirt and then found Abby's in the dirt laundry pile. I asked Megan to pick one of hers out (she has at least 6). She came out with one and no others. I explained to her that I needed to borrow one of hers for today because I could not find Brigid's. I looked under Brigid's bed, in the playroom, the dirty laundry pile, everywhere. I then went with Megan to her dresser drawer to find another shirt. Only there weren't any. Now it's almost 9:30 at night and I need to start a load of laundry (for Abby's shirt) and wait up until I can then put it in the dryer. I'm getting frazzled (and grumpy) because I can't find any of Megan's other shirts. I'm standing at the washing machine, cussing in my head, while trying to do this damn load of laundry when Megan comes out with a handful of shirts. Her head was hanging down as she said, "Here, Mom. Here are my other shirts." "Megan, where were they?" "I hid them so that no one else could wear one." I'm guessing the guilt of her actions got the best of her. At first I was so annoyed with Megan. She hates to share anything with her sisters (especially Brigid). But then watching me stand at that washer and worry that Brigid wouldn't have a H.M. shirt to wear today made Megan go back and fish her shirts out of their hiding place. So I'm thinking that maybe Megan's finally getting it. Finally starting to grow up just a bit. And after all that, I found Brigid's shirt in the dryer with the towels I had washed from two days before. (Yes I still had towels in the dryer. It's an extra drawer isn't it?)
Alls well, that ends well.

Rain

2009-10-08T12:49:00.000-07:00

Someone please make the rain go away! Being stuck inside a classroom all day with 11 three year olds is driving me crazy!! They really need to be able to go outside and run, play and be noisy. So please take the rain away!!!!!

Adoption Day Part 2

2009-10-05T11:33:00.000-07:00

Megan, my sister-in-law Cindy, and I went to the St. James Art Festival on Sat. It was a beautiful day. And it was the most crowded I have ever seen St. James. After 3 hours of walking around looking at all kinds of things, we went to dinner at the Spaghetti Factory. Megan was super antsy because all she could think about was riding on the horse-drawn carriage by the river. Since the carriages were parked by the restaurant Megan spent most of the meal staring out the window at the horses. After dinner (in which Megan DECLINED dessert) we let Megan picked the carriage she wanted to ride in by the river. She smiled the whole time. I'm not sure Megan even noticed that her Aunt and I were talking. I wish I could afford to take Megan on more of these rides. Or to have her around horses more. After we were finished we went to Kroger, loaded up on goodies, and rented Nancy Drew from RedBox. Then it was on to home where we cuddled on the couch, ate lots of junk, and watched the movie. When it was time for bed, Megan decided to sleep with me. As she was drifting off to sleep she declared it "The best day ever!" It definitely was right up there.

(And a special thank you to Aunt Cindy for helping to fund some of the day. Megan really enjoyed her company.)

Adoption Day

2009-10-02T10:56:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, July 27, 2000, at 4:29 in the afternoon our phone rang. I answered it and it was Diane from Catholic Charities on the other end. We were waiting patiently (ok not too patiently) for a baby. I had just talked to Diane a few weeks earlier and knew that we had not been chosen by anyone and that there weren't any expectant moms due for awhile so I figured it was just paperwork business she was calling for. Here is how the conversation went:

Diane: Hey Kristina. What are you doing right now?
Me: I'm cooking dinner and waiting for Patrick to get home from work.
D: What ya cooking?
M: Chicken
D: That sounds good. What else are you cooking?
M: Rice. (Ok so now I'm getting little nervous)
D: That sounds really good. Do you think maybe you could put that on hold for awhile?
M: Why? (Now I'm shaking. I figure she's going to tell me a birthmother wanted to meet us)
D: Because there is a baby at Norton's that needs to be held.

And in that single solitary moment, I was a Mom. Megan was 24 hours old. Her birthmother wanted to wait until she had left the hospital before we got the call. I can't put into words how greatful I am to Megan's birthmother for making this choice. I say this every year but my single best day EVER was that day. The feeling of holding Megan in my arms for the first time was so awe inspiring that I still choke up at that memory. (I'm sure the patrons in the library are thinking I'm nuts as I have tears rolling down my face while typing.) Tomorrow is Adoption Day for us. It took 14 months for the court to finalize everything. Every year we celebrate this day with Megan. Tomorrow I'm scheduled to have Megan for the whole day. Just her and I. We're going to the St. James Art Festival, out to dinner to the Spahgetti Factory, and a carriage ride downtown. I can't wait. I am so Blessed and lucky to be Megan's Mom. She drives me crazy sometimes. But she is the most amazing kid. I hope that in some way Megan's birthmother knows how wonderful she is. Megan is a great kid. So tomorrow if you get a moment just say a little prayer of thank you to Megan's birthmother. For making the choice to give Megan life. For making the choice to give me life. Life as a Mom.

Cindy, My sister-in-law

2009-09-29T12:31:00.000-07:00

Cindy I hope you don't mind if I post this here. I was floored when I received this. THANK YOU so much for sending this to me. I really don't think about myself very often. Somedays it just seems as if I only have enough energy to take care of everyone else. Not myself. Thank you so much again. By the way, you're pretty damn amazing yourself.

YOU HAVENT BEEN BLOGGING MUCH LATELY.IN CASE YOU DONT REALIZE THIS,RIGHT NOW IS A GREAT TIME IN YOUR LIFE, AND IM NOT TALKING ABOUT THE GIRLS THAT WILL ALWAYS BE GOOD FOR YOU.YOU NEED TO GIVE YOURSELF CREDIT NOW ,NOT JUST AS A MOM,BUT AS A WOMEN.THE WORLD IS DOING BAD NOW ,NO JOBS, OR JOBS WITH PAY CUTS.YOU AS A WOMEN MADE A CHOICE TO GET YOUR LIFE BACK ON TRACK.YOU DONT MAKE ALOT,BUT YOU STILL WORKED OUT A SYSTEM FOR YOU AND THE GIRLS.WHEN YOU GET UP IN THE MORNING(THE ONE WHERE YOU LOOK IN THE MIRROR AND STARE AT YOURSELF AND ASK WHY,AND WANT TO CLIMB BACK IN BED AND SAY ITS TO MUCH)JUST REMEMBER ITS NOT TO MUCH FOR A WOMEN LIKE ME.YOU HAVE BEEN THROUGH ALOT.WOMEN,MOTHERS,WORKING SINGLE WITH NO HELP,HAVE A SPECIAL SOMETHING TUCKED DOWN INSIDE.(ITS NOT A PENIS EITHER....LOL) ITS EXTRA ENERGY WHEN YOU NEED IT,EXTRA HUGS TO GIVE,EXTRA METAL AWARENESS ABOUT WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE AND GETTING IT DONE.WOMEN CAN PUSH THEMSELF MORE WHEN THEY NEED TO.SO TOMORROW WHEN YOU GET UP AND START YOUR DAY,STOP,GIVE YOUSELF A PAT ON THE BACK AND ALITTLE SMILE. YOU RECOGNIZED THE GIRLS ON YOUR BLOG ,AND IM RECOGNIZING YOU OR BETTER YET. HOW ABOUT YOU DO THAT? JUST WANTED TO SAY YOUR DOING A GOOD JOB STINA.KEEP IT UP

My girls

2009-09-26T12:06:00.000-07:00

I truly have the best girls in the world. I love them with all my heart and just want everyone to know that. With everything that goes on it is so easy for me to get bogged down in the hard work and struggle. Truly they are lovely girls. Even when they drive me crazy! I got everything I ever wished for, prayed for, and hoped for when God blessed me (us) with Megan, Abigail, Brigid, and Caroline. God really does answer prayers.

Louisville Magazine

2009-09-21T08:36:00.000-07:00

Our article in Louisville Magazine is out. If you click on the link and then click on the magazine you will find the article. The story starts on page 30 with Ali and her handsome boys. Our pic is on pg. 32. I kinda knew going in that our story is the negative of what can happen with a family who has multiples. But I think that the writer did a nice job of keeping things positive. I posted a comment on facebook about my life and some of my friends took it as me feeling badly about things. So I want to clarify. I do not feel badly about my life. I am not thrilled about some aspects of it. And really this is not where I expected to be at this point in my life. But really I have everything I need. I have my amazing girls. They are the joy of my life. And compared to where I was at this time last year? I am a million miles from that. I continue to work hard and make things for my girls as great as possible. So I am NOT in a funk. I am not feeling badly. My life is what it is and frankly I am proud of having built things up to where they are now. And that is all anyone can ask of me and all I can ask of myself. So from this point on I will continue to look forward. I've spent enough time beating myself up about my past and feeling badly. I've worked damn hard. I can only go forward. I am Kristina, hear me roar!!!! (ok I just couldn't help myself there)

My new van

2009-09-05T12:46:00.001-07:00

Here it is. My new van. It took almost 3 hours of paperwork at Carmax and a monthly payment I want to throw up about but here it is. The gratitude I feel in my heart for all those kind souls who were willing to help out is overwhelming. I can't begin to thank everyone enough. I have told everyone I meet about the kindness of family, friends, and strangers alike. It may have only been $10 but to this family your donations meant everything. I can't wait until the girls are back from their Dad's on Tuesday to show them our new van. Now if there is ever anything I can do for anyone, just ask. I am forever greatful to everyone. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Love and God Bless,
Kristina

Louisville Magazine

2009-09-03T12:35:00.000-07:00

We were interviewed for the September issue of Louisville Magazine about life with triplets. I got an advanced copy in the mail and it looks pretty good. I just wish it didn't look like I have 3 chins. :( But maybe that's because I do. Anyway. As soon as I get the link for the article and it is online, I'll post it here. Now of course I'm late picking up the girls from school. Ten minutes late to everything. On a great note too I pick up my van on Sat. Hooray!!!!!!!!

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-08-26T15:12:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much for everyone who helped out. I talked to my friend this morning and we now have $1500 for my down payment. I called Carmax and they are working on getting something together for me. I will hopefully have a van this weekend!!!!! Thank you so much for prayers answered. Thank you so much for being willing to help me/us out. I am forever and eternally greatfu. to everyone. You guys are amazing!!!!!!!!!

Facebook donations

2009-08-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

So I posted my totally joking comment about needing $1 from 1500 people to help cover the cost of the down payment for a minivan. Another triplet Mom said how about $10 from 150 people. So she started asking friends on her Facebook page to help. To date she has over $300 through the mail and a paypal account. Another triplet Mom jumped on it and I've been getting checks in the mail via her friends. I'm now up to at least $650. Here is the Facebook post:

"THANKS SO MUCH to my friends who have donated to help the single mother (of triplets plus one) that I mentioned last week. I now have a paypal account set up to accept online donations (sarahgocards1114@yahoo.com) BTW: I don't get charged a fee if you call it a "gift". I have $300 of the $1500 goal, so far. It will be SO cool if 150 of my FB friends each give $10!! Am counting on you all! We can do this! THANKS!"

I've been using my nephew's pick-up truck to get the girls back and forth to school and work but he needs it back. I figured it would take 3 buses to get the girls to their school and an extra one to get me from their school back to work, and another 4 buses to get home every night. There is no bus transportation for the girls to school as they are at their school on a hardship transfer because I pick them up at 3:45 and bring them back to the preschool I work at in the afternoon. Long story short life is VERY complicated without a vehicle. I asked the ex to help out and got a one word email "No". Not that I wasn't surprised but shocked none the least.

The girls and I were interviewed by Louisville Magazine for a September issue about raising multiples. My friend Ali and her boys were interviewed as well. The writer is very interested in the Facebook story as well.

Life continually throws us lemons. I seem to get more than my fair share. At lot of it is my poor choices and sometimes life just sucks. But the utter amazement I feel at the fact that people I know and people I don't know are willing to help ME leaves me speechless and shaking my head. My friend who orginally started the Facebook request does not want her name known. I asked because I wanted to tell the writer from LM about it. But she knows who she is and I believe there will be a special place in Heaven for that girl. :)

So thanks all for your offers of help. My email address is on my blog if you want to contact me.

$50 from 30 people

2009-08-03T10:41:00.000-07:00

That's what I would need to come up with my down payment for a vehicle. Any vehicle. Not just a van. I just simply can't get a loan otherwise. A friend told me to stay positive. I can't! I'm at 3 TARC buses just to get to work. It would be 4-5 to get the girls to school in the morning if they stay at their current school. I can have them switch schools but they will be devastated. In order to pick them up from school in the afternoon I would have to leave work early. There's less pay. Or I can enroll them in CEP. There's an extra $200 a month on top of the over $200 a month it will cost us to ride the TARC bus. That's over $400 a month. I will NEVER be able to save up enough money to buy another vehicle. I'm tired of hearing it will work out. HOW? I'm going to have to grocery shop using the bus. Carrying gallons of milk. Kitty litter. Laundry detergent. There is no grocery store within walking distance. How the fuck am I going to do this with 4 kids in tow? As it stands now we won't be arriving home until 7:30-8:00 every evening. Then we have to do homework, dinner, baths and bed. Then get up at 5:30 a.m. and start it all over again. I'm in such a panic that I don't know how we will survive. Truly. Don't suggest the ex. Not a possibility. So I'm thinking $50 from 30 people. $25 from 60 people. Or $1 from 1500 people. Any takers?

It really can get worse

2009-08-01T09:24:00.000-07:00

I've struggled here in the last 7 months to really pull myself up from my bootstraps. Found a good job, a nice place to live, can afford small things for the girls. Finally starting to enjoy life a bit. Then the van died. I need $1500 as a down payment to buy a car. NO ONE will loan me any money to buy a van except for Carmax. And only with $1500 down. I don't have it. I know it's my fault that my credit is so stinky. I really felt like this was the beginning of things getting better. How do I get myself and 4 kids around with a car? I came to the library today to look up TARC schedules. Life is going to be really tough trying to get around on city buses with 4 kids. I'm not really concerned about the hardship for me. I've survived SO MANY really bad things that this just falls in line with everything else. I don't want the hardship for the girls. I know they will think taking the bus is fun. But it is going to be really bad for them. I'm finding it hard to find a silver lining in all this. It just makes me feel like this is my just dessert for the things I've done in my life. I just don't feel worthy of good things happening anymore. Again I can carry the yuck all by myself without sympathy from anyone. But why should my girls have to suffer? I've too often lived in just the moment and the immediate future. I suck at looking down the road. I should have been planning for this. But I didn't. I had hoped the car would make it till tax time when I could have had a bit more for a down payment. And I should have been saving something. Should have. Could have. I didn't. So yes I am feeling really down. But I'll keep going. I have to. My children need it and expect it of me.

My van

2009-07-28T15:33:00.000-07:00

So now here's the bad news. My van is dying. My brother came to look at it yesterday and it is not looking good. My nephew has loaned me his truck for a few days (Thanks Evan). The girls are with their Dad this week (camping in Minnesota, ugh) so that helps a little. My brother is having a friend of his over to the apartment tomorrow to take a look and see if he can fix it. If he can't I may need another van. The problem is that my credit sucks with the foreclosure on it. And I'm not going to get anything for the van. So I need to find a place that is willing to lend me the money to purchase a van with nothing down and less than $200 a month. I'm not sure that place exists. I don't know what the hell to do. I was already looking at getting a part-time job on the weekends that Patrick has the girls to help make ends meet. Now I will definitely need to do that just to help pay for another vehicle. Notice that I did not say "new". No way I can afford new. I need something in the $8000 range. Crap. Crap. and more crap.

Bonjour

2009-07-28T15:29:00.000-07:00

Caroline's new foods of choice are fruit, cheese, and bread. I told her last week that she could live in France with those choices. She was so taken with the idea that she was "French" that we had a special dinner last Thursday night. We went to Kroger and bought Brie, fruit, French bread, and sparkling grape juice. The girls loved that they could just break a piece of bread off the loaf. Megan is now addicted to Brie. And we all had sparking grape juice (wine) out of my crystal wine glasses. They enjoyed the evening so much that we will be "French" again another evening. Bon Appetit!!

More pics

2009-07-28T15:23:00.001-07:00

Meeting the Saddle Club girls.

Megan, Abigail, Brigid, and Caroline watching Bluejeans perform.

Megan and Caroline meeting Bluejeans-Hannah Montana's horse in the movie.

Breyerfest Pictures

2009-07-28T15:19:00.001-07:00

Changing tack on the model horse.

Brigid, Abigail, and Caroline in front of Triple Select bedding. Triple the Triplets!!

Caroline says "giddyup!"

Megan living her dream moment back in the saddle again.

The Breyerfest. Need I say more!

iParenting.com

2009-07-23T09:39:00.000-07:00

So the article that I was interviewed for awhile back has been written and is up on the website. The site address is www.pregnancytoday.com/articles/multiples/does-having-multiples-lead-to-divorce-6673/

It is pretty accurate. Of course, not everything we discussed was written about, which is often the case with any interview. The only thing I wish was written slightly differently is that my ex didn't lift a finger to help. I guess I think it sounds more negative than I would have preferred. I try not to bash the ex in anything written or to the girls. Sometimes it is hard though.

So take a look and let me know what you think.

It's been interesting watching Jon and Kate's marriage on TV. I've always been a big fan and really a big fan of Jon's until he started dating the daughter of Kate's plastic surgeon. They are family friends and I think he may have stepped over the line. Interesting again is the fact that he appears to have had no problems finding women to date when he has 8 kids. But the press keeps making fun of Kate and how undesirable she is BECAUSE she has 8 kids. Why is that? Personally I think we women should be more appealing because we are the ones who are strong enough to raise the kids basically on our own. We do it all and I don't see the press (or anyone else for that matter) applauding all the hard work we do everyday. I would think men would find us more desirable simply because we can handle everything without walking away from our responsibilities. IMHO.

Breyerfest

2009-07-20T10:34:00.000-07:00

So we finally went to Breyerfest this weekend. The ultimate weekend as far as the girls were concerned. An entire day full of horses (real and model), hay, dirt, middle-aged women, and girls. I'm not sure I saw any boys the whole weekend. The girls got to ride ponies. They met the girls from the Saddle Club and got their autographs. We watched the Saddle Club girls perform and met Lizzy Traband who is a one-armed girl who does amazing horse tricks.

The absolute highlight of the weekend was that the girls got to meet Blue Man Steel aka "Bluejeans" from the Hannah Montana movie. I took a gazillion pictures. Megan practically glowed while she was talking with the owner of the horse. The girls got to pet him and hang out with the horse and the owner for awhile. Megan even got pics with Bluejeans, his owner, and her model Bluejeans horse. Heaven.

We then finished out the day by staying the night in a hotel in Lexington. I had to skip paying a bill to cover it and the girls used their birthday money and savings. But it was well worth it. On Sunday morning we got up around 8:30 and went to the hotel pool to swim. We had the entire pool to ourselves for an hour. It was wonderful. The girls' Dad has been teaching them to swim so it really was a lot of fun.

Only a few downers. For one, ten minutes near hay and I can't breathe. Thank God for Benedryl and even then I could hardly breath the whole time we were at the Kentucky Horse Park (site of the Breyerfest). Two, I didn't have money to buy any Breyer horses. That was a hard pill for Megan to swallow and a lot of the weekend was me saying "no" to her many requests to buy one. Did you know that they have Breyer horses that cost upwards of $1000 and more? Yikes. Megan did get one with the admission ticket we bought. Abby, Brigid, and Caroline were free and they all three got a stuffed Breyer horse.

At the hotel, Megan was sitting in the hot tub with a couple of women in their 60s. They struck up a conversation about horses. The one woman was selling all sorts of Breyer horses. She asked Megan for her room number (which really pissed me off, the woman should have known better). She convinced Megan she was going to give her a free one. After talking with Megan, the woman came over to me and said that Megan REALLY wanted a Breyer horse. I told the woman I could not afford one and Megan knew this before we even came Lexington. The rest of the time at the hotel everytime there was a noise outside our room, Megan would run to the door. And, no surprise here, the woman never showed up with a free horse for Megan. I was livid. The only thing the woman was trying to do was make a sale by making me feel bad and getting Megan's hopes up. Just awful. The amazing thing for me was watching Megan sitting in the hot tub talking to everyone in there. After that awful woman left, I watched Megan talk to 4 other ladies about everything under the sun. I am always in awe of Megan's ease in talking to other people.

On a lighter note, Brigid got her face painted on Sat. to look like a tiger. Very cute. Abby had a huge butterfly painted on her face. And Caroline asked for a horse. They were so excited. All day Caroline kept asking if we were really still in Kentucky. Brigid was so excited to be in Lexington you would think it was Paris. And Abby just seemed to enjoy every minute of everything.

The girls declared it the "best day ever!"

Baggage

2009-07-15T10:09:00.000-07:00

Last night I took the girls to dinner at Fazoli's. Tuesday is kid's night and dinner for each child with a drink is 99 cents. So for all 5 of us to go out to dinner it costs me about $10. Not bad. Plus they do a kid craft in the party room. I agreed to meet Ali and her boys there for a night of fun. An unexpected guest showed up to have dinner as well. I was happy to see this extra guest but it sort of put me off. And here's why. I never feel like I am good enough. I realize that this is baggage left over from high school where my parents just did not have enough money to buy the things I thought I needed to fit in. So I usually just hung back in the shadows and did my best to not stick out in the crowd. This person at dinner last night is usually very pleasant and was last night too. But I felt uncomfortable. And it totally was me. I can't afford a month in Florida on vacation. I can't afford a new van. I can't afford to dress my girls in Polo or any other designer for that matter. Did I get treated like less than a person last night? No. Did I feel it in my mind? Yes. How do I get past the baggage of the past? I took what could have been a very pleasant evening and simply ruined it by feeling uncomfortable. And that happens often when I am in group settings. I am not where I expected to be at 41. I suspect most of us aren't. But I would love to get past those awful feelings of never feeling good enough. So to Ali and the guest last night. I apologize for being in a stinky mood. I'll do better next time.

Open wide and say "Ah"

2009-07-07T15:28:00.000-07:00

Yes it's that time of year. The annual GYN exam. Ew. Yuck. I figure I should be use to it by now what with FIVE pelvic surgeries, IUIs, IVF, and what-have-you. But it still stinks. And this one was with a new doctor. I would love to know why they make you strip down to nothing but socks, put a paper gown on you that only goes just to your belly button, give you what equates to being a paper towel and then leave you for 20 MINUTES while you hope and pray the whole time someone doesn't come in there by mistake. I think next time I'm bringing my own robe so I can sit down in comfort while waiting for someone to come in and look at my who-ha. Next month is mammogram time. Since Mom died of digestive tract cancer I figure at some point they are going to suggest a colonoscopy. Weee. At least a got a prescription for some new hormones to help control the hot flashes. Mine are so bad they could melt paint.

The girls were so glad to be home last night. By the time I got done scrubbing them down and cutting fingernails and toenails (that's 80 nails in all) it was 10:30. They fell right to sleep. And wouldn't you know it, Brigid ended up in my bed. I didn't mind a bit. :0)

On a different note, I am addicted to Cake Boss on TLC. I was watching one last night where a niece, I think, had a ballet recital. The whole family got together afterwards for a really huge party. All I could think of was how cool that had to be to have so much family around all the time. I am envious. I just really enjoy watching the guys in that bakery make such georgeous, delicate cakes.

Hooray!!!!

2009-07-06T16:07:00.000-07:00

My girls are home! My girls are home!! I am so excited!!! They got home at 2:30 this afternoon. Actually the ex dropped them off at my work at 2:30. I cried. It feels soooo good to have them home. The first few days they were gone it was a relief to get a break. Then it got old really quick. I was climbing the walls yesterday waiting for them to get back. They were due back at 6 p.m. last night. At 1 p.m. the ex called and said they were going to have a "light picnic" and then they would leave around 3 or 4 p.m. Great. At 11 p.m. last night the ex called. Something about Megan stacking the carseats with "stuff" on them and the carseats and the car were now filled with ants. WTF????? ANTS???? He was trying to get rid of them but just couldn't seem to do it. So now they had to stay the night in St. Louis again and he would bring them back on Monday. Again I'm trying not to speak negatively about the ex but c'mon. Really? I feel like that skit on SNL where the two newscasters just keep saying "really?" A simple call in the afternoon yesterday to say they were going to stay another night would have been fine. So I was very skeptical about the girls returning today. You can imagine my relief to have them back here with me today. They are currently at VBS this week in the evening. I feel badly that VBS started today and they just got back today. If they hadn't been so excited about going I would have just kept them home tonight. It will be good to go home tonight and go to sleep knowing the girls are safely with me again.

Life is good.