Do I REALLY have a 5 year-old?

(sorry it's out of focus...it was 6:45 am before leaving for the bus)

Yes, I do! And apparently, once you're in Kindergarten, birthdays take on a life of their own...

BIRTHDAY #1...9/18/07 - Zoe's official birthday

Making sure to avoid all allergens, Ty & I brought the (apparently) uber-cool birthday snack of "Number Donuts", something I had NO idea existed, to school for snack time. And to think that I was just going to bake some "funfetti" cupcakes and bring them in. But no, that's not what Miss Zoe wanted. So, I called up Dunkin Donuts and requested 2 dozen donuts in the shape of 5's. Choosing a flavor was an act of congress...but finally, Zoe chose 1/2 chocolate frosted and 1/2 strawberry frosted. BOTH with sprinkles. I was fully prepared to pay an arm and a leg for these donuts but was pleasantly surprised: they cost the same as a regular dozen donuts!

BIRTHDAY #2...9/22/07 - The Princess Tea

Being that I recently had a major life change (a.k.a. "The Triplets"), there was NO way I was hosting a 5th birthday party here at the house. After a lot of research (and some serious heart attacks after looking at prices) Zoe and Mommy agreed on a YMCA party. A princess tea. The girls came dressed up as their favorite princesses and they had their nails done, put on make-up (which they got to take home), colored a crown, made a bracelet, & decorated a wallet. Then they had a tea party complete with Apple Juice Tea a & Sandwiches with the crusts cut off. They worked off those calories with a fashion show for those of us that stayed. Then they had cake and called it a day. Phew...I'm tired just writing all that. The beauty of it? I didn't have to plan, set up, bake, host, or clean!!!!!!!!!!!

BIRTHDAY #3...9/23/07 - Family Birthday Lunch

Are you kidding? 2 celebrations isn't enough? Zoe gets a THIRD? A friend of mine was always proud to celebrate her "Birthday Week" and now I'm seeing where that came from. This is CRAZY!!!!!!!!! Nothing too crazy...just some tacos. I baked a sheet cake (could it get easier?) and let Aunt Shannon & Zoe ice & decorate it. Zoe, of course, put a large "Z" on it. Ty climbed up to look at that cake and quickly noted, "Ooooooooooh, Zoe, HANDsome Z!"


All this to say...Praise the Lord we only celebrate birthdays once a year!

Super Mom I Am Not!

This is for all my friends that laugh at me and tell me that I'm Super Mom because I "have it all together" and I just had triplets...

HA!

I soooooooooooooooooooooo don't have it all together!

It's almost 10am and I'm still in my PJs. It's been one of those weeks where I start something, get distracted, take care of the distraction, forget I had started something, start something else, notice the original project I started, let IT distract me, go work on that, forget that I started a 2nd project...etc. You get the picture!

See...case in point...I'm writing on my blog and I SHOULD be...
* Folding Laundry
* Freezing Bagels
* Preparing Bottles
* Buying a Birthday Present (party tomorrow morning)
* Making Beds
* Loading the Dishwasher
* Putting Away Breakfast
* Coloring with Ty
* Writing Thank You's
* Vacuuming Kitchen

Let's just say my "To Do" list sure isn't getting any smaller these days. For every one thing I cross off (which is a major celebratory moment) there are 3 things I'm putting on it!

Well, today I'm determined to change that! Maybe because I had to dig through the dryer to find clean underwear for Zoe this morning. Apparently, my dryer can't handle two wash-loads at once, because Zoe's underwear was still slightly damp...so I got out the hair dryer to finish it up so Zoe could go to school. I may have started something though...she seemed to enjoy the toasted bun feeling. =)

Okay, enough with this distraction...I have work to do people! I can't just sit around entertaining you all day with stories of the craziness on DeBaun Avenue!

Have a great weekend...

For at least the next 13 years

Yesterday (Tues., 8/4/07), I was finishing up the triplet's 5:00 am feeding when I heard it: the quiet whisper of a 4 year old, "Momma, is it time to get ready for school yet?" I couldn't believe it! It was 5:30 in the morning! "No, Zoe, close your eyes and try to go back to sleep. I'll wake you up in a little while." Figuring that would work, I got in the shower and got ready for my day. When I got out of the bathroom, I noticed a shadow sitting on the love seat: Zoe! "How about now, Momma? Can I get dressed NOW?" Sure enough, we no sooner got Zoe into her new outfit and she was skipping down the hall, bounding down the stairs & practically levitating into the kitchen for breakfast. I could barely get her to eat 3 spoonfuls of cereal before she grabbed her backpack and started for the door. Convincing her that her hair needed to be brushed, I was able to get her back from the front door. But that was it, I couldn't put her off anymore. By 6:30 am, Zoe was sitting on the front step waiting for the bus to come!!

Around 7:00 am, the bus driver walked down our street and met us at our house. Unfortunately, living on a dead-end street has some downfalls. Apparently, a 52-passenger bus can't turn around down our street and our driveway is too narrow for the bus to pull into. So, my little kindergartner is going to be picked up up the street. I guess we'll figure out how we'll manage that in the rain, snow, & during Shane's business trips later. And by "we", I mean "me". The bus driver said Zoe & I could wait at the curb in front of our house...when the bus pulled into the intersection and opened it's door, Zoe could run down the street and the driver would wait for her. Okay...I'm getting off topic...

Zoe IMMEDIATELY took off for the bus and barely stopped long enough for me to take a picture. I think you'll be able to tell from the picture just how excited she was to go to school.

She chose the seat right behind the door and buckled in. It wasn't until this morning that I found out why she likes that seat: "I can get off fast, Momma & I get to say 'hi' to everyone when they get on the bus!" Does she take after me, or what?

As the bus pulled away, there she went...my baby...off on the bus for her first day of school...waving at me out the window of her bus! And lo & behold...I DIDN'T CRY! Go me!!!!!!!!

5 hours later (yes...5 hours) the bus dropped off my little girl. Grinning from ear to ear, she stopped at the bottom step of the bus and asked if she could go back tomorrow. (Did she think we'd gone through all this hoopla for ONE day?) I assured her there were PLENTY of school days ahead of her!

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UPDATE: 9/5/07
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This afternoon, I was greeted by a 16 year-old that took over Zoe's body! She came off the bus all exasperated and dramatic, "Mom...it's been a really long day...I don't want to talk about it...and please don't give me any projects...I've had so many projects today..." Not even a "Hi Mom! What's for lunch?" How crazy is that? Then she called Shane and told him how "horrible" the library was because she had so many tough choices to make. I guess picking just one library book is a bit traumatic for a (almost) 5 year-old. Boy, this year sure is going to be fun...

Together Again...

HOLY COW...I've got 5 kids!!!!!!
With all the babies home from the hospital, I didn't waste much time getting them together for a picture. It'd been two weeks since I had the babies together, and I'd NEVER had all 5 in one room, so this was exciting. A friend gave us these outfits and they screamed "take pictures of us". So, being the camera freak that I am, I obliged. My next project is to find rugbies for Zoe & Ty. =)

small (Ava)...medium (Eli)...& large (Cole)...

Ava Baby!

Look who finally decided she'd had enough of the party in the NICU:

Yes, Ava Barbara Higby finally left the NICU on Wednesday (8/29/07) just 25 days after she was born. One of the reasons she was "stuck" in the NICU was her buddy Cathie. She was also Mommy's favorite nurse. She really loves our kids. I can't say enough about ALL the nurses at Valley, but Cathie just seemed to click with us.

Here's the peanut (weighing a whopping 5 lbs 2 oz) all ready to venture out into the world...