Update on Gus, Kate and Claire

Hi, Everyone,

Well, we have three little busy bodies on our hands! So much has happened since the last time I posted. I will just hit the high points...

• I celebrated my first Mother's Day...WOOHOOO!!
• Our family participated in the Parent Commitment/Baby Dedication Service at our church on Mother's Day. My Maw Maw and Uncle David, Chad's parents, dad, Jill, Matt, Brandy, Hunter and Hannah all came to share in the day with us, which made it even more special. Matt was our extra "baby holder" during the service. He did a great job!
• All are crawling! Yippee!! Claire has been scooting around for quite some time...she still isn't on her knees. But, she looks like she is swimming on the floor. LOL! She is FAST! Kate was the first to actually crawl. Gus has been crawling for a few weeks now. When he decided to crawl, there was no struggle for him. He just did it.
• All have two bottom teeth. Sweet, quiet, loving Baby Claire is a biter...she will bite to move her humongous brother out of her way when she wants something...we are having to tell her, "NO BITE, CLAIRE!!").
• All can open cabinets. Gus and Claire closed-up Kate in the toy cabinet the other day...fortunately, Kate was so absorbed in playing with the toys in the cabinet that she didn't realize that she was being held captive.
• All are holding their own bottles, which has taken feeding time down from about an hour to about 15 - 20 minutes. Another WOOOOOHOOOOOO!!
• All are enjoying Stage 2 baby food. We are advancing them to more and more textures very slowly due to their previous feeding issues/aversions. They are making progress.
• All are pulling-up. Yikes.
• They all really enjoy books. They really like the "touch and feel" books with the different textures. And, they have a terrific attention span for most books...seriously.
• All are babbling and saying "Mamamama" and "Dadadadadada" and "Babbababaa" and various other noises.
• They are playing well with each other and even make each other laugh.
• They all still sleep in the same room at night and are still sleeping well through the night. But, for naps, I had to start putting them all in different rooms. Why? Because my girls were "talking" and laughing with each other for 45 minutes when they were supposed to be napping. This threw the nap schedule WAY off for a couple of weeks because they were just starting to fall asleep when Gus was almost finished with his nap. Having them napping in different rooms is working like a charm.
• Gus is covered in bruises from his rowdiness and lack of fear of injury. Good grief.
• Speaking of Gus, he reminds me of a baby rhinoceros...he is SO rowdy AND, he makes these little snorting noises when he is trying to play a little bit rough. LOL!
• Lesson learned: Never (and I mean NEVER) give one baby a sippy cup without giving the others one, too (immediately). I made this mistake the other day and got mobbed.
• Kate is doing much better with being touched and wallowed by her brother and sister. She does not freak-out anymore when they come near her, which is great progress for her.
• The babies all swam in their little splash pool for the first time last week. Claire didn't have a care in the world...she is a true water baby. Kate didn't like the water for long because it was COLD (which was mom and dad's fault completely). Gus liked it and would play a while and then would take a break...then, he'd want back in again.
• Claire continues to be my tiny "stick-tight"/shadow. She wants ME and doesn't like it when I am far.
• Gus went through a phase of screaming and crying for 45 minutes to an hour -- four or five times daily -- for a few months. At first, we thought it might be reflux. So, he's back on medication, which has decreased the crying. Now, we realize that part of this behavior is just his temperament. He wants things how he wants them and when he wants them. Oh, boy.
• I had my first outing ALONE with all three babies this week. It was just to a follow-up appointment, so it was short and sweet. Claire was fussy, but otherwise, the outing was uneventful. Whew!
• They all love it when Chad or I just plop in the middle of the floor and rest on our backs. They climb on us, pat our bellies, pull our hair, squish our noses, wallow us, etc. They love it and we do, too. It is SO funny to be clobbered by such a tiny little mob!
• All of the babies are sampling Cheerios. Gus and Claire just play with them. Claire will gag if I put one in her mouth. Gus could take or leave the Cheerios. Kate is in TOTAL focus with the Cheerios...busy, busy, busy...and she is learning how to put them in her mouth herself.
• Kate and Claire adore eating bananas. Kate loves fresh mango and bananas. Those girls can put away some bananas!! Goodness!
• We now bathe all three babies together in our big bathtub. This is definitely a two person job. Holy Toledo!! One baby splashes and face plants into the water while another baby is trying to climb out while another baby decides to bite the other baby....I could go on and on...but I won't.
• Gus, Kate and Claire had their first overnight visit with their MeMe and Poppa Bear (Chad's parents) a couple of weeks ago. It went really well. I'm not sure who had more fun...Chad's parents or the babies.
• All of the babies continue to be healthy. No illnesses...so far...thankfully.
• The babies will be 11 months old on June 9th. Where did the time go?
• On a more serious note...Due to a skull malformation, Gus will be wearing something called a DOC band from the end of June through September. The skull malformation is due to his unfortunate position in the womb. I like to say that he had the bottom "apartment" and that his sisters had the upstairs penthouses. In other words, he was SQUISHED. Please keep him in your prayers because he will have to wear this 23 hours per day, and the band cannot get wet. So bathing, swimming, dressing, etc. will all have to be planned and not exceed one hour.
• Question: Is anything ever REALLY baby-proofed??? I think NOT! Inability to baby-proof EVERYTHING = exhaustion/paranoia.

Chad and I are enjoying being parents so very much. It is one-hundred times more difficult than we could have ever imagined. But, it has also brought us more joy than we could have ever imagined. We are so blessed and so thankful for our sweet little ones.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers. With God's help, we are doing our very best with Gus, Kate and Claire.

Love to you all,

Leslie