Bragging rights!

When you have triplets, at 27 weeks, you never know what difficulties you might face in the future. My boys started out their little lives on ventilators and tons of drugs. We escaped the 98 day stay in the NICU without any brain bleeds. However, they have been exposed to tons of different things that COULD cause brain damage (steroids, ventilators, under developed lungs, etc.)

I was told that it would be difficult to diagnose kids until they are at least two years old. We were told Cerebral Palsy was always a possibility (when they were born) or other unknowns. I can happily say that my children are doing GREAT! They are behind in speech, but you should see my kids sign! I always joke that Rachel, from Signing Time!, is in more pictures with my children than I am. It's really not a joke. I told Rachel, in a chat, that someday (in my spare time!) I was going to see how many pictures were taken with Signing Time! in the background and compare the number to pictures that I am in. I am sure Rachel will win! All joking aside, it has been AMAZING to watch them soaking in all of the signs. I seriously recommend these movies to kids of all abilities. It helps alleviate the frustration. One mother had me laughing when she commented that her kids loved the videos, but no one told her SHE was going to have to learn it, too! There are times where our Speech Pathologist gets annoyed that my kids sign when they can say the words, but I am PROUD of that! Language is language, they are LEARNING!

Now it's time to brag about Noah! Noah is becoming our book worm. He is always flipping through books, signing the pictures he knows, and trying to say letters. Often you will get a magnet shoved in your face as he says a letter. Once you remove it from under your nose, you notice he is almost always correct! We are trying to get the kids to repeat words. I took the kids to Toys R' Us the other day (crazy?) and when I packed up the kids, Noah crouched down in his seat to look out the window. All of a sudden, he started reading the letters on the sign! He was pointing out the O, R, S, and T. Last night I was on the phone with my mom. I put him on the phone and started saying letters for him to repeat. He can easily say a, b, c, d, e, m, s, and t. I am sure there are others, but my jaw was on the ground. At bedtime, I decided to try to get him to repeat the alphabet to me as I changed his diaper. The dialogue went like this:
Cathy: A
Noah: B
Cathy: C
Noah: D
Cathy: E
Noah: F
Cathy: G
Noah: giggling!
I couldn't believe it! I couldn't have been more proud! I guess it's time to start working on G and so on. Then he can help us teach the other two (who won't be far behind him!).

Noah was always our tower builder, but watch out, here comes Robert!


Magna Doodles and blocks, what else do kids really need?


Matthew's turn!