We were at the mall for haircuts two weeks ago. I had no idea Santa was there already. We were not dressed or anything but they were so excited I couldn't pass up the opportunity! I think it's the cutest. Colin is actually wearing two of the same feet Spiderman snowboots! Poor Calleigh was passed out in the stroller and I didn't want to torture her and wake her up. I will take her again another day. I am sure the boys will go back to see Santa. And what did they ask for?

Colin: A truck with a grabber.
Ciaran: A truck with a shovel.
Cormac: A boy castle and a jewelry box!

Thankful....

Calleigh and my nephew, Gavin. He's only 5 WEEKS old. Calleigh is 5 months!


The boys being themselves


Daddy LOVES his lil girl


The whole Lawrence Family



The kids have been talking about what they are Thankful for since Thanksgiving. We get the usual Mommy, Daddy, Duke and they name each other. Yesterday things changed.

Cormac: I am thankful for Tinkerbell
Colin: I am thankful for Snow White
Ciaran: I am thankful for the mean queen!

If you knew my kids in real life you would really get how hard I laughed at Ciaran. He is the funniest kid and always on the other side. Not one to conform. I think I spit soda out of my nose when he said it.

Cormac starts his new IEP this week. I am a little nervous about the whole thing. I tend to second guess myself when making such huge decisions. He is doing awesome and I just want that to continue. I need that to continue. Yesterday, he said a 20 word sentence. Every night before bed he tells us a story he makes up out of his little head. He can read two stories out of the Disney book (well, he memorized them). I rarely have to ask him to repeat himself but more importantly strangers don't have to ask him to repeat himself. Sure, he has a ways to go but most people say they understand him the best of the three kids. Ironic.

He is sporting his new Skinits on his implants. Totally love them.



Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We have so much to be thankful for in our lives. I decided to make a much better effort to be thankful every day instead of just one day a year.

I must add, I am so THANKFUL for Advanced Bionics and the genius' who forever changed our lives.

Thanksgiving Feast

Today was The Thanksgiving Feast at the boys' preschool. It was by far one of the cutest things I have ever witnessed. They learned 4 songs and performed them all. All the songs had hand motions that went along. They were dressed in their indian vests, necklaces and head pieces. All of which they made themselves. (see picture at top of blog) They also made Teepee place settings which they proudly told me "were houses for Indians".

They then enjoyed a feast of turkey shaped turkey sandwiches, stuffing, jello, yogurt and a few other treats. It was so cute and fun.

Here is some video of the songs. The boys are not all together. Cormac is 4th or 5th from the right and Colin is three more to the right. Ciaran is standing right next to Colin. They are all wearing the same pants and sneakers if you look.








This last video is of Cormac. Last Easter I bought them the book Tough Chicks. Thought it was fitting for Easter since it's about a bunch of chicks. It has become one of their favorite books. Ciaran really loves it. But Cormac thinks this one part is funny and he quotes it all the time. Tonight I caught it on video.

Things I learned since becoming a mother......

Silence REALLY is golden!

A Mom is their child's best advocate. You need to be their voice until they are old enough to speak for themselves. NO ONE else makes your child their priority so you better make sure you do.

A minute can seem like an hour but a year goes by in the blink of an eye.

Don't sweat the small stuff.

It could always be worse.

It's OK to just lay on the floor or in bed and cuddle and not worry about the house, the laundry, or anything.

Children really do like a schedule and organization. It makes them feel more secure.

A child's taste for food literally changes from day to day. DOn't think because he at a ham sandwich yesterday he might ACTUALLY eat a ham sandwich tomorrow!

There is nothing sweeter than hearing your child tell you that you are his best friend.

Boys really do learn to wrestle on their own even if they NEVER witnessed it in their lives. And their favorite move is by far the clothesline to the neck!

Children are more resilient than I ever knew. They are tougher than you think but they also have very strong feelings that can get hurt.

They always like other kids toys better.

Nothing is sweeter than walking into your babies room in them morning to see that first smile of the morning when they see your face! I was just reminded of that one thanks to Calleigh.

Dirt, dirt, dirt. Boys = dirt.

Imaginations are a funny thing.

You never knew how much you could love until you had a child.

There are times you think, what was I thinking??? It could be for many reasons but at some point you do think that to yourself.

You will at some point say many things you thought you would never say and on occasions you will ACTUALLY sound just like your mother!

Men just do things differently. It might not be your way but if it gets the job done, don't complain.

You can unload a dishwasher in the time it takes to make toast.

When you have triplets your head does strange things. You start to count in 3's. You are always doing a mental count, 1 coat, 2 coats, 3 coats, 6 socks, 6 shoes. You get the idea.

People have lots of opinions and most of them don't really matter :)


Love has no limits. Love is unconditional. The love of a child changes you forever

Ok, let me know what you have learned. Post a comment.

Cornucopia

The other day we are driving down the street. From the third row I hear Cormac, "Hey Mommy, look, there is a cornucopia on that flag on the house". I was thinking how on earth does this child know the word cornucopia. I say "What's a cornucopia?" He says "It's like a empty shell and you put fruit in it". Really a good description I thought. Mind blowing for me for some reason. I ask "how do you know what a cornucopia is?" He doesn't answer so I pry further. "did miss Velsor teach you?" "Nope" Did Mrs Trackim teach you?" "Nope" (they are two preschool teachers") THen it hits me it HAD to be Miss Cole (Nicole, his teacher of the deaf. Only she would think to teach such a big word to a three year old!) And yes, it was Miss Cole. I told this to a few people and some of them didn't even know what it was! Then I learned it is sometimes called the "horn of plenty". I didn't know that so we both learned something new.

And I had to share this about Cormac's ability to hear in not so ideal situations. We were driving yesterday. He was once again in the third row because Colin has been a seat hog and stealing the second row too much. We had the CD player on playing Metallica per their request. I had the GPS hooked up on the front windshield. I had the volume turned to about half way maybe a little lower. From the back while listening to Metallica Cormac says "The man said to make a right turn ahead!" I cracked up. I am starting to think that sometimes I cut him slack when he doesn't hear me but he might actually just be ignoring me!!!

Oh, and here is one that I still haven't figured out. Cormac didnt want to get in his car seat after school. Of course, I made him. He was a little mad. So he says to me "Mommy, you're an instrument!" Well, I nearly wet my pants. He said it with such a tone I knew he was angry but Lord only knows what he actually meant. I mean, he knows the word instrument and can name instruments so I know that is not what he meant but man, I laughed for days over that comment. I am still trying to figure out what he really meant call me. SOmeone suggested he meant to call me a "tool" but that is not an expression he would have even overheard in our house because was don't use it. Now, if he called me a "jackass" I would have known where he got it from. (call me guilty!) When Colin stubbed his toe and said "jesus christ" well it had Frank written all over it. SO what do you think he meant to call me?

Anyway, just some tidbits on Cormac's progress I want to make sure to remember. I got to speak to a Mom yesterday who is just starting the journey with her daughter. I loved talking with her and feel so lucky I (well really Cormac but I share his story for him at this point) can help ease someone's worries even if it's just the tiniest bit. It is such a scary place to be and I know it meant a lot to talk to someone who had been there and done that before Cormac had his surgery.

I have a ton of videos from Disney I still need to upload but it takes time.....something I don't really have much of lately.

Vacation, hotel, lobby, kingdom, road trip, stilts, float(as in a parade). Just some of the many words we learned on our vacation. There are tons more but I can't remember. All I do remember is there were lots of conversations going on in the car and on the trip. Even some phrases like "Mommy, I need you to pull over so I can go potty!". Colin came out with a good line. He had stickers on his arm and was wearing nothing else running around naked. He gets all serious and says "mommy, can you take these stickers off so I can be more naked?" Too funny.

Mainly, we just had a lot of fun but when you are a Mom to a deaf child every experience takes on a different meaning. It's a way of life. Everything is about noticing learning opportunites. It's also about making sure he is able to hear in lots of different situations. Fireworks and COrmac do not agree. He can't get his magnets off fast enough! He was so excited to see the "castle" and then they set off fireworks and he said "I don't like the castle and more!" Well, I explained to him they don't always have fireworks and he came around.

We have hit a stage of TONS of questions. Mostly "what is a .....? And Why?. It love it. It makes for so much conversation. I really love when I hear the boys having their own coversations. I worried for so long Cormac would never be part of those discussions. But he is. He is always part of it. Just last night he says to me "Hey, Mommy, both my implants are not working. I need some new batteries". He speaks so clearly now. Frank didn't see him for a week and swears his language got better in seven days. I love that he is now telling us about his implants. He tells us when one isn't working. I am guessing his implants beep before the batteries die because he will often tell me at the end of the day "my left or right (yes, he knows left and right) is beeping. I change the batterey and it's better. Soon he will be changing the batteries himself.

We are in a good place with Cormac. With continued support from a Teacher of the Deaf I have no doubt he will continue to progress. I always fear he will regress if we don't stay on top of things.

Ok, somehow I got off topic! Here are some pics.

 
 
 
 

At the parade in Majic Kingdom. The last thing of the day. Ciaran only made it half way through
 

Pirates in Training
 
 
 

The Lego Store

 

Cormac seeing his first Princess
 
 

This is how we got them around the hotels. They loved riding the luggage carts

 

 
 
 
 

They read the maps wherever we went and decided what they wanted to see....

 
 
 
 

The face painting was a huge hit. Two scary dinosaurs and a super hero.

 
 
 
 

WE'RE BAAAACK!

After 1,100 miles (each way) in the truck with three three year olds and a now 5 month old we are back. Everyone says "was it worth it?" I think Colin summed it up best. As we were driving and got to Disney he saw the the arch with the characters and the welcome sign and he says out of the back seat "Look, Mommy, we finally made it here". He said it with such joy in his voice it was soooo worth it!

The looks on three three year olds faces when they saw the "castle" and realized they were there was priceless. Watching them meet Mickey, Goofy, Pluto and all the other characters was beyond words. Cormac's reaction to meeting the princess' well can't really be put into words. Let alone when he saw Ariel!

I have tons of pictures and lots of video clips to upload. But first I have to unpack and get organized. I have tons to catch up on.

And I never realized how a vacation could be such a wonderful language opportunity. We learned tons of new words. It provoked TONS of questions from all the boys and just a lot to talk about.

Stay tuned for the pics...

Super Heros!

Before I leave for Disney thought I would leave you with these pictures. The boys picked out their costumes for the first time this year. They also picked out Calleigh's costume. I thought they did a find job. They are and always will be my lil heros!


 
 
 

 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 

Nothing annoys me more than wrong information getting out to the public about Cochlear Implants. It's usually from people who are against implants in the first place. They don't take the time to find out the truth. They just repeat what they "heard" without verifying the truth in their statements. This leads to more people getting more bad information.

Look, I get it. Implants can be controversial. Not everyone thinks children should be implanted. You are entitled to your opinion. You are allowed to make that decision for YOUR family. Just like I am allowed to make the decision to implant my child for MY family. While I think children should be implanted I never BASH other people because they choose to not get implants. So, why do those who DONT have them feel the need to say things about those parents who do? Why do the continue to perpetuate untruths? Why can they not just say "it's not what I want for my child BUT it's the parents choice?" If I waited for Cormac to tell me he wanted implants, well, I would have missed the boat for language aquisition. He CANNOT get that back. If he decides when he is older he suddenly doesn't want implants he can take them off his head. He is STILL DEAF. I never deny he his deaf. I think I gave him access to both worlds. In a million years I cannot see him deciding he doesn't want to hear. Do parents who put glasses on their children expect when their children are older they will throw their glasses away and walk around not seeing?

This issue gets me fired up. I never thought anything was "wrong" with Cormac. I still don't. He's not broke and I didn't try to "fix" him. As his parent I chose to give him access to something that was not available to generations before him. I gave him access to a world of sound. I gave him access to hearing my voice and his brothers voices. My job as a parent is to give my son all the opportunities the world has to offer. Well, our world is a hearing world. And when I say world I mean my family. If you saw how much Cormac missed in his first year of life as compared to after he was implanted you would see the benefit. He was like a spectator in his own house. He was on the sidelines alot because he just didn't know what was happening around him. This broke my heart. He is now the leader of the pack! He knows if his brothers left the room. He hears them yell "Cormac, come play with me downstairs" when he is upstairs.

Cormac also can sign. He doesn't use it any longer but he can do it. All the boys and I know a lot of sign from his first year of life. That is how we communicated wtih him before his implants. So, it wasn't like we didn't try. This boy LOVES to hear. He LOVES to sing. He LOVES to talk. He LOVES life.

He lives his life like a typical 3 year old. He does gymnastics, plays soccer, goes to music class, art class, plays on playgrounds. You name it and he does it. And he does it all incredibly well. He excels at school. He can go to Las Vegas.(see link below) He can go through a metal detector. He can't have an MRI but he can have a CAT scan.

He understands and speaks at a level well above his actual age let ALONE his hearing age. He loves to hear stories read to him. He loves to dance to music. Lots of these things would not be possible without his implants.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and to make decisions about their family. But please base it on truths and not lies. Do your research for yourself. Actually TALK to person with an implant or a parent of a child before you write things that are not correct.

If you are wondering what prompted me to write this post. Click here.

While the writer of the above post didn't really bash us it's just the wrong info that gets to me. AND I get google alerts about implants and this was one of them.

Ok. I feel better!

Look out Mickey.....

Do you think the mouse can handle the triplets? We will find out in less than a week. We leave on Sunday. Excited can't really descibe how I feel. I cannot wait to see the faces on the boys when they get to see Mickey and the rest of the characters in person. My only worry is Frank won't be with us and he will miss this amazing experience. But he has no more days off available at work. WIth Calleigh being in the hospital so much at birth and then again when she was sick he used all his time. We couldn't pass up the opportunity. Frank's Uncle John and Aunt Mary were so kind to give us their timeshare for the week. Frank was kind enough to say we can go without him :( because he knows it's a chance we won't get again. He's pretty bummed about missing it.

Now we need to figure out all the details about Cormac's processors. We will have access to an FM system at Disney if he needs it. We will bring lots of tape to keep them on his head when he rides the rides. Water rides, well that's a given they will have to come off. But he doesn't really mind.

I'll post again before we leave but wanted to share our exciting news.

Writing, teaching and mice!

Cormac has been able to write a lot of letters for a really long time. Not sure if this is normal but Ciaran and Colin are not able to write like him. His fine motor skills are remarkable. He has been able to sign the entire alphabet correctly since he was not much older than a year. He loves to write and draw and a paper and pen can occupy him for hours. He used to write them really large on the chalkboard or on paper but now he is getting the placement on the page. He wrote these two days ago. He normally does his name better but he was in a hurry!

   

I thought I got this conversation on video but somehow missed it. Here's how it went. Cormac "mom I want to draw the milky way" Me: What's a milky way? COrmac: It's in outer space" Me: What's inside the milky way?" Cormac: "A teddy bear constellation" Me: What's a constellation?" Cormac: "A group of stars" I remember not too long ago worrying about increasing his conversation abilities and taking turns. I think he has got it now, right?

Here he is being the teacher and asking me what letters he is drawing.. CHeck out the end where he draws shapes.


I have been meaning to post a link to some educational toys I picked up and have turned out to be wonderful for Cormac. They are made by Alex Little Hands. I have the 123 touch and feel cards and The First Words touch and feel cards. They are great. They have questions on the back so if your kids are a little older like Cormac they are still useful. They also take away some thought on our part and make you ask questions you might not think of! For example: Socks On the back of the card it says "we wear our socks under our shoes" Touch the socks on the front of the card Do they feel soft or hard? ( I change it and say "what do they feel like since Cormac knows soft and hard) Am I wearing socks? Mop On back of card it says" The mop cleans the floor" Does the mop feel wet or dry? What else do you use to clean the house?" I only have these two but after seeing the website I can see I will probably get some more from them.

Ok, this is just cute and I had to share. Cormac is not wearing his implants in this video. He is reading my lips and talking back :)The boys found last years Halloween costumes last night before bed.....



C

Happy Girl!

I ordered this hat for Calleigh. She obviously loves it! That's all I got for today!


 

Pop Pop

So, today we are driving in the car and Ciaran says "Mommy, Pop Pop needs to get an airplane so he can fly back from Heaven and see us again". Needless to say, it sent me into tears. If only this were possible. At that moment I wished more than anything I could make his dreams come true. But I can't. I never can make it happen. I can only try and keep my Dad's memory alive by telling them about him. About how much he loved them. About how he came by a few times a week to see them. About how he got the biggest kick out of them. About how they always stole his hat and shoes. About how he always brought a newspaper with him and when he left it was usually shredded throughout my house. About how he caught a hammerhead shark. About how much I loved him. ABout what a wonderful man, father, grandfather, brother and son was. I miss him every day. I only hope my boys can grow up and live their lives with as much dignity and love.

It doesn't make sense why some people leave our lives. I hope someday I will understand but it's only been six months and I still don't get it. I still wait for him.

My children are my daily distraction from my sadness. Even though they can drive me nuts it's them I have to thank for laughing each day. For putting a smile on my face. For consistently telling me I am their best friend. For always telling me something silly or funny. But they also are a constant reminder of what we all lost. Ciaran is such a "wallace". He looks just like my Dad.

Make sure to enjoy those you love each day. We just never know how long we will have to spend with them.

Forever Fall

I wish the fall lasted forever. It is by far my favorite time of year. So much to do and see. SO MANY LANGUAGE OPPORTUNITIES!! We spent the past weekend fully enjoying the fall. On Saturday we went on a "hike". More like a fall walk at the local environmental center. Our guide pointed out all the cool happenings in the woods that occur in the fall. We even got to go inside a Wigwam. (how great a word is that??) At the end of our walk we made apple cider and drank it. The guide caught a frog and the kids got to touch it. We found out only male frogs make a noise and female frogs don't make sounds. (even the adults were being educated!) The were able to hold a salamander. All around it was a beautiful day.










Sunday, Cormac headed to a Fall Festival for the AG Bell Association. It was in Westchester, NY. Not too far from us. We originally were going as a family but Colin and Calleigh didn't seem so great so we made an executive decision for Frank to remain home while I took Cormac. It was an AMAZING, INSPIRATIONAL day. First, the weather was spectacular. I was there as a volunteer from Advanced Bionics. I met up with Laura, another Mom to two girls both of which have implants. We had a table set up with some information on AB. But mostly we just had fun. Mingled with other children and I got to chat with lots of parents of amazing children. Cormac got to make a candy corn necklace, build a scare crow, paint pumpkins, make a pumpkin craft and the MAKE SMORES!! He had a blast but was so tired after it was crazy. He fell asleep in the car in under 30 seconds.

TO see so many kids and adults with implants was great. All were at different stages of life. DIfferent stages of learning. But all of them were feeling blessed to be alive when such amazing technology exists. I was so happy to be able to attend and hope to be able to attend more when I they are within a close distance to us. My camera battery died when we got there! I took some photos on my cell but haven't downloaded them yet. A family I met also took some pics and when the email them to me I will be sure to post them.

Monday was a holiday for Frank so after a quick trip to the Dr for COrmac in the morning we headed into The Bronx to go to The Bronx Zoo. I had not been there since I was about 17 (ya know, about 10 years ago LOL). Frank was only there as a child. WOW!! It was great. So many animals. So many things to see. Words to learn (monorail, grazing, slithering, scaly). But I get the BAD MOMMY award for that day! We left the house with only one implant so Cormac only had one on the whole day. This drives me insane! I know he still hears me and learns but how on earth did he leave with only one???? I know how... Try getting them all up, bathed, dressed, packed for the day, remember Calleigh's colostomy supplies, bottles, formula diapers, lunch for boys, change of clothes just in case they forget to go potty...... HMMMMM, how could I forget to put an impant on??? Problem was he got up at the crack of dawn for some reason. I put one implant on him so I could talk to him in the dark and when we got up for the day after some snuggling in the bed, he was hearing and talking so I forgot I had only put one on at 5am!

Oh, well. I am sure he did not suffer any permanent damage! Nothing like a fun filled, language packed family weekend!

FINALLY!!! I uploaded the Rachel Ray Show.

Here is our TV debut! I know some of you saw it already. However, if you watched on the website you didn't see us in the live audience. It's about 5 1/2 minutes into the clip if you just want to watch us in the audience. The kids are too cute for words and Cormac does his little bit of talking! Sorry if it's poor quality but I was having major issues uploading so I actually recorded it off my TV onto my Flip video camera.

We had so much fun and when you see the boys' faces you can see they enjoyed themselves.

Just for today

Today I am going to try and not get frustrated.
Today I am going to make sure to take time to enjoy my kids.
Today I will NOT worry about the house.
TOday I will not think about the 20 million things I need to do.
Today I will not think about the 5 doctors appointments I have scheduled.
Today I will sit on the floor and do nothing but play with the kids.
Today I will make an extra effort to let my kids know just HOW MUCH I love and adore them.
Today I will not let Colin get the best of me if he decides he wants to have a fit.
Today I will ignore the volume level in our house and be happy to have all the noise.
Today I will not care if my children do not want to eat.
Today I will make a point to try and slow down.

Today is today. Tomorrow is another day. Today I am only worried about today.

UPDATE: It is now 2:30pm. The boys are about to take a nap. TODAY HAS BEEN WONDERFUL!!! We did a little of everything. Playing at the park, picnic lunch, grocery shopping. Let's see how the rest of the day goes. But so far, so good!


PS: Lots to update coming in the next few days (Cormac's language eval at NYU for one)

Our 15 minutes of fame is over!

So, I am glad lots of you got to see our big TV debut. It was a wonderful experience and we are blessed to have been part of it. I LOVED LOVED LOVED that Cormac talked at the end and pointed out the "R's". The funny part is the producer said to me "we are going to put a mike on Cormac BECAUSE HE TALKS THE BEST!" He had no idea what those words meant to me.

I have to say my kids were the best the day we went into the city for the taping. It was their first day of preschool along with NO NAP and waiting in a green room for a few hours. They were little charmers.

FOr those that missed it (Val) I have it on DVD and am attempting and going to attempt to upload the video to my blog. Keep your fingers crossed. I wont be trying until later in the weekend when I have more time.

In the meantime, for your viewing pleasure.....

The boys first day of preschool.





And Calleigh

SET YOUR DVR'S (Just Kidding!)

Our episode of The Rachel Ray Show will be airing Tuesday September 29th. We just found out yesterday. We went into NYC on Friday for the taping of the episode where they showed a five minute piece about us. It was a fun day. The kids were excellent especially since we waited nearly three hours in the green room. We were walked into the studio while our clip was being played to the audience. We sat in the front row and Rachel asked us a few questions. It was all over pretty quickly once it started. I will give a full run down after it airs and I am allowed :)

As a side note, not that I really care, but while they were filming at our house for the week I was told to look "scrubby" (their word, not mine). No make up or hair done so you will see me in all my glory! You'll know why at the end.....

Our five minutes of fame is over......

PS The boys started their first day of preschool the same day. Pics and stories to follow...

I am amazed...

I am amazed daily by many things in my life. I thought I might jot them down. These are just a few...

I am amazed I have four beautiful, loving children.
I am amazed Frank and I have not only survived but thrived in the past 3 years :)
I am amazed a baby doesn't know how to breathe out of it's mouth when it's born.
I am amazed by how little sleep I can survive on.
I am amazed Frank finally finished the basement. Remember?
I am amazed my deaf son talks and hears and listens and has even perfected SELECTIVE listening just like his peers!
I am amazed my three year olds are potty trained for the most part.
I am amazed by the generosity of most people.
I am amazed by the ignorance of many people.
I am amazed by the kindness of strangers.
I am amazed by the not so kindness of many.
I am amazed at how resilient children are.
I am amazed to watch the world through the eyes of people who don't know some of lifes hard truths yet.
I am amazed at how quickly life can change.
I am amazed at the amount of love three little boys can express toward one little girl.
I am amazed at how easily I am reduced to tears. Luckily,the are usually tears of happiness!
I am amazed I will be 38 years old on Tuesday!
I am amazed at how much one can accomplish is a short amount of time if you really put your mind to it.

It's so hard to remember to slow down and take it all in on a daily basis. Life seems to get in the way. But do me a favor today, take time to just be amazed by something wonderful in your life!

The Neglected

I feel like my blog is being neglected lately. Between doctors appointments and just our every day life it has been hectic. We are all doing well. Calleigh is just about 10 pounds! (Finally) We visited the craniofacial team this week and we were told we don't need to return for a year. THis is great because it means she doesn't have any other issues resulting from her incomplete lip! YIPPEE!!! She was hopefully have the lip repair done in the near future. (he's the only dr we have to see, the plastic surgeon). ANother issue has come up with Calleigh but hopefully, it's nothing. She might have some Kidney reflux. We have to have a test done. If she does it's something most kids grow out of in a year. I just feel horrible because she has endured alot in her short three months. I just want her to be done with the doctors for a while. Once we hit 15 pounds we can have her colostomy reversed and then her lip. Two more surgeries. Two more agonizing days to look forward to :(

We are so lucky her health problems are all fixable. It could be much worse but sometimes it's just hard. But she is a happy little girl. All smiles lately. She lights up when she sees her brothers. She already knows their voices and faces. They adore her. She is a crazy eater lately. Never know when she will eat or how much but she eats alot.

The boys start St Catherine's on Tuesday. They are sooooo looking forward to it. We head into NYC to film Rachel Ray on Tuesday as well. It's also my birthday. We are for sure having a packed day. Luckily, Frank is off for the day to enjoy the first day of school and Rachel Ray.

I'll be posting lots of pics of the first day and from the Rachel Ray Show next week. We don't know the air date yet but I'll be sure to post it so you all can set your DVR's!!

OMG! And Cormac's audiology report...

We are finished with The Rachel Ray Show except for going in to the taping next week. So much fun and excitement. We could not have had a better experience. I signed a confidentiality agreement so can't give the details until next week. But it's GREAT! LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! We are truly blessed.

I came across a list of Cormac's words that used to hang on the fridge. It's dated September 2007. That's three months post implant. Here's where he was:
Receptive Language:
Meow-signs cow
Ha Ha Ha for monkey
Yeah- claps hands
Dad-signs Dad
Beep Beep-signs car
up puts hand in air
Qucak-signs Duck
Hop Hop Hop-signs rabbit
Shh- puts head down to sleep
Bear-signs bear
"get me the ball" -went and got basketball
Elmo- signs Elmo
Bye Bye -waves bye
owie- signs owie
apple-signs apple
woof woof-signs dog
horse/ney ney

Expressive:
Ahh Ahh for airplane
Ha Ha for Monkey noise
Mmm
Bu for Ball
Pointed to cow and said MMM
Saw Rabbit and said Ha Ha Ha for Hop Hop Hop
Said Moo.

This isn't a comprehensive list but most of what he was doing at the time. My how things have changed in such a short time. Today he is having full conversations and says words I didn't even know a three year old would know!

We are heading to NYU to get mapped because I think this last one is just not working well for him. He seems bothered by it and tht not what we want.

Oh and I promised to give the results from his 2 year audiology evaluation.

Speech awareness thresholds right ear: 15dBHL for /ba/, 10dBHL for /sh/ 25dBHL for /s/

Speeach awareness thresholds for left ear 15dBHL for /ba,sh/ 20dBHL for /s/

Multisyllabic Lexical Neighborhood Test (MLNT)
Description
This is an open-set test of multisyllabic word recognition. The word list consists of 12 lexically easy words and 12 lexically difficult words (low frequency occurring words from dense neighborhoods). The test is administered via tape and is scored by both number of words correct and number of phonemes correct.
2 years post
MLNT words (easy) 92% (at 18 months post implant he was 75%)
MLNT phonemes 98% (at 18 months post implant he was 88%)
MLNT words (hard) 100% (at 18 months post implant he was 75%)
MLNT phonemes 100% (at 18 months post implant he was 85%)

You can see he improved from 18 months post implant to 2 years post implant.

At 2 years post implant Common Phrases (quiet) 100% (he was not tested at 18 months for common phrases)
At two years post implant Common Phrases (noise) 100%

He did the same in noise and quiet. This makes me VERY happy.

Taping for TV

We taped for the Rachel Ray Show on Friday. It was exciting and fun but also exhausting. They were here for the entire day. The boys were involved in the morning with me. Then it was just me for a while and when Frank got home from work it was his turn. I am not allowed to tell what we are doing but it is going to be great! Tomorrow they will be here again and we have to be home too. The rest of the week we can be in and out while the crew is here..... Big mystery. I am not really sure what is happening either. I get no details. I just know something is going on. They should be done by Satuday.

We headed to the beach for the long weekend when we were done taping. Aunt Juanita, Uncle Tommy and Corinne are home from Texas for good! We were finally able to go to the beach together. The boys were just lovin' Corinne. She is a doll and I am so excited we will get to see her all the time now. Talk about a crowded house. Frank and I and four kids plus one dog, Tommy Juanita and Corinne and another dog and Maggie and her dog. To say full house in an understatement. We had a ball though so it's worth it.

Now that things are calming down a bit I will be able to keep the blog more up to date and get back to basics. Just received Cormac's NYU evaluation report from his last audiology appt. I will give full details maybe tomorrow but lets just say there were plenty of 100%! Makes me so happy. Cormac has not really been himself the last week. Not sure what is going on with him.. Maybe just so many changes recently. New baby, no more Summit, not as much alone time with me, baby back in hospital and a lot of upheaval in his normal routine. We have had a few times when he didn't want his ears on by the end of the day. This is a first. I also think his last map is not sitting well with him. I am going to call NYU tomorrow and see if we can make a appointment sooner rather than later and see if that helps. Or maybe he is just testing his boundaries like your typical three year old. Hard to tell but it doesn't seem like him. I am hoping now that summer is ending and we will be home again like usual he will get back to normal.

Gotta get ready for bed. ANother big day of filming tomorrow....

Rachel Ray

Ok, can't give too many details right now but the Rachel Ray Show is coming to my house on Friday. They will also be there Tuesday through Saturday next week. It's a long story of how it happened and I will be sure to give all the details and when it will air.

I am excited and nervous. We are getting a wonderful surprise. I am also hoping when they film on Friday (they are doing background on the family) I can use it as an opportunity to talk about Cochlear Implants and hearing loss. Anything to help bring awareness to the subject. Not to mention, if the talk to Cormac on camera and the whole world will see how amazing he is doing with his implants!

Music

Frank and I differ greatly on our choice of music. Frank's a Dead head. He's all Jerry Garcia all the time. Literally, he has a six 6 cd changer in his car and ALL SIX have The Greatful Dead. Hey, I don't mind them but not my choice. The kids call it Jerry's band and seem to like it. I, on the other hand like completely different music. I like all kinds. Really all kinds. I listen to classic rock,some country. I even love Justin Timberlake. But my favorite band is Metallica. Most people who learn this about me are shocked. I don't really seem like the Metallica type.

I can't tell you the last time I put music on in the car. Between the kids and the DVD player I just never put on the radio. Not to mention I was paranoid to listen to the radio when Cormac was first implanted because I didn't want to add any more "background noise" then there already was in the car. But as time has passed and I realized Cormac can hear me just fine in the car and since we got the new truck I thought I would throw on the CD player. Got out my favorite CD, Master of Puppets and loaded it into the changer. By God, these children LOVE it! I played a few songs and I look back in the car and they were all rockin' out. Heads going back and forth and some serious dancing in their car seats. THey asked me who was singing and I told them. Now every time we get in the car Colin, in particular, asked for MEtallica. Master of Puppets is his favorite and you have to hear him sing it! Here's some video of them in the truck. I took a great one on my cell phone but the audio didn't work for some reason.



I taught them the hand movement as a joke but they seem to like it. I know, not the most appropriate music choice but it doesn't have any curses and for now they are too young to understand what it's really about. They just think it's about puppets!

I have never taught them the lyrics but the know a lot of the words. I was pleasantly surprised to realize Cormac could understand the lyrics as well. I wasn't sure how he would react but as you can see he really likes it!

I am sure Frank would be much happier if they were chillin' to Jerry, but hey, I can't control what they like!

On a different note, I had to share these pics of the boys. When they were small I always took their picture in the rocking chair in their room.



Just seemed like it was easy to prop them all up and get them all together...


Well, the chair has been moved to Calleigh's room but I asked them to sit in it all together for old times sake.... Notice Cormac has to sit on Colin's lap because they are just too big now. This is why I LOVE these boys....






Can you just see the LOVE in their eyes when they look at each other? Warms my heart and makes me smile. That's why I love the candid photos much better than posed.

And I feel like the princes is being neglected in the photo department so here's a few the the little lady...




She's just started smiling for real, you know, not just from gas :) This is the first photo I caught of her smiling.



FOr those that don't know, Calleigh was born with an incomplete lip. It's actaully even smaller in person than in photographs. SHe will have it repaired in a few months. Funny thing is I don't even notice it when I look at her.

Thank you

Thank you for all the wonderful comments on the last post. I am glad Cormac has given others hope for their children. I am thankful for all the support over the last three years. I am hopeful for the future for all the amazing "bionic" children in the world. And I wish all of the parents all the patience, time and ENERGY to continue on your journeys.....

From Contrail to Comets

Last Wednesday Cormac had his last day at Summit SPeech School :) He will be heading to preschool in September. While we are thrilled he is doing so well we are sad his time at Summit is over. Luckily, his support services in district will be provided by Summit so we will still be part of the school. I am hoping we stay part of the Summit family forever. Our lives would not be the same if we had not found out about Summit and we will be forever grateful for all of their support over the last three years.

On the car ride to school his last day I was thinking to myself "I hope we are making the right decision. I hope he will be OK. You know, all the usual self doubts you have regarding decisions we make about our children. As I am thinking all this I hear from the back seat "Mommy?" I say "yes Cormac?" He says "Why is there no contrail coming out of that plane flying in the sky?" My first response was "I don't know". My second was "you are going to be alright kid!" And he says "I know Mommy." Then he says "Contrail looks just like a comet!". Gotta love this kid. I don't know many people LET ALONE three year olds who know the word contrail. Anyway, it made me feel just awesome that day. Totally made me forget my worries (for a while).

They made him a special breakfast and I was able to stay with him for his last morning. It was sweet how the kids interacted with him. He certainly has no problems making friends.






By the way, the Eye Spy containers were a huge success. The glue gun was not sufficient and we had a minor spilling of rice but I was able to put clear packing tape on them and you can't even see it. Now they are more durable. We played Eye Spy for the long trip to the beach last weekend.

As we reach this next milestone in Cormac's journey I still can't believe all he has accomplished. He continues to baffle me on a daily basis with what he can hear and say. He NEVER stops learning. He loves it. His ability to recall information is better than mine. I honestly think he has a photographic memory. I have never really seen anything quite like it.

We spent approximately 112 hours in the car just commuting to Summit since April. I then spent approximately 225 hours entertaining Ciaran and Colin while Cormac was in school. I was pregnant and had a baby somewhere in there too. For the last month or so I had Calleigh along for the commute and the wait time. I say this not to complain but to just know while it was a tough time for us IT WAS WORTH EVERY MINUTE OF OUR TIME! It's time we will never get back and I mean that in a good way. For Cormac this was and is the most important time. We can't go back to being three when he is six. What he achieves now is the strong foundation he will need for his future.

For those of you who read this who are in the beginning of your journey to hearing just know it gets better. It gets easier. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. It's tiring, it can be frustrating at times but I think the rewards are just so much sweeter. We might never know why we were chosen to have children who are deaf but know that your hard work is rewarded. Years from now when are children are successful, happy adults you won't even remember how tiring it was to get there (I hope).

A much happier post...

Calleigh finally came home from the hospital on Friday evening. She is doing well but is still hanging onto a cough. Poor little thing had a rough go of it. Here's the run down of what actually happened.

We left for the shore Friday afternoon. The boys all had runny noses and a cough. Calleigh was fine. By Saturday morning Calleigh had a little cough. Nothing else. By the afternoon she didn't want to eat and started to get a fever. Thinking it was better to be safe than sorry I brought her to Jersey Shore Medical Center. My pediatrician said if I had any concerns to bring her. With her medical history and her cough they said they would admit her and observe overnight. She was tested for RSV and flu and both were negative. We were released on Sunday early afternoon. We came home back up north thinking we should be closer to our doctor. She never got any worse and seemed like she was just a little under the weather. Being nervous I "slept" in the rocking chair in her room with her on my chest the whole night. At 6am I put her in her crib in her carseat to keep her upright. I just wanted to lay down for an hour before the boys got up. At 6:30am Frank was getting ready to leave for work. He went in her room to see her. He picked her up and she was grey and blue and came into our room with her. He handed her to me and I said call 911. I gave her two rescue breaths and she coughed. SHe was still breathing very shallow.

She was brought to the hospital by ambulance and stayed for the week. It was really just a bad cold and upper respitory infection but she couldn't breathe through her nose at all and her mouth was closed so she was not gettin enough oxygen. I never knew babies don't know to open their mouths to breathe until they are closer to 6 months. You think I would know this. Thank God, Frank went into her room.

I stayed at the hospital for four nights and didn't get a wink of sleep. I am still trying to catch up.

I have lots of other stuff to tell about Cormac's last day at Summit and some other cool happenings but will have to do it in another post.

Why we are MIA....

Calleigh is back in the hospital. Long story that started over the weekend but I don't have time for all the details at the moment. Let's just say I am glad I now infant CPR and thrilled our 911 repsonds so quickly. Calleigh is doing fine now. She has been in the hospital since Monday morning. Probably will be there until Saturday. She has a really bad cold. That's it. No flu, no RSV. Nothing serious. But I guess when you only weigh 8 pounds and have a VSD it can really knock you out. Keep her in your thoughts.

Learning and Hearing and fun in one.

Well, I survived another day. Today was much improved. No puking. Still alot of coughing and gagging but no puking.

Someone posted this on Cicircle and I just wanted to share it. Thought it was pretty cool. Build a Bear has hearing aids you can add to your bear! You have to order them online but it's totally worth it. They look like cochlear implants to me so it would work for either. I am so psyched we might have to head to build a bear this week!


We have been trying to do something productive each evening after dinner. If I keep them busy it really is much easier. Left to their own devices.....you just never know! Anyway, we geared the last two nights toward listening games but most of our life is like that!

Last night we decorated hats. (yes, after my hellish day I actually did a project with the boys) Ciaran and Cormac had safari hats and Colin picked a yellow contruction hard hat. They were from Micheal's Crafts and we only like a dollar or so. I bought a bunch of foam stickers and let them decorate them. For Cormac I would say "can you put a purple elephant next to the yellow giraffe?" and so on. I let him do a lot without instruction but added in some listening skills. He also would tell me "I am going to put the purple heart above/next to/under the green rhinocerous." It was fun and learning built into one.

Here are the final products!





Today we made our own I Spy containers. I saw them at the store last week and they wanted like $30 a container. I wasn't spending $90 on I Spy so back to Micheal's we went. I found these great clear plastic containers. I also found lots of little things to put in them. They were all small plastic buttons. You can buy a bag for a dollar. I picked lots of different themes. Sports (baseballs, footballs, basketballs and soccer balls), things that live in the ocean, fruit, crayons, vehicles, shapes. There are more but I don't have the list in front of me. I let them each pick a few from each category and put them in their container. Then we filled the rest with rice. VOILE! Our very own I Spy containers. I am praying the glue holds the lids on or it will there will be rice everywhere! I plan to use them in the car for a game. It's a great listening game. "I spy something that lives in the ocean" Then they look and have to tell you what it is. You get the idea. You can change it up "I spy something red".

Here's how they turned out. Nothing fancy but they loved them. We are heading to the beach for the weekend tomorrow afternoon. We will be bringing them along for the ride.



Here's a close up of the buttons inside.

My day went something like this...

Up at 4:30 to feed Calleigh
Tried to go to sleep again.
Boys up at about 6:45am
Out of the house by 7:55am
SOmewhere in there I three boys went potty, got dressed, ate breakfast, brushed teeth. Calleigh also was fed again and dressed.
Drop Cormac off at school.
Now comes the 3 hours of time to kill with three kids.
Drive nearly back home for Calleigh to go to pediatrician.
Drive the 45 minutes back to pick up Cormac
Drive BACK home to drop off triplets so I can drive BACK 45 minutes to take Calleigh to her apppointment with the surgeon to have her butt irrigated.....
My Mom calls and says lets meet at Target and give the boys lunch and we can switch cars. Sounds like a plan.
We start eating and Colin starts coughing like crazy. Enough to make himself gag which led to puking all over the Target, himself while many people were just trying to eat lunch. (Insert crying hungry newborn here!)
My Mom takes him to the bathroom while I try and feed Calleigh. He has to be stripped down to his underwear because there is so much puke. It's even in his shoes.
He refuses to come out of the bathroom in just his underwear. But eventually caves. I buy him new clothes and get him dressed.

I now drive 45 minutes to the surgeon. Drive back home. Didn't get home until nearly 5pm.

At some point Calleigh ate 3 more times while on the road and needed multiple diaper changes. Can this all be taking place in one day?

SOme humor for the day? Calleigh has a colostomy bag until she has her second surgery. Not as bad as I thought. However, during the course of the day as she passes gas the bag fills with air. I have to let the air out and let me tell you the smell could knock you out! Well, today I do it in the car and out of the backseat I hear Ciaran "Mom, Calleigh is KILLING me with that smell!" He is too funny.

It's now near 6 we have no dinner in the house and I am very tired. Everyone is waking from naps and I am not sure what the evening holds for us.

By the way, we had an awesome weekend and I will share some really cute pics later.

COrmac only has 5 days left at Summit SPeech School. We are so sad. I am looking forward to not commuting there every day. Luckily, when he starts preschool in the fall he will be receiving support services from Summit so we will still be part of the Summit Family. Hopefully, forever!

A week of appointments

This week has been hectic. Lots of doctors appointments last week as well. Yesterday, we headed in NYC for Cormac's two year evaluation. I thought we were having a speech eval but that was rescheduled becuase he needed a map and to go in the booth.

I picked Cormac up from school and along with Calleigh we headed into "my city" as Cormac calls NYC. It was going right into nap time and I wasn't sure how long my little man would survive. But he held up for hours. First they mapped him and he was having a few strange reactions to the mapping. By the time we left he seemed fine but this morning again he was flinching a little on the lowest setting. At school he did great and didn't complain so I think he is ok. Hopefully, we can bump him up to the next two maps in the next few weeks and get him even greater access to sound. I can't imagine it being any better but hey, I'll try anything. He did great for his map and was able to tell them when he heard the sounds. He would say "hey, what's that sound?" Or "I heard that sound". So, I guess he was a pretty cooperative patient.

Next we headed into the booth for some testing. Well, a lot of testing. We are wrapping up the Advanced Bionics study we were lucky to take part in. He could hear sounds that I wasn't even sure I HEARD! As far as I can tell from the testing he was able to complete each task and didn't seem to miss one word. (even when they introduced noise into the situation.) They did each ear alone and then both together. He was tuckered out by the end but never let it get to him. I was holding Calleigh through the entire process. It was a long day and got even longer when we tried to get home.

Getting out of NYC is a challenge any day but add in rush hour and thunderstorms, well, it's damn near impossible. It took us over 2 hours to get home and we only live about 15 miles outside the lincoln tunnel. I had to pull over on the side of the road to feed Calleigh. Not one of our greatest days. We finally got home around 6pm from 8am that morning.

I'll update more on Cormac's results when I have the audiogram in front of me but he hears at very low decibals.

Calleigh went for her follow up with the NICU today. She is doing great and doesn't need to return. She was 8pounds 3 oz. Since she has been home she has gained a pound and 3 oz. They are pleased. And best news of all.... SHE IS OFF THE APNEA MONITOR!!!!! What a relief.

I had to bring all four kids to her appoinment. Not the easiest of things to accomplish. The stroller with the boys must weigh over 150 with them in it. BUT they can't be given free range quite yet. I had Calleigh in the sling. It couldn't be any hotter or muggier. I bribed with tootsie pops but that can only take you so far after almost an hour and a half! However, rubber gloves blown up to look like turkeys were a huge hit. Why I didn't think of it sooner is beyond me. Three three year old boys just equal noise. Lots of noise. Even if they are being well behaved just them all talking at once is loud.

Tomorrow we are supposed to head to another appt for Calleigh at the pediatrician. I think I am rescheduling because it was only for a weight check and she was weighed today. I need a rest from appts. We had three last week and now three this week. How many can I handle?

We are heading back to the beach for the weekend. It's so relaxing at the beach. Calleigh is too young to go to the beach but Maggie gladly watches her while we head up with the boys.

WOuldn't want to leave you without some pics.

The Princess






THE MONSTER STOLLER!

Two Year Hearing Anniversary

July 21st was two years since Cormac's activation. I can't believe two years have passed. They have flown by so quickly it's hard to remember everything. I am glad I have this blog to look back on to help me remember. Cormac's initial activation was by far one of the top days of my life. It could not have went any better. He was happy and smiling and asking for more sound. He was never afraid and he has never looked back a day in his life. He has worked hard. We have all worked hard. It's a daily, hour by hour, minute by minute job to have Cormac accomplish what he has accomplished in two years. I can't even remember what our lives were like before we became this AV family :)

I don't even like to think about before he could hear. Makes me too sad. Makes me wonder what he was thinking all that time. Was he scared? Was he bored? But when I look back at pictures and videos Cormac was always just a happy kid. He always smiled and was never upset. To this day, he still has the same personality. Although he is now your typical three year old. He has lots of ideas, lots of opinions. He might be the most inquisitive child around. He craves knowledge and loves to learn. He is very independent but when he wants to he is part of the crowd. He is confident. I hope he continues to be confident. I never want him to think he is any less than his peers. (well, if you know him you would know he is smarter than most of them :) Ok, I know, I'm his Mother but he really is very smart.

I still worry about him but not as often. I still wonder if he will continue to progress as nicely as he has in the past. BUT I have a different amount of confidence in his abilities. I see him succeed each day. I watch him make sense of the world around him. It's not always as easy for him but he manages just fine. I am still amazed by him each day. I hope I never take for granted the wonderful gift we were given by Advanced Bionics. They changed our lives forever. We can never thank them enough.

Today, on the way to school Cormac said the Pledge of Allegiance, he sang Take Me Out to the Ballgame, he had multiple conversations with his brothers and he also heard the bell on the car go off when I needed more gas and he was sitting in the third row of the Suburban. He has no problem saying "i didn't hear you or I didn't understand you". This is great because he needs to be able to make his teachers aware if he can't hear. He can tell me if only one of his implants is working. (HUGE step). He also will say "what are you talking about?" Not sure where he picked up that phrase but it means he didn't understand what you said. He will usually say it when I am talking in another room to someone else and he overhears it. (remember Different Strokes, "what you talking about, WIllis?) It reminds me of that!

I could go on and on but I will stop. Here is some of the celebration we had for his two year anniversary. We had some cake









We head into NYC on Wednesday for his two year evaluation. It's right smack in the middle of nap time so let's hope he survives!

Our interesting weekend and benefits of bilateral implants

A VERY SCARY DIP IN THE LAKE. That's what happened to Cormac this morning. Clothes, sneakers, implants and all. Man, have we been testing these implants lately. A dip in the toilet, the spray ground and now a quick fall into a lake. These suckers are awesome! They just keep on working.

Now to the details of the fall into the lake that aged me about 10 years as I watched it from afar. I was sitting on a bench feeding Calleigh. Frank was walking with the boys. They were near the lake but have NEVER gone so close as to fall in but today it was really muddy and slippery. Cormac threw a rock in the lake his feet came out from under him and splash......Frank was standing right there and before I could even yell out his name Frank had pulled him from the water. (it's only about 2 feet near the edge where he fell) I nearly had a heart attack. Cormac looked so scared it was sad. He was soaking wet and covered in green lake gook. I think he was in shock. I know I was. His head didn't really go all the way under thank god. He does not know how to swim yet (he's only 3). Trust me, he will never go near the edge again. He was terrified.

Sunday we headed to the Sprayground. What a blast they had jumping in the sprinklers. Normally, we would be at the beach every weekend but with Calleigh just home we are hanging close. We are going next weekend. After the Sprayground we went to the playground. We had a wonderful morning and early afternoon. It might sound strange but having Calleigh with us just seems so normal. I thought for sure there would be a huge adjustment period but that doesn't seem to be the case. She is such a good girl. You barely know she is there except for when she needs to eat. She is already just one of us. I will say we do get quite the looks from others when we are walking with three three year olds and a newborn. To have four kids 3 and under I guess seems insane to someone who isn't living it. While there are moments that are insane for the most part it's just pretty awesome.

We let Cormac leave one of his implants on while on the SPrayground. You'll notice his ear bandit covering it. The ear band gives it some protection from the water. He is a little too young to understand not to soak his head so I figure it will help to protect it. He loves wearing the ear bandit and loves being able to hear while in the water.


One of Cormac's implants came off while playing in the playground. I didnt' have the extra tape with me and didn't want to go back to the car to get it. We let him just wear one for about a 1/2 hour. Let me tell you... WHAT A DIFFERENCE TWO IMPLANTS MAKES. Especially in a noisy situation. Cormac rarely only wears one implant so we don't see it often. Normally, with both implants I talk to him just like I would talk to Ciaran and COlin. He responds just like them. Well, he was having the hardest time locating my voice. With two implants he never has this issue. He turns instantly to where the sound is coming from. With one it took him some time to find me. ALl I could think about is what if it was a horn on a car and it took him that long to realize where the noise came from? Would it be too late? I am so
happy he has two. It really does make a difference.

Here's some video of my talking to Cormac while he is on the swing. He is wearing two implants in the video. He is not lip reading and I was not standing too close to him. He sings "You are me sunshine" at the end. FOr some reason the last line he says "don't please take my sunshine away" instead of "please don't take my sunshine" That's why it sound a little strange! So, if you're watching, I would love to hear what you think of Cormac's speech. He is 3 years old and today is his two year hearing anniversary! We will have cake later to celebrate.

The Hammerhead Shark and Cormac

This is my Dad in 1971 when he caught a 6 1/2 foot hammerhead shark.  

My Dad only went on a plane once in his life and this was the trip. They went to Florida My Mom was pregnant for me at the time.

I can't even type this without crying because I just miss him so much. My heart breaks that I will never see him again or talk to him. It breaks even more knowing my children will never remembe him or hear him laugh or never hear him say "hey, you want a punch in the nose?" while teasing them.

You might be wondering why I posted this picture today. Cormac has a different theme each week at school and Friday is show and tell. This week they were working on the ocean and all things related. What lives in the ocean, what the water is like, what animals have fins, or legs. The were learning about different types of sharks as well. I thought, what a great show and tell it would be for him to bring in the picture of my father with the hammerhead shark. My Mom was able to find it and scan it and I printed it out. I showed it to Cormac and we talked about it. I was curious what he would say when it was his turn at show and tell. I went in today to ask his teacher. She said he told the class "this is my Pop Pop when he caught a hammerhead shark fishing". She asked him "how did he catch it, with his hands?" and he said "no, with a fishing pole". He made the connection between the shark being caught and needing a fishing pole.

SHe also shared that he is an incredible user of his implants. She still cannot get over the things he hears and the situtations where he doesn't have problems with noise. Out on the playground the other day she had her back to him and was talking with him across the playground while all the other kids were running around. He was able to have an entire converstion like that. Today she said they were talking in the classroom and he was in the bathroom going potty. Well, whatever they were talking about he wanted in because he came running out of the bathroom with his pants around his ankles to join in the conversation. Obviously, in these situation he is relying purely on his implants and no other cues. I have always said he doesn't seem to miss a trick. I guess I was correct. He is so in tune to his surroundings.

We are heading into the city on the 29th for a map and his two year speech evaluation. He was supposed to go a month ago but Calleigh decided she wanted to make her arrival the same morning :) I remember being wheeled into the c-section and saying to Frank "don't forget to remind me to cancel Cormac's appts at NYU tomorrow". (It was about 1am)

Here's another funny story I forgot to include in my last post. Once a week on the way home from school I get the boys milkshakes (ok, I get on too). I always ask "what flavor do you want? Chocolate or Vanilla? Well, it varies by day and kid what flavor they want. What does Colin say? "He wants a beer shake!" Mind you, Frank and I don't even have beer in the house for the most part. Trust me, we have had our share of cocktails and TOTALLY still enjoy some cold frosty beers BUT it's usually when we go out or have company. On top of that I have been pregnant and they were only 2 1/2 when I got pregnant so they haven't seen me near a drink. Frank didn't drink the entire time I was pregnant. However, every time i have a can of soda they will say it's a beer. Strange. I don't now where it comes from. I can tell you this I could use about a case of those cold frosty ones right about now!

Things I have to make sure to document

SInce Calleigh has home the boys have been wonderful. The are in love with her and totally want to be with her all the time. They have said so many cute things I want to make sure I get it down to keep for the future.

On our first morning home Frank went in the boys room to get them out of their cribs. I was in our bed with Calleigh. Ciaran says to Frank "is our baby sister still here?" Frank replies "yes". He says "she doesn't have to go back to the hostiple (hospital)?" Frank says "no" He says "can we keep her forever"? I think I was crying by the end. Ciaran calls her his "little sweetie".

Since her surgery she has a colostomy. She will have it until she is three months and has the reconnection surgery. Just imagine the reaction of three three year olds to a baby who poops in a bag! They said "mommy, why she poop in a bag?" Colin said "I guess her hiney doesn't work". (well said, pretty much that is the deal) I explained to them she will have a fully working hiney in three months.

They ask so many questions about her. They are also interested in when they were babies. They can't believe they used to be smaller than her even though I show them pictures.

The second night she was home they stood around her crib and sang Twinkle Twinkle to her before bed. Calleigh must be under our watchful eyes every second they are awake. Not that they would ever hurt her intentionally but I swear they might hug her to death. Purell is being used by the gallon at this point. They know they can't touch her without cleaning their hands. Actually, that goes for everyone who sees her. With her being born early and having the colostomy we have to be very leary of germs.

They constantly refer to her as "little sister" or little sweetie". They want to know if she can eat quesadillas.

I have been pumping around the clock since she wasn't allowed to nurse in the hospital. I still want her to have breast milk so this was our only option. The boys have seen me pump and to say they are fascinated is an understatement. The other day I walk into my room to find Colin holding the pump up to his boobs and pretending to pump. Cormac was turning on the power to the pump. I laughed so hard. The things these three will do.

I am sure I am forgetting a ton of things they have said and done but my brain is very tired at the moment.

Calleigh is doing awesome. At her first check up after coming home she was up to 7 pounds 6 ounces. That is a 6 ounce gain in about three days. SHe needed her mother to feed her. We are going to get another weight check on Monday. I am not concerned. The last 24 hours she has increased the amount she is eating by about 1/2 ounce per feeding. SHe is sucking down bottles and we are even using the regular bottle now. We were using the tiny NICU bottles but I figure she has to learn to use a regular bottle so why not start now.

She is like having a doll in the house. She looks like a doll. SHe has the most perfect skin I have ever seen. Her eyes are big and beautiful. I swear she is just gorgeous.

Here are a few pics from the last few days.

Proud Big Brother Ciaran. This is her arrival at home.

 

Cormac his first time holding her
 

Our first morning together with Calleigh
 
 

Calleigh in her swing with three onlookers. Now you know why I have to keep such a close eye on her.
 

Calleigh is home...

She came home on Friday afternoon. SHe is a little angel. SHe just eats and sleeps. She is not the greatest of eaters and it is a struggle to get her to eat what she is supposed to eat. Burping her is a feat in itself. SHe TOTALLY stops eating if she needs to burp but she can take 15 minutes to burp. The boys are over the moon with excitement. I have tons of video and pictures but haven't uploaded anything yet. We are settling in and tryin to come up with a nice schedule. Today Frank went back to work so we are alone today. Luckily, my mother in law drove Cormac to schoool. My sister, Trish, is picking him up and dropping him off here and my Mom is going to watch Ciaran and Colin while I take Calleigh to the pediatrician's office. Our doctor makes you come in every other day for weight checks in the beginning. While it's a pain in the ass it's great because that is really the only way to know she is eating enough. Since her eating has been an issue for a while it's comforting to know she will be weighed.

My cousin, Jeannie, is a pediatric nurse. She came by yesterday and weighed the baby. Looks like she gained an once which is good. At least she isn't losing any.

So far, it's just be awesome to have everyone home together. We have had lots of visitors and everyone is so generous. Frank's Aunt Mary brough over enough food to feed a small army. But since we kinda of are a small army it's great! I said to Frank it would be great if I didn't have to worry about cooking and my prayers were answered! We have a different meal for each night this week. GOtta love that!

Ok, gotta go feed the baby. I will post more when I have time.

"Mom, Cormac's implant is in the toilet"

THAT IS THE LAST SENTENCE A MOTHER OF A CHILD WITH COCHLEAR IMPLANTS WANTS TO HEAR!! But this is what I heard from Ciaran yesterday afternoon. He neglected to add that he had already taken a huge POOP in the toilet. I run faster than you can imagine up the stairs and look into the bowl. yep, there is his implant at the bottom along with Ciaran's poop. You guessed it. I had to reach in and grab it. Time was of the essence since implants are NOT waterproof but water resistant. To day I was mad is an understatement. Since I didn't witness how it happened I will never know the truth. I asked Cormac why he did it and he said "I don't know". Well, he couldn't tell me if he threw it in or if it fell in. He got so upset because he hates to not have both of them on and I told him it wasn't going to work because it went in the toilet. (It was actually working just fine (THANK GOD) but I wan't to put it in the dry and store to suck out any moisture. It has been working just fine but I swear I might have aged 10 years in that moment.

The days are getting longer and longer it seems. Having Calleigh still in the hospital is upsetting beyond words. The fact that I have to go visit my daughter is just not right. I have been reassured there is nothing wrong except she is a slow eater. She has been in the hospital since 6/10/09. It's so long. Trying to spend enough time with her while also making sure the boys are cared for and find a sitter for them every day in the mornings is difficult to say the least. Not to mention I go up every night when Frank gets home from his afternoon visit. I think I have only put the boys to bed for night once since she was born. While I know they are fine with Frank it makes me sad because I love to put them to bed at night. While I try and spend as much time as possible at the hospital it never seems like enough time. To know she is by herself makes me literally sick to my stomach. I know she is receiving great care and the nurses are beyond wonderful but it's not the same. They spend a lot of time holding her and giving her attention but ITS NOT ME. It's someone else. Please pray she will be home soon. I don't know how much more I can take...


Our day looks like this:
8:00 amOut of the house to get Cormac to school and drop off Ciaran and Colin at whoever is babysitting them

9:00 arrive at hospital

11:30 Leave hospital to go pick up Cormac and then Ciaran and Colin

12:30 home/lunch/nap

While the boys nap, I cook, clean, laundry and try and figure out when I am going to be able to get groceries or get to Target for much needed food and supplies.

4pm Boys awake from nap. Frank goes directly from work to see Calleigh. I start dinner and feed us.

6:30 Frank arrives home from hospital

7PM I leave for hospital

10 PM I ususally get home from hospital

AND I am pumping every three hours around the clock for 20 minutes. So, while Calleigh isn't home I still don't get to sleep.

Pretty much don't see Frank at all and never get to eat with him since he doesn't get home from the hospital.

What doesn't kill us makes us stronger, right?

Ok, lots to say...

The craziness has continued for our family. Calleigh is still in the hospital BUT she will be COMING HOME TOMORROW!!! We are so thrilled.

She also PASSED her newborn hearing screening. I am so excited about her passing the screening. I know we could have handled it if we needed to but GOOD GOD, can we just catch a break! This poor little girl has had enough between her belly and her lip she has had her share so I am just relieved her hearing is fine.

The boys continue to be your typical three year olds. We have awesome days and then every once in a while is a day from hell. (like yesterday) They have been through a lot this past month with Calleigh in the hospital. Lots of changes to their normal routine. Lots of less time with Mommy while I have been at the hospital. I have to cut them a break. I am sure they can tell we are under a lot of stress.

On to some cute stuff.......

I am driving Cormac home from school the other day. He was by himself in the truck. He says "Mommy?" I respond "yes, Cormac?" Know what he says next???? He says "Mommy, you make my heart super happy" I look in the rearview mirror and he is making a heart shape with his hands. (Insert flowing tears here....) I swear it was the sweetest thing I ever heard. I tried to tell Frank about it but cried again just retelling the story.

We took the boys to see Calleigh again on the fourth of July. THe nurse was kind enough to dress her in her specail holiday dress that was kindly given to us by Nadine. They just loved seeing her again.


The boys are still not allowed in by her so they get to look through the window. Here's is one of our first family portraits (with a window between us :)


Miss Calleigh Catherine. The tube was how she was eating until she mastered the bottle.




We went to the fireworks after our visit. They were not so thrilled with them. NOt scared but not over joyed either. I popped Cormac's implants off and he liked the firworks much better. (guess that's one advantage he has. I couldn't turn off Ciaran or Colin's ears!!)



Hopefully, i will have time to update once Calleigh is home tomorrow. I know i will have some better pictures once she is home with us.

Frank stopped home last week during work. The boys were so amazed at his big work truck!



Chillin in the morning....



We went to the zoo and fed the birds again this year. They kept trying to kiss the birds and many flew away but the looks on their faces is priceless.

Ciaran



Cormac



Colin



Three kings of the castle! They love to wear their capes and crowns.



Espsecially King Cormac (that is what Ciaran calls him now!)

Out of the mouths of three year olds....

Today we are leaving my sister Trisha's house (she has been helping me out tremendously since the baby was born) and her landscaper was finishing with the lawn. Colin says to me "Mommy, is that his job?" I say, yes. Just like Daddy works for the phone company and Uncle Mike drives the UPS truck (their latest obsession) that is his job. Well, I decide to ask them "what is Mommy's job?" After some thought from the three of them Ciaran says "Mommy, your the best driver. That's your job. You drive us everywhere" Cormac chimes in that I "cook and clean" and Colin says "But you don't do the laundry. Daddy does" (Yep, Frank does almost all the laundry. If I could only get him to put it away....)

Needless to say I got quite the chuckle on the car ride home. But really, in most ways, I am a driver, a cook, a cleaner, a problem solver, a referee, an advocate, a teacher. Being a Mom you wear many hats. There is no one job description that can define motherhood. It is an evolving job and no two days are really ever the same. While it is probably the most demanding job on the planet I also think it is the most rewarding job. And above all a Mom's most important "chore" of the day is to just love their kids. Not really much of a chore!

My kids apparently have there own language as well. They have about 5 words they say that are nonsense words but they all know what it means. Frank and I? We have no clue. If you ask them they won't tell you. The most frequently used nonsense word is "noneena". As much as I can figure out a "noneena" is a noun and causes them to act crazy whenever the word is said. Let alone one of them say "the noneena is coming" then all Hell breaks loose!

Cormac's spontaneous language is just growing by leaps and bounds every day. The things that come out of his mouth just amaze me. We are working on taking turns and having a conversation. Keeping him on topic isn't always easy but I am not sure how much that is related to hearing or just that he is a 3 year old. I am realizing his hearing is just amazing. Lots of things he says are just things he picks up in everyday conversations. The fact that today I had a conversation with him while I was in my bedroom and he was downstairs in the kitchen speaks volumes. He came in the house from the back yard and yelled "mommy, where are you?" I said "I am upstairs in my bedroom". He answers back "you're in your bedroom, what are you doing up there?" (I was pumping for Calleigh) I tell him this and he says "oh, you getting milk for the baby?" SOmetimes it's hard to remember he is deaf. I mean, I always KNOW he's deaf and our lives revolve around language aquisition BUT we have been doing this for almost two years and it's just part of our normal routine. It no longer seems like we are always working more like it's just our life. Does that make sense?

The boys met Calleigh!!!

Calleigh was moved to another room in the NICU (she graduated :) ) and the room has a window. We took the boys to "meet" her today. To say they were excited is an understatement!

Make sure to stop the music so you can hear the boys talking. To stop the music scroll down and pause the music player on the right.,







Calleigh is doing well. She is still not eating enough by bottle to get sprung but she is making progress every day. She is almost 7 pounds and is looking chubbier every day. She is so cute its unbelievable.

We are still running around like crazy.

"You're the best Mommy in the whole wide world.

You are super smart and super sweet." This is what Ciaran told me today on the car ride home from school. He just said it for no reason what so ever. I had to document it so I can show him someday. In case you couldn't guess, it made my whole day. Ciaran is by far the sweetest child. He loves to cuddle and hug and kiss me and Frank. He says so many sweet things. He is quick to touch Cormac's cheeks and tell him he is so "adorable" or "sweet". Lately, he's been telling Cormac he is beautiful since Cormac has been wearing a tiara around the house :).

Sure, there are times during the day when I think the three of them are little hellions but man it's so worth it to hear them say such wonderful things. I hope it's a reflection of how I talk to them. I make an effort every day to point out all the good they do and recognize kindness. Trust me, I spend a lot of the day telling them what they did wasn't nice or was fresh so I figure I gotta point out the good as well. You would be surprised at how quickly behavior changes when I am praising one for doing something sweet or for behaving nicely and listening to Mommy. All kids want their parents approval and it's sometimes easy to forget to point out the good.

I will say the three of them were filled with EXTRA energy today. Blame it on days and days of rain. Blame it on them being all thrown off by the baby still being in the hospital and our lives have been so hectic lately but WOW they were energized. I need to find something to do tomorrow to wear them out.

On the potty front. We have made a GIANT leap the last two days. Colin has FINALLY agreed to wear "big boy underwear". He has been wearing a pull up but doesn't go the bathroom in it but REFUSED to wear underwear. Well, yesterday he decided he was done with pull ups. He did great today in his underwear. He had one mishap in the morning but other than that he was perfect all day. Gotta love three three year olds getting out of diapers. Just in time for Calleigh.

As for Miss Calleigh. She is doing really well. She is eating more. Tonight she was bumped up to 25cc (30 cc is an ounce) and was switched back to breast milk :) She isn't taking it all by bottle but is making improvements each day. She weighed 6pounds 10 oz tonight. That's up 9 oz from her birth weight. She is starting to look chubby! She is just a beautiful little girl. I hate leaving her at the hospital but I know she received the best care while she is there.

Frank is finishing her room tomorrow. It's really almost done. He just has to put in the new light fixture, finish the wainscoting (just a small bit more) and move the computer downstairs. Not too much. Her room is turning out just like I envisioned. So pretty and girly!

On a side note, please say some prayers for some of the babies in the NICU with Calleigh. It seems a large number of very premature babies (a 23 weeker, a 24 weeker and a another 24 weeker who only weighs 13 oz) have been born in the last few days. They are so tiny and are really struggling right now. They could use some extra prayers.

Busy days

The last two weeks have been hectic. Calleigh is already 16 days old. She is still in the hospital. She is doing great especially the last two days. She is starting to eat more and more. I have guilt for not being with her all day. I have guilt for leaving the boys so much to see her. It has not been easy but somehow we have been working it out. Life will be so much better when everyone is under one roof.

On Tuesday we went to Summit Speech School for their graduation ceremony. Cormac isn't graduating but all the preschoolers were involved in the program. I swear, I cried through the entire show. These kids have come so far. I have known a lot of them from the beginning of group class. I have seen them all make huge strides over the past year or so. What really got me crying was the music. They played the song "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus. (It's playing on the blog as you read this :) ) Last week on the ride home from the hospital that song came on the radio. Frank was driving and I told him to listen to the word to the song. I said "this should be the anthem for our family". I was crying like a baby. Well, I walk into graduation and they are reading the lyrics from that song. It was all I needed for the water works to start.

Here is a little video from the ceremony. Cormac is wearing the red hawaiian shirt. He is the smallest kid up there. I am pretty sure he is one of the youngest at the school at the moment.



Even though Calleigh isn't home I am still not allowed to sleep through the night. Since I want to breast feed her if possible I have been getting up every three hours to pump. Not an enjoyable experience but necessary.

Cormac also got his evaluation from Summit. I will give you all the good news about it in another post.

Some pics

Our first time holding Calleigh, a long six days after she was born



Our second time....


Father's day


Father's Day Morning

A quick update

Calleigh had surgery on Friday. By far, one of the longest days of my life. She did great and is still in the hospital recovering. Having to send your 9 day old child into surgery is heartbreaking. You try and stay positive and know it will be ok but when they take her from you, well you just fall to pieces. She is doing well and we are praying for a speedy recovery.

Turns out she has something called Hirshprung's Disease. Luckily, there are no long term effects. Once she is over these intial hurdles it will be smooth sailing.... The odds of getting Hirshprungs are about 1 in 6,000. Our hospital delivers about 6,000 babies a year. We are the ONE. The odds of having a deaf child are something like 1 in 1,000. We are the ONE. The odds of having triplets I am not sure of BUT we are the ONE. Frank thinks we should have won the lottery. I mean, what are the odds of the lottery?? BUT the odds seem to be working against us.

She still hasn't had her hearing test. I am nervously waiting for them the test her. I have a pretty good feeling she can hear but one can never know. However, she almost always tries to open her eyes when Frank or I speak to her, not when the nurses do. She also startles to loud noises in the hospital so I am keeping positive.

The boys have yet to meet Calleigh. I think they are starting to doubt I really had a baby! They have been such troopers through all this. We have been away from them alot and I have horrible guilt! As a treat we took them to their first movie yesterday afternoon while on a break from the NICU. We saw the movie UP. The boys were awesome in the theater. They loved the movie and of course, the popcorn.

That's all for now. Today is Father's Day so we will try and make today all about Frank and how thankful we are to have him!

Still waiting...

for Calleigh to come home. BUT we have been able to hold her the last two days. It is just wonderful. SHe is doing well. Breathing room air with a little pressure for some part of the day and on totally on her own for other parts of the day. Her main issue is her belly. She has yet to poop and she is a week old (already). Not sure what is going on. They ran some tests which all came back OK. They did another test yesterday but we won't have results until tomorrow or Friday. She looked wonderful today and the dr said it's the best her belly has looked since birth. We are praying she just needs more time and it's nothing serious. They had stopped all her feeds because she wasn't tolerating them. Today they started her again at 11am and she tolerated the feed. WOOOOO HOOOO! They fed her again at 3pm so they will check to see if she keeps it all in about 5pm. If that works they will continue to feed her and hopefully she will start pooping. They are feeding her special formula right now but will switch to breast milk at her next feeding if she tolerates them. I am hoping she will take the breast milk because I know it's what's best for her.

Will try and keep updating when I can. It's so hard to be back and forth to the hospital with three little ones at home. Cormac is back in school this week so he needs to get there every day. Luckily, Frank is off until Monday. Who knows what will happen next week! One day at a time, right?

Home from hospital

I am home but Calleigh is still in the NICU. Breaks my heart to come home without her but she is in the best hands. Her breathing is great but she is having some issues with her belly. She can't seem to digest her milk. They don't think it's anything serious but have stopped her feeds and are giving her another day to regroup. They ran a ton of tests and they all were negative which is great. I haven't been able to hold her yet because she had a venus line in her belly. It just doesn't seem right to not be able to hold you own baby. The venus line should be out tomorrow so I think I can finally hold her. Keep your fingers crossed.

I will post more when we know more. Looks like at least another week before she will be home to join her family. Who said having a singleton would be easy???

Our Daughter has arrived!

Calleigh Catherine arrived on Wednesday, June 10th at 1:32am. She weighed 6 pounds 1 oz and was 18.5 inches long. She is just adorable and looks a lot like Cormac when he was a baby. I will post more details and pics when I am released from the hospital. The c-section wasn't as bad as I remembered however I had a horrible time with anesthesia.

She is in the NICU because she was almost a month early. She getting some support breathing with CPAP. She is doing well and shouldn't be here longer than a week.

I will share her birth story when I have more time. For now, I am missing my little men terribly. They are fine but feel the same way. I saw them yesterday for a few minutes and am hoping they can come visit tomorrow for a while. They are beyond excited to meet their sister but they are not allowed in the NICU so they won't meet her until she comes home :(

What happens when you wont sit still for a haircut???

YOu get your first crew cut!






I took Ciaran and Colin for haircuts on Friday because they were looking a little crazy. Well, Ciaran was an ANGEL. Sat perfectly. Got a cool short haircut we can spike up. Next came Colin. Ok, first I had to sit in the chair with him. Next I had to wrestle him (keep in mind I am nine months pregnant). So, finally I trapped him between my thighs and held his arms with my arms. The barber looks at me and says "buzz cut?" I agree without a second thought! Whatever gets the job done FASTER. Turned out he looks pretty darn cute with a crew cut. He actually loves it and gets a kick out of saying all his hair is gone. Ciaran told him he looked "dorable" (adorable). Very cute.

We almost had an ER visit this weekend with Ciaran. He slipped at the playground while climbing a ladder. He cut his lower lip and his teeth nearly came through his bottom lip. He's got a nice fat lip but no ER was necessary. He cried for maybe a second but good lord, the blood! The mouth just makes it seem so much worse. Of course, I was by myself and was trying to corral the three of them with one bleeding profusely from his lip. He was also wearing a BRAND NEW white soccer jersey. GOes without saying he would cut is face open while wearing the new shirt. It survived. What does he tell me when I get him in the car? "mommy, know what would make me feel better, Ms Donalds." (McDonalds) Well, we barely even go to McDonalds and normally if we do, it's a treat on Friday mornings for pancakes on the way to school. He said he needed bock bock (Yes, he can say chicken but all the boys call chicken, bock bock.) and french fries! Well, you know we drove straight there!

The babies room has been started. It's painted and the wainscoting is done is half the room. Poor Frank cannot get a break! I am praying he finishes this week so he is done for the weekend. It looks awesome so far. The crib is in our living room and just needs to be assembled. SLowly, we are making progress.....

Can you say nesting?

Ok, this baby is arriving in less than three weeks. We are SO NOT READY! When I say that I mean the house is not ready. The basement is almost done but the floors aren't in yet. Her room isn't painted or ANYTHING. Frank is supposed to do it this weekend. Problem is it currently being used as our playroom. The new playroom isn't ready and we have nowhere to put all our stuff. I wasn't too worried but suddenly I am freaking out. The house is a disaster. I can't seem to keep it up lately. The boys are a wrecking crew. We are out of the house for so many hours each day because of school I don't get to get anything done in the mornings. By evenings I am wiped out. YIKES!! God forbid, I go into labor early. We are royally screwed. There is no way I can bring a newborn home to this place.

I need to outsource these boys for a day or so and try and make some headway. But honestly, at 9 months pregnant who really wants to do it??? Plus we just have nowhere to put anything until that basement has the floor. Please cross your fingers the flooring comes in early this week so it can be installed next weekend. I will feel much better. Frank says he will have the baby's room painted and put up the wainscoting by tomorrow. If that much is done I will feel better. I did organize her closet somewhat and have realized I should not be allowed to have a girl. I like to shop too much!! I didn't realize how much I have bought her! But hey, it's only one this time. I can do it. Girl stuff is just so much cuter than boy stuff.

Ok, i am going to try and relax now. Can you say nesting???

BIG NEWS!!!

Big news on two fronts! Can you say potty trained? Well, I can say it times three!! Potty trained, potty trained, potty trained!!! Yes, that is me doing the happy dance. It really calls for back flips but at 9 months pregnant I have to settle for dancing :) I was so dreading the whole process. Much to my surprise it was no big deal. I think timing is everything. They were ready. They were old enough and they just got it. It didn't even take more than a few days. Colin is still wearing a pull up but he doesn't go the bathroom in it. He just refuses to put on underwear. Not that big a deal. He can wear a pullup. We only need diapers at night. But I expected that. They are so cute in their little underwear!

I can't believe it went so smoothly. Now, it's a royal pain when we are out because they have to use the potty in stores, restaurants. You name it and we have gone the bathroom there! It's a production with three of them especially trying to get them to not touch anything. I think I need to buy stock in Purell. Actually, I need to invent something where I can just spray down their whole bodies when they are done!

Now, I know all the peeing and pooping is exciting BUT I HAVE GREAT NEWS that does not involve the children. Any children for that matter!

My baby clothing business, myliltees
is officially being sold in a baby boutique! I went on my first sales call on Friday and on Monday morning the store called me to tell me they wanted to sell our clothing line. Nadine and I could not be happier. We have worked hard on this business. (Nadine especially) I am so excited. We are now marketing to more boutiques but for my first sales call to be a success, well, it was a confidence booster to say the least. We hope to have it in 100's of stores throughout the country. If you know anyone who would be interested in wholesaling please pass the website along. We are starting locally but are hoping family and friends will get us information on their favorite baby boutique in their neck of the woods. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

I wanted to have a celebratory drink but that will have to wait until after the baby arrives. By the way, we know when THE BIG DAY is...... June 25th is my C-section. That is only three weeks from Thursday.

We are still doing the commute to New Providence every morning. It's like a part time job! The benefits are so worth it but it's exhausting and we are going through some serious gas commuting both ways! Cormac's last day of school is Tuesday the 23rd of June and then he doesn't go back until after 4th of July. After the 4th of July he will only have about 4 weeks left at Summit Speech School. This makes me sad. He really loves it there and is doing great. I wish he could continue at Summit on a part time basis just to cover his therapy but they only enroll for 5 days a week. What's my dream for Cormac? I would love to see him in mainstream preschool two days a week and at Summit for three mornings a week. A girl can dream, right? He will get great support from Summit Speech School throughout his education and we are lucky to have them and grateful our school district is willing to work with them to come up with what is best for Cormac.

Friday night we took the boys to their first baseball game. We were given free tickets to the Jackals game by my sister. I think in total their were close to 50 people in the group. I thought it would be a great opportunity to bring the boys and see how they did at the game. It was a beautiful night. The seats we had were right next to a big field of grass. My boys spent most of the time playing on the grass and weren't that interested in the game. Ciaran actually sat next to me for a while and watched. He had lots of questions and I told him the "rules of the game". We used it as a wonderful language oppotunity for all the boys. Lots of new words for Cormac to experience. Jackal in particular! The mascot was running around and Ciarna kept calling him a camel. We learned a new song "take me out to the ballgame".

They mostly did this all night....



Cormac did cheer on the Jackals...


Ciaran found a baseball....



And Colin quickly confiscated it...


And what's a game without some ice cream?


All in all it was a really good time.

We left for the beach on Saturday morning. It's not Memorial Day Weekend in NJ if you don't go down the shore! We had to bring Duke with us this time and the boys thought it was hilarious that Duke was coming in the car with us. Usually, he would stay home with Duchess and we would have someone take care of them. But with Duchie girl gone we took the big dope with us.

Here is the big dope, Duke. He was reading a Dora book :)



My kids just love the beach.








We couldn't of had a better weekend.

On a side note, Cormac had no problems hearing me on the beach. We left his implants on since he wasn't going in the water. Even on Sunday when it was really windy he did so well. Never missed a trick. The beach is also filled with language opportunities. He can name just about every animal that lives in the ocean. By far his favorite is when the parasail boat goes by. He LOVES to see the people up in the parasail. You couldn't pay me to do it! I have a feeling he will be doing it as soon as he is big enough. I'll let Frank go tandem with him and keep my feet on the ground!