Monday Morning Update - The Holiday Season is Here!

We had a great Thanksgiving Weekend around here! Both Dave and Lucas had really short work/school weeks and enjoyed hanging out with me and the little kids.

Thanksgiving was nice. We put the Macy's parade on in the morning and relaxed until the Roach's came over for dinner around 2:00. Dave fryed our 20 pound turkey in his new fryer from Cabela's! He was so excited to get to use it! We have not had a roasted turkey since we bought our first fryer several years ago. The turkey always turns out juicy and delicious! Aunt Jen was in charge of the side dishes and she did a great job. We all ate a ton, enjoyed watching football and spending the afternoon with each other. It was a fun day!

I looked over the ads for black Friday and decided to hit the Toys R Us at midnight on Thursday! I stayed up, drove the 10 minutes to the store about 11:40, saw the INSANE amount of people and traffic and came right home! I decided that my sanity was not worth the $30- 50 I was going to save. Instead, Fri morning Dave took over toddler duty and I ventured out around 7 to see if I could score any deals. I did awesome! WOO HOO! I scored most of the deals I wanted the night before at Toys R Us and even a few I found just cruising the store! I did so well on time that I called Dave and asked if I could hit Target before going home. He and the kids were having a fun time without me, so he said to go ahead!

All in all, I was out for 4 hours and got our xmas shopping 99% DONE! Go ME! That is a big worry off my mind!

Lucas went camping Fri night thru Saturday evening and we even got most of the stuff wrapped!

Our friend Paige came over Saturday night to babysit and we had a night out! (Thanks again Paige! - whenever you need some more toddler time, just let me know!) Dave and I really enjoyed the time out just by ourselves - we really need to add that to the monthly calendar!

Sunday was church in the morning and then we started to decorate for xmas! We put the tree up and tonight we will be decorating it! It was so much fun watching the kids get excited seeing all the lights and decorations! Our neighbors put a ton out in their yard and the kids stare out all night!

We are going to a tree lighting tonight and then on Friday at the base! I love all the holiday happenings! Can't wait to see the kids faces tonight!

I am also working on updating the blog and hoping to get a new pic for the header while we are out tonight so please be patient with my "work in progress"!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just a very quick post to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!! The kids had a really great time visiting with The Roach's and their Nana and eating lots of great food!

I hope you all had a great day! Now I'm off to Toys R Us for their Midnight sale!

Monday Morning Update -Fun with Leaves!

OK, I did not get many comments for the Cans for Comments, but I will be donating 10 cans to the Navy/ Marine Corps Relief Society's food bank. I really loved this idea and will probably do it again soon! Thanks Helen for including me!

We went Thursday night to check out the family photos we had done. They turned out awesome! We got a great family shot and everyone smiled for their individual shots -even Will! I can not wait to share them with you in a few weeks!

We had a pretty laid back weekend. We worked on getting the house ready for Thanksgiving. Dave bought a new, bigger turkey fryer and some cool gadgets to go with it!

The kids enjoyed the weekend and really had a blast playing in the HUGE leaf pile that Dave and Lucas made! Can you spot the kids in the piles? LOL!


Lucas

Logan

Will

Fight for Preemies!

Did you know that November is National Prematurity Awareness Month, and today, November 17, is National Prematurity Awareness Day!

I have to admit before I had the triplets I never thought too much about this topic. That all changed with my high risk pregnancy! It is very scary to realize that your baby, or in my case, babies are going to be preemies and have to spend time in the NICU.

William was 4lb 10oz at birth.
Logan was 4lb 12oz at birth.
Jessica was 3lb 10oz at birth.

They were only in the NICU 10 days! They got to come home together! (that is not the norm - I found out afterwards)

I am very thankful to the March of Dimes and the work they do! The advances in medicine have saved many many, babies, including my three, but still too many are lost. I am truly blessed to have 3 happy, healthy toddlers and want to help spread the word!

P.S. the photo shoot was exhausting, but I think we got some awesome shots! We go back Thursday to pick our fav's! WOO HOO!

and don't forget to Comment for Cans for Comments all this week! Even new comments to old posts count!

Monday Morning Updates - Cans for Comments, Sickies and the Show!

I am participating this week in Cans for Comments. For every comment I recieve on the blog this week, I will donate one non-perishable food item to the local food bank. I think that this is a great idea to help local food banks get ready for the holiday season. Thanks for starting this Helen!

It has been quite a weekend here at the Dudley house. The kids are still fighting off something, with little appetites and low grade fevers. Dave and I both have symptoms of head colds and Lucas is also starting to feel ill. UGH!!

Saturday Dave and I took the triplets to a show in New Haven. The Imagination Movers have a show on Playhouse Dusney. The crew LOVES this show! We even have a dvd for the car! The show was amazing and the crew had a blast! We got seats in the balcony's first row. That gave us a little more room for the kids to get up and dance and boy did they! One of the Movers, Rich, came up to the balcony and Jessica got to "high 5" him! She was so excited! Will spent the show on my lap, but he was really enjoying it. Logan and Jess keep bouncing from seats, to laps, to the floor to dance! They really enjoyed themselves! We got home around 7:30 and they were in bed by 8:00!

OK, we have the family photoshoot this afternoon. I hope to report back with good news! Until then - Bring On The Comments!!!

Happy 15th Anniversary to Us!

I can not believe that another year has gone by! It has been an amazing year and I look forward to many more!

This year has certainly seen its share of ups and downs, but Dave has been my rock through it all!

Dave, hon I love you so much but really don't have the words to express exactly how I feel! I only hope you realize just how much you mean to me and how important you are!

The sitter is set (I think) so I can't wait to celebrate this weekend!

All My Love, Kris

Lucas' Monster Golf Party

As you can see, Lucas had a great time at his party!

Monster Mini Golf is an exciting indoor monster themed glow in the dark 18 hole miniature golf course. This is not your average putt putt golf course! There is lots of excitement and adventure playing mini golf among scary but cool monster décor with custom and animated props!

First, it was time for pizza and b-day cake and presents! The pizza and cake were very yummy. (Dave brought some home for me!) Lucas enjoyed all his gifts and then it was off to play golf! Everyone had a real good time! Dave had a hard time taking pics in the dark, but you can see a little in the next few pics.




They have several walls covered with hand prints of people who celebrated b-days there and Lucas was able to add his print! How cool!



Lucas got several great gifts for his b-day, but the biggest hit was from Aunt Jen and Uncle Larry - a self contained frog habitat!
Here is a pic of Lucas' new pets: 2 African dwarf frogs!

The best part about these pets - only feed twice a week and change their water every 6 months! I think he can handle that!

Lucas also wanted me to let you know that Commando is doing great and growing big!

Monday Update - 2 Year Stats and Logan has Croup!

The crew had their 2 year well baby visit on Tuesday Oct. 27Th. Everyone did great! They were well behaved and let the doctor examine them with no fuss. They did not need any shots, but had to have blood work done. That was the most traumatic part of the day! Logan did the best and only need one try. Will fought us and had to have both arms pricked. Jess also had to be pricked twice, but they were unable to get her blood! Her veins are tiny! I am taking her later today to the hospital so that someone from the NICU can do her blood draw!

Here are the latest stats:
Will- weight 22.4 pounds(2%),height 33.8 inches(43%),and head circ. 19.6 inches(80%)
Logan-weight 24.4 pounds(10%),height 35.6 inches(78%),and head circ.19.5 inches(75%)
Jess- weight 20.2 pounds(1%), height 33.6 inches(35%),and head circ.19.1 inches(75%)

Pics of the crew after the visit- they look like members of a gang with those medical bandages on their arms! and yes that is pizza they have all over! LOL!




On Thursday night we had a bit of a scare. Logan was starting to sound very hoarse before bed and woke up coughing and wheezing very badly around 11pm. He also had a fever of 102. We brought him in bed with us, but Dave ended up taking him out on the couch around 3am to sleep more upright since laying down was causing Logan lots of trouble. During all this Jess woke up and ended up with me in our bed. It was a rough night and neither Dave nor I got much sleep. I called Friday morning to get an appointment since Logan was still wheezing and feverish, but they had no spaces open. We ended up having Dave come home early (around 1130) and I took Logan to the local hospital clinic while he fed Will and Jess and got them down for nap.

Logan and I were at the clinic for 4 hours! Luckily since it was nap time he slept in my arms for the majority of the time!
The diagnosis was croup/upper respiratory infection. The RSV test was negative. My poor guy had a chest x-ray, rsv swap, two shots of steroids, and vitals taken twice!
We almost had to stay because his O2 level dropped, but it came back up quickly. It was a rough weekend, but Logan seems to be a little better every day. He had no fevers at all yesterday! He still has a hoarse voice and runny nose, but that should be back to normal in the next few days. Even better- Will and Jess seem to have not gotten it! *knock on wood*

Lucas has his party on Fri night. He had a blast! Not many of his school friends came, but the people who did all had fun. I was sorry to miss it, but I kept everyone home since Logan was so sick. His favorite present - a pair of African dwarf frogs from Aunt Jen and Uncle Larry! I will post a few pics later this week from the evening. Dave called in reinforcements for me and his friend Paige came over to help me. (Thanks again Paige!)

Here is Jess wearing one of Lucas' new bandannas!

There's a teenager in the house!

Happy Birthday Lucas!!!

I can't believe that my first baby is no longer a little kid! He is becoming such a great young man! We have a very cool party planned for Monster Mini Golf tomorrow night!

I found this poem and tweaked it for Lucas!

The Triplets' Big Brother

He loves those triplets an awful lot
And helps them when he can.
But triple trouble came his way
The day their lives began.
He needs an army just to guard
The things he most enjoys.
And plugs to cover both his ears
From all the extra noise.
Sometimes they like to hug his neck
And then he knows he's blessed.
A little daddy to them all
He is the very best.


WE LOVE YOU LUCAS!!! Mom, Dad, Will, Logan and Jess

Awesome Autumn Adventure!

What could be better on a crisp fall day than a trip to the local cider mill for fresh cider slushes, hot cider and of course cider donuts! We took the crew while my sister and cousin were visiting. Everyone had a great time both eating donuts and playing in the huge pile of leaves!

Will loves to dance!

Everyone loves to listen to music and sing and dance along. However, it is next to impossible to catch on video since the minute they see the camera they stop! Our answer to this problem - film from behind them! Dave was able to finally catch Will dancing! Turn up your volume and enjoy!

Halloween 2009

Halloween was a blast! We started out with the kids in their wagon, but they really enjoyed walking to the doors, so we let them walk. Lucas pulled the wagon for us. We took the kids to just a few houses, but Jess and Logan were having a fun time walking around and getting candy in their bags! Will was the most uneasy, but as the pics show - he is definitely enjoying the candy! I am looking forward to next year when they will really "get it"!








While we had our company last weekend, we went to -

We went with the Boyers and walked thru the amazing carved and painted pumpkins! There were almost 5,000 pumpkins! Here are just a few of my favs!







This pumkin makes our princess look even tinier! LOL!

Birthday Fun!

I know that everyone has been waiting for birthday photos, but last week got away from me. We had a few different events the whole weekend that my sister and cousin stayed so I have tons to catch up on! We have the aquarium, the cider mill, Will's first day of school, doctor visits and new stats, and of course Halloween that all need to be blogged about! Also,this week Lucas becomes an official teenager! He turns 13 on Thursday. I guess I will try to break everything into small posts instead of one huge one so please check back often as I try to get back on track!

OK, with that out of the way, first up is the birthday party! It was a great party with only a few family members who traveled from far away (Thanks guys!) and a few close friends who I consider family. We rented out the community center like last year and brought the kids bouncer over for them to play. They had a blast, but I'll let the pics do the talking!