Up to our knees in...

You can fill in the blank. The dreaded stomach flu hit the entire Lippens household minus one (not sure how Jeff avoided it). Wow. Yuck. Is it over yet? God I hope so.

Tyler got it first - scared the heck out of me when he barfed all over me - I never even saw it coming! He was so pitiful - we just laid on the floor in the basement (did I mention our AC was out and it was 85 degrees?) and jumped up every time he moved. Next was Haley. By then we had learned a little and we were better about making it to the sink (although she shook her head no every time we ran toward the sink...I think she thought we were going to put her in it, bless her heart). Then there was Elli...and by then we were pros...if you can become a pro at dealing with a barfing toddler! They were all so pitiful...it just plain sucks seeing them so sick. After a day of barfing came a day of well, you know. And to top it off, by that time I had the bug and Jeff was left to deal with the cleanup on his own. He really does deserve Father of the Year for what he endured!

Since then, we have been staying busy playing and growing! I think our babies are officially not babies anymore! Here are a few photos - you can see for yourself!


HALEY IS A COLTS FAN!!! GOOD GIRL!!!



















NOW THIS TAKES SERIOUS PACIE TALENT!!


















TYLER FIGURED OUT HOW TO STAY COOL IN THE SUMMER!!!



















ELLISON SNUGGLING WITH HER STUFFED ANIMALS!!!



















ONE DOULBE AND A SINGLE HOOKED TOGETHER...SWEET NEW RIDE!!! (We ditched the triplet stroller because of the attention it attracted - now we can split up - by the time people realize we are a triplet family we are long gone!!!!)

















WE ARE WORKING ON USING SPOONS...IT'S BEEN A HUGE SUCCESS.


















DANCING WITH DADDY



















A BOOK BEFORE BEDTIME



















BATHTIME...A SPLASHFEST...WE GET AS WET AS THEY DO!!!


















ELLI IS A CLEMSON FAN!!! GO TIGERS!!!

How can I resist?

"Mommy, why does daddy drag his foot when he walks?"

"Mommy, why does daddy drool when he smiles?"

"Mommy, why does daddy run into walls?"

Well baby, this is why...






































What more can mommy say?

Labor Day Fun!

I am the first to admit that the first year with triplets was just downright HARD. Period. Sometimes I look back and wonder how on earth we did it. I guess the power of prayer and laughter combined is pretty strong. I'm also the first to say that now that the babies are 18 months old, thing are still HARD! No, seriously, we are really enjoying this phase of their lives. Yes, they are a handful, but they are so much fun! They are so curious and are trying to say new words all the time. As a matter of fact, "Bob" is now affectionately known as "Bo" - we're getting closer to Nemo...just not quite there yet! Elli can say "milk" VERY clearly, but she says it without opening her mouth. Try it...not easy is it?! Haley says "piggy piggy piggy"...could be a commentary on our recent weight gain, or hopefully it's just her way of saying how much she loves playing "This little piggy"!!! Early on, I half-heartedly taught them a couple of words in sign language. Tyler has picked up on it really well. He knows the sign for "milk" and "more" and actually uses them appropriately which just blows me away. One of these days I need to take the time to learn more words for him!

Our final weekend of summer was a blast! The babies donned their life vests and went for a swim, and we went on a couple of boat rides! They LOVE being on the boat! Tyler was especially mesmerized when Daddy and Uncle Todd were wakeboarding...I will need a separate blog entry for those priceless photos!!! Elli loved the sunset cruise and fell asleep on the boat! Haley had a ball waving at all the boats we passed! I took a few photos of the girls on the evening cruise (Tyler was hiding from the camera)...might have to send these first ones to my rep at Costa del Mar! And of couse, some other summertime photos...


Ellison


















Haley


















Hey Tyler, can I have a ride?


















32oz shake split 3 ways...a true lesson in sharing!

What?!

OK - so if you've been with the blog for awhile, you already know that our children are absolutely mesmerized by "Finding Nemo" - they've been watching it every night before bedtime since they were about 3 months old. And they now have some favorite parts we have to see before we go to bed - like when Nemo gets initiated into "tankhood". They all try and make the chanting noises the fish make - it's very cute!

We've been working on saying words for awhile now...Elli has mastered doggy and daddy, although sometimes I think she gets Jeff confused with Hartwell...hmmm...Haley has UH-OH down pat and tends to draw out the OH part as long as she can...Tyler tries really hard to say Nemo - he curls his tongue up and makes a little OH noise - we're still missing the NEM, but hey, we'll take what we can get! Since Tyler was trying to say Nemo, we asked the girls, "Haley, can you say Nemo?" (shakes her head no), "Elli can you say Nemo?" To which she replied VERY clearly...BOB. What?! So we asked again..."Elli can you say Nemo?" and again, she said...BOB. So now every night, we watch "Finding Bob", although we're not quite sure how the little-orange-clownfish-from-the-reef came to be called Bob...

Ice Cream!

There's nothing better than watching the babies experience all the "firsts" in their lives. First steps, first solids, first swim in the lake, first words, and today's first...ice cream! They loved it! Haley was partial to the vanilla - not a big fan of the chocolate, but Tyler and Elli loved it all! I'm sure this will be the first of many Saturday evening runs to the ice cream shop!

They are all starting to interact more with eachother - it's really fun to watch! Tyler loves to give the girls kisses...in reality, he just head butts them, but hey, it's the thought that counts! Elli and Haley were cracking eachother up in the car last week by touching hands across the back seat. Someday that won't be so funny to them (she's touching meeeeeeeee!!!!!)!!! They have the most fun when we put them to bed at night...they spend about 30 minutes cracking eachother up! We're not really sure what's so funny, but they all laugh hysterically! Thank goodness they are all confined to their individual cribs - I can't imaging the mayhem if they could get out of bed!!! Just another "first" to look forward to (by the looks of one of Haley's photos, it won't be long)!






































































We had a great visit with Aunt Shelby and Uncle Adam! They brought the most adorable M&M shirts for the kids, and a special T-shirt for Tyler...not sure if dad will let him wear a UConn shirt, but I'll try and get a photo if he does!!!

Haley wishes she could have some M&Ms to eat!!

Fun in the Park!

Our first official visit to the park was a hit! They all loved the slide! Their friend Austin met us there, and they all rode the 4-baby teeter-totter! How perfect!


Haley and Austin
















Ellison





















































Let's see...updates...well, Haley has finally gotten the knack of walking. It took her awhile, but she's up and at 'em now! Now that she's walking, she just roams around the house talking...not really sure what she's saying, but she says it with everything she has! Elli is now running. We have a small hill in the back yard that she likes to run down! She's wiped out several times and tumbled head over heels, but she's a good sport about it! Tyler is such a snuggler and a big momma's boy! Jeff changes his diaper every morning, then he comes to find me in the bathroom while I'm getting ready. This morning the door to the bathroom was closed, so he just stood outside and yelled for me...too cute!

Tooth count: Elli has 8, Haley has 1, and Tyler has 1.

They LOVE smoothies, pancakes, cheerios, and PB&Js! Elli is super picky, so sometimes it can be a challenge to find things for her to eat. I am still doing a mostly organic diet for them, but the hour drive to the closest organic market can be a pain.

OK - I think I've hit the highlights! I hope you are all enjoying your summer! Thanks for stopping in to see us! Until next time...

Thank you, Cassandra!

This post is a few weeks overdue! Jeff and I want to send out a HUGE thank you to our nanny, Cassandra!!! She has officially been with us for one year! The year has flown by, and Cassandra and I have reminisced about how tiny the kids were when she started! I can't imagine how intimidating it had to be on her first day, but she took the job with a smile and has done such a wonderful job helping us raise the babies!!! The kids absolutely LOVE her! As a matter of fact, when we ran into her at IHOP last week, Elli threw a fit and refused to sit with us - she wanted to be with Cassandra!

People are always asking me how we manage triplets and both work. Well, we do it only because we have Cassandra. She makes it so that when we get off of work at the end of the day, we can just be parents. All the laundry is taken care of, bottles are made, toys are put away, the nursery is organized, oh I could go on and on!!! We really are so blessed to have someone who loves the kids the way she does!

So here is her long overdue debut on the blog! Thanks Cassandra! We all love you!