THREE YEARS OLD!!!

It's so hard to believe that these amazing little boys have been with us for 3 years now, yet sometimes it feels like they've been here all along & it's difficult to recall what life was like before them.

The boys sweet Triplet BFFs!!!

Well here is what these crazy boys are up to lately...

They have come so far verbally! It seems they never stop talking now, lol... Caden is more assertive in his speaking, beginning or ending his sentences with "mommy." "Mommy more milk please?" Or "I'm ready to get out of the tub mommy." His tantrums have cut down significantly since he has been able to communicate so much better. :)

Since they are talking more they are expressing some of their knowledge more, saying colors instead of just pointing to them, singing their ABCs instead of just identifying the letters, counting anything & everything, finding & calling out shapes in random objects. They also love to identify animals & make their sounds along with other objects like fire trucks & airplanes.

Strangely the more the boys talk the more they sign. I didn't start out teaching them to sign because of their speech delay but it did help out in that situation. When the boys started speech therapy it was said that as they start talking more they would drop the signing but just the opposite has happened & they are picking up more & more signs, combining signs, Kellan even signs his ABCs.

Caden; 1, 1.5, 2 & 3 years old

Their is no shortage on curiosity here. Garren & Caden ask what everything is & Garren asks what's it for. Kellan is more quiet & just looks at things, opening & closing them, driving them back & forth, really getting a good idea of how it works. All 3 of them get into everything & they've gotten really good at getting to where they aren't suppose to be. As if it wasn't bad enough when they learned to open or take down the baby gates, now they can put them back up too, so if I'm looking for one of them and see the gate still up I usually don't suspect they are in that room but not now! They will take the gates down, sneak into the room & put it bak up without making a peep, it's the silence that gives them away every time!

Adventure is a hot commodity for the boys too. Even Caden who was apprehensive to even climb on the playground equipment & go down a slide is now diving head first on his belly down the tallest slide he can find. Kellan has become a runner, though that is really NOT a good thing! He's really scared me a couple of times when he has run out doors of places we were shopping! He WILL get a harness & leash if he does that to me one more time! Garren is just a little daredevil, climbing up & hoping off of whatever & now leading his brothers right along with him.

The boys have been very challenging the past couple of months but I think (& hope) we are over the hump now & things are calming down. The boys wanted to test EVERY SINGLE LIMIT & pitch the most horrific tantrums when they didn't get their ways. Listening was also a huge challenge but is getting better with some old fashioned counting, 1... 2... 

Kellan; 1, 1.5, 2 & 3 years old

Keeping them busy has also helped a lot. We got somewhere to play everyday, a playground, (we have some good ones here) the tennis courts to chase some balls or just run or we travel a little for someplace new, indoors or just different. I usually save new/indoor places for bad weather days. 

I'm also planning to start a preschool homeschool curriculum soon. We've been working on letter sounds, sight words & the boys started trying to write letters on their own so we're running with it. Garren's learning style is different than Caden & Kellans so that's why I want to start with a curriculum. He needs a more hands on approach (like his mommy) than his brothers who seem to learn things by just seeing or hearing them a couple times.

The boys have a new obsession now, well since Easter. They had a few random items with Toy Story characters on them & had been inquiring about who they were so for Easter we got them the DVDs.we took them to pick out their birthday gift from us just knowing Garren would choose Jessie & Caden & Kellan would choose Woody. They completely surprised us & all 3 chose Buzz Lightyear! Kellan does have a little figure he picked up someplace that he is calling Woody, it's not actually Woody but we won't tell him that, lol...

Garren; 1, 1.5, 2 & 3 years old

Thomas, & Lightning are still a big par of our days, they have not lost their love or interest in them. Actually they also picked out some new train tracks to add to their current ones for their birthday too.

We are looking forward to the boys starting some sports & other activities soon, now that they are 3, they are all so active & busy i think they will really like soccer, gymnastics & t-ball! 

All 3 of the boys are so rough & tumble! They keep bumps, bruises & scrapes most of the time. They've turned our home into a giant wrestling ring or obstacle course! they really REALLY need a back yard!!! All 3 of them are also incredibly loving! They love to hug, kiss & cuddle, even with each other. When anyone gets hurt they are quick to offer a kiss & hug. With their big smiles & dimply grins they make it very difficult to get mad at them.

And of course we are looking forward to being a diaper free household in the near future too! Potty training has gone really well so far, Garren & Kellan have it down & Caden is "trying" he asks to "try pee pee in the potty?" & we of course let him. It's hit & miss for him though, I think he just doesn't have the feeling understood yet but he will in his time.

***This post is really random & all over the place but these are little details about this age that I want to remember so I wrote them just as I thought about them :)