Poor Pitiful Haddie Mae

Our 8 year old Haddie Mae had to have a few tumors removed 2 weeks ago. We found the first one on her hip 2 Christmases ago. It was the size of a grape at the time & our vet then didn't think it was any cause for concern. He aspirated it & it just looked like a fatty tumor. Fast forward a year, we're getting ready to move & took the pups in to make sure they were up to date on everything they needed before the move, NOW the vet wants to talk surgery to remove the now baseball sized tumor. We were literally moving the next day, the vet said it was not life threatening but urged us to have it done with the new vet as soon as we could. Well moving & kids & holidays & kids & birthdays & kids &... we finally got all Haddie's (& the other four legged creatures) records sent to the new vet. Haddie had yet another bladder infection she needed to get cleared up & she was finally ready for surgery. The tumor was now the size of a grapefruit & we were told the surgery would be rough as far as recovery went. because of the size of the tumor, it would leave a significant void which would naturally want to retain fluid & fluid could lead to infection, so Haddie would have to be on crate rest until the incision healed & she got her stitches out. YIKES!

Eason waiting for his sister on surgery day...

Haddie did well in surgery, she did well enough that they were able to go ahead & clean her teeth while she was still under. The vet had to remove a significant amount of excess skin though so Haddie came home with a couple of drains in addition to too many stitches to count. The girl was pretty pitiful for a few days.

Poor pitiful Haddie Mae

The boys asked where her butt went, lol...

Haddie managed to get both drains & a few stitches puled out the first night, so she won herself a trip back to the vet & 6 staples, evenly distributed between her hip & chest incisions. She also won an e-collar to keep her from chewing anything else. The cone as we called it actually helped keep her pretty calm, who could run or jump with that big ol' thing on your head, lol...

The rest of the 10 days were pretty uneventful, lots of love, cuddles & extra treats were given. The boys even gave her some extra lovin being super careful not to tough her incisions. She did get a little spunky one day & over did it a little but she realized it that evening when she didn't feel so hot anymore & remained calm again until it was stitch removal day. We took her in Saturday to have the stitches removed & didn't realize until Sunday that they forgot to take the stitches on her chest out, oops! So Monday she went back one more time. She's back to her loud, sassy self & is making up for lost time chasing Eason & the kitty cats around the house :)

Project 52; Week 21

Pretty Girl, Haddie Mae

29/52; Patiently Waiting

Wednesday Haddie hobbled around all day, she wouldn't put any weight on her back left leg. Thursday she wasn't any better so I went ahead & called the vet. Of course the boys tagged along to get Haddie "fixed" up.

Project 52; Waiting Patiently {c,g,k}

When It Rains...

We've all heard the cliche saying "When it rains it pours." The past few weeks have been really hard grieving the loss of my dad & dealing with life in general but last week was the torrential downpour to my already dreary rain.

Last Monday our oldest pup Haddie had a couple accidents in the house. It was very out of character for her but tra the traveling & being away from home I thought (hoped really) that she was just upset. Tuesday she had another accident in the house but this time her urine was followed by bright red blood so I called the vet & Donna took her in that afternoon. She was there a while & had all kinds if tests run, turns out she had kidney stones, several really large ones & needed surgery ASAP. We took her back the next morning for surgery & had a pretty pathetic pup in our hands for several days.

Haddie just home from surgery

Eason was so worried about his big sister!

The girl a few days post-op

The week before my dad passed, we got a call from the property manager letting us know a 3 bedroom apartment was coming available. There was a waiting list when we moved in which is why we took a 2 bedroom so we decided to go ahead & take it. We spent the weekend moving out of our old place & into the new, so much fun with 3 toddlers in tow!

C, G & K taking a moving break

A couple of weeks ago Donnas dad went to the doctor for some back pain & blood in his urine. He had an ultrasound & the doctor saw what he believed to be a tumor in his bladder. Tuesday he had surgery to remove it, the doctor is pretty certain it's cancer so he sent it off to pathology to be tested & now we wait for those results.

Thoughts & prayers would be greatly appreciated by all of us right now! 

Rough Week

Donna sent me out this yesterday morning. I didn't have anyone to meet or any place I really needed to go so I decided to take the dogs to the beach for a walk.

Caden, Garren & the sick one, Kellan

Kellan & Caden

It's been a bit of a rough week here, last Monday started with Kellan coughing & just being cranky, Tuesday he was quite miserable & his cough was worse & he had a fever, by the time I got him to the doctor on Wednesday in addition to his cough, general misery & fever his nose had also let loose. Everything sounded & looked good on the inside & it was decided he had croup. There isn't a treatment for croup as it is a virus & just has to run its course. The next couple of nights were hard on him as his cough kept waking him up & he was having a hard time resting (in turn, so was mom!)

Caden's ER worthy look

He was happy with his ride until I pulled

out my phone to take a photo, lol...

Caden entertaining himself while

waiting for his test results

And right back to his spot on

the couch when we got home

Thursday morning Caden woke with same cough Kellan had, since it was most likely the same thing I didn't call the doctor. His other symptoms kicked in quicker than Kellan's though & by Sunday he was in really rough shape, crying every time he coughed or sneezed & not getting any rest. Donna & I decided he should be seen, so I took him to the ER. The doctors comments were "his breathing sounds tight, his lungs sound clear, his right ear is red & so is his throat." She suggested we run tests for the flu, strep, RSV & do a chest X-ray, so we did. He tested positive for RSV :( but everything else was fine including his chest X-ray. The ER doctor said to follow up with his pediatrician to keep an eye & hopefully keep it from going to pneumonia. 

I started giving Caden & Kellan breathing treatments after we got home from the ER (the dr there said it might help) & they both took the longest naps they had had in a week. They also slept better Sunday night than they had in a week. They did wake up at 3:30 am hungry but they haven't been eating well & barely touched their dinner so I gave them some graham crackers & milk & they went back to bed & slept until after 9 this morning. They look much better than they have & aren't coughing as hard but they still have runny noses & now Garren does too, he's also tugging at his ear :(

Lots of crying :(

Amidst all of this sickness the boys have been screaming & crying pretty much non-stop. They are fighting with each other, whining over their own misery, not eating, & needing to be held constantly! I was at my wits end by the weekend & it wasn't near over yet which is why Donna sent me out this morning. 

High tide!

Eason & Haddie after a nice

walk in the rain on the beach

The dogs & I had a nice but rainy walk on the beach. Eason chased the water as the waves came & went, Haddie ran from the water as it came up, lol. They both enjoyed running in the sand & just getting out for a while without the kiddos.

The boys all went to see Dr J this morning and so far we have no ear infections but some redness & fluid so I will keep my eye on that. Caden still has some tightness in his chest so I will continue the breathing treatments on him & hopefully everyone will be back to themselves in the next couple of days!

Labor Day Weekend & Our Furry Family Comes Home

We all had a great nights sleep on our fist night home from vacation!

My Dad & Marie arrived about 10:30 am on Saturday with the pup pups & kitty cat. Donna had run to the store so I went out to help bring our furry family in. I was pleasantly greeted with kisses from Haddie right in the car, Eason was wagging his non existent tail so hard I thought he'd throw his back out, lol... I brought them in the house first before going back to find little miss Murphee. The boys were so excited to see the pups & the feeling was mutual, the dogs chased the boys & the boys chased the dogs, it was hilarious! Murphee had hidden herself away under the front passenger seat & didn't come out willingly but I did get her out & into the house of chaos. She joined in & greeted each of the boys not quite letting any of them touch her. Garren was dying to see her so I held her so he could give her a kiss & hug.

It was a pretty lazy day. We were still recovering from vacation exhaustion & just hung out around the house visiting. Marie had brought everything to make dinner, she is good like that, lol... So I cooked up the peppers, onions & brats & we had a summer feast with pasta salad & potato chips.

Sunday morning we took the boys swimming at the pool & Sunday afternoon Donna & I headed out for an afternoon date. I made dinner that night & we ordered an on demand movie after the boys went to bed, another sort of lazy day.

Monday morning Marie helped me go through the boys' closet & reorganize it which was a huge bit of help. She took 4 boxes of clothes to give back to my bonus sisters, I packed up a box of stuff for my expecting sister, 3 boxes of stuff to donate & I had 2 boxes of trash when we were done. It's amazing the amount of stuff that was in there & it is still pretty full but there is now space to walk in & some shelf space for storage. We will have to stock up on winter clothes soon but we're waiting until the last minute so the boys don't outgrow them before they wear them. Currently Caden & Kellan can still wear 2T pants but I'm afraid they may be in 3T by the time the weather gets cool. They are in 3T shirts already. I think that Garren will be fine in 2T clothes since he is a little shorter than his brothers (for now) but I'm not taking any chances, lol...

My parents left right after the boys went down for naps & Donna & I lounged around for the rest of the day soaking up the last few relaxing moments before our vacation was officially over & she headed back to work Tuesday morning.

Dropping Off The Pup Pups

We are getting ready to head off on a 2 week vacation! I'm pretty excited to see my family in TN & to see Donna's family in NY! 

Donna has to put in some long days in order to leave work for 2 weeks, so I decided to go ahead & take Haddie, Eason & Murphee down to my dads a couple days early & get a little grandma & grandpa time in for the boys.

He who serves spaghetti, gives the bath ;)

The boys woke 2 hours early on Wednesday, so they got a little early morning outdoor playtime at Grandma & Grandpa's

Kellan in his element, DIRT!

I also visited with a couple friends & had an awesome play date at a new indoor playground in Orlando!

A fun & fast slide!

Caden branching out & trying new things, lol... Not so much

I'm pretty pitiful when it comes to leaving our pets though, I cried when telling them goodbye today & tried to explain that we would be back for them. PITIFUL! I know! 

Lord help me when the day comes that I have to leave the boys overnight!

Haddie Mae

Today is our sweet Haddie Mae's 6th Birthday!

Outdoor Friends...

Haddie & Eason have made several new friends since we arrived at my parents. This past week though, they have made a couple of "different" friends. They are very curious about their new friends, but their new friends play a little hard to get. None the less, they search for them every time they go outside & are disappointed if they aren't where they left them :(

It has been pretty rainy the past week or so, so we haven't had out afternoon choo choo walks with the boys but I'm very excited for them to meet Haddie & Easons new friends the turtles :)

Happy Leap Day!!!

I vacuumed & dusted today. All the boys toys, blankets & boppies where out of the way, so Haddie & Eason took advantage of all the space to run & wrestle in. It makes me happy to see them play, I feel bad that they don't get the walks & visits to the dog park like they did before the boys arrived. Hopefully that will change when we get out of this 3rd floor apartment. :o)

They have been playing this way since we brought Eason home, almost 2 1/2 years ago.

Happy Leap Day from Haddie & Eason!!!

Road Trip #3...

This past weekend we took a little trip to south Georgia to see Nana & Papa (my mom & step dad.) We wanted to get the most of our long weekend so we decided to leave Thursday night after Donna got off work. We fed the boys & the pups dinner, let them play a little bit & then gave the boys their bottles. As soon as they finished their bottles we loaded everyone up & hit the road. We left about an hour later than we had planned but the drive went great! The boys slept the whole way, we just stopped for bathroom breaks & gas. The boys had a little trouble settling back down after we arrived but they weren't too bad considering we had to set up the pack & plays before we could put them to bed.

We had a fantastic visit with everyone. Saturday my sister, brother in law & nephew came up to visit too. The boys got a lot of cuddle time with everyone & the pups goy to run & run & run. (my parents have lots of land) Chandler, my nephew was extra snuggly too. He's never really climbed up on me to hug or be held & he did this time :) While we were there Kellan really mastered his crawling.

 My nephew, Chandler 

 Garren & Eason

Chandler, Caden & Kellan

(Donna & Haddie in the background)

We decided to drive home at night again & did the same as when we drove down, only this time we got on the road just before the boys bedtime instead of just after. This got us home at 1am instead of 2:30am & we had the same results with the boys sleeping the whole way & they went right back to sleep when we got home :)

Teethers & Dog Bones

I debated on posting about this... Didn't want to gross anyone out, but if I'm going to continue to share our adventures with triplets, I must share it all, LOL!!!

That said, if babies & dogs interacting is offensive to you skip this post.

So the boys are moving around quite a bit now. I wouldn't call it a full fledged crawl, but Caden & Kellan get to where they want to be via their hands & knees. Garren also gets around via rolling & spinning on his belly.

Until now, Haddie & Eason have always been safe to carry a bone to a corner & chew it peacefully but more & more the pups want to interact/share with the boys. It started with Haddie bringing her ball to them in an attempt to get one of them to throw it for her. When that didn't work she started bringing her stuffed toys to them. Of course all these things head directly towards their mouths.

Well the other night Donna & I were eating dinner while the boys played in the living room floor. The pups had their bones & had taken them to their corners to chew in peace. Suddenly I noticed it was a little quieter than usual & said to Donna, "why do I feel like I'm going to turn around & someone is going to down the hall or someplace?" I turned around & all 3 boys were still in the living room... Each one had a toy in hand/mouth... OMG KELLAN IS CHEWING A DOG BONE!!!

There are no pictures because I took it from as quick as I could!!!

Over the past few days I have noticed that Eason has observed Haddie offering her ball & stuffed animals & now he gives his bones to the boys. I have repeatedly taken a bone from Kellan, even once while lounging with his Mama on the couch watching tv. I have tried to convince Eason to take his bone elsewhere to chew but this pup LOVES his babies & generally does not leave them out of sight. (he even goes in their room & checks on them if one fusses during nap time) Kellan has also started chasing Haddie when she has her bone. Haddie will share toys but definitely NOT food or bones. He must really really like them because he screams when I take them away, from him or the pups.

So we have decided that instead of the pups getting their bones when we have dinner, they are going to have to wait until the boys go to bed & we will not be able to let leftovers linger on the floor for the next day.

9 Month Check-Up

The boys had their 9 month check-up yesterday. They are all doing really well & Dr H. is quite happy with their development & growth :)

Here's how they are measuring up:

Garren is 19lbs 14oz, 27.5" long & has a head circumference of 18"
still in the 75th percentile

Kellan is 21lbs, 28.5" long & has a head circumference of 18"
still in the 90th percentile

Caden is 21lbs 9oz, 28.5" & has a head circumference of 18.75"
down to the 90th percentile from 95th percentile

They had their iron levels checked which all came back great & they got a Hep B vaccine. There are normally no vaccines at 9 months but because they didn't get their first Hep B vaccine until they were a month old, they were slightly off schedule with that. They also had their teeth varnished at this visit & Dr H. said their 2 front teeth on top are on their way... oh fun!!! Actually they have all been chewing and pushing their thumbs or pacifiers into their top gums for a while now, other than a little sleep disruption teething hasn't been super bad. (fingers crossed that I didn't just jinx it by saying that out loud)

The boys are up to 32oz of milk (formula) a day & they are eating 2 to 3 tablespoons of food 3 times a day. We are going to work on doubling their food intake & cutting back their milk by 8oz. This should be interesting... the boys love to eat but they LOVE their milk!!! We are also going to add meat to their diets once a day now.

Their colds are gone for the most part now, still a little congestion but no more runny noses & their ear infections have all cleared up. Lets just hope we can stay healthy for a little while now!!

Kellan & Caden

Caden rocking on his hands & knees, looking determined...

Kellan rocking on his hands & knees...

Kellan, Garren & Caden playing with a couple of their new toys

Garren

Kellan

Caden, that tongue has been hanging out a lot lately...

Haddie trying to get Garren to throw her ball for her...

Garren picking up the ball...

& he tried to put it in his mouth, YUCK!!!

Garren making a funny face (also very common the past couple weeks) Caden & Kellan