Month: September 2009

So loving these!

I got an email last week from a triplet mom looking for Rock, Paper, Scissors shirts for her trio. I set to work designing a set. I did have some for the boys when they were teeny, but they were pricey and thankfully, a gift. Heh. But these…I think I’m in love. (I know, I’m so dang full of myself these days, aren’t I?)
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Rock…paper…scissors! I am picturing Linus wearing Rock, pinning down Oliver (Paper), and Scissors (Miles) piling on top, for the win! (Right? Did I get my RPS stuff right?)

These come in white, pink, yellow, and light blue, in sizes 6M – 4T. For a mere $11.99 each! Woo! Let me know if you want them in long-sleeve, or onesies, or dark shirts (for an additional cost.)

Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention…I’ve also added some new sections to the store. One for grandparents, because I’ve come to realize at least half of my sales so far have been to grandparents. Also one for MoMs-to-be and one for car stuff.

Sponsor me!

Don’t forget, I need to raise another $475 $242 $162 $82 $22!!! to reach my goal of $500 for Children’s Hospital. George was just there the other night with Miles, again.  So go here and then click on Sponsor a Runner to sponsor me!

We did it! Thanks to everyone for sponsoring me, I exceeded my goal! Of course, you can still donate, if you’d like.

Now I just need to worry about walking 13.1 miles. Hmmm.

Our weekend

Am home with Miles and Oliver today. They all are having asthma issues, but Linus (since he’s on a preventative medication) is better off, and was able to go to daycare. Whew. Two, I can handle on a bad night’s sleep. Three would be iffy.

Had a fun weekend, mostly. I took the boys to my mom’s. It rained the whole time, which sucked, but it was okay. Got the boys’ hair cut on Saturday and that was about the most exciting part of the whole weekend. Until Linus had an asthma attack at midnight, (literally JUST as the movie I was watching was getting to a critical part!) and I had to call the ped and drive across town to one of the few 24 hour pharmacies. (Remember, I was visiting my mom.)

Yesterday, we came home, but I had to run some errands first and I think that was a bad idea. We went to Whole Foods to pick up some organic milk to bring to my friend’s house. I can’t believe how expensive organic milk is. But I certainly respect their desire to give it to the girls. Anyway, I’m just glad I don’t have that desire.

Anyhoo, when I got home, Miles wasn’t doing well, so George brought him to the ER.  They made it home in just a few hours, so that was nice.

How about some pictures?

Linus and Larry bonded over the weekend over this book. 🙂

Me and the boys

My mom and Larry and the boys:

Oliver stuck in a Bumbo at the hairdresser’s

The boys eating breakfast (and me hiding behind the paper in the back)

Playing at the hairdresser’s

Miles’s favorite new toy. Hmmph.

Miles asks for “hep”

This is funny. Note Linus’s new “thing”. He’s the one in the overalls.

Unbelievable, painful cuteness.

I can say that, they’re my kids.

I don’t think these have ever been posted before. This is vintage LOM here, people.

Cover your eyes, this might be painful. It might be better if you cover your eyes with your hands, then slowly peek through the cracks in your fingers, instead of suddenly looking at this collage of adorableness too suddenly, therefore risking blindness by a fiery blaze of preciousness.

Or something.

newborns
(If you click on the picture, you can see it EVEN BIGGER! You have been warned.)

These were taken the day Oliver was discharged from the hospital, December 15, 2007. I can tell you exactly which baby Oliver is, his outfit is slightly different. He’s the only one that got a “going home” outfit. By the time we brought Miles and Linus home two days later, I was too flustered to consider going home outfits.

Linus is in the short sleeves, Oliver’s in the way-too-big outfit, and Miles is the tiny one. I swear, Oliver looks like Oliver. 🙂

Wafflewafflewafflewaffle!

Waffles. So yum. But the wafflemaking in our house is strictly of the “stick the Eggo (or generic version thereof) in the toaster oven” variety. But not for much longer! I was recently approached by a website that sells a lot of kitchen items, including kitchen furniture, with the opportunity to review one of their items. I chose a waffle iron, because I’m quite excited to make real waffles for the boys.

Other waffle-related things to note:
Whenever I stay in a hotel and get the breakfast, I always get a waffle.

Miles ate at least one waffle for breakfast every day we were at Kristina’s last weekend.

Waffles remind me of my brother. Not sure why.

Oooh, and speaking of kitchen furniture, I’d really like a set like this. I just saw it on that site and it reminded me.

Anyway, keep an eye out for the upcoming wafflemaker review. Yum.

Now I’m in for it.

So, I think it’s safe to say we’ve spent a lot of time at Children’s Hospital. Mostly for the asthma stuff, but there were a few other visits, like Miles’s broken head on Christmas day, and the fun surgery I like to refer to thusly:

[-(tubes+adenoids)]x3

I kind of enjoyed math in high school. Until it got really hard and I had to cry and beg my calculus teacher to give me a C so I could graduate from our nerd school and not have to repeat the 12th grade back at my old high school. Oh, the humiliation! I also had to do this with my physics professor.

Pam + (physics + calculus) = not good.

Best picture ever from surgery day, by the way: (babies on sedatives are funny!)

So anyway. Back to the Children’s Hospital stuff. We have spent a lot of time there in the past year. When I saw that the inaugural Jazz Half-Marathon in October was also a fund-raiser for the hospital, I knew I wanted to do the race.

I’ve done half-marathons and marathons before. Before children. Two marathons, and several halfs. Maybe five? I can’t remember. The last one was the Mardi Gras half-marathon, which I did with my friend Kettie, mom of Henry from the last post. Anyway. Let’s just say it’s been a while.

But I’m nothing if not hard-headed and stubborn, and dammit, I am going to do this race. I am planning to walk it, so don’t panic about my lack of training. I’m going to hit the treadmill as much as I can before the race, but I’m walking it. I’m not worried about finishing. It’ll be fine. I promise. Walk walk walk. I can walk 13 miles, right? No problem.

Here’s where you come in. Help me raise at least $250. It’s not hard. I had to raise ten times that back in 2003 when I did the Marine Corps Marathon for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. $250 is nothing. But let’s try to raise more than that. For purely selfish reasons, of course. Whoever raises the most money gets a fun weekend trip to NYC, and I want that trip for George and I! (Also, imagine the red carpet treatment we’ll get, next time we hit the ER at 2 am for a breathing treatment!)

Anyway. It’s easy. You can donate online here (just make sure you put in MY NAME – Pam Kocke – into the “Name of Runner You Are Sponsoring” box, so I get credit for your donation.) If you’d prefer to write a check, you can use this form. Again, just put my name in the first blank after the “I,_____”. Don’t worry, you’re not committing yourself to running the race.

Thanks, and don’t forget to make your donation! Don’t worry, though, I’ll be reminding you often. 😀 Mwah ha ha ha ha…

Miles and Mommy go to Virginia

Okay, I’m going to try to keep this short, at least the words part.

Thursday
We leave NOLA. Flight is fine. Miles is restless, but we have an empty seat next to mine, so he is manageable. I brought an iPod with YGG on it, v helpful. We arrive in DC, Kristina picks us up. We go to heaven, aka Trader Joes. I buy a few things. We stop by a frozen yogurt place and Miles and I share a cup. He does not like coconut, I learn.

That evening, we relax and have burgers for dinner. Yum. Miles sleeps well.

Friday
Kristina and I accomplish Goal #1 of the trip, to win Super Mario Galaxy. We are awesome. We started playing in April, the last time she came to visit us. (Miles is napping at the time.) Then we go eat pizza and shop. I get lots of great deals at Kohl’s.

Miles finds the one thing in the store that he must have that is going to be fodder for embarrassing stories when he’s older. Hey, don’t look at me. He was the one who insisted on getting the Yo Gabba Gabba girl’s undies.
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After shopping, we go to Kristina’s husband Mike’s pawn shop. It is really awesome to have a BFF whose husband owns a pawn shop. I bought some gold earrings, Miles stared in awe at the TVs (and said “Gabba Gabba Gabba Gabba” to them.)
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Then we went to Heaven, part 2, also known as IKEA. Miles wanted to live there. I don’t blame him.
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That evening, we go and meet my sister and her family for dinner. Burgers again. Yum. Miles stays over with Aunt Jenny for a slumber party with his cousin Emily. I gave Jenny her birthday present, a leopard-print Snuggie.
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Saturday
We slept in, and went and got pedicures. I am v fancy. Then we went to get Miles and brought him to our friend Anne’s house, so he could play with her son Whitman, and the mamas could all go play that night. Whitman’s dad and Kristina’s husband (they’re brothers) babysat.

We were v fancy that night, eating at a nice restaurant, drinking fancy adult beverages. We met up with some other fancy friends there too.
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Sunday
After a fitful night’s sleep (we stayed at Anne’s that night, and I forgot my Breathe-Right nose strip! This is v bad for me.) we woke up and made our way to a brunch place to eat. Miles liked the Froot Loops a lot.
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That afternoon, I met up with some friends who live in the area for a playdate, and after that, we hung out with our friend Kettie, who happened to be in town for the weekend. (She lives in Dallas.) Her son, Henry, is 13 months old, and would make a great triplet. He didn’t take crap from anyone. Heh.
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Here he is, eyeing Miles’s cup of Apple Jacks. And then going in for the kill.
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Ha ha! That was fun.

That night, Mike grilled steaks and some scallops. Holy yum.

Monday
Went to Jenny’s for a Labor Day BBQ. The kids all had fun playing in the beer.
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Especially Whitman.
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Then my camera died. Dang.

Monday night was really fun times. I forgot to mention how Miles fell into a chair earlier that day, and caused a minor nosebleed. It really wasn’t that big of a deal, it stopped within seconds, but it was the first time I’d seen that much blood coming out of my kid, so I was kinda freaked out. And then later, after he ate approximately thirteen oatmeal craisin cookies, he barfed all over me. That was good times too. I guess it’s just as well my camera battery was dead at that point.

So that’s about it. We came home yesterday on another decent flight. There was a bit more whining, but it was fine. Whew.

21 months old!

So, Miles and I are back from our trip to Virginia, and I finally have time to post the boys’ 21 month picture. I took it the day we left, so it was taken a day early, but that’s okay. I’m pretty sure they didn’t change much in that one day.

(Also, I was in a hurry to get the boys ready for the trip, so this month is nakey baby.)

(And yes, they’re all staring at Yo Gabba Gabba on the TV.)
21 months

I was really excited about all of the interest in the Triple Dip Shop from my last post. We had a ton of entries, it was so awesome. Congrats again, to Angela, for winning!

Blog Party Giveaway!

In honor of the Multiples and More blog party, I’m giving away a t-shirt from my online store, the Triple Dip Shop. I started it when I thought it’d be fun to make a t-shirt answering all of the questions parents of multiples get. So you’ll get your choice of a “Twins” or “Triplets” version of this shirt. (And if you need one that says “Quads” or “Quints”, then by golly, I’ll make you one!

Here’s how to enter…
Post a comment here, telling me which shirt you’d want – twins or triplets? (or more?)

And to get more entries, you can
– become a fan of the Triple Dip Shop on Facebook (either by going to Facebook, or using the widget on the right side of my blog)
– add my blog to your blogroll
– Tweet or blog about the Triple Dip Shop and this giveaway
– Click this button  and tell me you did it

Just make sure you post a comment for each of these things you do (include relevant URLs), so you get an entry for each.

Thanks for entering! The contest will close at the end of the day on Friday, September 4.

Good luck!

Now, be sure to check out the Multiples and More End of Summer Blog Party for lots more giveaways (including another one from yours truly!)

Wish List Wednesday

Since tomorrow Miles and I will be embarking on a trip halfway across the country, to our nation’s capital (sorta), my Wish List Wednesday will focus on that.

1. A portable DVD player loaded with every episode of Yo Gabba Gabba, a few Elmo-centric episodes of Sesame Street, and Finding Nemo.
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2. A seat on the airplane for Miles, besides my lap.

3. Four other seats on the airplane – for Oliver, Linus, George, and a robo-nanny to help take care of them.

4. A new, flattering, magically slimming wardrobe for the trip. I think I already wished for a new suitcase last week. So now I need something to put in it.

Want to play along? Find a few things on your wish list, and post them on your blog! Get the details here.