I have to start this week’s blog with Steven, Sammy and Amaya’s dance portraits. They’re too much for me to take. These kids!

I know it’s likely they’ll just stand on stage and cry during their recital but I had three very happy kids in their costumes and three kids who’ve loved dance class all year long.

On Monday evening, Steven put on his construction vest and decided that it’s now a crossing guard vest. To compliment his uniform, he wanted to make a stop sign. The kids were pretty excited to learn that they could make an octagon by cutting the corners of a square.

It was a frustrating process for Steven because he wanted a perfect octagon but, eventually, he was satisfied.

Have to write “stop”, of course. Amaya let me write it out first for her to copy.

Steven wanted to do it all by himself but periodically, and with attempted stealth, checked his cheat sheet.

Sammy wanted Mommy’s help with his letters. 🙂

In the morning, Steven decided the back side needs to say “Go”. He told me he could write it without help and wrote an “H” asking, is that a “G”? I wrote out “Go” for him which he added to his sign on his own and (amazingly) wasn’t thrown by the extra “H” at the end. I never know when a “mistake” might set him off but he rolled with this one very well and was excited to have a “stop & go” sign.

This week we officially dropped naps for SSA. The end of an era. On Wednesday, there was some quiet time with books after lunch. <3

We got some pictures of the kids at play at school.

Checking out the seeds the class planted this week.

Friday afternoon, Steven, Sammy and Amaya got to try out their new pool. It looks perfect for their age.

Saturday was another pool day but this time the pool was moved to the deck so the water doesn’t kill our grass and to make it easier to leave out to dry. Glad it fits!!

This morning, Amaya and Steven spent time cutting while Sammy got to join Daddy on a trip to the grocery store.

There were pony rides, thanks to Horsey Sammy.

And tv time with Daddy!

Love. <3

This long weekend I’ve been lucky to be in Colorado for Bitcherie Weekend 11. Eleven years running! We’re staying in an amazing house up on a mountain and have been able to just talk and laugh and talk and laugh and laugh.

Look kids! Mommy jumps on trampolines!

It’s been a great week! Have a good one!

Monday morning, Steven, Sammy and Amaya were excited to have just a little more time with Aunt Ouize and Nancy. Then it was off to school for the kids, off to work for me and off to DC for Aunt Ouize and Nancy.

Sammy and Steven earned new books for staying in bed in the mornings and were excited to read the right away.

Another recent nighttime favorite are horsey rides from Daddy.

Tuesday was warm but rainy which, for Amaya, meant shorts and rain boots. Good call, kid.

On Wednesday morning the kids were on fire and we got to school in record time. When we were going downstairs to drop off our stuff Amaya grabbed the door, “I can hold it. Don’t worry about it.” They sound more and more like miniature adults.

Thursday was a car picnic after school so the crew could go to the airport to pick up Nana! Hooray!!

No nap meant lots of time to play outside when they got back to the house.

One perk of Nana’s visits is that she takes the kids to school for us on Fridays and Mondays. This Friday, we got the usual business of a special Monday braid while Amaya worked on her computer.

Once the kids were ready, they had a special Starbucks breakfast with Nana! My mom even told me that two different people complimented them on their behavior. <3

As always, Nana joined the kids at school fro Shabbat. It’s also Shavuot so they had a Torah party in class. Sammy can tell you all about the Torah and Mt. Sinai.

Friday afternoon was spent at the playground with Nana and Megan, where the kids had the big swing all to themselves. Heaven!!

I love these pictures.

Friday night, at Sammy’s request, we lit the Shabbat candles at home and ate challah. “Nana will be here on Friday!?! Does that mean she’ll come to Shabbat at school!?!? And we can light the candles at home, too!?!?”

Saturday was raining and gross which made for a perfect day to go to the aquarium.

Touch tank! Steven didn’t want to touch the sea stars (we learned they’re not actually called star fish anymore) but was willing to touch the seaweed.

Coloring a digital fish!

Coloring with crayons!

On the way to the aquarium there was a bit of drama because SSA remember that this is the same place as The Rainforest Cafe. Sammy and Amaya really wanted to eat there but Steven was scared of the thunder, which comes every 30 minutes and is, admittedly, quite loud. I offered to leave with Steven in advance of each round of thunder but he wasn’t having it. Amaya wanted to take a vote, which is something they do at school (and then graph the results). In this case a vote wasn’t going to work because I could tell Steven was really distressed at the thought of going to the restaurant. Fortunately, we had two adults and were willing to split up. So Sammy, Amaya and I went to The Rainforest Cafe while Nana and Steven went to Bar Louie. Except for the splitting up part, it worked out perfectly!

Steven was a selfie blocker, cracking himself up!

Amaya wanted a picture alone with me. 🙂

All semi-interested in a photo with their mom.

Happier to be in one that included Nana. 🙂

We had a wonderfully lazy Sunday at home. Lots of active play time inside and outside all day long.

With time for hugs, too.

Steven made a game around an intricately developed obstacle course. Amaya, Sammy, Nana and I all participated. As we finished he’d say, “And the winner is…Mommy!!” “And the winner is…Sammy!” So cute.

Steven could not focus on lunch until he made a new Torah out of toiler paper rolls and rectangle piece of paper. He was also very specific about what to write on it – Steven, Sammy, Amaya, Daddy, Nana, Mac n Cheese, Sausage lol.

It rained a bit on and off but we still managed to get outside. Not too hot and a low uv index. Perfect!

Sammy looks so old. And you can’t beat the tank top and rain boots. <3

Little face.

The kids wrapped up an active weekend with some good ol’ fashioned daddy wrestling.

And that’s it for this week! Have a great one!

Hello! And Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms. <3

My day started off sleeping in and eventually “woken” by some excited kids. Amaya was very proud to have written “Mommy” on the envelope. I’m proud, too. And so happy to be mom to Steven, Sammy and Amaya.

There were also crafts that the kids made at school that had been “hiding” in a cabinet for me since Thursday. Hand prints and homemade magnets!

Before we went to brunch I wanted to get a picture with the kids which turned into full on photo shoot because no one would take a picture with me until they took a picture of me with their own cameras.

Steven’s photo

Sammy’s photo

Amaya’s photo

Daddy’s photo… with a sour Sammy who refused to sit up, even for me on Mother’s Day.

We’re very lucky that Aunt Ouize and cousin Nancy are driving through town tonight and are staying with us until tomorrow. It meant that Jason and his sister could both spend mother’s day with their mom so we drove toward Grandma Sunshine’s house for lunch with Aunt Ouize, Nancy, Grandma Sunshine and Aunt Annette. A perfect mother’s day morning!

He’s four and he’s bored?

Grandma Sunshine and her gang.

We got back to the house and had a little bit of downtime before it was time to head out for Second Meal. (First Meal was at 10:30am. Second meal at 3:15pm. Brunch and Linner?)

It was off to Deadwood with Grandpa Homey, Aunt Ouize and Nancy.

With “dinner” at 3:15pm it leaves lots of time to play outside with Aunt Ouize before bed…while Mommy & Daddy get to relax inside! We even made time for pre-bed bike rides. Sammy is actually getting the hang of his balance bike and starting to do really well with it!! He’s actually starting to balance and glide!

Such a wonderful day and so lucky for Steven, Sammy and Amaya to get to be able to spend Mother’s Day with so many of the amazing women in their lives.

Now to the rest of the week…

This isn’t a great photo but I can’t pass up sharing this latest Amaya fashion. She loves wearing high socks, especially ones with capes. 🙂

“Hiding” at school drop off. Sammy is so funny. He’s always so thrilled when I find him.

Monday was gorgeous out so Megan planned a deck picnic dinner for the kids. As you can see, Amaya has a loose definition of pajamas. Lately it’s meant bathing suits.

After two years, Steven, Sammy and Amaya are all finally climbing on their outdoor climber! This will be the third summer we have it and I think they’ll finally get some real use out of it. It’s awesome to see them getting more comfortable climbing.

Steven and Grandpa Homey had a blast playing “monster”.

Tuesday was another Amaya Original. Sparkly dress over warm-up pants. Why not?

Tuesday afternoon was another visit to the park behind Novi High School. This time it was super quiet which meant no one to fight with over the twirly thing.

Tuesday night I brought home dinner which included sushi for Amaya and Sammy. Amaya loves California rolls. Sammy is partial to sashimi salmon. I will keep promoting this as long as I can. I want kids who’ll eat sushi with me!

Wednesday braid day! Amaya says she wants her hair to grow as long as Rapunzel’s hair. It took her a long time to get here but she’s on her way! Plus, this is a hairstyle mommy can do easily. 🙂

Steven was class leader on Wednesday. Here, you can see him leading a graphic activity.

The kids have been learning lots and lots from Grandpa Homey. I wish I could remember what he was explaining here. The kids were rapt.

Even Sally loves having Grandpa Homey visit!

Sweet, sassy Amaya.

Explaining something to Daddy.

Thursday evening we eventful. First a new sitter, Penny, came to meet the kids. More importantly to SSA, they got some great gifts from Grandpa Homey! In talking about upcoming Mother’s Day Steven said, “Today is kids’ day!”

The weather was nasty on Friday but the kids still had Field Day, just indoors.

You can spy Amaya in her potato sack if you look closely.

Sammy loooooves jumping!

After school, Megan took Steven, Sammy and Amaya for a special lunch at Costco. 🙂

And they picked up a special Mother’s Day treat for me!! <3 Thank you, Megan!!

Friday night and Saturday were spent quietly at home, punctuated with more stories from Grandpa Homey. It’s been a great visit!!

Happy Mother’s Day to all our moms!

Happy Sunday! I’m in the middle of reentry after an awesome triplet mom getaway in Savannah which started with a visit to Charleston and my friend Ames. So good for the soul!!

It was a pretty quiet week for the rest of the Clines. It’s finally WARM so Sammy got to start his week in a t-shirt. He’s been waiting for this for months!

Of course Steven was jealous of the hood so, first warm school day of the year, he’s decked out in this hoodie.

After school Steven and Amaya made necklaces in the driveway while Sammy rode his bike.

He looks so old!

Steven and I got in some cuddles. This little face…

My hair was straight until Tuesday morning which devastated Amaya. She wanted us to be the same. My sweet girl.

I explained that there are things that are the same between us and things that are different just like with Steven and Sammy, too. Steven chimed in, “We’re the same because I have curly hair and mommy has curly hair and you and mommy are the same because you have vaginas.” lol

Another fun story… we were talking about different types of married people and different types of parents in the car on the way to work. Amaya said, “We’re lesbians mommy.” Oh yeah? “Yes, because we’re ladies and we love each other.” 🙂

Look! Kids don’t always cry at breakfast!

Tuesday was a perfect day for the farm! Hello Maybury! The kids were excited to visit their friend Reggie the Pig.

Amaya, in The Brothers’ clothing. I almost don’t recognize her without any pink! 😉

Don’t worry… the boys returned the favor by wearing her nightgowns to bed. They love this Ariel nightgown. (Sammy’s sleeping in it as I type this.)

Amaya, of course, can’t be outdone. She’s sleeping in this too small spring dress. Make her legs look so long, though!

I love this picture of Megan and Amaya. They were deep in conversation. <3

Mommy trip!!! Yay!! Our getaway was in Savannah which is perfect place for 27 triplet moms to meet up and I was lucky to get to travel to Savannah by way of Ames in Charleston. That’s me – on a Thursday afternoon – with no responsibilities.

Friday, while I was running around Savannah, the kids stuck to routine but with a visit from Taco! Steven’s mid-blink and Amaya is focused on TV but you can see Taco curling up into Amaya for a hug. I love how comfortable these kids are with each other.

Friday was also Jason’s birthday! Since I was away I tried to make it special and full of surprises, and so did Steven, Sammy and Amaya. <3 <3 <3

Saturday was another gorgeous MI day which meant some outdoor play time with Rosie. I’m so happy it’s warm!!

And we had a few visits from Ashley this week!!

The kids had another Saturday night sleepover. I think this may become routine.

And, in the meantime, I was living it up in Savannah! See kids! Moms have fun, too!

I got home eeeeeearly today, while the kids were at the playground with Rosie. It gave me enough time to take a long nap before diving head first into reentry. Even as excited as I was to see everyone, reentry is TOUGH.

And, finally, look who’s here! It’s Big Homey! He arrived on Friday night and is with us until Monday, 5/14. Everyone is thrilled!!

Have a great week!