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I am working on updating the blog...design, colors, layout, gadgets and more. Please bear with me as I do this. Check often to see the updates! Thanks, Jen :)

Friday, June 27, 2008

Our good ole' dog, Baylee

It has been ~10 years since I convinced Jeremy that we just had to go get this dog. We drove a couple hours from Macomb, IL (where we lived at the time) to the Quad Cities one night in February 1999. There was snow on the ground. I remember telling the owners we would give him the best life we could and we did.
Unfortunately our beloved dog, Baylee was put to sleep this morning. He has been ill for awhile - having seizures as well as old age. His doctor did all he could to help him but just ran out of options.
I am not even sure where to start to describe Baylee. He was our very first dog. He was devoted to us from the time we picked him up. He was a young one when we got him, only 4 years old. We changed his life, he was use to a fenced in yard and people around 24/7. We both were gone during the day and we had no fence. We had to travel, so car rides were a must. But he did wonderful with adapting to our life, no matter how it changed through the years. Baylee was our kid, he just had fur and 4 legs. He gave us his all.
There are so many things to remember about him...10 years is a long time. I remember while we lived in Macomb we had a waterbed. Baylee's bed was on the floor next to my side. Every morning we would find him in bed with us and not know how he got up and on the waterbed without waking either of us. While our first house was being built he lived with us at my parent's house. He put two German Shepherd in there place...you would think he owned the place. Our first house has a ton of memories from it...like the day it was snowing and there was already plenty of snow onthe ground. He jumped off the deck into the snow and bounced around. Due to his long hair he had snowballs stuck in his ears, behind his legs, on his tail and on his undercarriage. Or playing catch with him. We had a tri-level so you would throw his toy upstairs and he'd bring it back and then you would throw it downstairs and we would do this until he went under the dining room table because he was tired. He would wrestle with his toys and growl when you played tug of war with him. He LOVED going out to the farm (my parent's house)...he would find all the old bones that the boys had finished chewing on and drag them out like they were treasures. If the boys would go chasing something, so would Baylee...he may have been much smaller than the 100+ pound shepherd but he did his darndest to keep up. He loved having the backyard at our current house. He was such a good listener, he would not run off and he was not afraid to tell other to stay away (although some times he would tuck his tail and run after barking).
I remember the day that Jeremy came home from being gone in September 2004 and him jumping up to the couch to see him and him slipping the disk in his back and being paralyzed. We could not afford the surgery that could possibly not work, so we tried acupuncture and by January 2005 he was back to normal.
He was there through every failed attempt to get pregnant. He laid with me while we waited the two long weeks before finding out the last attempt worked. He was my protector. It broke my heart to be put on bedrest and not see him. After getting home without the kids he was what kept me together. And then when the kids did come home...you would have thought that he gave birth to them. He was awesome with them, even when he was not feeling the best. He was a great dog and they loved him just as much.
He watched his two little girls, Doris and Sam get sick and passaway, but still had enough love in his heart to accept Roxy. In his last few days he had a little spunk to him, so he was enjoying life. Well now he will enjoy life at the Rainbow bridge with his sisters- pain free- and wait for us to meet him there.
So here's to Baylee, you are very loved and will be missed dearly. So when you see your pet today give them an extra treat and hug, for they are not around forever even though we want them to be.
Love, Jen



Thursday, June 26, 2008

Vacation Day 3...trip home

This morning we woke and began the process of packing up at 7:30. Thankfully we had a better night. The kids were exhausted! Zach woke about 3am to join us in bed but went back to sleep immediately. Surprisingly we were all packed up and driving out of the hotel parking lot by 10. Two and half hours....not bad! As you can see we had a LOT of things for this trip...

With the kids all strapped in and the truck filled with gas, we left town. The kids napped for a bit and then began entertaining themselves.
First Zach thought his feet were the best toy...
and towards the end of the trip Liz thought Zach's feet were a good toy. Goofy kids!!!
We made it home in 3 hours. We did not stop for lunch and took a much better route with little detours. We are glad to be home and the dogs and cats are happy as well.
It was a sucessful vacation. We tried a lot of things we have not done yet. The kids got to experience sleeping in a hotel amongst many other things. Looking forward to the next one.
Love, Jen

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Vacation Day 2....very busy!

WOW!!! What day we had. Unfortunately our night did not go as well as we would have liked. By 2:30am Alex was sleeping with us, correction laying in our bed wide-eyed and then by 4am Zach joined us. Little Miss Liz made it through the night in her pack 'n' play. So I snapped a quick photo this morning as Alex first woke. Those two boys can take a LOT of room in a bed!

As you can see Alex was not a happy camper this morning, either were we. Both of us said we weren't sure if we just wanted morning to come or the night to go on longer so we could get some sleep. I think this is how we looked as well this morning.
Even though Alex had woke up, Zach just repositioned himself. These two are actually sleeping in this picture. It is sweet, isn't it?
So after eating breakfast in our room we changed into bathing suits and got ready to head to the waterpark. Our main mode of transportation for the kids in the hotel is by wagon (thanks grandma for lending it to us). So we loaded them up with our stuff and headed out. - down the hall is all the further we had to go.

Here is the kiddy area. With all the noise and water movement the kids preferred not to play in this area. So we held onto them and took them in the big pool. The water is cooler than they prefer so we did not stay in too long but enough to introduce them.

As you can see by the time we got out of the water the kids were beat and it was naptime, so back to the room. They did nap well, so Jeremy and I whispered plans for the afternoon to each other while they slept.
We decided on eating lunch early and eating it at a park. So we picked up lunch and head to Veterans Park. We used the burp rags from the diaper bag as plates for the kids as we forgot there plates in the room. They sat very well for our picnic.


After lunch it was time to play. We banged on a metal picnic table and found a few sticks. We ran around and enjoyed being out in the very warm weather.


We also tried out the swings. First time that we have been able to swing. They enjoyed it!



The plan was to check out the petting zoo but found out that they have closed. This may have been a blessing in disguise as the kids were beat and needed a nap. So back to the hotel for some much needed sleep. Again, they napped great. Zach woke early but fell back asleep on Jeremy, so they napped together. A little later Alex woke and slept a little longer on me.
After a small snack we again changed into swimsuits and headed to the waterpark. The kids did better this time. We went straight for the big pool. Thankfully both times we went it was quiet in the waterpark area.
After changing into outfits it was off to dinner. We decided against ordering in and decided to check out the Ground Round. It was extremely busy so we headed to Pizza Hut. This is the first time we have taken the kids out to eat, not fast food (which has only happened twice). Due to having pizza last night for supper we picked spaghetti for them off of the kid's menu....I know you are probably thinking you are nuts...well we are a little. It went very well, yes messy but they did not scream or make too big of a mess. We were quite the show, but that is pretty normal for today. The food took forever to get to us, but the kids held it together.
So after leaving there it was back to the room to change into jammies and go to bed. They are sleeping very soundly right now and I expect that to continue thru the night. We wore them out good today.
I would say the vacation has been a success. We now know what to expect and how to deal with the unexpected and look forward to many more. Our family vacation ends tomorrow. We will be back home by late afternoon tomorrow. Although one adventure is ending a new one is always beginning. So here's to the next adventure. I will post if anything interesting happens tomorrow.
So for now, I need to go to sleep. Hope you have enjoyed hearing about our craziness!!!
Love, Jen




Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Vacation Day 1

Howdy from Tomah! Yes we are finally on vacation...our first one as a family. We have not travelled far but it took us a while to get here. We did not rush out of the house this morning at the crack of dawn...we left after the kids woke from their morning nap. The truck was busting at the seams; barely enough room for the dog kennels. This trip did not include our 4-legged kids. They are currently vacationing at Grandma and Grandpa's.
Our first stop was only in Beaver Dam, about 40 minutes from West Bend. We stopped at McDonald's for lunch. We sat in the back of the store as to not draw attention but it did not work. As we drove in we noticed a tour bus...it was for some elders from Michigan headed to the House on the Rock. As the kids and I sat waiting for the food, we seemed to attract people. Two ladies sat down in a booth next to us and chatted for a bit while they ate. Then an older ladies (one from the group stopped). Low and behold she is a triplet. Then we had 5 other people come and say that they heard there were triplets and one of those people was a grandma to triplets. All the attention we got was positive. The kids did fabulous with the many interruptions.
Lunch took an hour...we were back on the road. We ran into many detours due to construction and flooding. There were some amazing sites...water is a VERY powerful thing...it left us utterly speechless (I know, I know....shocking, eh).
Our second stop was a wayside to change diapers and stretch. Let me just say right now that Tomah is roughly 3 hours from West Bend...who knew it was going to take us 5 hours!!! So at the wayside, the kids once again stoled the show. It seemed like everyone that stopped there asked "Are they triplets?!?!"
Finally, 5pm we arrived and checked in. It took Jeremy 3 trips to get everything into our room. We have re-arranged the room...the kids investigated every nook and cranny. It is a good set up as the kids are separated from us enough so they can sleep, as they are right now, and we can still watch TV. Liz and I checked out the waterpark and she even tested the water. We decided to get some pizza for supper from the little bar here. So instead of eating in our room, we went down to eat at the bar...3 highchairs, 3 kids, one wagon, 3 sippy cups and plates...yes we were noticed this time as well. The bar was empty when we arrive and more people showed up while we were eating. We sparked a conversation at the bar about the TV show "Jon & Kate plus 8". We made it thru that and came back to the room and got ready for bedtime and washed dishes. Finally about 9:30 everyone was quiet and asleep and we could relax.
Tomorrow will be another busy day...this time swimming. If time permits tomorrow night I will post how it goes. For now, I am going to watch the news.
Love, Jen
I do not know these three monkeys jumping on the bed!!!

Sunday, June 22, 2008

What we've been up to....

Feels like I have not posted in awhile. So I thought I give a quick overview of the things we have done in the last week or so and some pictures.
Last weekend was great! Grandma and Grandpa agreed to watch the kids for a couple hours while we took the bike out. My first time out on it this season. We ran to Cedarburg to grab some ice cream and then stopped at our friends Dan and Tandi's house. We sat there until the thunder started to roll and the dark clouds started to cover the sun. We made it home with just moments to spare (enough time to get the bike in and the windows closed). The kids had a ball at Grandma and Grandpa's.
Sunday was Father's Day, so we spent the morning together and then Jeremy got to brew beer. Dan, Tandi, Isabelle and Magnum (their dog) came over. Dan and Jeremy got to brew, Tandi and I got to chat, Izzy and the kids got to play, and Magnum got to hang out with our pooches. It was a great day!
The week seemed to be busy...Jeremy worked on re-doing the pond for 3 nights in a row. Unfortunately that meant he only got to see the kids for a brief moment on those night AND that meant that I was "it" for 3 days (all meals, all diapers, naps/bedtimes were all mine). The pond is bigger now and well on it way to being fixed.
I also was trying to prepare my packing list for our vacation. Don't want to forget anything. We leave on Tuesday to go to Tomah. The resort we are staying at has an indoor waterpark with a kiddy area. We are excited to go on our first family vacation. Although it will be short it will be a great experience....for all of us!
My Aunt Deb was here from Mincoqua for a few days. The own the farmhouse that is up the hill from us. The last time she was down every time she stopped down the kids were sleeping so she never got the chance to see them. So Thursday I decided to take them to her. So I packed the kids into the triplet stroller, packed some toys, a diaper bag and the dogs. A half hour later we were ready to tackle the walk. Instead of going across the lawn to the driveway, I decided to go straight up the hill. Yea, that was a heck of a workout, but we made it. We spent some time up there. Unfortunately, she had to meet someone so she had to leave, so we hung out with Grandma for a bit and then made our way back down the hill (much easier going down :)). Since she only saw them for a bit, she came over Friday to play with them for a bit.
Saturday Nana and Papa made the trip across the state to see the kids. Even though it was a short visit the kids loved seeing them and playing with them.
So we are about to start another week...looking forward to our trip...hoping all goes well. I will definitely post on how it all goes. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Love, Jen
Are these not the cutest kids??? ok, I know I am bias;)
The kids testing their Leap Frog Learning Pads...
We are 16 months old...can you believe it?!?!? Alex just chilin in Daddy's rocker...
Liz riding Frank the catapillar...
I cannot get this picture to flip the right way...Zach hammin' it up...
Daddy reading a book he got for Father's Day to the kids...
Everyone like to sit in the bins for the toybox...here Alex is enjoying the bin...
wait...Zach wants the bin...
wrestling ensues....
and the winner is...(drum roll please)...Zach!
Zach showing he's a big boy and sitting at the table in a big chair...
Mr. Cool aka Alex...swinging in Grandma's rummage sale treasure...
We put the kids to work when we went to visit Aunt Deb...Liz helped carry the watering jugs...
Alex helped pick up sticks....
Zach picked up broken branches.

Friday, June 13, 2008

Professional Photos

Just a quick post...We have finally ordered and sent the photos we had taken professionally so we would like to share the website. If you are interested in seeing all the proofs and you did not receive an email from me with the website, email me or Jeremy and we will get it to you. I would post it on here but there are alot of weirdos out here in cyberspace, you just never know.
Love, Jen

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Tissue, please....

Let me set the scene...the kids are playing. We opened up the playarea to the dining room and the hallway. We closed/gated off the guest bedroom, bathroom and kitchen area. Kids are having a blast playing with the dog's stuffed toys as they are much better than any toy in the play area. Although the area is not completely void of adult things like plants, photo frame, candle, etc.; it is pretty darn bare. One item in the dining room is a cabinet that stores video cassettes. On top of it is a picture frame, decorative figurine, candle, video camera and a box of kleenex. The location of the kleenex is behind the candle. Jeremy and I were in the living room talking about how high the river is will all the freaking rain we have received int he last 48 hours. Alex was in with us playing and talking. Liz and Zach were playing in the dining room with the dog's toys. After a wee bit of talking I realized it was EXTREMELY quiet...NEVER, NEVER a good sign. So I go a looking for our precious little ones (besides Alex). Low and behold I find them in the hallway. This is what I found:


Apparently, they needed a kleenex to wipe their noses (they do have colds so they are runny noses). We did not see or hear them get the box down. The box was practical full. I feel deja vu all over again but this time it is not wipes. This is what is so great about having kids...endless entertainment (times three). Luckily this time we got it on film!!! So as the kids were napping, I felt extremely productive as I folded each and every kleenex (pretty sure a machine does this normally). I hope you have giggled at this story as we sure did!!!
Love, Jen

Saturday, June 7, 2008

In the dog house (crate)...

As we prepared dinner on Monday night we had something happen that we knew eventually would happen. As many of you may know, our dog Baylee has seizures. When he has a seizure he is blind and deaf for a period of time afterwards. He become very disoriented. For his safety we crate/kennel him until he shows signs of being "better". We have kept the kennel in the dining room for one so it is close and it also does a great job holding/keeping the kids out of one of the built in cabinets. We knew at some point they would figure out how to open the door of the kennel. Well Monday night was the night they figured it out. Zach ended up crawling into the kennel, but Liz was the clever one....she blocked the door so he could not get out. Do not under-estimate her girl power. She may be outnumbered by the boys but she is tough enough to stand right along with them....you go little girl!!! As you can tell from Zach's facial expressions, he is no longer happy being in the kennel, but Liz does not seem to care (love the smirk)!
Love, Jen
Sidenote: We have since collapsed the kennel and are in the process of putting child locks on the cabinet doors.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Our weekend...

This weekend we (the 3 kids, the 2 dogs and us) traveled to the west to go see Nana, Papa, Great Grandpa and Great Grandma. Prior to leaving on Saturday morning we found out that Nana was under the weather but we kept our plans. We arrived a little late but in time to have lunch with Great Grandpa and visit for a little while. The kids took the opportunity of not being "confined" in a play area. They were EVERYWHERE and into EVERYTHING!!! I think we said 'no' to them more in the time we were there than we have the whole 15 months of their lives. They are just curious so it was not meant to due harm but could have! Saturday night Papa had to go work the beer tent at the local picnic festivities. Cousins Morgan and Madalyn were at Nana & Papa's for the time that their parent's were out of town with cousin Mackenzie's OM team. The kids got to play/interact with them. The kids also got to meet Nana & Papa's neighbors for the first time. Sunday morning Papa was out of the house early to help cook chicken for the Chicken BBQ that afternoon. We had breakfast and it was not long that Nana got the call that the line was forming for chicken. Before we knew it Great Grandma was at the house. We ate lunch and Jeremy visited with everyone while I packed us up. Papa was working on getting ready for being in the parade. Instead of leaving before the parade we stayed. The kids got to see their first parade (one they hopefully will be in in the future). They seemed to enjoy it, except for Zach and the band...not sure why but he got a little upset. Also Roxy did not like the big horses but was fine with the ponies. Here are a few pictures.
Love, Jen
Daddy & Alex with Great Grandpa & Liz
The kids enjoying a little rocker made by Papa (I think I see a few of those in our future).


Enjoying our first parade...what a beautiful day!!!