20th Anniversary and 3 Children!

Alec

Elle

Mark

Our lovely Nanny

Today is our 20th Anniversary,and I would have never imagined that we would have 3 children  all under the age of three.  They are a dream come true.  We will celebrate our anniversary  while in California with friends and family.   Colin left for California early last Sunday morning and Mark and I dropped him off at the airport.  Mark cannot get the thought of India out of his head, so it does not matter that we told him several times that Daddy was  going to California.  He cried when Colin kissed him good-bye, but was okay after about 30 minutes in the car, when I promised him McDonald's french fries. 


The thought of taking care of 3 children on my own for a few weeks is no longer daunting because we have a lot of help.  That Sunday, we had our local college girl who helps on the week-ends with the children,  and my girlfriend Lisa came over that afternoon to help out.    Our nanny arrived on Sunday evening, and we moved Elle's bassinet into her bedroom so that I would only have to feed Alec at night.


  I'm still trying to decide when to travel to California within the next 7-9 days so that we can meet up with Colin and visit family and friends.  One of my goals for today is to look for good prices on tickets for our trip and to figure out what rental vehicle we are going to need while in California.  Currently, I drive I Volvo at home, and it is a nightmare getting all three children out of the car.   My brother and his wife along with their daughter will come out for a visit one weekend, which means we will need three car seats, and possibly a booster seat.


So far the week is going smoothly, and I'm feeling grateful for what I have, especially in light of what is happening in Japan.

Life with the twins & Mark

Elle/Twin A

Life with the 3 children has been interesting over the past couple of months.  Since we have been back at home, Mark continues to go to daycare full time, and we have finally hired a nanny who we are just thrilled to have in our home. Our nanny is a pro, and we are learning a lot from her.   Mark is no longer asking me to send his siblings back home on the plane, but will often inquire about there whereabouts, if he doesn't see them in his periphery.  The twins are not  yet sleeping through the night, but at least they sleep for 3 1/2 to 4 hours straight.  Alec weighed in at 4 pounds and now he is close to 10 pounds.  Elle weighed in at 5 pounds and she is close to 9 pounds.  Elle is the quiet one, and you barely know she is even there, but Alec makes up for both of them.  We call him the drama king.

Colin and I think this time was easier for us dealing with the twins,  than it was dealing with Mark as a baby.  We knew what to expect and we were organized.   We decided that we would not kill ourselves and feed every two hours, unless the twins woke up on their own.  They never did wake up every 2 hours, and that give a little breather.  We feed both of the twins together and this helps to keep them both on a good schedule.  As older parent's I must say we are not doing to bad.

We are headed off to California for a month, and the entire family will be going as Colin will be on a teaching assignment.   The twins will be meeting their cousins who they have not yet met, as well as their Aunt & Uncle.  We will also be seeing a number of friends who have also had babies that were born in Anand, or friends with babies on the way in Anand.  

Alec/Twin B

After the California trip, it looks like I will be headed by to Anand as well as New Delhi with clients.  If I have time, I'm thinking about making a side trip to Jaipur to do a little bit of shopping because I have come to love the textiles from India.   Hopefully, the monsoon season will still be at bay for my arrival.