The first born. The big brother. The maker of trouble. Daddy’s mini-me. Mama’s big boy. Nana’s little buddy.
Most likely to steal your milk, and your leftover potatoes. Will most likely break a window, a bone, or both at the same time. Most likely to drive you crazy and melt your heart.
We had the most memorable meeting of our lives nearly one year ago. After the miraculous delivery of our quintuplets, now fondly known as the V-5, I had to wait over 24 hours until I could meet them.
This moment has a very special place in my heart…
As we prepare to celebrate the V5’s first birthday, we will be releasing video compilations of each quint beginning with Mr. Theo! Stay tuned!
What better way to declare your independence then by eating all by yourself?!
On Monday morning Mom was preparing breakfast for her five beautiful children and decided that their traditional oatmeal and yogurt needed a splash of color. While apples and bananas are favorites they weren’t bright enough, but berries certainly would do the trick! Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries turned the dreary oats into a bright purple surprise! Little did Mom know that today was the day that her children were going to exercise their right to feed themselves! Kali was the first to say, “No thanks, Mom, I got this.” Of course, she chose not to use her words, but rather to swat the spoon from Mama’s hand sending it flying onto Bella’s lap. She then proceeded to raspberry her raspberries all over the table and her brother, Theo, sitting 2 seats over. Theo thought this was hilarious and joined the raspberry spray fest. Of course once the spoon hit Bella, she, too, caught on, and soon Mom had a mutiny on her hands. While I would have appreciated a subtler request to learn how to feed themselves; the message was nevertheless received. I am eager to celebrate this milestone with my children. I won’t be packing away the Baby Bullet just yet, but now that four out of the five have at least 2 choppers we will be discovering the quints’ finger food faves! Their new meal plan that embraces their new found independence and celebrates their 11-month milestones is as follows: Breakfast:
5-6 ounces Milk (Breast Milk with Goats Milk)
Banana OR Cooked Pears, Peaches, Fig, Plum or Apple
Cheerios OR Oatmeal OR Oat-based Teething Biscuit
Lunch:
5-6 ounces Milk
Cooked Carrots, Peas, Summer squash
Ground Meat (Beef, Chicken, Turkey) OR Flaked Fish
Cooked Potato OR Spiral Whole Grain Pasta
PM Snack:
5-6 ounces Milk OR Water (Will switch to water after 1 year)
Avocado OR Chopped Hard Boiled Egg
Cheerios OR Oat-based Teething Biscuit
Dinner:
5-6 ounces Milk
Cooked Carrots, Peas, Summer squash
Cooked Beans (Chick peas or Kidney beans) OR Soft Cubed Tofu
Almost seven months have passed since I last blogged about what a day in the life is like for one of the V5. As most know, life is a lot different for a 10 month old as compared to a 4 month old, especially since our 4 month olds truly resembled a 2 month old at that time. Nowadays, the kids are catching up developmentally and are currently tracking with 9-10 month old milestones. So, what keeps our rug rats busy? Let’s explore a day in the life of the V5!
As one can imagine, we continue to keep the quints on a tight schedule and they help to keep us true to our word. We start the day at 7am. This honestly is the best part of my day because I am greeted by wide-eyed grins, smiles and giggles…well not everyone is giggling. Theo is typically whining and ready for breakfast. We bring the kids downstairs, change their clothes and pop them in their table for breakfast. Breakfast consists of oatmeal, various fruits and homemade yogurt along with their bottle, which is half goats milk and half mama’s milk. After breakfast, the kiddos go back up to their cribs for their first nap. This is the only nap that they take in their cribs. Kali and Theo tend to sleep for about 45 minutes and others, like Elliott, will fall back asleep until almost 11am.
After they wake up from their first nap, they are downstairs for the day. They play until their next care time at 11am. Lunch is at 11am and they know it. The choir starts to sing at about 10 til’ 11, which creates a mad dash to get them changed and back in the table, while warming their bottles and making lunch. Lunch is usually a starchy vegetable or grain with protein, like turkey, beef or chicken, and a vegetable. They down their lunch and bottles and then play at the table while we clean up. They love to play with their spoons following mealtime. After lunch, it is quiet time. Some of the quints fall back asleep and others play quietly.
Everyone is awake by 1pm, and it’s time to play again! We have transformed our home into a baby-safe exploration center. I let the kids roam around the kitchen, living room and dining room areas. They have a blast crawling, rolling and exploring. They typically travel with at least one toy in hand. The most popular toys right now are their egg maracas, the tower* of Sophies, stackable cups and connecting rings. They also find great enjoyment from whacking the doorstopper and kicking the walls. It is certainly free entertainment watching them learn what they can do- and cannot do- as they roam.
Two o’clock is snack and learning time! We gather at the table for bottles and a finger foods such as green peas, banana, avocado, or a homemade teething biscuit. After eating, the kids stay at the table a bit longer to play with their stacking cups, sippy cups and other toys.
Dinner often sneaks up on us at 5pm, when the kids starting “singing” again. We change them and place them back in the table for their last meal of the day. Dinner varies and sometimes is leftovers from lunch, but most often it is a vegetarian meal such as cheesy potatoes with broccoli or scrambled eggs with spinach, along with another bottle. After dinner they will stay up until bedtime, playing and roaming until about 7pm. Sometimes we are able to sneak in a walk around the neighborhood, too.
At seven, we begin cleaning them up and getting them ready for bed- PJ time! If all goes well, we usually have time for a story or two before their bedtime bottles. This bottle is a bit larger in volume and has Neosure and mama’s milk. Everyone is getting fed by 7:30pm and typically in their cribs for the night by 8pm. On a good night, all of them close their peepers and are off to dreamland until 6am when they slowly start to wake up. On a not-so-good-night, they all take turns teething and throwing the I-don’t-wanna-go-to-bed tantrum. We have been blessed though, and 5 out of the 7 nights every week are good nights.
And, that’s a wrap! Once the V5 are tucked in their beds, mom and dad prepare for the next day, making bottles, doing the wash, picking up toys, running the dishwasher and mopping the floor. It certainly is a full-time job, but I wouldn’t trade a minute for the world!
For those of you who know me, know I’m a bit nostalgic. I believe this appreciation for the past and joy from recollecting was instilled in me by my dad. I enjoy reminiscing about times that have gone by, sometimes to a fault, in that I miss the present or plan too much for the future. But, nevertheless, I cherish days like today- Memorial Day- for taking a time out to look back.
One year ago today, I was lying in a hotel in Mesa, AZ. I had just been discharged from the local hospital after having a surgery that saved our pregnancy. I did not know what the days ahead would bring, but knew that in a few hours I would have to drop Frank off at the airport and spend the next days alone.
For those of you who know me, being away from home is not my specialty. I have always been a homebody. I am perfectly content hanging out at home. While I appreciate others’ love for travel, I generally have little interest. So, needless to say moving to Arizona was not something I would have chosen to do.
For those of you who know me, know that I strive to walk with God. It truly has been a bumpy road, of straying here and there. But, as I reflect on this Memorial Day, I see how God’s hand was guiding our footsteps during that treacherous time. We had found out on that Monday that we were going to lose our pregnancy and the medical team shared with us that there was nothing we could do about it. The parents of other quintuplets told me differently. When I learned of the surgery that had prolonged other high order multiple pregnancies the answer was easy; I needed that surgery. I recall wrestling with this decision in my mind. I saw two choices: Stay here in WI where I was comfortable and await the impending miscarriage, or hop on a plane to AZ to see the best maternal and fetal medicine specialist in the world. After we decided to choose life, God granted me peace. My fear had passed away, and this new sense of calm and strength arose. I take no credit for this change, but was merely witness to it.
For those of you who know me, know that I have a rich inner life. I may be an ambivert on the Meyers Briggs, but I believe I’m a true introvert. I process life on the inside and share with those I trust. So, why would a true introvert write such a telling message? It is to brag, but not on myself. It is to testify to the guiding grace of God the Father, His humble Son and His Spirit.
I feel like I blinked and a year has flown by. Every day is an opportunity of worship. I look at my children and sometimes forget in the moment where they were 10 short months ago. I see them kicking and rolling and can recall them doing that when they were all crammed in my tummy. I stand in their nursery and just watch as all of their little heads pop up like little prairie dogs from their cribs in the morning. I dreamed of moments like that. Our children are a true joy and a challenge wrapped up into one little package
So, on this day when we are beckoned to remember, I encourage you to first and foremost thank those who have served our country. Remember those who have fallen for it. But, also take a moment to remember and recall the miracles in your life. For you are loved!