a VERY good day?

Today I had one of those days where EVERYTHING went wrong! Camryn has started climbing out of her crib! Yes, my life has taken yet another turn. It seems like each day there is something NEW going on in this household. They have continued their "nakedness" by taking off their diapers whenever they feel like it. No, it's not to be a BIG girl or boy, I believe they do it just to drive me CRAZY! LOL! They seem to think that taking OFF their diapers & peeing on the floor or better yet in their crib is now the FUNNIEST activity of the day! I cannot wait for the day when they ALL will be potty trained! Pray for me! Another "trick" is to climb on various toys, namely their toy drum, to reach TALL things. They will turn the lights off & on, open the front door to try to "escape" (Thank heaven for deadbolts! LOL!) or climb up just to get COOL things off the counter. Usually it is my purse that they are after & they will porrage through it like little scavengers! Today was an even EXTRAordinary day. Today Avery dumped my coffee (thank goodness it was cold!) all over the dining room table. Daddy better be ok with my clean up job because they wore me out! I tell ya they are QUICK little devils too! They get into even more messes while I am cleaning up their last one! The BAD part about all of this is that they do all of this right in front of me. I tell them "NO" & they do it again! Some days I feel like I just ran a marathon and it will only be 9am! These are my VERY bad days! It is in these moments that I usually call my hubby to tell him that they NEED preschool. He will reassure me that I am doing a "great" job but I do not feel that I am. It is days like today that make me feel that life as a SAHM is not for me! I do NOT do well with days like today! Makes me feel that my life is like that movie "Groundhog Day"! You know where he wakes up to the SAME day EVERY day! That is my life! In the end I know that I do not have much choice in the matter. Michael & I cannot switch positions in our lives. He is the main breadwinner & I am the SAHM. He will continue to watch them on the days that I work & I'll continue to have work as my outlet from my CRAZY life! There is no way that we can afford to send them to preschool. The cost is just TOO much! We will be lucky if we can get them into a voluntary Pre K at almost 4! Let's just say that life in the Fulton house is ROUGH! Having four two year olds is ROUGH! For now I just perservere & wake up each day trying to make it better than the last. That HOPEFULLY I will have more good days than bad. I ask myself when will I feel like I have made a difference? When will they listen to what I say? & most of all When will I have...

a VERY good day?

Happy Spring!

Hi Everyone! Here are a few NEW pic's of our "tribe". It took quite a few pictures to get these few! We hope you all enjoy looking at them as much as loved taking them!

Here's a photo of our 4 in their new BOAT clothes! Thank you Aunt "Larry"! =)
Mr B with Miss Cam Cam posing on our front porch! Gotta LOVE that grin!

And last but not least Miss Avery & Miss Lindsey doing their thing in matching dresses, Can you guess who is who? Hope you all have a...

Happy Spring!

priceless...

Lateley we have had some "priceless" moments in our household. Our little Brendan has become quite the talker of the family. He will try to say practically anything. For the most part we can understand him the best. His new phrase or word has been "Whatzup dude". He must seem to like the feel of it roll off his tongue because he says it ALL the time! It all started when my mom's neighbor Jim would come to visit all the munchkins and ask Brendan "What's up Dude!?". He just LOVES when Jim says it & has copied him ever since. I think he particularly LOVES the dude part. I catch him saying it when he is alone. He will get a HUGE smile on his face & then start to giggle after saying it. He must know that we get a kick out of hearing him say it. In the beginning he would say it whenever we asked him to. You know like it was a special trick and we wanted every other person to hear him do it. Yes, we turned in those kind of parents, the ones that have their kids perform right then & there for friends & family. Well he no longer does it on "command". It's like he has to be in the "mood" or something. LOL! I must say that it just cracks me up when he says it. Makes me realize that he is not going to be my baby boy much longer. That he is growing up SO quickly & I need to capture these moments. Oh how I love snuggling with my little man! We will sit down together & carry on "conversations" all the time. He will try to say almost any word I throw at him. Some words come out perfect, others like cantelope are not so good but just as funny! He loves to copy anything we say. UH OH! We better watch out what we say around him! LOL! The "dude" part, well that is just PRICELESS! He is TOO TOO cute! I just love these moments, especially the ones that I just HAVE to write about! they are...

priceless...

booster seats...

This is the latest plight in my life, why restaurants never seem to have ENOUGH booster seats?! I agree that we happen to have a "tribe" & we may not get the 4 that we need. HOWEVER, most families have at least one kid, maybe two. Why not splurge & get a few to accomodate the many!? It really bugs me when a brand new restaurant that has just as many booths as they do tables would they only have 2 for the ENTIRE place! This is what happened to us when we went out to celebrate Grandma's birthday! The place Grandma chose just re opened as a NEW Steak House. It used to be a Hop's restaurant. You know the place that used to make their own beer. Well, they went under just like most other places due to the economy. I think people just did not want a microbrewery anymore. So enters the NEW "Original" Roadhouse. Now do not get me wrong, the food was YUMMY but they made us a LOT of promises getting us in the door. First they took our reservation for a party of ELEVEN at 6pm over the phone and once we arrived they said they do not take reservations. HOWEVER they had our name on the list & then told us they gave our table away. Michael was a bit peeved about that. As a family with 4 toddlers we ALWAYS plan ahead & there are a few "needs" that we have to have for us to have an enjoyable meal. The BIGGEST need is either a booster chair or high chair with straps. They just do better restrained with no means of escape! LOL! Being that we were a LARGE group they now had to get creative in trying to accomodate us! It ended up that we could not all sit together which was fine BUT they did not think of the arrangements before they sat us down. We were across the aisle from each other & 1 table was about a foot higher off the ground than the other. You know the kind that you have to step UP to get into? I did not think it would be a problem once we had our 2 boosters that they promised us. Well, the next thing was that they could not find ANY boosters for us. It ended up that they only had 2 for the ENTIRE place & they were already taken. Imagine they only had 2! YIKES! I pity all of those other families also waiting for a seat! In the end they expected us to put 2 highchairs at the end of each booth. Remember the table is about a foot higher than the other booth so it was going to be interesting. Knowing that the aisle should not be blocked as a fire hazard I kind of got worried. First was the two highchairs at the end of a HIGH booth. Camryn & Avery did not like it one bit! Then just 3 feet behind them was another set of highchairs. The waiters had to squeeze in between the 4 highchairs just to get through with their food orders, etc. The weird part is that no one ever thought to move us! You can already tell that it was not much fun mostly for me but we were there to celebrate Grandma so we made the most of it! People can not believe that we take our "tribe" out to eat, but they LOVE it! AND for the most part they are VERY good that is with restraints! LOL! No one understands our plight because they do not deal with this day in & day out. You view things TOTALLY different when you are raising multiples. I decided right then & there that I am going to purchase our own boosters so we NEVER have this problem again. We left after dinner, no coffee & dessert. I just wanted to get out of there! Michael told me that the manager told him that they would take care of us the next time we came in. Little does he know that we will not be taking him up on that anytime soon.
So my message to all of you restaurant owners out there, Buy more...

booster seats...

THREE wheels...

Today is Grandma's 79th birthday & she got a new set of wheels, a three wheel bicycle to be exact! Yes, she is now part of that "older" sector & is now the proud owner of a three wheeled trike. You know the kind of bike that kids LOVE to ride but adults never seem to want to own! LOL! Grandma was an avid bicyclist in her "adult" life but then all her aches & pains took over so she stopped riding all together. A BIG factor in this decision was having to have both of her knees replaced. She has been afraid to ride a "regular" bicycle ever since. Frankly I do not blame her! I cannot tell you how many times she has told me how much she misses it, especially now that she has her "bionic" knees! LOL! SO, I set out trying to fill that void for her. Being that we live in South Florida we see a lot of "older" people riding around on them. The problem was that I was afraid she would take one look at a 3 wheeler and say "No way!, I am not THAT old!". LOL! I mentioned my idea to Michael & my brothers to see what they thought about it. They ended up coming up with this scheme so I could see if she would want one without buying one first. The deal was that I was to tell her that a "friend" at work had one & wanted to know if I knew of anyone that could use it. That would break the ice so to speak. Seemed harmless so I was in. Now all I needed to do was tell her but getting her to fall for it was another feat! Well, she sort of bit but did not express EXTREME interest so I mentioned it AGAIN to her. I said that maybe she could try it out. Three wheels are better than two, how she could get exercise, etc... She did not really say much about it UNTIL one day she brought the subject up on her own with me. She asked if that "friend" still had the bicycle because she wanted it. I was SO happy that she wanted it but remember this was a made up friend with a made up bike and if I did not come up with a bike I'd be in trouble! I ended up telling her that I would check the next time I went to work. This scheme was turning into a reality! I called my brothers & told them that we should get her a bike for her birthday. They had some apprehension about whether she would use it, etc. We discussed maybe getting a used one since they do not come cheap. So I was now on the hunt for one & I needed it QUICK! My mom mentioned it again & I told her that they gave it away already, whew! Little did my mom know that I had all of my "connections" on the hunt for one already. As luck would have it a friend found one just this week! YAY! It's all in the timing, just in time for her birthday which made it even sweeter! When Grandma saw it for the first time she was excited but VERY nervous. I was told she sat on it, then glided a few feet down the driveway when she almost crashed into her car & scraped up her leg. Grandma ALWAYS gets boo boos! )= This is definitely going to take some getting used to. I realized that my next purchase for her will have to be a helmet! Now if I can only get her to use her new set of...

THREE wheels...

yucky!

This can mean MANY things. Normally around here it is referred to the stinkiest of poopies. While I'm changing them they will tell me "yucky" like I did not know they had a "present" for me in their pants. Well today little Miss Lindsey walks over to me with something in her hand, says "yucky" and then hands me this ->
I did not know what to think. I about jumped out of my chair because you thought it was exactly what I thought it was, POOP! Stranger things have happened! I'm like great! Who stuck their hands down their pants & decided to give me this present!? I start searching for the rest of it when Camryn then showed me this ->
I think Camryn knew what I was thinking & wanted me not to worry! I'm telling you that I have never been SO happy to see a partially eaten empty CARDBOARD paper towel tube in my life!

See it is the little things that make me smile! and it sure was...

yucky!

Happy Saint "Pap Pee's" Day!

Today is the day to be on the lookout for all of those little green men & searching for their pot of gold! Oh wouldn't it be nice to actually have there be a pot of gold!? Ahhh.. We all can dream! My Aunt Pat LOVES St Patty's Day! She usually will call around & wish everyone a "Happy St Patrick's Day" but in the most perfect Irish brogue! Sometimes I do not even know it is her! She is AMAZING! IF she called us she should probably say "Happy Saint Pap Pee's Day!" since that is how we say it here in the Fulton House! LOL! They try SO hard to say things & it is SO funny what ends up coming out of their mouths! It's TOO cute! Hopefully I capture their meaning well! I might have to create a 2nd edition of their dictionary soon! hmmm. Anyhow, I hope you all have a wonderful day spent being HAPPY & with bellies FULL of Irish fare! You know the traditional things, the corned beef & cabbage, the shepards pie, the green beer, etc. Oh and you better wear green too! You know we will! SO from our family to yours, please have a...

Happy Saint "Pap Pee's" Day!

sounds

I have noticed lately that Brendan reacts very strongly to loud sounds. It is not just LOUD sounds but different sounds. Today we went to a park near a church & on the hour the bells chimed, well Brendan started to get upset. I knew it as soon as I headed towards his direction and another mom told me I think he is upset. It was those darn bells! They were not loud at all, just something he has not heard before. Maybe that is it, being exposed to something he has never heard. But then the "normal" noises he still gets upset over, ie: the vacuum, garbage truck, etc. It has only been over the past few months that I can say I have noticed his "aversion" to certain sounds. He gets all excited & even ancy when he hears an engine revving. We could be FAR away from it & he will sort of freak. If he is in his stroller he will practically climb out of it to get away from the noise. We have never exposed him to anything scary so I haven't a clue where it comes from. What would cause him to feel this way? Michael thinks that maybe his hearing is just a little sensitive. I am starting to worry about this. I mean when he was born they did any & every test on him. Other than him having a hole in his heart he has been A-OK. So what shound I do? Should I get his hearing re-tested? Is this just a phase he is going through? Basically should I be worrying about all of these...

sounds...

Our family motto...

A few months back I found this really COOL sign at our local Hallmark Gold Crown store. They seem to have the COOLEST stuff, better than a "normal" card store. Gotta love Hallmark! Anyhow, If I had the luxury of time I could spend half the afternoon just perusing the aisles in a Hallmark store. I'm always looking for that perfect card, picture frame or for what I call a "find". LOL! My love for Hallmark is sort of like my brothers affection for a Post Office but that is for another post! ha! When I looked at this sign I knew it had to go on the wall of the quads bedroom! It SO fits us! Especially the fourth line from the bottom! Funny how four always fit's into the equation with us! I love it so much that I have decided that this is going to be...



Our family motto...

Little things...

It is the little things that matter most to me. Today I was reminded of that! Why I took on this job, why I wake up at 730 am & go to bed way after 11pm. It is in the little things they do! These kids of ours bring me SO many happy moments. Each day a different child steps up to the plate to give me joy! I guess they realize how I need a little joy each day to even out the hard times! LOL! Today was Camryns day to shine! She always likes to be asked to do things for me. It is like she is older than her siblings. There are times when she will take care of things just like I would do. She will go around shutting all the doors something I always do! If we are going out she will get everyones shoes passed out. She even attempts to strap them in their car seats! Oh how I appreciate her help! She even gets everyone's sippy cups & places them where each of them sit. When we are going to eat she'll put each of their bibs on them. I am not surprised that she wants to help me it's just that today she did something EXTRA ordinary! I had to make their beds before nap time so as I worked Camryn was being "Mommy". Little did I know that while I was in their room Camryn was cleaning up. The rest of them straggled in to see what I was doing. After changing the last bed I went to clean up their plates, I should say MESS! Well, Camryn had already started taking care of that. She had picked up the food they dropped by their table. She TRIED to clean up their mess & then proceeded to take her fork and scraped their leftover food into the garbage. I could not believe what I was seeing, she was imitating what I do day in and day out! It is in these moments that I appreciate the...

Little things...

walking in my shoes...

I happen to have two different friends that have quadruplets, I know how lucky am I!? Joellen used to work with me years ago. She ended up moving away a LONG time ago but we continue to keep in contact. She too struggled to get pregnant & with medical intervention had quadruplets. She has a set of twins too but that is another story! LOL! Michael & I visited her family the summer before we got pregnant. At this point in our struggle multiples were not on our mind nor did we ever think we would have any. We just wanted one baby! Anyhow that visit with her is still etched in my memory like it was yesterday. We arrived just before she got back from grocery shopping with all 6 kids. I know, CRAZY! She had like 4 gallons of milk plus several bags of food. I was truly amazed! She has three boys & one girl, plus her twins are boys. The boys were wild! They each wanted out attention, wanted to sit by us for lunch, etc. Lunch that day was so funny. They wanted to eat something other than what was on their plates & Joellen did not budge. She told them that was their lunch and to sit down & eat! LOL! I am SO this way! ha! Being that they live up north they have a basement, this is something a native Floridian knows nothing about. Their basement was the BEST playroom ever! There was SO many toys down there for them to play with. I guess when you have that many kids you need a TON of toys! I decided right then that I wanted a basement, in Florida! hahah! I think we left their house that day in a blur thanking God that was not us! Ha Ha Ha, the joke sure was on us! Little did we know that just a year later we too would be having quadruplets! WOW! Life sure is amazing! Those who cross your path and you get to call them friend is too! Joellen & I were meant to have that connection! She is one of the first people I called when my triplets turned into Quadruplets. She calmed me down & said that life would be CRAZY but it's manageable. Her saying that was all that I needed to hear! Thank heaven for her! (= This is why I appreciate my friendship with her so much. She provides for me something that is a hot comodity around her, someone that understands all the chaos! I talk to Joellen especially when I am in need of an "experienced" quad mommy's advice. She helped me through those first few months with VALUABLE advice on what to do, how to feed them all at the SAME time & how important it was to keep to a tight schedule. That is SO important even now! We continue to chat from time to time over the phone. We have not been able to travel up to see them since that day in June of '05. But one day we will introduce our children to each other! My other compadre is Nicole, she is my "new" friend who lives about two hours S of me & her quads are 15 months old. We chat about schedules, their development & our mommy guilt quite a lot! Yes that is something we struggle with even now. It is always good to have someone to bounce ideas off that will not judge because they too feel like you. The cool part is that she lives so close. The bad part is that our schedules conflict & we never get together in person. I know, TERRIBLE! I have to work on that! I just keep telling myself that we will get together one of these days! At least for now we can give each other the support & encouragement we need. I cannot tell you how important it is to talk to another momma that is part of the same club! I value these friendships SO much! In this CRAZY life we lead I NEED more friends that have been...

walking in my shoes...

CRAZY!

I FINALLY had some free time to call Dustyn's school to check on prices for the quads to attend preschool there in the fall. Dustyn has attended there since he was their age, PLUS it is a Christian school which is VERY important to us. When she went over the fees with me & rounded everything off I just about died! She could tell by my silence that I was not expecting that! LOL! The fee for all four to attend is just over what we spent to conceive them! YIKES! Let's just say it is over $35,000. CRAZY! We are going to have to get VERY creative to find the money to cover this expense. NO, I am not about to hand out that kind of money for preschool. I just needed numbers so I know where to begin. Now I just have to work out the details, but know this, preschool is a necessity! They need the structure of a classroom, to be around other children besides a play date setting & most importantly I need the break! LOL! We were VERY fortunate to have been given a scholarship for each of them when they were born. This will help us out tremendously! The Lord definitely looked out for us. We have happy, healthy children, what more can we ask for!? My hubby would say "Winning the Lotto!" haha! As they reach each new milestone we realize exactly how expensive it is to raise them. I could never imagine having more than these 4! In this life we lead I would not change a thing, I just need to get more creative! After scholarships, the multiple child discount (For the first time a discount that has nothing to do with having multiples! ha!), etc, it is still quite EXPENSIVE! I knew that sending four children to preschool would be steep but I just had no idea exactly how steep it would be! Somehow, some way we will find the money to pay for this. For now just pondering it all makes me...

CRAZY!