Long gone are the days when Angelique was in bed by 5pm while her parents watched the munchkins and then back up by 11pm to take back over their care. I would also get home around 6pm and be in bed by 8pm – that is, if I didn’t need to stay up to work on something related to the IT Leadership Academy. 

You see, I poured a great deal of energy into dreaming up the vision that ultimately became the California Mentor Program, which is still inspiring the next generation of IT Leaders to this day. 

Nowadays, Angelique and I fly solo on their care. I normally take one or more of the kiddos if they wake during the night, and she gets to sleep in most mornings and I will take all 3. I don’t get to see them during the day unless it is the weekend, so I cherish those 2-3 hours I get with them in the mornings. I’m home by 6pm unless I have to pick up stuff from the store, so that gives me another 2 hours or so with them when I get home to play and also see what new stuff they’ve learned to do. And they love to learn!

It all goes by so quickly. Soon they will be 2 years old, and by the time they are 3 they will surely be talking up a hurricane 3 storm :). They get along great for the most part, but seem to know that they have each other and the support of both of their parents. They each have unique personalities, and are thriving in social situations. The days are long for Angelique, but she gets to watch them grow and thrive and steer them in the right direction. They play hard. They also love to dance. 

We get them out more and more, and it isn’t as daunting a task as it used to be. They actually do well when we take them out. The crazy questions from onlookers have died down, which is nice. They are just as big if not bigger than a lot of 2 and 3 year olds that we see. People are surprised that they were preemies as you’d never know. Michaela isn’t as small compared to the other 2 as she used to be – still petite but long. Her thin hair is filling in so that is causing us to call the girls “MichEmma” when they have their backs to us – whoops!

The latest details 

• Michaela usually sleeps in her room all night 
• I usually pass out on the couch in the family room and Emma just sleeps out there with me. She can sleep in her room, but she generally still pops her head up at midnight, so we just gave Christopher her room for now
• Christopher usually only wakes up when he is super wet or otherwise restless. He goes right back to sleep after a bottle and Thunder and the Magic House on Netflix
• Emma loves sauces. Ketchup, spicy mayo,  Alfredo sauce, pasta sauce 
• All three love polenta – Michaela doesn’t slow down and stuffs too many in her mouth. She then decides she can’t swallow any of it and asks for mom’s hand to spit it out. What a gift…
• They all love to give us whatever they are eating and feed us. 
• We give them all opportunities to help us around the house. That has included dishes, floors, sweeping, vacuuming and windows. They like helping.
• They know when they are being bad. It is usually Michaela and Christopher. Emma doesn’t give us grief. She still stays out of it 
• They usually get 2 – 3 hour nap in during the day
• The high chairs are gone – sold them 
• I am now trying to take at least one of them with me when I need to go to a store. Yesterday it was Michaela for a quick Walmart run and last week Christopher. They did great and didn’t fuss. I think they like the one on one time  🙂
• Grandma and Grandpa (Angelique’s parents) normally visit on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The kids love seeing them. It’s nice for everyone. 
• No bedtime stories yet – with three we still need to figure that one out!
• We usually have them all in bed by 8:30pm
• We buy about 3-4 2 pack boxes of organic milk from Costco per week
• The girls wear a size 6 shoe now and Christopher a size 7 (for now). He keeps growing and growing and growing…
• Michaela is still the boss of the group – had to throw that in 🙂

Cheers,

M.