Catching Up

It has been a while since we've updated the blog but we are all still alive!  :)  Taylor and the babies continue to grow daily and are a lot of fun to be around.  I can not believe that one week from today the triplets will be 5 months old.  Ahh.. time sure does fly by when you're having fun.  I can honestly say we are starting to have some fun around here again.  For awhile it seems like all work and little play, but as we settle in to our daily routine we are all having more fun.  It is very helpful that everyone continues to thrive.  Some of you are wondering what time of day it is that I'm actually able to do this.  It is actually 2:08p and all four of the kids are down for naps.  Yes, that feels like an accomplishment!  :)

Lastly, all of the fun is made possible with all of the help we continue to have.  Our parents have been our biggest supporters and a tremendous help.  We wouldn't be where we are today without you!

Pictures tell the best story, please enjoy:

 Taylor is 2! 

 Lucas Gregory

 Emili Rae

 Ethan Michael

 Love them all! 

 Taylor and Mia continue to be the best of buddies!  She loves to be outside.

 The trio @ 4 months :)

 Grandma Pat, Lucas, Taylor, Memow Ruster and Ethan (Emi was snoozing inside)

 Grandpa Kamp and Lucas

 Taylor and her brothers!  She continues to be a fun loving big sister.  She walks around saying, "I love him/her".  So cute!

 Taylor and Daddy on her first say of preschool!  She did not shed one tear and did great.

 Taylor and Mommy on her first day of preschool.  She was pretty much over pictures at this point but we had to capture the memory.  

 Emi is all smiles these days.  These little smiles make all of the hard work worth it! 

 This isn't the best picture of Taylor, but I love it for some reason.  Probably because this is an honest look I get daily.  :)  Daddy has taught Taylor that he favorite player in Andrew Luck.  

Michael and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on Sunday, Sept. 9!  Things sure have changed since the locker bays at New Palestine High School, but I love every minute!  

We are home

We are happy to update the Kamp Ground that all three of the triplets came home on Tuesday, June 12^th! The experience of taking the babies home along with Taylor with us, all together as a family, will be an experience we will always cherish.

It has definitely been a whirlwind, but feel as if it has gone as smoothly as we ever could have hoped for.  Their arrival has brought about the obvious; new and limited sleep schedules, communication and teamwork and an all-time high, a very excited and loving big sister and unbelieveable support from family and friends (it would be impossible without you!).

 

We celebrated Taylor’s 2^nd Birthday / Father’s Day on Sunday, June 17^th.  Taylor received tons of love and gifts that are certainly going to help keep her busy for the foreseeable future.  She was cute as ever in her ‘Daisy Duck’ shirt…She is officially addicted to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse so it is all we can do to keep her viewing times limited during the day.

Taylor is starting to put words together and her communication skills are expanding daily.  She is such a joy and it has been so fun watching her welcome her brothers and sister into her world! 

The triplets all weigh over 7 lbs, gaining roughly 1oz per day.  They have all been great babies.  We have enjoyed getting to know them and all that make each unique even more over the past two weeks. 

Now that everyone is at home and we are truly beginning our lives together, in some ways, their time at the NICU @ IU North seems like a distant past.  We are so grateful for the MDs, nursing staff and overall care they received while there were there for over 7 weeks.

The Waiting Game

It is simply hard to believe that Ethan, Emili and Lucas were born 7 weeks ago yesterday!  Time has gone by very fast as we have nestled into our busy routine.  The babies continue to do very well.  Over the past 10 days Lucas and Emili have successfully battled Urinary Tract Infections, which perhaps slowed them down just enough to keep them in the NICU an extra week or two.  Besides the UTIs all three have flourished.  As of today they all weigh in between 6 and 6 ½ pounds. 

It appears we are on the home stretch of their stay at IU North.  Everything is pointing at them to come home by mid-week this week.  It is nerve racking to think that within 24-48 hours we are going to have all 4 children of ours under the age of 2 at home with us.  At the same time, we are very excited for the adventure that is already underway.  We have already come to grips with the delicate balance between organization and ‘letting go’ of some of the details and control of our lives that used to be normal for us.  The next few months are going to be challenging but we are up for it and look forward to having fun everyday!

Taylor turns 2 on the 18^th of this month!  She is a great little girl and she continues to grow and change daily.  Everyone always tells you as a new parent that time is going to go by so quickly…This is so true and we are witnesses of it everyday. 

The 'Race' To Get Home

I can't believe it has already been three weeks since we last posted.  Time sure does fly by when you're having fun, hey?!  I wish I had more to tell you, but everyone is doing well on the 'Kamp Ground' front.  Taylor is officially less than a month away from turning 2 and the triplets are 5 weeks old!

The triplets are getting bigger and stronger by the day.  This morning Emili is weighing in at 5.10, Lucas at 5.8 1/2 and Ethan at 5.10 1/2 pounds.  We have been working on breast feeding the past three weeks and we introduced bottles on Tuesday of this past week.  All are doing really well with their feedings but we get reminded at how young they are when they become exhausted from time to time while eating.  It always makes us realize, even more, how fortunate we are that they are receiving such great care at IU North.  When we go home the babies will hopefully be breast feeding half the time and getting bottles the other half; so no better time to get the hang of things while we have all of the extra hands in the NICU.  

Everyone wants to know when we will be coming home with all of the babies.  We wish we knew exactly too!  Some days there is talk of two weeks and then we hear to keep the expectation to the 40 week due date (6/25).  We are not sure if they'll make the party for Mommy's birthday on June 2, but would like to think Taylor will get to celebrate her second birthday with her brothers and sister on June 18!

Taylor also continues to change by the day.  She is really starting to use a lot more of her words and has even started singing, which I'm not sure there is anything cuter than her humming and babbling to her own tune.  Michael and Taylor got me a little something special on Mother's Day and when I was opening it she started to sing 'Happy Birthday'.  :)  It truly is amazing to watch her and watch her little mind work non-stop.  Her favorite characters lately are still the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse crew, but Barney and Elmo are giving them a run for their money these days.

I hope you all have an enjoyable Memorial Day weekend with family and friends.  Be safe and stay cool!

Here are a few pics from the past couple weeks:

Happy 2 weeks Trio!

Happy 2 weeks kiddos!  It has been such a joy to learn all about each of you as individuals and to watch you grow these past two weeks.

The trio has been labeled as 'feeders and growers' as they just feed to get gain some weight and get all of their systems working together.  Everyone is back to birth weight if not over.  Saturday everyone weighed in a 4 pounds!  

Miss Emi enjoying her 2 week 'spa day'!

Lucas bright eyed and bushy tailed for his bath!  

The beauty of having triplets is that there is a baby for every grandparent!  It was not planned but everyone got to hold someone different for their first hold.  :)  

Mamaw Ruster held Lucas for the first time!

Grandpa Kamp held Emili for the first time!

Grandma Kamp held Ethan for the first time.

Do you think it will turn out where they will get their way with the grandparent that held them first?!?  Time will tell! 

Last week we had some un-seasonable spring days that felt more like the middle of summer.  So Taylor and I created our own water park on the back patio.  Tuesday we had a few friends over and the girls played until nap time and the mom's got to enjoy some rays and good conversation.  

Mia found her way into Taylor's bed during bath time for the first time this past weekend.  Taylor thought it hilarious!  

What a difference one week makes!

Wow, what a crazy week it has been!  It has been a roller coaster for sure, but an amazing ride to say the very least.  The babies were born 8 days ago, I came home 4 days ago and today our family of 6 came together for the first time at the hospital.  

The babies continue to thrive even as small as they are.  Their gestational age is 32 weeks tomorrow and they are acting their age if not a little bit ahead of schedule.  All of the babies are off any additional nutritional supplements and are getting all breast milk and clear liquids just to make sure they do not get dehydrated.  Lucas is off all respiratory assistance, Ethan and Emili have nasal canulas for additional air flow only and no oxygen.  They are all tolerating their feedings and their volume continues to be bumped up almost daily.  Each of them continue to have fluctuating bilirubin levels.  Currently Emili and Lucas are on bili blankets.  The medical staff test their bili levels every other day and this back and forth game could go one for another week or two.  All of the babies were right around 3.8 lbs. today.  We feel extremely blessed with their good health and daily progress.  Thank you for all of your kind wishes, thoughts and prayers.

The RSV restrictions were lifted two days ago, which allowed Taylor to be able to visit the babies today.  You are also supposed to be 2 years or older, but they were kind enough to make an exception for Taylor since she is so close.  It was a very special moment for our family and one I'll remember forever!  I'm pretty sure Michael and I both could have broken down, but we both held it together very well.  Taylor didn't know exactly what to think, but it was very clear she wanted the isolettes open and the 'babies out'!  We visited with each baby individually and then went back and covered the isolettes up and said goodnight where she was able to blow kisses.  We are not sure how often she'll visit, but we do plan on making it part of her schedule.  :)

That is all we have as far as our babes go.  Below are pictures from the past week...

The first time Mommy and Daddy held Ethan and Emili.  

Mommy's first diaper change with Emi.  

Mommy snuggling Ethan for the first time

Daddy doing skin-to-skin with Emili

Mommy with Lucas on Day 4

Ethan with Daddy on day 4

Hello Miss Emili

Emi's first bow! 

Mr. Lucas @ 1 week before the nasal canula was removed

We tried to put socks on the babies, but even the preemie sock are entirely too big!  These are Ethan's piggies!  

Mamaw helping Ethan with his paci

My cousin, Lisa, came to stay with Taylor on Wed. and they both had a great time.  Lisa worked with Taylor on her first finger painting experience and was nice enough to paint a picture for each of her new siblings!  :)

Taylor got to go to Ava's school for grandparents day with Mamaw Ruster

And to put things in perspective this was Taylor the day she was born at 8.5 lbs.  :)  

Have a great week!

XOXO