The Fab 4some!: Getting to know M

Sometimes it is hard to be the big brother of triplets and well today was one of those days. Poor M would set up his toys and one of the 3 baby godzillas would come crashing through and knocking everything down in their path. Then later in the day mason was sitting nicely in his chair enjoying a snack and all 3 of the babies come crowding around him trying to steal his snack (even though they all had their own snack in their hand). Days like this I feel bad for my first born, and I just tell him "sometimes it is hard to be a big brother." He will never have the the title of being one of "the triplets" and there is going to be times that he is thankful he isn't but i know there will be moments where he may feel left out also. I worry about my children not feeling special whether it is mason not being a part of a multiple birth or AG, LC, and AC not feeling like an individual because they all share a birthday (and in LC and AC case a birth minute). So i am going to take the time to give you a peak into the different personalitlies of my children over the next few days. m and I sat down for interview tonight and here is how it went!

I call M over to my desk and ask him to sit with me. He walks over wearing his normal uniform these days of batman underwear and his batman belt. Yes that is it. He responds with "ok are we going to look at toys on the puter" I tell him no Christmas is over we are no longer looking at toys online to add to our christmas list. he replies with "no then i dont want to look at the puter then" there is a few moments of trying to convince him to sit with me and finally after a bribe of 6 mini marsh mellows i get him to sit down with me. here we go...
M, what is your favorite part of being 3 years old?
being big and having big muscles. yes he is flexing at this time

What is your favorite color?
Sour apple. do you mean green? yeah that too. obvisolously you eat way to much candy when you are now naming your colors by flavors. your parents sound like they are really into nutrition.

what is something you like to do with mommy?
going to target. that's my boy!

What is something you like to do with Daddy?
Wrestle and cutting the grass

What is something you like to do with your brother and sisters?
playing batman. AG likes to be joker. what about AC and LC? umm AC is robin and LC is the penguin.

what is your favorite food?
Cupcakes

What do you want to be when you grow up?
a daddy. ohh this is how this little boy melts my heart

M then decides he is bored with my questions and asked me if we can do this later. I tell him of course we can, so i will ask him more questions tomorrow and see what else I get out of him.

My M has taught me so much in his short 3 years. He taught me how to put someones needs completely in front of mine and made me understand the phrase "i would jump in front of a moving train for you" (because i would without hesitation). M also showed me that not all children are "people pleasers." He has from day one been very independent and assertive. Just because he knows how to do a trick of some sort that does not mean he is going to perform it on command. He has a personality sometimes that is well beyond his years and many times nick and i have said that we are not sure that we believe in reincarnation but if we did we would know he has done this all before. God gave us this beautiful wild child first knowing that our experience with this sometimes "difficult" little boy would make our life so filled with laughter and acceptance. Laughter at the things that come of his mouth at times and acceptance that sometimes no matter how you raise your children they have a personality of their own and that doesn't make them disobedient it just makes them unique. I have realized with raising my 4 children very close in age, that all children need different kinds of parenting. 2 of my children at times can be little bit more on the challenging side then my other 2; with that being said if either of my "easier" children were my first born would mean that i was a better parent because they are so well behaved in comparison to my other strong willed children? does that makes sense? i am not sure it does when i am typing but in my head it does. Now when i see a child who is laid back and obedient i don't necessary think "wow they must be awesome parents (not that they aren't) to have their child sit so nicely on their lap and behave" i now know that just because a child is a little on the wild side that doesn't mean that the parent isn't a great parent. I know this because i have raised all of my children with the same do's and don'ts and I have 2 who follow them to a T and 2 who like to push the boundaries a little. I almost don't fear for my strong willed children like I do for my other 2 when it comes to being bullied or pushed around. I know that my strong willed children can stick up for themselves where my other 2 i worry about them when they are school age because of their need to please. With all this being said the lesson I have learned with having all these babies is that i no longer judge anyones style of parenting. Whether you live on a strict schedule like we do with the babies or you have a no schedule like we did when Mason was a baby, to whether you allow your child to sleep in your bed at times (like we did with mason) or if you vow your little one will never sleep outside of their room like we do with the triplets, it doesn't matter because how you choose to raise your children it is YOUR decision and i wish at times I wasn't as judgemental as i was on others styles of parenting. It amazes me how these crazy monkeys continue to make me a better person.

M from baby bump to little man!

I am in my first trimester here with M