personalities

Let’s Celebr-eight!

Better (reeaallly….) late than never, embarking on the next year of triplets, from age seven and into age eight!! I constantly seem to write that I can’t recall where the time went, and everyday the three of them grow up a little more, becoming a little more independent, and grow into little ladies. Just like the last seven birthdays…go big or go home. Here’s an overview of what my littles were up to over the past year of age seven…I should probably post it before they turn nine! 🙂

This year’s theme began with a Studio Gibly theme, but once that appeared a little more difficult to achieve than we expected, we transitioned into all things magical and fairy related. The love of the supernatural world, of magic, is something we work so hard to embrace and protect, since it won’t be long before the believe fades away. Even since I originally wrote this, they are asking more questions on the realness of things that “magic” controls now.

Fairy Harper
Fairy Emerie
Fairy Reagan

Birthday number eight landed on the same night as this year’s Daddy Daughter Dance, much to the girls’ delight. Because their school always has a fundraiser auction the same night, that also meant no school transitioned to a day of preparing for the fancy dance, but also do all the birthday things with family visiting in town. We opened some of the presents from Craig and myself, including new panda, turtle and seal dresses, new Lego sets, and some horse related toys. This way the girls played with their newfound treasures while we prepared for the birthday party the following day.

This year I went all out on dresses for the dance- with the girls in larger sizes this year, we can exaggerate a little more like a mini prom, and I found three unique dresses instead of matching in their colors like prior years. Harper’s flowy pink dress contained lots of layers and ruffles; Reagan had a darker blue with ruffles and mesh down to the floor; and Emerie’s first try of a purple galaxy dress was tight so we traded it in for a black and white one with a train. It turned out so beautiful with black heels! All three were personally tortured by their mother’s demand of tights…which were bejeweled and likely to never be worn again. But they survived.

After hair was curled (x3) and Daddy’s nail salon and face masks complete, Grandma Sue applied the makeup and everyone got dressed. Emerie was a huge fan of red lipstick this year…oh so much red lipstick. The real highlight of the night was the lovely pink suits that Craig and Cousin Tyler rocked at the event- surprisingly both look great in a light shade of pink! I can’t report that my trio fully behaved at the event, but they sure did have a lot of fun and instantly started talking about next year. Tyler humoring them was also really fun, as they have some pretty amazing cousins who will do the girly things with them, something they will always be able to treasure.

Age seven had some of the usual milestones, and I did a really terrible job writing things down and writing blogs to track all the things. Here are a few of the ones I do recall, that project us forward into age eight! A few other fun ones to mention as well, all three finally experienced the northern lights, getting to see not only the normal green, but also the less than common pink and purple, during one particularly amazing light show last fall. All three greatly advanced on reading and comprehension and are discovering a love of reading that we experienced at that age. They went to their first official school dance, learned to bike without training wheels, gained confidence driving their four wheelers and going up and down small hills, discovered new arts and crafts (soo much clay, gems and drawings!), and enjoyed another year exploring the Kenai Peninsula with their parents, Grandma Sue, and other visiting family.

The girls first Valentines Dance went off without any issues everyone enjoyed another reason to dress up and dance. Craig rocked his pink suit for the occasion and the girls wore lipstick! As a kid who didn’t get a chance to go to these events at my school growing up; I love seeing the opportunity to make memories and have some fun.

Learning to ride bikes this year and Harper and Reagan finding a true love for it, and doing almost nightly rides around the neighborhood. Emerie pushed back all last summer about removing training wheels, but eventually figured out her balance and gained more confidence. The girls also became much more comfortable on their four wheelers, which now need to trade to the next size. When they are running, we were out and about at the nearby park, driving around.

I hope the crafting age lasts forever, as they really fill the cold and dark winter months without sitting in front of the television or listening to everyone constantly fight. Favorites over the past year are paint by numbers for kids, using the iPad app to create clay animal models or step-by-step drawings (that continue to get more complicated and impressive for their age!), and painting fairy houses and other 3D contraptions. It is wonderful to be able to walk away for five minutes and my house isn’t covered in paint, and they really take the time to create unique things.

The girls learned SO much over the past six months in second grade. Their math skills with addition and subtraction and reading and writing dramatically improved, as well as their comprehension. Now we find hand written fashion show or tea party invites, customized recipes, intricate art to display on the wall, and even hand written and practiced songs. Their love notes are also wonderful to read, as are some of the “saucier” and less loving notes to each other sometimes (sshhh…). Third quarter was the first time separating them in after school activities and they all seemed to enjoy the reprieve and explore an hour with different friends.

Age seven boasted a year of big feelings, more fighting with each other, and more learning on how to express big emotions and frustrations without being mean. Constant and close proximity to each other drew out unkind words and arguing about meaningless things, and often pushes them to sensory overload that they are still grasping how to maneuver. While breaking this cycle is still an incomplete task, we did find mandating separate areas to play in or one doing a craft while the other two play helps. For the battle of who sits in the middle back seat in the car, we take turns and attempt to mitigate the throw downs every, single day…outside of all that, we certainly also see the other side, with nice playing, crafting together, and creativity on the daily.

The girls branched out a little on their friend groups, at least more than in years past. Reagan created a panda club with two other girls in her class, and I frequently saw handwritten notes in her backpack from it. Emerie appears to be more of the tomboy of the group and hangs with a number of the boys; that or she can just hold her own with them! Harper enjoys more girly girl things and has a couple girls from each class she spends her time with. All three also have a soft spot for some of the younger, pre-K girls at school.

I’ve heard the older kiddos get, the more activities seem to populate the calendar. We keep careful track of this, because free play and time at home are just as important to enhance and developing creative minds. Outside of that, the girls did four months of gymnastic and ballet, and one week session over Christmas of aerial gymnastics. This spring also included swimming lessons and ballet, in anticipation of the spring ballet show!

I wrote this one last year but it’s worth highlighting again. Going out and about solo for various errands, birthday parties, or even just fun activities is WAY easier now than even a year ago. Going overnight to Seward on a whim one day, without any preparation, is now doable and even enjoyable. We spent a lot of time in Kenai and Ninilchik last summer and plan to branch out to a few new places this year. The girls do great at the long car rides- always have- and find ways play and entertain each other, or listen to or read story books.

Age seven certainly brought about the concept of “boys.” All three goof off and pick on each other (already!) about boyfriends and crushes. Emerie has moved on from boyfriend territory and now claims one of the adorable boys in the other class is her husband, NOT boyfriend any longer. It’s pretty funny since he is well aware of her crush (as is the entire elementary school). Reagan is adamant about no boyfriends and only friends that are boys, and Harper has her eye on one in her class, although I believe they are genuinely friends! It’ll be interesting to compare this on their birthday next year.

I will wrap up this section with one of my favorite things about age seven; the girls still believe in magic- in Santa, in fairies, tooth or otherwise! They still love to create beautiful things, such as a fairy house in the middle of the woods in Palmer, delicious cookies on a plate for Santa, having a birthday theme that creates a magical craft, or to set a trap to catch that pesky tooth fairy on an overnight visit. I see many other kids their age or even younger that lost this belief, and I hope we can hold on to it at least another year and see what joy it brings.

This year’s birthday party was intentionally and significantly smaller than last year’s extravaganza, since 30+ kids running around was A LOT. With that in mind, Craig reserved a craft space and we kept the guest list as short as possible. The fairy theme was selected after much discussion about doing something Studio Gibli related (like Ponyo), or K-Pop Demon Hunters, and we decided fairies had the most flexibility. Over the prior month much supplies was ordered, including a lot of fairies, sequins and glitter, and about anything to contribute to creative houses.

I have to say, the group of about 15 kids did FANTASTIC. It wasn’t chaos and they all spent time perfecting their visions; in fact all the different ideas were very creative. Needless to say, I was pretty impressed at the outcome. The girls floated around to their friends and worked on their houses, one parent manned the hot glue gun and helped each kiddo glue things down, and the creative juices flowed. Cupcakes this year consisted of both vanilla and chocolate depending on triplet preference, and all three helped me decorate them and then drown them in edible glitter. Can’t have fairy themes without edible glitter!!

All About the Girls – Age Seven

Funny enough, a lot of these are very similar to what I wrote when they were five and six.

Harper Anne

Loves ballet, dressing up, & sleeping in.

  • Obsessed with seals
  • Team Aurora
  • Most chill/laid back
Harper Larper

Emerie Faye

Loves reading, collecting tiny things & puzzles

  • Turtles are life, just not live ones 😀
  • Team Elsa (still)
  • Creative name calling
Emmy

Reagan Jean

Loves to draw/color, write stories & sing.

  • Panda obsessed
  • Team Snow White
  • Most opinionated
Ray Ray

Harper Anne

This past year Harper maintains her girly girl status, and is consistently found dressed to the hills in elaborate dresses, shoes and accessories. She is our headband girl (just like I was) and wears them more frequently than either sister. This girl can rock oversized, four inch adult heels like she is walking barefoot and it’s impressive. Harper also enjoys drawing tutorials and her art continues to advance, and creates clay creatures all by herself!

Height/Weight: 78 pounds/ 53″ tall

Favorite Activities: How-to painting and drawing tutorials, dressing up and wearing high heels, dance class and playing with her doll (Babela), and riding her bike as much as possible.

Favorite Movie/Music/Show: Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella are still favorites, but any princess movies is enjoyed. For shows, the Croods, Sofia the First, and Bluey. Her favorite song is Golden from K-Pop Demon Hunters, the Wellerman song by Kids Bop that she refers to as the watermelon song, and of course the one played on repeat, Bad Boy by Cascada.

Favorite Books: Barbie books, Glitter and Glow (Genies), and anything Sleeping Beauty.

Favorite Princess/Character: By far her favorite remains Sleeping Beauty (Aurora). She likes all things Barbies, or seals of any kind and her collection continues to grow. Can’t forget her doll Babela and K-Pop Demon Hunters Mira, who just happens to have long, pink hair!

Favorite Color: pink

Favorite Food: French fries remain a main choice, including McDonalds and Sonic. She always wants to eat at Benihanna for their fried rice (with egg- she claims that’s important) and fancy ice cream. Harper continues to sneak candy and definitely has the biggest sweet tooth of the three. Other favorites include bowls of watermelon, juicy apples at night, and dip ‘n dots. A recent dinner favorite is carnitas and potatoes with BBQ sauce.

Favorite Animal: Stuffed seals are still the winner for her, although many other animals make the cut for bedtime snuggles. She has seals of every color and loves visiting them Seward each year. She also loves koala bears.

When Harper grows up, she wants to be: a Mom and a ballerina. If she had to pick between the two, Mom wins out because she doesn’t want to work all the time.” Ha!

Unique Personality Trait: Harper likes to watch and observe and then jump into the action, but also displays daring moments and climbs a forty foot tree by herself because she wanted to. She is definitely an instigator, but not always with the follow through. She also prefers to let others figure something out or get something for her, so there might be some leadership qualities in there to watch out for as she grows older.

Major Dislikes: Doing chores and cleaning up is always a challenge and a fight, as well as convincing her to brush her teeth so no cavities appear. It is an everyday battle! She also seems to be trending toward more motion sickness than her sisters and gets overheated in the car, requesting fresh or cooler air on drives.

Of the Three, She is the Most: Girly! Dressing up in fancy clothes and shoes, makeup, and accessorizing occurs daily. She isn’t afraid to get down and dirty outside, but she doesn’t mind doing that in a stylish outfit either. On the flip side, of the three she goes to the doctor the least, and now notices this. She often asks when she can go and a little sister competition arises.

Something she says she is really good at: painting and Legos and cursive writing. Her princess drawings are really great and she spends a lot of time on them. She’s also great at bowling! Reagan says Harper is good at finding high heels and dressing up. She is also good at listening. Craig would say she is the best at foot rubs; much to her dismay.

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? She answered where Grandma Anne lives and the water park, or going to build snow forts outside.

What is your favorite subject at school?: gym class and playing games. And least favorite?: writing because it tires out her hands.

Who are your best friends?: Sage, Harper M, Emerie, and Reagan. Also Miss Tawni.

Favorite Quotes: Mom, guess what?! I love you the mostest. This is one of my very favorite quotes that I hear from her every few days, always with a big smile on her face. The other day she also noted that Grandma Sue is so bossy; she’s always bossing me around. I asked her if she liked all the things Sue does with her and she agreed to that, but still maintained the bossiness is there!! She also always answers ice cream anytime you ask her what she wants for dinner.

Emerie Faye

Age seven was a year of discovery for reading, something Emerie continues to enjoy and advance on. She is definitely the bookworm of the three, and often found curled up with a book in various locations around the house or yard. Emerie is great playing solo and enjoys her time by herself, and especially spending time at home. When on the four wheeler, she becomes quite the sassy speed demon, constantly sticking her tongue out at you as she whizzes by.

Height/Weight: 73 pounds/ 53″ tall – This is the first time she is solidly in the middle for weight and not the smallest of the three. She finally caught up!

Favorite Activities: Emerie enjoys spending time at home with family, sledding, making tea parties and fashion shows, and using all the scotch tape. She also likes helping parents cook or pack lunches, building Lego sets, reading books and sitting on the floor, figuring out a puzzle, or playing a board game. Her tiny things collection grows daily and you should see the things found in her coat pockets (or out of the dryer!). She enjoys doing everything in a fancy, dress up outfit, going swimming with Craig, and funny enough, she loves to brush her teeth and will randomly do it throughout the day.

Favorite Movie/Music/Show: Favorite songs include Let It Go, Troublemaker, I Don’t Wanna Wait by David Goetta. While Emerie still loves her Frozen movies and music, requests are much fewer than in the past. She continues to read all the Elsa related books, and hum the music when she plays. Other current favorites were the Swan Princess and various old Barbie movies from the 90s, and lastly, she loves the song Girlfriend by Avril Lavigne, and Fat by Weird Al, which is absolutely hilarious and amazing, and a result from when I went to his concert up here last year.

Favorite Books: anything Frozen related, and really just books in general. She loves to read, and you’ll find her curled up in a chair, reading through a book, pretty frequently and at bedtime.

Favorite Princess/Character: No change from the past three years- Elsa (Frozen) is still leading the charge in her heart. She also continues to have turtle stuffies everywhere, and lots of little fairies litter the floor, just waiting for more playtime. She also loves the K-Pop Demon Hunter Rumi…who of course is purple!

Favorite Color: No surprise here…it’s still PURPLE!!

Favorite Food: She claims chicken nuggets, taquitos, ice cream, and strawberries straight from the packaging. A recent dinner favorite is carnitas and potatoes with BBQ sauce.

Favorite Animal: She still loves turtles and has a bunch of them, and took an interest in platypuses from her recent school project.

When Emerie grows up, she wants to be: a gymnastics teacher because she likes doing it, but still needs more work on it to get the handstand right. Does she want to keep taking gymnastics so she gets better and can teach it? No….

Unique Personality Trait: She is stubborn to the core, and this can serve her well when she is on a mission for something, and sometimes be an obstacle. She is our snuggler and loves to sleep in her own bed with her stuffies. Emerie is also a homebody and completely self sufficient entertaining herself.

Major Dislikes: anything that eats turtles, and tomatoes…barf! She continues to tell people she is allergic to them, but really it’s just hatred. She dislikes when her sisters talk over her or disruptions while she’s reading or doing homework. She doesn’t appear to like group instruction classes (or maybe she just doesn’t like obeying in them…) or being outside if she doesn’t have to (although this dramatically improved by the end of the winter!). It is also a constant battle on wearing her glasses and keeping track of them, and patching her eye.

Of the Three, She is the Most: Outspoken and direct. She is always announcing we are triplets to random people in public places and making friends everywhere. She will also dig her heels in and stick to an opinion, and there’s no swaying her mind. She can also be very compassionate and considerate; always thinking of others and wanting to be helpful.

Something she says she is really good at: at gymnastics, painting, and cooking with parents. Harper says Emerie is good at burping and it makes them laugh. Reagan says Emerie is good at making tea parties and when you are upset she will bring you a stuffy.

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? Kenai to see the twins, the warm beach in Florida, or to see the water park in Cincinnati and wear swimsuits all day.

What is your favorite subject at school? singing in Music Class. And least favorite?: Going outside for recess and especially getting dressed for it, and “her husband” not being in her class.

Who are your best friends?: Luke, Brian and Abigail. Really everyone in her class.

Favorite Quotes: I did nothing! This is also one of my favorites, because any time it is uttered, I know with confidence it indeed means the opposite…

Favorite Thing About Turning Eight: having a birthday party that people can come to. Most importantly, that Luke is coming. (and he did!)

Reagan Jean

Reagan’s artistic skills continued to advance over the past year, as well as her creative play. She is constantly coming up with fun ideas for crafts or outfits, writing a story or composing a song and then practicing it before performing. She is the social butterfly of the three now, and enjoys talking to her friends on the phone. She is also a great helper at cleaning up or random requests from parents, and the first to learn how to put her hair in a ponytail and tie her shoes.

Height/Weight: 67 pounds/ 53″ tall

Favorite Activities: Reagan enjoys art, painting pictures and drawing videos, and sledding, climbing trees, riding her bike, and playing Moms and Dads or with the back neighbor kiddo. She discovered how to take pictures with my phone and requests to do that quite frequently. She also enjoys ice skating and continues to ask for lessons.

Favorite Movie/Music/Show: Lately it is Ponyo and Howell’s Moving Castle, and various Barbie movies. For favorite song is What It Sounds Like from K-Pop Demon Hunters, Never Let Me Go by Cascada and she’s recently discovered techno music.

Favorite Books: Pupunzel and other princess story books, anything talking about pandas, and her first small chapter books, the Dragon girl series.

Favorite Princess/Character: After seven years on Team Jasmine, her love is diminished and she now claims to love Snow White and that original movie, because she is kind and pretty. And the K-Pop Demon Hunters Zoey, who is teal.

Favorite Color: You guess it…TEAL. This should not be confused with blue or green; it is teal and she will remind you they are different.

Favorite Food: She always requests macaroni and cheese and loves blackberries, apples, cantaloupe, and cucumbers, and of course ice cream. The love for cotton candy, and sometimes lemon, ice cream is real…

Favorite Animal: Pandas are still the front runner, but she also claims to like hedgehogs now. She doesn’t snuggle or cart her pandas around as much as past years and that shows how much she’s growing up (cry!), but her bed tells a different story; it is covered in all shapes and sizes of panda.

When Reagan grows up, she wants to be: An artist and a mom; she wants to do both!

Unique Personality Trait: She is our storyteller, just like her Grandma Sue. Listening to her explain the synopsis of a movie is simply amazing and detailed. She is also our helper and often requests to help make dinner, or put something away for us; it’s very sweet. She is very much the mom of the group and probably the most bossy.

Major Dislikes: Peanut butter, chicken nuggets and tomatoes. She’s a little quirky about her socks or shoes not fitting perfectly on her feet and the most aware of clothing that irritates her. She is not a fan of heights.

Of the Three, She is the Most: bossy like her Grandma Sue, especially during games and pretend play. She has great ideas, but her sisters don’t always agree with the direction and the fighting begins. She is also the most detail oriented of the three on anything she is doing, whether that is cleaning the living room, coloring a picture, or telling a story; she takes the time and is definitely our perfectionist.

Something she says she is really good at: at doing art and making things. She is also great at making ponytails in her hair, doing braids, and tying her shoes! Harper says Reagan is good at painting and drawings.

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? She wants to know what Hawaii is like and see the beach, and go to the “red house” down in Soldotna and see Becky!

What is your favorite subject at school? She says math, because it’s fun, and the chance to study animals and learn about them. And least favorite?: She doesn’t like doing PE inside, but it’s okay outside.

Who are your best friends?: her panda club, with Abigail and Addison and the neighbor kiddo.

Favorite Quotes: Mom, I love you more than you know. She says this so frequently to both Craig and me.

Favorite Thing About Turning Eight: Making the fairy houses for their birthday was the best, and doing that with her friends.

Seven Year Old FAQs

What are the biggest differences between the three? What are their similarities this year? All three continue to enjoy much of the same things, like princesses, fancy outfits and striking poses, playing outside, swinging and playing pretend. Everyone still loves magic and fairies and the beautiful side of life is still believable! All three also insist on evening snuggles with Mom. It is harder than you’d think to navigate those demands, and we have to rotate between who sits with and snuggles. Emerie continues to enjoy her solo time and is often found reading in her room or listening to a Tonie. Harper found a new joy in art projects and perfecting her drawings and outlining them in permanent marker. Reagan’s creativity on creating games and playtime for her sisters continues to grow. You’ll find her creating a salon for her sisters (and parents), writing a play to act out, or posting signs all over the walls.

What is the biggest personality difference? As I wrote last year, all three are growing into strong, independent little girls. If I have to choose a difference, Emerie is the homebody and would rather be doing something at home than every going anywhere. Reagan has a little more diva in her attitude now than in the past. Harper remains the “chillest” of the three and the constant negotiator during sister arguments. She often walks away and plays by herself to avoid it.

What do they all constantly fight about? A year later and all three constantly fight over the contentious who-gets-to-be-in-the-middle for a picture. This usually results in three photos, so everyone can rotate and have a turn…and a better selection to choose from! They really don’t fight over toys very much anymore, and the fights relate more to interrupting ongoing play with a different sister, or when one jumps in and takes over and they can’t agree on direction. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the other things they argue about, such as who has to sit in the third row of the car, who gets to choose the movie or the song playing, and nighttime routine antics when one kid wants silence, one wants an audio book, and one wants music. Tough choices indeed.

Who is now the best sleeper? Who is the worst? I believe we have finally made it. It’s been more than a month since a kid slept in my bed, and it truly is bittersweet. As far as falling asleep at night, Harper remains the winner; she loves the comfort of her bed and always has. Emerie seems to enjoy reading books or listening to stories to fall asleep, or the exact opposite and total silence. Reagan struggles the most with falling asleep, and is up and coming to me three to five times every bedtime, for one reason or another or for a philosophical debate on random ideas. Once asleep, they all do pretty well staying in bed other than the occasional ear infection or bad dream; it only took us EIGHT years to get here.

Who is Team Mom and who is Team Dad? This remains consistent since the toddler years, Emerie remains fully committed to Team Dad, although I do get occasional love and requests for evening snuggles. On the other hand, Reagan still commits to Team Mom and is essentially my shadow. Harper continues to noncommittally decide each day, and enjoys spending time with both of us doing different things, and snuggling with Mom at night.

What was my favorite memory of age seven? This past year was harder on me mentally than some of the more exhausting younger years, but I managed to work through it myself and have hopefully made it to the other end. With that in mind, I think watching them grow up so quickly is taking an internal toll on me, and something most moms face through the years. I really enjoy the extensive craft time and just sitting in the living room through the winter, painting by numbers together, beaded crafts and perler beads, and relaxing together. The girls also enjoy board and card games now, and while every gets riled up, it’s fun to be able to do it.

Here’s to age eight! I’m just proud I finished writing this before they turned nine 🙂

Just Hop Till You Drop

Another Easter for the books, in a year without any snow. I’m guessing this year or next is probably my last hurrah in the magical era where all three girls still believe a giant bunny trespasses into our yard, throws random (but common in our household) candy around like confetti, and casually hides eggs like it’s his part-time job. So I’m milking it for all it’s worth—full commitment to the eggs and customized easter bunny notes, the whole production. If the girls have discovered my secret stash this year, they are either humoring me or they haven’t noticed. Either way, they continue to prove they CAN clean up quickly and without complaint…but only for covertly placed plastic eggs. Shocker.

All dressed up to see the creepy Easter bunny

Our in-and-out mission to see the bunny at Cabela’s took a grand total of five minutes- tops! No line, all three kids hopped onto the bench like seasoned professionals, and they even smiled for the first photo. Honestly, it was suspiciously easy compared to the chaos of previous years. Of course, the magic didn’t last long. They immediately tried to peek under the bunny’s head and declared that’s not a real bunny. So, I guess that particular secret is officially out of the basket (basket- get it?? I crack myself up….eggs crack… I’ll stop now…). We also discussed how the real Easter bunny is in high demand with a busy schedule, meaning no time to sit and pose in a store, so we meet the hired help, kind of like Santa Claus. That excuse seems to be reasonably accepted for now; unsure if it will be by next year!

Harper drew a custom letter for the bunny visit and hung it on her bed, as visible as possible for easy spotting. I enjoy seeing what ideas they write on the love notes, and the cute freehand pictures along with it. Emerie also spent some time on a note, but declared the bunny would find it where ever she left it. That sneaky bunny left one egg by each kiddo’s bedside… but Reagan intercepted Harper’s and stashed it under her own pillow, much to Harper’s dramatic dismay she was left out. Meanwhile, Emerie was the first one up and displeased she didn’t get an egg and Reagan had TWO. The irony? Emerie could have easily slipped on her own egg down her stairs and still didn’t even notice it. Yep.

Once I finally found the empty, plastic eggs in our house (freaked a bit when I couldn’t find them the day before!), I stuffed them with a variety of small candy and then figured some minor torture was in order, and stuffed a few with carrots and a few with raw broccoli. The look on their faces from the lack of candy? Absolutely priceless. Craig egged the backyard after bedtime and Grandma Anne and I finished up the baskets, which included new sunglasses, a couple cute outfits in their colors, a mini Lego set of their favorite princess, a “peep” egg to grow in water, and of course the beloved chocolate bunny. The goal of less sugar and more fun went a little easier this year than some in the past, and everyone built their Lego sets first thing.

The egg hunt itself went pretty quickly and with great excitement like past years. They started out sharing the pink, purple, and blues with the kid specific to that color until realizing they don’t have to share. Very kind on their part, and some of the fancier ones were still traded even after my protests- no complaints here. The few eggs on the bird feeder were met with laughs and once knocked over, landed in Reagan’s hood. Seeing opportunity, Emerie snagged one and ran. Sisters…

We survived the wild, sugar filled children by visiting the zoo for a little exercise. Warmer temps and the occasional sunshine peeking out meant no complaints of being cold, and everyone enjoyed the playground and running from exhibit to exhibit. The howling of the wolves brought other zoo visitors over to observe, with four kiddos howling at the two wolves, who were only a few feet away on the other side of the fence. Pretty funny.

Easter dinner was laid back, everyone munched on their chocolate bunnies, ran around chaotically, read books with Grandma Anne, and stayed up late since Monday was another day off from school. We also (mostly) jokingly tormented Emerie all weekend about her outrageously loose front tooth-not the one she wanted to lose to join her sisters’ gap-toothed club, but the one just to the left of her recently departed front tooth. It hung on defiantly, with no root, no purpose, no business still being there—but it stayed a few days until gravity finally finished the job. The tool fairy also dropped the ball on swapping the tooth out for some moolah (oops!). Emerie pointed this out first thing in the morning, and then retracted her irritation after seeing rain outside, commenting that it’s okay, fairies can’t fly in the rain so she’s running late. What a problem solver…and that late fairy added a dividend to that tooth swap that made for one happy, little girl!

❤

Triplet Trade

This household takes spirit week at school pretty seriously, you know, when the options are easy enough to accommodate. From crazy sock or hat day to favorite character, the girls are always excited to sport something different than their typical day attire.

I don’t always match the girls for school, but they typically complement one another; i.e. all three wear a dress, or all three wear jeans and similar shoes, or in the same style but in their varying colors. They don’t fight me too much on this YET, and I am already sad knowing that day won’t be too far away.

And some spirit days we have a little fun. In other words, on an outfit mismatch day, that is taken in a different way than lopsided clothing. In a triplet house, it means switching colors and trying to look like each other, which includes faces, outfits AND accessories. It seems to be lost on them that they already look the same.

Reagan begged to look like Emerie for a day, eye patch, glasses, and all. Emerie opted less enthusiastically to be Harper, after being told she still had to wear her glasses even though Harper doesn’t have them. Harper luckily was okay being Reagan to round out the trio, likely because the tooth loss earlier in the week meant their smiles are once again exactly matched, years after Reagan’s front tooth debacle and surgical pulling. Harper rocked Reagan’s panda attire, and definitely could be mistaken for her sister in a random glance. Emerie didn’t want to wear anything seal related and opted for all pink.

Everyone trekked into school assuming their teacher wouldn’t be able to tell them apart (which she proved them wrong on). Reagan sported a patch and blue light glasses, after several discussions why Emerie’s prescription spectacles wouldn’t be wearable for her. This caused confusion since they pushed back that they all have the same eyes. Not quite kid!

From the jumbled story told on the car ride home, it sounds like their teacher let them have a little fun with it, sitting on their sisters color spots during the day, and eating out of each other’s lunch boxes. I am unsure how long the patch lasted, but guessing not nearly as long as Emerie has wears it each day.

Don’t they look alike? The correct triplet with the mismatched triplet 🙂

Just another day in the life of the Douglets… ❤

It’s Snow Big Deal

It’s been a while since a blog update so lots of things happening at the Douglets household. We eased back into the school schedule after a fun two weeks off for Christmas break, with an enjoyable Grandma Sue and Auntie Amanda visit, and dove straight into the new year with a family plague. It easily took three weeks before everyone was feeling back to normal, with the croup cough lingering and drifting through each kid, and then returned to Harper for a second round of fun. For how terrible they sounded and all the glaring looks from random strangers, no one had any fevers throughout the entire bout of it. We visited the doctor a couple of times for steroids and instructions to hydrate, continue inhalers, and take it easy, and finally those little bodies were able to fight it off, but not before Craig and I caught a mild version of it.

Harper’s ear tubes presented no issues and she bounced back to normal in no time, and since then we’ve attended various doctor check ups for everyone. So many doctor visits, so little time. We continue the triple dentist appointments and I am still impressed how well they do; ENT visits for all three as well. Our beloved eye surgeon, Doctor Winkle, just retired- much to Emerie’s dismay- and her prognosis is so good we no longer need a surgeon to monitor and can start again with the original doctor who initialized the cataract diagnosis. All the patching is really paying off and no eye surgeries are planned in the near future. Such a big win there! In fact, the doctor told Craig she would love to host a class for parents to hear how we prioritized her patching, something many parents apparently aren’t doing. If triplet parents can make it work; everyone can do it. No excuses! And I genuinely believe all the tears, crying and trying to rip it off during the toddler years equals her ability to see out of her left eye, and it was all worth it! Emerie still questions why she has to continue putting the patch on before school, but ultimately doesn’t fight us too badly on it and has started trying to put it on herself, unassisted. She also carries her “patch book” to school every day and it has grown exponentially with each passing day.

After school and recreational activities are keeping us busy through the winter months. Two build days a month, which typical start a day of fun with “cousins” Oaki and Kaden, start the weekend off to a good start. My lack of building skills are finally improving while Craig is able to master building two sets at different stages at the same time with two of the three kids. And as the second semester of first grade began, after school stays busy with Pokemon club, gymnastics (which they LOVE!), and intramural sports each week, ballet and tap on the weekends, as well as a weekly ice skating class.

The last time we did ice skating the girls were about three, and with COVID in full effect, masks were required along with helmets, which equaled sensory overloaded tiny humans on ice. This time around, especially after some family skating outings with pushers to assist, all three adore their skating time and look forward to it. They excitedly rock leg warmers and skate out to their class spot unassisted while the parents relax from the side lines, and everyone then free skates after each class. It is extremely cute to watch all three learning the skill and how quickly they pick each thing up. The backwards skating is a little tricky; forwards they are confident and faster and believe every skill is a speed race. In mid-February all three graduated from level one and are now in basic 2 and picking up different skills than the first round. Their confidence continues to improve and they ask to skate whenever possible.

One evening excursion to town center to skate was met with great enthusiasm by all, except maybe our toes and fingers. Hockey gear was borrowed and when focusing on a puck their balance improves; they actually skate better. It was cute to watch them hit and chase the pucks and try to score. And, of course, the pushers were blue seals and Harper loved that. It was a cold, but fun night.

Reagan’s weekly speech therapy came to an end after about a year and a half. She adored seeing her teacher each week, and even more so enjoyed no sister participation. Going straight from school to the place, Emerie and Harper read books or watched a show in the car to pass the time. She just graduated and now needs only occasional reminders to correct her “s” sounds; probably just in time for her other front tooth to fall out (haha!). She now casually states I retired from speech. And would really like to go back and keep doing it!

Closer to home and outside of all the hustle and bustle of activities, the girls continue to find new arts and crafts. In addition to the standard coloring, paper creations with scissors (snowflakes are everywhere but outside this year!), and creative freehand drawings, is the new skill of rubber band bracelets. Reagan picked it up effortlessly and became a great demonstrator for both her sisters, who frustrate easily and then shut down on trying. It’s very sweet to watch, once the fighting settles, and cute when Harper finally figures the loops out and gets excited at the progress. Emerie on the other hand, rubber band jewelry may just not be her thing.

Harper finding seal books at the library

Lots of other things to report over here in this active householder, but let’s keep it short and sweet or I will never complete this post! Harper and Emerie are all about fancy, collaborated outfits lately. They appear on the stairs with many accessories, fancy dresses and shoes, ready to do a show. Harper is all about wearing her high heels, which are just ballet flats with a tiny heel bump; asking to wear them to school every morning. She gets away with that request some days, with the lack of snow for this time of year. She often wears her Target dollar section earmuffs and Jordan’s scarf, to ensure those cold days aren’t an issue. Reagan always opts for her calf high black boots, and wears those to school most days, and often with a panda related accessory to compliment. All three continue the fuzzy coat obsession and are vastly disappointed any time we force them to wear real winter jackets. Harper’s pink coat is worn nearly every day, Emerie rocks her purple one when she can find it, and Reagan traded her light blue one for a beige and green one I found at the store a couple weeks back. Fuzzy coats for the win!

Cold school lunches continue to be a struggle, especially after three years at the school where I feel as though I had fantastic eaters, from keeping the variety interesting day to day. All three vary in preference for their sandwiches, with Reagan moderately obsessed with blueberry jelly -NOT raspberry, grape or any other flavor- and no peanut butter on her PB&J-minus the J. I believe Harper is the only one that will eat both peanut butter AND jelly, and that leaves Emerie, who only wants peanut butter. So very complicated to remember. Luckily the fruit and veggie portion of lunch times are easily satisfied and the continue to enjoy that variety.

We have also entered into a more emotional stage of kid development. While it isn’t full tantrums and freakouts (well occasionally), it involves more life questions. After meeting the twins at Christmas time, Reagan is now on a kick of wishing to be a baby again, and get baby snuggles like a baby. January hosted a multitude of bedtime discussions centered around this, and alluding to wanting to go back to that age. Emerie’s emotions are a different direction. The past six months or so, she has really latched on to her Uncle Chris, who passed away when she was about 15 months old. She seems to have a kindred spirit connection with him that I can’t really explain, but I love to watch play out. This includes so many questions about him, his likes and dislikes, and she is extremely sensitive about it. But it’s also very sweet to see her carry around a photo of them together or to see a letter in her backpack that is written to or about him. Sometimes Craig and I might make the cut on a family picture, but he always does and it’s very sweet.

In addition, Emerie now says the “k word”, “d word”, and “h word” and gets upset when she hears anyone else say it. You would think that is damn, hell, or who knows what “k” is supposed to mean, but it’s not from the swear jar. Her concern relates to anything “kill” related, “die or dead” related, and “heaven,” and scolds sisters when they speak. Yes, we are working through these big picture ideas and expressions, how heaven is a happy place and not scary, and talking it out. Man, kids surely keep you on your toes.

Valentines Day was a hit again this year; everyone addressed their own cards. The funniest part of that was the organization. After the mass table mess of cards, stickers, envelopes and class lists, I turned around to Reagan’s neatly stacked in a Ziploc, Harper’s shoved into a bigger bag but still semi in order, and Emerie’s shoved into the bag and all over the place. The distinction matches them each so perfectly. Everyone wore pink and red; Harper was especially excited to rock a stretchy pink skirt and red tights with her pink headband. The massive paper envelopes with all their goodies from the day returned home with great excitement, and some of that candy is still sitting on the kitchen table. We celebrated the evening with dinner at Texas Roadhouse, and a quick family picture.

7th birthday planning always begins in February as we prepare for our annual shindig and I am looking forward to the next blog update all about how my little ladies have grown the past year, and all the amazing milestones we’ve achieved on this triplet journey.

❤

Vacation Part II: Heading South to Disney

Headed south for adventure!

First day of the second half of our trip was spent in the car, driving from Cincinnati down to Atlanta, with three six year olds in tow. For NINE hours in the car, they did so well and better than we expected. The drive was seamless through Lexington with no traffic, speeding south with that lovely 70 mile per hour speed limit; bumper to bumper traffic didn’t occur until until Knoxville, which sucked up over an hour of slowly moving forward. Once again we then cruised until Chattanooga, and then off and on had traffic delays until we arrived at our Airbnb in downtown Atlanta. With only a few potty and food breaks, a brief run session while we waited for food, and a random playground, we spent the rest of the day in the car. The girls colored, wrote down words displayed on billboards and played with their toys, and watched a couple television shows. That, and a LOT of snacking.

Craig had another surprise in store, unbeknownst to the girls, with Grandma Sue walking in the door that night in Atlanta, to complete surprise and delight. While we traveled all day by car, she traveled by air. She walked in the front door like it was no big deal and they were so surprised! Little did they know that their beloved Disney castle was right around the corner.

Atlanta was not our final destination but a good midpoint on the long drive, so we shoved two major tourist destinations into a one day visit. We walked over to the Atlanta Zoo, first thing in the morning (once we found the front entrance!), and explored all the attractions in perfect morning temperatures and with very few people around. Staying a couple blocks from our morning destination and being able to walk over was a nice touch to the visit.

So many pictures!
Elephants!
Gorillas galor!
More elephants!

First stop was the elephants, learning that a couple were older than us! We stopped at most of the penny machines and I towed a huge bag of customized, zoo animal featured pennies back with us. Everyone saw the zebras and giraffes but didn’t get to feed them, as they didn’t wish to cooperate while we stood in line for it. Gorillas were everywhere in several different enclosures, but the girls could care less and were more excited to follow the random squirrels -which are everywhere down there- and collect acorns and pine cones off the ground. We saw snakes and other reptiles, and a variety of different turtle breeds. A few beautiful birds humored us in the bird enclosure while the lone red panda refused to wake up from his nap to say hello.

Fake pandas everywhere but no live ones…sad day.

Turns out the Atlanta Zoo didn’t quite live up to Cincinnati’s vibe, but at least it filled a morning. The real kicker? The live pandas packed their bags and returned to China just a week before we showed up. Reagan took the tragic news like a champ—definitely better than I did. She still strolled around the panda exhibit like they were magically going to reappear, we made panda themed pennies, browsed the still-open panda gift shop, and grabbed some panda merch. Because if you can’t see the real thing, at least you can own the T-shirt, right? And the irony of it all- while we were in Atlanta not seeing the pandas, another pair was refueling in Anchorage on their way to a different zoo—one we weren’t visiting. Talk about timing!

The petting zoo was cute, with goats and sheep enjoying the sun and a little love from kiddos and adults alike. Emerie and Harper insisted on picking off all the straw on them, and stood there talking to the zoo employee while “cleaning” them off. The kid specific area had a little train that looped the section, decked out for Halloween with a candy-themed stretch that looked like sugar rush from Wreck It Ralph. It was basically Halloween eye-candy central, minus the actual candy (thankfully, because the last thing we needed was more candy). The girls enjoyed pointing out the types of candy decorations and yelling echos as we passed through the tunnel.

After the zoo visit we walked back to the house and drove further into downtown, stopping for a quick lunch eating some local barbecue -brisket and pulled pork that took forever and didn’t actually get eaten until hours after our next adventure. We headed to the Georgia Aquarium for our second aquarium of the week, and honestly? I was a bit disappointed. Compared to the Newport Aquarium in Kentucky—which might be smaller but is definitely more exciting and better laid out—this one just didn’t impress.

Harper immediately spotted the seal enclosure -which was tiny by the way- and she happily watched them swim around, talking about them with Reagan and Emerie. For so many seals in one spot, the size of the area didn’t even compare to the Sealife Center here in Seward, but still drew quite a viewing crowd. The adjacent wall displayed paintings of all different types of seals and we had to return later to ensure Harper had a picture with it! The girls weren’t really impressed at all the fish varieties swimming in the many tanks, although I did hear Emerie exclaim look it’s Dory! and later look it’s Nemo! when we passed those species. And in truth there were many beautiful fish- though through the eyes of a six year old, I can see how that is less exciting than all the larger sea creatures swimming around. Another fish coloring activity led the girls to requests to color lots of different fish and see them swimming along a full wall projector, and it took a few minutes to convince them we couldn’t do that section for an hour.

The dolphins and the single, large shark were seen without any big excitement from the three, surprisingly. The kids absolutely loved crawling through the tunnels under the penguins—so, naturally, Craig and I found ourselves down on all fours, squeezing through like giant, overgrown toddlers (kidding not kidding!). We popped up inside the viewing bubbles, face-to-face with those cuties, probably looking just as thrilled (or ridiculous) as the kids. It was a sweet family moment— with a side of mild knee trauma for the parents! Another, more readily accessible spot had a moving escalator below the large fish tank and was met with more excitement than the actual exhibit, and less suffering on the adult knees for that experience. We touched more stingrays in the touch tank, took pictures in front all all kinds of fish, and the girls touched every piece of fake treasure on display throughout the Halloween themed halls.

After a couple of hours wandering around, we ventured back outside and to a nearby playground for a few minutes, then attempted to find ice cream to no success. The place we found was in a large, air-conditioned mall and hotel, but nearly everything was closed. The funniest thing about that stop? The highlight of that stop? Three girls, probably in their early 20s, walked by and asked if we were triplets—a question asked countless times on this trip. Turns out, they were fraternal triplets themselves, sparking a cute conversation about life as triplets, who’s the oldest, middle, youngest, and all that fun stuff.

We ended the evening driving to the Atlanta Airport to swap the rental car for a large model; you know, to accommodate Grandma and our continued shopping excursions. Craig and I managed to find the right location within the city that is the airport, and the rental folks were very nice and helpful. After clearing out one car, loading all the car seats and coloring (so much coloring) into the replacement, we drove home with the sunset dropping across the sky. This time, the quest for a local ice cream spot was successful, with tons of random flavor choices to try.

By the end of the day everyone was tired; no bedtime stories or Tonies were requested, and not even a nightlight to keep the darkness away. The three bedroom AirBnB meant each kid slept in a big bed with one adult, and were off to dreamland in no time, unsuspecting that Disney was right around the corner after one more day in the car. While Atlanta was a bit disappointing overall, I believe we made the best of the stop and still had fun. Reagan found plenty of panda swag, Harper saw more of her beloved seals, and Emerie

Final Travel Day: Atlanta to Orlando

The long awaited trip to Disney World is finally here! After six years as a parent, over a year of saving up funds and buying plane tickets, we finally made the final 400 mile drive to get to Orlando. Some grumbling and complaints were heard with another day in the car, but not enough to give away the surprise at the southern destination. With a fourth “older” kid in tow (Grandma Sue haha), the overall ride consumed less complaints and arrival time requests. Everyone rotated seats, with one in the very back surrounded by luggage and Grandma and the other two in the middle row. Each kiddo spent a block of the ride doing their reading homework with Grandma when seats swapped, time very well spent in the car, and eventually we conceded to allow iPad games for a while too, a rarity all were thrilled about! Nobody napped, everyone snacked and enjoyed the unusual screen time as we made our way to our final, exciting destination.

I will also add, traffic was nonexistent on the drive until outside Orlando, which was MUCH appreciated after the first trip’s challenges. With fewer cities to get through and more rural areas on the one interstate, traffic moved at a fast pace and the 70 mph speed limit kept us moving. We drove through areas affected by Hurricane Milton earlier in the month, with the billboards (or lack there of I should say) torn to shreds and missing on a long stretch of road. Many were blown down, in pieces, or ripped apart, as was the brush and trees nearby. Numerous DOT employees were out clearing trees along the interstate right of way and continuing efforts to clean things up. Once into Orlando area, we couldn’t see any devastation other than more missing signage and areas with high standing water.

The temperature and humidity continued to increase as we worked our way south. Our final rest stop potty break was met with a slap of humidity and the girls finally felt real heat as we coaxed them off the iPads and out of the car. I was surprised we made it more than halfway through our trip before encountering any real humidity—Ohio had been drier than usual, and Georgia only slightly more humid. The girls eyed the palm trees and found other trees dropping pine cones, which were bagged in the back of the car and even made it home to Alaska with some effort, for a flower craft we will do this winter.

First stop after arriving at our home base for the next few days? The pool! After a long day cooped up in the car, all three of them couldn’t get into their swimsuits fast enough. They practically sprinted across the condo parking lot to the pool, which turned out to be the perfect temperature to cool down a bit on a nice day. The only thing that slowed them down? Recognizing dozens of tiny geckos living their best lives along the pathway, each one spotted getting an excited remark from one of the three. They had fun torturing Craig in the water while I relaxed poolside, letting my eyes refresh from a long day of driving. Later, we tried out a local spot for dinner; while the my salad and the rice bowls were amazing, the place could’ve used a few more hands on deck. We gave up waiting for a the kid meal dessert and explored a Publix and a Disney outlet shop (they’re practically everywhere!) next door before calling it a night—a good nights’ sleep was a must!

Everyone chose their parent for the first night and ended up staying in that same room for the rest of the trip. Harper roomed with me in the master bedroom and glorious king sized bed, Emerie insisted Craig bunk with him in a room with two full beds, and Grandma and Reagan were together in the last bedroom. Each bedroom had a fun feature- colored lighting under the bed frames, and a nice way to handle kids’ dislike of darkness in a foreign place; definitely a good set up for families visiting Disney. The condo perfectly fit our group, even though we only really slept there each night, and spent the rest of our time adventuring, meeting princesses, shopping, and enjoying what Orlando had to offer.

Orlando Day I: Disney, Disney, Disney!

We opted to keep the excitement of the day a secret until the very last second. Getting the girls up, showered and fed, Craig and I then walked out in our princess themed t-shirts (Rapunzel for me and Snow White for Craig, the least girly color options!), and handed the girls three more matching ones with their favorite ladies, Sleeping Beauty’s Princess Aurora, Frozen’s Queen Elsa and Aladdin’s Princess Jasmine. They initially took the news a little calmer than I expected, with minimal screaming, but definite excitement that grew once we made it to the park and the realization of the day’s adventures became reality.

Matching shirts in front of the real Disney castle!!!

It took over an hour to get from our condo to the actual park—despite the fact that we were only 10 minutes away by car! Little did we know, once you find the right parking lot for the right park, you catch a ride to the park entrance, only to then hop on a train to finally get near the actual entrance. This all equals lines in between each transportation stop, and of course, doing this right at opening time meant everyone else was just as eager as we were. Thankfully, the girls were thrilled to ride on both vehicles and managed to stick close to ‘their adult’ in the crowd of equally eager park-goers. Somehow I was also flagged BOTH times we entered the park for security to go through my bag. Not Craig, who wore a backpack himself, just me. The girls kept saying my boobs were setting the censors off…silly kids!

This being my first time at any Disney theme park, I wasn’t expecting the throngs of people that surrounded us. In fact, one park employee noted about one hundred thousand people pass through in a day; in Alaska terms, that is a third of the city we live in, which is crazy! Because of that, each kiddo was reminded to stick with their “assigned parent,” which rotated throughout the day (although Reagan was mostly glued to me for the whole trip). Everyone was handed a Disney card “ticket,” Emerie instantly unimpressed that Elsa was not an option. It took the girls a couple tries to swipe into the park, but we made it. The cards helped with our princess photo pass, the predominant reason for the visit, and will make the memory book at some point later.

A wishing well, where dreams come true!

The first day of Disney World, at the Magic Kingdom Park, was a big success. Not only that, but we ended our 14 hour day with very tired but happy kiddos and parents, kiddos who exclaimed this is the best day of my life! (Emerie!). No amount of coaxing in the world would have kept all three awake on the short drive home, after such a fantastic day.

We met several characters the first day, including Encanto’s Mirabel, Tiana, Cinderella, Elena of Avalor, Rapunzel, and Ariel; but knew a few others were going to be part of day two. We stopped in many shops, rode the carousel and twirling tea cups, ate popsicles, smoothies and ice cream (anything cool!), enjoyed dinner in Beauty and the Beast’s ballroom and rounded out the day with the big firework show. It was a magical day made extra special by a few thoughtful details. For example, smoothies came with edible chocolate crowns, something small and fun that made it even more enjoyable. You better believe Grandma and I made sure to get three crowns for those tiny humans! New dresses were selected and everyone sparkled in the sun with princess-themed jewelry (jewelry that kept falling apart and making the adults crazy, I might add!). Eventually each kiddo found their mini princess doll (Elsa, Aurora and Jasmine duh) and toted them around like a tiny royal friend. The custom princess t-shirts were eventually traded for tank tops, which felt so much cooler in the direct, afternoon sun.

Another epic find in my mind was the customized parasols, each one hand-painted right there in the park and with their names on them. Emerie, of course, picked a “Frozen” theme, with cool snowflakes and an Elsa and Anna dress against a purple backdrop, while Reagan went for a Jasmine design against blue, full of vibrant colors and the magic lamp. Harper couldn’t resist Aurora’s signature pink, with a touch of fairy tale elegance of her crown and pink dress. A few hours later, we picked up their custom creations—perfect souvenirs for a day spent in their own little kingdom and a keepsake I hope we can keep from utter destruction for a couple of years!

Watching your kids see Disney World for the first time is like seeing pure magic unfold right before your eyes. Their eyes light up with a joy so big it seems to spill over, and each new sight—whether it’s the castle, a fancy dress (or pair of shoes!) or a favorite character—feels like a piece of their dreams coming to life, a small look into what they see as magical and important at this stage of their lives. It’s hard to put into words how wonderful it is to witness them in that pure, unfiltered excitement; in those moments, you realize you’re sharing something they’ll (hopefully) remember forever, just like your bank account will (am I right or am I right?!). I found myself pausing to watch the experience, and so very glad we made the effort to travel across the country to do it, and that we waited until this age.

I could write a book on the adventures of the first day, so in lieu of that here’s a list of some of the highlights:

The goal of the day was simple, to meet as many princesses as possible. Day one consisted of Mirabel, Tiana, Rapunzel, Cinderella, Elena of Avalor, Ariel and Jasmine. We learned that Elsa, Anna, Belle and Aurora would be day two at a different park, much to Emerie and Harper’s dismay. Many assurances continued to remind them all the favorite princesses would be met before we went back home to Alaska. We also spotted lots of familiar sights, like this photo with Rapunzel’s tall tower, which really looks like the real thing!

Seeing the real Disney castle, was a request Craig and I heard on repeat for the past two years or so. The girls didn’t fully comprehend the upcoming day until that castle came into view and were met with shrieks of excitement and awe that it does indeed exist! We took pictures in front of it, watched a couple dance numbers in front of it, walked through it, and explored with three very joyous and excited girls. Watching the magic come alive and their reactions to it was one of the best parts of the entire vacation. The firework show with the castle all lit up was a pretty exciting thing to see as well.

So many princesses to meet, such lines! We strategically decided who to see and when, with Tiana the first stop because her stop had no line. It was pure surprise when we walked in to the Princess and the Frog’s Tiana AND Rapunzel, and the girls peppered both princesses with lots of questions. The best part? The girls explaining they called Rapunzel “Pan” for all their toddler years, because it was easier to say and for her excellent use of a frying pan, which was met with a laugh and smile. Emerie also commented that Rapunzel’s hair was so beautiful, and we have braids too!

The moment they saw Cinderella, the girls made a beeline to ask her the most pressing question of all: what do your shoes look like? With a kind smile, she humored them and lifted her dress just enough to reveal those famous sparkly shoes, and the girls were so thrilled.

I couldn’t resist mentioning to Cinderella that Grandma Sue (and now Craig and I) always say, don’t act like Cinderella’s stepsisters! She actually laughed—a genuine, out-of-character chuckle—as if even she couldn’t help but non-verbally agree that it was pretty solid advice. The girls also asked her about her mice friends, and the prince, and were so fearless and not shy at all!

While rides were not the main focus for the day, we absolutely took advantage of low lines to ensure a full experience. At one point while Craig waited for lunch to be ready, Sue and I caught a quick line and rode the spinning teacups with the girls. We rode the carousel several times throughout the day, Aladdin’s magic carpet, and the girls drove the motor car track and ensured all three adults received minor whiplash from the wild steering. Apparently Harper became a speed maniac and was giggling and screaming manically with Grandma Sue in tow. Sounds about right.

We committed to a very long, winding line in a cave to ride the Ariel clam shells. Waiting in that line with the massive throng of people around us was the most anxiety I had the whole trip, but the ride was pretty cute once we made it. Reagan and Emerie hopped in with me and Harper with Sue and Craig behind us, and off we went. At one point everything stopped and the ride was stuck, which presented more time for the girls to look at everything closely. It was fun and got us out of the elements for a few minutes, not to mention all the creative characters and sets to look at.

Later in the afternoon we finally made it to see Ariel, in another cave. While in line we actually met another set of six year old triplets visiting from Michigan, whose mom is on my triplet Facebook page. It was nice chatting with them as we waited. Everyone was SO excited to talk to Ariel and full disclosure, Harper definitely reach out and touched her boobs. She told me later she wanted to know if her bikini top was made of real shells. So funny.

Last but definitely not least was Princess Jasmine and Aladdin. This was the toughest line of the day, 2 PM in direct sunlight, and we all look as sweaty and overheated as we felt. Reagan was SO thrilled to meet Jasmine and give her a hug; no one even batted an eye at Aladdin there with her, which was pretty funny. After pictures we rode the magic carpet ride, which provided a little breeze and view of the park from above.

It was really impressive that all the characters we visited took the time to listen to the girls, answer their questions as they all spoke at the same time, and just let them bask in the magic of the stories playing out in front of them. Everyone took turns pretty well, getting triplet photos and single photos with each princess, and often loudly announcing we’re triplets! to ensure that message was conveyed clearly to everyone in the room.

After a couple rides we walked through the Monster Inc. scare floor, watching the comedy show. It was cute although no Sully sighting was a little disappointing, but the air condition and momentary break to sit, on the other hand, were great! We rounded out the evening with dinner at the Beauty and the Beast ballroom, with the Beast walking around and waving but unfortunately no Belle sighting. Adults and kids alike had a three course meal and funny enough, Reagan and Emerie both ordered appetizer salads with their meals and quickly devoured them. The food was delicious after a very busy day and the girls received light up cups to pack home (to their delight and our addition of another tote for home). The kid dessert also had fun chocolate teacups that came with paint brushes to paint, so the girls decorated their masterpieces before tasting them.

By the time dinner was over it was dark outside, and we were right on time for the evening fireworks. While we initially planned to leave the park before this to beat the traffic, I’m really glad we found a spot off one path, with a direct view of the castle and sky. The girls oo’d and awed over all the different colors, which lined up with both the music and in relation to the princesses and characters. It was a spectacular show and the girls happily watched, without the “I’m tired” complaints after exploring for close to fourteen hours. It took another full hour to leave the park after the fireworks, along with practically everyone else. It felt like herding cattle, trying to keep my little ones close and with the adults as the crowd shifted to tired kids and sleeping babies in strollers, all of us pushing toward the train cars and the distant parking lot. Once we reached the car, keeping the kids awake was impossible, and the drive was completely quiet. Back at the condo, they instantly climbed into bed, still in their tank tops and shorts, with wonderful memories of the day to dream about.

Since this is apparently the longest blog ever, I’ll wrap up this post here and finish our trip’s highlights in the next one! There’s just so much to capture—so many moments I never want to forget and so many details that deserve their own stories. I’m beyond grateful to be part of this family trip, sharing these magical days with my girls, an amazing mother-in-law who makes traveling so fun, and a husband who’s wholeheartedly embraced his role as a girl-dad, making every moment extra special.

Being here together, watching the girls light up with every surprise, princess encounter, and adventure, has been something I’ll certainly treasure forever. And I can’t wait to share the final leg of our trip soon….when I finish writing it 🙂

❤