I think I blinked and it was suddenly Thursday. That means it’s time once again to link up with Rebecca at A Beautiful Ruckus for the Little Things Thursdays. Each week we pause to reflect upon some of the little things that made the week special.

1. On Monday, we had a play date with two year old triplets (a quatriplet play date). I met their mom, Christina, indirectly through my mom a while back. Her aunt and mom work in the same office and chatter about high order multiples, comparing notes often. This was the first play date we’ve had with older kids so I wasn’t sure how it would go. Even though the triplets are a bit older, they seemed to enjoy our toddler toys, especially The Weebles Treehouse. They were also good with the babies. In addition to enjoying our toys, the triplets educated me on toddler proofing. They proved themselves capable of opening our baby gate and reaching our remote control basket. Oh the things to come!

It’s incredible how much taller two year olds are in comparison to our 13 month olds.

I was bummed to find out that at two, the triplets were too big for our quad table. I was hoping to hang onto that thing until the quads were closer to three. At least the triplets were okay eating picnic style.

The Weebles Treehouse and Camper were favorites.

2. The past several months have been trying for our community of parents of multiples. Several families have said goodbye to their babies far too soon, and the entire community felt the pangs of their grief. As a way to honor these precious babies, members of our group came together to collect funds. We then worked with an artist, Victoria Glen, to create memorial necklaces. She creates custom, hand stamped jewelry using a variety of metal materials and designed beautiful pieces for them. When we commissioned the second piece, she was so moved by the story, she donated her work to the family. What an act of kindness for a family she’s never seen or met!

I was so impressed with Victoria’s work, I ordered a piece for myself. Because her work is 100% custom, I was concerned it might not fit my quad mom budget. To my surprise, she’s very reasonable, and can work with a small budget. Victoria worked with me to determine exactly what I envisioned. She took time to listen to my description and sent pictures with examples of options so I could see various combinations. I chose a long necklace with the babies names stamped around a hammered heart. I requested two additional embellishments, one a crystal ruby (the babies’ birthstone) and the other a stamped circle with their birth date. I chose stainless steel because it’s strong and virtually quadruplet proof! I LOVE my necklace! If you want to give a personalized gift to someone special (or yourself), drop by her Facebook page to see her gallery for inspiration and send her a message.

My necklace is actually in transit. Victoria sent me this picture to make sure I approved before shipping. I think it’s lovely in the photograph.

3. Over the past year, I’ve neglected my passion for reading. I unabashedly assumed there was no time for it a midst raising quadruplets. A few weeks ago, a friend with young children was telling me about a new book series she enjoys. The wheels started churning in my head and I wondered why I don’t have time to read. Naturally, I don’t have entire evenings or days to devour a book, but I can spare a few minutes a day for a novel. Sophie Kinsella is one of my favorite authors and I knew my sister had her most recent release so I borrowed it. Sophie writes light-hearted comical pieces that aren’t complex, which I find relaxing. I’ve since returned to my former bedtime routine of reading just one chapter before I nod off to sleep. It’s been so long since I read a Sophie book, I nearly forgot how much I adore them. She’s British so I tend to pick up a new British vocabulary. In the next few weeks I may talk about knickers, mention sniggers, or proclaim, “Bollocks!” If I really let it get to me, I may adopt a phony British accent. I’m enamored with accents as long as I can follow them. I should add, I found Sophie Kineslla’s books on CD first, when I had a long commute. It was then that I developed a love of the British accent. Whenever I read her books now in print, I hear the accents coming through.

Order is restored with a novel on my nightstand!

For Christmas, I had book stamp made for Courtney.

If I want the babies to enjoy books, I must model reading for them.

4. Last night I found this biohazard bag neatly folded in our camera bag.  I have a hazy memory of surgery prep before the babies’ delivery. I had to remove my earrings and my sister requested a bag for safe keeping.  They have been safe for well over a year!  The only problem is I had no idea where my earrings were and since purchased a new pair.  I’m glad to have my old pair back again.

What rays of sunshine did you see this week?

Hugs!

Amber