Cuteness--in Triplicate!

I have spent a lot of time with three special little people the last nine months.  They are the firstborn children of my fourth son and his wife, triplets who made their much ballyhooed entrance into the world last August, at 32 weeks.  After spending less than a month in the NICU, they came home and have been growing like weeds and hitting every milestone ever since.

There are two boys and a girl in this adorable trio, and it's very likely that the boys are actually identical twins (their parents may eventually have them tested to find out for sure).  They look so similar that it's positively uncanny.  Our firstborn grandchildren are our oldest son's identical twin girls, who just turned 7.  If these triplet boys turn out to be identical, too, I'm going to start wondering if this is something than runs in the Pearl family!

I just wanted to share a few picture of these three sweet babies who have wrapped their Grammy around their chubby little fingers.  Their parents have given them nicknames that I am going to use as their blog handles as well.

PUMPKIN (the larger of the two boys):

PAQUITA (the lone senorita in the group):

PEANUT (the little guy who wasn't supposed to make it):

They are cuteness cubed.

When we brought son #4 and his wife over to see the new house we had just decided to buy in VA (a mere 35 minutes from where they live), she had just found out she was pregnant and had no idea yet that she was expecting three at once.  We always knew that moving down here to be closer to our kids and grandkids was a good idea, but little did we know just how much our help was going to be appreciated!  It's definitely vital to have a lot of helping hands when you're dealing with multiples.

And I am most happy to oblige.

As is Papa.

Back when my daughter-in-law Braveheart was expecting these little munchkins, I asked you to pray for the health of mom and babies.  And dear readers, those prayers were answered, in spades. She was able to carry the babies until the all-important 32-week mark, and they were born tiny but remarkably strong and healthy.  Even little Peanut, who wasn't supposed to make it, and who doctors felt might be the best choice for elimination if our son and his wife wanted to reduce the risks of her pregnancy (insert angry, red-faced emoticon here!!!), is doing great.  He does have some GI issues and struggles a bit with eating, and he is due to have his tongue snipped next week.  (He is tongue-tied, but this was not properly diagnosed until recently--the poor little fella!)  So once again, I am asking for your prayers. #prayforpeanut

I am sometimes in awe of the fact that my husband and I--who had babies of our own only YESTERDAY, it seems--are the grandparents of 12 already.  Your family grows pretty quickly when your kids keep having multiples, I'll tell you that.