On the lighter side...

First thing's first, here's a quick baby update. As of last night, Lila is 3 lbs 14 oz, Alex is 3 lbs 13 oz, and Brandon is 3 lbs 9 oz. Way to go, kids!! Abby and I started bottle feeding them 2 days ago, which is a whole new adventure. This puts us in a position to be much more hands-on with them than we've ever been before, which is both exciting and frightening. But, with the nurses' help, we're making progress. They don't yet have the strength and energy to take every feeding through the bottle, but they'll get there.

Beyond that, Abby and I have been keeping track of some of the more humorous quotes and conversations that have occurred since the kids were born (or, in one case, a few minutes before they were born). Here are some of our favorites -- in some cases with accompanying explanations. I have listed them in chronological order, as best I can recall. And, yes, they are all real.

The following took place within the first 60 seconds of Sam walking into the OR...
Nurse: "Okay dad, you sit here."
Sam: "Hey, babe. Wow, there's, like, 42 people in here."
Anasthesiologist: "Well, not quite that many. Have a seat."
Sam: "How ya doin' Ab?"
Abby: "This is surreal."
Sam: "No, it's so real."
Abby: "No, surreal. Like a Dali painting. Like melting clocks surreal."
Sam: "I know. It was a play on words. Like, surreal - so real."
Abby: "Uh huh, okay. Just sit down."

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"Oh, okay. So when can I have sushi?"

Abby's first comment after listening to the lactation consultant's soapbox speech.

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The following took place during Day 2 in the NICU...
Sam: "It's just really weird because, you know, the babies are in their crates all the time."
Grandmom Deb: "Crates? They aren't pets!"
Abby: "Sam, they're called 'isolettes.'"

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"I'm glad you saw that. I didn't want to be the sole keeper of that memory."

Sam, after an early and "challenging" diaper change (which Abby subsequently evaluated).

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"I'm disturbed."

Sam, after a particularly rough day of diaper changes.

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"Wow, I'm a dad. I have the power to determine whether or not someone is sitting in therapy 30 years from now saying, 'Let me tell you about my parents.'"

Sam, walking into the NICU on Day 5.

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Sam's friend Justin was searching for the cosmic meaning behind the fact that U of M (Abby's alma mater) overcame a 20-point deficit to beat IU (Sam's alma mater) in overtime on the night the triplets were born.
Sam: "I think it just goes to show that, in any given situation, while the husband may have taken control, the wife will, ultimately, reassert herself and gain victory."
Justin: "Wow, that's deep. You could also argue that the wife never really lost control, that she in fact only let the husband believe he'd gained an advantage."
Sam: "True. (sigh) True."

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"We need a new car."

Abby, after seeing 3 carseats and a triplet stroller shoved in the back of the Envoy.

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The following took place on Day 13 in the NICU, after the nurse explained that her sister worked for the Secret Service and was on a protection detail for 17 hours on Inauguration Day.

Nurse: "Well, before that, she was undercover at a high school in Cincinnati. She was 24, but looked really young. She mostly concentrated on prescription drugs. She busted, like, 18 kids in one year. It was hard on her. She had to go to all the classes, the dances, do the homework, all of it. The only people that knew were the Superintendent and the Chief of Police. It was a 24/7 job."

Sam: "Oh my gosh. Just like 21 Jump Street!!"

Nurse: [Blank stare.]

Sam: "You're probably too young to remember 21 Jump Street, aren't you?"

Nurse: "Um, yeah. But it was kind of like Never Been Kissed!"

Sam (later that day): "You know you're getting old when you start saying things like, 'You're probably too young to remember...'"

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"Goodnight Alex, we love you. We'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight Brandon, we love you. We'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight Lila, we love you. We'll see you in the morning."

Both of us, every night before we leave.