All Hail Disney!

That is our new motto around here.  All Hail Disney!  Mark is now employed by ESPN Regional which is owned by Disney.  That makes him a brand new Disney employee with all the benefits that come with that.  The biggest benefit is health insurance, of course.  Mark has been self-employed for the 20 years since he graduated from college.  The only time he had health benefits that he didn't pay 100% was the almost 3 years of our marriage before children when I worked and carried the benefits.  Health insurance is expensive!  For our family of 5 it would have cost us about $11,000-$12,000 this year.  We will still pay for family benefits through Disney but it is a substantial savings.

The fun benefit will be free admission to Disney parks except for blackout dates.  We will live about 8 hours from the closest park so that isn't something that we will be using often.  It sure will be great when we get to use it!

The benefit we have actually used is the one that is a big deal to a bunch of 4 year olds and their parents.  We get a discount at The Disney Store!  Last Saturday Mark took his brand new discount card out for a test drive to get each of the kids a gift.  He picked clothes out for them at The Disney Store in Charlotte and I called up the pictures on their website to get kid approval.  Frankly, it was a bit of a toss up as to which they were more excited about all week.  Daddy visiting or the Cinderella, Belle and Lightning McQueen clothes!  OK, Daddy won that contest but the clothes were a big hit! 

Introducing the Super Hero

Introducing Super Hero Abby (wearing Ben's dress up clothes), her self proclaimed Trusty Sidekick Katie, and The Bad Guy (Ben).

Super Hero Abby

The Bad Guy, The Super Hero and The Trusty Sidekick

The toys have taken over!

Our kids have a lot of toys.  They are the only grandchildren on either side of the family.  I enjoy buying them things for special occasions.  One could say they are a bit spoiled in the toy department!  I have packed away some of their things but since then they had a birthday and got more stuff.   They really, really like to play with EVERYTHING, often at the same time.

The princesses, Little People, dollhouse and Barbies come out almost every day.

We haven't been going out much in the last couple of weeks.  Mark has already moved to Charlotte to start his new job.  We have no more activities.  I didn't sign them up for anything the last half of the summer because we hoped we would be moving.  Our library storytime is on hiatus for a few weeks.  School doesn't start until after Labor Day.  Plus, mommy is a bit depressed some of the time and is just happy if the kids are entertaining themselves with minimal fighting.  That is, I'm happy they are entertaining themselves until it is time to pick up the toys.

The toys have taken over!   I AM making them pick up a lot of their toys now, especially on a day this bad.  The thing is right now I need things picked up better than 4 year olds are capable of doing.  If someone calls for a house showing the next day I need the toys to start at a manageable level.  This means I am picking up toys forever!

The playroom

Living room

The kids do get points for creativity.  Nothing wrong with their sorting skills either.  They like to make piles or areas for certain things.  This day they were playing zoo.

 

Dolls on the couch

The elephant area.

My personal favorite.  Polar bears by the sink.

Saturday Pictures

The kids like to pretend to be the Fresh Beat Band right now.  The Fresh Beats were at our house on Saturday.

Kiki and Marina are dancing

Twist was unhappy because he didn't know where his toy guitar was.

It was very hot so we didn't go out and play during the day.  After a supper at McDonald's because Mommy didn't want to cook, we went out on the back deck to play.

Why we're moving

Mark has worked as a freelancer in television production for sports his entire adult life. He used to do camera but for many years now he has done graphics. What that means is, if you are watching sports on TV, most of the words on the screen would come from him. Either running the machine or coordinating what does go on the screen with the operator. Since he was a freelancer that meant no benefits of any kind.
This job involves a lot of travel. He did Pirates baseball for 19 years. During baseball season he was gone almost 50% of the time. He wasn't gone as much at other times of the year, but a lot. When we were first married that wasn't a big deal. After all, I had lived by myself for years prior to getting married. That all changed when I got pregnant with triplets. As the pregnancy progressed, my ability to take care of my own needs decreased. Then the babies were born. Being home alone for as long as 7-10 days at a time with infant and toddler triplets was loads of fun for me. Missing his family was hard for Mark. He also had to work more days since I no longer work and we had 3 extra mouths to feed. I estimate he has been gone about 40% of the time for the first 4 years of their life. We were both tired of that situation.

In March he was told about a new job that was being created at ESPN Regional in Charlotte. He called me on the phone and excitedly told me about the job. It would be full time with benefits and not a lot of travel. However, we would have to move to Charlotte. Throughout the whole conversation I kept agreeing it sounded like a great opportunity but kept saying "I don't want to move to Charlotte." Fast forward almost 5 months later. We are moving to Charlotte. With more time to think about things and a visit to check the area out I agreed to the move.

Mark started his job 2 weeks ago. I am still here, taking care of the kids by myself. We are waiting for the house to sell. The real estate market stinks. I am not in a great mood these days. Mark has always been gone a lot, but at least I knew when he was coming home. I don't know when we are going to live together again and it is making me crazy. Or maybe taking care of 3, 4 year olds by myself is making me crazy. Either way, I'm ready to start the next chapter in our lives.

Our Friends Birthday Party

Last weekend we went to the 4th birthday party for our friends Lydia, Jennifer and Taryn.  We had a great time.  Mark has been bugging me to see some pictures, so here they are.

2 sets of 4 year old triplets

Ben loves icing.

Katie enjoying her cupcake.

Abby looked so cute in that hat.

Starting this blog

I've been thinking about starting a blog for a while.  This seems like a good time.  We will be moving (hopefully soon) and this could be a good way for friends and family to keep up with our family.  I'm sure they will want to see pictures of the kids primarily.  I don't intend it to be just a family blog, though.  It is my blog and I want to be able to express myself however I want.  It might be good for me to have an outlet to express myself.  Whether anyone will want to read it for anything more than kid pictures is questionable.  No matter.  I hope to have fun writing and maybe someone will read.