As a present for the arrival of our triplets, my parents offered to replace our 5kg washing machine with something larger and more heavy duty. I’d been wanting to go and look at various models for a few weeks so we decided that yesterday was the day!
My husband and I had decided a while ago that we needed to try getting out of the house and in public with all 4 children (our 17 month old son Raph and our 11 week old triplets) at some stage so going to look at washing machines was going to be our test run!
We’d also decided to get a second double pram (city select) so that we could transport all four children with two adults and my husband had called to put one on hold at a shop across the road from where we going to look at the washing machines.
Once we’d decided our outing was a ‘go’ – we started putting the wheels in motion to get ready and organised. We made sure our toddler (who still wakes between 4 and 5am each morning) had a sleep and an early lunch. We packed the baby bags and got the 11am triplet feed done and everyone loaded in the van by 12:15pm. The bubs were settled so we made the most of it and treated ourselves to a McDonalds drive through meal which we thoroughly enjoyed in their carpark!
We arrived and parked under the baby shop at 1pm and decided the easiest way to get up to it (2nd floor of shopping centre) was to put our 17 month old and a baby in the double pram and for my husband to wear our ‘super duper’ double baby carrier for our two other babies. It was of course an incredibly hot and humid day and I’m pretty sure the underground carpark was at least 5 degrees warmer than outside. We finally got organised (albeit hot and sweaty) and headed up to the shop where we were greeted with much enthusiasm by the shop assistant and many, many stares of amazement from first time parents.
Within about 2 minutes of arriving, my toddler undid his pram belt and launched himself out onto the floor towards a beautiful display of colourful drink bottles and Audrey (our little screamer) decided it was a good time to show everyone how good she is at trying to burst eardrums and turn blue/ purple at the same time! My husband was out of action and of no help since he had our other two little precious babies strapped to his front. I made the executive decision to restrain Raph before he destroyed the display and let Audrey do what she does best. I do need to mention that I have on many occasions witnessed Audrey’s outbursts and know that after a short period of screaming she will calm herself down and go back to sleep. It’s not a scene for the faint hearted and I got a number of dirty and worried looks from fellow shoppers.
After a couple minutes of trying to coax Raph back into the pram and having Audrey sounding like someone was skinning her alive I decided that rather than trying to win a losing battle I’d sit Raph up on one of the stools next to the cash register so I could pick Audrey up and calm her down. I managed to pay for the pram (it took two attempts as Raph pulled the credit card out of the machine mid transaction) and calm Audrey so I decided to take Raph to the little play area at the back of the shop whilst the assistants unpacked and assembled the pram for us. We hate having to get rid of the big cardboard boxes the prams come packed in and had planned to leave the shop with all four bubs firmly strapped in so we could go across the road to look at the washing machines.
After no more than 5 minutes of playing with Raph I could hear Audrey start up her screaming again (I’d left her with my husband) so I waited a couple more minutes before grabbing Raph and heading back to the front where my husband was. As I got closer I could see a group of people staring in the general direction of my husband and as I rounded the corner and he came into view I understood why. There he was with Louis and Celeste strapped to his front and Audrey propped up on his shoulder screaming her little lungs out! He was jiggling her around (as we do to try and settle her) whilst the other two slept soundly. I think most people couldn’t believe their eyes since a twin baby carrier is already pretty rare, but to then see someone carry a third baby – well, it’s like a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience!
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity and Raph had finished road testing every single glider chair in the shop, the new pram was ready and we were able to transfer the bubs from the baby carrier into it and Raph and Audrey into the other pram. We high- tailed it out of there and across the road to the washing machine place. I have to admit that my husband and I both had a little giggle in the lift as we told each other about the various looks of horror people had when they saw us.
As we were crossing the road we could feel a couple small raindrops starting up but decided to continue on our mission.
Upon arriving at the second shopping centre, Audrey and Louis started crying and as we entered the lift I glanced at my watch and noticed that it was almost 2pm. I said to my husband that we’d have to hurry as we’d just hit the 3 hour mark since their last feed and they’d start to get grizzly. As we got out of the lift we pulled out the dummies and tried to get Louis and Audrey to take them. After a couple of minutes of screaming babies I made the executive decision to find the mothers room and feed them rather than try to calm them down. We’d also started to attract a number of stares by staff and shoppers so we jumped back in the lift and headed downstairs.
It took us a couple of minutes to locate the toilets and as I opened the door I realised that it wasn’t a mothers room but rather a disabled toilet with a change table! There was no way we were a) going to fit the two prams as well as my husband and myself in there and b) that I was going to attempt to feed anyone in a room that smelled like poo! So, we turned around and found the one free bench available and parked ourselves there.
My husband pulled out the baby bottles of boiled water he’d so carefully packed and heated before leaving the house and they were of course still boiling and much too hot to feed with! At this stage, all three babies were crying so I grabbed Audrey to breastfeed her while my husband grabbed Louis to calm him. We opened the bottles and put them on the bench next to us so they’d cool down enough to add the formula and feed to the babies. I am of course at this stage thanking my lucky stars that I’d decided to keep breastfeeding one triplet on rotation at every feed a couple weeks ago so I still had milk!
So, my husband has Louis in one arm and is rocking the pram containing Celeste with his other arm and I’m sitting on the bench breastfeeding Audrey when Raph spots the lift with the nice shiny buttons on the wall next to it. Like a race car, Raph manages to release his stroller belt and get to the side of the lift in about 3 seconds. Before we know it, he’s pressed the button. We hear a loud ‘Bing!’ and the lift door opens. The door closes so Raph presses it again, Bing! and again Bing! and again Bing!……. Each time this happens Raph turns around to look at us giggling with a huge smile on his face. As no one was using the lift and he was standing in a spot where we could see him playing we didn’t even attempt to stop him. We even had a bit of a giggle between us as it was quite funny to see.
By this time, Audrey had finished her feed so I gave her to my husband to burp while I grabbed Louis (who was still crying) and put him on the other breast. The water in the bottles sitting on the bench still wasn’t cool enough to feed to the babies. At about this stage, a little boy whizzed past us on a scooter and Raph walked over to look at him. After a couple of laps Raph decided he wanted a turn so started running behind the little boy. As the boy was riding up and down in full view in the aisle we were sitting in we let him go for it.
Finally, as I finished feeding Louis and my husband had burped and put Audrey down half comatose in the stroller I asked him to get the now lukewarm bottle ready for Celeste. As he’s rummaging around and I’m putting my boob away and burping Louis I look around and notice that I can’t see Raph anymore so I ask my husband where he is. He looks up and goes ‘oh sh*t!’ and runs off to look for him. So, as I’m sitting there with the three babies I put Louis down, pick up Celeste and start looking through our bags for the formula but can’t find it. Finally, my husband comes back with Raph (who’d followed the little boy around the corner) and I ask him where the formula is? After a minute my husband lets out another ‘sh*t!’ as he realises that he left it in car! So, I looked at him, pulled up my blouse for a third time and put little Celeste to my boob and crossed my fingers that I had enough milk left to feed her!
Raph had meanwhile discovered some lovely balloons hanging off some discount signs in the mattress shop across from us. My husband followed him in and walked him back to us. About three minutes later Raph started to rub his eyes and after getting knocked over by a passing gentleman starts crying. I look at my watch again and realise it’s almost 3pm and time for his afternoon nap…….. I tell my husband and he’s like ‘ok, where’s his dummy, maybe he’ll sleep in the pram’ and I say ‘oops, left it in the car’. My husband looks at me, grabs one of the babies’ dummies and shoves it in Raphs mouth. By this time, we’re pretty worn out and sick of all the stares from passers by so decide to admit defeat, pack up the team and head home. We look outside and as luck would have it, it’s started raining……. We’d already forgotten the formula and Raph’s dummy, so it’s not like we were organised enough to have packed umbrellas!
I decide that since we were stuck there and the babies seemed a little more settled that we should power on and go look at these damn washing machines. We got back in the lift, got out and of course Celeste (who hadn’t been burped properly starts crying). Since she wasn’t in my stroller (I had Raph and Audrey) and had my eye on the prize of viewing these washing machines, I leave my husband to deal with the screaming and I power walk into Harvey Norman and head to the right section. I’m at the back of the shop and can still hear Celeste screaming but manage to block it out while appearing very together and smile at a salesman who walks over to answer my various questions. About five minutes later I’m joined by my husband with whom I take turns walking around the displays in circles with a pram whilst discussing the various pros and cons of the machines with the salesman.
We gathered all the information we wanted within about 10 minutes, thanked the salesman and headed back to the lift in triple speed. Whilst walking out of the shop I heard people whispering to each other and looking at us. As we arrived at the lift a rather large and overweight man stepped in, turned around and looked at us. There was no way we’d all fit in it together and he wasn’t moving so my husband told him we’d catch the next one. As the doors closed my husband turned to me and said ‘well that’s obviously why he’s so fat, he could have taken the stairs!. I’m not sure if the man heard him and really, at that point, I was beyond caring. Whilst waiting for the next lift, a lady came up to us and asked us if we had Quads. I looked at her with a raised eyebrow (thinking to myself we have a 17month old sitting up quite obviously in the pram) gave her a polite smile and said ‘it’s triplets, there are three babies and a toddler’.
Luckily, just at that point the lift arrived and we were able to escape before she hit us with some other highly intelligent questions!
When we got out of the lift the rain had stopped and we managed to get everyone back and everything loaded in the van without any major mishaps. As we pulled out of the parking spot my husband turned to me and said ‘I think we deserve a chocolate sundae from McDonalds!. We downed them in time to get a much needed boost of energy (fuelled by the sugar high) as we pulled into our garage and unloaded everyone before starting our much loved ‘arsenic hours’ (from 4pm to 7pm every night!).
So, that’s how we spent our Saturday :)
