I get the questions all the time:
"What's it like having three?"
"What's it like having three so close together?"
"What's it like having three BOYS so close together?"
I'll start by free associating all the words that come to mind when I'm asked these questions:
wonderful, busy, fun, crazy, normal, hilarious, messy, hectic, loud, full, happy, great, wild, worry, entertaining, constant, right, and good.
Really, that sums it all up pretty well and you probably don't even need the details but I'm going to ramble a bit for my own memory's sake.
I really, really, really love this stage of life. I love having the boys this close together and I wouldn't do it any other way. I love how they adore their "baby." I love that they have each other and I love feeling surrounded by little ones. I'm pretty sure I smile every time I glance in the rear view mirror and see that almost every seat is full. This is the life I dreamed of, I'm so thankful to have a house (not quite) full of children. This is my dream, I'm living it.
That doesn't mean there isn't a large dose of chaos that comes with every day. Nearly every time I nurse Sam I have one or both of the "big" boys sitting with me as well. Which would be sweet if they actually sat. However, what they do is bounce and jump and climb: on me, on the chair, off of the chair, back on the chair, on my shoulders, onto the baby etc etc. If Sam isn't sleeping or perched on the highest counter in our house he has boys in his face, making him smile, pulling his toes, feeding him goldfish and generally overstimulating him. He is bound to be a very patient man. If Charlie isn't on me he is on a counter or the dining room table. If Jack isn't leaping from the chair where I nurse onto the couch and back again he is finding some way to pester Charlie or "be like curious george" (who I'm beginning to think is evil).
I worry less and more with three. I don't have time to let every tiny fear creep up like I did when I just had Jack, I can't micromanage anyone's world and for me (and them) that is a GOOD thing. I would not be a good parent to just one child. My temperament bends toward over involved and it is good for me to be so busy I can't obsess about the details. I do however find myself worrying about the same things over and over again. Right now my main worry is their roles (again, it is a blessing and a curse to be a therapist). I worry about the "middle child" thing for my sweet C. It is true that he is either being hauled around to Jack's swim lesson or Jack's summer camp or being trapped somewhere so I can tend to Sam without worrying about him hurting himself. He is, for now, very much stuck in the middle and it can be hard. Troy reminds me that this is temporary for Charlie, he has an older brother that can do much more than him and a younger brother that is completely helpless and that won't be the case for long. Soon he will have his pick of playmates in our house and his middle man status might just be the most desirable one. So when I'm not worrying about Charlie's role I'm worrying about Jack. Having just turned four and already being the older brother of two is quite a lot for his age. When the chaos sets in and everyone is screaming the easiest one for me to correct, or banish to another room, or attempt to control is Jack. I get afraid that we are too hard on him or that our expectations of him are too high or that we take out the tension we feel when the little two are screaming on him. Being the oldest myself, I think I'll always have a tender spot in my heart for him. So when I'm not worried about my middle man or my parentafied eldest son I'm worrying that the baby doesn't get enough eye contact or stimulation or physical touch. He certainly spends more time sleeping or more time in a car seat than his brothers did at his age and I often feel a tug at my heart when I'm putting him down because I'd love to hold him and just delight in his littleness all day long. It is an amazing and overwhelming thing to love people so much and I have to make a conscious effort to remind myself to "do my best, reflect on my successes as well as my mistakes, make changes, and let it go!"