The Triplet Ballerinas

Feb 21

My Triplet Ballerinas: Triplet Drama

Guest Blogger: Megan J. My triplet ballerinas are my triplet daughters, Makenna Anne, Jaeli Jo and Maysie Jailyn.

There is bound to be drama when you have three daughters in the house. But, with three daughters of the same age, the drama is exaggerated beyond what words can explain! I can’t even imagine what life will be like in just a few short years when the teenage hormones hit. At age 11, the drama now usually consists of problems related to not sharing or who is wearing whose clothes or jewelry. This is a constant struggle and a battle I dread each day, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

The girls do not realize yet how lucky they are to have two sisters their own age. They have a companion and someone to be with and talk to every day. Jaeli and Maysie, the identical twins of the triplets, have much in common, but their fraternal sister, Makenna, struggles daily to feel included. As they get older, I hope they find special bonds between each other and that one day they will realize how precious their sisterhood really is. I can see it now though: boy drama, attitude drama, friend drama, competition drama and much more I am sure!

Even with as much fighting and drama that has been going on lately, I still see how fast they are growing up. So, I know I need to take a step back and enjoy the time I have with them while they are still young.

Feb 7

My Triplet Ballerinas: Fighting and Fairness

My triplet ballerinas are my grand-daughters, Makenna, Jaeli and Maysie.

As with all siblings, these triplets are prone to fighting with each other. Surprisingly, it is usually one-on-one instead of two against one, and it is usually, but not always, Jaeli and Maysie who are the ones arguing or fighting. Makenna tends to be the peacemaker. She is the one who runs and finds a substitute to whatever they are fighting over so that they both have something similar. Of course, sometimes Makenna finds herself in the middle of a fight or argument and there is no one to save her since her sisters aren’t as accommodating to her! Most times, their squabbles are easily resolved by one solution or another and the three of them go back to being sisters and best friends.

Again, I am sure it’s probably like this with most siblings, but these triplets are all about fairness. It doesn’t matter what it is, if one gets it, the other two need to get it too or you will hear all about it. It doesn’t matter if it is food (especially candy), toys or even new clothes, it has to be fair and equal. This can sometimes be challenging to find three of the same or similar. When they were younger, whatever was given didn’t necessarily have to be the same since they were just happy to have something new. As they grew older and more aware, it was a different story. They were never far apart then, so if you gave something to one of them, you needed to give the same to the other two. Even though they are not always together now, if they find out you gave to one and not all three, you will certainly hear about it! Beverly

Jan 31

My Triplet Ballerinas: Identical or Fraternal?

Guest Blogger: Megan J. My triplet ballerinas are my triplet daughters, Makenna Anne, Jaeli Jo and Maysie Jailyn.

When I was about 7 weeks along with my pregnancy, we learned we were having triplets. At that time, we were told the babies were all fraternal because they were in three separate sacs.

After the triplets were born and in the NICU, we noticed right away that Jaeli and Maysie looked a lot alike. We had trouble with which triplet was Jaeli and which one was Maysie while Makenna was easily recognized. At only a few weeks old, we took the girls back to the hospital for pictures and had to remove Maysie’s hip brace and Jaeli’s heart monitor. After taking the pictures, it was time to put everything back on. This is the only time that I was ever confused about who was Maysie and who was Jaeli. Thankfully, I had previously painted Maysie’s toe nail in case this would happen. This made me start to wonder though if Maysie and Jaeli were really fraternal. I remembered hearing from another triplet mom that she had her triplets tested with an at-home DNA test. This was very cheap and simple to do, so we decided to have it done. The lab called one day and said they were emailing me the results but wanted to let me know that the test showed a 99% match for Jaeli and Maysie being identical twins!

As Jaeli and Maysie have gotten older, it is easier now to tell them apart. They may be identical, but they are also different in many ways. Like their fraternal triplet sister, Makenna, they each have their own individual personality that makes them their own person.

Jan 24

Ballerinas: Clothes and Hairstyles

The first step in becoming a ballerina is the right clothes and hairstyle. You will need a leotard (you can choose a simple short sleeve leotard or a tank leotard) and ballet tights. Don’t forget to add a tutu! You will also need ballet shoes. Ballet shoes can be made of leather or satin. Make sure the shoes are a good fit though. For beginners, leather sole ballet slippers are great. When you are ready to go on pointe, get proper pointe shoes.

It is helpful to pack all this up in a dance bag. Some other things you might want in your bag are a towel, water bottle and a small, healthy snack.

The young ballerina will probably be required to wear her hair in a ballet hairstyle. This consists of either a ponytail twisted into a bun, pigtail braids pinned on top of the head or even a headband around their head. These hairstyles help keep the hair out of their faces, which is very important when performing their ballet moves.

Jan 17

My Triplet Ballerinas: Characteristics (Pretend vs. Real)

My triplet ballerinas are my triplet grand-daughters, Makenna, Jaeli and Maysie.

One of the things you need to do when writing a story is give character traits (words used to describe a person) to your characters. Here are the character traits I gave to my “pretend” triplet ballerinas compared to the ones of their counterparts, my own “real” triplet granddaughters:

“Annie” is spirited and fearless. She is very confident in her abilities. I have a feeling she might be bossy too! Makenna might be described sometimes as bossy too. She is intelligent (very smart and studious) and creative (her drawings and ideas are so good). She is also always helpful (if you ask her, she will help without complaint).

“Julie” is determined and hardworking. I think she can be self-critical, but never critical of her sisters. She might be a bit of a perfectionist too! Jaeli can also be self-critical at times. She could also be described as being shy and maybe solitary since she has been known to spend time alone reading or watching her tablet. She is very affectionate (always giving hugs).

“Macie” could be described as shy or timid. She is also uncertain, but hopeful. She is definitely a follower, not a leader! Maysie is the dramatic triplet, but also kind-hearted. She is imaginative at writing stories and talented at cooking meals, both of which she loves to do. Beverly

Dec 13

My Triplet Ballerinas…Triplet Friends

The Triplet Ballerinas

Guest Blogger: Megan J.

My triplet ballerinas are my daughters, Makenna Anne, Jaeli Jo and Maysie Jailyn.

One of the biggest strugglesmytriplet girls faceis making friends outside of their “sister group”. During their first couple years of school, it seemed very difficult for them to make new friends within their individual classes. So, when Jaeliconnected with agroup of friends in her class, we were thrilled and so excited for her. She developed a unique friendship with one of the girls in her group that was undeniably precious. They were very close, and she talked about her every day. They would give each other hugs when they saw each other outside of school and hadthe occasional play date.

Unfortunately, the decision to have the triplets repeat 1st grade was made due to them struggling academically. This was one of the toughest decisions we had to make as parents of multiples. In the…

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Dec 13

My Triplet Ballerinas…A Triple Inspiration

The Triplet Ballerinas

My triplet ballerinas are my grand-daughters, Makenna, Jaeli and Maysie.

The dedication in “The Triplet Ballerinas” says, “For my triplet granddaughters, Makenna, Jaeli and Maysie, who inspire me each and every day“. This is so true.

When I started writing almost 5 years ago, I had no idea what to write about. After a dog came to our house one Fall day, lost from a hunter, I thought maybe this would be a good story for a picture book. I couldn’t make that story work, but then I was inspired with writing about the triplets and it evolved from there.

Back then, the triplets were of an age (around 6 years old) that they would have really enjoyed reading and sharing this picture book. Even though, by the time the book was published, they had left picture books and entered chapter books, they still loved that I wrote…

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Dec 13

My Triplet Ballerinas…A Missing Triplet

The Triplet Ballerinas

My triplet ballerinas are my grand-daughters, Makenna, Jaeli and Maysie.

When the triplets were little and went everywhere together, we would get asked a lot, “Are they triplets?”

A few years ago, Makenna went on vacation with her aunt, and whenever we went anywhere with Jaeli and Maysie, we were always askedthe question of whether they were twins. So, how should youanswer that, or should you even answer it?You could simply nod or simply reply,”Yes, they are,” because of course they are twins (the “twins” of the triplets). You couldalso say, “Yes, but they are twins in triplets with their fraternal triplet who is not here right now.” (What a mouthful, but I have been known to say it!) The best one though is, “No,they are triplet sisters with their other sister.” These last two usuallyget the biggest reaction of “Wow, triplets!” even with one triplet not there. That year…

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Dec 13

My Journey…Critiques

The Triplet Ballerinas

During the years of writing “The Triplet Ballerinas”, I received many critiques of my story/writing. The critiques became better as my writing became better. The first few ones were pretty discouraging, especially the one I received from a male editor on Mother’s Day! I almost quit then, but I persevered and, with each critique and advice, my manuscript improved.

Here is an excerpt from one of my later critiques: “The story feels more tightly focused on Annie, and we are now clearly inside her perspective. Conflict is introduced earlier in the story. And the story is more focused overall—there are fewer elements that fall outside of the main story line. However, as is usually the process, as you make forward progress with each revision, it can also become even more clear what other story elements still need to be addressed. I don’t feel a deep connection to Annie, or that…

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Dec 13

My Triplet Ballerinas…Grandma Times Three

The Triplet Ballerinas

My triplet ballerinas are my grand-daughters, Makenna, Jaeli and Maysie.

Since the triplets were my first grandchildren, I became a grandma times three before I was even a grandma once.Before the tripletscame along, I spent my free time mostly scrapbooking.Of course, I wanted to scrapbook aboutthese wondrous, new grandchildren.I wanted to scrapbook about them and any other grandchildren I had through the years.Sadly, finding time for scrapbookingbecame second to spending my timehelpingtaking care of the triplets and later on other grandchildren. So, the grandchildren scrapbooking stalled at the point of when the triplets were babies. Hopefully, I willget back to it someday when I find the time.All the pictures I have taken over the years are still waiting there for me along with all the ones I take each year.

These days, you will find me still taking care ofall my grandchildren, but marketing and promotion of “The Triplet Ballerinas”…

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