This and That

Potty Training Update!

It's been two months since we started Potty Training Boot Camp at our house. Surprisingly (at least I was surprised) Kaydence was the first one to graduate from boot camp. I am happy to report that Kassidy and Ryder are also recent PTBC graduates---yay! (If potty training were a Quint Olympic event, Kassidy would have won silver and Ryder bronze.) Rustin who was the early front-runner still has a ways to go, but has seen some progress this past week. And, Kyndall.....well, what can we say about Kyndall??? She likes to be the one calling the shots. Her personality is similar to Kaiya's, and with Kaiya, potty training turned into a horrible control battle. I decided it isn't worth it to go down that road with Kyndall, so I am just waiting until she decides she wants to be potty trained. She knows the basics, it is more a matter of her committing to use the potty all the time. So, I'd say overall we have about a 70% success rate at the moment!

Here are some pictures of the PTBC graduates and trainees that I took with my phone during a recent photo shoot with Kristen Duke

Kassidy--PTBC Graduate, Silver Medal Winner!

Kaydence--PTBC Graduate, Gold Medal Winner!

Rustin--Still in training, but getting close to the finish line

Kyndall--thinks playing in the dirt is more fun than potty training or having her picture taken

Ryder--PTBC Graduate, Bronze Medal Winner!

The Fab Five: Kaydence, Rustin, Kassidy, Ryder and Kyndall (a little bit of sun glare, but still thought the picture was cute)

So typical...whenever I try to get a group shot, there is always ONE who won't cooperate!

Halloween Update!

I was so excited about our Halloween costumes last year...the quints were the "Five Little Monkeys Jumping On the Bed" and Jayson and I were the doctor and the "mama". (Riley and Kaiya did their own thing). This year I couldn't get my creative juices to line up with my costume budget, so we aren't really doing any cutsie theme. All the girls (including Kaiya) are going to be fairies and all the boys (including Riley) are going to be ninjas. They will still all be cute and are so excited about going Trick-or-Treating at our church's "Trunk-or-Treat" activity tonight. We have been practicing saying "Trick-or-Treat" and "Thank you" all week!

Halloween 2009: 5 little monkeys, Doctor, Mama, Draco Malfoy (Riley), Angel (Kaiya), and my niece and nephew.

This year GG and Barbara decorated pumpkins with the kids---they used faces that attach to the pumpkin "Mr. Potato Head" style. The kids LOVE seeing their pumpkins on display every time we pull up!

The pumpkins have a face on both the front and the back---that way people from the road can enjoy them and the kids can look at them from the front window too!

Cassaundra was over last weekend and the kids found a praying mantis on Ryder's pumpkin. They were so fascinated!

I love the look on Rustin's face in this picture!

"Texas Quints" Update!

Nothing really new to report about the show. I still haven't heard when they are going to replay it, although I am sure they will sometime! We had a second "premiere" party (actually we called it a "replay" party) the Saturday following the premiere. The initial airing was past a lot of peoples bedtimes, and my kids wanted to have a party with all of their friends, so we had two parties. Below are a few pictures from the "replay" party. If you want to see more episodes of "Texas Quints", you can let TLC know HERE. Be sure to select "Texas Quints" from the drop down program list.

Playing Peek-a-Boo in an attempt to get the kids to look at the camera

Not sure what a great idea that was, but it did make for a humorous picture!

Wilkinson Family at the Texas Quints Replay Party!

In The News...

Austin Community College, where I have worked as an adjunct professor for the past 10 years, just did a spotlight on me and my family. You can get to it from the ACC homepage (watch the scrolling pictures at the top until my family comes up) or you can go directly to the story HERE. I thought it was a really great article.

This and That

Three-Year Pictures

Last week my friend and favorite photographer, Kristen Duke, took "three-year" pictures of the quints. They turned out amazingly great---especially since the kids were not in the best mood that day. For all you local Austin-ites, the pictures were taken at Old Settlers park by Dell Diamond. It was a great location with a big old barn, old truck, rusting tractors, etc. You can see even more pictures from the shoot on Kristen's Website. Kristen has been taking pictures of my kiddos since they were one month old----here is another link to some of my favorite "Kristen" pictures.

This one might be my favorite from the shoot--it's just so sweet and these two boys really do love each other. They are such funny little buddies.

Kassidy

Kaydence

Rustin

Kyndall (there is another one on Kristen's website with Kyndall doing her signature wink)

Ryder---I totally love this one of him! You would never guess he was my "Mr. Handful"!

Three-Year Pictures

How to Contact TLC

I finally found a spot on TLC's website where you can request more Texas Quints! Go HERE. You will have to fill out some personal info. On Step 1, it asks what your question is regarding, select "Network/Program related". On Step 2, select "TLC" as the network. On Step 3, where it asks for Program/Show, select "Texas Quints" (YAY--there is finally an option for Texas Quints---this is a recent addition!). In Step 4 you will finally be able to leave a comment.

If you have a minute or two, please pop on over there and fill it out----it sounds more complicated than it actually is :-)

For those of you overseas who don't have TLC, I think you could use this link to request that clips of the show be put on the website so they can be viewed on the Internet.

Thanks!

How to Contact TLC

"Texas Quints" Premiere Party

Monday night was the premiere of our TLC specials! We were so excited to finally see how everything came together from the filming! When we were originally approached by this production company, one thing that we really liked was that they wanted to do something a little different from other multiples reality shows----they wanted to focus more on the FUN and less on the drama. Now I know that I am completely biased, since it is my family, but I loved how the shows turned out! I thought they were laugh-out-loud funny and I loved that they tried to show each of the kids personalities. When they were over, I was left wanting more. I heard that they have about a 400 to 1 ratio for these shows----about 400 hours of filming for every 1 that makes it to the final cut, which tells you that they had to cut out A LOT of stuff and be really selective to tell the story.

Some of my favorite parts of the shows:

The Crib Cam---we knew that there was a lot of partying going on in there are night, but we had no idea just how much!

Jayson's Dance Party---the looks on the kids faces was priceless!

The diaper malfunction---perfect example of Murphy's Law

Baby Jail---I love the on-screen titles that listed the crimes

The Van Scrape---yes, this one is a bit embarrassing for me, but I have had several people ask, so I thought I would clarify---it was all REAL! I really scraped the van, I really peaked out and saw nothing, We really did not find the scrape until our first stop for gas on the trip, and what you saw on TV were the actual moments when we discovered it!

We had a big party with our friends to watch the premiere episodes. We set up a large screen with projector in a friend's backyard (Thank you Wilcox and Woods families!). I rolled out the "red carpet" and made everyone have their picture taken like they were at a "real" premiere. Despite the fact that it started to sprinkle 30 minutes before the party was supposed to start (what is it with me and parties and rain, anyway???) everything turned out GREAT! It was so much fun! All the kids loved seeing themselves. Rustin started crying when he watched his balloon go up in the sky---it was sad and sweet at the same time. Kyndall got upset when I started to get attacked with water balloons at the family party. I think some of their favorite parts were the special transitions---like Rustin finger-painting on the screen. When we watched the shows again at home, they wanted me to rewind that part over and over again, while they giggled like crazy.

The Quints on the "Red Carpet": Kassidy, Ryder, Kyndall, Kaydence and Rustin

The "Red Carpet" in the front

The "Red Carpet" and photo backdrop in the back

Goodie Table

I was so excited when I found these napkins on clearance at Michaels....they were perfect for our party :-)

Wilkinson Family on the "Red Carpet"

Getting ready for the show to start...we turned on "Dora" to entertain the little ones before "Texas Quints" started.

Kyndall, Kassidy, Ryder, Rustin and Kaydence watch the premiere!

I have had several people ask if there are going to be more episodes, and at this point it is up to TLC! We will let you know when we hear something! In the mean time, if you would like to tell TLC that you want more "Texas Quints", you can leave some feedback on their website HERE. (Note: I have discovered that Texas Quints is not listed in the drop down show menu, making it difficult to leave a comment...I'm checking into it.)

Thanks for all your support! We have loved reading all your emails, comments on the blog, and posts on facebook!

"Texas Quints" Premiere Party

Texas Quints Rap!

Here's a little something to wet your appetite...The production company just released this rap video that they made during the filming! Just two more days until the premiere of "Texas Quints"! Set your DVR's for Monday, Oct 11th on TLC (check your local listings for exact times).

Texas Quints Rap!

"Texas Quints" Preview

Discovery posted a press release about the show on their website. It includes a short description and a few still shots taken during the filming. You can see them HERE.

Just three more days until the premiere of "Texas Quints"! Tune in Monday night at 9:00 pm (Austin time, it's different everywhere so check your local listings) on TLC. I can't wait to see how it all turned out! For more details, click HERE.

"Texas Quints" Preview

We have a WINNER!!

In a surprising turn of events, KAYDENCE is the winner of the Potty Training Quint Olympics!!! Yay, Kaydence! So far she is the only quint to consistently be accident free---even at night!

Gold Medal Winner: Kaydence!

When we first started potty training, I was sure that Kaydence would be last. She always likes to take life at her own pace. She is usually the last person eating at the table, she was the last one to walk, and she doesn't score very high in any Quint Olympic events that require speed. However, after five weeks of potty training, she clearly passed the others and is currently the only one I would call "potty trained". I guess this is a good example of the tortoise and the hare, where slow and steady wins the race!

Though no one else has finished the "race", Ryder is currently the silver medal contender with Kassidy and Rustin vying for bronze. Kyndall continues to be completely apathetic towards all attempts at potty training. She would much rather cause trouble in the bathroom than use the toilet!

Kyndall in time out after flushing an entire roll of toilet paper down the toilet, causing it to overflow and flood the bathroom (while I was frantically trying to get dinner made). She clearly feels a lot of remorse for her misdeeds...NOT! In fact, when Kaydence saw how much fun Kyndall was having, she begged to be put in time out too. Perhaps I need to come up with a more effective consequence!

The weather here in Austin has been SO beautiful lately! I took the quints to the park last week to take advantage of the great temperatures---who knows how long they will last! Here are a couple of pictures from the park:

Kyndall, Rustin, Kaydence, Ryder and Kassidy

Kyndall, Rustin, Kaydence, Ryder and Kassidy

DON'T FORGET to tune in to TLC this Monday night for "Texas Quints"! Two back-to-back episodes will air starting at 9:00 pm in Austin (check your local listings...it's different everywhere).

We have a WINNER!!