Today we have Tracy Caliendo of Almost Triplets NYC on The Mag. Tracy is the mother of five, four of whom were born within 13 months of each other! Read more about her amazing motherhood journey, including IVF and surrogacy, and all of her best parenting tips and tricks.

Introduce yourself and your family’s journey with IVF and surrogacy.

I’m Tracy, the mom to @almosttripletsnyc. After struggling with infertility, I had 4 babies in 13 months!

I had 1 son and just turned 40 at the time, but couldn’t get pregnant again. So I turned to IVF. After 2 unsuccessful rounds and a miscarriage, I next turned to surrogacy. But get this — I finally got pregnant on my 4th round of IVF!

Naturally, one would be thrilled but for me — considering my difficult journey, I feared that this would end in another heartbreak. So I didn’t want to take any chances and still moved forward with the surrogate. Cut to me having a successful pregnancy with my daughter Harlow and 4 months later, our surrogate had TWINS — Piper and Presley!

It doesn’t stop there. After 3 months, I found out I was pregnant again. I learned I had placenta accreta which is when the placenta grows too deeply into the uterine wall. I gave birth to our son Dylan at 29 weeks. Although he was diagnosed with congenital scoliosis, a bone condition, Dylan is a WARRIOR and a very happy baby.

So here we are now — family of 7 with one 13 year old and 4 babies age 2 yrs old and under, living in the heart of Manhattan.

What are your top tips families with multiples?

Our top 5 tips for managing multiples:

1. Only buy pjs with zippers - the snap ones slow you down. Remember with multiples time is of the essence- speed is everything!

2. Keep them on a schedule - no matter what- this includes naps, feeds, bath, bedtime- they should do everything at the same time..

3. Imagine crying x 4 for us- when one loses it, most of the time the others think they should start crying too- ALWAYS carry or have ready their soothing toy. It’s usually something different for each child but figure out what that is and have it handy.

4. Mentally you need to stay strong- remind yourself every day that the first year is the toughest and it does get easier - my game changer was when the girls started walking- the fact that I could put them down on their own rather than trying to carry two at a time was turning point..

5. Keep them busy- I know it may seem easier to stay home but the day goes by much faster and the kids are happier when they have things to do!

PS. and always remember, children are such a blessing and we are lucky to have them xoxoxo.

Share three products you couldn’t survive parenthood without.

1. Dr. Browns bottles - easy to clean, prevented gas.

2. Table for 2 - amazing for multiples.

3. Insulated infant bottle - this way I can leave milk out for the kids at night and it will stay fresh. They take it and feed themselves overnight.

Name up other small businesses in the parenting space that you love.

1. Gymboree - best place for me to take the kids.

2. Evereden - all natural

3. Even Flo wagon

In one sentence, can you describe what it means to be a mother?

There is nothing so beautiful as a happy child.

Anything else you’d like to add?

It’s amazing to watch how each of our littles are developing and coming into their own. They each have distinct personalities and sometimes cannot be more different but with siblings there’s always that common thread that binds -family and a whole lot of love. ️

Harlow is our entertainer. She is the one that will sing and dance as soon as she hears music 🏻

Piper is our athlete and risk taker. She will run through a wall if we did not stop her ‍♀️

Presley is our sweetheart and most intuitive. She still wants non-stop cuddles and knows how to communicate to get our attention 🥰

Dylan is our warrior. He never complains, works harder than the crew ever had to and takes everything like a champ.

Then there’s Hunter, the oldest and the best role model to these littles.

And finally, where can we find you?

Website: Instagram/social: insta @almosttripletsnyc