For the Lienemann and Waddell triplets, the bond is strong despite differences
The Waddells
On Monday nights, freshman Hannah Waddell and her sisters Grace and Olivia gather around the television to tune into their favorite crime drama, “The Blacklist.” The girls absorb themselves into the journeys of cunning criminal and former government agent Red Reddington and his associates. After realizing that one of the characters was working against the FBI, all three girls exclaim in unison, “She’s the traitor!”
Although the sisters, who are triplets, say triplet telepathy is a matter of fiction, this sort of coincidence is a regular occurrence. It isn’t uncommon for the girls to say the same thing at the same time or finish each other’s sentences.
“The majority of the time we think it’s strange and look at each other wide eyed,” Hannah said. “Then we just burst out laughing because it’s a moment of awkward silence, and we realize how funny it was that we were thinking the same thing.”
Similar thinking is one of the idiosyncrasies that come with being triplets, who were born to Kevin and Stephanie Waddell on March 12, 1999. Olivia was the first born at 12:46 p.m. and weighed 4 pounds. Grace came a minute later at 12:47 p.m. and weighed 4 pounds, 9 ounces. Hannah was born less than a minute after Grace, also at 12:47 p.m., and weighed 4 pounds, 11 ounces. Grace and Olivia are identical, and Hannah is fraternal.
“[When I found out I was having triplets] I felt a little bit of shock, but I always kind of knew in the back of my mind for some reason that I was going to have triplets,” Stephanie said. “I didn’t plan on having three at one time, but I was very excited when I found out.”
Caring for three newborns may seem like a strenuous task. Stephanie endured long sleepless nights raising the girls, but had the help of relatives to help relieve some stress. For a week at a time her mother, mother-in-law and sister would alternate visiting Stephanie to help with tending to the babies.
“All of a sudden everybody was gone, and I was like, ‘What do I do now?’” Stephanie said. “But you just figure out a schedule and figure out which baby is more patient that day and do what you can.”
As the girls grew up, the days of dressing the girls in matching outfits faded. Each of the triplets developed her own interests and a distinct personality.
“[Being partners] was definitely a unique experience,” Hannah said. “It’s different than being partners with a classmate. We know each other, and we talk to each other differently than I would talk to a classmate. We argue with each other, but not in a mean way, just fun. ”
The girls’ characteristics and activities may differ, but the girls are enrolled in many of the same classes, which they say is one of the upsides to having two other siblings in the same grade.
“I really like that if we have questions we can ask the other one, and there are certain subjects that we might be better at than others, so we can always rely on that,” Grace said. “Plus, if we’re sick we mostly have the same teachers so we can ask them to get the homework.”
Inside and outside of school, the girls spend a majority of their time together, whether it’s just relaxing or hanging out with friends; however, spending too much time together can brew conflicts among the sisters, which can cause a rift in their friend circle.
“[My sisters] are my best friends, and we’re so close, but imagine having to be with your best friend all the time, eating breakfast with them, eating dinner with them,” Olivia said. “It would get annoying, and you guys would start arguing a lot, and that’s something we do with each other. Sometimes if we get into an argument, friends will take sides or try to tell us what’s right and wrong, and we don’t really like that because we’re sisters, and we just want to work it out by ourselves.”
Arguments among the sisters generally don’t last for long, and the girls typically can forget about it and move on. Despite their differences, the bond the sisters share is strong.
“We can always rely on the other one to be there for us,” Grace said. “[When you are a triplet], you can always have a friend. You always have someone to talk to and lean on, and you’re never really alone.”
The Lienemanns
On a December day in 1996 Mary Carol Lienemann stood at a payphone on a call with her doctors. When they revealed to her the news, she was stunned. “I was just in shock for quite some time,” Mary Carol said. “It just took some time to get used to the idea.” Eight weeks into her pregnancy, Mary Carol had just found out that she and her husband, Jon Lienemann, would be expecting at least triplets.
Sure enough, on June 12, 1997 Mary Carol gave birth to fraternal triplets, sophomores Fritz, Joe and Katie Lienemann. Fritz was the first born at 6:01 p.m. and weighed 3 pounds, 1 ounce. Joe was born one minute later and weighed 3 pounds, 2 ounces. Katie was born one minute after Joe and weighed 2 pounds, 9 ounces.
“When they were little, from a health standpoint, was really the only negative [to having triplets],” Mary Carol said. “It’s such a big negative because you don’t know how their life will unfold, and in our case, we were really lucky.”
After the triplets were born, Mary Carol and Jon’s family more than doubled in size. The two had to purchase a bigger home and new cars that would be accommodating to the newborns. Mary Carol had the help of a night nanny to care for the triplets. Having three newborns at once may seem more difficult and demanding than having three kids at separate ages, but Mary Carol said that it had its conveniences.
“If you had your kids one at a time, you’re going to have your newborn, and you’re going to be up all night, and you’ve got two others that are running around all day that have a different schedule,” Mary Carol said. “They might eat different food, and so to me, in some ways it was easier [having triplets.] They all ate the same food and were on the same schedule.”
Now sophomores in high school, Fritz, Joe and Katie have grown up, but their bond has still remained strong. But as the triplets grew up, they also developed their own interests in sports and other activities. While Fritz runs cross country and track, Joe is involved in golf, and Katie spends her time after school throwing the javelin on the track team.
“I like doing different activities because we’re already together so much that it’s nice to have a break,” Katie said. “Plus, we would get competitive if we were all doing the same thing.”
Outside of extra curricular activities, the triplets spend time helping each other with schoolwork and studying for tests in common classes. When not involved with school, the triplets spend time with their separate friend groups, which often intermix.
“Added on to the time that we spend together at home, [we spend time together] doing extra curricular activities and being with friends,” Fritz said. “There’s never a time when I’m just like, ‘I’ve had too much of this.’ It’s definitely something we can deal with.”
A social circle is something that the triplets share in common, but much like their interests, their personalities differ.
“Joe is laidback, and he’s more quiet and introverted, but he’s very caring once you get to know him,” Katie said. “Fritz is more outgoing, and he’s really funny. You can just tell that he really likes his life and is super positive.”
With Katie being the only girl of the triplets, Fritz and Joe have bonded over the matter of being boys. Hanging out with the same people and running cross country has brought them closer.
“I’m a little more close to Fritz just because he’s a boy,” Joe said. “There are certain things that I can share to him that I just feel more comfortable with than Katie.”
Entering freshman year, the triplets didn’t have an older sibling to guide them through the twists and turns that high school brings. However, they said that a positive part to this was that the three got the unusual chance to experience it together.
“The best part is being in the same grade,” Katie said. “You don’t have someone older to give you advice, but you’re all going through the same stuff at the same time. You have two other people who are doing the same thing as you.”
While they plan on going to different colleges and pursuing different paths, the triplets can always count on each other.
“I love having [Fritz and Joe] as brothers,” Katie said. “They are always there for me.”
