My baby is 2 years old!!

  

Happy Birthday to my baby girl! What an exciting couple years it has been! It's so amazing to see how much she has grown and developed over these last 2 years. She is such a fun little girl to be around. Very social, welcoming and thoughtful of everyone around her...and still so easy going! We are truly blessed to have her in our lives!

Her ice cream sundae and pizza party was a great success! Two of her most favorite foods. She loved having her friends over and all of the special attention she was getting. 

She wasn't too sure about the lit candles. I thought that she would attempt to blow them out from our swim practice and blowing bubbles exercise, but she wasn't having it...so Daddy and I helped. 

By the end of the party she was so pooped so her and Daddy took a nap. All the fun, pizza and ice cream she could handle. 

Some people say she looks like her Grandpa in this pic. So cute!

Hiatus is over!

...and three months later, a new post! Can't imagine what I've been doing with myself these past few months. The summer is here...so the heat is around us, baking like an oven until we are dehydrated and crispy.  I spend all of my time indoors or in my car with the A/C. We bought Kate a little kiddie plastic pool to cool off in but it's just so hot I don't even want to go out there to fill it up...let alone sit there while she plays. I do have her enrolled in swim lessons at our gym. It's only 1 day a week and it's a basic intro class so there's a lot of 'kick, kick, kick' and 'scoop arms' and bubbles. I don't think we necessarily need lessons for that but at least it makes me go.

She's also in a little dance class at the gymnastics place down the street. Dance class meaning a bunch of toddlers running and bouncing around to music taught by a 16 yr old. It's a free class though and it's inside so no complaints here. They do also provide little tutus to borrow for those that want to wear them and twirl around. Kate of course makes a B line for the tub of tutus the second we walk in the door.

This is a puffy vest that was sent in a hand-me-down box from her cousins. She LOVED wearing the puffy vest, and still does...poor girl. Too bad we live in a city with no snow...or cold weather for that matter. I guess we'll have to go find some soon before she grows out of it.

Baby's first lollipop. Might be her last. It was a hot, sticky mess. I'll think hard about it the next time.

Wearing her Aunt's vintage romper that's about 35 years old. I don't think you could find a better summertime outfit!

Wearing her shades inside, naked. Very necessary on a hot, sticky day like that day!

Happy 4th of July! This girl loved the sparklers!

...and the watermelon too.

Where'd my sweet baby go?

The beast has arrived. I can't pinpoint which exact day or event has unleashed it...but the time has come. The terrible twos. uggghhhhhhh... I actually saw a glimpse of it about a month ago when I was trying to put her to bed. I thought someone was going to call the cops and CPS from all of the screaming.  I didn't know what to do other than to give in and agree to let her go back downstairs to watch one episode of Sophia the First (Disney Jr.). After that she calmly cooperated and let me put her to bed without one peep of protest.

I am currently writing this entry just after surviving two tantrums, caused by two different events, that happened within minutes of each other. These episodes have been going on for the past 2 or 3 days. So now I'm sitting here while she plays quietly, trying not to make eye contact (or any noise for that matter), hoping to regain strength to make it through the next one...whenever that may be.

Research (and those who have experience) have said that the 'secret' to surviving these tantrums is to stay calm, be patient and DON'T give in...sheesh, let's just hope that I've had my coffee by this point.  Waaaay easier said than done for sure. Especially since research has also shown that during these episodes, the toddler brain cannot understand reason or rationale...so really it's like trying to deal with a crazy person. The screaming, crying, kicking, hand swatting and head shaking should to be dealt with by not speaking to them (you'll just add fuel to the fire) and keeping a calming composure...so basically pretending like nothing is happening? Oh and if they are a thrasher (yes...), you should remove any sharp or pain inflicting objects from the immediate area.

collecting her eggs during the hunt

On a positive note, she has yet to have a fit out in public. I suppose it's only a matter of time since apparently the terrible twos can last until 3 or 4...so unless I lock her up in the house for another 2 1/2 years, I assume I'll have to deal with at least one publicly humiliating episode. Let's just hope my audience is sympathetic and doesn't possess any working recording devices...oh and I also hope that I've done my hair and makeup that day.

My little angel at Easter Mass. Hard to believe she has a crazy tantrum bone in her body.

UH OH!

We've had our first major boo boo. Long story short, Kate fell off the couch and 'broke' her arm. It sounds awful, and it really was at the time...but it also sounds worse than it actually was.

Long story long...We were down in the basement one morning having a picnic breakfast on the couch. Our couch has an ottoman as well so I had just placed the tray of food on the ottoman and Kate had climbed up on the couch. This is no big deal, she can climb up and down on her own easily now. At this point I noticed I had received a missed call from a friend regarding meeting up that morning. Returning her call and hearing the signal cut in and out, I got up off the couch and walked to the base of the stairs to try and catch the signal. The base of the stairs is conveniently blocked by a wall so of course I don't see what happens next. Seconds later I hear a thud and Kate wailing. I hurriedly end the call and pick her up off the ground where I notice my big spoon from my cereal had also managed to be. My only assumption is that Kate had it in her hand during the fall. So after 30 mins of off and on crying, I know something is wrong but the question now is what. Try playing 20 questions with a toddler who shakes her head 'no' most of the time. I managed to narrow it down to her arm and after witnessing her try to use it and slump forward under the weight crying I narrowed it down further to her wrist.

Of course I'm panicking during all of this. Heart racing, trying to plow through brain farts of not being able to answer the question 'what do I do now?'. A broken bone was just unheard of, especially at this young of an age. A call to the doc, appt made and instructions for Motrin and ice calmed her (and me) down quickly.  Once we arrived at our appt (which was 2 hrs later), she seemed pretty normal and didn't show signs of anything being wrong...aside from not knowing where to put her arm sometimes. So I was beginning to let go of the guilt a little. This can't be too bad...I'll bet it's just a little sprained...I'm sure loads of moms have left their babies unattended on the couch. yadda yadda

After a brief examination involving grasping, stretching and poking with no tears and slight wincing, the doc recommends an xray just to be on the safe side. (Since it was Fri and didn't want us going into the weekend not being sure). I took it as a precautionary measure that was probably a waste of time...in other words, denial. Anyway, a trip across the street and an hour later we're back at the docs with xray in hand. (side note: I'd like to thank Kate for being such a good girl during these medical procedures since it was lunch AND nap time)

Waiting in the exam room again, I'm already thinking about what I need to do once they free us...lunch, nap, ice, maybe more Mortin...because it's just a sprain anyway right? Wrong. Doc comes in saying 'fracture' and I'm shocked and crying.  It's described as a buckle fracture and supposedly very common for this age group...even though they wrap her up with a half brace that is 5x bigger than her arm because that's the smallest size they have. (I caught this contradiction later on) She showed me the xray and although it was a fracture, it was very small. Like a newspaper that has been rolled up and smushed together a little. Just a slight crumple in the bone right above her left wrist. No actual separation or crack in the bone.  Still, my baby had a broken wrist and needed a trip to the pediatric orthopedic surgeon for further examination :( ...and so the guilt continues in full force.

We went to our appt with the pediatric orthopedic surgeon 4 days later and walked out with a pretty, purple and sparkly mini cast.  Kate did great. She was very cooperative and there were no tears.  She needed the cast on for 3 weeks which pretty much flew by. She seemed to be ok with it on and rarely paid any attention to it.  Bath time was a little interesting but once we got the bagging method down it was no big deal.  The pretty and clean sparkly cast soon turned a little dirty and dingy.  It was a little difficult trying to keep it clean being on a toddlers arm. Eating and playing (especially outside) was a challenge. I ended up putting a sock on her arm when she would play around dirt or sand.  Definitely the coolest kid at the playground. ;) A few days before her cast was scheduled to come off, I got some gold metallic pens and asked some of her friends and family to sign it. Very cool!

The appointment to remove the cast didn't go as smoothly as the first appointment. We were in and out in about 5 minutes which was great but the removal was a little terrifying. I never had any experience with casts before but I knew they removed it with a mini circular saw looking thing, which is scary in itself. It was explained that the saw doesn't spin around, but just vibrates so it doesn't cut the skin. phew. Still the sound was very loud and the vibration was pretty strong since I could feel it down her arm. She cried a little but it was quickly over so quickly forgotten.

All in all it was a tolerable experience but something I never want to have to do again. But I shouldn't be in denial that it's not a possibility. She's a very active girl that loves to explore and do things on her own.  I'll just be reasonable about it and strap her down with some elbow/knee pads, wrist guards and a helmet.

28 days of LOVE.

Today I was thinking about what to write for this month and how I could come up with something a little different instead of just writing an update. At the time, Kate was cheezing it up with some old lady at the store and the lady was gushing over Kate. I started thinking about all the goofy things I love about her and realized I was making a list in my head. So I thought, what a good idea for the blog...and how appropriate for February! So here is this month's blog update...my '28 days of Love'...some of my top favorite things I love about Kate. <3

I love...

1: that she can (and will) cheeze it up with any (stranger) who will give her the attention
2: her dimples, 'nough said

3: her babbles. They are so silly, I just wish I could understand them because I know she is always inquiring about something from her raised voice inflection and questioning stare
4: her dance moves! ...and she changes them up too which is pretty creative in my opinion
5: how she smiles with her eyes...big, squinty grins
6: that she is independent and decisive...with a touch of cuddles
7: that she LOVES Mickey Mouse, which means she'll be a Disney girl
8: her hair color! It's a beautiful brownish-auburn...with gold highlights in the sun
9: when she wears a onsie with no pants, I love watching her chubby (yet slimmed down) legs running around the house

10: that she only knows 2 signs (sign language). Well I don't love that, I admit I got lazy...but instead of the real 'more' sign, she just claps...which could mean 'more', or 'food', or 'I want____' or just an actual sign of joy
11: that she is not a cry baby...her rare cries generally mean there is something wrong and I can usually calm her down within a few seconds...fake cries and tantrums for attention are another story.
12: when I see glimpses of Bryan in her and then glimpses of me at totally different times...and of course glimpses of neither which means I'm seeing just Kate :)
13: that she has her daddy's eyes, gorgeous hazel green and cutie patootie curly hair

14: that she cuddles with Trevor, and he finally lets her
15: that she's an organizer...give her some space and a bunch of random shaped things and she'll just 'organize' them and 're-organize' them over and over
16: that she gives open mouth, slobbery kisses
17: that at 17 mos she has all of her teeth (except her 2 yr molars), so hopefully we get a little break from teething...yessss
18: that she is still a very go with the flow kind of girl
19: (and am sad) that we're not nursing anymore, although we both could have continued just a little longer because we enjoyed the time together...but it was time.
20: that she knows exactly how to push my buttons

21: that 90% of the questions asked to her get a head shake 'no'. I know it's the stage she's in, but it's so funny to me when Mickey Mouse asks something like 'do you want to help us find Pluto's ball?', and he gets a head shake no...because I know she really does want to help.
22: that she loves to get out and go places, doesn't really matter where
23: that you know when she is about to sit down because she'll start slowly backing up 3 ft beforehand...sort of like a big dump truck...beep beep beep.
24: that she loves to read books
25: that her cheeks are still enormous despite the rest of her body having thinned out
26: that she's an observer, a think before she acts kinda girl
27: hearing her chew...this is a strange one but I know there are others who love the sound of their babies innocently crunching, munching and slurping without being self conscious about what they look like...ha!

28: that she gives the best hugs, the 'make you want to melt' kind of hugs <3

Happy 2013!

....and I'm back! Things have been very busy around here. The fall/winter months and holidays are my favorite time of the year and always end up coming and going too quickly. So let's recap.



Oct was a hot month which was a bummer because sweating and being in a pumpkin patch at the same time doesn't feel right. Kate was Dorothy from the Wiz of Oz for Halloween and some of her little friends were the rest of the gang (lion, tin man and scarecrow). Super cute but she is still too young to appreciate my hard work. That meaning I made her costume. Well I actually just assembled a little blue dress with some scissors and a hot glue gun and painted some shoes with red glitter...but still. Next year she might be Boo from Monsters, Inc. which will take more than some hot glue if I'm going to make it. So maybe I should hold off until she knows how hard it is. Pssh...right.

Oct was also a big month since little miss started walking! It was probably a week or so before Halloween that she finally started taking some steps. She'd been standing for awhile...probably getting her game plan down. So when she started walking she really took off. A lot of people have commented on how well she walks for not walking for very long. I suppose they are right when I think about it but I don't really have anyone to compare her to. My little super star...she'll probably be a professional athlete.

November is always fun for me since its my birthday month...as well as the start of the holiday eating frenzy. This year was my 30th which wasn't really celebrated too crazy and that's ok. If I survive the year, then my 31st can be a big celebration. I really don't feel any older, slower or weaker so I got that going for me. Hopefully that lasts longer than I anticipate it will. We finally were able to get out the cute sweaters (this is back in Nov). So our play date activities at the parks, walks and zoo became more and more comfortable. Thanksgiving was great as always since I love to eat good food. We hosted here at the house and everyone came when they could. Kate loved turkey day food of course!

December came and I immediately put up my tree and started decorating. Last year Christmas came and went so fast I didn't get to enjoy it. This year I made a point to immerse myself in it...lights up, Christmas music channel on all the time, etc. I had my cards out somewhat early and I made Christmas cookies and treats...which is sort of a big deal. I think we watched Polar Express 6 times.  Kate had a fun month with all of the celebrations and activities. Her gifts from Santa were all musical and book related and she even got a year membership to the Museum for Youth!

We went in for Kate's 15 month...this was after her two colds with a double ear infection right in the middle...ugh. Her stats:

height: I can't remember and I can't find her sheet...maybe 30in? She's in the +95% anyway
weight: 23.12 I think...- 50%ish