My friend mommy

I love how Kelsie introduces us to random people we meet. She points to me: "dis, my fiend mommy", then points to herself: "dis, Kelsie". :) She did this several times at the pool today! 

Yes she will always be my sweet little friend. 

Until she is bad, then I am just her mean momma!

A gorgeous Carolina day!

Kelsie had a feeding therapy appointment this morning, so since we were already on campus and the weather was as perfect as it gets, I thought it would be a great time to have a picnic lunch in the quad. So we headed over to Franklin Street, grabbed a to-go lunch at McAlisters and headed over. Kelsie always has a ball when we go on campus but today was the best yet. We had a great time. I captured a few great moments on video. The first as she started chanting "Lets go Tarheels" for the first time ever. (Gotta love having an iPhone handy for times like this!) And the second was just a funny moment as she watched (and cheered) for a group of college students playing frisbee. I didn't even point them out to her or tell her to cheer for them. She just became captivated by them, asking me what they were doing. And then started saying, "Yay, people!" She might just end up being a sports enthusiast like her momma! You just gotta love this kid's spirit. She is so full of excitement ALL the time!

 

 

Sweetest thing ever!

Oh my goodness. Tonight as I was putting Kelsie to bed, she asked if I would sleep with her. I don't always say yes but tonight I did. As I laid there pretending to be asleep, I cracked one open and watched her looking at me. She was just lying there her face as close as it could be, chin propped up in those sweet little hands as she just starred and me. And then she started leaning over and kissing my cheek. And then my lips. And then she'd stare some more. And then kiss me again. And thats exactly what I do to her as she sleeps! Oh but it  was just the sweetest thing ever and moments like these are ones I hope I never forget! I love that girl so much I feel like my heart could burst!!! :) 

Potty training success!

Kelsie has become more interested in potty training over the past few days and today has only peed in the pullup ONE time and that was at nap. The rest of the day, she was dry and only peed or pooped in the potty! Over the weekend, she started telling me more consistently when she had to potty even when we were out. Then today, my mom stayed with her while I worked and said she peed on the potty each time! She wore panties all morning, and never had an accident. Mom put her in a pull up for nap and it was wet when she woke up but she peed again in the potty when she woke up and was dry the rest of the day. She used the potty with me 3 times after I got her after work. I am so excited. Just hoping this success will continue the rest of the week! Hoping she is potty trained by the weeknd...

On a side note, mom brought Kelsie to meet me at work today. She is always quite shy around my coworkers but she likes sitting with me at my desk. She now says things like "mommy, what doing?" as she watches me work on my computer (charting).

Sunday Spontaneity! Trip to Greensboro Science Center

Spontaneity makes me happy. I wake up most days not knowing what our day will consist of. I usually give in to my feelings for that day, whether that means staying home or going out (unless of course I already have some other prior committment or responsibility). But otherwise, I just plan my day as I go. I love when fun things pop up that I hadn't planned on. Perhaps I get that from my dad. On second though, I KNOW I get that from my dad. He does the same thing. Neither of us are planners. I love that he will call out of the blue with some off the wall idea to go do something. It makes life more fun, more interesting that way. I love the memories from my childhood of being woken up at 6am on a Saturday morning telling me to get ready, we were going on a trip. With no warning, just pure joy, excitement and anticipation, sometimes not even knowing where we were going. But I always knew with him, with our family, it would be fun. I love that about us. I hope to give my children those kind of memories. New experiences, lots of fun, and quality time spent with the family.  This past Sunday was one of those days. This time, dad and I both had an idea of something to do. I called him and asked what he was doing that day and his reply was "something with Kelsie." I asked if he wanted to come up and go to a movie with us after church (my mom works on Sundays after church and Nathan was in China on business, so spending time together was on both of minds.) He said he had been thinking of taking her to science center/aquarium in Greensboro. At first, I thought of all the other things I needed to do, and how much of a hassle it would be to pack up everything for her, go to church, drive to Greensboro, deal with her missing a nap, the fussiness, the tantrums on the way home and I almost just said No, too much work than its worth. But then I started thinking how much she would enjoy it. How excited she would be to spend time with grandpa, how happy I would be to spend time with my dad, and for all of us to enjoy doing something fun together. So I supressed those other feelings and decided to go for it. And it was so much fun! Valerie and Drew (my sister and brother-in-law) met us too and we all had a great time. It brings me so much joy to watch Kelsie see something the first time.  How many times have I seen farm animals up close? It is still fun to see, but for her, these first few years are about seeing and doing things for the first time! And its so much fun being a part of that. Being with Kelsie when she saw the tigers for the first time or fed a goat or put her hand in a tank of stingrays or watched the sharks swim...these are now great memories that I may not have had if I had said "no, I don't feel like it today, maybe another time". We just never know if we will get "another time" and that thought often leads my decisions. Why not just put aside your chores for a day and do something fun? Your children will only have one childhood, so make it worth it. Make it memorable! Share as much joy with them as you possibly can. Give them new experiences. Teach them new things by letting them see it with their own eyes. And above all, just spend time with them. Yes, we could have done that from anywhere, including our living room. But it wouldn't have been near as much fun as this! And we wouldn't have been with "A-pa"! (I'm so thankful for him, that he likes to have fun to, likes to do new things with Kelsie, and instilled in my this zeal for life and raised me to be as I am. I love him. 

 

The "Itser Spider" and Birthday Song

Kelsie can put on a show! I love to hear her sing. She is just starting to sing (recognizably at least). She has done Twinkle Twinkle Little Star before too. I will have to try to capture that on video soon!

 

 

 

Fun summer day!

 "Tickle tickle tickle!" :)

Popsicle sitting in the pool. Summer relaxin on the back deck! 

Pedal boat ride at Pullen Park

We saw the train go by! Woooow!

Carousel rides still make her nervous (or "really scared" as she says)! But we did see a few more smiles this time! 

Train ride! "Oh boy, really cited!"

Bring on more fat!

Whip cream is not something I ever buy (maybe because I like it too much)! But I bought some today, and used it tonight to try fatten up one of Kelsie's favorite foods (strawberries). Wouldn't it be nice if we all had a medical reason to eat as much yummy, fattening food as we wanted? Probably the only perk of having CF, but it's not a bad one. 

 I think it's the first time she has ever seen whip cream in a can and thought it was pretty funny for me to squirt it in her mouth too. 

Making bedtime fun!

Kelsie really likes hide and seek these days. And she likes to hide under her covers when it's time to go to bed. Sometimes she will sit up in the bed with a sheet over her, playing with her babies or looking at a book for 20 minutes after we leave the room. So tonight, I pulled it over both of our heads as I was rrading to her, kind of like a tent. She didn't want the fun to end so I just tied it up like a canopy and she went to sleep like that. :)

She has my heart

Funny girl

Kelsie is at this age where I find laughter in almost everything she does. She is just SO funny!! 

Today's moments...

"Deer yeah-et" ....then..."HOME!!"

Because she kept saying that on the way to the beach and has continued to say it since we've gotten back even though she knows we are already home. 

She's comes up to me with a sweet hug and kiss on the lips and says "happy burtday"... But it's not my birthday. Not sure what made her think of that but it sure made me laugh!!

We went to the park and she loved that!

We played in jello. (Her first jello experience.) And that was fun. She didn't care much about eating it but would still put it in her mouth, turn her head side to side and say "yicious!" (Delicious). 

We played hide and seek tonight - she actually knows how to play now (both the hide and the seek part) - but can anyone guess where she is!? Hehe. :) And you can almost see her smiling under those "fovers". 

She bumped her head on the footboard of her bed, sat up and grimaced, said "owwww!", paused as she thought what to do next, then said..."dand-daib", climbed out of bed and marched to her bathroom saying "I dit it". (Translation: I need a bandaid for this boo boo, I'll get it!). Didn't even need me for that one apparently. She looked totally in control and independent taking care if herself! She does have a fascination with band aids at the moment too however! 

The joy of being called mommy

So thankful for my days at home with Kelsie. Becoming a mother is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me! I have lived a blessed life and have experienced some pretty wonderful things but being a mom is easily the best of them all. It is not always easy. In fact, it is the hardest job I have ever had. The responsibilty is so great and the fear, the uncertainty, the guilt, the anxiety can ...all feel so real. But there is no earthly comparison to this kind of love, it is deeper than any other. And the joy and excitement you feel as you watch your child grow and learn and do new things is inexplicable. Each and every day, as I watch Kelsie play, I think how blessed I am to have her in my life. I notice her say and do new things, I see her personality continue to evolve, I receive her sweet affection, I hear her sweet voice calling "mommy", and I am overwhelmed with love for that child! Don't get me wrong, she is not a perfect child and I am not a perfect mother, but there is no doubt that God made us for one another and is helping us along this journey each and every day.

 

Here are a few pictures from our day today:

 

 

Washing her play food. Next I'll have to get her washing dishes! ;)

Trying a new way of entertainment during PT. The vest vibrates so much it's hard to hold and read a book but this tray works pretty well to hold a sticker book and puzzle! 

She loves puzzles and is getting really good at them! She put this one together all by herself and was so proud! Mommy was too!

"DID IT!!!" :)

Growing up so fast...

Sitting in the big girl swing and riding a tricycle!? How did that happen so fast? At least she still needs my help!

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day! It was such a busy day! We had lunch at Nathan's mom's then went to my aunt's house for dinner (celebrating graduation, mother's day, and dad's birthday). A busy day for Kelsie often means less sleep and today that lack of sleep led to the worst tantrum I have ever witnessed! We got home and she unleashed her inner tiger or something. Oh, it was quite a scene. Screaming and crying so hard she almost threw up! She was just soooooo tired! We did a lot today. She went down for nap late since we were at his parents' house for lunch, then we had to get her up after only an hour of sleep to go to my aunt's house. And she ran around outside non-stop from 5-9p while there. So as I was witnessing this major meltdown trying to contemplate what to do next but could hardly do anything to console her, I remembered that she didn't eat much at dinner and it had at that point been almost 4 hours since she had eaten so I thought maybe she is hungry. Since she is not usually awake at that time of night, that's not something I usually think about. I asked "do you want some milk?" and she calmed for a second and said "ok." As soon as I got back with her milk and a cereal bar, she calmed right down. Then kept saying "mmmm, delilicious" as she ate it! Needles to say, an overly exhausted and hungry child is a force to be reckoned with!! Poor thing said as we laid down and she rubbed her eyes, "seepy". She asked me to sing, held my hand, and laid her face against mine, then was asleep within 60 seconds.

But the greatest tantrum of her existence reminded me:
Parenting is hard and we are still learning as we go!
Sometimes being a mom requires more patience and grace than you know how to give.
Your child depends on you to meet their needs even when they don't know how to express them.
It is more important to figure out WHY your child is acting the way they are than it is to correct the behavior.
Your child finds so much comfort in your voice and in your touch. Make sure you are always there to comfort them and that you will always love them no matter what!


I am also so thankful for my mom today! For her love, support, hard work, kindness, grace, selflessness, and friendship. She is the greatest woman I know and I am so blessed she is my momma and is such an awesome grandma to Kelsie! I am also so thankful God blessed me with the beautiful gift of motherhood! It is the greatest love I have ever known and the hardest but most wonderful job I have ever had! That little girl brings me so much joy and I am so glad God made her mine!

Zizard!

Kelsie is so intrigued by lizards these days! We saw one on a tree this morning and she tried to feed it a leaf.