Whine whine whine

Some days when I am in the shower and the girls are whining for no particular reason, I just stand in the warm water and take a deep breath. *Sometimes,* the louder and the more they whine, the longer it takes me to get out of the shower.

(Of course this is only if the girls aren't injured, choking, or having another emergency that cannot wait).

Whine more= I take more time.

I know I might not win the best parent award.

Our Little Turtle

I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried, but Ashlyn is 15 months old now and she cannot roll from her back to her belly. I find this kind of strange. We have been working with her quite a bit, we will lay her on her back and guide her arms and legs, but to no avail. We will try rolling her to her left side and also to her right side, but it makes no difference. If Ashlyn is on her back, she will stay on her back until someone comes to her aid. She is our little turtle.

(Ambria took this picture of me and Ashlyn)

Bad Word

Mariah: Mom, sometimes I say a bad word.
Me: Yikes, ok.
Mariah: Can I say it now?
Me: No (Ambria was within hearing distance)
Mariah: It is the S word. Sh, sh, sh
Me: (heart beating a little faster)
Mariah: s-h-u-t u-p
Me: Oh. Ok. You are right, let's not say that word.

My heart rate returned to normal and I was relieved. I know it won't be too much longer before Mariah hears swear words, but for now, I am glad she thinks shut up is a bad word.

THAT Kind of Sick

The other day, Ashlyn woke up with a fever and was VERY fussy but she had no other symptoms. You know, the kind of sick where nothing will comfort the child: Tylenol doesn't work, all they want to do is be held, but you can't sit down, they aren't hungry, they won't sleep, they just plain don't-want-anything.

The kind of sick where:
*you want to cuddle and hold the child ALL day, but you have to get SOMETHING done
*you try everything to calm them, even walk outside and point at ants and leaves to distract them
*you HOPE they will take a good nap, BUT you aren't sure how long they will sleep so you hurry/scurry around the house as fast as you can in hopes of getting something accomplished
*you cringe a little when you hear the first whimper after a nap because you know the crying is about to start again
*you keep looking for other signs to figure out what is bothering the child: teeth popping through, snotty nose, drool, but the child gives you no other symptoms so you have no idea what is wrong
*you are prepared at any minute for puke-age...just in case :)
*you aren't sure if you should call the doctor, one minute the child seems ok the next they are screaming their head off

It was that kind of day around here.

Oh, and PS, I didn't call the doctor and Ashlyn was fine after a few days. It was a long few days, but thank goodness she is feeling better.

Tip/Advice/Reminder for the Day

Sometimes "good enough" is just perfect!

Parents Magazine

Yours truly has made it into the October 2011 issue of Parents magazine.

I am famous!!

No, not really.

I submitted a short story for the column entitled "It Happened to Me" which is about safety tips for other parents. After I submitted the story, an editor contacted me and we had some dialog over the phone and email because the editors felt my story could be helpful to other parents. The magazine also wanted a picture of Mariah (because the incident happened to her when she was little).

So, wa-la! My 15 minutes (more like 15 seconds) of fame is for a parenting mistake that I made. I am hoping that other parents learn from my mistake so "it doesn't happen to them" and their kiddos. It is just a short paragraph, but still kind of fun. Mariah loved seeing herself in the magazine and took it to school to show all her friends.

(Am I going to tell you what the story is about? Nope. Go read the article. Page 38. And then you can tell me how horrible of a parent I am.)

Another Milestone

Well, the second child has started preschool. I feel old. I have a second grader AND a preschooler!

As I said good-bye to Ambria on the first day of preschool, it made me wonder if I spent enough time with her before she started her school years. It made me wonder if I taught her anything that she will carry through life with her. I wonder if I was a good mom to Ambria for her first 4 1/2 years.

I will always wonder about these questions, but as I let go of her hand and walked out of her classroom, I saw her big smile and that reassured me that she will be ok.

What I do know is that SHE has taught me many lessons that I will never forget along the way.

We love you, Ambria! We are proud of you!