Mitteeee!

KK has a new boyfriend! He has a cute button nose, big ears and lives in Orlando, Florida. She calls him Mitteeeee! For the past two nights, she has insisted on bringing the same Mitteeee book with her to bed, and then insisted again for her nap today. When I went in to check on her, this is what I found. She can identify most of Mitteeee's friends - Donald, Goofy, Minnie, and Daisy (said with the sweetest little lisp!) We still have a little trouble with Pluto - she usually just says "puppy!" instead of his name.

Auntie Sunshine, are you ready for a trip to Mitteeee's castle? I know someone who is! : )

The Chair

When Daddy was a baby, his step-grandfather made him a beautiful rocking chair out of wood (Aspen, maybe?)
I had always hoped to take a picture of KK sitting in the chair at about the same age Daddy was in this picture, but I had forgotten until we ran into the chair in Nama's basement this weekend. I was only a couple of months late...better late than never!!! Next time we're at Nama's I'll have to get a picture of Daddy and KK sitting in the chair together. I love nostalgia!

Today was a pretty typical day. We worked at the club in the morning, and then ran some errands. KK was late going down for her nap, so she slept until past 4pm and we missed playgroup. I don't like to miss playgroup - I love it as much as she does. To make myself feel better, we went to the local consignment shop after she woke up and I bought KK four summer outfits and two books for $4! (It was technically $24, but I had a $20 credit at the store.) I love good bargains, too!

Family Weekend

I spoke too soon about the infection-causing bugs being annihilated. I'm pretty sure I developed a sinus infection on Friday. Harrumph. No complaints here...things could be worse. We were still able to spend some time visiting family this weekend. On Friday we had lunch with KK's Great-Great-Aunt Helen and cousins Janet, Paula, and Faith. Spending time with them doesn't happen often enough because of distance and schedules. Helen and her family took me under their wings and put up with me when I first moved to Colorado, and I am more grateful than I can express. Any time spent with them is special and something I appreciate and enjoy!
On Friday night we stayed at Nama's (KK's word for Grandma) and had dinner with her and Auntie K. On Saturday KK spent the day with Nama while Daddy and I helped some friends move into their new home. She kept Nama busy by emptying cupboards, rearranging everything she could get her hands on, and building towers "higher and higher!" We had planned to stay until Sunday because Nama was having a jewelry party at her house, but my sinuses got the best of me. We headed back home so that Nama could prepare for her party without having the little tornado (aka KK) at her feet and so I could nurse my sinuses. On the way home we stopped at her cousin C's house and they had a great time playing for the rest of the evening. Today we didn't leave the house. I did some spring cleaning and schemed up some new ideas for redecorating the house. Which we'll probably finally accomplish in, oh, say fifteen years? It's fun to pretend, anyway.

Finally, I am excited to share that a friend has started a new blog. The story is long, but I'll share that her husband overcame a life-threatening allergic reaction to an antibiotic. In her blog she writes about their journey to wellness and SO MUCH MORE. She is a very inspirational writer, so if you get a chance please stop by and visit Mama Panda at Rolling on the Liver.

Antibiotics and time-outs

I think it is safe to say that all of the infection-causing bugs that have dared enter our home this week have now been annihilated. KK is back to herself, with a few new developmental advancements. Like the need for some serious time-outs.

Last night BuddyBuddy came home from doggy daycare (no comments necessary, I already know it's crazy) with a wound from a "collision with another dog which resulted in a little tussle." He was limping badly and he had a small puncture wound in his chest/shoulder area. Since it appeared to be a dog bite, we brought him in to the vet this morning and now he is also on antibiotics. He seemed a lot better this morning, but laid around the house a lot. The problem was that whenever he laid down, KK insisted that she just HAD to sit on him. BuddyBuddy is gentle, sweet, and VERY tolerant of her...but he is still a dog. And sitting on him just isn't an option. Really ever, but particularly when he may be in pain or uncomfortable.

So, KK needed to have a couple of time-outs today because she just didn't get it. I had to sit with her because this 18 month old isn't going to just stay sitting in a corner on her own. And what does she do? She gets all cute with me. She says "Hi Mama!" and then tilts her head and blinks her eyes while she points to them and says "eyessth". I tried to be strong, but I couldn't help but laugh and say "Awwww, I love you!" and give her a kiss. She still had to sit there for the entire minute and a half while I explained that she couldn't sit on B, but darn she was cute! This discipline thing is going to be hard.

Ears

KK is doing better. Most of the time she plays contentedly, but once in a while she goes through spurts of being inconsolable. I'm sure her ears hurt. Tonight Daddy and I almost cried for her. She never quite knows what she wants...or, rather, she knows exactly what she wants but it changes moment to moment. Daddy left the room and she had a meltdown. Daddy returned and she only wanted to be held by me. Then she wanted to have BuddyBuddy's leash around her neck and hold one of his dirty old training bumpers (these things are really dirty - bumpers are usually not even allowed in the house) and she was FURIOUS when I took them both away from her. Tonight when she went to bed she had a cup of milk and a cup of juice because she couldn't decide which she wanted. When I tucked her into bed, she had a cup tucked under each arm. She glanced at each cup and said in her sweet little voice, "Melp. Dooce. Night night." Then she fell right to sleep. Thank goodness for numbing ear drops.

Poor KK

Yesterday KK developed a fever, but I was able to control it with M*trin and Tylen*l pretty easily. She stayed home with Daddy for most of this morning, and then he dropped her off at the club for the last hour of my shift. She wasn't interested in playing and just wanted to be held, so I knew she still didn't feel good. We went home and tried the Tylen*l again, but this time it didn't work - her temp was still high and she was lethargic. She didn't have any other symptoms of being sick - no vomiting, no coughing, no runny nose - so I called the doc and they told us to bring her in. By the time we got to the doctor at 4:30 her temp was 103.9 and she was not a happy girl. It turns out that both of her ears are infected, possibly caused by the influenza virus. Apparently influenza hits suddenly and usually includes headache, bodyache, and fever - but doesn't always have other symptoms (unlike the stomach flu which is totally different) so it sounds like it is probably the cause. We decided against testing her for sure, because if the doctor even made a motion of coming near her she would cling to me and scream...so since the treatment was going to be the same whether it is actually influenza or not, there was no need to torture her with a nose swab. Daddy was able to get her to eat a little tonight. She drank some Gat*rade, took her antibiotic (for her ears, not for the flu - we debated giving it to her at all, but in the end the doc thought we should) and went to bed early. I hope she sleeps through the night and is feeling better tomorrow...poor sweetie.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We had a very sweet Valentine’s Day! It started at the club where KK made a pretty handprint Valentine and played with her friends. (Did you know how fun it is to play underneath of tables?? She LOVES to do this!) This afternoon her friend P came over and there was more playing under tables and sharing of toys. I love the picture of them on the chair…check out how their mouths are the same…cute!

Daddy is still working on his big project at work, so he got home late and then worked from home for a while after dinner. He will be taking our computer with him to work for the next couple of days so I’ll be out of touch. It will give me time to REALLY start on that scrapbook I keep talking about (and buying stuff for). I mean REALLY this time!

On a more serious and important note, Grandpa had his surgery today to remove the skin cancer. It sounds like the surgery went well and was successful without having to remove too much tissue. Apparently they had to make some incisions and he has quite a few stitches, but they will heal soon enough. We are so relieved that it went well. Yaaaay Gampah! We love you!

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!!!

Baby, baby, baby!

We've been in the house a lot the past couple of days with my cold, and KK has formed quite the attachment to three of her "babies." These include two baby dolls and a stuffed cow she got with a MagIQ DVD from her Grandma M.

She dragged them from room to room (all three at the same time - she looked adorable with her arms full as she ran around the house) and played with them for hours. She had a great time!

Note how she is sitting on the baby doll's head in the picture above and has her in a choke-hold in the one below. What a sweet Mommy! : )

Sniffle, sniffle, cough, cough

Sure enough, after my great "Mom's 24 Hours Away" I am sick with a cold. Thanks a million, grocery store clerk. It isn't the worst I've ever had, but it still isn't any fun. I just hope KK doesn't catch it. So far, so good. I'm off to drink more orange juice...out of the contaminated carton...thanks another million, grocery store clerk.

Tip of the day

If you work at a grocery store (or anywhere for that matter, but particularly at a grocery store) please do not stand at the cash register, violently cough into your hands multiple times, and then paw the produce as you run it across the price scanner. There is nothing more repulsive and disgusting than the need to dunk your newly purchased food and containers in alchohol and/or bleach-water before you feed it to your family. Cough into your shoulder or even into the air for gosh-sakes - but please do NOT blatantly deposit your germs onto our food!!!!!!!! (Gag.)

On a lighter note, today KK and I went to music class and Daddy surprised us by showing up for the last few minutes. KK was so excited to see him! After class we went to the mall to get Daddy's Valentine's Day gift and then brought Valentine treats to everyone in his office (here is a picture of KK distributing the goods). This weekend I am going to enjoy a "Mom's 24 Hours Away" with some friends...we are getting manicures, etc. , having a nice long dinner, and then staying at a hotel for a slumber party! It will be Daddy's first time taking care of KK alone overnight, but I know he'll do great. We've already shipped BuddyBuddy off to "Camp Sandy" (his favorite place in the universe besides in a duck blind with Daddy) so that KK will not have to compete for attention from Mr. Pouty Face. Daddy has made plans to bring KK to the indoor park and is already talking about what they are going to eat all day. I think everyone is going to have a great weekend, and we hope that you will have a great weekend too!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Daddy is 38 today! Since he is working on a big project at work, we didn't get to do anything special. He doesn't like cake, so we made chocolate chip cookies for him instead - his favorite! Here is the birthday boy and his little girl (he would only pose for ONE picture, and this is it)...Over the weekend we went to Grandma's and celebrated Daddy's, Uncle Ry's, and Auntie Kar's birthdays...all happening within the week. KK and her cousin got to watch TV wearing their matching bear slippers. Pretty cute.

Happy Birthday Daddy, Uncle Ry and Auntie Kar!!!

KK is 18 months old!

It is hard to believe that this day is here...our baby is a year-and-a-half old. Not long ago KK was only a dream, a dream that we thought might never come true. And today she is here, in our arms, and I cannot imagine life without her. Every day when I see her, touch her, hold her, and kiss her, I am filled with love that is impossible to describe. The little piece in my heart that was missing for so long has finally been filled. Happy 18 month birthday sweet baby girl! WE LOVE YOU!!!

Click below to 'Watch KK Grow' through her first 18 months.