From anxious to awesome!

When I would say Emma was painfully shy as a baby/toddler/preschooler, I wasn't kidding.  Just ask anybody who met her.  She would cling to me, not make eye contact, not talk...and when Tim and/or I would leave her someplace, she would cry--a lot.  Tim and I figured it was best to start her in preschool when she was two going on three to work on that separation anxiety and the social skills.  We enrolled her in First Baptist Preschool and in September of 2010 she went to her first day of preschool.  See her down there in the picture?  Cautiously excited about this new adventure that mom and dad had been talking up for the last few weeks....yeah....that lasted just until it was time to say bye bye at Miss Jill's door.  A quick hug and kiss bye bye and we were off.  Emma was crying.  My phone was attached to me those first few weeks of school.  Emma was dealing with it, but not very happy about it.  She would cry every day on the playground.  She would have to know exactly what was coming next during their daily activities and she would have to be given direction by the teacher on what center to go to.  By the end of her first year she had improved tons.  No more crying at drop off or on the playground.  She still had a hard time making those independent choices on which center to go to and still needed to know what was coming next on the daily agenda.  

Summer break!!  woo hoo!!!!!

September 2011 rolls around and it's time for preschool!  See that picture down there?  Still cautions...a little more on the excited side.  Emma wasn't sure what to think.  She had gotten so use to Miss Jill's class and Miss Jill's schedule.  Who was this Miss Sara we were talking about...and a different class room?  No way!  But, we told her she would have the same friends, so that was a plus.  The first few weeks were tough.  Emma would get teary eyed at drop off.  She would try SO hard not to cry, with her bottom lip pouting and quivering.  Trying to hold it in so the other kids wouldn't see.  And then...this was presented to her in class...

You see what that says there?  No tears all day!  This was huge!  Emma was so proud of herself.  I could see the confidence in her growing.  Emma developed just as close a relationship with Miss Sara that she did with Miss Jill.  Emma would give Miss Sara a hug every day when she left.  She started interacting more with the kids and actually making her own choices as far as which center she wanted to play in.  I even started to see a difference with her outside of school when we would go to playgrounds, playdates, etc.  At first, if there were any kids playing on the playground, she wouldn't go on it.  She would sit next to me and watch.  As I saw her confidence growing, I would see her inch her way on to the playground while there were other kids on it.  She still would not talk or interact with other kids.  She would get out of the way fast if another kid was running around her or playing near her.  But...she was making her way.

Then it was summer break!!  Woo hoo!!

September 2012.  My cautious little girl pretty excited about Pre-K!  But no more Miss Sara and different class room?  Oh boy....

Emma was a pro at this by now...but the first few weeks took some adjusting.  I don't remember any tears, but I do remember some lingering in the doorway of the classroom or an extra long hug.  Emma would tell us every day that she had "no tears" and had a "great day".  Parent/teacher conferences were scheduled and Tim and I got to sit down with Miss Susan to discuss Emma.  This was our first parent/teacher conference.  I was nervous.  It was great hearing about Emma from her teacher's perspective.  About what she was excelling at and what needed work.  Around this time she was still needing some direction as far as which centers to go to, but her teacher was pleased with the improvement she had seen since the beginning of the year. 

 And now here we are....May 2013 (just a few more weeks of Pre-K left)....and we just went to Emma's Kindergarten round-up last night.  We got to the school and were told which room Emma was going to go in and where we were to go for the presentation.  Uh oh...a new place...all new teachers...and all new kids.  We walked in...Emma still a little cautious, but she sat down at the table with the other kids and said bye bye to us.  Tim and I walked out to go learn all about her new school.  An hour or so later we went to pick her up and she declared "no tears!". 

Emma Conn is the name of her school.  Neat!

I can't believe how far Emma has come in the last 3 years.  She has gone from a painfully shy toddler to a little girl that everyone wants to play with.  I never thought we would get here.  It's hard to see your kid WANT to do things but not be able to.  To know what all they are missing out on because of the anxiety they are feeling.  To see her self-confidence build year by year brings tears to my eyes.  To see that cautions excitement turn in to pure enthusiasm has made me so proud of her and happy for her.  Emma will probably never want the lead in the school play but boy oh boy will she be the best supporting actress...or the set designer or the costume designer. 

Emma's gone from anxious to awesome!  

We are going to take Kindergarten by the horns!

Molly's two year appointment

We had Molly's two year appointment a week or so ago.  I'm just now getting on here to put in her stats, etc.  She did great!  For this visit they had her get on the big girl scale and she got to stand up to do her height.  They also took her blood pressure with this tiny little blood pressure cuff.  That was a new thing the office has started.  The only bad (to her) part of the appointment was getting her blood drawn.  But really....who really likes that anyways?!  Her blood work came back fine.  She did great during the physical exam.  The only part she wouldn't cooperate on was opening her mouth and saying "aahhhh" for the doctor.  After convincing her that was the last thing we had to do and then we could go home, she happily did it.  Stinker! 

Here's her two year stats:
29 lbs (75-90%)  (although we got 27 two weeks prior at a sick visit)
height 33" (25-50%)
head circ 48.5 cm (75-90%)

Compared to Emma at 2 years: 

31.3 lbs (90-95%)

height 34.5" (75%)

head circ 48 cm (75%)

 

The trend continues of Molly being a little smaller than Emma at the same age.  It's fun to compare!  

 

We love you, Molly!!  Our sweet, sassy, funny little girl :)

Happy 2nd Birthday Molly

Molly turned two yesterday.  

When did we go from this:

 

 

....to this:

I blinked and she's not a baby anymore.  She is a little girl.  With likes, dislikes, independence (but not too much), talents, brains, tricks...and she's pretty cute, too.   The baby stuff in our house is being replaced with Barbies, Lego's, and baby dolls.  The crib is gone.  The potty seat is being pulled out.

And while I sit here and look back at those brand new baby photos, I don't miss it.  I loved it then and am loving, even more, the little 2 year old I have now.

newborn~one~two

Happy Birthday (yesterday), Molly Elizabeth!  

We love you so much and love the little girl you are becoming.

my kids and being a mom are my normal

Tim and I just spent 48 hours sans kids.  That's the longest we've gone without the girls.  Since Emma is on spring break, Tim's mom took them Sunday evening after Easter lunch to her house to spend the night.  Monday turned in to Monday night and they stayed another night.  It is now Tuesday and in just a few hours I will see my girls for the first time since Sunday afternoon!  In the past 48 hours I've gone through a whole range of emotions and have come to the conclusion that being a mom to these girls and having these kids is my "normal".  It's what I do.  It's who I am. 

I was sort of lost without them. 

Yes...Tim and I took full advantage of not having kids at home.  We went out to the movies (for the first time in 5 years), we went to bed early and slept all night without anybody in bed with us.  We watched a movie at home on night #2 and ate pizza and didn't have to share any of it!  We got ready in the morning without having to get two little people ready, too.  I went to Starbucks Monday morning BY MYSELF and enjoyed some coffee!  And please understand me when I say we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves...but we often found ourselves talking about something cute one of the girls did or said, saying how much we missed them or wondering what they were doing at that moment.  I won't deny going to smell Emma's buddy once or flipping through pictures on my phone. 

I can't remember life before them.  What did we do?  Where did we go?  Who did we hang out with?  They are my life.  They are my "normal"...and that includes the sleepless nights, the sister yelling matches, the messes, the laundry, the hard-to-please toddler and the opinionated 5 and a half year old.  I wouldn't trade that for the world.  I don't think I ever realized how use to this mom-life I was.  I'm a mom and raising my two girls is my normal.  It's what I do...and I realized, it's hard for me to go 48+ hours without my kids.

So...here's to deepening my love for my "normal" after being kid-less for two days!  Boy how I love these girls!

Glittery Goodness and a {giveaway}

Y'all, through the referral of a friend, I discovered the most amazing little business.  A young girl named Jessica makes and sells these adorable headbands--and with the purchase of every headband, she sends a headband to a little girl fighting cancer and donates $1 to the St. Baldrick's Foundation.  I'm all about businesses that give back! 

Check out some of the great headbands she offers.  Most come in two sizes so you can get some for your little girl and/or yourself!

Glitter Bands

See how fun and sparkly the glitter band is.  When I opened it, first I thought about how adorable it will be on my girls...then I thought of all my running friends.  I don't run, but if I were to run, this would be prefect to keep back those pesky fly-away hairs.  It's probably my head shape, but I usually have a difficult time keeping headbands in.  They usually slip back and pop off my head after 5 minutes...but this beauty stayed in place until I took it out.  That's worth it right there!   Add to that how every purchase gives back and it's a win win.

Up for grabs today are three glitter bands!  Three luck readers will win a glitter band of their very own!  All you have to do is 'like' Headbands of Hope on Facebook and comment here telling me you liked them.

If you want an extra entry, share Headbands of Hope page on your Facebook page and comment a second time telling me you shared.

Winners will be randomly drawn on Monday, March 25th  

Good Luck! 

...it's okay for her to sleep with me

I was somewhat of a sleep-nazi with Emma.  She went to bed the same time every night, slept through the night and NEVER slept in our bed.  Then Molly came along.  She was exclusively breast fed for the first year. She would nurse several times at night and she would sleep right next to me...in my bed.  I was too tired to fight it.  She slept the best (and the longest) right next to me (and the milk).  The nursing during night lasted through the first year.  After about 13 months I stopped breast feeding and in turn she stopped having her milk snack during the night.  When she would wake during the night I would stick the paci back in her mouth and that was enough to help her to get back to sleep.

BUT

She was still coming in my bed with me.  She starts out her night in her bed (a crib mattress on the floor).  After a couple hours she wakes, I re-paci and she rolls over and falls back asleep in her own bed.  A couple hours after that I hear her calling me, "Mommy, mommy...", in a quiet, soft voice.  I go in her room and she has her arms reaching towards me.  Although she can easily get out of bed and come to me, she still calls me and waits for me to come to her.  I can tell that's when she is ready to snuggle.  No amount of re-paci'ing will get her back to sleep in her own bed.

SO

I bring her in bed with me.  She immediately rolls over in my nook and falls fast asleep.  That's how she stays until the morning.  Sometimes I put her back in her bed once she's asleep....but that usually ends up in her calling me again and coming back in my bed.

I go through times of thinking:
I really need to get her to sleep in her bed all night
I need a king size bed
What is this doing for mine and Tim's "alone time"
I should just let her cry
Why do I have the only *almost* 2 year old who still needs to sleep with her mom

THEN

I hear stories of mom's getting diagnosed with cancer.  Mom's with cancer being given 2 weeks to live.  Mom's giving birth to still-born babies.  Mom's giving birth to babies they can't touch due to a skin disease that makes the baby's skin blister with just one touch.  Tragic car accidents.  Couples who can't conceive a baby.  Babies being taken from their parents too soon-being called home to Jesus.

...and I decide it's okay for her to sleep with me.  And I don't feel guilty about it.

I will give her snuggle-time whenever she wants.  I will be thankful for health and for the two kids I asked God for and for some reason He entrusted to me.  I won't be worried about what other *almost* two year olds are doing and will focus on the one I have and the fact that she loves to snuggle with mom and dad in the wee hours of the mornings.

I'm thankful.

We've got a winner!

We've got a winner for the Hope{full} giveaway!  

Congratulations to Stefanie (#1).  Random.org picked you!

I hope you enjoy your awesome Lisa Leonard stuff!

I will be in touch.  Congratulations!