MOMS Club trick-or-treating

The MOMS Club I'm a member of and treasurer for, arranged a trick-or-treating event for the kids at a local rehabilitiation center.  I borrowed this Minnie Mouse costume from our neighbor and off we went.  Elyse had a pretty good time grabbing the candy from the residents and stashing it into her bucket.  She was a little unsure of the wheelchairs carrying the sweet smiling faces hidden beneath a lifetime of wrinkles.  As I watched the residents watching the kids, I couldn't help but guess what their subtle grins and sparkling eyes were pondering.  Take away a few decades, liver spots, drooping eyelids and weakened joints and these were their kids or grandkids.  Take away a few more decades and this was them.  Would they want to change anything if they could go back?  What would advice would they give me, toddler in tow, newborn strapped to my chest, and fatigue upon my face?  Who were they years ago?  Profession?  Family?  I yearned to hear stories, to get to know them, to share their company.  Today was not the day for that as I followed the red dress with white polka dots while a sleeping ladybug rested with her cheek against my chest.

The joy our little ones brought them in such a short visit was so evident as the colorful costumes paraded and danced around a room where the onlookers couldn't even stand without help.  Upbeat music from generations past was being sung in person and, as a nurse, even I didn't notice the sterile white, aging tile, medicinal smell or stark white paint on the walls.  Joy visited them today and I'm grateful to have been a part of it.  They handed out so much more than candy to us today.

 This picture makes me chuckle because I can picture this, in another 16 years, except she fits in the seat, bubble gum replaces the lollipop and the Minnie dress is more mature for a school dance.  She confidently reverses out of the driveway and for the basillionth time I silently pray that we have equipped her.  Some days feel so long that it seems like I'll be dealing with toddler issues forever, other days I know I'll blink and this will be reality.

I annoy myself

I lack proper time management and the discipline to get out of bed early to start my day.  I've used pregnancy and middle of the night feedings as excuses for lingering under my sheets and eyelids.  I'm disorganized and lazy if I want to be honest with myself.  Well, may!be not lazy, because once my feet do hit the floor I'm generally going non-stop until I'm back in my bed again. 

I'm fortunate that Elyse is a good and late sleeper.  She goes to bed between 7 and 8pm and we consistently get a good 12-13 hours out of her each night and a 2 hour nap each afternoon.  Our spirited little girl needs her rest, and we respect that.  Given that she is a late sleeper, I truly have no excuse to slumber as late as I do in the mornings.  Even if I got up at 7, chances are I'd have at least 30 minutes before she awoke, if not an hour and a half on her later mornings.  Adley's routine is still in the making but for the time being she is following suit with being a later riser and I'm more than okay with that.  However, I NEED to make myself get up to spend quiet time, exercise or whatever.  I need to organize my time throughout the day, each day of the week. 

I'm good at chores.  I'm good at keeping things rather tidy, dirty laundry baskets empty, bathrooms clean and shelves clear enough of dust to satisfy us.  I am not good at organizing and shopping for a weeks worth of lunches and dinners or keeping clothes neatly folded in drawers.  I'm good at making sure toys are put away each night but not organized enough in their locations.  I pray.  I read my bible.  But not like I should, how I know I should, or as often as I need to.  I'm not sure what all of this says about me, but I would like to get better at all of it. 

Tomorrow I will wake up early.  God, please kick me in the fanny to help jump start me.  Amen.

Pictures!

Who doesn't love those!

 My little holding my big ;)!

 Grandma and Elyse with Playdough noses! Elyse could play Playdough all day long!

 Our first beer can chicken.  Fun to build and yummy to eat!

 Building blocks with daddy.  We were amazed she let it get so tall without knocking it down.

These next few are, in huge part, why we chose this house over others when we were house hunting.  These quack-less ducks walked through the backyard, almost on cue, when we were first looking at the home.  Ducks, that don't quack, in my own yard?!?!?  I was sold! 

 Elyse fed them bread today, which I've tried to avoid, but we all certainly enjoyed it.

 We have our own little paved paradise in the backyard and I purchased these 2 outdoor chairs on major clearance from Pier One a couple of months ago.  I love how much time we spend in them.  We daydream of some shade over our heads in the summer and a small fire pit between us in the winter.......maybe someday.

For now we will just enjoy the green grass on quaint pond.

I'm learning there are a lot of things that, if it can be avoided, I'd rather not take both kids with me to do. For example in and out errands like the drug store, bank or dry cleaners. Grocery shopping I manageable but not ideal and I'd really like to go shoe shopping (I finally tossed my brown winter shoes after 5 years and one heel replacement) but know better than to even attempt that at this point.

So this morning I got up early, jogged 4 miles, ran 3 errands and I'm ending it with a nice pedicure for my calloused soles.

Later this afternoon my mom is watching the girls so Matt and I can go with some friends to an outdoor festival to celebrate his birthday. This wil be a good day.

Photo session pictures

Here are our top nine pics from our session when Adley was just 6 days old.  It was so hard to narrow it down but these just absolutely make my heart smile!

Chicken BBQ Pizza

A local restaurant favorite inspired me to find a recipe and try to make it myself.  I actually liked mine better!  I don't know if I've ever said that before.

Ingredients


1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 skinless, boneless chicken breast half

1/4 cup barbeque sauce, divided

1/2 cup marinara sauce

1 (16 ounce) package pre-baked pizza crust

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1.Heat the sesame oil in a skillet over medium heat. Place the chicken breast in the skillet, and top with 1 tablespoon barbeque sauce. Cook 10 minutes, turn, and top with 1 tablespoon barbeque sauce. Continue cooking 10 minutes, until juices run clear. Cool slightly, and cut into chunks.

2.Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

3.In a small bowl, mix the remaining barbeque sauce and marinara sauce. Spread evenly over the pizza crust. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Arrange cooked chicken chunks and red onion slices over the top.

4.Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove from heat, sprinkle with cilantro, and let sit 10 minutes before slicing.
 
5.Eat and enjoy!

Eye appointment

We awoke early this morning for our appointment with the Pediatric Opthamologist.  I felt confident but still concerned and allowed Psalm 139:14 to carry me this morning......His works are marvelous, that I was sure of as we pulled into the parking lot and the rain drizzled from a hazy sky, the weather matching the tone of the morning. 

The waiting room was scattered with children, some with obvious eye abnormalities, others less apparent.  I sat still, glancing at Adley who was sleeping peacefully in her carrier, while parents swapped stories of surgeries and progress.  I prayed that wouldn't be us.  I didn't want this waiting room to become familiar.  I didn't want the staff to get to know us.

Once it was Adley't turn, the exam was a hard one to sit through, as most exams on children are.  Watching her eyes forced and held open with retractors listening to my baby who seldom even fusses, scream mercilessly while Elyse frantically said, "Mommy needs to help Adley" while her panicked expression looked at Matt and I questioning why her parents were allowing this to happen.  I calmly explained it was okay while two lone tears traced my cheek bones. 

Finally the doctor turned to us and as he said "I think she's perfectly fine" my entire body relaxed and I was so happy to hold her.  Moments like this cause me to be in absolute awe of the intricacy and complexity of our Creator's design.  Truly miraculous, that is for sure.

Her rash is fresh with ointment so it looks pretty bad, but aren't her eyes just gorgeous!  ;)

She will literally sleep anywhere.....at least for now.

We had a VERY fun and busy weekend!

Friday evening we went to First Friday, which our community has done for several months but this was our first time going.  We ate dinner, Adley slept in my carrier and Elyse enjoyed several turns in a bounce house.  There was a live band, balloon animals, vendors with samples, and great weather!  We definitely plan to attend next month.

Saturday the 4 of us went for a nice jog before naps and a birthday party that afternoon.  After the birthday party we went to a neighborhood fall fest/get together to meet some of our neighbors.  We met quite a few people.  We only moved about 2 miles from our old house but now we are technically in the community of Westchase and I must say, the feel is very different.  There always seems to be something going on and everything is so kid friendly, we are truly enjoying it.

Sunday we went to the late service and that afternoon I baked some ziti to take to our small group monthly dinner, Italian style.  Good food and great friends, one of my favorite combinations!

Today, today is great!!!!  After our visit with Adley's pediatrician I closely watched her eye movements throughout the weekend.  There were times I would try to convince myself she was looking, tracking and focusing but truthfully I just wasn't sure.  I couldn't confidently say that she was doing any of those things.  Today I can say that.  She definitely focused and tracked a black and white object I held and moved back and forth in front of her today......multiple times!  I realize we aren't out of the woods and perhaps one eye is stronger or maybe only one eye has vision.  There are many scenarios but one that I'm sure of is that my daughter is not blind, I am confident in that.

It feels so good to type that but prayers are still much appreciated for the specialist we go to see on Thursday.

Eye love her

We had Adley's one month well visit yesterday and we were amazed to find out that she was 11 pounds 2 ounces and almost 23" long, 97th percentile for both!  This is new territory for us because Elyse often lingered around the 10th percentile and we had to hide and encourage healthy fats in her diet at that.  The visit went well and then our pediatrician began to ask a couple of questions...."Does she seem to look at your faces and focus?", "Do you ever see her try to follow you with her eyes?"

At first I didn't think anything of it, "She always seems to be looking past us, at something over our shoulders", I calmly answered.  Even as I spoke the words I realized this likely wasn't heading anywhere good.  I quickly picked up on the change in tone in our trusted doctors voice as she turned off lights and grabbed different tools to encourage Adley to focus.  A little concerned with the results, we were referred to a Pediatric Opthamologist and have an appointment next week.

We don't know what this means or if it means anything at all.  Can she see at all?  Is she blind in one or both eyes?  Perhaps her eye muscles haven't developed yet.  Maybe she will need an eye patch over her left eye to encourage her right eye to strengthen, we just aren't sure. 

I know better than to worry ahead but it's hard.  It's my child.  I desire the best for both of them.  I began blaming myself.  Did I not eat enough DHA even though it was in the prenatal vitamins I took everyday?  Did I push myself too hard during the move?  I found myself hurting for her even though we really didn't know anything. 

I hid my concern in that small sterile room and choked back tears to keep Elyse from worrying, but once we got home and I looked at Adley's sweet little face and innocent gaze panning the room, I couldn't hold back.  I cried.  I called Matt at work to let him know about the visit.  His steady voice reassured me that he is my solid and soft place to land, but the edge of concern in his voice let me know I wasn't worrying alone. 

By the end of the day I resolved that regardless of anything we find out next week, she is perfect.  She is ours and we are equipped. 

Babies, other kids, and people in general crying or getting upset is very unsettling for Elyse. She gets anxious, clingy and upset herself. In preparing Elyse for Adley's arrival and having a crying baby around I explained to her that babies cry because they don't have words. Which coincided with times when she would whine or cry and we would ask her to use her words. This seemed to really help her understand a little more why babies cried. Before Adley arrived when other toddlers cried she would come to me and tell me, "He doesn't have words!" When she would cry she would tell me she didn't have words. It was pretty cute.

Tonight when I was putting her to bed and it was time to pray, I asked her what she would like to pray about. She said, "God". I asked her what she would like to pray to God about, she said "Adley". I thought that was so sweet that she wanted to pray for her little sister! I began to pray and then I paused and asked her what she wanted to pray to about Adley, she said "That she would have words".

I had to snicker inside and appreciate her honesty. She doesn't like to hear her cry and would like Adley to hurry up and learn some words. I, on the other hand, would like these simple newborn days to linger. Part of me feels guilty saying this, but the rest of me knows it's the honest truth, Adley is such an easy, content baby, Elyse was not. They could both be described as easy to love, delightful, fearfully and wonderfully made perfect miracles designed for us........they have just been such different babies. Elyse, as a newborn, caused me to question if there would ever be a second child. Adley's arrival has created an intense desire in my heart to have a third. God is using both of them to teach me so much.

Elyse is teaching me persistence and consistency along with approaching the throne boldly and honestly. Adley is reminding me not to take life too seriously and sometimes the best view comes from passively watching from the side instead of being right in the middle of the mix. I'm in awe of how different these girls are and excited to see them unfold!

A few pictures: 

Matt and I went out on a date night to celebrate our 4 year anniversary this last Saturday while my mom watched the girls.  He planned a wonderful evening with multiple locations, it was wonderful!  He did such a great job and I was so thankful for the time together.  We stayed up way too late, but it was worth it!

Little Adley's eyes finding the fan.

Elyse on a ride at the park.  We met some former co-workers of mine at the Longleaf park.  When the 4 of us met there weren't any kids, today there are 9 with another one on the way!

My attempt at dressing them in matching outfits and getting a picture.  It didn't turn out perfect, but I'm still a fan.