Swimming Lessons

You were so excited about swimming lessons. The key word here is "were".
On your first day, we got there, I answered your million questions about the locker room, showers and heated pool . You anxiously sat down right at the edge and watched the previous class finish up.
You couldn't wait for your class to start.



After you met your instructor, I planted a kiss on your little lips and took Ta-Ta up the elevator to watch from the 3rd floor. The bleachers provided a great view.
I could see you very clearly on your "dock" practicing your kicking while your instructor took your new friend out into the water.
Shortly after I took this picture, I had the biggest scare of my life. I'm assuming it was yours, as well.



My guess is that your instructor didn't warn you to stay on the dock. If she had, I'm quite sure you wouldn't have ventured to the edge.
Yes, right before my eyes, you slipped off the dock into the deep water. None of the instructors noticed. The lifeguard was still casually perched at her post. It wasn't until I hysterically started screaming, "Hey! Hey! She's drowning! HEY!" that one of the instructors realized you were going under for the fourth time. I remember some other moms shouting behind me and I wanted to dive off that railing and rescue you. I waited until I saw that you were safely in someone's arms before I frantically made my way back to the poolside. I distinctly remember saying, "Shit!" under my breath. I knew this would kill your spirit. My heart sank when I thought about how very excited you were to learn how to swim like Ariel, the mermaid.
Finally, the elevator opens and I push the stroller out into the hallway and open the heavy doors to the pool. I was amazed to see that you weren't crying and you still had your legs in the water. I walked up to talk to you and I almost busted out crying. Luckily, I didn't.
"Are you okay? That was scary, huh?"
She nodded.
"But you're not gonna let that stop you from learning how to swim, are you?"
I didn't give her time to answer.
"I'm so proud of you! You're okay. I'm going to stay down here and watch you from over there. Okay?"
She nodded.

I was so proud of her. I really was. She stuck with it.
That's not to say that the rest of the week wasn't pure hell. Each day progressively got worse.
By Thursday, which is the last lesson of the week, she refused to put her suit on. I had to wrangle her to the edge of the pool. It was so frustrating and saddening. I hate that she had to experience that. I shake my fists at the universe for killing her spirit. I'm hoping that this week will be better.

I tried to warm her up tonight, "Guess what Gubby? You have swimming lessons in the morning! Yay!"
Her response? "I don't ever want to go there again. I don't want to learn to swim until I'm 20 years old. I'm never never never going to swimming lessons again!!!"

Wish me luck tomorrow.


Oh, and any advice would be greatly appreciated. I've never had this issue with her. She's always been so excited to try and do anything.

Blah. This stinks.

Happy Birthday Ta-Ta (and Timmy)

Happy Birthday Ta-Ta!
You had a wonderful party and a fantastic afternoon.
You were on the go the entire time and chatting it up to anyone that would listen.

The cake I made you was just the right size. I drowned it in sprinkles to make it more appealing to you. I thought for sure you'd grab it and squeeze it in your cute little hands but you didn't. You ate about two sprinkles and you were done.



Your dad even attempted to get you started by putting some icing in your mouth....
Not interested.
We tried!



Harper, you can now point to your nose, hair and mouth. You know the sign for "more". You can comb your own hair and try to put your shoes on. You can even climb up into a chair all by yourself (a toddler sized chair) and dangle your chubby little legs off the front. You have been dancing and clapping and even singing along to some songs.

You love the book Pat the Bunny and I think your favorite song is The Wheels on the Bus.
You give us kisses all the time- Audrey gets the most.
You love to be outside and cry if someone walks out the door and doesn't take you with them.

You still fight sleep. You throw a fit and lay face down on the ground when you don't get your way. And you'd still rather play in the pantry than with the gazillion toys cluttering the house.
You are so close to speaking a full sentence. Well, I understand what you're saying but most people don't. So, I can't really count that as a full sentence yet, but soon. Soon.

One of A Kind

Harper, in a week and a half you're turning one.
This blows my mind.
Time is flying by at lightning speed and I feel like you just skipped your babyhood (if that's even a word). In my mind, you never acted much like a baby anyway. Nonetheless, it's sad that this stage is almost over.
You've rushed through every milestone. You are in such a hurry to catch up with your big sister. It's obvious.



You have such a strong will. A very strong will. And you are into e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.

I had no idea the extent to which you pay attention to your surroundings. It seems as if you always have your head down, watching your little fat feet race across the room or trying to quickly open drawers and doors before I catch up to you. You must be watching me out of the corner of your eye though because just the other day, you picked up Mama's phone, flipped it open and said, "Hello!"
I was floored. Wha? How? When? Just who do you think you are? You're not even one!
You darted toward the CD tower and just when you pulled out two and I simultaneously warned, "Eh!Eh!" you put them back. You put them back!&@!! and smiled.
You also attempt to dress yourself. You haven't mastered the getting your head inside the shirt part, but you've got the right motion down. You can already ride the Corn Popper around the room like a pro. You've started pointing to things and that, by far, is the cutest thing of all right now. That, and your little tiny voice. Oh, and the bear hugs you give me when I pick you up from school. No wait, maybe it's the kissy face and sound that goes along with it. That reminds me: I must record your laugh before it changes again.

You are something else. That's what everyone says about you.
It's so true.

I'm gearing up to make a birthday cake for you. The traditional Cake vs. Face theme is in total effect. Don't let me down. I have a feeling the cake will win this year. I want to see Face covered in Cake. That's the way it should be.

If you're reading this and want to come help us celebrate...come on out! The invites have yet to be mailed. Everyone's welcome!

Seriously. I can't believe she'll be one.

Her First Performance

Audrey, I've been proud of you before but never as proud as I was during your recital.
It had nothing to do with ballet and everything to do with your tenacity and drive. You are a force. A delightful, positive, inspiring and moving force.
I knew you were proud of yourself as well. I could see it in your expression as you warmed up your engine and took off as an airplane and as you marched in a circle with a very serious and determined step. You put on a masterful performance. I could not stop smiling or exchanging glances with the grandparents.

I know it must have felt as if all eyes were on you. And I apologize for taking way too many pictures and tearing up just a little as I watched. I was a little embarrassed at being One of Those Moms but I couldn't help it! You were ridiculously cute.

As I was standing there, taking it all in I found myself realizing that this was/is the beginning of a new era: The "That's MY kid!" Era. I found myself fast-forwarding to the future- the first time swimming underwater, the first day of kindergarten, the first time riding a bike unassisted, the small moments, the monumental moments, the realizations and revelations that you'll have, the all too fleeting moments that make us, well, that make us, us.
I love watching you grow.

I have to wonder how many of these childhood moments you'll remember. I wonder if your recital will stick with you, always.
I know it will stick with me.
You're growing up. Part of me wants to slow you down, but the smarter part of me wants to sit back and enjoy the ride.... every. single. sweet. sweet. second.

And I know we must be doing something right. I know this because I witnessed you graciously hand over your beautiful bouquet of roses to your instructor. What a shockingly selfless thing to do at your age. I was touched. I'm sure Ms. Jessica was, as well.
You are amazing.



And for the record, you were right. You did have the best leap, ever.

The Birthday Party

The party was awesome. At one point I just stopped to take it all in and found myself sporting a goofy grin. There were so many kids! They were all non-stop playing. It was grand.
And the adults? They all sort of posted up in their I-can-comfortably-view-my-kid-from-here-but-talk-to-another-adult-and-drink-my-beer-in-peace spot. Terrence (Tim's cousin) found his niche. He stayed in the front yard and pushed kids to a frightening height on the swing. They loved it. (So did he.) I wish I'd gotten a shot of that.

From the moment she woke up, Audrey didn't stop talking about her party. I decided to have her help me with everything. We jotted off to get balloons first thing in the morning. She picked out the colors herself. I think she did a fantastic job.



As if balloons weren't exciting enough, we stopped to get a manicure! It was hysterical to watch her from afar. She did such a great job and I could tell she loved every second of the pampering.


Once we arrived back home all I heard was, "Mom? Can we bake my cake now?", "Mom, the cake. I want to make my cake."....
So, she helped with that too:


She had requested a Maleficent cake. Maleficent, for those of you that do not know, is the wicked fairy, The Mistress of All Evil, from the Disney movie Sleeping Beauty. Aside from Snow White, this is Audrey's favorite movie character. And if you've ever seen the movie I think you know why. That woman deserved an Oscar. Seriously.

At one point I was decorating the cake and Audrey said, "You're messing it up!" I had to shoo her out of the kitchen. Stinker.
The funniest part of the evening for me was watching these kids wait in line for cake and ice cream. I thought there might be a riot at any second. They wanted their cake! Luckily, I had some helpers and everyone was given their dose of sugar before anyone snapped.


All in all, it was a wonderful event. It was so great to see the house packed with kids. It was fun to visit with friends and family. And I'm pretty sure everyone had a good time.

Audrey's already planning her party for next year.

10.5 Months

So, I typed out this long blog post at work. Shhh! Somehow my draft didn't save correctly. I love you, but I'm not typing all that out again. Sorry. It was quite boring anyway. (Well, except for the part where I tell you about the poopy diaper that I left in my purse for 24 hours.)
Yeah, looked everywhere for the source of the poop smell: shoes, shirt, you know the drill. My purse. It was a delightful discovery.

Anyway, Harper had her shots the other day and she's right on track as far as the growth thing goes. 75th % for height and 50% for weight.
Harper, honey, you are a square. And you have a super cute little bow-legged walk at the moment. Your happy face (see above) doesn't look at all that happy to some, but mom and dad know that you are thrilled when you contort your face like this.

You are starting to eat interesting foods for an 10 month old: spicy black beans, cucumbers and strawberries. I think I might give you a peanut butter sandwich soon. I swear. It's like you're two already.
You are beginning to climb up on things. Stop it. Stop it right now. I will put double-sided tape on the bottom of your feet if you don't listen to mommy. I mean it.

Hearing you say your own name ranks right up there with "I love you." (Which you haven't said yet.) But "Hah!...Pah!!!" is doing the trick for me anyway. So, I'll cut you some slack.

You are getting more and more independent. I love it. I can actually put you down and forget about you for a whole 10 minutes.

I love you Ta-Ta.



And I am going to enjoy this time now, before you and your sister start conspiring against your parents. You two are incredibly silly and mischievous when you get together.

They almost turned into raisins....

Your first bath together. You both had a bunch of fun and your dad and I got extremely wet.
Audrey, it's so heart-warming to see you with your little sister. You are so loving and such a great teacher. Harper simply adores you.