Yep, that's definitely our girl......

This was written on one of Macie's progress reports from the Occupational Therapist:

"Macie did pass some gas during this session, and smiled afterward."

Macie was having some stomach issues on this particular day and was in "distress" so that's why she wrote that, but I thought it was hilarious! Doesn't take much to amuse me these days!

Bad things happen in fours????

I thought it was three. Not only did FOUR bad things happen, but they all happened to our cars! Ok, so does that count as one really, and I now need to anticipate two more bad things happening? I know, I think way to much. Those of you that know me well are probably shocked that I am over analyzing that (**said with sarcasm).
First- Phil was driving on 355 in the Endeavor and thought he got side swiped. It actually was a tire that flew off a semi and hit the back of the SUV, just in front of the back tire. We had to get the car repaired, insurance covered it with an estimated repair cost of around $1200!!! It took over a week for them to repair and repaint.
Next- Phil was pulling out of the garage on Saturday morning to go to Matt's cabin. He was driving the Altima there. I was in the living room with the girls and I heard a HUGE crash coming from the garage. I thought he hit the side of the garage with the car, it was that loud!!! I went running out to find a huge Rubbermaid storage container (filled with heavy things like books, picture frames, etc.) had fallen off the rafters. Not only did it fall off, but it fell on top of the Endeavor. Glass shattered everywhere, there was crap all over. Phil didn't hear the crash, but was very confused when he saw a baseball roll out from underneath the garage door just before it closed. We cleaned it up and he went on his way.
And then- I'm hanging out with the girls and Phil calls me. All the guys went out for lunch, and when they returned to the cabin, they found a tree on top of our Altima. GREAT! After seeing the damage yesterday, they are going to have to replace the roof, probably both side panels of the car (because they are connected to the top of the doors which are damaged) and all the trim.
For the grand finale (at least I hope)- Phil was pulling the Endeavor out of the garage on Sunday and he heard something strange so he stopped the car and checked to see what it was. I walked out into the garage to see what he was doing and I see him yanking on a rug (yes....a rug) that has gotten caught up inside and behind the front tire. He had to take the freakin tire off the car to get the rug out. In the process of taking the tire off, the car rolled off the jack twice. I noticed there was a large patch of tar stuck to the tire. It must have made the rug stick to the tire and when he pulled out, it stuck and got caught. I desperately wanted to laugh, but poor Phil was not a happy guy and I don't blame him one bit, it was not an easy task.
Don't believe all this????? Can't say I blame you, and I am quite worried that the insurance company is going to have A LOT of questions!

Lady in Red

Thanks Matt and Jessica for the super cute outfit!!!!

We're coming over to meet my future husband soon!!!

Our first bath together!

Mommy took a chance tonight and gave us a bath together. Daddy isn't home so Mommy told us to "behave, or else". We had sooooo much fun taking a bath together!

**Mommy had to block out my privates since she couldn't get a cute picture without getting them in there**

A little side note- Macie has been following me around all day saying "Mama". I am in HEAVEN today! She also went in her room after her bath, got her blankie out of her crib, put it on the floor, put her head on it and said "night night". It was so cute!

Airtastic

There is one of those "inflatable fun" places near our house, and I have been wanting to take Macie. I was hesitant about taking her since I didn't know how she would react to all the noise, atmosphere, bouncing, etc. I also wasn't sure how I would be able to take her and have Emma with me. I recruited my parents to come along and bring Katie and Ryan. When we got there Macie was not very happy, but that was because she didn't want to hold my hand in the parking lot! Ms. Independence doesn't hold hands you know- only when she feels like it. My parents were nice enough to keep an eye on Emma while I took Macie to the toddler area. I climbed into one of the bouncy things and pulled Macie in there with me. She WAS NOT having any part of it. She cried and climbed back out. For a long time she just ran around the whole place and chased other kids around, got knocked over a few times, tried to join some birthday parties there, and even tried to pick out her own present from one of the parties. Little clepto! After a bit, I decided to try putting her in another bouncy thing. This one was open on both ends and had kind of a tarp over the top. I very quickly lifted her up and tossed her in there, and to my surprise she LOVED it. She ran back and forth, giggled, did belly flops, and rolled around for quite a while.

She was in the best mood the rest of the day. Despite being exhausted from running around all afternoon, she was almost on a high from it. She did nap for a bit when we got home, but woke up all smiles! We definitely will be going back often!

Emma even behaved herself for Grandma and Papa! Thanks Grandma, Papa, Katie, and Ryan- Macie had so much fun!!!

Allergy testing

Macie had her blood drawn for allergy testing on Saturday. Phil took her over to the hospital, and Macie immediately knew where they were when they got out of the car. She was not happy to be there!!! When I made the appointment I requested a pediatric nurse do the blood draw. Phil said it made a huge difference. Last blood draw they had to poke her four times, this nurse found the spot and only had to poke her once.
The Dr. called yesterday with the results, and all the tests came back negative for allergies. I was shocked. This test checked for allergies to milk, cats, dogs, ragweed, peanuts, maple trees (good thing there isn't an allergy there.....said with an eye roll), and a bunch of other things. They are going to send me the results so I can see what it did test for. I thought for sure AT LEAST she would show an allergy to milk. I have to call back and ask them if "milk allergy" is the same as "milk intolerance".
So, back to the drawing board......Another situation where you just wish they would find something so you can "treat" it. Instead, it still remains a mystery.

Macie- 22 Months

Love you!!!!

Birth Control!!!!

Macie- update

I haven't done an update on Macie's therapy lately. There is not a ton to report, but she is making progress.

She has progressed in these areas:

speech- she is saying:

all done

poo poo

paper

water

pool

up

down

bubbles

gentle

more

She walked up to me yesterday and said "Hi Dada".....close enough, right? I long to hear "Mama" again. A lot of people keep saying that in no time she'll be talking non-stop and we'll want her to stop. Bring it on.....I would be more than happy if she talked 24/7!

She is adapting well to the different therapists, and she lets them pick her up, touch her, play, etc. Her eye contact is awesome! She will look right into your eyes when you are talking to her, and she looks back and forth between Daddy and I when we are talking to her at the same time.

She no longer has the major meltdowns, and hasn't in a few months. She just now has the typical toddler fits, power struggles, etc.

She is better at following directions, and playing appropriately with toys.

She is very interested in watching and playing with other children instead of standing back and observing them. She imitates others actions. She helps get herself undressed, and knows how her shoes go on and off.

We are still trying to rule out allergy and/or medical issues. She is going to the hospital tomorrow to have blood drawn for her allergy testing. After that we will have the 2nd part of her hearing test, and once we have the results of her allergy testing, she will go to see a nutritionist.

She really is a trooper through all of this. It's exhausting for me with all the people coming in and out of the house, all the appointments. I can only imagine how exhausting it has to be for Macie. We are so happy that therapy is helping her, and so proud of her accomplishments.

Sisters playing footsie!

Am I being over dramatic? Yeah, probably......

This has been a nutty week and I am feeling a smidge overwhelmed.......
Here is how it looks (the week):
Monday- Occupational therapy
Tuesday- Call Allergist, hearing test lady, and coordinator (no humans answered the phone)
Emma didn't sleep last night AT ALL so I am working on about a total of an hour of sleep.
Wednesday- Social worker at 9:30, find out that speech therapy should be 2 days a week, not one. Then find out that funding from the state could be pulled if EI isn't fulfilling their obligations. Call coordinator again....leave message. Call allergist again, leave message (need to make appt. for testing for Macie). Still don't hear back from anyone!!!! Speech therapy is at 2:45. I work at 5:30. Have to make something for dinner so Phil isn't scrambling around when he gets home and has to take over with the munchkins. I am guessing Macie is hanging off the bottom of my shorts right now because I need to make her lunch (she's really not, but getting close).
Thursday- 8:30- developmental therapy.
Friday- Speech therapy hopefully to make up for lost time???? I work at 5:30

Oh, and this week Macie AND Emma don't feel like napping for more than 1/2 hour.
I think I managed to shower, but am not sure.
I did manage to get 4 loads of laundry done which Macie so kindly helped me in unfolding all of it and dispersing it all over the house.
I watered my flowers, and picked up dog shit (that was the highlight of my day).
I have to go since I just now remembered that I forgot to pee today!!!!

Just a whole bunch of cute pictures

The girls having fun with Daddy

Emma learning to drive (and sit up!!!)

Oh no....sharp turn

Love my jumparoo

The serious Face

Splish splashin in the pool

Whatcha gonna do with all that junk.....

all that junk inside that trunk.......

**the result of not putting on a swim diaper**

Emma- 5 Months

Little Em-

You actually turned 5 months old yesterday, but once again the day got away from me and I didn't get a chance to write. I have a good excuse......you keep me busy, busy, busy! You are learning new things everyday, and you are moving more and more everyday. You are no longer content in one spot for very long so it's hard for me to get things done. I certainly don't mind since I get to play with you and Macie instead of working on the house!!!

You are rolling around like crazy, and you surprised us and yourself by rolling from your back to your tummy when you were only 4 1/2 months old. You can almost sit up on your own, and it really looks strange because you still seem so little. I have to support you a bit, but you are getting stronger everyday. When you are laying on your boppy, you almost sit up on your own. Looks like you are doing crunches!

You have spent a lot of time hanging outside with your sister. You've been in the pool and you really seem to enjoy it. You went to your first parade on the 4th of July. You weren't real jazzed about all the noise, but can't blame you there.

You are growing so fast. You're little feet are to the end of your swing now, and we have to put it on a higher setting since you are weighing it down a bit. You are a clone of your sister. The only difference is your eye color. You have the same color hair, same big eyes, you have long, dark eyelashes, same mouth. You two are going to be mistaken for twins I think at some point. You two may look the same, but I think your personalities are going to be very different. Only time will tell. You idolize your sister so maybe you two will be similar there too.

Happy 5 months little Ems. I love you so much!!!

Mommy

4th of July- 2010

I will have to post pictures later, I left the adaptor at my parents house and can't download anything!!! I also can't us spellcheck on this so please excuse any typos!
We had a GREAT 4th this year. Every year my parents have a party for the 4th, and for my brothers b-day, which is also the 4th. Family, friends, the parade and food! We got to my parents house, put Macie down for a nap so she would be rested for the busy day. When she got up we headed down to the parade. The girls looked so cute in their matching outfits! We were a bit worried about how Macie would be at the parade with all the people, sirens, bands, etc. She was so happy and didn't fuss once. She sat in the stroller with her snacks and watched the parade. Emma was a little freaked out by the loud noises (cannons, guns, etc.), but was good for the most part too.
We left the parade a bit early, it was so hot and the girls were a bit overheated. When we got back to my parents house Macie played with all the kids, and she didn't stop until it was time to go home. She had such a good day, and so much fun playing with all her cousins. Emma had fun visiting with everyone, and was in heaven being held all day. The girls were exhausted by the time we headed home. Emma fell asleep in the car, and had no interest in even eating when we got home. She went straight to bed and slept until 7:00 the next morning. Macie was falling asleep in the bathtub, and wanted nothing to do with her bedtime books.
We all had so much fun! Thanks to Grandma and Papa for a great 4th, and for the goodie bags for the girls!!!

I am one proud Mommy!!!

Macie has had an amazing week with her therapy. She's communicating more through signing and words, she's been very nurturing to Emma (giving her a binky, bottle, putting a hat on her head, etc.), and she played out in the yard with two of the three therapists while I stayed inside, and she didn't get upset once! She's helping put her toys away when we move to another task. She is just overall much more focused.
Keep it up Macie- Mommy and Daddy are so very proud of you!