Butterfly Awry

Sometimes my mothering ideals fall short of the mothering realities. For the last two years we have ordered caterpillars and watched in awe as they slowly transform into butterflies. It is one of those delightful hands on science lessons that I always dreamed of sharing with my daughter. This year, after a month of patient waiting we finally saw our dear little painted ladies emerge from the chrysalis. Persy was just as fascinated with the life cycle as me and I foolishly let her lay on her belly one day and watch our butterflies while I did a little cleaning. When I came back to check on her two minutes later I was alarmed to see her smashing down the butterfly container! When asked what on earth she was thinking she shamelessly replied, "I died them!" Needless to say, I was not a happy mother and our science lesson of the day turned into a rather solemn affair.

3 Ways to End a Tantrum

1. Tell your child that they are "Not allowed to Smile"
3. Tell the child that their tantrum really isn't that impressive. Encourage them to really commit to the role and give you a louder and more dramatic response.
3. Pull out the camera

Big Girl Bed

After just one rough night, we've transitioned to the Toddler Bed. Persy seems to love having the "Big Girl Bed" in her room, but then every night she climbs out and sleeps on the floor. Not sure why.


This is how we find her after each nap and each morning. I never hear a "thump" or a cry, so I'm pretty sure she is climbing out and preferring to sleep on the floor. Puzzling. I wish she had told us her preference for "roughin' it" before we bought her the bed. We could have saved some cash! :)

Toddler Humor

I love how Persy bring extra humor, dancing, and play to my life. I'll be doing something mundane when all of the sudden she prances in with one of my hats or gives me a funny look that will make me laugh.

Love Story

I LOVE . . .

* nuzzling my nose into her silky, just washed hair.
* the way she signs "hot" with so much flair that she looks Italian.
* how she cracks herself up.
* watching her run in a circle, iggling because she can't keep her balance.

* how she gently rubs my back if she sees me lying down.
* her intense fascination with all things train related.
* the way she folds her arms and likes to say little prayers all day.
* how excited she gets when she helps me with laundry.
* her long brown hair and dark brown eyes.

From Mexico, With Love . . .

I bought Persy and I these dresses 5 years ago on a trip to Mexico. I'm so glad we've finally met and she is not opposed to doing the whole Mother-Daughter Matching thing. (Or at least not vocal enough to express her fashion opinions yet!)

Tantrums

We've been seeing a lot of this lately. Half the time I don't even know what she is so mad about. I know a lot of you have been through the toddler stage already. What are your best tips?

When Being a Mom is Just Plain Hard

It's been a week of snot, tears, barf, and suffering for little Persy. When we returned from our trip to Williamsburg she was in a rather sad state and things only got worse until we met with the doctor and learned that in addition to a fever, coughing and stuffed up nose, she also had been plagued with 2 gnarly ear infections. Ouch!

I think one of the most challenging aspects of motherhood is taking care of a sick child and watching them suffer. I hate that I can't explain why she must take the syrupy antibiotic that makes her gag, or that she thinks I'm torturing her when I drop pain medicine into her ear. I hate the worry, concern and lack of sleep. It's hard to know that this is just one ailment among many that she will have to face in her life.

Despite a full week of misery, I still find much to appreciate. I love that my child looks to me for comfort, (doesn't she know how clueless I still am?) I love the extra snuggles and rocking. I appreciate the way I've been left to contemplate the Lord's own love for me and how He must hate watching me suffer in life as well.

Hopefully we can put all this bodily discharge behind us soon and I can share the fun experiences that Persy and I had on vacation. Until then, wish me luck!

Mini Expedition

Gabe had some work in southern Utah on Monday, so Persy and I enjoyed taking a little road trip with him. While he labored away, Persy and I enjoyed a fun day of hiking in Zion's Park.

I felt adventurous going on our solo expedition. I reflected on the fact that when Persy was just a couple of weeks old I took her down to the Farmer's Market by myself and that seemed like a really big accomplishment. I've certainly grown more comfortable in my role as a mother over the past 9 months.


Persephone was mostly happy, but on our longest hike of the day she got incredibly fussy and sounded, according to one fellow hiker, like a baby bear.

A Night in the E.R.

We've had a stressful weekend taking care of Persephone. She started to get sick on Thursday afternoon, and by Saturday she had a really gnarly little cough. I took Persy to Insta Care where they listened to her lungs and checked her oxygen but told me there wasn't anything they could do and sent me home. By Saturday night, Persy's breath had become labored and she had stopped eating. After much deliberation, we took her to the Emergency Room where they told us she had the dreaded RSV disease, (adults get RSV too, but it just feels like a bad cold. When babies get it their small lungs become inflamed and it is very difficult for them to breathe.) We spent half the night in the hospital with tests and inhalers. They sent us home with a nebulizer treatment. We let her breathe steamed albuterol a couple times a day and also have her taking steroids for a few days. I am just so relieved that she is starting to feel better and is eating again. Watching your child suffer needlessly is the worst part about being a parent.

(Side note: You may remember me mentioning a couple of weeks ago that I was worried about RSV and was keeping Persy home from play group and other social activities. Oh, the irony . . . At least I'm not beating myself up for not being more careful.)

Worl'ds Greatest Baby Toy

1 Metal Bowl + 1 Wooden Spoon = Hours of Entertainment
What do you do to keep your babes happy?

Beating the Winter Blahs . . . .

Let's face it. Winter is NOT my favorite season and come October, I begin to dread the 5 months of cold weather and ice that inevitably leave me with the winter blahs. Whenever I begin to feel like Anne Frank trapped in "The Annex," then I know it is time to get proactive about staying cheery during this coldest of seasons. Here is my plan:

Get Outside, No Matter What: If the weather is warm enough to keep us from getting frost bite, we go outside! It makes a difference not only in how I feel, but also in how Persephone feels. When we spend at least 10 minutes outdoors she seems like a happier baby throughout the day. I also try to plan a little "field trip" each week to visit someplace interesting. This week I am going to a Book Baby program that the library offers with one of my good friends.

Exercise: At least 30 minutes a day, 6 days a week does a body good.

Socialize: Being a mom can sometimes feel a little isolating. I really try to plan a week filled with at least a few social activities to look forward to. Being around friends and family really energizes me. I e-mail, facebook, book club, play group, etc. to feel like I am connected with others.

Set Goals, Work on Projects, Plan the Day the Night Before: I love to-do lists! When I have goals and to-do lists I feel like my day has structure and purpose.

Remember that after Winter comes Spring: Every year I dramatically declare to Gabe, "This is the LONGEST winter of my life!!!" He just laughs and reminds me that at least we no longer live in the frozen tundra known as Syracuse, New York. When worse comes to worse, I just plan what I want to do when it becomes Spring and Summer again. Winter never lasts forever, (not even in Narnia! :)

So, what do you do to avoid the winter blahs? I would love your ideas!

Call of the Cougar

Do you ever have a day when your kids wake up on the wrong side of the bed? Today, Persy woke up with a slightly stuffy nose and when I tried to suction out the snot it threw her into a torrent of crankiness. If I even go near the spot on the couch where the torture occured, her face twists up in a most unbecoming manner and she howls like a wild cougar. Every new infraction sends her into a new wave of rage.

"What?! Change my onesie? The injustice!"
"Lay me on a blanket to eat breakfast? You'll be hearing from my attorney!"

The only good news is that her fierce feral roars have completely exhausted her and she now snoozes peacefully. I hope when she awakens we can begin the day anew.

Transitions

We are going through a rather traumatic transition this week as we are weening Persy away from swaddling and sleeping in her car seat to sleeping in a play pen with her arms free. In sounds like such a minor change, but 4 month babies really lack life perspective, (and new mothers sometimes too!) We decided it was necessary to stop swaddling because she is close to rolling over and we felt concerned about both the way that she was starting to inch out of the car seat and the danger of her rolling over and not having her arms free to push up and breathe in the middle of the night. I know that this is necessary, but it takes some serious conviction and stamina to keep calming Persy for hours on end as she makes this transition. Last night, I had to get up with her no less than 7 times in order to comfort her and put her Binky back in her mouth.

Seeing her so distressed also makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong. I constantly read, research, and question: Should I let her "cry it out" so she can learn to "self soothe"? How long should I let her cry before I comfort her and intervene? Will this be damaging to her emotionally? Should I ween her from the Binky as well? Should I let her go to bed with her silky blanket or will this pose a suffocation hazard in her crib? On, and on, and on. I realize that there is no "right" answer here, but I can't help but search in hopes of a solution. (I'd also LOVE to hear from any of you if you have good advice to give!)

It's interesting the Persy's transition should coincide with some of my own transitions. I can't help but think that I have a loving Heavenly Father who tries to ween me away from my own personal crutches and shakes His head to see me fuss over such minor changes. Being a parent has me constantly thinking of my own childish behaviors and tendencies and how the Lord is tirelessly trying to teach me and help me to refine myself. My daughter and I are growing together and I only hope that I can become the type of person that I want her to become.

A Day on the Farm

Persy and I had a very fun day yesterday meeting up with friends at Wheeler Farms. Wheeler Farms is a free historic park with farm animals, and large grounds for running and having a picnic. We also took a little tractor ride around the grounds. Persephone was a bit fussy without a nap, but I'm glad I discovered this fun place so I can take her when she is older. This picture shows two of my close high school friends Rebecca and Megan. It is just wild that we're "all grown-up" with children of our own now!

Beaver Utah has the Best Bathrooms

We drove all over the state this last weekend visiting friends and family in Logan, and Springville. We also drove to St. George where Gabe had a deposition. Persy did great in the car and the entire trip was without incident except for one major diaper blow out involving nearly 8 wet wipes and a handy Tide-to-go pen. I felt like I was truly being initiated into the motherhood club! Thankfully we were at a really snazzy truck stop in Beaver, Utah of all places. I gave Persy a good wet wipe rub down and then took the entire car seat to be washed and quick dried under the powerful bathroom hand dryer. Here are some pictures from our visits with family, (there were no pictures of the diaper incident! :)


Family picture taken near pond at Wendy's parent's house


In Grandpa's hammock


4 Generations of Wendy's Family


4 Generations of Gabe's Family

Gettin' My Groove On

One unexpected delight of motherhood has been the amount of time I get to spend dancing with Persy. Sometimes she gets so fussy that the only thing that will console her is to throw her in the sling, put on the i-pod, and dance the grumpies away. She just loves her sling and the rhythmic movement calms her right to sleep. I'm sure that my sex appeal goes way down when I'm grooving with a baby attached, but we have fun just the same. I guess I should unplug the i-pod and put on an old fashioned CD to see what kind of music she responds to. So far, I've exposed her to Mozart, Yo-Yo Ma, Broadway, and the Gypsy Kings. She seems unimpressed!