Just us - there’s a little of the before, but mostly it’s the after...: January 2013

Open House!

My Little Monkey was more than willing to pose for a picture this morning before school.

She was excited about starting her day, although not evident by the look on her face.

This evening, we attended Open House at Addie's school.

She loved showing us around her classroom and she LOVED showing off Julien although she was acting very shy to everyone we encountered.

Addie loved showing us how she stands at the Smart Board when she talks with her class.

Addie's snowflake....

The awesome artwork outside the art room.

Addie was still being very shy and wouldn't stop to talk to me about the kitty.

I can only imagine what she was thinking the first time she saw this kitty - it is HUGE!

We finished the night by visiting the gym.

One of Addie's PE Teachers told me that Addie participates each and every day.

She said that Addie tries to do everything that every other child is doing!

It made me so proud!

The rock wall is definitely not an independent option for Addie, but she did enjoy spending a few minutes with her friends and watching them have fun!

Our January Retreat

I LOVE the cold winter weather.

Except.

It's Alabama.

We can't exactly classify 60 and 70 degree weather as cold.

While it isn't Summer and 109, we have to take advantage of these Alabama Winters and stay outside as much as possible.

Our weekend retreats this January are to our local zoo.

Chunk was enjoying the day even with her mystery fever and hidden ear infection.

At that time, the Little Monkey was also harboring a pretty nasty sinus infection that would surface the very next day.

She was just having a great time riding in her stroller, taking in all the animals, and showing everyone that passed us - her container of chicken.

Sigh...

She is a little nut.

Addie didn't have much of an appetite, yet she was very protective of her chicken from our pre-zoo trip to Jim 'N Nick's.

You would have thought there was a Cupcake Cake in there from the way she held onto the container!

Addie loved the elephant, but getting her to stop being nosy long enough to smile for the camera was impossible.

Her excitement was a result of hearing that we were going to see...

the Little Monkey's.

Never Ending Holidays

Addie's gift from my brother and sister didn't arrive on time, so two weeks after Addie's birthday, we finally met up with them for dinner and to get Addie's gift.

Addie was thrilled to open yet another gift, but couldn't fully appreciate what was inside until the next day when I had time to open the box and put it together.

Addie's other water table has been used and loved for the last 4 1/2 years and it was just time to get a new one.

The funny thing about it is that four years later, Chunk still thinks the table is designed for her to sit in.

She is a mess!

I need to get this child a pool!

The same week, my Christmas gift from my Mother arrived.

She gave me a gift certificate for a heavenly soft wool rug that I had been ~~drooling over~~ looking at, and by the time I finally got around to buying it, it was the New Year.

Like every other item in my house, it isn't sacred.

Either my children or cats seem to take ownership of everything.

This time, it was Rudy who staked his claim.

He now spends most of his time snuggled into the rug.

It was blissfully nice to enjoy my rug for the five minutes before my cat tracked down the sheep in my kitchen.

Pshaw!

Who needs Miami when they could have the comfort of their living room for quarters one and two and their bed at halftime?

Not quite the perfect shade of Crimson, but my little cheerleader was still ready for the game!

Thanks GaGa!

My Mom just spoiled Addie rotten this year!

It is all so unnecessary, but so very much appreciated!

Addie has a pram that we got for her when she turned three.

Although extremely well built to withstand all the abuse Monkey can dish out, it remained an amazing source of frustration for Monkus for the last three years.

Addie has difficulty steering most items, but the pram has always been even more difficult for her

and

when she is trying to care for her babies, it can cause a great deal of grief for ~~every single person within our home~~ Addie.

So, when I mentioned to my Mom that I found a baby doll stroller for Addie with swivel wheels, Mom immediately claimed rights to purchasing it.

Although the stroller has not proven to be the magic trick that we were so hoping for, it has allowed Addie the ability to take her babies for a walk without the extreme frustration we have seen with other strollers and the pram.

The Little Monkey is getting there - one little step at a time!

...sometimes it just takes Addie's Mommy a little while to figure out how to facilitate the process...

~~~

January 1, 2013

Primate - Decoded

Sometimes, it can be emotionally difficult having to troubleshoot the Little Monkey.

I knew she wasn't herself and I knew she didn't feel well.
She had a lovely little fever on and off throughout the weekend and would occasionally mention that her head, "hurt".

Her fever went up yesterday and that's when I called to get the first appointment possible.
Monkus had a terrible night last night and when she woke this morning, the nasty runny nose had begun.

Thanks to the assistance of our fabulous ENT and his handy-dandy primate-decoding technology, we determined that the Little Fungus Monkus has an ear infection in her left ear and a sinus infection displaying all colors of the rainbow.

I knew Monkus' ear was bad when our ENT actually grimaced and said how terrible Monkey's little ear looked.

We made it through Christmas and three weeks into the new year without the onslaught of fungus encrusted ear goo, but I knew it was too good to last.
We have three weeks before we go back for a re-check.
If Monkey's ear isn't healed, back to surgery we will go.

I absolutely refuse to go through what we went through before.
We have a proven track record of what works and what doesn't and if antibiotics won't do the trick, surgery will, even if it's only temporary.
I hope sweet Monkus is feeling better soon, I hate to see her all stuffy and miserable.

Happy Birthday to Monkey - Cake Number Two

I realize, Addie's birthday was exactly three weeks ago, but I've been just a little busy.

Poor Chunk has a doctors appointment first thing in the morning, and I'm hoping to be able to decode whatever has been ailing her for the past few days.

My Little Monkey has not been herself.

~~~

Back to the story of the birthday cake...

Cake Number Two was created based on the Little Monkey's reaction while looking through a book at a bakery.

Since I couldn't decide on "the perfect cake" for Chunkus, the kitty cake was bought for the birthday gathering with my family.

When Monkey saw the cake, she was so happy and was even happier to show it to everyone who came through the door!

Oh my goodness, she was so excited!

Chunk watched as everyone sang ,

and the practice from the day before must have paid off because she blew out her candles on the very first try!

Snow Fell on Alabama!

It almost pains me to even post this knowing that my Northern friends will see this pitiful display of Alabama slush...

BUT

I cannot tell you how happy this made me!

It was absolutely beautiful to watch the snow come down for a few hours today and when we finally made it home, there was still a little time to go outside before the sun set!

Addie was able to go outside at school today and enjoy the snow as it was falling.

Julien told me that the principal came over the intercom to specifically tell everyone that they could not go outside, so as soon as Julien got home, he was outside until dark!

Julien just amazes me.

He couldn't wait for Addie to get outside so he could show her how to build a snowman.

It was so sweet.

She had absolutely no idea what to do with the snowball in her hand.

She didn't know what Julien was doing, but any time with Julien is a good time.

Addie was so excited to see Julien put the little snowman together!

I hope this is a moment that Addie will always be able to remember

and

I hope it is a moment that Julien will one day cherish.

Taking the snowman to his final resting place on the front stairs.

Chunk was absolutely thrilled to have to stand still for one second in order to photographically capture the moment.

I decided to let Rudy onto the porch to see his reaction to the snow.

He is a complete nut case.

He didn't have a problem walking in the snow and when I reached down to try to pick him up, he flopped over and decided to slather himself in the slush.

Our snow is over and tomorrow will be a bright and beautiful day!

We enjoyed the few hours of beautiful snow while we had it.

Ummm....

Kindergarten has been remarkable for Addie!
Not only does she love going to school, but we have seen progress in her expressive language.

Her teachers tell me that Addie is learning to say the names of all of her friends.
That is huge in our little world!

Addie has learned to tell me when she is hungry.
The sound of her saying, "Hungry, eat." is so calming to my heart because she is able to tell me one of the basic needs that must be met.
She still doesn't tell me consistently because there are times when I see her getting fussy or irritable and I know that she is getting hungry, but yet, she won't express it to me.

Addie has learned to tell me when she is sleepy.
Considering all of our sleep issues, when she does tell me, "Sleepy.", I drop what I'm doing and get her ready for bed!

Addie has learned to walk up stairs with minimal assistance.
She has to have someone standing behind her, but she is now physically able to make it to the top of the stairs!
Walking down the stairs still requires physical assistance.

When I ask Addie a question that she doesn't understand, I either get the same sweet response that I have always gotten, which is her standing, hands clasped together and those beautiful blue eyes just peering up at me...or her newest response of...."Ummmmm".

We are working to have Addie answer the all important question, "How old are you?" in the appropriate fashion.
I can absolutely understand her confusion on how that number keeps changing just when she manages to start answering the question correctly!

I am proud of Addie's accomplishments no matter how small or how long it took us to achieve them.

....Day by day, minute by minute in our Wait and See World.

Wrapping Up the Day

Out of every option on how to spend the evening, Zoolight Safari was the only activity that I felt Addie would really love.

Don't let Julien's short sleeves fool you, it was very chilly!

Over the last two years, Addie has managed to acclimate to riding a carousel and seems to really enjoy it.
She especially loves when Julien rides with her!

We enjoyed a quick trip through the barn where Addie had to stop and say, "Hi" to every cow we saw.

When she spotted the tree and fire, she walked right over, turned around and said, "Cheese!".

Poor child...that is the side effects of having a camera in her face almost daily since birth.

After leaving the barn, Monkus spotted the over sized elephant and tiger photo op stations.

Without missing a step, she walked right over to the elephant and waited for me to take her picture.

She didn't even give the tiger a second look....

We even enjoyed a three foot radius of falling snow.

At this point, Monkus was famished.

The only thing available was chips and it certainly wasn't doing a good job keeping the Monkey tame.

Julien agreed to a quick photo

before we moved on to the train ride.

We had a bit of a wait and Julien was doing his best to keep the Little Monkey entertained.

After the train ride, we ended our night by feeding the Little Monkey at the nearest
Chick-fil-a drive thru before heading home.

We are incredible party animals...and besides, Monkus was so very sleepy and ready for bed.

She had a very busy day, but seemed to enjoy her day.

As far as ringing in the New Year....

we couldn't be happier to welcome 2013 and we are looking forward to another year of watching this Little Monkey prove "them" all wrong!

~~~
December 31, 2012

Gift Time!

The Little Monkey was unable to tell me what gift she wanted for her birthday.

In some ways, it is not necessarily a bad thing.

I spent time after time with Monkus, sitting at the computer or looking through magazines, hoping to see excitement in her face over one item or another.

Baby Dolls are really the only thing that the Monkus loves, so as I began the search, I focused on all the usual websites.

I pulled up all the big name sites, never getting any reaction from Monkey.

It wasn't until I pulled up my trusty Amazon, did I start to see a glint of excitement in Monkey's beautiful blue eyes.

When a little smile crossed her face and she pointed at one particular photo on the screen, I knew that my search was over.

A few clicks of the mouse and the adoption process began.

This baby had no idea just how lucky he was to be chosen by such a loving little Mommy.

Nope.

That's not the Wicked Witch of the East.