Fun Day Today

I had a lot of fun today with you Grace!  Daddy and brother Skyler went to Montana to take care of some business, and so you and I got to be together today!  I took you to therapy, and then Kelly, your new play at home therapist came over.  After that, we just had to have some fun!  We went to Walmart and got a Pepperoni pizza, apple juice, and chocolate ice cream. :)  You ate almost 2 small pieces of pizza all by yourself!  And you really enjoyed the apply juice.  I don't let you have it at all because it's SO horrible for teeth, but I watered it down and then we brushed your teeth REALLY well.  I enjoy spending time with you so much my sweet girl.

After you went to bed I made sure to get the rest of my homework done, and now I'm writing in your blog while I watch a movie.  

I love you so much sweet girl :)  You and your daddy are my everything, and I am so happy that I am your mom!

I love our girl time!!

Mommy

I'm Sorry Grace

Dearest Daughter,

I am so sorry that I haven't been keeping up your blog.  I've gotten lost in the midst of schoolwork, holidays, birthdays, and then the struggle your brother is having with his divorce.  I've loved so many moments with you that we've had, and keep them in my mind and heart.  It is now 11:05 pm and must be getting to bed so that I can get you up and to school in the morning, but I just want you to know that I love you.  Here is a list of things that have happened throughout the past weeks that I've missed writing here:

Mommy's birthday!  We went to Uncle Brian and Aunt Lisa's house for my birthday.  We got there on Thursday, went skiing on Friday (we had a babysitter come watch you.  She was the sweetest girl and had cerebral palsy, so she understands what it's like to have special needs!), on Saturday we went out to dinner for my birthday to Straw Hat Pizza (YUM), on Sunday Donna, Lane and Trudy came to visit, and then on Monday (my birthday) we headed home.  It was such a beautiful day to be driving home, and you were such a good girl!  I thought it was so cute when you fell asleep in your car-seat because you had one leg crossed over the other one at the knee, your head was slightly back, and your little mouth was hanging open :)  I left you in your pajamas so that you would be comfortable.

You love going to their house.  Every morning, when you first see uncle Brian, you yell his name... "MYAN!!"  over and over you say it.  And then you put your arms up and say "up" and then he picks you up and throws you in the air.  You and he giggle and laugh with each other.  You also sat by him during dinners and he would give you food from his plate, or some more food once you ran out.  You two just get along so well.  You also love your "Aunt Seesa!"  You love to play with the fun toys she brings out.  One day, while I was doing homework on their couch, you and Seesa were in the little tent she had put up and were playing with the pretend food.  She had a baby doll sitting in a pretend high chair and you guys were feeding her.  It was so cute to hear you and Lisa talking together and pretending to eat food.  You were in there with Lisa for so long...about 20 minutes!  Every time you were around Lisa you would try talking to her, and sometimes I didn't even know what you had said.  She's really picking up on your "Grace's language."  I love that she is able to do that.  That way you are being understood by someone other than me.  Uncle Brian is picking it up as well, so that's good.

I'll finish this list later.  It's too late now.

I love you.

Mommy

Blogging

I'm so sorry, Grace, that I haven't been blogging.  Ever since I started school I've been so busy, and then busy spending so much time with you!  I love being home with you AND doing school at the same time!  You've been great!  Sick, but this was such an easy bug this time.  You didn't need your nebulizer at all, and though you still have a tiny bit of a runny nose, you are healthy all the other ways!  We are going skiing soon!  We are heading to Uncle Brian's and Aunt Lisa's house on Thursday, will ski Friday, visit with them Saturday, go out to Pizza for my birthday dinner, and then leave for home on Monday!  So, hurray!

Well, I love you bunches sweetie.  I'm sorry that I haven't written much.  But I love you.  Always.

Mommy

Already Thursday

Well Miss Grace, it's Thursday and I didn't post yesterday.  Darnit!  School has got me going full speed whenever I have a moment to get on the computer.  But you will be happy to know that we had some fun yesterday together!  We turned on some kid nursery songs on the computer, pulled out a batch of potatoes, and you and I scrubbed them all clean while talking and singing!  Then you kept scrubbing while I peeled, and then went off to play while I finished.  The cutest thing was that you would always come to me and ask "Up?"  When I picked you up, you'd lay in my arms, cuddle up to my chest and say, "Baby...mommy baby..."  Isn't that so adorable!  Then you'd let me rock you just like I used to do when you were little.  I had the joy of doing this with you almost 15 times!  It never got old with me since you're my sweet girl and I'd do it a million times so you knew I loved you.

Today you didn't go to therapy, but Mariah came over and you were all excited to have play therapy with her!!  After that, you sat next to me at the computer and watched Blue's Clues while I did my homework.  I love when you sit next to me and we share the screen :)  Then I don't feel like I'm ignoring you because we are talking about what's going on in your show!

When you went to bed, Brother Ryan came over and the three of us played cards for a while, and now here I am writing on your blog!  I love you so much my sweet girl!

Amanda/Mommy

Sick Again...

Darnit..Grace is sick again.  We had a great day and all, with her going to preschool and then having her play therapist over, but she woke up from nap stuffy, coughing, and having a bit of trouble breathing.  I'm so tired of my little bit getting sick all the time!  It's hard on her little body!  Tonight by 6 pm she was laying down over and over again on the floor, saying, "ni ni."  I felt so bad for her and wished I could have put her to bed, but she did well staying awake.  Dinnertime was a bit of a struggle since she was so tired, but she got enough to be satisfied!  After a nice warm bath, I tucked her into bed 2 minutes before 8 and she was quiet right then!  Usually I hear her in there talking to herself, sometimes jumping, but this time...nothing!  No more preschool or therapy for my little one until she's better. 

Amanda

FOLLOWERS

I HAD CLOSED MY BLOG DUE TO SOME WEIRD SEARCHES THAT HER BLOG WAS BEING OPENED TO.  IF YOU WANT TO CONTINUE FOLLOWING GRACE'S BLOG YOU WILL NEED TO GIVE ME YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS SO I CAN INVITE YOU.  MY COMMENTS ARE MODERATED SO THEY ARE PRIVATE, SO ANSWER BACK TO THIS POST.  PLEASE ANSWER BACK AS SOON AS POSSIBLE SO I CAN MAKE MY BLOG PRIVATE ONCE AGAIN.  THANK YOU.

AMANDA

Fun Monday!

So far it's been a pretty fun Monday!  It's been -4 degrees so far, and a transformer had problems so we were without power!  That means the house got down to 65 degrees!  So we all cuddled in bed until the power went back on!  Then Grace and I had homemade oatmeal for breakfast while we watched a girly movie, and now she's in bed for a nap while I start to do homework.  Then she has therapy at 2, and then we will go wander Walmart for a while to get out since it's too cold to actually be outdoors.  The high for today is 1, and the low is -3!  And this week we won't get above 19, and the lowest low is -8 on Thursday!  Crazy right?!  Well, off to do homework now!

Amanda

Not Much

Not much has been happening recently.  Brad and I went skiing on Saturday, and Grace got to play at a friend's house.  It was fun, don't get me wrong! First of all, don't ski on a sprained ankle, it just gets worse. Second, if you rent skis/ski boots, make sure you move and walk and lean in them just as much as you would if you were skiing. Mine were as tight as they could go and I still couldn't turn in them. Third, I gotta get over being nervous!! I did have fun, but was SUPER nervous, and so I didn't get many turns in today. The loose boots didn't help. All in all, it was a nice Saturday. :)

Sunday is a normal day as always.  We went to church at 9, and Grace almost fell asleep in Sunbeams today!  Of course, now she's talking and talking in her crib when she should be sleeping!  At two I go visiting teaching, and then that's pretty much it for the day!

Amanda

Oh My Snow!

It's been snowing and snowing since yesterday morning!  This is so exciting!  Now I'm getting a tiny taste of what Winter is supposed to look like in Idaho!  But it's still nothing like the stories I've heard.  When I woke up this morning I looked at the clock and said, "we'd be waking Grace up from her MRI right now..."  We turned around from our travels to Utah to get her to all her doctor appointments because of the horrible weather.  In the matter of 30 miles, we'd seen 6 cars that had slipped right off the road!  The 6th one we helped.  She had gone off the side of an off-ramp, and so we used our tow rope to pull her back onto the street.  I'd say it was only scary because the off-ramp was practically all ice, and there were vehicles constantly coming off the freeway.  Obviously we had some heavenly protection there so we wouldn't get run over.  I had later thought..."  Wow, if someone were to slam into our truck, Grace's side of the truck would be first impact..."  Shew...Thank Heavenly Father for keeping us safe.  At one point the truck went parallel with the slight hill she had gone down and I was a bit worried that our truck would get stuck as well.  But then Brad put it into 4 low and we were fine.  After that we turned right around and headed home.  There's no sense putting ourselves in danger for doctor appointments that aren't needed desperately.  They are all just checkups.  

So, that's where we are now.  Brad and I are still in bed, and Grace is sitting here while I type and she's playing with her Magna Doodle that came from her Grandma/Grandpa Hildreth for Christmas.  Brad will be hanging out with his friend today (so he says) so it will be just Grace and I.  I'm hoping she and I will have fun, but we'll see.  Not much to do when the snow is falling.

Happy SNOW!

Amanda

Wednesday was a Calm Day, and Thursday was a Cold day!

Well, there wasn't much going on Wednesday.  No therapy, no school.  So we just hung out at home.  Plus, it's so darn cold that we can't go outside or we'd freeze!  It is fun to see the snow falling from Grace's window, which is what we love to do when there's a lull in time.  This was the super crazy busy day when we were scheduling everything for Spina Bifida clinic, but then we needed up not even going because of the crazy weather!  By the time we were 30 miles out of town, it was a white-out with super slick roads.  We passed 5 cars that had gone off the road, and the 6th one we saw we were able to pull over and help her off the side of an off-ramp.  We almost didn't get it, but at the last second, after we put our truck into 4-low, we got her out!  I'm glad we ended up coming home.  We had called Brad's dad to have him check the weather and he let us know Salt Lake was going to get 10 inches of snow today!  Shew!  I'll stay home, catch up on my blog, do some homework, and be safe :)  Now she's napping (since she didn't get to sleep until 2:00 pm).  And now, as I'm writing, I hear my sweet girl moaning in her room, ready to get up and be goofy the rest of the day.  

Amanda

Preschool Changes

Well, since there has been some scary things going on in the world, Grace's preschool has made some changes in how parents are to drop off their children.  We used to take the kids through a back door that leads right to the preschool room, which I can see how is a BAD IDEA!  But now we are to take the kids to the front of the school, and wait in the lobby.  The teachers will then walk down and pick up all the kids at the appropriate time.  I think this is so much better!  I'm so glad that they decided to change the procedures to drop off the children.  It makes me feel a little less worried, even though I still have a heart flutter every time I drop her off.  Just the idea of something happening to my sweet pea makes me tremble.  But I need to just remember to keep breathing, praying and believing that she will be safe.

Amanda

Way behind on posting

I know I'm way behind, but sometime in the near future I will update!  We are leaving tomorrow to go to Utah for her normal MRI/Spina Bifida clinic, so obviously it won't be in the next few days.  So bear with me :)

Amanda

Sunbeam Sunday!

I was so excited about today because it was the first day as "Grace, the Sunbeam!"  I can't believe she's getting so big!  Oh, something about yesterday...she wanted a cracker while we were playing the game with Ryan, but she'd already eaten, and dinner was going to be soon.  So she came to me and signed open while saying "kacker open dur?"  It was so darn cute!!  A three word sentence!!  I was so proud!  Anyways, so I took her to the primary room, but she didn't want to go in!  It was something new, and of course she was a bit shy.  But her teacher gave her a baby doll to hold, so at that point she was happy to go in.  Her "uncle" Garon came a bit later and was with her the rest of the time.  He is her shadow, so she will have him with her every Sunday so nothing happens to her from the other children.  After church I invited them all over for dinner, so we will get to visit this evening.  And Ryan came over and brought his game so we can play again!  So all in all, a great Sunbeam Sunday!

Amanda

Slow Saturday

Well, I didn't do much except for go on a fun date with my honey!  Grace got to play with her two friends that came over to watch her while Brad and I went to the theater to see "Life as Pi."  It was a wonderful movie, and I enjoyed the company with Brad!  Oh, and Ryan brought over a new game and so we played that before we left for the movie.  It was a pretty neat game, and made the time go by between nap-time for Grace and leaving for the movie.

Amanda

Friday Already?!

This has definitely been a weird week.  It's gone by so fast, and so it's weird to see that the weekend is already here.  Two more days and then my college online courses open up!  I'm hoping that Grace understands that school is very important and that when Mommy needs to do homework, that she needs to let me do it :)  But I know she'll be great!  I have two hours Tuesday/Thursday to do homework while she's at school, and if she gets into BYU-I preschool again, that will be two hours every morning!  I can tell she's getting back into her schedule of being home, all except her naps.  She's still keeping herself away.  Oh, and do you want to know how I found her this morning?  Stark naked!  Little stinker took off her footie pajamas and her diaper...and yes, I forgot to put a onesie on her.  Oh well, she got to take a swim bath with Daddy, so she was happy!  What are we going to do today?  Nothing big...clean the house, make bbq beef for dinner with croissants, and organize the food storage room.  Grace can help with the first two, but we've got mason jars on the low shelves in the food storage room that she'd just love to push off!  Oh, and laundry.  She really likes to help with that, too.  Her favorite thing about laundry is pushing the buttons!  

Well, that's Friday for us.  Nothing big, and nothing exciting.  Just a normal day in our household.

Amanda

Christmas

Christmas day we got to spend at home for the first time since we moved here.  That was pretty fun to do!  Grace was so excited about all the presents, especially the Dora doll that she got from Santa!  Skyler got to come down for Christmas, so that was nice that we could spend some time with him, and Grace was so excited to have him here to play with!  Our friends came over and celebrated Christmas with us, played games, and brought Grace a singing Elmo for her present!  They gave us a couple's massage gift certificate :)  We had a big lunch of lasagna and tons of snacks, and played games late into the night.  

On the 27th we left to go visit Brian and Lisa, my brother/sister in laws.  I had such a great time!  We just got home yesterday, and it was hard to leave.  We went skiing twice while we were there, which is my first time ever in my life.

 We also played games, checked out some guns (a left handed 270 for me, and a 300 for Brad), and just relaxed :)  New Years was fun as well!  There were so many yummy snacks and treats, and I loved spending time with family.  And now we are home and back to the grind.  I REALLY miss being up in Montana with family, and am hoping to get together with them again so we can go skiing!!  I will definitely be working on it.  I fell both days, but that isn't a surprise.  The first day I messed up my ankle a bit, and my knees were NOT liking the confinement and positioning of my body from the ski boots, but those didn't stop me from skiing on the 28th as well.  The knee pain went away super fast, so it wasn't a bother, and after resting my ankle and stretching it quite a bit, I was good.  My first day I also bruised my knee from the ski hitting it!  But, I got some good turns in, and all in all felt proud of how well I did for my first day.  The second ski day I was more scared because of my falling from the first day, so Brian came up with the idea to give me his helmet, which played music.  I rocked it with that helmet!!  It was so hard to give it back ;)  I got 9 runs in that day, and skiied from 10-3.  

Great times, all in all.  I was happy to be spending time with family, and can't wait to do it again soon!  Grace loved it too!  Aunt Lisa had so many toys for Grace to play with, and Grace's cousin was there as well, which was so much fun!!  They played well together, and it helped that Qeirstyn (her cousin) was so gentle and old enough to understand that Grace needs a little help being good.  Grace definitely LOVED all the snacks that were always out, and loved using the word "MORE!" over and over until she got yummy snacks!

Amanda

Christmas Countdown Day 20-24

Well...you can obviously see that I failed on completing the countdown for 2012!!  Oh well, though.  That's ok :)  It was a super fun time and I'm so glad we did a countdown!!  This holiday season was awesome.  I really couldn't ask for anything better.  What a wonderful day to end the year, and ring in 2013!

Amanda