Before you get too impressed with the volume of posts I have for today,
let me tell you that I am going through my posts and kicking myself for the number of half-finished blog posts there are.
Here is one from April, 2011. I have no idea why I never posted it...
Emeline is obsessed with feet. Cold feet, specifically.
More often than not, I am bare-footed. Em frequently will
disappear into my bedroom and come out with a pair of socks,
and hand them to me, "Mom, Coe Feet." At that point, she wants
me to immediately sit down and put the socks on. It doesn't matter
if I'm stirring something on the stove, or cleaning the bathtub,
or whatever--cold feet rank right up there with national emergencies
in her book, apparently. And waiting 5 minutes to warm those tootsies
up is waiting 5 minutes too long.
Sometimes, I will humor her, and put the socks on, because my feet
actually are cold. LOL Other times, they aren't. Some times, I
just don't want to have socks on. So I won't put them on. I will
ask her to go and put the socks back in my room, because I don't want
to wear socks right then. You'd think I was telling her we were
giving each of her precious SpongeBob characters away or something,
she gets so upset. "Mom, no coe feet, Mom. Peas No coe feet."
She has even been known to cry, in her earnest and very sincere desire to protect my feet from the chill. I tell her, "This is NOT something that it is okay to cry over; this is SOCKS we're talking about here. I will have NO CRYING OVER SOCKS in this house!" And then I stop, and stand there, giggling at the utter ridiculousness that mommies sometimes hear themselves saying.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Emeline's 6th Birthday!
10/10/2011
As we always have, we celebrated Emeline's 6th birthday with a birthday party at Grandma and Grandpa's house in Illinois.
Emeline's favorite movie for several months now has been "Peter Pan" (or, as she pronounces it, "Pee-nah Pay-an), so we chose to go with that for her party's theme.
I searched and searched, but never did find a single shirt with Peter Pan on it. Apparently Tinkerbell is the only marketable character from that movie. LOL When I showed Emeline the Tink shirt I'd bought for her, she
said, "Ew. No sanks. No yike Tink. Tink bad guhl. Onwy wike Peenah Payan." (Translation: Ew. No thanks. I don't like Tink. Tink is a bad girl. I only like Peter Pan.) It took a few minutes of talking, but I finally convinced her to put the shirt on.
Aunt Joy made (or had made?) a Peter Pan hat for Em.
She LOVED it!
Mommy is no "Cake Boss", but Emeline was happy with her birthday cakes.
We had pixie sticks (Everyone needs a little pixie dust now and then!)
and of course, Em's favorite, M&M's, along with our cake, ice cream, and punch.
I was getting ready to cut into the cake when Em reminded me, "Mom! Emma
no bwow candles out!" OOPS! Good thing she was paying attention! LOL
Em and her good buddy, Justin. (Or, as Em calls him, "Jut-tin")
This last picture would have been precious to me anyway, but it became
even more so in December, when we said goodbye to our dear old friend Bob.
He and Lois have been dear to me all of my life, and they are like "great-grandparents" to Emeline. Last year, it was our good friend Joe Coley whose absence was felt at Em's birthday party. Next year, Bob's presence will certainly be missed.
And that's the end of the birthday pictures for this year. I had some more of Em opening presents, but of course, almost all of them are blurry. A photographer I am NOT.
I can't believe how quickly the time has past! It doesn't seem all that long ago, when Em was turning 5; I can hardly believe she's 6 already! And I know 7 is just around the corner. I *must* do better at writing down more of our "daily adventures." (Because if you know Emeline at all, pretty much EVERY day is an adventure!!!) Birthdays are fun times to remember and look back on, but every day has moments I don't want to forget. Every day has Moments Worth Remembering.
As we always have, we celebrated Emeline's 6th birthday with a birthday party at Grandma and Grandpa's house in Illinois.
Emeline's favorite movie for several months now has been "Peter Pan" (or, as she pronounces it, "Pee-nah Pay-an), so we chose to go with that for her party's theme.
I searched and searched, but never did find a single shirt with Peter Pan on it. Apparently Tinkerbell is the only marketable character from that movie. LOL When I showed Emeline the Tink shirt I'd bought for her, she
said, "Ew. No sanks. No yike Tink. Tink bad guhl. Onwy wike Peenah Payan." (Translation: Ew. No thanks. I don't like Tink. Tink is a bad girl. I only like Peter Pan.) It took a few minutes of talking, but I finally convinced her to put the shirt on.
Aunt Joy made (or had made?) a Peter Pan hat for Em.
She LOVED it!
Mommy is no "Cake Boss", but Emeline was happy with her birthday cakes.
We had pixie sticks (Everyone needs a little pixie dust now and then!)
and of course, Em's favorite, M&M's, along with our cake, ice cream, and punch.
I was getting ready to cut into the cake when Em reminded me, "Mom! Emma
no bwow candles out!" OOPS! Good thing she was paying attention! LOL
Em and her good buddy, Justin. (Or, as Em calls him, "Jut-tin")
This last picture would have been precious to me anyway, but it became
even more so in December, when we said goodbye to our dear old friend Bob.
He and Lois have been dear to me all of my life, and they are like "great-grandparents" to Emeline. Last year, it was our good friend Joe Coley whose absence was felt at Em's birthday party. Next year, Bob's presence will certainly be missed.
And that's the end of the birthday pictures for this year. I had some more of Em opening presents, but of course, almost all of them are blurry. A photographer I am NOT.
I can't believe how quickly the time has past! It doesn't seem all that long ago, when Em was turning 5; I can hardly believe she's 6 already! And I know 7 is just around the corner. I *must* do better at writing down more of our "daily adventures." (Because if you know Emeline at all, pretty much EVERY day is an adventure!!!) Birthdays are fun times to remember and look back on, but every day has moments I don't want to forget. Every day has Moments Worth Remembering.
"You May Not Be So Lucky Next Time"
Argle-Bargle. I started this post on 10/04/11, and just got finished editing it. I *hoped* blogger would post it in the (date) order in which it was written, but no such luck! Oh well. It's only fitting that my crazy-mixed-up life is appropriately reflected by a crazy-mixed-up blog! LOL
10/04/11
Yesterday Emeline had an appointment with a geneticist at U of I Hospitals and Clinics. It was our first time meeting this man, but I wasn't too concerned about the appointment. Em's cardiologist had asked me to schedule it this summer; he said it would be helpful, so I did. (Honestly, it wasn't. We already see enough specialists for Em's specific issues; this doctor didn't tell me anything new to watch for that I didn't already know. Or that Emma hasn't already been diagnosed with.)
In the course of the visit, he examined Emma and asked me lots of questions. At one point, he asked if Emma was an only child. I told him yes. He said, "That's probably wise of you." I then told him, "Oh, it's not by choice. We would love to have more children, but sometimes wanting a child isn't enough." His next look was one of pity, and he said, "You may wish for a child that is different than this, that does not have such health concerns..." and I'm pretty sure that at that point, my instantly-red face clued him in that he had just gone TOO far. I interrupted him and said, "*THIS* child is perfect as she is. She is fearfully and wonderfully made, EXACTLY how God intended her to be, and that includes Down Syndrome, Addison's Disease, and every other health challenge she lives with." He said, "You misunderstand me. I only meant that, given your age and your already having one child with Trisomy 21, statistically, your chances are higher of having another one. And who would want to take that chance?" I said, "Well, *I* would, and my husband would, too. I think at that point he maybe was starting to see that this conversation was not going well. He continued, "But you don't understand. Your child is still young. There are many more, much harder things still ahead. And I can already see that although she is progressing well, she will never be independent. She will never live alone." Looking back, I really should have just gotten up and left the appointment then and there. Seriously.
When a doctor thinks he can know the future of a 5 year old, he is too far gone, as far as I'm concerned. Talk about having a God-complex!
At that point, I interjected, "You know, clearly we don't see eye-to-eye on this, so maybe we should just get back to discussing Emeline." He said, "That's fine, but I just want to be very sure you understand that the reality is, you may not be so lucky next time. While she has some challenges, another child with Down Syndrome may be much worse." Wow. Thanks, doc. (Nope, that title doesn't even deserve the capital D this time, as far as I'm concerned.)
I just looked at Emma, playing on the hospital table with the Polly Pockets the Child Life Specialist had brought in for her. She had surprised me when she said, as soon as we walked into the examining room, "I want Pockets." I was confused for a minute, and then remembered that when we were there for another appointment last month, that's what she had played with. One encounter, but she remembered what they were called, and wanted to play with them again. And figured, "Hey, if I ask, they might let me have them again."
This child, who has not always been the fastest to progress, even amoung her peers with Down Syndrome, has come so far. Yes, she may not have crawled until she was 18 months, or walked until she was 3 and a half. Yes, she still may not speak very clearly, but the effort is there. And the desire is there. And, given time, it will come, just as the crawling and walking did. A little slower, but you know, nobody cares anymore that she wasn't crawling at 1 or walking at 3. She's walking now. And some day she will have so much to tell these doctors who look at her and see nothing but Down Syndrome.
If only their "education" didn't get in the way of seeing what's REALLY there. A child who loves without holding back, who senses in an uncanny way when someone near her is hurting or sad, who laughs and smiles and giggles with such joy that anyone near her can't help but do the same. If only they saw HER, and not Down Syndrome.
ETA: Coming back to edit...I absolutely do not want to paint all doctors with the same broad brush stroke, and I fear this entry may have sounded that way. *THIS* particular doctor we saw that day was so condescending, so pity-full, so arrogant in the way he spoke with me; clearly, I was very upset. But I must say that we are blessed to have SO many other wonderful doctors that work with Emeline, who are positive, encouraging, understanding, and hope-full. I do not have the words to adequately say how thankful we are, and appreciative, of the excellent care they have always provided, frequently going "above and beyond" to insure that our girl is given every chance to enjoy life in spite of her health challenges. We are nothing but BLESSED.
10/04/11
Yesterday Emeline had an appointment with a geneticist at U of I Hospitals and Clinics. It was our first time meeting this man, but I wasn't too concerned about the appointment. Em's cardiologist had asked me to schedule it this summer; he said it would be helpful, so I did. (Honestly, it wasn't. We already see enough specialists for Em's specific issues; this doctor didn't tell me anything new to watch for that I didn't already know. Or that Emma hasn't already been diagnosed with.)
In the course of the visit, he examined Emma and asked me lots of questions. At one point, he asked if Emma was an only child. I told him yes. He said, "That's probably wise of you." I then told him, "Oh, it's not by choice. We would love to have more children, but sometimes wanting a child isn't enough." His next look was one of pity, and he said, "You may wish for a child that is different than this, that does not have such health concerns..." and I'm pretty sure that at that point, my instantly-red face clued him in that he had just gone TOO far. I interrupted him and said, "*THIS* child is perfect as she is. She is fearfully and wonderfully made, EXACTLY how God intended her to be, and that includes Down Syndrome, Addison's Disease, and every other health challenge she lives with." He said, "You misunderstand me. I only meant that, given your age and your already having one child with Trisomy 21, statistically, your chances are higher of having another one. And who would want to take that chance?" I said, "Well, *I* would, and my husband would, too. I think at that point he maybe was starting to see that this conversation was not going well. He continued, "But you don't understand. Your child is still young. There are many more, much harder things still ahead. And I can already see that although she is progressing well, she will never be independent. She will never live alone." Looking back, I really should have just gotten up and left the appointment then and there. Seriously.
When a doctor thinks he can know the future of a 5 year old, he is too far gone, as far as I'm concerned. Talk about having a God-complex!
At that point, I interjected, "You know, clearly we don't see eye-to-eye on this, so maybe we should just get back to discussing Emeline." He said, "That's fine, but I just want to be very sure you understand that the reality is, you may not be so lucky next time. While she has some challenges, another child with Down Syndrome may be much worse." Wow. Thanks, doc. (Nope, that title doesn't even deserve the capital D this time, as far as I'm concerned.)
I just looked at Emma, playing on the hospital table with the Polly Pockets the Child Life Specialist had brought in for her. She had surprised me when she said, as soon as we walked into the examining room, "I want Pockets." I was confused for a minute, and then remembered that when we were there for another appointment last month, that's what she had played with. One encounter, but she remembered what they were called, and wanted to play with them again. And figured, "Hey, if I ask, they might let me have them again."
This child, who has not always been the fastest to progress, even amoung her peers with Down Syndrome, has come so far. Yes, she may not have crawled until she was 18 months, or walked until she was 3 and a half. Yes, she still may not speak very clearly, but the effort is there. And the desire is there. And, given time, it will come, just as the crawling and walking did. A little slower, but you know, nobody cares anymore that she wasn't crawling at 1 or walking at 3. She's walking now. And some day she will have so much to tell these doctors who look at her and see nothing but Down Syndrome.
If only their "education" didn't get in the way of seeing what's REALLY there. A child who loves without holding back, who senses in an uncanny way when someone near her is hurting or sad, who laughs and smiles and giggles with such joy that anyone near her can't help but do the same. If only they saw HER, and not Down Syndrome.
ETA: Coming back to edit...I absolutely do not want to paint all doctors with the same broad brush stroke, and I fear this entry may have sounded that way. *THIS* particular doctor we saw that day was so condescending, so pity-full, so arrogant in the way he spoke with me; clearly, I was very upset. But I must say that we are blessed to have SO many other wonderful doctors that work with Emeline, who are positive, encouraging, understanding, and hope-full. I do not have the words to adequately say how thankful we are, and appreciative, of the excellent care they have always provided, frequently going "above and beyond" to insure that our girl is given every chance to enjoy life in spite of her health challenges. We are nothing but BLESSED.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Before I can start the new year, can I PLEASE finish up the old?
In the scale of ranking the importance of pictures, "first day of school" are ones on the higher end (for me). So of course I was frustrated when I couldn't find the ones I was SURE I had taken. But here we are, in January (well, it was December when I found the memory card), FINALLY uploading Em's first day of school pictures. (Okay, so I uploaded several, but I'm only posting one here.) This is from August 24, 2011. My big, bad KINDERGARTENER.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Catching Up (Copied from Facebook posts--September)
from September 29, 2011
I was talking with Em about her first class field trip tomorrow--a trip to a pumpkin patch. I told her we'd have to pack a lunch for her to take; she said, "Emma pack yunch."
I just opened her backpack, and here is a list of everything she had CRAMMED in there. Apparently, this is what she considers important to take to the pumpkin patch: winter coat, lightweight jacket, teddy bear, black patent leather shoes, pair of pants, a long-sleeved (turtleneck) shirt, a pair of socks, a pen, 2 pieces of blank white paper, a tube of crescent rolls, a tub of Philadelphia cream cheese, a pudding cup, 4 cheese sticks, a Capri Sun pouch, a stack of about 22 paper plates, and a stack of about 50 napkins.
from September 28, 2011
On Monday I bought a cheapie new Sterilite (plastic) pitcher with a great snapto-close lid. I made some lemonade in it for supper that night. Tuesday morning, when I got up, I walked by the trash can in the kitchen, and what do I see, but my brand-new pitcher in the garbage!
I said, "What in the world?!? Who threw my brand new pitcher away?!?"
Emma said, "Emma frow way."
I said, "Em! Just because it's empty does not mean it's garbage. That's brand new; I JUST bought it yesterday!"
She looked at me, said, "O-kay," and then walked over to garbage and pulled out the empty milk jug and the empty Powerade bottle that were also in the garbage, and brought them over to me. "Heyah (here), Mommy. Sowwy."
September 26, 2011
Oh, dear. Oh, my. How I wish my computer would let me upload pics. I have been listening to Em puttering around in the bathroom, but (probably against my better judgment), I let her be. She just came out....Now I see why she was in there for so long....
Lipstick on her lips (and above and below them, as well). Eye liner (several lines) across her forehead. Mascara all over her eye lids. Blush (I think??) on her eye lids, too. Foundation smeared across her cheeks, in two thick stripes. And the beauty queen just keeps wanting to kiss me. "Emma pwetty, Momma. Emma pwetty." ♥♥♥♥♥ (I'm sure if you saw me, after all these kisses I've received, I probably mirror Em's makeup pretty closely! LOL)
And......I *just* noticed, as she was walking away (from yet another kiss!) that she found the hair clips, too. 4 of them are now gracing the back of her head! (Along with the 2 barrettes and pony tail that she already had!) LOL
I was talking with Em about her first class field trip tomorrow--a trip to a pumpkin patch. I told her we'd have to pack a lunch for her to take; she said, "Emma pack yunch."
I just opened her backpack, and here is a list of everything she had CRAMMED in there. Apparently, this is what she considers important to take to the pumpkin patch: winter coat, lightweight jacket, teddy bear, black patent leather shoes, pair of pants, a long-sleeved (turtleneck) shirt, a pair of socks, a pen, 2 pieces of blank white paper, a tube of crescent rolls, a tub of Philadelphia cream cheese, a pudding cup, 4 cheese sticks, a Capri Sun pouch, a stack of about 22 paper plates, and a stack of about 50 napkins.
from September 28, 2011
On Monday I bought a cheapie new Sterilite (plastic) pitcher with a great snapto-close lid. I made some lemonade in it for supper that night. Tuesday morning, when I got up, I walked by the trash can in the kitchen, and what do I see, but my brand-new pitcher in the garbage!
I said, "What in the world?!? Who threw my brand new pitcher away?!?"
Emma said, "Emma frow way."
I said, "Em! Just because it's empty does not mean it's garbage. That's brand new; I JUST bought it yesterday!"
She looked at me, said, "O-kay," and then walked over to garbage and pulled out the empty milk jug and the empty Powerade bottle that were also in the garbage, and brought them over to me. "Heyah (here), Mommy. Sowwy."
September 26, 2011
Oh, dear. Oh, my. How I wish my computer would let me upload pics. I have been listening to Em puttering around in the bathroom, but (probably against my better judgment), I let her be. She just came out....Now I see why she was in there for so long....
Lipstick on her lips (and above and below them, as well). Eye liner (several lines) across her forehead. Mascara all over her eye lids. Blush (I think??) on her eye lids, too. Foundation smeared across her cheeks, in two thick stripes. And the beauty queen just keeps wanting to kiss me. "Emma pwetty, Momma. Emma pwetty." ♥♥♥♥♥ (I'm sure if you saw me, after all these kisses I've received, I probably mirror Em's makeup pretty closely! LOL)
And......I *just* noticed, as she was walking away (from yet another kiss!) that she found the hair clips, too. 4 of them are now gracing the back of her head! (Along with the 2 barrettes and pony tail that she already had!) LOL
Catching Up (Some Posts I've Cut & Pasted from my Facebook page--October)
from October 20, 2011 9:00 pm
Overheard in my house in the last 2 minutes:
"Oh, soup nuts!" (Emeline's favorite expression for when she's frustrated. I have no idea where it came from; I'm guessing she made it up.....at least I don't remember SpongeBob ever saying "Oh, soup nuts!") Maybe I just missed it ????
and
"Nigh-night time! Yaaaaaaay!" as she runs to get into bed. (Don't be envious. That will last all of 15 seconds, and then she'll be back out here again....)
from October 20, 2011 9:00 am
Today is picture day at school for Emeline. She was SO excited. They put a "Don't forget it's Picture Day!" sticker on the kids' shirts yesterday before they were dismissed. She must have 'remembered' 10 different times last night. She'd be in her room playing, and all of a sudden, come RUNNING out, yelling, "Mom! No Foh-get! Pic-ture Day! To-mah-woah! No Foh-get!" I'd reply, "Okay, Em. I won't forget." And she'd go back to her room.....only to repeat the same exact scenario ten minutes later. LOL
And
Em must have been having SOME dream early this morning. At 4:00 she woke me up by yelling at the top of her lungs, "DOGGIES!!!!" ROFL When I woke her up this morning, I said, "Em, did you dream about... doggies last night?" She looked at me like, "How did you know that?!?" And the she started cracking up. "Yep," she said. "Bah-jo and Cay-cane FUN-NY!" (Banjo and Candy cane are our two beagles.) Silly girl! ♥♥♥
from October 15, 2011
Barb D. loves a girl who knows what she wants. Emeline came in carrying a box of spaghetti and a jar of Prego. Mom! Sketti! Emma hungry! ♥ Hmmmm...it wouldn't be the first time we've had spaghetti for breakfast. (But Daddy is definitely NOT a fan....so it probably won't be happening today. LOL)
from October 10, 2011
Dear Emeline,
Putting all of the kitchen towels and dishcloths inside the stove was a mean trick.
I'm just thankful I noticed it before I turned the oven on tonight. Next time, please put them away in the drawer, rather than the oven. Thank you.
Love, Mommy
Overheard in my house in the last 2 minutes:
"Oh, soup nuts!" (Emeline's favorite expression for when she's frustrated. I have no idea where it came from; I'm guessing she made it up.....at least I don't remember SpongeBob ever saying "Oh, soup nuts!") Maybe I just missed it ????
and
"Nigh-night time! Yaaaaaaay!" as she runs to get into bed. (Don't be envious. That will last all of 15 seconds, and then she'll be back out here again....)
from October 20, 2011 9:00 am
Today is picture day at school for Emeline. She was SO excited. They put a "Don't forget it's Picture Day!" sticker on the kids' shirts yesterday before they were dismissed. She must have 'remembered' 10 different times last night. She'd be in her room playing, and all of a sudden, come RUNNING out, yelling, "Mom! No Foh-get! Pic-ture Day! To-mah-woah! No Foh-get!" I'd reply, "Okay, Em. I won't forget." And she'd go back to her room.....only to repeat the same exact scenario ten minutes later. LOL
And
Em must have been having SOME dream early this morning. At 4:00 she woke me up by yelling at the top of her lungs, "DOGGIES!!!!" ROFL When I woke her up this morning, I said, "Em, did you dream about... doggies last night?" She looked at me like, "How did you know that?!?" And the she started cracking up. "Yep," she said. "Bah-jo and Cay-cane FUN-NY!" (Banjo and Candy cane are our two beagles.) Silly girl! ♥♥♥
from October 15, 2011
Barb D. loves a girl who knows what she wants. Emeline came in carrying a box of spaghetti and a jar of Prego. Mom! Sketti! Emma hungry! ♥ Hmmmm...it wouldn't be the first time we've had spaghetti for breakfast. (But Daddy is definitely NOT a fan....so it probably won't be happening today. LOL)
from October 10, 2011
Dear Emeline,
Putting all of the kitchen towels and dishcloths inside the stove was a mean trick.
I'm just thankful I noticed it before I turned the oven on tonight. Next time, please put them away in the drawer, rather than the oven. Thank you.
Love, Mommy
Our Daily Conversations On the Way to School
If you were riding in the car with us in the morning, this is the conversation you would hear. Every day. :)
"We ah we?" (Where are we?)
"You tell me where we are."
"In da cah. Sool." (In the car. School.)
"That's right. We're in the car, going to school."
"Ohhhh-kay."
"We ah we?"
Repeat entire conversation two more times, or until we get to the end of our road, whichever comes first.
Once we turn onto Hwy 63 (7 miles still to go before we get to town), the animal watch begins.
"Whey cows?" (Where are the cows?)
The cows are up here, on the right. Just wait a minute, and we'll see them.
"Ohhhhhhhhh-kay."
"We ah we? Oh, COWS! Oh, no! COWS! Goo Moh-ning, Cows! Goo Moh-ning!" (wave, wave, wave)
I also greet the cows. "Good morning, Cows!" Because that's the way we roll. ;)
"Toooo many cows."
"Yes, there are quite a few. Can we count them?"
"Oh, No. Toooo many. One, two, OH NO! Hoh-sie! (Horsie) Too many hoh-sie! Goo Moh-ning, Hoh-sie! Goo Moh-ning! Mom, Goo Moh-ning Hoh-sie!"
Okay, I will. "Good morning, Horses!"
"Tooooooo many hoh-sies."
"Yes, there ARE a lot of horses, aren't there."
"Oh NO! Cows! Moh cows! (More cows!) "Goo Moh-ning, Cows!"
Repeat entire conversation every time we pass cows or horses. (About 7 times, I'm pretty sure.)
The last mile before we get into town, there are no more animals. So I seize the moment.
"Em, what kind of note do I want to read tonight in your Notebook?"
"Goo Note."
"That's right. I want a good note. What do you need to do, to make sure it's a GOOD note that your teacher writes to me?"
"O-BEY!"
"That's right. When she says it's time to stop coloring, you stop RIGHT THEN. Right?"
"Yight!"
"When she says it's time to line up, you line up RIGHT THEN. Right?"
"Yight!"
"What else do you need to do, to make sure it's a good note in your notebook tonight?"
"No pinch fwends."
"Uh-huh. No pinching. What else?"
"No huht fwends."
"Yep. No hurting friends. Keep your hands OFF of other people, right?"
"Yight!"
"Anything else you should do?"
"Be nice."
"That's right. Anything else?"
"Hahd wook."
"That's right. You should work hard. Do your VERY BEST. No piddle-poking around, right?"
"Yight! Oh, NO!"
"What's wrong?"
"Daddy miss Emma."
(Notice her skill at changing the subject? I'm pretty sure I didn't learn that until at least junior high. LOL)
"Yes, Daddy misses you when you're at school. But he's at school, too, working hard, and he wants YOU to work hard at school, too. He wants to see a good note tonight that says, "Emma worked hard and had a GREAT day today. You know that?"
"Yep. Poh Daddy miss Emma." (Poor daddy misses Emma.) "Daddy key-eye." (Daddy cry.)
"I'm pretty sure Daddy doesn't cry when he's at school, but I know that he is thinking about you, and that he is hoping you are having a good day, and obeying, and working hard."
"Yep. Daddy key-eye." (Daddy cry.)
I have learned there is no debating this subject. She is firm in her belief that Daddy cries when he's at school, because he misses her that much. There is no changing her mind.
By now we're just a few blocks from school. We start seeing school buses.
"Mom! Sool Bus! Fwends!"
"That's right! There's the buses. Some of your friends are on the buses, aren't they?"
"Yep."
"Oh NO!"
"What?"
"Fwends."
"What about your friends?"
"Fwends sad Emma no sool."
"Your friends are sad when you're not in school?"
"Yeah."
"But you're going to be in school today, so they won't be sad, right?"
"Yeah. Fwends happy."
"Okay. Here we are. You have a good day. Be a good listener and what else?"
"O-BEY!"
"That's right. When you have a good day, you make Mommy happy, and Daddy happy, but most importantly, you make Jesus happy, right?"
"Yight. Momma happy."
"That's right. You make Grandma happy, too."
"Poppa happy."
"Uh-huh. Grandpa is happy, too."
"Ya-ya happy."
"Em, I don't think Boomer really cares at all if you have a good day, or not. He's a dog, and dogs don't care about those kinds of things."
"Yep. Ya-ya happy. Yep."
"Okay, well what's MOST important is that we make Jesus happy. And if we make Jesus happy, Mommy and Daddy and Grandma and Grandpa will be happy, too. You know that?"
"Yep."
I walk with her up to the building, where her 1-to-1 aide is waiting.
"Goo Moh-ning, Miff!" (Good morning, (Mrs.) Smith!)
Mrs. Smith replies with a cheery good morning, and a beautiful smile, and I walk away knowing that my child is in good hands, and is happy. What more could a mom ask for? (Other than maybe a good note from the teacher in that notebook every night. LOL)
"We ah we?" (Where are we?)
"You tell me where we are."
"In da cah. Sool." (In the car. School.)
"That's right. We're in the car, going to school."
"Ohhhh-kay."
"We ah we?"
Repeat entire conversation two more times, or until we get to the end of our road, whichever comes first.
Once we turn onto Hwy 63 (7 miles still to go before we get to town), the animal watch begins.
"Whey cows?" (Where are the cows?)
The cows are up here, on the right. Just wait a minute, and we'll see them.
"Ohhhhhhhhh-kay."
"We ah we? Oh, COWS! Oh, no! COWS! Goo Moh-ning, Cows! Goo Moh-ning!" (wave, wave, wave)
I also greet the cows. "Good morning, Cows!" Because that's the way we roll. ;)
"Toooo many cows."
"Yes, there are quite a few. Can we count them?"
"Oh, No. Toooo many. One, two, OH NO! Hoh-sie! (Horsie) Too many hoh-sie! Goo Moh-ning, Hoh-sie! Goo Moh-ning! Mom, Goo Moh-ning Hoh-sie!"
Okay, I will. "Good morning, Horses!"
"Tooooooo many hoh-sies."
"Yes, there ARE a lot of horses, aren't there."
"Oh NO! Cows! Moh cows! (More cows!) "Goo Moh-ning, Cows!"
Repeat entire conversation every time we pass cows or horses. (About 7 times, I'm pretty sure.)
The last mile before we get into town, there are no more animals. So I seize the moment.
"Em, what kind of note do I want to read tonight in your Notebook?"
"Goo Note."
"That's right. I want a good note. What do you need to do, to make sure it's a GOOD note that your teacher writes to me?"
"O-BEY!"
"That's right. When she says it's time to stop coloring, you stop RIGHT THEN. Right?"
"Yight!"
"When she says it's time to line up, you line up RIGHT THEN. Right?"
"Yight!"
"What else do you need to do, to make sure it's a good note in your notebook tonight?"
"No pinch fwends."
"Uh-huh. No pinching. What else?"
"No huht fwends."
"Yep. No hurting friends. Keep your hands OFF of other people, right?"
"Yight!"
"Anything else you should do?"
"Be nice."
"That's right. Anything else?"
"Hahd wook."
"That's right. You should work hard. Do your VERY BEST. No piddle-poking around, right?"
"Yight! Oh, NO!"
"What's wrong?"
"Daddy miss Emma."
(Notice her skill at changing the subject? I'm pretty sure I didn't learn that until at least junior high. LOL)
"Yes, Daddy misses you when you're at school. But he's at school, too, working hard, and he wants YOU to work hard at school, too. He wants to see a good note tonight that says, "Emma worked hard and had a GREAT day today. You know that?"
"Yep. Poh Daddy miss Emma." (Poor daddy misses Emma.) "Daddy key-eye." (Daddy cry.)
"I'm pretty sure Daddy doesn't cry when he's at school, but I know that he is thinking about you, and that he is hoping you are having a good day, and obeying, and working hard."
"Yep. Daddy key-eye." (Daddy cry.)
I have learned there is no debating this subject. She is firm in her belief that Daddy cries when he's at school, because he misses her that much. There is no changing her mind.
By now we're just a few blocks from school. We start seeing school buses.
"Mom! Sool Bus! Fwends!"
"That's right! There's the buses. Some of your friends are on the buses, aren't they?"
"Yep."
"Oh NO!"
"What?"
"Fwends."
"What about your friends?"
"Fwends sad Emma no sool."
"Your friends are sad when you're not in school?"
"Yeah."
"But you're going to be in school today, so they won't be sad, right?"
"Yeah. Fwends happy."
"Okay. Here we are. You have a good day. Be a good listener and what else?"
"O-BEY!"
"That's right. When you have a good day, you make Mommy happy, and Daddy happy, but most importantly, you make Jesus happy, right?"
"Yight. Momma happy."
"That's right. You make Grandma happy, too."
"Poppa happy."
"Uh-huh. Grandpa is happy, too."
"Ya-ya happy."
"Em, I don't think Boomer really cares at all if you have a good day, or not. He's a dog, and dogs don't care about those kinds of things."
"Yep. Ya-ya happy. Yep."
"Okay, well what's MOST important is that we make Jesus happy. And if we make Jesus happy, Mommy and Daddy and Grandma and Grandpa will be happy, too. You know that?"
"Yep."
I walk with her up to the building, where her 1-to-1 aide is waiting.
"Goo Moh-ning, Miff!" (Good morning, (Mrs.) Smith!)
Mrs. Smith replies with a cheery good morning, and a beautiful smile, and I walk away knowing that my child is in good hands, and is happy. What more could a mom ask for? (Other than maybe a good note from the teacher in that notebook every night. LOL)
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