My 6 Year Old Lo.....

How did this happen so fast?? My baby, my last baby, is 6. That is a huge milestone in our family. She is going into first grade, she's not so little anymore, she's starting to have "grownup" conversations, she's funny, she has many friends now, I'm not the center of her world, but she still can't tell a lie. Her innocence is still there. For now. :) My son has mastered lying, and I hate it. Just thinking about Lo getting one year closer to losing that kind of innocence makes me so sad. So for now I will just love her and hold on to what little bit of baby there is left, which isn't much. She's growing up, and fast!.......

The first thing she said to me on the morning of her birthday was "Don't worry, Mom, I still sound the same even though I'm 6 now!" But looking at these pictures, I see a little lady where my baby used to be. :)

Mom~

The Not So Natural Mommy.....

I used to look at Moms that would make their own cleaners, cook like they actually knew what they were doing and think to myself "Ppft! Morons".....but then I became a Mom myself and now I do all those things. Well, I used to. I slacked for a while there, became cheap because I had to, but now it's different. Now I have to again. Lo loves taking bathes and naturally I scrubbed the shit outta that tub with bleach and other various trendy cleaners. Then she got a yeast infection and it was a bad one. We had no insurance, but her pedi was kind enough to tell me what to do without having to bring her in. They usually run their course in a week if you're careful and keep things as natural as possible. So I went back to using apple cider vinegar and water to clean. God I forgot how awesome that stuff works. And my hands are super soft!! Can't beat that! I found a website that lists all the wonderful things apple cider is good for. Here ya go.....enjoy!!

Me~

Is She 4 YET?!?!

It's no secret that I kinda don't like the 2's, but we all know how I feel about the 3's. I despise them. I wish I could skip that age completely. At 2 they don't really understand yet and they're pushing boundaries, talking back and the dreaded "MINE!!!" phase. And then they turn 3 and all Hell breaks loose. It's exhausting. Lo has reached the 3's early. I don't even know what to do or say to her at times. I've had to threaten her with spankings! Thankfully just the threat is enough.....for now. I'm still holding out hope that she will be different than my other 2, but I doubt it. I'm not that lucky. I was lucky that she was a delightful baby that slept well, ate well and never cried. I was also kind of lucky that she was delayed in the crawling/walking phase. I couldn't imagine having 2 crazy children running around the house at the same time. Lex was plenty!! But I'm paying for it now. She's a hellion!! But a super cute hellion.....

Have I mentioned how happy I am that spring break is over and Lex is back in school? No? Well I am!!! They exhausted me last week!!!! :)

Little Miss. Independent

For the past few weeks Lola has started informing me that she "can do this" or "can do that" all by her little 2 year old self. Needless to say.....I'm scared. I hate this phase almost as much as puberty. They think they can do things even when I know they can't. For example...I know she can't climb into her carseat without me helping. I just know this. She doesn't, she thinks she can do it and she gets very pissed off if I try and help her. So I let her try, stay close and catch her when she falls. She wants to pick out her own clothes, her own foods, her own shows to watch and she makes sure I know she can do it herself, she feels the need to remind me by saying..."I can do this all by myself, Mommy. Lola can!!". Yes, she speaks in the first person. It's hilarious. If you've been reading my blog for a while then you know that Lola was delayed in walking due to a high fever which triggered a febrile seizure which set her back almost 6 months. With Early Intervention and lots of patience and love she can walk, run, climb and all that other dangerous fun stuff. She is still very slow, more cautious with stairs, but we're working on that. So you can understand my anxiety about this phase. I'm nervous she's going to hurt herself. I'm afraid I won't be there is she is trying out her new found freedom. But I can't be afraid. She sure isn't! So, I'm stepping back. I'm letting her do things by herself. I'm not fighting it anymore. We've already needed 3 bandaids today, but that's ok!! Lola can do this and so can I!

Best. Pancakes. Ever. And The Terrible Twos.

I'm all about trying to perfect my pancake recipe. My Grandmother used to use Bisquick, so I did, too. Until one morning I had none left and I was forced to make them from scratch! I'm pretty well stocked with everything I need to make just about anything, so I set out to find a recipe. I found this one on Allrecipes.com......

Good Old Fashioned Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

I tweaked it a little by doubling the recipe, adding 1/4 tsp of vanilla and half milk, half buttermilk. Yummmmmmmm!! They are sooo good! Last weekend I added blueberries to the mix, a bit more sugar and BAM! The perfect pancakes. I like using frozen fruits when they aren't in season around here. The kids had seconds and then they had leftovers for a snack. They were so good I barely had to put any syrup on them. I'll be making some this weekend again, so I'll post some pictures then. :)

Now...on to the "Terrible Twos". Can I just say that I'm terrified of Lola turning 3? I really am. She has been just awful. I actually caught her doing something bad. When she didn't think I was looking, I peeked in on her and Lex, saw her grab Lex by the hair and then slap him in the face. I rushed in and guess what she did? She started crying and holding her face saying Lex had hit HER! WHAAAAAAT?!?!?! I could NOT believe what I had just witnessed. I put her in time-out and told her "No!! No hitting! And NO pretending!" I'm fairly certain she understood what I was saying. I mean, HELL, the kid knows enough to lie about the situation, right?! I am in so much trouble. ((sigh)) Just look at her.......

You'd never know she was really a Demon trapped in an adorable, little 2 year old girl. She's going to make a fine teenager. I can just see the meetings now. HAH!

Once There Was A Princess....

And her name was Lola......

She was quiet, sweet and just adorable....

She grew up faster than her adoring parents wanted her to....

And became sweeter and happier than ever.....

And then one day the little Princess grew into a sweet little girl adored by many.....

But what most people didn't know, was that the Princess had a dark side.....

The Princess was TWO!....

And wasn't always the happy, sweet little Princess everyone believed her to be......

In fact, some days she was just miserable for no reason at all!!!.......

This would sometimes wear on Mommy, but that didn't stop her from loving the little Princess one bit....

Making Progress......

Very slowly, but surely, we are making progress.....

She is no longer fighting me when I try to put them on her.............

She actually has no problem wearing them, playing, running or climbing when she wears her AFO's.......

And that makes me, and her, very, very happy.......

I Don't Let My Babies Cry It Out.........I DON'T!

When I first got pregnant 15 years ago I swore I would never let my baby cry it out at night. I wouldn't. And I didn't. Then came Lex, and again I swore to never let him cry it out either. Same thing with him, I never did even though he wasn't the best sleeper. I would get up when he needed me. Then came Lola. I didn't even have to say the words....she was the perfect sleeper from day one! Perfect! She fell asleep on her own, in her own bed and never once made a sound. :) It was wonderful. She got older and we still never had any problems. Then something happened about 2 months ago. I started noticing that she was waking up crying at 3 a.m. every night. I would have to go down, change her and sometimes I'd even have to give her a bottle to soothe her when I wasn't enough. Then last month it got worse. Bedtime became a nightmare. Not just for me, but for her as well. She would scream, fight, try to get out of her crib, scream some more......it was horrible. And it hasn't gotten any better.

I figured that she was starting to go through something, the fear phase. All children go through it, but what the heck do I with her? I've been going in to get her and letting her fall asleep on the couch next to me. I know, I know....BAD idea!! You don't have to tell me just how bad of an idea that is. But I can't help it. She never complains, she hardly cries unless she needs something or is hurt, she's so sweet and so cute and I don't let my babies cry it out! I don't! But, I did. And guess what? She's alive, and she's fine. It kills me to do it, it really does, but that is my only choice. She cries for maybe 5 minutes, but in those 5 minutes I have to bite my lip to keep from running to her. I'm hoping this won't last long. I hate listening to her cry. If for some reason this doesn't stop, and she throws these fits at bedtime, I plan on buying a rocker/glider so I can rock her to sleep. Kevin thinks that's a bad idea. Hmph! This coming from a guy who still lays with our son till he falls asleep. Hypocrite. I honestly don't care what anyone thinks, if this continues or gets worse, I will do what I need to do to make her happy again.

My Sweetest Lola.....

Waiting on her Daddy......

Early Intervention.......The Breakup!

Lola had her Early Intervention assessment last week and I was dreading it! I didn't want to continue on with the program, but I felt bad because Patty said she wanted to see Lola through until the braces came off. But she's walking now. Almost full-time! She has come so, so far!! After the assessment was over she scored above average in everything except walking/running/stairs, she's in a 26-30 month level except those areas. So why continue? What else could they teach her? Nothing, really. We picked up her braces on Friday and she hated them, but she wore them and did ok with them. We had to take them off because they were bruising the backs of her thighs, they'll be fixed on Friday. The only issue now with Lola is that her feet turn in. It's fixable and we're fixing it. SO!!!!!! After the assessment they said that her score was just 2 points below, which means she's still elligiable for Early Intervention. It was only 2 points though. Come on!! But Patty was looking at me with those eyes and saying what a pleasure Lola is and how she's like to see it through and I was jut very honest with her. I said..."Look, Lady. We're done. Get out!" NO, I didn't!!! LOL!!!! I was polite and told her how I felt. My exact words were.."I feel like Lola has come so far thanks to you and Paul and all your help. She wouldn't be where she is today if it weren't for you guys and we're so grateful. But.....I feel like she is done. I think once the braces have straightened out her ankles she'll be set." WELL!!! Patty wants me to take a month off, think about it, see how she does with the braces and if she is doing well then Lola will be a graduate. But if she isn't doing well with the braces she would like to see her one more time to see if there is anything she may be able to help with. FAIL!!!! Breakup FAIL!!!!!!!!!!! LOL!! I totally sucked at it. :D But for now, we're done. She's walking better and better everyday, she's smart, funny and in my eyes....she's perfect. Now.....to get those braces on and off so we can move ON! I'll leave you with some cuteness..........

Day #18 Of Early Intervention, Laser Appointment And Ortho Appointment

Oh, Lola!! She fills our calendar up with more appointments than anyone else in the house. :) First.....Early Intervention. What a waste that was!! That was the day she got sick, but I had no idea she was sick. So the whole hour was spent watching her lay on the floor throwing fits. Poor Patty. o_O Poor Lola!!! She was sick and I didn't even know it till after she got up from her nap later that afternoon. We're hoping to have a better session this week. :D

She had her laser appointment in Boston last week. The first one in many months. Last time we went it was snowing!! It was beautiful out so of course Kevin just had to go, too. Not that I don't like being around him and Lex, but these appointments are in Boston and it gives me a chance to be alone with Lola, and I look forward to that. Anyway. It went well. Her doctor says that her Hemangioma is looking better and better!! YAY! We're going to see if our insurance company will give up 6 more visits.  They're tough though, so we'll see. :D

And last but not least.......the orthopedic appointment. Besides waiting for over an hour with a very cranky toddler, it went well!! -_- Dr. M came in and immediately started talking about braces. ((sigh)) I knew he was going to say that. I actually don't mind, whatever works is my motto!! And if she needs braces, then she needs braces. Period. And no, they won't look like Forest Gump's leg braces!!! LOL!! Although that is the first thing Kevin said when I told him. -_- I'm hoping we can get her some with butterflies or flowers on them. :D My niece had to wear braces and hers were cute! She has an appointment next week to get fitted for them. Lots of pictures!! Now, Dr. M  told me something that really made me nervous. He said...."You're lucky she can use her legs at all". Apparently he sees this a lot in children who have had strange fevers with no diagnoses as to what caused it. He thinks she had Meningitis and that's what caused her to stop everything she had learned as far as gross motor skills go. He asked if she could move her legs at all after the fever and you know what, I don't think she could. As a matter of fact, I don't think I saw her move for a very long time after that. :( My poor baby!!!! Luckily though, I pushed to get her into Early Intervention when I did, or else she may have been worse off. When Dr. M was examining her he could move her feet in every direction and she didn't even bat an eye! No muscle whatsoever in her time little feet. And he pointed out that since she's not using them, they're not growing like they should be. ((sigh)) The sooner we get those braces on, the sooner she starts building some muscle tone and sooner they straighten out. So here we go. Braces it is! :D

And She's Off!!!!

Well, she's off very, very slowly. :D Lola started walking yesterday. It's not a full-time gig just yet, she still prefers to crawl, but she is at least doing it. I am flat out refusing to pick her up and carry her anywhere. She is just going to have to do it herself. :) I can't wait to tell Patty. I'm actually hoping Lola will be mostly walking by then. A Mommy can dream, right? :) Picture time!!!!

Sorry, I went a little crazy with the pictures, but can you blame me? This is HUGE for her!! HUGE!!! I am so proud. :) Know what else I'm happy about? One less appointment on our calendar soon. I like Early Intervention and all, but I hate having appointments, hate it! So this will probably be the beginning of the end between Lola and Early Intervention. I can't wait to get her little diploma!! HAHAHAHAA!!! That will be awesome. Just awesome.

Day #17 Of Early Intervention

It's working!! Finally! Well, I think that Lola is finally willing to at least try and walk. Patty came over and brought the "round and round" (that's what the kids call it) with her to see if Lola would like to try it out. The object of this thing is to make her dizzy so her brain is tricked into helping her balance. Or something like that. The inner ear helps with keeping you upright, if she is moved around, spun around till she's dizzy, he turns on, which in turn makes her more stable, believe it or not. After using it just a few times she was able to stand up on her own and she stood there for about 30+ seconds, then took a few steps. Patty was very impressed and thought it would be a good idea to leave it here with us for the next 2 weeks. I've been working with her everyday since and I've noticed that she is way more confident, she's not as wobbly and she's standing on her own a lot. :D The other night while Kevin and I were watching t.v., I was on the floor with her, she stood up next to me, looked at me and said...."Momma, I walkawalkawalk ah Daddy" and took off to Kevin. She took 6 steps on her own!! I was so impressed. She just did it! Patty had the wonderful idea of "just ignore her and let her guide you" and it is working. I haven't talked about walking to her, I haven't even tried to make her stand up on her own and she is now trying it on her own. She's a willful little thing! Stubborn and willful, that's our Lo. :) I had to refrain from calling Patty and telling her because I thought if I did I'd jinx it, so I'll wait till our next session to tell her. Maybe by then I'll have more to tell! :) Anyway. I'll leave you with a few pictures of Miss. Lola and her "round and round".