Happy 3rd Birthday MiniLatte!!!!

My Dear Daughter;

This past weekend we were surrounded by your family and friends that love you to help celebrate the beginning of your third year of life. I was honored by their presence and am always in awe of the amount of people whose lives you have touched at such a young age.

Our family has been going through so much this year with serious health issues, loved ones passing- including the four-legged type, general stress and just life. Yet the one bright spot in all of this is YOU. How can a little one such as you make such an impression? With infectious giggles, a 10,000 mega watt smile, kind words and a hug- that’s how. I’d love to be able to take 100% credit for this but half of that also goes to your Daddy and then we also have to share some of that with the rest of the village that helps to raise you.  But you ultimately are the one who processes what we share with you and then constantly amaze us with your humor, wit and intelligence.  I know that you are thinking that’s what all parents have to say about their kids, but I have to disagree. You really are the best daughter anyone could ever hope for- and you are only THREE. I cannot wait to see what you do with the rest of your life with all of that charm! (that, you get from ME!)

To say that all of us rely on you for our happiness means that you have a mighty big job- one that you are completely oblivious to, yet you perform it so well.  Before you came earth side, I had no idea what being a mom was going to be like. I thought mostly about sleepless nights, diaper duty, cleaning up puke from my work clothes, and trying not to get a headache when you cried incessantly. And that was after the labor and delivery that I was PETRIFIED of.  Wow, could I have been more wrong.  What I didn’t realize was the immense amount of love that I would have for you the second that you were born (I won’t even hold it against you that I didn’t have time for an epidural) and that I would stand in front of a train for you.

 I think that I’ve had more sleepless nights in college and now, but not because of you, just because of life and trying to balance everything.  Diaper duty ended a few months ago- but I have to admit that your Daddy changed way more Huggies than I did however, I don’t miss those days.  (Well, just a little when I had time to gaze into your beautiful copper eyes and tickle your little feet…. Changing time was really a bonding time.  You weren’t a squirmy girl. And in fact, you were very easy going about the state of your diaper.) You didn’t really spit up on my clothes- you were a clean girl; however, I can do without your very trigger-happy gag reflex; I have cleaned up my fair share of toddler ‘spit out’ (as you call it) rather than baby regurg. And you aren’t a crier, never was. Such an easy going, sweet girl. Thank you for giving me a swift kick in the ass and changing my perception of motherhood.  (Your Grandma Linda was right that God wasn’t going to give me more than I can handle…. Well, with you, yes; with all the other shit, not so much!)  Even with labor- it was over so quick…. But, my dear, it isn’t true what they say, I haven’t forgotten the pain of the delivery- that’s another story. But you were worth every single little 45 second increment; and worth the four-year plus wait that it took to have you.

I can write forever and rave about your sweet personality and marvel at the stuff that comes out of your mouth.  It’s totally adorable (that might change in 13 years, but I’ll always have this to look back upon) and entertaining.  I’m not sure how you got to be so smart- you keep us on our toes, but your comprehension also makes our life easier.  On that note, don’t ever be afraid to be an intelligent woman.  Your beauty will get you noticed but your intelligence will help you accomplish whatever you want. Don’t be afraid to be successful.  Today you’re tackling 100-piece Princess puzzles and learning how to count in Spanish; tomorrow it will be quadratic equations and SAT vocabulary.  (Do they still give you 200 points for spelling your name correctly?)

You also love people. People love you.  From Nick at your swim school; your little friends;  to the grocery store clerks, you will dazzle them with your sqwunchy smile. These people right now are nice; not everyone is.  We will teach you how to differentiate between good, honest people and to listen to your intuition if you think someone is icky. I wish that I could shield you from the crap, but I won’t always be able to completely (but not from lack of trying!) but we will teach you how to overcome obstacles and adversity with grace and confidence and how to have a support team around to help you as life won’t always be easy.

Trust me, these past six months- outside of this house- have been hell on earth. Emotionally I am done, but I see you and I am reenergized. You give me hope on what the future holds for us. I love watching you experience things for the first time- a carousel ride, trick-or-treating, fireworks, the petting zoo, a piñata, new food- it’s really cool.  And then you also have gotten to see sadness when your Grandpa Jerry died and Grandma Helen was very, very sick. Everybody cried…. You gave us hugs and kisses and asked us if we felt better.  I’m glad we have been honest about our feelings and shared with you that it’s a part of life and doesn’t have anything to do with you.  You have become so empathetic and caring.  Perhaps not ideal to have to share this much sorrow with a toddler, but it’s real life.  I think it helps you to see that sadness doesn’t last forever and it’s okay to smile behind the tears. Thank you for being our little ball of therapy!

See, I could go on and on about all of the reasons why I love you so much. There are 400 million of them, if not more.  I promise you that will never change- except to grow exponentially more. All I ask is that you be true to yourself, that you are kind and honest, you use your manners and help those less fortunate than you. Daddy and I will in turn protect you as best as we can, provide for you opportunities for you to grow and love you unconditionally.  You may not always ‘like’ us, but know that we will always have your back. (When you don’t like us, it’s time to call in the grandparents….)

I want to close out by simply thanking you for making me a better person.  I feel more, love more, hope more and smile more because of you. 

With All My Love,

Mommy

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY SWEET, SWEET GIRL!

I can’t believe that it has been 365 days since you were born- from the first tentative days that we spent together getting to know each other to today where I cannot imagine my life without you in it , each has been a blessing. Your Daddy and I had to work so hard to have you and every second of that emotional journey was worth it a hundred times over.


You have brought so much joy to our lives! Each day you wake us up with an infectious, sleepy little smile and in essence changing Mommy into a morning person (sortof!) We never know what the day will have in store, but as long as you are our little ‘partner in crime,’ it doesn’t really matter because you make us laugh and smile and allow us to view the world from your little viewpoint- full of wonder and delight. And we’ll continue to do our jobs as parents to protect you so that you can experience being a child for as long as you want!


This past year has been such an amazing time; just yesterday I went through hundreds of digital pictures of your life to pick out my favorites (impossible, by the way!) and was in awe of how quickly you’ve developed into an awesome little person. My heart swells with pride just thinking of you and the accomplishments that you are going to make in your life; right now it’s going to be mastering the ‘walking’ thing, but hey, that’s overrated, so you go on crawling with your bad little self! You have though mastered the usual baby-development stages: holding your head up (7 weeks); sitting up (3 months) holding your own ba-ba (6 months); rolling over (also 6 months- you took a bit of encouraging on that one!); crawling (8 months); first word- although it’s pretty much been your ‘only’ word (10 months) and charming the socks off of anyone (Day 1). You are a smart cookie- it didn’t take you long to learn patty-cake or that your little sqwunchy smile would get you whatever you wanted. And cute? Check, check.

I could go on forever and ever about you…. It’s easy to do. But the point of this is to tell you that we love you so, so much. I could have never dreamed how you would change my life for the better. Being a Mommy is the best job in the whole world. I’m so in love with you and your little spirit. You are amazing. Thank you for letting me be your mom. Happy First Birthday sweetheart. I’m looking forward to spending so many more with you.

NOTE: Kiera's Bday was actually August 18th, and her party was the 22nd.... with all of the preparations and family in town- this has been sitting in "draft" mode but I had to post for prosperity's sake......  you know, fellow Mommies, what it's like!!!! LOL

An Open Letter to Our Daughter: Welcome to Half a Year!

Dear Kiera Mckenzie;

    You, my heart, are already six months old…. You’ve blessed our lives for a whole 26 weeks now- it feels like so long ago, yet just like yesterday that you decided to ‘pop’ into our lives. I do know that I can’t imagine NOT having you in my life; or how I, we, ever existed without you.
    You were Mommy and Daddy’s dream for so long; we endured five years of hoping, trying and heartbreak before we found out about you and then for the next 37 weeks we could hardly contain our excitement. We wondered what you would look like (Daddy was hoping for a little red-haired angel; I was just hoping for hair, period- not bald as an eagle like Mommy was, but a cute little curly red-head, blue eyed doll would have been my order), prayed that you would be healthy and strong; how you’ve exceeded- already- all of our wonder, prayers and expectations.
     When they first meet you, everyone remarks how adorable you are; we are the first to agree although we are certainly biased. With big blue-gray eyes framed by long wispy eyelashes; chubby, rosy little cheeks; a cute little button nose and a 5,000 watt smile that lights up any room and melts any heart, you, my sweet girl, makes anyone fall in love with you at first site. But that’s just the beginning- as you will soon find out that looks aren’t everything (but they do help!)- you are ‘the total package.’

     You are a very happy, content little baby and have the sweetest disposition. You have just three cries- one when you are hungry and nothing else will do; one when you are fighting going nite-nite; and then the third is the one that breaks my heart- when something is really, really wrong. We’ve only heard that a handful of times so far, but that’s been enough (remember your three-month shots? Probably not, but we sure do!) So when you aren’t hungry or tired, you are my smiley-bug. And how that smile after a long day of work just makes everything I do for you count. It also makes me want to hold you tight and never let you go. When we do hold you close, you like to give us slobbery but welcomed and cherished kisses. And then you look at us and smile because you are so proud of giving loves! You are just learning how to give hugs, and until then, we’ll take the kisses.
     We’ve only been away from you for one night since you were born- we left you in Grandma K’s very capable hands while we had an overnight escape to Reno. We missed you to pieces while we were gone and thought about you every second! In fact, Mommy is having the hardest time letting you sleep in your big girl crib- you do fine- she doesn’t. I promise that by the time that you are 16; you will be very comfy in your own room!

     We’ve watched you sprout like a little weed right before our eyes- you’re a healthy growing girl- you’re now over 17 pounds and 26” long- but Mommy is in denial that you no longer fit into those petite little NB clothes. Although you haven’t really mastered rolling over yet (tummy time is too stressful!) you are nearly sitting up on your own unaided. You held your bottle all by yourself just the other day, and you smiled so proud- Mommy was proud too. You’ve also been enjoying big-girl cereal and food for a few weeks; almost as much as we enjoy watching you eat it. You sit in your Bumbo anxiously awaiting the yummy delights that we are going to spoon into your little mouth. Your first food was sweet potatoes and you weren’t too sure, but then loved it. That was followed by carrots, green beans, peas, prunes and apple sauce. You aren’t very fond of the peas (can’t blame you there!) but you love the prunes and apple sauce. When you know it’s dinner time, you chatter, chatter and then nearly knock the spoon and bowl out of our hands because you can’t wait to see what is in store for your tummy! Such a big girl!

      There are very few things that you dislike- one of them is getting cleaned up after above said big girl food and the other is well, despite a closet packed to the gills with every darling outfit imaginable, just getting dressed is your worst nightmare. You are our resident nudist and love to show off your baby-supermodel physique. If you are grumpy and we let you play on a fuzzy mat in your birfday suit, you are sooooo happy. It’s magic! You also work up quite the appetite kicking and playing. Speaking of kicking, you love taking a bath, especially if it is in the big yellow duck. The first time we put you in it, you kicked up a little tidal wave and all of the water was on Daddy and the floor. It was fun for us all- we took video to prove it.. and someday we’ll even show your boyfriends! ( :
    It’s no surprise that you have a toy box that rivals current inventory at ToysRUs, however we’ve been careful to not overwhelm you with too many. You seem to especially like the ones that have smiles as big as your own. Your most fave so far is Jaff Jaff- the colorful giraffe that smiles at you even as you put the death squeeze around his neck and chew on his ear. He doesn’t mind, he’ll always keep you company and tell you good jokes. As for jokes, your ladybug friend on your bouncy chair must tell you the best jokes because you have been smiling at her for weeks and weeks. We figure that you two have shared some good stories during Waggoner-spa time (that’s when we put you in the bathroom to steam you if you’re congested- you also like the sound of the water- that was a secret trick that Mommy figured out about two weeks into life with Baby Kiera). And despite Mommy’s best attempt at trying to get you to love her favorite Eeyore, you LOVE Winnie the Pooh. Perhaps its his bald little head that sort of matches Grampa’s or that nose that you like to chew on, I mean kiss. We often prop you up on the bed with various Winnie’s and watch you hold a press conference with them and they are certainly entertained by all that you have to tell them; you are already so wise beyond your short six months. (Is it the Judge Judy, Law and Order or football that makes you so?)

     You have quite the fan club already: several sets of grandparents, all of whom claim to love you the ‘most;’ your Aunties (aka: all of Mommy’s friends); your Nanny-Auntie Barbara, and even Daddy’s bachelor friend, Todd, thinks you’re pretty cool. We haven’t met a soul yet who doesn’t marvel over our little miracle. And as for Mommy and Daddy, we love you with every fiber of our beings- you are the pride and joy of our little family. Everyone fights for your attention, and we’re so happy that you’re so popular (yes, your social life is so much busier than ours already!) We are honored to have you in our life and happy to share you with anyone that loves you- meaning pretty much anyone who is lucky enough to meet you!
    You are our partner in crime and we love to include you in all of our adventures- from ordinary trips to the grocery store or Saturday morning ‘treasure’ hunting to feeding the ducks and family road trips. You happily go along for the ride watching with wonder from your comfy car seat the world outside. We can’t imagine not having you there with us (ask Mommy about the time that she wanted to sneak you up to Reno…) and are so excited to expand your horizons with whatever other adventures life has in store for us.
   We will always be here for you- we’ll always love you and support you. I know that you will grow up to be something special- you will change your little part of the world (heck, at just six months, you’ve already done that!). You will be successful at whatever it is that you want to do- be a mom, cure the world as a doctor, make Grandma H proud and race cars, run a Fortune 500 company- or maybe even the country! Do whatever makes you happy. All that we ask is just that you are always kind, fair, and empathetic and forgiving; let your self be a kid, laugh loudly and often and don’t forget to be fun-loving and lastly it’s important that you are always true to yourself. We love you sweet little girl.


Love and Kisses,


Mommy and Daddy