Apples

Did I mention I love fall. And what else makes you think of fall? Apples. Bella learned all about apples her first two weeks of preschool. So we decided to make apple strudel for dad, since he was working late tonight.

Bella's help consisted of watching me work. She did do a little sampling of the apples, just a little more sour than her normal applesauce.

I don't know how I am supposed to eat that..........but it sure looks good.

**And it was, good thing it made two, since Bella was already in bed before we were able to sample the strudel. I'll have to process some tomorrow for her, so she can try it.

Autumn is Here!

Bella helped me plant some mums this afternoon. I love how mums just scream "fall". Now we just need to get to a pumpkin patch, so we can add some pumpkins to the front porch.

I am the child who can not talk

What does it mean when your child is non-verbal? Well I would say that Bella is non-verbal at this point. She makes noises, she realizes she makes noises, she recognizes that if she is in a room by herself she has to make louder noises for us to hear her. But her noises are all the same. She has happy noises and sad noises, but other than that, we don't know what she is saying.
Take last night, Bella was tired all day long, and when we made it home from pre-school she was fussy and making lots of noises that we know mean something is wrong. But it's a huge guessing game to know what is wrong.
We tried feeding her, multiple times, we tried giving her something to drink. We tried gas drops, we gave her a bath, we tried ear drops, we tried orajel for her teeth, and lastly we tried her night bottle with Benedryl.
Well after the night bottle, she finally went "bm" and wasn't fussing anymore. But after all that we tried, we really have no idea which was the answer. If I had to "guess" I would say it was the gas drops and the relief of her having finally gone to the bathroom. But we don't know, and it looks like we might never know.
So what happens when she gets older and her list of problems can be greater? I would be happy with having her learn to point to what bothers her, but I don't know if she even knows what it is.

I am the Child

Author unknown

I am the child who cannot talk.

You often pity me: O see it in your eyes.

You wonder how much I am aware of .... I see that as well.

I am aware of much.... whether you are happy or sad or fearful, patient or impatient, full of love and desire, or are just doing your duty by me.

I marvel at your frustration, knowing mine to be far greater for I cannot express myself nor my needs as you do.

You cannot conceive my isolation, so complete it is at times.

I do not gift you with clever conversation, cute remarks to be laughed over and repeated,I do not give you answers to your everyday questions, responses over my well-being, sharing my needs, or comments about the world around me.

I do not give you rewards as defined by the world's standards.... great strides in developments that you can credit yourself;I do not give you understanding as you know it,What I give you is so much more valuable..... I give you instead opportunities.

Opportunities to discover the depth of your character, not mine; the depth of your love, your commitment, your patience, your abilities;the opportunity to explore your spirit more deeply than you imagined possible.

I drive you further than you would ever go on your own, working harder, seeking answers to your many questions, creating questions with no answers.

I am the child who cannot talk.

First Day of Preschool

We must have been excited this morning as we woke up at 5am. Well probably not excited, just doing the normal "I'm Bella and I don't have a schedule" routine. We needed to leave home around 7am, in order to get downtown for the start of preschool at 8am. It's a 35 minute drive, but if we leave much later, we hit all the rush hour traffic. I was really hopeful that Bella would fall asleep on the drive. She did for about 3 seconds, and then opened her eyes back up and screamed. I guess she fooled me.Bella had to have a backpack for preschool. Since I was buying it right after prime back to school time, there wasn't as much to choose from. Most of the toddler back packs had Dora the explorer, and princess themes. Bella doesn't get in to any of that yet. About the only show she watches in Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and that's just because I like the ending song "Hot Dog Hot Diggity Dog". So I thought I would go retro with the strawberry shortcake. I always took a strawberry shortcake doll with me to preschool. My mom still has that doll at home. Sounds like a good time to wash it up and let Bella have it, Grandma.....start washing!
We talked with all the teachers going over her schedule, how she eats, what to do if she gets fussy, etc. They seemed to have everything under control and it looked like it was going to be good for her. I took this picture right as I was leaving. I can almost hear Bella saying
...."It's okay mom, they are going to feed me now, everything will be just fine. See you later"

-I picked up Bella at 3:30, I actually went and observed from 3 o'clock, they were cleaning up from play time, and Bella was laying on the floor on a wedge. The assistant teacher was just coming to get her and took her into the bathroom. She came out saying "What a stinky girl". I'll second that, Bella can clear a room with her diapers! They put her in her chair and were getting the class together for activity time. They painted with apples, and an assistant helped Bella create some artwork. Then they had circle time. They all sang a song, which was a hello song to Bella for being new in the class. It was then time to go. She did a great job on her first day of class. The teacher said she fell asleep during lunch time, which would be normal if she got up so early. Let's just hope that she sleeps in tomorrow, so she can participate a little more.

It's my birthday and I'll cry if I want to

And that's pretty much what happened. Bella turned 2 last Saturday, and we had a big party for her. Bella decided to get up that morning at 5am, and by the time the first party guests were arriving, she was already a wreak and needed to go down for a nap. Except in normal Bella style she refused to actually take a nap. So here are the pictures from the big day, not so many of Bella as she was absent for most of it.

Already fussy, and no guests have arrived yet.

Later on after we took a short 30 minute nap, we were able to eat some applesauce. But even though we worked on eating our birthday cupcake for two weeks prior, and loved it. We were too tired to eat it during our actual birthday party.

Where's my birthday party..........I was born in September too!!

Weekend Work

I wish I had a picture to post of our weekend trip to Home Depot. We were busy working on painting and finishing the family room, and we decided to make an early morning trip to Home Depot on Monday to pick out some lights, ceiling fans, ladders, tools, etc, etc. Bella came with us and did very well, as we were there for 2 hours. While we were busying picking out which ceiling fan we thought would look the best in the space, we weren't paying much attention to what Bella was doing, all we knew was that she was content and happy. When we finally looked at her (she was facing forward in the stroller) we noticed that she was enraptured by all the different lights and fans all over the place. She just kept looking up and scanning all the different things to see and behold. I guess a trip to the lighting department will be in order every time Bella comes with us.

So this week we are busy trying to finish up the family room for Bella's big birthday party. Not to mention all the food and decorations that are being made. It's already been a long week of late night and early mornings. Only a couple days left and a lot to do!

My week

I have had a very busy week.

Friday I rode back to Nebraska. I slept for 1.5 hours on the ride and then decided to stay up until 1am that night.

Saturday I went to watch/listen to the blue angels at the airshow with dad and the puppies while mom threw a bridal shower for my aunt Erin.

Sunday I rode back home. I slept for an hour and then complained a little about all the time I had been spending in the vehicle.

Monday was a very busy day. I went and toured what will hopefully be my new preschool downtown. My mom will talk about that later. I then went over and spent some time with my cousins for a couple of hours. And then we had our new friends the Madden's over for dinner with their 3 kids.

Tuesday I decided it was appropriate to get up super early, even after not going to bed until after midnight. But I was still in a good mood.

Wednesday I ate Mexican for the first time. I like the flavor, must get it from both my parents as it's their favorite type of food.

Thursday I went down to the Country Club Plaza for the first time and sat outside while my parents caught up with an old friend from high school, Dubas. I was a very good girl and enjoyed my time in the beautiful weather on the patio of Baja 600. Mom and Dad might even think about taking me again.

I think I'm tired after all the excitement!

Bella fell asleep 5 different times while eating this week. Maybe a little too much stimulation, but it would also help if maybe she would nap when given the opportunity!!