The Holidays...

The holidays are approaching and with them brings a whole new set of feelings and insanity :)

I am overwhelmingly excited for Kiera's First Thanksgiving and Christmas...I'm excited for new traditions to begin (even though she won't remember them this year), waking up with her on Christmas morning (the two we will have) and seeing her rip through wrapping paper (but not really understanding what it is that she's doing).

However, with the holidays brings sadness about what my mom is missing...especially this year. I know that she would LOVE nothing more than to be here with us and see all the firsts that Kiera is experiencing.

Sometimes when I'm sad about my mom I think, "Why are you still sad?? You're someones mom now" but it doesn't work. I feel like I'm redundant when I think about her and write about her and speak about her...how many ways can you say that you're sad and that you miss someone before people start to not care...and believe you me, people start to not care. Some of my friends who have lost their moms recently, like within the past fives years, have said that people have started to forget because their lives can go on...and I say, "wait until you're at 12 years and counting!"

I just honestly would have LOVED to have seen her with my kids. There's this love that I see gushing out of my Dad and Sean's Mom that I can't even explain and for my Mom, that would have been her #1 happiest moment to see Kiera grow and experience life like they're able to do.

Anyway, enough mumbling for today...Things that I'm Thankful for this year...
I'm thankful for my beautiful and healthy new family of three (or 7 including our many four legged friends)
I'm thankful for our home
I'm thankful for the couple of dollars we have that get us by on a daily basis
I'm thankful for having a job and getting paid for doing something that I love
I'm thankful for my gorgeous, caring, and overly supportive friends
I'm thankful for Nicole, Nanny and the Hices for taking such amazing care of our peanut when I can't be with her
Finally...I'm thankful that gas prices are down to $1.83 so I can get back and forth to work without crying on a daily basis!!

Melissa

Oh My Teether...

Today was a touch and go day with little Miss K...not portrayed in the picture to the left however :) That second tooth is definitely trying to come through, but is torturing her in the meantime. She was happy one minute and crying hysterically the next. I exhausted EVERY teething method I had in the house...including some I invented myself...such as chewing on leaves, which you can see in the picture below :) She's always SO happy that when she's upset she gives it all she's got. Also, she only napped for 45 minutes today. Apparently she felt like that was enough...not quite for mom however.

I was thinking today while rocking her next to my mom's picture in her room, about how and when to tell her that my mom died when I was only 17. She'll obviously know that she's not here and whatnot, but when do you tell a child that their mom can die when they're young?? I never tell my kids at school that my mom died because I never want them to be scared that their mom could potentially pass away...so how do I save that thought from my own daughter? I guess it's something that I'll have to take as it comes...as well as see what kind of child she is, a scaredy cat like me, or a go with the flow gal.

Anyway, we did have a few minutes of peace today when I took her outside and took 800 pictures of her with the leaves...I must have said, "not in your mouth" about a million times. She didn't quite get it. Oh well :)

Melissa

11:25pm

John McCain is giving his speech to concede to OBAMA as I write!! No matter what your political views may be, this is a historic election that I am privileged to be a part of! I am so thrilled...that I stayed awake until 11 for the polls in the west to close...and of course that OBAMA is our next President!

Just another word from the day after...I got an email from one of my best friends, Jess, who also had a baby this year and she said, "THANK THE LORD Obama won! I am seriously so relieved and so happy and so thankful that Mia & Kiera's next four years in this country will be with a competent, intelligent, inspirational leader at the helm." And I really think that sums it all up for me! Thanks Jess!! :)

Melissa

FIRST TOOTH

Kiera got her FIRST TOOTH TODAY!! What an exciting milestone.

I called Nicole, as I usually do, at prep time and she said to me, "You know she has a tooth that came through, right?" I jumped out of my chair with tears of excitement and said to her, "You know, if you weren't one of my best friends and just some daycare provider or babysitter I would be balled up on the floor in agony right now!"

I knew there would be things that Nicole would get to witness first...and I wondered how I would handle it...and I think I did pretty damn well :)

SOOO Kiera has a tooth! YEA!! She's also sitting up, she said "Ma" the other day...and is getting a ton of hair! This has to be the happiest I've ever been in my almost 31 years of living! On Sunday she and I napped together in bed and I wondered if my mom ever laid down with me. I just can't imagine her taking that much time out of her day to relax...she was ALWAYS on the go. I guess I'll never know.

Kiera and I also went to vote this morning at 6:30am...OBAMA MAMA! Crossing Fingers!! The old ladies at the polling place wanted to eat her alive...I love that! "Oh sweetie, you can't vote, you're too young!" I wish I were younger and could stay up to watch the whole thing unfold, but unfortunately I'll probably fall asleep within the hour...I should set an alarm for 12am to check in!

Melissa

Halloween!

Yesterday was obviously Kiera's FIRST Halloween!! I was never so excited...besides her Christening, this was our first holiday with our peanut and I loved every minute of it! She spent the day in her Strawberry costume with Aunt Nicole, Uncle Dennis, Roman and Nico as they went Trunk-or-Treating at Roman's school. Then Sean and I went over to their house after work to go Trick-or-Treating with them, Letitia, Michael, and Aly. We had such a great time! Kiera was her smiley self...too cute. I, being a 3rd grade teacher, also dressed up...this was definitely one of the best nights of my life!

Melissa