Updates

A list of updates because a) I've been asked recently about it, or b) I don't want to forget what we are experiencing as a family right now, or c) I'm bored and want to entertain my enormous audience with words that they will likely wish they hadn't wasted their time on.

1. Sleeping at night for Micayla is going better. Not perfect, but better. This might or might not be due to the fact that my 2 year old believes that she is "too big" for naps. Her mother disagrees, because her mother is the one that mostly deals with cranky Micayla when she doesn't take a nap. However, if she doesn't take a nap, there is no battle for bedtime, and she goes down early (around 7:30). This provides great time for Mom and Dad to discuss things, work on household projects, budgeting, etc., however, since Hudson doesn't get home until 6, it means it gets 1 1/2 hours with her, and she's a Daddy's girl. We've finally figured out that no one can lay down with her at night because she believes it's playtime. So, I tell her I will stay in her room with her for one minute, and then I leave. And, most days, she does pretty good at staying in her bed and going to sleep.

2. No news on the adoption front, except that our agency has stopped taking new families because they have so many waiting families (including us) right now. Their prayer is for a harvest of babies to arrive so that these adoptive families can be fulfilled, but it is all up to God. This doesn't bode well with my lack of patience in waiting to add to our family, however I trust that God knows the plan and really, what can I do to change the outcome or how fast this process moves? On Feb 1, we'll hit the one year anniversary of turning in our paperwork for the second time. I'm praying that we'll have a little someone before Micayla turns 3, and also praying for God's protection for us as we go through the process again.

3. I said Micayla's sleeping at night was going better. Dear daughter is driving me crazy with the refusal to take a nap right now. Because I know what the hour after naptime will look like, and well, maybe I should start praying to be mute between 3 and 5 today.

4. Micayla loves watching Beauty and the Beast, loves pretending that she and Mommy are "Belle" and Daddy gets to be the Beast. We all three dance just like Belle at the ball most days. She also desires to be a ballerina and does the cutest impression (arms over head) of looking like a ballerina. Mommy is going to have to work more if dance lessons are in our future. She also wants me to sing "Beauty and the Beast" multiple times a day.

5. A friend gave her two Go Fish cd's for Christmas, and wow! Mommy thinks these are delightful. I find myself humming the tunes throughout the day. We've been mostly listening to the "Splash" cd, because Micayla's favorite song (The B-i-b-l-e) is on there. We've also been listening to 30 Hymns for Kids (by Twin Sisters productions) and I also love it...since the hymnal seems to be a thing of the past, I still want Micayla to know the hymns I grew up with and still love. And she likes listening to it, so we play it alot around the house.

6. I would like a small, compact cd/radio player that my iPhone can plug into that charges it while I'm downstairs that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. So far, I've not found something that won't take up much space (I don't have much counter space to begin with), or if it is small, it doesn't charge the phone. This is purely a want, but I figured I could add it to this list since it is my list.

7. My 2010 resolution of painting all the trim in the house was not accomplished at all. I did paint the trim in one room. I'm not inspired in the least to set this as a goal for 2011 but I believe that Hudson still thinks this is attainable goal. Enter 2 year old that doesn't take a nap. 'Nuff said.

8. I love my Scentsy warmer. When my house might look like a disaster and there is laundry on my dining room table (a typical occurence), turning on my warmer and changing out the scent makes me happy. Here's a few of my favorite fall/winter scents: Silver Bells, Christmas Cottage, Centimental Cider, Honey Pear Cider, Welcome Home. I'd love to hear if there are other scents that people recommend! I've got Clean Breeze and White Tea and Cactus for spring, but I'm always looking for new one to try.

9. Am I on the verge of potty training Micayla? I'm not sure. (She is singing Jingle Bells right now while she is supposed to be sleeping....it is rather cute.) She is great about sitting on the big potty (she never wanted to sit on a kid's one) and can go #1 anytime on command. #2 hasn't happened except once, and I was at work, and Hudson said.....nevermind. She's not at the point of telling me she needs to go yet. We've bought panties (thank goodness that elastic makes it stay on her!) and tried wearing them for an hour or so, and she proceeded to pee in three different spots in the house within 15 minutes. And not because we couldn't get to the potty quick enough, because we went every 5 minutes, but I think because of the novelty of it and because she could go on her own. When she does take a nap, she's still not dry, so I'm thinking I might wait until she's 2 1/2 or, better yet, until late May when preschool isn't in session anymore and we can stay home for a few days and get this learned. Thoughts, ideas?

10. Due the advice of our pediatrician, Micayla is now supposed to drink Pediasure instead of regular milk to help her boost her weight. While Pediasure is very expensive compared to whole milk, we have changed it out some at home, and I'm happy to say that as of early Dec to now, she officially weighs 24 lbs. So she's gained about 1 1/2 lbs in 5 weeks and 18 mo old (size) pants might actually stay on her now.

11. Also due to the advice of our pediatrician (whom we love), Micayla is getting ear tubes put in next Wednesday. Chronic ear infections plus a very small ear mean that tubes are a necessity, so we'll be going down that road next week. Financially speaking, it sure would have been nice to have gotten this done in 2010 since we met our high deductible with her cyst surgery in November. However, schedules didn't allow for that, so hi! (and high) deductible, we meet again. I'm not at all concerned about the surgery, as apparently the doc can do it in 8 minutes (doesn't that sound like a man? He timed himself to see how long it takes.) I am concerned about her waking up for anesthesia, because that was horrible in November for us and for her.

12. I just watched my dog taking a flying jump at our fence because there is a squirrel that torments him by sitting in a tree above him and taunting him. One day, squirrel, you might not be fast enough for Tucker, because he almost cleared it this time.

13. I'm doing "Wisdom for Mothers" by Denise Glenn as part of our Mothering Matters Bible study at church. I'm very hopeful that it will give me some of the wisdom I've been praying for as I parent a very strong willed two year old!

14. Laundry beckons. Does it ever end? :)