Friday, June 27, 2014

Weekend Links 6/27/14

A few Friday links . . .

Life
Faces over Facebook, People over Pixels
When becoming a mama isn't what you imagined
For the days you got nothing done 
They notice cakes
The background

Special Needs
A brand new week
Tips for speech and language development in kids 
Why do sensory kids brain get overloaded? (a video)
5 Common Myths about Auditory Processing Disorder 
Grace App for Autism on the iPhone, iPad, and iTouch 

And a few Friday pics. . .

 So much joy. . . be still my heart. . .


Bath-time = Clara's favorite time

Love these two faces so much. . .

Monday, June 23, 2014

Summer bucket list

Clara's Mothers Day Out program is on break until September, so I knew I needed to come up with a little inspiration to keep us active and adventurous this summer.

Enter the summer bucket list. . .



My friend Wendi created a bucket list for her little boy both last summer and this summer, and my friend Aja did the same this summer, so I had to jump on board!

So far we have made homemade blueberry muffins for some friends, and dropped them off the night before they left for vacation, and this past Friday we tested out the McDonalds play area. The McDonalds close to our house has a really fun toddler area with lots of musical toys. It took Clara a while to warm up, but once the big kids evacuated & the noise level decreased substancially, she was in heaven!





Music = Clara's love language :)

Excited to check more off of our list this week. . . hooray for summer time!

Friday, June 20, 2014

Weekend Links 6/20/14

Life
Pre-Planned Encouragement 
The false advertising about motherhood
31 days of encouragement unexpected (some awesome ideas here!)
6 things that will help any mom stay sane
Stop saving your stickers 

Special Needs
Is toe walking normal?

And some two pictures from our family ranch weekend. Having a few issues getting all the pictures downloaded (shocker) so just two for now.

James (my brother) & Tiffany having fun in the mud. . .


Group shot. . .


And in case you are wondering why we all decided boots are the hottest fashion trend, I will just say one word. Snakes. Flip flops at your own risk, people.

Happy Weekend!

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Camille 5 months


Little C turned 5 months! 
So in love with this smiley face. . . 


Loving: Flirting with herself in the mirror, lounging in the pool, playing with her feet, playing in her Baby Einstein exercauser, swinging, watching intently as Clara walks herself around the house, and just making cutie faces at anyone who passes her way.

Not loving: Dirty diapers, and when she suddenly decides she is hungry and you are taking too long to warm and give bottle (who can blame her??).  


Development: Lots of vocalizations, laughing constantly, rolling over, and working hard on her sitting up skills. Girlfriend is also STRONG. She will get a grip of something and not.let.go. This is cute unless said object is the hair on your head. 

Weight: Almost 16 pounds. Please check out left thigh in picture below. . . cannot handle it. 

Diapers: Size 2 daytime and size 3 overnights

Clothes: Still trying to squeeze her into 3-6 month, but sweet thing really needs to be in all 6 months. 


 Camille and her 7 year old cousin, Aiden. 
They had lots of fun bonding time this week while he was in town!


 "Aunt Brittnie, she is like SO heavy!" Lol. . . 


Schedule: Sleeps 8pm-7ish am with one wake up (usually) to eat somewhere between 3-5am. We usually have to go in a few times at night to reinsert her paci (probably 2-3, which is a great improvement from last month!). She still sleeps swaddled. We tried un-swaddling her a few nights ago and she was up every hour. Thus, she still sleeps swaddled. :)

She takes 3 naps a day at approximately 9am, 1pm and 5pm. Depending on when she wakes in the morning these times might shift 30 min to an hour earlier.

Adventures: We had an overnight getaway to our friends ranch, about 1.5 hours away from home. She did well, and we all had a great time. Pictures to come from that weekend. . . eventually. She also got some good one on one time with two of her cousins, Avery and Aiden, over the past few weeks while they have been in town. Love watching them interact with my girls.

Loving this stage of babyhood!

Friday, June 13, 2014

Weekend Links 6/13/14

Life
What to do when you don't know what to do
Even when I'm tired (Pretty much my thoughts exactly. I think about this concept all. the. time.)

Special Needs
Flappy birthday
The difference of a year 
The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Childs Developing Mind

Clara's neurologist prescribed a "medical food" (aka vitamins that you need a script for - supposed to aid in language development and lessen sensory issues. . . we will see.) for her that consists of Omega 3 & Omega 6 & several other words that are too big to remember. The problem? It stinks like fish. Like the stinkiest fish you have ever smelled. And tastes like fish. Not gonna fly for Clara. The neurologists solution for getting it down? Mixing it with Nutella. It is safe to say we have a winner, as  Clara's face looks like this most mornings of the week, and she is usually sporting a smile.

Camille at her most recent well check. Girlfriend is over 15 pounds.

Working on our pouch skills. . . Don't let the clean tray fool you. . . Contents of the pouch usually end up all. over. the. place.

Enjoy your weekend!

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Clara's latest trick. . . from sitting to standing

For the past few weeks one of our OT homework assignments has been helping Clara learn how to go from sitting to standing, without crawling to pull up on something first. On Monday after nap time, I (lovingly) made Clara do this approximately 435 times. She was so thrilled. BUT the iPad Fisher Price ABC app kept her motivated the entire time. Check it out. . .


So proud of her! She still can't quite do it 100%, and I have only seen her attempt this on her own (when we are not actively working on it) a few times, but nonetheless practice makes perfect, right?

And little sister just enjoying the show. . .



Monday, June 9, 2014

Not For A Moment

A sweet mamma in my (in)courager Ordinary Moms, Special Kids group posted this music video a week or so ago. It brought me so much encouragement that I wanted to share it here with you.

Enjoy. . .

source 

You were reaching through the storm 
Walking on the water 
Even when I could not see 
In the middle of it all 
When I thought You were a thousand miles away 
Not for a moment did You forsake me 
Not for a moment did You forsake me 


After all You are constant 
After all You are only good 
After all You are sovereign 
Not for a moment will You forsake me 
Not for a moment will You forsake me 


You were singing in the dark 
Whispering Your promise 
Even when I could not hear 
I was held in Your arms 
Carried for a thousand miles to show 
Not for a moment did You forsake me 


And every step every breath you are there 
Every tear every cry every prayer 
In my hurt at my worst 
When my world falls down 
Not for a moment will You forsake me 

Even in the dark 
Even when it's hard 
You will never leave me 
After all 


Not for a moment will You forsake me

Friday, June 6, 2014

Weekend Links 6/6/14

Hope you all had a great week. Some reading for you this weekend. . .

Life
I Need to Rest - Lisa Leonard via (in)courage . . . "I want to see rest as a priority and not a luxury. I want to slow down and let things be imperfect so they can be more better. I want to rest before I am overextended." Amen to that. 
Take back your schedule (like a boss) - Grace Uncommon
Always In Pursuit (7 Ways to Be More Content) - Living Well, Spending Less
The Problem With Not Having Any Losers - We Are That Family

Eating Disorder and/or Mental Health/Self Esteem
Eating = healing
Overcoming denial 

Special Needs 
I Have One Too
How to make cooking a sensory experience
A ministry for parents at the end of their rope - love this! 
To The Mother of the Adult Son With Down Syndrome in the Grocery Store Today

Picture from Clara's routine eye appointment. . . Routine appts are necessary to check for any signs of retinal dystrophy (common with Cohen Syndrome) and to stay on top of her prescription. Praise God for no changes noted! Even still, we will be doing a more extensive eye test towards the end of this month, which will show her potential for vision, and which areas of her brain light up when presented with various lenses/prisms. (In other words, to see how her eyes interact with the brain when given different stimulation.) More to come. . .

I was actually able to get a high pony tail/bun on this girl.  iPad was totally necessary in order for this to happen. Cutest ever.

And a few pictures from my parents house, while I went into work this week. Love how in the last picture it looks as if they are having their own little conversation. 


It's Friday!

Monday, June 2, 2014

First swim of summer

We thought Memorial Day would be the perfect day to spend outside, letting the girls get in their first swim of the summer. This plan lasted about five minutes due to the clouds, wind, and rain, but nonetheless we enjoyed some water time with our girls. And yes. . . they are in matching swim suits. Because matching swim suits on little 2T and 3-6 month bodies are just too cute to pass up. 




































Hope your summer is off to a great start!

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