Sunday 11 May 2014

happy mother's day!

when i was about 5 years old, i remember arguing with my mom and receiving the age old curse, "i hope when you grow up you have a daughter just like you!"  my snappy comeback was to say "i hope i do too because i want my daughter to love me as much as i love you!"  i thought i was so clever with my smart mouth, but it's funny looking back now and realizing that even back then all i've ever wanted in life was to be as awesome of a mother as my mama.

people say you never realize how much you can love someone until you have a child of your own, but i feel like i had a pretty good idea. it wasn't surprising to me when our little kitten was growing in my belly and i fell more and more in love with her every day. when she came out so tiny and perfect and settled right into my arms, it was everything i thought it would be.  i know exactly how much my mom loves me because she has shown it in every word and action my entire life.  she sang to me, rocked me, rubbed my back, and/or held my hand until i fell asleep every night long past the age when that usually stops.  when i was teased in school, she made me feel proud of the things that others considered flaws, and to this day i am still proud of those things.  she always gave me plenty of trust and freedom and was there to pick up the pieces if things didn't work out.  as i got older, i know it must have been hard for her to do, but she fostered my independence.  she supported me dropping out of college to move to nyc when i was 18 because she knew the best thing for me was getting out of our small town -- or maybe because she knew i was going to do it regardless!

whenever i read about different "parenting styles" and studies on what you should and shouldn't do, i dismiss them immediately.  i frequently joke that my parenting style is "do everything exactly the way that my mom did" but it's really not a joke.  i honestly don't think she could have done a better job raising me.  she didn't have all the excessive information we have forced on us thanks to the internet mommy wars, so i refuse to get wrapped up in that unnecessary crap.  love and patience was all i needed.  i remember being very young and choosing to behave because i loved her so much and wanted to make her happy.  i hope it stays that simple and amazing with my own daughter.

i love you mom!!!!!!!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Sunday 23 February 2014

big girl talking

kiki has had a language explosion over the past week! she surprises us every day with something new. i haven't counted her words yet, so here goes:

mama
dada
cat (usually she says cattt! cattt! cattt!)
shoes (shooozsh)
what you got?
where'd it go?
flower (gower)
toot toot
baby (ba-pa)
dog (doge)
circle (gur-kle)
uh oh
hello
thank you (tah too)

there are a few words she has said a few times but not consistently enough to count, i don't think:
bumblebee (bumba)
butterfly (ba da da)

she also barks like a dog when she sees or hears one (or the geico pig lol), points at sebastian and says "doge" when asked where her dog bast is, and points at circles and says "gurkle!"


Saturday 4 January 2014

1 year

cookie is 1 year old! our tiny kitten is officially a cat. she went from 5 lb 12 oz to 20 lbs and just over 30 inches tall.  she's walking better every day, but her real talent is climbing.  big girl can climb up onto the couch all by herself, and can throw her leg over mine and climb up on me whether i want her to or not.  she can't quite climb up into our bed yet, but she can get down from it like a pro.  she's very strong and i swear she was doing pull-ups while hanging on the side of her high chair the other day.  at the clinic recently, every nurse and doctor commented on how "busy" she is because she never stops moving and exploring.

she loves phones and pretending that everything is a phone by putting it up to her ear and saying, "hello!"  she knows how to swipe the screen of our phones and pinch to zoom in and out.  she is obsessed with our bellies and loves to lift up our shirts to give raspberries.  she is still very much into music and loves singing and dancing and watching youtube videos.  when i pull up itunes on my computer she recognizes the screen and starts dancing before i even play any music.  she also loves books and will sit by herself, flipping through the pages and talking like she's reading.  several times a day she will bring a book to one of us, crawl up into our lap and demand that it be read to her.  colby went to the coffee shop one day and they happened to be selling a used copy of one fish two fish red fish blue fish.  he bought it for her not even knowing that it was my favorite book as a child.  she squeals happily when she sees it, tries to carry it everywhere, and throws a tantrum when we take it away, but she doesn't quite have the attention span to sit through the whole thing yet.

and now..... a year of pictures!!


the last picture taken of my pregnant belly a week before our kitten was born


tiny cat fresh out of the oven

one month old

two months

three months

four months 


five months 

six months

seven months

eight months

nine months

ten months

eleven months

ONE YEAR!!!!