What a day

Miss Jordan is so big... And if you look at this picture, you'll agree. She asked to go outside and swing on the swing. Look at the pride and comfort she has on the swing. It was so cool to watch. She doesn't know how to pump her legs, but she could hang on and not lose balance while swinging back and forth. It wasn't too long when she wouldn't ride a swing or if she did, she had to do it in a baby swing. Very exciting.

Speaking of exciting... Did you notice all of the Linens and Things stores are shuttting down? Well, I took Jordan out to see what's going on at our local store and we officially found her new bedroom look. It's beautiful and Jordan officially calls it her "princess bed." It took her awhile getting to bed because she was so darn excited. When I left her to sleep last night, she kept saying: "I'm a princess!" Very cute.

The little things just stun me

I've noticed some tiny but amazing things about Jordan lately. First, she's certain she can do anything... And I mean ANYTHING. Most of the time she's right. She can put her pants on and off all by herself. She can take off all of her own clothes. She climbs stairs of any size. She can even get down off the front stoop of our house which is just a little too high for anyone to use. She can get down these days without tumbling. I'm not sure exactly when she mastered that skill. I just noticed it.

That's just one of many little things that show me how she's making huge changes in her physical surroundings. I'm so darn proud and amazed by it all.

This weekend we stayed up late and took naps late to enjoy a fun music festival in town. To cap it off for the kids, they got to meet and listen to Farmer Jason. I knew him as Jason of Jason and the Scorchers. But now he's more popular as a children's singer. We had fun dancing and laughing and sweating in the early Fall sun.

Here's a moment when she started dancing:

Dancing to Farmer Jason from NerdyMom on Vimeo.

29 Months Old (600th post)

In my constant documentation of Jordan, we've reached my girl's 29th month. Every month is another amazing jump in independence and personality. I'm not sure how I can properly document this little one's growth as she becomes more like a a little person every day. I obviously post a lot. This happens to be my 600th post about a 29 month old. That seems a bit extreme. I guess this mom blog thing has become quite the hobby.

Along with her growing potty skills (for those of you who know more than what I've been posting about that process, she finally let loose today), she's working on ways to get her clothes off. She's not an expert on putting clothes on, but off is turning into an impressive skill. I came up with a way to help her take shirts off: little arm out first, pull the shirt over her head and then shake her big arm out. It's going very well. These are the little things that used to worry me. But she finds solutions each and every day. I'm proud to be a part of it.

If I'm lucky, I'll find a way to stay patient as her powerfully stubborn tests try me. She will fight just about anything I ask her to do. But she and I are learning. I'm training her and she thinks she's training me.

Either way, in the last month, Jordan has picked up more words and abilities to really talk about what she wants, needs and is curious about. She's always asking things like: "What's that?" "What's that sound?" "I want that!" "I do it!" Classic stuff. It's just so fun to watch her grow.

We had a potty party today

Remember how I was all concerned about this potty thing when we went cold turkey on Sunday? Today Jordan was dry from when we put on the cotton this morning until I put on her bedtime diaper. I'm thinking I might need to give up diapers all together and see what the overnight experience is like. (Messy I'm sure... but today she surprised the heck out of me, it could continue)

The potty party day started a little unusual. Jordan woke up ten minutes before we had to run off to school and take part in a Kindergarten walking trip to the nearby gardens (where there is no bathroom). Cameron asked if Jordan could come along so she could hang out with his classmates. I was a little nervous since she'd be in cotton the whole time. I brought extra clothes and was prepared for a mess and a bunch of kindergarteners yelling: "YUCK!"

Three and a half hours later, I rushed home as quick as possible to give Jordan a chance to go to the bathroom. And she was mad at me. I am not allowed to force her to go to the bathroom. She held it through our trip to school and even a quick lunch while the rest of her class went down to nap (we were a little behind schedule because of the field trip). As she ate, I kept asking if she needed to go... And she kept saying no. I had to ask one of the teachers at school to ask her to use the bathroom, and it worked. The girl made it through nap and didn't make a mistake. She made it through the entire day. I was so freaking proud.

So when I had both kids, we (Cameron and I) bought Jordan a balloon and some pizza. Then we had a potty pizza party that also included watching the Little Einsteins. It's like she's growing up right in front of me. Amazing. This sink or swim experience apparently is what motivates Jordan better than anything else.

Mommy misses her kids

I have been working a lot. A lot.

When I walked into the house today, Jordan squealed with excitement. She scrambled up the stairs. She babbled to her heart's delight. She missed me.

I've been swamped at the beginning of a new semester - There has been a culmination of projects that need attention at the same time. Plus, my class more than doubled in size. I have so many people to train, fires to put out... I could go on and on.

But let me tell you about my girl.

She's now 25 months old. 25 months. Can you believe it?

In this past month, her ability to communicate has SKYROCKETED! She knows what she wants and often puts together the words that helps us know what she wants. She knows colors WHEN she wants to tell us the right color. She wants to sing the ABC's but doesn't always feel like she needs to say the right letters at the right time. She loves to play the piano and she loves to be in charge. She warmed up to her daddy this month. She gets upset if she wakes up late and he already went to work. She hugs and kisses him more. She leans on him for comforting sometimes. She's growing up.

She knows how to say her brother's name and she loves him on her own terms. She's very demanding of him and she always wants what he's doing. Lately she gets upset about her breakfast. No matter what, she'd rather eat what's in his bowl. Who cares if they have the exact same breakfast. She wants HIS.

We continue to talk about potty training. She is not comfortable with actually using the potty after our initial success. She is getting pretty good at pooping on the floor. (YUCK)

Jordan is starting to use her prosthetic a bit more. She uses it at dinner sometimes. She is using it to work with coloring and other art projects at school. She's really doing great with her occupational therapist... Mainly because we're doing therapy at school twice a week. I think I get in the way of therapy.

"Read a book" is a big deal in our house. Jordan is reading up a storm. She loves it when we read, she loves to read, she's copying her brother's enjoyment of a good story. Lately she's been telling me the things she sees on the pages. She really likes Elmo stories, nursery rhymes and baby animals. Her teacher tells me that Jordan is really good at school. She transitions incredibly well. The only thing she does that's challenging is she does stairs very slow. If I felt off balance, I'd do stair really carefully too. So if that's the only challenge in her class, I think Jordan is kicking butt. (But we already knew that)

I'm so proud of my girl. This coming month we're going to try swimming lessons to help build her shoulder strength. I'm considering equestrian therapy as well. I'm just looking for ways to help her continue to gain strength so she can continue to use her prosthetic in more useful ways. If she gets stronger, she'll be able to use it more.

Beyond therapy and talking... I'm just having fun. I look forward to getting past this work hump and spending more time with the kids. They are growing in so many amazing ways.

Special Daddy Moment

Jordan needed to cross the parking lot with her dad tonight. So her dad asked her to hold his hand... She immediately lifted up her LEFT hand.

LEFT.

So he held onto her prosthetic hand and walked to the car together.

Wow.

22 Months Old!!

Is it possible... Can Jordan be THIS close to 2 years old? It's stunning to see what a little girl she's turning into. She has more and more words. Heck she even has two and three word sentences. She's also a much more emotional and demanding little person. When she wants something, she'll scream it. Then I look at her and ask her to say it calmer and with less volume. Usually she will say it in a less ear-bleeding tone.

Jordan is still attached to her Mommy... She will grab my leg or beg me to carry her. But she's also happy to sit in her room and read through piles and piles of books. I've seen her "read" the books... But if her brother offers to read a book to her: "NO!" That word is heavily used in her world. My favorite is when she says no, but she's nodding yes.

Miss Jordan is getting stronger with her new shoe inserts and she's starting to relax with her newest prosthetic. We're finding new ways to get her to reach up more with her prosthetic and she's finding more ways to use it to carry items.

Baby dolls are still a big deal to Jordan. She loves putting them to sleep. Her new way to stall from going to bed is placing babies in different spots in her room and putting them to sleep. She lays them down and rubs their bellies. Sometimes she finds a blanket to place on top of the babies so they will stay warm. Jordan's blanket is officially named "Lamby." When Jordan asks for it, she will say "Ahh-Mee" or "Mee-Mee." Sometimes she says it three or four times for me to notice that she's asking for her blanket. I'm catching on. She's training me.

Food is still a strange thing with Jordan. On days when her teeth are obviously hurting, she will tend to not eat much at all. If she does eat, she'll end up spitting out the food. The only comfort food I've found for her is cheese-based food: Cheeze-its, Mac and cheese, slices of cheese. But the strange thing is on moments when she doesn't feel good, even cheese can't be a guarantee that she'll eat. Then suddenly, green beans or peas make her happy. You just never know. So I'm continuing to try and keep our food varied and I'm doing everything I can to not get her into an eating rut.

On the whole, this has been a great month for Miss Jordan. She's growing stronger, more opinionated and she's starting to try my patience in a good way... She's strong-willed in a cute way. At least I can still call it cute. She's also starting to find ways to use that "cute" to avoid things like going to bed or getting into the car. She doesn't want to be directed, she wants to CHOOSE to move from one place to another. It's amazing.

Arm challenge

I put Jordan in a really cute outfit today... But her arm was too wide. The wrist was a bit to wide. The dress never really fit properly. She did wear her arm all day -- She did all week except Monday. She's amazing.

Today Jordan stepped up on a stool to get water from the water fountain. She used her prosthetic to help her pull herself up. It was sooooo cool to watch her do that on her own. I just stood back and watched her try and try and try. Then she even stepped back down all by herself. She's finally catching onto steps! I'm thrilled.

21 Months Old!

This has been a really big month for Jordan. She's really becoming her own person and this month proved it. She's turning into an independent, strong little girl. Some of her big changes this month included a TON of words and more understanding of my words. I can also talk a little bit of reason to her. Often I can direct her to new locations with just giving her some motivation: "Jordan, come into the house so you can say hi to Bubba Dog." "Jordan, where is your baby? It must be in that room." Of course, there are more times when Jordan gets stubborn and won't budge. She's starting to fall onto the ground and just scream. Typical two-year-old stuff. What is wonderful is watching how she's really working hard during her occupational therapy appointments. She's trying harder to use her prosthetic. I'm excited to get her a new and improved version so she can step up her efforts.

This past month was really special because Jordan and I got to spend time with my Aunt Jan and Uncle Chuck... We even got to hang out with my cousin and her kids. It was awesome to share extra hugs and smiles to family I really care about but don't get to see often enough.

Jordan is getting along a little better with her brother. She loves to play hide and seek and chase with Cameron. They also have this thing where they scream. It's painful to my ears, but they think it's super funny. Either way, I see these little brother and sister moments as a sign that they're getting along better. We had one moment today that I thought was awesome. We were having a non-healthy picnic of burgers and milk shakes at a local park. Jordan loved the shake, but couldn't hold it while she drank from the straw. Cam patiently would hold the cup while she enjoyed her drink. It was so kind.

Jordan is finally starting to hold my hand in parking lots and throwing fewer fits about my attempts to keep her safe. She's still closely attached to me, but she's more willing to go off with her Dad. While she was at work with us earlier this week, I needed to continue working while her Dad was ready to leave. So he walked her over to me, she said bye-bye and walked off to the parking lot with Dad. I almost fell out of my seat. It's a little sign of freedom for me. I love our connection, but I'm thrilled to see her expanding her trust.

20 Months Old!

Jordan got to celebrate her 20 month old birthday by meeting a brand new baby. Her name is Charley and Jordan was skeptical of the experience. She patted her very gently, but was more interested in babbling and talking to Charley's family. Either way, it was so awesome to hold a little baby in my arms. No... I'm not interested in having another. I swear. Little Charley was exactly the same weight Jordan was when she was born. But she felt hearty and sweet. What fun. I like to dabble in the experience of being around new babies, but I'm content in the experience of visiting newborns, not creating ones.

Jordan had OT today. We had time for me to see her ability to turn pages of books with her prosthetic. Of course it's the cardboard books... But she's getting pretty dang good at it. It makes me proud. Maybe we'll get around to getting some video of that. By the way, prosthetic or no prosthetic, she's getting sturdier on her feet. Jordan is running, regaining balance faster and trying to jump. Now THAT I have to get video of! Development is so sweet.

Jordan went to a big-deal meeting with me tonight. I found out she's very good at saying "apple." More like "app-pull." Very sweet. The words are flowing. As the words grow, her needs grow. She's starting to learn how to try and delay bed time. I'll sit down and read her a bedtime story. And right before I'm done with the story, she's already grabbing for another book and begging for me to read it: "Boh! Boh!" (That's how she says book) The good news is when I stand firm and wrap up the book reading, she melts into my shoulder when I turn off the light and start singing a lullaby. That little melt makes being a mommy so sweet.

In the last month, Jordan turned into a little girl. She's independent (especially when she wants to walk into the parking lot on her own... I swear she'll hold my hand ANYWHERE except in a parking lot). She still grabs onto my leg and desperately wants to be with me no matter what. Independent when she wants to be. And a spark. My gosh she is such a spark. I think that little picture tells it all. She is SO alive.

Little developments every day

We're moving into a stage where milestones creep up very organically. It's natural and slow and amazing when you realize she just did something "grown up."

As we walked into school the last three days, Jordan grabbed the railing and walked up the stairs all by herself. Cam and I were so excited. She's getting braver by the moment. The steps at school are a little smaller than the normal kind... Which I am so happy she has easier steps to practice on. I was a little nostalgic about not being able to grab her other hand to help just in case she needed it. I'll get over it.

So the whole family went to school yesterday to meet Cam's new teacher. Jordan LOVED walking up and down the hallway of the school. She LOVED saying hi to people. She LOVED upsetting her brother by no going where he told her to go. She LOVED checking out the classroom and trying to grab paper that she should grab. It drove her brother nutty. Randy and I just tried to make sure she didn't grab something that would cause danger to herself of the classroom.

I'm kind of looking forward to taking the kids on the walk to school every morning. It's a little exercise, a little family (except Daddy will have to go to work before we head out to school) time, a little outside time. It will take work time out of my morning, but I think that's probably a good thing.

Torn between little girl and baby

When we were at the summer Helping Hands event near Boston, we met a really cool family I've talked to a number of times online. Their daughter is a month older than Jordan and missing her right arm below the elbow... She seems SO much older than Jordan physically. And I thought about it and I've been thinking about it since then. Jordan is so small and cute and a bit delayed physically -- But emotionally, she's right on track. And to me, that's a little confusing. She's so certain about her abilities and opinions... It makes me wonder if I'm getting in the way at all in her development. I watch her at school - she follows commands and does a lot of great things on her own: gets her chair to the table on her own, puts cups and plates in the bin after she's done. She follows directions from me at home, but I have to stop and think and make sure I'm not doing anything for her that might be causing any delays.

Since we got home, I'm making sure she goes up and down the stairs on her own. I'm trying not to carry Jordan around. She's a fantastic communicator so I know when she wants something. She's emotional and demanding. It's all very typical 2 year old stuff (and she just turned 19 months old). SO I'm not concerned. But I hope I'm not delaying her in her physical growth. I'm not hearing any concerns from the therapists, but it's still something that's been on my mind lately.

Kids Jordan's age can run... Jordan's getting there. She can walk fast. Kids Jordan's age can jump. When I bounce Jordan like jumping, she LOVES it... But she doesn't have the balance to jump yet. Here's my big crazy mommy concern. If she's missing things physically at a young age, does that hurt her cognitive development? I know it's nutty, but Cam had even more words and knew colors at this age. I know that wasn't normal. But is all of the extra effort to meet physical milestones going to delay Jordan's potential cognitively? Is there anything I can do to prevent that? Once again. I don't want to be a crazy mommy, but the crazy mommy in my gut worries.

I'm silly. I know it. But I guess this is why I have a blog - I can throw these thoughts out there instead of leaving them in my brain.

Pie, lobster and the beach

We've continued this non-stop vacation with non-stop trips. After visiting the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens yesterday, we took the kids to eat at one of the best diners in the country: Moody's Diner. We got their famous 4-berry pie. We even bought a slice for Jordan She'll eat it ONLY if disguised in vanilla ice cream. It was strange, but I was happy to see her try it no matter what. Cam opted for the standard slice of chocolate cake. Oh well. I cooked up my famous scallop dinner. Cam wasn't interested at all, but Jordan took a few bites before throwing it to the floor. She's really into throwing food lately. She mainly throws because she only wants to eat one food type at a time. So if she's eating a hot dog, she'll throw the bun so she can eat the bread. If she eats the bread first, she'll throw the hot dog. If I catch the food first, she'll probably eat what I salvaged, but not until she's done with the first food. You just never know. After a while, she just throws everthing. She throws before she says "all done." By the way, Jordan's "all done" is "no no" in a sing songy "all done" manner.

Today we let Jordan take a good morning nap before we drove off to one of our favorite sandy beaches along the Maine Coast: Reid State Park. I was pretty surprised by Jordan's reaction to it all. After I put her into the water where a little surf was lapping our legs, she screamed. Randy thinks she freaked because the water was so cold. I'm just not sure if she trusts water that moves like that. Either way, we didn't really get into the water very deep. She did enjoy a bit of time in the water jetty nearby. Her brother had a BLAST jumping and running through the frigid cold waves. He's getting braver by the moment. When Cam invited Jordan to join him in the water. She gave him a solid: "No." I almost fell onto the sand from laughing so hard.

Tonight we had our annual home cooked lobster meal. Jordan and Cam got to see the lobsters before they went into the big cooking pot. Cam is still very scared of the hard shelled guys. Jordan wasn't phased at all. She just checked out those guys until she got annoyed with just sitting there.

Speaking of annoyed. The brother/sister dynamic is becoming a lot clearer in this time away from home. Jordan is growing so fast right now. She even said "lobster!" These cool developments in her personality has us zeroing in on her... It's exciting to see her become her own person. But Cam is seriously jealous. He admited to me that he feels left out sometimes. It's one of the hardest parts of growing up. Jordan deserves the attention... Cam deserves attention. Figuring out the right way to give each what they deserve and need is the hard part. I think it doesn't help with the way my girl clings to me. Even after this many days with our whole family, she's still desperate to be in my arms. It's great for my arm muscle growth... Terrible for the overall peace between my son and I. We'll figure this out just like we have all kinds of other things to figure out. I do know that long-term vacationing is wonderful and we've been so damned lucky to do it.

18 Months Old!!

It's Jordan's half birthday!! It's just amazing to think about what a big girl she is turning into. We had Jordan's 6 month IFSP meeting this morning: Individualized Family Service Plan as part of the state's First Steps program. We are going to cut down on our PT time (we were approved for 2-3 appointments a week) and we're going to continue the two OT appointments a week.

Another big deal event happened today. Jordan started making the transition to her new classroom. It's full of 18 to 24 month olds. All of the kids walk and play at a level that Jordan needs to reach. She knows a few of the kids really well so I think she'll be excited about that. I will miss the wonderful teachers she's had in the 12-18 month old room. They have been so incredible with my girl. But I'm glad she's making the move just so she can be around older kids who can challenge her physically.

Jordan isn't screaming as much as she did last month. She's finding words and using a few more signs. She is still very clingy in a loving, but challenging way. For some reason, when I gear up to cook, Jordan turns up around a leg demanding I pick her up. I actually cooked an entire meal with her in the hiking backpack just so she'd stop begging! She is still a Mama's girl... But she's also getting much more excited about her Daddy. In the past week, she's been much more interested in him. As we drive home, she starts giggling and yelling "Dada!" She squeals when she sees him. She kisses him on demand more often. She also smooches her brother more often. As we drop him off at school, Jordan always walks over to him and gives him a kiss. She seems to be pretty proud of that. I think Cam is proud of it too.

Jordan is talking so much. She's very interested in making dog noises. Her favorites are monkey and dog noises. But she can make all kinds of other animal noises on demand. She can also copy a bunch more. You should hear her say 'moo.' I should try to get some audio of it. Classic stuff. Colors aren't that exciting to her yet... But she is starting to get excited over Dr. Seuss's book on colors.

My girl is becoming more self-reliant... But she's still trying to ask me to carry her around. I'm doing my best to help her but also encourage her to give it a try on her own. She's trying very hard to play just like her brother. Any toy he has is better than the one she has... Standard younger sibling stuff. She knows what she wants: His stuff. We're hearing the world "MINE" more. It will make our future road trip very loud.

We spent most of the past month dealing with intestinal issues... They aren't resolved yet. I'm hoping her final 6 teeth might come in and clear things up... But Jordan's made it clear that teeth making is a slow and mysterious process for her. We're going to have to get her prosthetic fixed for her growing arm... And we're going to need to get lifts back into her shoes to help straighten out her legs and flatten out her feet. But with all of the challenges, she's growing and thriving!

Who knows what kind of amazing tales we'll tell in the next month!

She climbs!

I looked away in the backyard for one moment... And suddenly I look up and Jordan is on the first rung of the treehouse ladder. I rush over and spotted her as she climbed all the way up on her own.

Success!! She was very proud. I'm nervous. Cam would have never climbed that ladder at 18 months old. Never. I'm not sure what kind of danger is in our future... But this girl is brave.

17 Months Old

Miss Jordan is 17 months old today. I'm so proud of all she's been able to do in the last month! She's walking better every day. Yesterday, she was walking FAST from one spot to the other in our basement. She fell on her face on Sunday and even though she bruised her mouth, she kept going. I tried to capture a sweet moment with her outside of school. She was a bit skeptical with my picture taking efforts... As you can see.

Most mornings, Jordan is willing to hold my hand and walk into school. Lately she's demanded that she gets to walk in and visit Cam's room first. She'll be pretty disappointed in two weeks when he's not around anymore! It will be three years before she gets the chance to go to school with him again! Jordan is excellent at saying hi and bye. This picture is her saying bye to me this morning. She's also picking up fun words. She kept pointing at a doll yesterday saying: "Baby!" She also likes to say "tickletoes" when I start tickling her toes. I usually yell: "Tickle Toes!!" And she repeats after me. Now when I tell that story with her around, she starts tickling her belly to show how she knows how to tickle.

Jordan loves giving high fives! Last night she blew a kiss to her Dad and then required him to high five that kiss that she blew. Pretty cool.

With Jordan's growing enjoyment of walking, she's more independent. She wants to go outside all the time and will cry at the door if she doesn't get what she wants. But she's also able to play a little with her brother. It's fun to watch. Hopefully they'll be able to continue to play and giggle together.

In the month ahead, we're going to work harder on specific signs to help Jordan with her words. I can read her really well, but I'd like to remove some of the screaming and pointing. We're also going to work on walking better and going up and down stairs. It's something she already loves to do at school. The goal is to just get her moving and grooving as best she can! It's exciting. I know we're finally officially moving into "toddler mode." She's getting more independent and I'll be chasing after her soon enough!

Prosthetic action

Jordan is figuring things out. Last Friday I got a voicemail from her occupational therapist telling me how Jordan was figuring out how to really use her prosthetic. Today I got to see the proof. This picture shows Jordan holding a striped tube that you have to hold to put shapes on it. She would actually grab the tube and throw it under her prosthetic arm. She also would hold onto things with both arms to place items onto the floor. It was very cool to watch.

Of course, I'm proud. It's a great feeling.

Later this afternoon, Jordan followed me down a school hallways as I went to pick up Cam from the playground. All of Cam's little friends got excited. Heck, I was excited. This is so fun!

Even the boy is excited

Cam and I watched Jordan stand up, walk across the grass and step up onto the concrete in the backyard, then walk over to me where I was sitting in a chair.

Even Cam was excited.

Wow. Now I have to carry a camera to capture a moment to share with everyone!

Home just in time

I got home this afternoon... While I was on the phone with the family this morning, Jordan took six steps across the room without any encouragement.

When I got home this afternoon, she started walking non-stop... Holding hands or not holding hands. Then something amazing happened while Cam, Jordan and I were playing with chalk: Jordan started standing up and walking all by herself. ALL by herself! The scooting world is days away from leaving us. And my simple non-mobile baby world is going to change.

The picture? Well it was taken awhile ago, but I had forgotten my brother-in-law text messaged it to me. It's fantastic and one of the best I have of both kids at the same time. I makes me happy, so I thought I'd share.

I'm so excited to be home. I'm extra excited that Jordan waited to really kick the walking into full gear until I got home.

My daughter can walk!

That's right folks. Mark today down in the books. She walked many times at school today! Not just a few - 5 steps two times and 6 steps another time. They stopped counting the many two-step moments in the day. At home, she even walked a couple of steps here and there.

My girl can walk!

Our PT will be on a roll with her now!! I'm thrilled. I'm excited.

All of the teachers at school are already chuckling about how life is about to change for Cam. They're pretty sure she's going to rule life around our house and it will shock Cam's world.