Stage Mommy Pride

Yeah... We had another big dance performance for Jordan. It isn't the Nutcracker (since we're at a new school now) but it was a great experience anyway. Jordan performed with a local dance studio with the youngest class they offer. She and a bunch of other two-year-olds did a great job. I was really worried about the performance for a couple of reasons: 1) She decided not to perform earlier in the day during a church choir performance. 2) Her ballet shoes weren't in her ballet bag for some reason. Luckily she moved into an excited performance mode once we got to the theater and one of her classmates had an extra pair for Jordan to borrow for the performance. (Sigh of relief)

We had so much fun at the show. To add to the experience, our friend Aurora came to watch and brought Jordan three roses. She let Cameron hand them to her and I wish I had the video camera running. Her jaw dropped in shock. Flowers!!! It was a really cool experience to see. The flowers are in her room to enjoy.

Speaking of enjoy. Here's a little edited version of Jordan's performance for you to enjoy:

If you can't see it, you can watch it here.

35 Months Old!

Can you believe Jordan is only a month away from turning 3? It's mind boggling. In the last month she has turned even more into a strong, opinionated and highly verbal little girl. She is super proud of her new prosthetic. She didn't wear it much this week after we discovered a skin breakout that is healing very well (we'll start using cotton balls at the bottom of the gel sleeve). She had to bring the arm to visitors this week to show if off. While I was away this month, she talked all about what she was doing at school, dance and with her grandparents. We video chatted almost every day. That was really cool. Earlier this month we spent so much time together building her new arm. We're so happy with what she is able to use - three different hands! How cool is that?

With growing up comes big challenges. She and her brother are all about fighting for dominance. There's tattling and complaining. But that just comes with the territory. Other challenges: We're officially in the food fight zone. She doesn't want to eat anything except snacks. It will take a while to get past that. She's also turned up a notch on fighting to go to bed... I actually had to threaten the wrath of Santa last night. (If you actually go to bed, I'll tell Santa you're good. If you keep screaming and crying, I'll tell Santa that you aren't a good girl. Ack.)

Jordan's love for dance continues. She'll start dancing just about anywhere. She loves to sing and she tries really hard to know the words to songs. The down side to leaving her current preschool means she isn't performing in the Nutcracker this year. But she does have a winter recital with her dance school. Thank goodness for that!

This coming month means some big things for Jordan: A new school, a big trip to Florida and possibly a two-day trip to one of the happiest places on earth! (We're hoping Santa says we can go to Disney World... I guess we'll have to wait and see! ;-) )

While I was in China...

The first night I slept in Shanghai I left my phone on... Silly me since there's a 14 hour difference. I happened to notice my phone buzzing and decided to answer it. The person on the phone was from a preschool where Jordan was on the waiting list. Apparently there's a chance for her to attend, but we needed to decide within 24 hours.

But I was in China!! So I needed to contact Randy, chat with him and see if he could set up a school visit. He ended up going to visit the school yesterday with Jordan. He liked it a lot and Jordan warmed up to it near the end of their visit. Randy paid the deposit and we have her moving to the new school in two and a half weeks! Wow. That was fast. So I'm mentally grappling with the idea of Jordan attending a new school. I'm excited but also a little sad to leave a school where we've spent so much time. Cameron started there when he was 17 months old! It's been 5 years! Wow. I'm certain Jordan will be fine. I will miss the teachers and some of the kids... even a few parents!

It's big news for us. The move also means Jordan won't perform in her current school's performance of The Nutcracker. I'm a little bummed about that... But it isn't the end of the world. She does have a Winter recital at her other dance school. I'll get cute photos/video of that instead!

I am wrapping up my second full day in China. I've had a chance to video chat with the kids three times - I'm hoping to stay awake long enough for a fourth. I do get tired earlier in this time zone. I'm documenting the trip in photos... Feel free to follow this slideshow if you'd like to see it all. I've done some touristy stuff and today I experienced shopping and debating over the price of some cool things (I even got a "Prada").

Dance class experience

It was open house at Jordan's dance class yesterday... Here's a quick little peek:

Feeling a bit stressed

I have a lot going on right now... And I don't feel like I'm ready for any of it. I'm leading a huge project for election night. Jordan and I go to Chicago the next day to build a new proshtetic and a few days after we get home I'm headed to Shanghai to conduct training on new media... Although I don't know specifically what the media group wants me to train. Thanksgiving is right after that. Chirstmas comes roaring after that.

I barely have time to do my laundry.

I'm stressed about expenses.

Jordan is so happy. Cameron is happy. I just want to go outside, hike around with the kids and take naps when I want to.

I need a breather. There's no time for a breather.

So what did I do today? I bought the final gift (I'm pretty sure final) I'm going to get Jordan: A new dance outfit. I'm thrilled with her love of dance and her current dance outfit was giving her a wedgie as she danced in class today!! I figured that out when another parent said: Oh! Is Jordan potty trained? I said yes and she told me she could tell because Jordan was showing off her rear in all its glory! HA!

***Another tiny thing I just realized - I'll be in China when Santa first comes to our local mall. I have ALWAYS taken the kids to the breakfast with Santa event. I'm going to miss it this year! WAH!***

Big developments

You may see a major trend in the photos I show here on Jordan's blog. Dance, soccer, football. Repeat. Dance, soccer, football. We've had a pretty active but consistent life in the last few weeks. Jordan has dance on Thursday and Saturdays have had the combination of Cameron's soccer games and going to football games. So my pictures of Jordan are clearly in a pattern of pink, green, black and gold.

But it looks like we're mixing things up. In November, Jordan and I are going to the Chicago area to work on her new prosthetic. We aren't going in the myoelectric direction this time. We're going to use a body powered prosthetic that will let Jordan really get some consistent function. There are some things she really wants to do: Swing a bat, ride a bike -- stuff she tries SO hard to do but her little arm is just a little too short to help with. Not long after that trip I'm going to China to conduct some training at a media group. Very exciting but overwhelming since I'm also speaking at a national journalism conference in between those two trips. Oy. Oh... Did I mention there's a major election the day before Jordan and I go to Chicago? Man I'm fried just thinking about it.

But I'm excited about the many big things in our future. I look forward to working with a new company and the possibility Jordan will be able to work with a tool that will help her really do stuff she wouldn't normally be able to do. And it won't piss her off. Her current prosthetic hasn't functioned like we wanted and it's gotten to a point where Jordan yells at it to open when she wants it to open. She also yells at it to close when the hand opens and closes for no reason. But I know she's ready for something that works. A couple of days ago we were hanging out with a bunch of adults when Jordan said she has three arms: her big arm, her little arm and her robot arm. I thought she was joking about three arms until she defined all three arms. She's right. She really does have three arms. I love it.

Football, dancing and fun

I pushed my luck tonight. I let the kids stay up super late last night then I dragged them all over the place today. We had Cameron's soccer game where Jordan got to play soccer with her newest friends. (Anyone her size is a new friend. It's so sweet) Then we ran to the football game and stayed for the first half. Jordan fell asleep in the car and I dropped Cameron off at a neighborhood birthday party. We immediately went from that to a dinner gathering with a bunch of families at a local pizza restaurant. Crazy. I'm exhausted, the kids are exhausted. We're all fried. It was fun, but exhausting.

Jordan is a busy girl. She had another dance class this week and she just LOVED it. The moment she walked into the dance room she flopped on her belly and just slid around. It was so silly that I had to take a picture. It's just another example of how Jordan takes charge when she's in any environment. She's ready to order any and all people around. It's amazing to watch.

How could I go so long without an update?

Well... it could be because I've been SO swamped at work. There were a number of big events underway here and I had a lot to do with those. During this time, I got a really cool haircut (I have yet to find a cool picture that documents it) and Jordan got back into the swing of taking her dance class. It's obviously a class made for two year olds. Two of the little girls aren't interested in dancing and are much more interested in their mommies. But Jordan is INTO it. The funniest thing is Thursday is also the day she takes dance at her school. So she's really going to enjoy all of this groovin'.

Jordan got to enjoy a lot of grandparent time last week. But that has developed into a strange challenge. She will no longer go straight to bed. She must choose to go to bed and it usually must happen after I leave the room at least once. She will open the door and I'll ask if she's ready for bed. If she says yes, she finally hops into bed and lets me put her blanket on. We'll do the prayers, songs and scratches and she stays in bed for the rest of the night. Speaking of staying - Jordan has figured out how to open all of the doors with plastic door nobs that are supposed to keep her from getting out of the house.

She can do that, but she still won't come out of her own room when she wakes up in the morning. What's up with that?

So many little quirky things. So little time.

Special Exposure Wednesday

I mentioned in an earlier post, but I wanted to share Jordan's happiness while she danced during a school event this past weekend. She is so into music and dancing... The joy in her eyes is so worth the knowledge that I will have years of buying dance recital outfits and expensive classes.

My dancer performs again

Jordan's school holds a summer luau picnic every summer. It's kind of a way to celebrate the end of the year - a lot of kids are about to move on to elementary school and others are about to move into new classrooms. What I like about it is the chance to win a tuition discount in a raffle (didn't win this year) and the kids get to perform for the parents.

Jordan had a blast!

I even set up a play date for Jordan and one of her school friends for next weekend. I haven't really done much of that yet for Jordan so that should be cool. I got to get to know a few parents through Cameron's friendships who I treasure. I look forward to hanging out with new grown ups!!

I have to get more serious about finding the girl her next prosthetic. My physical therapist has tipped me off on a new option. Her contact is out of the office until Monday so we'll see what I can find out. My life is going to get more complicated at work very soon... So I'd love to have this process underway as soon as possible.

Special Exposure Wednesday

I stumbled upon this awesome idea from the blog 5 Minutes for Special Needs. It's a chance to show a cool moment of our kidlets through photos. Special needs is a tough word for me to swallow sometimes even though Jordan is two and a half and we've had a long time to digest what her differences mean in this world. She does need special things every once and a while. But thanks to her stubbornness, those special needs aren't as obvious as you would think.

Here's a sweet moment when we were at the beach in Maine. She was so happy she started dancing. It's her newest love and she's getting stronger at jumping and spinning every day... She's figuring out her balance!




It was so fun to watch - The picture doesn't tell half of it.

A new look!

Jordan's had her hair cut one time... Until today. I wanted to help her hair take shape before we head out for a big mega-vacation. So I looked into places I could take her and the price wasn't any different between a nice grown-up hair place or the new local girly-girl salon.

I went with the girly-girl salon. She loved it. (Cameron was not that interested in being there... When we got to the door, he stopped and pronounced: "I am NOT going in there.") Jordan got her hair washed with chocolate shampoo and raspberry conditioner and seemed to enjoy the experience. She listened really well while her stylist did her hair (the barber chair was a pink Barbie Corvette). She even had her hair blow dried. SO funny.

I have to say, I kind of miss the little ragamuffin girl I had. She looks so clean cut and pretty with the new hair. I'm hoping her bangs will continue to grow and catch up with the rest of her hair. She's never had them trimmed and yet they're SO short!

Tomorrow is Jordan's last dance class of the summer. I talked to her dance teacher who says she can tell our girl loves to dance and encouraged us to keep it up in the fall. She also did a really wonderful thing: she asked how to help deal with the kids who stare at Jordan. She thought it might be too personal to ask, but I really appreciate it. I gave her tips on using Nemo's little fin as a guide to kids to help explain that Jordan can do anything! I'm so happy ABC ran Finding Nemo recently so more kids had a chance to watch it. I love that movie and of course I love it even more since Jordan arrived. I offered to talk to the kids in the class, but my feeling is I don't want to call it out. I'd rather kids learn about Jordan more organically, but if there's enough of a disruption already, I'd be happy to chat with them all. I also encouraged the teacher to see if Jordan would like to talk about her arm. I'm not sure if she's ready... Since I realized I haven't given her a chance yet. It's time to start letting go. I want to protect her and it's scary to know that she had to be able to hold her own. I realize she's only close to two and a half, but the sooner she learned, the stronger she'll be!

My dancing girl

Jordan had her first dance class yesterday. It was kinda cool. Not because she really participated in the class (I'd say she half participated). What was cool was how she was excited about getting dressed up. She talked about being a princess and wearing princess shoes (her ballet shoes). She was very proud to be a part of that experience.

It was actually very cool to see her in the class. She was so tiny dancing and walking around with the other kids. It's a class for kids between 3 and 5. Miss Jordan isn't quite 2 and a half, so this was just special. I work with the dance teacher at the university and she invited Jordan to participate this summer after her awesome performance in the Nutcracker last year.

To cap off the sweet part of the day, Jordan slept in her ballet shoes all night. She actually danced to the bathroom when she woke up in the morning.

Flowers, puddles and dancing

The morning was rainy, really rainy. So rainy that when it finally stopped, the water was running through our driveway as if it was still raining. Jordan was thrilled to enjoy the puddles and blooming flowers outside. We had spent most of the morning playing Wii Fit. It's a lot of fun and I broke a sweat a little here and there.

The highlight of the day: Taking Jordan to a local dance company's recital to watch dancers from the age of three to who knows how old (probably mostly high school). I wanted to see what she thought about the performances. I'm considering a chance to put her in a short summer dance class. It's for three year olds, but I know the teacher and she thinks Jordan would love it. Jordan and I in the front row of the balcony... It gave her room to fidget and a chance for us to escape for a possible potty break. It also gave her room to dance. Oh my did she boogie. It was great. She was so excited every time another group came on stage. I never took to the dancing thing as a kid. It's not my kind of thing, and it might not be interesting to Jordan. But for now, it appears that this is the kind of stuff she likes.

Oh! On items that have nothing to do with Jordan and everything to do with me. I bought a new bike!! With the help of birthday money and saved up funds, I was able to get a new Trek bike. It isn't just a Trek bike, it's a girl Trek bike. I wasn't sure if I wanted to buy a girl version or not, but in the end, I just like this design and its features. I've never had a bike with suspension! I can't wait to enjoy my first really long trip down our local bike trails on this puppy! I'm ready to find more excuses to get outside and get healthy. I totally fell off my The Daily Plate diet (although not really a diet, just a mindful lifestyle). So I'm back on TDP and trying to exercise more... even if it's a little exercise like the Wii Fit (which has options to make things sweaty). I'm looking forward to feel a little healthier... As I did a couple of months ago before I started gaining weight back!

Because still pictures are fun

Here is a slideshow of the big show:

See it up close

I'm kind of crazy... It's probably obvious from my devout documentation of my children. So last night I had two different cameras rolling on video of Jordan's dances. One that would be quick for uploading purposes (see previous blog post) and one that could zoom in closer and I could edit on a computer.

So, I give you another opportunity to watch my girl:

We've enjoyed a post-Nutcracker high in our household. It's just awesome.

She is a star

I must must must share this awesome video. Some who know me won't be surprised about this discovery about Jordan: She loves the stage. Jordan danced in two dances in her little schools production of The Nutcracker. Here is video of her in both dances (the first dance is on two pieces of video). Stick around to the end of the third piece of video to see a sweet moment. She was totally in her real on the stage

It sure is chilly here

It's cold and icy here... But that hasn't kept the kids from really enjoying it outside. Yesterday, Jordan and Cam enjoyed playing and sliding all over the place in our neighborhood. Today, Jordan just pointed at a lot of stuff and declared: "COLD!!" (Or in her way: "COLE!!")

I'm getting really excited because we're getting very close to Jordan's second performance in her school's Nutcracker. Many teachers who have seen her practice say Jordan is REALLY excited about the dance and she's very focused and happy when she performs. I can't wait. If she's in a good mood, we might get to see a great show. I'm also really thrilled she loves dance so much. I see it as a great way to work on balance and honestly, dance is beautiful. I can only see it as an ego boost when you get to wear pretty pink flowing outfits and prance around.

Big girl

Jordan is so big. She went to the newsroom with me and helped me smile while I worked late. Then we went to a downtown festival where my girl GROOVED.

She danced freely in the crown. Just pure happiness. I couldn't stop giggling.

Weekend dancing

I was sitting at the dinner table with the kids on Sunday. We were listening to music off of my computer when this ROCKING song from the Bottle Rockets came on. Cam started dancing in his seat and not eating. So I told him that if he ate a couple of bites, I would stop everything and dance with him.

So we danced and Jordan joined in on the fun. It was so awesome I grabbed the camera that was closest to me: the cellphone. So here was a sweet dancing moment:

If that doesn't work, click here.

Another great moment happened at dinner tonight. We grill up corn every once and a while. The last few times I just cut the corn off for Jordan to eat. My mom convinced me to just give Jordan a hunk of corn. So I did.



She chowed down. She loved it. We giggled.