Birthday fun

This is Jacob - the morning of his birthday - ready to open presents at 6:30am. Lauren and Taylor were in great moods too. Jacob also enjoying his party at the inflatable gym. Lauren and her fashion show glamour gals and on her new horse. Gotta love birthdays!!

First Days of School

Busy September

Wow, where did September go? It seems like September gets busier every year. It is our birthday season - Taylor is August 22, Jacob is September 13 and Lauren is September 28 -no, they weren't planned that way:) I LOVE birthdays and try to make them very special for each kid, so I am wiped out at the end of the month. School starts in September in Seattle and that is another level of craziness between shopping preparedness, orientation meetings, tours, beginning of school activities and more - right now, for each kid in three different schools - phew. But mostly, September is loads of fun - the kids have a great time and there is so much joy all around.

Today is Lauren's birthday - she is 7!! I can't even believe it - 7 is such a big girl and seems like she is hitting another milestone in becoming a big kid. She is such a sweet, kind girl with a huge heart - her classmates made her a birthday book and they each had to fill in a word for her - "sweet", "kind", "nice", and "good friend" were the most common - can you ask for anything more as a parent? She had a huge week-end - Saturday was her friend party - as always, Lauren is Miss Creativity and decided she wanted a fashion show party. We moved all of our furniture around in our living room, made a red carpet, hung sparkly decorations, and all 16 girls walked the red carpet for their parents. It was a big hit and so much fun. Of course, they had to choose outfits, get their hair and make-up done, and practice before the big show. This was the after the pizza picnic, pinata, and playtime - Lauren had a blast. She was a good sport and Jacob got to be the emcee of the show and the DJ. Taylor also cooperated and somehow napped through the bulk of the party. Yesterday, we had Lauren's family day since she was in school today - we had pancakes with candles for breakfast, presents (her favorites were a personal doorbell for her room and a huge stuffed horse), lunch at a restaurant, a trip to the toy store, and a picnic dinner. She also had her third soccer game - and scored a goal! She is in a fall neighborhood soccer league and she is doing awesome - she is a smart player and has really good foot control of the ball - as she says - I'm a good goalie, mom. We're so excited that she is having fun with it. She plays on a team with 5 other girls and they play 3 on 3, so everyone gets lots of playing time.

Between birthdays, school starting, soccer, and more - life is busy, but fun. I am feeling more relaxed about our schedule and less pressured to go to all of Taylor's activities. She is enjoying therapy now and loves to practice moving. She has not been a big fan of her school - she has normal 2-year-old separation anxiety with her new class, which as always is a mixed bag. On one hand, you hate for her to be sad, and on the other hand, it is so nice that it is a developmentally appropriate reaction. We're working with her on it, giving her lots of hugs, but also trying to encourage independence.

Most exciting - my little sister had a baby boy, Caleb. We're so thrilled for our families new addition and know they will be wonderful parents. I will post a bunch of pictures so you can see our first day's of school, birthday fun, and more.

Jacob is 5!

Wow, what a week-end - Jacob is 5 today!! I can't believe my sweet, crazy boy is 5 - it is such a milestone in my mind. In many ways, he has always seemed like an old soul- he was an early talker and walker and he has always had the deepest, most infectious belly laugh. I love him to pieces and we celebrated his birthday with joy - I love birthdays!!!

We woke up bright and early - he was up at 5:45 and went into Lauren's room - he told her she needed to make him breakfast because it was his birthday. So, we were up and at 'em. He'd opened all of his presents by 7am - a Playmobile knight castle and pirate ship were the biggest hits - he loved these toys. I spent the next few hours building his new toys and then we all went out to breakfast. He loves his pancakes. He and Lauren played all morning and then we went to Lauren's first "real" soccer game. She plays on a team of six players and it is the cutest thing. She's not the most aggressive, but she is pretty good. She's a smart player and motivated. They play 3 on 3, so 3 are resting half of the game. Each time she was resting, she would say - I want to play - we loved it. Then, David took the big kids to the pool while Taylor and I played and she took a huge nap. The big kids are big swimmers - Lauren swam a lot of laps and Jacob is just nearly self-sufficient. He can swim a lap on his own now.

Tonight we celebrated with pizza, mac and cheese, and chocolate cake (Jacob's choice). He was such a good boy all day - he has such an amazing personality and I'm so proud to be his mom.

Taylor took a 3 hour nap today, which she so badly needed. She has been on a bit of a sleep strike lately. We don't know if it is teething, constipation, or just being. Her naps have been pretty much non-existent and she is so wiped at the end of the day. We're hoping she gets back to normal now. She has therapy last week and it went well. It was such a gift - she didn't get too tight while Susan was on vacation and we didn't lose any ground. Hurray! Last week was super busy for me at work and beginning of school craziness, so I wasn't able to go to as many sessions as I would have liked. Typically I will take her twice a week and Alison will take her once a week to therapy and once a week to school. David will take her once a week to school. The beginning of school has created the next round of scheduling nuttiness, but I think we're getting in a groove. Hopefully this means I will find more time to write on the blog too - I was a huge slacker over the summer, so perhaps the new school year will bring me structure too:)

what makes a happy life?

Yesterday, out of the blue, Lauren asked me "Do you think Taylor has a happy life?" How deep and introspective my little gal can be sometimes. I answered "yes, I really hope so". It was so timely because I have been thinking a lot about this question this summer - in fact, it has been a huge part of my inner thoughts.

This summer I have tried to come to terms with accepting the reality of Taylor's life - challenging because we can't ever know what our kid's lives will be, and even more uncertain in the case of Taylor. When we first found out about her condition, my approach was blind optimisim - we could give her every resource available and would do everything we could for Taylor to be "normal". Over the summer, I've realized that this mindset may not be good for Taylor - or the rest of our family. As it turns out, her life can be wonderful and fabulous, even if it is not the "normal" parents typically dream of. Step by step, I have worked hard to accept that Taylor will be blessed with a precious life - even if it is different than what I would have dreamed of. This doesn't mean I have given up hope - but instead, I have chosen to embrace Taylor for what she is today, and what she may be. It is OK if she doesn't go to college, or live indepentedly, or get married, or any of the other million things you hope for your kids. I still pray she will - but have realized that it is important for all of us to accept that her life can be grand - no matter what. The real gifts are found in - can you smile every day? do you feel loved? can you laugh? do you have a happy laugh? This is the unconditional love that parents strive for - I will love you for you, no matter what.

This mindset is so important - I read a wise story about how we can easily miss the joy of today - every little laugh - every precious memory - because we are so worried about what the future might - or might not - bring. The guidance was "don't be so worried about the future, that you miss the joy of today". I have tried to embrace this - for all of us. At the conference David went to he saw first-hand how varied and different kid's lives can be - and how much joy they brought their families regardless. Taylor is truly a gift and rather than blindly pushing her to the goal of "normal", I am striving for the balance of helping her, while ensuring she has a "happy life". We love her so dearly, and Lauren and Jacob too - the happiness of our whole family is the balance we are striving for.

Tonight I know without a doubt that she is a gift and she is happy. It's our job to help her be happy forever, along with the rest of our family.