I think I need to find a new way to talk about how old the girls are, rather than in months. Maybe from here on out, I'll just use dates.
We all fell back into our pre-holidays routine with relative ease. January is always the month that seems to drag on but the girls seemed to love the snow and subsequent snow days at home together.
Addi has her first parent-teacher conference today and we already received her evaluation. She is doing awesome! Her strengths are that she is "extremely personable and well-liked by classmates", "strong vocabulary and communication skills" and "fun-loving and pleasant personality". That's our girl! We are so proud of the little girl she is becoming. There is no surprise on what skills she is developing which includes fine-motor and gross-motor skills, social problem-solving skills as well as letters and numbers. I am excited but nervous to discuss all of this. I am thankful for this opportunity half way through the year.
Like in her evaluation, Addi loves her classmates and is developing real friendships. I asked her what she was excited about one day as she was going to school and she said "Being Cason's friend!" Precious girl. He loves her too which is one of the best parts. Addi loves to play dress up, sing and dance. She did a full set on Skype for my parents. So cute and funny.
Stella is just growing in so many different ways it is hard to keep track of. The first and most important change we've seen is in her sleep. I didn't blog about it, mostly because I was exhausted, but we went through a very difficult time with Stella's sleep. For about 4 months we were spending 4-6 hours trying to get her to sleep and it was horrible. We did all of the "right" things but nothing worked. Because of her lack of sleep we started to see serious cognitive and emotional issues arising. Our happy girl wasn't so happy. She couldn't answer to her name. She had 0 attention span. It was awful. But it would change when she had good sleep so that gave us hope.
As a last resort, I took her to the pediatrician because she was telling me her ears hurt. She didn't have an ear infection or any other illness so I discussed seeing a sleep specialist. We got the referral and called that night. They got us in the next morning! A HUGE answer to prayer. The neurology department at Children's Hospital gave us lots of information (met with us for an hour), went over any concerns and then taught us new tricks and tips. We moved her bedtime back slightly, woke her up at the same time every morning, moved back nap slightly, woke her up from nap at the same time, used a gate to keep her safe and away from the stairs but also in her room so it was like a big crib. Within 48 hours... BOOM! New girl. I guess I didn't write about it because I didn't want to jinx it either.
Stella is a new girl! She LOVES sleep and rarely fights us when she is on schedule. I am so proud of her. She just went to her follow-up and they only need to see her on an as-needed basis. The clinician was very impressed and so am I. That has opened up a world of doors for our sweet girl being able to learn and explore without being tired. Stella loves being around other people and has developed a crush on one of our students. She even asked to buy him candy since he always shares his with her. She said "He is my boy! Hims is a sweetheart! He always shares with me!" It melts me. She is a social butterfly beloved by all of her babysitters (our students) and their friends. She is talking more, recognizing letters and shapes, singing, dancing and playing "Frozen" all day long and I love every minute I get with her.
This is the most I have worked since having the girls and I am thankful it is going well. I teach 4 classes which takes me out of the house 12 hours a week. I feel somewhat less balanced than before but it is only a few short months until my life is really going to change- Stella will be in school with Addi! I actually just contacted the school's director about Stella starting early since I was hired to teach a summer class and we need childcare. It is hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that I will not be with either of them during the day on Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays. I have to look at it glass-full- lots of time to do my classes without having to schedule babysitters, time outside of the classroom to grade (which I have been shoving into nap times and when they go to bed, about 12-24 hours per week), time to do my house managing work (cooking, cleaning, organizing, etc.) without having to divide my attention. It will be a good thing.
I am really blessed to be able to make our schedules work together so I'll work some while they are in school (it varies semester to semester) but I can choose to only work those days. I'll have one more year with them both home on Tuesdays and Thursdays before Addi starts kindergarten. Crazy! Then, I only have 1 year with just Stella! Crazier still! The past (almost) 4 years as their Mom have flown by and I am trying to hold on to as much time with them at home before we are into full-fledged school. I really do believe I have the best of both worlds. Lots of time at home with my girls, a job that I love and they are in a school they love. Love all around.
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