Where is the learning curve?

Kayden KEEPS slamming her fingers in the drawers and doors to the entertainment center. I know you probably think I should have latches on them - we DO, she can figure them out. In fact, she can take the one off the entertainment center (and it holds the two doors together). Earlier today, I was at the kitchen sink and watching her play in the living room when she slammed her finger in the door of the entertainment center and actually got her hand stuck. What hand you ask? Of course it would be her left one again. What fingers did it get the worst? Mainly just the left ring finger...again. Doesn't she know that is an important finger?!? She's going to have very pretty rings on it one day...

Momma cuddles and more

Sunday night, I was talking to Keeley about school as I was putting her down. We talked about her teachers, her friends, playing in the garden, etc. Then I asked her:

me: "Do you like school Keeley?"
Keeley: "Have fun at school."
me: "I'm glad you like school. You get to play with all your new friends."
Keeley: "uh-huh."
me: "Are you sad at school?"
Keeley: "not sad. have fun" long pause "still momma cuddles though"

How cute is that?!! I reassured her that we would still have plenty of momma cuddles just like we were doing right then.

Monday when I picked her up, I asked her if she had a good day as the teacher was putting her in her car seat. She said yes and Ms. Sutton said "She is really becoming very good friends with Lucas." I asked Keeley if she had fun with Lucas and she said "yep." Ms. Sutton smiled and said "There were lots of kisses for Lucas today." So sweet. Keeley is such a kind little girl. We are very lucky.

Gray hair

I think my hair will not survive Kayden's toddler hood and keep its natural color. I may not keep my sanity either....

Here is a run down of our last three weeks:

5/26 - diagnosed with hand-foot-mouth
5/28 - burned her finger on her birthday candle
5/29 - check up and shots
6/1 - fell off chair and amputated finger tip; molars start to come in
6/2 - had to get a cast put on because she wouldn't leave the bandaging alone

Then we have some days of "normalcy". Although, I'm not sure you can consider a one year old with a cast normal life...

6/11 - puts her cast in a bucket of rain water
6/12 - has to have cast taken off and a new one put on
6/13 - awake from 12am-4am
6/16 - falls running after us and cuts her mouth and then later puts her cast in the dog water bowl; I dry it for 10 minutes with a hair dryer before it quits feeling wet to the touch

We have an appointment tomorrow to have the cast removed again. Of course, we won't actually be able to see the doctor (that would be too convenient) because she is out until Friday. I'm hoping that the nurse practitioner will be able to see that it is healed and let us not put a cast on. Otherwise, we will have to get another cast removed on Friday when we had our regularly scheduled appointment.

She's going to wear me out!!!!

Making cookies

Keeley wants to do everything for herself and help with everything now. While it is sometimes a bit tiring, it is also a lot of fun when I get myself in the right mind set. I wanted to make some cookies the other day so I spent Keeley's nap getting all the ingredients "prepped" so we could make them together.

After the nap, we pulled out the learning tour and I gathered all the ingredients and put them on the counter. She got to pour everything in, help me stir, and even put them on the cookie sheets (albeit a little crazily)I think the hardest part was her waiting the 18 minutes to eat her creations!

Frank Buck Zoo

This is my new favorite place! My mom is watching the girls over Father's day weekend so we met up with Grandad this past weekend to celebrate. I thought it might be fun for us to meet out there. Everyone had a great time. Kayden was a bit subdued because she had been up from 12-4 the night before, up at 6, and then refused to nap on the hour ride out there - but she wasn't grumpy. Keeley was super excited and ran through the zoo. She raced from one exhibit to the next. If we weren't keeping up she would turn around and say "come on everybody" and then name us. It was hysterical.

Last time we went to the zoo, I didn't have any cash so we couldn't feed the giraffes. This time we came prepared. I don't know that Keeley cared whether or not we fed the giraffes, but I really wanted to. She stood right up next to us as we fed them but she didn't want to actually do it. Look how long his tongue is!!!!!!
As a side note, you may notice that Kayden's cast is a different color. That would be because she found a sand bucket outside last Thursday (after the rain) and put her cast in it. It was replaced on Friday. Casts on one year olds = bad plan for everyone!

Shoes

Keeley may be wearing a bathing suit top and pajama pants, but no one is going to pay a bit of attention to those when they see her shoes!

Mini drum sticks

I think this is the smartest invention Blue-Bell has had in a while. My girls agree!

New School

Keeley started summer school on Monday. She will go for 3 hours every day. This is a montessori school and has specific guidelines on clothing. I was a little nervous about this, but, after labeling her drawers, she seems to be doing well understanding that she can only wear school clothes to school. Hopefully this will help when fall rolls around and she has to wear a uniform. I tried to get a picture with her but she wouldn't stay still long enough to get a full shot of her clothes. (She's very into wanting to see the camera.)

Sitting with Mom (and Elmo!)

Getting ready to go!

The first day we both stayed for 1.5 hours. She did wonderfully and really seemed to be having fun. Her favorite activities were playing with the barn and animals, washing the table, and playing in the cars outside.

Yesterday, she stayed for 1.5 hours all by herself. She was sad when I left but the teacher said she only cried for about 2 minutes and then had tons of fun. She talked about her friend Gavin, eating gold fish snack, and playing in the sand.

Today, the plan was for her to stay for 1.5 hours again and to have the teacher get Keeley out of the car and walk her into the school. I called after an hour and they said she was having so much fun that I should pick her up at 12 (the full three hours).

She came running to the car today and hasn't stopped talking about singing and Ms. Alva. She also had an apple snack that she was able to fix herself with the apple cutter and is very proud of that.

She has tons of fun but doesn't want to leave me. When we talk about me dropping her off, she says "keeley be sad". Hopefully that will end soon.

Tomorrow is water day so I am thinking it will be lots of fun for her!

Zoo

Friday I made a very last minute decision. We were already on our way back from Chick-Fil-A and I glanced at my clock realizing it was 6:47. That left a LOT of the day! I decided we should check out a zoo. We went home and I tried to put Kayden down while I showered. She was uninterested (not surprising) so we packed some snacks, got dressed, covered in sunscreen, and headed out the door. After an hour drive to Gainesville, we unloaded and began our adventure at Frank Buck Zoo.

This was our first outing at the zoo and I was by myself (with a cast wearing one year old) so I was a little nervous. Everything was WONDERFUL though! The zoo is the perfect size for the girls, it is well shaded, the animals are close, and, best of all, there is a wonderfully shaded park right outside.Checking out the bunnies. Don't you love Keeley's outfit?

Watching the giraffes eat. You can't tell, but Kayden is on her tip toes.

The girls loved it and crashed out on the way home. We will definitely be going back!

Just like big sister

Apparently, Kayden is just going to refuse to take a morning nap if Keeley is home. She's been skipping them for awhile now but will take them on Saturday mornings if Keeley is at Little Gym. Perhaps Keeley going to school in the mornings will be good for everyone!!

Life at the ER

Monday morning as I was clearing the breakfast dishes, Kayden decided that she needed to climb in my chair (after I made her get down from hers because she kept climbing on the table). She got up there, and started shaking it. As I told her no and reached for her, the chair fell forward and squished her finger between the floor and the chair. There was much screaming and blood. After a few quick minutes, I decided that the amount of blood and fact that I couldn't get the screaming or blood to stop meant that we were headed to the ER. I told Keeley to get her shoes and she ran quickly to the car. I got Kayden strapped in and we were off. It was a miserable 45 minute drive (lovely rush hour traffic). That was only made more horrible because every time I glanced in the rearview mirror, I saw my baby screaming and covered with blood.

Kelly met us at the hospital and, after a very quick assessment, they determined that she had amputated the tip of her finger. Her finger really looked like you had popped a grape. There was no way to sew it back together. The doctor said that we would just cover it and follow up with an orthopedic surgeon after it healed. Before we covered it, we did x-rays and they showed that the bone was not broken.

As the tech was wrapping it up, he told me that I needed to change the bandage every day for three weeks. That plan quickly went out the window as it was apparent Kayden wasn't going to leave it alone. He the put a splint (sort of like a half cast) on her arm and gave me the instructions to keep it dry.

Kayden fell asleep leaving the hospital and slept until 1:30. She woke up 100% happy. After a quick bite, she was ready to go explore. She quickly figured out how to climb back on the chairs in the kitchen and the see saw in the playroom. You just can't keep her down. I should have known we were in trouble when she stood up to rock the rail in the hospital bed while the tech was preparing to bandage her hand! I pushed the chairs against the wall and the table all the way into them so she couldn't get on them and climb on the table. The only thing that seemed to bother her was that she only had one hand to use for eating.
Later that afternoon I had to call back to the ER and tell them I was having problems keeping Kayden from pulling at the bandages. The tech suggested I put a diaper over the end of the splint sort of like a boxing glove. That worked a little, but then she started biting at the diaper trying to get it off.

After her nap the next morning, I noticed that I couldn't see her thumb anymore (it had been sticking out). While trying to fix that, I realized that her splint now only went to her mid-forearm instead of all the way to her elbow. After calling the orthopedic doctor, they suggested I come in for a cast check.

Apparently, kids arms are still so flexible that they can move around a bit inside the cast. Now she has a real cast. Her arm is bent in a 90 degree angle and she has cast like a mitten over her fingers and all the way up to her shoulder. This isn't coming off, but it also isn't staying out of her mouth. She keeps trying to bite it. Obviously it isn't supposed to get wet, so the tech suggested wrapping it in press and seal. She keeps biting at that too so I guess I will just do that when I can watch her and a diaper over it at night (so she doesn't choke on the plastic).

She isn't sleeping well at night but is 100% fine during the day. I've had to hide all the kids chairs, the learning tower, and her rocking caterpillar. I've also removed all chairs from the kitchen and hidden the step stools the girls use because she WON'T STOP CLIMBING!

I swear this child is going to test my limits to the max! And, just to keep things interesting, Keeley went with us to the doctor in her bathing suit.

Never a dull moment here....