Little Miss Sensitivity

I have been aware for quite some time that Abby has a tender heart. She doesn't like to see anyone upset. There were many times when she was younger that when a baby started crying, she would join in the wailing. Now she just offers to go get them some medicine so that they can be "all better now". Sometimes, when I'm playing around with her I will feign sadness and she quickly will tell me that we are all done. She doesn't like to see someone sad.

Lately though she has been really, really sensitive. For example, this afternoon the FedEx man stopped by the house to drop off a package. Now, usually I will just let them leave it on the porch and get it once they've left. See, Bruiser tends to get a bit jumpy when it comes to strangers coming to the house, especially when Jason isn't home. He is in full protection mode and this can cause a bit of stress in the poor guys that swing by to drop packages off. There was even one time when the UPS man asked to give him a running start before I opened the door. Although Bruiser lets Abby do whatever she wants to him, when it comes to strangers he is pretty fierce. This afternoon, as usual, Bruiser started the loud barking that lets us know that someone is near. I didn't have much patience with him, and the third time he wouldn't stop barking, after I asked nicely, I may have raised my voice a bit. That's when Abby got mad at me and started crying.

Abby "comforts" Bruiser. At this point though
Bruiser was much more interested in the people
walking their dog by our house. 

I made sure that she knew that she wasn't in trouble, that I had just been talking to Bruiser, but it didn't matter. She sat by the door for a few minutes crying (rather pathetically), and wouldn't listen to anything I tried to tell her. She wouldn't let me comfort her, or even touch her. She just wanted to sit and cry. She finally stood up, when Bruiser came to find out what was going on. She put her arm around him and her forehead to his back - and continued to cry. I finally got it out of her that she was mad at me for yelling at Bruiser. I found myself apologizing to Bruiser, just to make her happy - it didn't work. Luckily, Daddy was on his way home, so she didn't keep it up for long.

So, from now on, I will have to be a bit more diplomatic when it comes to correcting the dog, otherwise I'm going to have to deal with his protector.

One of the many Bruiser/Abby Love pictures

Worry

Worry - what an absolute waste of time and energy - and yet sometimes I feel like by worrying I'm at least doing something when things are out of my control. Worry seemed to pop up around every corner today, and when I least expected it. Most days I can tell it to take a flying leap, but today was different. Maybe it had to do with the way the day began.

At six a.m. Abby once again got sick, and while it wasn't in her bed, she still didn't quite make it to the bathroom. (This morning I was thankful that the upstairs hallway is hardwood, not carpet.) Today is day 10 of her being sick, and I feel for the little peanut. As soon as I could I called the doctor and asked if there was anything else we could be doing. The answer was not encouraging. Apparently this stuff can hang around for up to three weeks - three weeks?!? 

My worry about her getting better turned into frustration and another "w" - "Why?" Why does this stuff alway seem to happen to Abby? Why can't she just get better? Why does everything have to be so difficult?

The whole day wasn't a great big pity-party, but I had to watch myself, least I fall back on those "Why's". In my better moments I did come up with some plans on how to help her out in the long run. I ordered some new vitamins and have some grand plans for healthier meals for all of us. Since I can't possibly follow her around and tell her not to put her fingers in her mouth, we need boost her immune system.

Besides the dashes to the bathroom, Abby really had a good day. She was her sweet self and flashed a lot of her beautiful smiles. So I'm going to focus on that and reflect on the good of today, letting Abby wash my worries away and keep learning to take one day at a time.

Abby treated me to a song today.

I loved her smirk here.

Abby decided that she needed a bit of a
rest, so she made herself a bed and took a
thirty second power nap!

Big Wheel - Keep On Turning

After a week of being cooped up at home we were all feeling a bit snarky today. Abby still wasn't in tip-top shape, but besides the occasional race to the bathroom she was acting like herself. In desperate need to see the outside of this house, we all piled in the car (sans Bruiser - poor guy) and headed out to Nana and Papa's.

Papa had mentioned that there was a nice surprise waiting for Abby and so with that on her mind she was very good on the drive out. She was absolutely convinced that it was a Jesse outfit (of Toy Story fame). Although we didn't have the inside track as to what the "surprise" was, we were pretty convinced that a Jessie outfit wasn't it.

It wasn't long after we arrived, and she'd bestowed her round of "smoochie-bugs", that she inquired as to the great surprise. We were lead back outside and she could barely contain herself when she saw the Big Wheel waiting for her in the back of Papa's truck*. Nana and Papa had been out and about this weekend and found a "certified pre-owned" pink and purple Big Wheel for their little angel. Abby hopped on that thing and started pedaling away. After the first two rounds of that big front wheel we noticed she was having more trouble than she should keeping the bike straight. Jason stopped her and realized that the the right bracket, that holds the "big" wheel to the front of the trike had broken.

Out came the duct tape.

As Abby wailed and cried about her bike, Jason and his dad tried to tape that bracket up as fast as they could. Abby was a big wet mess by the time that everything was a go. It was fun to watch her barrel down the driveway, and great to hear her laughing (after all that crying moments before). She did have a wonderful time on that thing - until we heard a pop and realized that into her second leg down the driveway the bracket on the other side of the bike had broken.

Out came the duct tape - again.

Once again the tears started and finally, the great weeping mess that was Abby, got off the bike and declared that she didn't want to ride it anymore. Well, as you can imagine, Papa couldn't stand for this and so he declared that he and Dada would head out to get her a new one - and that's what they did. With Abby still crying, the boys went off and Nana and I were left behind to distract her.

I looked for the sidewalk chalk as Nana pulled out a ball and bat. We did some drawing and some "batting", and even pulled out the Little Tikes car that Abby is slightly too big for. Before long Abby yawned, stretched, and declared it was time for a nap. We all trotted inside and were thankful that Abby was in better spirits.

Rapunzel/Abby

Soon enough the boys were back and along with the bike they picked up a beautiful Rapunzel wig. While Abby gazed at her long, lovely locks in the mirror, the guys put the new Big Wheel together. By this time though dinner was ready, so the decision was made to wait a bit before Abby was presented with her new bike.

Somewhere between the hair preening and dinner Abby lost her good mood. Each of mom's "suggestions" was greeted with an emphatic, "NO!", and we couldn't find just the right thing to get her in a better mood. You might be thinking that this would be a good time to pull out that new Big Wheel, right?

Well......

See Jason and I know our little peanut rather well, and we were fairly certain that if we got her outside and on that new bike, we would never be able to get home. We were winding down and packing up to make the trek back to our house, and we knew that in her current mood the potential for a major melt-down had grown exponentially. We made the executive decision to let it be, and leave the Big Wheel surprise for the next time we came out to Nana and Papa's house.

Despite the bumps in the road (literally and figuratively) it was a great time. As Papa gave Abby a helicopter ride out to the car we marveled at how quickly her mood and attitude changed. She giggled and laughed as the "helicopter" ran out of gas just in time to deposit her into her booster seat - ending our evening on a very good note.

So, we now have something besides the usual fun to look forward to the next time we head out to Nana and Papa's - a beautiful new pink Big Wheel.

Dad was ready to go before Abby and Mom were (big surprise)
and so he went to get the car washed. As we waited for him
we had a little impromptu photo session with Abby and Bruiser.

She had quite the grip on his neck - but he didn't
mind a bit.

Then she decided that she would set off to
rescue Dada, riding her noble steed.
Here she let out a yell of, "Yee-Haw!"

*It was pointed out to the author that Papa actually has a Ford Flex and not a "truck" as was stated in the above post. The author apologizes for any confusion on the reader's part.

Dear Billy Joel

Dear Billy Joel,

In a few short years your career will have spanned a half century, I'm sure you can scarcely believe that. I've always felt that you were one of the few artists that remained true to yourself, and who wrote what you felt. Your music stood on its own, and didn't bow to fads. You wrote good music with catchy lyrics, and you proved yourself again and again.

It was "Piano Man" that made me want to learn how to play that title instrument, and I always thought that "Just the Way You Are" beautifully summed up what every girls hopes her love to feel for her. I even remember sitting in my room with my tape recorder and painstakingly listening to "We Didn't Start The Fire" in order to catch each of the lyrics you so quickly blasted through. In short, I have always liked your music.

In the years you've been a musician you have received many awards and accolades, and I'm sure thousands of letters from fans, but this letter is not to tell you about my love for your music, but about my daughter's.

Each night, as Abby lays down to sleep she requests one song more than any other - "Lullaby (Goodnight My Angel)". The simple tune, that is so beautifully sung by your soothing voice, settles her right down. With the opening strains she snuggles in and begins to breathe deeply. Sometimes she will ask me to join my voice with yours, but other times we both will enjoy the simplicity of the song by only listening, and most nights she doesn't even make it through the whole song before she is sleeping soundly. After a week of sickness, Abby has been through the wringer, and so tonight, as I sought to ease her pain and calm her tired mind I laid her in her bed, covered her up, and turned on "Lullaby". I rubbed her tummy as your voice filled the room and she soon settled into a peaceful sleep.

So, in short, I want to thank you for your beautiful song, and the comfort you give to my little girl through it. This mother is truly grateful.

Sincerely,
Abby's Mom

Yep, they're buddies alright.

Ta-Da!

Abby has been in the "look at me" stage for quite some time now - so long that I'm beginning to wonder if it is a stage after all. Even the simplest of tasks will trigger a, "Watch me, Mom!" Usually, I will "ooh" and "ahh", as is expected of me, and we move on. Tonight, Abby decided that she wanted to do some coloring. This time she wanted to make sure that I paid attention, so she climbed up on my lap and colored away. She told me to watch her and I did, suitably impressed by how well she was doing. At one point she said, "Look Mom, see how I'm inside the lines," and she was - inside the lines I mean. I was being completely honest when I told her how proud I was of her and how well she was doing.

When she was finished she held it up to me and said, "Ta-Da!" It was adorable. I loved how she punctuated her hard work with that wonderful exclamation. It drew attention to the work she'd done, and allowed me to acknowledge her performance. It made me wonder why we all don't do that more often. There are many days when I would love to yell out to someone, "Hey, watch me!" as I do regular mundane tasks throughout the day.

So, I've come to a conclusion. I'm going to take a page from Abby's book. I'm going to start "Ta-Da"-ing my way through the day. When I finish a sink full of dishes - Ta-Da! When I make a meal - Ta-Da! When I write a lesson plan - Ta-Da! I think we all should do that, what a fun way to get some much needed encouragement. Isn't Abby smart?

Pocoyo, Ellie, and Pato needed a bit of lovin' today.

Feeling sorry for her, since she is still battling a sour tummy,
I caved when she asked to paint. She did a great job of containing
the mess - to herself. 

By the end she was rather colorful - too bad you can't really
see the red paint that got in her hair. 

There you have it - tonight's post.

TA-DA!

Being Flexible

The plan today was that we would pack up and head out for a nice extended weekend at the family cottage. We were all looking forward to it. Frankly, we are in desperate need of some family time away. Abby was excited about the prospect of swimming in the lake, Jason was looking forward to some fishing and boating, and I was excited about a change of scenery. The fact that we haven't been to the cottage all year made us all the more anxious to get there.

Abby started our day early, she was raring to go at 6 a.m., but she seemed to still have a sour stomach. We made the plan that we would spend the morning straightening up the house, getting some laundry done, and then maybe head out in the afternoon, if Abby was feeling better. Unfortunately, as the day went on she didn't seem to be getting better. Mid-morning, when she had an accident, we were very thankful that we hadn't decided to do the three hour drive to the cottage, now that would have been horrible.

We changed our plans and began talking about things we might be able to do around home, if we never did get Up North. You might think with the delay, and possible cancellation, of our family get-away we'd be bummed, that the mood around the house would mirror the rainy, dreary weather of the day, but it didn't. We actually had a very nice day.

We were able to get some work done around the house (which felt really good), and find time to relax as well. Abby was in a great mood, despite everything, and enjoyed a low-key day of playing. Once again we are learning that it pays to be flexible.

Beautiful!

Another one of the pretty girl.

Yesterday, as I was getting ready for our visit, Abby spent
time reading a book to her dolls.

Then she decided to take a nap with them - apparently I
take too long getting ready.

Today Abby enjoyed some quality time with The Lorax.
It was so fun to hear her giggling along with the movie.

She loved the headphones!

Meeting Nolan

Throughout the years there have been several times when I've been contacted by friends when a friend of theirs finds out that their child has Down syndrome. I am always eager to get in touch and help out in any way I can. When Abby was born we didn't have a "face" for Down syndrome, and it made it much more frightening. I've always thought that the best advocate for children with special needs is Abby herself. It is my hope that people see her as the beautiful child she is - that by seeing past the Down syndrome they can see it is just a part of who she is - not all of who she is.

Last September I got a message that introduced me to Melissa. Melissa and her husband were recently blessed with a beautiful baby boy, a baby boy that happened to have Down syndrome. I immediately contacted Melissa and sent her a Facebook friend request. I post quite a few pictures of Abby online and I figured that would be a wonderful way for Melissa to get to "know" her. Throughout the year we've kept in touch, and I've been so blessed to see Nolan grow and reach milestones through pictures.

After seeing a recent (darling) picture of Nolan, Jason commented that Abby and Nolan should meet. As luck would have it, Nolan, along with Mom and Dad, would be visiting Grandma (who lives rather close by) today, so the date was set. We would get to meet that adorable little man.

I told Abby we were going to Nolan's grandma's house, and she was immediately excited - grandma's houses are automatically fun in her mind. We talked through that she would have to listen to Mama and be very gentle with "the baby". She agreed that she would be a good girl, and even wanted to bring along a movie for Nolan to watch. I was able to convince her that he wouldn't be interested and we were off.

She was a good girl, and being in full performance mode, she gave us plenty to laugh about. Nolan was a bit unsure about his new friend, but he was a great sport - especially since Abby kept running off with his drum. We had a nice visit and were even treated to some ice cream (complete with "sauce"). It was a wonderful afternoon and so nice to meet such great people in person. The best thing though is how obvious it was that Nolan is loved beyond measure - that is what I loved most about today - that and how cute it was to watch those two together.

Meet Nolan!

Nolan so kindly wore the hat we brought him while Abby
enjoyed his toys.

Smooches!

Hugs!

Abby decided that it was her turn for sitting on Melissa's lap
when Nolan went to Dad.

A special thanks goes to Melissa for all of today's great pictures. I loved them all!