Carpooling to School

Since Sophia and Kelsie go to the same school now it is possible for us to carpool. Well we decided to try it for the first time and it went much better than I had hoped! Usually I have to carry Kelsie at least part of the way to her classroom, but with Sophia with us she walked the whole way and pulled her own backpack. Both girls seemed really excited to go to school together and even more excited on the way home. It will be a while before I feel like I can ask Kelsie to go with Ms. Heather, but I am hoping we will get there soon. In the meantime I look forward to taking Sophia with us again soon!

Kelsie "Sawing Varsity's Horns Off"

Gig'em Aggies! Whoop! (Sorry Grandpa.)

Mike's Birthday

For Mike's 39th birthday, we had two celebrations. The first one was on his actual birthday on September 23rd. Grammy came over and we had fondue for dinner. After dinner, Mike opened presents with Kelsie's help of course. We had a yummy frosted brownie as a birthday "cake". Everyone had a good time, especially Kelsie since she loves birthday parties.

The second celebration was at my parent's house that following Sunday. Grant came over and my Mom made chicken fried steak for lunch. After lunch and presents, we had chocolate chip cookie cake, which is what Mike likes for his birthday instead of regular cake. And, of course, Kelsie enjoyed every bit of it. It is wonderful to have our families so close, so we can celebrate with both sides!

The Case of the Basket Stealer...

We went to Target to do some grocery shopping and to let Kelsie play with the little animal figurines she loves so much. While we were playing Kelsie said she needed to go potty, so we went into the restroom and left our basket right outside. Well when we came out our basket was gone and Kelsie was more than a little upset by this. She didn't throw a fit or anything, but she immediately started looking around and asking "Who took our basket?". Mike and I explained that one of the workers must have taken our basket by mistake thinking that we were finished with it and we thought that would be the end of it. Unfortunately we were wrong.

We went over to pick out another basket and she was convinced that hers should have her name on it. She went to each basket looking for her name and I tried unsuccessfully to explain to her that it wouldn't have her name on it and that all the baskets were the same. As we were having this conversation a poor unsuspecting older gentleman came up and tried to take one of the baskets. He must have heard some of what was going on because he asked Kelsie if he could take the basket. She looked at him and said in a very huffy tone said "I guessss". I quickly explained why she was acting like she was and apologized for her tone. He saw the humor in the situation and went on about his business.

Finally Kelsie decided that her basket must have been at the opposite side of the store. We walked over and I picked one that looked like "ours" and she finally agreed that it would work. We went back to the animals to play while Mike shopped with the basket. The whole time she was playing she would ask every few minutes "Why did the man take our basket?" I kept trying to change the subject, but she apparently was on a mission to discover who the basket stealer was. Right before we left the store Kelsie had to go to the potty again and she said the whole way to the restroom "Don't let the man take our basket again!". I explained that Daddy had the basket, so it would be safe.

When we came out Mike was finished checking out and we were about to leave. As we were walking toward the door Kelsie was looking quickly from side to side trying to find the basket stealer. Luckily no employees other than the those at the checkout counters were around, because I think she was fully prepared to chew whoever took her basket out good!! LOL! We explained that the man must have been sent home because he was mistakenly taking customers baskets and she finally allowed us to leave without a fight. However, on the way home we had to tell the story about the basket being stolen and why the man was sent home over and over again!

Grandma's Birthday

On Sunday we went to my parents house to celebrate Grandma's birthday. My brother and sister-in-law, my parents, Mike, Kelsie, and I were all there. Kelsie was super excited to have everyone together as always and was even more excited about the cake! She was showing it off as if she had been the one to decorate it!

We all ate some BBQ and then my mom opened the cards from us. She had already opened the presents from everyone else the day before. After that we had some cake and ice cream and then visited for a while before it was time to go home. I cherish family days like these. Although we all live in the same city we each live about an hour away from each other, so other than birthdays and holidays it is often hard for us all to get together in one place. Kelsie loves them too and it is always a fun time!

Grammy's Birthday

Friday the 18th was Grammy's birthday (it was Grandma's too, but we were celebrating with her the following Sunday). We took Grammy out to a restaurant of her choice. It turns out that she chose Mammasita's which made Kelsie very happy! After we ate Kelsie had to show Grammy the waterfall and lions outside of course and then we went back to Grammy's for presents and cake.

Mike and Kelsie made Grammy's favorite cake and even got the recipe for her mom's famous icing to put on top! Kelsie loved helping Grammy open her presents and she was very excited when it was time for cake. We setup Grammy's present for her and made sure it was working while she and Kelsie played outside on the patio. Kelsie was having so much fun that she wasn't ready to leave. It was a wonderful family day! We are so thankful to live close enough to the grandparents to spend birthdays and holidays with them!!

Kelsie's first full week of MDO

Kelsie had a very successful first full week of MDO. This is the first time she has gone 3 days a week and I was a little concerned about how things would go. Although she was a little hesistant to go in each day she didn't cry any of the days and she was very happy when I came to pick her up each day! She seems to really like her new school and her new teachers.

This week they had show and tell for the first time and although I didn't get too many details out of Kelsie she seemed to really be excited about bringing things to show her classmates and teachers. They were supposed to bring something blue this week and she decided to bring a little Pablo figurine she had. She couldn't wait to take it with her on Wed.

I am very pleased that things seem to be going well and I hope she has a great year this year!

Mike's Day Off

Monday Mike took the day off since the shuttle didn't land until Friday evening due to weather (again!!). We had planned to go to the Children's Museum, but apparently it is closed on Mondays during the school year. We asked Kelsie what she wanted to do and all she wanted was to go to Toys R Us to play with the little animal figurines they have there. We were fine with that and although it wasn't too exciting for us she had a wonderful time. We spent at least an hour there and most of that time she just sat and made the animals talk to each other and to her. It is amazing how entertaining they can be for her!

After Toys R Us we went to eat "Rolls and Sour Cream" she actually means tortillas and sour cream, but she can never remember what tortillas are called! She was super excited to go to Mammasitos where they have a waterfall and some lion statues outside. She sat on top of the lions and roared for them it was very cute.

After lunch and nap we went outside to play with some of the neighborhood kids until it was time to go to bed. She had a great time especially after she discovered some puddles to stop around in and a mud puddle beside our neighbors tree. Unfortunately she stomped a little too hard in the mud puddle, because her boot got caught in the mud which then made her fall in too. We didn't see any of this happen we just thought she was still splashing around, but next thing we know she was taking off her boots and pants right in front of everyone! It wasn't until she went in for bath that we discovered what had happened. She started saying next time she would make sure that her boots didn't get stuck in the mud.

It was a perfect day! I love days when we don't have an exact plan and can just go with the flow. Sometimes that is hard for Kelsie, but she did great yesterday. She was super excited to have an extra day with Daddy and Mommy before going to school again today.

Kelsie's first day at her new MDO

Today was Kelsie's first day at her new Mother's Day Out. It went as close to perfect as you could expect for her first day! She talked about going to school all day yesterday and this morning she kept explaining (more to herself than to me) that I was going to take her to school and drop her off and then I would pick her up later.

She gave me absolutely no trouble getting into the building. She even pulled her backpack herself from the car to the door. However, she started to lose her confidence once we got in the door. She found a chair right inside to sit in for a couple of minutes until her friend Sophia came. I decided it would be best not to fight about getting her to walk to her class, so I picked her up and carried her to the classroom door. I put her stuff in her cubby and she decided to try to hide in one of her classmate's cubby. I was really worried that she would fight going in to the room, but I took her hand and she walked right in without a peep.

As soon as we got in the room, Ms. Jana, her teacher, gave her a name tag and then asked her to go find her chair. Kelsie seemed to completely forget I was there after that. She went right to her chair and started building the Mr. and Mrs. Potato Heads they had out on the table. I went over to her and gave her a quick kiss and a hug and then left. She didn't even turn around to see that I had left!

When I came to pick her up, I asked the other teacher, Ms. Cristina, how she did and she said she did wonderfully. Kelsie then looked at me and said, "I had a good day Mommy." Then she proceeded to tell me that she went potty all by herself, which she was very proud of probably because it was a new place and that is often an issue for her the first few times. She also told me that she was a little disappointed that they didn't get to play outside today since it had rained. She said her favorite part of the day was playing at the rice table they had out and that she met some new friends. Although she couldn't seem to remember any names. :)

I am just beyond thrilled that her first day went so smoothly. Every other year the first few weeks if not month has been filled with tearful goodbyes and even reports that she is sad most of the day some days. I just can't put in to words how much easier it is to drop her off when she is happy and pick her up the same way! I hope she continues to love her new school and that she learns lots of new things this year!

Moody Gardens

Mike and I wanted to take Kelsie out to Moody Gardens when he had the day off on Friday. Unfortunately we mad the mistake of trying to get her haircut before we went. We thought taking her there would be a treat since she usually loves it at the Aquarium and the Rain Forest. Unfortunately for some reason she was having a strange day. In the Aquarium she kept saying she was scared of everything that usually doesn't bother her at all. She was afraid of the divers in the water and any fish that came too close to the glass and she wanted nothing to do with going through the area with the sharks.

When we went to the Rain forest we were all a little disappointed. There wasn't much to see. It just hasn't been the same since the hurricane hit last year. Kelsie was particularly upset that she couldn't find all the birds they had pictures for, so we decided to head out to another area.

We finally found a place the she enjoyed that day outside. She went down the slides, climbed on everything, and really had a great time chasing us around the play structure. Although the day started out a little rough we wound up having a great family day. That is just how it goes when you have a 3 yr old, but especially when that 3 yr old has some sensory and social issue. It is always a challenge, but I wouldn't change Kelsie for the world!

ABC's

Kelsie Singing (or yelling) her ABC's

Budding Photographer?

Recently Kelsie has decided that she loves taking pictures. She wants to take pictures of everything she sees! She's not too great at aiming, but she is determined. I think we may just have a budding photographer on our hands!

Our Little Climber

Here is Kelsie climbing a rope ladder without help. I had no idea she could or would do that!! I was very impressed that she didn't even hesitate to give it a try!!

My Birthday

I had 2 wonderful celebrations for my 32nd birthday! The first one was on my birthday at home with Mike and Kelsie. Kelsie as always was very excited to have mommy's birthday party. They made me some yummy cake and cupcakes for the celebrations. We opened presents and then each had a cupcake to celebrate.

My second celebration was at my parents house. There we celebrated my birthday along with my brother's 35th birthday. We always celebrate together since our birthdays are only two days apart. My brother, his wife, my parents, and of course Kelsie and Mike were all there so it was a lot of fun. My mom fixed roast and mashed potatoes, my favorite dinner. We both opened presents and then we had cake and ice cream. Kelsie couldn't wait to dig into both of the cakes and the ice cream too! It was a great birthday. I love getting to celebrate with my brother again now that he moved back to TX. It always reminds me of when we were kids and had combined birthdays!

Kelsie and Emma at Chuck E Cheese

At the end of August we met Tiffany and Emma at Chuck E Cheese for a play date. Unfortunately as with most outings with 2 strong willed 31/2 yr olds they didn't spend very much time together, but they both had a wonderful time. Afterward we all went to the pet store next door and the girls enjoyed looking at all the animals. Their favorite part was taunting the dogs in doggie day care with thier candies from Chuck E Cheese. We kept trying to explain that they shouldn't do that, but anytime we turned around one or both of them was at it again!



Kelsie's new favorite game to play is the one with the horse. She spent most of her tokens playing it over and over again. I had to make her get off to give others a turn!



This is Kelsie dancing in front of the blue screen. There is a little TV right in front of her, so she loves to watch herself on TV! :)

Kelsie's first Rummage Sale Experience

Kelsie's friend Sophia wanted a princess doll really bad despite the fact that she had just recently received several new toys while on vacation. At first her mom and dad said she couldn't have it until Christmas or her birthday. Well Sophia was watching a Max and Ruby cartoon in which Ruby had a rummage sale. She asked if she could have a rummage sale to earn the money to buy the princess doll and her parents agreed.

Several of the girls from the play group came to participate and Sophia was super excited! At first Kelsie didn't quite understand the she had to buy the toys on display, but once she did she really got into the idea. She loved the entire process and couldn't wait to get back home to play with the new toys she had acquired. We all loved it and hope to have another one soon. Everyone had a great time and went home happy. To top it all off Sophia made more than enough money for her princess doll!

Timmy's Baptism

Our friends Martin and Denise invited us to attend their son Timmy's baptism. We wanted to be there with them even though we were worried about how Kelsie would do during the service. She of course didn't want to go to the church nursery, so she stayed with us throughout the service. I was pleasantly surprised that she actually did pretty well. The only parts she had a problem with were the hymns. Everyone singing in addition to the organ playing was a little too much for her. She covered her ears and kept saying stop singing. Luckily due to the noise only a couple of people could hear her. I turned out to be a good experience for all of us. We all went to lunch afterword to celebrate.

Play date with Abbie

We had lots of fun playing with Denise and Abbie at their house. Mike had a day off, so he got to come too. When the girls were babies Denise and I would always talk about how they would one day really enjoy playing together. I am so glad that is definitely coming true. Even when they haven't seen each other in a while the girls always have a great time playing with each other!