Liesel's First Day of Kindergarten

In a very small moment of self-discovery this summer I decided I am not a summer mom. I am a school mom. Perhaps that's because I've been pregnant for the past two summers which turns the regular little difficulties of life into pure, unadulterated misery. Little things like slipping at the pool just before swim class in front of a dozen lifeguards who didn't do a thing to help me up or even ask if I was okay, even though I had Brigitta on my hip and with my huge belly had to roll from my awkward split onto my knees with my larger-than-usual booty facing all the watching parents and their little swim students while badly shaking because I was terrified I might have harmed my unborn child in the fall. Little things like that. Misery.

Ergo, I had Liesel completely ready for school by mid-July. School supplies, check. School clothes (including snow pants for crying out loud), check. New lunchbox, check. Forms completed and personally handed to the principal, check. First day of school outfit, check. No kidding, in mid-July this was all done. I found myself looping by the school whenever I had to run errands and straining to look in the windows to see if any teachers were prepping their classrooms yet. They wouldn't cancel it, would they? I so desperately needed it to start. In the weeks leading up to the first day of school, even Liesel was adding "Please bless school can start" to her daily prayers. I know I'm not alone. I just about laughed myself sick reading this post by Jen Hatmaker entitled, Worst End of Summer Mom Ever: A Sequel. So it's not just me.

At long last, the blessed first day of school arrived. 

I had Liesel ready to go early so we could take the traditional photos and make sure she made it to class okay. I anticipated waiting until the bell rang but as soon as we got to her door, Liesel turned and waved goodbye at me. "Be sure to take Ireland with you!" she called out. Poor Ireland doesn't start preschool until after Labor Day. Whatever Kindergarten is, she could tell it was going to be much more fun than going back home with Mom and Brigitta. She mournfully dragged her feet heading back to the car. 

See Ireland waving back in the foreground?

I didn't cry. Not a bit. In fact, it took a while for the huge grin on my face to fade. The house was quieter. Brigitta napped longer. I had more energy by mid-afternoon which is usually my breaking point. Life was beautiful. When I picked Liesel up I was excited to see her. Without thinking, the first question out of my mouth was, "Who did you sit by at lunch?" Until then I didn't realize that even though I was happy for school to begin, I was still worried about my little girl having friends. For the record, Liesel couldn't remember but she immediately started chattering away about all the things she did on her first day. It was a good day for all.

Birthdays, Baptisms and Torsions

The best laid plans of mice and men always go awry. 

We headed out to Maryland to celebrate the babies' birthdays and for Piper's baptism. After a grueling drive, the cousins were delighted to spend time together. Seeing my sister was like a huge gulp of fresh air after treading water for months. We went shopping and talked, talked, talked. Not to mention our little family was finally together after Brent's weeks in Chicago and weekend in San Francisco. Oh it was marvelous!

The picture they'll never forgive us for.

Reagan was sweet to take some amazing photos with her new camera (yes, totally jelly over that one) and even edit them for me. 

I adore this picture! Not only can you see Brigitta's chubby legs as Brent tosses her in the air, but in the background Piper is carrying Ireland around while Liesel is looking at her reflection in the glass. Brent and I quietly wondered if Piper's exertions with Ireland were partly to blame for her ailment. 

Piper and Paisley came swimming at the hotel pool with us. All seemed right with the world. Then I received a text from Reagan in the early morning hours the day of Piper's baptism. She'd taken Piper to the ER with severe pain near her right hip. The next 24 hours were filled with inconclusive test after inconclusive test: urology reports, ultrasounds, CT scans, sonograms. They looked for kidney stones and appendicitis. Finally after a new ultrasound just for good measure, she was diagnosed with an ovarian torsion. For an eight year old with no cyst or tumor, it's extremely rare for an ovary to twist like Piper's did. She was airlifted to Johns Hopkins and underwent emergency surgery. 

Before the drama. Piper reading to Ireland (notice she'd also given her a stuffed animal to cuddle).

When we first visited Piper in the hospital, she scooted over so Ireland could get into bed with her. Then Piper made the mistake of showing Ireland the controls to the bed. At one point I was worried Ireland would accidentally fold them both in half. She wouldn't even take her finger off the controls for the picture!

This one is post-surgery at Johns Hopkins. What an amazing hospital! Piper talked more about the helicopter ride than anything else. 

 I think it goes without saying the baptism didn't happen. Text messages were flying between family spread all across the country and I was fielding phone calls from a very concerned Mom and Dad in South Africa to boot. Everyone was holding their breath and fervently praying for Piper. Poor Reagan was exhausted, stressed, worried beyond belief. Brent gave Piper and Reagan a blessing. I decided to give Piper the quilt I'd been keeping as a surprise for her baptism at the hospital. Although it was intended to help remind her how the Holy Ghost can be a comforter, it took on a whole new meaning as she endured excruciating pain, then endless prodding, then surgery and recovery.

We got to have Paisley hang out with us at the hotel and have a sleepover while Piper recovered. Thank goodness for youthful innocence! The cousins were again just happy to be together; seemingly oblivious to the drama happening around them.

As we headed back to Iowa, Ireland had the worst asthma attack yet in her tender life. We uninstalled her car seat and took turns holding her (please don't call CPS on us!) while we drove exactly 7 miles over the speed limit almost the whole way. We headed back to Iowa with nothing of the experience we thought we'd have. Still, we were SO glad to be there and help out in any small way. More than anything, we are so very glad Piper is okay.

Brigitta is ONE!!!

Since her first birthday is happening here in Iowa, we decided to get Brigitta's pictures in a tiered, ruffled, overall jumper. I used quite a bit of gel to tame her dandelion fluff. Although it was nearing her nap time, Brigitta was generous with the toothy grins.

We also did some photos in this outfit from the Gymboree French line... one of my favorite lines of all time!

It seems like every time we get photos of Brigitta, Brent and I disagree on the "money shot." So help me out here, which one do you like better? This one? (Brent's favorite)

 Or this one? (My favorite)

Not to sway your vote or anything, but she put her hand on her chin with no direction whatsoever. And you can see her baby blues better in mine. But ya know, what's your honest opinion?

This little one is so full of joy. I'm often asked if she's always happy. She has her moments of course, like any baby but her default setting is exuberant. Her sisters just adore her and I can practically see the space she's carved out for herself in her father's heart. As content as she is to just be tucked in and taken along, she also demands attention when she needs it and knows how to stand up for herself. Brigitta is no shrinking violet which will serve her well. She makes me laugh and smile every day. I love this little girl so very much and I kiss her smooth rosy cheeks as much as possible. Congratulations on your first trip around the sun Brigitta! 

Orange-glazed Cinnamon Rolls

As I'm catching up on my blogging, I'm realizing how many posts center around food. Sorry, I am pregnant after all! While Brent was in San Francisco I knew I'd never be able to make it to church with all 3 girls intact. Our sweet so sweet babysitter even offered to come over and help get everyone ready. But even so, I knew I'd never be able to manage the squirmy baby all by my onesie for 3 hours. Essentially, we'd get dressed up just so I could spend the entire time in the lobby chasing after Brigitta. So in the interest of sanity, we skipped church. To make the day somewhat special, I made cinnamon rolls with an orange glaze as part of breakfast. Believe it or not, the girls were skeptical. Until they got a taste of that glaze that is.

Morning Sunshine!

I sent this video to Brent of Brigitta first thing in the morning. While he was in San Francisco, he watched it over and over and he tells me it made him horribly homesick. I'm not posting this because it's a one-off, I'm posting it because this is what she's like every morning.

How would you like to have someone help you greet the day like this? She's such a happy little soul!  

Cupcakes

I knew Brent would roll his eyes and ask if I really needed to spend the money on fancy cupcakes for kids who are perfectly happy with a handful of MnMs. But when you have little girls and a cupcake place that has so many photo ops, sometimes you just have to!

Proof that sometimes, just sometimes, my girls share without being asked!

See their reflection in the mirror?

I love the swings in this place! So do the girls.

San Francisco Fog

As seen on Design Mom, I just had to repost this here because I found it so beautiful and calming. Brent pointed out it was filmed over 2 years. As a native of the Bay Area, he knows the fog does not move quite that fast!

 

Two Blondes Go Into a Salon...

After a summer of sun and chlorine, the girls were in desperate need of a trim. Liesel also decided to take scissors to Ireland's curls and lopped off chunks (CHUNKS!!!) of hair. The damage was bad enough I decided to take them to my Aveda salon rather than one of the cutesy kids places. I'm always worried about taking the girls to a high-end place like a nice department store or a fancy restaurant where kids are persona non grata. My concerns were for naught at this salon--everyone was SO nice to them!

Before: straggly, damaged, uneven hair.

Getting a treatment to remove the last of the chlorine. iPhone photo, not the best.

Liesel is very observant as she gets her blowout.

Ireland on the other hand, is a bit bored during her trim. She had gotten one recently from her sister, after all.

After: beautiful, shiny, perfectly even hair. 

Is It Really a Temper Tantrum...

...if the second you finish snapping photos of the weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth, your child contentedly sits by your side, curious to see which Instagram filter you're going to use?

Summer Is...

This:

 And this:

 And this:

 And this:

There's 10 pages to that suggested reading list! We've been cruising through that sucker.

It's naps and sunscreen and learning to ride a well-earned bike. It's movies with a huge bucket of popcorn in an overly air-conditioned theater. It's swim lessons and warm baths afterwards to scrub chlorine out of hair that is in desperate need of a trim. It's drives through Amish country to see the horse and buggies and it's dripping ice cream from Dane's Dairy. It's first jumps off the diving board, first tastes of froyo, and last days before full-time school. It's sunsets that splash stunningly saturated hues of pink and purple across the sky before giving way to the deep blue nighttime, punctuated with sparkling stars. It's salads and tank tops. It's running around the backyard and screaming for joy because the construction equipment nearby drowns out everything anyway. It's coming to a close and I can hardly believe I've just about survived another hot summer while being pregnant. Fortunately, the girls don't seem any worse for the wear.