Here's a little something that made my week yesterday!

Here's what came in the mail yesterday, that warmed my heart, and put a smile on both mine and Em's faces!

This was the box

And this was what was inside

That is the single, cutest travel bag I have ever seen (my two favorite colors together!) to use at the hospital. An activity book for Em, that she already made me open, I only let her do one page, so that we could save the rest for when she's in that hospital bed for who knows how long! And a very sweet card!

This is all the doing of a fellow 18q mom. Might I add, we have never met her in person, only communicate via blogs, email and Facebook. To see her beautiful family and little girl, click here.

This made me so grateful for the connections I have made because of my wonderful little girl! There may only be a small group of us in the world, but it is true that we are a true family. And even though I haven't met all of them, I feel like I know them as well as I know my family or my best friends. Amazing, is all I can say. And I am so grateful everyday for these most wonderful people. 

I was especially grateful yesterday for you Mandi, and your sweet family! Thank you so much for making my day and whole week really! 

After over 2 1/2 years....this girl finally has a room!!

Sad? I know, and pointless? maybe. That last one being because, our house is up for sale. But, I still felt like this girl deserved a proper room in her first home. 

The biggest work on it, is all due to Steve. He organized and rearranged when we first decided to transition her to sleeping in there, back in December. Then he worked tirelessly, day and night to finally finish her crib when she and I were in Sedona for Spring Break. 

I have no excuse for her not having a finished room until now. The crib was a big, right, pain in the you know what! We could never find the style I wanted for less than $900 which was way out of our price range! Then one day while at Burlington, we saw one the exact style I wanted, that was a floor sample, clearanced, for about $200, score! The only problem was, it was not the color I wanted (which was dark), but since it was a floor model, it was kind of scuffed up anyway, so either way we would have to refinish it! Little did we know, what a task that entailed! We tried putting finish over the top, but it wouldn't stick to the old finish. So, then we tried sanding it, which took FOREVER! We tried calling a couple sand-blasting facilities, but none of them would do it. So, we gave up for awhile. Yeah like 2 and a half years! Then the surprise when we came home from Sedona (if you remember in this post).

And now, I have been working on this for the past week, and I'm finally done! Well, almost......still would like to hang some pictures. And I wish I would have painted (which would have been a pale yellow), but that really would have been pointless. 

So, without further ado:

Because of the glare in this one, you can't tell, but that's the poster we had everyone sign at Emarie's first birthday party. 

It might be a little busy, but she LOVES it and helped! And that's what counts!

Love you baby girl, sorry it took me SO long!

You be the judge!

Figured it was about time that I gave you all an update on my cutie pie! Although, she has made progress in the last little while, I have still been a bit frustrated. Because, while she was growing and gaining weight like crazy all of a sudden, we seemed to hit a plateau of sorts in cognitive development. And it seems as though it is a pattern for her, but I never really noticed it until recently, since she had never quite had a true growth spurt. That pattern would be, that when she's growing physically, she seems to slow down cognitively. I know doctors are going to disagree with me on this assessment, but the facts don't lie! Don't get me wrong, this child really needed to grow, and I am happy she did, since I can remember that last year at this time, she had been stuck at about 12 pounds for over 9 months! It's just, that she had been doing so well, and really taken off in communication, was even saying sentences. She's still talking, though not as much, and has really not learned any new words in the last 6 months. 

But, I am happy to report progress of all kinds tonight!!! I'm not sure of her exact stats, since we do not have weekly visits from a nurse anymore. That's right, Emarie does not need them anymore!! But, I'm guessing that her weight is in the ball park of between 20 and 25 lbs! Big milestone, so we finally got to turn this kid's carseat around!! She's loving it! Hard one for mommy to do though. I am a real fanatic when it comes to car safety, as any of you who know me, or have been reading my new blog should know. I am also not sure of her length, but the fact that she's fitting into some 24 month clothes, leads me to believe that she's pretty close to where she needs to be! I can say that about 5 months ago, she was still in 3-6 month clothes, so this is HUGE!! I am also happy to report that for the first time EVER, her feet have grown! She is now snug in size 2's!! Way to go for the growing!!

Now, in the last week or so, I'm thinking we're starting to slow down in the growing, and wouldn't you know it, that little brain is taking off again! Now, I'm going to show you a video, but first I'll explain, then the video will make more sense:

If the words "bye-bye" are said, the girl waves. This is also her universal sign for, "I'm ready for a nap or bed" and "let's get out of here!"

She dances on cue, either you tell her to, or she hears music, and the girl has rhythm too!

Say the word "Yea!" and she claps

Ask for a hug, and she instinctively holds her arms out, and if you are close enough (not seen on the video since I shot it by myself) she will wrap her arms around you and either pat your back, or arm, or whatever she can reach. 

I also didn't think to put this in the video, but, she also will play peek-a-boo with whatever resource is available, if you either say "peek-a-boo" or else say, "where's Emarie?"

I have been told on more than one occasion that my child can't hear. I have also been told that she doesn't understand much of what is said to her. Well, you be the judge of that!

                              

I love shopping with my girl!!

I was just noticing today, because mostly I never pay attention to anyone else. But, today, I made a point to watch others. And it was sad what I noticed. At the store, most moms seem annoyed to be with their kids there. And I don't know, maybe they are just annoyed that they have to be at the store. Not me! In fact, I enjoy it sooo much, because my kid makes it that much better! Em and I have always really enjoyed shopping together. In fact, I don't think there is a place that Em could be happier than in a shopping cart! I mean, it even makes it difficult to get her in the dang thing, because she goes crazy when she's about to go in! And we really make the most of it too. I will wheel her around really fast, and she'll squeal! Or, I'll hop on and ride with her, and I don't really care what anyone thinks! 

I always wanted to be a parent like that, one that enjoyed time with their kid to the fullest! I will never forget a time when I was about 14 and in the car with my mom at the gas station. There was a car parked next to us, with a man pumping gas, and all of a sudden he walked over to his back window and started dancing around, making funny faces, and jumping up and down. It was then that I realized there was a little girl in a carseat in the back that had been crying, and now was laughing at her "silly daddy". I will never forget that. He didn't care how he looked to everyone else. All that mattered was that that little girl in the back seat had a smile on her face, that he was responsible for.

I hope we all can stop and appreciate being with our kids. In 20 years, we won't remember if our house was clean, or what happened in our favorite tv show. But we will remember the time we spent with our children. Hopefully it will have been enough, and good memories. 

An ending of sorts

So, most of you know by now that our family is going through a lot of changes. Hard ones at best. Drastic ones. Drastic enough, that this blog is not really appropriate anymore. 

I've been thinking about what I can do about that, and I don't want to kill this one off, because of all of Em's life being on here. So, for now, redesigning and naming it seems best.

I will though, be starting a new blog as well. Mostly it will be a journal of sorts. I have always found writing very therapeutic (heaven knows I can use all the therapy I can get), and I really like it. I am going to make this blog private, because it's going to be my very personal thoughts. However, the reason I'm telling you this, is because, I will consider inviting anyone who asks me for an invitation. I am going to warn you, most of you do not know everything about me, I can now admit that I have faced horrors in my life that most can't even imagine. That is from outside perspectives, not just my own. This is going to be very raw, and telling it like it is. So, if you don't want to read that, I certainly will understand. Mostly I just need to write it out for me, because there are certain things that have happened to me, that I've only just begun to even admit. 

Here is just an excerpt of what this blog will most likely entail:

Monday- made it into the top 5 worst days of my life. This is a hard list to crack into, I'm not going to elaborate on all of them, because for one I don't like reliving them. But, one, was the day my sister died, a day I can't ever forget, and seems to creep up on me with all it's vivid horrors when I least expect it to. 

Yes, Monday was pretty hard. It is really hard when every last bit of hope that you could maybe work things out with your spouse, is gone. It was really hard being away from Emarie for the first time at night. And being alone at night for the first time in, I can't even remember. I did not sleep, all I could do was recount everything in my head, and stare at the blank and silent video baby monitor. 

This is probably pretty tame compared to what may come, but pretty much along the lines of what it will be. 

So, this will most likely be the last post on this blog as it is. Also, I really would like to know how many people really read this blog. I know I have 13 followers, but not sure if all of those actually read my blog. I'll admit, that I don't read all of the blogs I follow. Mostly just because there are too many, I really would like to read them all, but there's just not enough time. So, if you don't usually comment, but do read this, will you please let me know! You don't have to leave a comment, but you can email me, fb me, or tell me in person! Please, I want to know!

Heavy stuff, but thanks for reading, if you did! I am really grateful how many people are supporting me, in what is proving to be one of the most difficult times in my life. I love you all, and know that your support does not go unappreciated. 

My Chromosomes

A friend of mine posted this on Facebook about her child. I wanted to share it for Emarie

  My Chromosomes may be different

But my feelings the same

I laugh and I cry

And I take pride in my gains

I was sent here among you

To teach you to love

As God in the heavens

Looks down from above

To Him I'm no different

His love knows no bounds

It's those here among you

In cities and towns

That judge me by standards

That man has imparted

But this family I've chosen

Will help me get started

For I'm one of the children

So special and few

That came here to learn

The same lessons as you

That love is acceptance

It must come from the heart

We all have the same purpose

Though not the same start

The Lord gave me life

To live and embrace

And I'll do it as you do

But at my own pace

As we are now closing in on the end of the contest. I would like to beg you all, if you have not voted, please do. And if you have, please encourage all those you know to do the same. 

Click Here to go to the post about the contest.

And please enjoy some pictures of my sweet angel!

Please vote! It's not much to ask for one the most deserving little girl's in the whole world!!

Much love, 

The Peters