Things To Do (in May) List

There are a few things that I need to work on with Belli that I have been putting off for various reasons.  Most of them are logical reasons but some of it is that I'm kinda lazy.  So I am going to write out this to do list so I can hold myself accountable.  I really have no reason to put these things of any longer after May so I'm just going to have to buckle down and do it!  Ok, so here is my list and my reasons why I haven't done it yet.

1.  Potty training.
This one is probably the most logical and reasonable one as to why I haven't done it yet.  Obviously since Belli can't walk yet her getting to the potty by herself is sort of out of the question.  Our bathroom is upstairs so that means I have to walk up the stairs while carrying her every single time she need to go potty.  This isn't so bad now but when she had the halo on for almost 6 months I wasn't really all about that.  But then once she got the halo off I started school and working another day out of the weeks so I am never home enough days in a row and since the key to potty training is consistency I didn't think we would be very successful.  Lastly, I have always heard that the best way for them to train is to just let them go without a diaper on so they can feel themselves be wet.  Since I already have work, school, homework, and doctors and therapy appointments cleaning up pee that Belli has dragged across the floor while scooting was not something I wanted to add to my list.  But, I will be finished with this semester at the beginning of May so I will be home everyday except Friday and Saturday so I should be able to do it now.  She is pretty close to being trained so hopefully it won't be too hard.

2.  Teach her to eat with a spoon and fork.
There are a couple of reasons I have put this off too.   I had always planned on waiting until she either got her collar off or she was two.  My reasoning behind this is that when a child learns to use utensils it's not exactly a clean experience.  Her collar only comes with two sets of pads so I would have to wash and clean them each time she ate because they would obviously get very dirty, and then smelly if I didn't.  So I thought that if she didn't have her collar off by the time she was two I would just suck it up and get prepared for a lot of collar pad washing.

Well, as most of you know in August when she turned two she was in the halo and vest so self feeding was again out of the question.  The fake wool underneath the vest didn't come out so there was no way to get it clean.  So I thought I would just wait until she was out of the halo and collar free.  Well that didn't happen either.  She came out of the halo and straight back into the collar for what was supposed to be only a few months.  So again my plan was to wait until she got her collar off.  Well if you read this post you will know that we found out recently that Belli will not be getting her collar off until after her next fusion which will probably be around five.  So seeing as that I can't wait until she is five to teach her how to feed herself I guess I will not just suck it up and do it. 

She also has some problems with arm and hand strength that is needed for feeding.  Also, since she can't look down because of her fusion we are going to have to figure out a way for her to be able to see her food to be able to scoop it up and put it in her mouth. 

3.  Teach her how to hold an open cup
I have avoided this for all of the same reasons as above.  Can you guys tell that I really don't handle mess well?

So there is my to do list for May.  Wish us luck!

Fun in the Sun

When I was in New York at the Bronx Zoo I bought a box that came with materials to make and paint a bird house.  I thought that would be a fun thing for Belli and me to do when I got back home.  So on the next pretty day we had we sat outside and I built the bird house and the let Belli paint it.  She did a great job!

FYI...Yes there is a roof to the bird house.  I just forgot to take pictures of it.

Getting to Know You

As I sit here in bed bored and missing Belli who is away for the weekend I thought now would be as good a time as any do Keely's Getting to Know You.  So here it is!

1.  Why did you start blogging?
I started blogging in June of 2009 when I found out Belli would need a spinal fusion.  I wanted to be able to keep everyone updated and not have to worry about calling people.

2.  Who is the one blog friend you would want to meet most in real life?
Probably Kate or Mama M.  They have both been really great friends to me!


3.  Why are you always concerned about losing that "extra 10 pounds"?
Because then my pants would probably fit better.  Duh!

4.  What's the one thing you wish guys could understand about you?
Well I guess it's not really important right now because I'm not dating but when or if I ever do again I hope that I find someone who understands that all I need is to feel loved and honesty.

5.  Tattoos-how many do you have and how many are visible when you wear everyday clothes.
One. None.

6.  What was the best year of your life and why?
My freshman year of college!  It was awesome.  I was 3.5 hours away from home.  I joined a sorority, met lots of new people, had a boyfriend, partied all the time (until 11pm when it was time for me to go to bed), and still managed to make dean's list my first semester. 

7.  Name three things you would do if you were a man for a day.
First, I would pee standing up as many times as I could.  I am so jealous that I can't stand up to pee.  It's so convenient!
Second, I would try to drive some where that I didn't really know how to get to so I could test the "men have a better since of direction" theory.
Third, I would join a tackle football team.

8.  What's your alcoholic drink of choice that usually raises a few eyebrows?
My drinks of choice are usually girly frozen drinks so that doesn't really raise eyebrows.  

Five Question Friday

Here are Belli's answer to this weeks Five Question Friday by Mama M.

1.  Did you pass you drivers test on the first try?
Well if the way I drive my walker is any indication of how I will drive a car, then no probably not.

2.  What is your most embarrassing moment?
I'm only two.  I don't get embarrassed yet!  Although I do embarrass my mommy frequently.

3.  What TV show would you like to be on?  Oprah, Biggest Loser, or What Not to Wear?
Well I definitely don't need to be on Biggest Loser and my mommy has impeccable clothing taste for me.  I think I would like to go on Oprah and spread awareness about Larsen's Syndrome.

4.  Would you ever get plastic surgery and what kind?
Plastic surgery?  On this pretty face?  No way!

5.  What are your favorite jeans to wear?
So far the ones that have fit the best are from Children's Place.  The only problem is that I have grown out of the 18 months but the 24 months are too big.  So I guess their jeans really aren't that great.

The Serenity Prayer

You know the one...

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

The part about accepting the things I cannot change and the wisdom to know the difference has always been hard for me.  But I have made a vow to myself to try a little bit harder to figure out the difference and to accept those things I deem unchangeable.  No matter how badly I want to change them or they need to be changed for the sake of others.

Can I get an amen!

 

Belliisms 2

Here are some more of Belli's recent misspeaks and funny sayings.  You can read my first Belliisms post here.

When Belli goes to physical therapy at Children's her favorite thing to do it jump with the jumbees.  Also known as bungees.

One of her favorite nursery rhymes is, "Sing a Song of Picnics."  AKA "Sing a Song of Sixpence."

Since she has been sick the past couple of days with a sinus infection I gave her a popsicle to try to help her throat feel better.  She keeps telling everyone she ate a bicycle.

Yesterday when we got to out car after leaving Target there was a little boy sitting in a cart right next to our car.  I went to open the car door and put the stuff in an I could here Belli say, "Hey!  Well hey there!"  I don't know if the little boy didn't hear her or if he just didn't understand her but he didn't say hey back.  So then Belli looked at him and said yelled, "HEY!  Say hey to Isabelle!"

Yesterday we were sitting outside and Belli was eating crackers.  Our dog kept trying to come over and eat her crackers and Belli kept telling her, "No no Bagel.  Don't eat my crackers."  Each time Bagel would back away and then she tried again and Belli looked at her and said, "Don't you even think about!"

Tonight she was trying to open one of those Silly Puddy eggs.  After trying for a little while she mumbled, "I'll figure it out."

Oh Belli.  How you make me laugh.

Food for Thought

I have had a lot on my mind the past couple of days with the new health care bill being passed.  If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook you know my stance on the matter.  To say I am ecstatic about this might be an understatement.  This bill could mean so many great things for so many people, myself and my daughter included.

I have heard and read what the naysayers think about this bill and it hurts my heart to see the hatefulness in some people.  The lack of caring for others less fortunate is really sickening to me.  There are many statements that I have heard over the past couple of days that I won't go into detail about but there is one in particular that I wanted to touch on today because it has stood out the most to me for two reasons. 

It has been said in various forms but the gist of it is that this health care reform is socialized medicine.  There are two reasons this has stood out to me and bothered me the most.  The first being that this reform IS NOT socialized medicine.  There is no reason for me to argue the point because I'm sure it will not do any good so I'm not going to.  But the second, and really most important reason, is that most of the people making these comments are Christian.  I know this because I either know them or they have it on their info page on Facebook or I have been a member on message boards with them long enough to know.

My problem with this is that the majority of these people are the first ones to throw the Bible in your face, quoting scripture, and telling you what Jesus would want (like they know).  So my question (however cliche it may be) to all of those people is, "What would Jesus do?"

He would be a socialist. 

Wouldn't he want the same care for everyone no matter what he had to sacrifice for it.  Didn't he sacrifice his life so that everyone else could live a happy life?  So if he can sacrifice his life for us what is such a big deal about you sacrificing whatever it is that you think you are going to lose with this health care reform?

For those who are angry because they have to pay more taxes...isn't that better than having people who cannot afford health insurance and are dying or drowning in bills because of it?

For those who are angry because they think the quality of our health care will now go down (which I do not believe will be the case)...Isn't it better that everyone get the same quality health care than some people getting great health care because they can afford it while others don't get any at all?

I believe these are all things Jesus would agree with.  And wasn't the whole point of God putting Jesus on Earth to give us a human example of him to try and strive toward? 

Just a little food for thought.  I hope I gave some of you a different perspective on the matter.  Feel free to leave comments.  Feel free to disagree but please keep it friendly! 

Yes We Can

New York Day 3 and 4

Finally!  Here are some pictures day 3 and 4 of my New York trip.  Day 3 was taken at Top of the Rock (which is the top of the Rockefeller Center).  We also went the Museum of Modern Art that day but I didn't get any pictures there.  Day 4 was at the Statue of Liberty and Times Square.  We ended up not being able to actually go to the Statue of Liberty but we did go to Battery Park which is where the ferry leaves from.  So I took some pictures of the Statue from there.

So first up....Picture of the New York City sky line from the Top of the Rock.

Here is the Empire State Building

Here is a view of Central Park from the sky.  Sorry if you can't see these pictures very well.  It was raining that day.

And here are some other random pictures of other buildings.

Here is a picture of the Statue of Liberty

And these a probably my favorite.  These are from Times Square which is probably the coolest place ever.  They have a three floor store devoted just to M&M's.  It was awesome.

So that was my New York trip in a nut shell.  We went to the Bronx Zoo on Wednesday and I took some pictures there.  I may or may not post those later.  It was a really awesome zoo though.  It was huge and had every animal you could imagine.

Hope you enjoyed my pictures!

I Hate Going to Neuro Appointments

Because they never turn out well.

We went today for another check up and as always the news was not favorable.

It looks as though the second fusion and parts of the first fusion have not taken.  Meaning the pieces of her rib and the bones chips that were used did not harden to her spine like they were supposed to.  Her doctor thinks this is because she is so young and her bones are still so soft (basically still cartilage) that the piece of rib he used was not strong enough and her body is more or less just absorbing the bone.

Right now the instrumentation that is put in to keep everything in place until the bones fuse is doing the job but over time they will start to wear down and probably break.  He said on average they last about two years.  At that time, and if her doctor feels her bones are strong enough he will try again. 

The only bit of good news we got is that since she is wearing the collar and it is doing most of the work then the instrumentation might last a little longer.  However, that does mean that she will be in the collar indefinitely.    

So instead of being told I could start taking her collar off some which I was hoping for we found out that her fusion has not worked and she will remain in the collar for probably years.

Needless to say, I am bummed. 

And I promise...I will post NY pictures tomorrow!

Home!

I am back home from my trip to New York!  Boy have I missed my Belli cuddles!  I'm off to bed now though since I have to get up early for Belli's doctors appointment tomorrow.  I will post about it tomorrow and some more pictures from my trip.  I miss New York but I am so glad to be home!  Talk to everyone soon =-)

New York Day 2

We spent day two at The American Museum of Natural History and Bodies:  The Exhibition.  Both of them were really cool.  We weren't allowed to take pictures at the Bodies exhibition so I only have pictures from the museum but here they are!

Oh, by the way.  Don't ask me exactly what the pictures are of because quiet honestly I don't know any of the names of the dinosaurs or fish or anything.

New York Day 1

I'm cold.  I'm wet.  I'm exhausted.  But I am having a blast!!! 

We left my sister's house this morning and walked a couple of blocks to the train station in the Bronx which took us to Grand Central Station.

 Then we went to Mary Poppins.  It was awesome!  I wanted to sing so bad but I figured that wasn't a very good idea.  Here is a picture of the billboard.

 After that we went to Hard Rock Cafe and had dinner.  As always they had some really awesome music stuff but by far the best one was this guitar signed by Paul McCartney.

 Here are a couple of other pictures from Hard Rock Cafe.

 And here is a picture of the gross train tracks.

And here is a picture of some...differently dressed girls.  My cousin was "taking a picture" of my sister and me but really she was trying to get a picture of them.  I cropped us out though because the picture was really horrible.

 
 Tomorrow:  American Museum of Natural History and Bodies:  The Exhibition.

Guess Who Was on my Flight to NY?!?!

MARLO THOMAS!!!!!

I wasn't even in New York yet before I saw a celebrity.  She was on my connecting flight from Memphis which make since because St. Judes is in Memphis.  She was sitting on the first row (in first class, duh)!  And then I saw her again at baggage claim. 

However, the best part of the trip so far was the guy in the airport picking up his two girls (who I assume were his daughters) looked at my Alabama shirt and told me "Roll Tide!"  I could have hugged him.

As far as my actual flight goes...Once I get home from New York I am quite certain I will never fly again unless I absolutely have too.  It was awful.  I hated it just as much as I thought I would.  And it was so rainy and windy when we started our descent in New York that I was quite certain the plane was going to flip over.  Obviously it didn't.

I don't have any pictures yet because I haven't been anywhere but today's schedule includes Mary Poppins, Times Square, and The Hard Rock Cafe.  Hopefully I can post pictures tonight or tomorrow morning!

Five Question Friday

I will be leaving for New York today at 4:30!  I have never flown before and I am really nervous terrified!  Please pray for calm!  I may or may not be blogging while I am gone but I will try my best to post some pictures while I am up there.  If not then I will see you guys next Thursday!  In the mean time here is this weeks Five Question Friday.  Thanks Mama M for hosting!  Here are Belli's answers.

1.  How much time do you spend on the computer a day?
I touch all the computers in the house as often as I can while mommy isn't looking.  Actually I just touch them anytime even though I know I'm not supposed to and I know I will get in trouble.

2.  Will you pay for your children's college or will you raise them to pay for their own?
Well my Mimi paid for my mommy's college and my mommy is hoping to help pay for mine.  So I would like to keep with tradition and pay for my children's too.

3.  Have you ever been in a car accident?
No.  So far my mommy has been and impeccable driver!

4.  What is your favorite book?
I love the Where is the Puppy series that Sesame Street does.  Those are the books I read when I am doing my business.

5.  Do you make your bed everyday?
Nope.  I'm still in my crib with just the crib sheet so there is nothing to make up!  Mommy would probably like to keep it that way for as long as possible.

I Got a New Memory Card. See!

I'm Running Out of Time Before NY!

If you remember my post from Saturday with my virtual to do list you will know that I have a lot to do before I leave for New York on Friday.  I've only done one of those things on the list.  And that was get makeup.  I haven't done anything else.  And I also need to add washing my sweaters to the list.  Because you know, it's cold in New York.  I have to do a few hours of observations today and then I have class tonight so hopefully I will be able to get all of this stuff done tomorrow.  Hopefully...

My sister made us a tentative itinerary and email it to me the other day.  Here is a list of the places we are going:

Seeing Mary Poppins
Eating dinner in Times Square at the Hard Rock Cafe (I collect glasses from there)
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park
Dinner in The Village (not sure what restaurant yet though) 
Bodies Museum
Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island tour
The Today Show (unless I decided I don't want to get up that early)
Top of the Rock or Empire State Building.  Not sure which yet.
Lunch in Little Italy
Chinatown
The Bronx Zoo

We have a lot to do!!  And I still have a lot to do here before I go do all that there.  Here's to having a productive next couple of days!

Saturday Morning Thoughts

I must go get a new memory card for my camera.  MUST!  Mama M and CFMama have both requested a video of Belli's Asian singing that I referred to in my 5QF post yesterday.  Of course when I got home from work yesterday Belli was just Asian singing away and I couldn't record it.  I was also looking through the last few pages of my blog and there are no Belli pictures.  Why?  Because I have no memory on my memory card!  Poor Belli hasn't gotten her picture taken in at least a month.  What a horrible momma I am!

I need to go to the mall and get some more makeup.  I think I can only scrape out enough powder for one more day.

I need to start thinking about what I am going to pack for my trip to New York which I leave for in SIX DAYS.  I think I may vomit.  I have never flown before and I am terrified.  And my cousin who is going with me called me last night because she is terrified of staying in the Bronx where my sister lives.  Funny that I'm not scared of that but I am afraid of a flipping airplane. 

Which reminds me that I need to go get a memory cards so I can take pictures while I am there.  Oh wait.  I already needed to get a memory card anyway.  See I already forgot!  

Ah!  Where dos my brain go?!?!

I also need to order some of Belli's pictures that were taken for The Bell Center composite.  She's graduating this year!  Can you believe that?  I am so depressed. 

I need to go to work today which means I should probably quit typing out my virtual to do list.  If any of you want to comment or tweet me through out the day to remind me to do these things that would be great!  Thanks!

Five Question Friday

Yay for Mama M's Five Question Friday!  I didn't get to do it last week so I was starting to have withdrawals.  So here are Belli's answers to this weeks questions!

1.  What is your guilty pleasure?
My blankey.  Although I shouldn't really feel guilty about it. 

2.  What is your favorite TV series?
Sesame Street.  Duh!

3.  Can you speak any foreign languages?
I can sing in an Asian language that my mommy has yet to decipher.

4.  How many pairs of shoes to you own?
Two.  My tennis shoes that I wear with my AFO's.  They look sort of like this.  And my brown Pedipeds.

5.  What is your favorite kind of M&M?
A plain blue one.  They make my mouth blue =-)

That's it!  If you want to play along make sure you head on over to Mama M's blog and link up!

Cheeky

I really love this word, cheeky.  It sounds so British and formal.  And it was the only other word I could think of to use in place of the original title of this post.  I'll give you a hint.  It starts with smart and ends with a word that rhymes with brass.  I didn't think that would really be appropriate.  And I love the word cheeky.  So I used it.  And the cheeky person I am referring to is none other than the subject of this blog.  The one and only Belli.

For those of you who don't know Belli she can be a bit...cheeky.  Always has to have the last word.  Always has to be right.  I wonder where she got that from?  Not me...surely.

So those of you who I am not Facebook friends with have not had the honor of hearing Belli's latest cheeky moment.

Last week while at The Bell Center one of the teachers was trying to show Belli that three snow balls made a snowman.  So she put one snowball down and Belli told her it was one snowball.  She put another snowball down and Belli told her there were two snowballs.  She put another snowball down and Belli told her there were three snowballs.  The teacher told her she was right and asked her what you got when you put three snowballs together trying to get her to say a snowman.  Belli looked at her for a few seconds and said, "Uh...a big snowball."  Duh!

And she's only 2 and a half.  Just imagine what she might be like as a teenager.  Bless my soul.

Also today, I asked Belli where her noggin was.  She told me it was in the living room.  I asked her to go find it for me.  So she went in the living room and looked around for a while.  I kept asking her where it was and after she couldn't find it in the living room she told me, "Oh, it must be in the dining room."