Kate is 8

I can't believe my little girl is 8 years old. In our religious community, turning 8 is a big deal because children can choose to be baptized once they have turned 8. Kate has been counting down the years, seriously! When she was 5, she started to ask how many years it would be before she could be baptized. 

Kate has proven that she is made of pretty tough stuff over the course of her young life. She has been through a lot, but has learned at a young age how to cope and deal with a lot of deep emotions. We moved a year ago, and she has had to switch schools 3 times since the end of 1st grade. She has quickly made friends and made herself comfortable in her new surroundings. She is definitely a social butterfly, and wants play dates every single day! 

She has been awarded a few times this year for her character and her awesome job in school. She has increased her reading level by a grade and half this year and worked so hard for that! She does awesome in spelling and math, and loves to write in her journal. 

Kate usually plays "Family" at recess with a big group of kids in her class. If they are not playing "Family", then they running from the boys! According to her, she is the only child in her class that hasn't "clipped down" on the behavior chart and she is very proud of that! 

She is quiet and meekly mannered at school, but at home is most often a different story! She runs in the house after school and goes straight to the swing in the backyard or the bars and spends the next hour or so "unwinding". She and her sister are either best friends or worst enemies! I can hear them playing/fighting from any room in the house. There are lots of giggling and screaming in the Taylor Household! 

Kate has been practicing Taekwondo for the last year and has some serious skills. She is currently a purple belt. She hopes to earn her Black Belt in the next 2 years. She evens out the weapons at TKW, with makeup! She loves to wear mascara, glittery eye shadow and lipstick when I am not looking!

We are so thankful to have Kate in our family. She has been our constant for the last 8 years, when everything else has changed. She loves and lives fiercely. I am so excited for her to be baptized. She has a really big heart, and is going to do amazing things in her life. I am grateful I get to teach her and lead her along while she is still my little girl. 

Swinging in a hammock with Lola

I have these moments with my kids that feel so perfect and full of love that I tell myself there is no way I could ever forget it. But I have learned that my mind does not store these perfect moments as crystal clear as I would hope. 

This afternoon Lola found me, grabbed my hand, and lead me to the kitchen and asked for a snack. Realizing it was lunchtime,  I told her we would have a picnic in the backyard. As I made our lunch, she looked around for "banket." I sat down on the blanket outside and she said, "Jus a minute Mama. I need ta geta water frum the wittle fwige." I heard the little outdoor fridge open, and she rounded the corner with a huge smile, water in one hand and Diet Coke in the other. Surprisingly she handed ME the Diet Coke and said, "For you Mama!" She was excited to see our lunch was a hot dog, chips, and blueberries. She said, "Mmmmm, soo soo bery good!" 

After our lunch she wanted to play Hide and Seek. She always says, "I count to 4 and you hide, ok Mama?" We ended up in the hammock together for the next hour. We went from hiding from each other, to hiding from the dog, to rowing our boat, and watching the bird and bees fly overhead. She kept laying on me with her chubby little arms around my neck. 

Both the girls love when I make up stories about them wearing fancy clothes and high heels and usually having some super powers and glittering wings.  She asked for a story and when I told her what she was wearing in the story her eyes lit up and she did a quick audible inhale and long exhale and then kissed me! After my story she made up a story about her friend named "Mama friend" who could fly and got all the purple ice cream from the ice cream man and shared it with everyone. Then Mama was eating cotton candy and Lola started to act like I was the cotton candy and tried to "eat me all up!" I didn't mind that at all!

These little people are exhausting, they really are. This morning when I felt the tap, tap, tap on my shoulder, I wanted to turn over and keep sleeping. Moments like today with Lola make the endless diapers, dishes, chores, and carpooling fade to the distance. I want a thousand more of these moments and will trudge through the exhaustion and dishes to get them when they come! 

Lola the NUT

 My Lola Bloom is 2 and 1/2. She is the biggest nut I have ever met. I wish there were words to describe the straight up crazy fun that she is. 

She wakes up around 7 and yells for anyone who will listen. "Mom and Dad! Dad, help me! Ana? Elsa! Elsssssaaaa! Ani! Annnnniiiiii. Mama? KK? Kaaaattteeeeee!" It is the best way to wake up, because every morning is something different and it cracks us up. 

She is obsessed with clothes. After we say goodmorning, she always says, "Got to get dressed." She picks a shirt, pants, bow, and a diaper. And that is just the first outfit choice of the day. Yesterday she changed her clothes about 10 times. No joke. Each time she takes off ALL of her clothes and diaper and wants a new diaper with her new outfit. Her hair also needs to change every time. She is currently in love with tank tops and shorts. Which is fine, except it is February. I've tried to tell her they are "Summertime" clothes. Which didn't help, because now she just cries, "I want myyyyyyy summertime clothes!" One of my favorite outfit choices is a diaper, hat on backwards, and a backpack. 

Lola wants to party all day. She is constantly asking me, "Where we goin' mama!?" She is excited to follow me everywhere, even just to the laundry room or bathroom! Her favorite part of the day is when we pick up Kate from school. She always runs, screams her name and gives her a big hug. Then she spends the next 10 minutes trying to talk to all of Kate's classmates, their parents, the teacher, principal, or anyone who will listen to her stories. She loves to dance, especially naked. She has a pretty good "nakey dance" routine! She gets her moves from her Dad!

She wants to snack all day. A true grazer. Obsessed with yogurt and skinned apples. She is a big fan of gum, and asks for it constantly. She usually eats her lunch on the go, and if we are ever at home for lunch, she still wants it in her special tupperware she uses in the car. She is a true On-The-Go girl. 

Her personality is so strong. She is adventurous, curious, daring, and really funny. She is kinda sneaky, and gets into everything. Everything is AMAZING to her. She hears sirens and she runs to the window and under her breath says, "Fireworks!" When she hears the trashtruck she gets a little fired up because she knows they took her pumpkin and Christmas Tree. But today she said, "There it is! He is takin' all our poop!" And speaking of poop...she learned how to potty talk this week. "What is on your face Lola" "Poop! HAHAHA!" "What do you want for lunch?" "Poopy Diaper!" Diaper Head is also a favorite. She is tough. She both legs and feet are covered in bruises and scrapes. She barely slows down when she takes a fall. Usually she laughs!

When it is quiet, that means she is being naughty, 100% of  the time. She is putting on lipstick, getting into paint, playing with scissors, unwinding the TP, eating dog food, coloring on the walls, etc. At the park if you can't find her, it is because she has climbed up the rock wall and is hanging 4 feet up. If her eyes are open, she is on full speed.

Lola is so sweet. She has brought our family so much JOY. I wondered if I could ever feel that again after we lost Ruby. While I don't feel like it is full joy, there is JOY and it is great. I say not full joy because in those moments that just feel so perfect and full of love and everything good, there is always a little tugging at my heart telling me that someone is missing. I know that Ruby is with us a lot. But I know that one day, when I am reunited with her psychically , there will be a full measure of joy. I can't wait for that day. In the meantime, these little people I am raising keep me so happy and so busy! 

Lola has been talking about Ruby a lot. She was over the moon about celebrating her Birthday. She sang "Happy Birthday" 50 times that week. She talked about her, sang to her, picked out flowers for her, wanted to make "pupcakes" for her. She knows that Ruby is her sister and includes her in naming her family members and I LOVE that! Lola was playing in the playroom the other day and when I passed she said. "Mom! Ruby come home and give me a hug!" Definitely stopped me in my tracks! 

I am so thankful for this crazy girl that is keeping me on my toes! She is the best little thing ever. 

 

Starting again...

I let 2015 pass without a single post. How did that happen? This space has been confusing for me. I use to blog so much when Kate was a baby. I love looking back on her every milestone. And then it was my outlet when Ruby was sick. I have gone back looking for something twice, and read entries from when Ruby was sick, and it really sent me into a tailspin. I am almost afraid of opening these "pages" in my book. The pain of losing Ruby will never go away, but reading about the details of her struggle are often times too much for my heart. This blog became hers in those 7 months. I am happy that I was able to share her story, to write down her stories, to preserve her memory from her mother's perspective. 

I would like to start writing here again. I want to chronicle these years I have with my little girls, because they are fleeting. They will never be this little again. I want to bottle their childhood up as much as I am able! 

Ruby is always with us. She is with us when we have big family events. She is with us when we watch the sunset every night at the beach. She is with us when we have crazy dance parties in the kitchen. She is always there, even if we can't see her.  She wants us to live fully, dream wild, and love fiercely. Now, I just need to start recording it all again! 

Potty Training

It's a big day for Lola Bloom! Kate has been trying to months to get her excited about potty training. She has spent a few minutes sitting on the little potty chair, but mostly asking about the Sesame Street Characters on the seat. Today she stood up while eating breakfast and declared she needed to go potty. We went in, she sat down and wanted to get down immediately. I told her I would go get my phone for her to play on. When I got back, her eyes were huge and she screamed, "I pooped!" And sure enough, she had. We did a lot of clapping and dancing and hugging! She followed me into the kitchen so I could give her two M&Ms, and then said, "I poop again!" I turned around, and yup, she had pooped again, on the rug, and then proceeded to step in it! She might be out third kiddo, but every milestone is just as exciting as the first time around. Even when it involves poop! I never want to forget how proud she was of herself.