Special Olympics

On Friday our class headed to Ames to help out at the Iowa Special Olympics. We helped out in the 'Healthy Athletes' tent. It was a cold day, but we had a good time. I would definitely volunteer again next year if it works out.

It was a very rewarding experience. As I was watching a few wheel chair races in one of the gyms, I couldn't help but notice how proud everyone was of the athletes. Parents, coaches, fellow athletes, siblings, care givers, teachers, etc. were cheering, jumping up and down, screaming, whistling, and even running along side the athletes during the races. You have no idea how loud it was inside the gymnasium! It got even louder as the medals were given at the end of each race. The amount of love in the room brought tears to my eyes.

No one ever wishes their child to have special needs. We feel very blessed to have such a healthy and beautiful little girl. But what if something happens down the road? What if Harper develops a learning disability? What if an accident occurs and she becomes physically disabled? What will happen? How will I feel?

I will feel no different than I already feel now. I will love Harper unconditionally for eternity! And that is EXACTLY what I observed yesterday between the athletes and their families/friends/support team. I saw families from all walks of life, young and old, rich and poor, small families and large families, etc. They all shared one thing in common - they loved their child with special needs just like any other 'normal' child. But most importantly, they were PROUD of their special needs child! I feel so blessed to be just a very small part of something so awesome! I know my life will never be the same again.

PS - The other girls with me in the picture are friends from school.

Warning!

I am warning you all now that my blogs may be few and far in between. My summer class takes up a lot of my time. And when I'm not working on school work, I try to make the most of my time with Adam and Harper. I promise when June 21st roles around I will be a better blogger.

School: I feel like I spend a lot of time doing homework and studying. But I've gotten A's on my two tests so far, so I guess it's worth it. I have enjoyed my clinical experiences for this class. So far I've worked with patients in a detox unit (alcohol and drugs) and at an inpatient group rehab center. It's amazing to see all of the different types of people suffering with addiction. You would NEVER guess that some people are suffering; they have stable/honorable jobs, nice family, good income, etc., yet they are in intense rehab. This had definitely made me think twice about stereotyping people.

Harper: Sugar and Spice. She is either super sweet or super crabby! She is talking like crazy. Her favorite thing to do is listen to nursery rhymes/songs on YouTube. We can't even be on the computer now if she's awake because she'll whine 'bus' until we play a song. (Her fav is 'Wheels on the Bus.') Speaking of buses, Harper got to go on her first school bus a few days ago. We were outside the other day when all of the buses pulled up to the school at 3:30; Harper wanted to go on one. So I took her on one of the buses before the kids got on and she just smiled the whole time. She did NOT want to get off. But we managed to walk along the sidewalk and wave at every bus.....she even got one bus to honk at her! I'm thinking that we're going to have to avoid going outside at 3:30 from now on. Good thing school gets out soon.

Adam: Nothing new to report on Adam. I think he's hoping we can go golfing sometime this weekend.

Where has the time gone?

Time seems to by flying by for me, which is definitely a good thing right now. I can't believe tomorrow is already Friday; it feels like we were home just yesterday celebrating my niece's high school graduation.

My summer class is keeping me very busy, which is why I haven't been blogging much. All my time spent working on class is paying off because I got an 'A' on my first test today!

Anyways, last weekend we went home to celebrate our niece's graduation from high school. I can't believe that Nicole is all grown up now. Nicole will be attending Kirkwood in the fall and plans on going to nursing school! She has been a CNA for the past year at a nursing home, so I know she has what it takes to be a nurse. Good luck Nicole - we love you very much!

And in Harper news, she got to go outside with the 2 and 3 year-olds today at daycare! Probably doesn't sound like a big deal to you, but it is very exciting to me because that means she is that much closer to leaving the nursery! Over the summer they will slowly wean Harper out of the nursery so she will be ready to hang out in the big part all day when her 2nd birthday rolls around. Bitter sweet.

Have a good weekend!

20 Months

Weight: 24.6 lbs

Diaper Size: 3

Clothing Size: bottoms = 18/24 mo, tops = 24 mo/2T

Eating: Harper has been on an eating strike the past week...doesn't eat more than a few bites. She still loves her apply juice though! We've given her a taste of 'junk food' and that's all that she seems to want anymore (chips, ice cream, etc.) Guess it's a good reason to change our eating habits.

Sleeping: Officially down to 1 nap/day. Bedtime is back to 8:00ish and she'll sleep for about 12 hours :)

Speech: It has exploded this past month! Harper does a great job trying to repeat what we say when we ask her to. Some new words that I can think of off the top of my head: nope (she says nope instead of 'no' now), pop, dirty, puppy, basketball, rock-a-bye, Maggie, pee, poop, apple juice, milk, Michael, nap, purple, paci, blankie

Favorite Toy/Activity: Playing with her babies or playing outside

New Things:

• knows the actions to 'The Wheels on the Bus' (her favorite song right now!)


• wants to rock-a-bye before bed


• starting to tell us when she pees in her diaper


• LOVES driving around in the car - she will often whine to 'drive'

Will Harper seriously turn 2 in 4 more months?!!?

Weekend Recap

Last weekend we traveled back home for a wedding of a childhood friend. We had a great time catching up with old friends. Harper came with us and enjoyed dancing at the reception. Adam's parents went to the wedding/reception as well and offered to take Harper home with them when she got tired. It was great having a night 'away.' Here are a few of my favorite pictures of the weekend:

Here are a few videos of Harper dancing:

Slow Dancing with Duckie :)

Random:

Happy 22nd Birthday to my brother, Michael! I hope you enjoyed the 90 degree weather we had today!

We will be heading home again this weekend for our niece's high school graduation.

Tomorrow I start my summer class...and I'm nervous!

I'm not feeling clever enough right now to make an interesting post about Mother's Day. So I'll keep this short, sweet and to the point. First, we would like to say 'THANK YOU' to our mother's for being so awesome! We love you both VERY much!

Second, I had a great day! I love being a mom. I love Harper to pieces. I love Adam even more since he has become a father. I am very thankful to have these to amazing people in my life! I couldn't ask for more :)

I hope all of the mommy's enjoyed their special day! Being a mom is tough work - but very rewarding! Hearing Harper call me 'mommy' is music to my ears :)

Please keep all of those trying to conceive in your prayers today. I imagine that Mother's Day must be a very difficult day for those who desperately want to have a child to call their own.

HAPPY MOTHER's DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Upcoming Blogs:

*pictures from our weekend (and a cute video of Harper)

*Harper's 20 month update

Moving On...

Today I finished my first year of nursing school! I can't believe that I only have one year left; time is flying by! I have one week off before I begin my 6-week summer course, which is 'Mental Health.' I hear this class is quite challenging because it is considered a second year course and everything is condensed down into 6 weeks. I will have clinical on Mondays and Tuesdays and class Wednesday - Friday. I am not looking forward to clinical because they will be in Ames and Fort Dodge - that will make for long days and high gas bills. As you could guess, we will be working with patients with mental illnesses at the hospital in Ames, and then will work with substance abuse patients in Fort Dodge. We also get to help out with the Special Olympics in Grimes! June 22nd can't come fast enough; I am looking forward to spending some quality time with Adam and Harper - going to the park, grilling out, trips to the pool, going on walks, etc.

In Harper News:

• Harper has been my shadow this week; I've taken her on lots of little 'adventures.' I took her to the library for her first time and she loved it! Which doesn't surprise me since she loves reading books. We played with the puppets, puzzles and read a handful of books. She even had her own little rocking chair to sit it. We definitely will be making a trip to the library every week. Harper also joined me when I had errands to run yesterday, so she go to visit Iowa Central, get groceries at Hy-Vee (and sit in the firetruck cart), and have lunch at McDonalds.


• Harper has started repeating things we say. She even repeats things she hears on TV, i.e - repeating letters that the contestants call on Wheel of Fortune. She is learning new words everyday - it is amazing.