Lose a tooth - Find a tooth!

Last week Dallin lost his first tooth (front bottom right).  He was so brave and determined to get that thing out!  I told him the roots had to be broken and to now start pushing back on the tooth instead of just forward.  He pushed the tooth back about 5 times and he looked at me and said, "Mom, it kindof tastes, like I'm bleeding."  I started cheering (mainly to stop him from crying because who likes to bleed, right?)!  He ran to the mirror and it was just hanging there.  This spurred him onward.  We got some thread, tied it around the root and he pulled that darn thing right out!  You can tell by his expression how proud he was of himself!

Not more than an hour after this exciting episode, Dallin says, "Mom, I see something white in Lauren's mouth."  What?  Could it be.  I ran over and sure enough the front bottom right tooth was coming up in her shiny red gums.  Now, I know why she has been drooling and chewing on everything she can find.  I was blindsided as both Dallin and Kiera were at least 9 months old when they got their first tooth.  I shuddered at my next thought of feeding a baby with a tooth.  Eeek!  Let's hope for the best!

Mom, Can I Help?

A couple of weeks ago, I lay on the couch wondering if I was actually going to be normal again. Dallin and Kiera being the troopers that they are played very well together with a few comments here and there from Dallin such as "Kiera, we have to play nice together because Mommy isn't feeling well." and "Kiera, let's be friends today so Mommy doesn't have to get mad at us, cuz she's sick." Each time he commented, I would chuckle to myself and be grateful for my kids!

Anyway, every hour or so, Dallin would come to me and ask me if I wanted a pillow or a drink of water, or crackers, etc. I would thank him and tell him I was such a lucky mom to have him looking after me. Kiera decided that she wanted in on some action. She came to me and asked me if I wanted any candy, where I quickly replied with a shutter, that no, I didn't need any candy. She came up to me again and asked me if I wanted medicine to make me feel better. I told her again that I was okay and didn't need anything right now. She looked at me and said, "I want to help too, Mom! I'm a nice lucky girl!" After a slight chuckle inside, I asked her if she would get me another cracker and told her thank you.

The day progressed about the same and before I knew it, it was night. Joe was still at school and wouldn't be home for another 2 hours and my kids had spent the whole day looking after themselves and had done a GREAT job! However, I was feeling like a complete and utter failure as a mother! Guilt struck and thought to myself I better get them to bed. Dallin comes up to me and puts his hand on my cheek and says, "Mom, I think Kiera is tired, do you want me to put her to bed?" Man, why stop there, he had done such a great job all day, I should let him finish the day out, right? Oh, boy, what is happing to me! In desperation, I let him. He was so excited to do it!

This is what I hear from the other room:
"Okay, Kiera, it's time to say your prayers. Ready? [Dallin prompting her] Dear...bless mommy to get better...bless daddy to get home fast...amen. Okay, now let's sing songs. I'll sing you 3 songs. Which one first? Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star... Rock-a-bye Baby, in the Treetops... I Am a Child of God... Alright, it's time to go to sleep, okay? I love you Kiera! I love you, Dallin! Good night! Good night!"

Dallin ran in the room, I was moderately existing in, and told me that he was going to go to sleep, gave me a kiss on the cheek and left. He said his prayers and went right to sleep.

I have no doubt that even though I was feeling depressed and didn't feel like facing the world through this last month that this was God's hand helping me to hold on and see the love and the light that each new day holds. I have been truly blessed.

The Art of Reading Books

I'm speechless and can only say one thing...

At least she loves to read.

What the...!

The other day, I came downstairs to our unfinished basement to find this! Now many of you look at this picture and say, "Oh, what cute kids". Well, my first reaction was, what were you two thinking! But, I have to say, I'm sure glad I didn't look past their face and miss the joy and pride they had in their eyes! They were so excited to show me their 'fort' they had spent so much time making. My frustration quickly turned into a chuckle and I ran to go get the camera! After I took a few shots of the new addition to our basement. we had a "party" in our new fort with Ritz Crackers and Strawberries. I think about that day now and realize that I wouldn't have that great memory with my kids if I had looked past their faces to the mess that lay beyond! Thank heavens for far-sightedness!

Big Brother

Yesterday Kiera fell off the couch, this is not unusual, and her toe caught on the corner and ripped her pinkie toe away from the others. We bandaged her up but she was still in a lot of pain. After we gave her a little Motrin she sat on the couch very dejected-like. Then, Dallin had a great idea! He decided that for the day, he would carry around his little sister on his back. You can see he is not much bigger than her. But still, he took her to the potty, her room, the table to eat, even to his room to play a little. She doesn't know it yet, but she has one great big brother!

Hear Say?

Since my children could talk they have repeated and mimiced us as parents. It hits really hard when you hear something come out of their mouths that you obviously say quite frequently! Like "NO!" or "Just a Second!" or "I'm counting...3...2...1...timeout!" or "Dangit!" or even worse for that matter! All you can do is cringe and think to yourself, "I've really got to stop saying that so often!."
Well, today it happened again! As we sat reading our 24 Days of Christmas Advent Book (I wrap 24 books and number each and put them under the tree, they open up one each day, taking turns of course), and Kiera looked over at me and kissed me on my cheek and said, "Oh man, Mommy, I love you so dang much!" I realized that even though I have quite a few things to work on as a parent, I still might be doing somethings right!

What is Our Niche in This Bloggin' World?

I have been wondering lately what types of things I want to write on our blog. You know, the things that will really be interesting to read. I'm sure you aren't out here to read about my overpacked, crazy life. And then it happened at 3am (which is when it always does). I will share all our Taylor'disms OR in other words, You Know You Are a Parent If...thoughts. There are so many of these that happen to each parent and they end up being some of the most memorable things in our day. I want to remember these in years to come. So, I will memorialize them here in the Taylor'd Crew Blog. Should be a good time! Stay tuned...