Conferences

I have been meaning to post about the Adeline and Lila's conferences.  It has been so busy and with all my time spent in the car picking up and dropping off, that I rarely find myself in front of the computer.  If only my Blackberry was user friendly in the blogging world. 

I will start with Lila.

Lila is in a class with 15 children and two teachers.  She is the youngest with the exception of her good friend Vincent who just turned three on Wednesday. Many of the children started this year at 3.5 years old. That being said, Lila is three and expected to meet the challenges of a three year old classroom. Her teacher knows me well. She was Savannah's teacher and played an important role in embracing our family while the twins were fighting for life in the NICU. We both had the feeling of "full circle" when sitting down for Lila's conference.

Lila is doing very well at school. She is very social, plays nicely, and is one of the MOST attentive student during circle time. I was surprised to hear that she hasn't engaged in any negative behavior like fighting over toys or not sharing because she can get into some pretty loud tiffs at home. Mrs. Jones indicated that she was right on target for the social/emotional domain. Although her articulation makes it hard to understand her, she always engages with others during free play and plays nice! It is so strange to have a very social child after agonizing over Savannah's painfully shy road in this same class three years ago.

With regard to receptive and expressive language, Lila was given satisfactory for her age. She communicates her needs, participates in music, and is very involved in finger plays and stories. However, she is still on the low end of the language curve. Conversations are beginning to emerge but going back and forth with Lila is still difficult. It is hard to know if she doesn't understand what you are saying or if it is just expressive language immaturity and her not realizing the format of a conversation.

Cognitively, Mrs. Jones doesn't have any concerns for Lila. She considers her a young three and assessed her accordingly. I still have concerns and most of them stem from the above conversation piece. I feel that there should be much more dialog in her life as well as the ability to retell about a past event. Again, it is emerging but when compared to other students in her class, she falls behind. Only time will tell if it has a cognition link.

Finally, Lila's motor skills were all satisfactory except for her crayon grasp. Since the conference that has been rectified which puts me at ease. Savannah really struggled with her pencil grasp which carried over into the 4's class. I am glad that Lila has avoided this.

All in all, I am thrilled with Lila's report. I knew that she was very young going into the three's class. Not only that, Brandywine is a very rigorous and academic preschool. There is little to no unstructured time which is very different from many other preschools I know. I worried that Lila Grace wouldn't be able to hang, but hang she does. She loves school and the few times I have peeked in on her, she is following directions and very attentive. In fact, Mrs. Jones said that she ALWAYS follows directions. Lila has taken to her assistant teacher Mrs. Pezick, the only one that calls her Lila Grace, and is viewed as a sweet and quiet student that always uses her manners.

I hope that she continues to thrive at Brandywine. It is going to get much more academic next year which will really start to paint the picture of Lila and how she will do in a school age classroom.

As if I haven't said it a hundred times before. . . never in a million years did I think Lila Grace would be a typical, thriving three year old while I sat watching over her isolette a mere three years ago.

Christmas Tree 2009

We headed out the day after Thanksgiving to get our tree.  It was windy and cold but the girls had a good time.  Adeline was over the moon when she got on the train that drops passengers at various crops of trees.  We searched, we found, we cut, and then we headed home in hopes that this years extra large tree would stand stable in our tree stand. It is still standing today which must be a product of Adeline tightening down the screws extra tight!

Diapers No More!!

Just when I thought I would be spending my entire Holiday season encouraging Adeline to sit on the potty, she proves me wrong.  Of course, this is a typical move for her - atypical progress.  One would think that potty training a developmentally delayed child would be a burdensome task.  Afterall, it isn't that easy potty training typical children. 

And so the story goes. . .

We took Adeline out of diapers on Tuesday before Thanksgiving.  She was sitting and peeing on command within a day.  Alex and I were both flabbergasted and way too cautious to "count it."  During the holiday break, while still in underwear full time, Adeline stayed dry.  We were able to go out and and about while not missing a beat.  By the Monday after Thanksgiving, she had completed both tasks in the potty and was headed to school in underwear.  She has been accident free since - well their was one nugget deposited in her underwear at school but if you knew her pooping issues, you wouldn't let that hold you back from celebrating.

So here we are, mid December and the Belle is potty trained.  It took one try and less than a week.  Pretty impressive for a one pound preemie.  I must note that this little dainty girl is sporting Lightening McQueen briefs just to let everyone know that she has a mind of her own!

Happy Birthday Daddy

I think we celebrated this year which is very unusual for us. Here is a picture of his gifts waiting underneath the tree followed by the night's events.

A Visit with Santa

We took the girls to see Santa the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Typically, there aren't any lines and the girls get some more face time this way. It has been a yearly tradition for Savannah to make Santa a gift and this was no exception. Luckily, there was no line, Santa listened to all the requests, and paid extra attention to Savannah's gift.

The lists went something like this:

Savannah - A new bike, Lincoln Log roof and window pieces, and a purple Ramone.
Adeline - Thomas, Thomas and more Thomas trains
Lila Grace - A red train and a Hello Kitty Purse.

I was surprised when the twins were having to be held back from darting into Santa's lap while the children in front of us (the only ones thank goodness) were telling of their requests. Even more surprising was The Belle. She was the first one to reach Santa and was more than happy to hop up on his lap. The beard was a bit much and you could tell when it caught her cheek but she powered through for the big man. Lila Grace was the first to voice her request as you can hear her saying, "I want a Hello Kitty purse." It should be noted that she was quiet miffed to find out that Santa didn't have her Hello Kitty purse right then and there. I guess she didn't get the Christmas day component and thought that she would get her gift while sitting on his lap. She had to be pulled away from Santa yelling, "Hello Kitty purse, Hello Kitty purse." The candy cane helped quite her down.

Savannah's gift was as sweet as ever. This year I had nothing to do with it. I found it adorable that she made Santa a "Flippy, Flappy, Book." The book even included humor as one flap was labeled dog while underneath hid a bear. Her text on the page provides more evidence that my girl has escaped the shell! I should also note that Savannah wrapped some glow sticks up for Rudolph and dropped them with Santa during our visit. She figured it would give his nose a break.

Here are some pictures and a video clip. The quality is low and it misses some of the precious conversation but it is beautiful to see all THREE of my girls walking up to Santa with anticipation - I never thought I would see the day!!

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving is a time that one feels compelled to list all of the things that they are thankful for. Children are asked to do it at school while adults often pause to reflect around the holiday. That being said, I am MOST thankful that today isn't significantly different than most other days. I feel that I am thankful for my family each and everyday. I feel their blessings in my life on a regular basis. There are just too many moments in my day that force me to recognize what a wonderful family I have. I feel fortunate knowing that my children feel the same. November isn't the only month that I hear how lucky Savannah feels to have her sisters and it isn't the only time that I lay in bed with my girls telling them how beautiful they are (especially deep down.) Today we were surrounded with loved ones and I am proud to say that today was just one of the many that I gave thanks for each and everyone of them!

Now for the details:

After a very relaxed morning, filled with sleeping in, the girls and I spent some time in the kitchen making apple crisp and pumpkin pie. This activity, which can go poorly with all three girls participating, went exceptionally well. There was great turn taking, patience, and joy. I had to stop and take a picture because I have waited so long to bake with all three of my girls without have to police every move.

Shortly after, we headed Mr. Byron and Miss Melissa's house. They, again, graciously shared their home and families with us. I feared that my girls would be antsy with abbreviated naps, and some unfamiliar faces, but they were fantastic. I do believe that this Thanksgiving marks the first holiday that I have not had children glued to me. There were plenty of snuggles followed by "go play" time which gave both Alex and I a time to enjoy ourselves. That we did. The girls looked so grown up considering where the three of them (Charlotte included) were three years ago. While this is Charlotte and Lila's fourth Thanksgiving, I only mark it as Adeline's third. Her first Thanksgiving was spent in the NICU and marked her hardest fight for life during her four month stay.

Today, I celebrated my girls. They used their manners, were social, and even became a little more open to dogs. Thanks to Charlotte's Uncle Justin, all three of my girls were walking Bailey by the night's end. I closed the day with some rocking with Adeline, she almost fell asleep in my arms after saying without prompting, "I love you too Mommy." After laying her down, I climbed in bed with Lila Grace and experience her falling asleep by my side for the first time in her big girl bed.


Savannah isn't in bed yet but did something quite noteworthy this morning. She brought the entire family downstairs for a gift. I had no idea she had this stored away because she had worked on these projects ages ago and sporadically. Come to find out, she had made a Talking Stick that we used to pass around while telling each other what we are thankful for. Savannah also illustrated a Thanksgiving story which was very cute. Included was a card that she had made independently, paint and all. She really touches my heart.



There is much to appreciate on this day but, as I said before, I am most thankful that we celebrate one another each and everyday.

Grandparent's Day at WCFS

Today was Grandparent's Day at West Chester Friends School. Initially, I thought this day would come and go since Savannah's Grandparents are 3,000 miles away. Thankfully, that was not the case. Savannah was given the choice to invite a special adult in lieu of a Grandparent. I didn't know if she would take to the idea and I only put it out there in conversation with no real opinion. Savannah was thrilled to hear of the option and almost immediately asked to take her beloved Miss Neely. Miss Neely and I have been raising kids side by side for years now and I am over joyed to see that it has not only impacted my life but the lives of our children.

Off Miss Neely went with Savannah to school while I stayed home with her girls and the twins. Savannah was dressed up in her uniform for the very first time and very excited. (The school only wears uniforms for special occasions. I have to say after seeing it on her, I am a big fan of uniforms!!) Grandparent's Day is quite and event at WCFS. It lasts three hours! Neely was able to see Savannah in her classroom, attend Meeting for Worship with Savannah, and watch Savannah perform with her class. There were many special touches along the way. The school contacted the out of town Grandparents and had them send cards to their grandchild. I thought it was an extremely generous effort. Savannah was very surprised when she received her card. Neely bought Savannah books at the book fair for both Savannah and to donate to the library in Savannah's name. Savannah can't wait to go to the library and see her name in the book. Miss Neely thinks of everything when it comes to touching my little girl's heart.

After debriefing about the day, I was surprised to learn that Savannah was chosen to play an important role in her classroom. One of the first events of the day was to have the students explain different classroom routines to the grandparents. T. Michelle had chosen Savannah to go first. She bravely stood up and told the students and grandparents about the Morning News. Each day the class does Morning News which involves the date and a piece of new from one student. After her explanation, Savannah had to write the following sentence on the board (She chose the sentence). "I went to Dutch Wonderland last Sunday Night." I guess she did a pretty good job with the hard words. I couldn't believe she would choose a sentence with words she didn't know how to spell. Savannah is thoughtful enough to choose a sentence that she could ace if she wanted to. I asked Savannah how she felt getting up in front of everyone and this is what she said. "I felt a little shy but I tried not to show it." Wow, I am overjoyed. Is this the same girl that used to follow me around the house because she was too nervous to be in a different room or floor than me? Is this the same girl who had to be told to speak louder and look at people's eyes when saying hello? According to Miss Neely, WCFS has cracked her shell and helped Savannah emerge. I couldn't be more proud. Having been a teacher, I know the type of student I would choose to represent the class first, especially when asking them to perform a tough writing task. I just can't believe that that child is my daughter. It just goes to show that children never cease to amaze.

On this Thanksgiving Eve, I am immensely thankful for my oldest. She is sweet, loving and thoughtful. She thanked Miss Neely for spending the day with her time and time again . Savannah reminds me to stop and appreciate all that we have and are.

I am also thankful for my sister in motherhood, Miss Neely. She continues to fill my children with love each and everyday. It really does take a village. . .