Happy 1st Birthday, Collier

My baby boy is officially a one year old! The past 12 months have been perfect with Collier apart of our lives.  I love his infectious little smile that he gives so freely to any and everyone.  His bubbly and friendly personality makes my day and he loves being around those closest to him, but is just as friendly to new faces!  I love watching his eyes light up when he gets excited or discovers something new.  He is truly an easy baby and it's such a joy to be his mom!

This month Collier has learned to say "mama."  I won't even try to pretend like I wasn't THRILLED to hear that sweet little word! It makes my day every time he says it.  I've waited a long, long time to be called mama by my babies and I don't think it will ever get old hearing.  Collier chatters all day long and it's so funny to watch!  He will carry on some intense conversations by himself.... I just wish I knew what he was saying.   He also repeats me when I say "no, no, no." When I'm feeding him, I'll say, "yum, yum, yum" after each bite and he'll repeat, "num, num, num" and sometimes, he'll just say "mmmmm..." while eating. So cute. :) He treats everything as though its a telephone and will put any object he can find up to his ear and jabber away, as if having a make-believe conversation.  He has also learned how to clap his sweet little hands and will do so whenever we say, "yayyyy, Collier!"  He is a smart little guy and amazes me daily at the things he picks up on and learns.  Each morning when he wakes up in his crib, he'll stand up and press the button on his mobile to turn it on, then lay back down underneath it and watch the colorful lights display and listen to the sweet lullabyes.  He will lay there watching his mobile (and of course, talking to himself), just as happy as can be, until I come in to get him to begin our day. 

Another exciting thing that happened this past month was that Collier took his first 3 steps on his birthday!  My mom, Jamie and I were there to witness it.  My dad was in the den with us, but somehow missed it.  We were so excited and cheered and clapped for him!  I know it will be too soon before his is toddling around the house!  Collier gives the best, slobbery little kisses and it's so sweet when he wraps his arms around one of us and lays his little head on your shoulder.  Although these moments are brief because he's too busy to sit still for long!

At his 1 year check up, he weighed 20lbs 10oz (20%) and measured 30" in length (55%).  After checking him out, Dr. Crenshaw told us he was just perfect!  Of course, she wasn't telling us anything that we didn't already know. :) He currently has 2 little teeth, the one on top and another one coming through on bottom, directly beneath the first one. Yep, his little smile resembles that of a jack-o'lantern!

Simply put, Collier is a little ball of energy, fun and excitement.  We love him more than words can say.  I'm thankful for this past year and look forward to the years and years of fun that lie ahead as Collier's (and of course, Noah's) mama.  God answered my prayers when he gave me another son. I'm so proud of both of my boys and lucky to be their mama! 

The Greatest Show on Earth!

I remember October 21, 2010 very fondly.  Noah and I joined Jamie for lunch at Dish in downtown Florence.  I can recall exactly what I ate... the portobello mushroom panini with fruit and I even remember running into a friend and her dad who were dining there as well.  Following our lunch, Noah and I came back home, where he took a nap and I laid on the couch to rest.  I was 38 weeks and 2 days pregnant and at THAT point. Noah woke from his nap and we left to meet my mom at the mall.  Shortly after meeting up with her, we noticed my face was SWOLLEN so one quick trip to the pharmacy to check my blood pressure, a call into my OB's office and I was admitted into the hospital to be monitored.  They released me later that evening once it came back down to normal, but little did we know, we would be meeting our precious baby boy less than 24 hours later!  And we celebrated Collier turning the big ONE on the eve of his birthday with our immediate family by having them over to our house for dinner and cake!

We celebrated Collier's 1st birthday with a circus-themed bash, complete with a colorful, circus-styled cake creation and colorful balloons everywhere!  We enjoyed some of our fall favorites for dinner... Taco Soup, Potato Soup and Broccoli Cheese Cornbread (delicious!).  The kids had elephant shaped PB&J with animal crackers and circus peanuts (not very nutritious but I was trying to stick with the circus theme!)  Following dinner, Collier I opened presents.  He was too busy to stop playing for long, but would occasionally come over to see what I was doing.  Since we really don't need too many more toys, Collier got lots and lots of really cute clothes! Following presents, we sang Happy Birthday to our sweet guy and let him dig in to his very own birthday cake.  He was much neater than I thought he'd be and carefully picked up each little piece of icing and put it in his mouth.  He didn't really try to much of the cake part and after it was all said and done, there was only one little speck of cake on the floor! My thoughtful little boy knew how hard his momma had worked to clean the house and was trying his best to keep it that way. 

After the presents were opened and the candles were blown out, it was time for everyone to go.  We had such a great time celebrating Collier's first year of life!  He's a blessed little guy to have so many that love him so much and we thank you all for helping us celebrating him turn the big ONE.

Noah at 4 1/2

My sweet boy is about to be 4 1/2.  He no longer looks like a baby at all but like a handsome little boy.  He's been in school now for 8 weeks and is doing so well.  Up until this past week, he would cry every.single.time I would drop him off.  He would gradually begin crying as we walked down the hall and once we turn the corner and approach his classroom, he would literally pull away and try to not walk into class.  It sure makes drop off hard to do! Especially when I look like Mean Momma trying to force my child into his classroom, trying my best to hide my embarrassment and frustration, while balancing a wiggling baby in my other arm!  The funny thing is I always hang around outside the door, and within a couple of minutes, the crying has ceased.  And his teachers always reassure me that he NEVER cries during school.  Thankfully, during this past week, he has quit crying.  He always enjoys school but I'm sure he had some anxiety over me leaving him but has now realized that I will come back! 

We had his parent/teacher conference this morning and it went really well.  His teacher, Mrs. M told me that Noah has made so much progress in the first 8 weeks.  He makes more sounds, he participates and gets excited over things, he gets up and walks independently more.  He has learned hand motions to some of the books and songs they sing each day.  She told me that the kids all love him.  I have witnessed it firsthand, because when I drop him off, some of the kids come up and hug him each morning.  PRECIOUS.  As a mom of child with special needs, you ALWAYS worry about how they will be accepted and what others think of them.  It's always been in the back of my mind how kids would treat him once he begins school.  One thing I have quickly learned is that these sweet kids do not discriminate towards anyone, regardless of the child's capabilities.  One sweet boy loves to give Noah hugs each day.  He ran up to us one day in Walmart to say hi to Noah and then on a Friday afternoon after school was dismissed, he ran up to Noah in the parking lot to hug him goodbye.  His mom apologized to me but all I wanted to do was THANK HER and hug her sweet boy!  Noah's teacher told me that the kids all want to hold his hand to help him walk and they are all so proud of him when he learns something new.  She said they all try to 'momma' and 'daddy' him.  He's their buddy that they look after.  I just can't begin to explain how happy it makes me to hear these things.  All I can do is thank the Lord for leading us in the right direction for doing what is best for Noah and for surrounding him with such kind people.  I'm so grateful that these kids accept Noah and love him.  I hope that they all continue these friendships with him as they get older.  One of the teachers at his preschool was telling me that she has seen that the kids are very protective of the kids with special needs as they get older.  That helps to ease the worries I have. 

It's funny how when you are accustom to a certain behavior that you don't take it in and appreciate it.  You overlook it because you are so used to it.  Noah's teacher was telling me how Noah always eats so slowly at school (which I knew this because he does it at home). She said that he'll shut his eyes and take slow, deliberate bites as though he is savoring every bit of it. I've NEVER thought of it this way.  I've just always known he was a slow eater (and yes, sometimes gotten frustrated by it when we are in a hurry).  She told me that she has decided to be more like Noah and has been eating much slower, trying to enjoy each bite and in turn, she gets full quicker, doesn't overeat and has even lost weight.  Her observation completely opened my eyes and I've been thinking about it all day.  Sometimes I need to slow down and just take it all in, no matter what it is.  Quit trying to rush through my day, through my life, and just enjoy every single moment and in turn, my day will be more fulfilling and more beneficial.  One of the beauties of having special needs, is that Noah doesn't have a care in the world.  He doesn't worry about what others think or say about him or about anything.  He simply enjoys life.  How AWESOME is that?!  I think that's the way God would have all of us live, but we get to caught up in other things.  I WISH I could be so carefree.  I'm glad Mrs. M helped open my eyes this morning and hopefully I can continue to have that same mentality!  Isn't it funny how when you become a parent you think it's all about teaching them to be all the things that you hope and want them to be.  It never once crossed my mind just how much I would learn from my own kids.  Thank you, God for speaking to me through my kids!

Light the Night

Our family had the priviledge of participating in the Shoals area's Light the Night Walk on Saturday evening.  Every year the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society has Light the Night walks all over the US as a way to raise money for those fighting blood cancer and to help fund research for these forms of cancer.  My dad has Multiple Myeloma which is a form of blood cancer so we formed TEAM POWELL to raise money in his honor.  It was very personal to me because I felt like it was my way of showing my dad how much his fight this past year has meant to me.  His strength, determination and positive attitude has been an inspiration.  We got a very late start in our fundraising efforts and signed up just 1 month prior to the walk, but still managed to raise a grand total of $2,515.  I ended up raising the most money online ($1,196) so I won a Scentsy candle warmer as well as a couple of other prizes. Overall, the Shoals' Light the Night raised over $67,000 and exceeded their goal!  I am completely overwhelmed and so incredibly grateful to all of those that were able to give to this cause in dad's honor.  Their support means so much to me.  I also appreciate the prayers that have been said for my dad during the past year.  Our God has been so good to us throughout these past 9 months.

The walk was such a powerful and emotional event to witness and I am so glad we were able to be there and participate.  The park was filled with hundreds and hundreds of people all there in support of those friends and family members that are battling or have battled blood cancers. Once we arrived and got registered, we were given balloons that have a flickering light inside of them (hence the name, Light the Night).  Red ballons indicated you were a supporter, white balloons were for survivors and gold balloons were in memory of those that have passed from one of these forms of cancer. One of the honored patients, John Ritter spoke about his battle with Hodgkin's Lymphoma this past year.  He's a 27 year old football coach at MSHS (my alma mater) that just found out he was in remission this past summer. Once the sun finally set, all of the colorful, glowing balloons lit up the evening sky ... it was an amazing sight to see.  Shortly afterwards, they had the Survivors walk, where those who have or have had cancer all took a walk around the fountain in the center of the park, while the rest of us applauded them.  One thing I can tell you is cancer doesn't discriminate.  There were children, teens, adults, elderly, men and women of all races.  Halfway around the fountain, my mom went out to join my dad as he finished his walk, and threw her arms around him.  That got me.  Definitely the most emotional part of the evening for me.  But that's what that Survivors Walk was all about.  My dad is surviving cancer with my mom there to help hold him up during the times when he needs it most.  I was so glad that we were able to do this for dad and for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  He's had a tough year and we were able to show him that we recognize what he's been through and will support and honor him through it all.  We ended the evening with a 2 mile walk through downtown Florence.  Majority of my dad's brother and sister's, some of their spouses, and 1 of my cousins also attended the walk so we had a big crew representing Team Powell.  Their presence was greatly appreciated.  I'm so grateful and humbled by everyone that came together in support of my dad. 

Team Powell getting ready

{Terry, Courtney, Sheila, Tammy, Ricky, Tambra, Lindsay, Noah, Mom,

Derrick w/ Collier, and Aunt Lyn}

{Lindsay, Collier, Noah, Tambra, and Mom}

{a view of part of the park}

{Terry, Linda, Dad, Tammy and Ricky (in back)}

{Courtney and Tammy} 

{Team Powell}

Mom joining Dad during the Survivor's Walk

{It was also my parents' 34th Anniversary!} 

 {My family of boys}

 {The beginning of our 2 mile walk}

 

{Downtown Strolling}

 (Aunt Sheila, Jamie, Me, Collier, Uncle Terry and Aunt Lyn}

 {Mom, Noah, Derrick, Lindsay and Dad bringing up the rear}

 {Mom, Dad and Lindsay}

{Hundreds of walkers in front of us} 

{The back of dad's shirt says it all}



{These two sure do love one another}

For my mom friends

Being a mom is the greatest, most rewarding job there is; however at times, it can be overwhelming, hard, and frustrating.  I have felt alot of the latter in dealing with Noah lately.  It is HARD WORK parenting a special needs child.  Especially when there's a lack of communication as there is in our case.  In fact, one morning last week, I had a really hard time getting him ready for school. If it were up to him, he would wake up, cuddle with me on the couch and watch tv.  He wakes up slowly (sort of like his momma). He DOES NOT like that now he has to wake up and get moving so he can be at school on time.  Needless to say, mornings have become a challenge and since he doesn't talk, he cries. ALOT.  It was particularly bad last Tuesday.  He continued to cry (wail) while I was trying to feed Collier his breakfast.  Then Collier began crying because of Noah being so upset.  I couldn't get either one to settle down and we had to be out the door shortly.  On top of that I was going to a cycling class after I dropped Noah off, so I had to have Collier fed by the time we left.  In hindsight, it wasn't THAT big of a deal, however, my patience was thin because of Noah's behavior recently so I got very frustrated pretty quickly.  I finally had to put Noah in his bedroom in order to get Collier calmed down and fed.  We finally got out the door and I cried on the phone to Jamie during the drive to school. I felt like I was a bad mom and that I couldn't do anything to make him happy.  I was frustrated that I never know what he needs or wants and its all such a guessing game since he can't tell us (plus I know he gets frustrated by all of it too and that just breaks my heart) and on top of that, I was upset with myself for losing my patience with him.  After I dropped him off at school, I debated whether to go to my RPM (cycling) class, but ultimately decided I should go so that I could release some of the stress that I was already feeling at just 8:00am. 

It was absolutely no coincidence that after class ended, our instructor asked me how Noah was doing.  I told her about some of the challenges I'd been faced with lately in dealing with him.  Would you believe that she used to teach Special Ed at a school and was very familiar with special needs kids and their behaviors?!   We spent a good 30 minutes discussing things and ways to make life easier and less frustrating for Noah and therefore easier and more manageable for me (and Jamie).  She had several suggestions for me and even knew some peole that work in the field that could give me additional advice.  Thank you Lord, for know just what I needed that morning!  She was literally a blessing to me that day.  Someone who was encouraging, comforting, and sympathetic. 

Regardless of anyone's situation, you have bad days with your little ones.  This morning, I ran across this article and thought it was full of good advice and encouragement to all moms so I wanted to share it. 

8 Ways to be a better mom to young children

1. Make your relationship with the Lord your number one priority. If you’re too busy for God, you’re just plain too busy. Make time for the most important things. You won’t regret it.

2. Get a consistent routine in place. Make your routine simple (maybe even just five or seven things you want to do in the same order every day), write it out, and make yourself stick with it for three weeks. After that, you’ll probably find it’s become somewhat of a habit. Don’t set your expectations too high. If you’ve never had a consistent routine, you’re not going to go from chaos to a regimented schedule in two days. Start small, take baby steps, and make loving and enjoying your children your priority — far above a clean home or strict schedule.

3. Read aloud from a plethora of good books. Look at the pictures together. Talk about the stories. Stop and listen and answer your children’s questions. It’s not about finishing the book; it’s about investing in your children’s lives.

4. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Ask yourself, “What will matter 25 years from now?” and then live your life accordingly.

5. Take advantage of teaching opportunities. It’s amazing the things you can learn and explore together when you’re willing to stop what you’re doing and seize a teachable moment.

6. Praise your children liberally. Do you correct or criticize your children more than you praise them? As parents, it’s our role to guide and nurture our children, but that doesn’t mean we can’t also be their biggest cheerleader!

7. Realize that no mom — however put together she might look — is anywhere near perfect. Stop comparing. Stop feeling guilty. Focus on what works for your family and be okay with the fact that you aren’t gifted in all areas.

8. Don’t give up. Being a mom is hard, hard work. If you’re anything like me, you have days when you feel like you just can’t do it anymore. And I’ve come to learn that I can’t, in and of my own strength. But “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

http://www.momlifetoday.com/2011/10/8-ways-to-be-a-better-mom-to-young-children/