winter is really here

well, we finally had to break out the good ol suction machine. i thought that we might be done with it - but kaiya's lil nose was all crusted and full of boogers this morning so we got to the business of sucking them out with our trusty tool. i've been worried that kaiya might be getting a cold or something just because she has been out of sorts. she has had the whole week off of school and she pretty much just ate and slept. she would play for awhile and then all of a sudden we would turn around and she would be passed out. not like the little princess at all. so i guess it was no surprise to see the first signs of a cold. kaiya doesn't really like having anything put near her face unless she is the one in control so there was a lot of the smacking and pulling at mommy's hands - but once i get her hands out of the way and get down to business she just giggles. i have to admit, i tried the machine once just to see if it hurt - and it tickles like crazy so it's no wonder that she gets the giggles. thinking about her getting sick caused me to check the cabinets for medicine, if she should need it. and that's when i realized that we don't even have any children's tylenol or motrin or anything for her. kaiya's mommy isn't all that big on doling out the medicine anyway...but it just goes to show how lucky we are that she is as healthy as she is. i can't even remember the last time i had to give her tylenol or motrin. i usually have benedryl or something on hand (more because she get's eaten alive by mosquitos in the summer time and has nasty allergic reactions) but even that was out of date. heaven forbid the kid wakes up with a fever in the middle of the night. mommy would be dashing out to the 24 hour walgreens in her jammies with a crazy haired sick kid by her side. not a pretty picture :(

on a good note, we had a wonderful thanksgiving dinner. the food was excellent and some of kaiya's most favorite things were there. mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes with butter and brown sugar, turkey....nana sure knows how to cook an excellent meal :)
kaiya is definitely thankful for all of the friends that she has made and hopes everyone has a great holiday season.

silly girl

the crying has settled down a bit. i have no idea why it was there...but she hasn't done it for the past couple days so maybe it's gone. she does still giggle uncontrollably at the strangest times...but giggling is fun so we'll keep that. she's still a sleepy girl - taking a lot of naps in school...but i have been sleepy too, so maybe it's just that time of year. i used to joke around that i was a bear, b/c i wanted to hibernate in the wintertime...maybe kaiya is a bear cub :)

on another note...kaiya's wheelchair has been randomly losing parts. not a good thing i'm thinking... so i called up the place where we got it, and of course they can't do anything about it b/c her insurance has changed. so now i have to find a place that will fix a chair they didn't provide. lovely. even though kaiya has some growing room left in this chair, i am of the mind that a new chair would probably be a better option. i'll have to talk to some people and learn some more before i start down that road though...

Akaiya all bundled up, waiting for the bus to arrive to take her to school. She keeps putting her hands down on the side of the chair like that which gives me the urge to get a chair with big wheels to see if she would push it...she would have to build up lots of strength, but it could be fun!

always the lady...this kid just cracks me up sometimes. she was rocking away in her chair one minute, and the next i look over and see her totally knocked out. of course, since she was wearing a dress, she had to have her legs crossed. one of the many moments in time i think to myself how boring life would be if i didn't have akaiya to entertain me :)

still weird

akaiya is still not herself and i'm beginning to wonder if it's the start of a growth spurt or something...is it true that kids get growing pains? do trisomy kids get growing pains even though they grow so slowly? she has had a wacky sleep schedule...she wants to sleep for hours, or she doesn't want to sleep at all. she eats like a pig, or pushes her food away (or spits it out at school...uh-oh going to get a detention for spitting at teachers!) it's like dealing with a moody teenager i swear. one minute she's happy and giggling all over the place - the next she's crying for no apparent reason.
i tried to sit her down and ask her what was going on, and all she had to say was "eh eh eh eh eh aaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!" hopefully this moody unpredictable child will go away and my content relaxed little girl will come back soon :)

notes...

kaiya came home from school the other day with a note from her lil friend. her best bud in class drew her a flower. my heart just about melted! it's so awesome that even though she can't communicate verbally, she is still able to connect with the other kids and they still want to be her friend. i made sure the teacher told the child that kaiya loves her picture and she hung it up in her room. he was excited and said "i hoped that would happen and i was right!"

the school is having parents come into the classroom next week for national education week. i am going to get a picture of kaiya and her bff together so i can put it in a frame for him.

acting odd...

kaiya is usually a very happy little kid. she's usually smiling and laughing. sometimes the laughing can be a little creepy b/c she's in bed, all by herself, laughing away...but it's awesome that she is as jolly as she is :)

but now she is starting to cry at random times... kaiya hardly ever used to cry - it got to the point that when she did, we all looked around trying to figure out what that strange sound was before we realized it was her. (and then we would all freak out thinking something was TERRIBLY wrong b/c she NEVER cries...) so now a couple of times a day she will just start crying. and i have no idea why. it's usually when she's playing on her own which leads me to believe it's a way to get attention, but the past couple of days she has done it when someone is holding her too. and she used to stop when someone just said her name, but the past couple of days she has needed her pacifier to quiet her down. her teacher has been saying that kaiya is sleepier in school, she has been taking little naps and sometimes big ones! i have noticed her being sleepier at home as well. i just can't figure out what is goin on with her. there are no other signs that she might be sick, no fever, no cold symptoms...i just don't know what is going on with the lil lady.

boyfriends already?!?!

halloween day there was a party at kaiya's school. the parents were invited to come see a schoolwide costume parade and then stay in their child's classroom for a little celebration. as i was changing kaiya into her costume a little boy came up and informed me that kaiya was his girlfriend. i just smiled and said "oh really". and he preceded to tell me how she was his girlfriend and that she loved him. then the teacher told me how the two of them are always together - and it wasn't just on his part - if kaiya doesn't see him she looks around to find out where he is and gets upset if he isn't around! the little boy's mom told me that every day she hears about akaiya at home. i knew my lil girl was a flirt, but boyfriends at age 6??? oh my! :)

wild ride

just so you know what kaiya has to deal with on a daily basis, here is a lil example of an event that happened the other morning...

kaiya and i are not morning people...we don't wake up quickly or willingly. so the morning started out like any other one. i got up late and was rushing to get kaiya ready for school. i wheeled the chair outside to greet the bus and realized that kaiya wasn't wearing her shoes. so i kicked the brake on the chair, and ran back into the house to get them. when i came back out, kaiya was rolling on down the driveway towards the bus! i started running (which is a sight unto itself...) and grabbed her just as she rolled up to the bus. the bus driver had no idea there was a problem because somehow kaiya rolled right up to the bus. they thought she was moving herself!

just a little taste of the antics that go on here daily :)

giving nana props too

so, since we have a post dedicated to papa and what an awesome guy he is, it's only right that we have one to show how awesome nana is too...

kaiya's nana spoils her rotten! seriously! and kaiya knows that she can just give her a little look, and nana will do whatever she wants her to... the kid is a manipulator! (don't know where she gets that from!)

there are certain things kaiya will only do for nana - some sweet, some not so sweet :) like, kaiya does not like to fall asleep in anyone's arms. she would rather be on the floor, in a bed, anywhere she can stretch out. but she'll fall asleep in nana's arms no problem. nana just holds her close and pretty soon you hear the snores and know kaiya has fallen asleep snuggled in with her nana.

somehow kaiya knows when you need a little lovin', and that's usually when she will show off a new skill, or a skill that she hasn't used in awhile. well, nana goes away for the summer so she doesn't see kaiya as much. we were on the phone talking to nana one night, and she asked to talk to kaiya. now i thought nana must be losing it because really, all you're going to hear from kaiya is some heavy breathing and big loud yells..but hey, who am i to judge right? so i put the phone to kaiya's ear and nana is saying all the usual "hi, i miss you, blah blah blah..." stuff. well wouldn't you know, akaiya decides to say "hiiiiiiiiii" to her nana. kaiya says hi sometimes. she doesn't say it at the proper times, or with any regularity, but it is one of her fun little tricks b/c sometimes she gets it right. this night she got it right in a big way! i was so shocked i tore the phone away from her and asked my mom what she said to her, and of course nana was crying so she couldn't really tell me :) kaiya must have known nana needed a lil extra love so she gave her a "hi"...at least that is what nana and i are telling ourselves :)

so we know we definitely don't say it enough, but thank you to nana for all of the cool costumes, and outfits, and toys, and snuggles, and songs, and anything and everything :) kaiya appreciates you and so does her mama.

he's the man

i'm sitting on the couch watching my dad play with kaiya and it's probably one of my favorite things to do. kaiya absolutely adores her papa - and it's obvious that the feeling is returned. they play the "who can yell the loudest" game, or the "tie you in a knot" game, or her favorite "echo the crazy sound" game. whatever games they are playing, kaiya is ALWAYS smiling and laughing. and he's usually smiling and laughing too :)

ever since kaiya was a teeny tiny little baby the two of them have had a special bond. i was continually turning to my mom and asking her "was he like that with me when i was a baby?" i still do ask her that... he continues to amaze me all the time with how wonderful and accepting he is. the first person he looks for when he comes in is "the noisy baby", and if she lets out a wail he is the first one to come running to see what is the matter. kaiya has a whole set of "i love you looks" that are just for him.

i guess it really is true, you never appreciate your parents until you become a parent yourself.