Poem for my Daddio

When you think of a Daddy, what comes to mind?

Is your daddy gently, loving and kind?

Is your daddy someone who will always be there,

Whether it be hundreds of miles or simply right here?

Is he the sort of daddy, who will come to your aide,

When the scary monster in your closet will not go away?

When you’ve fallen down and got a boo-boo,

Will he mend your cut and kiss it, too?

Will he tell you everything will be fine and alright,

When you and your best friend have had quite a fight?

Can your daddy cheer you up when you are ever so sad.

And make all the world better when you are feeling mad?

Is he the kind of daddy who likes to have fun,

Who will play ponies with you…even if he has to be one?

Can your daddy play tag and soccer, too?

Will he run through the sprinkler and color with you?

Does your daddy help you learn your ABCs?

Will he even help you could to one hundred and three?

Will your daddy read you bedtime stores, as you slowly close your eyes?

Will he read one, two, maybe three…or even five?

Is your daddy your hero, who can save the day,

The one you look up to, in more than one way?

My Daddy is such; he is ALL of these things!

And I know he will be there for me, whatever life brings!

So, with a hug and a kiss, I will say adieu,

To the bestest daddy in the world…that’s you!

I love you, Daddi-o!

Happy Father’s Day!

xoxo

My new treefort!

This summer, Tony decided that he wanted to build a tree fort for Kailyn…something he has wanted to do for a very long time! We had been trying to explain what it was to Kailyn and that it would be her very own little space. She took this to mean it would be her very own house! A few days before we were going to start, Tony and I went to Lowe’s and bought all the wood, nail, screws, and everything else we would need for Tony’s little creation. After two trips to and from Lowe’s, because there was so much wood, we were done. We brought Kailyn out into the back yard to show her what her tree fort started out as. Now I have to say, we did get a bit of lumber and supplies, so the corner of our back yard resembled that of a lumber yard! She ran around the wood, climbed over and it and decided it was good. So the groundbreaking took place in mid June. Kailyn’s godfather, Larry, came over to help Tony with the framing. By lunchtime, they had completed almost all of the framing! They made great progress and over the next few weeks, Tony continued to work on the fort and finish it up. Kailyn even helped quite a bit! As work progressed, it was amazing to see her face and how excited she was! Finally it was all finished and we all climbed up in it. As Kailyn surveyed her very own space, she said very satisfied, “I like my house daddy, it is cool! Thank you!!” Since then, she has had numerous picnic lunches and dinners inside her happy little “house.” I have to also say that I know Kailyn was blown away by all that Tony did, but so was I! It’s amazing! So Tony, I have to say thank you…for all you do and for how happy you make your girls!! We love you!!!

Uncle Billy's at Chili's?!

This particular little story came about from a simple misunderstanding Kailyn had about her Uncle…it is rather cute and really showed how much kids pick up on the little things!

Alright, so this May my not so little brother Billy headed to Chile to teach English in a small city called . Despite the fact that I was very sad to see Billy go, I was excited for the experience he had ahead of him. Now, Billy had been spending a bit of time at our house lately and by doing such has formed a rather beautiful bond with Kailyn. She truly loves and looks up to her dear Uncle Billy. When he left, we wanted to make sure we explained to her why he wouldn’t be coming over for a bit…well six months to be exact. We told Kailyn that Uncle Billy was going to Chile to be a teacher. She seemed to kind of get it…I think. About a month later, we decided to go to Chili’s, the restaurant, to pick up so food. Before I left, I asked Kailyn if she wanted to stay home with Daddy or come with Mommy to Chili’s. Instantly, she dropped the toy she had been playing with and said rather exuberantly, “I can go with you Mommy!!” I was a little shocked about how excited she was to go, but I just figured she wanted to spend time with me…ha-ha! The whole way there she kept saying, “We are going to Chili…yeah!” Like I said, I just thought she was happy to be coming with me…I was wrong. As soon as we pulled up she said, “We are here! We can see Uncle Billy now!!!” I turned around a bit astonished and tried to explain that Uncle Billy was in Chile, not at Chili’s…a bit too much for her I think! So, we headed inside and I placed our order. As soon as I was done, Kailyn said, “Come on we have to find him. Where is he?” At this moment I wanted so bad to make Billy appear. There was Kailyn, simply heartbroken that she couldn’t find her Uncle and totally confused! We sat down, and again I tried to explain it to her. Her simple response was, “But you said he was at Chili’s!” I told her that he was in the country of Chili and attempted once more to explain the difference, but in the end, I just held her in my lap and told her that today we would not be able to see him. With a little tear in her eye, she said, “We can see him later…right?” I reassured her that yes in a while we would see him again. This simple errand to run and pick up food showed me so much about our darling girl. She really does love her dear Uncle and that whatever we say she will remember! Until Billy returns in December, I do believe she still thinks he is there!

Summer is here!!

Thank God…summer is here!! Now, summer is not only my favorite time of year because of beaches and suntans, but also because Tony is usually off! So for three glorious months, we get Tony all to ourselves, something Kailyn and I love!!! However, this year Tony decided to do summer school for half the summer to help with a few expenses we had. I know I was a bit sad, but it was heartbreaking to see Kailyn wake up each morning asking where Tony was…it was like she totally knew it was summer and he was supposed to be home with us! But as I stated before, thank God he only is doing summer school for about a month. Anyway, so yes summer is here! Welcome back bathing suits, beach towels and endless bottles of sunscreen…we missed you!

birthdays

Parties, parties, parties!! It seems like all we do lately is go from one party to the next!! For me, it is something I don’t really mind. I love the fellowship and good food. However, for Kailyn each party starts out a little disappointing. Since the beginning of the year, I have been explaining to Kailyn that her birthday is in July. She does not like this one bit! She doesn’t like it simply for the fact that July is taking its good old time getting here…according to her! In January, a friend from school had a birthday party. Thinking it would be a great idea for Kailyn to pick out the present we went shopping together. She was very excited and even helped me wrap the present; however, when it came time for her friend to open her glorious gift Kailyn literally had an emotional breakdown! Somehow she got dreadfully confused and thought we wrapped the present for her to open at some else’s party! Once that happened, we had a big talk about when her birthday was and that we will not be getting presents at every party we go to! Apparently this is a really hard concept for a three year old to grasp! Each time we have a party she asks, “Is it my party? Is it Kailyn’s birthday?” Each time I have to say no and then I ask her when her birthday is. She usually replies in a sulky and highly disappointed voice, “July…I don’t like July.” Then if she is really disappointed, she will say, “It can be my birthday today and they can have their birthday in July!” She is forever trying to change her birthday and even went up to her friend the other day and was trying to convince her to “switch” birthdays by saying, “It can be my birthday now…you like July. You can have a birthday in July!” Again, I had to explain to her that a birthday is something that cannot be traded or swapped. She wasn’t too happy with that! Needless to say, we are anxiously awaiting July…so I can finally say, “Yes, Kailyn it is your birthday…finally!”

Turning corners

Looking back on this past year, I realized Kailyn has turned A LOT of corners! She sprung from diapers to panties…in fact, on this very day one year ago!!! She actually “ran” in the road race this year, rather than saunter across the finish line. She no longer takes her daily nap, although on occasion she does take a bit of a rest. She upgraded from baby toothpaste to Daddy and Mommy toothpaste…very fun! But, the most recent and, honestly next to potty training my very favorite, is her new found love for the doctor! When Kailyn was young, she had numerous ear infections and we were constantly at the doctors…it is my belief that this is why she developed a deep hatred for the dreaded doctor’s office. I took Kailyn to the doctor this month and instead of screaming, fussing and fidgeting, she was happy, peaceful and obedient! She did so well, I didn’t know what to do! A big turn in our life!!! I could probably go on for the next hour or so and list the many changes that have taken place in just this last year; however, I have come to the realization that Kailyn is a completely different child! She is no longer solely dependent on Tony and me; in fact she is highly independent and tries to do all she can on her own. Gone are the days of our little darling baby girl…here are the days of, “I can do it. I don’t need help. I am big enough!” She is officially our darling big girl now! I didn’t think this would come so soon! So, despite the constant turning of corners in our sweet “big” girl’s life, I find myself a bit melancholy! Yes, these achievement and “upgrades” are marvelous, wonderful and truthfully helpful…but is it terrible that I wish I could make them stop for a bit and we could just keep her as she is…just for awhile! She is our ever changing flower, blossoming into something quit beautiful and magnificent!

pictures

Since it is getting close to Kailyn’s birthday, I decided we would try and get her picture taken once more. Despite the fact I knew it would be a grueling and hard endeavor, it needed to be done.

Let me first give you some background info on Kailyn and her history of getting her picture professionally taken. Around our house it wouldn’t be anything out the ordinary for me to be taking random pictures of Kailyn or having her pose in some funny outfit she picked out…she honestly loves to have Mommy take her picture (probably due to the fact that for the first two years of her life that is the only way she saw me…behind a camera, happily snapping away). However, put her in a room with plenty of props, beautiful backgrounds, beaming lights, and high-tech camera equipment and the tears will begin to flow! Kailyn has dreaded getting her picture taken ever since she was one! So, in all the lovely portraits we or our relatives have she may seem happy…but that is far from the truth! Usually, I schedule her appointments so that both Tony and I will be there…yes it requires two of us to get just one smile! So let me play it out for you. We walk in, Kailyn clinching Tony and/or my hand for dear life. She looks around, and then it begins, “Hold me, please! I don’t like this place!” Usually we get her to sit down with Tony and I mere inches away from her and inevitably she has at least two massive meltdowns and her face turns bright red. By the end not only are Tony and I exhausted but the poor camera person who had to deal with us for the past hour or so is ready to kick us to the curb! I am sure every professional photographer that has taken Kailyn’s picture, watches us as we leave and wonders why in the world pictures mean so much to us and why on earth it is so hard to get our little girl to crack a smile! One time we had not only the photographer but two other people who worked there trying to make Kailyn smile just once! It is always a patient trying, totally exhausting, emotion filled visit!

Having said all that, I wasn’t really looking forward to getting her picture taken today…by myself! So, Tonyless and a bit worried we headed to our appointment. As soon as we walked in, Kailyn remembered where we were. “Oh, I don’t like to get my picture taken here! It’s not fun.” As she said this, all I could do was take a deep breath and continue to pray for a miracle…I wasn’t really in the mood for a physically and emotionally exhausting morning. So, I signed us in and we waited for about five minutes. I must insert here that this particular photographer was excellent, we have gone to her before but this time she did awesome! Anyway, she came out and introduced herself to Kailyn and asked if she was ready. A bit hesitant Kailyn followed, not holding my hand, but the photographers instead. She walked into the room and followed every direction the photographer gave her, looking at me after each picture and saying, “Look…cheese!” In a mere twenty minutes we were done! Not one tear, one bit of hesitation, or one insecurity…she loved it! Not only did she enjoy it, but her pictures were truly precious! So, we have turned a corner! No longer is she deathly afraid of her photographer, but she actually likes getting her picture taken…at least for the time being:)