Living an Intentional Life
Tater is movin and groooooovin. She’s discovered her feet were made for walking!
As she glides clumsily across the floor, Coti thinks she is ready to play MONKEY. 
Unfortunately for him, Tatum is more interested in looking in the mirror and holding the comb. Maybe she’ll comb Coti! 
Nope…. I think she’ll just try to smooth her own lovely locks.
It was February 5th, 2013 and only took one misstep that would change my life. Luckily, as I look back, it was when Tatum was only a baby so I did not miss out on so much of her activity. But more importantly, the massiveness of this calamity was a small window as I reflect one year later. It is amazing how the moment of an occurrence or the bit of time this occurrence effects is larger than life and at that moment we think that event will last forever. And it does….in our minds.
As I laid on the doctor’s table and he diagnosed me with a full tear with the foreboding surgery to be had, all I could think about was all I would miss with Tatum, how would I ever walk, all the people I would inconvenience…how my body would be messed up from not working out and the missed school….etc. It was all daunting. Isn’t that just like us? To think that in a lifetime this small window of time is continuous. However, it does change our lives for the better. The better in that the bitter makes us better.
I do not want anything like that to happen again, however, I do not regret the time. One year later, I see that I have learned to relish the small things and appreciate all of my blessings. No longer do I stress about something I cannot control because you never know when you can lose it (i.e. my mobility!)
Still I have less mobility in my left leg and the atrophy is still a bit embarassing. My left calf is almost half the size of my right, but it gets stronger every day. The therabands NEED to be used daily on BOTH legs. This way the OTHER leg will stay strong.
Strength…Found in pain, perseverance and patience.
Each day presents new challenges. From new foods to new behaviors. Sometimes they are just AAAAdorable and sometimes these behaviors befuddle me. What do I do? First, today, she tried raspberries for the first time and sourly winced as she placed a piece gingerly in her mouth. 
I did not want her to starve, so I reverted back to the egg and banana route. She of course wanted her “baba” which I am learning has to come after she eats or she’ll just want milk. I now dilute it with water since she loves it so much and I can’t overfeed her the 24 recommended per day ounces. Next endeavor will be hummus, avocado and black beans.
After I picked her up today, I took her to Cheesecake Factory to meet my mom. She had not had a nap which should have been my red siren blaring, but oh well, let’s do this. We arrive and she instantly looks for things to grab. I hand her a small graham cracker as I pray for the waiter to hurry and bring the food. Steamed broccoli (she loves the floret tops) and grilled chicken quickly arrive and she proceeds to throw them on the floor as she laughs and screams. Oh joy. A screaming child? Really? I pull out every trick in the book….a mini book, her bear, a sippy cup of water (blegh…she hates plain water), puffs, a squeazy…all go on the floor. This is when I give up and decide it’s time to flee the premises. On the way home, she proceeds to SCREAM bloody murder. This is the sign of extreme tiredness. After about 5 minutes of straight screaching, she falls asleep. NO! It’s too early now for her to sleep, so the minute we arrive at home, I give her the baba and read her a story. Slowly we fade to bed, and now? I’m wondering if this is normal…normal to have a screamer!? I suppose I am going to have to just A) practice taking her to restaurants; B) make sure she is well-rested BEFORE we go; C) find more bags of tricks; or D) never go out in public ever again.
Breathe.
Tatum and Coti cannot get enough of each other. Before school each day, Tatum and Coti play catch. Today, she just wanted to pet him. 
Yep…..sportin the shades!
I am constantly analyzing, wondering, and questioning. It’s not a confidence thing. It’s a “am I doing this right?” thing. Tatum has been OUT often! Heck, we go to the store, the mall, the park… many “outs.” But sitting in a high chair for dinner at a nice restaurant? This is a new adventure. Finding things to do in “the chair” instead of just eating has its own challenges. Kelly, oh my dear sweet cousin and sista, tells me Tatum is doing great! Me? I don’t know what to compare it to, so I figure, OK. However, I don’t want Tatum to expect table time to be all about her. But, hey, she’s 14 months!
The first thing she did when I plopped her in the queen’s seat (high chair), she tried to make us all laugh with her antics of putting things on her head and bouncing Mr. Bear. Then, she turned around and started to “flirt” with the couple behind her. She just stared, and the lovely old couple smiled and she mimicked them with smiles and laughs. The social butterfly.
The food came, and she scooped it up…loving every bite. I ordered her some steamed broccoli florets, chicken breast and she then enjoyed some parmesan cheese shreds and banana…again..loving every bite. How did I know she was finished? She dropped the food on the floor and said, “Uh-Oh,” and enjoyed watching the food missile down to the ground.
We got home and then….
took out the Coti as she zzzzzzzzed. 🙂
How do I keep up with this inquiring mind and voracious appetite for learning? I have noticed that her play area (s) is filled with toys from when she was only 4-6 months old. It’s time to rotate and learn what she can thrive on. Yes, I have been given some amazing toys and gadgets, but I need to understand what is age appropriate and opportunistic for learning. Plus, when she is in her lobster, she gets bored easily, and I want her to learn to entertain herself instead of relying on everyone around her to keep her entertained. (Although she does recover quickly and make the most of her time)
I scoured blogs and various mommy sites to see what is working for others out there (Thank goodness for other minds since I’m clueless!) Then, I decided to create little “boxes” for each area of the house and just rotate, adding new toys as she grows. Some things I have around the house!
Here are some ideas I discovered:
1. Tape down some wax paper on the island (while she is in her lobster) and let her fingerpaint with pudding or yogurt. I can also tape down paper and get some crayons teaching her to draw!
2. Various puzzles and nested cups keep her occupied and teach her spatial relationships.
3.Empty mini boxes and bandaid boxes. Plus I can add stickers and let her learn to stick things! I figured mini-post-it note tabs too.
4. I am going to make some playdough which does not require cooking: flour, salt, oil and water and food coloring. She can make shapes and I can give her some pasta to make designs.
5. Various mini-pots and pans with lids, whisks, spoons…etc.
6. One of my old purses with lots of zippers..fill with compact, plastic keys, mirror…She loves to rifle through my things!
I am adding to this every day! I have to continue to learn how to help her learn!! 🙂
Here are some of her boxes. I have a ways to go! Today, I am going to get some crayons and a few other accessories for her to play with!
Work in progress to keep up with the Tot!
