I had it all planned out; It was to be a “Rock it” into 2nd grade. She’ll be returning to school tomorrow LIVE! (masked of course).
The unveiling would take place during our brunch at 11am on Sunday.
Mom would also come over and join us. Tatum got ready with her new little bundle.
And we prepared the Rock it Rocket. You’ll notice what matters to us more her character growing more like Christ than her academics. Yes, they matter too, but if the foundation is set in HIM, the rest will follow.
Right Coopy?
Daddy adores you!
Mama showed up and of course we had to snap some pics. Look at that handsome family.
We love you!!! Look how adorable MAMA is!
Ok, brunch is ready and the unveiling occurs! YOU WILL ROCK 2nd GRADE!
I will use this little board to send a message daily.
After enjoying the yummy food, we celebrated Tot with a few presents and cards.
There is no one like you! YOU BE YOU!
I MEAN EVERY WORD.
Mama got her a cute little swimsuit for her to sport in the pool.
I wanted her to have Coopy with her all day, so why not on her ears?
The beauty of Tatum is that she knew the brunch was for her, but she made us all a card with a love note inside.
I LOVE her heart.
Tatum, you are off tomorrow! More to come later. WE LOVE YOU!!
Last week, we had a follow up with the endocrinologist upon her having her bone exam and blood test.
Dr. Sandstrom recommended she go through growth hormone treatment because her height is shown to be only 4’9″. If she has this particular treatment, she will add 3″. So, we are going to go through the preliminary testing to see if she qualifies. This means a five hour stint of IV’s and blood draws. (FASTING that is!)
We got it scheduled the Friday before school starts since it requires early morning and a whole 1/2 day. The day is here now.
We arrived at 7:45am for the 8am appt and waited a bit. Good thing Paw Patrol was playing!
She was quite nervous, but we had been preparing for the past couple days with much PRAYER> Joshua 1:9, to be exact: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Yes, Tot HE IS WITH YOU! Oh, and I’ll be right there too.. (I’m holding you tightly!)
They got her height and weight.
And then we met Kat, her nurse for the day.
She gave me a rundown of the day and the tests performed.
Then they hooked the first IV up. A little poke and then the straw goes in. Courtney came in to bring her an iPad and get her distracted. It worked (the first time!)
We are on our way. ( I think). Daddy texted us a lovely video wishing her well. My friends also texted some prayers. We read a few books, played on iPad, made a necklace. They made her a nice card. All going swimmingly the first two hours.
UNTIL…. the arginine injection was when it got a bit messy. The IV started to hurt, and the blood showed clotting. She had to remove the IV and re-insert. This occurred for about an hour poking in various places. We had to redo a few of the tests also. At one point, she felt nauseous and they wanted to give her some Zofran. It hurt too bad, and Tatum said she’d rather feel nauseous; she even threw up. We had two hours left after 1:00. We were supposed to be finish by 1, but it went slower than we had anticipated. All of us were quite hangry!
BUT, my little trooper, she pushed through for the last two tests.
Kat and Courtney were so impressed with her bravery and her kindness, they let her pick two gifts from the prize closet. TWO! She got two babies because she loves being a mommy.
On the way home she had Chik-fil-a, and she said, “I’m in heaven!”
She wanted to thank Kat and Courtney, so she made them a card. I will send it off on Monday.
In one week, we will find out about the results of the test. If she fails it, insurance covers it. For the first time I am hoping for a failing test! (not sure if I understand it all quite yet). I am just grateful for the opportunity. She learned so much today from this. She gained courage, compassion, and gratitude. So proud of you, sweet girl.
It’s been a great summer of Tatum reading books as noted in the last blog post.
She was assigned to read five books over the summer and was given a choice of books.
We picked Animal Ark series because the levels were highest. They did not disappoint.
Here are the five books she chose:
She had to complete an AR test for each. The word count for the three Animal Ark (Ben Baglio) were around 27,000 words and were 4th and 5th grade level.
She also read two more fun books.
Now for the assignment, she picked two books to report.
Beginning, Middle, End, and a pic of the ending. (100%)!!
Now the next one:
Favorite part and pic (100%)!
The other three were just read and AR tested. (90, 100, 90%s)!
She did such a great job. What fun doing this with her and organizing it! HA!
Sad face but happy that we had the opportunity to do this weekly. Today, we would have breakfast at Wildflower. They finally open at 8am! That calls for celebration and a few kisses!
She had avocado toast. I don’t think it’s big enough!?
It did not disappoint, and moreover, the conversation did not either. We chatted about school hopes/dreams, our walk with Jesus, and fun memories. Delightful.
After, we went to Hobby Lobby. Why? Because it tickles us pink to be in that store creating ideas and making plans for our new home. Also, they have many little fun crafts. I let her buy a toy for a celebration of our time together.
I love you so much, Tot. I will miss our mornings. We’ll continue to do our girlie time; it just may look differently.
What makes cauliflower taste not like cauliflower? Marinade, tossing, and roasting. You have to truly transform this cruciferous veggie for it to be edible. Tatum helped me do just that this morning.
In a large plastic bag, we added coconut aminos, maple syrup, hot sauce, and black pepper to florets.
Then,
That’s right, toss those babies! Now, what do you think Coopy is thinking? Drop it! Drop it! Drop it!
Sorry, pup, you have your own chew toys.
Dinner will be delightful tonight. Thank you, Tatum for your tossing precision!
Oh the days of me reading to her….they seem to be passing away.
This summer, she is to read five books and report on two. She has already finished her assignment, but she still must finish her five. Now, for Tatum her reading level is in the 3rd and early 4th grade. Therefore, her books are chapter books and take a little longer to read.
She’s already read Bunnies in the Bathroom and Puppies in the Pantry.
She just finished Beagle in the Backpack, and I was S.H.O.C.K.E.D to see it’s a 5th grade level! OYE!
She took the AR test this morning. Wow. 90%.
Anyway, the cool thing is that she is choosing to read on her own without me. Just today, she was a bit under the weather. She wanted me to bring her some books, and for an hour, she just read and read and read and read.
You can hear her laughing and enjoying the books.
Every day while she eats lunch, I read to her Nancy Drew. When I was a kid, I had a huge set of these yellow books. We are on the second book right now. Then, at night we read for about 30-45 minutes. However, now she wants to read to me instead. Oh, the sadness. I love her reading to me, but I do miss doing the reading too!
Even at bedtime, you can find her reading.
I look forward to reading more books with her! We’ll do our own mini book club. (We’ll be true Book Buds!)
