Sunday, May 2, 2010

Cute Things

Ever since Kambi's birthday, it seems that every day she becomes more of a little girl and less of a baby. She picked up on the gesture for "I don't know" and does it all the time. So cute. She babbles "dada dada dada" a lot, although I'm not sure if she knows what it means. Other than that, she doesn't say any real words. I try so hard to get her to say "Mama" but to no avail. I'm trying to teach her how to feed herself with a spoon. It's going to take some time. Sometimes she gets excited and flings the spoon around, thereby throwing food everywhere. It takes all of my patience to let her do this. I know with enough practice she will eventually get it.
I'm thinking that sometimes when I expect things from Kambi, the exact opposite happens. For example. I was so set on "teaching" her to sleep through the night by the time she was 3 months old (thanks to Babywise, but I'm not going to start on that) but she didn't actually do it until she was 6 months. Whereas other parents I talk to, who just go with the flow have babies that sleep just great at 3 months or earlier. Also, I've really wanted to encourage her to like books and reading (not so much TV) so we've bought tons of books, and I try so hard every day to read to her . But she will have none of it. For a long time she would just eat them, literally. She doesn't do that anymore really, but she WILL NOT sit and listen to a book no matter what I do. I don't even try and read it, just look at the pictures and talk about it, but she won't sit for even 10 seconds. It frustrates me to no end. I guess I just can't make her do or be who I want her to be, she will be who she is.
Anyway, she is super cute and is learning new things every day. I am so happy to be her mother! I would not trade it for anything in the world.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Has it Really Been a Year?

My baby is turning 1 on Sunday. Holy smokes, that year went by so fast! Every time I think about it I get a lump in my throat and teary-eyed. She's not going to be a baby anymore! And if I'm having this much trouble with her first birthday, I'm going to be a wreck as she gets older and starts doing things like going to school, or turning 16, or oh my goodness get married! Ok ok maybe I'm overreacting. But really, she is growing up so fast. I have learned so so much from her! I absolutely LOVE being a mom and there's no doubt in my mind that it's what I am supposed to do with my life. I have never been happier. That's not to say that it's been a walk in the park. It hasn't. There have been some days when even though I love my daughter with all of my heart, I've wanted to pull my hair out and scream. But I thank my Heavenly Father every single day for the blessing of being a mother. I have a few close friends who, for some reason have not been blessed with children at this point in their lives. My heart aches for them. I pray for them often.
Over the past year, my weaknesses have become very clear to me. I am so far from perfection, and sometimes I get discouraged about that, but I try to do my best. It humbles me to know what aspects of my life I need to work on.
Lately Kambria has been so adorable! I have no words to describe how much joy her cuteness brings to me :) She babbles all the time: in her crib, in the high chair, in the car, in church. She doesn't say any words yet, but she cocks her head to the side and squints and smiles and babbles and I just want to eat her up, it is so cute! I want to remember her baby attributes because I know that before I know it she will be so big. She follows me around all day, and sometimes wants to be held more than I have hands for. But I will cherish this time now because some day, she might not think that hanging out with me is so cool after all. She is beginning to learn how to give loves, and she gives great open-mouth kisses :) She means the world to me and I want to give her the very best. Including my best self.
I'm all choked up just writing all of this. I just wanted to write down my feelings about this sweet little girl who has brightened up my life immensely. I guess when she stops being a baby I'll have to have another one :)

Saturday, February 13, 2010

To Cut or Not to Cut

Ugh. I am so sick of my hair!! Every so often I get the urge to chop all of my hair off. I've basically ALWAYS had long hair. And usually, I really like it. I debate back and forth, back and forth, should I cut it, should I not... And usually my wussy side wins out and I don't cut it because I get scared. 2 years ago I decided to take the plunge and cut it, but I didn't dare go too too short. The result? A medium hair cut that was somewhat cute straight, but so poofy and so ugly when I did it curly. So I didn't like it and have grown it out ever since. Here is the internal debate this time:

One thing I keep telling myself is that if I cut it short, I'll have to straighten it all the time because it would be poofy if I did it curly. Then I realized, I straighten it all the time anyway! Maybe one time in a month do I ever do it curly anymore.
Kambi is always grabbing my hair, therefore it is in a ponytail almost EVERY DAY. Even when it's in a ponytail, she can still get to it.
It bugs me when I sleep.
Maybe a cute hair do would take the focus off my acne covered face.
I get headaches a lot. Maybe because of the weight of my hair.

My hair takes forever to grow. If I hate the cut, it will be a long long time to get long again.
Who can I get to cut it and how much would it cost.
Hm, save money on shampoo and conditioner.
Curt likes my hair long.
I shed so bad and since it's so long, it clogs drains and gets all over everything.
I wouldn't be able to put it in a ponytail if I wanted to.

This is the internal debate

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Hello Again

Wow, that last post was forever ago! Kambi has changed so much since then. Time is just flying.
This post is only kind of related to being a mommy. 2 significant physical changes (well, many more than that, but I'm only writing about 2) happened during my pregnancy. 1) My hair was so healthy!! I don't think I lost a single strand. 2) I started to break out with pimples more than I ever had. I had read that that was quite common in pregnancy, and they weren't huge or bright red or anything, so I patiently endured. Well, I had my baby and immediately got my pre-pregnancy hair back, but my complexion didn't change. Over the next few months it got worse and worse until it was out of control. When I was in Logan for Thanksgiving, I almost didn't say hello to an old friend I saw because I didn't want her to see me and my face. I started avoiding mirrors and cameras, and that's when I knew that something had to be done. I wanted to see a dermatologist, but it is so hard on a college student budget to think of spending anything that isn't totally and utterly necessary, and for a long time I wasn't on insurance. I had to tell myself that the acne all over my face did not change anything about my worth as a person, and that I was still me despite my less-than-perfect looks. Curt has been so good throughout this whole trial; he tells me all the time that I'm beautiful and that he loves my smile.
Anyway, I went to an esthetician to get a facial, thinking that she would cleanse my pores and give me a product that would actually work on my face. Well, to make a long story short, on my 2nd facial she pretty much told me that I would have to get regular facials every 2 to 4 weeks for it to make a difference. YIKES! There's no way I could afford that! AND she went on to tell me that basically, the only type of cleanser or make up that I should ever dare to put on my face is the product she sells, and a select few other salon brands. (of course these are WAY more expensive than what I normally buy). When she told me I would have to come back for facial #2, I started feeling a little uneasy about the whole thing, but at this point I thought to myself, "I do not trust this lady and there's no way I'm coming back." (It was so painful, having her extract black heads...ouch!)
I finally was able to get insurance, and the minute I did, I called a dermatologist. Of course, I have to have a referral from another dr to see a specialist, so now I am going to a family dr next week to (hopefully) have her look at my face and say, yes, this girl needs some help. I really hope and pray that I can finally get my face cleared up! This problem has weighed on me so much over the last several months and I'm ready to feel better about myself again.