Yes, you read that right. Seems that I missed my window for the flu shot. I was trying to wait and get it by a local practitioner, but I was traveling for work, then I was inundated at work during the day and with kids' activities at night. Before I knew it, I was out for the count with one cold/flu virus or another.
I've been off from work all week, and I've been sick all week. I was just starting to feel better when it hit me again this morning. Whine whine whine.
Yesterday we went to a foster parent Christmas party with all of the kids. We go every year. This year, I figured Princess was old enough to play with the kids on the dance floor. Not so much. Instead, I speant the majority of the party chasing her and her one-shoed self literally all over the hotel where the party was. Out the exits. In different exits. Dodging other people and children. Desperately cutting in front of people to stop her from going out the automatic door to the parking lot/behind the bar/into the kitchen. Whew!
Skater said I had the wrong shoes on her and replaced her Mary Janes with her fuzzy boots. Five minutes later, she was running around with one fuzzy boot. So much for that theory.
He had the "easy" baby - our son is incredibly mature for 22 months. Seriously. He stays with us, helps us retrieve dropped objects (like the Princess's errant shoe), and shows off his dancing skills when appropriate. He's a dream baby, and he's such a wonderful big brother. Oh yeah, he had the easy one!
When I was finally able to pick her up and hold her without her screaming and twisting her little body to try to get down, I held her in my arms and visited with a couple of the other foster parents. Whew. It was nice to speak with a couple of grown-ups.
My Mom always laughs when I tell her about Princess and her running. She says, "That's exactly what you used to do - you never stopped. I always breathed a sigh of relief when I took your struggling little self into the house and locked the door for the day. Whew." I love it when she tells me this. I love it because I love the Princess so much. I feel like she is my "soul daughter." I felt it almost immediately. And she feels it, too. None of my boys ever cried for me unless they wanted to nurse. Princess was a formula baby, so everyone got a chance to feed her. Nonetheless, she wants to be with me. I am her Chosen One. And she is mine.
She wasn't talking at all. No words that she could relate to actions except for "MMMmmmmmmmmmm!!!!" when she was hungry and it was time to eat. I know, that's really cute. I enjoy it thoroughly. Still, she's 18 months old, so we've been working with her to see if we can help her to catch up a bit. It must be working:
This week, she said "babana - babana" over and over again for the banana I held in my hands. She also said "Dadada" while running to my husband with her arms out, and "Aya!" while running to my oldest son (the other baby calls him this, too). Her "twin" is helping her, too - he's so patient with her (when he's not jumping on her to snatch her toy or secure a spot closer to me). It's so cute. Even though I raised four other children, I am enjoying these two to no end. Everything they do is like the first time I've seen it. So much love.
I am hoping that we can continue fostering when all of my children are older. Right now, we have our hands full, so adding another may be too much (unless they call us with an emergency - I could never turn them down). Still, I know there is more we can do at some point. I often read "I Was a Foster Kid" by Looney Tunes. When I read her blogs, I so much want to be there for a child who has not had it easy. I feel like she has so much potential, and I agree with her: Patience is an absolute must with a child who has been through a lot. This is really why we will wait: Right now, we have our hands full with our older boys and their school work and extracurricular activities. Once they are older (and my oldest can drive), hopefully things will slow down a bit. Then, we can concentrate on an older child with more specific needs.
Until then, I will continue to chase after my Princess, one shoe in my hands, and keep her from running out any automatic doors.
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