A bumpy night

Before going to bed last night, I was looking forward to taking some "mother/daughter" pictures today after church. However, when Xylie came to our room at 1:00 a.m. I knew that picture taking would have to wait until later this week. The poor little girl is sick. She's running a fever and has a runny/stuffy noise and a dry cough. We're all just staying home today and resting. As a parent, it is so sad to see your little one hurting. Sweet Xylie-bear (another nickname from her infancy) has been hurting a lot these past few weeks. She's having a very difficult time with the move. We knew she'd miss her friends, but because of her vibrant nature, we thought she'd bounce back fairly quickly. Even though we've been making new friends, she really misses the little girls in Texas who were such a big part of her life. And it does not surprise me. In reality, those little girls (Hope, Amanda, Avery, and McKenzie, along with a little boy named Ira) were her very first true friends. It has given me a whole new understanding for a toddler's/preschooler's capacity to love and form relationships. There are often several times during the week that Xylie and I will be playing happily and I'll notice tears streaming down her rosy cheeks. Whenever I ask her why she's crying, she explains that she's missing her friends. Right now, I am doing my best to allow her to grieve, but to also give her lots of opportunities to enjoy our new life here in South Carolina. It's a tough balance.

We've made some changes in the sleeping arrangements of our household. Zayden and Xylie still share a bedroom, but at night time, Zayden now sleeps in his pack N play in our bedroom. During the daytime, he naps in his crib that is in the room he and Xylie share. I think that the interrupted sleep patterns are partly responsible for the difficult transition. Zayden will stay with Napp and I at night until he consistently sleeps through the night, which he does about 50% of the time.

On Friday, Xylie and I went shopping for some new Fall clothes. It was really fun to shop with her and watch her try things on and it even gave me a new "Xylie story"to share, which I'll get to later this week. I've attached some pictures of her modeling a new shirt (She's very into Tinkerbell right now. It seems that the little pixie has replaced Dora and Strawberry Shortcake for the top spot in her heart.) she picked out (the skirt is actually one that my mom bought her several months ago). Xylie loves to "model" and demonstrate all the silly faces she can make. She's a hoot! I've also put some more pix of Zayden enjoying his grub.

Currently, both of my children are sleeping. This is a rarity in our household so I am going to take this opportunity to spend some quality time with Napp. I hope you all have great weeks. Please let me know if you'd like me to post any photos for you on this site and if it is ok if I post some of your family's that I may already have. Blessings, Angela