Mira Archives - Page 17 of 36

Aug 3, 2010

The Doctor’s Bill Hurts More Than The Shot

Being without health insurance at the moment, we’ve put off a lot of routine care because we simply can’t afford the bills. Vaccination boosters can wait, yearly check-ups can be put off, and if anyone gets sick, I can put my Super Mom-RN skills to use to determine if a trip to the doctor is really necessary.

But when the school sends home a form requiring a medical professional to sign off that your child has had a physical in the past year and is healthy enough to attend school – and said child can’t attend school without this signature – then you have to bite the bullet and make an appointment.

Mira had her doctor’s visit yesterday, what would have been her three-year-old well-child visit, now more like her three-and-a-few-months well-child visit. Her doctor is actually a nurse practitioner (yay for supporting my fellow nurses!), and Mira spent all morning excited about going to the “dot-torz oh-hice!” Or at least she was excited until we got there and the nurse asked her to take off her shoes to be weighed. Then the wailing started.

Thankfully, the tears stopped when the nurse practitioner came into the room. Our NP is very friendly and outgoing, and Mira quickly recovered herself and became the show-off ham she’s known for. The NP pointed out that Mira is continuing the tradition of Amazon warrior princesses in our household – 95th percentile for height – no surprise there. If she continues on this growth curve, she’ll likely be 5’8″ or taller as an adult.

There were no surprises at this visit. Mira still has speech apraxia. We knew that and she’ll be getting therapy through the school in the fall. She has sensitive skin and a sensitive tummy, which we’ve been aware of since birth. She has a persistent junky cough that is likely just allergies as her chest is clear – the NP’s stethoscope findings matched my own from home. She’s bright, overflowing with energy, and completely healthy with no serious medical concerns whatsoever. And that’s essentially what was noted on the paper required for school admittance.

In other words, we didn’t need the NP to tell us any of this. We just needed her signature.

And then we paid $110 for that signature and 15 minutes of time that only confirmed what we already knew.

Ouch.

I think my checkbook needs a band-aid and a Thomas the Tank Engine sticker now.

Filed Under: daily life, growing up, Mira, money, school ·

Jul 21, 2010

An Early Love of Reading

By Christina ·

Earlier in the summer, I was invited to visit the Columbus Metropolitan Library to learn about their programs, specifically their summer reading club. This was something the girls were only mildly excited about, because going to the library is a semi-regular occurrence for them. But little did they know that was the day the library was kicking off the summer reading program, and there were all sorts of special events going on at the library all day to celebrate.

Now, we don’t just have any old library here in Columbus – we have the TOP library. Columbus Metropolitan Library was named the top library of 2010 by Library Journal, along with several other honors they’ve received before. Our library is awesome – the diversity of their offerings is unmatched.

Cordy and Mira were both excited to sign up for their first summer reading club. Aaron signed up, too – adults are welcome to participate. Cordy already had a library card, but Mira got her first library card that day. (And wouldn’t you know it – it was PINK.) They each received a sheet to track their progress and selected several books to start with.

For the next few weeks, this was how we usually saw Cordy at home:

Yes, it’s a comic book, but there are words, so it counts!

Her nose was buried in a book, trying to earn time to get another box marked off of her sheet. But Mira wasn’t slacking, either – she brought me book after book and begged me to read until my eyes crossed.

And with only half of the summer complete, they have both finished their summer reading club tracking sheets. Aaron took them to the library on Saturday to turn in their tracking forms, and each girl received a library tote bag as her reward. They now use those tote bags to take library books to and from the library.

I’ve been thrilled to see Cordy’s interest in reading develop over the summer. I think she’s a stronger reader now than she was at the end of the school year. She may have trouble with social skills in kindergarten, but at least I feel confident that she’ll do fine with her academics this fall.

There’s still time to get your child enrolled in a summer reading club. Even if you don’t live in Columbus, this is something many libraries do each summer. Even my small hometown library had a summer reading club when I was a kid, although back then I had to give a verbal book report to the children’s librarian to earn my stamp. (You kids these days have it soooooo much easier! *said in my best old person voice*)

And if you have more time for reading that doesn’t involve navigating to Facebook, check out any adult reading club activities your library might have as well.

Locals: should you happen to live in the district of the Columbus Metropolitan Library, be aware that a levy to help fund the library will be on the November ballot this year. This will replace an expiring levy and help fund new services, as well as bringing back Sunday hours to the suburban branches. Don’t forget to vote for this levy!

Full disclosure: I was invited to come to the library as a special guest, and received a very nice presentation about all of the library’s services while my children were entertained by library staff during storytime. I received no compensation, other than the time of the Executive Director and other staff. Our family loves and supports our local library, and encourages you to love and support your local library, too!

Filed Under: Cordy, daily life, growing up, Mira, reviews ·

Jul 6, 2010

A Tale of Two Girls (and One Dress)

By Christina ·

One advantage of having two daughters? Re-using some of the cutest outfits. And then comparing photos of them in said cute outfits.

Today’s dress? A lovely orange and yellow floral dress bought for Cordy by her Aunt Katie.

Now worn by Mira.

(Why must she always give me the “Are you kidding me?” look when I ask her to smile?)

Age difference – almost a year and a half. Cordy wore it at 19 months and it was nearly too tight. Mira now wears it at 3 years old and it’s nearly too tight.

It’s a size 3.

They’re both Amazons in their own way. And yet again I have another dress that I never want to get rid of.

Filed Under: Amazons, Cordy, memories, Mira ·

May 31, 2010

Mira’s Perfect PINK Party

By Christina ·

So Saturday was the great PINK party. Many guests showed up wearing pink for Mira, and Mira happily wore the PINK dress she picked out at The Children’s Place.

All of the decorations were PINK, and most of the presents were PINK, too. The cake? Oh yeah, it was PINK:

The cake was made by Krazy Kakes, a local Columbus small business. Even the inside of the cake was PINK with strawberry filling. Gorgeous, no? It tasted amazing, too! We also had a second PINK cake from Whole Foods for Cordy, which meant that nearly everyone got two slices of cake and was on a sugar high the remainder of the day.

I should have taken more photos. But I was too busy keeping things running. Hopefully someone else snapped a few for me.

And Mira celebrated her birthday in true diva fashion. You may remember that my children have a fondness for Lady Gaga. Well, for Mira it’s more of an obsession now. At preschool they occasionally turn on the radio for the kids, and when a Gaga song comes on, Mira screams, “Da Wadee Gaga!!”

So in true Gaga form, Mira’s preschool teachers made her a birthday crown unlike any other birthday crown ever made in that school.

Lady Gaga? I think you have a new three year old friend.

She wore it with true pride, even out to Bob Evans for dinner. And like Lady Gaga, she appreciated that everyone was looking at her.

What little monster have we created?

Filed Under: family time, growing up, Mira ·

May 27, 2010

Three

By Christina ·

Today I no longer have a toddler.

Today Miranda will start her day as a preschooler, or as she calls it, a “big girl.”

Unlike Cordy, Mira has been planning her third birthday for over a month. She immediately told me she wanted a PINK (her emphasis, not mine) party, with PINK balloons and PINK cake and PINK decorations. (Fun fact: Mira likes pink.) She created most of the guest list. And she’s been very good at making sure we don’t forget that her birthday is in May and she’ll be three.

All this birthday talk has spurred her to think about her future as a big girl, too. She spins stories of how she will someday go to work, and she’ll drive a PINK car to get there. She can’t even say PINK yet – due to her speech apraxia, it sounds more like HINK. However, I can understand her so much better than I could even half a year ago, thanks to all of the hard work she’s put in trying to be understood.

This younger daughter of ours is more than just a little girl – she’s a force of nature. Her impish spirit is obvious to everyone she meets, and her direct and sometimes forceful personality ensures she gets her way. She’s just now three years old, but she has already mastered manipulation, charm, and knowing just how to bat her eyes to get one more cookie. Where Cordy falters socially, Mira shines.

Today my little girl is three, and I’m mourning the baby that’s being traded in for this child. She longs to explore her world and make her place in it, going further from my reach each day, and I’m not ready to let her go yet.

But when bedtime is near, and she climbs onto my lap to cuddle for “jus too moh minuwtes” she nestles her head against my shoulder and reminds me that, “I noh ah baybee, I ah big girl. Buh I m stiw mahmee’s baybee.”

Happy birthday, Mira. You are a big girl, but you will always be my baby.