To Be Clear, I'm Not Pregnant And Other Things About ME!

OK, there seemed to be some confusion in the title of my last blog so I'm here to clear it up.  I AM NOT PREGNANT!  Even Kayla must have read the blog expecting a pregnancy announcement because she has spent the last week and a half asking if I have a baby in my belly and then randomly telling people about it. I would like to reiterate one last time, there is no third baby, or triplets. However, it was brought to my attention that I have spent a lot of time talking about the crazy antics of my kids.  Most of you now know my kids prefer to be naked, hate sleep, and sometimes take on gremlin characteristics, but what do you know about me? So I'm taking the time tonight, if my kids will allow me, to tell you everything you have ever wanted to know about me.  OK just kidding, but here are five fun facts about me!

1. I have my own version of blue steel and it is this look.  It is the face in almost every picture of me in the last two years.  I'm not sure why I feel the deer in the headlights look is a good one for me, but I have yet to change it. 

2.  I love, love, love, love, (add two hundred thousand more loves in) MUSIC.  I have to have it playing pretty much all day.  At work I have it on, in the car, at home.  And I will listen to pretty much any type of music.  My top bands currently are The Lumineers, Mumford and Sons, and Gary Clark Jr., and the Frozen Soundtrack because I have two daughters.  I demand if you don't know these bands stop reading and go to you tube and start listening.  Amazing!  I'll admit it, even the Frozen Soundtrack is catchy. 

3.  Ok, now that you are done listening to my great taste in music, I will continue.  I have been known on the random occasion to break out into random rapping AND interpretative dance around the office. Now I won't lie, I think the rapping of TLC's Waterfall may haunt my coworkers for the rest of their lives, but I choose to consider myself the female version of Eminem?  And let's face it, happy birthday is much more meaningful when you add a dance to it.  My dance moves, well I will let you be the judge next time you see me bust my moves, but I like to think they are pretty hip.

4.  My kids are AWESOME at being a constant reminder of some of the greatest lessons in life.  

A little background to this picture.  This is Abby on her one month birthday, she had been on a vent for about a week and a half leading up to this and was sedated for comfort the entire time.  Because of all of the iv's, tubes, etc I wasn't able to hold her during that time.  I remember, it was exactly on her one month birthday that I finally got to hold her with no tubes and this was the picture taken by our nurse!  If you ever need a reminder to smile during the valleys in your life, this picture is a great reminder.  I think of everything Abs went through and yet here she is, a day off the vent and smiling away and still loving me and giving me comfort. 

And not to leave Kayla out, she reminds me to just keep trying.  If you fail, get up and keep going and you will achieve your dreams.  Kayla is five (yes I survived the actual birthday and she really is 5 now!) and has done a lot more than some kids in middle school because she isn't afraid to try anything. 

5.  As much as I love my kids, I love being able to go to work Monday-Friday.  I know, it is taboo to admit it, but I love working and getting time away from my girls. And no it doesn't mean I love my kids any less so let's just stop the judging now.  I found it crazy that I spent the first year back at work after having Kayla explaining why I wanted to work, you know other than that whole bills to pay reason.  Come on, how many places do you have pirate parties and other themed parties once a month.  I was devastated when I HAD to quit my job at MichiVan to take care of Abby.  

Who wouldn't want to work in this place??

But I have been on both sides, a working mom and a stay at home mom.  I am a much better mom to the girls when I get to have my adult interaction.  And I am lucky enough that right now my job isn't a demanding job and is flexible when I need to run and pick up Kayla from preschool in the middle of the afternoon.  You might be wondering, what amazing job do I have? I'm lucky enough to not have just one job, but two jobs!  My job by day is working as the assistant at our local Chamber of Commerce.  There is rarely a dull moment in our building between planning the different events and talking with the visitors who stop in.  By evening, well Tuesday and Thursday evenings, I teach a youth cycling class.  It is an interesting job, but I really enjoy working with the kids.  It gives me a glimpse into what my future will hold.  So yes on top of being an over committer, I also work two jobs.  

BONUS

That's right I'm going to give you a deep and meaningful bonus fact. My life is beyond hectic.  I feel like we are constantly going from point A to point B with a quick stop at McDonald's to get dinner (again stop your judging you know you do it too!) before getting Kayla to yoga or dance class.  But I wouldn't trade this life for the world.  I love that Kayla has already gotten to experience a musical, and a dance recital, and getting to be the opening act at a concert.  Granted she sat and laughed at the squealing speaker and attempted to knock down the microphones, but she loved it.  And seeing her smile and confidence grow in whatever new thing she is trying makes the constant running around worth it.   I know as Abs gets older it will just get more chaotic but I plan on getting a clone of myself to keep up!  I look at all the amazing experiences I have had in my life, not just with my kids, but my entire life and I am one lucky girl. 

So there you have it, five facts (five seems to be a theme in my blog, but I swear I'm not pregnant!) all about me.  I'm sure you will rest easier now that you know everything there is to know about me.  

Adios!

Five is the Magic Number

How is it possible that it has been five years since I was up all night googling what a contraction feels like?  Yes, for those who don't know the story of me going into labor with Kayla, I didn't actually believe I was in labor.  In fact I was so sure it wasn't labor I made Bryon go to work and told him not to worry even if it was contractions it would be a long time before I needed to go to the hospital.  Well it turns out about an hour later we were on our way to the hospital, or as I like to call it the land of epidurals.  Anyways, later that day Kayla Jeanette was born.

I need to make a side note here to point out that as you read this you need to pretend I'm writing this blog on Tuesday, January 21st, because as Kayla likes to point out, technically she is still 4.  However, I know how hectic our weeks get and wanted to write this after spending the weekend celebrating her 5th birthday.  

The past five years with our Kayla have been a roller coaster ride.  If anything I have learned I might move out of the country for her teenage years.  She is definitely our drama queen.  But although she is full of drama and worry over which glittery outfit to wear today, she has a huge heart and I can't imagine our lives without her in it.  When I first found out I was pregnant with Kayla (one week before our one year anniversary) I went out and bought a journal.  I wrote to Kayla all through my pregnancy and as she has grown up.  I record stories of the funny memories and keep pictures in it for her.  I plan on giving her this journal when she turns 18.  However, I thought I would share my letter to Kayla as she turns five. 

A quick side note....I won't lie, I am struggling with this fifth birthday thing.  I feel like she is moving into a new stage in her life and as exciting as all of it is, my first born is no longer a baby or toddler (even if she still wears some 2t clothes) and it's hard to accept.  I mean she is the kid I made all the mistakes on so by the time we had our second kid I wouldn't make mistakes.  That's how it works right? Anyways, here is my letter to Kayla.

Dear Kayla,

     I can't believe you are FIVE!  Where has the time gone?  I feel like we just brought you home from the hospital and laid you in your crib and stared at you wondering what the heck we were supposed to do now?  As you can tell we figured it out because you are five and still alive.  You are such an amazing girl Kayla.  There is never a dull moment in our house with you around.  Whether it is you singing and dancing on your desk or just sitting around telling me about how you looked at your boyfriend today.  Fingers crossed you  remember to talk to him tomorrow.  You are so full of life and you bring the best of everyone out.  

I'm pretty sure every year I have the same wishes for you.  I want you to continue to be the carefree imaginative girl you are.  I love when you make up stories about princesses and dinosaurs. I also love that you love to perform.  My absolute favorite time of every day is our time in the car together when we both sing at the top of our lungs to whatever song may be on.  I wish you would have met my Grandma Askins when you were older because she would be so proud of your love of music and performing.  You also love to dance and tumble.  Even though you try to tell me you don't like dance class I'm not falling for it.  Almost every time we watch a movie  you are either in a frog stand or a bridge watching it upside down.  I hope that confidence never fades and you continue to want to perform and shine.  

You are in preschool this year and even though you have a big love of boys, well one boy, you also love to learn.  You now will sit at home and write letters to Grandma or Daron, although I don't think you have ever given him any of the letters.  You try to read and spell on your own.  It puts a smile on my face.  Again I hope you continue to grow and want to learn new things as you get older. 

And last but not least I hope you keep going out of your way to be a caring, helpful kid.  Over the years there have been so many times I have beamed with pride over ways you have gone above and beyond what is expected to help someone else out.  I can remember being told about a kid being upset in school last year and how you spent the morning drawing pictures for him to cheer him up.  You share your change with other kids in church so they can get candy as well.  And even though you claim most days to not like your sister, you go out of your way to cheer her up and help her when she is upset.  I am so proud of the girl you are and hope you continue to grow in those same areas.

I hope you know even on those days when you make me want to pull my hair out (only the gray strands though), I will always love you and I am always here for you.  Happy 5th birthday.  

                                                                                           Love, Mommy

So there you have it, five years of Kayla!  Life has definitely not been boring with her around.  She is stubborn yet gentle.  She can be put in any situation and she does just fine.  I have a special soft spot for both of my girls for different reasons.  I talk so much about everything I went through when Abby was born and then hospitalized for almost a month, but I never talk about how amazing Kayla was during that time.  As if it isn't' hard enough for a two year old to accept a new sibling into their house, Kayla was thrown into a situation of barely having her mom around.  The first few days of Abby being in the hospital, Kayla lived a gypsy life and went from home to home being taken care  of by whomever had the time because I barely left the hospital.  Then once we had a surgery date for Abby set, Kayla went to stay with Grandma and Grandpa Askins for an entire week.  Kayla had never been away from me for more than a night and she was amazing.  Once she came back she spent the max 10hours a day in daycare while I was still spending my days at the hospital.  Then she normally ended up back at the hospital with me after I rushed to pick her up.  And although we definitely struggled with the normal terrible two attitude from her, Kayla was the most amazing child. She knew exactly how to make me smile and laugh during one of the most stressful times I had ever been through.  She worried about her baby sister and talked about her being sick and then was thrilled when Abby was finally back home.  Through that trial in all of our lives Kayla proved what an amazingly strong and independent person she is and I have no doubt she will have big plans for herself as she grows up.  For now those plans are to be a cowgirl who sings on tv Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday nights.  She would like Saturday and Sundays off.  

So it's almost here and time for me to accept that she is going to be 5...but not until Tuesday!  I'll stay in denial of her growing up until then.  

Is My Daughter a Gremlin?

Every parent who has gone through the Terrible Twos has asked themselves if there child is possessed at some time or another.  However, I have come to realize there is a much better comparison that goes with this age.  Abby has several characteristics that have left us pondering, is my daughter a Gremlin?  Let us compare the traits of a Gremlin and the traits of our adorable Abby.  First a Gremlin is often bright, bold, and full of energy and happiness. Let's take a look at Gizmo as an example.

I mean let's face it, when this movie came out and we started watching it, we all wanted to take Gizmo home as a pet.  Now let's compare with Abby 

Abby has enough energy and brightness to heat several homes in our neighborhood.  She can sleep a few hours and you won't hear a quiet moment from her for the rest of the day.  She loves making people laugh.  On top of that, isn't she adorable?  Speaking of talking, have you heard the sounds a gremlin makes?  If not Youtube it...now close your eyes and pictures Abby's adorable face making these noises and you have a conversation with my daughter.  Seriously, she is fluent in gremlin talk, because there is no way she is speaking English or any human language 90% of the time. 

  

The next trait I notice these cuddly creatures and my favorite youngest daughter seem to share is that while they are happy, they care very little about rules.  I know, I know most parents can't stop talking about how well behaved their children are.  I'm here to tell you that Abby's general tendency is to do what she wants when she wants and she will hit, kick, and scream bloody murder if you try to stop her.  Abby's older sister, Kayla, unfortunately seems to be on the receiving end of the rule breaking a majority of the time.  I'm surprised she still has hair after the handfuls we have taken from Abby's grip.  So far it's looking awful likely that Abs may actually be a Gremlin...let's continue

As I was watching the movie I realized Gremlins will eat ANYTHING!  I mean seriously they will eat anything.  Which brings me to Abby, who is willing to eat paper, crayons, toothpaste, and even shoes when she feels I'm neglecting her from her feeding necessities. Abby is a human garbage disposal.  There was a lunch not too long ago where she ate 2 bananas, 4 oranges, and 6 chicken nuggets and then asked for a snack a half hour later!  She likes her food and so do the gremlins.....hmm this is sounding fishy now.

If you are a child of the 80's then you know there are 3 very important rules when taking care of your gremlin. 

1. Do not get them wet- Have you ever tried to wash soap out of Abby's hair?  How dare you get water on her face.  At least I'm assuming that is what the screams mean.  

2. Do not expose them to bright light- If Abby is allowed to wake up on her own she wakes up looking all cute and cuddly like Gizmo up there.  However if you attempt to wake up Abby on your timeline and you will get an Abby a little more like this.

Oh sorry, that's the actual gremlin, I meant you will get this. 

I rest my case, my daughter is most definitely a gremlin. 

3. Do not feed them after midnight- I won't even dare break this rule for fear of what else may happen in this house.  

To wrap this up, my daughter is definitely a gremlin....or a two year old. Luckily we get the Gizmo side of Abby a majority of the time.  But we definitely have our moments where, "hilarious mayhem ensues" (I'm guessing that's the movies way of saying mass chaos) in our household because we have obviously broken a Gremlin Rule.  Maybe you are reading this and you have realized you too are raising a gremlin.  I just want to offer some encouragement.  You see Abby's big sister hasn't always been this sweet and innocent.

Yes, Kayla was also once a gremlin. I don't know how or when it happened exactly, but one day Kayla outgrew this stage.  She moved right into the drama queen stage, but that is a story for a different blog. So there is hope!  One day we are going to look back and realize we aren't raising gremlins anymore, but actual kids.  But until that day remember, no water, avoid bright lights, and NEVER feed them after midnight!

What Does The Fox Say, Resolutions, And Other Epic Things

Admit it, you saw the first part of this blog title and in your head started singing "ding ding ding ding ding ding ding". This song has been a staple of our bedtime dance parties, as well as our breakfast wake up music.  If you haven't caught on, music is on in our house A LOT! And with winter in full effect (oh to update our snowmageddon was much more of a rain/icemageddon and we survived) music is our way of burning energy.  Because when we don't have our amazingly awesome dance parties things like this happen.

Yes,this is a disaster, but I'm choosing to look at them emptying their drawers and half the bathroom to decorate their bedroom a win.  Because I know I will now get at least twenty more minutes of quiet while they clean it all up.   This picture is the story of my life, happy chaos.  I'm sure I'm not the first to use this description and I doubt I'll be the last, but this picture is the epitome of our lives.  Which leads me to the real point of this blog, new years resolutions (stick with me, I promise you will see the connection soon).

Every new year brings out a slew of New Year's Resolutions and I am no different.  So here we go with my list of resolutions for 2014:
1. I will first buy a sewing machine and then learn how to use it because I have pinned a bunch of really cute clothes for the girls and myself to make.
2.  I will learn how to play guitar because think of how our dance and karaoke parties will go from amazingly awesome to epic.
3. I will stop using words like epic.
4. And this may be the most important one, I WILL LEARN TO SAY NO.

Unfortunately I have already ruined my 4th resolution.  You see, I say the Zielonka Household is basically surviving in a state of happy chaos and I have this gut feeling I am the cause of that.  While I am an organized person (when people aren't throwing random trash and food scraps on my desk) I tend to over commit myself.  Whether I am agreeing to help fund raise for an organization, organize a holiday event, or write a grant, if you ask me to help I will say yes 9.8 times out of 10.  This leads to our days being filled with going from here to there and back, a state of happy chaos(see it all comes together now!).  We always seem to be on the go.

How exactly have I failed my fourth resolution already you ask?  Well we are on the 11th day of the month and I have already agreed to work on a fundraising campaign and help organize an event.  And to make it worse I technically broke my resolution before the new year even started!  There is a reason for this though, I love helping people.  I love organizing events and while I don't love asking people to donate money if I believe in the reason they are fundraising, I am willing to help out.  I know I could just as easily say no.  I mean let's face it, I have a built in excuse, the two girls who sound more like they are re enacting the best of wrestle mania instead of cleaning up all those clothes upstairs.  Obviously they could use some parental guidance.  But the problem is, I love helping other people and I love being involved.

SO I have decided to amend New Years Resolution Number 4.  I will learn to not over commit, which means technically I'm going to have to learn to say no every once in while.  I have talk to a few recovering over committers and they have assured me once I say my first no I will feel liberated.  I have yet to drink the no juice, but I promise when the first opportunity strikes and it finally happens I will be sure to let you all in on the celebration.  But until that day I will keep saying "yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes" (admit it you just sang those to What Does the Fox Say).

To update on the success of my other resolutions:
1. I have yet to buy a sewing machine, but I did sew a tear in a jacket and even though it came out about three hours later, I'm counting this a victory.
2. I have yet to buy a guitar, but I can picture me playing it in my head and it's pretty cool.
3.  I didn't say it was pretty epic in the previous sentence so I am calling this one a WINNER!

Ok, so one out of four isn't bad, right?

Snowmageddon!!

It happens every year, and every year people react the same...

SNOWMAGEDDON!!

It's seems like once a winter we have the storm of the century.  Now I can't lie, when we lived in Michigan, I lived for these storms because there would be reporters on the corners of random suburbs with their rulers all while plows sprayed them driving by 24 hours a day.  And I won't even get started on the fact I went to 3 places and there wasn't a single gallon of milk today.  I mean, seriously people, you need 10 gallons of milk for the 24-36 hours you may stay in your house.  My plan is to just order a pizza.  But I love snow storms either way and figure if it has to be cold, might as well have snow to play in.  

But snowmageddon isn't the reason for this post (I just really wanted to find a way to put that picture in here).  As the mom of an almost 5 yr old going on 13, we are in a struggle.  The struggle between being grateful and kind for the things she has and being down right mean and feeling entitled.  I am sure every parent has the goal of raising their kid to be kind and gracious and caring and I am no different. I try to keep the girls involved in helping when we do our clean out to donate.  And we explain that not everyone is lucky enough to get all the stuff they have, or even the bare necessity at times.  And I let them help with volunteering whenever possible, or tell them about anything Bryon or I may be doing to volunteer.  But over the last few weeks I feel like I am failing miserable at this part of parenting and I'm not exactly sure where I am going wrong.  

Over Christmas Day I noticed mostly Kayla, while loving the thrill of unwrapping a gift didn't take the time to truly enjoy it.  Instead we had multiple tear ups over the fact someone else was opening a gift and she doesn't have one. I get it, she is 4, they are emotional selfish humans at this point, but I was in shock because I have never seen this side of Kayla before.  Kayla is our kid who I pick up from school or dance and am told stories of how all she wanted to do was color a picture for someone who was sad or she is the first to help out.  How can this sweet caring child have this horrible side to her?  Am I doing something to feed into this and help her think she is entitled to more than food, shelter and being able to learn? 

And it wasn't just that day, again later in the week we had a meltdown because even though Kayla bought the boots of her dream with money she got at Christmas, she had to have the doll Abby got with her money (this may be my fault for sending them on two separate shopping trips). I mean she cried for over an hour that she needed the same doll and then tried to convince Abby to give her the extra money so she can buy the doll also.  However, that must have doll has been sitting in the corner of the room since day 2 while the sparkly boots haven't left Kayla's feet. As I sit here and write this stuff out, I realize this is most likely typical 4 yr old behavior, but for some reason I find it really bothers me.  I don't want my girls to grow up thinking they have to have everything or they won't survive.  I still remember not having a cell phone until I was 19!  Now I have 9 year olds in my cycling class who can't put their phones down for class. 

But to add to this new found entitled attitude, Kayla has been mean.  I mean, the kind of mean where her friends want to go home and never come back because Kayla makes them "nervous".  It just tears me apart to see, because this is not the girl I have raised for almost five years.  It's a whole new side of her and like I said I don't know if I'm missing something or doing something wrong in my parenting.  Or is this just like most things in kids, a phase that leaves us parents up at nights worrying that we are ruining our kids?  I have a feeling it is more of the second one than the first, but I can't help but try to figure out what I can do to combat the problem now.  Because I fear if I don't start working on this attitude issue now, she will be the mean girl come her teenage years. And no one wants the mean kid to be their kid.  I want Kayla and Abby to be the kids who are the first to help others.  

Like I said, this is mostly a Kayla issue, with Abby we are just dealing with her stubborn terrible 2's right now.  I do seem glimmers of hope with Kayla when she is willing to help Abby or offers to donate some toys. Or when all she can think about at night is how we need to leave some crackers and water out for the dinosaurs who came out of their cave looking for food.  And yes, I stayed up and ate the crackers and drank most of the water so her little imagination will continue to think her target dollar aisle dinosaurs must come to life at night.

 I just haven't seen much of it lately and it leaves me worrying whether I am doing something wrong?

Sorry I have interrupted Snowmageddon and for those of you around Detroit you may return to your 24 hour coverage.  I will leave you with our creation from the snowstorm, we have named him Phil, in memory of Uncle Phil of course.  

  

2 Years Later...Better Late Than Never?

Wow, where to start?  So that whole idea of keeping up with my blog kind of backfired.  But I'm allowed to use my kids as an excuse, right?  Things kind of went from happy chaos, to chaos, and now we are back to happy chaos.  So let me briefly fill you in on the last two years of our lives and you will see why this blog may have become the last thing on my mind.  First remember when my kids looked like this?

Well two years has made quite the difference....here are the girls Christmas Morning 2013

As you can see, their facial hair is out of control.  But let me take a moment and fill you in on our major life changes over the past two years.  The biggest being the state we live in.  We finally said adios to the state we called home for 7 years, Michigan, and after years of attempting to convince Bryon we made the move back to my WONDERFUL hometown Wapakoneta, Ohio.  For those that don't understand this huge life change for my husband, he grew up  in a city 10 miles from Detroit and had three high schools just in his city (not counting all the private schools).  To go from that to good old Wapak is quite a change.  Within days of making the move the stresses of life started to fade away simply because there weren't people everywhere.  It used to take us 45 minutes to make a 10 mile commute to work and now it takes 5 minutes to cover the entire town of Wapak. To go from a city where no one knows your name to Wapak where everyone knows your family (sorry Cheers I'm stealing your theme) is great. I love almost everything about my hometown and am thrilled and looking forward to raising my daughters here.  

I am one of the very few people fortunate enough to love my job. Oh yeah did I forget to mention that change, I went back to work a year ago. Another added benefit to the small town living is having affordable daycare options for the girls.  While Kayla is in Pre-School three days a week, we have the most awesome babysitter.  She is seriously the best.  Anyways, back to this whole workin thing.  I am the Assistant at the Wapak Chamber of Commerce and I love my job. I enjoy going to work pretty much every day. I also work at our local YMCA and teach a youth cycling class as well as sub for any of the group classes.  What I have learned through this experience is I will never survive the teenage years with Kayla and Abby.  But I truly enjoy what I do. The best parts of my job are the flexibility and hours I work so I still have plenty of time to enjoy my girls, but I still get some adult time during the day, which is something that I was lacking for those almost two years of staying home.

So that is our biggest change, however, if you have read any of my many blogs before this (ok so there may be only three), you know that our youngest daughter Abby presented us with her own set of challenges as a baby.  Well as you can see in this recent picture, gaining weight and growing is definitely not an issue anymore.  To make Abby's long complicated story short, around 11 months old her growth took off!  She started eating and really only had minimal issues.  Up until last fall when she started having more breathing issues again, which led to her dealing with 3 bouts of pneumonia in two months.  We went through a lot of doctors appointments and testing to rack up those medical bills again only to be told they have no clue why she gets pneumonia so easily.  We have been very lucky since last winter though and have only had to deal with breathing treatments this winter, but no real sickness from her.  I can't imagine our family without her because just when you think you can't take anymore of her stubborn independent attitude,  she flips and does something to make everyone laugh.  I love seeing this gorgeous smile every morning.  It makes our days of crying together (ok it may be a toss up of who shed more tears) that first year worth it.   

Then we have Kayla, our little rock star.  I don't even know how to describe Kayla, because she is definitely a one of a kind kind of kid.  Kayla is 4 (will be 5 in 18 days!!!) going on 15.  Kayla's passions currently are performing, whether it be singing, dancing, or telling jokes, and making sure she has a rockstar outfit on at all times.  We do several loads of laundry a day just to keep her wardrobe stocked.  Her current favorite is a sparkly skirt and her new pink boots.  She loves to accessorize.  This girl has changed more than any kid I know, going from complete tomboy ready to dig in the dirt (which she still loves to do), to making sure her nails are painted and her hair is curled for her boyfriend.  Yes you heard me right, my almost 5 year old has decided she is in love with a boy from preschool, Daron.  If the name is even mentioned Kayla's cheeks turn bright red and she will tell you how much she loves him and will marry him.  Although she did assure me she won't kiss him until she is married to him.  Luckily we know Daron's family and we approve of this relationship...for now.  Kayla is her own person, she loves learning and will sit and color or write for hours. So that's Kayla in a nutshell, I refuse to talk about how she is almost five because I'm not emotionally ready for it.  I mean this girl has a loose tooth!  When did this happen, she used to be my peanut and now she is almost ready for kindergarten.

And of course we can't forget to update on Bryon, the poor guy stuck in a house with three girls.  Bryon and I always have fun together as well.  We both love music so it's always nice when we can get away and go to a concert.  Some of the better ones over the past couple of years are Paul McCartney (A Beatle....I still can't believe I saw a Beatle live!) and Gary Clark Jr.  I didn't know much about Gary Clark Jr, but it was an amazing show and I will tell you now, if he is ever playing near you...GO! So that's Bryon, he puts up with all of the craziness the girls and I get into and we love him for it.  He is our lone Michigan fan and will fight to the death trying to convert the girls, but I have no fear it will never happen.  The best part about Bryon, he's always willing to go along with my crazy ideas, like taking our 4 and 2 year old ice skating downtown during a snowstorm.  You can tell Kayla lived in Michigan for awhile, she was a natural with daddy.  

Anyways, that is the update on those three adorable kiddos (Bryon will be the first to admit he is like a third kid).  We definitely have our moments, you know those moments where you aren't sure if you should go curl up in a corner or just start drinking, but for the most part we are still living life and having a blast.  I went back and re-read my many posts on here and really the purpose of this blog was to just give me a way to keep track of all those amazing memories I have with the girls. I want them to grow up being who they truly are and caring for everyone as I think every parent wants for their kid, but on top of that I want them to have fun.  So although I feel like I haven't accomplished keeping up on this blog like I hoped, it was mainly because I have been too busy cherishing the many memories I have had a chance to make with my kids.  From Kayla's first musical to dancing down the sidewalk in the rain and going on walks downtown.  We have traveled to zoos, museums, libraries, beaches and we have made our own picnics in the house when it's too cold to leave. And we never go to bed without having the best dance parties ever.  I find with every new year I reflect back and almost every year I want the same thing, to not take life too seriously and truly enjoy it.  And this year is no different, I'm hoping to spend another year making crazy fun memories with my girls and Bryon.  It's hard when you are stuck in those ruts and you are convinced your kids are plotting your demise to remember that these days of our kids being little and liking us (most of the time) are going to go fast.  Before we know it they will be too busy to spend time having dance parties with us, so enjoy it now.  

So that's the very long update and here is to hoping that I can do a better job in keeping this updated with the crazy Zielonka household stories.