Story Time

My parents celebrated their 50th recently (post to come). We were so lucky to be able to have almost everyone here to share in their celebration. My Aunt Vesta (avid "Finding Miaya" reader) came to see her newest grand-niece, little Miss Miaya. Aunt Vesta from Metaire, LA is a retired Children's Librarian and continues to tell stories all over New Orleans. Miaya was primed and ready from a good story from Aunt Vesta. Hopefully, next year she will have a better attention span. Take a look!

Moving again?

No we aren't moving....I think I'd have a major breakdown if we had to do it again! Michael was taking trash down our huge hill with a handtruck dolly and Miaya decided to tag a long. Miaya wanted a ride back up the hill!

Fashionista!

Just had to share Miaya's fashion sense. I recently had been to Des Moines and checked out my favorite spot to look for Miaya's clothes called "Once Upon a Child". It is a place for gently used nice clothes. I asked if she wanted to try it on and she agreed grudgingly. She decided she needed to spruce up her outfit with the boots from the Catt cousins, hat from one of her outfits that she wore when she first came to the US, and a smile of complete accomplishment!

Fun at the Fair

Michael, Miaya and I attended the Iowa State Fair recently. It was so strange remembering Miaya's first fair last year. She was so young...I had to find someplace to warm up her lunch and make her bottle. Now it's .....give me anything on a stick! Her favorite is the old standard hot dog. She loved the ducks! There is a man that has ducks that follow him everywhere...I guess it doesn't sound that strange, but it is so hilarious to see them follow him down the road.

Letting Go As Slowly As Possible

One of our blogger friends recently wrote about how we first bond with our children so we can learn to let them go. The incident that precipitated the rumination was dropping his oldest daughter off at her first Girl Scout camp. In our own lives, we have already had to let go a little, the first time we took Miaya to daycare was certainly harder for us than her. We were still a new family, and though we knew the caregivers, it was still a bit disconcerting to leave our daughter, and walk away.

Recently I had to drop her at a different daycare as her normal one was closed for a few days, and she was not the happiest when I left. There is no way to describe the feeling when she comes running and shouting "Daddydaddydaddydaddy!!!!!" when I go to pick her up. The sheer joy on her face is beyond compare. And, the silly grin on mine is something I cannot nor would not want to control.

There is much truth to that observation, we do spend much of our parenting years learning to let go of our children. Fortunately we have only had to let go of Miaya a little bit, but I know that all too soon daddy's little girl will no longer be little and will be ready to chart her own course in life.