Belli's Place-Living With Larsens

Champions Again! Rammer Jammer!

2012-01-12T20:35:00.000-06:00

Fall Fun

2011-12-04T23:31:00.001-06:00

Believe it or not having a special needs child does come with it's perks. One of those being that some of their "firsts" come a lot later than a typical child. This way their childhood doesn't feel like it is slipping away quite as fast!

This year was the first year that Belli really had the strength and the balance to play in leaf piles. So, last week we raked up a big pile of leaves and let her have at it. It. Was. Awesome.

Rammer Jammer

2011-09-25T09:19:00.000-05:00

I thought since it's been so long since I posted one of these and we are fresh off of a Arkansas stomping now would be a great time! Roll Tide!

Belliisms 9

2011-09-20T16:03:00.000-05:00

These go waaaaay back to April so bare with me! There might be a lot!

While watching the news the reporter said "damage" in reference to the storm damage. Belli yells, "Hey! You can't say that! That's not a nice word!!!!!"

(This isn't really a Belliism, just something she did. It was too funny not to post though)
I was watching a clip for Grey's Anatomy on my computer and Belli wanted me to turn it down so she could hear the TV. I told her no so she went and turned on the loudest toy she had in the room. Talk about passive-aggressive.

Belli: Why do you still have both of your ears?
Me: Umm...because you usually get to keep both ears.
Belli: Well, if I eat a lot of vegetables I'll get to drive daddy's Jeep.
Me:....

My mom asked Belli what she would do if she was out somewhere and got lost. She said, "Well, I would just go find a hiding place somewhere so we could play hide and seek!"

Me: Belli, hurry up! (In reference to her cleaning up her room)
Belli: Look, I only have two hands!

Little girl to me: Aww, she's so cute. How old is she?
Me: (instead of saying she's almost four) She's 4.
Belli: Awww MAY-un. Did I miss my birthday?!?!?!

Belli to me: Eww. Something stinks. I think it's my birthday surprise. Or maybe it's you because you haven't taken a shower today.

Belli: Oh wait. I think I'm too big to walk in this hat!

My mom to Belli: Look, you mommy needs some peace and quiet.
Belli: Well I need some peace and loud!

After dropping Belli's ponytail holder into the toilet she looks down and says, "Aww man! That was my 18th favorite color."

After telling Belli that I came in her room last night to check on her while she was asleep she said, "Well why didn't I say something to you? Like gracias, or de nada, or...tree?"

Belli's Big Birthday Surprise

2011-08-08T20:54:00.000-05:00

This year for Belli's birthday I decided it was high time for a swing set of her own. After looking for a few weeks I finally decided on this one:

It has a slide, swings, monkey bars, a built in toy box, bench/bar, and picnic table to eat and drink at. It also has an area that you can fill with sand for a sand box but I haaaaaaate sand so I haven't put anything in it yet. Anyway, I knew it would be difficult to put together but I really enjoy building stuff so I thought it would be fun. I took pictures each day to capture my progress.

Here is day one. The amount of wood and hardware alone took up my whole den.

Day Two (I can't find the pictures for day two but I am pretty sure I just put together the ladders)

Day Three: I had help from my dad and sister hold the pieces up while we attached the top boards.

Day Four (I only had a few hours to work but I got the floors in that day)

Day Five

Day 6 (had help from Belli's dad putting the roof up)

Day 7

Isn't it beautiful?!?! And in case you are wondering, yes, I did do almost all of it by myself. Big props to my dad though for helping me a few times when I couldn't figure something out. But, the biggest props of all go to my sister and mother for keeping Belli entertained for the whole week while I built it. Without them there is no way I would have had the time to do it nor would I have been able to keep it a secret from her. She was majorly surprised. I will post picture from the birthday soon!

In the Past 3 Months...

2011-07-22T12:35:00.001-05:00

I have been sooooo busy (and a little bit lazy) which would explain my lack of updates. But, due to many "complaints" (Ahem...Lori and Aunt Karen) I felt it was high time I let everyone know what has been going on our lives.

Honestly...it has been really boring and uneventful for the most part.

I finished another semester of school at the beginning of May. I feel like I had a lot going on in May but now I can't remember a single thing that I did. I started another semester of school in June and it has been a whirlwind ever since. I am only taking two classes but when you have to get in the same amount of work in two months that you normally do in four months it feels like a lot more than that. So needless to say I have been unbelievably busy with school work. As part of an assignment for one class I had to spend 20 hours at the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind. There is a regional center in Birmingham which is where I was. It was a very enlightening experience. The first day we went to the Lakeshore Foundation and the kids did the rock climbing wall and swam. The second day we went to the zoo and the last day we went to the Botanical Gardens and then bowling. It was amazing to me what these kids could do. I mean climbing a rock wall and diving into a pool with no sight is very brave to me. Just goes to show that a child with a disability can still do all of the same things everyone else can.

Back in June I had a bit of a health scare when I found a medium sized lump in one of my breasts. My fears were almost immediately put to rest though when I consulted Dr. Google and decided that it was likely a fibroadenoma. That was exactly what it felt like and it didn't have any of the characteristics of a "bad" lump. I scheduled and appointment with my doctor and he thought the same thing and sent me to get an ultrasound. The radiologist agreed but said it was pretty large so I decided to go ahead and have it removed. The surgery was yesterday and I was in and out in no time. They sent the mass to pathology but my surgeon said it looked just like a fibroadenoma so that's most likely what it was. Should get the results for sure though some time next week.

We went to the beach a couple of weeks ago and me being the horrible mother that I am took ZERO pictures. I did take one video of her swimming though. It took a full day of screeching but I finally convinced Belli that she would not sink with her floaties on and she finally let me let her go. After that she had a blast. Fortunately my mom did take a few pictures so at least I have something to remember the trip!

It was a really fun trip although I forgot how much I really REALLY hate sand. And I also realized how difficult it really is to have a child with a physical disability. I mean for the most part Belli can pretty much do everything kids her age can so sometimes I almost forget she has a disability. She's just a little bit slower and she gets tired quicker. But she had a really hard time walking in the sand and I had to carry her a lot. But as you all know it's really hot at the beach and it's hard lugging around a 30 pound kid. So it was a little frustrating at time. But still, everyone had a lot of fun.

Belli has also taken to dancing lately. I posted this on my Facebook so those of you who I am friends with may have seen this but if not it's worth a look. Very funny!

Health wise Belli is good. We will see both ortho and neuro sometime in August so there are no new updates since the last time I posted about them. She did have her well check up this week though and everything looked good. She has finally broken the 30 pound mark at 30 pounds 8 ounces.

On the school front she will be starting back at her public school in August just one day a week and then will start going the other four days to our church preschool. I am VERY excited about this because I am taking three classes in the fall which means I will need to do 60 observation hours and with Belli in school 5 days a week I will have plenty of time to do them. This will be my last semester of classes and I will be doing my student teaching in the Spring. Hooray!!

I think that is all for now. I promise I won't go so long without an update again. Belli's birthday is coming up so I am sure I will have a post about that. And then another one in August after her check ups with her ortho and neuro. Hopefully they will both be good reports!

Bagel, Belliism, Bunnies, and Awards

2011-04-20T16:14:00.001-05:00

When I was in 4th grade we got a family dog. She was a beagle and I (rather smartly I thought) named her Bagel. Yep, Bagel the beagle. This is her:

Or, I suppose I should say, this was her. Sadly, after almost 15 years we had to put her down back in March. This was the first death that Belli has ever had to deal with so I was interested to see how she would react. I decided not to mention it to her unless she asked because she was never really fond of dear Bagel anyway. I mean why bring it up if she doesn't really care anyway right?

Well a few days later Belli was outside with my dad and she asked him where Bagel was. He told her something about her getting sick and being in doggy Heaven now and all that stuff. Well, without missing a beat Belli says, "Well. I guess that means she won't be bothering when I play in my sandbox anymore now will she?" So, needless to say Belli handled the death well.

On the upside, because Bagel is no longer on the prowl in our backyard we now have a brand new bunny. Belli named him Bruno and he lives in our backyard. What's really awesome about him is that he is a wild bunny so we don't even have to take care of him. He comes and goes as he pleases and finds his own food. It's quite nice really. Here is Bruno:

Isn't he cute? We love to sit by the back door and watch him hop around.

And last, but certainly not least, Belli was nominated for the Finley Award. This is an award that our school system does based on character. There is one kid per class per grade nominated each year and they pick the kids who have consistently shown good character. Only the high school overall winners and the faculty winner get the money that is awarded but just to be nominated is an honor. Here are some picture from the ceremony last night:

And here are some pictures of her certificate, free meal from Beef O'Bradys, and her medal:

I am one proud momma!

Five Question Friday

2011-03-18T07:43:00.001-05:00

Head over to Mama M's to participate in Five Question Friday!

1. Have you ever testified in court? For what?
No. But I would LOVE to. I would also love to have jury duty but I've never been picked!

2. Do you still have your wedding dress?
It's still at the cleaners...4 years later. I'm fairly certain I won't be going to get it seeing how the marriage turned out.

3. Is there a special place you like to go when you're happy, sad, stressed, etc?
I used to like to drive around in my car with my music turned up real loud but I can't now with Belli in the car.

4. If you have kids, do they sleep with you? If you don't have kids will you let them sleep with you when/if you have them.
No. No. NO! This is a major no no for me. Belli has only slept in my bed twice in her whole life. Once when she was sick and once when she was scared of some caterpillars in her room (that didn't exist) and she had woken up five nights in a row and I just didn't want to deal with it anymore. I am very anti cosleeping in my house.

5. Do you watch late night tv?
I used to watch Jay Leno. Especially on Monday when he would have all those funny newspaper clipping with funny headlines. I don't really watch anymore though.

The Special Needs Mother Club

2011-03-10T12:59:00.000-06:00

It's not something you would ever want to be in but it can certainly be rewarding too.

Since I have started this blog I have had four people contact me who have children with Larsen's that were seeking information.

And recently I had a friend of mine who has a little boy that was in Belli's class for a few years contact me about a friend of hers whose just found out her son would be having spinal surgery.

I hate that Belli's and I have been through all that we have but I LOVE that I am able to help those in need of someone to talk to!

See, it can be rewarding!

Five Question Friday

2011-03-04T07:03:00.001-06:00

Head over to Mama M's to join in on Five question Friday!

1. Have you ever forgotten your child in a store or at school?
I've definitely never left her at a store but there was one time a couple of years ago when she was in MDO so I could go to class that I almost forgot her. Class got out early one day so I went home to lay down for a little bit before I had to go get her. I was supposed to pick her up at 2 and the next thing I know I wake up at it was 1:55. I was WAY late picking her up. So I guess I didn't technically forget her...I just fell asleep.

2. Where did you go on you first date?
I actually don't remember...Most of the guys I dated where people I actually knew already so there was never really a "first date" per se.

3. What's your "silly" fear?
Insects. Any insect. OH. MY. GOD.

4. Confrontation: do you cause it, deal with it as it comes, or run far far away from it?
It depends on the situation. I will cause it if I need to or avoid it if I don't think it's necessary.

5. Wood floors or carpet?
I am currently a big fan of the laminate wood flooring.

Belli Finally Got Into A Preschool!!!

2011-02-12T18:58:00.000-06:00

Now you may be wondering why I am so excited that she got into a preschool since that's just kind of a normal thing. Well it's because it has taken me two years to finally find a place that will take her.

Every other place I looked (probably 5 or 6 places) wouldn't take her because of her disability. Which, by the way, is illegal. Even the daycare who is run by the United Cerebral Palsy foundation that takes special needs children wouldn't take her. You can read about the devastation here.

But now, finally, I received a letter from my church preschool saying she will have a spot in the fall. Thank GOD! Finally!

Snow Day

2011-02-10T10:56:00.000-06:00

We have had quite a few snow days lately but today was the first day that we finally got out and played.

Belli Has Lost Her Head

2011-01-30T15:01:00.000-06:00

Five Question Friday

2011-01-28T08:57:00.000-06:00

Hop on over to Mama M's blog to join in!

1. If you had $1000 to to donate to one charity which would you choose?
It would probably be between The Bell Center, a neat little organization called the Prosthetics Outreach Foundation, or to a coworker of mine who goes on mission trips to Swaziland every year.

2. Snow days: do you welcome them happily or are they a pain in the butt?
I absolutely LOVE snow days. The only problem is that here in Alabama we have snow days when there is only an inch or so of snow which actually isn't really that much fun to play in.

3. What talent do you wish you had and why?
I wish I could sing. I love to sing and I love music but I have horrible voice!

4. Are you a news, politics, or celebrity news junkie?
I am a news and politics junkie. I can't stand celebrity news. It's so stupid and dramatic and no big deal if it was about a non-celebrity.

5. What is your favorite cocktail?
I love long island iced teas!

In the News

2011-01-25T07:43:00.000-06:00

Do you ever watch the news or visit a news website and just think, "Seriously? What the heck is wrong with you people? Seriously?"

Like this story about three men who burglarized a house and stole the ashes of the woman dead father thinking it was cocaine. I mean seriously? I've never seen cocaine in person but I'm pretty sure it's white. And I'm pretty sure ashes aren't. What's almost as bad is that the story says they also stole the ashes of her two dead dogs. Seriously? Who keeps the ashes of their dead dogs?

And what about this horribly embarrassing and utterly disgusting story about the governor of my state announcing for all the world to hear that "Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I'm telling you, you're not my brother and you're not my sister." Seriously? You're the governor of a state. You are supposed to advocate and protect EVERYONE in your state. And you don't consider those of a different faith your brother or sister? Seriously? A cousin of mine put it best when she said, "He must not know our God."

Then there is this story about a police officer who was suspended for giving a seven year old boy a ticket for throwing a ball at his patrol car. Seriously? The man should be given a freaking award! Someone needed to discipline the kid. And if he's seven years old and is already bad a** enough to throw a ball at a police officers car then someone needs to take care of that now!

And lastly there is this picture by a three year old who is already able to write some words when told what to write. Ok, really that's a picture of what Belli did and it didn't actually make the news but it was news worthy for me!

Have a good day everyone!

Belliisms 8

2011-01-18T07:53:00.000-06:00

Belli outside waving goodbye to my mom yells for the whole neighborhood to hear: "Bye bye Mimi! Bye bye! HEY! Hey MIMI. I JUST FELL DOWN AND HURT MY TUSH!!!!!"

Belli: Look mom. We have a new ornament on the tree.
Me: I know! It's so pretty.
Belli: What is?
Me: The ornament.
Belli: What ornament.
Me: ......

"We have summer, we have fall, we have winter and we have sprinkles!"

After letting out a huge trucker burp Belli looks at me with wide eyes and says, "Was that YOU?"

"Hey mom, when I hold you are you going to turn into a hippo?"

So weird...I know.

Five Question Friday

2011-01-07T16:27:00.001-06:00

My first Five Question Friday in a reeeeeeeally long time!

1. What is your current favorite book and why?
Books? Wait...you guys have time to read?

2. Do you go to the dentist regularly?
Up until a few years ago I went every six months like you are supposed to. Now that I don't have dental insurance I go once a year.

3. What is your worst memory from high school?
A friend of mine was stabbed in the hallway and died. Our school was in lock down for hours and it wasn't until after the principal came on the intercom and made the announcement that anyone (at least the students) knew what had happened. I will never ever forget that day.

4. What do you hope to be remembered for in your life?
Winning the lotto.

5. Are you superstitious or do you have any superstitions?
Only during football season and it's usually not determined until the third or fourth game of the season. Like if Belli has worn the same Bama shirt three games in a row and then the fourth game she wears a different shirt and the team isn't doing well I will put the other shirt on her.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-28T18:41:00.000-06:00

Here are some pictures from Christmas. Belli had a great time!

And here is her room all set up with her big girl bed.

Mother!

2010-12-02T07:25:00.000-06:00

The other day Belli decided she didn't want to take a nap. This is what I listened to for 45 minutes.

Belliisms 7

2010-11-23T08:06:00.000-06:00

Time for the 7th installment of Belliisms...

While hanging out with my dad Belli asked him what was on his wrist. He said, "A watch." She looked at it for about thirty seconds and then said, "I watched. What it do?"

Belli yelling from the bathroom: "Umm...HELLO!?! Someone went poooootty! It was ME. ISABELLE!"

My mom was watching the video of Belli reading Llama Llama Misses Mama. Belli walked up, looked at the video and said, "I like her. She's cute."

While Belli was walking around the living room I brought her lunch in and put it down on her table and told her to sit down and go eat. She started yelling, "Mommy, mommy help!" I asked her what she needed help with and she said, "I need help sitting! I just CANT stop walking!"

The other day my dad asked her where she was ticklish. Belli thought about it for a second and then said, "Hmm...probably from that door over to the bed."

Five Question Friday

2010-11-19T07:19:00.000-06:00

Be sure to visit Mama M to join in the fun!

1. What Christmas song do you loathe?
The question should really be which Christmas song do I not loathe? Ok, ok I'll quit being a grouch now. I don't really like any Christmas song sung by a well known singer or group. Like I would rather hear a choir sing Christmas songs or just orchestra music.

2. Do you and your significant other cuddle at night or sleep on opposite sides of the bed?
I don't have a significant other =-( Hopefully one day I will have a cuddle buddy though!

3. Have you ever had surgery?
Yep. I birthed Belli straight out of my stomach.

4. When do you typically have your holiday shopping done?
Normally around the 23rd. If I don't have it by then oh well! No way you can make me get out on Christmas Eve.

5. If money wasn't an issue what would your ultimate luxury item be?
Tickets to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.

Llama Llama Misses Mama

2010-11-08T18:27:00.001-06:00

*Update*
Mama M suggested I submit this to her holiday gift guide blog hop. This weeks theme is children's books so the goes well with it. Feel free to join it!

Have any of you heard of the Llama Llama books? If not I HIGHLY recommend them. We only have one and I only just realized yesterday that it was a whole series but I will definitely be getting the rest of them for Belli for Christmas. The one we have is Llama Llama Misses Mama. We read it every day before nap time and every night before bed. Well last night Belli told me she wanted to read it instead. And she did. Word for word, every single last bit. Except obviously she didn't actually read it she just memorized it. I didn't get a video last night but I had her do it again today. She didn't do it as well but it's still pretty impressive for a three year old if you ask me. Here is the video!

MRI Results and Five Question Friday

2010-11-05T13:02:00.000-05:00

Belli and I met with her neurosurgeon earlier this morning to discuss the results of her MRI. It's been so long since we have seen him that he hasn't seen Belli walking yet. Which by the way she is REALLY good at now. So when he opened the door I told Belli to walk over there and she went straight to him and gave him a huge hug. It was so precious!

Anyway...on to the results! According to her doctor her MRI from yesterday looks basically the same as the last one we got done pre-operation. So, the good news is that she hasn't gotten any worse. The bad news is that aside from maybe keeping her spine from getting worse both surgeries didn't really do a lot of good. The other good news is that he was really impressed with her walking and that as long as her spine doesn't get any worse and she isn't showing any signs of neurological impairments then we will continue to put off the next surgery.

He said that he would like to wait at least two more years so her bones will be bigger and stronger so the fusion will take the next go round. Now, he didn't say we COULD wait two years. Just that he was hoping to be able to wait two years.

What I do know is that as long as Belli continues to show no signs of problems it will be AT LEAST six months before her next surgery because he doesn't want to see her back until then. He said since I've been doing this for so long I know what to look for and know when to call if something is wrong.

So all in all I'm happy about the report. Of course I always hope for that miracle that her spine will just randomly straighten on it's own but realistically both her doctor and I are just happy when things don't get worse.

On to Five Question Friday with Mama M...

1. If you could have any talent and turn it into an occupation what would it be?
Absolutely singing! I love to sing! Unfortunately I am really horrible at it. I only sing in the car when no one is around. It's really bad. Seriously.

2. Would you rather have a house at the beach or a cabin in the woods?
Definitely a house at the beach. The woods kinda freak me out. Plus I reeeeaaallllly hate bugs.

3. Is there a meaning or reasoning behind your children's name?
Isabelle is Italian for Elizabeth and two of her great-grandmothers are named Elizabeth. And my middle name is Elizabeth.

4. What is your guilty pleasure?
Pizza and whole milk.

5. Do you live in a house that is deep cleaned or straightened?
Straightened. Deep cleaning is for the birds.

MRI Update

2010-11-03T14:18:00.000-05:00

Belli's doctor was in emergency surgery today after her MRI was finished so we weren't able to get the report. We will go back Friday to talk to him.

However, I did talk to his nurse practitioner when I was scheduling the appointment for Friday and she did say that when the radiologist reads the pictures from the MRI if they are bad then the radiologist pages the nurse immediately and she hadn't been paged yet. After the last MRI that we had when we found out she would need the fusion the nurse was in the recovery room before we even got up there so I know they page them quick.

So...I will take that as a good sign and just hope for the best. We will find out Friday for sure either way though.

MRI Check-Up Tomorrow

2010-11-02T09:47:00.000-05:00

Since I started this blog after the MRI where we found out Belli would need a spinal fusion most of you don't know that four two years up until that point Belli had MRI's every six months to check for pressure on her spinal cord.

Well since the surgeries she has only had x-rays and CT scans to check the bone alignment and bone growth. But, now it's time to check for pressure on her spine again. There is no reason to think that there is but it's still one of those routine things we have to do.

But it still makes me feel sick. Knowing that it is very possible that they could tell me tomorrow that she will need another surgery again. And soon.

So please be praying and/or sending positive thoughts our way tomorrow. We will certainly need them!