Watch out MUCHACHOS.....

......There's a new MAMACITA in town!

I had to post a few pictures of Mia in her "Spanish Dancer" getup. Grandma & Grandpa Roper just got back from a Mediterranean cruise and picked up this little number in Barcelona. I am totally in love with it. Her 2 cousins, Drew and Devin, have the same dress and I'm hoping to get a picture with all three of them. Ole'!

For all you Bachelor LOVERS out there.....

......or shall I say Bachelorette LOVERS.

I must admit that watching the Bachelor is a guilty pleasure of mine (lame, I know). The last couple of days Bryan has been in San Diego for business and I got a call from him yesterday from the airport:

Bryan: "Guess who we just ran into?"

Me: "Who?" Bryan: "DeAnna from the Bachelor (as if they are long lost friends)."

Me: "No way. What was she doing?"

Bryan: "I don't know.....didn't ask (He could care less for the show)."

Me: "Well, did you ask her why she didn't choose Jason? I mean, she made the biggest mistake of her life."

Bryan: "Don't know.....don't care. But, Ryan (a guy he works with) got a picture with her. I'll send it to you."

Me: "Sweet!!!"

Sweet Girl!

Today has been a very hard day for me. I've been thinking a lot about decisions that we make in our everyday lives and reflecting on this time 1-year-ago, when our lives were changed. We had to make so many hard decisions regarding the quality of life for Kater bugs. We wanted the very best life for Kate. Making the decision for her to undergo surgery to have a trach placed was one of the hardest decisions we had to make for her. In my mind, I felt that having a trach meant that Kate was very sick and could not sustain breathing on her own. I didn't want to make this decision because I didn't want to believe that my sweet baby girl was really that sick. After Bryan and I came to the consensus that this is what needed to be done, it was almost as if a huge burden had been lifted off our shoulders and we knew that this was what was best for Kate. Once we gave our permission, the surgery was scheduled for the next morning. I never thought that I would ever miss the little oxygen tubes that became Kate's signature, but I did. Boy was she a trooper. With daily trach cleanings and weekly trach changes.....she rarely put up a fight.

Sometimes we may not know the reasoning for certain experiences in our lives, but how grateful I am that I was able to spend 21 of the most precious months with this sweet little angel.

(I love this picture of Kate. She was in the middle of watching Baby Einstein, and from the look on her face, was not thrilled about being interrupted to have her picture taken.....sweet girl).

Oh Yes She Did.....

Mia has been really stubborn about not wanting to stand (my take on it is that she is just a tiny bit spoiled!!!). She has been crawling all over the place and seems to be perfectly content with that mode of transportation. So, we've been working with her, letting her brace herself up against the couch (with a little bit of cereal bribery). As of late, she has been mastering the whole standing thing. Now I have to ask myself...."Am I really ready for her to start walking around???"

Showing off her best side!

PRICELESS

My favorite features of Kate have always been her tiny little hands and feet. When Kate was 5-months-old, my sweet friend, Shelby (A Child's Touch), did some pottery foot and hand impressions. I didn't realize they were so small until I compared Mia's newborn feet to Kate's 5 month feet and they were the same size. Kate had the cutest little unique hands that put a smile on my face. Especially when she would try so hard to reach for her toys or grab my nose. I miss so much being able to kiss and nibble those hands and feet.

When Kate passed away, Shelby offered to go to the funeral home and take some impressions. My favorite ones are the little ornament hands and feet. I got some shadow boxes months ago with the intention of displaying them, but it has been so very difficult for me to do anything with them. For Christmas, I decided to finally put one together. I am so happy with how it turned out and so grateful that I have this tangible memory.