An accident is an unforeseen and unplanned event or circumstance, often with lack of intention or necessity. It implies a generally negative outcome which may have been avoided or prevented had circumstances leading up to the accident been recognized, and acted upon, prior to its occurrence.

This past week my co-worker was unfortunately in an accident. She escaped unharmed, but her car was not as lucky. Her experience can defined as an accident; she didn’t intend to wreck her car and the person who hit her could have prevented it if they would have just waited to turn.

A little over 3 years ago, Joe & I received the outcome of what some were calling an accident too. Like my co-worker, we hadn’t planned the event but unlike her car, the end result was definitely not a negative one, but instead the best unforeseen blessing we could have ever been given. 

Ella turned 3 on November 26th, a Thanksgiving baby – something to truly be thankful for. Looking back at our journey I wonder where the time has gone and where this little person came from. Filled with spunk and sparkle she has changed our lives more than we ever could have imagined. Her personality has no end; she is funny, entertaining, witty, caring, sweet, strong, and more than anything – charismatic. She has the ability to win over a room without ever saying a word. 

Looking back I realize that all the fears I had when we first found out we were unexpectedly expecting were ridiculous. First I was unsure of being a parent and having the heavy responsibility of shaping another humans life. I think all first-time parents are fearful of their new life change and as much as people think they are prepared – there is no way to prepare for how a child will change your life, until you live it. All you can do is give it your all and hope for the best. Then I was terrified that she would be born with a cleft lip and palate – I had already failed at protecting her and she wasn’t even born! Surgeries have come and gone and we barely remember them. Everyday life happens and all the fun, memorable things you experience together allows you to forget about those hard times. Besides, Ella has about 5 accidents per day (4 today)- so the scar from surgery was bound to happen sooner or later.

Looking back we were given an accidental blessing. Ella may have been an unforeseen and unplanned event, but in no way could she ever be considered an accident. She has brought so many great things to our lives – I just hope we will be able to give her as much as she has given us. 

Happy 3rd Birthday Monster & we love you♥

I started this blog to make sure I wrote down all the funny things Ella did each day, but have been doing a bad job at that lately. I swear there is a story for every.single.day.

On Saturday Ella was in desperate need of a bath, so I filled it up and plopped her in. Since she is contained, I have been using bath time to be super productive. Ella’s room looked like a tornado had rolled through so I thought I would pick it up.

After she had been in the tub for quite some time she yelled, “Mom, I have to go potty.” So I went into the bathroom and as I was reaching in to get her she shoved a cup in my face and said, “Here – I pooped in the tub.” As I grabbed the cup and peered in I saw that it was filled with poop and water!
I shrieked, “Ella Marie Leschisin, what are you doing? That is very naughty. Why would you poop in the tub?” She replied, “I had to go potty mom, no big deal.”

I emptied the contents of the cup into the toilet and sat her down to finish her business. I then set out to determine exactly what had happened and just how gross it was.

Mom: Did you accidentally poop in the tub and scoop it up with the cup?
Ella: No, I poop in the cup and I got some on my hands (makes a yucky face while wrinkling her nose.)
Mom: We definitely need to wash your hands.
Ella: Mom I had to go potty so I pooped in the cup and a little came out. No big deal.

The kid literally sat on a tiny cup, pooped and as she was lifting it out of the water, some escaped. Are you kidding me? I could never make this shit (literally) up!

This cup that she pooped in, well it’s (was – it’s tossed now) small to say the least. I couldn’t be mad at her, I was impressed by her impeccable precision. I was laughing so hard because she looked at me as if I were dumb that I hadn’t thought of her solution sooner.

What a creative thinker!

No worries, this time I resisted the temptation to include the infamous David Bowie song – but only because I’m still not able to determine what the song is really all about. I will say that I did dig up my old post where I included music and I liked it. A lot.
Now that you have watched the fantastic Youtube video – let’s move on.
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Life in the Leschisin household has maybe slowed a bit, but that doesn’t mean that things aren’t constantly changing every day. For starters, I am able to officially refer to us as the Leschisin household since Joe & I tied the knot on September 17th. We were blessed with amazing weather and couldn’t have asked for a better day!

While the wedding is a major event in our lives, the changes that Ella has been going through are what proves to be more surprising and continues to amaze me every day. Where to even begin?

We attended Cleft Clinic on October 14th. Our mindset going into the appointment was that we would be scheduling another surgery to correct the pulling on her lip and work on reshaping her nose. Of course that’s not how the appointment really went. For the first time, our surgeon actually had an opinion and shared it and he prefers to not do surgery unless a medical necessity (speech plateaus, nasality, bone grafting, etc.) arises and he can piggyback on that. Since we have struggled with the topic a lot, I am good with not doing surgery anytime soon. However, I also think as her parents it’s our job to do what is best for Ella in the long run. If she continues to mention that she doesn’t like her lip & nose – we will think about a surgery before she starts school. For now it’s back to the waiting game.

In exciting news Ella’s Big Girl Check List continues to take no prisoners. We have conquered potty training, which means she not only gets to wear big girl princess undies, but is also the proud new owner of this {super sparkly & girly} bike. —————–>

And that’s not all folks – last night was her first night in a big girl bed. Yes I know you’re all thinking “What, she’s almost 3?”  For some reason my wild and crazy child has never tried to get out of her crib & I am not ashamed in the fact that I have delayed this day for as long as possible. As much as I thought it was going to be terrible, the transition has gone swell and at almost two nights in, I can’t complain.

Perhaps the most exciting and beneficial transition for Ella is in regards to her speech development. When Ella turns 3 in November, we will no longer be able to utilize the services provided by Birth to 3 and our case is turned over to the Madison School District. I have been super nervous about whether or not we could expect continued therapy and if so, at what level of consistency & quality. Today was the meeting to review Ella’s evaluation and much to my surprise it went fantastic.

After the therapist spent an hour with Ella they determined that while she is extremely intelligent and definitely doesn’t struggle with language and communication, she does struggle with speech development. Therefore, she qualifies to be one of 12 kids to take part in a Phonology Clinic. The clinic focuses on building the intelligibility of speech and emphasizes the accuracy of sound patterns to promote speech clarity. Ella would attend half the day for 4 days/week for 6 weeks. She then would have 6 weeks off where we would practice and continue at home and then 6 more weeks on. The cycles continue until she no longer needs the help or she starts kindergarten.

While this is definitely going to be a major transition for us and Ella – it’s something I am very excited for. It does seem a bit intense and I feel guilty for taking her out of daycare where she will most likely miss he friends and fun, but I strongly believe the consistency and focus will help us see some major improvements. Cross your fingers!

Today I received a text from my sister-in-law. It was a picture of my niece Paige and it looked like it hurt. She had fallen on the playground at school. She was battered, bumped and bruised. Paige was the first baby to enter my life, she made me an aunt (well her parents did but lets not get into that) and will always hold a special place in my heart. It broke my heart to see her in such pain.

At the same time, it also put things into perspective for me. When Ella was born we fretted about the inevitable surgeries she would face to repair her cleft and we worried about the scarring, both emotionally and physically. Taking a step back – those surgeries and scars may have happened even if she wasn’t born with a cleft (the scenario is very likely if you know Ella).

Kids will be kids. They run. They fall. They cry. They scar. It’s impossible to keep them safe all the time. As we contemplate another surgery I will think of today and remember that if it wasn’t this – it would be something else. One thing you can predict about kids, they will always be unpredictable.

I hope Paige doesn’t experience any long lasting scars from todays debacle. I hope she will return to school tomorrow and all of her friends will comfort her and she will know it’s okay to go back out and run again. Most likely she will fall again, but the important part is to get back up. Every. Single. Time.

If not, she will always be a beautiful little girl to me and I have a ballerina Barbie going out in the mail tomorrow as bribery Love you Paige!

This past weekend Joe and I went to Las Vegas for a few days to celebrate our bachelor/bachelorette parties with friends, so we left Ella with Grandma & Grandpa for a bit. Whenever we are away from her for even a day it becomes very apparent that she is growing up right before our eyes.

Tonights conversation on the way home from daycare is a perfect example. It went something like this:
(Saw a lawn ornament in someone’s yard by daycare)
Ella: why that not in my yard?
Mom: because you don’t live there?
E: why?
M: because you live with mommy & daddy.
E: I not want to live with mommy & daddy.
M: that’s not very nice. who will take care of you? who is going to feed you, bath you, change your diapers, etc?
E: Mac (our cat)
M: well we have a problem then because Mac can’t open the fridge.
E: I open the fridge all by myself.
M: you have a point. who will change your diapers?
E: I will.
M: who will make your meals?
E: I put chicken nuggets in the oven.
M: why don’t you want to live with mommy & daddy?
E: cause I not need you!
M: ouch