Our Beautiful Chaos: Testing Boundaries

It was a big, challenging and lovely weekend for us over here.

Piper is taking major leaps in the toddler department.

Climbing onto the windowsill to climb atop a table we're borrowing from our friend John Day. It is Piper height and intended for future art project, puzzles and other such discoveries. But for now it seems to be used for the discovery of, "How high can I climb before Mom makes that funny noise?"

So we compromised. She would not stop running on the couch, so I took the cushions off the love seat and fashioned a little climbing gym closer to the ground. It satisfies her need to climb and keeps me from having numerous heart palpitations throughout the day. Now I only have one or two.

Piper is talking more. She says things like "bop" but she also says: bounce, up, hot,

doggie, yep, thank you and Grammy!

She says much more. But under her breath, so you really have to pay attention to catch it.

We headed up to the Front Range this weekend.

Visit the Aunties and go to Z's 1st Birthday was on the itinerary.

But first we had to get there.

In the past we've taken the 4 hour drive while Piper slept for the night. But she's going to bed later these days and getting older, so we decided to see how she'd do taking the drive after her nap (she doesn't sleep in the car for naps - not long enough at least).

Um.

ya.

I don't know if words can describe the torture.

for her.

for me.

Dad drowned out the noise with some OutLaw Country on the radio... but the back (where I ended up) was filled with screams, growls and the repetitive sounds of desperation...

which oddly sounds much like a Yo Gabba Gabba App for an Ipad.

But then we made it.

Later than expected and so after some much needed time running around the yard,

Piper went to bed an hour later than usual.

Which, ehem... began a domino effect of a two hour crib party and an hour early wake up.

See...Piper likes her sleep. When she's short on sleep it tends to spiral out of control.

The next morning she seemed "okay"

despite being 4 hours shorter on sleep than usual

Piper remembered her Auntie Amy even the first night and lunged into her arms and even played with her while I got ready for the day.

HUGE improvement from the past visits we've had.

So after an incredibly crappy nap (the dominos are still falling at this point)

Piper looses it in an all new way.

Possessed.

Seriously, no joke - I was ready to find a gypsy woman to help.

She lost it.

Screaming, crying, pulling at her hair - little fists shaking in the air.

This. was. not. Piper.

Well, this WAS Piper.

Its just that this was Piper with not enough sleep.

Wow.

Ya.

It will be a good long time before I test the ol' "all kids are flexible" theory.

Not all kids are flexible.

She's flexible with many things, but sleep is not one of them.

So...here we are, supposed to go to Jenn and Dave's for a birthday part for Zs

and Piper is screaming while clinging to me.

A little time out in a dark room to take a breath, some meds in case she had teeth coming in, and a little candy and we taught our daughter coping mechanisms.

And we made it to the party.

These are the only two photos of the party I have. Which is too bad.

It was lovely, packed with people and kids and just beautiful...

And this is how Piper spent 99% of her time there...

Fully channeling her Father's social patterns.

Then she dug deep, found my genes and ran around for

15 minutes beaming at people and working the crowd.

Only to completely melt again.

Back to the Aunties we went, after a tub and some mellow love-y time which included giving Auntie Amy big big kisses she went to bed early, slept through the night

and only got up 2 hours earlier than "usual".

But that little "extra" made all the difference.