Geo-Journey: September 2007

Every parent needs a reason why their child is, or will be, retarded; this is, jokingly, mine.

Shana and I had a newborn baby and she was going to sculpt the rest of our lives. We wanted to journey back to Oklahoma and reveal her to the rest of our family and friends. As we traveled throughout our homeland, we visited many people. On one such occasion, our trek took us to the house of Brian and Kelli DeHay. They enjoyed seeing Samara for the first time as we enjoyed seeing their kids, a 1 and a half-year old and a half-year old (at the time). Naturally, Kelli wanted to hold the 9 pound Samara and, as all mothers do, enjoyed it. However, their littlest child did not like the attention his mother was graciously giving Samara. He marched over to his mother (and Samara) like a warlord-king on a crusade and brought forth his fist on Samara’s hard noggin!

Samara has been doing great this last month and a half; growing, running, and learning new and exciting things. We are starting the potty training process with some mild success, which is great! I can’t wait until we don’t have to spend money on diapers!

Samara has increased her vocabulary, most of which is slightly garbled, but we understand what she says. She has learned the words more, up, no, yes, please, thank you, and bus. Soaking up the knowledge! And, she has learned to vigorously shake her head (no) when she does not want something. Speaking of body language, Samara has started to learn sign language at school; and, as a consequence, we have begun to sign at home (with our limited knowledge). Her only word she has down is “more”; for instance, we can sign more while she’s eating dinner and if she wants more food, she’ll sign “more” back at us. She’s also learning “milk” at school (even though she hates milk) and we’re trying to teach her “outside” and “drink”. Other signs we are incorporating into our daily routine include diaper, bath, hot, mom, dad, cat, dog, and book. We’ll see how it goes, but we are always amazed at how well she learns! I may incorporate “the bird” into her arsenal of words

She’s also latched on to some new foods that include, cottage cheese with apple sauce, fruit-flavored yogurt, and of course, whatever Shana and I are eating! In the last blog, one of her favorite new foods was cat food. Well, she has comprehended that we give Cassie and Orion kitty treats from a separate container. Every time she sees us handing out treats she desperately wants to be the one who gives the cats their “dessert”. One day, after giving her a handful of treats to give to the cats, we noticed she was eating just as much of the treats as the cats!

In early August, my brother, sister, and niece came to Oklahoma City for a weekend getaway. Shana, Samara, and I took them down the street to the Edmond waterpark called “Pelican Bay” and played in the water for several hours. Samara had a moderately enthusiastic time; Tori, my niece, didn’t want to leave! It was fun, relaxing, and a great time. The pictures below are from the extravaganza:

Shana’s aunt and her son, daughter, and granddaughter came for a visit at the beginning of September. Shana hadn’t seen her aunt Cathy for over a year and her cousins for, a lot longer. We were able to “hang out” for several days and enjoyed the weather, which had begun to have a “fall” feel to it!

Samara had her 15-month check-up earlier this month! Unfortunately, I was doing field work and could not make the trip. Samara needed her shots and took them like a baby, as I heard! Shana informed me that the needle was at least an inch long, which made me wonder, “does the needle hit the bone?” Ouch! Samara also got her vitals checked out:

Weight – 21 lbs. 12 oz.

Height – 29 1/2 inches

Since Samara has learned to walk, her favorite pastime has been playing outside. When she was younger, we couldn’t keep shoes and sock on her feet. These days, she brings us shoes and socks!! She also puts things around her shoulder (like a p

urse) and waves “bye” to us! I’ve also seen her grab my car keys and head for the door…

Here are some photos of “my girl”: