so beyond blessed.

So yesterday was about summing up my sweet baby's first year. Today is about summing up the best school year. Ever.
I am pretty sure the latter was easier.
We have had the year. The year you beg for and the year you dread. I have had 6 years of class "families". I have had more co-teachers than I care to count. I have had a handful of bosses and a few different styles of curriculum in a few different kinds of schools.
But nothing will ever amount to this school, with this co-teacher, with this curriculum, these parents and these kids. These kids.
These kids that we miss when they leave for the summer. These kids that quote us and pretend to be us and maybe sometimes call their parents us.
And these parents, oh these parents. That spoil us with wine parties and gift cards and "comfort" treats because they know how difficult today would be. These parents that tell us how we taught their kids to be better people and them to be better people. These parents that not only value our line of work but are convinced (because its true) we were born to teach and who are trying to figure out ways to get us jobs at their public schools (even if its not true, its still nice to hear!).
This classroom family that went to hell and back and can still laugh and cry and still laugh some more. That slides down the water slide with us and plays tag and duck, duck, goose and may be a little sadder than their kid to leave our room.
If I ever have a moment of weakness and question my path, here is the year that will prove it. I am a teacher, was born a teacher and will always be a teacher. It is said to be the hardest job, but this co-teacher and these families and these kids make it oh so easy.
We, my dear Lauren Moreno, are so, so, sooo beyond blessed to have a year like we did. Cheers!

Happy First Birthday sweet baby Coop!

How do I sum up the most amazing year of my life? It's hard for me to remember what life was like before Cooper, before motherhood.
In the past year, Coop has kept me up countless nights, caused serious physical discomfort in various ways including causing my feet to swell up like jimmy dean sausage logs, been on at least 12 sick visits and a weekend in the hospital, with many diagnosis ranging from ear infections all the way through his floppy voice box aka laryngomalacia, ruined various items of clothing with mushy peas and green beans, has probably given me my first gray hair trying to hear him breathe over the monitor, has even started hitting/pinching and has still brought more joy to my heart than I ever knew was possible.
He is more than walking-ish. Each day he has a little more confidence than the last (what a man, right?) and will be running any day now.
He is more than talking-ish. He says: mama, dada, dog, uhoh, byebye, thank you, and countless other things that I have yet to decipher.
He is definitely more than siging-ish. He signs: byebye, milk, more, eat, all done, dog, and is very close to please and thank you.
I just cannot believe how challenging/fun/emotional/exciting this year has been. How having this beautiful baby has made me a better person, woman, wife, daughter, friend and teacher. Each day is better than before and each day he does something equally as amazing.
Today was the birthday dance. It consisted of Coop stomping his feet, bouncing on his knees and throwing his body onto the bed while I sang him happy birthday. (Don't worry, I got a video!) The day before was me asking him why he was crying and him instantly showing me the sign for eat. Each night I go to bed, I am so excited to see what cool thing will happen the next day.
So happy birthday sweet Cooper James and thank you, thank you, thank you for choosing us to be your parents!

peace is calm in your heart.

In the midst of an earthquake, a hurricane and many tragedies, this past week has challenged my core in the most chaotic sense. Just thought I would share the mantra that I am repeating to keep myself steady and grounded. May you all find a calm in your own hearts.

The best classroom family...

There are a million things I have missed blogging about... Cooper got his 7th? (I may have lost count) postcard in New York, he is walking-ish, talking and throwing 3 year old fits, not to mention Rick and I celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary (we lost count on that, too!). But tonight with tragedy weighing heavy on my heart I must blog about my classroom family.

I should've met my co-teacher a million times before. She and I have crossed paths so many times its a little bit ridiculous we didn't meet. Between VCU, common friends and even hanging out with her brother a few times, it just didn't make sense why we kept missing each other.

So when we did finally get together, we instantly realized it was a relationship long overdue. We brought (and still bring) the best out of each other and with that we have brought out the best in every single kid in our class. We have had (as you have previously read) one of the best years a teacher could ever ask for.

All year we have questioned why it took us so long to meet. What is it about our kids that have touched us more deeply than any other group of students? What is it about us that has touched this group more than any other teacher?

For a long time I thought it was the success in our diaper drive. We exposed a group of families to economic difficulties they may not have been exposed to and the beauty of making a difference. But that wasn't it at all...

Last night, a father of one of our students was hit on his bicycle by a truck. He is finally stable but has a long recovery and we aren't even sure the details of that recovery after such serious brain trauma. Every bone in his face was broken along with many others in his body. A part of his skull was removed to make room for brain swelling.

In the face of tragedy I can safely say, this is what it was about. We were being prepared to come together for this family. This is the true test of why it took us so long to meet, why we have spent 12 months touching each other and creating the deepest bond I have ever felt in a classroom family.

So here we are, ready for the next challenge. We are a family and we will get through this. We will face this tragedy and not only come out of it stronger, but better because of it. And I will continue to trust that everything happens for a reason.

my big boy...

...walked today! Like full-fledged walked. He has been thinking about it, he has been wanting to, but he hadn't quite gotten it together. He is super fast at crawling and cruising but today was the first time he took multiple steps in a row.
When I pick him up from his class, I usually wait for him to realize I'm there before I walk all the way in. Today, he was standing when I came in and when he saw me he walked right on over.
I couldn't believe it. I started crying/screaming/kissing him all at once while I scooped him right up into my arms. I have never been so proud! And its only just begun. I am so blessed. We are so blessed. My big boy... :)

Wouldn't change a thing!

Usually I am excited to go to the doctor. We find out how much Coop has grown and they often spend a solid 5 minutes of our 15 minute visit talking about how beautiful/handsome he is (which they probably say to all the moms but I believe it anyway!)
I don't even mind the shots so much now because Coop handles them like a champ and I know how important they are especially for a kid that catches EVERYTHING!
But the ENT is a different story. As you have read before, the throat scope is definitely heavy on the heart. I am not too proud to admit that I don't like to handle this on my own. Even with someone there to support me (usually my dad) I still have a hard time keeping it together.
But... today they skipped the scope! I couldn't have been happier. Even with my dad's muscles and the nurse's help, it is difficult to hold him down for the physically painless procedure and often times even more difficult to watch. I could've cried that we, Coop especially, didn't have to go through that once again.
I asked the doctor about the incessant cough that Coop has, even on his healthiest days. He thinks it might be linked to reflux so they are putting him on a daily medication that should help.
He also said that Cooper still has a significant amount of fluid in his ears which explains his regular ear infections. He is pretty sure Coop will get another one once cold season hits in which case he thinks tubes are the best choice.
When they first brought tubes up, I was fine but that was when I thought it was a procedure only requiring a local. Today the doctor said they would have to put him to sleep for the procedure. I'm pretty sure the doctor saw the sadness in my eyes because he was quick to tell me they do it all the time and not to worry.
I feel way more confident in our choice of doctor now that we have built a relationship with him. I am starting to feel like Dr. Brager remembers Cooper and his symptoms which makes me trust his opinions and the prognosis. We go back in 8 weeks unless an ear infection comes first. And we will cross those bridges when we get there.
Fingers remain crossed for some improvement in his stridor, because so far it seems pretty stagnate. The outlook is that at 12-18 months we should start hearing a difference (the window keeps getting extended...)
I have to admit, I am starting to get really sick of people assuming he is sick and congested. Honestly, I prefer you to ask why he sounds this way instead of giving me judgmental looks and pulling your own children away like he is a leper (you won't catch it I swear).
I said a long time ago that this would probably resolve itself the minute I let go. Not only letting go of what people think but also letting go of the feeling of constantly wanting to explain. Guess I still have some work to do.
Until then I am going to enjoy my sweet little squeak toy who is definitely more a toddler than a baby, with all the fickleness and attitude that comes with it. And remind myself that even with all of these throat scopes and ENT visits and awful stares... I would not change a thing about my sweet baby coop.

hello sippy goodbye bottle!

Cooper has never been attached to anything. He has never been crazy about the paci nor does he have a blankie that he can't live without. The closest thing to any kind of attachment would be his teddy. He gets really excited when he sees it and instantly tries to love on it, but when its not there, he doesn't seem to notice.

One would think with that being said, he couldn't possibly be attached to his bottle.

Boy, were we wrong.

With his 12 month birthday coming way faster than we would like, it seemed the best choice to start figuring out when we would make the switch. The doctor said we should start 2 weeks before but that would be days before our long weekend to NYC and coop's first night without one of us.

I didn't want to do that to my parents or to him. So we decided with his 11 month coming up, to just cold turkey the bottle.

It was awful.

Apparently my precious son picked the bottle to be attached to. The first bottle free day, we did soooo much trying to wear him out and I'm not sure if the affect was positive or negative. He didn't seem to mind skipping the day bottles BUT that night he screamed for at least 2 hours.

I thought night 2 would be better but it was wayyy worse. He screamed for over 2 hours and was beyond angry. He swatted at my hands when I tried to comfort him. I had a melt down. We are talking full-fledged bawling (in the hallway of course). To make matters worse, Rick took him during night and ended up giving into to a bottle filled with water.

I won't get into how fun that was to find out about the next morning...

This by far has been the hardest thing for me to navigate. Everything that I have believed in as a teacher and parent about consistency and firmness has been challenged. I want to give in. I want to just give him what he wants. But I can't. I would be a hypocrite if I did.

But last night (night 3) was a little bit easier and already tonight is even a little better. So, I think it is safe to say we have officially said goodbye to the bottle!

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