The Sawinskis

The time has come to resurrect this blog. I am sitting in bed eating a granny smith apple and drinking A&W root beer. To celebrate being parents for four years I made Martin some chocolate chip walnut cookie dough and I bought olives for me.  The thermostat in the house reads 49 degrees so I am bundled up like usual. Warm and clean sheets to join me shortly. I am just sitting here reminiscing about this past year and here are my thoughts.

It is the eve of Kiera’s fourth BIRTHday. Her first birthday I was a wreck, second eagerly awaiting a trip to Central America, third eagerly awaiting the birth of our new babe and dealing with Kiera’s broken femur, and her fourth… in awe of the beautiful girl my baby is evolving into. WOW. She remains crazily confident and out going. She has a spark within her that I can’t quite describe. As she gets older the spark grows. Her personality is contagious- beautiful, bold, dynamic, strong, caring.

We have been celebrating for about two weeks with the grandmas and grandpas- no “real” party planned but lots of special treats from the G and Gs and other family. A new booster seat from Great Grandma Ellen, make up goodies from Grandpa Don and Grandma “Wori”, a doll and fairy stuff from Zannie and Tom, a trip to Mall of America from Tim and Kassie… Tomorrow we will celebrate at Namaste and have gluten free vasagna (as Kiera says it) and root beer floats. She was convinced she wanted lasagna for all three meals. Hopefully the leepin’ lemurs cereal and green grapes will win her over for breakfast. Perhaps going out to eat for lunch… oooh, big splurge:) Sparkly pink and purple balloons and dark chocolate with cranberries await her in the morning.

How has Kiera changed over the last year? Entering into the threes was a bit rocky. She got out of her femur cast March 3rd and was barely walking when Sully came along. She is a splendid big sister who cares so much for her brother bear. She is so in tune with him- it is amazing to watch their interactions together. In May we moved out of our rental- her birthplace. Summer was at Third Street while our current house (first time home buyers!) was being transformed from a foreclosed pit to a livable home. Fall was filled with Namaste adventures and settling into our new home. Her polka dot room is her favorite part of the house- she is so proud to tell newcomers of the “special surprise” in her room. The winter blues have been chased away with lots of dress up, time spent with friends, and learning to cook and bake.

Her favorite foods (at least for today) are lasanga, eggs and soy cream cheese, strawberries, cheddar jalapeno chips, and black bean brownies. Her loves are dance parties, makeup, dress up, make believe, fairies and princesses, and pink- in no particular order. Instead of wearing what one might called a layered look (two shirts, a skirt, a dress, long sleeved shirt, AND a sweater) she is leaning toward anything she can pair with tights. Black tights. Pink tights. Striped blue tights. Sparkly tights. As long as it looks light tights she will wear them.

She wants to be a “belly dancer and a ballet dancer” when she grows up. She weighs 40 pounds and is 40 inches- she loves eating food and saying “I am eating this chicken because it has protein and protein makes me strong or I love bananas because they have potassium”.

I love you as big as the sky Kiera. Forever and always- Mama