Maddie's Education: Big Lesson Learned

It's that time of year.  

Pre-enrollment.

Where parents plan to camp out in front of schools and do whatever it takes to get their little one in the best schools and stress over whether they've made the right decision or done all they could. 

Luckily, we don't have to camp out.

Maddie has a spot with her name on it in the developmentally delayed preschool class at public schools.  

To mainstream or not to mainstream? That is our question. 

Could she handle a normal classroom environment and keep up, or is she best served in a class where everyone needs some extra help?

It's a tough question.

You don't want to hold them back in any way, but you also want to be realistic and assess her current abilities and her future potential.  

A month ago the decision would have been simple...keep her with qualified professionals trained to meet her needs. 

But then the results from her IEP (individualized education plan) came home and she hasn't made hardly any progress towards her education goals.  

Now we have to discern whether this environment is setting high enough expectations for her.

And if it's not, what do we do?  

Jump ship?

Demand change?

Cross our fingers and have faith?   

I've been in research mode the last week or so. 
I've brushed up on reading the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)

(a riveting piece, let me tell ya)

I've checked into our options at private schools.  

I've been to her class to observe.  

And I've come to a conclusion...

I have been so foolish to hand over the reigns of Maddie's education.  

It's ultimately up to me, her first teacher in life, to teach what the schools are not.  

It's still important to collaborate with Maddie's teachers and expect they will raise their standards for her potential; but if I want Maddie to reach these goals (which I KNOW she can), I'm going to have to do whatever it takes. 

One of her goals is lacing 5 beads on a string.  

We began working on this Thursday and I have to admit, it didn't go very well.

I really thought she could already do this.  

But she couldn't, and I had to walk her through each and every step.  

We would work on it for awhile, and she may have a little success, but her attention span was gone.  

We'd take a break and try again later...

and it was back to step one!!

I was sad and dejected.  

Maddie won't get things on the first try, or the second, or the third.

But guess what?  

Today, she laced not 4, not 5, but SIX beads in one sitting...ALL BY HERSELF!!

She's smart and bright and has vast amounts of potential.  

Without effort to bring it out though, it will remain hidden.

I am a

 Mother.

 Teacher.

 Dream Maker.

and best of all...

 Potential Finder. 

Meet Maci Rose Roberts

I love newborn sessions.

They are laid-back, easy going and completely on the little one's time schedule.  

In other words, they take time.  

But let me tell you, it's always time well spent.  

Especially when it's with good friends!

Here are some of my favorites:

We had to wait for these shots.  

This pose required little Maci to be in that deep, beautiful sleep.  

We almost gave up, because it was towards the end of the day and I didn't want to push it, but then we decided to give it a go....EEEEKK I'm so glad we did!

I also love getting some lifestyle shots of everyday life.

She was daddy's little girl on this particular day.  

I'm so happy for the Roberts family!!  

 They make the most wonderful parents! : ) 

Visit my website for more information on booking a session of your own!

The Shadow Proves the Sunshine

I love the lyrics from Switchfoot's song The Shadow Proves the Sunshine.

The last couple of months have proved to be a sad season in my life with the miscarriage and now having to put Gracie down.  

I realized this weekend though that God's mercies are new every day.  

The weekend was full of sunshine-y moments that warmed my heart.  

The first ray of light came Friday morning.  

Maddie and I have been volunteering at a Head Start with a couple of other ladies from church.  

We read books and do a few activities with the kids. 

There is nothing like a spontaneous hug from a 4-year-old to cast the shadows out of a darkened heart. 

I was still raw with emotion from the previous afternoon and I swear in that single, solitary moment I felt my heart mending.  

But the next day had even more mercies in store for me!  

I did a newborn session with the beautiful Maci Rose!  

Oh my...she was so precious.  What a blessing!

But then...

on Sunday...

the best ray of sunshine!  

My nephew Caleb was baptized!!

Congratulations buddy...welcome to the Kingdom : )  

You are so amazing, I can't wait to see what God has in store for you. 

One Last Day with Gracie

My heart is crushed.

Gracie bit Maddie last week.

Since the day we brought Maddie home from the hospital, I've always said if Gracie ever bit her, we would have to do something.  

And while it makes sense logically and the mother bear in me wants to protect Maddie from any harm, this is really hard.  

Maddie still associates coming home to seeing Gracie.  

Yesterday she ran through the door and called out, "Gace, whereareoooo?"

I told her there would be a day when we came home and Gracie wouldn't be here anymore.

She said, "Sick?" 

I told her yes, Gracie is sick and we're going to have to tell her bye.

I'm going to miss her so much. 

Maddie Makes Her Own Egss!

So, the blog has been a little light on Maddie-pics lately.  

There's a good reason why!

I've been working on a video project and shooting videos instead!! 

I'm so excited about this project.  

I was very inspired by Hailey Bartholomew on Creative Live so I'm joining the challenge to create a video of 30 days of gratitude!!

Here's a couple of my favorite clips from last week...

I Have a Theory...

I have been instructed by my #1 blog fan (Maddie's Daddy) to get back to the subject of Maddie! 

I know that's why you guys tune in as well : ) 

I am working on creating a new blog devoted solely to photography so that will be coming soon!  

But back to Maddie...

I have a theory that no matter what you make/sew/craft for your child, they are going to love it.  

I have the perfect example to prove my hypothesis.  (wow, digging into grade-school science!)

A couple of years ago I attempted to sew Maddie a bath robe.  

I considered it an epic fail, but for whatever reason, Maddie loved it.  

This morning after bath, she once again proved her love for her bath robe.  

It's not hard to recognize when Maddie's excited about something.  

She expresses it with her whole being.  

I haven't attempted any repairs, so it's still very disheveled. 

She plays with the straggling strings...

and the tie is still held together with a safety pin.

but the girl loves it.  

It has to be simply because I made it.  

That's my theory and I'm sticking to it!! 

Photography Angles

 Look Granny!!  My Christmas cactus finally bloomed!

My Granny has the most amazing sun room full of beautiful plants and flowers.

She cut a clipping of one of her cactus plant for me and I put it in the wrong part of the house.  

It wasn't getting enough sunlight and I almost killed it!!

Luckily, I moved it to a different location and nursed it back to health.  

I was so delighted to find its first bloom!!!

So, I decided to photograph it.  

I tried to find as many different angles as possible to see what I liked best.  

Here's an example of just 12!  

Rather than just choose one or two favorites, I kind of like how they all fit together for a collage. 

Next time you go to photograph something, see how many different angles you can get!
You might find some that surprise you : )