A Day in Esther's Life

Here is Esther all ready for the day,
with the latest headband to keep
her old glasses in place

I thought you might be interested in hearing about how Esther usually spends her day.  Granted, this is a perfect day and lately they are few and far between (I've been down with a sinus infection for 7 weeks), but it gives you an idea!

Wake up at 7 am, cuddles and juice with her medications in the juice (thyroid and vitamins), diaper change (or on a good day, we'll have her sit on the potty), and her glasses are put on.

8 am is breakfast with the other children, she self feeds and loves to participate in prayer time!

After breakfast she gets dressed (she needs lots of help with this) get's her hair brushed and her glasses on (if she isn't wearing them yet) and gets her braces and shoes put on.  If she has a cold, she also gets a breathing treatment at this time, and she doesn't mind this as long as there's something PIXAR playing on the TV!

Esther loves playing with baby dolls
- but she usually takes their clothes off ;)

I do some therapy things with her - reading a book together, trying to learn new words/signs, threading large wooden beads on a shoelace, playing with a shape shorter toy, naming body parts, reading a book with animals and learning animal names and sounds.

Here's Esther helping wash dishes!

During chore time she usually helps a bigger brother or sister, putting things away, or maybe making another mess for them to learn to teach her to pick up behind herself!
During school time, we try to have her play quietly or color in coloring books.  Our biggest challenge right now is getting her to consistently wear her glasses, and trying to find them when she takes them off any old place.  I'm trying to teach her to give them to me when she takes them off and I've a little success with this.  She recently got new glasses that are much easier on her so she wears them longer.


The rest of the morning is pretty much free time for her - to play with her toys or siblings or just hang out with mommy.
At lunchtime she is fed and gets her second juice (we found out that she is milk intolerant - we are trying out lactose free milk, but haven't figured out if it works or not yet) and some yogurt.  If she needs it she gets another breathing treatment at this time.

Here is Esther playing with ponies
 - she's making the kiss!
As you can see, she goes cross eyed
when not wearing her glasses
and trying to focus on something close.

After some play time she goes down for her nap at 2 pm and is allowed to sleep as late as 5 pm, but we wake her up then if she's still sleeping so she can be ready for dinner.  She gets another breathing treatment before dinner if needed.
When daddy gets home she gets excited and will often sign to us the I need to go greet him with a hug, and she'll usually give him a hug and ask to be picked up.  She's really getting fond of her daddy!
She loves to climb up to the dinner table once it's set and "re-organize" things...and is usually very ready for dinner.  She is not a fast eater and likes to warm up to her food, often pushing it away at first and then taking it back when she's ready for it.  She is usually just getting into the swing of eating when we are done, so she continues to eat while we have family devotions.
For the rest of the evening she plays with her siblings or watches a movie snuggling with mommy or daddy.

Esther is so used to her breathing treatment that
she will usually hold it for herself!

Around 8:30 it's time to get ready for bed, which includes getting on pajamas, removing her braces and shoes, a breathing treatment if needed, brushing teeth (she doesn't like this, but she tolerates it if you give her breaks).  Then I put her to bed, and we pray together.  I kiss her good night and say what I've said to all the kids for over 25 years at bedtime - "Good night, I love you, See you in the morning".
She is usually a good sleeper, but she quite frequently decides to leave a little gift in her diaper after being tucked in for the night, and she will refuse to go to sleep until her diaper is changed...otherwise we usually don't hear from her again until morning (unless she's sick and wakes during the night needing meds/comforting).
Life for Esther has been not very consistent while I've been sick, but now that I'm feeling better I am going to try to get her/me back onto her normal routine.  But that will only last until she becomes a big sister (Carese, Esther's little sister in hiding,  is due to join our family around April 2nd).  I do have her routine posted on the dry erase board, so it is possible for the girls to do everything for her, but with me out of commission for a while, things will be out the normal for her for a while, to say the least.

Esther cuddling with Mommy, using my baby belly as a pillow
- Carese will usually kick Esther when she does this!