Random Update

I feel as if it's been ages since I last updated. Despite it being so cold out, I am still wrapping up the last of my 2013 work load. It was another great year for my business. I love seeing everything grow and improve from year to year - from customer experience, my workflow, products and services, and even my talent and ease behind the camera. It was a good year, but I'm looking forward to cooling off in the cold months and having my workload ease up a bit.

My other job - motherhood - constantly has me going up and down. If I could quit, I would. If it were any other job I'd leave because of the emotional toll it would take on me and that at any point I'm sure I'd be fired. Motherhood doesn't work that way, so I'm stuck! It's such a challenge, this whole parenting thing. For something so important and trying, you think there'd be a better screening process to who should be able to reproduce.

Autumn proves to be the most challenging, but she is apparently karma in the flesh. Brighten the hair, add some freckles and remove the glasses and she a Kelli 2.0. So I've been told... As a mom I just thought that you correct and discipline - "Autumn, no. You need to pick that up and find something else to do." Voila. 'That' is picked up and all is well.

HAHAHAHA

That's me laughing at my former self. If only it were that simple. If only rational conversation WORKED on an emotional 4 year old! It's taken the better half of the past year to figure out exactly how to best discipline Autumn. I have found that positive + positive + positive reinforcement works much better than traditional discipline. She's outgrown/doesn't do time outs anymore, and 'No' only escalates arguments because she feels backed into a corner. I also think her tantrums are a self-esteem issue. She wants approval, she wants my time - which is hard as a stay at home working mom. The more patient I am and the less I escalate the situation, the better. It's all about re-direction for her. Do I yell? Sure. Am I always patient? Gosh no. But we're figuring it out together.

When she's happy and all is well, she's the sweetest little girl you will ever meet. She loves to help, she loves to sing and loves to dance. She's so creative and the things that come out of her mouth these days is just hilarious. It's amazing what a 4 year old picks up and learns.

Brody continues to grow cuter and cuter, every day. From his facial expressions to the fluctuation in his voice, he's so amusing to watch. He's happy and he's easy. Aside from the fact that he climbs EVERYTHING and gets into EVERYTHING. He's much more of an explorer than Autumn ever was, and that can be challenging and exhausting. Like his sister, he loves going outside. When we're walking to the car he runs as far down the sidewalk as he can, trying to escape the confines of the car and enjoy the outdoors. I can't wait until the weather is warm and he can be outside. He has mixed feelings about the cold and more specifically snow.

He's talking more and more - "What's this/that?" "Doh (no)" "Daddy" "Yum" "So silly"


It's been a great start to the new year. I'm anxious to see what 2014 has in store for us.