While Daddy’s Away..

 

We play,play, play.

Actually…I get very lonesome for my hubby when he’s out of town. Eric recently went on a canoeing trip with his friends. So instead of moping around…I decided to take the time to plan some fun things with Kate. She was in need of some special mommy time…and it took our minds off of missing Eric.

We had a blast. Here is what our 4 days alone entailed…

Night 1….visited with my cousin and her girls. Her hubby was canoeing with my hubby…so we were both needing some company

Night 2…It rained all day and all night. We embraced the dreary weather and had a living room CAMPOUT! Who says you can’t have fun in the rain. We set up Kate’s Dora tent…our air mattress, sleeping bags, blankets, pillows and flashlights. The tent ended up being a little too small for the air mattress so it sat on top of the mattress…and my feet stuck out the bottom. And I couldn’t figure out how to set the tent up quite right…so it was slanted on one side. Haha…just another reason I need my husband around. And what campout is complete without a fire and smores??? Luckily we still have a wood burning fireplace. So I made a fire (MY first fire-making experience in our fireplace. Took a little time..but finally got it going) and broke out the roasting sticks and smore supplies. Kate was in heaven. She had a marshmallow/chocolate grin from ear to ear! Then we crawled in to our tent with our flashlights and read our bedtime stories. Which then turned into an hour long shadow puppet adventure. Tents make great backdrops for shadow puppets. And Dinosaur pop up books make great shadows if you hold them right! That was Kate’s first time seeing a shadow puppet. Should I admit that!?! WHy have I not done these with her before. She loved it. IT was a great night and I slept surprisingly well…feet hanging out and all!

 

Chowing on hot dogs, sweet potato fries and fruit!

 

 

 

 

 

Beware….Now entering the TIGER DEN

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SMORES anyone….

 

My ridiculous attempt at a tent. A little crooked..but it worked just fine!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoying a pancake breakfast and fresh fruit smoothies..after a hard night roughin it! And a little rainy day silliness.

 

Day 2.. attempting to get a sister picture. Ya…it worked out real well…..

and finally. One somewhat decent one

Night 3… MOVIE NIGHT & sleepover in mommy’s bed. With popcorn and goodies of coarse.The movie of the night…Mary Poppins (to get her excited for her upcoming dance performance). I didn’t think it would hold her interest, but she loved it! And was over the moon that she got to sleep in mommy’s bed.

Day 3/ night 4….More Rain. Charlotte wanted to go play outside with her sister soooo bad. Poor baby.

Then to my moms for dinner. Thanks for keeping us company mom! And dinner was delicious.

Day 4….Attended a performance of Alice and Wonderland…Five Guys for lunch…followed by our favorite cupcake shop (ouch…that put a dent in my calories for the month!)

All in all…the time flew by and we had oodles of fun! But we were sooo happy to have Daddy home!

10 months old! (and 7-9 mo updates)

Hard to believe my baby is 10 months old already. I think the times goes even faster with your second baby. I feel like I'm soo busy that the little moments just fly by before I can savor them. I want time to slooowww down. . This post is long..and mostly info for my documenting purposes. Anyway here are some things I want to remember about Charlotte at 10 months

She:

has 3 teeth (bottom two middle, and upper left fang) and is breaking 3 more (top two middle and right fang).

is Fast…crawling like a pro and pulls up on everything and stands by herself. She has gotten quite good at standing..and is thrilled with herself when she does

walks with her car walker

sleeps all night (yippee!)

loves to east (anything…not much she doesn’t like). Especially loves to feed herself (cut up bananas, avocados, mangos, little puffs, yogurt melts..etc..)

loves to stick her right foot on her highchair tray while eating.

Is my little vacuum cleaner. It drives me nuts…she is constantly inspecting the floor to see what she can find…any morsel that Kate might have dropped during lunch. You would think I don’t feed her. I have to constantly sweep my floors or she has anything she can find in her mouth. It doesn't even have to be food, leaves..grass..or anything Kate tracks in from running in and out a million times a day.

loves to smile a big toothy grin

loves to laugh

loves her daddy and nanny time. When they are holding her…she pushes me away and snuggles closer. She likes to tease me..so we play a little game.

loves our cat..and animals in general

loves tubby time with her sister.

still a thumb sucker…not a fan of the binki

Not a consistent napper (usually 1 nap a day if I'm lucky)

says dada,, baba, hi (not a clear hi..but clear enough along with a little wave) and I think she is working on mama (I hope).

sleeps on her stomach..and has to have her hands tucked under her belly

makes growling noises when playing with Kate's dino or lion/tiger figurines.

took 5 steps a couple days ago

points and shakes her finger at you when she doesn’t like something

loves to point at everything

holds any random object up to her ear like a phone and talks

is the best tempered baby ever….she is soooo good. But I can see hints of strong will and determination….so I might be in for some fun when she is a toddler.

 

9 months

16.8 lbs (15%) and  27.2 inches (50%)

Pro-stander….and crawls FAST. Fascinated by toilets..and tries to get into the bathroom any time the door is left open. Mommy has to watch you like a hawk. Full of energy. Had to lower the crib..again. Had your first visit to the ER (From a punctured soft palate. Long story short…fell on something she was holding which left a nice wound in the back of her mouth. Ouch. Luckily, the Dr. didn’t think it was bad enough to require a CT scan and ENT to repair…which they initially thought it might. Just antibiotics, Motrin, soft/liquid diet and water rinses. It healed amazingly fast!). Full of smiles and laughs. Loves our Cat Dante….constantly following him and bugging him when he’s sleeping. Loves to open/shut things and play with mommy’s cooking utensils, bowls, cups. Likes to empty drawers, toy bins and tries to unload the dishwasher as I'm trying to load it.

8 months

Had to lower the crib. Loves playing in Kate's room…especially with her doll house. Also loves Kate's play kitchen. Entertains herself well. Got her first 2 teeth..at the same time (bottom two middle…left one broke slightly faster than right). Always on the move. Still lives to snuggle with mommy when tired. Loves to play with her sister. Loves to play in her activity saucer and jump in her doorway jumper (often jumps herself to sleep). Starting to sleep through the night.

7 months

Started to crawl at 7 months and crawling like a pro by 7 1/2 mo. Loves to eat. Puts everything in her mouth. Lots of laughs..mostly from Daddy..sister and Nanny. First word…Dada (same as Kate's) at 7 1/2 mo. Loves bath time. Not sleeping through the night. Rarely cries…easy going. Almost always content. Truly the best baby ever!

Race for the Cure

 

6 YEARS….and counting! So proud of you Mom! I look forward to this event every year. It is such a special time with my mom. A day of remembrance, hope and celebration of life. I still tear up every time I see her her in her pink shirt with all the other survivors.  We always gear up in pink…enjoy the race…and eat at the Dodo after. It is our tradition. I love it. The race is always the day before mothers day which makes for a great weekend!

This year was Kate's 3rd year attending and Charlottes 1st! (4th and 2nd if you count in the womb….haha). And many..many more to come!

 

LOVE YOU MOM!!!!!