One year ago

One year ago today (well it was actually February 29th, but that day doesn't exist this year) was my last day of work before Charlotte's birth. It's hard to know whether I knew all I was in for in the year to come. This has been both ridiculously difficult and remarkably fun. Controlling the uncontrollable is hard, but knowing that the most she usually needs is me -- simply me -- is a big stroke for my ego.

Corey took Charlotte on a daddy-daughter outing to the library and the mall today while I slept off whatever bug I seem to have come down with. (I am usually NEVER sick and only get a mild cold every other year or so, but I have been sick several times this winter. I guess that's one of the downsides of having kids!) Even though I was grateful for the break and asleep for most of it, I felt as if a part of me was missing. As soon as I heard the garage door, I ran downstairs and snatched Charlie Jo out of the car. The smile she gave me melted my heart and made me forget all my aches and pains.

SnuggleBug Club

The story time for babies 18 months and under (called the "SnuggleBug Club") at the local library is not great, but we still go each month anyway. The librarian is completely tone-deaf (every song she sings comes out sounding vaguely like "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", so we just go with it) and makes us repeat every finger play and song three times. Twice I can understand, but three times is a little much. Story time with NanaB was way more fun (and I'm not just saying that to kiss up).

This month, Charlotte had a BLAST. She was subdued for most of it until the librarian brought out the parachute. Then, it was the Charlotte show. At some points, she was the only baby under the parachute. She waved her arms wildly and shrieked with excitement. Everyone thought she was hysterical.

Fruit loop

Charlie Jo is on a fruit kick right now. She has even forsaken her beloved goldfish in favor of fruit! Her favorites are bananas, nectarines, peaches, apples, and as of a few moments ago, mandarin oranges. We tried to give her grape pieces at lunch yesterday, but she just threw them on the floor. Might have been because she was at a restaurant though, so I'm going to try those again. Too bad the dogs won't eat those when they're tossed on the floor at the end of the meal though.

Sleepy pumpkin

We skipped CJ's normal morning nap in favor of a Steak & Shake lunch date with our buddies Joslyne and Zoey after Stroller Strides this morning. Nothing like a little brownie sundae to undo all the good we did at class! Amazingly, CJ stayed in a terrific mood until 2:00 when I put her down for a nap in her crib. She woke up about 45 minutes later, but after I nursed her it was clear she needed some more sleep. She's now sleeping on my bed with her butt stuck up in the air. According to Alicia, this was Faith Carol's preferred sleep position. Hard to imagine FC (who gets her driver's license soon!) so little.



Our old buddy, Scott Hamilton (the Olympic ice skater), was at the place where we do Stroller Strides again this morning. We did our push-ups and dips by him as he put on his skates, and he waved bye bye to Charlie Jo as we all strolled back to the other side of the building. Does Charlie Jo know she was in the presence of skating (and skating announcing) royalty? Probably not. She just chewed on her toys and kicked her little legs.

All she needs is a switchblade and a pompadour

After I rolled Charlie Jo's sleeves up in a vain effort to keep marinara sauce off them during lunch, it struck me that she looked a little like a greaser extra from the set of "The Outsiders". Of course, the velvet shoes with the big bows on them spoiled the effect a little, but I'm sure the casting directors could overlook that. Our old landlord from when Corey and I lived in Hollywood was actually a casting director. Maybe I should give him a call. According to his IMDB page, he's working on a movie called "Kung Fu". Maybe if I put her in a little kimono with a black belt...





Nah - we'll just eat our leftover pasta instead.

More mug shots

These are of the silliest criminal ever to come out of the Cannonhood. She's wanted for pulling the cat's tail and playing in the dogs' water dish.

Nick Nolte as a baby

Remember Nick Nolte's mug shot from a few years back? (Photo credit: Los Angeles Police Department)



Well, I'm pretty sure this is what he must have looked like as a baby. (Photo credit: A mom whose daughter is going to kill her for this one day)

Connie and her BFF

Connie, whether she likes it or not, has a baby fan club. Okay, so Charlotte may be the only member, but Charlotte truly is Connie's biggest fan. (Duke is more nervous around Charlotte and doesn't tend to stick around when she is on the loose.) Charlotte is especially fascinated by Connie's paws and tail.

Mom! Mom! Look at this cool wagging thing!



And these feet! Have you ever seen anything so fascinating?



Where ya going Connie? Huh? Huh? Can I come too?



Please help me. I beg you.

Getting bigger!

As Charlie Jo approaches her 1st birthday, I am getting increasingly sentimental about her babyhood. It's so much fun to watch her grow, but I do miss the little cuddly piglet who I could swing around on my forearm without even breaking a sweat. Even if she doesn't seem to be getting much bigger on a daily basis, just a look at a couple of photos taken a few months apart show just how much she has grown!

Taken late last summer or early fall:



Taken last weekend:

Foodie

Charlie Jo has eaten some new foods in the past few weeks. Here is a sampling:

1. Goldfish crackers (Yes I am well aware of all the bad things in them, but I bought the 50% whole grain ones so at least she's getting a little something good.)
2. Cherry-flavored Craisins
3. Nectarines
4. Apple slices (If I give her little pieces, she won't touch them. If I give her a whole slice, she munches happily on it for a whole half hour and manages to scrape off little bits with her tiny teeth.)
5. Frozen peas
6. Carrots (Again, I have to give her a large chunk for her to scrape bits off of. Otherwise, she throws the small pieces on the floor and even the dogs won't eat them.)
7. Muenster cheese (though not Colby Jack or cheddar)
8. Wheat bagel
9. Cheese off of a Chuck E. Cheese pizza, but not a Jet's pizza
10. Pasta, pasta, pasta
11. Guava yogurt
12. Papaya yogurt
13. Passion fruit yogurt

The dogs have also eaten some new foods this week. See above.

Valentine's twin

Charlotte's Great Great Aunt Bev and Great Great Uncle Leo sent her the most hilarious Valentine's Day card. It looks just like her! We tried to take a portrait of the "twins", but Charlotte was coming down with a fever right then and wasn't in the best of moods. This is the best we could come up with:

A well-outfitted bathtub

After a trip to Babies 'R Us, Auntie Ernie and I picked up a few things to make Charlie Jo's bathing experience all she hopes and dreams. First, we picked up an inflatable cover for the faucet (to protect it from Charlie!). Charlie likes the froggies on it.



For CJ's upcoming birthday, Auntie Ernie bought her a bath toy holder in the shape of a ladybug! The body of the ladybug come off so you can use it to scoop up all the toys. The water then drains through the holes.



Charlie thinks the ladybug is hilarious.



Bathtime is always the highlight of Charlie's day, and now it's even more fun!

Cranky pants & Auntie Ernie

Poor Auntie Ernie visited on a weekend filled with fevers, a runny nose, and lots of coughing. Even though Charlotte was not in tip top shape, we still had a good time. After Auntie accompanied us to music class (yes, Nicole Kidman was there with Sunday Rose!), we ended her visit with lunch at Blue Coast Burrito with Alicia, David & Faith Carol. I realized I had taken a grand total of zero photos of Auntie Ernie with her favorite niece, so we enlisted Alicia's help after lunch. You can tell little Charlie Jo is feeling like a punky monkey if even Auntie Ernie and Alicia couldn't get her to smile. Don't you love CJ's new daisy hoodie? Erin will be 25 weeks pregnant on Thursday, and we all think she looks great.

Cold walk

The gorgeous warm weather of last week disappeared once Erin got here. That didn't stop us from taking the dogs for a walk today, but we kept it short out of concern for poor little Charlotte (she's got a bit of a cold).

The dogs tend to get tangled up when one person tries to walk both of them. Erin pushed the stroller (to practice for Sonia!) and I wrestled with Doofus and Goofus. Here, Doofus (Duke, with the blue leash) seems to be attempting to choke Goofus (Connie, with the red leash).



Charlotte, all bundled up like Nanook of the North, watched the shenanigans with interest.



Charlotte was very quiet on the walk, but she didn't miss a thing!

Bookworm

Charlotte has recently become obsessed with her books. She has a great collection of board books (thanks to NanaB and Dolly Parton, among others) that we leave down within her reach. Originally, she just liked tearing them off of the shelf to make a mess. She also enjoyed chewing on them (Corey once thought that Connie or Duke had gotten a hold of one, but it turned out just to be the work of Charlie Jo).

Now, Charlie can't get enough of me reading to her, and she can't wait to help turn the pages. Her favorites are the books with peek-a-boo flaps. She claws at the pages of other books, searching for flaps to turn. She has a few book with tactile panels (like the old "Pat the Bunny" book), and it cracks me up when she scratches at the furry or rough parts rather than feeling them with the pads of her fingers.

A whole new world

Charlotte has obviously been outdoors before. Last summer and fall, we even used to play on the lawn on a big blanket. Now that the weather is getting warmer (off and on), it's time to introduce Charlotte to the joys of playing outside without a layer of fabric between her and nature. I was petrified that we would spend the entire time pulling leaves and grass out of her mouth, but after doing it a couple of times I never needed to do it again. Either Charlotte finally decided they don't taste good, or else she got tired of me digging them out.

Charlotte especially loved watching the dogs tear around. She laughed and laughed while they ran back and forth. Another magical thing happened that afternoon -- Connie actually fetched a stick (sort of)! She tired of it pretty quickly, but it was amazing nonetheless. Charlotte crawled all over the place, but her favorite thing to do was to crumple up the dried leaves and let them fly away in the breeze.

In case you wondered if Don was really Quinn's dad...

Quinn really is a little Don! Compare Don's photo from when he was first born to one of Quinn's:




LOVE the little car outfit, by the way. Corey has already declared that he wants a matching one (complete with the footies).

The cousins

Charlie Jo is learning a lot about her new cousin, Quinn, thanks to Aunt Stephanie & Uncle Don's blog posts and NanaB & GrandDad's picture shares. She especially loves the video where Uncle Don calls Quinn a "little chicken burrito". Here she is checking Quinn's photo out.



We had sent a stuffed dog a present for Steph & Don to open once Quinn made his debut. Here's a photo of Quinn lounging on it:



The dog is just like the stuffed cow Corey bought for Charlie Jo not long after she was born, so we tried to recreate Quinn's pose using Charlie Jo and Buttercup the Cow. It didn't go over so well with poor Charlie. She's not a fan of being on her back (our pediatrician says this is normal for babies her age, which explains why diaper changes are such a struggle).



We hope to Skype with little Quinn sometime soon, but we know the real fun will come once Charlie and Quinn meet face-to-face in March!