Happy 7th Birthday, Charlotte!

Charlotte Booler is 7 today! Happy birthday, baby girl!

She doesn't know it yet, but when we wake up in the morning, we are taking her to the American Girl Store (we drove to Charlotte, which is the closest storefront to us, to spend the night with my mom and put us closer) and letting her finally FINALLY get an American Girl doll, which she has been coveting for literal years. After wandering the Chicago store last summer, she knows exactly which one she wants, and we have two aunts meeting us there for a tea party/ lunch in the doll cafe (I DO NOT EVEN KNOW WHO I AM ANYMORE), and I am actually legit excited to finally give her this thing she has wanted for so long. (There has been a "responsibility" requirement for such an expensive doll in our family, which she has... um... taken a few extra years to show she can handle.)

Anyway. Doll me strength. Happy doll lunch birthday to this child who has big-girl interests and somehow isn't in a bumbo seat drooling on herself anymore. I know, it's weird how that happened.

Seven!

Charlotte at 7 is a gappy-toothed bubbly chatty funny delight. She has no shortage of personality, and though she still hasn't really ever met a stranger, she's become sliiiiightly more guarded with who gets to see her truly silly side. She loves dancing in her room, lip syncing with a hairbrush, and filming herself talking to the camera about all manner of nothing (as if she's a youtuber, which she longs to be, which I will not allow, despite the hours of footage added up on all our devices showing her life dream about this).

She's a night owl and an early riser, both. She's a lefty who loves drawing and writing her name on everything. She loves puzzles and math. Her favorite mammal is a sheep but her favorite SEA-mammal is a narwhal, and her favorite overall animal is a penguin. (She really likes animals.)

She took a sign language elective at school last year, and now loves signing. She's on a quest to learn more, and notices sign language now everrrrywhere, tons of places I had never noticed myself. She says when she grows up, she wants to be a person who signs sermons in church (or an artist. one of those).

She loves Beanie Boos, and will recite a list of the ones she owns, in order of acquisition, to anyone who will listen. (I don't recommend listening to this, unless you have, like, very specific insomnia needs.)

She reports that the best new places she went this year were a Disney Cruise, and (finally!) Montreat. Of all our kids, she's the one who most craves a new adventure, which is really fun for me, since it feels like a little bit of me, connecting to her in that way.

She didn't do dance this year, because she was a bit overwhelmed at starting a full-day school schedule, and it was all just... too much. (To this I say: YEP I GET IT ME TOO.) She does miss having an activity though, so she will start gymnastics with Anneliese this fall. She also loves running (and is fast!) and finally this winter learned to swim. It's amazing how fast and strong her swimming is now, just a few months later. (However, she doesn't want to be called "quite the little fish" but "quite the little narwhal." Please to make a note.)

She and Anneliese have become thick as thieves this year, which is really fun to see. (Well, really fun insofar as the bickering doesn't exhaust me, because they are very much thieves of the bickering ilk.) When Nathan is home, she sort of has to vy for Anneliese's attention and affection, but most often she can fit right into the group dynamic, and the girls find lots of moments for sister time with dolls and dancing and whatever camping show they're into watching together these days.

Sometimes parenting Charlotte feels like a whole new beast to Mark and me. She's somehow cut from a very different cloth than the other two (I know, I know, all children are different), and it once in a while renders us feeling like hopeless newbies at this whole thing, even though we're over a decade in and she's our third kid. Those days and weeks and spells are... hard. She has her own mind, and knowing what the expectations are, and what the right thing to do is, isn't *always* enough to convince her to do it. But MOST of the time, she is wonderful and quirky and funny and sweet, always the first one who wants to snuggle or have special time one on one with us, often the first who wants to help in the kitchen, the least complainy about chores and cleaning, and these days the best eater in the house (whoa). She is becoming more confident in her needs and her gifts, and it's super cool to see her becoming the person she will be.

For now, we'll settle into watching her be seven. We'll spend the day doll shopping and eating chocolate cheesecake (her request). We'll delight in this little Booler, and be so joyful that we get to know her and love her. It seems only a moment ago, the idea of a third baby was so hypothetical, just a lark of a hope, and now she's here and human and funny and HER. She made and makes our family complete, and we love her like the sun.

Happy birthday, dear Charlotte. We love you so much, forever and ever, baby Booler.

Memories from Charlotte's 7th year:



(If you can't see the embedded video, click here to watch on YouTube.)

And from years past:

Sixth year
Fifth year
Fourth year
Third year
Second year
First year

Three Somethings Cheerful (And A Bonus 1990s Mark/Erin Story)

Look, I can be cheerful. Three times, even! Ready?

1.) Anneliese sang in chapel choir again last week. She was as adorable and delighted as the first time.

And what's sweeter than a choir full of four-year-olds anyway?

Anneliese is tall* so in the back row, to the right.

*Side story: one of Mark's first memories of interacting with me was when we were taking some group picture for school (band! fine! it was for band! we were at BAND CAMP okay?) and they told us to stand by height and I hopped up into the back row, because apparently part of my self-image is that I am tall? And apparently I am actually... not that tall? (I feeeeeeel like I am tall.) 

So anyway Mark watched as they moved me down a row and then down another and then apparently it happened again (!) later in the school year and he kept wanting to yell at me (in his best Seinfeld-to-George "you're bald" voice): YOU ARE AVERAGE! But he didn't, because he is Mark, and that is just not a very Mark thing to do. But! He does like to bring up this story every time I mention that I am tall, which is apparently still fairly often. Because I am! I mean, not a giant! But fairly tall! Really! 

2.) Charlotte has a new purple peacoat. In my opinion (as the shopper), it is perfection.

3.) Nathan was telling me some story the other night about something that happened at a Boeing parts factory (I don't even know) and he thought it was the best most hilarious mishap ever, and even though the story was actually suuuuper boring, his perfect smile and giggling about it enchanted me anyway.

lampshade on head?

I'm glad I got a picture though so I never have to get him to tell me that story again though. Yawn.

(Y'all hush, I am a good mom, take a seat and stop clutching your pearls.)

DST Sad Face

Okay so I do this thing every time the clocks change, where I talk about what time is actually is versus what time it feeeeels like, and if Certain People did not limit me to talking about this for only a week, I would talk about it much much longer because it is a thing! It is!

(I also do this thing every time the clocks change where I don't actually change any clocks. Including the one in my van. Or on the oven. Or the alarm clock we keep by the tv because our dvr (inexplicably!) does not have a clock on it. Also my alarm clock on my nightstand has been flashing for a solid month since the power went out in the last ice storm and I haven't done anything about that either. I am a super wife. You all want me around. You do.)

So anyway, this time of year my clock-chatter means I spend a week marveling at playing outside after dinner, and driving to evening activities in daylight, and moving kids' bedtimes later and not feeling guilty about it. And I spend the week ALSO complaining about rushed mornings when we lose our extra hour before school, and feeling bad for waking babies up from naps because they slept too late because they fell asleep too late because I know the clock says 2 but it only feeeels like 1.

(This whole phenomenon affects everyone* far less than I like to pretend it does. But just go with it. Give me this one thing!) (And any other things I choose to make a fuss over.) (*Everyone = Mark has to get up at what feeeels like 3:45 in the morning so it totally affects him, for real life, as the kids would say.)

ANYWAY I would like to blame this picture on DST, but Charlotte actually looks like this pretty much every day after her nap these days, anyway:

Isn't it sad and funny and also kind of awesome?

So, happy DST everyone! And also, every time someone says Daylight Saving Time (not! plural! not savingS!) an angel gets its wings. This has been your DST PSA, thank you and goodnight.

Rough Week? Merry Charlotte! And Daniel!

 It has been a long week.

Some of it was fine and fun, but lots of it involved COLD weather (and school delays, and therefore all-day-behind delays), Mark working late evenings and extra days, both girls being sick (Anneliese got diagnosed with p-neu on the 3rd -- it only took three days for our family to fail at my 2014 goal of no pneumonia, #nomonia I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO HASHTAG THAT B!TCH), several super naughty and frustrating mornings, a day of hard Jan 9th memories, oh and then a shooting near Nathan's school that ended in a lockdown (everyone is fine! had nothing to do with school! all is well! but it sure didn't make my week BETTER), and yeah I don't have many cheerful funny things to blog about right now. But I was looking at Christmas pictures and this made me smile, so HEY! If you're having a rough week, look at Charlotte! IT HELPS!

Charlotte and a big Daniel and a little Daniel (and several of Daniel's friends which you can't see inside that purse) are settling in for a Christmas day nap.

Several weeks and several rough days later, and yep still merry.

Daily Goettsch, December Edition with a Lost Tooth

This is how you blog when you're in a December frenzy: already-shared happy moments from the month!

Gray days have nothing on Anneliese.

Charlotte apparently thinks my driving needs a two-handed ridealong grip. Okay kid. Okay now.

And Nathan finally lost his first tooth! (Confession: we barely knew it was loose.)

He has been waiting for this since halfway through last school year, and finally he joins the ranks of his friends with a hole in his mouth and a matching lisp which makes me both happy and sad at the same time. We have had a rough weekend with this one, but glad for his moment tonight and ready to start fresh tomorrow. Parenting, man.

Daily Charlotte, Just Because

I can't get it up to write anything real today, because the lingering summer sunshine is calling my name. I make no apologies.

So here is a picture of Charlotte instead.

She is happy just because.

And now, back to reading by the pool.

(It's a tough life.) (Mark is off work, it's basically our weekend. All week. I don't hate it.)

Sometimes I Can't Even Believe She's Real

Ten years ago I was still days from being married, and now suddenly after what feels like only a week (and also an eternity) I am a wife of a decade and a mom of over half that.

Including to this perfect third baby, with the shiniest eyes and gentlest sweet disposition, who I never knew I could want or love so much.

Your daily Charlotte

And that just seems worth noting today.

Can't Quit the Shades

This bit of the blogosphere has been a little Nathan-heavy in the last week so here is something not about Nathan that is worth a smile:

Charlotte! In more sunglasses! (She cannot quit them.)

(Let's pretend she's clapping for something besides Nathan at tae kwon do, mmmkay? Since, you know, not about Nathan.)

Another Little Tiger

And now, for our newest installation of "child who never met a hat she didn't like," just in case you needed a bright-eyed tiger to make your day a little sweeter, YOU'RE WELCOME.

your daily Charlotte

(Note to self: she looks good in orange but we definitely need to own more Furman shirts. Get on that, self.)

Baby's First Cheerios

So after Charlotte got pretty sick last summer and landed herself in the hospital, unable to tolerate much of anything in her tummy, we spent months feeding her milk and only milk (of the boob/formula variety, not from a cow). She was significantly enough underweight that we didn't want to try to force calories in her that she might not be able to keep down.

The result is that she is now a sixteen-month old who eats about like an eleven-month old. Which... fine by us! She is growing great and will catch up eventually. And while we have been slooooowly adding baby food and other solids back into her diet, she is taking to it just great. Exactly like she did the first time. There really isn't even much to tell, actually. (Which is a relief for me because this has felt emotionally complicated from my end. To say the least.) Anyway yay! Food! Easy!

Anyway, we never quite made it to finger foods before we went back to an all-milk diet, so the last few weeks of cereal and fruit and bread have been Charlotte's first experience with it.

your daily Charlotte

I don't know, I'm not sure if she likes it or not...

Everybody's Favorite Scarf

Look who else wants a piece of mommy's favorite scarf.

(We could have a contest about who wears it best, Charlotte, or Nathan, or me. But let's not. I don't think I would win.)

Baby in a Shoe Mirror

In case y'all are curious what the best part of the shoe store is...

... Charlotte has discovered it.

Climbing Confident

Someone reeeeeally wants that remote control, and has wildly overestimated her ability to get it.

Your daily Charlotte: overconfident

Nice try, sweetie. (Read: not even close.)

Three Way Thumbs

I looked in the backseat the other day and saw this:

Yup, all three of our children share a common vice.

(And yes, that's all the kids, across the backseat of Mark's car... barely fits.)

Half a Charlotte

Charlotte has pretty much abandoned the belly scoot in favor of a real all-fours crawl, which she's become pretty speedy about. And once she's up on her feet hanging onto the furniture, she's a speedy cruiser too.

She always looks so sweet and happy, exploring the house from her new perspective... but she moves so fast I can't ever get a good picture.

your daily (half) Charlotte

So, here's half of a good picture.

You're welcome.

We Are No Longer a Bucket Seat Family

Look who's riding forward in the car like a big girl these days!

Yes, Charlotte is finally old enough and heavy enough to turn around and ride in a toddler seat. While it's true that we probably could have squeezed another month or two out of the infant bucket seat, we turned her around anyway, for a whole litany of reasons mostly involving the big kids' ability to easily scoot past her and exit the van on the non-busy-street side of school dropoff but those details are boring (just ask Mark who pretty much dozed off every time I brought it up with him). 

The unexpected detriment to this seating arrangement is that Nathan can't see Charlotte's face from the back row of the van anymore, and he's sad (and vocally so) about it.

The unexpected perk to this seating arrangement is that I can see Charlotte's face, which means I can see all three baby faces, and once in a while I glance in the mirror and see three tilted heads, three thumbs in mouths, three sets of fingers curled over noses, and I could just about burst from the sweetness.

And then I remember I'm driving a MINIVAN full of MY THREE CHILDREN and I'm all WHAT IN THE WORLD WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN???

Anyway Charlotte. Riding forward. New thing.

Lego Head

Charlotte's new favorite game is having us balance a lego on her head, and then gifting us with a belly laugh when it inevitably falls off her head.

Your daily Charlotte

So we've basically been constantly sticking legos on her head. You know, like you do. We're all suckers for a good baby giggle. Who isn't? (Although Another Nathan who stumbled into this game has the best luck.) (Hmm don't tell but actually, maybe she's just laughing at him.) (Nope, it's the legos. Let hilarity ensue.)

Selfies With Kiddies

In case anyone is curious, I still can't quit the inward-facing camera on my new phone. The kids are fully on board too.

(I would be embarrassed for anyone to see exactly how much of this type of thing actually exists in my camera roll. Don't judge.)

Monster Towel

Less than a year ago, this towel pretty much swallowed her whole. Now, it barely reaches her bum.

your daily Charlotte

But even as they outgrow their stuff, they get even more beautiful. So I will take it.

Tasty, Charlotte?

I don't think this is what they meant when they said keep her off baby food.

your daily Charlotte

(Somewhere off camera, Bowden is totally rolling her eyes.)