Charlotte At Almost Five

Charlotte is almost five! Happy due date, five years ago today! Age five! Five forever! I love five! I am about to have another five-year-old (yay)! ... My last five-year-old (sob).

But really. Look at this beautiful young lady. She hardly seems like a baby anymore.

(Hahahahahaaaaaa yeah right *wipes tear* no no, she's obviously still The Baby. Of course.)

Charlotte seems to have already entered into Age Five Delightfulness. She is old enough to be independent and have preferences and chase after what she wants and likes. But she's still young enough to have none ounces of too cool, and lots of innocent curiosity still in her.

Plus, she still says some words wrong. Syrup like cereal: syriup. The bonus room is the bennis room. Eating two pieces of toast is toast-es.When she wants you to leave something where it is (a song on the radio, the PJ's she wants to wear all day, etc) she says stay it on. And actually, stay makes more sense than leave, so I get it.

She is chatty and full of stories, half the time made up and half the time completely earnest retellings of mundane events ("and then he poured the cereal but mixed it with the other cereal can you even believe that???" *cue wild hand motions*) and unlike the other two, who we naively maybe once thought were talkative, Charlotte kind of never. stops. talking.

She has two made-up friends, Apple and Sushi (I don't even know) and when no one else will play with her, she plays with them. I have never seen a child outside of a novel so committed to her imaginary friends. Or so chatty with them. She and Apple and Sushi have an army of small toys like her Daniel Tiger "toysies" figurines, and Calico Critters, and a few Paw Patrol pups, and she creates whole worlds and houses and neighborhoods for them, and will do this for hours.

Also, she has several small purses and bags and even a portable Calico house, but her preferred transportation method for her most precious toys is a pizza breadstick box. She takes it all over the house and even on playdates. (Again, I don't even know.)

She dances and skips around the house, because why walk?

She floats around the pool in her puddle jumper, because why learn to swim? (Sigh.)

She follows Nathan and Anneliese and still can't quiiiite keep up, and "hey guys wait for me!" is still a very big part of her life.

She and Anneliese play together ever better, they are both very into dolls and babies and it has been a bonding thing for them this year. It has taken years for them to seem as close to the same age as they are (less than two years! only one school year apart! it has always seemed a much bigger chasm) but I think we are finally getting there.

She still sucks her thumb (no, I do not care anymore), and she calls it her "strong thumb" because it helps her feel better. I will never argue with that. Girl's got an overbite like whoa, braces are coming, there's no more preventing it, so thumb away, little one.

I feel like Charlotte eats almost nothing, and she is somewhat wee, but she's growing, so... meh? She does like french fries and gummy snacks. And gogurt and pizza. And sandwiches but only if they're cut in certain shapes (because obviously puzzles are delicious but dinosaurs are not). She also apparently loves the arsenal of snacks she keeps sneaking into her room and then doing a terrible job of hiding the evidence from. *mad face*

She sort of fails in her own Sneaky Wheelhouse though, replying when I call upstairs to her with things like, "I don't have my scissors, you don't need to come up here!"

Um.

She loves coloring, and is still really good at fine motor type things for her age. "Can you please print me something" has basically been her motto this year, there aren't enough coloring pages in the world to sate this child.

She loves winter, the only one in our house who grins in the outdoor chill, and bundles into her coat and hat with glee. (The rest of us glare at her properly, I promise.)

She loves being read to, but has shown very little interest in trying to read on her own yet.

She thinks she is good at numbers, and shushes everyone at least once a day to tell us "plus one plus one is two" and wait for people to lavish praise on her for such genius. (The amount of eye rolling from Nathan cannot be overstated.)

She likes to pray, and is the one who leads us in prayer 99% of evenings before dinner. She has a whole medley of blessings she likes to say.

She is off to kindergarten in a month. WHAT.

She is wheezy and sunshiney and makes the best mad faces of anyone I know. She has no modesty. She cries having her hair brushed. She cheats at games and tries to charm her way out of it. She is strong and delicate at the same time. She has gobs of friends and would play with them all every day if she could. She loves people, and new people, and she's never met a stranger. She's a good listener, always ready for a story or a joke. When she's happy to see you, she quite literally jumps up and down in excitement, and it's the best feeling in the world.

She made and makes our family complete.

Happy almost five, Charlotte Booler. You won't stay five forever, but we're sure going to enjoy it while it's here, you delightful little human, you.

Last Kindergarten Chapel

The last day of school! Finally! Maybe I'm being naive, but I am so ready to have all the kids home every day for the summer. Nowhere to be by any certain time which I will certainly feel late for! No more fighting for parking for school dropoff! PJs all day! (Well, some days.) Playtime at home! NO MORE PACKING LUNCHES!

Okay so yay summer break, but before we celebrate can I just be nostalgic for a second? Anneliese is done with her first year of preschool. Nathan is done with kindergarten, and graduating out of our church school for good.  Look how far they have come in a year:

And in case you thought those two were looking too old, try not to freak out at how huge Charlotte is all of a sudden. Um, excuse me? When did that happen?

(Also, oh my sweet babies, you are so perfectly and wonderfully awkward. Never change.)

Nathan is all dressed up because the last day of school was his final "graduation" chapel. I tried not to be too emotional but the second he walked downstairs with his tie on and asked for help with his sleeves, I was crying. And kept going off and on until chapel was over.

So, that's how that went.

And of course he wanted Daddy to wear his matching tie. Which of course Daddy happily did.

We are hella in love with this awesome kid. He is so bright and incredibly kind. He is still a budding introvert, but ever more confident, and I can't believe how far he has come out of his shell in the past year or so. I am both terrified and proud to send him to a big public school this fall.

We love you, Nathan. So much. Congrats, little graduate.

And now, summer.

A Year and a Half

Sweet little Charlotte,

You are eighteen months old! Happy half birthday, baby girl!

You have made strides in the last few months. Literally -- you're walking! You're eating everything under the sun (although not gaining much weight; will you always be our tiny delicate baby?) and finally starting to feed yourself a bit more.

Your wide bright eyes still get lots of comments, and your head is full of wispy wild hair. A lady in St Croix last week told you that the gap in your mouthful of teeth is called a sweet tooth -- the space is for your sweetness -- and I have decided it must be true. You are seriously so beautiful.

You have been a bit scared of strangers recently. More than a bit scared actually. Like, a room full of people  (even when you're safely in my arms and don't have to interact with anyone) sometimes makes you lose your sh!t. (People love you anyway. Don't worry. You're darling.)

You know a lot of words but don't have much to say, apparently. We have to content ourselves mostly with a lot of hi and what's that? and cheer in the moments you decide to say Dada or Eee-lee or Naynay, or ball, or blow us a kiss with your newest, night-night. Oh and when you do say my name, you call me Ommy which you should know makes me a little melty.

You continue to be the most flexible person in this house, rolling with everyone else's schedules and rarely making a fuss about it. You can never have enough attention, especially from Daddy. And the look on your face standing in your crib each morning to see whose turn it is to come "wake" you and play with you -- priceless.

You will occupy yourself for looooong stretches of time emptying and unloading your play groceries from your cart, or building with blocks, or your new favorite -- bringing us balls or small toys to throw so you can toddle after them and bring them back. It's fetch! And you're basically the cutest puppy we've ever had (don't tell Bowden and Simon).

You are frequently covered on your back in stickers, the product of having two older siblings. Likewise, showing up to the church nursery clinging to sippy cups labeled with a band that says "Anneliese" and sporting bibs with Nathan's name and monogram embroidered on them. You know, classic third kid stuff.

I can't believe how old you are already. My last baby, no longer a baby. A toddler, walking around the house in clothes that I remember Anneliese wearing when we were renovating this place, when you were but a series of kicks and stretch marks, gestating inside me. Traipsing around St Croix in a swimsuit your big sister learned to crawl on the beach in, like, oh I don't know, a few weeks ago. How is this possible already? Is this a last baby thing? Will you always seem younger and tinier in my mind than you really are?

You're spending this year's half-birthday a little sick. Or, a lot sick. We've been passing around some kind of cold virus (likely RSV, apparently) that moves straight to the chest. It eventually caused bronchitis in Anneliese, and I had pneumonia the week before we went to St Croix. And while we were there, it hit you too. So much coughing, so  much wheezing, so little sleep, so many tears. We're all praying it stays out of your lungs and you feel better soon, sweet sicky girl.

In the meantime, keep smiling in between the sneezes, keep hiding behind your hands when someone says "where's Charlotte?" and know that you can put your little head on my shoulder for a hug any any any any time you want.

Love you so much. Happy half-birthday, little one.

Smart Chick is Smart (and Not Delayed)

We had Anneliese's three-year-old checkup this morning. Yes, I am fully aware she's not three yet. But she's starting preschool next week and preschools have these pesky little health/physical forms that need to be turned in before school starts, and heck if I am hauling her into the doctor's office for a well-child exam more than once a year. So. She has officially been checkup-ed.

And guess what.

She is the first of all three of my darling failure-to-thrive children who is all caught up with her age group (yes, Nathan is still a stitch behind, and dear little Charlotte is listed as a fifty percent delay) (!) (rant for another day).

I can't remember one time, in three kids and in five years of parenting, that I went in to a well-child check and answered that YES my child sure can do x and y and z and all the other milestoney questions you're asking from your chart. UNTIL TODAY.

Needless to say, it felt huge. Some kind of relief I didn't even know to expect.

Yay Anneliese, who runs and jumps and hops and twirls and dances and splashes and climbs and tumbles and wrestles and skips! Like the normally developing (almost) three-year-old she is!

In related news, she's grown half a foot in the last ten months, is now the height of some five year olds, adorably towering over the other kids in her nursery room (to be fair, because of her October birthday, she's also one of the oldest) and wears about the same size clothes as her big brother.

She was fun and sweet at the doctor this morning. A far cry from the hella hella naughty child we've been dealing with of late. One on one, she is pretty much delightful. (Once again, attention saves the day. Why does this revelation keep surprising me?)

She was all smiles, chatting with everyone we encountered, so far opposite from Nathan a few weeks ago that it's hard not to be startled. Just full of information -- this is a book about horses and my favorite letter is W and I peed in the potty and wiped by myself and my shirt says I'm a smart chicken.

(It actually says Smart Chick. It's my current favorite of her shirts, but I like her chicken version even better.)

After her appointment we had a lollipop and a chocolate milk and she proudly showed off her shot band-aid to Nathan.

And Mark and I smiled little smiles of parents who have a baby who's not delayed. IT IS BRAND NEW TO US AND WEIRD AND WONDERFUL.

Thanks for letting me brag on my strong little smart chick for a sec.

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.

Charlotte at Eleven Months

Listen, this is weird: this is my last baby-month blog update. Probably ever. Charlotte is eleven months old, which means in a few short weeks she will be one and then she'll soon be a toddler not a baby and she's my last one and this is all going too fast and nooooooooooooo.

Deep breaths.

So like I was saying (in the most logical, least emotional way possible), Charlotte is eleven months old. And doing so great.

shiny eyes and crazy hair and gappy grin = love

Since the hospital, she has stayed with her all-milk diet and we haven't re-introduced solid food yet. She's doing well on milk, and gaining weight, so why run the risk of fussing with her tummy again until she's completely caught up? (Also you don't hear me complaining. In case I haven't mentioned it once or a hundred times, baby food sucks.) She's sucking down about six bottles a day, plus nursing once or twice, and seems perfectly content with that.

She's also become (dare I say it?) kind of... mobile. I mean, she can't really crawl, but she can definitely drag herself and roll herself to where she wants to go. Yesterday that meant right out the back door and down the stoop in an attempt to go play with Nathan and Anneliese who were squirting each other with the hose. (I intervened too late. They got Charlotte too.) She's also sitting well, very consistently, and will gladly bear weight on her legs which continues to be the most shocking thing a Goettsch child can do.

We're also seeing a sensitive side of Charlotte come out now that she's moving around a little.  For months, firm words, while she certainly heard them, were really only directed at other people. But now that she's kind of into everything, we've had to do some quick yelps and grabs to save her from things like, say, power cords and electrical sockets.  And it just breaks her heart every time. The lip trembles and she cries a sad sad cry. We're trying to be as gentle as we can in our reprimands so we don't make her panic, while still also teaching her that some things really are scary. That chair! It will tip over! Really!

She's increasingly dependent on other people to entertain her. She has a high tolerance for stimulation, and a low tolerance for boredom. She doesn't ever seem exhausted of Nathan and Anneliese all up in her face with noisy toys and voices and silliness, but when they're ready for a break she's pissed. Never too much attention for this one! Did you know there's nothing more hilarious than a big brother showing how high he can jump, or a big sister blowing on your face over and over again?  True story.

I'm trying not to panic that before the next month passes, my last baby will be past her official babyhood (*sobs*) and suddenly I won't be a mom of little babies anymore. For the first time in five years. (Oh heavens. Five years. Also before the month is out, Nathan will be five. Speaking of panic. Post for another day.) For now I am going to make the most of another few weeks of her first year.

Happy eleven months, sweet growing girl.

Charlotte's Belly Scoot

I might or might not be feeling the teensiest bit defensive these days about how Charlotte is growing and developing. It's hard not to be, when medical testing turns up (so far) very little clarity, and all eyes are on Mark and me, and our ability to create a safe and nourishing home for our (chronically delayed) children. It's a judgy ugly post for another day (or never) but ANYWAY my point is, when Charlotte does something spectacular (and by spectacular, I mean any progress is awesome progress) I kind of want to shout it from the mountaintops.  That being said, guess what.

1.) A week after being discharged from the hospital, eating nothing but milk, the gym scale says she is up about a pound. WE WILL TAKE IT. Yay growth.

2.) In the past few days she has started trying to crawl. No, she's not exactly doing it yet. But she is trying oh so hard. She lies on her tummy and uses her left leg (only the left) to push and roll until she gets where she wants.

I love seeing it.  You will too.


(Ignore the whatever-that-is stuck to her face, and the kinda-whiny big sister trying to steal the show.)



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


We're so excited to show Daddy her new tricks when he gets back in town!!

Tiny Charlotte

Well. We had Charlotte's nine-month checkup this morning.

See how beautiful this tiny baby is? How perfect? Remember that.

your daily Charlotte

Because it turns out that at just under fourteen pounds, she is indeed tiny. Actually she has officially fallen off the growth chart.

Sound familiar? You might remember this happening once or twice before.

Yes, we probably could have started her on solids a bit earlier (but I'm still glad we didn't). Yes, I could do more to interest her in nursing the three times a day she's down to. Yes, her chart looks a little sad. But we (and her doctor) aren't really concerned, knowing that Nathan and Anneliese both followed similar curves plateaus between six months and a year and they're both just fine now. Our official plan is to shovel in as much as she'll eat, especially high-protein or calorie-dense food. And... well, not worry too much about it, having faith she'll curve back up like her brother and sister before her.

Also Charlotte is clearly thriving, a little behind on gross motor skills (predictable Goettsch baby what) but ahead socially and verbally. Overall she's doing just great.

Tiny and great.

Charlotte at Nine Months

Charlotte is nine months old today!

And, coincidentally, based on careful calendar-counting of 41 weeks gestation (minus the two "pregnant" weeks before she was actually in there), plus 41 weeks and a day since she was born... it's also her inside-out day!

That means she's officially been out here in the world longer than she was inside me.

WHAT.

(Cue predictable commentary about the impossibility of this, because her pregnancy was clearly forrrrrevvvvverrrr long, and also wasn't she born like ten minutes ago?)

signature gap-tooth grin

The best way I can describe Charlotte at nine months is on the verge.

On the verge of talking. We hear dada with some regularity, and once I swear I heard a mama but considering it hasn't happened since, I'm finally conceding it was an accident. We hear a ha! every time we see her or greet her, which we're pretty sure is hi. And in case anyone wasn't sure how to melt Mark's heart, a gap-toothed beautiful baby girl flailing her arms saying ha dada! will totally do it. True story.

On the verge of sitting. She's oh so close. If she's really in the mood she can hold herself up for a few seconds, but never long enough yet to get a picture. I give it a few weeks. Well, nine months and a few weeks. She's following in her siblings' delayed-gross-motor footsteps after all. But that's a post for another day. For now, she's less behind than they were (we think?) and the important thing is she is on the verge of sitting! As all mommies can attest, a whole world of photographable moments will come when this finally happens.

playing in big sister's room

On the verge of a growth spurt. We haven't had her nine month checkup yet, so we don't know if she's actually gained much since starting solids a few weeks ago, but to our eyes (the ones that matter), she is losing some of the lanky skinniness that has defined her for the last few months, and she's finally starting to fill out a little. Anyway she eats incredibly well (and incredibly much). I can feel the growth spurt coming.

On the verge of weaning. This one brings mixed feelings, so I don't want to write too much about it.  But now that Charlotte has food, she doesn't care as much about the boob. Sad but true. She still nurses 3-4 times a day, but it takes an effort to keep her focused on feeding instead of whatever her brother and sister are doing, or whoever else might be in the room talking. It's the opposite of Nathan and Anneliese who both resisted food somewhat (Nathan especially) (story of his life now that I think about it) in favor of nursing. With Charlotte, I'm going to keep going as long as I can, but I don't know if she'll even last the year I was hoping for, and almost certainly not longer.

On the verge of real personality (and by personality I mean opinions). In the past week or so, she has started to balk when we strap her in her car seat, put her in her crib before she's ready (oh baby girl, you will learn I don't care; it's naptime), or replace a toy she's holding with something safer (like an actual toy). She is starting to expect us to pick things up when she drops (read: throws) them. And she's just learning that if she giggles she will get all the attention. I sense a stirring of personality that is about to explode onto the scene. Brace yourself.  And stay tuned.

Yay for nine months, baby girl! I love you even more now than I did the day I found out you were in me (and believe me, that was already a lot). Happy inside out, little Charlotte.

Charlotte at Eight Months

There's this thing in the midwest or maybe everywhere called a Golden Birthday. Whenever you're turning the age of the date of your birthday. For instance, Mark's was when he turned 28 on November 28th. Ashley's when she turned 11 on December 11th.

Do other people know about this? It's completely new to me. Maybe because mine was when I turned ONE. Lame. (Solidarity *fistbump* Merritt?)

Anyway. This post is not about that.  It's about Charlotte and how she's EIGHT months old on April 8th and I am therefore declaring it her Golden Monthday (um, actually now that I write it, it might be a title in progress; I'll work on it) and I don't want anyone to tell me it's not a Thing because it. is. a. Thing.

On Charlotte's Golden Monthday* she is as beautiful as ever. She is imitating sounds well, she is deliberately picking things up (and putting them in her mouth), she is still sleeping great at night and loving the one nap I let her take during the day (see: what works best for mommy's schedule). She is now a whopping 29 inches (!) which is well over the 99th percentile, and she weighs right at 16 pounds which is about the 20th percentile (starting solid foods should fix that slowing weight gain). She is still very happy as long as she's getting attention, and increasingly fussy when she's not. Which, aren't we all?

Also, today as Charlotte officially hits her eight-month mark, it's Easter Sunday! Hey baby girl, did you know that Jesus the Christ was crucified and resurrected... for you?  That's right, sweet Squeaks. For you. It's about the best Golden Monthday* present you could ask for, am I right? (I am.)

Love you, sweet Charlotte. Happy eight months.

*still a title in progress, remember?

Charlotte at Two Months

Well if it's blowing my mind that Anneliese is going to be two this week, it might be freaking me out even more that Charlotte is already two months old! Um, what?

On some level I feel like we're still in those fresh newborn days, when really we're... not.  Not even a little.  Maybe because the fussy sleep-deprived fog hasn't quite lifted, it's hard to believe it's already been two months.  But it has.  The calendar says so.

The past month has been... hard. I won't lie. Charlotte is still colicky and spends a lot of her waking time frustrated. She spits up a lot, which sometimes makes me worry her tummy is upset.  Her doctor says she has molars (!) bulging in her back gums, which at this age is unusual but not unheard of, and is likely causing some pain too.  Basically we're all exhausted.  We hear her crying even when she's not crying anymore.  It just sort of stays ringing in our ears. We call her Baby Screamsalot so that we laugh instead of cry.  It works, sometimes.

But there are some good things happening as well:

- She is less fussy now than she was even just a week ago, especially during the day.  If we're on the decline, I'll take it.  Even if it's slow.

- She is going to bed by 8 or 9 most nights, and then only getting up for one feed before daybreak. Our nights are much more manageable, overall.

- She has a couple of periods of sweet quiet and smileyness every day.

- She is a joy to cuddle with in the wee-morning hours when she comes to bed with me.  I love waking up next to her. Those few minutes a day are doing wonders for our bonding, which otherwise has been frustratingly slow.

- She does great on the go. I can haul her to the grocery store, for preschool dropoffs, shoe shopping, and even on road trips, and she handles it like a champ. She loves the car seat and seems to like being out and about, where there are new things to see and hear.

- She can stay with a sitter.  This is a really important breakthrough.  When your baby screams for hours every evening, there's really not many people you trust to leave her with.  Now that she's a little more manageable before bedtime, we can actually leave her for a few hours and actually be able to relax enough to enjoy some adult time.  It sounds small, but this has done wonders for our sanity.

- She's huge! She's growing really well, just shy of 12 lbs and just over 24 inches.  That's about the 75th percentile for weight, and off-the-charts tall (99th) for height like her sister.

- She's a great eater.  Once we got her tongue-tie sorted out, she has been my easiest nurser of all three.  She eats well, she eats regularly (about every hour or two during the day), and she doesn't seem to have any aversions to what I eat (except caffeine). She and my milk seem to be in a good rhythm of supply and demand, including enough to pump a bit for the freezer most days if I want to.

- Nathan and Anneliese still adore her. I keep waiting for some sibling rivalry or jealousy, but so far it's been really smooth sailing.  Yay.

So the past month has been a bag of mixed blessings.

We hate that she's not happier, but we're grateful she's healthy and thriving.  It's hard to adjust to meeting her difficult needs, but at this point our family wouldn't feel right without her. 

Someone told me recently that a new baby is a hundred days of hell, and then it's awesome.  And since the hell days are decreasing while the awesome days are increasing, I'm daring to hope we're right on the brink of that.

It's been two hard months, Charlotte, but we know you're worth the ride! We love you, Squeak.

Eleven Months: Almost 1!

Anneliese is eleven months old today.  This is the last time I get to count her age in months.  (Except in mommy circles.  Mommies can think in months when no one else can.  Mommies can also think in weeks -- up to forty, anyway -- when no one else can.  True story.)  I can't believe my little baby girl is almost one.  Wasn't she born like a few days ago or something?

A year ago this week, I was getting ready for a mommy-daughter baby shower, watching Mark assemble a tandem stroller (you know, for our two babies), taking a tour of the birthing unit where Beanie would be born (a trip which ended with me overwhelmed and sobbing in the hospital parking deck), and starting a little guess-the-birth-date contest (which thirty-eight of you participated in, and none of you guessed the right date). 

And now that baby we were getting ready for is almost one.

This month, Anneliese has:

- weaned herself down to one nursing a day, which broke my heart for a few minutes (or weeks, who's counting) until I realized she's still voraciously interested in that morning feeding, and is therefore definitely not done with the breastfeeding relationship... which means she'll still feel like a baby to me for at least a little while longer.

- taken two road trips (a day trip to the beach, and a weekend in Huntersville) and slept like a champ on both of them.

- finally gotten her top two teeth in (after getting the two bottom ones really early, before five months).

- perfected her backwards sit-scoot around the house -- as you can see, she's quite pleased with herself about it.

- had gleeful fun emptying the toy and clothing bins in her room, and the dvd rack in the living room.

- started saying boo when we play peek-a-boo with her, and started saying ball and hey more consistently.  Also, new yesterday!  She is emphatically (almost frantically) saying nay-nay-nay-nay when she sees Nathan.  So precious.  (Still not as awesome as mama, but it's a very cute second.)  Video forthcoming; stay tuned (try not to fall of the edge of your seats).

- gotten herself down to one nap a day (I might or might not have (brace yourself: euphemism alert) "encouraged" this, to get both kids on the same nap schedule... which has now finally happened, praise the Lord).

- eaten lots and lots of "grownup" meals, when I toss our leftover dinners (as well as any miscellaneous produce we have left in our farm share box) in the food processor to freeze in jars (Merritt's pizza casserole is one of her favorites) -- yes, it looks completely gross, but she eats it great, poops it great, and she's growing well... plus it saves me lots of money over store-bought baby food.

- gotten very good at picking up puffs and cheerios (and small chunks of canned pears) and feeding them to herself.

- put on over a pound of weight -- she's now just over 17 lbs (7th percentile) and 31 inches long (off-the-charts tall), and we're so thankful her weight is now going up instead of down.

- stayed the prettiest almost-one-year old I know, and made her family and friends smile every day.

We love you, Anneliese!  Happy eleven months, sweetie!

Seven Updates at Seven Months

Anneliese is seven months old today! It just sounds old, doesn't it? Like, we're almost to the part where we stop counting her age in months. Weird.The last month has been kind of hectic (with my sister's wedding, potty-training Nathan, and the sense of overwhelm with Simon), but Anneliese has made the move from I'm the baby look at me I'm the center of attention ...to... hey it's cool I'm just one of the fam now with grace and ease. She has been so relaxed and undemanding and just generally a pretty easy baby. Thank goodness. She survived her first injury, is getting better and better at doing the church nursery thing, still sleeping all night, and has settled into a pretty good two-nap routine (and one of them happens at the same time as Nathan's... praise the Lord).


Here's what's going on with our little lady these days:


1.) Eating. She has become a champion eater, and likes pretty much anything we give her. Sometimes I still look around in disbelief, like... is this really happening? How is this so easy? I feel like someone might pop out from behind a corner any day now and say, haha, fooled you, we really had you going, didn't we? and then she'll turn into a picky food-refusing pain. But... it keeps not happening. So after almost 2 months, I'm close to letting myself really believe that when it comes to food, she's just... easy. She's still nursing a bunch of times a day, but she does love food-food when she gets it!


2.) Growing. She is growing like crazy. She's 17lbs and just shy of 30 inches. In case that doesn't mean anything to you, I am posting her growth charts below. Her weight (on the left) is pretty average for breastfed girl babies her age. Her height, however... um, yeah. That's what people mean when they say off the charts. We're not sure if she's going to be really tall, or if she's just in a grown spurt that will slow down after a while. Looks funny in the meantime, though, huh.


3.) Babbling. While she's not as talkative as some other members of our family (ahem), she does like to squeal and babble and "talk" to us for a little while each day. She is oh so close to saying da-da. It's right on the tip of her tongue and she's trying so hard to repeat it. She definitely knows what it means when she hears it, based on how she kicks and giggles when we say it (especially if that coincides with Daddy walking in the room). I'm campaigning hard to get mama out first, but it's not looking good. Mark's betting she says her first word (intentionally, he means) in the next month. I think that's optimistic. But we'll see.


4.) Playing. She loves trucks. Her favorite thing to play with is whatever Nathan is playing with. Fortunately he's good at sharing (for now), and is glad for an eager and enraptured audience when he wants to talk about his trucks. Which is... frequently. She also loves to read books. (And eat them.) And there are a few stuffed animals that keep her entertained and amused pretty well too. Peek-a-boo is becoming a huge hit.


5.) Adorable-ing. Despite what the picture above might imply, she's still only up to like thirteen baths or something. Oh yeah, mom of the year. (The more astute of you might notice that this picture is strangely similar to the one of Nathan that's in our bathroom right now, and yes, that was intentional. Also, fun side note -- a different picture of Anneliese wrapped in a towel is now hanging in the bathroom at our portrait studio. She's a bathroom model! I mean, she definitely has the height for it, right?)

6.) Moving. She is soooooo close to sitting up on her own. If she's not paying attention, she'll do it for a few seconds. But once she notices she's not leaning on anything, she just tips right over. :) Still no desire (on her part or mine, for the record) to try crawling or pulling up or anything looking too much like a workout.


7.) Grabbing. Anneliese is our grabbing queen. I have resorted to wearing contacts most days now, since my glasses are just too tempting for her little fingers. Ditto with necklaces, my phone, my purse, or any papers I happen to be holding within an arm's reach of her. I remember this phase with Nathan. Good times, good times.

Happy seven months, Anneliese! We love you!

18 Month Update

It's been a while since I've done an update on Nathan, and since he's 18 months today, I thought now would be a good time.

Walking Boy - After taking his first steps in mid-December, Nathan spent about a month only walking when we explicitly asked him to. (Nathan, stand up. Take some steps.) And that only worked sometimes. But a couple of weeks ago (has it only been a couple of weeks? wow it's been crazy around here) he started walking to actually get somewhere. And now there's no stopping him.

Handsome Boy - I like this picture because it captures him so well. His natural smile (open-mouthed, of course... for two earlier versions click here and here), and you can actually tell he's taking a step. I'm glad that his 18-month portrait captures him so well as he is... now. Plus, again with the cute. :)
Talking Boy - I think I mentioned a few month ago that we have long stopped counting words Nathan knows. When people ask me this question, they are met with a blank stare. It's probably a hundred or more. It's way too many to keep track of, that's for sure. Of all the words he knows, his favorites are what's that? (yes, still), applesauce, outside, big truck, help please, Bowdy (Bowden) and Sy-eeee (Simon). Before you start thinking what great parents we are to have taught Nathan good manners, you should know that he says help please for almost everything (which is not helpful, we usually need to ask "help with what?" to get more clarification on what he wants), and says "thank you" only rarely. And only when prompted. We're working on it.

Playful Boy - Nathan's favorite toys right now are his blocks, his fish book, his instruments (still loves noise), and recently he has formed an odd attachment to the stuffed hippo his Uncle Sean got him for Christmas. I say odd not because there's anything wrong with the hippo, but because as of yet Nathan has not been terribly attached to any comfort object. He has been known on occasion to ask for his stuffed cow at bedtime, and we can tell it's the most-loved of all his animals, since it's missing a nostril. (That's true toy love, people.) But even that pales in comparison to his recent fascination with the hippo. We'll see how it plays out.

Growing Boy - He weighs 26 lbs (53rd percentile) and is 33.5 inches tall (82nd percentile). Which is a far cry from losing weight, and falling off the charts like he was this time last year. He's bounced back like it's no one's business. Amazing. And now that we're on this side of the situation, his growth chart is almost humorous. Almost. Plus, he's about to be in size 4 diapers. Some kids never get out of 4's before they're potty-trained. Also, the child on the size 4 packaging is a kid, not a baby. When I look at Nathan, I can hardly believe it's time for the diapers that the kid on that packaging wears. Sure sign of growing up.

Nursing Boy - yes, I am still breastfeeding Nathan. I was talking to a friend a week or so ago, and made mention of the nursing, and she was really surprised to hear that. She jokingly called me a closet nurser. Now, I have jokingly said that, too - Nathan doesn't want it every day, and when he does, it's almost always right after he wakes up -- so we're at home. Which means it's just me and him. Which is private by default, not by intention. Her comment bothered me not because she was surprised I was still nursing, but because she thought I was trying to hide it. As if it was something to be ashamed of. As if I were going out of my way to avoid the judgement of other people. Me. Yeah.... not so much. I'm not trying to flaunt it or make a big deal about it (it's not a big deal), but I am certainly not trying to hide it either! So let the record show that I am still nursing Nathan, and my current plan is to continue to do so until he is ready to completely wean. (In my mind, the weaning has already begun, since the nursing sessions are so infrequent at this point.) And that it's still good for him. And that I have no shame in it. And that I reserve the right to revise the plan without notice, of course. :)

Hungry Boy - While I wish he would eat a bigger variety of food, Nathan actually does ok. He likes applesauce best (he'll eat it on anything), and he also likes baked beans, mandarin oranges, sunflower seed butter (we use it instead of pb since we can't send nut products with him to church), french toast, and pasta. Or anything Daddy has on his plate. Or anything we tell him is applesauce. [Side note - Mark feels bad lying to him, so he tells Nathan the food is like applesauce. "Sure, this is like applesauce, it's chicken but it fits on the spoon like applesauce," and other such nonsense. But as long as Nathan hears the word applesauce a couple of times, he's pretty likely to eat it. I just lie. Don't judge me, you've lied to your kid about trivial stuff too.] Nathan has also started feeding himself with a spoon. So cute. And oh-so messy. We got him some curvy spoons to help get the food into his mouth, but they're only made for righties. And he usually prefers to hold the spoon in his left hand. Though I'm not sure if that's because Mark taught him how using his right hand, facing Nathan, so he just learned in his left, or if it's because he's actually a lefty. Time will tell.

Loving Boy - The best thing (to me) that Nathan has picked up on recently is hugging and kissing. I've mentioned before that he's not much of a snuggler, so when he actually wants to hug, Mark and I know to freeze and let it happen. Now he also thinks it's great fun to kiss me. He has no idea what it means, and I know that, but I still love it and it makes me absolutely giddy with happy-mommy endorphins.

So, Nathan... don't listen to Daddy, this is your half birthday! It's worth celebrating because you're our big boy, growing up so fast, and we love you more every day!