2 and 3/4...

Annabelle,
Just wanted to write a little bit about you and what you have been up to lately. You are just 3 months shy of turning three, and you have become such a big girl.

First of all, you have been an incredible big sister to Charlotte. You are extremely kind and concerned about her and how she is doing. If she is not in the room with us, you want to know where is, and you want her to be with us. You have definitely started to show a more jealousy when we are holding her, but this hasn't changed your actions towards Charlotte. Instead, you have wanted to be held and carried more than ever. Also, it has been important to you to specify when one of us is doing something special with you that it is just a "big girl thing that babies can't do".

Your pretending has really taken off over the last couple of months. You and your dolls/animals play restaurant, school, camp out, and nap time. You love to "cook" for us and we are forever "tasting" what you made.

You are a girl of many interests! You have really gotten into wearing your tutu and "te-rah-rah" and have been calling everyone "Princess ____" (as in Princess Annabelle, Princess Mommy, Princess Daddy) while you are dressed up. We have been watching the non-scary parts of Snow White, and I think that has fueled the princess interest. In a completely opposite direction, you are obsessed with your daddy's construction tools. He has taught you to use quite a few of them as he as been doing all of these projects, and you can't keep your hands off of them. Current favorites include the measuring tape, the level (which you call "bubbles") and the laser level. As he has been working on tiling the family room, you have been imitating everything that he does.

We have really put to the test lately as you have been challenging what we tell you. Whew...you are one determined little lady. Some days go beautifully, and some days I say "you have to obey mama" a hundred times.

You continue to amaze us with your memory and your vocabulary. We can say something once, and you will remember and reuse the word days later. Some words you have used the past couple of weeks that have us saying "did she really just say that"... terrible (as in "that's just terrible"), colorful, concentrate, mysterious, interesting, privacy. I have been trying to jot down some of the funny things you been saying. The other day you told me "Mama, let's get me hooked up with some milk". When we have told you no about something, like maybe dessert, you say "but mama, how can i have dessert if i can't have any dessert"... it's a thinker! One night I asked you to call upstairs and tell daddy dinner is ready. You went to the bottom of the stairs and yelled, "daddy, dada, jesse, dinner, jesse, i can't eat without you, daddy..." When he didn't answer you immediately, you said, in your saddest voice, "I think I will just have to write a little song about this". You are one hilarious and dramatic little girl!

You have been having some extreme fears lately. For some reason, bugs seem to gravitate towards the slides at the park. A couple of weeks ago it was lady bugs and today there were gnats. You lost your mind both times. There was absolutely no reasoning with you whatsoever. The same thing has been happening whenever you see fuzz (like fuzz from your socks) in the bathtub. Hysterics. We have no idea why. I have tried everything to help with bath time... bubble bath, food coloring to make colored water, glow sticks...but if you see a fuzz... forget about it - you are out of that tub so fast.

You spend three days alone with daddy while Charlotte and I were in Atlanta. He did so many fun things with you, including going hiking and and on a lunch date.

You a quite particular and have an answer for most everything. For example, if I ask you if you would like a snack, you say things like "I would like some regular milk in my purple cup with a green lid and some goldfish in my orange bowl on a paper towel." You just like things how you like them...I think you get that from me.

Favorites: blocks, your dollhouse, cheese, Curious George, painting, play-doh, going on hikes and walks, bubbles, helping cook, chocolate chips, chick-fil-a,the moon and stars, singing

You are smart, beautiful, sassy, full of energy, compassionate, and so much fun!
We think you hung the moon!

What's been going on...

A January recap...

We celebrated Jesse's 35th birthday!


Annabelle got her first black eye falling on a toy. So thankful it missed her eyeball!


We had a flood in our backyard. The water made it into the garage and family room, and was about a centimeter from entering the doors for the playroom and kitchen. Water was streaming off the hill behind our house like a river.

I watched it rise over an entire step in the minute or two it took me to call my dad to ask what do to. After it made it to the top of the second step, I went out with a bucket and scooped and cried (really, the perfect solution) for about 20 minutes (of course, this did nothing), and then Jesse got home and rigged up a drainage hose contraption. Just an inconvenience, not a disaster, thank goodness!



We are under construction around here again. Our family room, which is really a large sunroom addition, carpet came out 2 weeks ago (a combination of the flooding and the dogs), and our tile crew (Jesse) is going to start laying tile on Saturday. Pretty excited about this!


So right now, all of our furniture is crammed in the dining room. Jesse was out of town for work, and then I left the day he got back to throw a baby shower for my friend Joy (pictures soon, hopefully) in Atlanta. Now all three of us girls are fighting the yuckiest cold, and poor Charlotte can not shake her low fever. And, our house has fallen apart (Mom, come back...we need you!)! I am pretty good about keeping the house under control most days, but being moved out of the family room makes it a little trickier! Don't worry... it has been cleaned up since this picture

(at least there are some vegetables amidst the mess!)


I used some Christmas present money to get my little kitchen club chair reupholstered. I also got our living room couch, that I have been waiting to redo forever, recovered ...mom found a lady in Atlanta with incredible prices. Having a comfy chair between the kitchen and playroom has been fantastic for reading to Annabelle and for feeding Charlotte, and it needed a little facelift! I love bolder colors and fun florals, and I feel like I live in the kitchen, so this just makes me so happy!

The girls are asleep about 30 minutes at the same time during the day right now so the old blog has been taking even more of a backseat. If it didn't take so long to upload the pictures, etc, I might do it more! I am open to suggestions, fellow blog writing friends. Currently, I upload everything into flickr, but I still feel like the process takes forever. Is there a better way?

Three Months...

***I started this post 2 weeks ago, but life has been full and busy.***

Charlotte Grace,

You are three months old! I feel like you have been with us forever, but also no time at all! You are the most precious, perfect addition to this family! We are all three completely in love with you. I think to myself daily that I am blessed beyond measure to have two daughters!


When we named you, we just intended for you to be called Charlotte, but now we call you Charlotte Grace most of the time.... also - Charlotte Gracie, Gracie Grace, Gracie, and Annabelle calls you "Charlotte Gracie Gracie Boo-Boo" and Sissy.

You are wearing 3 month clothes, but quickly starting to fill them up - and size 1 diaper.


You are still eating every 2-3 hours during the day. You really seem to love your crib, and sleep so well there. You are also the champion of naps in your swing in the middle of the loud chaos your sister makes! She just loves to be near you, so she will play as close to you as possible. You eat, play for about an hour, and then you are ready to sleep. Night times have been back and forth. We will have a great few days, and then we will be up every couple of hours again. Hopefully that will improve when you are feeling better! You have had a terrible cold all week.


You have been smiling so much, and you love to chat. Talking to your daddy is one of your favorite things to do! You have also perfected the "bird of prey" like screech.

You cry so little - really only when you are ready to eat, sick, or when the car stops moving. When we went to Atlanta last weekend, you slept the entire 4 hour ride home. I went the long way so that I wouldn't have to stop at a single light until we made it to our street.


You get loved on so much each day...Annabelle just can't keep her hands off of you! We had a little scare two weeks ago. She tripped and fell on you when you were laying on the playmat. You cried for a long time, but then were back to normal. It is a challenge to balance having you right with us and keeping you safe while you are so tiny!


At least once a day, Annabelle will pull up a chair to read you a book. This has been completely unprompted, so the first time she did this I just about cried. You just dream for your babies to start to bond and love being together, but seeing it happen is really special. Now, I know that there will be lots of fighting in your sisterhood, but I just pray that you two will be best friends.

As a side note...the book she is reading in this picture is one of my favorite books from when I was 2 or 3. It is a Strawberry Shortcake scratch-n-sniff book, and it smells the exact same as it did THIRTY years ago.