Fall(ing) Behind

Fall, fall, fall. My favorite time of year. The crispness of the air, leaves falling gently, and an adventurous soon-to-be 14 month old exploring this lovely season. We've been having a blast this fall, starting off with a visit to Mapleside Farms for the Johnny Appleseed Festival.

Charlotte and her two older cousins, Henry and Teddy, had so much fun running around the farm. We explored a corn maze - Henry led us through it! And we saw tractors and a petting zoo and even had time to eat some french fries!

exploring the petting zoo

the three amigos!

Cousins having a blast

loving the pumpkin farm


Charlotte loved chasing Henry and Teddy around and couldn't get enough of the pumpkins. Grandma Jackie bought her a small one to take home, and mom was even able to snag some pepperoni bread! (score one for mom)

Next up we had a visit with some dear college friends and their 10 month old son, Rocco. Rocco and Charlotte loved experiencing the Cleveland zoo together in mid September. It was an absolutely beautiful day and we had so much fun meeting Rocco and catching up with Tommy and Adrianne. We saw all kinds of animals - everything from monkeys and snow leopards to koalas and grizzly bears! The Cleveland zoo is an awesome place for kids - I am thinking a zoo membership might be in order!

pointing to the elephants

mr. koala in the tree

saying hi to the baboons

fun at the zoo playground with daddy

weeee! zooming down the big slide with mommy

grizzly bear swimming in the water - check out his claws!

After the zoo we went back to our house for some downtime and dinner. We introduced Rocco to some of Charlotte's favorites - veggie straws and goldfish! Once dinner was finished (thanks to the guys for cooking grilled chicken, vegetables and red potatoes) it was time for Rocco's first wagon ride. Charlotte was a good host and shared her wagon very nicely with him.

wagon ride!

Early October brought on some sickness, which is the hardest part of being a mom for me. I hate when my baby is sick and there isn't much I am able to do for her. She had some sort of nasty virus (picked up from school no doubt) and a high fever. The doctor said to keep her hydrated and to use Tylenol for fever. This also conicided with Sam's annual guy's trip where they travel out of town for a Brown's game. This meant mommy was on call 24/7 which meant some long nights. Charlotte developed roseola from the virus, which meant more time out of school. They said there isn't anything you can do for the rash and that it isn't uncomfortable for the babies. Luckily it went away within a few days.

poor sick baby

Once she was feeling better, we took her to Mapleside Farms with the grandparents for round 2. Charlotte loved donning her new winter coat and hat and getting pulled around in her wagon!

family photo at the farm

grandparents

wagon ride

It's been a terrific fall season thus far...next up, a visit from Grandbirdy because mom is going on a "mystery trip" with dad. This means my first night leaving Charlotte (I am starting to mentally prepare now!) I will keep you all updated on how that goes and perhaps Birdy will be a guest blogger to share her experience watching Miss CharTot for 2 whole days solo!

Hope everyone is well and taking some time to enjoy the small things in life.

my little girl playing with her toys

fun in the leaves with her new pink ball

love this little pumpkin more than words can say!

Catching Up - Charlotte Faye Turns One!

It's been hard to play catch up lately, sometimes I feel like that's all I get done doing! That leaves little time for writing, but alas, I have a few spare moments so want to update the blogosphere on what is going on in our lives.

Charlotte Turns One
Charlotte turned one on August 26, 2014 and reflecting back on the year was extremely awesome and therapeutic. It's easy to have those days as a mom where you really doubt and get down on yourself. Looking at pictures from when she was a newborn and realizing how far Sam and I have come as parents since 1:19 pm on August 26, 2013 was amazing.




My birthday present to Charlotte was her one year scrapbook. It took me about 3 months and I won't even say how many hours to complete. When she is older I will give it to her to show what an amazing first year she had, and how truly loved she was from the very beginning. The scrapbook features events from her very first smile and bath, to her first big trip to Grand Cayman and Oak Island, North Carolina and everything in between.

Charlotte's first birthday party was a street fair theme. It turned out amazingly thanks in large part to the party planning awesomeness of my mom (Birdy). We had a unique space to work with - my skinny strip of grass and the driveway but we made it work! We had a popcorn maker, cotton candy machine, sangria for the adults and kids, and enough food for 100 people! Charlotte had a blast and friends and family seemed to enjoy the day! Some of the unique touches we implemented was the photo booth -- which everyone seemed to have fun taking photos with the old school Polaroid camera (purchased at Michael's). We also made a one year birthday banner and had photos and fresh flowers of her everywhere.

Here comes the bday girl!



And now for some more photos from the party...











And now for my favorite photo - nothing is better than snuggling with my peanut girl...Happy Birthday, Charlotte Faye. We love you!

One Year Later…Reflecting Back to the Day My Life Forever Changed (for the better)

Yesterday my mom and I drove past Mayfield Road, and I had a flashback of Sam driving me to the hospital one year earlier, on my exact due date, after my water had broken while walking Bruiser. I remember what I was feeling then: excitement, nervousness, and panic all at once. I was ready only I wasn’t.

Nothing can prepare you for the first moment you see your baby. People will tell you it’s the greatest moment and you politely listen and nod your head, but until it happens to you, it just doesn’t make sense. After 23 hours of labor, I got to look at Charlotte only for a few seconds before they took her to the NICU. Those seconds changed my entire life. I still remember exactly how her face looked, and the way her eyes glistened as she searched for my face.

A few hours later I finally got to hold Charlotte. I was in my happy place now. She was such a tiny little peanut – weighing only 6 lbs. 6 oz. (the doctor had said she’d probably be mid 8’s!) Her skin was so soft and delicate and I hated all of the wires and monitors they had on her.

A year later, I still have that same feeling when I hold her and rock her to sleep each night. I am so thankful for Charlotte, and for all that she has taught me over the past year. If you had told me one year later that I’d still be nursing her I wouldn’t have believed it, but I made it! A high five and a pat on the back to all of you breastfeeding moms out there – it’s like having another full time job! Nursing Charlotte and co-sleeping with her only made our bond that much stronger. I finally moved her to her crib full-time at 9.5 months and there are still nights I wake up and wish her warm, snuggly body was next to mine.

I was checking out at Michael’s yesterday (loading up on first birthday party gear as you might imagine) and the cashier asked me what all happens to a baby in their first year. “A whole lot,” I told her. I proceeded to tell her about Charlotte’s first word (dada), learning to crawl, her first foods, her first trips out of the house, her first vacations (Grand Cayman and Oak Island, NC), and eventually her first steps just a few weeks ago. So much has happened in the past year that it’s easy to forget.

Right now Charlotte can take about 7-8 steps on her own. She gets into just about everything, including trying to open the kitchen cabinets and trying to eat Bruiser’s dog food, so constant monitoring is a must! She is still experimenting with finger foods – last night she seemed to love Ritz Crackers (one of my sis’ faves growing up). She loves bath time and story time at night – and goes down so easy for me at bedtime now - lots of hugs and kisses and she snuggles right into the nook in her crib and curls up and is off to snooze land.

One time a dear friend and I had a conversation where we contemplated what babies dream about. “Boobs,” she said. “A heaven filled with boobs where they just bounce from one to the next!” This makes me laugh to this day thinking about that.

This past year was a great experience for me personally. From learning to deal with a sick baby, to sending her to school, to the daily care she needs, I have grown so very much. I am thankful for my family, especially my mom, who has helped me immensely in this first year. From coming up at a moment’s notice when Sam and I were stricken with the flu at the same time, to teaching Charlotte new words, to just being the loving grandma she is, I am so grateful those two are as close as they are.

A huge thank you to my husband, Sam, for being such a great dad to Charlotte and for supporting me all the time. I wouldn't have made it this first year without your dry sense of humor, breast pump jokes, and all of the cooking! You kept me fed for a year! Love you, hun!

Now that I’m basically in tears (which is the new norm for me these days) I’m going to leave you with some of my favorite photos of Charlotte’s first year.

Hugs to you all and thanks to everyone for all of the support in this first year.

Love,
Amanda