Dinner at Auntie Gwen's

Such A Smart Baby

This morning Wayne and I woke to music coming from the nursery. We both assumed the other had gone into soothe Charlotte and turned on her aquarium crib toy. But guess what? Neither of us had – Charlotte figured out how to do it by herself! When I went to get her up this morning, she had her feet propped up on the toy and was turning the music and lights on and off with her toes. She must have scooted herself around to that position in the night because she sure can’t crawl yet. The picture above is a dramatization photo I took later after she was up and dressed. But as soon as I laid her down to take the picture, she put her feet right back up there to do it again! Such a smart baby!

Wayne's New Toy

Tonight Wayne got a new toy! Over the last week he has spent most of his free time searching reviews online and taking trips with Charlotte to check his choices out in person. Although it just came together this week, he has been dying to get a TV for awhile and finally tonight, he was able to make it happen. Wayne was like a kid on Christmas but gets bonus points because Charlotte was not having a good night and he put off setting everything up to take care of her! I have to admit although I was fine with what we already had, this is so nice. With our open floor plan - I especially like the practical things, like the fact that the kitchen and dining room lights do not reflect in the picture. The next step is to install the surround sound system we got as a wedding present. We have been using it on a limited basis but have put off the hard install until we got everything else together so, now’s the time!

Month Four Musings

Charlotte is doing great and were doing pretty well ourselves. If you can believe it, she is four months old already. At last count about 15 ½ pounds and 26 inches – a very tall girl. We love her to bits and enjoy her smiles so much. She has started to giggle A LITTLE and it just takes your breath away – funny how you take these things for granted until you watch your baby learn how to do them. Wayne and I have been making a point to still get out thanks to “The Grandmas”. We have actually gotten to go on quite a few dates and drink alcohol, let me tell you that first glass is amazing! Otherwise I am back at work (for the last month or so) and am lucky enough to bring Charlotte with me. We have a mock nursery in the office next to mine complete with a pack-n-play, bouncy seat, swing and various toys. I even have a swing and bassinet in my office. Thank God for hand me downs! I joined a Mommy & Me group (it’s affiliated with our hospital and free if you took birthing classes there) that has really helped me to adjust. Is more beneficial than you can imagine talking with other moms who have babies the same age. You learn a lot from what has worked for them and what has failed miserably. I was amazed to meet so many cool women who were not the proto-typical June Cleaver. Some are ex bar managers or writers for funky magazines – its kinda cool networking too – most still want a sassy life after baby and want to know how to incorporate their kid not just turn into a one hit wonder mom. Plus in our class they have speakers on all kinds of things that you sorta read about before you bring the baby home, but before the hospital trip all you can really think about is getting that baby out as safely and painlessly as possible. Wayne has turned out to be a fantastic Dad – I am not surprised but very proud nonetheless. We are still feeling our way and probably will be for the rest of our lives, but things are good.

Four Month Stat Charts

It’s so interesting to see her stats illustrated like this. It makes it more interesting to see the changes in her growth over the last few months. For instance it is easier to see that for weight she was born in the 94th percentile but at four months she has dropped to the 79th percentile. And in length she has gone from 77^th percentile to 80^th percentile. Guess she is turning out to be tall and skinny at four months.

Mommy & Me: Stroller Picnic

This afternoon Charlotte and I met our extended Mommy & Me group for lunch and a stroller ride around Lake Eola. Our ambitious plans included getting some exercise and spreading out under a beautiful oak tree for a picnic. Guess what? It was SO hot we ended up eating on the porch of Panera Bread and taking turns cooling the babies off by running inside for quick visits. Regardless we all had a fantastic time and made the most of our good intentions. Although I never took my camera out of the diaper bag, there sure would have been some sweet photo ops. I think we will try to make plans for next week – I’ll try to remember to keep my camera at the ready - keep checking back to see what we do next.

Four Month Doctors Appointment

Today Charlotte had her four month doctor appointment. She checked out perfectly, but there was no way we could get out of getting those darn shots. She got five vaccinations, four shots and one set of droplets. Charlotte was SUCH a good girl and hardly cried – but that did not stop mommy! Here are her four month stats…

Weight: 14pounds, 13.5 ounces (75th percentile)
Height: 24 3/4 inches (50 to 75th percentile)
Head Circumference: 16 1/4 inches (50th percentile)

Four Month Birthday

Charlotte is four months old today!
Wow, time really flies! We definitely feel like having her was one of the best things to happen to our lives, right up there with meeting each other and getting married. She continues to sleep through the night in her crib, @11pm to @7:30am – we know we’re lucky and keep our fingers crossed every night when we put her to bed. Recently she giggled for us a couple of times, once for Daddy, once for Grandma and once for Mommy! We are still not quite sure what the key is to making her do it – Grandma used the tickle technique, Daddy was making loud noises and Mommy was saying “Charlotte are you Serious?” She just laughed and laughed. But that was it – the same trick did not work later in the day! Char is not rolling all the way over yet but she is rolling onto her side and sometimes sleeps or plays in that position. Generally she is a smiley baby and if the atmosphere is quiet enough (read: she has no other distractions) she will talk your ear off and wave her hands around to make her point. Plus she just goes crazy on her changing table, kicking and talking to the art piece above the changing pad. Wayne and I “fight” over who gets to get her in the morning or pick her up after a nap because that is her best time. Charlotte is so cheerful and just vibrates with happiness when you wake her up - the cherry on top is her beautiful smile beaming right at you!
I took another “month” photo of her today; since she was born I have been taking these on her monthly birthday. She is wearing the same outfit, size 12 months, so by the end of her first year we can see how she changes and fills it out!

Mommy & Me: Lunch With The Girls

After Mommy & Me Charlotte and I met all the girls and baby girls for lunch at Boston Market. Everyone had a fantastic time swapping birth stories and getting tips that only new moms need to ask. It was so nice to get to know everyone better, in class we only have time to give the same basic info each week so this was a treat. I think we'll try to make more mommy and baby play dates in the future... check back to see if we do!

Father's Day Dinner

This year we hosted the Father’s Day Dinner at our house and were able to celebrate with my dad, Dave, Wayne and my brother-in-law, Erik. The afternoon preparation was a comedy of errors as Wayne and I discovered that our refrigerator had a huge water leak…from somewhere… and our gas stove would not light. I was in a panic because I was expecting to feed five adults and one toddler in a few hours. Wayne, as always, was calm and collected, just pulled out the range manual and went to work, the fridge is still a mystery. Luckily for food prep - Sancha’s family was a little late getting to the house. Jacob had not woken up from his nap at the expected time, she assures me you DO NOT wake a toddler up early. J Anyway, it worked out perfectly because we were able to spend some quality time with my dad before he Whynot Brood arrived. Long story short we got it together and served salad with cheesy pizza bread (roasted garlic and fresh mozzarella) ziti and homemade meat sauce. Seemed like everyone enjoyed the meal. I KNOW they loved Sancha’s desert, homemade carrot cake! YUMMMM

All of us (Kids, Son-in-Laws, and Grandkids) got together and bought my Dad some neat GPS thingy. Cameron is the one who did the technical research and knows all that it can do. I am just excited that he can take it with him hiking in the Everglades, Montana or just tooling around California. So neat to think he can pan out and see where he is in relation to the rest of the world – very neat. I think he liked the gift and will like it more when Sancha sets it up and Cameron explains the how to. See, my Dad is pretty hip just has no patience for technology. I secretly, I think once he gets the hang of it he will be hooked.

Erik, Dad and Wayne watched a lot of the US Open and I got a few pointers on what the heck was going on in the tournament. Wayne and I put the coffee table in the garage – small house – so that Brennan and Charlotte could lay on blankets and play. I sure think they will be great friends – Brennan just lights up when he sees her and tries to pull her toward him. Jacob was his adorable self, playing all around the house and keeping us laughing with all the comments he comes up with. He and Wayne were wrestling in the kitchen and Jacob just giggled until… Jacob says “I’m tired.” He is so sneaky cuz he’ll just come at you when your guards down. I get teary every time he says “I love you Aunt E.” Sancha and Erik need to get this kid an agent – he is already a heartbreaker! After the Whynot's headed home my Dad hung out for a little while, this was nice because it gave us a little more time with him on his special day. All the dads seemed to have a good day even if in typical Brennan fashion it was LOUD, but happy!

Wayne's First Father's Day

The day started out late as Charlotte slept in until about 9am, thank God! But Mommy got her up, dressed her in her special outfit for the special day (complete with a pretty pink flower in her hair) and started making breakfast. In case you don’t think she pulled her weight, keep in mind she was propped up on the counter getting a play by play from me. Charlotte was very quiet and attentive the whole time, I am sure she was taking mental notes.

“Charlotte, these are eggs, were gonna scramble them and add some cheese for Daddy. Next year you can make him breakfast all by yourself…um, okay, Mommy will help you.”

Wayne was so sweet with her too! He held her in his lap and ate every bit of our breakfast in bed picnic. She just smiled at him so big and, as always, you could tell she loved being with him and getting his undivided attention. Charlotte and I each gave Wayne a card, helping to express how happy we were and what a wonderful dad he is! Wayne also received cards card from his mom, my sister and two of his sisters that were very touching and funny.

Mommy & Me: Father's Day Project

Today at Mommy & Me we made Fathers Day gifts for the Daddy’s. Everyone worked in pairs because it was such a messy project. Charlotte and I worked with Hilary and Emma to make foot print cards. We made cards for both Daddy and Granddad – hope they like them! Charlotte was very good at class and even stayed still, uncharacteristically, during the messy parts. I was able to get some good pictures of the whole group and a few cute ones of Emma and Charlotte playing…such as they do at this age! Charlotte played on her purple and paisley blanket, a baby shower gift from Jennifer Weeks. THANK YOU JEN - we love it and get complements all the time! Our speaker today talked about developing language skills, gave us pointers and suggested good books for each age group.

Attitude ... In An Adorable Outfit

I took this picture because this is such and adorable outfit and her first "real" pants! (Thanks Sam for the cute clothes) Unfortunately, Charlotte was waving her hands around so much that it looks like she wanted to hit the camera! She sure has had her share of photo shoots in her short life - guess she deserves a break - not that she is gonna get one!

Charlotte With Her Cousin Brennan

So tonight we stopped by my sister house breifly for a visit. Just a quick trip but while we were there the funniest thing happened with Charlotte and her cousin Brennan. Obviously they have met before but Brennan was acting like Charlotte was the MOST interesting thing he had ever seen - she seemed scared to death. His interest in her was so amazing and his "talking" to her and reactions had all the adults laughing. These photos only represent .oooooo1% of the pictures I took, unfortunatly, with digital lag time the pictures that did turn out just did not capture how hillarious this meeting was. I wish I had thought to take video...