three little birds

Big Girl Bed and Pinterest Projects

2012-01-16T11:28:00.003-06:00

Last week Charlotte almost climbed out of her bed and succeeded in escaping her pack n play within two days, so we decided we would go ahead with her toddler bed. She loves it! We've been troubleshooting in the middle of the night with rolling on to the floor and losing our pacifiers between the slats of the bedrails, but we think she will adjust quickly. For the most part, she sleeps the whole night, no major problems.

I have recently, thanks to my good friend, Linnea, discovered Pinterest. If you do not know about Pinterest, be wary. It can consume your life.

One of the recipes I pinned were these pretzels rolls, which I made last night for our Sabbath dinner. They were simple and SO delicious. I HIGHLY recommend making them!

Christmas and Christmas Camp

2012-01-16T10:51:00.009-06:00

Our Christmas was very busy this year, as usual. We started out Christmas Eve morning at the Mecher's with Kyle's immediate family.

Strom boys retrieving presents.

Tiny present from the Stroms.

Doing some coloring.

In the afternoon, we went to my mom's to celebrate with her side of the family. Charlotte got this vintage Tickle Me Ernie that used to me my cousin, Bekah's.

She also got Elmo from Granny. We don't go anywhere without Ernie and Elmo.

Goofs.

Charlie and Grandma Auntie Barbie.

Trying on some of her new clothes.

The evening of Christmas Eve, we headed back to the Mecher's to celebrate with Kyle's extended family. On Christmas morning, we woke up in our house- our very first time! We had a delicious breakfast and opened some presents. We went to our church- again, a first!

After church, we went over to my dad's to celebrate with them. More delicious food. More presents. A really fun afternoon.

After my dad's we went back over to my mom's to celebrate with my stepdad's family. Every year, my mom makes this amazing spread of appetizers for dinner- it might be my favorite Christmas meal. When my mom and I got shopping the next morning, we get to have all of the delicious leftovers for lunch!

With a full day of rest, shopping, putting presents away, and packing (another first!), we headed up to camp on the 27th for our first venture to Covenant Point as Christmas Campers. We packed up Charlotte's toys in her backpack, hoping to make them last throughout the car ride. She had them all on her lap before we even started the car.

We had a really great time relaxing in our cabin, hanging out with camp friends, eating delicious food, and playing in the snow.

Christmas Blogpost Spectacular!

2011-12-24T07:55:00.007-06:00

These are going to be super-random, but they are the only pictures we have taken since Halloween. We are delinquent parents.

Very into phones lately. Everything is a phone- calculator, remote, iPod. And mostly she talks to "Elmo."

For Thanksgiving this year we were at camp with Kyle's family. This was the bi-annual Thanksgiving/Grayden's birthday "dress as your favorite book character" costume breakfast. We were Wilbur and Charlotte.

The aftermath of Grayden's birthday pinata.

I made these cool bottles at Thanksgiving camp. I am in love with them.

Sometimes we'll catch Charlotte at Kyle's desk "coloring" (writing with pencil on his notebooks.)

A few weeks ago we went to Christkindlmarkt in Lincoln Square. It was kind of lame- mostly shopping and not much for the kids. However, we stopped at Timeless Toys, which Charlotte loved. Here we are by the Christmas Tree in the Square.

Decorating our Christmas tree one Sunday afternoon.

Charlotte mostly just laid them on the bottom branches.

Charlotte swiped some burnt garlic bread off our counter and very much enjoyed it. She kept saying "Mmmm."

She LOVES looking at pictures.

Last week we went to Winter Wonderfest at Navy Pier. Here's Charlotte and Kyle waiting in line for one of the bouncy slides. Sometimes she smiles like this. We're not sure why, but we love it.

Charlotte was climbing through this candy cane tunnel and I was waiting at the end for her. When she got right to the end she just sat down, with all of these other little kids waiting behind her. Another mom was standing there with me and I asked Charlotte to come out. As I reached in to get her out, she started screaming. (Charlotte never really cries, especially not when it's time to leave something- she's so good about that). The mom said to me "I think my son might have pushed her, I'm so sorry." And I said, "Oh, I didn't see him do anything, it's okay." About two hours later, Charlotte wet her clothes, so we had to take them all off and put on another outfit. As we were changing her, our cousin Olivia pointed to her back and said, "What's that?" What was it, you ask? Oh, don't worry, just a BITE MARK! The kid BIT HER! She has scabby teeth marks on her back!

She was running around all day, it was actually hard to get pictures of her!

2011-12-05T21:20:00.002-06:00

We have been super blog-delinquent. It's really hard to take pictures of Charlotte right now because she moves around so fast. As soon as we catch her doing something cute, she's moved on before we can even get the lens cap off. But, she will say pretty much any word you ask her to repeat, her favorites being "mama, da-ee (daddy), uh-oh, no, bye, night-night, tickle, story, shoes, zoey (my dad's dog), nice, and belly."

Tonight we all put on our pajamas and watched A Charlie Brown Christmas on tv while we ate popcorn. It was maybe my favorite thing that we've ever done.

2011-11-20T20:44:00.002-06:00

Here is Charlotte chatting it up on her cell phone.

2011-10-31T21:04:00.002-05:00

We started our Halloween at North Park's Trunk or Treat. Charlotte was a little unsure of all of the people in costumes at first, but she warmed right up and was eventually dancing around the parking lot- her favorite thing to do lately!

Enjoying some M&Ms.

We met some friends from church so that Charlotte could hang around with their son, Sawyer. He was a viking and was so cute!

Then we headed over to another Trunk or Treat to see some of Kyle's family and some of our friends.
Charlotte and Kendell.

Charlotte spent most of the evening dancing to the live music. Here she is dancing in the back of the Berg's van.

2011-10-29T20:55:00.000-05:00

Shenanigans.

Playing with Auntie Amy.

Trying on a Halloween costume possibility.

Getting a real kick out of herself in the mirror.

We recently took Charlotte to Indian Boundary Park. It was so awesome and Charlotte had a blast! We will definitely be going back.

Man-handling a boy who got in her way.

2011-10-12T20:44:00.000-05:00

We recently made a visit to the "pumpkin patch." (Home Depot).

My sister and her boyfriend, Pete, joined us.

We came back and enjoyed some chicken chili, pumpkin pie, and apple crisp with my two best friends in the whole world, Amy (and Pete) and Megan (and Scott). After we put Charlotte to bed, we watched Charlie Brown and carved our pumpkins. It was a total blast.

Our pumpkins turned out pretty awesome too!

2011-10-11T20:39:00.000-05:00

Charlotte has been really helpful around the house lately.

She helps Daddy wash the dishes.

And she helps Mommy bake.

She also makes everyone who comes over read with her.

2011-10-07T20:07:00.005-05:00

This post is long overdue. We also have not taken very many pictures since we moved. But, here is what we have...

In August, my mom had Charlotte and I over for a pool party one day. Charlotte loved the pool, mostly climbing in and out of it.

At the end of August/beginning of September we went up to camp for Erik's installation. These were sadly the only few pictures we took. This is Charlotte enjoying some zucchini bread in the lounge of Cedar.

And Charlotte taking a shower with Kyle.

Charlotte and I did some baking together....

In September, when Courtney and Erin were visiting, about half of the Mecher grandkids took a trip to the children's museum.

We take frequent walks around campus with Charlotte to visit friends or play with the leaves or on the stairs.

She's really into pointing lately.

Not so much into me, but that's okay.

Rainy afternoon couch cushion fort building with dad. He's pretty fun.

And Charlotte's first real haircut! We took her to this place in Lincoln Square called Pickle's Playroom "a Clip, Sip, and Play Cafe." So, we got a haircut and 30 minutes of playtime in the playroom.

No more mullet!

We have a walker

2011-08-20T12:54:00.002-05:00

About week ago Charlotte started to take some steps and she has bettered everyday. This is the best so far. Jenny demanded she not be in the shot since it was first thing in the morning. Enjoy.

Charlotte: Savvy Chicago Socialite

2011-08-20T12:16:00.004-05:00

Charlotte has adapted very well to her new city. She has slept just as well here with screeching ambulances outside her room as she did with screeching foxes back in the U.P. We have taken in some urban life including Jenny's Half Marathon and the Lincoln Park Zoo.

Grandma and Poppa Mecher went with us downtown for Jenny's race at 5 in the morning. Charlotte loved all the people and excitement.

After Lynn and Gladdy left Charlie and Kyle toured around Millennium park waiting for Mom to finish.

So happy to be a city girl.

Charlotte asleep on her first CTA ride.

Lincoln Park Zoo

Looking at Turtles in the Children's Zoo

We had camera trouble so we only got a few pictures, but Charlotte loved the Zoo. She was mimicking the Tiger's noises in the Lion house and pointing excitedly at all the big cats.

We had a picnic while Charlotte napped, but she was awoken by the "Thunderbirds" flying overhead practicing for the Air and Water show. They flew right over us a couple time and we had to quick cover Charlotte's ears.

We are doing great. We worked really hard to make our apartment a home quick. Pictures of our place forthcoming.

Last Days at Point

2011-08-20T09:01:00.004-05:00

Kayaking with Dad

Checking out the moving truck with Caleb.

In the truck with Dad and all our stuff.

Thank you Point family for all the support. We love you

Jenny's Baptism

2011-08-20T08:55:00.005-05:00

2011-07-26T08:59:00.002-05:00

Well. We are leaving in a little less than two weeks. This week is family camp and we are trying to participate as campers as much as we can. It has been really fun and relaxing to go to chapel and coffee talk, participate in hymn sings, watch big games, hang out on the waterfront with a ton of other parents and kids, etc.

Charlotte is loving being out in the sun and swimming, she is such a little water baby. She also has been standing on her own for a few seconds at a time. Last night, in the bath tub, she stood and danced a little bit. She says "dada", "hi", and "ball" (kind of) and we think she says "What's that?" and "Who's that?" Regardless, we answer her. She loves people and will go to pretty much anyone. She is a smiley, happy, joyful girl and we are having a blast with her right now.

I have been reading a book this summer called "One Thousand Gifts" which is about how the crux of the Christian faith is actually giving thanks to God in all circumstances- the Greek word is "eucharisteo"- and how eucharisteo allows us to live in the now and experience joy in every moment, even hard moments, sad moments, impatient moments, angry moments. It has really been shaping my days, and consequently, my faith and life. I think the lessons God has taught me through this book are timely for our move. He has been keeping me from stress and worry and perfection and fear of the unknown so far and is preparing me for accepting change and being open to all the things He gives (a new home, a new journey, a new perspective). I couldn't have hoped for a deeper feeling of God's peace right now.

And so, we are coming soon!

2011-07-07T12:17:00.004-05:00

Summertime.

Pictures from a Mecher visit and Fourth of July.

LOVE this.

Eating a stick.

Adoring Jackson.

Serious Emmett.

New birthday sprinkler.

Look at those little chompers up top.

Miss America.

Don't worry, the box did not really contain explosives.

American girls.

Princess Charlotte.

2011-06-29T09:26:00.003-05:00

Moving on.

Our moving date is officially August 8th. We are both sad and excited to start something new. It will be really hard leaving camp, for Kyle especially. I've grown to love a lot of things about living at camp and about living in a small town... things that will be very different in Chicago. But, we're excited for new adventures. A new home. A new church. Different friends. Family. Seminary.

I'm interviewing for a teaching assistant job in Chicago this Friday. Keep us in your prayers, if you think of us. We really need a job while Kyle's in school and this one best fits our family's needs, we think.

2011-06-28T20:23:00.007-05:00

This weekend we travelled down to Chicago to celebrate Charlotte's first birthday with a small amount of our family. It was a beautiful, fun day.

My sister Katie painstakingly assembled this very long birthday sign for Charlotte and then my dad painstakingly hung and re-hung and re-hung this very long birthday sign for Charlotte. Thanks, guys!

Delicious summer beverages.

Plenty of balloons and outdoor playing apparatus.

Watermelon appetizer.

Not pictured: popcorn from popcorn machine. Why didn't I take a picture of that?! It was so cool!

Flavored potato chip smorgasbord. Thank you, Archer Farms + Target.

Hot dogs with all the fixins.

Opening presents with cousins.

I love this picture of Adeline with her little hand on Kyle's shoulder.

She loves her books.

Sitting on her new placemat.

Singing Happy Birthday.

Dessert announcement.

Charlotte's Web cupcakes made by my best friend, Megan.

Do you think we had enough desserts? Five different pies, ice cream, cool whip, cookies, gluten free cookies, gluten free brownies, cupcakes, sugar cookies, and leftover birthday cake from another party.

Her very special Charlotte the spider cupcake from Auntie Megan!

2011-06-19T08:11:00.003-05:00

The final installment of the birthday chair pictures!!!

I bought her this birthday badge that I was hoping she would wear on her birthday... not so much. She also just wanted to eat it for these pictures.

2011-06-17T07:35:00.007-05:00

Charlie-cat turns ONE!

We started out the morning with the traditional sticky buns with Uncle Colby and Lauren.

We got her this Little Golden dinosaur book, which she LOVED.

Then, we went to the library.

Checking out the book kits.

Walking over to Scott's to get some ice cream.

Her very own "birthday cake ice cream" cone!

We had to swing on the swings on her birthday.

In the afternoon, Charlotte and I played in the canteen, reading books and climbing on couch cushions.

Charlie's cupcake.

She was dainty at first...

... then, not so much.

My favorite.

Extra rubbing in, for good measure.

Videos are coming soon!

2011-06-15T13:18:00.002-05:00

I love this crazy girl!

2011-06-09T18:06:00.003-05:00

A few days ago, when it was nearing 90 degrees, Charlotte had her first popsicle!

Unfortunately, all of the juicy drips looked kind of like blood.

2011-06-07T17:25:00.005-05:00

The Eckers visit!

We all went out to the island- Marit, Axel, and Charlotte had never seen it before. The children were not so thrilled about the life jackets.

Charlotte finally tolerated it...

... but Axel, not so much.

Former island directors-now dads!

Playing while parents took turns on the Tarzan swing.

Sweet Axel brought Charlotte a cutey present.

An owl backpack and a red pinwheel! That boy knows the way to this girl's heart (or her mom's, at least).

2011-06-06T17:18:00.002-05:00

Charlotte's first swim in Hagerman Lake!

Look for the video at the bottom...

She loves volleyball!

I'm really going to miss those forget-me-nots every spring.

And this tree by Cedar.

And this big tree by Maple. Look closely, Kyle and Charlotte are under it.

2011-06-05T17:10:00.000-05:00

Randoms.

Dinner with Jane.

Visit from Grandma and Auntie Barb

A couple of weeks ago, I thought I could get Charlotte's hair in pigtails.

It was a stretch.

2011-05-17T17:47:00.002-05:00

Happy eleven months to our sweet Charlotte!!!

Capturing her was difficult, as usual.

We eventually won her over with the remote.

Cutie standing.

Love her!

The magic of Charlotte holding her own bottle!

Look, she's so happy about it!

2011-05-11T17:54:00.004-05:00

Today was Kyle's day off so we went to town to run a bunch of errands and then took Charlotte to the park. She LOVED it.

Like I said, Charlotte LOVED the swings...

The slide, not so much.

2011-05-08T18:11:00.003-05:00

My first Mother's Day!

Me and my girl before church. Kyle made me homemade cinnamon rolls and gave me some presents.

My present was two-fold. The first was a card body painted by Charlotte.

The second was a video that made me cry within 3 seconds.

2011-05-07T18:02:00.000-05:00

Here are some random pictures of Charlotte that I have been meaning to post for so long.

Playing with blocks last Saturday.

Charlotte spends her days doing all manner of fun things, like shredding napkins...

... and catching up on Everyday Food.

Spooked by the flash. Sorry, Charlie.

2011-04-26T18:47:00.001-05:00

I didn't have any pictures from when we went to Molly's Cupcakes on our spring break in Chicago, but I just stole some from some Aunties' blogs. Here is Charlotte enjoying the cream cheese frosting off of a red velvet cupcake. I would hold it up to her mouth for a little nibble and she would keeping leaning farther and farther forward with her mouth wider and wider to get tons of frosting.

2011-04-21T22:06:00.002-05:00

Part Three of Chicago Spring Break.

My kind of vacation.

Mommy-daughter Keens.

Visiting Great-Grandma Duckhorn. She's as amused with her as I am.

Great Grandpa Duck.

What a great nap spot. I wonder how many times I did that?

Charlotte's first trip to Jay's. She enjoyed some french fries and played with some ketchup packets.

2011-04-21T21:51:00.004-05:00

Part Two Chicago Spring Break.

On Wednesday Charlotte got to take a ride in this Barbie jeep.

The lucky duck also got to eat lunch in it!

At the Sparky Fun Fair.

Tammy and "Cheeks."

Meeting Chris and Abbie!

Checking out her new kicks.

We spent Thursday morning saying goodbye to the Condaps.

Cousin Keens!

Charlotte hugging (?) Sawyer.

Bye Uncle Jim and Auntie Erin! It was so nice to finally meet you!

2011-04-21T20:16:00.004-05:00

Part One of Chicago Spring Break.

Just some highlights. I am not so good at bringing the camera to places or taking pictures with it. If it weren't for Kyle, we would have no memories.

First stop, Granny's (as she strangely prefers to be called).

Charlotte was wooed with the large container of vintage (c. 1980's) McDonald's Happy Meal toys.

Charlotte's been making this face a lot lately.

Charlotte met Great-Grandma Mecher and Great-Aunt Debbie on Monday evening.

She was quite taken with Grandma Mecher's necklace.

Cousins breakfast. I'm not sure why Jenna is cut out of this picture.

On the way to the Garfield Park Conservatory, Charlotte and Emmett decided to hold hands as they fell asleep.

She's enraptured by my beauty.

Enraptured, again.

Buttercups are my new favorite.

On the way home, we stopped at Molly's Cupcakes. Charlotte LOVED the cream cheese frosting.

2011-04-18T22:15:00.002-05:00

Charlotte turned 10 months old on Saturday. Getting her pictures sitting in our chair is becoming increasingly difficult. Not only does she grab the paper, but now she will not even sit. I tried putting on Sesame Street in the background to distract her, but that did not last for long.

Cutie.

Looking over me to try to see Sesame Street.

The only good one.

The fun begins.

Standing might be a better bet from now on.

2011-04-09T08:37:00.008-05:00

Last weekend we took Charlotte to McDonald's for her first ice cream cone.

Saturday mornings we have started a tradition of having coffee and cinnamon rolls together. Friday night after we put Charlotte to bed, Kyle and I make them and then we enjoy fresh cinnamon rolls in the morning! We LOVE our Saturdays, having breakfast together, reading while Charlotte naps, going to the grocery store together, going for a walk outside. We need to enjoy the next few weeks before the craziness of the summer ensues!

Here is this Saturday morning:

We've been seeing a lot of this sort of thing lately.

And this. But without really moving anywhere.

2011-03-26T15:31:00.003-05:00

Here is a picture of Charlotte's first tooth!

(You will probably need to zoom in, if you can.)

Playing with dad's hat.

(Kyle's Uncle Rob is the Routt County Coroner. We don't have some weird, morbid sense of humor or anything.)

... and a new style of hat! Please note how many times this empty wipes box had made it on our blog and think twice about buying Charlotte toys.

Charlotte's first ride down a slide!

Here are some videos of the sliding experience.

2011-03-17T08:32:00.003-05:00

Here is Charlotte clapping along to her music. She kept turning her music on and clapping, and when it would end, she would turn it on again, so she could clap again. It's hard to capture videos of her because as soon as we get out the video camera, she spots it and becomes a statue. Kyle actually recorded this through the hole of an empty wipes container.

2011-03-16T21:29:00.009-05:00

Today Charlotte turned nine months old. She has been teething (AGAIN SO SOON!) again this week and had a 102 fever on and off for the last two days. She is finally not feverish anymore, but is still drooly, snotty, and generally cranky and unpleasant. However, she is eating a variety of foods, such as grilled cheese and avocado, she loves Sesame Street, and she says "doo, doo, doo" all. day. long. She just recently began clapping (pictured below) and waving bye bye. We love her!

This is when Charlotte pulled herself up on the table last week.

Charlotte in her tutu from the Rummelhoffs.

And finally, this afternoon Charlotte, wearing her tutu again, was scooting on her belly on the floor and being generally crabby. Eventually she got her pacifier in her mouth and decided that a sunny spot on the living room carpet was the perfect place for an afternoon nap.

Look at how crazy her toes were during her nap!

Oh yes, one more thing. The last three mornings when I go to check on Charlotte (she's been sleeping in due to fevers keeping her up at night + daylight savings time) she is sleeping on her belly with her butt sticking up in the air. We tried to get a photo this morning, but it was too dark in her room and we didn't want to wake her up. She's so kooky.

*Is anyone able to open these pictures to make them bigger? I don't know what I'm doing wrong. It's probably Mac's fault.

2011-03-15T15:11:00.004-05:00

My Mom Fika's have taken a turn for the better. I'm trying something new, but I read on a friend's blog once about sharing your goals before you complete them and how it can sometimes satisfy the desire to complete them at all, so that's all I'll say. I'm trying something new.

But this "something new" has led me to wandering some really amazing blogs of writers involved in (in)courage. I happened upon The Simple Mom, who recently started something called "Project Simplify"- a five-week plan to declutter, clean, and organize based on Tsh Oxenreider's book, Organized Simplicity, which I will hopefully be purchasing soon. I'm a week late, but I'm going to give it a whirl. I love decluttering and in the wake of my first, serious, grown-up move, I'd really like to simplify my life. Plus, it involves before and after pictures, which I love. Each week Tsh designates a "hot spot" to tackle and last week's was your wardrobe and closet. Here's the link, if you'd like to join. She has some really great guidelines and I'm excited to marvel at my very clean closet in a few days.

2011-03-11T19:45:00.003-06:00

Charlotte is changing so fast, I can't even handle it. Yesterday morning, as Charlotte was jamming my fingers into her mouth, I found her first little tooth on the bottom right side!

And she's scooting backwards all over the place. Like, TWO DAYS ago I could plop her on her bottom and there she would sit and play until I came and got her. Now she's across the room stuck under a chair in less than five minutes.

And yesterday I was sitting on the couch and all of a sudden I saw her little fingers gripping the other side of the coffee table and her little face start to rise up over the edge. She had pulled herself onto her knees.

And she's feeding herself things like grilled cheese and peanut butter sandwich and scrambled eggs. And tonight for the first time and picked up her sippy cup, tipped it back, and drank juice from it. She's like a REAL KID, for pete's sake.

I'm changing a little bit too, I suppose. I've lost almost 25 lbs. since I went back to Weight Watchers. And I just very recently am able to fit back into my very smallest pre-pregnancy jeans! Hooray!

2011-02-25T08:03:00.003-06:00

This is a little late, but about two weeks ago, Charlotte turned eight months. This time it was impossible to even set down the piece of paper on the chair. She was grabbing it out of my hands before it even hit to chair. I had to DUCK TAPE the paper to the chair to keep her from grabbing it, and even that didn't really stop her. She was very squirmy and it was hard to get good pictures of her. Which one should be the official eight month photo? You vote.

#1. Grabbing that paper.

#2. Caught in the act.

#3. Munching away.

#4. Playing.

#5. Sneaking around? Ready to pounce?

#5. Losing interest.

#6. Realizing Mommy is behind that camera.

#7. Coming to get me.

2011-02-18T11:55:00.002-06:00

This is the cutest video ever. Get excited.

Also. For a while there, Charlotte was really into screaming. Here, she is very excited about watching Oprah.

And here I'm not sure if she's excited about her toy from Grandma, her toy that used to be a Pampers package, or listening to Outkast. You decide.

2011-02-14T09:30:00.001-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day from the Mechers!

2011-02-13T13:59:00.003-06:00

Yesterday we decided to take Charlotte out to play in the snow for the first time. It was beautiful and sunny and almost 35 degrees.

Layering up. Thanks for the socks, Auntie Courtney and Uncle Erik. Even though they said 2T, we were shocked to find out that they fit perfectly right now!

We got these sunglasses from the Lourias and decided to try them out today. I was surprised at how long Charlotte kept them on.

Note Charlotte's vague look of amusement.

2011-02-11T13:47:00.002-06:00

My little snuggly girl.

Okay. I know that these are basically all the same picture, but this girl is so sweet. She just snuggled up in my arms before bed last night and I ate up every second of it. Until the last picture, when she finally decided that she might like her bed more than my arms.

If you only knew the absurd things that came out of my mouth, in the most disgusting intonations, or the songs that I make up with lyrics like, "Squishy, squishy diaper," on a day to day basis, I would be SO embarrassed. Please, God, don't let there be hidden cameras in my house.

2011-02-09T10:32:00.002-06:00

Charlotte has been very helpful with the laundry the last couple of days.

Daddy's Favorite Band Broke Up

2011-02-05T20:11:00.008-06:00

Now, I saw this coming, but The White Stripes are officially broken up.Charlotte suggested we dress up like Meg and Jack to both grieve and cheer ourselves up.

Yes, Charlotte is a better drummer than Meg.

For those who are unaware this is who we are impersonating.

There are a few recorded performances of Daddy Jack and Baby Meg, but died hard fans will have to see those in person. A little too kooky for this blog according to Mom.

2011-02-05T11:36:00.003-06:00

I know the shadows in this picture are weird, but she looked like the cutest little pink polar bear in real life!

We got this shirt from Auntie Amy for Christmas. Thanks, Auntie Amy!
Also, this was the very first picture I took of Charlotte during this photo shoot. I just sat her on the couch and said, "Smile, Charlotte!" and this is what I got! Love this girl!

Charlotte was standing all by herself today! Now, I did prop her up against the table, but once she was there, she held herself up for a long time!

2011-02-02T11:26:00.004-06:00

Our trip to Appleton this past weekend was very eventful. First, about 20 minutes from home, our car spun out and we ended up in a very steep ditch. Everyone and the car were fine, but Charlotte and I had to sit in our car at a steep incline for about an hour. I thought I would take that time to give Charlotte a head start in learning how to drive.

We finally got to Appleton and had lunch at Chipotle. When we got back to our car, Kyle realized that I had left the lights on and the battery was dead. Someone gave us a jump, we drove across the parking lot to Barnes and Noble and Old Navy, and when we returned to our car, it was dead again. SO. We went to Starbuck's and got coffee and let the car run the entire time we were there. Finally, no more problems! We had a fabulous time, nonetheless, and decided to have an impromptu overnight stay at our friends, the Edwards home. And we had DELICIOUS dinner at Famous Dave's. It it climbing the charts toward Red Robin for me.

Charlotte is such a Chatty Charlie lately!

Also. Her laugh is my favorite sound in the ENTIRE WORLD.

2011-01-28T16:08:00.002-06:00

My favorite time of day, of late, has to be when Charlotte takes her afternoon nap. I call it my "Mommy Fika." "Fika" is the Swedish word for "coffee break." Every afternoon, around 1 p.m. I make a pot of coffee and lay down on my couch with a book until Charlotte wakes up (usually an hour or so). Sometimes I have a sweet treat, sometimes I just have coffee with cream and sugar, but boy, oh, boy do I love that quiet coffee-reading time! Currently I am on my second tour of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows. I'm almost done and contemplating reading it a THIRD time. I miss so much because I read through it so fast!

Here. Proof that I am a real human being, separate from my baby :)

Tomorrow the three of us are taking a trip to Appleton, Wisconsin for Starbuck's, Target, Old Navy, mall walking, Famous Dave's, and who-knows-what-other-adventures!

2011-01-19T16:32:00.005-06:00

This weekend we had a really big retreat and the Rills were kind enough to watch Charlotte all weekend. On Monday morning, the last meal of the retreat, I just kept Charlotte with me and brought her to the kitchen. She was such a dear to play on some towels with some kitchen utensils while Mommy and Daddy baked fresh biscuits for everyone.

Charlotte is really into snacking lately. She enjoys feeding herself crackers, teething biscuits, apple slices, and carrot sticks. Here are some of the snacks that Charlotte shared with Mommy today:

This video is from Christmas, but it's Charlotte enjoying my sister, Katie's dancing.

This is also from around Christmas- Charlotte taking her first ride on her new sled from Gramma and Poppa. She's about to go down for a nap, which is why she may look so indifferent. Normally on her sled she smiles and laughs.