Category Archives: Family

November Catch Up

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The past two weeks have totally flown by. Here are some tid bits to fill you in on the various happenings in our lives…

  • Charlotte is continuing to do well at school. Although, when I picked her up last week, she was bawling her eyes out. Turns out some little punk pushed her down for no reason. Now, if you know Charlotte, you’ll know that she rarely cries when she gets hurt and if she does, the tears last for a second. This was not that. I’m convinced that her uncontrollable sobs were due to a) the fact that this was C’s first real experience with meanness. This little… kid… was a total jerk. and b) the proximity to nap time. Everything is more dramatic when we’re sleepy. 

    Climbing up on the loft in the K4 room!

  • Charlotte had her first experience with snow!! She… didn’t love it.

    Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.

      

  • C’s obsession with music continues to blossom. From playing the drums and piano to dancing like a maniac, the girl loves her music.   
        
  • We got to attend a Thanksgiving Celebration at Charlotte’s school. I apparently embarrassed Mark by taking over C’s art project. Whatever. I let her put the glue down.

    See… she helped!!!  

  • Charlotte has a new BFF. Her name is Chloe. Their teachers said they’re trying to come up with a nickname for the two of them… a Brangelina type name. I love it! She picked the sweetest little munchie in her class. Momma approves.

    How cute is Bestie Chloe? 

  • We finally got our custom baby gate/staircase protector installed. THANK GOODNESS. I’m so sick of racing Charlotte to the stairs.     
  • We celebrated Thanksgiving at my parents – the annual tradition. As many of you know, it’s my favorite holiday… but I’m not going to lie, this year was not my favorite. I got in this fight with my dad that was kind of ongoing and it really just put a raincloud over the whole thing. Pretty disappointing, but I’m trying not to dwell.                 
  • Charlotte won’t stop trying to “snuggle” with Toby. AKA, she backs her butt up into him and tries to sit on top of him… or just slams her head down on him. Toby is not a fan.     
  • We finally brought our dumpster find home… Yes, we dragged a dining room table out of the dumpster! Just needs to be refinished, but tablecloths will work for now. 

And there you have it! Two weeks: Bam! Done! We’re all caught up.

The Next Chapter

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Tomorrow is a big day for our little love. Tomorrow is Charlie’s meet and greet at her new preschool. She will meet her class and her teachers… She’ll get to check out the school. It’s a whole new world for this little lady… 

So maybe I should just be honest and say that tomorrow is a big day for mommy. I keep thinking about my little love being at school all morning without mommy or daddy or nana or grandma or grandpa or grampie or Grammy. None of her peeps. 

What will that be like for her?

Will she connect with her teachers? Will she make friends easily? Will she love school? Will she hate it? Will she cry when I drop her off? Will I cry?

Oh my goodness. 

(Here comes the pep talk…)

I know this will be so good for her, but I can’t help this pit in my stomach. The thought of her looking around for her family. Mommy? Daddy? 

Woah. Okay. This will be good for her. She will get over any initial hesitation (as will I). She will love it… Right?

All we have to do is have fun (together) tomorrow and then I’ll… Errrr… We will have the rest of the week and weekend to prepare. Not too bad. We can do this!

Swim Class – Week 2

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Charlotte really took strides in swim class this week! Whatever, I said it. I’m that mom. But really, she did so well (relatively speaking)! She was LOVING the water, splashing like a goon, kicking her little feet, and blowing bubbles in the water!

I decided to stay out of the water this time so I could take pictures. So, enjoy!

   
    
    
    
    
    
    
 
Mark attempted the water slide again… This time instead of whiplash, he dunked our tiny girl! Haha They’ll master it some day 🙂

My Favorite Visitor!

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This weekend my absolute most favorite house guest came to see us. My sweet (and quirky, hilarious, sometimes clamy) cousin, Stef. Our Cali girl.

She flew in on Friday and I sadly dropped her at the airport this morning. Those 4 days were filled with a lot of family time and a lot of fun! Or as my husband would say, “adventuring.”

On Friday, I picked her up at the airport and drove her directly to dinner with my parents. The restaurant had live music, which was hilarious… not because the music was funny or bad – it was great – but because Charlotte was OBSESSED. Immediately upon hearing the end of any song, she would start signing “more” and making hollering noises. Oy. Can’t take that child anywhere.

Also, Stef gave C the BEST gift ever. I’m not even going to mention anything more because they deserve their own post.

  
On Saturday, we went to the Children’s Museum (SO FUN!!)! It was a blast, as always. Man does Charlotte love that place.

   
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
 Saturday evening, we had the entire fam over (my grandpa, parents, sis and her fam, and bro and his girlfriend) to hand out candy to the trick-or-treaters, get together and celebrate three birthdays (mom’s 62nd, Grandpa’s 90th!!, and Gabby’s 4th). We decorated amazing skull cookies that I made using this recipe and these cookie cutters. I must add that we didn’t end up taking Charlie out for trick or treating. We had planned to, but it was so rainy and cold, that we just let her hand out the candy.

   
    
    
    
     

  
On Sunday, we had my niece’s 4th birthday party! It was a blast!

   
    
    
    
   
Sunday evening, we picked up some delicious Vietnamese food and had dinner at my parents’ house.

Then yesterday, Stef and I took C for a walk and then left her with my Milly (mother in law) so we could go explore the city. I took her to the Milwaukee Public Market, we walked around the third ward, sampled some Milwaukee-famous Purple Door Ice Cream, and played around. That evening, we had a nice leftovers for dinner meal and went to visit Grandpa! All in all, SO much fun.

We all got very used to her being around… I’m thinking we should probably head to LA to capture her.

Weekend Update

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We he such a fun weekend! I’m going to do a full post on Charlie’s Halloween costume because it was so dang cute, but for now, just pictures.

Friday we went to a Halloween party at the place where we were married with my parents, sister and her family. It was hilarious. They had everything “Spookified” and there was a DJ, dance floor and literally more neon lights than Charlotte has ever seen. From the moment we arrived, she was pumped. Probably 50% because she was so weirdly excited by her costume and the other 50% because of the severe stimulation. 

The second her mini feet hit the ground, she was strutting her little stuff on the dance floor, walking up to strangers, dancing and being goofy. It was hilarious. 

How cute was our little Jane Fonda??

   
    
    
 

     
    
    
    
    
    
   
On Saturday, Mark and Charlie had a daddy daughter day while I went shopping with a friend and went to my sweet little friend’s baby shower. It was a costume shower… Please not my adult version of the Jane Fonda.

   
 On Sunday, we went to a little 2 and under play group called “Bagels, Books & Babies”… We were pretty grateful, because the mini one woke up in serious need of entertainment. 

   
 
After BB&B, we went home for nap time, and then it was time to celebrate Mark’s father’s bday. We went to the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum, which is just about the coolest place for littles. I’ve talked about it before, but everything there is tiny and set up as a little city. There is a grocery store where the kids can shop and work. I can’t even explain it… It’s amazing.

Charlotte has been once before, but it’s her first time as a walker. She absolutely loved it. Everywhere she turned, there was another adventure to be had, another exhibit to explore. She was all smiles.

   
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
 
All in all, it was another great weekend! 

Overnight Babysitter Kind of Saturday

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This past Saturday, my parents took Charlotte for an overnight so that Mark and I could attend a wedding. We got all dressed up and headed to the reception at around 4.The wedding was for more of a distant friend, but it was fun catching up with others who we haven’t seen in awhile.

But here’s where things get pathetic…

By 7:30, pretty much right after dinner, I was feeling too tired to keep up small talk. I started hinting to the hubs that we should bolt and try to catch a movie or something. Finally, around 8:30… which is about the time the dancing started… Mark and I snuck out through the coat room. We sat in the car for a few minutes looking up movies to go see, but nothing started until 10 and we didn’t really feel like waiting around… AKA we’re old and were already exhausted.

So alas, we went home and WENT TO BED! Oy. I feel old.  

It’s not too often that we have an overnight babysitter and how do us old as parents spend it? Snoozing by 9pm. I guess that’s what happens when you have a non-stop toddler running around… or at least that’s my story!

Warm, Toasty, Sweet & Spicy, Wonderful Fall

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By the time fall hits, I’ve usually put on at least 3-5 lbs of summer BBQ weight (or some pre-winter hibernation warmth as I like to call it), making me even more excited for sweater weather. But really, it’s the colors and the smells that I love. In Wisconsin, we have four distinct seasons… they definitely aren’t equal in lengths, but we get at least a couple solid weeks of fall.

Fall in Wisconsin is just cozy. It’s sweaters and boots and leggings. It’s cinnamon and pumpkin and apples. It’s reds and oranges and yellows.

I really love fall.

A few days ago, I was nominated to share some of the “sweater weather” faves by I Am JustAudrey, so here they are!

Favorite Candle Scent: My favorite fall candle scent is probably pumpkin pie.

Coffee, Tea, or Hot Chocolate: Coffee has been killing me lately… horrible heartburn… BUT if it weren’t for our recent issues, I would say coffee all the way. Mmmm Skinny vanilla latte on a cold day. Yum.

What is the best fall memory you have? Remember that time I tried to shove Charlotte in a pumpkin we carved so beautifully??

Pumpkin Pic

Can you tell how much she enjoyed it??

Pumpkin Fam Pic

Okay, I don’t know if that’s actually my favorite fall memory…

Really, there’s nothing so over the top amazing about fall… it’s just the little stuff. The football game parties, the tasty food, the colors, the breeze. Just fun. OH!!!! AND! How could I forget? Thanksgiving… EVERY YEAR! I’m obsessed. My absolute favorite holiday ever. Oh goodness… guess who’s going to LOVE thanksgiving? I’ll give you a hint… she’s tiny and she eats lilke a horse!

Yes! Charlie. Get ready, Thanksgiving Dinner. Charlie’s going to take you down.

Best Fragrance for Fall: Maybe Chanel Chance or Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue… either those or bon fire 🙂

Favorite Thanksgiving Food: Don’t get me started on fall foods. I love a good chili. Vegetarian, Beef, Bean… So many delicious varieties. And of course, pie. And apples. And STUFFING. Oh goodness… thanksgiving. Everything on the Thanksgiving Day table.

What is autumn weather like where you live? When it’s good, it’s good! 60’s and sunny. Perfect sweater and boots weather.

Most Worn Sweater: I have this Michael Kors grey sweater from last year that I love. I bought it in a size too big and it’s just cozy and amazing. Here’s a bad picture of me wearing it while pregnant with baby C.

sweater

Football games or jumping in leaf piles? My husband will likely be surprised to read this, but I’m going to say football games! I love any excuse to make tasty food and hang out with friends.

Favorite Type of Pie: Doesn’t matter as long as you have ice cream and whipped cream to go on top. But apple is pretty tasty… or pumpkin. Actually, I love cherry and blueberry pie. Whatever, all pie is fabulous.

Which makeup trend do you prefer, dark lips or winged liner? I so wish that I had any sort of ability to try makeup trends. My makeup looks the same every day. I’m just not talented. But I guess I’d say dark lips. I wish I could wear dark lipstick. I don’t get much darker than mauve.

What song really gets you into the fall spirit? 

Come little children
I’ll take thee away
Into a land of enchantment

Come little children
The time’s come to play
Here in my garden of shadows
Please tell me I'm not the only Hocus Pocus fan!

Please tell me I’m not the only Hocus Pocus fan!

Is pumpkin spice worth the hype? Not in my mind. I do not like pumpkin spiced / flavored anything… except candles and pie.

Favorite Fall TV Show: What have I told you about my TV tendencies? Yes, that’s right. I love shows for teenagers. With that little warning out of the way, I’m going to say Pretty Little Liars (YES! Everyone is A! Everyone!)… I’m also ready for some more Grey’s Anatomy (in case you were wondering who that last Grey’s fan was… it’s me!)… what else? Orange is the New Black… I feel like there was another show that I was recently obsessing over. OH! It’s with Ryan Phillippe… hmmm. Secrets and Lies! Thank you, Google. And Nashville. I love Nashville.

Skinny jeans or leggings? They’re both so comfortable… I love them both.

Combat boots or Uggs? I love boots. I try not to discriminate. As long as they’re not too high. I used to require a 2-3″ heel, but now that I have to lug around 25 lbs of sweetness, flats and 1″ heels are as big as I can get.

Halloween – Yay or Nay? I’m NOT a fan of dressing up myself… it’s just not really my thing. I used to love it back in the day… for a good old fashioned Halloween party with libations and bar crawls. But these days, I’d much prefer reserving the dressing up for my babes.

Remember??

Bunny BabeBunny cabbage patch

Fall mornings or evenings? I’m not partial to either… I’ll take both!

What do you think about Black Friday? I LOVE shopping. For the past two years, we pretended like we were going to buy a big CHEAP TV on Black Friday, but never did. But I like shopping for random stuff, clothes, whatever. I’m a huge sale shopper. It’s just way too fun. BUT… you won’t see me in line or up at 3 am. I’m way too lazy and obsessed with Thanksgiving for that crap.

One Fall 2015 Trend You Love: PLAID!! I just love flannel and plaid shirts. I’ll be rocking them all fall and winter.

Now to nominate more of my mommy blogging friends…

Grace of the Father

Just Live It 

Bumbi’s Mom

Have fun, mommas!

TWO NAPS!!

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I know, I know… can I talk about anything else?

Apparently, no. I’m all naps all the time.

This weekend was another couple days of weird schedules. Charlotte has been waking up at around 6/630 every day for the past weekish. Every morning, her little baby diaper is totally soaked through, as are her clothes. After 4 mornings like this, we started to think, “hey… I think she’s ready for the next size!”

Duh, right?

Anyway, I think that might be why she’s been waking up so early, which could also be throwing off her whole schedule. Bad sleep perpetuates bad sleep.

I’m not 100% convinced, but it’s something to try.

I bought her new (bigger) night diapes that we’ll try tonight!

So anyway, on Saturday, Charlotte took a 3-hour nap, from 11-2. This was her only nap of the day and it worked great. She was a little doll the whole day. Only trouble? 11-2 is not a sustainable nap time and I don’t think she’s ready to push it back until 1.

On Sunday, we went back to trying for two naps. Charlotte napped from about 940-1140 I believe… or something like that. Then, we put her down for her second nap at around 330/4. She fell asleep at around 5p and we ended up having to wake her up for dinner at 6:45. Ugh. Needless to say, she didn’t fall asleep until about 10:30 pm last night. Unsuccessful.

BUT!!! And here’s where things start looking up… today, Charlotte napped from around 10-1130 AND AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON! It’s currently 4:30 and she’s been asleep since at least 3 pm! I’m so excited. Hopefully it’s not just a fluke. But even so, I’m feeling relieved. This tiny person was definitely in need of a little rest.