6 Months Old

Hey there, it's me Charlotte. I turned 6 months old yesterday--can you believe I'm already half a year old? Crazy! Mom took these pictures of me last night at dinner. I'm not the neatest eater, as you can see. So far I like the cereal that Mom's been giving me, but I'm pretty skeptical about sweet potatoes.

My fingers taste pretty good too. I've always got at least one hand in my mouth, and then I love to swipe my drooly hand at anyone within reach.

Mom took me to the doctor on Monday for my 6-month checkup. It turned out they didn't have one of the shots I needed, so I didn't get any. Yea!!! But Mom says I have to go back next week, darn. I weighed 16 lbs, 10 oz; and I was 25 inches long. I'm on the 10th percentile for length and 95th for weight. So I'm officially short and round. I'm only a pound behind where my big brother was at 6 months, and a full inch shorter. Looks like I'm chubalicious too--at least I have a chin, though, ha ha!

I'm getting really good at sitting up by myself. I can sit unsupported for 20-30 minutes sometimes, as long as I've got some entertaining toys in front of me to play with. I also love to sit and watch my brother and Louie. They make me laugh more than anything!

I'm looking forward to seeing my Grandma and Grandpa Nold, and my Grandmomma and Granddaddy Fields in a week when we go to Florida!

Dinner time

Charlotte started solid foods the other night! She had some rice cereal--here's the very first try:

What are they doing to me???

Charlotte wasn't sure what to think of her food the first couple times, but since she's actually become a big fan of her cereal. She'll grab your hand and force the spoon into her mouth.

And here's Jack having fun laughing with Elif at dinner.

Welcome Elif!

A belated congratulations to the Edelmanns on the birth of their baby boy Samuel Ross on Feburary 3. Congratulations Lindsey, Cliff, and Amelia!

Last week we welcomed our new au pair, Elif--all the way from Turkey! (For those of you that weren't aware, it worked out that our first au pair, Ashley, was going to be with us only until April. Ashley is still with us for a couple more weeks, and she is a great help, since she's the main one "training" Elif while we're at work.)

Charlotte has really taken to Elif, which is saying a lot, since Charlotte has seemed to develop mommy separation anxiety at an earlier than average age.

Jack's in heaven with another person around to play with him! Elif is a lot of fun.


We look forward to spending time and sharing our house with Elif over the next year as she's part of our family, and we hope we're able to help her adjust to life in these crazy United States.

Birthday party

A happy birthday shout-out to all the March family birthdays: Grandpa Nold, Aunt Lisa, and cousins Alexis and Lori!!

I forgot to hit the "play" button until halfway through the song, but you get the general idea. Jack loved his Thomas the Train cake, and being sung to, but he was not interested in blowing out his candle. Maybe next year!

The cake was a big hit with all the kiddos!


Leah Word and Charlotte also thought the balloons were fun to play with.

Charlotte attacking the balloons

Present time! Thanks to everyone for all the wonderful gifts. Jack was in heaven today playing with all his new things. He also liked the handmade cards--we were trying to get him to show off the card from Aubrey and Leah here.


One of Jack's favorite new toys was this cool dinosaur from cousin Alexis. It got a little hungry toward the end of the night (Fields/Gambrell familes--remember that chicken from Christmas 2009?)

The Morning After

More to come later...

Just wanted to share a picture of the aftermath of Jack's birthday party last night. Please note this picture was taken after we had already done some cleaning last night and for a while this morning.

But it was worth it--Jack had a fabulous birthday party and fun was had by all. We had a great time with everyone last night!!

Birthday Boy

It's hard to believe, but Jack turned 3 yesterday! He was very proud of the artwork he made today at playschool.

What a year he's had. Look at this picture from a year ago and see how baby-faced he still was.


Can you believe at this time last year we were just announcing my pregnancy, and now I have a 5 1/2 month old and a 3 year old??

Jack, you've really grown from a baby into a little boy this past year. We started the year off with you barely speaking, and us worrying as it became apparent therapy was needed. But you gradually improved, and then in the fall, you had a breakthrough and your language abilities exploded. I still remember how surprised the speech therapist was that you went from 50% delays in expressive ability to above age-level ability in just a couple of months. Your little voice is still one of the best sounds in the world.

You've also gone through several other important changes this year. We moved to a new house, which you had no problems adjusting to (I'm sure the ceiling fans and big back yard helped a lot with that.) We stopped using a crib, and you've been in your big boy bed for several months now. You don't even have a rail on it anymore. You're sitting in a regular chair at the table and are so good at feeding yourself. We're still working on potty training, but you're definitely making progress.

And of course, you've become a wonderful big brother! After hearing other people's horror stories, I had wondered and worried so much when I was pregnant about how you would react to the baby. We had a few tantrums in the beginning, but other than that, you've handled everything exceptionally well. You and Charlotte definitely love each other already, and I know you two will have so much fun growing up together.

You're such an incredibly smart, happy, sweet, and loving little boy. You fill our lives with joy, and I look forward to another year of watching you grow and learn. We love you very much, my little 3-year old!

These are a few of my favorite things

How Charlotte looks at her big brother with such awe and fascination. I'm lucky to coax a few chuckles out of her, but she openly laughs around him every day.

Jack's beautiful mispronunciations. I'll almost hate when he learns to say these correctly: "maggots" for "magnets," "pack-pack" for "back-pack," "Woowie" for "Louie," "snug-a-bug-a-wug" for "snug as a bug in a rug" when I tuck him in bed, "muffin" for "oven," and "boo-boos" for "blueberries." (He actually stopped doing that one a while ago, but it's still one of my favorites.)

How when Charlotte is eating, she'll frantically wave her free hand around, grabbing at everything until she finds my finger. Then she'll calm down and lie still.

When Jack is so proud of himself for doing something that he literally quivers with excitement and struts around.

How Charlotte can look totally unfazed no matter how loud/disgusting the bodily functions she's performing are. She just stares straight at you with a "Who, me?" look on her face.

How Jack amazes me all the time with how smart he is. He's recently started telling me when we're turning left and right when we're in the car, or when we're going straight. And he's right! I don't think we ever consciously taught him left/right either.

Charlotte's enjoyment of eating. She wiggles around and gasps with excitement whenever I'm getting her in position to feed. She's definitely her mother's daughter :)

Jack's blanket statements. He usually greets me when I get home with "had a good nap," or "good time pweeschool Miss Gwadys," or "watched Jack's Big Music Show." He'll say one of those regardless of whether he actually did any of them that day. And of course, we've all heard and loved his favorite icebreaker, "Monkeys eat bananas."

The way Charlotte sat up for several minutes this morning in front of the closet mirror, staring and smiling at herself.

Jack and Charlotte's excitement when Andy or I arrive home from work. My heart will break a little that inevitable day sometime in the future when they stop.

The noises Charlotte makes occasionally when she's dreaming. She sounds exactly like Louie when he's sleep-barking and squealing. I'm not exaggerating--if they ever happen to be doing this at the same time, you really can't tell who's who.

And lastly, Jack's spontaneous displays of affection for his baby sister--giving noses here.