Florida, part 3

Warm weather makes it much easier to discover your toes!

On our last full day at the resort, we got some good pictures of the kiddos in the water. Jack finally worked up the courage to touch the water fountains and waterfalls.

The water wheel, which he still talks about.


Charlotte had no qualms about sticking her hands in the fountains.

Jack and Charlotte playing around with Grandma and Grandpa Nold in the kiddie pool.


Most people who meet Charlotte after only seeing pictures of her are surprised at how bubbly and smiley she is, since she always shuts down when I get the camera out. Here's a little smile I was able to capture.

And she makes a great scrunchy-nose face.

Florida, Part Deux

On our first day with Grandma and Grandpa Nold, we decided to try out a free children's center and park that Andy found on the internet--and it turned out to be the most amazing municipal park we've ever seen! If anyone is ever in Boca Raton and wants to try out the Children's Explorium and Sugar Sand Park, we'd highly recommend it.

The Children's Explorium had all sorts of cool exhibits that even Charlotte enjoyed.


Of course Jack loved all the things that can spin around.



A cool train circled the room near the ceiling.


The ladies always flock to Jack.

The outdoor park was huge, and included a carousel--unfortunately Jack wasn't interested in riding on it. Here are Elif and Charlotte relaxing in the shade while Jack was busy running around.


Tired little girl on the car ride back! Jack was also worn out afterward and took a monster nap.

Florida, Part 1

We got home LATE Sunday night--actually it was early Monday morning--from Pompano Beach, Florida. Our vacation was wonderful, and we got to see Granddaddy and Grandmomma Fields, Grandpa and Grandma Nold, and even the Edelmann family. Here's the first of what will be at least 3 blog posts; I uploaded over 100 pictures, and that was after I had already weeded through and deleted many.

Charlotte has definitely gotten a lot bigger since Grandmomma and Granddaddy saw her as a newborn!


Our resort had several different pools, but we wound up spending the most time in the baby pool, since Jack was a bit skittish around the splashing fountains and deeper water in the other pools. He got braver as the week went on though; I think these pictures were taken from our first trip to the pool. Another benefit of the baby pool was that it was mostly shaded. In case you haven't noticed, our kids have blindingly fair skin, so we have to be very careful in the sun.

LOVE the faces from Granddaddy while he and Jack were splashing each other.


Charlotte spending some alone time after her sunscreen (aka "sunscream" in Jackspeak) application. She's a slippery little sucker after her 5 pounds of sunscreen are applied, so she has to sit for a while to let it soak in. We rubbed it on her head too, so she was looking pretty rough--fuzzy hair matted with white cream is not a fashion statement many can pull off.

We've decided Charlotte is going to be a future swimmer, since she loves the water. She sat for a long time in the pool splashing and wasn't afraid to get in the fountains, either. Here's Charlotte sitting pretty with Dad. Note her chewing on her arm--she's getting her first tooth, so she's always gumming something.

Sleeping beauty, all worn out after her swim. I guess I at least got one picture of myself on the blog, even if it is just of my cleavage.

Charlotte with Grandmomma and Elif.

We went out to eat several times, and with the exception of one dinner later in the week, Charlotte behaved extremely well. Here she is sitting in a high chair at a seafood restaurant. We introduced Elif to the delicacy of hush puppies...I think we got across the clarification that they are not made of dog, and the fish was not made of cat.

Elif showing Charlotte how to use her cell phone.

Saying goodbye to Grandmomma and Granddaddy. They left on Wednesday evening, as Grandma and Grandpa Nold arrived. We had a wonderful visit and look forward to seeing them again sometime this summer!

Opening day

Actually, opening day for the Cubs was yesterday (and they lost), but oh well. Jack and Charlotte still put up with my impromptu photo shoot in their Cubs gear this morning. We're ready for baseball--and hopefully the warm weather that will come with it!



Jack showing Charlotte how to play the xylophone.

Gotta love the ruffle butt.

Screaming

We're not going to be very popular on the plane if Charlotte does much of this. These screams are relatively quiet, too. Whenever I get the camera out she tones it down. She was really letting loose with some ear-splitting screams before I started filming.

In case I don't post another blog entry before then, Happy Birthday to Grammy Jarvis on Friday!

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.