Happy Birthday Charlie!

Following a tearful week (I'm way too sentimental for my own good :), on Friday, May 11, Charlie finally turned 2.  I cannot believe my baby boy is TWO...it just sounds so old (until you see him unsuccessfully try to get his 2 fingers up--reminds just me how little he still is :).  He woke up to a balloon-decorated chair, a Matchbox helicopter and tractor, a new pair of sunglasses, and a card...

 Not surprisingly, the balloons were a big hit.  But not nearly as a big a hit as a helicopter!

 Two candles in the French toast...you've never seen anyone so thrilled to have "Happy Birthday" sang to him.

 The lovely little party guest.

 Charlie loves his new sunglasses.  Evie was pretty excited about them too. :)

 Daddy was working the night before and the night of Charlie's birthday, so we didn't get a ton of time with him, but he did take some time to open a couple of presents with Charlie.

 And he got a scooter!  SUCH a big hit.  We have been having so much fun with this!

 My parents were in town for the birthday extravaganza, so we decided to spend the birthday morning at the zoo.  We got caught in some rain showers, but that didn't stop us.  We had a great time.

Our fearless navigators, leading the way...

 Charlie likes the animals, but REALLY loves the safari jeep!

 The carousel is also a huge hit...

 ...with both kids!  Evie loved her zoo trip, and decided Charlie's birthday isn't half bad. :)

 My two little helpers helped me bake a cake when we got home from the zoo.

 Charlie learned all about licking the spoon.  I think I've created a monster!

 The finished product!

After a relaxing, fun, very special day celebrating our sweet little 2-year-old, we are finally ready for the big party.  More to come tomorrow... :) 

Rescue Vehicles, Race Horses, and Cinco de Mayo

We had a very Charlie-centric Saturday on May 5 (can you tell I have some catching up to do?).  We started things out with a trip to the park for my neighborhood's "safety day."  This event more than lived up to its unexciting name.

Charlie got to drive a police car...

...play around in a fire engine...

...ride on a game warden boat...

...and then, when we thought things just couldn't get any better, a helicopter landed right next to where we were standing!  It was so cool watching it come down, and even better watching Charlie's face while it landed.  He really could not believe his good fortune.

Charlie was so excited to climb in the helicopter.  I had to restrain him several times to keep him from cutting in line to get in.

Finally, it was our turn.  You've never seen someone so excited.  It was NOT easy getting this guy out of the helicopter!

After watching the helicopter take off, we headed home and Charlie chattered nonstop about the various vehicles he had seen and sat in.  We took naps and then rushed out to a Kentucky Derby party.  And not just any Kentucky Derby party--this one had stick horses, a bounce house, and--much to Charlie's delight--snacks and juice boxes. :)  We then came home for a quick dinner and then headed over to the Stoltz's house for a Cinco de Mayo celebration.  Another hit for Charlie, as this party came with chips and salsa.  SUCH a fun day, capped off with a rousing rendition of Peter Rabbit as the party wound down (note Blythe's scarf and sunglasses--such a stylish little lady :).

 And here's a very exhausted Evie celebrating Cinco de Mayo with Bethany.  Evie was such a good sport all day, staying sweet and happy despite being run into the ground.  You've never seen anyone so happy to get into bed that night!

What a fun day!  So grateful for such fun friends to spend time with when Clint is working. :)

Evie: 6 Months Old!

My goodness, where does time go?  Our baby is half a year old already, and this is going down as the fastest 6 months in history.  I have to say, though, that the passage of time is easier to take this time around.  I so mourned the passing of time with Charlie, and although I definitely get nostalgic about Evie getting older, it is also really exciting because I know how much fun is ahead. :)  Evie is such a delight at 6 months.  She is the sweetest, smiliest little baby.  Every time someone looks at her and smiles, she breaks out a huge smile (and then gets shy and buries her head for a minute before peeking out with another smile).  She babbles and coos in her soft little voice, and waves her arms about wildly when she gets excited.  She is getting a bit wary around strangers, but loves her "people."  And although I don't want her to be clingy, those tiny little hands reaching out hard to resist. :)  One of my favorite things about Evie is getting her up in the morning or from a nap.  She usually wakes up in a wonderful mood and switches from crying to big smiles and giggles when I walk in her room.  What a great way to start off a day!

Evie has a mind of her own and lets us know when she's hungry or tired, but she is generally really easy going.  Even when she's tired, she will perk up and be sweet with a change of scenery, a trip outdoors, or a new face to talk to (hungry is another matter; Evie doesn't like missing meals...and who can blame her?).  Evie rarely gets to be on her "own" schedule, but she is a good sport about fitting into our wild days.

At 6 months, Evie is sitting well, although she still tumbles over if I leave her alone too long.  She cut her first tooth (bottom left) on her 6 month birthday, and I think there's another one trying to break through right now.  She is sleeping about 12 hours at night, with one feeding (around 5 a.m.) in the middle.  I am ready for her to drop that 5 a.m. feeding, but hoping she'll do it on her own soon.  She's eating solids (we've tried rice cereal, avocados, sweet potatoes, and bananas), and seems to really enjoy her new meals.  She has started standing up in her high chair, trying to get closer to the food, so I guess I've got to start feeding her more (and buckling her in :).  Charlie loves having her eat with him, but has voiced some concern about her messiness. :)  

Evie is starting to imitate noises, and is working particularly hard on imitating the clicking noises my dad makes for her.  For some reason, she loves that noise.  I even heard her practicing it in her crib yesterday morning!

Charlie and Evie are still so cute together.  They are always making each other laugh; I love hearing "Ebie SOOOO funny!"  Charlie is always often concerned about her well-being, and gets very worried when she is crying.  He sees her as a person, rather than a baby, and I love having that perspective to remind me that she is, indeed, a real person.  If she's crying in the car, he wants me to get her out immediately, and if she's fussing in her bed, he really wants to get in her room and make sure everything is ok (if he goes upstairs with me to get her out of bed, he yells, "Eeebie, we cooooming!" on the way up :).  She's been lunging out of her bath sling, and Charlie has been her biggest advocate for letting her sit in the tub on her own (he finds this hilarious, for some reason).  Evie loves her big brother, and will sit and watch him run around and play for as long as I will let her.  No one can make her laugh as hard as he can, and hearing her deep little chuckle makes me so happy.

And, without further ado, here is the 6-month-old, in all her glory... :)

Evie's 6-month doctor's appointment was quite successful.  She loves getting an outing all by herself and is not picky about where we go--the pediatrician was quite thrilling for her, especially because she was the center of attention.  She was talking and smiling up a storm, even though we were there during nap time.  She didn't fuss too much about the shots, and although she had a little fever the next day, she was just as sweet as ever (just a little more sleepy).  Evie clocked in at:

Weight: 15 pounds (35%)

Height: 26 inches (60%)

Head: 17 inches (75%)

So far, her percentiles are pretty close to what Charlie's were at this stage.  Funny how that works out!

Miss Mouse, you are so very loved.  I don't know how we managed without you!

QT with Papa & Ahh (and other random events)

My mom drove up to Dallas with the Reeds, and ended up staying for a few days afterwards to help out and have some fun.  We had a great time with her, and my dad came up to spend the weekend and retrieve her, so that was really fun as well.  I feel like I am such a better parent when my parents are around.  They are really good with the kids and have so much fun with them (and my kids are really good when they are around as a result), and I feel like they help me relax, live in the moment, and just enjoy my babies.  You don't realize until you have kids what a gift that is!

Charlie had a picnic with Ahh while Evie worked on tummy time.  No one loves a picnic as much as Charlie.  Evie was not quite as thrilled with our outdoor adventure...my mom had her in tummy-time bootcamp during her stay, as I've been a little lax in that department. :)

This boy LOVES his new swings!

So over tummy time.

We had a busy Saturday, beginning with a trip to the kids' school carnival (Charlie is going to school two days/week and Evie one day/week in the fall).  It was an amazing carnival, with 5 different bounce structures, a train, hamburgers, and ponies with sparkly manes and tails.  Charlie is going to be sorely disappointed when he gets to school in the fall and realizes it's not like this every day!

Charlie loved this jumping castle...

...but REALLY loved this slide.  Charlie was so funny on it.  He went up and down so many times, and got sillier and sillier each time.  He watched the big boys very closely, and soon was copying them by jumping in the air at the top of the slide, landing hard, and then shooting down.  We were all dying laughing watching him.  He has no fear! (and is definitely not my child. :)

Here comes Charlie!

While Papa and I chased Charlie around, Ahh and Evie enjoyed some quality time. :)

Charlie also loved the bungee trampoline.  I was a little nervous when the guy started flipping him, but Charlie thought it was amazing.

We did not think we'd get him out of the obstacle course.  Just before he got back to the end each time, he would turn around and run back through the other way.  I had to coax him out with promises of a snack... :)

The kids were worn out after the carnival, and took long naps when we got home.  We had a block party that afternoon that was also so much fun.  I forgot my camera, but we had another bounce house and slide, and two fire engines!  Charlie had so much fun and could not believe his bounce house luck.  We have been in detox ever since. :)

In other news, Charlie has his two-year doctor appointment coming up, and so we are "practicing" in preparation (due to a growing fear of shots and doctors, the last few visits have been a little rough).  Charlie has been loving listening to heartbeats and coughs with his stethoscope and giving shots (poor Evie has been vaccinated more times than I can count this week).

This is a random photo, but Charlie's highchair turns into a child chair, so he's been using it as a chair for a while now.  Since Evie is starting to eat solids, we decided it was time that she had a chair, so we transitioned Charlie to a booster and Clint turned Charlie's chair back into a highchair.  Charlie LOVES any "fix-it" job around the house, and he was very "helpful" during this process (poor Clint--every time I walked by, I heard "Cargie's turn," and saw Charlie wrestling tools away from Clint :).  Evie was thrilled with it as well, and loves her new chair.  Can't you tell?

That concludes my random, rambling post.  If you're still reading, thanks for your loyalty. :)