Sun, Sun, Sun ... Here We Come!

Our cruise is coming up on us quickly and we are SO ready for a vacation. Aaron and I haven't had a vacation since our honeymoon in February 2008 and we've been so busy since then with the new job for Aaron; the move to NH; me being pregnant for 9 months; buying a house and doing much work on it; and raising Charlie for 6 months so far. Whew - it's definitely time for some relaxation.

Also on this cruise are the people we met on our honeymoon cruise: Nancy, Christine and Joyce from California, and Chris from here in NH - who is engaged to Robin and getting married on this trip!!

Many say we're crazy for bringing such a young baby on the trip with us, but we're smart cookies - we're also having my parents come along to help out! We are leaving from NJ once again, which I love - being able to stay out of the sky before and after a trip.

Our stops are:
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas - where Charlie, Aaron and I will be attending Chris & Robin's wedding!
Samana, Domincan Republic - none of us have ever been!
Labadee, Haiti - my FAVORITE!

We have had this trip planned for over a year now and I must say, Charlie has the best vacation wardrobe since I've been shopping for her since we found out she was a girl!! But, recently I found sunglasses small enough for her little noggin and she actually loves wearing them. She played in her exersaucer one day with them on for about 15 minutes!

I'd say she's as excited as we are!!!

Warm weather, here we come!!!!!!!!

Charlie's First Word!

February 4, 2009

I must say I'm excited that Charlie can say "Mama". Here's a video of her saying it the first day I heard it - at exactly 6 months! The fish face was a new thing after I got the camera out; she's a character!!

6 Months Old!!

That's right, Charlotte is officially a half a year old!!! It's crazy how fast time has flown by and how quickly she is growing up.


She is now eating solids three times a day, rolls all over the floor to get to where she wants (we prefer the rug, she prefers the hardwoods!), and can sit up on her own with us close by. She is trying so hard to crawl, but manages to cruise backwards instead of forward. She smiles and laughs all the time and reacts to most of the routine things we mention - eating, bath, jumperoo, etc. She LOVES her bath (had gone through a short phase a while back where she didn't) and splashes water all over - and it doesn't phase her when water gets in her eyes and face. I can't wait to see her on the beaches in the Caribbean in a couple of weeks!

Of course, there are still some things we're working on with her - getting her to enjoy her vegetables as much as her fruits; not to whine like a puppy when we walk out of the room for a minute or two; she is still scared of people coughing/sneezing/laughing/sniffling/blowing their nose ... sometimes it makes us laugh, and then that scares her too; she enjoys quietly lying down on the couch with Tigger and Pooh on the tv for her naps ... which means she hates going down in her crib when I try and usually ends up back on the couch.

They say you can't spoil a baby this age - I disagree. I shower her with songs, dance, and attention ALL day every day, so if she isn't entertained for a few minutes - she lets me know she's not happy about it! She is a character and we love all of it as she forms her own personality.

Growing Up Isn't Easy

January 29, 2010

Our baby continues to grow too fast - and it's sad when you watch her outgrow her FAVORITE toy. We bought the Merry Monkey mat when she was only a couple of months old, and the cashier at the store commented that she was a little young for it. WRONG! She loved it from the minute we set her under it. Here are a few pics showing her growth:


Picture 1 - this is when we first bought it at a couple months old. She wasn't sure of what she was supposed to do, but got the hang of it pretty quick.

Picture 2 - this was taken in mid-December at about 4 1/2 months old, when she began rotating herself easily around the floor.

Picture 3 - taken last week after only a few minutes of setting her down to play under it - she rolls all over the floor these days. Not a good thing for this play mat!

Even though she's outgrown it, she still gets excited to come downstairs and play with this toy first thing in the morning. When she wakes up, we ask her if she wants to play Merry Monkey and she gets all giddy with excitement - how can we take that away?! There may just be hope for one more step in playing with this toy - sitting up! She's *so* close now!

Charlie's Book

I got an email from Shutterfly with an offer for a free hard cover book, so I dug right in. We made it for Charlotte to keep in her room as her own story book of her first 6 months. I can't wait to get it in the mail this week and read it to her!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Gosh, she is growing up so fast. :(

Tiny Dancer

We often play her fun music during the day and she has come to recognize those songs. She likes them so much she has started to dance to them too!!



I'm lucky to have such great entertainment every day!

The Best Sound in the World

Charlotte has really enjoyed eating her rice cereal over the past month and a half, and now likes *some* fruits. She loves applesauce and pears ... bananas, not so much ... and peaches, forget it! After eating, she doesn't care for having her face washed but has fun biting on the wet washcloth. We were having fun here!