Carolyn

Birthday Party Part Deux

Sarah Carolyn

20051029_party.jpgCarrie had her last first birthday party today! She had a blast with all of her cousins, although she does seem to be a bit under the weather. (She seems to have a non-stop runny nose, and I swear she’s felt feverish to me for the past two days, although the thermometer disagrees.) I also didn’t manage to time her nap very well: it was too early and too short, which I’m sure contributed to her crankiness.

After the cake, all the kids put on their Halloween costumes and had a mini-parade. We actually got all seven first cousins, plus one of their second cousins, to sit on the couch all at the same time. As far as I can tell, nobody’s crying or trying to leap off the couch. I think we should mark this day on a calendar!

Although I did hand my camera around a bit, we didn’t get as many pictures this time around, but we did get some good ones here. (Why is it so hard to be involved in an event and still record it?!?) Carrie’s definitely looking a bit rough around the edges in some of those pictures…

12 month well-baby visit

Sarah Growing Up

Vital stats:
1 year, 2 days old
20 lbs. 3 oz.
29.5″ tall

My goodness. I’ve been lifting a 20 pound weight for weeks now – I’m a strong mama! Today was Carrie’s 1 year checkup, and she checks out perfectly. She’s almost exactly (within 1/4 pound) tripled her birth-weight, which is exactly what they’re supposed to do. We can give her whole eggs now, and whole milk if we want – but since she’s still nursing we don’t have to yet. We can technically also switch her carseat to front-facing, but having read a bunch of studies and seen some crash-test videos we’ve decided to keep her rear-facing as long as we can. The rear-facing limit on her seat is something like 33 or 35 pounds, so probably for another year and half or more. (</end public service announcement>)

Carrie had her chicken pox vaccine (I’m so glad she won’t have to deal with that – it’s one of my earliest memories, since I had it when I was three, and it’s not a pleasant one) and her flu shot today. She was such a trooper, and didn’t cry at all for them. And then we had to take her down the hall for the finger stick lead test. Again, she was amazingly good and didn’t cry, despite having to sit still for a good five minutes while the technician collected drop after drop of blood. (I swear, the mama bear instinct was in full force and I wanted to claw her eyes out, although I’m sure she’s very nice.)

Now Carrie’s sleeping it all off, and will hopefully wake up a happy girl – though I certainly can’t blame her if she wakes up cranky!

Twelve Months Old! (a.k.a. Happy Birthday!)

Sarah Monthly Updates

Dear Carolyn,

Today you are one year old! I can’t believe how quickly this year has flown by, and I’m torn between feeling sad that my baby is growing up so fast and feeling excited about seeing the little person you’re becoming.

(Click the picture to see Carrie and her bear at 1 month old.)


The changes this month have been more subtle than in past months. You’re becoming a lot more independent and adventurous, and you want to do things you maybe can’t quite do yet, but you really want to do them yourself and will get upset if anyone tries to help you. Now that you’ve mastered walking, you’re working on climbing. You’ve managed to get up on the coffee table once already, and you love to climb in and out of kid-sized chairs. Unfortunately, you also love to stand in kid-sized chairs, and have fallen and bumped your head a few times.

Now you have two teeth, and we brush them every night. First I take a turn, then you get your toothbrush to chew on for a bit. You’re loving your “big girl” bath, in the regular old tub, especially since we got a duck tub mat and some duck tile appliques for the walls. You love to point to them and sign “dog”. (We keep trying to tell you that “duck” and “dog” sound a lot alike but are different words – and signs – but you insist that they’re dogs.)

Hm, let’s see, what new foods have you tried this month? Definitely salmon, kale, chick peas, cranberries and chocolate. At this point, everything you eat is something we’re eating for dinner, unless we’re having chicken. You hate chicken. And anything chicken broth-based. I’m starting to think that my complete aversion to chicken while I was pregnant with you was because you don’t like it. I imagine you’ll at least learn to tolerate it someday. In the meantime, you get plenty of protein from cheese, turkey, beans and fish. Oh, and I discovered “pea butter” a few weeks ago, so some days I have my regular old PB&J for lunch, and you get PeaB&J for your lunch. This has cut down on how often you beg for my sandwich which you can’t eat yet.

You have some news signs this month: “water”, “read”, “bear”, “bunny”, “butterfly”, “moon” and “star”. (Some of these, admittedly, are very similar – in fact, “bear”, “bunny” and “butterfly” look exactly the same, so you sign it and then point to what you’re “talking” about.) So that brings us to, what, 16 signs? And you sign two-word sentences, like “more cheese” and “read dog” (to hear a book about a dog.) No new spoken words yet, but you’re working on your “s” and “sh” sounds. You really love socks and shoes and try out those sounds whenever you see them, so I think you’ll get those words soon! Sometimes it really sounds like you’re trying to swear. Since Daddy and I really watch our language around you, though, I’m pretty sure you’re just talking about shoes!

We had a big birthday party for you a couple of days ago, and you had a great time. Tonight we just had a little celebration, and I made your favorites: turkey, green beans and sweet potatoes. Instead of a cake I bought a pumpkin roll for you to try – we’re a little “caked out”, and you have another big birthday party this weekend, so I figured it would be ok. You loved it so much you were actually licking the plate! I hate to tell you, but while you were licking the front of your plate, Molly was licking the back of it. I really wish we’d gotten that on video! And then when you were all done with your cake you tried to eat my piece too. I’m glad you like pumpkin so much, because you’re my little pumpkin. (You’re going to hate me someday when you read this!) Oh, and we got you a book and a doll for your birthday. The first thing you did was drop your doll on her head and step on her. Poor dolly!


You’re definitely making the transition from baby girl to little girl, and while I miss the baby I’m loving the little girl you’re becoming. I’m sure someday I’m going to see you with your own little girl and wonder where the time went. In the meantime, I guess I’d better try to enjoy every single minute I have with my little girl. I love you, Carrie.

Love, Mommy

See more pictures!

Cribs And Kisses

Sarah Carolyn

A year ago today, my parents, my grandfather, and Denis spent almost an hour putting together Carrie’s crib. Just in time, too, because I went into labor a couple hours later! Today, on the other hand, I spent what felt like an hour trying to detach one of the toys Carrie got at her party yesterday from its packaging. I swear, those stupid little twist ties ought to be illegal! Whoever came up with this form of packaging never had a small child crawling all over them because they really, really, really wanted the toy inside the box – the toy they could touch and play with through the box but couldn’t actually get out!

Tonight, as I was getting Carrie settled for bed, she started giving me kisses on my cheeks and chin. She’s given “blown” kisses before, but never real kisses. They were open-mouthed slobbery kisses, but they were the sweetest kisses I’ve ever gotten! And here I was feeling all bittersweet about her turning a year old tomorrow, because it seems like the year has gone by so fast and I’m afraid I’m not living enough in the moment and enjoying this fleeting time. But the kisses made it all better! And after she gave me enough kisses she fell asleep in my arms, which she hasn’t done in ages at bedtime. I swear I thought my heart was just going to melt.

Happy Birthday To A Star!

Sarah Carolyn

20051022_party.jpgWe had the first of Carrie’s first birthday parties today! (She’ll have a small celebration on her actual birthday this Monday, and we’re going to visit the other half of our family in NYC for another big bash next Saturday.) It was a great party. Things came together, and not even at the last minute – we had some time to chill before the party started, and Carrie miraculously took an early nap so she was a happy little girl for the party. I can’t thank Lisa enough for all her help with everything, especially the cake!

Carrie did all the things you hope your child will do for their first birthday party. She walked, she shoved chocolate cake in her mouth (and all over her face), and she even feigned interest in the whole present thing for a bit. Amazingly, she took having more than 40 (I lost count) people in the house with only a tiny bit of shyness, and was a social butterfly for most of the afternoon. I think she missed the dogs, who spent the day at doggie day spa (we boarded them at the vet, where they’ll get a pedicure), but we thought they’d be happier to not have to deal with so many people.

There are some (well, maybe more than some) pictures here. We ran out of memory card space before the end, but luckily there were a few other cameras floating around! I also put together a playlist for the party, which is a combination of sort of general party music, songs with some sentimental meaning, and songs that went with the rainbow/colors/wishing theme of the party. Oh, and there are several songs about dogs.

Nana and Poppy’s Visit

Sarah Carolyn

20051017_nanapoppy.jpg

Nana and Poppy left this morning, but not before Carrie got her picture taken with them. We’ll see them again in less than two weeks. Carrie took a little while remembering them on Saturday, but as you can see, they’re definitely two of her very favorite people!

It was a pretty short visit, and most of yesterday was taken up with the Bill’s game, but we did get to visit a pumpkin patch on Saturday. Sunday Carrie and Nana had a good time reading books and singing songs while the rest of us went to the Bills’ game. (Poor Poppy is a Jets fan, so he needed a few extra kisses from Carrie this morning!)

Snip!

Sarah Firsts

20051015_haircut.jpgCarrie had her first haircut today! It’s not the drastic straight-cut bangs I had feared. I brought her to my stylist and she did a really good job sort of layering it so I could push it off to the side and not have it look so severe. And when it falls forward (which it does frequently) it’s no longer hanging right in her eyes.

She did beautifully, sitting on my lap with no protests, and let Michelle work on her hair for a good 10 minutes. I was really worried about how it would look and how Carrie would handle it, but I’m glad we did it. She looks a like a little pixie now. We’ll just grow it out when she’s old enough to leave barrettes and pony holders in without trying to eat them.

Oh, and does anyone have any good recommendations for tear-free baby shampoo & conditioner? Carrie’s hair seems a little dry just using our Aveeno baby wash & shampoo combo.

Bye-Bye Duck Tub

Sarah Carolyn

Carrie took her first bath in the big tub tonight. We were using an inflatable duck tub, but she seemed to be getting kind of cramped in there – especially when she had several toys in with her, it was nearly impossible to wash her up properly! (For some reason, both Denis and I are a little sad about retiring the duck tub…)

Carrie definitely liked the extra leg room, and was splashing and having a great time. This child has no fear of anything! Oh, except maybe getting her teeth brushed now – I don’t know what happened, but she started crying as I was brushing her two little teeth and gums. Maybe I just hit a tender spot where another tooth is coming soon?

Two Teeth!

Sarah Carolyn

Carrie looks to have a second tooth coming in on the bottom. I’m kind of selfishly hoping that she only has two teeth for Halloween, because she’ll make a cute pumpkin!

Dance, Baby, Dance!

Sarah Carolyn

Carrie figured out how to dance today! She bops up and down with her knees. We tried to catch it on video, but every time we started filming she stopped. Go figure. She was dancing to “All Star” (Smash Mouth) and then “Best Years of our Lives” (Baha Men). I’m putting together a playlist for her party, so I’ve been playing more/louder music in the daytime than usual – I generally try to keep it a bit quieter so she can hear what I’m saying when I talk and read books to her. But I think she’s enjoying the extra music time, so I’ll probably make more of an effort to play it on a daily basis.

Carrie’s been doing a couple other cute things lately. This morning at breakfast, she was eating grapes. The dogs, as usual, were stationed on either side of her high chair. Carrie looked at a piece of grape, looked at Molly, looked at the grape, and then dropped it for Molly to eat. Then she did the same thing on the other side for Murphy. That’s the first time I’ve seen her deliberately give the dogs each a piece of food – before now she’d just drop things and let them scramble for it.

And she’s also mastered walking backwards recently. If I’m sitting on the floor, she’ll turn around in front of me and back up until she can sit in between my legs or on my lap (depending on how I’m sitting). The funny thing is that when we play with her ball, instead of sitting across from me, she’ll back up, sit in my lap and roll it away from both of us. I guess she thinks we’re playing with an imaginary friend?