Happy Halloween

Caroline says, "Quit stealing all my candy!"

I told Mark that I wanted to be productive today. I wanted to feel like I had accomplished something and we have! Today I made pumpkin bread and pizza dough for homemade pizza. I also finished a pillowcase dress for Caroline. It's a little big but as she gets bigger I'm hoping that I can make more of these. It was very easy!

Bath time

Tuesday we went over to Lindsay and Brad's house and carved our pumpkin. We enjoyed our time and the girls were very well behaved while we carved. Afterwards we decided to give them a bath together. They have both started taking baths in the tub with just an inch or two of water. Caroline loves it! She splahes around like crazy. I tell her that she is going to be an Olympic swimmer (this is me living all my long lost dreams through her)!

The picture below is not the best color/quality but their little faces are just too cute! Poor blog readers...I just can't resist taking pictures of them together. Two babies is just too much cuteness for me to handle. Everytime they get together I have to take pictures of them!!

Halloween Party

Last Saturday Caroline went to her first Halloween party. Noelle was so creative! The kids "went fishing", did a ring toss, played on the swing set, decorated cookies and ate lots of yummy treats (pumpkin cupcakes and ghost suckers). It was a fun time to see the kids in their costumes.


There were lots of sweet little kids...


but I think she was the sweetest one there!

Mark held her the whole time and she was so content and warm. She even took a little snooze in his arms.

Poor baby

Caroline woke up Sunday morning with a stuffed up nose. We stayed home from church Sunday because we didn't want to get the other babies in the nursery sick. We thought about letting her sit in Sunday School with us but she was snorting so much is would have been a distraction! She has held on to this cold everyday since. We have been suctioning all that we can out of her nose but it will not go away. She has remained pretty happy all week and has been sleeping pretty good overall...except for Wednesday night. She woke up at 2 AM and I went in to check on her. She was so stuffed up. The poor girl could barely breathe. Really the whole reason I'm writing all this is because it was the saddest, sweetest thing. I picked her up and she immediately snuggled right up to me and relaxed. I think one of the best things about being a Mom is feeling needed. She was so glad that I was there to love her and snuggle her. I could just feel her little body relax in my arms. Needless to say, she stayed with me the rest of the night. I love getting to take care of her!

Since she was up so much Wednesday night I tried to get off work Thursday but couldn't. Thankfully, Mark volunteered to stay home with her. He took great care of her and said she was an angel all day! It's so nice to be able to work together as a team and to see Mark being able to care for her too!

Christmas in October

Mark came home the other day and said, "Honey I got you a Christmas present and I want to give it to you now." I could tell he wasn't going to take no for answer so I opened up the bag and found a new video camera! It's very tiny and fancy (read: I have no idea how to use it). He told me he wanted me to be an expert on the camera and to video Caroline growing up. I'm not sure I will ever be a camera expert but I can video her growing up. I'm thankful for my sweet husband. I would have never thought to ask for a video camera but I know that it will be so much fun to watch video of her when she is all grown up!

Below is my first attempt at recording her and posting it online. I must say that I hate my voice on camera! I try so hard not to talk when it is on because it's so annoying...especially the baby talk voice. I'm sorry that you will have to suffer through it. As she ages I hope the videos get better and better - more of Caroline talking and less of me! :-)

Stylish Girl

I think Caroline's jeans are more stylish than any jeans that I own. She is so cute!

Mom Time

Caroline and I had a few friends over today. We had lunch together and talked about lots of fun things. It's neat to be able to share so many things with these friends. The small stuff, like all of our babies being sleepy at the same time, and the big stuff, questions about marriage, working, and more. I am so thankful for our time together and look forward to adding more Mom's and little munchkins to our group!

Aunt Lindsay being sweet!

After Katie and Ki left we took a couple pictures of Caroline and Kelsey in their matching outfits and then it was naptime!

Growing girl!

Our little girl is growing up too quickly. I keep telling Mark that I want her to stop growing and he keeps fussing at me for saying that but it's true! She is just so sweet and so much fun. I know it's going to get better and better but it just goes by so quickly. The funny thing about her growing up is that on the one hand I get excited when she does new things but then on the other hand I want her to slow down. Today I laid her on the ground next to some toys and she reached over, grabbed one that was close to her and pulled it on top of her!! Also today I put her in her little jumpy thing for the second time ever (the first time didn't go so hot) and she enjoyed it for a few minutes. She's only 3 months old! How can she like that thing already?!?

Slow down sista'!

Day Care

I was so reluctant to put Caroline in day care. Before Caroline had even arrived I told Mark that if we had to put Caroline in day care I would just quit my jobs and stay home. Thankfully, I have changed my mind. It is really good for me to get out of the house and interact with adults a couple of times a week. I still hate putting her in day care because I miss her so much but the ladies there are so sweet and I know she is getting great care. I also know that it will be good for her especially as she gets older. The older children there are constantly singing and reading. I'm sure she will learn things that I couldn't teach her myself! It's also worked out great because she goes to day care twice a week at the church where I work.

Today a couple of sweet things happened at day care. I normally drop her off and then don't see her again until I pick her up even though I am in the same building. However, today I passed by her room a couple of times and couldn't help but peek in. The first time I passed by she was zonked out in her crib. The second time I passed by they were getting ready to take the babies outside to "play"! I am such a cheesy Mom I couldn't resist taking a picture.

I wish Caroline could ride in the big stroller but apparently you have to be 6 months old. I think those big strollers are so funny! Random note...apparently I think bigger is better for babies - I am seriously considering buying Caroline one of those headbands with a humongous bow on it! I think they are terribly obnoxious because of their size but that makes them great, right?

Anyway, back to day care...I am thankful for them. Caroline seems very content there and I know the ladies care for her. One of the workers surprised me today by telling me every baby's birthday in the room, even Caroline's! Surely she loves them since she knows all their birthdays!

Pumpkin Patch

We went to the pumpkin patch the other day in the freezing cold! I'm not quite sure what we were thinking. It was a short, cold but enjoyable time. Here are a few pictures from our time together.

The perfect picture takes lots of preparation.

Then we have the silly faces.

Then the, "Mom what in the world are you doing with me!" look.

This is the best one of the day. Thankfully, both girls were very sweet and well behaved, although a little cold.


Family pictures at the pumpkin patch...

We put Caroline in the car and it wasn't a minute later that I turned around and found her snoozing away. Apparently picking out the perfect pumpkin is hard work.

Fun times.

Sew...

I finally finished my first outfit for Caroline. I tried to sew Caroline a little dress before she was born but it was never completed. However, when I went home to visit my Mom she helped me to get started on another project. I reluctantly brought it back to Marietta unfinished but thanks to my helpful husband and my really sweet neighbor the overalls became a reality! I can honestly say that I did every bit of sewing but the sewing machine had a few hiccups that required help from Mark and my neighbor.

Here is Caroline styling her new duds...

I think she was showing off for the camera or maybe she really likes new clothes, just like her mama! Either way I can't wait to make her another outfit! I hope it comes sooner rather than later. :-)

I made some matching overalls for Kelsey too. Come back soon because I hope to have a picture of them both styling them (hint, hint Lindsay). :-)

Shopping...

shopping, shopping (said in my best Greg Russel voice). This morning we left a sleepy Caroline with Grandude. I was shocked to come back two hours later and find her in the same position!




While Caroline slept Grinny and I shopped at a consignment sale and some garage sales. We made a couple of great puchases. Grinny was reaaly happy about this one...






I'm really thankful for Mom and Vern! They have been such loving, patient parents teaching me lots along the way. They are also great grandparents! It's really fun to have them love and spoil Caroline!

Caroline Update

Yesterday Caroline may have had her best day yet! She is getting to be such a happy, sweet baby!! We came to Augusta yesterday to visit with Grinny and Grand-dude. She slept all except the last 10 minutes of the drive. Once we got here she played and slept and played and slept. I can put her on the floor for several minutes at a time now and she will just look around and be content.

One of the reasons for her contentment here is the new found tv. Mark and I have not had cable for almost two years and just recently got rid of the tv all together. Here is a picture of her watching the tv at Grinny's house. Mark and I don't think we are too wierd for not having a television but I realize it's different. The other day I took Caroline over to Lindsay's house so that her babysitter could watch both girls while I worked. I was quite embarrassed when Lindsay mentioned to the babysitter in succession that 1)we don't have tv, 2) we use cloth diapers and 3) we use glass baby bottles. OK, we're a little different but that's alright.





Caroline getting some love from Grinny.



Caroline being a content girl.

Caroline's new sleep "trick." When she gets really tired she starts to bury her head in the crook of my arm. It's so funny. You can't really tell in the picture below but her entire face is hidden and I just love the hand on her head. I just imagine her thinking, "Crazy world go away. I'm trying to sleep.

Random thoughts...

I've been hearing a lot of this lately, "Nicole I think you've lost your sense of humor." Mark thinks that since Caroline has arrived, my humor has disappeared. He even tells me that he thinks we should have a funeral for it! I might have agreed with him but then my friend Noelle suggested that maybe Mark just wasn't that funny. I think I like that thought better. :-) Thankfully, Mark also says he thinks my sense of humor will be revived one day and that it doesn't matter because I'm still as sexy as ever. :-)

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In other news about me, while Mark thinks I have lost my sense of humor, I think I have lost my mind! People kept telling me that I would have pregnant-brain but it never happened. I think pregnant-brain waited until after Caroline was born to attack. I have such a hard time remembering things and focusing on more than one thing at a time. I'm hoping that this doesn't last for long.

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Caroline had a first yesterday that I am proud to report....her first poop explosion! Julie, was holding Caroline at the shower and she started to poop. Julie brought her over to me right away. I still felt the poop coming out and then realized it was all over her clothes! Everyone told me that it would happen at some point and it finally did. Thankfully, Mark was upstairs and he got her all cleaned up! He's a good Dad.

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We have really enjoyed having skype because it's an easy way to catch up with family and let them see Caroline. Here are Mark and Caroline talking with his parents and our nephew Roman!

Eventful weekend

We had a great weekend. This is the first weekend in 10 weeks that we have not had house projects (ceiling damage) to work on!! I don't really remember everything that we did but it was good. On Friday Mark, Caroline and I all ran errands together. They were fun errands. I got a new phone and we shopped at Target which is always fun. I had recently received a gift card to Target for doing a research study for Graco. Afterwards we went to dinner and to bed early.

Saturday morning we woke up early and headed out for a 5k. Our church was hosting the run to raise money for two Habitat for Humanity homes. Mark and I have been "training" for two whole weeks and were definitely prepared to run walk most of the race. :-) We did a great job and enjoyed our time together. Here is a good looking picture from before the race. Afterwards, we didn't look so hot.

The rest of Saturday was relaxing and peaceful. We hung out around the house, took a nap, ate dinner and then went to the Marietta Square to walk around.

Sunday we headed to church and then had a baby shower at our home for our friend Amy from Sunday School. I can't begin to explain how thankful I am for our church family. It is truly a joy to have this group of friends. I think my favorite quote from the day was from Katie who said, "I've eaten all of number 4 and I still can't figure out what it is." This was said during our game of guessing baby foods! Thanks to Lauren for expanding our food repertoire!

Gift Giver

My friend Noelle is the best gift giver! She brought me three sweet birthday presents today. Her gifts are always thoughtful and unique. I love it! Not only is she is a good gift giver but she is very generous! Here is Caroline with a blanket full of new toys. A thank you also goes to William who has decided he is too grown up for these toys. :-)

Noelle and I had a good time catching up. I just wish that we were able to do it more often. She is such a sweet friend!

Boo!

Caroline got invited to her first party!! We are very excited for the Halloween party that William is throwing! Can't you see that she's excited too?

She has been eating her hands a lot lately and making lots of drool. I keep telling her that Halloween candy is better than her hands but she doesn't seem to believe me yet! Maybe after the party.... :-)

Baby Talk

Tonight Kelsey came over to hang out with us for a few minutes. Lindsay and Brad work so hard. Lindsay cares for Kelsey during the day while Brad works and then they switch at night. Often Brad doesn't get home from work until the moment Lindsay has to leave (occasionally he is even late, which is why we get to hang out with Kelsey)! Mark and I had a great time with Caroline and Kelsey tonight. For the first time ever, they noticed each other. Kelsey "talked" to Caroline and Caroline smiled back. They both stared at each other for a long time, just like they stare at us! It was so sweet to watch as they really saw one another for the first time! I can't wait until they can talk and play together. It's such a blessing to be able to live so close to them. We are going to try and video next time they "play" together!

They were smiling up a storm but this is the best picture I could get once I pulled the camera out.



Just a cute picture of Caroline...