Grandma Shirley's 50th Birthday

When Shane's family was here over the Memorial Day weekend, Mema mentioned that this July was going to be Shirley's 50th birthday and that she was wanting to do something special for her.  Shane and I talked it over and thought that it would be great time for Charlotte and I to visit them in Colorado (Shane can't get vacation time until he's been at the job 6 months). So off we went!

We were expecting about 50 people for the party and it was a great turnout.  Of course, Shirley loved showing off Charlotte and babysitting her while Mema, Ken, and I got things ready.  We found out after the party that Shirley hadn't eaten anything the whole time - she was enjoying her visitin!:)  At the party, she got to meet "Grandpa" and "Grandma" Horn and her cousin, Amelia - so cute and such a sweetie!

We hung out at the house alot just enjoying playing with Charlotte and spoiling her with affection.  She is going through a bit of separation anxiety and would many times cry if I wasn't in the room or wasn't holding her.  Cute but not conducive to family visit:) - hopefully she'll get over it soon!  Here is Charlotte with her Uncle Jake, Grandpa and Mema.

   

She really enjoyed the balloon from the party....mesmerized is the only word to describe it.

 Here are her teeth!

And here are some of her standing or in process:).

So glad we were able to spend time with our Colorado family!

Fourth of July weekend - I'm a little behind:)

We were able to visit family in Iowa over the 4th weekend - it's so nice being so close!  On Saturday we visited with the Potter side of the family at Uncle Phil and Aunt Linda's house.  Wonderful food and wonderful fun!  We got to meet the newest addition to the family - Mike and Cassie's little Jacob - such a cutie and so well-behaved!  And Sophie, Jake's big sis, enjoyed being attacked by Charlotte throughout the whole visit:).  See my cousin's blog for cute pics - http://micassie.blogspot.com/.

We were able to visit both Grandmas.  Grandma Bell wasn't feeling as chipper as last time she met Charlotte, but I hope that she'll remember the visit for awhile and have fond memories of it.  I add photos of Charlotte to her Grandma's Brag Book photo album each time I go.

Grandma Potter enjoyed being growled at and having her face grabbed.  Right now Charlotte loves having you close to her face and pulling your hair, eating your face, and pinching your cheeks - I'm hoping this is a precursor to actual hugs and kisses.

We visited with Aunt Bev, Uncle Butch, and their boys too over the weekend and I was able to eat everything she prepared!  What a blessing to not have to bring my food!  We went to a park on Sunday where the local veterans put on a barbeque and had music.

Charlotte didn't sleep too well over the weekend but put on some funny faces for us in her pack n play.  She reminded me of those fish that attach themselves to the aquarium wall and suck on it with their mouth open.  I couldn't get a great shot cuz I was dying of laughter.

Uncle Nate enjoyed his Charlotte time:).

We didn't get to stay for the fireworks Monday night but heard plenty outside our apartment here at home - apparently it's a first year for Nebraskans to be able to set off fireworks and they took full advantage of that freedom - sounded like a war zone:).  Very grateful for family and friends this holiday weekend.

Charlotte growling: my monster baby

Don't know why she does this....I certainly don't make these noises for her to imitate....but it's quite funny!

Charlotte crawling, playing peek-a-boo, and being fascinated by the computer.

Charlotte has been doing numerous pre-crawling actions for weeks, ie rocking back and forth, bringing her legs up underneath her, waving her hands around while on her knees, etc, but it wasn't until last week (6 months and 22 days to be exact) that she crawled successfully.  Luckily, I caught her on camera right after she started.

She also likes to play peek-a-boo, not so much where you cover your face and then reveal it, but when you look around the room for her and then "find" her.  Here is a snippet.  Please excuse her weird fashion combo:).

I was sitting with her in front of the computer the other day and she was fascinated by the screen, so I got the screensaver working to see what she'd think.  Looks like we're going to need to invest in some cartoons soon!

 

Even though I miss when she was more cuddly and not so active, I have to say that experiencing the world through Charlotte right now is sooo much fun!  She makes me laugh all the time and is constantly doing new things - very blessed to be a stay at home mom during this time in her life!

Sweet potatoes, sewing frustrations, & other stuff

Now that Charlotte has conquered pears, we set out to find whether or not she likes sweet potatoes.  These are much messier and so I have eventually stopped putting her in shirts before a meal - just her bib!  I think she's liking the sweet potatoes pretty well, but still can't seem to get the hang of the fact that she shouldn't try to grab the spoon from Mommy or blow out when the spoon goes in her mouth!  I don't know how much food actually gets into her tummy but oh well!  I also give her a bottle right afterward so she doesn't associate the highchair with just weird new stuff.

In other news, I was given a 1960's sewing machine from Shane's grandma (thank you Mema!) and I am attempting to relearn the skill.  It ain't easy, let me tell you!  I have had to walk away from the thing so many times in frustration, telling myself I will fix whatever it is later.  I've had to dissemble most of it, start over again and again, rethread numerous times, and rip out numerous stitches.  Part of my problem was the thread I was using - the kind you get in little packets for mending.  I thought it'd be fine for sewing, but I guess not - it broke and got caught a TON.  However, I just thought I was doing something wrong so I kept on using it till it was gone and I was out of patience.  Once I bought a proper spool of thread (and threaded it the right way - thanks Miss Lee!), it went better.  I won't say good though:).  My first project was a dress for Charlotte - a reversible onesie from a pattern I got offline at the recommendation of a friend in NY.  I wanted to do it first for Charlotte before attempting to try one for my bestie, Miss Bekah, who is expecting in a couple of months.  Her shower was this last Saturday so I was under a time crunch.  But I think they both turned out pretty well!  Here is the one for Charlotte. 

Blue patterned on one side, plain red on the other side.  I got a pattern for panties so that the whole outfit matches.  We'll see how that goes!
Here is the one for Bekah.  I put it on a monkey for the shower with a bow and a onesie.

Finally, got to put some random pictures up of Charlotte and a video of her talking a little.  She's been talking up a storm for a few weeks now, but she'll usually stop when I get the camera out.