18 Months Old!!!

Hello to all!  Well, I'm 18 months old today and am so excited because I will get to share my half-birthday with Auntie Laura's new son, Lincoln...he was born really early this morning and is doing great.  Otherwise, I'm doing very well these days...ever the daredevil, I continue to climb, run, swing and jump from virtually every surface.  I'm increasingly more communicative, mimicking almost everything that is said to me and even weighing in on the more important issues, like letting the dogs know when it's time to be quiet ("hush" is what I say whenever they start to bark!).  I've started putting more and more words together..."mommy, out" etc., which is very exciting.  I am still enthralled with dogs (photo above with Scruffy, Aunt Susan's new dog) and enjoy my playtime with Gryffin and Bucky.  Daddy thinks I'm going through a growth spurt at the moment as I have been eating non-stop for nearly two days!!!  I still enjoy all fruits, the occasional vegetable (peas are a hit), pasta, pizza, cheese (which I generally demand whenever the refrigerator is opened) and chicken hot dogs.  I even stopped drinking my milk from a bottle, and am very good using a regular cup without spilling, which is exciting for mom.

As you can see from the above photo, I've adopted a more toddler-like appearance, which makes Mommy a little sad, I think.  I recently measured 34 inches in the doorway and am taller than nearly all of the children in my play group.  I don't think the height factor is a surprise to anyone who know mom and dad yet it is frequently mentioned.  In all, I'm a very happy girl who knows what she wants, knows how to laugh and have fun and loves her family and friends.  Mommy and Daddy still cannot believe that 18 months have gone by so quickly...they seem to think I'll be 2 "before you know it!"  Hope all are well. Love, Charlotte

Catching Up

Well, it's been awhile since my mom updated my Blog so we're hoping to play a little "catch up" here today.  These last few weeks have been a whirlwind of travel (more on that below), playdates, and other fun activities.  Chandler and I went to Stepping Stones this week for an outing.  Mom and Kendy had so much fun chasing us around the place...here we are in the water room.

Last week mom and I hopped on an airplane and headed west...out to visit Aunt Laurie and Uncle Dave in Sausalito.  I've heard so much about the west coast from mom and was so excited to get out for a visit!

Here we are with Aunt Laurie on the Golden Gate Bridge!  Neither mom nor Aunt Laurie had ever walked across, so we decided to take a walk after spending a few hours in San Francisco.  Even though we didn't make it all the way across, we had so much fun.

I'm enjoying my lunch at Fish Restaurant in Sausalito, especially after 6 hours of sitting on the airplane.  Mom was so impressed with how well-behaved I was...we both think I'm going to enjoy traveling just as much as mom does.

Here I am with mom outside the Ferry Building in San Francisco.  Mom, Aunt Laurie and I had a fantastic lunch at the Slanted Door, one of mom's (and daddy's!) favorite restaurants ever.  I was very experimental with my lunch choices, enjoying vegetable spring rolls, noodle soup and flank steak.  Thanks so much to Aunt Laurie and Uncle Dave for having us!!!  We can't wait to come back soon.  Love, Charlotte

Vacation in St. Thomas

Here we are, back again for another fantastic week in St. Thomas.  The smile that I have on my face in the photo above remained in place nearly the entire time we were on vacation.  It was just wonderful for the whole family.

We all thought this rainbow was so special and I'm glad my mom took a picture of it. 

Daddy and I are enjoying the kiddie pool and I seem to have no problem with the fact that an octopus was sitting on the top of my head.  

Daddy is enjoying the warm, relaxing pool.  Just a few hours later he chopped off all his hair...mom was just thrilled.  :o)  Well, at least I thought he looked great!  For all our vacation pix (and even a few videos!), check out my Mac Gallery.

Merry Christmas...A little late!

My second Christmas sure was a great one.  These pictures are a little out of order but the festivities were great and the day was enjoyed immensely but the whole family.  Dad and I are taking a break from our french toast breakfast to smile for the camera.

Dad is opening his stocking here and he received lots of products that will make him smell good...maybe Santa was trying to tell him something??!

I received several board books in my stocking and was very happy to have mom there to read them to me.  This Santa person must really know his stuff because I certainly enjoy books and love reading.

Check out our tree and all those presents!  I wasn't quite sure what to make of the whole thing but quickly got the hang of opening gifts.

Here is a photo of my stocking, which was sitting next to the fireplace when I came out in the living room.  My mom explained that the chimney is Santa's preferred point of entry into the house...how crazy is that?

My great Aunt Jane sent me this really cool plane and I was was so excited to sit in it.  It has pedals to drive and the wheel turns to change direction and turn the propeller.  I'm still a little young to operate the pedals but still had so much fun playing with my plane.

Here I am in my new chair, which is just next to my dad's chair in the living room.  Mom thought I looked very grown up in this photo, chatting on the phone and gesturing with my right hand.

Finally...a little sleep!  The day was both exciting and exhausting (for everyone) and my dad was eventually able to get me to sleep on the couch for a few minutes.  

And now I'm back in action, taking advantage of the relatively mild day to take my new tricycle out for a spin.  Here again I don't quite have the pedals figured out but the tricycle actually has a bar attached to the back so that mom or dad can push me around.  What a wonderful Christmas we had together!!  I felt like the luckiest girl in the world to have spent such a special day with my family.  Love, Charlotte

A Family Getaway

Mom, Dad and I spent a few days in a cottage at the Castle Hill Inn in Newport, Rhode Island.  Though we didn't have the best weather (lots of fog and rain), we had a really nice time together as a family...it was great to get away.

Dad and I are relaxing on the bed for a few minutes...everyone seemed to want to take naps while we were away.  Except for me, of course.

Here is a snapshot of our cottage, which was only about 100 feet from the ocean.  The beach was absolutely beautiful and I was so happy to run around, even when the weather was not particularly cooperative.

Since our cottage didn't have a bathtub, I was perfectly happy to take my baths in the oversized kitchen sink.  I haven't bathed in the sink since I was a little baby but I certainly enjoyed the experience...

Here we are at lunch, and I'm ready for food.  Mom and Dad recently realized that my patience for sitting in a high chair in restaurants has grown limited...I will eat and entertain myself for about 30 minutes these days but once that time has expired I will let my parents know that I want "OUT."

Another dining shot...this time in the restaurant at the Inn where we ate our breakfast each morning.  Please take note of the fact that the surrounding tables are empty; we would arrive as early as possible in order to eat and depart prior to the arrival of the other guests.  Oh, and I developed quite a taste for banana bread on this trip.  YUM!

This is one happy girl!

Daddy and I walking up to the Inn for breakfast...it was such a lovely spot and we look forward to returning again in the summer.

I could have spent all day wandering the beach in front of our cottage.  We were fortunate to have had some sun and clear skies on the morning that we left for home - so the whole family took advantage of the beach.

So nice to see my mom smiling.  We were so happy to be together for a few days, just the family.  xoxo, Charlotte

Holiday Fun!

We've had a lot going on here lately but mom didn't want to let her blogging responsibilities slide too much.  December has been a busy month and I've been engaging in many exciting activities.  Swimming is almost over for the fall but I'm enjoying my most recent class, smiling coyly for the camera.  Thanks for the great photo, Kendy!

Here we are at the Bridgewater Holiday Party, where mom got me as close to Santa as we think I'm going to get this year.  I was definitely not a fan of the man in the red suit...nor did I want anything to do with Frosty the Snowman, who seemed to lurk around every corner.  The party was fun, nonetheless, and I was at least able to wear my party clothes and be social with dad's work friends.

On Saturday we went to the Kavanaugh's house, who hosted a Holiday Party for all of my friends (and their parents, of course) in our playgroup.  Here I am opening my great present from Olivia, who was my Secret Santa.  I got a wooden puzzle (definitely a fave!) and a set of stacking wooden boxes.  The highlight of the party was when all the parents attempted to assemble the kiddies for a group photo...HAH!  Better luck next year, moms and dads.  We had a great time and it was nice to see all of my friends.

Here I am racing through the muddy fields of Maple Row Tree Farm, where my mom and dad have come for many years now to chop down their Christmas Tree. Last year I was too small to really help pick out the tree but this year 

I am determined not to miss out on any of the fun.

 

I've finally acquiesced to let daddy pick me up for a few minutes.  After several spills in the mud, I am both exhausted and exhilarated by the day's activities.  We have finally found the Seymour Family tree and can't wait to get home and decorate it.  Happy Holidays!! Love, Charlotte

All-Day Playdate!

Today was really fun and exciting as we had the pleasure of spending the whole day with my great buddy Chandler!  Chandler and I played a lot at my house, pulling out all the toys, running everywhere and just having a grand time.  With all that play, eventually a kid needs to take a lunch break...

 

Chandler is enjoying his lunch here...some sort of couscous that his mom made especially for him.  He took a longer nap than me (over 2 hours!!!) so I had already had my lunch by the time he got up.  So he was anxious to eat and get back to playing.

Here we are finally relaxing for a few minutes on the couch with Daddy.  We've spent the whole day playing and having so much fun together, though now we're getting close to bedtime and are finally wiped out.  Mom and Dad ordered pizza for us (yummy!) and we even got to watch a little college football.  We can't wait for Chandler to come back and spend another day at our house.  He's a great playmate!!! Love, Charlotte