It's April?

Where does the time go? Really, where? March was a busy month with a lot of traveling, hosting guests, planting the garden, etc, etc. I blinked and the month was over.

Our little ray of sunshine is now 16 months old and doing very well. She was recently evaluated by ECI (Early Childhood Intervention) and passed all of their tests with flying colors. She tested at 16 or 17 months for everything except fine motor skills and that range was 14.5 -16 months. So really, not a deficiency. I was most surprised to hear that she was "scattering" up to 24 months in some areas, mostly her gross motor skills and problem solving.

With all of the traveling and hosting, she was able to have some play time with most of her cousins, including her Swiss cousin, Joshua. It was a lot of fun to watch them all interact. I think I will be seeking out more opportunities to socialize her now that RSV/cold/flu season is over and she seems to be eager to play with other little ones. We were at the park last night and a group of older kids were hanging around (Side Note: Were we ever that annoying? Surely not). They had no interest in entertaining Charlotte and she was not very happy about that. It will probably be good for her to be around people that don't live and die by her smiles and eyelash batting :)

Helping Dad plant tomatoes

Messy Eater

Curly

Terrible Twos at 15 months?

She isn't quite there yet, but boy do we have a boundary pusher. Telling her not to do something is like an invitation for her to figure out a way to do just that, without getting caught. *Face palm*

Now that she is walking and climbing, we have been diligent teaching her how to get down from things and how to navigate stairs. She does pretty well, even "repelling" off our bed, which is too high for her to slide off of easily, using the bed sheets.

She says Momma and Daddy regularly, but even funnier, most of the time she just says Mom. I don't know why that makes me laugh. I guess she seems too young or small to have already gone from Momma to Mom. She also says duck, quack, and yes with clarity. She has other "words" that I understand, like kiki for monkey, but as Aaron says, I have my baby gibberish ears on.

She is still under 18 pounds, but we are getting there. We have her 15 month check up next week and I am hopeful that the doctor will agree that it is time to change her over to whole milk. We have already started giving it to her at times and she seems to like it and tolerate it well.

Now I must run along to stop Charlotte from swan diving off the couch....

One Year

A year ago today marks one of the happiest days of my entire life. On February 6, 2010, we were finally able to bring our sweet little girl home from the hospital. It seems so long ago and just like yesterday, all at the same time. Time flies and stands still? Curious.

We are very proud of her and are loving watching her grow and develop. Walking, talking, and yes, sassing. She definitely keeps us on our toes.

14 Months. An update in pictures.

Charlotte eats big girl food and loves it.


She holds her own bottle. Finally.


She can be a REAL stinker.......


although, she is a sweetheart most of the time.


Wait, who is this guy?

He would be my genius little brother that asked Kate to marry him and he was lucky enough that she said yes! Congrats little brother.

Big changes around here :)

Happy New Year!

A Blessed Season Indeed

12/25/09:

12/22/10:

Wishing you a blessed Christmas and wonderful New Year!

The Agnews

Happy Birthday Baby!!!

How far we have come in 12 months time. From 2 pounds 2 ounces:

To 16 pounds 4 ounces:


Someone once told me that Charlotte would be throwing that caterpillar around before I knew it and they were so right. This birthday caught me off guard, even though I was preparing myself for over a month. It all goes so quickly.

In the weeks leading up to today, I have thought a lot about what was happening a year ago. I remember how terrifying that trip to the hospital was and how upset I was when they told me that we had to have her and they couldn't stop the labor. I remember talking to a good friend who has been in the same situation trying to steel myself for what was to come and fight off the fears of what possibly could happen. I remember being thrilled to hear her crying when she was born and petrified when they took her away from us so quickly. I remember how strong Aaron was throughout the entire ordeal, never letting me see him upset and staying positive even under the most trying circumstances. But most of all, I remember all of the love and support that we received from our family, friends, co-workers and neighbors. Without even asking, we were taken care of at every turn. Our support group pulled together with nary a meeting and made sure we had food, clean laundry, a healthy dog, sleep when we could get it, a hug to come home to after a long day at the hospital, nice messages of support on the phone when we needed it, countless prayers, and encouraging notes and comments posted here.

Thank you all so much for helping us through those 74 days in the hospital and in the months following. It is a true gift to know that you are loved.

She was meant to be born near Thanksgiving because she truly is a blessing.


Happy Thanksgiving from Team Agnew.