Clara Irene: 12 Months

Let's completely disregard the fact that my baby is now over 13 months old. Because I know I am- she's still a baby. Not a toddler yet.

I know for a fact that this past year was one of the busiest, craziest times in our lives. When Clara was born, a move to a new state was not even on our radar. I was getting nice and settled into the idea of living in our tiny, imperfect townhouse until our kids were grown and out of the house. We were dedicated to the Christian school Noelle was registered for, and knew we'd eventually be paying tuition for all three kids, therefore, a move to a bigger house was just not as doable. But I was good- contemplating ways to store things better, decorating and painting to make it more of what I wanted, figuring out how to arrange the barrage of toys we own. And then boom, God provided the opportunity for us to move to a new state, and it was go, go, go to clean, pack, move, downsize, move, unpack, settle, find a church, make new friends, figure out all our new places. All that on not getting to completely sleep through the night until Clara was 8 months old, dealing with a never-ending injury that halted my much appreciated form of stress relief, and a steady stream of family and friends coming to stay at our house. (I counted 17 different people and three dogs who slept in our home over the course of multiple visits!)

It's been busy, but I'm thankful to be able to look back and see God's hand in it all. And I'm thankful for the moments I had of nursing Clara to sleep in her room, and just sitting and holding her, and remembering God's faithfulness in bringing us our third little blessing!

Now onto some updates (hopefully mostly accurate since she's 13 months old now.) :)

Height and Weight: We had her 1 year well-check on June 27th, and she was 28 inches and 16 pounds, 14 ounces. A growing girl!

Diapers and Clothing: As soon as we ran out of size two diapers, we opened up our size 3 diapers, which is especially helpful for nighttime when she goes a lot longer without a diaper change. Right around her birthday, I pulled out our bin of 12 month clothes and that's what she's been wearing. For a little while, she was still wearing some size 6 month onsies to bed, but those have been put away now.

Sleep: Overall, we're in a good place with sleep. She sleeps through the night (though decided to wail for awhile at the end of last week and eventually wound of falling asleep in our bed), and she usually naps once a day. I try to keep her awake and active until 12 or 1, and then put her down. She usually sleeps for about two hours, but can also sleep much longer if the house is quiet and she's super worn out. She took a FOUR hour nap last week when we were in the midst of a busy time running around with visiting family!

Eating: We are officially switched over to milk, though still using bottles. The one sippy cup I have leaks, and I hate to use the ones with straws because they're harder to clean. But she does know how to use a sippy cup, just usually drinks water from it. She usually drinks 20ish ounces of milk over the course of 3 bottles, and eats breakfast, lunch, and dinner with snacks of course. She eats black beans with salsa, berries of all sorts, grapes, sweet potato, pureed baby foods like carrots, apples, pears, and prunes. I need to get more veggies in her, which I can get her to eat bell peppers, onion, tomato if I'm feeding her off of my plate. She'll eat chickpeas, chicken, pizza, peanut butter, yogurt, applesauce, and more! I always try to give her a little bit of whatever I'm eating if it's soft/small enough, and most times she'll at least try it!

Social/Milestones: I feel like 11 months to 12 months old was the biggest leap for her physically. She consistently pulls up, can go from laying down to sitting to pulling up, sitting to laying down, pulling up to sitting, and she can hold one of our fingers and walk around. We bought her a push toy two weeks ago, and she can walk around pushing that. She's our latest walker, but she's close! She has her two bottom teeth, and got one of her top teeth. Definitely my baby with the least amount of teeth by age one! She says lots of "dada!" If we're playing in the toy room and someone comes up the stairs, she goes "Dada!" And Luke is so totally her favorite! Breaks my heart a little since ya know, I'm the one who carried her for 9 months, pushed her out, nursed her, and hangs with her all day. But I get it, dad is cool. :)

Likes: Clara loves being with Noelle and Jonah. If they're playing in the toy room, she's a lot happier playing up there as well. They've been having fun with her push toy, and helping her push it around. She loves water- bath time and the pool. And her favorite right now is holding one of our fingers and walking around. Everywhere, all the time. I even started putting shoes on her so it's not quite as gross when we're out and about and she wants to "walk" around.

Dislikes: She isn't happy when someone can't get to her right away when she wants something. And when she's tired, and we're out and about, she can get unhappy. She did NOT like getting left in nursery this past week, and Luke got called to pick her up (I was in Sunday school with the other two.)

Fun things: The end of May through her first birthday involved family visiting, trips to the zoo, pool time, library visits,  hanging out with friends, the Moon Pie festival, Father's Day, and lots of time as a family!

Pictures from the month:

visiting daddy at work and stealing an RX Bar

hanging out on mama's hip

the Factory

doesn't look like the most comfortable sleeping position

hanging with cousin Holden

a cupcake all to herself when we celebrated her birthday with family

hanging out with GG and Grandpa

Celebrating Noelle's birthday at the American Girl Cafe

angel wings in Nashville

Moon Pie Festival

cheesing with mama

splash pad fun

mom and dad's 10th anniversary

more splash pad!

falling asleep the night before her birthday

birthday morning with mama!

Catching Up On July

These pictures are all out of order, but July fun must be documented! Or I'll forget what we did. I already get to the end of a week and forget what we did that week. Mom brain? Or maybe I'm just getting old?

The kids and I were part of the insane Build-A-Bear pay your age day. When my friend sent me the info on it, I thought sure, why not? We have no plans that day. She and I chatted and decided to get to the mall a half hour before the store opened. I had also let my mom know about it to take my nephew, and I got a call from her about 45 minutes before I planned on leaving (she's an hour ahead of us) to let me know that there were hundreds of people waiting in line at the mall she went to, and that the store has opened earlier than usual. What?? So I stuffed my bag with snacks, texted my friend and sister-in-law and let them know we were heading out sooner than planned.

We ended up waiting in line for over 4 hours. We questioned it multiple times if it was even worth it, but eventually we reached a point where we'd waited long enough that there was no turning back. Between the three of us there were six kids, ages 6, 4, 2, and 1. Between snacks and Netflix on my phone they kept themselves pretty happy. Once we got to the front of the line, we were told it was another hour long wait to stuff the animals, so we opted to buy our animals and come back another time to stuff them. (Which is what these two pictures are from. And which we did the very next day.) Noelle got Skye, Jonah got a storm trooper bear, and Clara got a cute little teddy bear.

A couple of Saturdays ago, Luke and I each took one of the big kids on a date for some one-on-one time. Noelle and I went to Starbucks and colored pictures while I drank coffee and she ate her cookie. It was such a sweet time to connect with my big girl without interruptions, and when I asked her what her favorite part of summer break had been, she said right now having alone time with me (most likely because it was fresh in her brain!) Later that evening, Luke took Jonah to "Old McDonalds" for dinner and they talked about Jonah's friends and Super Mario.

Noelle and Jonah had Vacation Bible School at the church where Jonah will attend pre-K in the fall, and they both loved it! Last year they did VBS at my in-law's church, and so they kind of knew what to expect. This church is much larger, so there were a LOT of kids, but they both jumped right in to the fun. For Jonah's age group they did a Shipwrecked theme, and for the older kids it was Star Wars: The Force Within. They both loved it, and the parents were spoiled as well! Every day during drop-off they had treats for the parents: Chick-Fil-A chicken minis, McDonald's sausage biscuit, Peach Truck peaches, juiced veggies/fruits from a local juicery, and donuts from a local donut place. It was really sweet, and they did a great job with everything! Clara and I got some good one-on-one time, where we hung with friends, went to the park, explored Aldi's, got a flat tire on one of our brand NEW tires, and met with Luke and our pastor to interview for membership. My little tag-along is not always the easiest, but I love our little bug!

 
Earlier in July, we did cow appreciation day at Chick Fil A. Jonah stuffed himself into the dalmatian costume for the third year in a row (which Noelle wore for Halloween when she was two), and the rest of us donned our spots. We met my friend and her kids, and got there just in time to avoid a crazy line. Always so much fun getting free food, especially when it's one of our favorites!

On Mondays, our church's moms group gets together, and one of the Mondays we went to a local chocolate factory for a tour. The kids got to dip things in a giant vat of chocolate, and we all walked away with delicious chocolate to share. It will be sad not having Noelle join us for our Monday get-togethers when she goes back to school (which is SO soon!!)

Water, Water, Water!

Two weekends ago we used our season pass to visit a nearby farm for their watermelon festival! When we went to the farm for their Easter egg hunt, it was packed, so we were fully expecting the same thing. BUT thankfully there weren't nearly as many people, and our kids were able to enjoy the special water things that were set up, as well as the usual things (slides, swings, pony rides, the little rubber ducky pump races.)

Noelle and Jonah both loved the bubble station. Jonah would run in and get himself all covered, and then run over to the splash pad and get it all washed off. Back and forth, back and forth.

Clara did pretty well, and thankfully it wasn't too hot in the shade. It's a hard stage with her getting more mobile but not able to move around on her own yet. Plus she gets tired and fussy, so then we have to cut it short when the big two are ready to keep going.

That evening I didn't have anything planned for dinner, so we decided to use some gift cards from Christmas and go to Cracker Barrel. I don't think I've been there since sometime in high school, but the biscuits were delicious, the kids were able to get chicken tenders and fries and play the little peg games, and Clara kept it together for most of dinner.

On Thursday last week, we had no plans, so I told the kids we were going to the pool! Jonah was immediately excited, but it took some convincing for Noelle. I talked her into bringing and using her puddle-jumper, and as soon as she got into the water with it, she LOVED it! We stayed for two hours, and only left because Clara was done. They stayed in the water almost the whole time, with a small break for a snack. Noelle was making new friends with another little girl, and I felt bad taking her away right when they were getting into it! We went back on Friday, but a storm came through, so we were only there for about 45 minutes.

 
This past Saturday we went to the zoo for their Splash Day! There were water slides, bubble stations, and baby pools set up on the lawn, as well as free Icee and Bluebell ice cream samples.

The big hit though was the giant playground! The kids played on this in 2016 when we came to visit my brother-in-law, but I haven't taken them yet since we moved because I wouldn't be able to keep up with the two of them while holding Clara. It's probably the coolest playground I've ever seen, and it kept them busy for well over an hour. They probably would have played longer but we (aka I) needed to stop for a snack break. We convinced them to go see a few animals, and then headed to a cookout with Luke's boss. (Where they provided canvases and paint for the kids, which my art-obsessed kids loved!)

It was a busy day, and Clara was cranky and ended up with only a 10 minute car nap. Noelle and Jonah got lots of down time once we got home, and Luke and I tried to keep Clara happy till she went down for an early bedtime!

Birthday Celebration and the Fourth!

Tuesday was full of celebrating Noelle's sixth birthday! I'm still not used to Jonah being 4, so now I have to get used to saying my kids are 6, 4, and 1! (Although, let's be real, I'll still count the baby in months until she's 2!)

When she woke up, I had streamers hanging in the kitchen and two balloons tied to her chair. Those little things definitely make her feel loved, and I wanted her to feel celebrated! I also had a free pastry from Panera that needed to be used, so we headed there first thing and Noelle chose a sugar cookie, Jonah a chocolate chipper cookie, and I got coffee. 

The kids didn't know the plan for the afternoon, but after we'd been home for a little bit, I told them it was time to head out again. We drove up to Franklin and met Daddy at Chuck E Cheeses! It was Noelle's second time going to one, and Jonah's first, and they were both so excited. We spent $12 and they both had a blast running around to different rides and games for an hour.

According to Noelle, her favorite was the horse riding game! (Also, multiple people have asked me if Noelle is tall for her age, and I was beginning to wonder if she'd had a good growth spurt or something. Her measurements from her well-check put her at the 25th percentile for height, so I think it's mostly because she has long legs that she looks so tall. And she's leaned out a lot this past year- only about 3 pounds heavier than Jonah!)

Jonah had a blast, and his favorites were the "shooting" games. He seems to have some pretty good hand-eye coordination, maybe also because he's already playing video games at home. (eek!)

Clara hopped on rides with them when she could, and was otherwise pretty content to watch everything going on! Also, the fact that the girls were wearing matching dresses and bows today was by Noelle's request. (And ultimately thanks to Heather who bought them both the dresses and bows!)

And let's be real- Luke also had an absolute blast. He said someday he needs to just go during his lunch break and play skee-ball.

After we were done playing, we headed to Chick Fil A for lunch! We said goodbye to Daddy, and once we got home, Noelle was allowed to open one present. She decided to open her little Melissa & Doug horse painting kit. She immediately got to work and painted her two little horses!

We had a pretty quiet afternoon, ate dinner, and she opened the rest of her presents. The day before I had hosted our church's moms day, and we bought a cake to celebrate Noelle with our church friends. There was a piece left over, so on Tuesday we stuck a candle on it and sang her Happy Birthday again.

Fourth of July was also a super fun day, and I kept thinking that it was Saturday all day! Luke was working from home for a few hours, and I took the kids to our town's bicycle parade. Noelle and Clara rode in the stroller, but Jonah rode his bike! It was hot, and we were sweating before it even started, but I kept reminding them that there was ice cream at the end!

At one point there was a sloping downhill, and Jonah is terrified of hills because he has fallen a few times. He started freaking out a little, and a mom walking near me asked if I needed any help. I said probably, and she was immediately on it, holding one of Jonah's handlebars, while I held the other and pushed the stroller. She talked to him to keep him distracted from the hill, and helped me all the way to the finish, including getting into the shade. Not only did she help me with all of that, but after kids were finishing up ice cream and people were leaving, she came over to make sure we were all okay and offered to watch the kids so I could ride back to the starting point with her husband to get my van. I had already called Luke to see if he could come bring the van to us, and he was on his way. But it was incredibly sweet because I was completely dreading the idea of pushing the stroller and Jonah on his bike back up the hill in the sun. I think maybe she was my guardian angel for the day! 

That afternoon we had Luke's brother's family over for a cookout, and the kids played in our baby pool and in the play room for awhile. Cookout food is just so good, and I would love to get a picnic table some day so we can enjoy summer meals outside. Though I'm probably the only one that would want to eat outside with how hot it is. :)

We started hearing the pops of fireworks around 8:30, so we ran out front to see what was going on. A little girl we hadn't met yet, who lives three doors down, ran over to us and invited us to come see her fireworks. Jonah and I went down and I met our neighbors (yay!) and they were super kind and let Jonah do some sparklers and shoot off a few roman candles (they saved their big ones for when it got a bit darker.)  The street that branches off from ours apparently has an unofficial competition with fireworks, so we were able to stand in our driveway and watch the fireworks from that street, as well as all over town. It was pretty spectacular, and fireworks were going off everywhere for well over an hour. Both Noelle and Jonah loved it! And thankfully Clara slept right through it. :)

SIX!

Happy SIXTH birthday to my firstborn!!

You have blown us away with your growth and learning in the last year. Coming home from school actually reading easy sentences to us, and spouting off the answers to math facts like it's no big deal. You have done SO well. And not only that, but you transitioned beautifully from your school in MD to TN. It was seamless, and you embraced your new friends and teacher like you'd been a part of them all year long.

You've done such a great job growing into your roll as big sister to two. You and Jonah love each other, and he clearly looks up to you. While you're both learning how to share and take turns and don't always agree, you continually come back to each other and have such a great friendship. You take great care of Clara! You get her toys when she's upset, you love to give her little bites of your food, and you try to keep her entertained when I'm trying to get something done. You're like her second little mama, and are so proud to show her off!

I love having my big girl to talk to. You listen to me read books, talk with me about Jesus, perform dances and songs you make up, and tell me what you've learned on the Magic School Bus. You make me multiple crafts a day, and "give" me gifts, aka little toys wrapped up in blankets or bags. You're goofy, and fun, and I love that we get to have you home with us for the summer.

Your favorite is going to the library when it involves making a craft, going to the zoo, doing ANYTHING that has to do with crafting, listening and dancing to Shake It Off, watching tv shows on your tablet, playing with the neighbors, and the fun things that get sprinkled into our everyday. Things like a trip to the splash pad, or seeing fireworks from the front yard make you say "this is the best day!" And I hope those fun, simple things always bring joy to your life!

You are a girly girl through and through. You are all about dresses and skirts, wearing your lip gloss and hair accessories (assuming you'll let me brush your hair), and all things pink and glittery.

Your big girl attitude is coming through as you figure out this whole growing up thing, and believe me, I'm learning right there with you. I'm praying most of all that you know Jesus, that He would just capture your heart and give you a desire like none other to follow hard after Him. I love you so much and am so proud to be your mom!!

Happy Birthday, Noelle!

love,
mom