Constant Beginnings

while nate and jess took a trolley tour of the city, we took claire to the sprinkler park along the harbor. she was a bit nervous at first, but eventually loved it. where in the world are claire, nate and jess?

Mya was baptized on Sunday. We selected Jessica and Lauren to be her Godparents. It was a lovely ceremony attended by my family and Chris's Dad. We were happy that he took the time to drive down for the ceremony as he had to work later that day, so it was a brief visit. We are happy that our little blessing is officially a child of God. May he guide her and keep her strong with his word.

We waited to truly celebrate Claire's 2nd birthday until my family could partake. I am not a believer in friend parties until school age. I think it is relatively tacky. So our plan was small and simple with family. We ordered the cake a week prior, which made for a very long week. Each time we got in the car, she stated something along the lines of "george cake." We had to explain that they were making it and we'd pick it up in a few days. It was a long few days. None-the-less we picked up her cake and enjoyed the party. She wasn't a fan of the singing, but loved blowing out her candles. Claire got some fashion boots and jacket, which make her the most stylish 2 year old I've seen. She wore them around the house with her jammies. She also really enjoyed the little table and chairs from my parents. We've yet to enjoy activities at the table, but she enjoyed conversation with her aunties. Luckily they are small enough to sit on the chairs without breaking t...

My family arrived on Thursday and Friday. It is great having them here. Each time they visit us, we try to plan an itinerary full of different activities in the area. We've lived here for nearly 3 years, but have never made it down to Rhode Island to check out the Newport area. It was lovely. We toured the Breaker mansion previously owned by the Vanderbilts. It was pretty amazing. We also checked out the cliffwalk and had lunch in town. It was a hot and very humid day, so we didn't walk down the cliffwalk, but we'd love to go back and do that. My sister, Jessica was accompanied by her boyfriend, Nate this trip. It was his first trip to the east coast, so we tried to make it memorable. Hopefully his most memorable moments do not involve carrying my daughter from place to place. He tended to do that often, partly because Claire was especially fond of him, but partly because everyone else was too tired. He was a trooper.

2 years ago, our little baby girl came into our lives. Claire changed our lives and has blessed us in so many ways. I can't believe she is already two. Just thinking about how much she has grown, changed, accomplished in those 24 months brings tears to my eyes. I am so proud of her. She truly is the sparkle in my eye and brings so much joy to my heart. I love her so much more than I ever thought possible. I knew having children would be an incredible experience, but how incredible is simply overwhelming. She is everything I could have wished for in a little girl and I can't wait to see what the next year brings for her. Claire's vocabulary and understanding of language is extremely well developed. Her articulation skills are more within age expectations--she is reducing clusters, inconsistently produces /s/, /z/, /th/, /l/, and no /r/. She refers to our family as "my ----." For example, when my Mom calls to talk, Claire says, "myGrammy," as if it were al...

our next few weeks have gotten even crazier than we had first intended. my family is arriving this week, followed by a week of fun around new england, then the kiddos and i are going to nd for a week or so. in preparation of our flight together (yes, 1 adult and 2 kiddos---i must be nuts), we bought claire a little monkey leash that she can wear while wandering through the airport. i knew i wouldn't be taking the double stroller and who knows about how she'll feel riding. lately she prefers to walk, getting distracted by passers by, so we went shopping. claire selected the monkey. she loved it, but didn't want me to take her picture. i am convinced that my camera and i are the monkey on her back. she wore it on her front and back, hiding her paci in the little pocket. hopefully the affection for this little friend continues until we return from our trip. it should be interesting.

she was loving when i was saying "mamamamamam" with my lips on her cheek. she'd smile and smile and smile, so i tried to get a picture. ooo, i could eat her up. mya is 8 weeks old. wow, time is flying by. in only a month or so, i will be returning to work. i definitely have mixed emotions about that. anyway, 8 weeks. mya has been consistently sleeping 6-7 hours per night, which is awesome. can't say it enough---awesome. the issue is that since i am nursing her, i wake with watermelons on my chest. can't say i enjoy that feeling, but i definitely love my sleep. we've had kind of a rough week in terms of contentment. i have been eating something that doesn't sit well with our poor little girl. she's been constipated, yet again, gassy and quite fussy--especially around the hour of 4:00 which just so happens to be when daddy returns. i tell him that it is because of him that she is fussy, but he isn't buying it. otherwise, life is great. she is getting...

Yesterday was our first day without rain and warm temperatures, so we were able to use our pool. Yahoo. Claire loved swimming last summer, so I was expecting much of the same. Needless to say, the experience was less than desirable. She'd put her feet in and let Chris submerge her legs, but that was about it. I'm sure over time it will get better. The kid loves playing in water, but I think the fact that she couldn't ease into it by herself is what turned her away. Anyway, I thought a sprinkler might be better. Not so much. We found this cute ball sprinkler at Target, and Claire talked a good game up until it was time to get wet. She managed to run through a couple of times staying dry, but the second she was splashed was the second she decided enough was enough. Aren't Cancer babies supposed to LOVE water? I know I did and still do.

7 weeks has brought a couple of changes for sweet baby Mya. She is eating 5+ ounces of milk/feeding. Mya is much more awake now. She typically sleeps for about 4 hours during the day, otherwise is checking out this big bad world. Mya seems to enjoy our daily walks. She looks around and is a pretty content kiddo. Claire tends to her pacis if the need arises. We've introduced her to the activity mat, which she enjoys if she is left alone; however, given the fact that Claire too is fascinated by the mat and Mya, being left alone is a rare occurence. Mya sits in the swing daily, although she isn't a huge fan at this point. We're hoping to change her ways. She is strong, holding her head for minutes at a time and loves standing on her little feet. Mya has begun smiling. She has done this consistently for the past several days, but it is difficult to capture such an event on film as she stops smiling the moment you break eye-contact. This milestone is such a heart melting one. Th...

We've been searching for some fun activities for Claire to participate in--not necessarily organized classes, but fun. I happened to come across a flyer for a gymnastics academy that works with toddlers. It seems most classes begin at age 3, so this was an awesome find. Anyway, during the summer months they offer open gym for three hours once per week. Today was the day. Claire was the youngest kiddo, so she received alot of one to one help from Kathy, the instructor. The session is organized, but it is not so focused on skill building as it is on practice. Claire was introduced to the trampolines, mats, rings, balance beam, bars, and moonwalk. She loved it. Chris accompanied her to most of the activities while I kept an eye on Mya. Her first class went well and we all look forward to her next.