No, I am not ashamed of it.
Yes, Mitch and I still do exist and have (somewhat eventful) lives.
No, there is not much photographic evidence to support the above statement.
Why, you ask?
Well, if you had the choice, who would you rather photograph? (Hint: the baby).
Exactly.
Now that the sun has emerged and the snow finally melted (pretend it is still May), we've tried to spend a lot of time outside. Charlotte seems to like being outside sitting in the grass and all that there is lots to see and enjoy. And after only knowing the cold whiteness that is winter in Alaska, she has adjusted quite swimmingly to more enjoyable weather.
The sun may not be strong, but it is nice and bright!
Charlotte's hair has been growing at a rapid clip. As such, we felt a new hairstyle was in order.
Wearing the sweater Nana got her from Chile.
Charlotte seems to be starting to understand "no." Mitch was outside with her and she wanted to eat the grass. He turned to her and said "no, no baby" and she put it back down. This happened not once, but twice. Coincidence? I think not!
This girl loves sitting up (as opposed to laying on her tummy). My hypothesis is it's because she can reach her toys better.
She learned how to clap this month. It has been fun to watch the progression from figuring out how to smack her hands together, to doing it purposefully, to then clapping when she sees someone clapping or hears "yaaaay!".
"Look at me sitting here and looking cute!"
Charlotte has begun to make more noises. In particular, there are lots of buzzing of lips and "ssssss" sounds. See for yourself:
Check out that awesome embouchure. Future trumpet player for sure.
Charlotte has really entered into much more of a social laughter. She is starting to laugh more in response to the situation or because someone is laughing--not only is it very delightful but it boosts my self-esteem big-time. I never knew I was so witty and charming!
This has been a really fun stage and I have loved it and how interactive she is.
Posing in her vintage outfit (one that my mom saved for me).
Charlotte has a thing for bath-water. She doesn't just like it--she loves it. And she'll do anything to get any little drop into her mouth.
First, it was the "dipping-fingers-into-water-then-transferring-to-mouth" technique. But as she has grown so have her bath-water sneaking techniques developed in sophistication.
This is the "dip-toes-in-water-bring-toes-to-mouth-enjoy-both-water-and-toe-nibbling-simultaneously." It seems to really satisfy her cravings.
At the beginning of June, a Japanese naval ship docked at Anchorage and they were doing free tours. Mitch heard about it on the news (I know, crazy!) and was excited to see the ship. Charlotte and I were excited because we love all things Japanese.
Things of note: Charlotte chose a leopard printed anime-esque outfit in honor of this fine occasion. The crew were so friendly and we enjoyed lots of bowing and poorly spoken (on our part) Japanese. Mitch enjoyed the photo-op in the helicopter--minus the fact that he was a bit cramped on leg-room.
Another big milestone this month: Charlotte had first taste of solids! The winner was avocado! The verdict was "thanks but no thanks!"
We also started on some rice cereal to see if it would help her sleep better. That first night after she has some, it really seemed to help. She slept in 3 and 4 hour stretches! But then, alas, she was back to her old ways. And despite much better naps during the day, waking up every 45 min to 1.5 hours was killing me (and her).
Sooo, despite my reservations and attempts to find another alternative, we decided to give sleep training a whirl. (Or should I say "Cry-it-out" since at that point I considered "sleep training" to be just a euphemism to help parents feel less guilty). It wasn't so much the night-wakings, which I was still willing to do, rather it was the night-stay-awakings which were doing me in. Sometimes I would spend hours trying to get Charlotte to fall back asleep (multiple times throughout the night), and it seemed to reach the point where I wasn't really helpful to her at all. So, we made sure she had a nice and full tummy and set out to do this thing!
Mitch had to work that night (lucky feller), so it was just me, the clock, and the cries. I decided I wouldn't let her cry any longer than 3 hours total (and I was convinced she may cry that long). I did the graduated 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc. approach and it was good because I could check on her, kiss her, pat her, and tell her I loved her. I was amazed when after an hour and a half she fell asleep. I couldn't believe it! She woke up a bit later but cried for only a half an hour. And then she slept the rest of the night. I was in shock. The next night was better. And then I don't remember if she even cried at all the next night. We had made it through and seemed to be none worse for the wear, but rather, a whole lot more rested.
So, we did what any typical family would do.
That's right.
CAMPING TIME!
We also started on some rice cereal to see if it would help her sleep better. That first night after she has some, it really seemed to help. She slept in 3 and 4 hour stretches! But then, alas, she was back to her old ways. And despite much better naps during the day, waking up every 45 min to 1.5 hours was killing me (and her).
Sooo, despite my reservations and attempts to find another alternative, we decided to give sleep training a whirl. (Or should I say "Cry-it-out" since at that point I considered "sleep training" to be just a euphemism to help parents feel less guilty). It wasn't so much the night-wakings, which I was still willing to do, rather it was the night-stay-awakings which were doing me in. Sometimes I would spend hours trying to get Charlotte to fall back asleep (multiple times throughout the night), and it seemed to reach the point where I wasn't really helpful to her at all. So, we made sure she had a nice and full tummy and set out to do this thing!
Mitch had to work that night (lucky feller), so it was just me, the clock, and the cries. I decided I wouldn't let her cry any longer than 3 hours total (and I was convinced she may cry that long). I did the graduated 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc. approach and it was good because I could check on her, kiss her, pat her, and tell her I loved her. I was amazed when after an hour and a half she fell asleep. I couldn't believe it! She woke up a bit later but cried for only a half an hour. And then she slept the rest of the night. I was in shock. The next night was better. And then I don't remember if she even cried at all the next night. We had made it through and seemed to be none worse for the wear, but rather, a whole lot more rested.
So, we did what any typical family would do.
That's right.
CAMPING TIME!
Port-a-crib. Check!
Foil Dinners. Check!
Giant Marshmallows. Check!
New tent from Costco. Check!
Charlotte wanted to drive, so we let her. It made it kind of tricky for her since she couldn't reach the steering wheel. But she worked it out.
Well, as I'm sure you could've/would've/should've (why didn't you?!) told us...BAD IDEA!
Long story short: great food + even better company + no sleeping + rain = hightailing it for home at 1am. Well, I guess we'll just chalk this one up to experience. And pack up the tent till next summer.
In terms of sleep, camping set us back a bit, but Charlotte was a trooper and by the end of the week was back to pulling 12-hour nights. What a girl!
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