"One and a Half"

Caroline is now 18 months old, or as kids like to say, "she's one and a half." She actually has been "one and a half" for a couple weeks now but I have failed to make a blog post about it. So, what's life like with an adorable 18 month old?

AMAZING, though sometimes chaotic. Caroline is learning to speak and is constantly saying things. The problem is, 75% of the time we don't understand what she's saying. I think that's frustrating her because she wants to communicate with us so badly, so she does get upset. When she's upset we give her "quiet time" which is usually one of us sitting on the sofa forcing her to stay on our lap, and usually the wiggling and screaming stop within a minute. The worst parts of her tantrums are the hair pulling (OUCH) and slapping my glasses off my face (I'm blind as a bat) but we're working on it :)

Everything other than those moments of chaos? Wonderful.

She's doing very well using her words. She knows dog ("doh") and cat ("tat") very well and makes sure to point them out to us every time she sees them. We're teaching her what sounds animals make and she has woof woof ("ooo ooo") down with her meow meow ("mow mow") getting better every day. She tells us when she wants juice ("ju") and grabs it out of the refrigerator for us. When she wants to read a book she points at it and says book ("boo") if it's out of reach, or carries one over to us and raises her arms to sit in our lap and read. She sings the nakie baby song, the song we sing before baths, with us ("nay nay"). She says night night ("ni ni") and is really good at falling asleep in her crib these day, not on the couch like she used to. She knows no ("no no no no noooo") a bit too well and yes ("ya!"), but often uses the wrong one to answer questions. She's doing a wonderful job communicating with us, so hopefully as she gets better she'll have less tantrums like I mentioned above.

She loves "talking on the phone." If you put something up to your ear and say, "hello," she'll grab the nearest object, put it up to her ear, and answer ("hewo"). She walks around the house having intense conversations on her "phones." We don't know where she got it from because we rarely speak on the phone, but it's adorable! I'm going to Target today to buy her an actual play phone; I can't wait to see how she reacts!

Her favorite toys are not actually toys. She'd rather have her makeup brush, her travel sized shampoo bottle, her plastic cup we use for baths, or her daddy's Captain America shirt than any toy in the house. She loves playing with books, has regained interest in her excersaucer (every time I go to pack that thing away she starts to love it again), and her zebra that she rides on. 

She's still enormous. I'm currently packing away some 2T clothes but she's fitting comfortably in most. I'm not buying her anything smaller than 4T because she's growing so fast. When we're at a playground and parents ask how old she is they are shocked that she is only 18 months old. Their child, the three year old she's been playing with, is smaller than her. It happens a lot. She's one of the youngest in her current daycare room but also one of the largest. She has her 18-month checkup next week so we'll get exact measurements and percentiles then, but I'm pretty sure they'll all indicate, "your toddler is HUGE."

She looks normal sized… until you remember I'm 5'10" and Josh is 6'4"...

She loves watching cartoons and Disney movies. When she sees Cinderella's castle at the beginning of the movie, she sits down and stares at the TV because she knows it's going to be amazing. She loves the Little Mermaid, Tangled, Cinderella, and especially Frozen. I sing "Let it Go" to her all the time to calm her down and she tries to sing along ("de de doooooe"). She also loves to "sing" her ABC's and dance along to her favorite songs, like The Itsy Bitsy Spider, If You're Happy and You Know It, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. She is getting so good at Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes; she especially loves showing us her toes.

She loves food but is often picky about it. Her favorite foods are pasta, black beans, apple sauce, rice, tacos, BACON, pancakes, goldfish crackers, and Texas Roadhouse rolls. She still doesn't like sweets and looks absolutely offended if you try to feed her one (she probably gets that from me). She loves her juice and is going through an anti-milk phase, but she'll eventually drink it if it's there. 

She loves giving hugs and kisses these days. If I ask for a hug, she'll run to me with her arms wide open ready to engulf me with an enormous hug. And those kisses, they're our favorites. She goes right for the mouth. If I ask for a kiss, she'll go right for my lips, pucker up, and go "MUAH," often leaving drool all over my mouth, but it's so worth it. She has the sweetest heart and is so full of love. She has a habit now of kissing everything. We were in Home Depot this weekend and she was kissing price tags on shelves, she kisses Ellie constantly (and then gets upset that she has a mouth full of fur), and she kissed a dog statue in Macy's this weekend while petting it (germs are good for the immune system, right? sigh).

Every time she hits an age milestone I always say it's my favorite age. Toddlerhood is definitely proving to be the most entertaining and fun stage so far. She makes me and Josh laugh constantly; I don't think we have ever laughed or smiled so much. She makes us incredibly happy. The other day I showed up to daycare to pick her up in the Altima and saw our Jeep already in the parking lot. Her daddy had shown up to her daycare early, in the car without the carseat, just to see her, hug her, and hang out with her until I got there. That's how much we love her. I still miss her every day she's at school and wish I could be home with her every day, but Josh and I are both helping to provide for our family which is what works best for us (those student loans aren't going to pay for themselves). Plus, Caroline adores her school, her teachers, and all of her friends so I know we're doing the right thing by having her there.

Being a mom is still hands-down the best thing everrrr. I'm so proud. I'm proud of all of the things Caroline has accomplished and proud of what a sweet, kind, and smart girl she is. I'm proud to call myself her mom. And I'm proud of myself and Josh for rocking at this parenthood thing. Motherhood is honestly the bomb, especially when you have a munchkin as awesome as our sweet Caroline.

Lake Lure, NC!

We had an amazing week with my family last week in Lake Lure, NC. We had no wireless internet and no cellphone reception, and it was absolutely refreshing. It allowed us to focus on enjoying our time together instead of fooling around on our phones to check on things that really don't matter. Caroline had a wonderful time and enjoyed spending time with her Memaw, Pepaw, and Auntie (and her Mommy and Daddy, duh). I'm terrible at remembering the days things happened or the order we did everything, so I'll just talk about some of the highlights and post some pictures :)

Lake Lure Farmer's Market was really fun. Caroline mostly walked around with her daddy while the rest of us shopped around. The view was gorgeous - the perfect view of Lake Lure! Afterward, we got some appetizers and beers at an italian restaurant. Italian nachos (made with italian sausage instead of ground beef) are the bomb, guys!

We also had great time at the swimming pool. Caroline was very unsure of the water at first, but ended up loving it. Josh was helping her "jump" off the side of the pool, she was splishing and splashing, and she was by far the cutest little thing there. And she definitely had the cutest belly at the pool, that's for sure!

The Lake was also a blast! We enjoyed a few wonderful afternoons on the beach at Lake Lure. Caroline, once again, was unsure of the water. However, by the time the afternoons were over she was trying to go play with the big kids, and Josh and I had to keep grabbing her to keep her from going out too far. Her favorite lake activity? Grabbing sand and throwing in the water (she didn't seem to notice that most of it ended up in her hair, and not in the water at all). There was a swing set on the beach which she found to be the coolest thing ever. I love my little beach babe so much!

Chimney Rock was one of our favorite places. It was a really charming area on the river, with a fantastic view of the mountains, with cute restaurants and stores. We enjoyed walking around the restaurants. We'll just pretend Caroline didn't have a meltdown at the restaurant, causing Josh and I to eat our lunches in shifts (there terrible twos can come early, right? please tell me the terrible twos can come early). We really liked the River Walk, where you can walk on the rocks and see the river. Caroline wanted to go swimming in the river so Josh let her stick her toes and fingers in.

We had a fantastic afternoon in downtown Asheville near The Biltmore. We opted to not tour The Biltmore itself because, well, it was too darned expensive. But we enjoyed an amazing lunch instead. I got one of the best grilled cheeses of my life, and a delicious IPA. The grilled cheese had cheese (duh), cream cheese (omg), bacon (YES), and avocado (nom nom). I need to recreate this sandwich. We then walked around and shopped for a bit and, much to my dad's delight, Caroline got to see a train go by! It was a lovely afternoon.

One of our favorite parts was the scenic tour around Lake Lure. It was Caroline's first time ever on a boat. She was not a fan of the life jacket, but she really seemed to enjoy the boat ride. It was a 90 minute ride and she probably stayed awake for about half of it and snoozed for the second half. The boat ride was fun, our tour guide was hysterical, and the views were breathtaking. We got to see gorgeous homes, amazing mountainsides, and filming sites for Dirty Dancing. I think it topped my list of favorite vacation moments.

We spent another afternoon in downtown Asheville. This time we went to the actual downtown area, had a great lunch (and a delicious porter beer) at a pizza restaurant, and walked around some very fun stores. Downtown Asheville is very pretty and has some very interesting people. I loved a bookstore we ended up in that is dog friendly, sells champagne and coffee, and is absolutely gorgeous. If we lived in Asheville, I think I would work from that store every day.

We loved spending time with family. We don't get to see either of our families often enough, so it's always wonderful to spend time with them. I am so glad we were able to spend the entire week with them and that Josh was able to work his schedule so he could come too (Caroline was such a #hotmessexpress at moments I don't know how I would have survived without him). It was so good being around my favorite people all week!

Thanks so much to my mom and dad for inviting us to the mountains. We all needed the "break from reality" and some quality time with family. I love you guys (and Allison, duh) so much and can't wait to hopefully get to see you again soon! <3

I must actually do some work now, shhhh. After a week off work it feels weird getting "back in the grind" again and is hard to get motivated. Maybe another cup of coffee will do the trick!

Caroline Earned her Ears.

Caroline went to DISNEY WORLD this weekend! That's a very exciting event in the life of any kid (well, any adult, too) so I made sure it was a well documented moment.

We drove up around lunch on Friday. Caroline took a great nap, then woke up in time to terrorize a Dunkin Donuts, and then watched The Little Mermaid until we arrived in Lake Buena Vista. Caroline loves Sebastian. Every time he comes on screen, she points at him. When King Tritan yells at Sebastian, Caroline screams at King Tritan. When the chef tries to cook Sebastian, Caroline screams at the chef. It's hilarious. We tried to find her a stuffed Sebastian at Disney with no luck. Poor Caroline.

When we got to Lake Buena Vista, we checked into our hotel (the Hilton because we're swanky like that), got settled, and then drove to the hotel where Josh's parents are staying. They were thrilled to see little Caroline and she was happy to see them, too. She decided they were her BFF's within minutes. We all went to Downtown Disney together for a wonderful dinner. We ate at Fulton's Crab House which, as you can see on the website, is a restaurant inside a giant boat. I had a glass of sauvignon blanc and the shrimp scampi - delish! Caroline had water, a lot of crackers with cream cheese herb spread, some bread, and an amazing look bowl of macaroni and cheese. The best part of her macaroni and cheese? The goldfish (the snack, not the actual fish) on top - she gobbled them up!

I spy a sweet girl soaring through the crowds <3

Saturday was Magic Kingdom day! We got there bright and early, ready to make the most of the day. When we got inside, Caroline immediately made friends with Goofy. As you can see, she was very confused.

Once we got acquainted with Goofy, we headed straight to Cinderella's Castle. Every little girl wants to rush to the castle, right? We lucked out because right as we got there, a show was starting. Caroline loved the show. She waved at the characters and danced to the music.

 Once we were done seeing the Castle, we headed to Prince Charming's Carousel. What better first ride for our girl than a Disney classic? Barb and I waited in line with her while Josh stood by with the camera ready. Caroline watched the carousel go round and round. Once she figured out how this whole "wait in line to get on the ride" thing worked, and saw that she was in line to get on a horse, she tried to wiggle out of my arms to run up to the horses. Oh dear. Once we got on the ride, she and I got on our horse and off we went. She had a blast! She was smiling and laughing. It was an amazing first ride experience for her. I was so proud of her :)

After the ride we became Minnie Mouse. Clearly she was thrilled to have something on her head, ugh.

We then headed back over to Fantasyland for a ride on Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Caroline absolutely LOVED the Dumbo ride. It was a great ride, very relaxing. You can control how high you want to go on the ride; Josh controlled our car to go high and she didn't mind, so we soared through the air. She even threw her hands in the air like she was on a roller coaster. It was absolutely precious.

Our next ride was a big girl ride… The Haunted Mansion! The Brians are a horror-loving crew and Caroline had to be initiated. Thank goodness for FastPass because we got right to the front of the line. She sat in my lap (they don't warn you about how low the safety bars go and poor thing got squished, but she didn't seem to mind) and was SO GOOD the entire ride. It's so dark in there I couldn't see her face to decide if she enjoyed the ride, but she didn't cry so it must have been okay!

After The Haunted Mansion, it was definitely lunch time for Caroline (and me, duh). We ate at The Pinocchio Village Haus Restaurant. The chicken caesar salad was actually quite tasty and Caroline seemed to enjoy her cheese pizza.

We then headed to Fantasyland again (FastPass makes your schedules crazy and adds to lots of extra walking #firstworldproblems) because it was time for The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. We rode in a honey pot and traveled through a Winnie the Pooh book. Caroline cuddled with daddy this time. She seemed to enjoy the ride. It had some crazy dream sequence similar to the creepy sequence in Dumbo; Josh decided the dream sequence in Winnie the Pooh was far scarier than The Haunted Mansion ride.

After the Winnie the Pooh ride it was definitely time for a Caroline nap. We put her in her stroller she fell asleep almost immediately. We split up from Josh's parents for a bit to do our own things. They rode Space Mountain while we relaxed in the shade with Caroline for a bit, got some delicious ice cream, and caught a bit of a parade from Frontierland after she woke up! We then took her to the Casey Jr. Splash n' Soak Station, where kids can play in a water-based play area. It was a good opportunity for her to walk around for a bit without being in the way of thousands of people. She didn't show much interest in playing in the water but loved watching the older kids run around. It was definitely a good choice for her!

We then met up with the Brians for an early dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, which is a family-style restaurant in Liberty Square. They sat us in the Jefferson Room; so fitting for me since I'm from a half-UVA family! We had salad, rolls (Caroline loved them), turkey, beef, pork, stuffing, sweet potatoes, macaroni and cheese (Caroline ate most of it), green beans, mashed potatoes, and something for dessert that I didn't have. It was yummy! Caroline made a huge mess with her macaroni and cheese so please note the outfit change that took place; oh Caroline.

After dinner we headed to Fantasyland once again (no wonder my legs are so sore) and rode on Under The Sea, the Little Mermaid ride. Caroline squeezed into my lap and we rode a giant clam shell through the story of The Little Mermaid. She seemed to enjoy the ride. It was a great ride (the giant Ursula is the greatest thing I saw all day) and she got to see her beloved Sebastian in action!

We then headed to another Brian Family favorite, Pirates of the Caribbean! Unfortunately, we hit this ride without a FastPass and Caroline was not a fan of the line. She was a bit of a fussy mess but we survived. She wasn't scared on this ride either and even handled the small dip into the water (and the slight splash) like an absolute champ. She's officially a pirate!

I don't know why her eyes look like that - she looks like a different baby with light eyes!

 After Pirates of the Caribbean she started acting sleepy again. I volunteered to walk her around and see if she would nap, while Josh and his family headed over to Thunder Mountain. Caroline and I used that opportunity to get her Mickey Mouse Ears! She earned her ears so they are even embroidered with her name; perfect!

I then met up with the Brians again and we decided to hop on It's a Small World After All before the electrical parade started. Caroline loved the ride. She sat in her Papa's lap and just looked around in amazement. Her favorite three rides: Prince Charming's Carousel, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, and It's a Small World After All.

That belly was the star of the show!

We then got in position for the Main Street Electrical Parade. Josh grabbed me a hot chocolate (once that sun set it got cold and I had no sweater) and Caroline fell asleep. Poor girl slept through the parade (keep in mind the parade starts at 9:00) and missed seeing Mickey and Minnie again. Oh, well.

After the parade, we moved to view the fireworks. I picked that time of all times to try to find a bathroom, not knowing the basically usher you around and set up barricades. I got completely separated and couldn't get back to the group, so I watched the fireworks alone. Le sigh. They were still beautiful even from my lonely, partly blocked spot. I then had to fight the swarms of people to make it back to the group after the show as over. Picture thousands of tourists trying to leave the park while you're just trying to make it back to your family. Ugh, too bad I couldn't get my hands on a glass of wine at that moment because I needed one. Darn you Disney and your rules!

Anywho, after seeing the mass of people leaving and knowing Caroline would soon be back to snoozing (she woke up and saw some of the fireworks), we decided to hang around the park a bit longer. Josh's parents volunteered to watch Caroline while we rode Space Mountain. We endured the 45 minute wait (which began around 11:00pm, way past my bedtime) and had a blast on the ride! It was worth the wait to get my one roller coaster ride in.

We then walked to the bus area to hop on the shuttle back to the Brians' hotel. Caroline had to get out of her stroller, so I grabbed her and we cuddled on the bus. We then said goodnight and headed back to our hotel, got Caroline to bed, and then collapsed. Such a fun, exhausting day! We had SO much fun!

Sunday, we checked out of the hotel, had breakfast, walked around Downtown Disney a bit, and then went to the Brians' hotel again for some quality pool time! Caroline looked like such a babe in her tankini swimsuit. She wasn't so fond of the floating, but loved playing on the steps, climbing on the steps, and sitting on the steps. After the pool she took a nap in the Brians' hotel room, and then we hit the road.

It was a wonderful weekend and an amazing experience! I'm so glad Caroline got to enjoy Disney World. I doubt she'll really remember much, if anything, but that just gives us an excuse to go back! :)