Chloe post - All the latest

Well, there is just so much to report! I learned to clap (finally, that was tough, but I have it down pat), my walking is improving every day and... there was something else... oh, right! Mommy, Daddy and the bank all got together to buy me a house! It's so exciting... I am less then 2 weeks away from my own room!

Mommy said it's a good thing, too... I am running out of room in our little apartment. I keep returning to areas that Mommy and Daddy want me to avoid. I like to try to spin the wheels on the laundry cart. And Daddy's bike. And the jogger stroller. Whenever I do it, Mommy says "that kid is BACK on the escalator," which makes Daddy laugh, but then I laugh at him laughing and don't believe him when he says I should leave those wheels alone.

Anyway, here are some awesome pictures of me on the move:

Thank you, Aunt JoJo and Uncle Fuzz

I wanted to thank my Aunt and Uncle and their fabulous family for celebrating my birthday yesterday - it made me feel very special and loved that they took the time to make such a nice party. I had a wonderful time with them!!

As you can see below, Chloe had a good time, too... she discovered icing and there may be no going back! :-)

Still sick, but need to post some photos...

I've been a very slack blogger. I'm still feeling kind of yucky, but I can just feel Grams sitting in her cabin, just itching for new Chloe photos.

Miss Stella was the photographer at the zoo last week, so I still need her to send me her photos, but in the meantime, here are two that were on my camera:



When we picked up Miss Stella to go to the zoo, Chloe was so confused... "why isn't she at school where she belongs?"... but in the end, Miss Stella is Miss Stella! It doesn't matter where she is, Chloe is a fan.



Of course, we had to get all decked out for the NKF walk at the zoo since we were walking with the Phi Sigs! We ran into a bunch of collegians and they loved our matching letters.



I know I've talked before about how much I love the teachers at Chloe's school, but I also have to give a shout out to the other families. I've loved becoming part of this community and often bring in things that didn't work for us (i.e. peas, diapers she has grown out of) to see if they can find a home. I thought it was so cool that Zavier's mom brought us this little scooter. Her daughter is a bit too old for it and since it's so girly, she thought it would be better for Chloe than Zavier! Chloe doesn't completely get it yet - she's not quite tall enough to have both feet flat on the floor, but it does help as a walking helper when she pushes it...

...and speaking of walking, guess who has started it?!!

On Friday, I was greeted with "CHLOE WALKED TODAY AND WE HAVE A PICTURE OF IT!" I was so excited (a little sad that Ed and I weren't the first to see it... another cost of being a working Mommy), but so excited that she did it. Miss Lady was all sorts of giggly when I got there... she KNEW that she had done something really cool. It was so neat. And then she did it while I was there... and all weekend long. She can't do it for long, but she manages a few steps. So, it won't be long before she's just running thru life... and as Grams said when I told her, we are in trouble.

My girl likes to EXPLORE.

LOL

Mommy Can't Talk

Literally. My vocal cords have decided to take a siesta. It's all email for me today. I hope no one thinks "oh, I'll just pick up the phone - it will be easier to just call her anyway" because no, it won't be.

I never get stomach viruses.

It's not that I am immune to illness, but if Ed gets the flu, I will get a sore throat. If he gets an upset stomach, I will get a sore throat. If he sprains his ankle... well you get the idea. It has always been this way. And every time I get a sore throat, I know there is the distinct possibility that I'm on my way to laryngitis. It doesn't happen every time or even every other, but it's always lingering... my body's way of making a threat "if you don't take me seriously and REST, there will be consequences." Perhaps it's God's way of keeping me humble since I do love to talk. I don't know.

Sometimes books are longing to be read.

On Friday, I took the day off because I was feeling so crappy. I took Chloe to daycare, did a couple of quick errands (feeling like crap doesn't make the things Chloe needs go away), bought some meds and returned home to get in bed with a book, my Pooh blanket and my cough syrup. And the day SPED BY. I was so depressed to realize that before I knew it, it was time to climb out of bed, get back in the car and go pick up the Muppet. It's not that I didn't want to see her, but do you know how long it has been since I rested all day and read a book? About 8 months. Know how long it will be before I get to do it again? 18 years or my next sore throat.

I think that's one of the things that is so weird about parenting and the subtle, quiet, nameless thing that sometimes makes it so hard. I walk through malls and look longingly at book stores. I think my favorite author (Stephen King) recently released a new book. I think. I can't say more than that because it was a passing whisper that I heard on my way to buy diapers. I can remember a time when I would count down the days to a new SK release and then schedule a weekend full of nothing so I could read, read, read. How delicious to be utterly left alone to READ.

I know it sounds like I'm complaining and I honestly don't mean to do that. But in all the things I worried about or thought about when I was pregnant, this wasn't one of them. I worried about dogs in parks, not having money for college, losing my job, tubes for ears, playground bullies. I remember saying to a friend of mine that after Chloe was born, I was committed to still being the person I am - I want her to know who I am as a person and not just who I am as a Mom. So, as a result, I drag this kid everywhere. True, I did back out on plans on Saturday to take a 2 hour nap (so needed), but did I rest yesterday and save my voice? Nope, we went to the zoo for the NKF walk (lots of fun, but exhausting). Being a working mom gives me a certain amount of balance in my work life - I have to leave at 5p and that's that. But, where do you find the balance between being a mom and being just a plain old person?

I haven't figured it out... maybe because there is no answer. This is what it is. My brother recently read this blog and said "I love my niece, but I wonder where my sister has gone." Maybe she's on siesta along with the vocal cords.

I don't feel missing, but putting down the book to pick up the car keys absolutely sucked.

Captioned by Chloe

"Mommy took this photo to show how tall I am getting. 25th percentile for height - HOLLA."

"Mommy and Daddy like me to sleep at the other end of the crib, but sometimes I like to chill with my peeps. They miss me when I am all the way at the other end."

"I got to hang out with Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop last Saturday so Mommy and Daddy could go celebrate Aunt Stef's birthday. I would have liked to go, but was not given the option. Mommy and Daddy don't know what they're missing, though, because Mom-Mom has cool toys that we don't have at home."

"Auntie Lu gave me this cool bear, Rupert. He came in a neat little suitcase, which Mommy said I can have to play with as soon as I stop putting everything in my mouth. I know where she hid it, though. Heh, Mommy."