I realize I haven't done an official "Charlotte update" in awhile. I only have about 15 minutes before kids start waking up from naps, so I am going to make this concise!
Health: Charlotte is doing fantastic health-wise. She had her 15-month old well-check a few weeks ago and everything was perfect. She is growing well (she is taller and weighs more than her older sister did at this age!), and the pediatrician didn't have any concerns. Such a complete 180 from this time last year! In August she visited the ENT for a hearing test (which she passed with flying colors) as well as the Developmental pediatrician.
Gross/Fine Motor Skills: We are switching it up a bit with her therapy. Since birth, Charlotte had been receiving once a month PT through our county's birth to three program. At this point, even though Charlotte is doing really well, we felt as if we needed a bit more to give her that added push in order to keep progressing her skills. Starting this week, she will now receive PT and OT once a week. She is getting close to walking, though it will probably be a few more months. She is master-crawler and is becoming very good at getting into trouble. She likes to walk along furniture and tackle her brother and sister.
Speech: Charlotte doesn't have any words yet, though loves to babble constantly. Her favorite syllables seem to be "dada" and "baba", with "mama" only thrown in when she is really mad. She has a good understanding of reciprocal speech and will hold a conversation with you; she even changes the intonation of her voice as one would in an actual conversation. Pretty dang cute. We are working on signs (right now "milk", "more", "all done", "eat"), which she understands, but has yet to imitate or initiate. She also starts once a week Speech therapy this week which I am very excited about. I really feel she is on the verge of really "getting" how language works and I look forward to watching this develop!
Extra-Curriculars: Every Monday Charlotte and I have swimming lessons as well as adaptive gymnastics on Thursdays. She LOVES swimming. She squeals from the time she sees her swimsuit come out of the bag in the locker room until we are done with lessons. Gymnastics is a big playtime for kids a a bit of a social hour for the moms...both good things in my opinion! The best part of both swimming and gymnastics is Max, our old neighbor, is also in the classes. I love having the chance to see Melissa and Max every week.
In a nutshell, Charlotte is great. Happy, healthy, and an absolute joy to be with. Last year at this time we were preparing for open heart surgery; this year, we are enjoying our new house, our new routine, and all the fun activities that fall brings!
Pictures to come soon!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Hey you!
Have you joined our team yet for this year's buddy walk?!? If you can't be there with us that day, there is an option to be a "virtual walker." Charlotte thanks you!
Here is all of the information you need to join our team..
What: Wisconsin Upside Down Buddy Walk
When: October 16, 2011 at 10:00 am
Where: Steinhafels off of I94 in Waukesha
Why: This event is sponsored by Wisconsin Upside Down, a local organization which provides information, advocacy, and support for individuals with Down syndrome and their families.
To join our team or donate:
http://buddywalk.kintera.org/
Once on the website...
- Click on "Join our Team"
- Agree to the waiver
- Fill out your information, if you do not want to make a separate fund raising page, you can leave this section blank. Unfortunately you will have to register and create a user name for each person in your family separately.
- You will want to register adult walkers under "TEAM"
To make a donation:
- Click on the "General Team Donation" tab
Here is all of the information you need to join our team..
What: Wisconsin Upside Down Buddy Walk
When: October 16, 2011 at 10:00 am
Where: Steinhafels off of I94 in Waukesha
Why: This event is sponsored by Wisconsin Upside Down, a local organization which provides information, advocacy, and support for individuals with Down syndrome and their families.
To join our team or donate:
http://buddywalk.kintera.org/
Once on the website...
- Click on "Join our Team"
- Agree to the waiver
- Fill out your information, if you do not want to make a separate fund raising page, you can leave this section blank. Unfortunately you will have to register and create a user name for each person in your family separately.
- You will want to register adult walkers under "TEAM"
To make a donation:
- Click on the "General Team Donation" tab
Monday, September 19, 2011
Girl on a mission.
Charlotte's new favorite activity. I wasn't kidding when I said this girl likes water. Awesome.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Party time.
Last weekend we had Katherine and Will's birthday party. We usually have it the last weekend in September, smack dab between their birthdays. However, this year we had to move it up a bit due to a family wedding. The kids didn't mind!
We continued the tradition of holding the party at Kate and Bill's. They spoil us rotten; they throw amazing parties! We started the tradition when Katherine and Will were 3 and 1 (respectively), hard to believe this year we are celebrating 6 and 4.
What a day we had!
There were sno cones...
...and pinatas....
...there was chatting with family...
...and friends...
...there was cake...
...and singing happy birthday.
The adults had fun too, as we caught up on the happenings of family...
... and introduced old friends to new.
There were presents...
...and "baby only" bounce house time.
Oh yeah, did I mention the sno cones? Definitely the biggest hit of the day!
Even Sophie had fun. She slept for four days after the party.
I wish we had more pictures, our camara battery died half way through the party, and once again we had misplaced our charger (hence this post being a few days after the fact...good news though! Found the charger this morning!). We are blaming it on the craziness of our move.
However, I am hoping my brother took some pictures he can send to me. It truly was an amazing, fun, laid back day. Good food, good company, entertainment for the kids...who could ask for more? Last year's party was a bit stress-filled for us as Charlotte's heart surgery was only two weeks away. It was nice to do a complete 180 this year and be completely relaxed, with no worry of impending surgery.
Thank you to all who came to make Katherine and Will's celebration special. They had a wonderful day!!
We continued the tradition of holding the party at Kate and Bill's. They spoil us rotten; they throw amazing parties! We started the tradition when Katherine and Will were 3 and 1 (respectively), hard to believe this year we are celebrating 6 and 4.
What a day we had!
There were sno cones...
...and pinatas....
...there was chatting with family...
...and friends...
...there was cake...
...and singing happy birthday.
The adults had fun too, as we caught up on the happenings of family...
... and introduced old friends to new.
There were presents...
...and "baby only" bounce house time.
Oh yeah, did I mention the sno cones? Definitely the biggest hit of the day!
Even Sophie had fun. She slept for four days after the party.
I wish we had more pictures, our camara battery died half way through the party, and once again we had misplaced our charger (hence this post being a few days after the fact...good news though! Found the charger this morning!). We are blaming it on the craziness of our move.
However, I am hoping my brother took some pictures he can send to me. It truly was an amazing, fun, laid back day. Good food, good company, entertainment for the kids...who could ask for more? Last year's party was a bit stress-filled for us as Charlotte's heart surgery was only two weeks away. It was nice to do a complete 180 this year and be completely relaxed, with no worry of impending surgery.
Thank you to all who came to make Katherine and Will's celebration special. They had a wonderful day!!
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Grand gift from Great-grams.
My Grandma Peg gave my kids a wonderful birthday gift; a whole stack of GREAT books. She gave me a check and told me to buy a big assortment of children's books. Charlotte and I spent well over an hour in Barnes and Noble this morning choosing the perfect combination of new picture books as well as some of the classics. Curious George, Bernstein Bears, Amelia Bedelia, Silverlicious, and many more...so many new books to read! Yay!!
Thanks Grams! You're the best! The kids can't wait to share their new books with you.
Thanks Grams! You're the best! The kids can't wait to share their new books with you.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Four.
Will is four today. Four....wow, once again I sit in awe and revel at how fast time goes.
Four years ago, this little boy came into the world and changed our lives.
I'm not going to lie. That first year was tough. Not only were we adjusting to a newborn in addition to our hot-headed toddler, but I was also adjusting to being a full time mom. I am embarrassed to admit that much of Will's first year was a blur, however what I do remember is an easy-going, laid back baby boy.
Will makes us laugh. Often. He definitely has found his niche in our little family. He is such a sweet little man, who randomly tells us he loves us for no reason.
age 1
age 2
age 3
It has been a privilege to watch Will and Charlotte's relationship grow over the past year. He is a fantastic big brother. Katherine is super maternal with Charlotte, wanting to care for her and love on her often. Will is much more understated. He plays extremely well with her, and is incredibly gentle and loving with her. He has never shown any amount of jealousy, anger, or hatred towards her for any reason; which is truly amazing considering he wasn't even three when she was born.
Today was a day-long celebration for Will. M&M pancakes and chocolate milk for breakfast followed by a birthday treat to share with his preschool class. He came home to a special present on his pillow left by Kate, and we went to dinner with my parents this evening. This time Katherine's persuasion got the best of Will and we ended up at Chili's.
Happy birthday little man, I look forward to seeing what the next four years hold.
Four years ago, this little boy came into the world and changed our lives.
I'm not going to lie. That first year was tough. Not only were we adjusting to a newborn in addition to our hot-headed toddler, but I was also adjusting to being a full time mom. I am embarrassed to admit that much of Will's first year was a blur, however what I do remember is an easy-going, laid back baby boy.
Will makes us laugh. Often. He definitely has found his niche in our little family. He is such a sweet little man, who randomly tells us he loves us for no reason.
age 1
age 2
age 3
It has been a privilege to watch Will and Charlotte's relationship grow over the past year. He is a fantastic big brother. Katherine is super maternal with Charlotte, wanting to care for her and love on her often. Will is much more understated. He plays extremely well with her, and is incredibly gentle and loving with her. He has never shown any amount of jealousy, anger, or hatred towards her for any reason; which is truly amazing considering he wasn't even three when she was born.
Today was a day-long celebration for Will. M&M pancakes and chocolate milk for breakfast followed by a birthday treat to share with his preschool class. He came home to a special present on his pillow left by Kate, and we went to dinner with my parents this evening. This time Katherine's persuasion got the best of Will and we ended up at Chili's.
Happy birthday little man, I look forward to seeing what the next four years hold.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
49er
It is quickly becoming our tradition to let each one of our children pick the restaurant of their choice for dinner the night before school starts. Last week, Katherine picked Noodles. Tuesday night, after avoiding much persuasion from Katherine, Will picked good ol' McDonalds. He can't resist the nuggets, chocolate milk, and a 49er (49er is what we call the ice cream cones from McDonalds...such a great little treat for so little money!).
Because of the special occasion, we let Charlotte have her second ice cream cone in as many days. She is becoming quite the pro.
Just be prepared for the fallout when you take away the end of the sticky, mushy mess.
******
Speaking of the first day of school, check out my handsome little man on his first day of preschool. He did great; such a "go with the flow" kid, jumped right in and had a good time. Hard to believe he is going to be four on Monday!
Because of the special occasion, we let Charlotte have her second ice cream cone in as many days. She is becoming quite the pro.
Just be prepared for the fallout when you take away the end of the sticky, mushy mess.
******
Speaking of the first day of school, check out my handsome little man on his first day of preschool. He did great; such a "go with the flow" kid, jumped right in and had a good time. Hard to believe he is going to be four on Monday!
Monday, September 5, 2011
Weekend of Chaos?
Missy and Chris had a "no kids allowed" wedding to attend this past weekend in Chicago, which meant that the Neuharth boys stayed with us for a few nights. Amazingly, it was pretty easy. All five kids were really well behaved and enjoyed each others company. We even took them all to the zoo on Sunday.
(Highlight of the zoo trip...the beloved prairie dogs are back!)
Charlotte also enjoyed her first ice cream cone. Funny how she knew exactly what to do with it!
******
Katherine bus update from Friday: Yes, she did ride the bus on Friday. However, even after calling the bus company, they messed up again and this time dropped her off at our house instead of the correct bus stop. Normally this would have been fine, however, the younger kids and I were waiting for her a couple blocks away at the bus stop (which is where the woman at the bus company promised me they would drop her off!) and didn't realize she was already home, once again crying and upset. Ugh, we are taking a break from the bus for awhile. Katherine has told us numerous times this weekend that she doesn't want to ride the bus anymore and I am not going to push it. Hopefully she will try again in a few weeks.
******
Busy week for us. Will and Sam start school on Wednesday, and I am back to work Thursday night. We also have the kid's birthday party coming up this weekend! Yay!
Have a great short week everyone, enjoy the "fall" weather!
(Highlight of the zoo trip...the beloved prairie dogs are back!)
Charlotte also enjoyed her first ice cream cone. Funny how she knew exactly what to do with it!
******
Katherine bus update from Friday: Yes, she did ride the bus on Friday. However, even after calling the bus company, they messed up again and this time dropped her off at our house instead of the correct bus stop. Normally this would have been fine, however, the younger kids and I were waiting for her a couple blocks away at the bus stop (which is where the woman at the bus company promised me they would drop her off!) and didn't realize she was already home, once again crying and upset. Ugh, we are taking a break from the bus for awhile. Katherine has told us numerous times this weekend that she doesn't want to ride the bus anymore and I am not going to push it. Hopefully she will try again in a few weeks.
******
Busy week for us. Will and Sam start school on Wednesday, and I am back to work Thursday night. We also have the kid's birthday party coming up this weekend! Yay!
Have a great short week everyone, enjoy the "fall" weather!
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Letting go.
Today, I officially have a Kindergartener.
I know it is cliche, but I have to say, it is amazing how fast time goes. It seems like just yesterday that Katherine came into this world and made me a mommy. I gotta say, it's the best job I have ever had.
It was hard to watch her walk onto that bus this morning. I hid a few tears behind my sunglasses, waved enthusiastically and told her to have a good day. It helped to know that she is so ready for Kindergarten. She is nearly six years-old, and has been looking forward to this all summer.
Will missed his big sister today. He asked about four times when she was going to get home. He also informed me that he would be my little helper whenever Katherine was at school. We spent the morning running errands, weird to be shopping with just two kiddos.
(Charlotte thought she was hot stuff riding in the cart...she is usually in my baby carrier, but I decided if I was dealing with sending my eldest off to Kindergarten, why not start the cart transition for the youngest?!)
There was a bit of a snafu when we went to get Katherine from the bus. She got off at the wrong stop; she inadvertently followed two older girls who had gotten on at her stop this morning, but use a different stop in the afternoon. I didn't realize it until a few minutes later when she didn't get off at the right stop. I ran (with an almost 4-year old in flip flops complaining behind me!) to find her. Thankfully she was almost home, but when she saw me, her lower lip started to quiver as she fought back tears. It killed me to see my independent, outgoing little girl coming home from her first day of Kindergarten so upset because she thought I had forgot her. She was terrified. I tried to downplay the issue, and talk about the rest of her day (which was fantastic), but she ran into the house and grabbed her beloved pink monkey--her security, something that will always be there.
These are the moments I dread as a mother. The times when you can't do anything to protect your children from pain and fear. Sometimes I wish I could stick them in a bubble and keep them young and innocent forever. It is hard to let go. I'm workin' on it.
Tomorrow is a new day...though I don't know how successful I will be at getting Katherine on the bus. She repeated time after time today that she did not want to ride the bus tomorrow. Not sure what the "right" parenting move is in this case. I'll keep you updated.
I know it is cliche, but I have to say, it is amazing how fast time goes. It seems like just yesterday that Katherine came into this world and made me a mommy. I gotta say, it's the best job I have ever had.
It was hard to watch her walk onto that bus this morning. I hid a few tears behind my sunglasses, waved enthusiastically and told her to have a good day. It helped to know that she is so ready for Kindergarten. She is nearly six years-old, and has been looking forward to this all summer.
Will missed his big sister today. He asked about four times when she was going to get home. He also informed me that he would be my little helper whenever Katherine was at school. We spent the morning running errands, weird to be shopping with just two kiddos.
(Charlotte thought she was hot stuff riding in the cart...she is usually in my baby carrier, but I decided if I was dealing with sending my eldest off to Kindergarten, why not start the cart transition for the youngest?!)
There was a bit of a snafu when we went to get Katherine from the bus. She got off at the wrong stop; she inadvertently followed two older girls who had gotten on at her stop this morning, but use a different stop in the afternoon. I didn't realize it until a few minutes later when she didn't get off at the right stop. I ran (with an almost 4-year old in flip flops complaining behind me!) to find her. Thankfully she was almost home, but when she saw me, her lower lip started to quiver as she fought back tears. It killed me to see my independent, outgoing little girl coming home from her first day of Kindergarten so upset because she thought I had forgot her. She was terrified. I tried to downplay the issue, and talk about the rest of her day (which was fantastic), but she ran into the house and grabbed her beloved pink monkey--her security, something that will always be there.
These are the moments I dread as a mother. The times when you can't do anything to protect your children from pain and fear. Sometimes I wish I could stick them in a bubble and keep them young and innocent forever. It is hard to let go. I'm workin' on it.
Tomorrow is a new day...though I don't know how successful I will be at getting Katherine on the bus. She repeated time after time today that she did not want to ride the bus tomorrow. Not sure what the "right" parenting move is in this case. I'll keep you updated.
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