10 Months

- Charlotte stands like a champ, but she's not quite ready to walk yet
- She loves climbing up and down the stairs and she is really good at it
- She loves frozen blueberries, Cheerios, yogurt, beans, and peas
- She likes to dance by bobbing up and down
- She really likes to be turned up-side down
- Her eyes are still greenish, but they look like they may be changing to brown
- Charlotte loves to eat the erasers off of pencils. We really have to keep them away from her because she is quick about it
- She likes Ben and Sam to pick her up about half of the time that they do. Definitely not the other half of the time.
- She loves to wave hello and goodbye
- Peekaboo: best game ever!
- She loves to play with dolls and figures



P.S. These photo shoots are getting very, very difficult.

Up to Date! And to celebrate...

Some quotes I've been saving for this joyous moment!



Ben: What's a werewolf?
Zach: It's a person who turns into a...monkey!
Ben: Oh. Is that right?
Sam: No, that would be a weremonkey.

Ben: We're gonna make a robot bigger than our house!
Katie: Where are we going to keep it?
Ben: In our underground fortress!

While trying to talk me into buying a toy
Ben: I want it!
Katie: No sweetie, we don't need it.
Ben: Yes we do need it to make me stop whining about it!

Ben: Mom, isn't this cool I'm walking backwards?! If you hear a bang or an "ow" then I ran into something.

Ben: Mom, the next house we have can we have a huge house!?

Sam: (to Charlotte) Ah! How many times does Mommy and me have to tell you?! No chewing on my shoes! (It's true; Charlotte loves chewing on Sam's flip-flops)

Talking about a little boy Sam was playing with:
Katie: How old was he?
Sam: Well, he was pretty little. He didn't speak human yet.

After Breakfast Scripture time:
Sam: What's a bitter cup?
Katie: Well, bitter is the opposite of sweet.
Sam: Oh, so it's healthy.



P.S. Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad! You guys are awesome!

O Christmas Tree!

We got a Christmas tree first thing this year, since we had such a fun time with it last year.


Ben and a tree candidate


Sam and another hopeful

We just went to a lot down the road (drove, not walked this year) and picked it out. Ben and Sam were both very opinionated about which one we should get. In the end we got the one I wanted. That's the way it goes baby-cakes.


Me and Charlotte



The lot was being run by high-schoolers, and while they did a good job, they did it kinda slowly. So, while we were waiting Sam and Ben discovered that they fit perfectly inside the tree netter. It was a wonderful moment.



The next day we got out the ornaments and set to work. Charlotte helped by making sure none of the bulbs were blown out and trying to suck on the electrical wiring. I helped by not letting her.



Our tree looked awesome! And then Charlotte pulled all the ornaments in the bottom two feet off the tree. Then I put them back on. Then Charlotte pulled them all off. Then I put them back on. Then Charlotte pulled them all off. Then I put them back on. Then Charlotte pulled them all off. Then I put them back on. Then Charlotte pulled them all off. Then I put them back on.



While I'm typing this, I think Charlotte is pulling them all back off again. I better get moving.

9 Months

- Charlotte is crawling around like a crazy woman. And she's fast.
- She has four teeth up top and four on the bottom
- Currently her eyes are green (like her Daddy's). They may still change, but I hope not because they are so pretty
- She is trying to stand by herself. She keeps letting go and standing for a moment or two, then plopping on her bottom.
- She is an amazing eater. She'll try just about anything. Currently the only thing she has completely rejected is baked squash. She was even gnawing on some lemon peel earlier today.
- Her favorite foods are yogurt, applesauce, chicken, Cheerios, and beans. But like I said, she'll pretty much eat everything.
- She isn't sleeping through the night. Boo.
- She loves drinking water. Especially with a little lemon in it.
- Charlotte loves her big brothers. She thinks they are hilarious and fascinating. (Caveat: unless they picking her up. Not cool.)









P.S. These photo shoots are getting increasingly difficult. Sitting still for a photo is not Charlotte's idea of fun.

8 Months

- Charlotte has seven teeth! Four on the top and three on the bottom
- She is crawling all over the place
- She is pulling herself up to stand constantly
- She is trying to cruise around while she stands up but mostly she gets scared and cries
- She loves to eat! She is always grabbing at our food
- Her favorite foods are currently peaches, mandarin oranges, black beans, yogurt,
baby puffs, bread, bananas and the soft parts of popcorn
- She loves dolls and stuffed animals
- She likes to pick up things off the floor and ground and eat them: leaves, paper,
sticks, garbage, etc.
- Charlotte does not blink a lot. She just stares and stares at everything around
her

7 Months

This is from September. I didn't really do a great job of recording this month. And Charlotte was very grumpy. Oh well.







- Charlotte has three teeth and another on the way
- She has kinda figured out crawling, but mostly she goes backwards

Halloween 2011

You thought I had forgot about it, didn't you? Nope, just crazy lazy. Halloween was pretty relaxed this year because while we were back in Maine my Mom got the boys Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costumes, so I didn't have to make anything this year. And that was awesome. Especially since I ended up helping out with the Ward Halloween Party. Ben and Sam had been averaging about three different Halloween costume ideas a day until we pick the TMNTs. After that, they just picked what they were going to be on the Halloweens when they were six, seven, ten and twelve. Ya know, just to be thinking ahead.


The Crew
Zach (the Man with no name), Charlotte (Soon to be the Glow Stick Queen), Sam (Raphael), and Ben (Leonardo)


Leonardo strikes a pose


Trick-or-Treating


A slightly dazed Raphael


The Glow-Stick Queen. She got a lot of attention from her subjects, as usual.

Ben, Charlotte and I headed in after about a hour of Trick-or-Treating. Sam and Zach stayed out for another hour. Zach would ask Sam if he was ready to go home and Sam would look in his bag and say, "Nope, not yet." Eventually Zach said it was time, since they were pretty much the only people out there. Then they came home and we ate candy forever. And ever. The end.

Summer 2011: Maine

We got to go and visit my family up in Maine this September. It was a great time! We played around in the woods and wild, played in the ocean, roasted s'mores and had boatloads of fun!



The Fam and the Atlantic



Zach and Charlotte at beautiful Popham Beach



Ben wading into Knickerbocker Lake



Charlotte at Knickerbocker She really didn't like sitting in the sand. At all. And didn't like the cold water. At all. But she did manage smiles under these specific conditions.



The boys and I on Mom and Dad's sailboat. My, she is yar. It was loads of fun. Even when the boat keeled and the boys almost slid right into the water. Good times. We also all slept out on the boat one night. Slightly less good, but still good times. It was so beautiful out there on the water. We kept seeing all these monarch butterflies flying over the water. It was lovely.

We also got to go to the Common Ground Fair. It's brilliant. I was a little overwhelmed by the whole thing though. There was so much to see and so much information, I couldn't take it all in.



The boys spent all kinds of time watching the blacksmith work. They really enjoyed it. Then they all went to learn how to make fire. They used string and sticks. Zach was the first one to actually make fire and everyone clapped. The boys thought it was great.



Ben eating organic pizza and listening to a performer



Jen and Chris at Popham Beach. It was great to see them!



Charlotte taking a bath in my parent's sink. And being off the charts cute.

It was so much fun visiting. Thanks, guys! We loved it.

Oh, and here are some quotes from our time up there:

Before a game of chess:
Sam: Let's have a fair game, Ben.

Ben: Lobsterman almost always wear shoes!

While playing at Grimes Cove:
Ben: Mom, come in the water with me!
Katie: Oh no, Ben. It's too cold.
Ben: It's not cold! It's refreshing!