If you are happy...

and you know it clap your hands (clap clap)! Chloe just started clapping along with the song. I don't know what inspired me to sing it to her, but when I began singing she immediately stopped crawling, sat up, and started clapping. It's the cutest thing I've ever seen. I can't believe that at barely 10 months old she can recognize the song and associate the motions with it. Here she is!

Get up - Stand Up....and other Stuff

Lil Chloe is now 10 months old! She weighs in at 16 lbs 9 oz and she is about 28" long. She is babbling non stop, and waving "hi" to strangers. It's fun to watch people stop, smile like goofballs and then wave back to her. Chloe has reached another milestone....she is pushing up to the standing position. She can accomplish this feat if the object she is using to push herself up is at her waist or lower. She uses the stairs, the bottom rung on our dining room chairs, and Camdyn's red folding chair in order to push herself up. She seems so small to be standing there like that. So, I take her hands and try to help her walk and she is all hula girl, with her belly wiggling back and forth while she tries to muster up the control to take a step. I predict that she is going to walk after her 1st birthday, she still has a long way to go before that will happen....I'm guessing she'll be 14 months old when she takes her 1st step!

Yes, I realize that Chloe is only wearing one babyleg and it's a completely strategic wardrobe

statement. Her uncovered leg provides her with enough traction to crawl on our wood floors.

When both knees are covered she ends up in a face plant.

Look at me, Mama! I'm Standing!

Camdyn & Madison play at the park on MLK day

Chloe sports a hair bow that is clinging to one precious hair on the top of her head

Snowed out at Disney!

Yes, you read that right and it happened in Florida. Originally, we planned our annual trip to Disney World the weekend in December that Chloe & Camdyn had the rota virus. I cancelled the trip thinking that it wouldn't be any fun to drag two crappy kids to the happiest place on earth. Well, turns out that would have been better than enduring Disney THIS past weekend. Being that I had already cancelled and re -booked the trip once, Expedia showed no mercy when I attempted to rebook it again. So, kids, it's 3o degrees out and we are headed to Disney World! We packed our warmest clothes, I bought a weather shield for the stroller and we thought we would brave the weather and just hope that we would, at the very least, take advantage of light crowds. When we woke up on Saturday morning, it was 27 degrees and raining. OH NO! This made the cold even more unbearable and the last thing we wanted was 2 sick kids, so Chris and I had to come up with a Plan B.

Camdyn plays in our hotel/condo on Saturday morning. Surprisingly, she isn't really disappointed about not going to Disney World. The digs are great at Mike Ditka's Runaway Beach Club...this is our FAVORITE place to stay when we do Disney. Having a full kitchen, and a separate bedroom are a must have now, especially when traveling with a baby.

Around 10:30, we bundled up the girls and headed to Downtown Disney. We shopped and Camdyn bought a baby Bambi stuffed animal and then we had lunch with the Dinosaurs at T-Rex. Camdyn thought they were real and it was really cute to watch her try and touch them and then pull her hand back in fear when they moved.

Chloe enjoys her lunch in the Ice Cave, she ate cereal, with crayons for dessert. The walls turned different colors and that really kept her attention.

Playtime at the hotel. Chloe tries to pull up to standing

Later that evening I took Camdyn to Arabian Nights to have dinner and watch the horse show. She wore her "Cutest Cowgirl" shirt and we had a blast watching all the pretty horses (and the princesses/knights too).

So, the weekend didn't turn out how we intended, but we had a great time despite the weather. We actually saw some snow flurries on Saturday night and we knew that we made the right decision. I will bring Camdyn to the Magic Kingdom when it warms up in a few weeks....I guess maybe the 3rd time is a charm!

Chloe Belle

It's been a bit of a whirlwind since Xmas and I have totally neglected my blog. I'll have to play catch up later...but this is a start. Miss Chloe turned 9 months old on 12/19 and just yesterday had her well visit. She was a doll baby and didn't even cry during the toe prick and subsequent squeeze. She babbled and cooed and smiled at Dr. Meyer. Even he couldn't even resist kissing her on the top of her bald baby head.

Chloe's stats: 15 lbs. 6 oz, 28" long and she sits in the 5th percentile for weight and the 50th for height. She has gained about a pound and a half since her 6 mo. visit and she has grown 3 inches! It appears that she lost some weight this month due to the rota virus which plagued our whole family for a few days....poor Chloe battled it for 10 days! The doctor isn't concerned by her petite-ness. He said, "I wish I saw more skinny babies." Funny, cause when I brought chunky monkey Camdyn in to see him he'd say, "She's big and healthy and perfect." Babies come in all shapes and sizes and they are all adorable! I'm so glad I got one of each...makes it easier to tell them apart in their baby pictures :)

So, what's Chloe doin? She's crawling on her hands and knees and she is losing that timid, "am I doing this right?" hesitation. She is linking a lot of vowels and consonants together and I'm just waiting for her to spit out "ball" or "dog." She does say Dada and Mama randomly. She is also waving "hi" and can pull herself up onto her knees. Chloe is also eating Organic Puffs now, for her first solid food, and we also mixed in a little fruit this month....pears and bananas!

Camdyn still adores her baby sister. This morning Cam was laying on the couch and I placed Chloe on top of her like she was riding a horse. Camdyn grabbed her little starfish hands and said, "Gidyeeup Chloe" and then bounced her around a bit. They looked so cute together! Chloe laughed and laughed. I'm sure these sisters will share a lot of good times.

So, Chloe is growing up and it won't be long until she is pulling up to standing and first words are flying out of her mouth. I'm still trying to hold on to not only my sanity but every minute of babyhood that Chloe has left in her. I know I'm really going to miss these days...