Early domesticity is highly encouraged...

Charlotte's love of vacuums is starting to get out of control. She knows the word, knows where one is kept and can hear one a mile away.

Sometimes she tries to intervene and take over vacuuming, but gets angry when I try to explain to her that you can't always go forward with a vacuum. Sometimes you have to go backwards. She will have nothing to do with that silliness.

I was giving her a bath in the sink last night when she heard Tim vacuuming in the other room. This elicited such excitement that bubbles and water flew everywhere accompanied by squeals of delight.

Later, Tim laid the vacuum down on the ground so that he could clean out the bristle area and she wandered over, got on the floor and nestled her head against it. My precious. 

In Charlotte's world, her love of the vacuum is rivaled only by her love of the kitty. Therefore, I truly pity B'Oscar if she ever learns to combine these two passions!

She took a brief moment out of her vacuum reverie to talk to me in her "old man" voice.

Now back to playing... I like how at the end of this video, she crawls across the room and starts chewing on the protective guard we installed on the fireplace... Mmm... tasty... 

One year later...

Have I mentioned lately...

.. how much I love this girl???

This picture was taken back at Thanksgiving. I love her hair!

A girl on vacation...

A little girl in a great big world

2012

2011 will always have a fondness in my memory. It's the year my baby started to crawl and then walk. It's the year she learned how to give kisses and wave hello. It's also the year of "mama" and "dada" and learning how to roar like a lion.

Watching Charlotte grow up right before my eyes has been amazing, humbling, frustrating, inspiring, terrifying, rewarding and so many other things! Seeing her discover the world around her and observing her personality really beginning to blossom has been such an extraordinary experience. People said it would happen fast, and they were right. One year ago she couldn't do much of anything. Now she tries to put on her own socks, dances to every song she hears and gives some pretty good cuddles (when she's in the mood!)

2011 is the year we found out about and started preparing for Chapter 2 and soon, Chapter 2 will be here. Feeling the baby kick and watching my belly move makes me smile, even at three in the morning.

2011 had its rough patches as well... Moments I wish never happened, or moments that seemed to change everything. But there is no undoing those moments, so we move on, trusting that God's plan is bigger than our vision.

2012 has a lot of potential. We are all eager to meet Chapter 2 and watch our little family grow and change. We are curious how Charlotte will react to being a big sister and interested to see how she embraces her new role.

I've never been one for New Year's resolutions and this year is no different. I only pray that God will use this year to reveal himself more to us each day and draw us closer to Him and help us to follow closer in His will.

A girl and her daddy...

There's nothing more fun than a laser pointer...