The great outdoors

The problem with having a baby at the end of summer is that by the time you are feeling confident enough to take your baby outside, the weather has changed and its too cold. So, Charlotte has spent the majority of her little life tucked away inside. Thankfully today was beautiful and we took the opportunity to take Charlie to the park and into the woods for the first time!

with daddy at the park

Charlie's first slide

Daddy got stuck!

Ready for the big slide!

She loved it!

mommy's turn!

Yay!!!

A girl and her daddy!!

Her first time in the woods!

Love my girl!

chewing on mommy!

fun on daddy's shoulders! (my favourite picture of the day!)

time to go :(

exhausted after a long day

A Girl and Her Kitty

In our house, we have three cats running around...

Eli, B'Oscar (with a silent 'B') and Cyclo. 

Charlotte decided early on that Eli was her favorite. Maybe it's his size (he's huge!). Or maybe it's his white fluffiness... Or maybe it is because he is the only one that doesn't run, tail tucked between his legs, from her every movement!

Whatever the reason, Charlotte loves him! She starts jabbering at him the moment she sees him. She carries on long conversations with him and she reaches out to pet him every chance she gets. For the most part, he is a good sport about it. He never gets aggressive and I never have to worry that he will hurt her. Sometimes, he even leans into her strokes... That is until she grabs a handful of fur and skin and pulls! Then, he'll let out a protest and scurry away. 

Hey Kitty! How ya doin'?

I will pet you!

...

Have you seen my feet?

I will kick them at your face... Watch out!

oh boy...

KITTY!!! You're so soft!
Hmph!

Oooh! Look at that!!

Ha! You never saw it coming!
Ahhhh!!

Oh how I love you, kitty!!

Kitty... Kitty??? Where did you go?

There's that contagious laugh again...

Too fast...

This past weekend, Charlotte Jane turned six months old.

Six... months... old...

It was 11:45 at night when the contractions started.  11:50 when I told Tim and saw his eyes light up. 2:15 when we got in the car and started towards the hospital...

7 am the pain was so intense. Tim was talking... I couldn't hear him. I couldn't hear anything past the pain.

It was 9 am when her heartbeat first dropped. Tim was in the cafeteria eating a sandwich. He was so tired. He didn't know it was happening. My room swarmed with doctors and nurses, flipping me over trying to steady her...

11 am when her heartbeat dropped again. Tim looked worried. More flipping. More hushed, hurried voices. But she was steady again.

It was 1:30 when it dropped again. Urgent voices when it wouldn't rise. We knew.

1:45 in the OR.

1:55 It's a girl! I heard her cry. She was safe! Everything was foggy... But she was safe!

That was just last week, right?

Too fast... Way too fast...

Photoshop Fun!

pretty girl!

the infamous bear suit

big girls sit in big girl chairs!

Charlie's cousin Emma!

Charlie's cousin Adie!

Charlotte with Nonna! 

Charlotte with Grandpa & Grandma Pearson

Dancing with Daddy

Tim and Charlotte have a favorite past-time... Dancing!

Are you surprised?

She loves being in daddy's arms

Daddy's girl

And so it begins...

Eli kitty vs. Giraffe

Which one does Charlotte love more- Eli kitty or her giraffe?

Big girls use cups

Mommy calls a sick day...

Unfortunately it was a Saturday!

Mommy couldn't play, so she hung out with Eli kitty... She bit his ear...

Kitty legs are delectable morsels!

Laying on the floor for hours without complaining!!

Hands are always fun!

Sitting on mommy's lap!

The Blair Charlotte Project... Episode 1

When babies attack...

A working mom

Being a working mom is hard.

I knew it would be, but I never imagined it would be this hard!

No, the job itself isn't any harder, the hours aren't any longer, the commute isn't any worse... but it feels like it. Don't get me wrong, I love my job. I work with an incredible group of people and I really do enjoy what I do, but every time I see my little girl smile, I want to drop everything, call in sick and cuddle up with her for the day.

But I don't.

Sometimes I bring her to work with me and that helps. She lays on the floor in the office or takes a nap or makes her rounds, holding court with anyone that passes by. Most of the time, she is content to sit in my lap and watch me edit. If I could, I would bring her every day.

It's hard sometimes, walking out of the door in the morning, away from that smile... And then counting down the hours until I can see her again.

There is no better feeling after a long day filled with meetings, laborious edits and unforgiving deadlines, than to walk in the door and see my little girl. When she notices me, her eyes light up and she grins uncontrollably. Her feet start to kick and her hands wave around. I feed her and then she sits in my lap, snuggled up in my arms and she talks to me. Sometimes she reaches up to touch my face or she plays with my clothes. And other times she just sits in my lap and screeches.

These are good moments. These are the best moments.

Being a working mom isn't easy, but at least I have these moments and for that I am thankful!

smiles for mommy



Sweet Potatoes

Charlotte loves sweet potatoes...

Covered in carrots...

Charlotte has started to eat real food...

We knew it was time to start feeding her solids when every bite we took was accompanied by a gumming and snarfling noise coming from her direction. This was followed closely by distinct chewing motions and intense utensil scrutiny. It's hard to have a peaceful dinner when your baby is leaning cross-eyed over your plate with a large string of drool dangling precariously close to your meal.

So we slapped a bib on her, forced her into the sitting position and confined her to her high chair.

The first food we tried was avacados. I had read online that they are a wonderful first choice, so I bought an avacado, cut it up, mashed it up, stirred it up and stuck it in her mouth. The first spoonful she tolerated...The second one she complained about... The third one she gagged on and the fourth one she dodged completely... I tried the next night with the same reaction...

Having been disheartened by the avacado debacle, we put solids on hold for a few weeks. We resumed with peas, and after some success (there being no gagging or dodging) it was time to move on.

And that brings us to this evening...

Tonight's menu- carrots... Sure, most of them ended up running down her chin and landing on her bib... Some coated her fingers... Still others smeared across her nose.

And then there was the projectile batch that, when she sneezed, shot towards me like machine gun fire, spraying everything in its wake. Unfortunately my reflexes, slowed down as they are by fatigue and distraction, were not quick enough to save me from an untimely shower of warm, orange goo... And so, I sit here covered in carrots.  There are carrots in my hair... There are carrots on my shirt... There are carrots on the computer screen... They are everywhere...

But that's okay. I gave up long ago my expectation to be clean and sticky free anywhere near a baby. I am sure that over time, I will be covered in much worse, and I will long for the days of warm, orange goo!

mmm...carrots...

I love this girl...

A girl and her mom...

Flawless

Stay tuned for more photo shoot pics!!

Going to work with mommy!

playing with her toys

lots of drool



naptime





snug as a bear in a chair



going home