To my dear Sweet Caroline,

Today is your second birthday and I'm finding myself daydreaming and reminiscing about the past two years. The time has passed so quickly and I can not believe this day is here already. The teeny tiny little bundle we brought home has grown into an adorable, strong willed, independent, funny little lady. Not a day goes by when you don't amaze me with the things you know, do, and say. You have taught me how to slow down, take a breath and enjoy the simple things in life. There are so many things that I love about you. I love how excited you get when you see birdies and try to "see 'em". I love how much you're fascinated by the moon and want to "see it", "have it" and "eat it". I love how you say "I love you too, Mommy" when you give me hugs and kisses. I love that your favorite song is Happy Birthday and you make me sing it a dozen times before bed. I love how you know all of the words to "Goodnight Moon" because we've read it so many times. I love how you smile and say "hi" or "how are ya" to everyone you see. I love how much you love going to Target. I love watching you play with your baby dolls - wrapping them up, feeding them, changing their diapers, taking them for walks and talking to them in a high squeaky voice the way grown ups do. I love it when you tell me that you want to do things yourself by saying "leave me alone". I love it when you say "ummmm" when I ask you a question you need to think about. I love how you say "um, hi!" over and over again when you talk on you're pretend phone. I could go on and on forever. I love you more than you'll ever know. You are an amazing little lady and I couldn't be prouder to be your Mommy. I can't wait to see what surprises you have in store for us next year. Happy Birthday, Ladybug!

Love Always, Mommy

Look Who's Two!

Summer, Summer, Summer Time

We've been busy enjoying the summer weather over the past few weeks. Here's a peek at what we've been up to....

Going down the slide at the carnival

Watering the plants

Playing at the playground

Wrapping up and "hiding" in blankets

Taking walks (she likes putting her own glasses and hat on!)

Eating pudding on the deck

Attempting to use the sprinkler...not a big fan :)

Got some stickers from Grandma and Grandpa and decided they'd look good on Daddy's pants

Found an inchworm - he's one luck guy...he escaped death by squishing a few times :)

And I just have to add that Caroline will be 2 tomorrow....I'm still in denial...where did the time go????

Life After Surgery

is the same as it always was! Caroline was back to her usual self within days. I couldn't believe it! Had a follow up appointment yesterday and everything looks great!

So we've been able to take advantage of the beautiful weather and have some fun! Here's a peek at what we've been up to...
Coloring on her new easel


Coloring on the couch (oops...thank goodness for tide pens!)


Harvesting beans from our "garden"


Playing with new toys at Pep and Mimzy's house - thanks Auntie Judy!!





Visiting the farm - saw some ducks and got some strawberries





Playing around in the tub


Hopefully we'll have a summer full of great weather and we'll have more fun adventures to share. Looking forward to a big birthday next week...two already!?!?!

Headed Home

Caroline and I spent the night at the hospital last night. Erik headed home around 9:30 and Caroline and I settled down for what proved to be a pretty uneventful night. I ended up sleeping in bed with her (just like I did the night after she was born almost 2 years ago!). She slept better than I expected. Only woke up once for meds, but she's a crazy sleeper! The girl tossed and turned all night, and she talks in her sleep :) She ended up waking up at 4:30 and fell back to sleep around 5:30, and was up again at 6:15. So she's pretty well rested. I, on the other hand, am not!
The doctor and all his residents came in around 7ish and said she looks great! And as long as she kept eating and drinking we were good to go. Boy has she kept up her side of the bargain. Eggs, oatmeal, yogurt and juice for breakfast! She got checked out by the nurses and now we're waiting to head home!


I just want to thank everyone again for their love and support. This was a tough time for all of us and you helped us make it through! Love you all :)

Day of Surgery: Part 3

The hard part is over. Things are going very well. Caroline looks good, is talking up a storm and entertaining visitors. Pep was in the area so he stopped by to say hello.



She also decided that she was ready to eat. Enjoyed some ice cream, apple sauce and apple juice.


Now it's time to rest. Hopefully heading home tomorrow. :)

Day of Surgery: Part 2

Post-op and Recovery

She's all done! Made it through like a champ. The doctor said things went very well. We spent just a short time in recovery and we're all settled in her room now. She's sound asleep in her giant hospital bed. We'll be spending the night tonight and as long as she eats and drinks we'll be headed home tomorrow! More updates coming soon!

Day of Surgery: Part 1

I know I haven't posted in forever, little miss has been keeping me busy! But today I have plenty of spare time to waste while we wait for her to come out of surgery. Today her doctors are clipping her extra frenulum and removing the extra tissue and bumps on her tongue.
We were up early this morning and of course she was too! Poor baby couldn't eat so we had to distract her. She was able to have a little juice so that made her happy :)
We headed to Yale Childrens Hospital at 7:00 AM, arrived just before 8 and started the check in process. She got her bracelet (which she immediately removed) and she played with toys. They brought us into her room where we convinced her to wear her little yellow gown and kept her buy while nurses and doctors came in and out in preparation for surgery.

We read books




Played with the socks




And tied Daddy's shoes



She got some meds to keep her calm and they really worked :) She got super relaxed, layed on Erik and I, and sang rock-a-bye baby a hundred times. She started talking silly and stuff too. About half an hour ago she went with the nurse into the OR. Now we get to sit and wait....

All dressed up...

Caroline has recently acquired her very first tutu (thanks Auntie Maryellen!) and it has become her FAVORITE accessory. She's been pretty much wearing it ALL DAY LONG!

Here she is helping me make the bed

It looks nice with her rain boots and little green purse

Not so bad with the red shoes and fire helmet!

It took me forever to get her dressed today - she wanted to stay in her pj's and tutu. Got her in real clothes, but she wouldn't part with the tutu (we went to Big Y in it!). It was only by some small miracle that Erik was able to get her to take it off before her nap!

Compromise

With her second birthday is fast approaching, Caroline is getting lots of practice being a two year old. If I never hear the word "No" again, it will be too soon! In order to get anything done we've had to do a lot of compromising these days. I've been allowing her to make choices when its reasonable. She's been choosing which outfit and which shoes she wants to wear (whether they match or not), and she's also been choosing hair accessories and putting on her own socks. With that said I bring you to today....

She left the house in this beautiful ensemble - complete with two hair accessories (pony tail and headband), NO socks, and her new favorite tutu (see the next post for more tutu photos). At least I got my grocery shopping done....

Monkey See, Monkey Do....

Caroline likes to comment on things around the house. I'll randomly hear her say things like "phone", "remote", "kitties", etc. Yesterday I heard her say "camera" and thought nothing of it, until she said "cheese" and I got curious. I walked into the living room to see this...
Wonder where she gets this from????

Firehouse Visit

Today we took advantage of the nice weather and drove down to visit Erik at work. The drive to Greenwich is about an hour but with the sunroof open and the radio on we had a blast! Here are just a few snapshots from our day plus a bonus video of Caroline's reaction to Erik driving the truck. Enjoy!

In front of the truck with Daddy

Sitting in the back of the truck

Playing with a flashlight

Trying out Daddy's bed

Trying on Daddy's coat

Admiring all the buttons

Daddy let her push some!

Checking out her new hat

Fast asleep on the way homeThis is a clip of Caroline watching Erik drive the truck. Love the face!