Our big, little girl

This week has been busy, again. I subbed Wed., Thurs., and Fri (I am actually writing this blog in 8th grade science) and all my "free" time is spent working on Christmas ornaments for an ornament party I am going to in December. My ornament is very cute this year. I am so excited about it, but I can't tell you what it is just yet in case other party goers are reading this blog! :)

Caralin had a well child check-up last week and I wanted to report on her growth. She is 22 lbs. and 1 ounce which keeps her in the 15% for her weight. She moved up a little in height. At 31 3/4 inches she is in the 30% for height. I guess she is on track to, luckily, have her daddy's tall and thin frame. She is so petite! She is quickly becoming a master climber! The middle of the table and the computer desk used to be safe territory but she has conquered those obstacles and I often find her standing on a chair at the kitchen table or climbing up and standing on top of the computer desk pulling out all the bills, business cards and pictures (I think we need to buy a jungle gym for Christmas). She is learning more new words and getting much better at linking words into mini sentences to convey her needs to us.

Another HUGE milestone to report is she is in the beginning stages of using a potty chair! We are still working on telling Mommy and Daddy when she has to go but she likes the chair and she has used it several times in the last few days! I am so excited and so is she. When she goes potty in the chair she says "Yeah!" and claps for herself. Then she says "candy" which she has quickly understood as her reward for using the potty chair.

I have much more I can report and will post more this weekend. Hope you are all well.

Fall update

Well, it's November and I have been racking my brain for a post topic. My camera ran out of batteries after Halloween and I keep forgetting to charge them. I have lots of great pics of Caralin on my cell phone but haven't been able to figure out how to get them from phone to blog. I will figure it out though, promise. We have been keeping busy at our usual favorite spots - Zoo, Sea World, and a new fun park with a cool new water play area. I am itching to decorate for Christmas (I am sure Dot knows how I feel). I have been taking a poll of when it is appropriate to decorate for xmas and thought I would ask all of you. Please let me know what you think in my poll to the right. I also thought I would post some good recipes I find. I am always looking for yummy (easy) recipes. This first one is a great fall favorite chili recipe (not too tomatoey)!
I will get some pictures out soon. Enjoy!
Combine all of the ingredients in a crockpot and cook on low 8-10 hrs. or on high 4-5 hrs.
1 1/2 lbs. gr. beef
1- diced onion
1- can kidney beans
2- cans pinto beans
12 oz. salsa
1- can diced green chilies
1- pkg chili seasoning
1/2 cup dry white wine
1- 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
4- cloves garlic- finely chopped
(If you are looking for some extra HOT add 1-2 tablespoons diced jalapenos)

Trick-or-Treat

We had so much fun on Halloween (I think Kev and I had even more fun than Caralin). Caralin was dressed up as Minnie Mouse. She was adorable. We carved pumpkins together, went out to dinner, went to the church carnival, and then trick-or-treating at a couple of houses on Nana and Papa's street (my old neighbors, who watched me grow up). The neighbors were really excited to see her. At the carnival she really liked playing the bean bag toss game. She had cotton candy for the first time. I think she thought it was a feather duster because she started using it to clean the ground. I guess she should've been dressed as Cinderella!

Here are some pics and a video. Enjoy!

At home, again.

So I have finished my sub job. It is a bitter-sweet end. After six weeks of being the "teacher" I started to get attached to the kids and now I am back to stay-at-home mom (which is my real love) but it was nice to be contributing to our family and society, even if it was short lived. I think I am more sad for Caralin. She really loved her "school" and it was such a good opportunity for her to learn to take turns and share and sit quietly at the table when she eats. It was hard picking her up on that last day. Everyone there really cared for her and I know she cared for them too. It took so much trust for me to let her go in the first place so when it was over I was sad knowing how well she was taken care of and how much fun she had. I guess now I need to be the preschool and make sure I have planned out activities and times for her to learn. And I thought my teaching job was over... :-)

Feeling Like Fall.

Earlier this week we went to Bates Nut Farm which has a great pumpkin patch and lots of fun things to do. It is finally feeling like Fall. Caralin's cousins came over and we decorated the house for Halloween. We are waiting until next weekend to carve pumpkins. We made the mistake, a couple of years ago, of carving them too early and ended up with pumpkin mush in the front yard by the time Halloween rolled around, Yum! At Bates Nut Farm Caralin rode a pony and pet a duck and pig for the first time. It was a nice little outing. We all had a lot of fun! I want a baby pig for a pet now! Check it out:

mmm...carbs!

Several days ago I walked into the kitchen from doing laundry in the garage to find that Caralin had taken a half loaf of garlic bread off the counter, pulled off the foil and started eating it. I guess she was hungry! It was one of the funniest things to watch her taking bites out of this loaf of bread larger than her head. Here is a picture and video. It's hilarious!

So Entertaining

Well Caralin is really enjoying "school". I am enjoying my sub job but am definately ready to be home with her again more. I miss her and Kevin too much. We have completely opposite schedules right now. It's been tough but the job will help us catch up on some expenses and have some money set aside for the holidays. It will all be worth it in the end.
Caralin continues to amaze us. She repeats everything we say (No more rated R movies while she's awake). She is a great talker and communicates better every day. She really likes to play with baby dolls. Lately she has been wanting to put diapers on them and change their clothes. It's really cute. Here is a video I put together. Enjoy!