Thanksgiving

We are back home from Thanksgiving in VA. Casey was great on the plane. Both to and from, several people commented at how good she was on the plane. Yay!

Our trip included a Virginia Tech game in Blacksburg; shopping; a visit with Chrissy; a couple of visits with Santa; lots of aunt/uncle/cousin time with Marcy, Stuart, Jack and Lily...etc.

Thanksgiving morning, Stan and Tracy ran the Drumstick Dash 5K in Roanoke, then enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner at Gramma Lois' with Aunt Linda, Uncle Marvin, Blair, Chad and their new baby boy, Grayson. Friday Casey got to hold Grayson...she loved pointing at him and saying, "baby!"

Sunday, Grandpa Tom took Tracy and Stan flying!! We took a Cesna 172 out to Rehobeth Beach, along the coast then back over Annapolis. Stan and I got to take over the controls once we were airborne. Very fun!!

Thanks to all our family for visiting and playing with Casey!

go hokies!

chillin' with gramma lois

cheesin with baby

stan flying

tracy hanging in the back of the cockpit...that's ocean city in the background

cousins

Artist

Casey was quite the artist this week. She played with sidewalk chalk at the rec center daycare and then later at home; she colored with crayons all week, one of her favorite activities (which is nice for mommy); and she got real messy with fingerpaints at home.

She is starting to notice her friends now. She will ask about her friends every once in a while, "Rowan?" She is also starting to play with her friends. We went to pick her up from the rec center daycare and Rowan and Casey were actually playing together on the slide. Sarah and Brian watched Casey on Saturday while mom, dad and Aunt Kel went riding at Keystone. They had fun chasing each other around the house. Aunt Kel babysat Casey Sat night while mom and dad went to a fundraising event for her daycare.

Casey is very much into climbing lately. She wants to climb on everything...the coffee table, up into chairs, under chairs, on her toys. She'll climb up onto her toy, then look around very proud. She is also starting to pretend play a lot more. She'll make her horse walk around, her little people walk around and jump off things. Her vocabulary is growing too. She repeats pretty much everything we say. She says, "Thank you" a whole lot and usually when she is actually supposed to. She is also putting together 2 word sentences. Sometime we're amazed by the things that come out of her mouth.

She is a little fiesty sometimes too. She had her first official "timeout" this past week. She kept hitting mommy with her toy. After 2 warnings, she was whisked upstairs into her crib, with no blankey. It took her a minute to register, but once she did, she cried until I came back a minute later to "discuss." After she calmed down, we came back downstairs and she continued playing, without hitting mommy. I'm sure it will always be that easy!!;)

Enjoy the pix.

trying to be blue like her Aunt Kel (aka, Smurfette) on Halloween

"cheese"

chalking up the sidewalk

Shots

Casey got her H1N1 and seasonal flu shot on Tuesday. She was not happy about it, but was very excited the Batman bandaids the Doctor put on her thighs.

Casey has become really social. When I dropped her off at daycare this week, she didn't cry. I left her at Kathy's to play with Dillon and Connor a couple times this week and she went straight for the toys. She still gets very emotional when I pick her up...crying and running to me as quickly as possible.

This week in swimming we worked more on blowing bubbles and putting her head under water. The teacher was amazed that it didn't phase her and actually smiled when her face went under.

She's still eating pretty well...not as well as she used to, but it usually means she's not that hungry. She takes one nap a day...usually around 12:30 p.m. And her naps are anywhere from 1.5 to 2.5 hours. She goes to bed between 7:15 and 8:00 p.m.

Today when we went to get her up from her nap, she was sitting up in her crib surrounded by her stuffed animals and blankets and didn't want to get out. She hung out in her crib for a good 15/20 minutes. She was the same way in the tub tonight. She was in there pouring water all over herself for over 30 minutes. And when I asked if she was all done, she kept saying, "No."

Enjoy pix.

Rowan and Casey at tumbling

future gymnast

jumping on the bed with Dillon and Connor

wearing daddy's shoes

Argh

If you couldn't already tell, Casey was a pirate for Halloween. And a really good one. We went to Frisco Main Street for trick or treating. The town closes Main St and the businesses hand out candy. She was a great trick or treater. We got there early, so there weren't many kids out, so she got all kinds of attention. We finished the night at the Boatyard with our friends Erica, Khristian, Sean, Kathy, Dillon and Connor.

Thursday we had our 2nd swim lesson. It was more exciting this time. She got to kick her legs and use her arms a little. Friday was her first tumbling class. She is taking it with her friend Rowan. They had so much fun. Hopefully I'll remember the camera this week. Casey ran around the entire 45 minutes. She loved the balance beam, makeshift slide and hanging from the bar. At the end of class they got to play with balls and she had so much fun on the bouncy ball that has a handle. She sat on it (with mom's help) and said "bouncy, bouncy" over and over.

Her naps were a little strange last week. She would go down at her normal naptime, but play in her crib for 30-60 min before finally falling asleep for an hour and a half. Hopefully that was just a phase.

Sunday Casey got to play with Dillon and Connor while Mom and Dad went snowboarding at Abasin. We go for the last hour and there are no lines. Thanks Kathy and Sean for babysitting!!

Today Casey got the H1N1 and the seasonal flu shot. Hoping not to get sick this winter...or at least not REALLY sick!

Casey would like to send out bday wishes to her Great Yellow Grandma who turns 89 on Sunday!

getting ready for a wagon ride to the playground

helping daddy shovel the driveway

a pirate coloring

argh...do you have candy?

argh...let me cross the street

18 Months Update

Casey is 18 months on November 1st. Her 18 month appointment was today. She weighed in at 22.8 lbs and is 2 feet, 7 inches tall, both in the 25th percentile. Her head circumfrence is 18.5 inches, which is 50-60 percentile, not quite a big head, but close. She was a big girl today when she got her hepatitis A shot. She barely cried. It's funny how fascinated she is by the bandaid they put on her thigh.

Swimmer

Casey started swim lessons this week. She did great. It was mostly singing songs and getting used to the water, which she is already comfortable with, but she had a great time anyway. She is so much taller and stronger than she was the last time I took her months ago. She can walk all over the baby pool by herself.

Sunday while Stan went snowboarding, I took Casey trick or treating at the outlets. Her pirate outfit was a huge hit. Everyone who walked by her made a comment of how cute she was. Obviously!! It snowed the whole day. We actually have snow in our yard now. So exciting. Sunday night we carved pumpkins. Casey did great shoveling out the pumpkin seeds.

Casey and I have a little bit of a cold this week. Hoping to get rid of it pretty quick. We've got swimming and tumbling starts Friday.

argh!

casey the pirate and dillon the lion

casey's pumpkin

casey and daddy's pumpkins

mommy and casey's pumpkins

sledding in the front yard

Pumpkin Patch

Casey is very busy all the time. She is saying "Bess you" and "Excuse me" now and she is repeating us constantly. We think it's funny how she'll say in a kind of whiney voice, "Bankey" (blankey), "nak" (snack, while pointing at her mouth), or "milk" (which is really any drink). She also says "nigh nigh" and on Saturday actually asked to go nigh nigh.

She loves to play with anything and everything. She really likes pushing her cars back and forth with us. She has become very interested in her blocks and also finally figured out how to do one of her puzzles. She has a great arm and can through the football pretty good. She knows how to catch too. She holds out her arms, and if she is paying attention she'll actually grab it when it lands in her hands. I feel like every day she does something or says something new. It's very fun!

This week, she went to the daycare at the Rec Center on Monday and Tuesday. The daycare staff was amazed at how many words she knows and how she can make sentences. She had a great time at her school on Wednesday. We went out to Burger Night at ACafe with Mark on Wed night and then again on Thursday for BBQ Night at ACafe with Kathy, Sean, Dillon and Connor. Friday we went with Sarah and Rowan to ABasin for a few runs on the "white ribbon of death." (Which means we went snowboarding on the 1 run that is open at Abasin). Casey and Rowan were a huge hit in the lodge. Everyone thought they were twins and could not stop saying how cute they were.

Saturday we walked to the playground. Casey was very brave and climbed up the big kid playground. Before Stan or I could get prepared, she slid down the big slide on her belly (movie below). Such a big girl!! Later that day, Stan braved the ladder and was able to use a long-poled squeegy to clean our very high picturesque windows. It took a long time, but it was well worth it. We suffered through the VT game, then enjoyed the rest of the night eating and playing foosball with some friends.

Sunday we went hiking and had lunch with Sarah and Rowan.

Monday, we drove to Boulder to have lunch and ice cream with Aunt Kel. Afterwards, we went to the Rock Creek Farms Pumpkin Patch. You're supposed to be able to cut them off the vine yourself, however, about 2 weeks ago it was really cold in Denver, so their pumpkins froze. The ones they had already taken off the vine looked to be in good shape, so we bought a few of those. Casey had fun running through the pumpkin patch, playing in the hay maze, climbing on the hay and looking at the animals.

Casey's hair is finally growing and is long enough for pigtails...now Mommy just needs to figure out how to do them correctly.

go hokies! we obviously didn't say it loud enough.

checking out the view while hiking

aunt kel helping casey balance

this pumpkin patch is SO fun

trick or treat

Time to Snowboard

Loveland and Abasin are open!

Last week was a bit rough. Casey and I were both sick all week. Aunt Kel was sick too. Fortunately, we are all feeling much better this week!

Wed, we had an "episode" at daycare. When I was handing Casey over to her teacher, she started crying so hard, a silent cry where she doesn't take a breath, so she passed out for a second. She came to right away, but it's so scary. She has done this a couple times before and it is something that some pre-toddler/toddlers do occasionally. I can usually stop the episode by blowing in her face while she's crying and it brings her back to reality. Unfortunately, I was in the midst of handing her over and neither of us could blow in her face quick enough. After the episode, she did end up going over to the teacher, still crying a little, but she stopped immediately after I left the room. Hoping that doesn't happen again this week!

Friday we drove down to Denver to run errands and pick up Stan from the airport. We stayed the night at Kirsi and Konlee's house in the city. Amy, Kristi, Ken and Isaac came over to visit.

Saturday we woke to snow and very chilly weather in Denver. We watched the first half of the VT/BC game at a downtown bar, Jacksons, with the Denver Hokie Alumni Club. The second half we watched at Mark and Amy's house while the kids napped. We actually had to wake Casey up from her nap so we could make it to the Circus in time. Casey enjoyed the Ringling Bros Circus at Denver Coliseum. It was 2 hours long with an intermission, but for the most part, Casey paid attention to the "greatest show on earth!" After the Circus we went back to Mark and Amy's to celebrate Amy's birthday with Ribs for dinner. We headed back up the mountain after dinner.

Sunday Stan and I went snowboarding at Abasin in the afternoon. Luck had it that our friend Tiff was in town and she met us at Abasin and watched Casey for an hour while we rode. Stan went again this morning. Snowboard season has officially begun!!

Enjoy pix.

sick baby

Mom and Casey watching the VT/BC game!

elephants

Casey wanted to sit in Kristi's lap the whole circus

Snowboarding at Abasin

Family photo at Abasin

Pushing Cars

We got home last Wednesday morning. Unpacked the car and the house, went grocery shopping, then crashed! Thursday we had lunch with Sarah and Rowan, then went to play with Dillon and Connor and Kathy and Sean (our neighbors).

Thursday night was the first of many activities last weekend. Our good friends Mark and Amy got married. Thursday night was the rehearsal dinner. At first Casey was extremely shy. She didn't want me to put her down, and when I finally did, she hid between my legs. A good hour later, our friend Kate found a glow stick and Casey's personality finally came out for everyone to see. The rest of the night she was glow stick sword fighting with Mark's nephew's who were age 4 and 8. She's a fiesty one. She also enjoyed sitting on the bottom step of the staircase and telling everyone to sit down next to her by patting the seat next to her and looking at that person.

Friday, everyone came into town. We had a full house! Aunt Kel came up to babysit, not only Casey, but 3 other kids (Kailen,age 2.5, Isaac, 16 mo and Graham, 8 mo). Luckily she had the help of our friend Stacia's girls (14 and 12). The wedding was Friday night in Breckenridge. The reception was western style. Though it was outside and it was below 40 degrees, everyone had a great time. A tent was set up and there was a heater inside. Good times!!

Saturday we headed over to the house where the bride and groom and their families were staying in Breckenridge. It is used for executive retreats. It sleeps 50, has a basketball/raquetball court, pool room, enclosed patio and a climbing wall built on the back of the house...using actual stones used for homes. The rope harness was built into the roof. Very cool. I made it to the top and rang the bell, even though I was shaking like crazy from my fear of heights.

Sunday we had dinner with our neighbors Kathy and Sean and their kids Dillon and Connor.

It's been snowing off and on since we returned. Nothing has stuck, still too warm during the day, but the mountains should be getting a good base. Loveland Ski Resort opened today and Abasin opens Friday. Hoping to hit the slopes on Sunday!!

cheesing it up, while using my ipod as a phone

our picnic lunch at mcdonalds

playing with kaelin and isaac

Family photo

A Little Damp

Casey, Frisco and I are in a hotel room in Belleville, IL tonight, on our way home to Dillon. We should get back on Wed afternoon. So far Casey has been a great road tripper. She watched a lot of videos today, took 2 naps, read some books, had some snacks and played with toys. After an hour of running around the hotel room, take lap after lap, crawling all over me, walking around with my ipod, holding it up to her ear and my ear saying, "hebo," she just walked over to her crib saying, "nighnigh," pulled her blankey out, crawled up on the couch, laid down and stuck her thumb in her mouth. I just put her to bed.

Last week we kept busy again. Monday we went to a park and then had lunch with Kris and her 3 out of 4 kids. Tuesday, Casey had a sleep over at Gramma Gail and Grampa Tom's while we went to open mic night at Tiffany Tavern in Old Town. Stan and Matt played (the SM of SML). Wednesday, we played with Gramma Gail and Grampa Tom all day. Casey swam in the pool, played with the bikes/car/wagon, basically did not sit still except at naptime. I went out to dinner with Dyani and Stacey while Stan and Casey stayed home. Friday we went to Aunt Marcy's for one last play day. The whole fam (except Kel) made it for lunch at Panera. After lunch we headed to Blacksburg.

We dropped Casey off in Roanoke with Gramma Lois for the weekend. She had a great time entertaining Gramma, Aunt Linda and Aunt Donnie all day Saturday. Stan and I went down to Blacksburg Friday for the VT/Miami game Sat. It poured down rain all day, needless to say, we were very damp all day, but the game was exciting and we ended up winning, so it was worth the wet.

On the developmental front, Casey is saying all kinds of words now...she said computer tonight (after I said it of course). She is great at pointing at her body parts, saying animal noises and counting to 3 (of course she leaves out #1).

Not many pix this week, will try and do better next week.

Lily buckeling Casey in the doll stroller

Grampa Tom in charge

A little damp at the game

laying with her new baby

Baseball, Beach, Football

We've been in Virginia all month and we keep very busy when we come to visit.

We went to the VT vs Marshall game in Blacksburg 2 Saturdays ago, then headed back up to DC for cousin Lily's 5 year old birthday party. Casey had so much fun at the "Luau," playing with all of Lily's toys and friends. She loved the moonbounce (maybe not as much as Jack, but close). It took her a little while to figure out how to stand up in it, but she finally did and thought it was hysterical when she would fall and bounce.

That following Tuesday, our friend Ken treated us to a Nationals game. This was Tracy's first time at the new stadium. Casey was pretty good. She wouldn't sit still, but she was very cheery the whole game.

We went shopping with Gramma Gail and found her Halloween costume...very fun...you'll have to wait until October to see what she will be.

Casey has gotten to play with lots of different kids while in town. She has gotten to play with Jessica's kids, Hunter (5) and Jacob (3); Stacey's kids John Patrick (3) and Cate (1.5); Dyani's boy, Harper (7 mos); Dayna's boy, Owen (9 mos); Kris's kids Ellie & Erin (3) and Evan (7 mos); and Sweet's and MaryAnn's girl Ellie (2.5). She has had so much fun with everyone elses toys and is slowly learning to share.

This past Wed, we met our friends Ken and Stacy and their son, Isaac (1.5 months younger than Casey) in the Outer Banks. We beached it Thursday and Friday morning (the No Swimming signs were out, but Casey enjoyed the big "sandbox").

Friday afternoon we drove to Gramma Lois' house in Roanoke. Saturday was spent cheering on the Hokies. What an exciting end to the game, especially because we beat Nebraska. Go Hokies!! Casey got to tailgate for a few hours. She was spoiled with junk food, potato chips and doughnuts (thanks Jeff). She had fun!

Casey has been learning so much these past couple of weeks. She is saying all kinds of words now. When she hears a plane go by, she'll stop, look up and say, "plane." She tried jumping this past weekend. She bends her knees and tries to spring up, but never leaves the ground. It's pretty funny. She loves when we do "This little piggy..." with her and after we do it, she does it to herself and then cracks up. She is definitely testing us lately. She has started to deliberatly throw things off her high chair while looking right at us. She'll start to fake whine with her eyes shut and then try and open one eye to peek and see if we are looking at her...if we are, then she'll continue the whining.

We have 1 more week in VA before heading back home. Enjoy the pix.

Jack, Lil and Casey after Lily' 5 year old birthday party!!

Vaccuming Aunt Marcy's basement

Fam at the Nationals vs Phillies game

Playing with Hunter and Jacob's train

Playing with Isaac at the beach...Frisco getting her lick on...

Casey dressed for the sun and sand

Mom, Casey, Dad and Frisco in the Outer Banks

Casey and Dad at the VT tailgate