Family Naps

Everyday I tell Charlie not to grow-up, but he doesn't seem to be listening. I love him so much at almost-two years old. He is so happy and tries to help us with everything. Yesterday at the store I let him sit in the front of the shopping cart because he only lasts 5 minutes in the seat. He organized the food in the cart, put everything on the counter at the checkout talking the whole ("and this and banana and this and tomato and this...") and swiped my card to pay. When the woman put the reciept on the counter he took up the pen (with his right hand) and signed it! I burst out laughing. The woman took the receipt like nothing was weird about a 2 year old standing in the shopping cart and signing the receipt!

This weekend we went to visit Aunt Mary (whom Charlie calls Mia) in Waterford as she packed up her house. It must be hard to pack up 20+ years in a house. I'm emotional about not being able to go to Waterford anymore so I can't imagine how it is for her. We spent Friday night there and of course Charlie didn't sleep well. My frequent evening bathroom trips didn't help because he woke up and decided he also needed to pee. I stood him up in the dark on the toilet and hoped for the best with his aim (which is never very good). He was up and ready to go at 5am. Carlos and I reluctantly got up and then actually enjoyed a beautiful walk around Waterford as we watched the sun rise. Here are a few shots from our 5am stroll.

We packed the tiny car with a few of Mary's treasures she was willing to part with and headed back to DC. We all passed out when we got home and woke up just in time to make it to Aidan's birthday party. Charlie had a lot of fun playing with Aidan's toys and shoving his face with yummy italian food.

For father's day we went to Strathmore for a brunch with live music. The music turned out to be an amazing ukalale player. Who would have thought that ukaleles were so great.

When we made it back home we all passed out again!

Charlie tried on his new glasses and when he saw it he exclaimed "FUNNY CLOWN!"

Strawberry Picking for Blueberries

Last weekend we went strawberry picking because Charlie loves strawberries and I have a tough time finding organic ones in the store. He picked a few and ate them, but he mainly just walked behind me as I bent over breaking my back to get him some tasty berries. He jumped on my back and tried to play horse or told me to sing the Old Macdonald song. He was quite content to have me do the work. And after all that when we went to pay he saw blueberries in the farm store and went nuts. He ate blueberries the entire way home and left the strawberries for me....

We also went to the Moms on The Hill picnic which featured an amazing girl band comprised of 12 year olds! I was shocked and told Charlie that he better get moving because he only has 10 years to catch up. He really liked the picnic - especially the food, the chalkboard (definitely right handed!) and the fire engine, but he was too shy to get on the inflatable toys. I liked the food too, but I especially liked that my raffle ticket got me a $50 gift certificate to a local restaurant.

This weekend we went to another Truck Touch event which featured a helicopter and lots of tractors and trucks. Charlie liked them all, but after driving a few he insisted that they were "too big" for him to drive. By 10:30am it was 'too hot' for me so we left and spent the afternoon being tourists on a Potomac boat cruise.

I'm really impressed by Charlie's visual memory. It seems to be a lot better than Carlos' or mine. For instance he remembers a restaurant we went to with his friend over a month ago. When we pass by Mr. Henry's he says "num-num with Brett!" He calls the ice cream truck the "muck truck" (muck is his word for music) and the other day he spotted a food truck with similar pictures on the side and inquired why it wasn't playing music. I guess I'm just hoping that means he'll have a better memory than mine...

Here I am at 31 weeks! Despite the gasps and the "you're HUGE!" comments by all the men in the office when I was in Atlanta last week the doctor said I was measuring small. To ensure the baby was okay I had a sonogram done which is always fun. Supposedly he is weighing in at 4lbs now which is exactly average so there are no concerns.

Lake Taco Pictures

Finally some pictures from Tahoe! Charlie still talks about Lake Taco.

Here is Charlie trying desparately to lick his plate.

He loved the lizards.

Charlie as part of the BBQ

Lake Taco

Last weekend we celebrated Carlos' birthday with his family in Tahoe - or Lake Taco as Charlie called it. Charlie had a blast because he got to see his abuela, hang out with FOUR dogs and see my family too. Poor guy didn't get any attention....Unfortunately we didn't end up taking any pictures so we'll have to wait until we get copies from other people to post them.

Abuela had gotten an electric train which fascinated Charlie. He figured out how to make it run, but he was even better at dismantling it. He took off all the train wheels and then would get frustrated that it wouldn't run. But he had a great time with it so I may need him yet more trains. His other favorite toys were the dogs. He couldn't quite get the names right - Louie was Luli and Mariah was Maya. He loved to make Luli dance with him and play catch with Maya.

We rented a house on the lake and celebrated Carlos' birthday with a bbq on the beach. Charlie's favorite part was the musician that abuela hired. Charlie made everyone sit together and clap our hands. He even dragged my mom up to dance. It was hysterical. His second favorite part of the evening was the cake. We generally deprive him of sweets, but let him have a taste of the birthday cake. He literally tried to lick his plate. Poor kid.

In terms of new things he is putting sentences together more and more and he officially speaks spanglish. He says things like "wash manos" or "sit down aqui." Since spending time with his abuela he says "papito" which I find hysterical. I still adore "i lub u" and "Charlie hambre." When I put him to bed he stands up and says "I lub u" multiple times. In the morning the first thing we hear is "Charlie HAMBRE" - which means: I'm hungry, make me some oatmeal now. He still likes to take lots of photos so here are a few that he did take; self portraits are his new thing.