Monday, May 28, 2012

Mondays with Crosby and Jane Claire

At 11:24 am, Crosby Fox turned 3 years and 21 weeks old!!!  At 1:03 pm, Jane Claire turned 8 weeks old!!!  I am not even going to say what I am thinking.  Just know it has something to do with time and speed. How cute is that picture of my babies??  Jane Claire smiled right as I snapped the picture.  What a precious smile my baby girl has.  It just melts me.  And sweet Crosby.  He is still madly in love with his baby sister.  He is so loving with her.  Not an ounce of jealousy so far.  Just love.

Apparently he is teaching her to act out in front of the camera already!!!  It might look like he is choking her but that is not the case.  He just got her to stick her tongue out at the camera...

I remember being accused of sticking my tongue out at my dad once and I absolutely did NOT do it.  Nor did I spill the powder all over the bathroom sink but I got in trouble for that one, too!  I don't hold a grudge... Anyway.  I have proof that she really did stick her tongue out at me!  No spanks for my little beauty though!  Just kisses! ;-)

One Tuesday, headed out for a day at the park.  We started out at Crockett park and attempted frisbee golf.  Blake got panicked over the possibility of one of us getting into posion ivy so we left and headed to Centennial Park.  We packed a lunch and ate it there. Blake made the sandwiches while I took pictures...

Our little fella climbing in a tree...
Oh my!  I finally got a cute one of him with no sign of the dreaded chipmunk!  Hallelujah!!!
Soooo.  They called on Wednesday morning and said Crosby could come for the last day of school.  Technically the M/W/F kids had their last day on Wednesday. Since Crosby only went on M/F he was going to miss out on that.  Crosby was excited to spend one more day with his friends!  Now we have "First and Last Day: Take Two" ;-)

First day of school...
Last day of school...
He looks so much bigger in than he did a few months ago.  Baffling...

On Thursday, we headed to Otter Creek for a preschool play day on the playground.  Jane Claire and I hung out in the shade most of the time!
It was a super sunny day.  Crosby spent most of his time on the playground.  When things started to wrap up, I looked over and saw him and Dean at the picnic table under the tree.  Next thing you know, they were hanging like monkeys...
Dean the monkey...
Blake had 4 days off over Memorial Day weekend.  We decided it would be the perfect opportunity to take a little trip.  The beach was too far.  Camping with a 100 degree heat index sounded less than appealing.  That left nearby cities with fun attractions for kids.  In the end, we booked a trip to Atlanta.  Blake and I were living in Auburn when the Georgia Aquarium opened and really wanted to go.  We never made it.  So this was the perfect opportunity.  We ended up getting a City Pass, which allowed us to visit the Aquarium, the World of Coca-Cola, the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, CNN and the Zoo.  We managed to squeeze them all in Saturday, Sunday and Monday.  We drove half way on Friday and stayed the night with Aunt Dot.  Leah and Jay were in town when we came back through so we stopped again to visit with time.  (Why didn't we take a single picture Aunt Dot???)  It was a full weekend but it was a lot of fun!  And we are proud we survived a trip with a 3.5 year old and a near 8 week old!!  Bring on Disney... ;-)

Hula Hooping at the Fernbank on Saturday morning...
...amongst the dinosaurs!!!
Maybe a T-Rex?!?
Interestingly enough, there was a special exhibit...
If you can see what the book says, you may figure it out.  The Scoop on Poop!  I have to say it actually was interesting!
The City Pass allowed for several extras at some of the attractions.  At the Fernbank, we were able to see an IMAX movie.  Crosby getting ready to see Born to be Wild...
Crosby climbing into a bird's nest!
The 4 of us trying out the green screen, giving a weather report...
More dionsaurs...
Of course I had to take a picture of the fox for our Fox!
Leaving the Fernbank...
We checked in our room and took a short nap before heading back out.  We walked around Olympic Centennial Park for a bit.  Once Crosby saw half of Atlanta playing in the fountains, it was over.  He REALLY wanted to participate.  We caved and off he went...
We headed to the aquarium on Sunday.  Crosby enjoyed seeing all of the fish but man could he jump from one tank to the next before we could even find the fish we were supposed to look at!!
The large tanks were quite impressive...
There were tons of beautiful (and huge!) fish to watch...
Whale Shark...
Crosby insisted Jane Claire and I sit on this seahorse with him after lunch!
Beautiful and graceful beluga whales...
Another City Pass perk was seeing a dolphin show and watching a 3-D movie.  It was nice to sit and feed the babe without having to miss out on the fun with the boys!

The World of Coca-Cola was right across the park from the Aquarium so we went straight to the next tour.  Thank goodness for the stroller and Ergo.  Jane Claire slept the whole day away and Crosby was able to rest when he needed a second wind!  It was close to 4 o'clock by the time we got into the Coke museum.  We watched another 3-D movie there and toured the exhibits.  We even got to sample different drinks from all over the world.  There were some pretty tasty flavors that aren't sold around here.  Then of course there were some flavors I wouldn't touch again even if they were sold in the US!

In front of one of the first delivery trucks...
Crosby "ordering" a Coke!
Another old car...
Makes your mouth water...
Crosby walked right up to the Coca-Cola bear and gave him multiple hugs.  It was like they had known each other for years!
We went to our room for maybe  30 minutes before heading back out again.  We jumped on the MARTA and headed to Mary Mac's for dinner.  Crosby was excited to ride the train!
And he got to take his first taxi ride back to the hotel.  He made fast friends with our cab driver, Lockhart!  Needless to say, we crashed as soon as we got back to our room.  What a fun but busy day!

On Monday morning, we did the CNN tour, which was interesting for the adults but less than appealing to Crosby.  Thankfully, the Zoo was next on the agenda.  We were quite impressed with the Atlanta Zoo.  It was compact with lots of animals that you could get really close too!  See the chipmunk and the panda...
Crosby climbing on the gorilla statue...
Our little lion...
Elephants out and about...
Crosby got to do all of the "rides" with the City Pass.  Yes, the rock climbing wall is a "ride"!!!
Making his way up...
He made it half way up but was very sad he didn't ring the bell at the top.  Poor thing was technically 8 pounds shy of the weight requirement!  He would have gotten for sure had he had a little more bulk.  Next time little man, next time!
Me and Jane Claire on the "free" carousel ride...
And Crosby...
Blake and Crosby on the "free" train ride.  And this train goes a lot farther than the one in Nashville!! ;-)
Jane Claire enjoyed the train ride too!
The Zoo wrapped up our time in Atlanta.  After our visit (and Crosby's swim) with family, we headed back home.  What a fun filled Memorial Day weekend!   And we made it home in time to snap one last picture...

Jane Claire at 8 weeks!

And a few fun facts about Jane Claire at 8 weeks...

We are making the move from newborn to size 1 diapers.  Although I mistakenly picked up size 2 diapers for our trip!!  They looked enormous but we made them work!

She has given me a few 5 hour stretches at night. 

She is smiling all of the time now.  Just presh...

She is starting to find her voice and her hands!

She can't wear newborn clothes anymore.  We are now for sure in 0-3 month.  Even 3-6 month is some brands!  I never thought she would get that big...

I can finally say feeding her doesn't hurt!

She is the most darling little girl I have ever seen!! ;-)

Monday, May 21, 2012

Mondays with Crosby and Jane Claire

At 11:24 am, Crosby Fox turned 3 years and 21 weeks old!!!  At 1:03 pm, Jane Claire turned 7 weeks old!!!  My goodness where have the last 7 weeks gone?  Too much has happened this week to remind me how fast time is moving.  Oh to slow it down.  Sigh...

Tuesday night was a super special evening for me and my sweet Jane Claire...
A precious group of friends and family hosted a Sip 'n See for Jane Claire...
Back row- Left to Right: Dele, Anne Claire, Kara, Me and Jane Claire, Jenny, Bethany, Courtney
Front row- Left to Right: Katie, Heidi, LeAnne, Kristen

There were so many beautiful (and tasty!!) touches...
Burlap banner
Sweet verses...
More delisious cookies!!!
Not sure what we were doing but apparently I thought it was funny!
Beautiful flowers...
Yummy chocolate covered strawberries...
Another handwritten verse.  Oh to write like this...
Adorable diaper wreath...
Katie, Mom, Me and Jane Claire, Lucy and Anne Claire...
Mom, Me and Jane Claire...
Stunning cake...
There were so many sweet people that gave up a Tuesday night with their family to meet my darling girl.  I am sure lots of daddies had their hands full to let their wives join us at such a hectic time of day.  I am so grateful for each and every person who was there and those who were there in spirit.  I never dreamed we would be given such a gracious celebration.  Jane Claire was given lots of sweet, sweet gifts that were not expected.  We sure feel blessed to have this baby in our lives and are so thankful that others wanted to host such an occasion for us.  Precious, precious friends...

On Thursday, we headed to Spring Hill for our first official swim date with Danielle and Jack Spencer. A friend is letting me use her Moses basket, which was just perfect for the pool!  Too bad Jane Claire couldn't exactly fall asleep in it...
We will have to work on that one!  We want to spend lots of time swimming this year.  Crosby and Jack had a good ole time together...
On Sunday, we took Jane Claire to church for the first time!  Luckily I remembered to take my camera so we could document the big day...
I should have taken a picture of her in the sweet dress Lulu made for Charlotte!  At least I snapped one with my phone when we got home!
It felt so good to sit on the pews knowing our family of four was there together!  Life is finally settling into a normal routine post bed rest and baby.  I am loving the new life and new routine!

Sunday night, we headed to Let It Shine with the children's ministry.  We had never been before so I wasn't quite sure what to expect.  Something told me Crosby would enjoy it so we signed up.  Boy was that a good idea!  He had a GREAT time playing on all of the equipment.

This was a swing that could be lifted REALLY high in the air.  He was a big fan...
Running on the trampoline and jumping into the ball pit...
And I couldn't resist the chipmunk...
Walking on the balance beam...
Jumping into a ball pit from a platform...
Where is Crosby???
All smiles!
Jumping...
on the trampoline!!!
At the end, we all gathered to say a prayer. Such a fun time with our church family!
Crosby is ALLLL about helping with all things Jane Claire.  We finally ( :-/ ) got a new bath tub for this baby to use!!  The sweet thing has been deprived of frequent baths for 7 weeks now... Anyway, we were excited to see how she would like it.  She seemed to be quite cozy!  Crosby is ALLLLL about helping with Jane Claire.  Fortunately he does actually "help" most of the time.  He decided to rinse her head with a measuring cup...
This was a bittersweet week for us.  Crosby had his last day of school at Harpeth Heights today.  We have enjoyed this year for sure.  It started out rocky, with him not wanting me to leave.  And how hard it was to leave him.  Broke my heart.  Then I went on bed rest and a neighbor started taking him.  Crosby grew to LOVE riding to school with Mrs. Lexi and Isabella, or "Missabella" as Crosby likes to call her!  The teachers and staff were so sweet to love on my boy while I was stuck on the couch.  It made bed rest a lot easier to manage. I was finally able to take him again at the end of my pregnancy and once Jane Claire arrived.  Thankfully there were no tears at the end of the year!  It is hard to believe this school year has come and gone.  We put a lot of thought into where Crosby would go to school if I got pregnant. I am so grateful everything fell into place so nicely.  I couldn't have asked for a better situation.  What a blessing.  And to reminisce..  

First day of school...
 Last day of school...
I guess I sort of told a fib.  Crosby actually was on the verge of tears in that picture.  Not because he was emotional over the last day of school.  It had more to do with the fact that he got up late and just wasn't quite ready to walk out the door when Mrs. Lexi arrived!  I suppose this forced smile is better than the chipmunk!!!  Beggars can't be choosers at this point!

Jane Claire at 7 weeks...
Even she is sad about how fast time is going...