More Charlotte Videos

video: body parts
Originally uploaded by [griff] [griff] 'n [chuck]

There was recently a request for more videos on Charlotte. Sorry, I was lacking. My new camera doesn't have a video function and Kevin has been keeping the little one with the camera.

Well, this week I have three new videos for you. Here's one, the other two are on our Flickr site. This is Charlotte, almost 17 months, showing you how many body parts she knows. We have been adding another one and another one. i think she also know knee and chin. I was just happy I got her on camera doing them in a row! Enjoy!

we're having another one!

For those of you you haven't heard, we are having another one! A baby that is....due to arrive in our household on or around February 4, 2011. Sure seems strange using that year. At this point, I am 12 weeks and 5 days. I feel great and have felt great these last three months. I must be a lucky one. My energy is good and I've only gained two pounds so far (I'm not including the weight I never lost, that's another story in-and-of-itself).

Some would say I'm starting to show a little, some would say I never lost all the weight from the first baby. But when it comes down to it, my post-baby pants still fit. (I gave up on my OLD OLD pants and have decided to sell them all!!!)

So, stay tuned. I'm sure we'll have lots of good photos in the near future. I can't wait to see how Charlotte will react as she sees my belly getting bigger and bigger. Exciting!!

back bedroom quilt

Math. It's always been my enemy. I tried really hard to get the fabric measurements right this time, but I forgot a few numbers. I'm on the third row in each square and realized my fabric stash is almost gone and the squares look rather large. Well, the blocks are my anticipated size and I only made 3 out of 5 rows on each square. The good news is I can start assembling the quilt top and I don't have to buy more fabric. The bad news is, I am still terrible at math, yet again.

The quilt is for one of the double beds in my mother's house but it will finish at a queen size roughly 77x99.



Most of the fabric is Eva by Basic Grey for Moda. There are a few randoms in mixed in for a total of 12 fabrics. After walking around the store for what seemed like a long time with my mom, we came across this line and fell in love. The room has stenciled lavender leaves on a beige background. This quilt will look spectacular in there! I think I have enough scraps to make some pillows too.

who needs an appendix anyways?

What a weekend! Kevin went up north to visit his parents and work on cabin stuff. I went to Mom's house with Charlotte and Griffin. Saturday we took a road trip to Crystal Lake for a huge birthday party and family reunion. It was way too hot out but we had so much fun. Charlotte got to play in the sandbox, eat cake, run around in a diaper and swim in the lake. I can't believe how much she enjoyed the lake. It was super shallow and extremely warm -- I think that's why she liked it so much. I will have photos soon. She was jumping, splashing, kicking and putting her face in the water. What a kid!

After a long day we drove home to Grandma's and slept hard that night. In the morning I spoke with Kevin to tell him how exhausted I was from the day before. Of course, he trumps me again. I can't win!

Kevin started having pain in his abdomen on Saturday evening and into Sunday morning. Long story short, he had to have his appendix taken out at 2pm on Sunday afternoon. It was outpatient so we are already back home and resting. Sunday my Dad drove me to Green Bay with Charlotte and all our stuff so we could be with him. At first we weren't sure how fast the recovery was going to be. One day later, he's walking around and doing great. He only has three little holes in his belly, not even a good scar. By the looks of him, I think labor must have been harder!

So, that's the scoop! Kevin is fine and is minus one body part. For those of you who knew and sent good wishes, it worked. Thanks!

who said vacation was easy?

Oh man, day four of our vacation to Key West. The island is not exactly what I expected. I think I expected it to be more resort-like and it's very party-town. Although the island is only four miles wide, we need to take a shuttle bus to get to the other side, where all the "stuff" is. Literally, all the food and all the shopping. There are no restaurants near us except the one in the hotel. Food is great, but not good for the body. We are itching to get home, thank goodness tomorrow is around the corner. We are ready to see our little babe. I know, the last post I was raving about leaving! Guess I only needed like two days off...

Here's a photo of Kevin with his new hat. He looks good, I know.



It's only like 85 down here, but the humidity is terrible! It's like a thick cloud some days. It's been overcast most of the days so at least we haven't died. We do have some tan, that part is good. All-in-all it was a nice vacation but I would not suggest this place as a vacation spot for those of you looking for places to visit. There are parts of FL that are much nicer than down here.

We did visit the Southernmost point. Sorry, no photo. The camera was fogged up because it was too humid. (See!)

I've been checking in with Charlotte twice a day. She's sleeping and eating very well. It's good to know she's having a good time and behaving while we are gone. I hear she has 40 new books, 1 movie and 2 bibs. Boy, she already knows how to get what she wants!

Anyways, home, HERE WE COME!

independence day

Independence Day it truly is! Tonight we dropped off Charlotte and Griffin at Grandma and Grandpa Horstmeyer's house for FIVE DAYS, six nights. No kids around?! This hasn't happened since before we were married. Amazing. Why, you might ask? We are leaving for Key West, bright and early. For a few months, Kevin was teasing me with the trip he had to take for work. First we were going, then we wern't, then we were maybe going next month....well, it's finally here and we ARE going. I'm so excited to take a break and just enjoy the sun and my husband. No alcohol will be involved in this trip (bummer) but at least key lime pie is still on the menu. The best place to get key lime pie must be in Key West.

Another cool thought, Kevin will have been to the Southernmost Point of the U.S. and Barrow, AK which is the Northernmost Point of the U.S. Now he just needs to hit San Diego and somewhere in Maine.



I just wanted to rub in one more time, we are going on vacation for close to a week without any kids! Boy, I'm sure gonna miss my kiddos, especially that little sugar bean...

finished deutsche quilt

Wow! I am amazed at myself! Kevin was out-of-town a few days earlier this week which gave me motivation to just finish another quilt that was overdue. I think I was just afraid to tackle another twin size for the cabin. Again, it's not perfect, but it's darn close. The quilting took about four hours, but it turned out really, really nice. I love the colors of this quilt, yes, I do believe it looks like a German flag, although not intentionally.

I quilted an all over meandering and I was pleasantly surprised that my basting stayed put this time. This definitely gives me the confidence to keep moving forward and quilt that darn color wheel quilt.