Corinne's Corral

Roman who?

2010-10-11T17:18:00.000-07:00

So Roman is driving to work the other morning and sees these signs posted by the road. We have no idea what/who they're for. Friends have begun to call and ask, 'Who is Roman?' Isn't that weird?! Some look more homemade than this one, and all are various sizes. But they're posted all over the island! Maybe by my next post we'll be rich and famous. LOL!

Timeless Fun

2010-10-11T16:50:00.000-07:00

Grilling at the park. Ageless, timeless, effortless. Why didn't I think of that? Gj had a great idea to pack a cooler and let the kids run off some steam while we imbibe and grill out. I know that this is something simple, but sometimes after working all week, I take the easy road with the kids and don't always want to do the extra little things. Little did I know that heading to the park would be so easy! We had most of the stuff on hand and just threw it in a bag.

A real monkey on the monkey bars!

No park grill is complete without smores! We ate ourselves silly with the classic combination.

Want some marshmellow-pinestraw goo?! Uh, no thank you!

You want more marshmellow? I'll give you more marshmellow!!

Goofy kids

Two more goofy kids

"Ima big-kid now!"

Cheerio!

Moving right along...

2010-09-29T17:22:00.000-07:00

Ouch. Last post two months ago! We wrapped up our summer with simple activities and a stay-cation around Charleston. Roman and Corinne were busy designing tie-dyed shirts. Too bad they shrunk so that only Sam can wear them. They turned out really cute.

Roman celebrates his birthday. Two cake mixes later, I put our new cake mold to the test to brush up on my cupcake skills!

Mmmmmmm...giant cupcake!

Do all children love shoes? 'Cause my kids love shoes. I can't keep Sam out of my closet. Some mornings he lets me know that I chose the pair he wanted!

Awww, you're not planning to blackmail me with this later, are you?!

Summer strumming

I think we're all ready for some cool fall days/nights. Personally, I love an oyster roast. We're into the 'r' months! School and work keep us busy, but we are fortunate that we both love what we do. Corinne stays busy with her dance class. Sam is just busy. Busy. Busy. We're looking forward to a little Panic this weekend and gj and Pappy visit. It'll be nice to play this weekend. Have a good one!

Charleston Stay-cation

2010-07-31T05:05:00.000-07:00

I love vacationing in our own hometown. Usually when Pappy and GJ visit, it's a working visit for everyone as we scramble to keep the kids, get to work, fix the house, and squeeze in QT where we can. The spring rains around Kentucky and Tennessee ruined Pappy and GJ's basement, so they are in the middle of home renovations, i.e. there's no 'play room.' We switched gears from our usual KY visit to a Charleston Stay-cation. With nowhere special to be, we did the beach, water park, children's museum, pirate park, movie theatre, and just about every restaurant in the vicinity.

Corinne warmed her gj's heart with the latest addition to the area: 'the hot dog restaurant', Jack's Cosmic Dog. No child or gj should be denied the experience. :)

Sam and Pappy polish off the guacamole at Taco Boy

Mom and I thought it would be awesome to take Corinne to her first movie, Toy Story 3. She was only a little squirly and only asked to leave a few times. My girl just doesn't do movies. She stuck it out, though. There was no way I was leaving without finding out the fate of Woody and friends! Good thing I brought along my kleenex!

Roman and Pappy tried to outsmart the local fish.

As always, we had a fabulous time. Every visit, I feel like I'm ten again when they leave; I have to keep myself from running after the car for just one more hug!

Love and miss you guys. Thanks for everything!

Creekside Crowd

2010-07-07T17:10:00.000-07:00

We ventured to Virginia to meet Roman's family over the fourth. Angela flew into the states from Bangkok to visit Mimi in Michigan. They were adventurous enough to drive and meet us halfway (more or less). Roman found this beautiful creek off of the New River in Pearisburg, VA. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful venue. This is where we found Roman each morning and evening.

Fly fishing the New

Sam & Mimi kick back

Who needs toys when you have jacuzzi bathtubs? The kids had a blast each evening soaking all of us as the jets roared.

Nighttime sillies

AA brought badminton and the kids found many uses for the rackets. No one broke anything and they both managed to hit a birdie or two.

Sam really blossomed on the trip. His vocabulary is really building along with his level of understanding. He's so easy-going (as long as his tummy is full :-) and full of laughs. He's cutting molars now and should have them all after this round.

Corinne didn't let AA too far from her side all weekend. They had lots to catch up on.

Corinne has matured a lot this summer. She's so proud of herself for 'staying in the lines!' when she colors, dressing herself, and doing things 'all by myself!' Her swimming has far exceeded our expectations. She's now jumping into the water and swimming under to you and back. Corinne has also started dance classes. To the delight of her aunt and her Mimi, Corinne would quite often break away into an arabesque or shashay in her tutu.

Fortunately, she adores Sam and loves to do for him. Just keep him out of 'my stuff, Mama!'

What stuff?!!

Who needs water?

Making memories

It's been awhile since I've been rolling down hills, tubing down a real lazy river (no offense, Splash Zone), watching fireflies and fireworks on the lawn, and drinking coffee on a swing on a cool summer morning. . It was wonderful.

Have a good one!

First Fish

2010-06-19T03:47:00.000-07:00

The first Saturday of June Roman's work hosts a Kids Fishing Day. This year we gathered all of Corinne's friends to try their luck. I'm not sure who had more fun, the kids running around eating hot dogs or the dads who got to throw a few lines (helping children, of course!). Seriously, the kids have to be the ones to reel in the fish.

Can you see Roman's chest bursting?!

In response, Roman just HAD to purchase a pink tackle box for Corinne. He's outfitted it with plenty of fake worms with shimmers and sparkles. She slept with it then was up at 5am this morning rattling around with that darn box.

Happy Fishing!

Summer begins

2010-06-09T03:48:00.000-07:00

Hopefully, this will sum up a little of the early summer events. The video is a little long; maybe one only grands will love. Kids are doing great! Enjoy.

Spring Bunnies

2010-04-14T16:49:00.000-07:00

This Easter, the kids and I flew to Glasgow to visit family and friends. I'll skip the details of flying solo with two young children. Let's just say I was begging gj and Pappy to pack a cooler of beer in the car!

The weekend started out with numerous Easter egg hunts, many of which were in gj's backyard. Every morning both of the kids headed for the backdoor to hangout on the patio or the swing. The neighbor cat, Charlie, was a great source of amusement for the kids. He even let Sam put him in a choke-hold. "Gentle, Sam!" The weather, warm and beautiful. The spring flowers, stunning-- especially the purple redbuds, forsythia, weeping cherries and dogwoods. Purple, white, yellow and pink poised on Kentucky hillsides.

Corinne and Maren split their attention between serving up soup in the sandbox...

"Do you want chicken noodle or black bean, Mom?"

and bouncing around to Ring-a-round the rosies...

Queens of the Trampoline. Eat your heart out Olivia!

Sam jams at the music table.

You have to go to 'the farm' when you visit Glasgow. Spencer and Carrie have a stunning view of the countryside while home to many horses. The kids got to see several foals, one as early as four or five hours old.

Spencer and Sam share the tractor. What contentment.

Austin plays the drums nowadays in addition to hosting their exchange student from Spain, reading, and swimming on the swim team. He was kind enough to treat the kids to a private jam. Corinne said it was too loud.

Sam said bring it on!

Seeing friends on the visit home is always a plus! I was able to hook up with Britney and Ryan at Cave City's own Dinosaur World. The dinos were actually pretty cool. Ryan was so attentive to Sam and very grown-up! Lesson of the day--the colored belts of karate! He had some cool moves, too!

This is so scary, kids can't resist. Corinne watched awhile to make sure T-rex didn't spit anyone out like so much spinach.

Pappy was swamped with tax season, but caught up with us in the evenings.

Always refreshing to introduce your children to new situations and make new family memories with everyone. Thanks for a great spring break!

He's ONE!

2010-04-11T06:23:00.001-07:00

That's right, he really is. And, yes, this year went by even faster than our first year with Corinne. Sam is such a happy little boy and can always be seen smiling. Or eating. :-) Sam loves to snack all day if you'd let him. Which is why I was surprised that he was less than excited at his first cupcake. He was concerned about the icing on his fingers and kept trying to flick it off!

I want YOU! (To bring me more cake ;-)

Happy Birthday, sweet Sam!

The Circus

2010-03-14T07:43:00.000-07:00

Our lives could definitely be defined as a circus right now. By the time we juggle sick children, jobs, and faulty plumbing, we find ourselves walking tightropes and jumping through hoops to get everything accomplished.

Corinne's class at school held their annual Circus last week even though a nasty fever and virus seemed to keep many students out of school off and on all week including our own. Corinne was out Tuesday and Wednesday before the Circus on Thursday. While at the performance, we had to take Sam out for a high temperature, too. Ah! Thankfully, it seems to only be a low grade fever and the sniffles.

So, maybe it was her mood that kept her from performing Thursday. Corinne was the only one who contracted stage fright and refused to come out with the others. I managed to grab a few photos of her, though, backstage. Side note, gj made the clown costume over 30 years ago! I think Derek may have worn it also.

Lady and the Tramp

Have a great week.

Let it snow, let it snow!

2010-02-23T16:53:00.000-08:00

It doesn't happen very often. Snow in the South. Friday evening, Feb. 12, Charleston was blanketed with roughly 2-3" of snow. The town shut down Friday afternoon. I almost woke Corinne up to have her watch it. Looking back, I wish I had. But she got to enjoy it! Yes, the picture here is dark because it's morning at our house.

Roman let me sleep in Saturday morning until 7am. When I came out for a cup of Joe, this image greeted me.

Now, I know that Charleston winters aren't arctic by any stretch, but we've really had a cold winter here. The weatherman spouted trivia that from January 1st to Feb. 16th last year, Charleston had about 11 days around 70 degrees. The year before it was 6 days. This year: none. The thin-bloods down here have really been whining. I have to say that I love it. I love the cool to balance the sultry summers that usually cling to the fall and winter months.

Lame excuse for a snowman, but I wanted to hurry up and sit inside enjoying the snow while sipping my coffee.
Brrrrrrr!

First Steps

2010-02-03T17:04:00.000-08:00

He did it. Sam is now taking first steps on his own. I love the pride in his face when he realizes what he's done. Don't you know that babies must just love it when they can finally do what the big folks are doing everyday?!

Sam is in his own little world right now. I call him my little Cave Man because he's favorite form of communication is loud grunts and growls. Luckily, he's becoming adept at sign language, so there's hope for a gentleman someday. :-)

Here he is in action.

Old friend, new friend

2010-02-03T17:01:00.000-08:00

After the birthday bash, we were excited to get out of town for the MLK weekend in the mountains. Mike and Jane Ann are proud parents of little Emma Rose who's close to 5 months now. What a darling little girl! She watched the craziness with good humor.

Our friends Carla and Preston brought their new bundle of joy, Reece, over for dinner. It was so good to see them. Reece is a few months younger than Sam.

Couldn't you get lost in those eyes?

Boys and their blocks.

"You be the whale, and I'll be the boat."

Thanks for a great time!

The Magic continues...

2010-01-14T03:11:00.000-08:00

Sheeeee's 3! This year Corinne wanted a Halloween party for her birthday. I finally figured out that she wanted to dress up for her big day, so we planned a Tinkerbell/Peter Pan party with fairies and pirates. Sadly, it was a high of 40, so our day at the park turned into many fairies and mates running around our house on a chilly afternoon. Luckily we had the foresight to plan some outdoor activities and arranged for a fire pit outside. Oozy, gooey marsh mellows hanging off sticks over a fire was the perfect kid magnet.

She has begun the art of negotiation. My favorite is instead of a "5 minutes!" countdown, she says, "How 'bout 2 minutes, Mama?!" No problem. We'll take your suggestion. She started in the next class at daycare, the '3's. So far, so good. Corinne takes change in stride. For the first week she really hung back and watched how the clock works. Once she figures that out, she runs the clock. Or tries to.

We were so busy parenting and playing host and hostess that we didn't take any still photos. I did manage a clip of the birthday moment.

The Magic of the Season

2010-01-14T02:58:00.000-08:00

A little late on the holiday post. So sorry. We got caught up in the relaxation of playing with the kids and holing up inside during the cold weather. It was so nice not to have to play Beat the Clock every morning and evening in preparation for the school/work day.

Pappy and gj came to celebrate Christmas with us. We enjoyed much of the usual holiday activities including a train ride at the Festival of Lights, walks around the neighborhood admiring the lights, and the baking!

You know the reindeers. Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, and Corinne.

Baking is always on the Christmas agenda. We started with pecan pie. Ta-da!

Sugar cookies for Santa.

Playful elf.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

Two Turkeys

2009-12-01T02:58:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break. Ours turned out great. The kids were into a good groove over the long weekend--playing and generally going along with whatever outing we planned. We also got the chance to break out of our home routine again to visit with friends in for the holiday break.

For the turkey dinner we ventured over the bridges again to Joel and Suzy's. Every year their neighbor, Christopher, takes Corinne under his wing. They only see each other once a year really, but you would think no time had passed. This year he helped Corinne find new uses for a half-pipe.

Hail Hitler!

Sam continues to grow leaps and bounds. He crawls to his destinations either army style or on all fours then pulls up on anything he can reach. He's even attempted to transfer between furniture. The world is his oyster right now.

Sam is getting the pincer grasp down, too. I don't know who enjoys the Cheerios more, Sam or Corinne. She gets the biggest kick out of feeding them to him (and helping herself to a handful, too). Then, of course, the sisterly love has to withhold the Cheerios while brother screams because he knows she has them. To Sam's delight she obviously went a little overboard here.

One of my favorite pictures when I was Corinne's age is one where I dressed Derek up in dress-up clothes. I guess the eldest child sees the younger as their play toy. Well, I've been trying to be creative with Corinne's hair lately, and she seemed all about the headband idea. Putting two and two together....

This is one for his high school yearbook.

Have a great week!

Just a Swingin'

2009-11-12T03:00:00.000-08:00

This is the year of the pecan, and anyone with a pecan (pee-can or pi-caan take your 'pic') tree knows that the daily pecan picking must begin! Every other year the trees produce their bounty and this is our year. We worried early on that the trees were suffering because we were losing huge limbs every day. They would just split and hang their heavy heads, often knocking other limbs down on their descent. Then I noticed other trees in the neighborhood losing limbs just like ours. Evidently, when the limbs get so heavy the upper branches can't hold the weight and just crack. Not to worry. The pecan crop is still huge. As I type the backyard is covered with ripe nuts waiting to be picked up. There is a small blessing in the fact that they only produce every 2 years.

Our next challenge was to entertain 2 chill'uns while we played squirrel. Hello, swing. Sam gets to swing and Corinne gets to push. They love it. I don't know if Sam is as excited about going 'higher and faster' like Corinne, but he put up little fuss.

Wheeeee
Hey, do it again!

The little guy just got his first tooth. We'll post a toothy grin when you can see it better. It just pokes through the skin right now (and is razor sharp!). He gnaws pretty much anything right now.
Have a great week.

Fall Fun

2009-10-31T03:09:00.000-07:00

I love this time of year. The cool weather, pumpkin patches, hayrides, and Halloween. Ok, maybe not necessarily cool down here in Charleston unless you count sitting in the air conditioning because it's 80+ in October! You know how it gets when you love your routine because it keeps everyone sane, yet the time comes when you need to break the rut to appreciate the routine? That's where we were mentally when we started off fall by venturing to the Bensons in Greenville for our first road trip in a while. The weather was perfect, cool days, cold nights, and the kids played great together. Sam and Lila hung in the background and simply watched the ruckus.

The Three Stooges

Back in Charleston we took the kids to Legare Farms to the pumpkin patch. Despite the intense heat, we pretended it was a fall day and enjoyed the festivities. Corinne fed the cows on a hayride and choose the family pumpkin. Roman stepped up to flaunt his carving capabilities.

Not your average Jack-O-Lantern

Corinne's imagination is beginning to bud as she shows more and more interest in her costumes. Between Craig's List and gj, she now has several stock piling in the new costume bin. Pappy and gj came down for a week. We had a nice mellow visit, trying hard to plan things that would tire the kids, not us. :-) One of our favorite pasttimes, dining out, was put on the backburner this visit because we're still experimenting with Corinne's allergies. We managed to dine at Lost Dog though. No trip to us is complete without it. Just as they left, the kids and I headed to our first Halloween party of the season.

Mickey and Minnie Tour Charleston

Halloween night wore both the little ones and the adults out! There's a lot of cute things in this world, and a neighborhood full of wee ones in costume is definitely in my top 10. For the finale the kids chose Teddy Bear and Tinkerbell. We had a blast living vicariously through Corinne as she trick, treated, and dashed to the next house. ("I said thank you, Mom!")

Pre-game

Half-time

Sam's personality continues to unfold and his mobility increases. We find it doesn't take a second for him to army crawl to his destination. The best are his belly-laughs. He chortles at Corinne's antics then the two of them get going into silly giggles. I love it! He's also very vocal with grunts and sighs. It doesn' take him long to convey his needs. We delight in trying new foods with him.

Ewwww. You can't beet this messy kid!

The holidays are coming upon us. Keep healthy and safe

More milestones

2009-09-28T17:02:00.000-07:00

Weighing in at 20lb 7oz, in the cute corner is...Sam the man! He went in for his 6 month checkup (yikes!) today. He's a few days shy of the actual 6mo marker but close enough. He's still a really big baby at >97% height; 95% weight (compared to other male babies his age). With that much cushion it's no wonder he hardly batted an eye when they stuck him with vaccinations and a flu shot. Seriously, we was chuckling away with the nurse (or was he flirting?!).

Our next Sam battle is sleeping through the night. Corinne was always the champ in this department, hardly making us blurry-eyed during her infancy. Sam on the other hand, has never really 'slept through the night.' I always felt for his size that he should be capable of it, so why isn't he? My doctor pointed out that as long as he wakes and we feed him, he's going to continue to wake. Yummy. Who wouldn't? Soooooo, Roman and I are prepared to start playing the crying game. Why not, we aren't really sleeping anyway. Sigh.

We also mentioned Sam's coughing. We are concerned that if Corinne has a milk allergy chances are he may, too. The doctor suggested trying a soy formula for those needed supplemental bottles. Unfortunately, we tried that months ago, and he hated it. Ahhh, we'll see!

On a fun note, Sam just started sitting up in a seated position. He is thrilled by his new independence and will sit and grunt, giggle, and grab at anything within reach.

Big sister had her first trip to the salon. Noel wooed her into the booster chair and shaped her up for the first time. She was awestruck by the experience and loved the hair dryer. We didn't take much off, it just needed to be styled. We lova the Lava!

It's almost 8:30...getting past my bedtime (sadly). Have a great week.

Our Crew

2009-09-12T18:05:00.001-07:00

Where have we been? I think Roman and I can safely say that we got our sea legs with the children/daycare/work schedule. The last few weeks have been filled with simply keeping up with house and home while lingering at the park and the beach as the days cool off to wonderful Charleston weather. Sam has taken well to daycare and is often found shrieking in laughter at all of the children in his class. He continues to grow at a rapid rate, too. We started feeding him cereal a little earlier than the suggested 6mo marker. He still stirs several times a night to eat and just seemed eager to hang with us at the table, so we went for it. I forgot what an interesting journey it is introducing food and teaching an infant how to eat. Once we convince Sam that he doesn't have to eat the spoon, too, he'll do just fine.

Here he proudly displays the remnants of his first taste of peas. Ymmmmm

We've been battling coughing fits from Corinne almost her entire life. Over the summer we decided it was past time to get to the bottom of it. No longer would a "daycare-virus diagnosis" satisfy us. Off to the allergist she goes only to find out that she's allergic to either milk, egg whites, or both. So, in addition to starting school, we've had to restock the house and mind with supplements for a non-dairy diet. We have been slowly eliminating dairy and have seen great results. Because she cleared right up with the dairy first, we feel fairly confident that the cow is the culprit. We'll give her another week without Zyrtec and slowly introduce an egg, then milk to see exactly with which one she reacts. Luckily, we live in an area that supports alternative foods. It's really forced us to bump up our cooking (which we like to do anyway) and toss the cheese. I've had to shed a few tears over the cheese, but we've all acclimated well to the rest of it.

Corinne is now the #1 fan of her tricycle. She rides everyday in and out of the house. Fall is near as the breeze keeps the heat from daytime play. Splash Zone might be closed, but the rest of the park has plenty to offer kids. Corinne now motors through the park, trike cruising at 2 mph. We spread the blanket, toss the soccer ball, and picnic all morning.

Corinne and Hendrix refuel.

This is a mac daddy tricycle. Corinne was eyeballing his ride all morning.

Michelle and Ceily gearing up.

Ceily drives a big wheel. Long live the big wheel.

Roman has been itching to practice with his new fly rod, so until the tides fit his schedule he resorted to some casts landlocked.

The great weather has everybody grilling. Meeting up with friends after a vacation-filled summer has been great. We've had a grand time catching up with everyone. Ava had lots to tell Roman about her first visits anywhere!

How 'bout that bonnet?!

Chrissy and Isabella take a break. Bella and Corinne ran like two 2 year olds should...run off that energy! :-)

Handling both children becomes easier as we all learn each other, new schedules, new milestones. So, Roman and I have begun to swap out nights of independence. Now that the weather has cooled, the evenings are a great time to get in a walk. Corinne especially loves the house "with the red door" where there are actually 3 red doors on the front of the house. It's a great time for Roman to unwind from the day, exercise for me, and best of all, the end result is this...

Last, but not least, we'd like to send out a big hug to Mimi, Pappy and GJ. Happy Grandparent's Day guys, we love you and miss you. Thank you for all of your love and support :-)

I saw mushrooms

2009-08-25T17:29:00.001-07:00

Corinne's imagination is starting to kick in overdrive. We love it! You never know what zany something she might be thinking or want to play. I have to say that Corinne is original in that she will pick up and eat a raw mushroom. My girl loves to eat! She was helping assemble our pizza for dinner and got a little sidetracked with the mushrooms. When I asked her what she was doing, she replied, "It's a choo-choo train, Mommy!"

I don't know what I love more about this picture:
the mushroom train or the proud grin on her face.

NC crew

2009-08-23T14:02:00.001-07:00

The Rutledge crew from Raleigh came to vacation with us last week. Derek found a rental that was a mere minute from our house. We enjoyed happy hours and dinners with everyone all week.

Gus willingly shared bear hugs with us all. Sam included!

I expect one of these in the Christmas stocking, Dad. --Tess (Derek's ipod)

Ever observant, Owen could spot the fiddler crabs, cranes and other marsh birds with his keen eyes. You don't get anything past this guy!

One of our favorite parts of the week was Splash Zone. The boys showed off their swimming skills by touching the bottom, swimming underwater, and zooming down the big slides with Dad. I'm hoping Corinne was watching closely and tries to mimic their swimming habits. They've obviously grown confident in the water. Tess held her own in the shallow pools, also. Sorry I didn't photodocument, but I'm not adept enough to watch Hurricane Corinne and snap the camera at this point.

Thanks for trekking to Folly for your vacation, guys. We enjoyed seeing you!

Michigan Reunion

2009-08-11T03:56:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Charleston!

The culminating event of our summer was the anticipated Michigan family reunion. Roman and I packed everything but the kitchen sink to fly to Detroit and rent a car for the week's excursions. All in all the kids did great considering each day brought a different schedule and sometimes a different home for sleeping. Sam blossomed into a social butterfly this week, giggling and chatting with everybody he met. We started our trip in Detroit with the Crumpton side of the family. Debbie and Mike opened up their home (and grill!) to us coming and going to the airport.

Brooke played with Corinne. Corinne called her Leigh Ann all week!?

Joking with Jennifer (Roman's cousin)

On to Mimi's house where 'AA' (Aunt Angela) has been residing before her permanent departure to Bangkok. Mimi lost both of her Yorkies this year and have two new additions, Poppy & Posey. Corinne couldn't leave Poppy alone. Poppy is a saint to tolerate Corinne the way she did.

Mimi's backyard was so cozy. Where better to catch a cool Michigan breeze?

AA, Posey, and Corinne (pointing at her brain).

"Draw this, AA!"

The trip wouldn't be complete without a trip to the Binder Park Zoo. I don't know who was more excited about this trip: Mom&Dad or Corinne. I love this zoo! Their African safari is so authentic and the tram ride to the exhibit is as fun as feeding the giraffes.

Red panda

Prarie dogs

Many of Roman's family live on one of Michigan's finest lakes. These little lakes seem to pop up around the corner when you're out in the country. The kids just loved the open space. The two hottest toys on the market this week were the Barbie car and the trampoline. Corinne and cousins bopped from one to the next.

Belle and Mireyah take a round while Liv, Corinne and Kaleb patiently wait their turn. According to Kaleb, "Corinne's a terrible driver!" Hope she doesn't take after her mom. :-)

While were there, Roman took advantage of the time to catch up with some old high school friends at a mini class reunion at Blossom Lake.

Congratulations goes to cousin Aaron and his wife Yvonne on their newest addition, Amaya. Amaya is three weeks younger than Sam. They had a lot of notes to compare this week. Amaya is welcomed at home by 3 older brothers!

We had a wonderful time with everyone and appreciate all of the hospitality. I must admit, though, that I was clicking my ruby red slippers by the end of the week claiming, "there's no place like home, there's no place like home!" The return flight had us deboard the plane for an hour due to a leaky air conditioner. Try explaining that to a wired 2 1/2 year old who's excited to ride the airplane! After her meltdown and the drive from Myrtle Beach, we all relished in our own beds, our own space.

Happy Birthday...

2009-07-28T18:34:00.000-07:00

...dear Roman, Happy Birthday to you! Our friends from Charlotte, Ben & Dana with young Brayden, are vacationing at Folly this weekend. We were able to host a little get together with them on their last night out. Ben brought some yummy Chimay beer and played some guitar and banjo with Roman, so topped with some cupcakes and the outdoor pool, the evening was a blast!

Cupcakes are serious business!

...so are swimming pools.

Decked out in my party duds

Playing some tunes

Birthday Boy

Speaks for itself

Thank you for all that you do.

4 Months

2009-07-27T12:03:00.000-07:00

Sam went today for his 4 month checkup. The scale told me what my back has been screaming for a few weeks now: Sam is packing the pounds! He's decided to follow in his sister's footsteps and be a big guy. Sam weighs 26" long and almost 17lbs. I think I already mentioned that he's been rolling over for a few weeks now. There's something so relaxing about seeing a baby sleeping on his belly with his bottom stuck up in the air!

He's also found his fists and wastes no time gnawing on them. I keep feeling around for a tooth, but nothing yet. Here's one of my favorites of the little guy:

Have a great week!

Charleston Vacation

2009-07-25T04:17:00.000-07:00

Living in Charleston and vacationing in Charleston can be two totally different things. The day to day grind (and two little ones) usually takes me away from the museums, restaurants, and other sight seeing opportunities. Of course, I always make time for the beach and water parks, but it has been a little more difficult this summer with Corinne and Sam. This week Roman needed to be in Georgia for some training, so Pappy and gj made the trek once again to help out. We truly made the week a Charleston vacation and enjoyed every aspect of our historic town.

Mom and I tried the aquarium but were not impressed. For the price, it wasn't nearly hands on enough for a 2 1/2 year old. Sam loved it, viewing the fish Bjorn-style. He was wide awake for the entire 2 hour trip. Many days he was determined to hang out with big sister even at the water park, Splash Zone. The Charleston Children's Museum was another morning. I'd forgotten how fun that place is (and how small!). Pappy and gj love their sugar, so each day held some element of a cookie, ice cream, key lime pie, or dinner dessert. Corinne came to know these as 'special snacks' and tried to talk us into one at every opportunity.

We even all went on a 'road trip!' to historic Beaufort where I was able to catch up with my college friend, Britney and son, Ryan. The annual lunch at Plums was yummy. Ryan tried to order a baby brother, but Britney wasn't buying!

Sam puts on a pirate face. Arghhh!

Other events on the agenda: face decorating,

tea parties,

and neighborhood swimming pools.

Corinne really loves the water again this year. She has been busy watching a few of her older friends go under the water and dive for rings, jump in, and simply swim in the pool. She gets more and more brave with each visit. Today she attempted to pick up diving rings herself by holding her breath underwater for several seconds. I'm thrilled and anxious for her for each attempt. Next up, swimming lessons!

Pappy and gj, I'm sending the key lime pie, cookies, homemade ice cream and other sundries your way. My waistline is complaining. :-) Thanks for such a great time.

I saw "Bread"

2009-07-06T05:24:00.000-07:00

What's This???

Some may think that it's just bread with the centers munched out, but oh how you are wrong. It's more than that! The story goes...

This morning I took Corinne to daycare. On Mondays we usually pack her some foodstuffs to supplement for some of the items we don't like to give her that daycare provides (in this case wheat bread as opposed to white bread).

Corinne, being her little independent self, is insistent that she help all of the time. For example, she wanted to carry her food to school this morning. I pulled into the parking lot and could smell that the wheat bread had been opened. I went to get Corinne out of the car and there she was, making jewelry. Yep, she had eaten the centers out of the bread and was proudly wearing them like bracelets on her arms. It took some creative negotiating to have her give them up!

Let's see what tomorrow brings. Can she make a hat out of a smoothie?

3 Months!

2009-06-30T06:23:00.000-07:00

Sam has now hit the 3 month mark, that magical month where life seems to wind down from the newness of a newborn and sleeping increases for everyone. He is such a happy little boy always content where you place him as long as you chat with him. Big sister is a hit, too, evoking many giggles when she starts kissing his toes and playing tickle monster.

Alas, I am still trying to figure out our new camera. When we catch a good pic, it's really good, but many of them turn out blurry. Roman thinks there could be a problem with the camera; I say it's user error. Therefore, some of the photos don't live up to their potential, but we're working on it.

Almost caught that grin!

Last night da Joyners visited with baby Ava. I swear Sam knew that he had a playmate over and it wasn't just a friend of Corinne's! He laughed and kicked and cooed totally turning on the charm for the little miss.

Big sister was a big help with both babies.

Have a great week!

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-23T04:45:00.000-07:00

Well, as usual, I'm a day late and a dollar short, but I wanted to post a huge thank you to Roman. He's a wonderful, hands-on Dad who delights us all. Hope you enjoyed your day.

Love, us.

My Old Kentucky Home

2009-06-22T04:33:00.000-07:00

Weeee're baaaack from the annual summer trek to KY. The kids did great in the car. We had the DVD player ready for emergency backup but did not actually need it. I think breaking up our trip in Asheville both coming and going made a huge difference. It was also a great opportunity to catch up with friends.

Harlan teaches Corinne the art of strumming.

Sam had started sleeping through the night just before we left. He continued part of the way into our trip, then reverted to his old nighttime routine. Of course, Mommy is crossing her fingers that he picks it back up now that we're home again. There was no shortage of arms and shoulders ready to soothe Sam over the week.

My cousin, Laura Jo and her son, John, soak up some Sam for the day. Thanks for making the trip up from Tennessee! It was great seeing you.

Pappy holds Sam in his favorite spot, the outdoor swing.

Look at that grip. "Don't go anywhere, gj!"

My cousin, Shane and his wife, Crystalin, had baby Ethan in January. Uncle Steve and Aunt Laura motored from Tennessee so we could enjoy him for the day. I kept trying to get that gorgeous grin, but he was on to me.

What's summertime without a huge tub of bubbles? Corinne finally figured out how to make the soapy water produce a bubble!

Where's the stick?!

Inside, outside, upside down!

Maren shows off her big wheel skills.

The girls really had a good time playing all week. We were more than happy to have them burn off all of that homemade ice cream by burning up the pavement after dinner.

Corinne has already been telling me to "go back, Mommy, go back!" We had such a great time and thanks to everyone for visiting with us!

Trial Run

2009-06-10T13:30:00.000-07:00

This weekend we're getting ready to pack the kids and head to Kentucky. While we plan to stop in Asheville on the way to break the trip, we are still sweating the drive with 2 under 2. Yesterday I got to test their road-trip skills for a quick trip down to Hilton Head.

You know true friends when you haven't seen them in years but can sit right down with them and continue a conversation as if it was yesterday. Well, my college friend, Resa, is just one of those friends. She and her family are vacationing at Hilton Head this summer, and I couldn't pass the chance to visit. Here I go with my little crew for a 2-3 hour drive to and from for a few hours of catching up!

The day went perfectly and the kids were true road warriors! Let's hope it holds for the weekend.

Resa's children, Hannah and Clark, along with their cousins, really welcomed Corinne and helped keep an eye on her for me.

Clark warms up with the boogie board

Clay (cousin), Hannah, and mad Sam

Beach queen

Here's to friends!

Sam Speaks

2009-06-08T04:47:00.000-07:00

I've been working hard to snap a shot of Sam grinning but got even luckier when he decided to start chatting with me also. He's very laid back and only fusses when he's ready for a new venue. I thought you might enjoy a few of his first sounds. Proud Mama thinks he's a Pat Conroy in the making with his storytelling! :-)

Enjoy!

Benedict Blast

2009-06-05T15:59:00.000-07:00

We were fortunate to have the Benedict's visit us this past week. Karen, Jane Layton and Maren enjoyed the sun, sand, and surf in addition to fun hangouts on Folly like breakfast at the Lost Dog cafe and dinner at Taco Boy. We sandwiched in several rounds of 'ring around the rosie,' too.

Corinne and Maren journey to the lighthouse

Partners in crime at the beach

Morris Island Lighthouse looms a short distance down the beach and is currently under reconstruction. I'm embarassed to say that it's been years since I've walked that far down Folly. Long ago were the days of walking Chloe down the river. The winds and tides have altered the beach so much it was like looking at a different place.

Girlish giggles

Thanks for making the trip you guys! We enjoyed knowing you were right down the road from us if even for a short while. See you soon in KY!

Sambo grows

2009-05-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

We just left the doctor's for Sam's 2 month visit. Two months!! Gosh, did I really just deliver 2 months ago?! He's doing so well weighing in at 12 lbs 8 oz and 23 1/2" long. Sam is such a sweet little boy and is beginning to grin and laugh at the sound of my voice. I keep trying to catch him at it, but nothing yet except blurry pics. :-)

Enjoy!

Summer begins

2009-05-26T04:27:00.000-07:00

Schedules are frustrating, but routines are usually necessary and aid in the process of keeping daily sanity. There are times, though, as we all know, that it's necessary and relaxing to step out of the routine and just roll with it. Well, that's what we did when this weekend rolled around. Memorial weekend really marks the beginning of summer for me, so in true beach weekend fashion, we pulled out all of the usual stops.

We spent much of our time with the Bensons who traveled from Greenville with their 3 children to stay at Folly Beach. They've been making the Memorial trek for several years now. This year we got to welcome Lila, their newest addition, a mere 2 weeks younger than Sam. Corinne romped with Wesley and Max. According to Wesley, Corinne's cool "because she's fast!" With Wes it's all about speed.

Popsicles!

Watermelon for the kids

Watermelon margaritas for the adults

Benson and little Lila

Downward facing dog: Max-style

Yoga trend

The Pirate Ships anchor at Folly (Corinne learns the rules from Wesley!)

Arrrghh, Matey!

The Pool (at Scotty D's)

To the delight of her daddy, Corinne splashed around in the pool most of the afternoon. She even jumped off of the diving board into Dad's arms.

Sam catches some love from Suzi

We finished the weekend with a dip in the trusty backyard pool. Callie was more than happy to share the slide with Corinne.

Hope everyone had a relaxing, fun-filled weekend!

Popcorn, popcorn

2009-05-20T14:25:00.000-07:00

Corinne invited me to her school for Mother's Day lunch a few weeks ago. What a blast! As we all sat on the floor in a circle, Corinne and fellow mates taught the moms the 'Popcorn' song. It is now a favorite after dinner.

Word on the street is that Roman is thinking of trying out for the next season of 'So you think you can dance.' Go, Daddy, Go!

First Date

2009-05-12T04:41:00.001-07:00

I finallly got the chance to visit my friend, Elizabeth, and her new baby girl, Ava. She's a mere two weeks younger than Sam. Little did the kiddos know that we were plotting their future relationship :-) Congratulations, Joyners!

Proud Mama and Ava

The future couple

Girlfriend?! What 'chu talkin' bout, Willis?

Past curfew

Have a great week.

If you give a girl a pancake...

2009-05-05T15:22:00.000-07:00

Corinne matched us pancake for pancake tonight pulling in an impressive amount of syrup, also.

Enjoy!

Growing Boy

2009-05-01T04:39:00.000-07:00

Sam is really growing and filling out lately. Shoot, he should the way he's been eating! We visited the doctor for his well-check this week and he'd gained almost 2lbs and grew an inch and a half in 2 weeks! He's up to 9.4lbs and 22 1/2" long. That was Monday. I dare say that he's more than that today. Trying to figure out nursing with Sam has been a bit more of a challenge than it was with Corinne. The fact that he's growing (a lot!) tells me that something must be going right. Here's a few pics to show his progress:

Hey, this thing is moving!

Cousin Brittany visits from Savannah

Sisterly love

Big Sister is enjoying Sam also. Everytime he cries she says, "Feed 'im, Mama, feed 'im!" She's still our little helper doing a great job of bringing me diapers and toys for him. She also enjoys trying on his clothes. Naturally, they don't go very far.

"Tee hee hee. That's so silly!"

Enjoy the weekend!

The Milk Man

2009-04-20T04:32:00.000-07:00

Thought you might like to see how the little man is progressing. He's really beginning to fill out and when he's awake, he's very alert. I figured out that he must be going through a growth spurt for he has been eating around the clock every other day. True to his family, he loves to relax and enjoy his meal. Feeding usually takes at least an hour as he takes his time filling up his belly. He can almost fit into the newborn outfits now :-)

Sam knows, too, when we're all in the other room and he's not. Often he'll sit and watch us in various activities around the house. His big sister is his #1 fan. She runs over, arms outstretched. "Hold 'im, Mama." After about 5 seconds, she's ready to return him. "Take it back, Mama." (No malice intended.)

Chillin' in the Moses basket

Favorite spot: the bobby

Corinne hit the birthday circuit this weekend. She is the number one fan of birthday cake, usually securing her spot at the table before anyone else. I'll hand it to her that she waited patiently to be served. We also learned of her new playground acrobatics. She's swinging from bars and has somehow learned the pump kick on the big swing. We have no idea where she picked this up, but she'll soar!

Push-ups, anyone?

Wheeeeee!

Have a great week.

Week 1 and more to come!!

2009-04-07T05:57:00.000-07:00

Just so that all of you can get your fix, this is a pictoral entry for the blog...

There was a request for an up close of Sam's ears, Yep he's got daddy's ears!

The first group of pics were taken while still in the Hospital...

Corinne and Sam: Up close and Personal

Proud Grandparents...

Jessica stopped by to see Hendrix's new playmate (Hendrix is Jessica's son who is one of Corinne's best friends)

Some people don't give hospital food enough credit, here's Corinne finishing Mama's Chicken noodle soup YUM YUM!

The following pics were taken at home...

Sam's first bath as administered by gj

Priceless...

Corinne got to celebrate gj's birthday with her very own cookie monster cookie.

gj using the Gaga technique to calm little Sam

Until next time...

It's a.....BOY!

2009-04-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

Heee's here!!!! Samuel Carver Crumpton arrived right on time Thursday, April 2 weighing in at 7lb 5oz. We are so fortunate to have everything go so well for us. His birth was eerily similar to Corinne's, occurring very quickly with a short stay at the hospital following.

Currently, Sam, or Samuel (NOT SAMMY, please), is experiencing elevated bilirubin levels (slight jaundice) but does not look to be of much concern. He's been pounding the boob (he's an eater like his big sis), and has been doing very well. He's got a pretty good set of lungs but we rarely hear them 'cause he's quite content. I know, I know enough of the chit chat, here are the photos.

Yep, That says "7 pounds five-point-4" ounces

I would've come earlier but I had things to do...

Mostly what I do is sleep

Have you ever seen a mother look so good after labor?

Proud Papa with 'wide awake' Sam

I must say give a HUGE THANK YOU!! To Jane and C.E.. Jane has been in town for a couple of weeks since Mel's first series of contractions which turned out to be false labor. We put her to work though doing laundry, cooking, and making sure the freezer was stocked with cookies and ice cream and the liquor cabinet with bourbon-THANKS!

The Waiting Game

2009-03-29T05:34:00.000-07:00

No baby yet, folks. Many thanks to everyone who has called and inquired on our status. We had a little action last weekend and thought the time had come. Baby decided, ummmm, nope, I like it inside here just fine, thank you. Soooo, we've been in pre-labor symptom-status for over a week now, and we're just waiting around. If you're female and a mom, you know exactly how I feel right now. :-)

Luckily, Corinne has been a typical two-year old to divert my attention. gj and I went out and purchased some baby-sized diapers and fake bottles for her to care for her baby. Wow. She has played with this baby now for hours each day. She's all about baby. Let's just see if it holds when the real one arrives. She's already a little possessive of some of the new baby equipment.

Just a few things we've been up to:

Ceily and her parents came for dinner. Any cake to Corinne is 'happy day cake' so we all sang Happy birthday to no one while the girls enjoyed their dessert.

Corinne is very into Daddy right now. She wants Daddy in the potty, Daddy to do bath, Daddy to read story, etc. Mommy gets the 'bye-bye, Mommy' like 'yer outta here!'

This is what happens when we leave Daddy in charge. hahaha

gj has helped implement craft time this weekend. Instead of coloring, though, she's very intent on taking all of the paper off of the crayons. We got a kick out of her organization. Check out the crayons themselves. All in a straight line, tips pointed down. I have no idea where she gets this. :-) Roman and I have tried to get Corinne to smile for the camera, also. Many of her shots end up looking like mugshots. This is the latest smile attempt.

Hopefully, the next post will reveal the new little one. Love to you all!

Dress up

2009-03-03T16:44:00.000-08:00

Corinne is becoming more and more aware of her clothes these days. She often remarks on 'mama's purple shirt' or 'mama's black pants.' Then she scampers to her room to find a similar item to wear. Now that we are into serious potty training, she's become pretty adept at taking her clothes on and off. Even at 3:00am, she isn't afraid to strip to nothing (diaper and all) to yell, "pee-pee potty, dada!" The only good thing about this is that she calls for her dad and not her mom. :-)

We did, however, get a huge chuckle out of her dressing antics the other day. She had decided early on that she didn't want to wear pants opting for tights and a T only. No problem. Then she found the bathing suits. See for yourself:

It gets even better:

Have a great week!

Thank heaven for Grandmas!

2009-02-28T04:14:00.001-08:00

This past week we had the pleasure of gj coming to play and fill in for Roman who ventured to Calloway Gardens for a work conference. (On a side note, he didn't realize that as a family, we used to vacation at Calloway for several years. I haven't heard that name in a looong time!)

I was going to don my Superwoman cape and brave the week as a single parent, but thank heaven I didn't!! What a week it turned out to be. Corinne got sick the first night gj arrived. We thought it must have been the rich food at dinner. Several days later, the stomach bug hit pregnant mama. Torture. I stayed home from work Monday. I can't imagine trying to keep up with Corinne with a stomach virus floating around my body.

By Wednesday, Corinne decided not to nap and not to go to bed. This is my wonderful night sleeper who often tells us that she's ready for bath and bed. gj and I endured at least an hour and half of crying, screaming, and rattling the door in between trying to calm her and laying down with her each night. This extended into the wee hours as she awoke 3ish and wouldn't go back to sleep. Roman and I endured this when we switched from crib to toddler bed a few months ago. It was truly hell for about 2 weeks. Now we've just moved from toddler bed to big girl bed. Here we go again.

So hat's off to gj for keeping me sane and entertaining an often tired, cranky, energetic two-year old with books, puzzles and beloved Dora. We love you!

Nothing New

2009-02-09T16:11:00.001-08:00

Wow, we're lame, aren't we? It doesn't seem like weeks ago that we last posted. Whew. Not a whole lot going on really. Chloe had another place removed from her back. She's such a trooper! You should've seen the original t-shirt she wore. I don't think Roman appreciated it: his black Social Distortion T. Chloe wasn't supposed to be involved with any vigorous activity, and what does she do? Bounds around the backyard like she's two! I swear, this dog will always be a puppy at heart.

Sporting the US Fish and Wildlife T

Corinne is getting all sorts of changes with her bedroom. We're trying to prep her so we can use all of her furniture for the baby. So far, so good. She loves the 'big bed'! We moved the full bed into her room. There goes the guest bed.

Look, Mom, all of my toys fit on the bed!

She's also potty training pretty well. We only use diapers at home when she sleeps. Still need some work at daycare; she hates to leave playing with friends long enough to go there.

Happy Day!

Helping Pets

2009-01-18T03:59:00.000-08:00

Saturday morning, Corinne and I loaded up the car with the donations from her party. I told her all morning that we would go see the kitty cats today (and dogs of course, but they aren't as exciting right now). I decided that in my next life I want to be a cat at Pet Helpers! I've never seen anything like it. All of the cat rooms are connected by little cat doors so the cats travel from playroom to privacy to playroom, etc. (with the exception of new and sickly ones). We were free to enter any of the playrooms full of friendly cats. Aside from the couches and windowsills full of soft pillows, they could also climb. Pictures can describe it best:

Here, kitty, kitty.

"This place is safe from the little girl."

They're everywhere!

The Loot.

Pet Helpers was very appreciative of everything, amazed that we brought in so much. So a huge shout out to everyone who donated! Thanks so much.

"Happy Day!"

2009-01-11T04:05:00.000-08:00

I'll say what many parents exclaim, "It went by so fast!" (Sigh).

Corinne says "I'm two!"

As always we delight in her growth and understanding. She's slowly beginning to learn the potty. We're just taking that a day at a time. Her language improves daily, often repeating everything we say. (Which can be dangerous, ahem.) Colors are pretty much mastered and shapes are close behind. Counting to 10 is close behind as are singing the ABCs. We're pretty excited with her progress. She's always eager to start/learn something new.

Of course, there's always the inevitable two tantrum. If she's trying to show us that she has spirit and spunk, we got the picture! Her 'no's' are now accompanied by a crossing of the arms across her chest. I constantly grapple with making her mind and trying to ingeniously make her think that our commands were her idea. It doesn't help when her quick answer to "Do you want to go to time-out?!" is met with "yes!" Aahhhhhh. :-)

We started off Corinne's birthday singing and opening her presents. This resulted in her signing Happy Birthday to herself all day, "Happy dayyyyyyy, happy dayyyyy!"

Decked out in gj's handiwork (hat, scarf and new kitchen apron!). Check out my tricycle!

Oh yeah, I love my trike!

Corinne was a perfect hostess at her party. With 18 children under 4, we lucked out with a 68 degree day and a backyeard bash. I have to say that everything went off without a hitch. With the holidays just past, she really doesn't need extra gifts, so we offered for everyone to donate to the local Pet Helpers organization. (They are the only ones in the area that don't euthanize). The response was wonderful! We plan to take Corinne there this week to offer up the loot.

Here's a recap of yesterday:

Great to see the Burns family! It's been awhile since the days of taking our dogs to the house parties!

Greg, Catherine and Lauren break Arden into the party scene.

Chrissy and Isabella taking a break.

Maxine gives the horse a workout!

Hmmmm, where am I headed?--Charlie

Wells gets the yard tour compliments of Corinne.

Ella, Stella, Ailish and Rebekah show everyone the art of climbing.

Thanks to all friends and family for making her day so special! Love you all!

Holiday Cheer

2008-12-29T04:29:00.001-08:00

I have to admit that I'm usually the kind of person who has the Christmas tree down the day after Christmas easily saying good-bye to the hype of the holidays. Except this year. I found that enjoying the holidays with Corinne made me very emotional to let go of the green, the red, the lights, and even Frosty (which we watched a total of several hundred times). Of course, it wouldn't be connected to the pregnancy hormones which can set me emotionally off balance at any moment. :-)

We had such a grand time at Uncle D's for the holiday. They were brave enough to host all of the Rutledge clan for a week, including the dogs! (Personally, I think the dogs got the best end of the deal. If the house got too crazy, you just grabbed a couple of dogs and 'went for a walk.')

Corinne bonded very well with all of her cousins. Gus shared all of his costumes and took her under his wing. Owen observed her from a distance but warmed up enough to share his building blocks and keep a close eye on her for us. Corinne couldn't get enough of 'Baby Tess.' She even named one of her baby dolls after her upon our return. This was a good sign for Mommy. I was afraid she might pull out the jealousy coat, but she was all about loving on Tess, touching her and being generally aware of her whereabouts. But don't let Tess's sweet face fool you, she is quite a ham herself and will soon give those boys a run for their money!

So, I'll post my photos and say 'Bye-bye, Santa, bye-bye Frosty' for this year. (Sigh).

Two peas in a pod.

Getting goodies from gj.

See, Tess, these velcro together. I'll share this one with you.

Could you deny this face anything?

Happy New Year, everyone!

Road Weary

2008-12-23T13:51:00.000-08:00

We arrived in North Carolina late Sunday night to a houseful of Rutledges all awake and eager to see us. Corinne finally dozed off in the car the last hour of our trip, only to awaken to two eager 3 year olds ready to romp! What followed was a very late night for all of us as we tried to finally wind three wild children down for bed. Corinne had quite a time trying to go to sleep. On top of being waaayyy overstimulated, she was in a foreign environment, and it was way past her bedtime. Long story short...we all (Roman, Corinne and myself) finally dropped off to sleep around 1:15am, on the floor, on her pallet.

Monday brought even more excitement. Corinne tried as hard as she could to keep up, but alas, during lunch, the lack of sleep overpowered her.

Here's to an early bedtime!

Kiss and tell

2008-12-01T15:13:00.000-08:00

I hope we haven't tried to instigate change too soon for Corinne by altering her crib to a toddler bed. For weeks now it seemed we had a seamles transition with her often waving bye-bye to Roman or me, eagerly awaiting the night's slumber. The last few nights, however, have brought upon a screaming little girl who yells, NO! when we try to leave for 'night-night.'

We anticipated possible trouble during nap time, though. And we got some. She's been a little too eager to say 'bye-bye, mama' and have me close the door. I could usually hear her rummaging around and could tell what she was into. This day there were no snores, but a quiet child. Hmmmmmm......

Aside from sleep issues, Corinne continues to delight as her vocabulary expands. It seems her emotions have expanded also after a previous report from her day-care teacher. Roman arrived to pick her up last week only to be told that "Your daughter's been kissing boys."

Roman replied, "Oh, really? Like maybe, Wells?" (Wells is one of Corinne's favorite playmates at school; we also run into him at birthday parties and the beach).

Miss Mary said, "How did you know?!" Roman just chuckled as he looked over her shoulder to see Corinne walking right up to Wells with both hands outstretched, lips puckered. Poor Wells didn't know what'd hit him. Hey, at least she's affectionate, right?

Have a great week.

C'mon, Chloe!

2008-11-26T04:57:00.001-08:00

Corinne's favorite evening activity is gathering everyone in the house to our bed to read stories and hang out until bath time. She can be quite demanding if you aren't ready to head back when she is. The other evening she decided that the dogs needed to hear the story, too. She had quite a time trying to convince Chloe to do what she wanted her to do. Welcome to our world, Corinne. We've been trying to get Chloe to listen to us for 12 years!

Northern Fairies

2008-11-16T05:26:00.000-08:00

We all enjoyed a visit from two Northern fairies this past week, Roman's mom from Michigan (Mimi) and sister from Seattle (AA: Aunt Angela). The week started off Southern with Roman and Angela cracking crabs. We ate in style all week as Roman donned his chef's hat. Crab cakes, pumpkin curry soup, shrimp and grits, salmon and spinach pasta....mmmmmmm. Lucky for us Corinne is a fabulous eater. She ate her share right along with the rest of us!

Her latest move is the upside down hand, "Where's _____?" We interpreted this as "Where's the washcloth?"

Corinne is really into singing lately and wakes up belting out "ABCDEFG...then repeats ABCDEFG" or jumps to "QRS." She's quite the songbird. Mimi and AA were told on many occasions, "Mimi, SING!" Our car resembled the Griswolds as we motored around Charleston singing "Row, row, row your boat." Right on cue, Corinne shouts for the next soul to chime in the round then ends in a rousing applause for us all. Could we have a conductor on our hands?

There was no shortage of sitting on the floor playing this week!

Mimi and AA also decked Corinne out in fun clothes including some fancy skirts and princess shoes. Corinne now ventures into her room and dresses herself in every hat, shoe, and accessory she can find.

Who said ruby slippers can't be worn with pjs? Watch out, Gus!

Angela brought Corinne the latest stuffed favorite to date: Ernie. He was lucky enough to go on our morning walk with us.

Right after Mimi and AA left, Roman and I moved Corinne's bed into the transitional bed for toddlers. She's always been a pretty good sleeper, so we figured we might as well try it. Especially if we want to use her crib for the new baby months down the road. She is learning the freedoms of the new arrangement, however, and piddles and plays before she nods off. Poor Ernie got the raw end of that deal today.

Angela arrived with an early Christmas present: the FLIP camera! I think this was her way of saying, "hint, hint." :-) You can see here that Corinne insisted on learning how to use it also. Corinne is all into electronics.

Cell phones are the favorite electronic as probably so with most children, I'm sure. She has her own (several, actually) but only the real ones will do. Unless of course, it's a clock. Does she know something we don't?

We really appreciate Mel and Angela making the trip down. Traveling isn't easy these days, and I know Corinne had a blast all week! All weekend long she looks at us and says, "AA bye-bye?" Very observant. We miss you guys and thanks for everything!

Trick or Treat!

2008-11-01T10:10:00.000-07:00

I've always loved Halloween, and now that Corinne is old enough to enjoy it, too, I love it all the more. Pappy and gj have been down all week, so they've helped out with parties and the annual 'trick or treat.' Corinne, gj, and I made cupcakes for the school party, half of which the adults ended up eating (yum)! Not to mention that we raided Corinne's candy stash after she went to bed. (Shame on us, right?!) She actually had a death grip on the pumpkin, and we ended up sending her to bed holding it. Luckily, she wasn't yet aware that it was actually candy inside. She was more interested in the fact that that pumpkin was 'mine'!

Check out our little butterfly fairy...

.... and Hip Hop Fairy

We even did the carving of Jack. Corinne was quite thrilled with the results.

Did you notice the boots? Gus, beware! Some friends donated these 'lizard' boots to Corinne last week, and they are quite popular around the house. We were able to get her to remove them for a bath, but, alas, she ended up sleeping in them for the night.

Prancing around

Have a great week!

Monkeyin' Around

2008-10-12T16:14:00.000-07:00

Corinne has really taken to her monkey in the last few weeks. Oddly enough, Roman and I both had monkeys as children. No bears here. I still have my old monkey, actually. So, I guess it's natural that she has an affinity for them. We really began to notice what a sidekick monkey was when we found him perched in odd spots around the house. I began snapping photos of her growing affection for showing him her life. See for yourself.

"Ready to chase Chloe?"

"Buh-bye, Dada!"

"Don't let Chloe eat the snacks, Monkey."

"Hold on tight."

"Wheeeeeee!"

Luckily, Monkey was prepared outside with his sunscreen.

"Brusha, brusha, brusha....."

Unfortuately, it wasn't Monkey who was playing around and pulled over the marble top end table, tearing Corinne's toenail. She was lucky enough not to break her big toe, but the damage is pretty gross. We've been watching and waiting for it to fall off. I have to say she's pretty tolerant of us soaking, dressing, and cleaning it. We've made such an impression that she tried to sit Monkey on the toliet to dress his toe! Couldn't get that photo, though, as we were racing to save Monkey from the realms of toliet bowl water.

Have a great week!

Crumptons expand

2008-09-27T16:24:00.000-07:00

At least one of us will literally be expanding that is. Here he/she is, baby #2! So far, so good at 13 weeks. We have an April 2 due date. We've told Corinne that Mommy has a baby in her belly, but she's clueless. Of course, we'll keep updating as the baby progresses. Isn't it amazing how much they're formed even this early? You can see the hands/arms flailing around the head and the little legs on the other end. Once again, Roman is adamant that we don't find out the sex of the baby. I have to admit the second 'go round that I would like to know. The planner in me wants to have all of the old clothes sorted and organized, etc. But, I guess it can all wait. :-)

Enjoy the weekend!

Well Read?

2008-09-22T15:45:00.001-07:00

Ok, my cousin Brooke put this post on her blog (see Celebrate the Everyday!) and I had to rise to the challenge. Evidently, the average adult has only read about 6 titles from the list. I bolded the titles I've read. Mom and Angie will probably bold the whole list! I've read 42. Not a very good number for a librarian. Guess I need to get busy. Happy Reading.

1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4. Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6. The Bible
7. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8. 1984 - George Orwell
9. His Dark Materials- Philip Pullman
10. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11. Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12. Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14. Complete Works of Shakespeare
15. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16. The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18. Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19. The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20. Middlemarch - George Eliot
21. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23. Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25. The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33. Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34. Emma - Jane Austen
35. Persuasion - Jane Austen
36. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38. Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40. Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41. Animal Farm - George Orwell
42. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown (Also seen the movie)
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46. Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48. The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50. Atonement - Ian McEwan
51. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52. Dune - Frank Herbert
53. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen (Does starting to read it count?)
55. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time- Mark Haddon
60. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68. Bridget Jones’ Diary - Helen Fielding
69. Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72. Dracula - Bram Stoker
73. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75. Ulysses - James Joyce 7
76. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78. Germinal - Emile Zola
79. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80. Possession - AS Byatt
81. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87. Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92.The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94. Watership Down - Richard Adams
95. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98. Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Roald Dahl
100. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

Where the wild things are

2008-09-20T04:05:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we headed off on a road trip for our friends', Joe and Julia, wedding in Asheville. It was so good to see many friends that we just don't get to hang out with much now that little bit is with us and our social life is very slow. :-) We actually got a babysitter and attended the wedding sans Corinne.

Julia's night

Roman, Justin, and Dave contemplating the 'Electric slide'. Haha

Pal'ing around with Elizabeth

We did take Corinne to the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville during the day. The gardens were gorgeous. I'd been there once years and years ago, but they've made so many improvements and additions that it was a new experience for me. I was mainly looking forward to showing Roman the quilt garden. The link shows what it would look like. We only saw it in its planting stage. Still, other exhibits like the bonsai garden and colorful wildflowers were worth the visit.

I'm not sure what this one was. It reminds me of Mimi's morning glories, but it was as big as the spread of my hand!

Of course, the wildest flower of them all...

Corinne has been learning her colors and is telling us that this 'baba' is red! So far she can recognize the difference between some colors but will only tell you when something is 'lello' or 'red.'
This is just a little note on the side. I dropped Corinne off at daycare Friday morning and as we were entering, a classmate and friend, Katilyn, was entering with her father. The two girls squealed and shrieked to see each other, then ran full speed ahead down to their room. It was the first time I've seen her get so excited about one of her classmates. They had the workers peering out of other rooms to check on the commotion.

Another cute story, induldge me here, from daycare... one of the teachers informed me that Corinne gets quite irritated at the wood chips from the playground that work their way into her shoes. She sat down to take her shoes off and a little boy from her class, Gavin, came over to put his arms around her (he thought she was upset). A few minutes later, the same scenario ensued, yet this time he planted one on her! Her first kiss! The teachers said it was too cute. Roman wanted to know if he needed to have a talk with the little guy.

We're enjoying a cool day about 65 out! It's a welcome change from the muggy, mosquito-hungry heat.

Have a great week.

Mosquitoes, Hurricanes, and Guitar Hero

2008-09-02T16:02:00.001-07:00

School has definitely gotten off to a good start. Summer is always fun, but by August the heat and the mosquitoes can ruin anybody's picnic. Besides, the thrill of making muffins with Mama was wearing off.

We started our school year to a new school-wide reading program that culminated last Friday. I don't like to toot my own horn, but I was pleased that our student body and efforts were recognized on the local news.

(The video hasn't been working, so here's the link: http://www.wciv.com/news/stories/0808/548702.html)

We had a national young adult author, African drumming groups, a Holocaust survivor, and 2 Vietnam veterans to speak to students who read books of similar topics. Who said reading and books were dead?! :-)

The Bensons graced us this weekend with their crew. Corinne and the kids played so well together. When she wasn't following in Wesley's (older) footsteps, she was taunting Maddox with the latest toy of choice. The real treat was the Wii, Guitar Hero, and the rockstars that came out of the closet.

Trina and the boyz

Roman takes on Wesley

Now we sit and wait to watch the local coverage scare everyone to death about Hurricane Hanna on its way. Not to sound to disrespectful of the media, I realize that we are fortunate to be kept informed and out of harm's way. But after living here for 12 years, we just can't hit the panic button just yet. The groceries are already out of water and the gas pumps are triple deep. It's Tuesday. This storm might hit Friday or Saturday. Needless to say, we do have our evacuation plan in place. We'll hope for the best.

Have a great week!

Melanie

Relief!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-08-22T04:41:00.000-07:00

What a Relief!!!

Upon Corinne's last doctor visit we once again mentioned our concern for Corinne's constant runny nose and nighttime cough. For the past year (yes, it started last August) the doctor has suggested that it is just a minor cold and an artifact of her being in daycare. Honestly, Mel and I were a bit skeptical. Well it has not stopped with her not attending daycare this summer so the doctor suggested removing items from her crib and trying to isolate the "allergy" (i.e. wool, satin, etc). After Corinne has been sleeping with absolutely nothing in her crib except a blanket (a different one every night) nothing seemed to work. Then a couple of weeks ago we were invited to dinner with our friend 'Berta. She suggested we stop using fabric softener and BAM!!! that was the culprit- no more pics or videos of snot rockets to spoil Corinne's baby pictures

-THANKS 'BERTA!

P.S. 'Berta's from Michigan

Young 2's

Corinne has started back to daycare and Melanie is back at work. To our surprise Corinne has been moved up to another room called "Young 2's". We like to think that our daughter has moved up due to her capacity for learning/maturity/advanced manners, but something tells me it was a logistical choice made by the daycare-you make the call ;)

As I was writing this blog, Melanie called me in a mournful tone. Apparently Corinne cried this morning being dropped off at daycare. I'm sure it won't be the last time-Better you than me, Mel.

Thanks Aunt Angie for the books they are soooooo cute!

Best Friends-Chloe is so patient when Corinne wants to put goggles on her

Four of these bad boys grew in our landscaping this year, no doubt from our compost!

Corinne's favorite pasttime-reading, thanks Pappy

Playmates

2008-08-01T09:53:00.000-07:00

My time at home with Corinne this summer is about to come to an end. Honestly, it has been a challenge and an adjustment for me to keep her entertained and socialized as well as occupied while I attempted to get stuff done at home. Going back to daycare will be bittersweet. She is really asserting herself as the 'two's' begin to settle in. Roman and I agree that we're going to have to get tough with her now. We'll have to endure some screaming tantrums. Ah, lovely.

While Corinne seems to have a strong will, she isn't overly obstinate about getting her way. I'm learning the art of letting her think she's getting her way :-)

Corinne's favorite playmates are the dogs. She loves to hug and kiss all over them. They love her mealtimes. I loved watching the two of them playing (and, ahem, sharing) Corinne's snack. Just for a quick translation, Corinne is calling 'Ah-ee, Ah-ee' which is her version of 'Chloe.'

We can no longer enjoy the computer by ourselves now. When she gets really quiet, I get worried. Here's where I found her the other day:

The young navigator

Just chillin'

There is no shortage of books at the house, and she loves to curl up with a book either by herself or with us.

Enjoy the weekend!

Dog Days

2008-07-23T03:35:00.001-07:00

Wow! Is it already the end of July? Where did the time go? After traveling around most of June, we settled in to the slow, humid days of July here in Charleston and have been enjoying as many outdoor water actvities as possible. Corinne loves the beach. She's content to eat sand and build castles as well as charge forward into the waves. Splash Zone is another outdoor favorite. I have to say that this one is Mama's favorite! I love taking her down the slides and for a relaxing ride on the lazy river.

Corinne's language skills grow daily. As they say of small children, their little brains are sponges soaking up much more than you might think. She's even beginning an interest in 'potty' talk. She now knows what her diaper is and what goes in it! :-) During the day, she'll approach me tugging at her diaper telling me what's in it. Of course, I rushed out to purchase some training potties hoping to expedite the process. (Sigh) But, no. She wants to carry it around the house and won't sit on it. It'll be slow going, I'm sure, since she is so young. But she didn't learn to walk in a week, either!

We seem to get lucky with our neighbors getting rid of toddler items. This time, a Fisher Price Outdoor Castle playground was left by the road for trash day. Yep. Roman and I could be seen at 10:00pm walking up and down our street carrying huge plastic walls into our yard. It's perfect! Corinne is all about the slide. See for yourself:

Lastly, Roman and I have been discussing the need for a new car for months now and yesterday we finally did it! We are the proud owners of a new Subaru Outback. Yes, we are now a Two-baru family.

Hope everyone is doing well.

Delightful Tess

2008-06-30T12:47:00.000-07:00

As usual, we all had a grand time watching young children rip and roar through various activities while on a visit to Derek and Amy's home in Raleigh. This particular trip had Mom and Dad visiting at the same time. Tess was a highlight of the weekend as we all delighted in watching her squeal and grin at the chaos occurring around her. She just lights up at our antics easily making us act as foolish as possible to earn one. She is finding her voice amidst 3 older siblings/cousins, four family dogs, and the adults. The weekend culminated with her dedication at the church. The rarity of having all of the Rutledge families together made it even more special.

Pappy: (sigh)

Tess: Mmmmmm watermelon. Just a liiiittle closer there, gj.

Uh, hmm. GUS has my watermelon, gj!

Weekend highlights included:

*wrestling with Pappy and Uncle D

*eating watermelon and ice cream

*riding, no sitting in the red wagon

*wheeling around in new big wheels

*addition of new and exciting headgear for Gus (there's not a pic of him all weekend without the helmet!)

*watching Uncle D-man swat hundreds of flies

Goodbye, Fireman's Hat!

Gus-man to the rescue!

Serious discussion

Things that help keep the adults sane:

*refrigerator full of good beer

*Derek's homemade strawberry daquiris

*Roman's Sweet tea vodka

Flies, Beware!

Love you all!

Pigtails

2008-06-30T12:34:00.000-07:00

What child doesn't look adorable in pigtails? We've had quite a time keeping any hair accessories on Corinne, yet she seemed to tolerate the pigtails the first day we tried them. Roman and I chuckled as they flapped up and down with her busy running around.

We just returned from a weekender in Raleigh with Derek's family. Mom and Dad joined as well. I'll post those very soon.

Ah, dirt!

2008-06-18T18:39:00.000-07:00

The first day back from vacation is always foggy. I'm trying to get too much done, trying to rest and acclimating to the home again. Corinne wanted to play outside early, and I was more than happy to have her entertain herself for a little bit. As I cleaned the kitchen I watched her playing in the dirt outside. Ah, dirt. Thank you for babysitting my daughter. She is having a blast digging into you and oh...

...eating you!

How 'bout a kiss?

The Road Warriors

2008-06-18T17:44:00.001-07:00

School ended once again, so Corinne and I kicked off the summer with our annual girls' road trip. First stop was Greeneville to check in with the Bensons. Corinne had her first encounter with the backyard kiddie-pool. Trina is the queen of backyard water areas. After this trip and a birthday 'spray play' party that we attended (prior to the trip) I am set with ideas for keeping cool (and entertained!) for the summer daze.

We also loaded the kids for a trip to Greeneville Zoo. It was funny to watch which areas the kids enjoyed most. Wesley is a regular tour guide. Max just chuckles and moves with the crowd. Corinne enjoyed pushing the stroller and climbing in and out the wagon hundreds of times.

They all came together at the goat pens. After we convined Corinne and Max that these weren't 'those' kinds of cookies, they stopped eating them and fed the goats, too. It was a mere 100 degrees in the shade that day, but no one cared.

Trina, Wesley, and Max.

On the road to Asheville we were able to stop by the Benson's new family denistry office. Hats off to Benson for starting his own practice. The place looks great, and I know things are off to a good start.

Asheville was a quick overnighter to store up for the Kentucky road the following day. Harlan kept everyone on their toes; if we missed, a growl from Corinne told us that we need to find out exactly what he's into.

Harlan is quite the mischievious one. One toss of that curly head and a smirky grin and we
could only shake our heads. He's very liberal with hugs, too!

This was my first Kentucky trip where I was able to get Corinne with many children her age and visit with old high school friends and their children. Most days consisted of a park/swing visit with a water/pool afternoon. Corinne has really taken to the water and fought for the right to swim on her own at the pool. I thought I might deter her a little by immersing her in the water, but no. She was energized.

Corinne and gj dig into the bubbles.

Once again Corinne and Maren were able to play each day of our visit. Jane Layton purchased this blow up pool with a slide and spray.

(Sorry, Corinne, this is one of those 'aw, mom!' photos).

We had to miss Father's Day with Roman, but she called him that morning to wish him love. She was almost able to say 'love you' with the expanding vocabulary she was picking up over the week. She had no problem with 'Pappy' nor 'Sayla'. She even finally acknowledged me as 'mama'. Whew. It was worth the wait. We'll have to get a video of her talking.

As usual, I just love to get away from home for awhile. Get into everyone else's world for awhile. A warm hug for all of my hosts and hostesses this past week. We had a great road trip!

Melanie & Corinne

Memorial Blast

2008-05-30T03:06:00.000-07:00

Memorial weekend proved to be a true family vacation with the arrival of our friends, the Bensons. First order of preparation is the large cooler that must be placed on the back porch. Next in line is the grill, yet this year we had the pleasure of cooking our first country ham. The ham was a Christmas gift and we've been waiting for a crew to be around to help us eat it.

Cheers to Trina for keeping the blender out and the mojitos coming!

I got another true taste of life with more than one child while Wesley and Max were in the house. (Hence the early consumption of mojitos all day). All 3 kids woke up running, er flying, depending upon the attire.

Max-man, Superman

Nana-nana-nana-nana......Wes-man!

Sometimes we just can't keep the kid out of us!

The weekend wouldn't have been complete without a trip to the beach. We got to hang out with our friend, Rob from Charlotte, also. Rob is a Wesley-magnet as seen below.

This is taken before her mouth was covered with sand. Did you all know that sand tastes very good? Hmmmm.

Max takes it all in.

This is what fishermen catch after they have kids. Nice Roman, but that's not going to feed the family.

Thanks for such a great weekend, Bensons! Hope everyone had a nice long break from the grind! I'm now doing the countdown for summer vacation! Have a good week!

Melanie

Backyard Birthday

2008-05-18T17:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we had some friends over to celebrate my birthday. It was so good to see friends and actually goof around on the weekend instead of rushing around playing catchup so I'm organized for the next week.

(Above) Charlie and Heather with young Melanie prepare for a rousing game of Corn Hole. Anyone familiar with this game? It's basically horsehoes of the lowcountry. It's great for parties because you can throw bean bags with one arm while babysitting your drink in the other.

Corinne tried to devise her own version of the game, though. I do appreciate everyone's patience as she scampered from hole to hole stealing bean bags. Does she look like she's on a mission here or what?

Shawn and Roman watch as Corinne prepares to destroy another game.

She still doesn't understand that the object is to leave the bags IN the hole.

Corinne got to see some of her usual buddies as well as meet new ones. Thanks to everyone for coming and celebrating with us! Julie, Leigh Ann, Callie (on the scooter), Jennifer and her husband, Mike, and little Charlie make themselves at home in the yard.

Julie and Callie catching up on Callie's busy day.

The gathering also celebrated Baluha's birthday (the day before mine)...Dave is seated at the table. He brought his infamous garlic mashed potatoes. Dave is also Chloe's boyfriend. He is always gracious enough to watch the furries when we head out on a road trip.

Charlotte walked over with her sister, Melanie, and mom, Anna. They live right around the corner. I just loved watching her figure out that ball!
Corinne enjoyed wearing--I mean, eating--some of Julie's chocolate cupcakes. Julie later confessed to allowing Corinne to lick the icing from the spatula. (Notice her hands as well as her face!) This was definitely the highlight of her evening.

Ed smoked some BBQ for the occasion. It was juicy and delicious! Ed is becoming quite the master smoker! Verbatim here: Great. Take her picture now so I look like a super Dad. :-) Sorry, Ed, I couldn't resist.

Roman and I pushed the parental curfew to hours we hadn't seen since Corinne was an infant. It felt great, though to be around so many friends. Naturally, Corinne didn't get the message that everyone was sleeping in Sunday morning. Oh, well.

Have a great work week!

May Flowers

2008-05-06T03:16:00.000-07:00

Gosh, where to start? We've had an active couple of weeks. Gj and Pappy came down for a few days on their way from taking care of the boys in Raleigh. While they were here, we learned some very sad news concerning Roman's uncle Bob. Bob's daughter and husband were killed in a motorcycle accident over the weeekend. They lived in Goose Creek. Our hearts go out to all of you all in your loss. While we hated the occasion, we enjoyed having dinner with Sally, Bob, Sally's daughter, Jessica, her husband, Randall, and daughter, MiRayah. We haven't seem many of them since the wedding. MiRayah is another Guatemalan cousin and kept Corinne very entertained. Sorry about the lack of pics, I need to get with Aunt Sally for those.

Roman did finish the bathroom, for the most part. There are a few cosmetic things that still need to happen, but we've run out of steam. Not to mention shopping time. We're still in need of a dratted vanity light! We can't find one to fit yet. Who said shopping was fun?! I must say, though, that once again, Roman has done a beautiful job of rennovating.

Corinne has been very busy in her little world. She loves shoes. (Girl after Aunt Angie's heart!) Any shoes that are left lying around (and there are plenty of those) she tries to put them on. She loves her little Crocs. In fact, I can't get her to walk around barefoot. If I take her Crocs off she squeals in protest stomping to slide them on herself. She almost has the hang of it.

Over the weekend we headed to Raleigh to celebrate Dave & Allison Jenkins' wedding. Many out of town friends attended, and it was wonderful catching up with old faces. The ceremony and reception were held at an old home that used to be an orphanage. The grounds were just gorgeous.

Speaking of May flowers, every year I have to snap a shot of our front landscaping. The amaryllis make such a statement as spring turns to early summer here. This year the roses decided to challenge the amaryllis and what a War of the Roses it was!

Our visit to Raleigh was also our grand opportunity to meet little Miss Tess. Ah! What a precious little girl. You would hardly know that there is an infant in the house. She looks like a little Owen and sits and watches the boys play. Corinne was excited by her also, and wanted to make sure that she learned the magic of the hanging toys.

Amy's parents, Billy and Elaine, were brave (and kind) enough to babysit 4 children age 3 and under for the afternoon so that we could all go to the wedding. Luckily the weather cooperated and the kids were able to run off steam on the playset.

Owen and Corinne get gritty!

Gus, the "workin'-man", Rutledge scoping for baby jaguars.

The making of a good lawn mower was a hot topic.

Now that we're home, Corinne has been imitating just about everything that Gus did this weekend. Specifically, Zerberts now delight her to no end. She even tried to pull my shirt up in front of a potential babysitter tonight to deliver one!

I always love going on a road trip. Thanks to everyone for a great time! Have a good week!

April Showers...

2008-04-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to give a peek in Corinne's world...

I call this video Corinne Vs. Sprinkler. The first part of this video is the must-see.

Hullabaloo

2008-04-21T03:20:00.001-07:00

Seems when we go to the homes of others Corinne ALWAYS picks out something fun to play with. Upon making an appearance at Ceily's 1st birthday party this weekend, Corinne fell in love with a new boy, ahem- I mean toy. A plastic rocking horse for outdoor use. Of course, on our way home we stopped by the local kids consignment shop and found a rocker nearly like the one at Ciely's.

I just love this picture.
Corinne has been incredibly "Clingy" with MAMA lately, although it can be taxing, DADA wishes he could get some of that too!

Corinne loves to put on other peoples shoes. Here she is acting like Dorf (remember the Tim Conway character?)

Obviously cupcakes were a hit at the birthday party!

Birthday Girl Ciely with mama Michelle, a beautiful day for a birthday

In other news...

Cousin Rooster has started up a website dedicated to passing along firsthand information of travel locations worldwide. http://www.baraaza.com/ is a self proclaimed "meeting place for travelers" No not the shifty Irish types who swindle the elderly looking to reshingle their homes, but the kind who want to share information of previoous ventures, holes in the walls, and out of the way must see spots. If you have information you'd like to share it'd be a great help to write a review.

Gracias and see ya next type.

Welcome Back!

2008-04-16T16:35:00.000-07:00

So sorry for the delay in posts all..........
We've been incredibly busy with house projects (namely finishing the bathroom, and some lawn work-eat your heart out Michiganders).

Bathroom update: The Bathroom is about 95 % done (all that is needed is the new light and to put up the crown molding-Photos to come!)

Corinne isn't nearly as stressed out about the lack of a tub

(Corinne isn't sure what to do with herself in the new, larger bathtub)

With the weather patterns changing (lots of rain and warming up HOOOORAYYY) there is much more time spent outside. We've been going to the park and having playdates. We went to the Cajun festival at the county park a couple of weeks ago and Corinne ate an entire smoked turkey leg, no really!

One of Corinne's favorite pasttimes... push the chair.

She has an adirondack just her size.

Look Closely...she's trying to catch a bubble on her finger.

A playdate with a new friend.

Hendrix was introduced to us through friends. He's a sweet little little boy about 2 months older. They have a blast together!!

Playing in Kentucky

2008-03-30T14:09:00.000-07:00

I always look forward to my visists home. Opportunities to relax abound when willing grandparents are around. Corinne is definitely beginning to enter a new 'phase' where she is babbling more and more noticeably trying new sounds for words, increasing her agility by climbing in and out of chairs, preferably rocking ones :-), and imitating our actions. She now brushes her teeth with me in the morning. I've never loved brushing my teeth more! Much of these things occurred over the week we were in Kentucky. She ended up cutting 3 teeth; so being in a new environment, off schedule and cutting teeth, her initial behavior was tolerable considering.

My college friend, Britney, and her son, Ryan, met us in a small town (yes, smaller even than Glasgow!) in Kentucky where the train runs through daily. We ate at a local restaurant then watched our kids ramble about the city playground.

When Ryan wasn't busy doing his Spiderman impersonation, he was waving his light sabor!

Corinne was determined to keep up.

Mom and Dad have a rocking chair in just about every room in the house. Corinne found and sat in every one of them. She was so proud of herself if she could climb into all by herself. She also learned to turn around and sit appropriatey, back to back. Don't think she wanted company. Her splitting grin told how pleased she was to be sitting in the big chair all on her own.

Here she's playing on the chair and stealing Pappy's heart.

Meanwhile, on the homefront...

Roman undertook yet another home improvement project (Go, Roman!). This time: the bathroom. We thought it would be a perfect time to gut and redo the bath while Corinne and I were well out of the way. He's almost finished. I'll photo the finished masterpiece soon. In the meantime, you can all be thinking of how best to rennovate this beauty:

Have a good week.

Happy Easter!

2008-03-24T16:04:00.000-07:00

Like many young children everywhere, Corinne spent the Easter weekend involved in an Easter egg hunt. Many kids of all ages had the devine pleasure of 'hunting' over 1200 Easter eggs over our church grounds. I say 'hunting' of course because the eggs were merely thrown on top of the ground, not hidden, so Sherlocks like Corinne could find their fair share. gj tried to teach her the art of picking up the eggs, but Corinne wasn't too interested. She picked her first one up, took a few steps, then threw it down on the ground when she spotted the swing set in the distance. It was all about the swing from there on out.

We're not sure she was impressed with the Easter bunny, either. No offense to the bunny impersonator, but the face of that bunny resembles a mean Chucky, don't you think? Corinne kept her distance.

Many of the eggs for the smaller children had been filled with raisins and cereal. Jackpot! Corinne still wasn't too keen on finding the eggs, but she enjoyed cracking them open. Raisins are about all she wants to eat this week. Poor girl has another molar and a front tooth ready to break through. Her mood reflects her body's physical changes. Thank goodness for the little boxes of raisins.

Hope everyone had a good weekend.

Meet Maren

2008-03-23T16:20:00.000-07:00

We finally meet! I mentioned earlier that my cousin, Jane Layton, adopted a Guatemalan girl whom she named Maren (pronounced like Karen with an 'M') who is only a month older than Corinne. We've been hearing so much about what a sweet, tentative child she is. This picture says it all. Could you gobble her up or what?!

Upon our first meeting she didn't venture too far from her mama, but the little sparkle in her eyes said that it wouldn't be long before she broke loose to play with us.

Jane Layton and Maren Benedict

I recently read about the socialization of 14-15 mo old children mainly because Corinne just completed her first week at daycare in the toddler room. (We've been promoted, folks!) Evidently, children of this age will play alongside each other but are not necessarily interested in playing with each other. I'm glad I read up a little because we've been dying to get the cousins together and now our expectations wouldn't be too high.

They definitely cased each other out in the infamous Rutledge Playroom, home of every toy made from 1971-1975 (lead free and still working!).

BFF!

By the time they left, Maren actually ran over to me, arms open wide. I was pure pudding inside. She granted me a hug which was more than I'd hoped for in our first meeting. Maren grows more secure each day and delights us all with her dancing and ear to ear grins. We plan to see quite a bit of Miss Maren during our Easter visit.

Our Great Friends to the North

2008-03-17T04:18:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Jane Anne, Mike, and their son Harlan Dempsey made the trek to Chucktown for some catchin' up.

Corinne: "Harlan, I think your moving a bit fast"

Harlan says, "Uh, girls don't play ball!"
Harlan pulls Corinne from the edge of the deck

Knight in shining armor!

Corinne's new favorite toy-yep, believe it or not a portable high chair!

She would get in, then get out, then back in and grab the tray. This went on for hours-seriously!

Harlan helps Corinne find her nose

Close encounters of the cutest kind. Obviously both are having a blast!

A Funny Story...

This morning, March 17th (St. Patty's Day) I woke Corinne up to get her ready for school and chose some clothes. The clothes were given to her in early February by her Mimi. In fact, I thought that they would be a good weight for the weather (a bit chilly) and she's only worn them once-how perfect! I bring Corinne out, and to Melanie's surprise I had dressed her in her Valentine's outfit. All red hearts, on St. Patty's day- As H. J. Simpson would say D'OH!

Blast from the Past

2008-03-12T17:39:00.000-07:00

Once again we cannot seem to escape the illness floating around. Corinne left daycare on Friday with a fever which prohibited us from visiting the newest addition to the family, cousin Tess. Derek and Amy are the proud parents of a darling little girl, born Feb. 7 (sorry I'm a little late on the announcement, but Derek has some great updates on The Rutledge Farm). Congratulations, Rutledges! We were sooo looking forward to hanging out with all of the little ones, but it seems their household wasn't any healthier. Maybe next time.

The Rutledge Clan

Amy, Derek, Tess, Owen, and Gus (and the baby jaguars)

The Newest Star of the Show

Tessa Lane Rutledge

Hang in there, baby T...hope you are over the congestion soon.

I got a phone call Tuesday evening from someone claiming to be a 'blast from my past',a fellow Glasgow graduate. So, I'm thinking, 'who in the world?!' It was Scott Welborn in from LA! How cool that he called and wanted to get together. He has been in visiting a friend who is from Charleston. We met up tonight at Folly Beach for some fun in the sun and a few cold drinks. Scott is doing great as a set designer. I felt as if it was the 80s again, and I'd just seen him at school yesterday. It was so good to see you, Scott. You look fabulous. Congratulations on your successes!

We're singing the alma mater. Haha, yeah right!

Corinne gets into the fun.

Check out my new molars! If you look closely, maybe you can see my tonsils, too.

I'm getting tired of waiting for that cheese quesadilla!

Corinne loves to ride her scooter. Occasionally she rides it the correct way, but this way she gets to sit on all of the buttons sothey all go off at once. Uh, kleenex, anyone?

Next week Corinne starts full time in the toddler room. She's been spending a lot of time over there getting acquainted these last few weeks. She'll start on a new routine, specifically one nap a day. I'm anxious to see if they'll be able to have our Corinne lay on a mat (not confined) and actually sleep for 2 hours. How could you not trust this face? Hmph.

I'm off to my librarian conference tomorrow. It will be the first time I've ever spent the night away from Corinne. Am I sad about this? Um, can you say jacuzzi? Bottle of wine? Ok, maybe not a jacuzzi, but I'll pretend. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Uh-Duh!

2008-02-20T15:51:00.000-08:00

Uh-duh, Uh-duh! This is the universal language of Corinne. We're supposed to figure out exactly what uh-duh is after she points (usually up at something); however, she uses it for everything! We play the name game all of the time now, trying to get her to say different sounds. I, for one, would love to hear an 'mmmm' for 'mama', but 'duhduhduhduh' prevails. (sigh)

Corinne loves to play uh-duh (pointing out the front door), that means 'outside.' Once she's out, a rousing game of chase begins!

We are realizing that she really does understand instructions and questions, though. Recently, her gj knitted her a new hat to match her vest. When I told her it was time for school and showed her her hat, she tried to put it on her head and made a beeline for the front door! She loves to take her hat on and off. We're really trying to enforce 'no', but we're only met with laughter. Gone is the busy-ease of an infant, hello toddler. Now we really have to start 'parenting.'

"NO?! You want me to leave my hat ON? Okay."

Hat on.

As always, she's a joy to behold when she discovers new things. Right now the flowers in the yard are a fascination.

"THIS one is my favorite."

Roman was unfortunate enough to catch whatever bug has been going around lately. He's been out of commission for a good week. Happily, he's on the mend now, but it seems everyone we talk to is sick. Corinne keeps the usual runny nose and cough which hasn't kept her down, but the addition of her bottom molars leaves little room for a hearty appetite.

Here's wishing you a healthy hello!

Million Dollar Baby

2008-02-03T13:47:00.000-08:00

Nothing overly exciting down our way. We just seem to cruise along work week to work week right now. And, of course, cruise right behind Corinne as she tootles around. I actually had to leave Wal-Mart the other day because she was quite upset that I wouldn't let her eat the new sleeve of barrettes we had yet to purchase. So upset that to let her blow off steam, I was going to allow her to walk around in the card asile while I tried to choose a birthday card for a friend's one year old. Bad idea. Giggling and squealing, she proceeded to pull the card markers out of the slots on the bottom rows. I was putting them back as fast as she was pulling! By then she refused to sit in the cart or be held, running away from me all over the store. So I (shame-faced) left my cart with all of my inteded purchases in the Valentine candy asile and marched her out of the store.

Corinne definitely knows what she wants. Lately when she's ready for a snack or dinner, she walks over to her high-chair and pulls it out into the middle of the floor where she grabs the tray and starts squealing.

This has been the weekend for bumps and bruises for her. While at a birthday party Saturday, Roman's thumbnail connected with Corinne's forehead in a fast action slide maneuver. She was asking for more of the slide, so she wasn't deterred long. Blood was just dripping down her forehead. No big deal.

That evening she toppled down the one step we have in the whole house. I think it was the puzzle piece she was holding that was the culprit, or the fact that she doesn't look where she's going when walking (wonder where she gets that?!) but she was sporting a busted lip all weekend. It did give us a scare, though. Then today as she was rearranging the mountain of baby wipes in the cabinet she slipped and bit her tongue. Luckily there was only a little bloodshed this time, but boy! have we had a weekend. Sadly, these were all supervised events. I'd hate to think of the damage she could do unobserved!

Million Dollar Baby

Today was a beautiful 70 which brought many Charlestonians out into their yards and on the beaches. Definitley a teaser for the coming spring. Don't think I'm quite ready for the intense heat yet, but 70 in Charleston is a welcome day anytime.

Have a good work week!

Tea Party

2008-01-18T16:29:00.000-08:00

She was a one-eyed, one-horse, flying...

How about the birthday outfit? Purple boots (compliments of gj). Purple velour super-star shirt. Belly paunch straining the middle. Rock-star, rhinestone kitty. Tongue hanging out, new Corinne move. Don't you love the tongue? This is a new thing. We think she just realized that she has a tongue and can make it go everywhere.

We've been having such a good time with Corinne as she comes more and more into herself. In leiu of a party we just relaxed with a few of Corinne's 'play dates', Ceily, Maxine, and Stella. The young girls socialized while the older girls slurped coffee drinks and devoured Anna's dark chocolate fondue. Whose party was it?!

The girls discuss the upcoming primaries while expressing their distrust of the toy industry. Ceily's voting for the candidate who will improve toy quality and monitor Chinese exports. Maxine is more concerned with wireless connections as her conversation on the Dora cell met with yet another dropped call. (Sigh).

Hey, Bridget, I'd like another muffin, please!

Michelle and Ceily light up the room.

What a great afternoon! The following Tuesday we headed to the doctor's office for the official one-year checkup. Corinne is in the 97% for her height/age and 75% for weight. Must be the bean and cheese quesadillas she's been inhaling during mealtimes.

We'd also like to welcome the newest addition to the extended family, Maren Benedict. My cousin, Jane Layton, just adopted a Guatemalan girl who is merely a month older than Corinne. I'm waiting for gj to send photos. Send photos, gj! :-) Jane Layton has been waiting patiently for months to finalize the adoption and her waiting finally paid off this past Wednesday when she and Maren met. Congratulations, JL, we can't wait to meet your little one! We love her already.

She's ONE!!!

2008-01-10T17:08:00.000-08:00

Yep, One Year...One long beautiful year

The Birthday Cupcake

Some for me!

Some for Daddy...

And some for Mama...

Corinne has access to one cupboard in the house...

Can you guess what we keep in there?

She is very big about taking things out and putting things into containers. Many of her toys require placing blocks and shapes into appropriate spots. When she's not banging the crap out of them on the ground, smacking them together, or stomping on them, she gets them in the right spot.

Walking is definitely the transportation of choice now. Belly straight out and bum ready to squat, she toddles all over the house, very pleased with herself. We decided no better time than to train her early in womanly duties. hahahaha

She's a natural, isn't she? Look out Molly Maids! Actually, folks, we have the cutest video of Corinne on her birthday morning walking into the living room to find her new birthday gift: the scooter. We got a little carried away, and the video is too long to upload and post to the blog. Oops. That's why you are being entertained by the Molly Maid clip.

Corinne first met a scooter while playing with her cousings in Raleigh. It wasn't too difficult to decide what to do for her on her birthday! She couldn't wait to get the keys and be on her way! Anybody up for a Sunday drive this weekend?

Finally, this was the scene crossing the bridge from downtown onto James Island the other day. The storm front in the background had moved through earlier and offered this image. Looks like mountains in the distance. Hey look, Ranier's out!!!!

Thanks everyone for the wonderful gifts. You all have kept Corinne well equipped and continue to do so. We appreciate everything!!!

Happy Holidaze

2007-12-29T17:22:00.000-08:00

Well, Its been a while since I've (Roman) checked in on the Corral. So what better a time than to submit photos from Christmas. The photos are in no particular order but are cute nonetheless. Instead of bringing Crumpton Christmas to Raleigh (where we would ultimately spend Christmas) we celebrated it on Dec 23 in Charleston; Just Mel, Corinne and I. We (Mel, Corinne, Chloe, Terra, and I) went to Raleigh on Christmas eve and stayed till Friday the 28th. We had a wonderful time. We left the midgets one afternoon with he grandparents and went to the movies. Made several trips to the grocery (they have Bell's beer in Raleigh now), and Derek had buddies over for a night of "Roman gives his money to strangers", or as most people call it-POKER.

WHAT A BLAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks, Derek and Amy for the Hospitality, Gus and Owen for being such good cousins, Pappy and gj for the presence (presents), and everyone involved for such a wonderful time. Enjoy the pics.

Hows appropriate! Pappy (the CPA) giving a little financial lesson to Corinne.

Save, Save, Save!

Uncle Dude with the boyzz (Gus and Owen)

Christmas Morning

Corinne dressed up in her Christmas outfit.

Her stockings were so cute especially when she pooted- Her ankles swelled up ;)

Cousins! (notice Gus' attire- Lizard Boots and Firemans Hat)

Oh My God! itsa, itsa, itsa....

gj and Baby Corinne

So Happy Together

Cousins after Church

(no the boys aren't zombies-the red eye remover tool sucks)

Notice the Pug wrapping... Gee wonder who sent that Auntie A

Auntie A's puppets are a big hit. Got yer nose...

Corinnes attempt to "play along" with the whole Christmas thing was futile. I think she liked eating the bows the best.

Warm wishes

2007-12-13T16:48:00.001-08:00

Since our last post, we've been busy getting ready for the holiday season. Corinne attended her first ever Oyster Roast at our friend Berta's. For anyone not familiar with an oyster roast, they are quite possibly our favorite pasttime during the Charleston winters. Prying open steaming hot oysters with blunt oyster knives (without gloves, of course) on a cold night leaves numb hands that need a raging fire to get warm. The hot sauce helps add some heat, too, if you're so inclined. Corinne loved the dogs. Berta has 3 big labs that would happily send a sloppy kiss her way. As you can see, she was eager to join them in their dog run.
We also attended the grand Folly Beach Christmas parade on Saturday along with a holiday parade party from friends from work, Tara and Brad with little Elliott. Many of the children at Tara's were infants. Corinne had a blast with new toys, new people, new stimuli. Corinne decided she wanted to join the parade.

The parade started at nap time, so she didn't last very long. Can you see the obvious whine starting here?

Corinne wasn't much help trying to put up the tree this year. She kept trying to eat it. It couldn't taste that good. I did some figuring and realized that I have had this artificial tree since I lived on my own in Glasgow in 1995! Hard to believe the fake fronds are still hanging on. But, hey, it works!

Roman is ending his last week away for work. Lucky for us gj came down for another bonding week with Corinne. Poor gj. It seems every time she visits the grandkids somebody is sick! Corinne has been battling a fever and vomiting all week. This is the first time we've had to really deal with her not feeling well to where she wouldn't (and couldn't) eat anything. Her spirits have been fairly low with whimpering (and an occasional whine). Of course, we would swim across the Atlantic and back for her if it would make her smile and feel better. After being vomited on for the third time, Mom and I headed to the Pig for popsicles and Pedialyte. Hopefully we'll see her perk up soon.

We're also hoping for some cool, wintery weather. I drove down Folly Road Tuesday listening to 'Frosty the Snowman' on the (cheezy) Christmas radio station with my AC cranked. I kid you not. It was 80 degrees outside. Ahhhhh!

Hope everyone is getting into the holiday spirit in your area. Until the next post..... Happy Holidays!

Many Thanks

2007-11-23T16:48:00.000-08:00

Ahhh...the relaxing of Thanksgiving, eating large, melting into the couch like so much syrup. We've had a wonderful break just enjoying the daily routine without the hustle of the work week. Corinne babbles more and more these days, the majority of which is 'dadadadadadadada." I'm desperately trying to get that mmmmm sound in there :-) She's really imitating sounds, too. One of her favorites is the "Ah-oh" sound. She'll sing song this over and over to herself. This is one of the more popular spots which usually warrants one of those "Ah-oh's" from mama.

Roman aided the fellow fishermen of Edenton, NC last week as they stocked striped bass 'stripers' to their local waterways. He compared the small town to Beaufort, very quaint and historic. Meanwhile, Pappy and gj were enjoying hanging out in Charleston with the girls. Thanks again to Mom and Dad for helping us out.

Roman only works with 4 other people at the Hatchery, so everyone pulls a holiday shift at some point. He opted to work for Thanksgiving so he can relax with Corinne for her first Christmas and New Year's. We headed to Mt Pleasant to join Joel and Suzi's crew. There's never a shortage of fried turkey, Mandy's butternut squash, Nougettina (sp?) dessert, beer, wine, and extra kids to play with Corinne.

Ka-BOOM!

Jodi and Katie are being prepped for babysitting.

Christopher is thinking PROM in a few years :-)

We are so thankful to have so many good friends. Hope everyone enjoyed time with their friends and family as well. Gobble, gobble!

Walkin???

2007-11-18T18:37:00.000-08:00

You see for yourself-
These vids were taken on the night before her 10 month b-day (11-9-07) Sorry for the delay in posting.

On one of the attempts, Corinne fell and hit her tooth/lip to my knee while recording the video and she's been a bit "gunshy" of walking ever since. At this point crawling is not only more efficient, but safer too!

Boogie Fever

2007-11-12T16:27:00.000-08:00

The change in the weather seems to have nabbed us all lately. While we have been lucky enough (so far) not to develop pneumonia, the seasonal stuffy head, cough, and chest congestion has run its course through Corinne and me. How does Roman manage escape all of these maladies?!

We picked Corinne up from daycare several days last week for fever and wondered if it was the two more teeth she's cutting not just illness. (This makes #6 and #7).

We headed to a baby shower this past Saturday that was held at a clubhouse overlooking the Folly River. It was a beautiful night. Many of the couples had young children around Corinne's age. I got my first taste of chasing a fast moving baby all night long. Whew. I swear, she could not and would not be stopped. And she did NOT want to be held. We danced to Mystic Vibrations, a reggae band, and Corinne got her first taste of a live performance.

It was great to see old friends, too. Amy and Chris were up from Jacksonville. They lived in our house before we moved in. Glad to hear they are happy and prosperous!

Roman is off to Edenton, NC to play with more fish. Pappy and gj will arrive to save the day again.

Happy Halloween!

2007-11-01T03:02:00.000-07:00

What happened to all the trick-or-treaters? Each year we get a littering of treaters at our door, but this year was even worse. We had 4 boys all at least 13 years or older. Corinne gave them some candy and that was the extent of our Halloween. She did dress in costume for daycare though. I think she knew she was wearing a tutu.

Thanks to Mimi for the costume!

The next star of Swan Lake seen here in her studio.

Daddy didn't look quite as cute.

Hope everyone had a fun night!

gj visits

2007-10-28T17:08:00.000-07:00

Last week Roman worked in Kentucky leaving me to face life as a single mom for a week. I wasn't too keen on the idea, and lucky for me, gj wanted to visit and help out. Mom stepped out of her comfort zone and drove the distance with Sayla riding shotgun. Way to go, Jane! She quickly found out how fast Corinne can make it to the dogs' water bowl, to the toliet paper under the bathroom sink, and to your pant legs begging to be picked up.

Mom got to witness the arrival of Corinne's 5th tooth and help her master the art of sipping from a sippy cup. Corinne loved the apple juice and began smacking her lips together in delight. She now smacks her lips in anticipation of her next meal or snack. Now we're introducing the toothbrush. She loves how it feels on her gums. I always check to see if there is a gnoothbrush on her toothbrush. Any Suess fans out there?

We had a grand week dining out several nights and shopping for fall clothes. I don't know how I could have managed without the extra hands. Thanks so much, gj, for all of your hard work. Hopefully, we didn't wear her out too badly. She needs her strength as she heads north...On the road again...to the other grandchildren!

Firsts of the Season

2007-10-28T17:03:00.001-07:00

It's that year again. The year of the pecans. Every other year our pecan trees provide us with bushels and bushels of yummy pecans. It usually takes us all winter to pick up the backyard. The neighbor kids down the street that used to help us out moved last year. Corinne, can you say "child labor?" Ha. Chloe and Terra join in the fun and choose to eat the pecans that we've already picked up and placed in the wheel barrow. They could at least help us out with the ones on the ground! Chloe particularly dines on pecans as long as you'll let her stay outside.

Now that the weather has finally turned cooler, we can break out the sweaters and afghans. Mimi just sent a fun package with a beautiful new crocheted sweater & hat set. She needed it today as our high reached a mere 62. Perfect timing and perfect stitching, Mimi! They both fit just right.

Corinne would like to introduce you to her first pumpkin. Mom and Dad carved away this weekend making sure that the teeth in the pumpkin reflected Corinne's mouth. She's now cutting her fifth tooth.
Next up...Halloween pics. Trick or treat, folks!

Finished Floors

2007-10-28T16:56:00.000-07:00

Roman finished the final trimwork on the fl0ors last week. Whew! Are we glad to be done with this project. He did such a great job. We spend most of our time on the floor now with Corinne and it's so nice to scoot around on a clean, new floor. Here are a few samples of his handiwork:

What's Your Vector, Victor?

2007-10-18T17:40:00.000-07:00

Corinne is progressing at unbelievable rates!!! She is free standing, and happy about it. This video shows some of her new tricks

Cute, huh?

Corinne has also earned a new nickname; Vector. That is she carries everything contagious back home from daycare. There's been multiple cases of the common cold, thrush, etc... Most recently when dropping her off in the morning the teachers warned Melanie of a new pathogen infecting not only kids but the 'rents too. Interestingly, in a matter of 24 hours Mel had caught the bug: vomiting, nausea, tired, etc. At the same time Dad caught another version of the common cold (we'll call it 4.0). While Mel's illness only lasted 24 hours, Dad is still battling his and Corinne managed to defeat all! Go figure!?!?

This photo was taken the night Dad began feeling sick-wonder why?

Corinne, happy and feelin' good

Energizer Bunny

2007-10-14T16:57:00.000-07:00

Eventually that bunny has to sleep! Corinne enjoys daycare so much that she is exhausted when we arrive home each day. I watch for the window of opportunity to feed her or we end up with a high chair zombie like this.

Corinne enjoys feeding herself contrary to this picture. We're using sign language to encourage her to ask for more food. It could be she's learned a little because she claps (indicative for our 'more' sign) when she's ready for more. Of course, she's also slamming both palms onto the high chair tray which usually ends up slapping the spoon full of food out of our hands all over everywhere. Chloe stands post the minute we move her chair over to begin. At least I don't have to sweep the floor each meal. :-)

Corinne just received a good report card from her 9 month check-up. We are really trying to keep exposing her to new situations. She's had some fun playdates with new friends lately. Chrissy and her little Isabella stopped in one afternoon.

We also head to various state and county parks to walk and play with Michelle and young Cieley. This afternoon at Charles Towne Landing was one of the first cool ones this fall.

Roman and I are so over the heat down here. A few cool days this weekend teased us. The mosquitos aren't dead yet, so it's not cold enough for me. Roman has officially finished the floors and the trimwork. We'll get some photos of his handywork up soon.

Make it a great week! Melanie

Goin' Mobile

2007-10-02T15:01:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay in posts-but do we have a treat for you, faithful followers of Corinne's cult.

So, as you can see Corinne is becoming quite agile. She's quick like lightning and can manage the small step down in the house just fine. She is a complete JOY!!!!!
Oh yeah-She's cut her third tooth (top).
Hope everyone has enjoyed!

Busy Bee

2007-09-13T17:35:00.000-07:00

Corinne is very mobile now, crawling towards everything. Once she arrives at her destination, she immediately pulls up to standing position. The dogs are wonderful with her and surprisingly tolerant. While Terra doesn't encourage Corinne to seek her out, she allows Corinne to pull her ears and succombs to a body hug now and then. Chloe on the other hand, loves all of the attention from Corinne. They are quickly becoming partners in crime.

Who me?!

Wait up, Chloe! I'm coming!

Still a great eater, Corinne now wants to take charge of mealtimes by feeding herself. Just when I thought we had the mealtime feedings down pat, now we'll need to change gears and plan for foods that she can pick up and eat.

More stars, please. In the blue corner, weighing in at 19 lbs 9 oz...

Kentucky Family

2007-09-04T16:47:00.000-07:00

Last week we received somber news of the death of my uncle, Carroll Benedict. Carroll fought a short yet intense battle with lung cancer. As a family we mourned, yet as funerals do, his death brought many of us together for the first time in many years. Carroll will be remembered fondly.

Cousins, cousins, and more cousins.

A picnic in the kitchen.

Gus and Gabby crack themselves up. Must've been an inside joke.

For years Carroll gifted Derek with Chevron trucks, tankers, and semis every Christmas. They are still a favorite today as Owen, Gus, and Corinne scramble to make the next vroooommmm...

The ultimate playroom. Complete with no recalled toys dated 1971-1981.

Our hearts are with the Benedicts during this difficult time. Hopefully, the addition of little Marin, the Guatemalan baby girl that Jane Layton is adopting will help fill the void they all feel right now. Whenever God closes a door, somewhere he opens a window. We love you all and keep you in our thoughts.

The Loser Chronicles

2007-08-28T03:30:00.000-07:00

There have been some interesting developments this week in local and national news. These developments have highlighted the many flaws of the human race including stupidity, hypocrisy, and drunk beligerence. So we thought we'd enlighten you all on some things that you may, or may not be aware of that fit our "Loser" category.

Number 1

Miss Teen South Carolina

Oh I think I understand what she was trying to say....

"The Capital of France is Jupiter"

"7+7 is 24"

"100 degrees C is the boiling point of California"

Yes... IT IS ALL CLEAR

Number 2

Senator Larry Craig (R-Idaho)

Can you believe that this guy didn't know the code to soliciting gay men in an airport bathroom? Unfortunately, I'm afraid he may "get off" these charges due to an impatient arresting officer. The case would have been "open and shut" if the officer would've just waited for three farts, a tinkle and a shake.

Finally, Number 3

On Sunday Night (11:30pm) we awoke to the dogs barking loudly, very loudly. After three trips into the living room to scold the dogs for possibly waking up Corinne, Mel comes running back to let me know that there is a potential fight between neighbors outside, and I was called to mediate. We went outside and the neighbors were not fighting at all, in fact they were in cohoots busting two young men for driving over mailboxes on the street (approximnately 17 total). Interestingly, several months ago our neighbor purchased the largest, gaudiest, most ridiculous faux stone monument and put it in our yard, next to our box. Well, this poor excuse for a freight elevator is responsible for stopping a 2 ton, chevy avalanche V6, and actually suspending the front tire off the ground causing the perps to flee on foot. Actually stumble-they were trashed and carrying their beers. They didn't make it a block and our neighbor tackled and subdued him with some body blows. The cops showed up soon after and arrested both perps. At 2:00 am, the doorbell rang, it was the officer. He filled out a police report and continued down the line. He informed us that we were #14.

Here are some photos of the damage...

The box that stopped the truck is in the background

Ours (foreground) didn't stand a chance

I put the link below for a laugh-apparently the local legislature has REALLY put in this habitat protection law in King County, Washington. They did this for an endangered species, Bipedus Giganticus--Go Figure

http://www.bigfootencounters.com/articles/kingcounty.htm

Corinne's crawling!

2007-08-17T02:59:00.000-07:00

Sheeeee's mobile! Corinne is now crawling and showing her adventurous spirit. No longer is she afraid of doorways, steps, dogs. As I'm sure most babies do, Corinne ignores all of her bright, cute, SAFE toys lying around on the floor, opting instead for the dog bowls, Dad's floor tools, and other no-nos. Day-care has begun to take its toll on our immune systems also. Roman refers to Corinne as our little vector for disease since she's already brought home a nasty unknown virus, and an equallly nasty case of conjunctivitis (pink eye-actually pink eyes in her case).

This video shows Corinne playing and crawling. Thought you would enjoy seeing her on the move.

Asheville

2007-08-13T04:23:00.000-07:00

We were hoping for some cool mountain weather in Asheville, but the heat seemed to follow the little black car everywhere we went. Betsy and Wells Harned from Glasgow joined in the fun for the weekend. Wells is so imaginative and entertained the younger two by reading (her version) of any storybook she could find. She'll be a librarian's dream someday :-)

Mr. H-Man takes us on a tour of his yard. He looks quite the tour-guide, doesn't he?! We were all envious that we couldn't romp around in the heat with just our undies!

Corinne would've been just fine if we'd left her in Asheville in this swing forever.
...and they were dancin' and singin' and movin' to the groovin'

and just then it hit me, somebody turned around and shouted....

A big 'THANK YOU' to Anna for joining us on our trip. I needed the extra hands on several occasions. Anna always wore a smile even when the volume got loud and crazy with so many little ones all week. Corinne gives her an extra little squeeze.

On the road again

2007-08-11T12:09:00.000-07:00

Afer a brief stay in Charleston to do a few loads of laundry and stock the house with groceries for Roman, Corinne and I headed back out on the road with our good friend Anna to Greenville, SC to visit the Bensons. Brian's and Trina's newest addition, Maddox, turned out to be a cuddly bear! In addition to chasing a 2 year-old toddler, nursing an infant, and helping Brian decide on colors and specs for his new dentist office/practice, Trina showed us new areas of downtown Greenville that were just beautiful. The 'river walk' with waterfall, landscaped hillside and children's garden was worth romping around SC in the August heat.

The Bensons

"Ewwww....did you poot?"

Come catch me!

You won't be smiling at me after I pull this pretty earring out :-)

High-five, Max!

We wish the Bensons the best with the winter opening of Brian's practice. It was so good finally meeting Max, too. He already surpasses Corinne is size and is sure to keep brother Wesley in check in a few years. Congratulations you guys!

So far we haven't scared Anna away. She's still maintaining sanity as we travel and visit in 100 degree heat with multiple children. Next we're off to Asheville to visit the Dempseys.

Mo' Michigan

2007-08-09T16:02:00.000-07:00

Still have some photos I'd like to share from Michigan. I had BIG PLANS to create 3 or 4 entries, but that isn't going to work. So here are some pics....

Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!

Captain Aaron at the Helm...

Brudda, Yvonne, and the Kids...All Aboard!!

Left to right-Aunt Sal, Uncle Cork, Aunt Sandy, and Aunt Sharon

Left to right- Brett, Devon, Aaron, Ryan, Yvonne, Belle, and Trevor

A beautiful day for a reunion at the lake...

Brett is an Uncle for the first time-Congrats!

Devon-all grown up!!!!!!

"I caught a fish this big-Really"

Corinne being entertained by Aarons boys Drew and Ryan

Cousin Aaron and Me!!!

Momma and her pride

"Low-Ri-Der Don't Use No Gas NOW!"

"Take a little Trip"