Happy Birthday Sweet Caroline!

I can't believe you are 1. Mommy barely got off her baby weight, and here we are singing Happy Birthday to you!  Time goes by so fast.  I remember when you were born.  Everyone in the delivery room kept saying "wow, she has a lot of hair," at the time I was annoyed by the comments as you were taking a while to make an appearance (mommy was tired).  The hair comments continue to this day (people stop us everywhere we go).  A head full of dark hair has turned into a head full of sandy blonde curls. I always dreamed of having a baby girl, and when we went for your ultrasound to find out your gender, I was hoping for a girl. When they said you were a girl, I was overly excited!  You have colored our world pink and introduced us to tutus, hair bows, baby dolls and fairy tales! You are more precious than I could have ever dreamed. I love your cuddles and your squeals. You are one happy baby! 

We always knew we wanted more than one child, but learning how to divide time we were certainly concerned. You made life so easy. Since the day you were born, you've just been along for the ride. You'll go to just about anyone, rarely fussy, and love to smile and giggle. You are one of the most content babies I've ever been around.  Along with your go with the flow attitude, you are very quick to pick up on things-crawling at 6 months lead to walking at 9 months. You simply grew up too fast! You certainly were not one we held for very long, you've been on the go for most of your infancy. 

Many people say you look like your daddy and other's say you look like my grandmother, Kathleen. Your great grandmother was adored by many. We see her in your grins, curly hair, and facial expressions. This weekend, we learned of a saying that she used to say to her girls (all of which had curly hair).

There was a little girl,

            Who had a little curl,

Right in the middle of her forehead.

            When she was good,

            She was very good indeed,

But when she was bad she was horrid.

Although I don't think you have been horrid, it is certainly a cute little poem that fits you. I know that my Granny would have loved to meet you, and I'm so glad that her memory lives on through you!

Mommy and Daddy couldn't be more proud than to be your parents. We love you to the moon and back. You have made life more joyful, and your sweet presence can make the worst day a bright one! You will be the one that teaches the family all things girly. Be patient with us, you have 6 boys a head of you and one behind you  (so far)!  We know you will have those boys trained soon. You have already shown that you are a tough little cookie but prissy at the same time! You've given CiCi a little girl to smock and sew for and hand down my dresses when I was little. You've given your MiMi someone to shop for! Shopping and making for boys isn't the same as for a girl! You've melted your JRS's heart, and he loves to hold you (the first grand that he's gravitated towards/felt comfortable handling). You adore your big brother! First you would watch him go, and now you are chasing after him. You guys are well on your way to be best buds. Tillman loves you too. He is always concerned about you and enjoys spending time and playing with you. Oh, and we can't forget about Graham. Graham dog loves you too. He is always coming up to you smelling you, and he doesn't mind a bit that you tug and pull on him. You must have melted his heart too.  

Thanks for being you, Caroline Sutherland!  You will forever by my little girl with blue eyes and curls! Wishing you many more happy years.

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

35 Months 8.12.13

Tillman called this "going vroom vroom!"

WHY? Tillman is Mr Why these days!  He wants to know why he has to do thing, and after you tell him why; he then ask why again!  If you ask him why, he just repeats what you say.  Mr Why is well on his way to being a detective!

At Margaret and Dawayne's wedding

Tillman moved up to his next class last week.  He is doing well. This class is getting a new curriculum, so I'm very excited to see him develop.  The last class was all about potty training, and I think he was getting a little bored. It is great to have him come home and talk about his new class. When he leaves in the morning he is excited.  He is coming home with lots a papers and crafts. It makes us very happy that he is being challenged. Just in the short week he was in this class, we could tell a difference in the amount he is talking and using sentences. His counting is also improving. I think he knows all the way to 20, except he always skips 14 and 15.  It is cute to hear him count.

Polishing off Caroline's Smash Cake

Speaking of him talking, he has a few Tillman words.  He says "That is mys" instead of mine (of course we are working hard to correct, but he looks at us like we don't know what we are talking about!). He also says "What?" very disrespectfully (kind of like "say what??"). We think he got this from someone else, so we are trying to break him of it. It is almost like him knowing a bad word and using it all the time!

Mommy and T eating candy! Check out his blue mouth!

With all of that, he also is doing very well with his manners.  He is very good about saying please, thank you, and yes/no sir/mam. We've also started to encourage him to order his food when we are out for dinner.  We do have to really encourage him to speak up.  This Friday we were at Wendy's.  He wanted chicken nugget. He was saying it really soft and shy to the lady.  We told Tillman to speak up.  In a very loud voice he says "I want chicken...CHICKEN....CHICKEN!" I'm pretty sure the cook heard him too!  It was funny, and we are glad he is learning.

Tillman breaking it down...child loves to dance

He also learning to sing and say the blessing.  He really isn't shy about it either.  He sang Caroline Happy Birthday this weekend in front of a group. He also love Darius Rucker's Wagon Wheel song.  He calls it "Rock me Mamma."  He jumps in when the chorus starts and really sings away.  With the blessing, he often starts saying it with no warning. It is normally when we put his plate down on the table to cool, he will say it.  Sometimes it is by the microwave.  We went to church yesterday, and he was trying to keep up with the service and songs.  He loved the Amens!  He is really doing very well in church. I think we are in a happy spot with church now. Caroline does fine in the nursery and Tillman is relatively quite in church (he is only 3, so he's working on his whisper, and if he wants something, we just give it to him as we know the volume will increase...especially for a snack!).

Getting water for CiCi's drip castles

He's also been working on his Strider Bike skills. While we were at the beach, the house had a small hill.  Tillman is now to the point he can ride down the hill without any feet action, thus fully balanced on the seat. He looked like a dare devil coming down the hill!  The bike is a cool concept. The thought is once he learns to balance on a bike with no petals, then he should be able to go straight to a two wheel bike without training wheels.  We'll see.  He loves riding his bike!

Sharing Lance's Trike!

Family Beach Week 2013 Isle of Palms