Special Song

Claire and I have 'singing time' every night before she goes to bed. We sing lots of Broadway songs, and for some reason whenever I draw a blank on picking a new song, it turns into one from Mary Poppins....great show, but I've never liked it that much. We also sing hymns and lots of childhood favorites like Popcorn Poppin'. Claire is starting to participate with me, and claps along with each song - so precious! That's my little girl - born to be a star :)

Right before I lay her down, I sing our "Special Song" - Goodnight Sweetheart. I don't even know if that's is the real title to the song, and frankly I don't even think I know all the words. It comes from the movie Three Men and a Baby with all the men surrounding the little one and singing in harmony. When I was a kid and when I would get scared or have leg aches, my parents would let me sleep on the floor next to their bed. That's right, they drew the line on sharing their bed, though I don't blame them. And when I would lay 3 feet below my mom on the floor she would say, "Sing me song." And for some reason, it was always that song. I would repeat the round over and over until I got sick of it or until I fell asleep.

I didn't plan on making it the song that I sing to Claire before bedtime, but it's kind of stuck. The other night I tried to end with "I Am a Child of God" and Kelland threw a fit! "What? That not her song! Let's sing the other one!" and sometimes he'll join in and we'll have a little duet by her bedside. Don't get me wrong - we totally promote hymns and belief in God, but I guess the other song is a little more catchy. Don't judge.

Claire, Grandma and Grandpa Schmidt are taking our whole family to Disneyland this summer! You'll be 15 months old, and we are so excited to see how you'll like it. We know that you won't fully understand what is going on, but we think that you will love that atmosphere! I'm already planning on what "Disney" outfits I can sew for you to look super cute!

Bum Scooter!

Claire, you will be eleven months next week and you still aren't crawling. If you do end up on your tummy you put your head down on the carpet and bawl. However, you do love to stand up against furniture or while holding onto Mommy or Daddy's hands. Though you're still working on the whole mobility thing on hands and knees, you are awesome at scooting on your bum, learning to do it from the slippery bath tub. You travel in a complete circle to reach all the toys around you - which is pretty tricky considering that you are sitting on it!

Splish Splash...

We had the funnest bath tonight! We spent almost a full half hour playing in the water. And your new favorite bath toy is a washcloth. That's right, not any of the colorful water toys off different shapes and textures, but a washcloth. You loved watching it sink to the bottom and then reaching down to grab it, sucking the water out of it. We sang songs and played patty cake. You loved clapping along with me, but not just clapping along but doing it with a HUGE smile and giggling! That's probably one of my favorite things about you - when you do something, you do it all the way and you do it good. It's like with clapping, it took you a long time to do it, but now that you do, it's a game every time accompanied with huge smiles like you have a secret that I don't know.

Beauty and the Beast

We just finished up directing Beauty and the Beast Jr. at Mount Ogden Junior High. People wonder why and how we could possibly keep up with and enjoy a cast of 60 teenagers - but we LOVE it! No, honestly, and I'm not just saying that in case one of their mothers stalks this blog. We love working with this age group. Our job is to make it a fun and positive experience. We want them to love doing shows and have a heck of a time; teaching them theater skills along the way. Easy right? Sure, it comes with struggles of playing quiet games and dealing with the constant flirting, and gossip of who likes who, but we wouldn't have it any other way!

Our show is over, and it's accompanied by bitter-sweet feelings. This was the most difficult show that we have had to deal with. Not only is the show itself hard; it requires intense costumes, a large set, and adult emotions; but there was a lot of junk that happened behind the scenes, making things complicated. Politics, Micro-managing, and losing 9 of our kids including 2 leads a week before the show opened. What a headache!

But at the same time, we also had some of those "bubbly" moments that make it all worth the effort. Watching our Belle come alive with depth once she stepped in front of an audience, seeing the awkward kid nail his lines with confidence, and helping several of them develop comedic timing. What an honor to be apart of and have a chance to make an impact on them!

Here are a few pictures of our show - sadly, my camera battery died and only allowed a few pictures.

A few of our awesome teens! I'm sad that the quality stinks!

Our Belle and Beast - Greg and Hannah. They were awesome!

Claire also grew to love these teenagers - coming with us to every rehearsal and being so patient while we taught the kids. My parents watched her during the performances - making our life and hers so much easier by letting her keep the same bedtime! "Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for watching me so that I could get my beauty sleep during the performances!"

Immoblie

Claire, even though you are past the 10 month mark you are still not mobile. You have never liked tummy time very well, and when we practice crawling on your tummy you either roll over onto your back or put your head down and bawl! You do love to stand though and practice "walking" - but your little muscles are still too little to support your weight. You do scoot on your bum to move short distances or turn around to face a different angle. This used to be just fine and dandy with you - you never seemed to mind us transporting you from room to room. However, the last couple days you want to be mobile so bad! While sitting up you'll reach for a toy out of your reach, eventually toppling over and smacking your head on the carpet letting out a huge wail of distress. Also, if you're sitting next to me, you'll grab onto my jeans and pull yourself forward eventually ending up on your tummy while propped up and slobbering on my pants. Don't worry little one, you'll get control of your body soon enough and we won't be able to stop you!

Babbling

Claire you have officially grown out of the "raspberry" stage and you are babbling ALL the time! It's so cute to hear the sounds you make while we drive in the car and while your eating meals. Yesterday I was changing your diaper and you started babbling, "bum bum bum" ... I guess someone's been listening!

Grandpa and Grandma Schmidt

I just want you to know Claire how much your Grandma and Grandpa Schmidt love you! Seriously- they try so hard and put in so much effort! We've started performing Beauty and the Beast (we've been taking you to the school for rehearsals since November) and they volunteered to watch you so me and dad could be at the school without any interruptions. Two night ago Grandma played with you, gave you a bath, dressed you in jammies, and put you to bed without you even making a peep! Last night Grandpa watched you all by himself, and he loved it! When we showed up for dinner and to drop you off, you remembered them and were all smiles and giggles at the dinner table - doing cute things that we see you do at home. Grandpa played with you and said that he sang to you in the rocking chair for 20 minutes while you listened. When he laid you down to bed you cried for 30 seconds and then turned over and went to sleep! What an angel you are, and you've won over their hearts!

A True Lady!

The other day I watched "A League of Their Own" on Netflix - I love that movie! It's one of those classic movies from my childhood with some hilarious one-liners. "Cow girls, see the grass? Don't eat it." "See the train moves, not the station." "You mean you ain't taking her cause she ain't pretty?..... Well, look who just caught up!"

Seriously - I forgot how funny it was! While the girls are in Charm School the teacher says, "Legs together. A Lady reveals nothing." - I couldn't help but think of my little Claire, who crosses her legs at all times! Check out these pictures:

She's our little Lady - and there's no convincing her otherwise!

We survived the plague.

RSV is crappy. I can see why women with new babies stay home during the cold months for a long time - even months! Claire caught this horrible virus and our life was turned topsy-turvy for a week. We spent hours during the night comforting and rocking and using our handy BBG (baby booger getter) machine to clear her breathing passage. No, I'm not kidding, that's really what it's called - it's scientific name. I guess they're running out of other medical abbreviations. Of course, it didn't help that me and Kelland caught the same virus. It's not as dangerous for adults as for babies, but with how we felt, you could have told us otherwise. Taking care of sick baby is hard enough but it's ten times harder when your also too sick to function. We passed up all of our other obligations and I stayed inside with Claire for an entire week. I didn't go to school, church, jr. high rehearsals, family get-togethers, grocery shopping, nada. Not too bad right? Except when I'm used to running at full speed all the time I felt like a hermit. (We're lucky she was only sick a week- sometimes is lasts for 3!)

We're still not sure where she caught it. If she would have gotten sick last semester when we dragged her to school with us, being surrounded by strangers and practically living on campus, I would understand and still feel like a horrible mom. But now, we are home what seems like ALL THE TIME! Needless to say I spent lots of time cleaning and sanitizing our doorknobs. Things are on the up, and Kelland is the only one still showing symptoms. What a crazy week! It sure put things in perspective for our little family. Thank you to everyone who helped and brought us meals and checked in on us!

Here is our little sick-o who would only sleep well against our chests - making our own sleep pretty interesting :)