Age of Lady Cora: 6 months, 8 days
Family,
And a good afternoon to you from the Queen City. Another great month is in the books, so let's get
6/1 - WE HAVE A TOOTH!!!!! that's right, sports fans, Cora has officially popped her first tooth! It's on the bottom in the middle. JT had seen it on the rise a week or so ago, but it's officially through. I must say, I think our kid might be a tough one, as while she was often chewing on things, she didn't seem to mind the tooth too much. Exciting! You can already tell that the one beside it is about ready to pop as well - this kid is growing!
Also, I am officially ready to declare that she is army crawling at this point. Granted, it's a combination of rolling, grunting, spinning on her head, and pushing with her legs, but there is no doubt about it -this kid is MOVING. Seriously - if you take your eye off her for two minutes, you'll come back to likely find her off the play mat! We have had to ensure that none of K's toys are near the play mat, as Cora is all about eating everything in her path. K has been good about it, but we also know it's something we'll need to be very vigilant on in the coming months.
And speaking of K, the poor girl has a viral infection. :-( She went to the Peds to have it checked today, and they were STUNNED that it wasn't strep. She's got white spots all in her throat, and she said that her throat really hurts while swallowing. I had noticed a few spots yesterday, but when Lindsey and the boys came over today, Lindsey shined a light in her mouth and found spots everywhere. But the good news - she's still hovering in the 100 degree range with ibuprofen, and honestly, she's still in really good spirits.
6/2 - JT left for her girls weekend on this day, which meant I had the kiddos for the weekend. The day and night were easy, and I got both of them down fairly quickly. No drama...yet.
6/3 - K gave me TWELVE HOURS OF SLEEP! Poor thing has been really tired, but she's been in great spirits and wasn't even sporting a temperature Friday morning or Saturday morning. Given that, I was able to take both the kids to church where they stayed in daycare while I attended Leading Edge (a leadership seminar). It was a great experience, and K was in Heaven (got to watch Moana, had an amazing breakfast, etc). Cora was really good as well, and the entire day was honestly just a ton of fun.
K said in the morning that she wanted to go to DPK, and so I thought why not? Consequently, we packed up after lunch and rolled to Huntersville, where we spent about 90-100 minutes or so playing around. I carried Cora the entire time, and she was an angel. K was really good too and had a lot of fun (she is getting SO STRONG on the climbing wall!). Our two little hiccups: 1. She found a group of older girls and wanted to run around with them. I was fine with it while they were all in the same room, but when they sprinted off I had to tell K that they were a group of older girls who wanted to just play together. She said, "I don't have any friends," at which point I replied - "I am your friend!" A puppet show helped, and also it helped when the girls went backstage to play dress up. K loved that, and she came out in the CUTEST princess dress. All in all, that diffused the situation. :-)
The other moment occurred as we were walking out. K took off her bracelet and tried to hand it to me. I told her I didn't want it and that she needed to throw it away. Well, she did, but when we got in the car, she said, "Dada, I want a bracelet." When I reminded her that she had just thrown it away she went BALLISTIC THREE MILE ISLAND CRAZY. Seriously - it was NUTS! She was screaming "get me another one! Go back and get me another one!" I even offered mine to her once we got home, but she was inconsolable. She finally calmed down when I got mine off and taped it onto her wrist, but WOW. The good news - both girls got a bath, and bed time was easy (K slept another 12 hours).
And congrats to Wife Muffin for running her 4th ever half marathon!!!!! SO PROUD OF YOU AND HOW YOU AND THE GIRLS MADE THE WEEKEND COUNT! I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!
6/4 - We hit the 9 AM service at church today, and again it was great. It was funny to hear all the comments as I walked in with the two girls, the infant carrier, the diaper bag, and usually another accessory. People were great and always offered to help, but I had to say no. After all, I was perfectly balanced, and removing anything in the string of pearls was likely to throw off my balance!
After church, the plan was to go to Emmi's for swim lessons. However, as the instructor was sick, we just decided to go and swim instead. Well, at 10:50, I asked K if she would clean up her toys so we could surprise mommy when she returned home. K, however, had zero interest. I went along with it, and we then had a great afternoon playing Go Pup, reading, eating lunch, etc. At 1:50, I asked her to please put her toys away so we could go swim for a good hour plus at Emmi's. Well, time passed, and despite repeated requests for her to clean up, she just continued playing (I did ask if she just wanted to stay and play, but she assured me she wanted to swim). I don't want to belabor all this, but the bottom line - I started giving her cutoff times after which point she could no longer a) go to Emmi's and b) go swimming period. She ended up missing the Emmi cutoff! However, that worked out well, as a huge storm kicked up, and NOMAD is the only place we could have gone swimming.
NOMAD was great minus a few hiccups. K slipped and busted her knee in the locker room - it was even bleeding a bit. She was fine once we got her in the pool, and Cora was a SAINT in the water! She loved just floating there and watching K, and she didn't even mind getting splashed in the face! She really took it all in stride. K swam GREAT - she was doing her otter swimming again, and man was she moving! I was really impressed, as you can tell she's already getting some endurance and stroke work back. She did get a little cranky (likely due to exhaustion) when we left (we were only in the water about 40 min), but the toughest part was the absolute DOWNPOUR we had to walk through to get to the car. Poor K just about lost it - she was bawling as she walked through the puddles in her towel. Cora got pretty soaked as well, so I had to promptly bath both of them once we got home. But we made it, and I got them both down at reasonable hours. JT rolled in about 7:45, and we just relaxed for the evening. 
6/5 - K started SUPER HEROES Summer Camp at UCUMC today. She is in the class with Eli, and she made a new friend named Grace. The funniest part - when we ask how her day is, we usually just get confirmation of the snack received (graham crackers, goldfish, etc), and further probing will likely only confirm whether they were on the playground or in the rainy day room. But hey, she's having fun, so that's all that matters.
The other classic moment: When we asked how Eli was, she said, "Good. He yelled at me and pushed me today." She said this with a smile on her face, completely matter of fact (this might have been Tuesday, actually). The good news is that - we have since trended in the right direction. On Wednesday, she said "he just yelled at me today," and on Thursday they were friends! Ah, I love childhood.
A few other K moments - she got popcorn and a movie today! JT went for her post race massage, and since I still had work, we popped K some popcorn and put on Back to the Sea (think Finding Nemo ripoff). I went down at 4:45 PM to check on her and watched THE EXACT MOMENT where she passed out (it was so sweet). I let her sleep for about 15 min - I think Summer Camp is wearing her out! Lastly, Lindsey gave us this super cute dress that we think K will use when she's the flower girl in the wedding. She tried it on with her little slip on shoes (she LOVES those things right now) and looked just ADORABLE. She's growing up so fast!
So is Cora for that matter, but the good news is that we are really starting to bond now. Several times this week I got to feed her in the morning before work, and it was just awesome to start my day that way. Her personality is blossoming so quickly right now, and she's smiling and laughing so much more. It's been really fun to watch this awakening occur, and I'm finding that I'm really starting to embrace this time and this experience. In general, life is just perfect right now and feels very in balance. I feel like work, running, family, and church are all going great, and I am really happy with the amount of time I'm getting to spend with both kids (and Jenny, of course). Things just feel very zen at the moment, and I am trying to treasure every second of this. One critical thing I am finding is to just play more and say yes more to everything - it's amazing how that little decision will lift your spirits and help make new memories. I think church this past weekend really helped this, as we talked about the concept of the "All In" No. Basically, you are fully committed to the family, the cause, the mission, but you have to accept that you can't do everything. It's amazing how much knowledge I received from the speakers this past weekend and how positively that's impacted my thinking.
6/6 - Today was a great day - I got to snuggle with K and JT in bed! I was exhausted, and so I slept later than normal (I have been sleeping in lately, but I am at peace with it. I need the rest, and I am finally getting some). Well, a little after 7, K ran into the room and climbed in bed. She put her head on my pillow, put her thumb in her mouth, got under the covers, and tucked her feet between my legs. It was just AWESOME, as I was afraid those days were in my rear view mirror. I didn't get out of bed until K made me. :-)
And let's give some credit to Wife Muffin, who pureed her own sweet potatoes today! Cora tried them, but she was not a fan. However, persistence will pay... :-)
Oh, and get this - out of nowhere, K dropped the pledge of allegiance on us today! It was crazy - she said that she'd been saying it at preschool all year. I LOVE THAT PLACE!
6/7 - Cora actually quite enjoyed sweet potato today - way to go, wife muffin!!!! Also, JT took both the girls to the pool today! She took Kaitlyn by herself yesterday, but this day it was all the Taylor women in the pool - sounds like they had a great time!
K was so tired after Summer camp that she actually asked to go and lay down. When she did, she passed out for a 1 hour, 40 minute nap! WOW.
And her most classic moment of the day: At the pool, JT said, "My back is killing me." K looks at her and says, "Mommy, is that an expression? Because if your back was really killing you, you'd be in Heaven." I mean...FROM THE MOUTH OF BABES.
Last thing to note - this evening I noticed a split starting to form in K's bottom teeth. It seems as though her thumb is finally starting to impact the shape and positioning of her teeth. JT and I talked about it briefly, and soon enough we think we might have to consider doing something about it. I don't think it's a huge issue yet, but eventually it's something we will have to take care of.
6/8 - So JT left for Florida today, meaning it was the arrival of VOL NANA!!!! And let me tell you - K was THE PICTURE OF EXCITEMENT. When she woke up, she asked if Vol Nana would be there when she got back from Summer Camp. When I said no, she then kept asking - when, when, when. It reached a fever pitch by 5:30 PM when Vol Nana was less than an hour out, and luckily she arrived just in time to read to K. It was a good start to a great weekend.
6/9 - So K wasn't thrilled about the fact she had to go to Summer Camp today. True, she's had a blast, but let's face it - VOL NANA IS HERE! And since Vol Nana was already talking about brownies, popsicles, and playing, there wasn't really a lot of incentive for her to leave. However, I did get her out the door for camp (she had a lot of fun, and when I arrived to pick her up, her new friend Grace ran out after her to give her a hug - too cute), and she was back before she knew it. She did break into tears in the car, trying to find a way to stall (her approach was "I don't like how my hair looks!").
That day was a lot of fun. K had a BLAST with mom, and she was a LIFE SAVER in terms of playing with K while I wrapped work and did some stuff around the house. K wanted to play in the bonus room, and so she invited several games (such as the "Princess game") to play with Vol Nana. Mom was great about playing and running around with her, and K was just plain in Heaven. Brownies were made (I think she had 2.5 this day!), popsicles were made with Kool-aid (grape flavored - K loved making them), and most importantly - memories were made.
Mom also got some good bonding time with Cora. She loves to hear her coo, and Cora was SUPER expressive the whole time. The girl is also starting to army crawl like a rocket! She is covering the entire length of the carpet now, and so we've had to move all of K's small toys into the sitting room (we did this on 6/11). Pretty soon we will have to start using the pack 'n play if we have to step away or do something, as she's starting to outgrow the seats (she gets fussy if she's in them too long) and is just moving too fast these days.
Vol Nana handled bath and bed this evening (I only get the call from the bullpen to do the prayer), and it was again a perfect, happy day. Mom gave Cora this little mirror to play with (one of those padded reflective toys), and Cora LOVES IT - she's been pulling on it and playing with it nonstop!6/10 - We hit IHOP in the morning after my run, where K LOVED getting some of Vol Nana's bacon as well as her own smiley face pancake. There was some drama out of the gate when a server was DRAGGED OUT OF THE KITCHEN CUSSING, but minus that "small" hiccup, it was a wonderful morning. Cora got up early (about 5:40), but it worked out great, as I got the chance to feed her, have my coffee, and have a little food before my run (17 miles, so I needed the fuel). The afternoon was pretty chill. Mom being here allowed me to knock out a few errands, but when I returned, mom actually had to go to urgent care due to some trouble breathing. The good news - all is well, and by 6/13 (the day I'm typing this), she is much, much better and breathing fine. Thank you, Jesus!
That evening was Lauren's graduation party, and we had a classic K meltdown. Cora was asleep, meaning that one of the adults had to stay in the house. Mom understandably didn't want to go over there without me, so I offered to take K over for food (she really wanted Mexican). Well, K wanted to get food, but she didn't want to leave mom. She walked out the door with me twice, only to burst back into tears both times! 
Finally, we struck a compromise - Mom would stand on the deck where K could see her, and K would watch her while we ate (this girl... :-)). Well, when we got over there, K actually didn't want ANY food because she saw M&Ms out of the gate. So I ended up getting her a full plate of food, which she ignored to just GOBBLE the M&M's (and then proceed to ask me if there was cake). Once she was done with the M&M's, she ran over to the deck, saw my mom, and then ran back to me, telling me, "Dada, Vol Nana said that she wants some red M&M's." When I said I would take her some after I finished eating, she said, "Vol Nana said she wants them right now!" I mean, I have known my mother for 40 years, and NEVER in all that time has she ever demanded an M&M. Who says original sin isn't born in every child? :-)
Once we got back over, we then learned that there WAS cake, and so we went back over for a piece (and I went back for another Corona) before putting K to bed. Mom had worked her TAIL off that night, so I mandated she go sit on the deck and have a Corona. She got through about 5 oz - a big night for her. :-) It was bed early that night - another great one in the books.6/11 - We all hit church today - mom's first time at Freedom House! She really enjoyed it, and I was so glad that Troy spoke. K was great going into FH kids (she showed Nana the aquarium and was happy to show her the room), and Cora even took an hour nap! K picked a dress that matched mom's, and they looked SO CUTE (mom gave her new shoes, which she was all about wearing). We then hung out at home before going to swim lessons, where K did AWESOME in the water while Cora was AWESOME just chilling under the umbrella. I was SUPER proud of K, as she swam HARD for that half hour! Way to go, kiddo! I am loving that endurance!
After that we rolled over to Prosperity Pool, where mom fed Cora while I played with K (we broke out the water gun, which K loved). Eventually, however, we had to do the inevitable - tell K that Vol Nana was leaving. K popped out of the pool and sat with her a little longer (super cute in my Chang shirt), but when 4:40 hit, it was time to roll. The next hour was honestly one of the toughest I've had in awhile.
K was great until we got her into her car seat. But when Nana hugged her and gave her a kiss, she suddenly realized what was happening. You could tell that she just wanted to BAWL, but she tried SO HARD to be brave! She was fighting back tears, but the agony under the surface was just heartbreaking. She and Vol Nana started singing "Oooh, eee, oooh, ah ah, ting, tang, walla walla bean bang," and K kept trying to sing it to keep her there. But with each refrain she was having trouble fighting back the tears and getting her breath, and eventually she just gave out. As I drove her home, she just started screaming "VOL NANA!!!!!!" Which morphed into "I WANT VOL NANA!!!!!" which then morphed into "I MISS VOL NANA!!!!!!"
When we got home, I unclipped her, picked her up, and just held her in the garage while she bawled her eyes out. She had tried so hard to be brave, but just like that her Vol Nana was gone, and she just didn't know how to process it. It took her an hour to calm down (still crying hard in the bath), but finally she did settle a bit when we got her in her night gown.As I tucked her in, she said, "I miss Vol Nana, dada." I told her I did as well but that we would see her again soon. I then told her it was okay to cry and miss people, and also how proud I was of her for being so brave. Then, without missing a beat, she put her thumb in her mouth, looked at me, and said, "I'm proud of you too, dada." I mean, I LOVE THIS KID!!!!!
6/12 - Today was the start of another fun camp for K - Little Scientists! She must have been quite emotional at drop-off, but apparently after that all was great. In her defense, so many people have come and gone lately, and I think it's been tough for her to process. Coupled with some exhaustion, and it's a recipe for a few meltdowns. Oh, and random side note - K keeps trying to kiss me on the lips! I have told her that is a privilege reserved only for mommy, and I think now she's finally getting the hang of it. Now she just wants to kiss me on both cheeks, which is of course totally permissible.
Oh, and a BIG MOMENT for K today - she looked at me after her show (before dinner), said, "Daddy, look!" and then ran into the bathroom and washed her hands by herself!!!!! BOOM GOES THE DYNAMITE BABY!!!! She did it again on 6/13 - HUGE WIN!!!! She also told JT that she wants to work on saying Please the first time vs. forgetting. Baby steps, friends...we are getting there (and I am super proud). 6/13 - Today was a super busy one for the Sneetch - Little Scientists in the morning, and pool with the Williams clan in the afternoon (she was ALL ABOUT playing with Ryann). But in the interim was another first - K's first Karate class! JT sent me a photo of her in the outfit - TOO CUTE. And best of all, she really seemed to enjoy it! She even bowed to us and showed us a few of her blocks when she got home. There were 8 kids, and it really seemed like fun! I really hope she likes it, as there are SO many benefits of getting involved with a dojo early. Obviously I want her to do what she wants, but man - if I could get her into swimming, karate, and piano all at NOMAD, I'd feel pretty darn good. :-)
Oh, and K was talking to Cora this morning, imitating JT's inflection. It was pretty cute hearing her say "is dat a mile...." :-)
6/14 - The Williams clan (minus JP) came over for lunch today, and the kids had a BLAST. Ryann even stayed for another 2+ hours and played with K. Judging by the noise, they had a blast. :-)
Also - Cora got up early this morning (5:30), but credit my wife for being a ROCK STAR and elongating her wake time so that she still just had 4 feeds and went to bed at 8:45. Way to go, Wife Muffin!!!!! It was straight up Mommy Jedi stuff - I was well and truly impressed. And the best part - she slept until 6:30 the following day - definitely trending in the right direction!
And did I mention that Cora a) now has two teeth, b) is likely teething because she is CONSTANTLY chewing on stuff, and c) is moving like you wouldn't believe? I keep trying to get video of her crawling but keep missing it, whereas JT has recorded some seriously quality video. That kid is ON THE MOVE.
K had karate again today, and she seemed to really like it again. Apparently they did pushups and crunches - it must have been quite hilarious! Although ever since this day, she has repeatedly told us: "I don't like karate." When I pressed her on it and asked why, she said, "Because I don't get to make any friends!" I told her once she was part of the dojo, she absolutely would make friends. However, she was NOT impressed. That being said, when she shows "ready stance, sir!" and then bows to you, it's pretty darn cute. I mean, let's face it - how can she NOT be adorable in that outfit!
6/16 - Granddaddy came for a visit today! It was really, really awesome, as he got a chance to bond with both the girls a lot. Alice didn't get the chance to come, so dad had "bedtime duty" both nights, and it was GREAT. He read to K that night, and she LOVED it. It was so cute, as she just kept asking "when is Granddaddy gonna be here?" I'm so glad he made it before bedtime!
K was apparently quite emotional at a few points, but all the same she must have had a blast. She had been talking about this party all week, and she had the clothes for it! She had the vest, eye patch, sword - you name it. It was pretty darn cute. The Williams clan was there, so as you can imagine, Kaitlyn was never more than about 6 inches from Ryann's side. :-)
On the Cora front, she had her first round of carrots today! For the record, she was NOT a fan, but she got them down all the same (and burped them back up more than one - NUCLEAR ORANGE on the way back up, for the record). I think that girl likes solid foods more than formula at this point, and so we're trying to ratchet up all the new solids.
Pirate Party highlights:
Cora also dropped her third nap officially today. We were a little unsure, but as I write this over a week later, I have to say it's completely changed the game. We can now put Cora down between 8-8:30, and that means JT and I FINALLY have our evenings back! That is just so incredible, as we've been able to get some to-do's knocked out, have a little down time, enjoy a beer on the screen porch, and just slowly start to decompress after what has been quite the hectic 2017 (how did that happen, anyway?). WAY TO GO, WIFE MUFFIN!!!!!!! YOU HAVE CRACKED THE CODE!!!!!
Oh, and K had the sweetest line of the night this evening. As we were getting ready to go to bed, she gave me a hug and a kiss and said, "Happy Father's Day tomorrow, dada." Pretty sweet...
6/18 - So dad headed out early (wanted to be home for Homecoming back at Creech's), and the goose slept until 8:40!!!! It was a perfect day all around, as it wasn't rushed, the weather was good, and I got lots of quality time with my girls. For me, that day is just about being with them and celebrating the women in my life who have made me a father and who fill every day of my life with immense joy. Church was great, and on the drive home (I was alone in the car since the girls rode back with JT) I teared up thinking about how blessed I am - my cup TRULY runneth over. From Kaitlyn saying, "Happy Father's Day, dada" and hugging me to Cora smiling as I blew on her tummy to JT making me yet another INCREDIBLE photo collage (5 years running!), it was just a wonderful day. We even got some great pool time with the Williams clan, K had a GREAT swim lesson, and I even got Buffalo wing pasta courtesy of wife muffin!!!!! Life is GUUUUUUUUD!!!! Love my girls!
6/19 - K slept until 8:30 today, and Cora gave us 11 hours! K then did an airport tour with Emmi, and while she apparently complained about being tired and hot a lot, see seemed to really enjoy it. One thing she absolutely LOVED with this little wooden airplane they gave all the kids. Once we put it together and I showed her how to throw it, she was ALL ABOUT IT and really started throwing it GREAT. I was impressed!
She went to the Sports Club Pool with the Burch family, where she crossed off a BIG Highland Creek Milestone - she went down the water slide for the first time!!!! JT sent me the photo, and it was AWESOME! The first time she purposefully went down really slowly, but after that she was all about it! She climbed up there all by herself, and JT said she rocked it 5 or 6 times. WAY TO GO, KIDDO!!!! Also, a cute moment: K was swimming with a girl who is older than her but still wearing a puddle jumper. K asked her, "Why are you wearing that?" Mommy had to explain that not everyone can swim as good as she can (in private, of course)! I was a proud papa. :-)
K and her friend were also apparently DRINKING POOL WATER from one of the fountains at THE MOST URINE FILLED POOL IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE. When JT explained that they were drinking watch kids pee in, the looks on their faces must have been priceless...
6/20 - So K ran into our room and climbed into bed with us about 6:20 or so. I snuggled up with her and was quite excited, as she hadn't done this in awhile. After a few minutes, she tells us that she didn't sleep very good. When we ask why, she told us that she slept on the floor. When we asked why, she was quiet, and then she said, "I'm sorry I threw up in the bed, dada." POOR THING! She had thrown up in the bed in the middle of the night, and rather than get us, she made a bed of her stuffed animals and tried to sleep instead. My heart BROKE when I heard that. It made it worse when she said, "I called out to you, but you didn't hear me." Ouch.K tried to eat a couple of times that day, but ultimately she just couldn't. However, we kept her hydrated, and she didn't throw up after the morning (she threw up her breakfast poor thing, but she was a trooper!). She didn't have a fever and seemed to have plenty of energy, so we just kept her at home, and by evening she was still fine (even if she had barely eaten anything). She slept good that night, so we were hopeful it was out of her system. And hey - it was a GREAT teaching moment about pool water, so in the long run it could have worked out well for everybody.
6/21 - K was clearly feeling better, as she hit DPK this afternoon! She was a rock star, and it was GREAT to see her so full of energy, as she had a play date/pool date we didn't want her to miss on Thursday.
6/22 - K had a pool date with Kate on this day. Unfortunately it was rainy and the coldest day we've had in WEEKS, so they didn't actually get to play very long (Kate's family was leaving for a surprise Disney trip the next morning at 5 AM, and before that they had another play date, a swim meet, and packing to do). It was a little disappointing for K, but she was a champ and rallied. I know we'll get them together again soon, as I know K misses her. 
And guess what - we now have a SIX MONTH OLD!!!!!! Cora (Or Kyori Koto as I am calling her now) is now 6 months old. I mean, HOW DID THAT HAPPEN!?!?!?!?!? It is just amazing what a difference a month makes. She's now sitting up (supported) pretty good, army crawling, has 2 teeth, is sleeping soundly through the night, is crying MUCH less and smiling much more, laughing some, and grabbing everything within an eight block radius. It's just so amazing to see, and I am SO TOTALLY falling in love with this kid. 
What's fascinating at the 6 month mark - our two kids are POLAR OPPOSITES, and it's just incredible to watch. K didn't really put anything in her mouth - Cora consumes everything she can find. K was slow to crawl and walk. Cora is already up on her haunches and ready to start proper crawling soon. K slept 12 hours consistently by this point. 10.5 is a HUGE night for Cora. K was fine with solid foods but wasn't blown away. C LOVES THEM and likely prefers them to milk. K loved (and still does) her thumb. Cora doesn't mind a pacifier, but she honestly doesn't care for either. K was a back sleeper. Cora rolled over early, and that's the only way she rolls (literally). It's just so fascinating to watch, and also awesome because I think they will have different interests and strengths that will complement each other as they get older.
6/23 - The other day K asked me why Sam and Ryann get to brush their teeth "by their own." I told her they were older and could hit "all the zones," and she then told me she wanted to brush "by my own." I told her I had to QA it for 7 days, but if she could do it, I would let her do her own thing. Well, she hit 3 of the 4 zones really good tonight (top left is tricky since she brushes with her left), and I was impressed. Update - since then she's really improved, and one morning the other day I didn't have to help at all! Big moment!
Also, it was Cora's 6 month appointment! Everything went GREAT. She's now 15 pounds and 2 ounces, coming in 50th percentile in weight, 30th in height, and 30th in head. She was totally on track with all her milestones, and everything looked good. She got 4 vaccines, but K was right there holding her hand and said that she was REALLY BRAVE!
6/24 - So today was a good day - largely thanks to Vol Nana! She sent us an AMAZING present - a play pen for Cora! Honestly, we needed one (and we knew it), but we just didn't want to pay for it. Well, Vol Nana came through in a BIG WAY, as we now have a way to keep Cora corralled when we have to do something. She's moving super fast now, and we just haven't done the complete sweep of the house to baby proof it yet. Add in all of K's toys, and it's a mine field on Regal Court! However, this is buying us some time. Just keep the wet wipes out of the pen, because Cora LOVES them. Seriously - when she sees them, she goes to them INSTANTLY and starts eating them. I mean, kid - don't you know where these have been? Also, she's started undoing the knots on the crib bumpers. She's a clever one!
And did I tell you about our mealtime prayer with K? It's AWESOME - best one ever. You put your hands to the sky and say:
"Thank You, LORD, for giving us food!
For the FRIENDS we meet,
And the FOOD we eat,
Thank You, LORD, for giving us food!
Amen"
I love it! It feels like a super hero theme song (which is appropriate given that we're singing to the Creator :-)).
The other 2 bits from the day: I started reading to Cora today. Apparently I have been remiss in not really doing this in earnest on a daily basis before now. Now I will give us some credit, as we often have her in there while we read to Kaitlyn. However, I now want to do better and operationalize reading to her at least once a day before either a nap or nighttime. I will get better, but I have been inconsistent out of the gate.
Other news - I took K to NOMAD today, and she was INCREDIBLE!!!!! HER BEST SWIM EVER!!!! She jumped into the cold pool and ground out 300 YARDS!!!! She did 200 otter style, but then she just dropped some backstroke on me for 25, followed by freestyle for 25, then another backstroke for 25, and then ANOTHER 25 free! It was awesome! She jumped off the blocks, she dove for Nemo toys (another gift from Vol Nana), and we just had a BLAST! It was easily the best swim I've seen, and I was so proud of her. Plus we just had a lot of fun, which was great. And proud papa moment - I "semi clocked" one 25 and think she was sub 60. I then officially clocked another, and it was 62. Impressive!
6/25 - So today was a great day, but we definitely had our ups and downs. K was SUPER whiny all day, and it eventually just wore me out. She is such an amazing kid and so great 99% of the time, but today was just a whine fest, and I wasn't as prepared as I should have been for the onslaught. 
K - when you read this in 30 years, remember how much daddy loves you. Actually, just wait until you have a 4 year old. Then, when you read it, I think you'll appreciate it more. :-)On a serious note - I don't want to belabor the whining, as a lot of good things happened. Church was great. She had an AMAZING swim lesson (crushed it!) - even started the breast stroke kick and jumped from a high wall into the pool! We got some time in the Clarke Creek pool and on the playground, and honestly, I was SO PROUD of K as she climbed on all the apparatuses. She did SO GOOD! At first she was a little timid on a few, but once she did them once, she was a MACHINE! Similar to the swimming, it was the best climbing I have ever seen her do. She's just like her mama - a naturally born mountain goat! She's certainly got an aptitude for swimming as well. But hey - her mom is a dolphin and she's a Pisces, so odds were good. :-)
She spent the afternoon with Taylie and Jackson over at the park, and apparently K was a rockstar and even played with bugs! Holy Moly! I wish I'd seen that! :-) We did apparently have a bladder incident, but other than that it was all smiles an some really quality outdoor time. K has been super great about playing this summer, and I can't say enough good things about how JT has continually found activities for K that have kept her active, kept her relationships with her friends strong, and kept her interested. Best wife ever!
6/28 - So dance camp has been great so far, and Karate was good yesterday (even though K is adamant that she doesn't like it :-)). She did present herself with "Attention stance, SIR!" to me yesterday, which was pretty darn cute. Today she actually presented Jenny and I with the formal invite to her recital, which was really cute. It was addressed to Mommy, Daddy, and Taylie. Hilarious that Cora didn't make the cut! She said, "I also wanted to invite Kate and Vol Nana, but Kate is in Florida and Vol Nana lives far away." However, she did learn that Beka and Johnny were coming, so she's gonna have a huge cheering section! Oh, and K's classic quote of the week. JT is on the toilet, and K walks in and says, "Hey mommy, how's that urination going?" PRICELESS. Love that kid!
As for Cora, she's been SUPER fussy the last 36 hours. Yesterday was REALLY tough, as she was just so tired and fussy. She basically cried for the last hour of the day, and that was after 3 naps again. Not sure what was going on, but even this morning (after a 3 AM wake up/settle and then sleeping until 6:40) she only took 5.5 oz after an 11 hour sleep! JT has been out with the girls most of the day, so I am not sure how it's gone - fingers crossed!
Oh, and we have officially commenced watching PAW Patrol on a regular basis as of this morning! K had requested we start taping it, and she has been ALL ABOUT IT since we started recording it (luckily there was a marathon the day we started taping).
6/29 - So Johnny and Rebekah rocked up today, and we kicked off an EPIC long weekend. We rolled over to 26 acre once they arrived, and K was in Heaven - popcorn, puppies, and corn hole. Who could ask for anything more? You should have seen the mess under our table, as K was shoveling in FISTFULS of popcorn, with only about 50% reaching the desired target. I had to dub it a "popcorn massacre," as it looked like Baghdad outside the green zone under our table. She'd also already had dance camp and karate, so it had been a full slate of activities! We grilled on the deck that night, and K didn't get to bed until 9:30! 6/30 - At 10:45 AM, we rocked over to Anne Marie's Academy of Dance for a GREAT start to the day - K's dance recital! She was super cute, and they actually did 4 performances! K seems to really, really like dance camp. She even said to me, "I wish dance camp could be all year." And it was really cool to watch how much she'd learned from even last year - the sashay, the steps, the movements now more coordinated - it was just an amazing glimpse into the progression of our daughter.
Cora was really good through the whole thing - didn't even need her bottle. And after that we got a few photos before rolling over to the first of 3 breweries for the day. Talk about making it count!
First up was Primal, where the Rice clan crossed off another big CLT item - food from the Lake Norman Grill. They also had a new Pilsner on draft and were trying to source a name. Rice recommended Pool Boy Pilsner (to go with Lawn Boy lager) I like it! After that, we hit 2 more breweries (Ass Clown and 11 Lakes), and I have to say that the girls (especially K) were really, really good through it all. While there wasn't a ton for them to do, they were troopers and found ways to stay entertained. Plus we concluded the evening with lots of pizza and watermelon on the screen porch, and K was LOVING eating outside in her nightgown - she knew that was a special treat!
One thing that was hilarious - K was CONSTANTLY itching her bum inside her pants, and at one point while I was wiping her, she put her finger in there. GROSS!!!! Needless to say I told her that was NOT kosher and would not be tolerated going forward.
Okay, that's it. An EPIC June in the books for everyone. Talk to you all in a month!
Love,
Sam and Jenny
