What's Inside the Jack in the Box?

We often learn about what Caroline is doing at school through songs and other re-enactments of the day (we've played lots of, "now you sit on that spot and don't move" and "Freeze Dance").

On this night, we were treated to a performance of one of her favorites. This one comes from Nina, who comes to school weekly to teach fun songs and dances to the munchkins.

The actual lyrics:
What's inside the Jack in the Box?
Soon we all shall see
Turn the crank, and out it pops - Pop!
Out comes a...[insert whatever you'd like to act out]

As you can tell, there might be some ad-libbing from our little songstress.

Jack in the Box, part 1 from Sarah on Vimeo.

For those of you worried about Daddy's part in all of this, never fear. He got his song too.

Jack in the Box, Part 2 from Sarah on Vimeo.

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Classtacular

The end of August was very exciting for our little star - the first day in a new class at school! For some time, she's been promised that she'd soon be in the "big kid" class, and even had made some field trips down the hall to visit.

And finally, her day arrived! She was characteristically enthusiastic about the new adventure, and anxiously got dressed and ready to go. She used her new backpack for the first time, and apparently thought is was necessary for not only Gis, but a soccer ball, to accompany her.

Always be prepared, C.

Showing off her pretty smile and her school (?) supplies

Mommy even interviewed our the little scholar on the way to school - listen for observations on the colors she sees, and some comments about age (hers and her friends).

Thoughts on the First Day of School from Sarah on Vimeo.

She is so yummy, isn't she?

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Diva in the Sun

Some entries require very little introduction.

Let's just call this "Shades, Swinging, and Singing"...

Swinging and Singing from Sarah on Vimeo.

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Tally Vacay

A trip to Tallahassee!

No need for lots of explanation here - think you can tell from these pictures the great time had by our star (and her parents). She certainly did not suffer from a lack of attention, and true to her star-status, she enjoyed every second of it.

Tallahassee Vacation from Sarah on Vimeo.

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Bringing Home a Baby Bumble...Caroline?!

Caroline has many favorite songs, and often sings them without even a break between tunes. She has also started doing a little improv - making up words, creating medleys, and doing a little DJ-style remixing.

Here, she does her own version of "Bringing Home a Baby Bumblebee." For those who might be out of the loop, the actual lyrics (as we sing them) go something like this:

I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee,

Won't my mommy be so proud of me?

Oh, I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee...

FUZZY WUZZY! OOH! HE STUNG ME!

C has just personalized it some...

Baby Bumblebee! from Sarah on Vimeo.

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Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow....

Our first honest-to-goodness sled-worthy snowfall of the season arrived in, of all months, March. Though a Winter storm in a Spring month* might normally have been enough to make me crazy, the prospect of seeing our little one play in the snow for the first time superceded any wishes to escape to the beach.

Despite the snowy streets, Caroline's school was open, business-as-usual. Mommy and Daddy took advantage of the excuse to work from home, a rare-ish luxury that included a lunch date, and afforded us the opportunity to pick up C early and get home in time for some serious snowy adventures.

The field between our building and NIH was perfect for running, playing, falling, and CEC's favorite game of "touch snow." We had the bonus of hanging out with our neighbors Sharon and Anthony (and the heartstoppingly adorable little Anthony), who were nice enough to let us play with their Golden Retriever Ozzie and to loan us a sled!

CEC LOVED the snow, snowballs, making snow angels, and sledding (each run was followed by an enthusiastic "AGAIN!"). She didn't even seem to mind the cold - at least until it was time to go inside, when she suddenly realized that her hands were freezing! Note to mommy: thicker mittens next time!

*So I know that technically March 2 is still winter, but for this Southern girl, March should mean azaleas and sunshine, not snowstorms!

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Twinkle Twinkle...

More Caroline video!

In this installment, Caroline Sings! Check out her versions of toddler favorite "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" below*.

There was never a sweeter sound.

*Yes, I know my camera work in the first clip leaves something to be desired. I'm working on it!

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Caroline Counts!

As promised, video evidence of our little girl counting up a storm. Although we hear 1 to 10 so much, the repetition has been echoing in our dreams, capturing the whole thing on film is a bit harder.

And as you'll notice by especially the first of the two renditions included below, a major issue in getting good video is Caroline's fascination with - well... Caroline. Let's just say that she gets a bit distracted by the prospect of seeing herself*.

So there we have it. Caroline counts. Look for more videos (Caroline Sings! Caroline makes funny faces! And maybe... Caroline Dances!) coming soon...

*Distracted by TV and movies? Definitely her father's child :)

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Just Another Evening...

Though it may seem to regular readers that our lives are filled with holidays, museums, and parties, in fact, it is often the mundane details of the day to day with CEC that we enjoy the most. In that vein, here is a video of Caroline eating dinner in the days leading up to Christmas. Nothing special - just practicing using a fork and chowing down on lasagna, potatoes, and corn.

*And please ignore the state of our living room. We were in full present-wrapping, package-mailing, mess-making mode. Rest assured, things are somewhat (at least temporarily) back in order.

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Christmastime Visitors

On Christmas night, Santa came for an unprecedented second day in a row, and most importantly, brought Grandma and Grandpa with him!

Once they arrived, all concern for the whereabouts of momma and daddy vanished. It was, as it should be, all about Gamma Gamma and Grandpa. Caroline did not let them out of her sight for long, and insisted that every activity and routine be done within eyeshot of her surprise playmates.

Caroline was showered with gifts, hugs, kisses, and all kinds of love, and we got to take trips to the National Gallery of Art, the National Christmas Tree, the National Arboretum, and the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception*.

Busy busy and fun fun.

We miss you Grandma and Grandpa!

*Check out all that "National" stuff - we definitely live in DC!

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Christmas in Motion

In addition to the photographic evidence of our wonderful holiday, we managed to capture a few videos of our star in action celebrating and enjoying the day:

Best wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year!

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There She Goes!

Finally - in response to all you CEC fans crying out for "more video!" - another installment.

Not only video, mind you, but an outright movie featuring the Star of our Show and highlighting her newest skill.

If it seems like this change is sudden, you're right! Things change quickly around here - blink and you just might miss something.

We couldn't be more proud of our happy little girl.

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Walk Walk Walk

As mentioned in a previous post, CEC's walking ability has made great strides* in the past few weeks. And, as promised, a video of our toddler, well, toddling.

She actually made it quite a bit further than our little movie indicates - mommy needs work on getting camera out and button pushed in time to capture every step!

More to come (considering playing the crazy tourist and wearing the camera around my neck - just in case).

*Pun totally intended

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Word Games

Thought it was time for another Caroline word-update. Before long, there are going to be so many, I won't be able to keep up! But for now...

The updated word list includes:

1. brush (sounds a lot like push) *Includes wanting to brush teeth and hair - usually Mommy's
2. cup (bup)
3. door (doe) *as in, I want to go out of the "door" to "walk"
4. hippo *Random – she has a stuffed hippo or 2, but definitely not something we’ve emphasized
5. Rory *Her friend at school who shares her birthday!
6. walk *Something she wants to do all the time, even if it is with assistance

Other Linerese updates:

1. momma is now mommy; dad-n is now daddy - very sweet!
2. she now calls all letters and numbers “8” though, if you have pictures of a bunch of numbers and ask her to point out the 8, she can do it!

She was even willing to share some of her new language skills with her fans:

No doubt there will be more soon!

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A Moo and A Baa...

As mentioned in a previous post, performances on demand are hard to come by when it comes to our little diva.

But, as promised, we have managed to get a rendition of Moo, Baa, La, La, La on video.

Though it might not have been her finest performance to date, and there was definitely some artistic license taken with the headstand, this critic rates her performance as top notch (the co-star wasn't so bad, either :) ).

Without further ado...

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Pa-pay-a!

Caroline has ventured into the delicious world of tropical fruits -

And it introduced to her to a new fun word: "pa-pay-a"!

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Flower Child

CEC loves flowers!


Check out her reaction when she received a beautiful birthday bouquet of gerbera daisies from her Papa Ray and Uncle Jonathan. As you can tell, she loves them, and has loved pointing them out to us ever since.

Yep, that's "flower" - she's definitely a fan.

Thank you Papa! Thank you Uncle JD!

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Happy Birthday Eliza

Caroline has a special birthday wish for her friend Eliza, who turns 2 today!

Hope it is a great one sweet girl!

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Happy Birthday Caroline!

Cue Kool and the Gang...We're having a Celebration!

Though really, Every Day's a Holiday with Caroline, we've managed to stretch this special holiday into a week full of parties!

 Celebration #1: Old Family Friends (OFF) Party*

Caroline's Grandma and Grandpa Beaumont were on hand for the big fete. The Party of Five began with an early dinner of some of her most favorite foods - pizza, broccoli, and watermelon - and topped it off with a throwback from mommy's childhood: the yummy Cherry Chip Cake**, made (with some help from Betty Crocker) by mommy herself.

Then it was on to presents! Caroline was a full participant in all package-ripping, and loved all of her clothes, toys, and games. We have one lucky little girl to be blessed with such generous family and friends...

And the tradition of the delicate pink cake continues...

She wasn't a huge fan of the cake (Is this our child??). Maybe next year!

After the birthday girl retired for the evening, the grownups toasted her with some wine from (where else?) Chateau Caroline!

Celebration #2: Partying with her friends.

Next, it was on to cupcakes and cookies with all of her friends at school.
Caroline is lucky to share a birthday and a class with her best buddy Rory (the pretty little girl with the pigtail). These two are already inseparable!

Even mom and dad got to join in on playtime. So much fun!

Look at the baby Caroline!

Bring on the next party!

*This year, the OFF party was just family, though we plan to institute the true OFF tradition next year!
**This delicious, and elusive cake-mix even earned a spot at the Hard to Find Grocer. CEC's Grandma has been looking for it in Tallahassee since 1993, with no luck. And there it was, at our neighborhood Safeway in Bethesda all along.

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Little Librarian

This little girl won't read just anything.

Caroline has learned that sometimes, discovering the good things in life involves digging through the options, tossing the junk on the floor, getting troublemakers out of the way (perhaps with your feet? this is a total-body activity), and of course, tasting a few of the options (not to mention, declaring the victors as "yummy").

Yummy indeed

Mommy Notes:
*Note that, as in all things, this activity was narrated by its actor.
*Note that she did, unprompted, settle on the Baby FSU book!
*Don't those jean shorts kill you? Hilarious.

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