Dear Chloe,

Hi Little Miss!

Three months have passed since I last wrote, and I thought I had better get over here. A lot has happened, and I don't want to leave anything out!

You are talking a lot now. It is so cute! Some things sound perfectly clear, like cookie, for instance... You like your cookies. You say na for banana. Nulk for milk. Nee for music. Cruck for truck. I can't remember what you were saying today, but you were very emphatic and I had no idea what you were saying or what you wanted. I'm sure there is much more of that to come.

You celebrated your second Christmas just a couple of days ago. It was a very fun, and LONG morning! Grandma and Grandpa K. and Grandma and Grandpa W. were here along with Auntie Kels and Uncle Matt. You received ALL of your presents from everyone at the same time, so needless to say, there were a LOT of presents to be opened. You weren't quite as into it as I had thought you would be, but you did enjoy it. You loved everything. In fact, that was part of the problem. Whatever you opened, you were so interested in, you didn't really want to mess with opening anything else. We eventually had to take an intermission and have brunch before finishing up! Mommy and Daddy got you a Cozy Coupe and you loved it! You are calling it your truck and it's the first thing you talk about every morning and after nap! It's so cute, and makes us so happy that we picked something out for you that you absolutely love!! Other big hits are the dishes and food that Granny M. and Grandpa Dale sent from Arizona. You are really enjoying "cooking" and serving meals. It's very cute. You also really like your little people farm from Grandma and Grandpa and Auntie Kels and the tent from Grandma and Grandpa Ketchum. Uncle Matt got you a nice big toy box and you wanted to climb into it! It will be so nice for storing all the great toys you got for Christmas!

We really focused on Jesus this year and I pray that you always know the reason for Christmas, Chloe. Receiving gifts is great and all, but Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus. He came to be a man so that He could save us and that is the greatest gift we could ever hope to have in this life, my sweet girl. I pray that you know and embrace that!

We have had some sad days since I last updated, too, Chlo. Grandma Amidon died on November 19. We are so sad that she is gone, but I'm so happy that she was able to know you, Chloe. I know you will most likely not remember her, but she will live on through all of the wonderful memories that she is a part of, and she will be spoken of often in our home. You were named to honor her, and for very good reason. She was a wonderful grandmother to me, Uncle Matt and all of our cousins, and I pray that her legacy of love and generosity will be evident to you and passed on to future generations. She was a very special lady, Chloe. And will be greatly missed.

When we went to see Great Grandpa Bob on Christmas Eve (as is our tradition), I was surprised to see a wrapped gift for you! Grandma had talked about a truck that she thought you would like to have, but I just assumed that since she had died in November, that she probably hadn't gotten it yet. Well, I was wrong! She had sent Aunt Connie all over looking for it and had it ready to go for you! It is the cutest little talking dump truck and just means the world to me! We will keep that around for years to come.

You had a very fun outing a week ago! Your first long day out without your momma! (Your momma enjoyed some peace and quiet and some cleaning that was uninterrupted, and it was glorious!) Grandma Karen and Auntie Kels and Travis took you to the mall in East Lansing and you had a great time! You had dinner and played and really enjoyed yourself! We are all looking forward to more fun times like that!

Another favorite thing right now is Sid the Science Kid. It is such a cute show and you just love it. There are some great songs that are in every episode and you absolutely love to dance to them! It is such a riot to watch you. We made a point of going to Great Grandpa Bob's one day at the time that it comes on so he, Granny M. and Aunt Connie could see you do your thing. They all got a kick out of how much you love it and what a great dancer you are!

Oh, I almost forgot. Mommy bought you a pillow for Christmas and made you a very soft fleece pillow case for it and you absolutely love it. We also gave you a bigger blanket to use and you are one cozy little girl at bedtime, these days! So cute!

Well, I suppose that brings us a little more up to date! I will surely try to update more often. You are growing and changing and learning so quickly, it's hard to keep up!

I love you, my sweet sweet girl!

Mommy

Dear Chloe,

Hi Honey!  I'm so excited to share some of your new accomplishments!  The most exciting thing happened today.  You went potty on the potty seat for the first time! Here is a blurb from my other blog that tells about how it happened:

Before I hurt my back, I was letting her sit on the potty seat every time I changed her diaper.  Once I was back to being able to lift her up on the changing table, I decided I better not press my luck or use my strength with multiple unnecessary ups and downs.  So we kind of forgot about the potty seat for awhile.  But when Daddy said she was often having accidents in the bathroom before she got into the tub, that got me thinking...  Maybe I'd try Daddy's idea of not putting her right in the tub.  Maybe, just maybe I would move the potty seat into the bathroom where she takes her bath, and maybe, just maybe I would have her sit on it for a minute while that water was running, and maybe, just maybe all that water running would get the party started.

Well.

It worked.  How about that?  Not the first night, not the second night, but indeed - the third time is a charm!  

Yes, little Chloe - you had a big first tonight!  You are still young and I don't know if it really means you are ready, but we will see where it leads.  I guess maybe I should have bought those training pants the other day!

You are also doing an awful lot of talking...  I'll try to remember as many words as I can.  You say:

daddy  - only it's pronounced daE.  It's so cute and you say it ALL THE TIME.

momma - or ma - but you don't say it much.

dog - dog

hot dog - dot dog

cheese - cheeee

grandpa - buppa - you mainly say this of grandpa weir.

room - roo

truck

elmo - melmo (emphasis on the mo)

sid

kay-kay

hot - everything is hot.  you always complain of your food being hot, the bath water and even just the water to wash your hands.  PS.  It's never actually hot.

down - dow

horsey- see  a lot of words you just do the first sound.  for some reason with horsey you only do the see.

thank you - is just tee tee.  one of my favorites.

please - pea

banana - nana

fruit - foo

peaches - I can't remember if you say pea?  i think so.

outside - side - this is your absolute favorite thing right now.  you LOVE to be outside.

up

ball

bread - bah

drink - dee

deer - dee

milk - muh

I know I'm forgetting lots...

You are really enjoying Sid the Science Kid right now too.  Daddy and I find it a little annoying, but you LOVE it.  The songs are all really cute and it's obviously very educational.  Sesame Street is still your first love...

You have been doing room time really well.  This is basically just playing in your room by yourself.  You have a been a little grouchy, due to some teething (more on that later).  Your naps are suffering and one day you didn't want to take a nap, so I was having you play in your room.  The monitor got quiet after a while, so I came to check up on you.  When I opened the door, I hit you with it!  You were laying on your blanket right inside the door, fast asleep!  I didn't know what to do, so I just stopped to see what you were going to do.  You moved a little and then went right back to sleep!  I hated to leave you on the floor, but I knew if I moved you, the nap would be over.  So I left you...  And you took a short nap, snuggled up on your blanket right there on the floor.  It was so cute!

You have the beginnings of your first molar!  You are working on at least one more, too.  You have been grouchy and your appetite has not been very good.  Poor tootsie.  You have been doing a really good job brushing your teeth every day.  As long as you brush them and let mommy help you a little, you get to ring the birdy chime in the bathroom.  You think that's super cool and say chi.  Add that one to the list...  ;)

You and I have been attending a weekly Bible study called CBS, Community Bible Study.  You absolutely love it!  And the ladies just love you!  I'm so excited to see you grow in the knowledge of Jesus, Chloe.  He is the most important person in our life and knowing Him and loving Him and serving Him is our number one priority.  I can't wait until you understand that and can participate in that.  I know we will learn as much from you as you'll learn from us.  Maybe even more.  Jesus says we have to have the faith of a little child and I can't wait to see yours, Chloe.

Well, it's way past mommy's bedtime, so I had better say good bye.   I love you very much, sweet heart!

Momma

Dear Chloe,

Hi Sweetie!

So much has changed since I last wrote to you...  You are changing so quickly.  You are getting so big.  Your personality has really developed and you have mastered (or are working on mastering) a lot of new skills!

We've also had some firsts!  Yesterday, we took you to the zoo for the very first time.  We all had a great time, but you really LOVED it!  It was so much fun watching you feed the goats, talk to the birds and run all over.  You rode in the stroller some, but you really wanted to be on the go on your feet, exploring for yourself.  We got there just in time to see the goats anticipating their breakfast and they were going berserk!  You would have thought they hadn't eaten in weeks!  It was hilarious.  The Macaws were also very talkative, and you thought that was pretty cool.  We also had a chance to feed the black bears a piece of candy.  That was pretty cool.

The birds are not the only ones talking these days, Chloe.  You are really starting to say a lot of things.  You say ball, hat, book, duck, down, hi, dog, dad, nose, eye, cheese, and bread.  I'm probably forgetting something....  Oh you also say shoes.  Very cute.  You are also telling what a cow says, "mmmmm", what a duck says, "k k k", and what a duck says, "BAAAAAA!!!!" You have been making a funny noise that sounds like nonsense, but I recently discovered that it isn't. You seem to have gotten the song that Elmo sings confused with his name, because the other day at Meijer you were making your funny noise and pointing at an Elmo balloon.  I realized that you are saying Elmo.  It sounds more like Lalala, but you always say it when you see Elmo, so I think that's what it is. Whatever it is, it's cute!  OH!  You've also been saying Oh, Me!  It's so funny.  If you're trying to do something and can't, you say Oh, Me!  It's almost like it's your version of cussing.  It totally cracks me up...

You also know how to put your hands on your head, touch your nose, eyes and mouth.  You know where your belly is and where your knees are.  Smart girl, little Miss.

You have also been jumping for awhile.  It is the cutest darn thing.  You barely get both of your feet off the ground, but it's not for lack of trying.  You really put a lot of effort into it.  It's adorable!

You still love to play with your toys.  It's so amazing to watch you learn.  You catch onto things so quickly.  You are using your shape sorter, and can do almost all of the shapes.  You love to play pretend tea party, and I can't wait until you're big enough to do real tea parties!  We will have so much fun with that!

You can climb up on your horsey all by yourself, now.  I'm sure there are a lot of other things I should add, but it's impossible to remember everything!

I love you, Miss!

Mommy

Dear Chloe,

I just had to write today, Chloe.  You were cracking me up, you little turkey.  I went and got my haircut today, and had to scramble to get dinner ready when I got home.  You were playing in the kitchen, but then you disappeared.  I was absorbed in my biscuits and gravy, but suddenly I realized it was awfully quiet.  I went in the living room, where I was sure I would find you with something you shouldn't have.  I was in for a surprise.  You were ON the ottoman.  Sitting there like you owned the world.  With the pepper shaker.  I ran to get daddy from the garage to see you and by the time we got back, you were standing on the ottoman.  We've since put the ottoman away for awhile...  Apparently, daddy taught you how to climb on the ottoman while I was getting my hair cut.  Thanks Daddy....

After dinner I was sitting in the living room reading on my computer, and again realized how quiet it had gotten.  I went in the kitchen to find that you had taken the bowl that had the 2 leftover biscuits and you were sitting on the floor eating them.  You were mighty proud of yourself.  

Uncle Matt is here and has been staying with us for a couple of weeks.  You LOVE your Uncle Matt.  I knew you would.  You love to climb on him and have him pick you up.  He is also an expert wagon puller.  It makes me so happy to see that you love him as much as I do!  I'm so glad he has been able to be here with us.

Today we were outside and I had you in the stroller.  I was riding my bike around you and you thought that was pretty cool.  I put you in the Ergo carrier and took you for a ride on my bike.  We went down the big hill and you laughed and thought it was very fun!  We'll have to do that more often.  Soon you'll be big enough to get your own bike!

We went up north with Auntie Kels for a couple of days.  You did pretty good, despite the long car rides and mixed up schedule.  Our last night there, you had a bad night and we had to trek into Cadillac to get some Tylenol.  I saw today that you do have a tooth popping through, so I assume that's what the problem was.  We brought along the Silly Songs for Kids and you really enjoyed listening to that while driving.  Kels and I grew rather weary of it, but it was better than listen to you hoot.  You were not a big fan of the long car rides.  You would take a short nap, but then you were ready to be out of that car seat.  Poor kid.  Hopefully it'll get better as you get older.

You also had your first night away from Mommy and Daddy.  Grandma Ketchum came and spent the night with you so Daddy and I could go sailing with our friends.  We had a great time and you had a great time!  I think you will be spending lots of time with Grandma Ketchum...  ;)

You haven't been saying too much...  We're still working on up and down.  I think it frustrates you when you know that I know what you want and I don't just do it.  You kind of squeal and pitch a fit...  Not a pretty picture.  We'll be working on that too...  You do say cheese.    Well, actually chee.  But I know what you mean.  ;)

Well, I think that's all for now, Chloe.

I love you, 

Mommy

Dear Chloe,

Hi Baby!  I already know that I'm going to forget something.  I should write every week, even if there doesn't seem like much to report...  I'd be less likely to forget things.  I'll do my best.  Here we go!

You are getting so big Chloe!  Shocker, right?  I have a feeling that will always be the case.  At least for many many years, anyway.  I wish I could report that you finally have lots of hair.  I can't.  One of these days.  Of all the ways you could take after me, this is not the way I would choose!  The good news is once you get some hair, you will have a ton of it...  I just have no clue when that will be.

You are running everywhere these days, Chloe.  It is so incredibly cute.  You are so confident and we laugh about the way you swagger (we say swagga) around everywhere you go.  We love it.  We had Grandpa and Grandma Weir, Grandpa and Grandma Ketchum, Great- Grandma and Great-Granpa McKlaren, Auntie Kels and Con over for a Father's Day barbeque and you pretty much ran everyone into the ground! Everyone just loves you so much, Chlo!  No one more than me, though.

You are trying to talk a lot.  You do say momma a lot.  Since you say it at my legs when you want my attention, I'm assuming you know what you're saying now.  The other day, I was trying to finish doing the dishes and you wanted me, so you were at my knees and you were crying and saying "momma, momma".  I couldn't help but think of my Grandma, Earlene.  I remember she would tell me how hard it was for her when her kids were at that stage.  She said she would get so frustrated with only ever being called momma.  She would say, with great exasperation, "I just wanted someone to call me Earlene!"  I was thinking about that, and thought about how she would giggle if she knew that I was thinking about that at that moment.  Especially since a little someone by the name of Earlene was causing me to think it!  I'm so very sad that she never got to know you, Chloe.  She would have LOVED you.  I just know it.

You also say book.  In fact, you aren't feeling very well right now.  It's 4 o'clock in the morning and you are watching some Sesame Street while I type.  I awoke to you crying, and though I sometimes let you work out at night when you wake up, I knew you might have a fever and I wanted to check on you right away.   I got you out of your bed and sat in Grandma's chair with you and your blanket.  There were books in the chair and I asked you if you wanted to read a book.  You said, "boo" (which sounds exactly like book, just with out the k.)  So we read The Little Mermaid.  I have to say, I was pretty impressed.  It's one of your longer books, and I don't think you have sat still long enough to read the entire thing.  It's one of my favorite stories, and by far my favorite Disney movies.  Oh Disney...  We will enjoy the Disney together one day...  I can't wait! 

You've been working on saying up and down.  You get a little frustrated when you don't get what you want right away, (No idea where you get that trait from.  Ahem.) so when I ask you to say up or down before I get you up or down, it doesn't always go over really well, but we are working on it.  We're also working on please, but so far when I ask you to say it, you just nod your head yes.  I don't think it will be long and you'll be talking a lot.  I can tell you want to and that you know what you want to say.  Once those floodgates open up, it will be no turning back! Poor daddy will not be able to get a word in...

We took our first trip to the beach this week!  It finally got hot and I decided to meet up with some of the ladies and kids from church.  You finally got a chance to play with Ellliana.  She is an adorable little girl from The Freedom Center who is just 3 weeks younger than you are.  I just knew you two would play great together, and you did!  You were very unsure of the lake, but once you saw how much Elli liked it, you warmed up to the idea and splashed and played for a couple of hours!  It was great fun!  Mommy did a pretty good job with the sunscreen.  On you.  I forgot to do my back and have been in pain for the past three days, but I will survive.  I missed a small spot on your face with the sunscreen and was so worried that you would be in pain or blister up, but I don't think it was as bad as it looked.  I do think you might have a bit of weird tan, though.  Oh well, I'm just relieved that you weren't in any pain!  There is nothing worse for a mom than to know their child is in pain because of something that she has done, or failed to do.  I know I will make mistakes, but I pray that they are few and far between and that no matter what happens, that you know how much I love you and have tried to shield you from any and all physical and emotional pain.  I know there will be times, when you can't understand why daddy and I do or don't do certain things, but I want to tell you right now, Chloe.  We love you more than we ever thought was possible, and there will never be a day when we do anything for any reason other than because we think it's what's best for you.  We are human and will fail even when we have the purest motives, but I just pray that no matter what, you will always know how much we love you.  Oh, how we love you...

Love, 

Mommy

Dear Chloe,

Hi Sweetie!  It's been a while since I've written, and you're changing so much every day.  You have 5 teeth now, and I'm pretty sure you're working on another one.  You seem to be suffering with allergies, so you've had a bit of hard time lately.  Nothing really gets you down, though - so you're still enjoying every day!

In the past month or so, you have become a world class explorer!  You love exploring in the kitchen.  I'm having a really hard time keeping everything in it's place.  Daddy needs to get some cupboard locks in place...  It never fails, you leave all of your toys in the living room and you would rather play with tupperware bowls and measuring cups.  Whatever floats your boat, I suppose.

Speaking of floating your boat...  You are now taking baths in the big girl bathtub!  You barely fit in the sink anymore.  You love the water and you really love to splash!  You open your mouth as wide as it will go and splash like a wild woman!  It's so cute.  Messy, but cute!  

You are walking really well, and actually do more running than walking.  Especially when you get ahold of something you're not supposed to have.  Like the remote.  You're favorite... You take off with me in hot pursuit.  It's never a dull moment around here, Chloe.

Grandma Ketchum and I took you to the park for the first time a few weeks ago.  You had a great time swinging and going down the slide.  I didn't know what you would think of either of those, but you are not easily frightened, so you loved it!  You like to be pushed on the swings and you even say "Wee!"

You've been "talking" a lot more.  You definitely say hi a lot, and momma. I think you say dogs, and even try to say Kay Kay and Sid. (You love those dogs and they have really come round were you're concerned.  I'm pleasantly surprised.)  I'm working on teaching you to say up, down, drink, and please.  Right now, you mostly talk a bunch of nonsense, but it won't be long!

You have been playing Monkey See, Monkey Do quite a bit.  I've taught you to put your hands on your head, and it's so cute!  We're working on learning to touch your nose, but you can't seem to find it too easily.  You're trying, though!  The other night, dad was sitting at the table with his hands clasped behind his head and you put your hands on your head!  Then he slapped his hands on the table and you did too!  Then he made quite a game of it and you played right along.  Hand on head, table, nose.  It was really funny.  You are quite the character, little miss!

We've been hanging out over at Benji and Ian's since they recently had a baby sister, Joy.  You really like the boys and they like you, too!  They love to hug you.  You love finding all of there bugs and cars, and they like pushing you in your stroller.  It's great practice for when baby Joy gets bigger.

Speaking of hugging, you've been doing the cutest thing!  When you give hugs, you say "aw..." it's so incredibly cute.   You hug everything in sight!  Us, the dogs, your toys...  You even hugged the vacuum cleaner the other day!  Complete with an "aw..."

One day, sort of out of the blue, you really seemed to love the little beanie elephant that Aunt Les gave you last year.  It's really soft and you love to hug it.  You've started sleeping with a really soft blanket the grandma Ketchum got for you and you love to hug that too!  I read somewhere that babies that suck their thumbs also love soft things.  I guess that explains why you always nuzzled your fleece sleeve on your jammies!  So very cute...  So now, anytime there is a soft blanket or stuffed animal near you, you like to slam your head down on it and nuzzle it and say "aw..." 

I told you you were a character...

We love you, Chloe.  You are such a good girl.  You are smart and sweet.  You are tenacious and tender.  You are cute and cuddly.

Like I always tell you, you are my favorite baby!

Love, 

Mommy

Dear Chloe,

Happy Birthday, my beautiful girl!  Today you are one year old!  I can hardly believe that one short year ago you were in my tummy.  It's true what they say, time really does fly when you have a baby.

Well,  you are hardly a baby anymore....  You are walking!  All over the place!  By yourself.  I know, I can't believe it, either.  :)  You are doing so well with it.  You always surprise me with how quickly you catch on to things.  Within a week of taking your first uncertain steps, you were off on your own and now - you are constantly pulling yourself up and taking off!  It's incredible.

You are babbling quite a bit and daddy is convinced you're trying to talk to us.  It sounds like you say hi all the time, but I'm not sure.  You've been saying momma and dada for awhile, but I still don't know if you understand the meaning attached.  I know it won't be long and we'll be carrying on deep conversations!  I can't wait for that!

You absolutely love to dance!  We listen to music a lot and wether it's the radio or one of your musical toys, you dance any time you hear anything resembling music.  It's adorable and I love it!

We had a really fun party for your birthday on Sunday.  All the grandmas and grandpas came!  Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa Amidon couldn't make it, but we'll go see them this week.  You wore a beautiful party dress and instead of shoes, I let you go barefoot and I painted your little toe nails.  You were so darling!

You weren't terribly interested in opening gifts, but you sure loved the cake.  You literally did a nose dive into it and didn't come up for air for about 3 minutes!  It was hilarious.  You didn't know what to think.  

You received a lot of very nice things.  A wagon, a baby doll and stroller, a Big Wheel, an Elmo blanket, lots of clothes, an art set, a xylophone (which I love playing with, by the way....), a really fun tea set that we all love playing with, a big girl book called The Secret Garden, that I can't wait to read together, some very special coins from the year you were born, a special doll made just for you with love from Daddy and I, and lots of other things.  You are a very blessed baby, Chloe.  For all the people that love you so much and celebrate you with wonderful gifts!

Your personality is really starting to come through, Chloe.  I just know that you are going to be an amazing young lady.  I know God has an incredible plan for you, Chloe.  We love you so much and feel so incredibly blessed to call you our daughter.  We thank God for you and look forward to all of the amazing things to come.

All my love, 

Mommy