The joys and difficulties of only one baby

The past couple days Henry and Bea have been on a road trip with my mom and I have been here alone with Clementine.  Justin is also out of town, so it's really just the two of us and I am forced to revisit the time when it was just Henry and I at home with no other kids yet.  In many ways I love it.  Since I don't have to be constantly wiping noses, finding blankies, answering questions, cooking and cleaning up dishes constantly I have been able to just enjoy my little baby like I used to.  We have wrestled, snuggled, laughed as I chased her around the house, made growling noises, copied each other, and I actually had time to just look into her eyes and see her darling smile on her face and let it soak in.  She's the only child I really don't have one on one time with every day so this has been such a blessing.

On the other hand, I remember how hard it is to be your one child's only entertainment.  Clementine is usually occupied by Henry and Bea, but these past couple of days when I have had to get things done around the house and there's no one to play with, she has found ways to entertain herself that she's never thought of before.  She has learned how to turn the lights on and off, she has pulled every dish towel out of the bottom drawer of the kitchen, she has attempted to crawl up the bookshelf, which is so scary.  I haven't ever had a climber and constantly climbs on the chairs to get on top of the table.  She is way more needy and wants me to hold her all the time.  I can see why some parents decide not to have more than one child because they think every child will be like the first.  Not so.  More than one is always better!  I'm so glad I have a little brood of children who play with each other, even if they run each other over with strollers and someone is always crying at all points of the day. I am so blessed to have my darling kids!

Clementine's crazy adventure out west

If you want to read the whole story HERE it is on Henry's blog

Clementine HATED this life jacket in the water.  Plus, it said HO Sports and that's just not appropriate for a virtuous young lady

My Dad torturing children as usual -- bringing Clemmie super close to the waterfall...

...and thinking it is the funniest thing in the world.  My dad used to do things like this to me, specifically when he would force me to dive through waves in California when I was really little.  The waves looked monstrous to me back then and I always got salt water up my nose and cried, but now it's one of my favorite things to do and I'm so grateful he forced me to do adventurous things...so I let him torture my children.  It's for their own good.

Grandma Teri keeping Clementine from falling off a cliff.  Thanks!

Here comes the little drunken sailor...

Chillin' in the boat..as stiff as a board in her strait..er..life jacket

Thanks heaven for chips.  She loved having her own bag.  She's the first of my children to actually be able to keep food in a little bag at such a young age.  Usually my kids just dump out the contents of the bag, but she knows the value of food and keeps it safe from the dirty floor.  She even cleans up if her food falls.

Clementine and Mommy in the boat.  Thanks to whoever got this shot for covering up my pregnancy belly. 

I'm sorry about the nudity, but this shot is significant because she stayed in this chair for at least a half an hour, unstrapped, eating hot dogs and other treats because our beach was covered in prickly thorns and she knew it was safer on the bench than wandering around, which she usually prefers to do

 Clementine is a joy to have around and she's growing up so fast! I'm glad because there's another baby on the way and I need her to grow up fast!  Love you little chubster.

Bryce Canyon hike

My parents ran a half marathon in Bryce Canyon so we drove down to watch and did a short hike with the kids afterward. The views were spectacular and the kids loved playing on the rocks and in the water. Here is Clementine with the grandparents. So cute!

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Clementine's first word

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Summer fun

Clementine at the Liberty park water feature.  I don't know what Bea is doing in the background there.

There isn't much difference between summer and winter in our family because we're always getting out and finding things to do.  With my kids getting older and also living in a new city, it's been extra fun finding activities to do in our new environment.  I have the advantage to have friends and family who already know a lot of the fun spots to take kids, and since Clementine is more mobile she's been able to enjoy exciting new adventures, most of which include being in the water.  There is a water feature at Liberty Park in downtown SLC that is a pint size representation of all the rivers and canyons that flow down through the mountains here for the kids to play in.  It's basically a tiny man made river system starting with fun waterfalls and fountains and converging to create a pond.  I think it's the most creative thing I have ever seen and the kids had a blast playing in the streams.

Getting better at walking every day! Although she has a bloody toe from being at the pool sans shoes.  I try to keep shoes on whenever possible.

She loves her swimming class with Mommy.  It's fun bonding time together, even when the pool is freezing.  Brrrr.

 

 

You might be wondering what she's wearing and it's a new Cost Guard approved flotation device for little kids.  Granted she's just a little bit too little for it, but she'll grow into it soon enough.  It can replace a life jacket which kids find so annoying.  I have all three of my kids in these when I'm alone at the crowded pool and they don't mind wearing them at all.  The fountains at our pool turn off and on when a button is pushed and is on a timer, so Clementine's favorite little fountains will come and go and when they stop, she crawls away, but soon the come back on again and she speedily returns.  It's like watching a game of cat and mouse as she comes and goes.  Also, there's this huge bucket that fills up and spills out over the whole fountain area every 15 minutes or so, which sends her running, but never reaches where she's playing.  It's a great pool and is really close!

Clementine in her fountains

not minding the splashes

She loved the Merry-go-Round at Liberty Park. 

Father's Day Gift

I had to go to Costco on Saturday because I had to pick up photos for this cute photo thing I made for Justin for Father's Day. It was basically DAD spelled out in those paper block letters that they sell at craft stores painted yellow with each kid holding one letter.  So Henry had one D and Clementine held the A and Bea the last D.  The photos weren't so fabulous because it was the middle of the day and there were some shadows, but the mountains behind us were really nice and I think it was fine for a last minute thing.  I put them in an IKEA triple frame and then sent a photo of it to Justin.  Well, I was standing in line to check out after having eaten a super spicy piece of peppered Jerkey and my mouth was on fire, so I walked briskly to fill my water bottle up with some more water and as I was walking in my cheap China Town slippers, I totally slipped and fell right in front of a billion people!!!! Luckily I'm a pro at falling down since I'm accident prone and didn't even get hurt one ounce but it was really embarrassing.  The weirdest thing is that no one came over to help me up.  They all just stared at me with open mouths and probably didn't want to lose their place in the snack bar line. haha. 

Thank you Alissa Packer for sharing your letters with me!! You're the best neighbor!

I just can't get enough

I don't think she could be cuter or happier.  I love nuzzling my chin into her neck to kiss and tickle her.  She's so squishy!

She loves to climb up on stuff and always smiles and waves at everyone. I love it when my kids are friendly.