WILL AND CHARLIE

Any book, pamphlet, handout, lecture, or tour dealing with Mayo Clinic begins with a brief history. Normally, it's something like this (taken from the Mayo Clinic website) :

Mayo Clinic developed gradually from the medical practice of a pioneer doctor, Dr. William Mayo, who settled in Rochester, MN in 1863. His dedication to medicine became a family tradition when his sons, Dr. William and Dr. Charles Mayo joined his practice in the late 1800's. From the beginning, innovation was their standard and they shared a pioneering zeal for medicine. As the demand for their services increased, they asked other doctors and basic science researchers to join them in the world's first private integrated group practice. Although the Mayo doctors were initially viewed as unconventional for practicing medicine through this teamwork approach, the benefits of a private group practice were undeniable.

Perhaps the most recognized display of Mayo Clinic history are the bronzed statues of Dr. William and Dr. Charles Mayo at the center of our downtown campus. We locals simply refer to them as "Will and Charlie." They are in the background of every department photo. They are the meeting spot when connecting with a friend for lunch. The statues are always surrounded by pristine landscaping and exude courageousness, dedication, and commitment.

Today JP and AA met Will and Charlie.
They weren't as impressed as I had hoped.

I plan to make our meeting an annual tradition ...

and perhaps someday my kids will appreciate the heritage of our city!

FIRST WORDS

AA is becoming quite the little chatterbox. She's proficient in adding an "a" to most consonants when she starts babbling (i.e. gaga, yaya, lala, baba). I've heard her rattle off "mamma" several times ... but, sadly, she doesn't say it on command. (Okay, so I'm not even confident she knows it is the word to be used only when referring to the woman who has been at her crib side throughout all hours of the night; the lady who carried her in womb for nearly ten months; the person who has doted on her every move ... I'm not bitter or anything!).

The one word she does say on command, and with intentional meaning ... is Dadda! (I think this was JP's first word too!) Her sweet, high pitched "Dadda" directed right at A is about the cutest sound I've ever heard.

And her second word? JP typically instigates this one ... he'll shout, "Addie, say uh-oh!" And she quickly responds "Uh-oh!" while clapping her hands! Big brothers can be so influential!

HOME DEPOSIT

Who knew that the shopping carts at Home Depot were so much fun?!?!

STRANGER DANGER

Lil' Miss AA has stranger danger.

Or maybe more like attitude. JP was never this complex. He's always been that happy-go-lucky boy who will talk to anyone (I wonder where that comes from!). I can count on one hand (maybe even two fingers) the number of times JP cried when I dropped him off at Miss Emmy's. Of course he's the most comfortable when A and I are around, but JP thrives in new social situations (especially when attention is given to him).

Thankfully, AA loves Miss Emmy. And me. And A. But anyone else ... well, it all depends on what mood she's in. AA is seriously the sweetest, vibrant, fully energized daughter I could imagine ... but when someone new comes into the scene she makes it quite apparent that she's tight with her ma and pa. She can turn off the streaming tears in one second flat. Full drama, let me tell you. She arches her back, clenches her fists, and sports the cutest quivering bottom lip.

While I'm hopeful this is just a phase (one that I was able to skip over with JP), I'm certain this is just the beginning stages of personality development in my strong willed daughter (okay, I wonder where that comes from!)

RAINBOWS

Single parenting on weekday mornings are crazy.

We need to leave the house by 7:15 a.m. I try to let the kids sleep in as long as possible ... so that normally leaves about thirty minutes for me to nurse AA, change diapers, feed both kids breakfast, get us all dressed, brush teeth, comb hair, change dirty diapers again, pack up the daily bottles, play referee, find the teddy for Miss Emmy's house and fly out the door (and, of course I've inherited the completely anal trait from my mother of never leaving any dirty dishes or big messes behind!).

But I don't claim to be a superhero. I'm just a mom.

I'm always searching for new tricks to speed along our morning routine. While we were eating our cereal today, I noticed the most brilliantly colored rainbow out of the corner of the window. The bold colors danced against the pale pink morning sky ... it was actually quite breathtaking. JP couldn't see it from the kitchen table, so (amazingly) he quickly finished eating and then he ran to the front window. "RAINBOW, mamma, prwetty RAINBOW" he shouted. JP instantly wanted to run outside and "get it." I explained to him that as soon as we were all dressed we could go outside to see it. Let's just say that we set a record today ... JP was dressed so fast and he even helped me get AA ready. I reminded him over and over again that we could go see the rainbow as soon as we were all ready. In no time at all, we were all getting our shoes on ... I grabbed the camera, we opened up the garage door ... and it was totally raining! There was no rainbow to be seen. The look on JP's face just broke my heart. I was so disappointed! "Mamma, move clouds. I want rainbow!"

Oh, how I wish I were that superhero.

SATURDAY IN THE PARK

It's just me and the kids this weekend. And I love it. (Don't get me wrong ... my back hurts from lifting both of these kiddos, I'm completely exhausted, and I wouldn't mind some adult conversation!). But it's just so relaxing (can I use that word?) and rewarding to have a few days of pure mom time. We've had so many busy weekends lately ... and with A away at Uncle M's bachelor weekend, I decided to not schedule any specific events. We took a hike to a "new park" yesterday ... and the kids loved it so much we hiked again today. It always seems like the kids act better when only one parent is around.

Either that or God only gives us what we can handle!

NINE MONTHS OLD

AA turned nine months this week!She's 28.5 inches tall (85th percentile) and nearly 19 pounds (55th percentile).
She sleeps 11-12 hours each night and normally takes two to three naps.
(Although this last week she's had a nasty head cold and awoke several times at night ... how did I do it before???) She sucks her thumb when she's tired.
No teeth yet. She's eating solids for lunch and dinner. She absolutely loves any kind of finger food ... her favorites include small pieces of peaches, bananas, avocado and sweet potato. (Her second favorites are anything she can find dried up under JP's high chair!)

AA is proficient at crawling. FAST. She walks along furniture but she doesn't quite comprehend the idea to walk forward. She isn't interested in holding my hand while trying to move forward. She can stand on her own for about five seconds at a time. She is BUSY. With an older brother to keep up with, this gal is always on the go. She does sit still for books and songs. AA loves to play "So Big!" and clap her hands.

AA has quite the personality. She is normally full of smiles, squeals, and silly sounds. She screams to get what she wants and then puts her smile back on when she succeeds! AA definitely prefers her mamma or daddy to any stranger. And she definitely loves her big brother!

PICKY EATER

I guess all good things come to an end.

My once amazing eater has turned picky. Actually, he's fallen in love with carbohydrates. Just months ago he would gobble up green beans by the handful. JP used to ask for more tomatoes before even trying his cookie. He loved green olives, jalapenos, and cheeseburgers. I'm certain JP would be content if I let him eat noodles and peanut butter toast for every meal. I've tried a few new recipes trying to at least "disguise" the vegetables ... but this kids seems to have it all figured out! He'll eat the bowl of noodles and leave the pile of peas on the side!

I'm crossing my fingers that this is just a short lived phase.

LABOR DAY WEEKEND

All summer long we've planned to head up north for the airshow over Labor Day Weekend. I guess this is our new tradition as JP attended the outdoor show last year as well. I'm certain that A enjoyed himself just as much as JP!
Being at Grandma's and Grandpa's for 4 nights meant a lot attention and treats.

The whole family came too ... Uncle M tried to play catch with JP

while Uncle J played with AA.

Aunt K and

soon-to-be Aunt J took the kids to the park.

Everyone was able to see just how much personality

my sweet girl holds.

Family weekends are always filled with chaos, relaxation, over-eating, laughter and new toys.

It's hard to imagine that these two will be the big cousins someday on my side!

BIRTHDAY

Happy
Birthday

Grandpa

A!