My Girl

It should come as no surprise that Corinne is not into getting her picture taken. She can be so silly! And shy.
A little better...tickling is a good trick:)

Changes

20 months has brought lots of changes for Corinne. Her vocabulary has had yet another explosion, along with an even more significant milestone: talking in (modified) sentences! Corinne announces regularly, "This is ________ " (insert: baby, train, Lilly, water etc.). Or she might narrate what someone is doing, "Daddy is sit(ting)". We'll work on the grammar later:) Lately Corinne has shown a new interest in crayons and chalk, so we spend time decorating our patio any chance we get. Little C is pretending with play food, animals, and just about anything else her little imagination can conjure up words for. She also loves to wear both Brett's shoes and mine around the house! We often catch the sweet sound of Corinne humming or singing softly to herself as she walks outside or plays with toys. "Thank you" has finally joined "please" in laying a small foundation for, and introduction to, manners. And both bedtime and nap time have moved earlier as a result of this new (brain) activity. (Thankfully I finally figured out that her sudden sleep interruptions were just a product of exhaustion! I can check that mystery off the list as solved.) I believe she is getting her eye teeth, which would bring her total count to...16 when they finally all come crashing through her poor gums. We can't believe that Corinne is rounding the corner and heading for TWO years old! While we've seen flashes of what some have warned us are the "terrible twos" I have to say that Corinne is still a sweet little girl. I think the "twos" will be quite terrific!

Future Prom Dates

Do they look so cute, or what? This little boy lives down the street from us and regularly asks, "Does Corinne want to play?" Mind you, he just turned 5! So we don't let anything unsupervised take place:) Haha. He's just a little too suave, though, don't you think? But really, a great kid from a great family. Maybe some day...

Two of a Kind

What else is there to say? These two are so silly together!

Imagination--

Corinne has been using hers a lot lately! The following scene has become quite common lately...I might be cleaning up lunch or making dinner and I'll hear these sweet "HELLO"s coming from Corinne. The first time it happened I was baffled by this (and the other noises coming from the sun room), so I peeked in on Corinne to find that she had set up all her Noah's ark animals (and a few toys that weren't animals!) on the sun room floor. And, she was walking a few of them along the step leading into our dining room. As for the "HELLO", it was none other than lady lion (that's how we've taught her to differentiate the male from the female/mane-vs -no mane) saying hello to lion! She was holding them up to one another and making voices for them as they happily said "HELLO" to one another! Priceless. Look closely at the next two pictures and you'll notice that I caught Corinne saying "HEL--LO". Each picture captures the two respective syllables. Friendly animals, aren't they?!

Besides noticing the neat rows of animals, the other significant observation that we made from these pictures is how grown up Little C looks! Unbelievable how much she looks like a little girl these days! Afterall, she is almost 20 months old:)

Vacation Favorites

This picture might just be my favorite from all of vacation. Vacation was wonderful for many reasons, but perhaps the most important being that Corinne got lots of time with her cousins! All of whom live out of town.

Corinne learned how to play hide-and-go-seek. Well, kind of. Corinne had little patience for hiding and then waiting to be found.

And, a whole week with Grandma Schatz!! What more could a girl ask for?! We picked a beautiful night on the beach to do our own Schatz Family photo shoot. (You may have to enlarge them)

Yes, it's true. We only know how to produce girls in the Schatz family! And, of course, Hilton Head '09 was our first chance to introduce Corinne to the beach. And we're so glad she loved it! (Good thing, because it's a pre-requisite to be part of our family..)

We found out that Corinne likes the taste of both sand and salt water. What?!?
And she was willing to try out the raft that her cousins brought. But only on the shore--the jellyfish were out in full effect and actually stung several members of the family during the course of the week. Smart girl, Corinne. Corinne loved playing with this bucket, which I believe is bigger than her:)

4 Years

Four years ago today Brett and I were married on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. (Best decision I ever made!) While on vacation there last week we took Little C to the Mariott Beach & Golf Resort in Palmetto Dunes Plantation where we had both our ceremony and reception. Here are some pictures--I included the 2nd one so you could get a better view of the ceremony spot. Picture white chairs set up on the grass to face the ocean, 65 of our closest family and friends, and a breathtaking evening at the beach. It was truly a spectacular venue and everything I had dreamed of. Happy Anniversary, Brett. All of my love.

Girl Genius

I don't have any pictures for this one, but I do have one small victory! Tonight after dinner Corinne used the potty for the first time! We were downstairs in the kitchen and she told me "potty". When I asked her she assured me she had to go, so I whisked her upstairs to the potty and-- to my sheer and utter surprise--she went potty! Uh, did I mention that we just bought the potty this morning, and only set it up this afternoon?!!! Let's hope she picks up on everything this fast! I knew she was gifted :)

Quick Pics

Just a few really quick pictures for our fans who can't stand it any longer (you know who you are!) Corinne is loving the ocean, waves, sand, and the beach in general. She also loves to taste the salt water:) Hard to believe our week is almost over. Sigh.

Survived the Trip

Thanks to a McDonald's with an outdoor picnic area and a Weeping Willow Tree, we survived the drive to Hilton Head Island. At our dinner stop we put Corinne in her pajamas...and shoes so she could still play and walk. She loved hiding in the Weeping Willow branches with Grandma Schatz!

Stay tuned for vacation pictures!