NICU Reunion Party

On Sunday, the NICU had a reunion party for all of their "graduates". They had food, live music, cookie decorating and some other activities for the kids. Since Charlotte is still a little too young to really take advantage of everything there we listened to music and talked with friends the majority of the 2 hour party. Since it is so close to Halloween they encourage people to dress up. Owen and I didn't wear a costume but Charlotte went as a pirate princess. It was nice to go back to the hospital for a happy occasion and show how well Charlotte is doing.

The end of the baseball season

Today starts an exciting day for some baseball fans but unfortunately, my White Sox didn't make the playoffs this year. Being a big baseball fanatic, I enjoy watching the playoffs that start today but it is bittersweet since my Sox aren't in the race for a championship this year. So for those who want my opinion, it was great to see the Sox almost knock the Tigers out of the division race and than they blew it against the Twins. So now those pesky Twins take on the Yankees and that offensive machine. Surprisingly, I'm rooting for the Twins as I think Joe Mauer is one of the best players in the game today and he plays the game the way it's meant to be played. In the NL, we see Pujols and the Cards, as probably the best team in the league right now. Again, I like Pujols and how he approaches and plays the game so I'll root for the Cards in the NL. Plus, given that they are a big Cubs rival, you know I have to pull for them!

So, here are my picks for this year's playoffs. And as you'll see, it burns me to pick the World Series winner as we'll hear about it for the next 6 months but I'm sure ESPN and their East Coast bias will love it.

ALDS
Twins vs. Yankees - Yankees wins in 4
Boston vs. Angels - Boston wins in 5

NLDS
Colorado vs. Philadelphia - Philly wins in 5
St. Louis vs. Dodgers - St. Louis in 4

ALCS
Yankees in 6

NLCS
St. Louis in 6

World Series
Yankees in 6

Spring Training starts in 6 months and I look forward to the 2010 White Sox!!

Charlotte Turns 1

This past Saturday, October 3rd, we celebrated Charlotte's first birthday. For those of you have been following this blog for the past year know that it was quite a rough and surprising start for her so we were so happy to celebrate the big day. We had a small party for her with family at our house and she was able to try cake for the first time. She received some great gifts too but as I'm sure with all one year olds, was more interested in the wrapping paper and even with that, lost interest after a few minutes. Donna and I were just so happy for her and how much she has grown over the past year.Charlotte is just waiting to dive in!

Cake is good and Great Grandma offering a little help in the background!

METALLICA!!!

While I was in Indianapolis last week for customer meetings, I worked in a little fun. Thursday night Metallica was in Indianapolis and of course, I had tickets. My fellow Metallica compatriots Clint, Halverson and Mr. H came into town to catch the show too. Before the show, we found a bar close to the Conseco Fieldhouse and enjoyed some pre-concert cocktails to wet our appetitie for 2 straight hours of hard rockin' fun! It was, as usual, a great show! I've seen Metallica too many times to count now and every time, I leave the show wanting more and looking forward to the next time I can catch them.

Food, Glorious Food!

Owen and I went on a food tasting and cultural walking tour on Saturday in the Bucktown/Wicker Park neighborhoods in Chicago with our friends Jason and Terry. Mother Nature cooperated and we had a beautiful day! We met our guide, Ben, at George's Hot Dogs around noon to start the tour. As could be expected our first food item was a Chicago style hot dog. I have to admit this was the first Chicago style hot dog I ever had. I'm a ketchup kinda girl so I never have the true Chicago style dog.

After George's we went to Hot Chocolate (http://www.hotchocolatechicago.com/) and had one of the best chocolate drinks I've ever tasted. I don't remember what it was called or what was in it but it was fabulous! It was served with a house made marshmallow that was pretty good too. As if we weren't stuffed already we went to the third stop, Goddess & Grocer. We had a taste of a antipasto salad that was really good too. Luckily after that stop we did quite a bit of walking to work up our appetite again. We were already pretty stuffed and we had three more places to go. The fourth stop was Piece (http://www.piecechicago.com/flash/index.html) which is a restaurant and brewery. We had a taste of pizza and some of their own brewed beer. The next stop was Sultan's Market (http://chicagofalafel.com/) which is a Middle Eastern food store and deli. Owen had his first falafel sandwhich! The last place was iCream (http://www.icreamcafe.com/). This isn't your typical ice cream store. They make your ice cream on the spot using liquid nitrogen. Pretty cool to watch them make it and it was yummy!

After three hours of eating and walking we weren't ready to go home yet. We stayed in the Bucktown area and found a bar where we sat outside and enjoyed great weather and good friends. It was a great time people watching too! :-)

Home Improvement / Boat Ride / NICU Follow-up

HOME IMPROVEMENT
Well, I haven't been good at keeping the blog updated so we have a whole bunch of stuff wrapped into one entry. As all you homeowners know there is always something that needs to be done around the house. Whether it is a small project or a big one it is always something. Unfortunately, it seems like the majority of our projects are the big ones. We have been talking about getting our fence replaced because the one that we inherited with the house wasn't exactly maintained well. As you can see it was falling down...















if not already down!!















We decided that it was time for a new fence. One home improvement project down - God only knows how many to go.





























BOAT RIDE
We went up to the lake this weekend to enjoy some well deserved summer weather. "Captain" Kyle was nice enough to drive us around the whole weekend in Kyle & Teri's boat. Charlotte wasn't overly excited about the life vest that was almost as big as she was.















Kyri got driving lessons from her Dad.















Charlotte loved to feel the wind in her hair...














So did Teri















NICU FOLLOW-UP
Charlotte had her 9 month (corrected age) follow up visit today. She is now 20 lbs 1.9 oz and 29 1/3" inches. Since Charlotte already goes for physical and occupational therapy I wasn't too concerned about that part of the follow up but there was still the speech therapist to talk to. Charlotte does have some hesitation with new foods and the speech therapist gave us some tips on how to get Charlotte more curious with food. She also gave us tips on how to help encourage Charlotte to talk a little more. Maybe by our next visit in December we'll have a little chatter box!

Charlotte has been going to PT for a little over a month now and we are starting to see some big progress. She has decided that waiting for us to give her the toys that she wants takes to long so she'll just crawl and get them herself. Yep, CRAWLING!!! We're so proud of her! We were able to get a little of her crawling on video. She seems to like to play in Artu's water bowl so that was her target on this crawling mission.

Relaxing...

Well, we have been taking advantage of the nice weather that we have been having. On Tuesday, Owen took the day off and we all went downtown. Charlotte took her first train ride and seemed to enjoy it. We stopped at a small park and fed Charlotte before we wandered around and found a place for Owen and me to eat. We ended up
eating at The Green Door Tavern (www.greendoorchicago.com), it was a really nice restaurant and we had a really nice time. If you are ever in the area I suggest checking it out.



Since we can't go downtown all the time we have to find other ways to relax around the house. What's better than getting in the pool again?? Charlotte and I took a little dip today and enjoyed the sun. Charlotte had a good time...



















until I got bored and started messing with her hair. She seemed to get a little ticked off. What do you think?

The DuPage County Fair

OK, who doesn't love a good county fair?!?! Well, we made our annual visit to the DuPage County Fair to enjoy the animals, corn dogs and everything else the fair brings. Heck, I had my first corndog at the Boone County Fair that I used to go to every year with my Grandma and Grandpa Burritt. My Dad is a Director for the fair board so we know people on the inside....and get us a discount on admission! Charlotte was introduced to racing pigs, bunnies, cows and horses for the first time. She wasn't overly thrilled at first but started to like the animals. By the end of the night, Charlotte made it clear that it was time to go and end her first fair visit. I think she'll enjoy it more when she can walk and enjoy a corndog for herself!

Lake Summerset

We spent this past weekend at the house in Lake Summerset to relax for a long weekend. While it was relaxing, apparently mother nature didn't get the "TPS Report" that the Burritt's requested some warm and sunny weather. Instead, it was mainly cloudy, rainy with the sun shining only now and then. Even with the weather, we were able to visit the beach shortly, Charlotte got her first boat ride (on a friend's boat since Kyle's boat a.k.a. The Anchorman is in the shop) and we were able to play golf. Well, Kyle and I actually played 15 holes before a monsoon came and washed out the rest of our round. Even though the weather was less than ideal, it was a good time as always.

Charlotte here...

Hi everyone! It has been awhile since you have heard from me and I need to fill you in on what's going on. I went to the doctor today for my 9 month check up. I KNOW! I'm 9 months old...how crazy is that?!?!? I can't believe it either. It has gone by so quick and I'm loving every minute of it. I know you are all wondering so I'll tell you, I'm 18 lbs. 2.5 oz and 28 1/4 " long. Long way from 3 lbs. 15.5", huh? The visit was great until some horrible women came in, smiled and then stuck my leg with something sharp. I don't know what the heck it was but it hurt really bad! Luckily I don't have to go back there until after my first birthday.

As some of you may or may not know, I went for a follow up visit with my friends (doctors and therapists) at the NICU last month. They thought I was doing good but they said my muscles were a little tight. They suggested that I get a physical therapy evaluation. Mom took me a few weeks ago for that and Nancy, the PT, agreed that I could use some regular PT. My Mom took me to my first PT session last week and I rocked! I've all ready started to roll over because of the therapy and I'm sure I'll be crawling in no time. I can't wait to start crawling! My doggy, Artu, just teases me by walking by but once I start to crawl I'll be able to catch and pet him! I'm pretty good at giving kisses too so I'm sure he'll be the recipient of a few of those.

Besides the PT I'm having a pretty laid back summer but I also want to tell you about my parents. I think that they mostly write about me so I'll tell you about them. First of all, my Daddy is AWESOME!! I lucked out in the Daddy department. He plays with me and is so silly...I LOVE IT!!! He makes me laugh all the time! Daddy has already taught me about baseball...he talks about his Sox and they seem to be doing okay. I guess they are on some kind of break at the moment so he won't teach me anymore for a few days. He also talks about some weird game called golf...I don't understand that too much. He seems so excited to go and play and when he comes back he doesn't seem like he enjoyed it too much. Oh well, I just get excited because he is home!

Now for Mommy. I love her a whole bunch but man, she needs to relax a little bit when it comes to me! Daddy just lets me play and have fun but Mommy is all about tummy time. I heard Nancy tell her that I should have 90 minutes of tummy time a day and I swear, Mommy has a stop watch going to make sure that I do all 90 minutes. I guess it is good for me but when I'm President are they really going to care how much tummy time I did??? ;-) Mommy and I do get to play a lot. Hopefully the weather warms up again and I get to go back in my pool. I didn't like it at first but now I love it!

Thanks to everyone who keeps reading about my family. I can't wait to see everyone soon.

Love,
Charlotte Faith

4th of July weekend

Even though the weather was not what I envisioned for July, we had a nice holiday weekend. We started on Thursday night by going to Bartlett's fest and enjoying some fair food and then Friday we went to the Taste of Lombard with Grandma and Grandpa Burritt for some more fun and "fine dining."

Since the weather was not as warm and as dry as we would have liked we didn't do too much on Saturday. We relaxed around the house and then went over to some friends' house for a barbecue. We decided to watch the fireworks from our front yard as Charlotte decided it was bed time.

Today was Bartlett's parade and Charlotte took it all in.



















She seemed to have a good time, even blowing kisses at the parade participants


















But after a while the excitement was too much for her to handle and it was nap time once again.

Golf Trip

This past weekend, it was time for my annual golf trip with the boyz. Each year we head out for a long weekend to hit the links and create some havoc by chasing that little white ball around. This was our fourth year and Fox Hills Golf Resort in Mishicot, WI was happy to host this year's pool of talented golfers. We arrived on Friday to play our afternoon 18, followed by 36 on Saturday and the final 18 on Sunday. During the length of the 72 holes we saw some Tiger-esque shots and some well...on the opposite end. Kyle ended up taking the weekend's individual title (the first day's score of 77 did not hurt) while Clint and Riebe (a.k.a. Okie Doke) took the team trophy. This is the fourth year in a row Kyle has taken the individual title but I have a feeling some of us will try to pull a Mickelson and knock him off the top tier next year.

Golf is my one main addictions and a weekend of golf with my good friends (and a few cocktails to dull the pain of the bad shots) is just an awesome time! I'm already looking forward to next year!

Double Trouble

Owen was out of town this past weekend on his annual golf trip (he'll fill you in later) so I was on my own with Charlotte. Teri and Kyri came over on Saturday and the girls got to play together. Teri had to leave for a little bit so I was in charge of both Kyri and Charlotte. As you can see they played really well together. I put on an educational video for them to watch which kept them occupied for a little bit. Kyri and Charlotte would tap each other every once in a while to make sure the other was paying attention.


Once the video was over and it was up to me to "entertain" them things did not go so smooth. I think they just wanted to watch me sweat so they both started to cry. I know that I shouldn't have been recording but rather trying to comfort them...but as you can see, it was too cute not to record. Don't worry Kyri and Charlotte calmed down once I picked them up.

Father's Day and Pool Time

Owen got to celebrate his first Father's Day, but we didn't let him relax too much. He pulled some weeds, cut the grass, changed one of Charlotte's dirtiest diapers to date, ran over to my Dad's for a quick visit, came home where he made fruit salad for dinner, then grilled (some really good) chicken and FINALLY got to sit and relax and enjoy his day. We had Larry, Laurel, Kyle, Teri, and Kyri over to celebrate the day too.




















Owen and I have been promising warm weather to Charlotte for a very long time. I'm sure that she thinks she was living in Alaska for the first 6 months she was home. Luckily the warm/hot weather is here and we can enjoy it. Since we don't have a air pump I blew up the pool on my own and got everything set for Charlotte to enjoy it. I made sure there were toys in the pool, the water was warm, she had her sunblock on...we were all set. I put her big toe in the water and she let out a scream that I've never heard before! This can't be my daughter...not wanting to lounge in the pool?!??! Hopefully tomorrow will be more successful!

Weekend in Ely

This past weekend the Burritt family took their first long road trip to Minnesota. We packed up the family truckster on Wednesday and drove to Minneapolis where I had some business meetings on Thursday and Friday. While it was a long drive to Minneapolis, Charlotte was really good except for the last 30 minutes when she was telling us she had enough of the drive and wanted out. While I was working, Donna was able to enjoy the nice weather and the surroundings of the North Loop area of downtown Minneapolis. After my meetings on Friday, it was time to pack up the car again and head to Ely, MN to visit Donna's Uncle and Aunt who have a house in Ely, MN. It was about a 4 1/2 hour drive to Ely when once again Charlotte was thankfully good. Mom and Dad were ready to get out of the car to enjoy a relaxing weekend just as much as Charlotte. We spent the weekend with Uncle Ron and Aunt Diane in their log cabin in the woods of Ely. Ron and Diane were happy to see us and opened their awesome home to us. The weather was beautiful all weekend and was really nice to spend a few days of relaxation in such a great atmosphere. Diane fed us all weekend long with some local treats including some of the best brats I've ever had from Zup's. The pictures don't do their house or the woods justice as both are absolutely beautiful. We can't wait for our next visit!!

8 Months Old

Not too much is new with Charlotte. She has started eating solid foods which she seems to enjoy. So far squash and sweet potatoes are the favorites. She goes for her 6 month follow up at the NICU next week so hopefully we get a positive report.

Caught in the act...

Lake House

We went up to our lake house for the Memorial Day weekend and had a great time. Kyle, Teri and Kyri were there along with Teri's brother, Bryan, and his wife Kay and their new baby girl Aubry. All the girls did great and kept us entertained the entire time.
We tried to get a picture of all three girls when when they were awake, happy, and looking at the camera. As you can see, we settled for one - awake!


Charlie had her first experience with water other than the bath. We took her down to the beach and dipped her feet into the water. She wasn't overly thrilled with the idea but she didn't seem to mind it either. This is a good sign because I like to spend a lot of time at the beach when we are there.













After she went for her "dip" she relaxed with Dad in the shade on the beach.









It was a nice relaxing weekend but we did have to keep the girls in line. Kyri did get a little out of hand so her parents had to put her in time-out underneath the coffee table. Actually, all the adults needed to step away and she needed a safe spot where the dogs wouldn't pester her!

Charlotte's Baptism

Charlotte was baptized yesterday and we couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. The ceremony was great, the weather was great, and it was great to be around family and friends on such a big day. Charlotte's Auntie Teri and Uncle Kyle did us the honor of being Charlotte's Godparents. I think that is the reason that Charlotte was so good during the ceremony...she was being held by Auntie Teri!

After the service it was nice to relax with everyone back at our house. Thank goodness the weathermen were right and it was a gorgeous day! Great-Grandma and Charlotte were able to enjoy the beautiful weather out on the deck.

Road Trip

We took our first road trip with Charlotte and it couldn't have been a nicer time! We went to visit Michael, Laura and Nan Robey (and their dog Bowden) down in Casey, IL. Michael was Owen's fraternity brother and roommate at Eastern. We were a little nervous since Charlotte is still not consistent when it comes to sleeping through the night but they assured us they didn't mind a crying baby. We made the 4 hour drive on Friday and just took it easy for the rest of the night once we got there.

On Saturday Charlotte started the day off with horseback riding. The horse was VERY well behaved so we weren't too nervous about her getting hurt.

Once she was done horseback riding we were off to lunch at the Kandy Kitchen in a neighboring town, Greenup, IL. It is an old fashioned soda shop that has really good food and homemade ice cream. All of us ate too much at lunch and didn't have any room for dessert but Nan rose to the challenge and ate all of her ice cream.

After lunch we headed over to Cameo Vineyards for our first wine tasting and winery tour. All of the wines we tasted were from Illinois grapes and bottled right there at the winery. We had a really nice time there just relaxing and tasting some local wine.The weekend was relaxing and it is always nice to have a few extra hands who are willing to hold Charlotte at any time. We thank the Robey's for being so inviting and accommodating for our first big trip with Charlotte. We hope all of our adventures with Charlotte go this smooth and are just as fun!

1st Easter

Charlotte had another 'first' over the Easter weekend. She went to her first church service and I'm happy to say that she was a little angel for the whole time! We were prepared to whisk her out the door if she started to make a fuss but she did great.

The Easter Bunny made a stop at our house too for Charlie. She got a little stuffed animal, some headbands and some candy. The candy just happens to be kinds that Owen and I like so we are in luck! As you can tell from Charlotte's expression she was shocked that the Easter Bunny remembered her.

We went over to my brother's place for Easter dinner and had a great time. Melanie did an awesome job with the meal...I'm still stuffed! Charlotte got to play with her two older cousins, Bailey and Austin. Bailey kept Charlotte entertained by showing Charlotte her toys.

Charlotte had her 6 month doctor's visit on Tuesday and he said that she is doing great! Not only is she doing great for her corrected age of 4 months but she is even doing well for her actual age. She is now 14 lbs. and 26 inches. We got the green light to start mixing some rice cereal in her formula. Once she can handle that we'll start spoon feeding her the cereal...she is growing up so fast!

Charlotte doesn't really understand Easter yet but she does know that the Easter Bunny is coming. I took her to meet the Easter Bunny today and as you can tell from the picture, she was really impressed.

Opening Day!

Opening Day is finally here! We were all pumped for it yesterday but Mother Nature had different plans. This year the Sox have another fan in little Charlie. If she screams for them as loud as she does at 3am they will do great this year! Owen is at the game today but we had to take a picture of Daddy and daughter in their Sox gear.

Even though Charlotte will not be at the actual game we are trying to make her first Opening Day as authentic as possible!



















Post Game Show -- In case you missed it, the Sox won their first game of the 2009 season 4-2 over the K.C. Royals. It was a bit chilly while tailgating but for those of us who braved the weather, we saw a great game. Opening Day is one of my favorite days of the year as I know I get to look forward to 6 months of Sox baseball!! Now onward for the White Sox quest to bring another World Championship to Chicago and the South Side! -- Owen

It has been a busy week at the Burritt household. Owen's birthday was on Wednesday and Charlotte turned 6 months old on Friday.
Picture courtesy of Auntie Teri


Charlotte and I started taking and infant massage class too. When we went for Charlotte's 3 month follow up with the NICU they suggested the massage class as a way to loosen up Charlotte's muscles. The NICU feels that they are a little ridged and the massage class could help. It is a fun class and it is also great bonding time with Charlotte.