ktg: 11 months

To be completely honest, Kate's 11th month wasn't groundbreaking. She did a lot of fine tuning of some previously acquired skills and got even cuter but nothing astounding. She is getting better and better with walking with less and less assistance. 

Kate continues to show us that she is "soooooo big", clicks her tongue, says "yuck," "mama," "dada," "sock," "ba(ll)," and a few other sporadic words. She babbles all day long in her low voice and squeals and screeches in her high falsetto the rest of the time. She did perfect her wave this month and her dainty little fingers are constantly opening and closing to say hello to anyone who will look - including herself. Still not clapping, but she does a funny little wash of her hands - and that could very well be attributed to her seeing Rett syndrome on a daily basis. Sigh. At least we can tell it's controlled. I love watching her scrunch her little nose up and after she cries, I love the tear that sits on her chubby cheek. And I love that she lifts to her tippy toes any chance she gets. 

Still no new teeth! Just those two bottom ones that have been hanging out for a few months all by themselves. 

She can dance like the best of them and has added a side-to-side move to her repertoire this month. She was already incredible at the up-and-down bob. One of my favorite things is to watch her when she doesn't know I'm looking. She was even dancing to my sewing machine the other day - I'd see her start to bob every time I pushed the pedal down, then stop when I stopped. 

Kate is a climber. She loves to get on and in anything and everything. And it is so funny to watch her try. She is great at crawling up the stairs and, whenever the gate is open, she races to the bottom step and waits for us. If we don't come, she makes a peep to get our attention. When we finally arrive, she squeals with delight and races as fast as she can until we catch her. 

She loves emptying the tupperware drawer and is getting faster and faster at it. She also loves to help me unload the dirty dishwasher - and is especially drawn to the knives. Nice. She is a tub splasher and loves to try and stand up, but immediately sits down as soon as we look at her with a stern face. She still loves emptying the toilet paper roll and has become so fast and efficient at it, that it sits perched in a nearly-permanent residence on the bathroom counter instead. When we get her in the morning, she sits up immediately and then falls back onto her back when we go to pick her up - giggling like crazy.

Every morning Kate gets to carry my phone downstairs and she carries my keys to/from the car - she takes her responsibilities very seriously. 

She is beginning to appreciate the spring weather and doesn't mind the wind as much anymore, but still doesn't love the grass. 

She sleeps from 7:30-6:30 every day (and is usually woken up by her big sister or she might sleep longer) and takes two naps, usually 2-3 hours each. 

She eats nearly everything, but is becoming a dawdler at the dinner table. If the window is open, she would rather wave to passersby than eat. If music is playing, she would rather dance. If Leah is loud, she would rather stare. And if she knows mom is in a hurry, she would rather take her time. I try to not let her know that I care. She is also down to one bottle a day (first thing when she wakes up) and loves her sippy cup of milk at all other times. She could easily drink four sippies full each day.

Kate just fits perfectly into our family and I know Ryan, Leah and I can barely imagine the time when she wasn't a part of our daily lives. She makes us laugh, drives us up the wall and melts us like butter on a daily basis and we couldn't love her more. 

Weight: ??

Height: ??

Head Circumference: ??

Diaper size: 3

Clothing size: 12-18 months (that belly is bigger than it looks!)

Longest stretch of sleep: 12 hours

NEW Nicknames: Kater-banana (courtesy of her Marshall cousins)

Tuck Gives - Studio 54

Each year, Tuck puts on a silent and live auction called Tuck Gives - an event created to fund summer internships for Tuck students with nonprofit or public sector organizations. Students, faculty, staff and more donate goods and services from handstitched quilts to weekend getaways to free babysitting to themed dinners for large groups to a plate of cookies. The funds raised supplement the compensation these student interns receive, enabling them to take positions they might not otherwise be able to take. Since its inception in 1996, more than $600,000 has been raised to support 135 interns in 74 organizations worldwide. 

Each year, as a part of the live auction, the students and Tuck community gather together dressed in that year's particular theme. Last year was the roaring 20s and it is the one event I am still sad I missed (I'm still convinced I was born in the wrong decade). This year, the theme was Studio 54 and students dressed up in 70s disco and glam. 

It was nothing short of a miracle that I got Ryan to dress up - he even donned a wig (Kate wasn't very fond of it) 

and bell bottoms (I used some of his old jeans and this tutorial). 

I did my best to get Farrah Fawcett curls with my slow-growing hair that turned out...okay. 

And off we went. 

The auction was loud and crazy and so much fun. Especially the photo booth. 


 

I just love the Tuck community and the lengths they go to to support one another.

As a side note, Ryan and I participated in a Tuck Gives March Madness Bracket. For a $10 buy-in, the top three each received money to bid on items at the silent and live auctions. Mr.  Layton dind't fare too bad, right?

But if you'll look a little farther north, you'll see another familiar name. Bam! Beat him again. 

general conference

No church. Cinnamon rolls. Sleeping. General shenanigans. 

It must be general conference. 

As always, some fabulous talks. Click here to read more.

Sugarbush farm

Early release days can be dangerous 'round these parts. Lots of spare time and not much to do. I rarely do craft projects with Leah because honestly, it's a lot of work for both of us. And working isn't fun for nor fair to Leah on an afternoon off school. We are really pinching the pennies right now, so we can't really do things that cost any money either. It's too chilly and wet to play at the park and too muddy to let the girls wander freely on the field.

So, I decided to check my "Tucket List" (more on that later) and cross off one more item before we leave: Sugarbush Farm. Oh, you know, just your run of the mill maple sugaring farm a few towns over. What? Your town doesn't have a maple sugaring farm? Weird. You must not live in New Hampshire. Or Vermont. Because that's what we have.

I talked Michelle into coming with us so the six of us drove down the seriously bumpy roads (it really is in the middle of nowhere!) and entered an old house-turned cheese dipping factory and store. 

We tasted all four grades of maple sugar (grade A medium is still my fav) as well as a handful of cheeses. They were amazing! Hickory and Maple? Extra Aged Sharp Cheddar? Sage? Mountain Jack? Smoked with Salami? Smoked with Onion? Mountain Bleu? Jalapeno and Cayenne Pepper Cheddar? Take your pick. They were all delicious. 

After the taste testing, we watched them dip and seal the cheese in wax for preservation and shipping and color coding. 

We walked through the store and purchased some cheese and maple souvenirs. Yummy ones, of course. 

Then we headed outside to see the horses, walk through the boiling room (it had been too cold the previous day so they weren't actually boiling the maple they had tapped), and walk on the nature trail. It was a bit too muddy for me to carry Leah and Kate, so we wandered around at the bottom of the trail instead. 

All in all, a successful, delicious, entertaining and informational early release.

march in an instant

March was full. Full to the brim. We drove a lot, ran a lot, vacationed a lot, worked a lot, schooled a lot, played a lot, cried a lot, laughed a lot, tried to live in the moment a lot, but also looked forward to our future a lot. We really packed it in this month and we reaped the rewards.

I also gloated a lot because my bracket is killing Ryan's right now. 

Go March!

two weeks and counting

Fourteen days. 

Marathon Monday is in fourteen days.

And at risk of jinxing myself, I actually feel ready. Whatever that means. 

I'm not sure I would ever say I'm "ready" to run 26.2 miles. I think very few non-professional runners would. But I feel like this go 'round I've prepared as sufficiently as I can and much better than my previous two marathons. 

I've put in the blood, sweat and tears. Really, I've experienced all three.

I've put in the miles. Since my training officially commenced on December 8th, I have run 343.72 miles - and plan to add 30 miles, give or take, to that number before race day. I ran two 20 milers this time, which I've never done before {and let's be honest, I was wondering what crazy person thought that was a good idea when I headed out the door last Saturday for the second}. But it was a great decision as far as my mental preparedness is concerned.

I've trained on hills. So. Many. Hills. And I've improved more than I could ever have imagined on those hills. I know that training will be worth it when Heartbreak presents itself, which I was finally able to see as I drove to Boston last week for Leah's Rett appointment. Also good for mental preparation.

I've run in sub zero temps, ice, rain, snow, wind and overall blah and bleak winter weather. 

Together with Ryan and so many friends and family members, we have raised $10,000 for Rett syndrome research. 

And so, in two weeks, I'll line up in Hopkinton and give it my all until I cross the finish line in Copley Square. Because that's what Leah does every day - she gives it her all. I don't know what will happen on Marathon Monday - so much is out of my control. But I do know I've put in the work and I feel ready. 

So, ready or not, Boston, here I come. 

 {I love this pic from my 18 miler in early March. Usually the speed sign doesn't even know I exist. It just sits there, black and blank, taunting me. But that day, apparently I was going fast enough for it to give me the time of day.}