The Growing Caldwell Family

Before Sarah Graves was born we received a gift of a small bear attached to a square of blanket from Aaron's cousin, Melanie. It was a sweet gift and the square of blanket had a soft fleecy fabric as well as satin and the bear had soft fur. Sometime during her first year Sarah Graves attached herself to it and to her blankie. We began calling the toy bear her lovie. She would later differentiate it from her grandmother by calling it her toy lovie and made sure to let you know if wasn't the same as her grandma lovie!  Her lovie has been by her side since. She brought it to school, she needed it for car rides, for bedtimes, and for outings. It was her comfort. She rubbed the fur in a soothing way to fall asleep and it was how you knew she was tired or feeling very relaxed. Over the years the pink faded after many washings and the fur started to have bare patches. When I read The Velveteen Rabbit, I envision her lovie becoming real . The kind of love a child has for that spec

I think sometimes our evening time is hectic and dinnertime is not the peaceful, family time that I envision. However, I also know that one day these guys will be bigger and I will want to remember what it was like to have dinner and fun time with a 2 and a 5 year old. Tonight we had the pleasure of dining with a pumpkin and a princess! It was one of those peaceful meals where food was passed, children ate, and we mostly stayed in our seats enjoying the meal! After dinner the kids played with kinetic sand. I banned play-doh from the house, but the sand sticks together pretty well and it doesn't get ground into the rug, so I gave it a try letting them play with it. Charlie did pretty well and Sarah Graves gets the idea of it! She was quite proud of herself using the horse mold and adding a horn to make a unicorn! Kinetic sand did Charlie in, but SG was up for playing with some silly putty like stuff that a friend of hers made and gave to her. It's pr

Sarah Graves loves to do art and color. I don't know if every kid at her school gets into art like she does, but every day she comes home with new creations! These are a few of the ones I wanted to remember from her lately. She was pleased with herself for thinking of coloring in the whole page rather than just coloring the heart! She drew her family. Charlie is clearly drawn as the baby, she gave me long, blonde hair, and drew her daddy and I taller than her.  She has taken to writing her full name. She has spent a lot of time practicing her name and pretty much has it mastered. 

Charlie had a bout with a stomach bug over the weekend. We didn't realize he was sick at all until we were in Kohl's looking at kids' clothes and he threw up in the aisle! I guess we should have suspected it when he ate a bowl of blueberries and commented that they tasted weird (yes, he actually said, "these taste weird"). He was so embarrassed and kept saying, "I sorry. I didn't mean to." Poor kid. We weren't the least bit upset with him, just surprised by the whole thing and trying to figure out what to do. We bought him a new outfit and asked for someone to come mop it up and headed home. The same thing happened on the way home and I felt worse for him as he sat there in his car seat feeling disgusting. A bath, warm pjs, and watching his favorite program du jour, Bubble Guppies, helped him feel better. He ran a low fever and had an upset stomach all day Sunday. We kept him home on Monday and he was feeling better. Here's hoping

We had our own little celebration at home for Mardi Gras. I get so homesick this time of year, so we decided to do a little something. Dinner from Popeye's and king cake was how we celebrated! McEntyre's Bakery here in Smyrna makes a great king cake! I shared a piece with SG's teacher who is from the New Orleans area and she agreed it was excellent. We like the cream cheese with cinnamon pecan. Sarah Graves got the baby! Charlie thought he got the baby, too! It was actually a chunk of icing, but he was happy! Livy was snoozing so sweet! Sarah Graves and Charlie love their cousin and she seems pretty happy with them!

Sarah Graves made her first communion on Sunday!  Jeanne' and I made our first communion at the same time and Jeanne' was close in age to Sarah Graves when she made hers. My mom made us matching dresses with smocking and lace. The dresses were a labor of love and we were so pleased that Sarah Graves could wear Jeanne's dress. For the past month the kids have taken a class teaching them about baptism, communion, and the order of the service. Sarah Graves was the youngest child in the class and she did really well. Just before time to go to communion she got nervous and wasn't sure about it. Lovie talked her through it and when it was her time she was all ready. She was very serious about it. She had decided ahead of time that she would prefer to intinct rather than drink from the chalice.  Lovie and Pops gave Sarah Graves the special necklace she is wearing. You can see it best in this picture. She wanted a picture with Nay and Livy!

Charlie made this valentine at school. He was very proud to bring it home, but couldn't decide who it should go to! At first he said it was for his momma. Then, he thought it should be for Lovie. A couple of days later he thought it should be for momma again!  He gave it to me on Valentine's day, but when he saw it at our house, he shouted it was for Lovie! I assume he loves us both very much and wants each of us to have it.

We gave the kids each a little candy and made them valentines. The real treat was breakfast at Chick-Fil-A and a chance to ride Skyview downtown. Sarah Graves had been longing to ride it and the timing hadn't been right, but we made special plans to do it as a fun outing. We had a few obstacles with unforeseen crowds downtown due to tryouts for the show, The Voice and surprising crowds out for breakfast on Valentine's day, but once we arrived, it was a great time! The day was gorgeous and it wasn't too cold. Sarah Graves showed off her dance moves while we waited in a short line! Charlie was a little nervous at first, but he quickly warmed up to the ride and the views. Sarah Graves enjoyed listening to the audio guide point out some of the sights and was particularly interested in a roof that had a lot of dirt on it! We celebrated Valentine's day at Lovie and Pops' house with Nay and Livy! This cutie was ready to celebrate! She i

The other night Charlie kept talking about apples. He was in a good mood and being silly about it, which made it funny. If you asked a question, he said apple. If he sang a song, he said apple.

I love these two precious valentines of mine!

Charlie is becoming more and more his own person. I love talking with him and am amazed at how well he can carry a conversation. He knows and understands so much and thinks so logical. The other morning Sarah Graves wanted to kiss him before he left for school. She loves to kiss him and touch him and it just aggravates him! He doesn't want to be handled anymore. While wiping her kiss off he told her, "don't kiss me! I not like it." He is really cute and I also have a hard time not kissing all over him. I was sitting next to him the other day and this was our conversation Me: Charlie, you are so cute that I just want to take a bite! Charlie: No bite me. I a boy. Me: You are a cute boy and I want to take a little bite. Charlie: No bite me. I a boy! Me: Why can't I bite a little boy? Charlie: Because I special. Me: Yes, you are my special boy. He just melts my heart and I really do want to just gobble him up!

Charlie just loves this shaving set he got for Christmas! This funny girl loves her shampoo mohawk!