Lake FUN

Last Saturday we drove up to the Augusta Georgia area and spent the day at Mr. Hunt's Aunt and Uncle's Lake house. We went last year as well and had so much fun, so we were excited to go back this year. 

Look at her cute little lake outfit!

                        

This year, Mr. Hunt wake boarded (I did last year, but opted out this year), and we also got to take Jane tubing for the first time. 

All three of us had a blast, but Im positive Jane loved it more than us. I think I was the most scared, only that Jane would fall out. She had her puddle jumper on so I wasn't worried about her drowning or anything, she just hasn't figured out the whole holding her breath thing, so I was worried if she fell out that she would get a huge mouth of water or something.

Anyway, she LOVED IT!

Uncle Michael and Papa showed Jnae how they could jump from the top deck into the lake. Jane likes jumping too, just not from that far up!

The rest of the time we spent relaxing in the water and eating some good food.

Jane also loved throwing the ball to the dog Dixie for her to jump into the lake and retrieve it.

On the boat with Uncle Mike and Aunt Rachel. Thanks to Aunt Amy for staying with Jackson back at the house. Its hard to take a baby on a boat when he can't wear sunscreen until 6 months.

This little guy enjoyed being in the air condition. BUT, I know he will have just as fun doing all the things we did next year.

Love,
Jennifer

Jane Loves Swimming

We are loving our neighborhood pool this summer. Last summer, we lived in our new home in North Charleston (we had just moved from Texas and didn't have any friends), and the pool was always empty. Nobody was EVER there. So it wasn't ever very much fun. 

Now we have TWO pools in our new neighborhood and they are always PACKED with kids. So far its been quite nice, not too many kids, but just enough for Jane to have some "friends" to play with. 

Last year she was just learning how to "swim" with her puddle jumper and I felt like I had to be in with her watch time. This year she is a whole new kid. She can go in and out on her own as long as she is wearing the puddle jumper and I can sit in the chair with Jackson. Of course, sometimes she still wants me to get in to play with her and that's fun too.

Jackson can't wear sunscreen until he is 6 months old so he stays in the shade. We bought him a portable fan that clips onto his chair for the really hot days. We love the fan for walks in the neighborhood and the beach too.

Jane is very adventurous. She really isn't scared of much and it seems like she has no fear when it comes to climbing, running, learning new things. BUT, most of the time she will only try new things when she sees someone else do it first. And that someone else can't be me or Mr. Hunt, it has to be another kid. SO, being at a pool with lots of kids, she has learned a lot. I tried to get her to jump in the pool a million times and she just didn't get it, but as soon as another kid did it right next to her, she was all about it. 

One of Jane's friends from her gym class lives in our neighborhood so we go to the pool with them a lot. They have a boy Mason who is her age, and a girl Molly who is Jackson's age. 

Even though Jane seems to make friends with everyone at the pool, its nice to have her best bud there as well.

Last time we went to the pool she saw a child take off their puddle jumper and practice swimming without one and of course she wanted to try. So we did. I'm no swim teacher and I really have no clue how to go about it, but man did Jane want to swim on her own.

I can't tell you how many times she tried and tried to kick her legs as hard as she could to stay afloat. Only problem is she doesn't know how to hold her breath yet so she swallows a lot of water in the mean time.

We are headed to Mimi and Papa's house in Charlotte for the fourth of July this year and they have a pool in the backyard. I think with the endless pool time PLUS lots of family who love Jane and like to play with her, she may get real close to swimming on her own.

For some reason, Mr. Hunt doesn't want to pay for swim lessons. I don't blame him. I never had swim lessons and I swim fine. I'm Just not really sure how to teach her. BUT, she isn't scared of the water one bit, and she seems to WANT to know how to swim on her own, so it may be easier than we think. Ill keep you posted!

Love,
Little Swimmers Mom!

Jane's BIG GIRL BED!

 Jane is now in a big girl bed, and she's been in one for about a month now. So I think its safe to say that the transition has gone WAY better than I thought. It has gone so well, that I thought for sure in the beginning that it was just beginners luck and everything was going to go wrong any minute.

So, Jane just turned 2.5 years old, so we had her in her crib for a long time. I always told myself that I wasn't going to kick her out of it, I would wait until she was "ready." She LOVED her crib. She never argued when it was time to nap or go to bed. Most of the time, she even would sit in her crib and play before she fell asleep, and every time she woke up, she would just play until I came to get her. Most times I would look at the monitor and wonder how long she had been awake in there because she never cried. So, I really didn't want to mess up a good thing, she was a great sleeper and loved her crib.

With Jackson's arrival I was getting anxious that she still wasn't showing any signs of wanting to transition to be bigger bed. Poor girl is so long for her age that she really was kind of squished looking her crib, not including ALL the stuffed animals she insisted on having in there. I worried that since she really didn't ever see anyone else her age in a big girl bed, that she really didn't know the difference, she just thought the crib was where she slept.

So out of the blue one day, Jane decided she wanted to climb into the crib on her own at nap time, so I let her. I then realized that that probably wasn't the best idea because if I wasn't right there she may have not made it and hurt herself. About a week went by with her wanting to do this until she realized that she could also climb out. This is when I really started to tell her and talk about a big girl bed. Luckily she only climbed out of the crib twice before we had the new big girl bed (we had already ordered it...just in time).

While I was excited that we would finally have a crib for Jackson, I was a little nervous about Jane being in a big girl bed. I was nervous that her whole schedule and great sleep would go out the door, and with a newborn, I wasn't ready for that. I was also a little sad because my little girl was officially growing up.

Long story short, she has done GREAT! I could have asked for a better transition. She hasn't ONCE come out of her room. We  made a rule that she couldn't get out of bed until I came to get her. It worked for about the first week. I think she didn't really understand what was happening or that she could actually get out. She wanted all her stuffed animals in the bed with her and was worried when I put her water and pacis on the nightstand. We got her a full size bed, so the stuffed animals weren't much of a problem anymore.

After about a week of her staying in her bed just like I asked, she slowly learned that she could get out of bed. We would be sure to tell her to get back in bed through the video monitor and she would, but then I decided to let her get out as long as she didn't come out of her room. 

There have been a few rough naps where she would just play the entire time, but at least she is having quiet time and resting. Like I said, she hasn't come out of the room yet and bedtime is perfect, so I can't complain.

I really think the trick was waiting until she was 100% ready. We waited until the last possible minute to transition her. We also made a HUGE deal about it, talking about it for weeks before, and letting her help pick out the mattress, and bedding. When the time came, she was all about it. I also think since she was a little older, she really understood what was going on and also could listen and follow my directions of not getting out of bed.

Lastly, we left the crib in her room for about a week. When it was time to take a nap or go to bed, I always gave her the option. "Do you want to sleep in your big girl bed? Or your crib?" She always picked the big girl bed, but at least it wasn't a crazy change all of the sudden, and her knowing she had a choice maybe helped.

Then when it was time to move the crib to Jackson's room. We asked  her if he could have it and we let her help move it to his room. I know sometimes, the older child could feel attached and get made when they have to give the crib to the younger sibling.

How was your toddler's transition? Like I said, I was pleasantly surprised, but I know its not always that easy.

Love,
Jennifer

Daddy/Daughter Popsicle Date

I love little moments between Mr. Hunt and Jane. I knew I had to get the camera out when he decided to take her out front to have a Popsicle. Mr. Hunt is on a diet, so this was extra special. 

 She of course had to try his to see if his was anything different.

Then she just wanted to copy everything he did!

I tend to freak out about things that are messy, so I don't get the Popsicles out very often, but moments like this are priceless, and I would bring out the Popsicles again and again if it was always like this.

Love,
Jennifer