Sing a Song

Maggie has started to sing lately, which is just a hoot. She even remembers words to songs from our music class that we haven't listened to in awhile. Hopefully she'll have a voice as nice as her Daddy's. And if she does become a singing sensation one day, we'll be able to look back and say it all began with this...

The "Bobby"

It has arrived! Maggie's new potty chair finally came, and it is exactly like her cousin Bixie's. Maggie is very excited about sitting on the potty and has been practicing every day. Just practice at this point, which is just too cute not to snap a picture of. I'm sure she'll hate me for this one day!

Upright!

We dusted off the Bebe Pod chair for little miss Claire. It's safe to say she enjoys the new vantage point! At the moment though, she can only use it when big sis is napping. The resemblence to a potty chair is just too much for Maggie to handle. Hopefully, once Maggie's special potty chair arrives it will all make sense in the toddler brain.

What a girl wants

I was having coffee with my friend Alison a couple of weeks ago and we were discussing parenting toddlers, limit-setting, discipline etc. She said, "I hope I don't become blind to my daughter's manipulations." I agreed whole-heartedly. Today, Maggie was in rare form and gave me another opportunity to practice what I believe. Well, all I can say is, I'm certainly not blind to it. And sometimes I cave, especially when Jim is out of town. As Alison recently blogged, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Claire's Baptism

The culmination of our trip was the celebration of Claire's baptism. It brought tears to my eyes to be home at Bellarmine Chapel and welcome Claire to the community. Claire did not cry when Fr. Al dunked her naked in the baptismal font. Per Chapel policy, there were no pictures during the worship, but trust me, her chubby bottom and "budda belly" were pretty darn cute. Afterward, she was dressed in the Flynn family baptismal gown, which is 65 years old and clothed it's 23rd infant in Claire.

The Farwig contingent traveled in from places south, east and west. Even Nana came in from St. Louis. Maggie was very excited to see MawMaw and cousins Zane and Lia. Weekend long festivities included a cookout on Saturday, brunch after church, and Sunday night dinner at great Aunt Mick's. Claire received the "Susanna bowl" which was a wedding gift to Susanna Staley in 1831. It has been handed down to every Susanna in the five generations since.

Our extended visit to Ohio was filled with the things that matter most in this life: faith, family, and friendship. We only wish we had more time to spend with those we hold dear. But we treasure the memories we made and know that soon we will be home again...to stay.


Maggie and purple dolly had time for quiet reflection before Mass

Claire Susanna's Godmother Aunt Beth

Two Peas in a Pod

Cousin Beatrix also stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's house the whole ten days we were there. Maggie and Bixie were inseparable and had a great time playing together. Maggie learned a lot by constantly watching the way her older cousin did things and often imitated her. Of particular interest was Bixie's potty, which Maggie practiced sitting on and has since become obsessed with. (We'll be making a trip to Babies R Us this weekend to acquire one for Mag). There was also a vocabulary explosion on Maggie's part thanks to the exposure to her articulate cousin. My favorite was her first use of the word drink, "Baby drink milk mommy!" Many thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for opening their home to us; they must be exhausted! The week the girls spent playing together was such a gift and we look forward to many more. Here are the highlights...

Summer time pool fun!


"I didn't make the bubbles...did you?"

Pure joy!

Maureen's Blessingway

During the trip to Ohio, my friend Deanna and I hosted a baby shower for our friend Maureen. We had afternoon tea at Churchill's Tea Room in downtown Cincinnati. Instead of a traditional baby shower, we gave a Blessingway for the mom-to-be. Maureen's friends and family offered prayers of support and words of love and encouragement for the birth. We each picked a bead which symbolized our relationship with Mo and our prayer for her. The beads were made into a necklace which she can wear for the remainder of her pregnancy and during labor if she chooses. I received one during my blessingway for Maggie and drew on it's strength during both of my labors. It is a wonderful symbol of the power of friendship.

Besides support and prayers, Mo received lots of great gifts too!

July 4th!

We traveled to Ohio for the 4th of July holiday and a week's worth of activities. Aunt Beth, Uncle Jay, and cousin Bixie all came to town too. The annual Flynn Family 4th of July picnic was extra special this year with all the children running around. It's hard to believe it's been only four short years since we got engaged under the fireworks in Ault Park!

First of many

The girls had their first joint bath this week. Maggie was very excited to have her baby sister in the bath with her and Claire didn't take her eyes off Maggie. It was a little chaotic at times and definitely should not be attempted by a lone parent. But it was pretty darn cute!