Snow Day

My funny kid

I have a really funny kid! Thought I would share a few recent Maggie-isms that make us smile. When she is looking at a book or magazine she will randomly say "oh, I miss a page". She has a fascination/fear of Santa Claus and is constantly asking if he is coming to the house. One minute she says "I yike him" and the next "Santa's scary-Daddy hold me!". She also likes to call me a "yucky pig" "oink oink". I realize I have been pretty hungry lately but seriously Maggie!! When she does not like something she tells us "I yik-e that" while shaking her head no. She is talking up a storm and surprises me all the time with what she remembers. She likes to list everyone coming to our house for Christmas "Papa, Nana, An Erin and An Emma".


(Rob and Maggie ready for the Army-Navy game)

In other news baby #2 is doing well and wiggling around like crazy! If Maggie turns out to be our quiet child we are really in trouble. We had our ultrasound 2 weeks ago and everything looks good so far. I have to go back again after Christmas but am happy to do so as Rob wasn't able to make it to the last one. Christmas shopping/baking/wrapping/shipping seems to be extra busy this year and I am really looking forward to having Rob around for some long weekends! I have a cookie exchange tomorrow and am trying out a new recipe-Giadas hazelnut biscotti (though they look more like a cookie to me). Hoping they are delicious!!

29

I'm 29 today! I have been thinking about it for the past few weeks and wondering how I would feel today, one year away from my 30th birthday. Though this really isn't one of those milestone birthdays, it feels pretty significant to me. Maybe because it is my last year in my "20s" or maybe just because I am hyper-sensitive due to pregnancy, either way, I feel compelled to share my thoughts on this December 8th!

My initial reaction to 29 was honestly...fear. Last night I complained to Rob that 29 means I am official old and I was totally freaked out. Thinking about it today however, I have decided I am officially still young and very lucky! I have been blessed with a lot in 29 years and when I think about all the love in my life I am completely overwhelmed! I have been blessed with a lovely, large, healthy, and close knit family. I have so many friends around the world. I have spent my entire adult life in a "profession" of service as the wife of a Soldier. I have a beautiful daughter and the blessing of another baby on the way. And, I have had the love of the most wonderful man I know for almost 11 years.

So today, on my 29th birthday, I am thankful for all of the blessings in my life and celebrate all of the wonderful people who have helped make me the person I am today!

Thanksgiving Weekend

Happy belated Thanksgiving! We had a great weekend with my family and we are so glad they decided to make the drive to see us this year. Maggie LOVED playing with her cousin and they had a great time playing with Grandma all weekend. Thanksgiving dinner was another success due mainly to Rob's delicious turkey and some rescue help from Jessica in the kitchen when sweet potatoes caught on fire! Maggie and Caddie did their first cookie bake with Mom and we had a great time downtown checking out the Natural History Museum and the Sculpture Garden. We are headed into the busiest month of the year and are excited for all of the fun things December has in store for us. Hooray for the Holidays!!

I am so excited for Thanksgiving! My mom and all the siblings as well as Rob's sister, will be joining us and I am so looking forward to having everyone here. I think Maggie is going to have a blast with Caddie around too! I went to the Commissary today and was so tempted to get everything for next week. I am slowly getting the non-perishables and picked out Mr Turkey today. Watch out for me next week though-cart will be full!

Maggie and I went down to Williamsburg on Monday to hang out with the Griders. We had a great time and as usual Maggie loved seeing Jack and Hank. I was unhappy that the Puma outlet had NOTHING in her size but I did get some great stuff over the weekend at the outlets with Beth and a head start on the Christmas shopping.

I had my 16 week checkup this morning and so far everything is looking good. Baby 2's heart rate was 140 and I am sticking to my guns and proclaiming this one to be a boy! Rob thinks I am crazy but there is something to be said for Mother's intuition. The Doc also gave me the go ahead to participate in the BN Thanksgiving Party Spouse Flights. I get to fly in a helicopter around DC-YAY!!

Back upstairs to make cranberry sauce and punch for our playgroup lunch tomorrow!!

Interview with Maggie

Along with some recent pictures, here is a little interview with Maggie!

What is your favorite food? "Um, noo-noos (noodles)"
What is your favorite thing to do? "play"
What is your dog's name? "woof woof-I'm funny"
What does a turkey say? "gobble gobble"
What do you like to do everyday? "coloring-paper"
What is your cousin's name? "Caddie" "baby yay ya"
What should we buy at the Commissary today? "nanas and pickles"
Are you going to have a baby brother or a baby sister? "baby bruder"

It's official! Maggie is going to be a big sister! Crowe baby #2 debuting in early May. Here are a few pictures from the past week!

With Mommy at the Pumpkin Farm. I love my new vest!!


Riding the tractor with Daddy at Cox Farms. We went with some of the families in the Company and had a GREAT time!

One of my favorite friends Carter. We love to eat cheerios together!!

Happy Halloween!

The week so far

Thursday (Halloween lunch at Panera)
Wednesday (carving pumpkins with Aunt Erin)

Tuesday

Monday (does she look just like Rob or what??)

one more...

Here are Maggie and her little buddy Eli at the Moms Group Halloween Party last week! Too cute!

Just a little something

I realize I have been really bad at putting up recent pictures and stories but am trying to make this week an exception. I am hoping to add a new photo of Maggie everyday! We will be sticking around home this week as our friends in Williamsburg are under the weather but hopefully will have a visit from Aunt Erin! Maybe some shopping is in order?? We are also really looking forward to Halloween on Saturday and doing some trick-or-treating with our little crab!

In other news we waited for 3+ hours on Saturday to get our flu and H1N1 shots at the Ft Belvoir field house. It was a super long day but at least we are done with it! Maggie did surprisingly well for being stuck in line during lunch/naptime. We all needed a little snooze when we got home :)

Also, a belated congratulations to Schneiders and Pritchards on the arrival of their little girls. We look forward to meeting Olivia and Lucy sometime soon!!

Have a GREAT week!

Crab Costume

As promised, here are some first shots of the crab costume. I know she looks a little frazzled-she just woke up from her nap and was not that thrilled to put on the costume! She also refuses to wear the red headband with googly eyes attached! What do you think? It's this or the strawberry costume that Rob hates but Maggie likes because it is "pink".

Weekend Pictures

Grumpy face!!
When did she get so big?

Tired out after a long morning at the pumpkin patch. Posing with her "punkie"

Feeding the goats at the farm

I LOVE coloring!!

Long Weekend

Happy Long Weekend!! We stayed in Alexandria this weekend and just spent some time together as a family. Maggie LOVED the pumpkin farm on Friday and we enjoyed being outside on an 80 degree October day! Cox Farms was a blast and Maggie was able to participate in most of their activities. The Hayride, slides, baby animals and live music were all big hits. We also went to the farmers market on Friday afternoon and got some really good stuff including pumpkin ice cream. In true Crowe fashion we spent Saturday watching football and eating all kinds of terrible/delicious food! We took a nice walk with Maggie and Lucy in Huntly Meadows Park and spent a relaxing Sunday eating pancakes, taking naps and a trip to the playground. I think Maggie has having a serious growth spurt-she went to bed before 8 last night and slept until 9:45 this morning! She is also still down for a nap after 3+ hours. I have some cute pictures from the weekend and will update as soon as I track down the camera (which Maggie calls the "key"). Oh, I also finished Maggie's Halloween costume and will have pictures up soon. Question of the day...will she wear it??

We won!

Beating the Wolverines in East Lansing=AWESOME!!

Finally

It's finally cooling down in Virginia and I could not be happier!! It is the perfect fall weather for walking with friends and trips to the park. Maggie loves that she gets to be outside more. Rob is back at work after a well deserved break and is busy as usual. Late nights seem to be the norm during command :) We celebrated his birthday over the weekend with Andrew and Danielle and he made it home early on Monday for dinner with his gals! I am quickly writing this between fixing dinner and getting ready for game night with some of the ladies from the Company. I hope they have fun and eat all the food I made today!! I am looking forward to all of the yummys myself-pizza dip, cheese dip with apples, cream puffs, and other fall treats. Maggie is busy busy and her vocabulary increases daily. I am pretty sure she knows over 100 words by now and is working on her animal sounds and colors (she has pink and purple down-my little girl!!). She loves to color and draws me pictures multiple times per day. She also has been terrorizing the dog and chasing after Lucy with her baby stroller while screaming as loud as she can. Anyone else have a screech-er out there?? Still trying to figure out how to make that stop!

Why can I only upload 5 pictures at a time???

Maggie and Caddie at the MSU Children's Garden
Uncle Rob and the girls
Playing at Impressions 5 in Lansing

Cousins!! (Maggie had to bend down when I did)

Grand Haven, MI

Anyone have any advice for me?? Here are 5 from the Michigan trip! I wanted to include the full Crowe Family shot but promised Erin I wouldn't let it happen!

Michigan in the Fall

It's so wonderful I often wonder why we live anywhere else :) We got home last night from our week up north and realized the temperature at 8pm was 82. By mid-September I am so done with summer and yearning for cooler weather. We had a wonderful week with family and were able to spend time in both Spring Lake and Lansing. Rob's Irish relatives were visiting and it was great to see them again (its been 6 years) and to introduce them to Maggie. Rob also got to meet little Laila in Lansing and Maggie had a great couple of days with her best friend/cousin Caddie. Fun stuff we did on vacation:

1. Got fresh doughnuts and cider from the mill near the Crowes
2. Went swimming, relaxed around the fire pit and made s'mores
3. Ate delicious food!!
4. Went to the Michigan Irish Music Festival and ate tacos and grape Faygo
5. Took Maggie and Caddie to Impressions 5
6. Fed the ducks, got ice cream and went to the Children's Garden at MSU
7. Saw lots of old friends/Rob's family in Lansing
8. Helped Mom finally get the Internet at home!
9. Wore jeans and sweatshirts!!!
10. Had Rob's complete attention!!!! (work is pretty busy these days)

It's 9:30 and Maggie is still asleep! She must be super over-tired from the long day in the car and early mornings in Michigan. Pictures from the week to come!

Sweet

Oh how I love this little girl!

18 Months!

Maggie is 18 months old! I took some really cute pictures but Blogger won't let me upload anything right now!!! Hopefully they will be up soon. In the meantime-I hope everyone had a great long weekend! We had a great time with Erin and Bridget and got a couple of fun little trips in over the weekend (the zoo, Old Town, a picnic at Pohick Bay, etc). I found almost everything I need for M's Halloween costume. If it is as good as I imagine it to be you guys are in for a treat!! I am trying out the OWC again tomorrow, hopefully it will be a little better than the luncheon I went to in April. Have a great week!!

Bad Mommy

There was a time when the little digital camera was basically stapled to my hand. We had so many pictures of the Muggins we didn't know what to do with ourselves! I don't really know how it happened but I just can't seem to remember to bring the camera with me when we go fun places anymore. So unfortunately you will not have a picture of my sweet girl spinning around Eastern Market in a fit of giggles or eating delicious shrimp on the waterfront with Aunt Claire. You will just have to imagine Miss Maggie in all her cuteness having a wonderful weekend. We also visited the Torpedo Factory where Maggie found some great music to dance to and during nap time fit in a movie-yeah!! Busy week with lots of meetings but a 4-day weekend coming up. Can you believe it is September tomorrow-Hooray for Fall!!!

Thunderstorms

I love thunderstorms! Especially when they come in the middle of the afternoon while M is taking her nap. I plan on curling up with a new library book and being lazy for a few hours before Claire arrives! She has not been here since Maggie's birthday and I think she is in for a big surprise. We are still debating what to do this weekend while she is here-depends on the weather! Saturday there is a DC Dance Festival which might be fun, or we might try Georgetown, Eastern Market or the fresh seafood market. So many possibilities!!

The Fair

Daddy-I don't like that baby goat!

Birdie ride with Mommy

Happy Monday!! Hope everyone had a great weekend! We did a little shopping and resting on Saturday but on Sunday we went to the Arlington County Fair!! Maggie had a great time at the *tiny* petting zoo, ate some yummy Lebanese food and ice cream and went on two rides! YAY!