The Brown Family Buzz: HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY CHARLOTTE AND JACOB...

On Friday December 30th we celebrated Charlotte and Jacob's 1st birthday in Jamaica. I am still finding it very hard to believe that they are a year old already. We feel so fortunate to have the kids in our lives. Not a day goes by when I don't think about how tiny and vulnerable they were when they were born. They have certainly come a long way in a year. I have thoroughly enjoyed spending everyday with them and will miss them very much when I head back to work on Monday. They continue to make me laugh everyday and I can't imagine not having them in our family.

From December 1 - December 30 Charlotte and Jacob have:

Continued to gain weight: Charlotte weighs 18 lbs 11.5 oz and Jacob weighs 18 lbs 6.5 oz (a far cry from the 3 lbs 15 oz and 3 lbs 5 oz they were born at)
Continued to pull up on everything: Charlotte and Jacob continue to pull themselves up on everything they can reach but have thankfully mastered getting themselves down as well. Their favourite things to pull up on include the coffee table, chairs, the couch, the gates at the bottom and top of the stairs, their crib, and the stairs.
Started to climb the stairs: A few times when I've forgotten to close the gate at the bottom of our stairs I've found both Charlotte and Jacob on the second or third stair and heading up for more.
Took a few steps with their new Fisher Price Ride and Stride Dino: On December 12 Jacob took a few steps with his new Fisher Price Ride and Stride Dino that he got from Grandma and Grandpa. He is more interested in pulling up on things and cruising than actually walking forward though.
Clapping: Jacob mastered clapping his hands together and was so proud the first time he did it! Charlotte continues to clap up a storm and is just as excited about it as she was the first time she did it.
No longer eat baby food: Both kids lost interest with food from the baby food jars. They will still eat apple sauce but other than that they would rather eat people food. In some ways this is easier but it others it is not because it takes more thought to figure out what we'll give them to eat during the day vs just popping open a jar of food. This did come in very handy when we were in Jamaica though because it was one less thing to worry about packing.
More "babbles": Both kids continue to "babble". They can say "dada" and a sound that sounds like "dog" ("duh") but other than that I'm still waiting to hear "mama"! They do seem to know to use "dada" when they see Doyle which is cute! Charlotte also mutters "dickle dickle dickle" which I seem to think sounds like "tickle tickle tickle" but only she really knows what she is saying!
More teeth: Charlotte has four teeth (two bottom and two top) and Jacob has five teeth (two bottom, and three top - front two and an eye tooth)
Pointing: Charlotte has started pointing at things. We respond by verbalizing what it is she is pointing at. She also puts her arms up when she wants to be picked up - she'll crawl over to our feet and raise her arms above her head
Celebrated their 1st Christmas: Charlotte and Jacob celebrated their first Christmas with Grammy Pam, Uncle Andrew, Uncle Mike and the Jeffreys.
Traveled to Jamaica: From December 26 - January 2 we stayed at the Iberostar Rose Hall Suites with my Dad, Sandy, Kelley, Dave, Kieran, Quinn and Jal. It was a fantastic week away and the kids thoroughly enjoyed swimming in the pool, dipping their feet in the ocean and eating with the 'grown-ups'
Activities outside of the house: More walks in the stroller, Stars and Stroller movie (The Muppets), and playtime at the drop in centre