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Whereas Natalie sported cute sunglasses and a sun hat for Florida walks, our Evanston walks look a bit different….

Yippee! Fresh Air and a stop to see Daddy! Daddy forgot his lunch at home, so Mommy and I delivered it to him at lunch!

We are just happy to get outside!  This weekend, Grandma and Grandpa are visiting, so we’re excited to show them the park outside our condo!

We had a great play date with Megan & Molly!  This is the first time Natalie went to someone else’s house for a play date – Molly was so nice to share all her toys!

Wow - Molly, your head control is amazing. And you have such fun toys. I wanna be like you when I grow up!

Natalie and I also went to Ash Wed mass – which just happened to be presided over by the Cardinal.  Natalie got blessed by the Cardinal.  We only made it through the ash distribution and then headed out.  My arms and wrists can only take carrying around a 14 lbs. baby for so long… I was hoping to get a cute little pic of her with her ashes on her forehead, but it was super light, so you couldn’t see anything.

For Lent, Natalie has decided to give up sleeping on the go (which is why we had to leave after ash distribution).  She is going to take up washing her gums.  I read an article that said I should already be washing her gums, so that when teeth come in, she is used to having her mouth cleaned.  This is reminisent of my college Lenten resolution… in London, I persuaded most of my flat and many other Londomers to take up flossing.  We had a chart posted in our kitchen.  Nothing like a bit of peer pressure.  Who wants to be the dirty kid?

Nana bought Natalie an adorable sun hat and sunglasses.  Given that they live 2 blocks from the beach, we thought Natalie would get a lot of use out of these. 

First attempt.  Stroller ride.  Lasted 1 block before crying.  (To Natalie’s credit, we encountered a lot of wind and sun.  You’d think she’d be used to the wind, but we haven’t left the condo much this winter – and this FL wind carried sand with it.  As for the sun, well, we live in Chicago – that was new to her!  We also ran into her great-grandparents on the walk, so six adults were staring at her – that’s enough to make anyone nervous!)

Let's hit the beach... wait, what's a beach?

Second attempt.  We took her to the pool.  That lasted 30 seconds – just long enough to take this photo.  Once again, the wind thwarted our attempt.  And the water was pretty cold.

I love my bloomers! (Thanks, Aunt Ann.) But, whoa - these chubby white thighs have never seen the light of day. I need to work on my tan!

I knew it - my dad's a dork. I'm probably in for many more years of this type of dorkiness, huh?

So, although we didn’t get quite as much use out of the cute hat as one would have thought, Natalie is sure to wear it a lot this summer in Evanston!  As for not making it to the ocean, I suspect that our next visit will be very different… she will love playing in the sand next time and one day, collecting seashells.  Boy, these kids get big FAST. (At least, that’s what everyone tells us, and we’ve already seen so many changes in our little Natalie!)

We are in Florida, visiting the family and in particular, Natalie Ann’s favorite great aunts, Aunt Ann. The car ride to the airport required two stops and someone in the backseat to shade the sun from the princess’s eyes, but she was a champ on the flight. And Erin was a champ feeding her, holding her and keeping her happy.

I was nervous from the onset when we asked our row mate if she would trade Erin the window seat for the aisle so that Erin could nurse discreetly. “No, I need the window.” Seriously lady?! Fortunately, the kind people in the next row gladly traded.

The plane temperature also steadily rose throughout until we felt like we were sitting in a sauna. You can see Natalie’s progression below, from bundled up smiley baby to sweaty fat guy in a skinny coat. She was in just a diaper by the end. But we are all at Nana and Pop’s now and having a great time in Florida!

Last weekend, on Sunday, March 19th, Natalie Ann Linville was christened into the Catholic Church!  It was quite the event with 15 people from five different states coming to Evanston to celebrate.  She didn’t let them down!  Nana made a BEAUTIFUL christening gown for Natalie (and her children and their children) to wear, and she was  a perfect angel throughout the church service.   She was also able to meet her Mammaw & Pappaw (paternal great grandparents) for the first time.

Here are some pics from the big day.

Natalie’s 2-month “birthday” was on Sat, Feb. 19.  We’re a little late with the post because she has been fussy this week – she seems not to be sleeping enough during the day.  She’s tough to get to sleep, won’t sleep well in her crib or swing or bouncey seat and often wakes up after 15 min. – usually b/c she needs to burp but needs help.  Any suggestions?

Anyways, back to the 2-month update:

Weight / Height: 13 lbs, 1 oz (95th percentile – up from 85th percentile at her 1-mo appt when she was 10 lbs, 13 oz) / 23 inches (76th percentile).  She is wearing some 6-9 month onesies, but the rest of her clothes are mostly 3-6 mo!

Is it just me, or is this chair getting smaller???

Who does she look like? Still looks like Jordan – In addition to the cheeks, her eyes esp. look like Jordan when she smiles big.  (Note by Jordan: this is Erin’s nice way of saying “squinty.”)
Personality: Sweet, Personable
Favorite Food: Mom’s Milk – at least 8 times a day. But, we’re still struggling a little through the bottle thing – suggestions? It worked a little better last night when I left the room, but it is still pretty frantic.  After getting her 2-month vaccinations, she also got grape-flavored Tylenol, which she just loved.
Favorite Toys / Games: Playing “I’ve got your (belly / nose / etc)”, “Talking” to her favorite people, Standing, Kicking her legs (which my Dad calls Exercising), Following a soft cube with her eyes, Reading board books (especially those that have a simple picture that significantly contrasts from the page – her Auntie Becky recently gave her some that are a hit!).  Although the black and white shapes (courtesy of our friend Molly) which are posted all around our house are less captivating than they once were
Big Accomplishments: On Feb 16, she slept through the night and has continued to do so almost every night!  She smiles A LOT too, which is super gratifying and fun.  She is lifting her head up higher during tummy time too.
Funniest Moment: We temporarily moved her diaper changing pad into our bedroom b/c we had guests.  She caught Dad with her pants down and shot runny, explosive poop everywhere.  Amazingly, it all escaped her little outfit – but my jewelry box was in the direct line of fire.  Fortunately, it was closed!

Thanks for reading our blog!  Remember, please send your naptime and bottle suggestions our way!!!

I'm just getting into position for my morning pushups

Our friend from Indy, Jenny, made Natalie this adorable onesie.  Its her first designer outfit.  Doesn’t she look great?

I'm ready for the red carpet! Thanks Jenny!

Um, Dad... this isn't my best angle. You can totally tell that I've been drinking a lot of milk lately.

I hope she doesn’t get used to designer clothes, as I’m not creative enough to make much more than puffy paint t-shirts (which her Aunt Stephanie is great at and I very much appreciate!), and I didn’t learn what Prada was until well after college.  Luckily, the flower is detachable, so you may or may not see the flower on larger onesies – or, possibly, a sweater she wears to kindergarten! 

Jenny has a blog and is beginning to sell some of her awesome jewelry and accessories on her own too.  Jordan got me a necklace for Christmas.  And I got his mom one for Christmas too!  I strongly encourage you to check out her website, www.strungbycolor.blogspot.com.  Here’s a peek at what you might find….

We had such a wonderful Valentine’s Day!  Natalie was very lucky to have many valentines.  She got cards from all around the country – from WI (Grandpa & Grandma) to NC (Nana and Pop) to CO (little Jackson who is just a couple weeks older than Natalie and the son of our friends from Kellogg). 

We also had many valentines visit!  Our ND friends, Megan and Molly, stopped by with a vday package!  It was filled with cookies, as Megan and Molly are Steelers fans and needed to bring over 2 dozen delicious chocolate chip cookies, as part of a bet we had going.  That’s my kind of betting.  Natalie slept almost the entire time, so I tried to wake Natalie up for a few photos.  As you can see, I had limited success.

Wow - is this baby next to me really 3 months older than me? Either, I eat too much, or she exercises a lot more than me!

Come on, Mom... what are you doing?

After seeing the photos, can you guess who is older?  Or who weighs more?  Molly is 5 months, but weighing in at less than 13 lbs (10th percentile).  Natalie is less than 2 months, but I’m guessing she is at least 13 lbs (probably 80th or 90th percentile).  At this rate, Natalie will be sharing the clothes she outgrows with Molly – rather than the other way around!

Then, our friend Kelly (my cousin Tim’s amazing girlfriend) came over to watch Natalie, while Jordan and I went out to dinner!  Kelly is a baby lover/whisperer, and every time she comes over, Natalie cannot help but fall asleep on her. 

Kelly, can you come with us on our trip to FL in two weeks, so that I sleep on the plane the whole way? You are just so cozy! No wonder my big cousin Tim likes you so much!

Thanks for coming over, Kelly!  It was awesome to have a date night!  Towards the end of the date, Jordan couldn’t help but talk about Natalie – nonstop.  It was clear that he missed his other favorite valentine.  Who can blame him?  Isn’t she irresistible?

I love Valentine's Day!

For those of you who are impressed that she stayed in the same outfit all day (isn’t the onesie adorable? – thanks Aunt Stephanie!), don’t be.  After less than an hour in it, she peed on it when I was changing her diaper.  Not to be deterred… I washed it and we were good to go by noon!

Come on... its cool to double roll your sleeves. Didn't you know that?!?

However, after 5-6 weeks and about 50 meals, she has filled it out quite well!

Go Pack Go! Geez, does this onesie feel a bit tight to anyone else?

We made the voyage to Green Bay to watch the game with my family.  It was a weekend of many firsts – new state, long car ride (it took 4.5 hours, instead of 3.25 due to needing to stop for Natalie to eat), night away from home (though G&G have the exact same crib as we do at home, which eased the transition), and meeting great grandparents.

Natalie is very lucky to have 4 great grandmas!  For any of you who know Grandma Mary (lady on the right), you know that she has a mind of her own.  For a bunch of pics, we had trouble getting her to take her eyes off of Natalie long enough to snap a photo.  Then, once we finally did, Grandma Jean got sidetracked – as is caught on this photo.  Hopefully my dad has a better version of this special picture!  We are hoping to get a similar pic of Natalie’s Mammaw and Grandma Vonda on the other side of the fam.

Grandpa, can you say "Baa"? Whoops - did I just let out a little toot? Funny how those slip out...

What my mom left to go out for pizza?!? I had so much fun with Auntie Becky, I didn't even notice. Can you come over next Saturday?

We watched the game at my sister Becky’s house.  As you can see, Natalie was quite upset at half time – the Pack seemed to be losing momentum.  (Though, doesn’t she look great in that adorable jersey – thanks Patty!!!!)

Rodgers is on fire tonight, yet the receivers keep on dropping good throws. Come on boys!

Yet, thankfully, the Pack came back!  Now, our Green Bay family is rooting for the Pack to go to the Super Bowl in 2012 – in Indy!

For those of you who missed our daughter’s debut on Sports Illustrated, join the 24,000+ other people who have checked out Natalie’s forecast of the Super Bowl:

The actual SI link was posted last Thurs or Fri, but you have to scroll down to find it: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/extramustard/hotclicks/02/04/leighton-meester-lebron-james-resonds-to-dwight-howard/index.html?eref=sihp

She clearly has good taste in football teams and men (or rather, what men to avoid – good girl, Natalie!).

We had a great weekend in Green Bay, watching the Pack win.  More photos and stories on that later…. here’s a preview:

Mommy Swap. I'll let my mommy hug you, if you let your mommy hold me!