Where to begin?

I've been such a slacker with this blog, and I'm sure my memory is not going to help me out with every small detail of Caroline's life in the last few months.

As many of you know, I lost my Mom to abdominal cancer in July. It rocked our world - to say the least - and has given the entire Eidson/Palmer family a new reminder at how precious life truly is with each day.

We returned home at the end of July and somehow managed our way through August. Labor Day, we were back in KC to celebrate Lori Bettinger's wedding. All kinds of good fun and such a happy occasion to be back home. It was really a great time of healing for all of us - and with Caroline as a side kick, you just can't be down for too long - she always says/does something to cheer you up!

This Fall we have enjoyed being in Erie, yes you read that right. It was really nice to just be here - after non-stop travel the first half of the year. I wouldn't have changed any of the trips, but it was a little chaotic! I think we have hit almost every festival, fall event and local attraction we can think of around Erie. Niagara Falls was a big hit - Ryan hadn't been there since he was a little kid. It is only a 2 hour road trip and fun to say you went to Canada for lunch! We also got some happy news that we will become a family of four next April. That's right, 02 (thanks Erin Majka for the nickname) will be here around Tax Day - who knew there was ever a reason to get excited about Tax Day? We will be surprised once again on gender, but I'm thinking pink... that crazy Mom instinct. Guess we'll have to wait and see!

Caroline is a walking, talking kiddo these days. She's all about song and can break into Row, Row, Row Your Boat, Wheels on the Bus or a number of other favorite tunes. In September, she got a big girl bed and LOVES it! The kid can crank out a 3 hour nap and be happy to get back in it at 7.30 PM at night - we are so happy she made the transition with ease... now about that potty training thing. She loves to ask, "What doing?" or "What that?" I guess the inquisitive 2 1/2 year old is cranking into high gear!

Those are the big highlights as of late. I'll post some pictures to show you all how she's growing. Happy Halloween!

February, here comes the snow!

Having had a mild winter - for Erie standards of course - the snow found us in February. Caroline had a few chances to test out her sled in our neighborhood, she wasn't a fan of the sitting on the snow. Maybe next year!

Caroline is growing up big time. She's saying please "Be be" and thank you "Dank do". Each week is filled with Mom workouts - Caroline playtime at the YMCA, story hour on Wednesday at our main library branch by the lake, and Babygarten class on Tuesday. She loves singing the songs at Babygarten and we practice them weekly at home.

She loves books! We read three each night, and her usual five from the library each week - at least a couple of times a day. Caroline has also embraced, Elmo. If we are home, 10 AM on any weekday she's watching Sesame Street. The toughest part is having to wait until the end of the hour to see Elmo's World. The kid is mesmerized, and Mom can take a shower without any worries.

Her Piggy is definitely her best friend - sorry Charlotte. She'll hold that thing (we have an extra in the car and one at Debbie's) and suck her left thumb. She'll make a little humming noise that seems to calm her down and soothe her! Whenever she and I disagree - it happens a few times a day, the joys of an almost two year old) she'll say, "I Piggy" and I tell her to go and find it. She'll trek up the stairs just to get Piggy, amazingly enough it calms her right down. No complaints from her parents!

Time to play catch up!

The beginning of 2010 was a little crazy around the Palmer house. Caroline and I ended up flying to KC on the 16th, Mom had been admitted to KU Med Center with abdominal pains. Long story short, but many tests, doctor visits, road trips, etc. she was diagnosed with adeno carcinoma in her stomach - cancer with an unknown primary source. She was accepted into a clinical trial through the Mayo Clinic - and is being treated close to home at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

It was a terrifying time for all of us. Caroline and I were in KC for 10 days which was stressful on everyone. Once we got her into a treatment protocol we were all feeling a great sense of relief. The support for my entire family has been overwhelming and we are glad to see that her chemo treatments are working - her lymph node tumors are shrinking!

Caroline and I got back to Erie at the end of January. It was so tough to be here, and not know what was happening with Mom. I needed to have Caroline back in her own world and usual routine, Ryan was my rock as always. We were very glad to see January end... moving on to a new month, warmer temps, and more hope.

Some More Indy Fun!

As you can see there was a load of presents in Indy and I did a great job of handing them out. I got some new food (that I can cut) to use in my Erie kitchen. We were able to make a small snowman and I was able to turn into a marshmallow before I went outside! : ) I don't really like the cold weather, and can't stand my gloves or hat but guess that's what I have to deal with in order to really play. I"m not an Erie kid, can't deal with this cold stuff!

December... we have made it through 2009!

Yeah Christmas! What a great month... I loved having a tree in my house and did a nice job of un-decorating it immediately after it was put up. By the end, we only had the top 2/3 of our tree covered, nice Caroline.... We sat on Santa Mike's lap at Millcreek Hospital - complete with all of the other ENT kiddos: Luc and Necia. I got a baby doll and thought that was super cool.

I'm totally into books these days. I would read the same book about 5000 times and still not be tired of it. I"m able to point at the pictures and show my parents what objects are on each page. It is pretty cool to say the least.

Christmas morning was super special. Dad was on call, as usual, but didn't get called away at all. We opened presents - I perfected that rather quickly. I would tear a little piece at a time, which made the gift opening take a long time. Santa brought a kitchen set - wow am I a good chef! I look to cook and can't wait to share a meal with you from my special basement kitchen.

We finished the holiday in Indy with my family. It was great to see Doug and Joe - they traveled a long time to see me. Tim and Budi came over to play quite often as well. The grown ups were into a board game, and I was into everything else! :) My Aunt Erin wasn't able to join us becasue she was busy cooing my new cousin who will be here in March. I'm sorry I didn't get to see her, but can't wait to have a playmate the next time the whole family gets together!

November... do I even remember that far back?

Welcome to the world of slacker blog mom Anna... just can't figure out how I've been this far behind on a catch up. Maybe a few photos will refresh my memory....

I'm a climber. Caroline will climb pretty much anything and everything if she wants to reach something. Determination, hmm wonder where that one comes from? She likes to "help" in the kitchen and uses the step stool to cook with us. We hosted Erie Thanksgiving once again. More kiddos this year which made dinner shorter but the party later - how did that happen? We were rockin' until 10.30 that night. Caroline had a ball! We loved getting a chance to catch up with all of our Erie buddies, and the food was fantastic as usual.

Madi and Pal joined us for Thanksgiving this year. Ryan (as usual) was on call. Thursday and Friday night he spent most of the time at the hosptial - sorry Richard's family, who also joined us for the meal. Just part of the joys of residency. It was great to have my parents here and as you can see the weather was fantastic - no sarcasm. We were playing around outside and got our tree all set for Christmas.