Happy 1/2 Bday CGR!

Charlie had her 18m check-up on Wed and in preparation for it, I did what I always do... Make a list of annoying questions  and all of her recent milestones.  As I was sitting at work making a list of all the words she says, as I knew he would ask me the exact #, I couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness and randomness of them... It really is a reflection of me and the words that I say most often.. Apparently I say: ick, ew, yuck, oh no!, a lot!! Yes, my daughter loves to point to a piece of hair or random dirt pile that the dogs drug in while saying any of these words. And woe to the person who does not clean it up immediately. I find it comical, but it gets kinda embarrassing when we are out somewhere or at someone's house... You are officially warned, Charlie demands her surroundings be immaculate. She says a total of 27 words, which Dr. Chi said is at a 2 year old level.. I was not kidding when I said she has the gift of gab. Dr. Chi said she 'passed all of my tests' so I guess that means she is allowed to get older...He also said that based on her current stats, at 20 years old, she is projected to be 110 lbs and 5'9'' to which he said 'Sorry mama',—still not sure what that was supposed to me?!?!?! I found myself wondering, "did I just get 'dissed by my daughter's ped??" My next thought was "Is it terrible that I am going to hate my 20 year old daughter for having the body of a supermodel??" ha! O yea and she needs to be off the bottle by 21 months and potty trained by our next visit.. in 6 months... Those are awfully lofty goals Dr. Chi... Lofty. Goals.


Here is a recent pic of Charlie, me and my friend Cara at our friend's grand opening. She has the BEST spice shop. They literally have EVERYTHING.. Dan and I are obsessed... Check it out Savory Spice

Chatty Charlie

So Charlie has the gift of gab... another thing she gets from yours truly :) Here is a video of her talking to her friends on her phone

Apple Issue

Hi All!! I'm so sorry for being such a blog slacker. All is well at the Russell home. The holidays were absolutely awesome, BUT we have been dealing with some apple issues aka the apple has not fallen FAR enough from the tree! haha (I stubbled across this saying somewhere and it describes our situation to a T!) There are only a handful of people who know the real truth about my 'tude. Luckily, I think I've outgrown it... however, it took about oh, I don't know 20 years. (emphatic sigh). When I was younger my mother would wish I had a daughter just like me which at the time I thought was AWESOME! Fast forward a bunch of years and welcome Charlie Grace Russell. The real victim here is my poor husband. I mean really, those Russell genes are strong, but they lost the fight to my 'Beast Woman' attitude. Um, yea beast woman was my nickname growing up... not schnookums, peanut, love bug- just beast woman. So the battle of the queen bee has begun. Charlie now decides what she wants to wear and woe to the person who doesn't abide. Sometimes it is two outifts, one on top of the other. Sometimes it is just a hat to accessorize.
As long as the hat is on we are happy...


Dare to take it off and feel the wrath of C.G.R...

I'm currently reading every book I can get my hands on to learn how to parent a 'Strong-willed' or 'Spirited' toddler. In the meantime, I've resorted to slavery... that's right folks. And if she keeps it up she'll be scruba-a-dub dubbin' the floor with her toothbrush! ha!

I'm just kidding. Really it's all good. I adore this little girl and love her lil 'tude-most of the time. Here's a cute little clip at her teasing her fav Eska-bear. I mean you just can't help but laugh :)

Suzi Homemaker

Yep! That's me.. Suzi Homemaker... well not really, I won't respond to the name Suzi (ok. fine. I would, but begrudgingly...) and I wish I were a homemaker as in a SAHM... but I do think a play a role in making our house a home... especially with these new curtains! Yep, I made this beauty all by myself!  (Can you tell I'm very proud of this accomplishment?) 

Of course it wouldn't be me if there wasn't a ridic story attached... So allow me to set the stage... Dan was working nights and Charlie was spending the night at Grandma Russell's (I had a dentist appt and she was watching her the next day it was easier this way...) I had the night husband and baby free! Sounds like a vacation, right? So early in the morning I was envisioning myself sitting in front of the TV with a glass of wine (read: bottle) in hand catching up on my absurd list of shows that I never have time to watch. As the day progressed, this vision morphed into something dark... I decided I was going to paint the kitchen. Bonus: I would surprise Dan! This is the only room that hasn't been graced with a fresh coat of paint since we moved in... it was long overdue. There was a spackled area next to the stove that would taunt me as I walked up the stairs... u-g-l-y. I went to the store by my work and picked out a perfect greige (gray/beige) shade. (I am the most indecisive person, so this was a very difficult task for me!) I loaded up on all of the supplies and I was good. to. go. After my dentist appt. I putzed around at my mom's with my sister. I mean, I was baby AND husband free... I just went where the wind took me.. well not really, she had food and I was hungry. So! after that I went home and decided to start this project at 10:00 pm. I mean how long could it take?? There isn't a lot of surface area to paint... I just have to tape. Yea, taping took me almost 2 hours. Then I needed to do two coats... of both the edging and rolling... yikes! 3:00 am I finally finished :) I set it up all HGTV style.. minus the things on the wall. I could hardly sleep I was so excited for Dan to see it! I swear it felt like Christmas Eve!! I call Dan on my way to work... we talk as he is driving home. He tells me he is home and that he'll call me later! I was giddy with excitement!! After about 10 mins... still no call! Hmmm.. I called Dan this is how the convo went:

Me: Hey!

Dan: Hey! I was just going to call you... 

Me: Oh?

Dan: Yea, the kitchen looks great!

Me: Oh thanks! You like the color??

Dan: You painted?

Me: (sigh)

No, Dan didn't not notice that I changed the paint from an off white to a gray (or smell it for that matter), there was nothing on the walls, no light switch covers were on and the spackled area was now gone. He did, however, notice that I cleaned off the butcher block (which is usually covered with junk mail and random baby paraphernalia) Folks, this is the person that I am trusting to protect me from the bad guys... I'm scared, very scared. 

October Round Up!

Some how October got away from me... Here is a recap of what went down at Casa de Russell...We had pics with ACP (We're down with ACP, yea you know me.. sorry, I had to..) Charlie was in one her moods.. and that mood did not consist of sitting still.. I was actually SHOCKED how many cute pics Anne captured... never ceases to amaze :) Here are a few of my favs!

I could pick a bazillion more... but this post is already going to be too long!

Charlie has fallen deeply in love with Eska... she likes Finn, but LURVES her Eska-bear... I think the feeling is mutual. Eska seems to be in heaven as Charlie rips out her fur (which btw, she learned from her dad... that is how Dan 'pets' her. Oi vey!)

My friend Heather got Charlie this for her 1st bday. Her name is Rody. (which is an odd coincidence because Dan had a Grandpa Rody (sp?) I never had the pleasure of meeting him, but his legacy lives on ;) One prob with this though... Charlie thinks Eska can be like Rody sometimes (bouncy)... Eska is not fond of this confusion...



And last but not least... here is a video of Charlie walkin around with her tentacles!! haha This costume cracks me up!!



I hope you had a great October!

Got-2-Be Smarter Than The Baby

This is what runs through my head whenever Charlie comes close to outsmarting me. I have to share my latest conquer... I have all of these adorable beenie type winter hats for Charlie adorned with cutesy ribbons and bows that I couldn't wait to put on her as last year her head was too small (which is a shock considering we've already established she has a bobble head see here). Alas! It is freezing! I can now break out these little beauties!! I put one on her head and as I was about to swoon and ooh and ahh... she rips it off so violently that I can almost hear the methodical, evil laugh that would complement her actions so nicely. The nerve!!! Needless to say, she refuses to wear hats... between you and me I think she is doing it out of spite...what's that you say? A 14 month old doesn't have the ability to know... you must come take visit to the Russell home soon.. you will not believe your eyes! Anyway, back to me winning... although I am still hopeful she will wear the other hats, I worked up a cute substitute for the time being... here's a shot of her modeling my creation. It ties at the chin, so try as she might, this sucker isn't coming off!! Mommy -1 Charlie- 0

Funny side note... The pattern said it fit 'most toddlers'. Since Charlie has the same size head as a 2 year old, I had to tweak it a bit!! haha I also embellished it with a flower ;)

My Favorite Halloween Treat!

If you would have asked me 5 years ago what my favorite Halloween treat would be in 2010 I would have responded with absolute certainty and conviction... SNICKERS! Hands down best candy bar ever.  Despite that fact, there is no way you could have convinced the 2005-Susan that in five years my answer would be Octopus... but I must say my Chachi looks scrudiliumptious! Here are a few pics :)