The Hughes Family: Our Resident Climber

So let's talk about Caroline. Most commonly called "the quiet one" or "the serious child," she has all of a sudden developed an absolute LOVE of climbing. I'm talking climbing on chairs, gates, the table, the stairs, the door, the couch, the refrigerator...the list goes on and on. She's fearless! And pretty darn cute while she does it. She gets this little grin like "yeah, you know I'm cute." She is still much quieter than Katherine was at this age, but definitely do not underestimate her! She will sit back, take it all in and then crawl right over and do something that shocks the socks off of me! She is still refusing to walk...even though she totally can. She just refuses to let go. I think she is going to be our very cautious risk taker. Meaning, she will sit there calculate out all of the possible ways to go wrong, figure out the best approach and then DO IT. Heaven help us! Katherine, on the other hand, just does it and then goes, OH, well that didn't turn out the way I wanted. So different, but oh so sweet!

Caroline's favorite things right now are FOOD, climbing, anything that Katherine is currently playing with, the remote controls, my kitchen cabinets, Colby's water bowl (GROSS!), dancing, music, and putting EVERYTHING into her mouth. If it will fit, in it goes. This drives me absolutely CRAZY, but I am hoping the stage will soon pass. Things she's not too crazy about include being told "NO!", shoes and socks, and sitting still. As long as you avoid those things she is one happy kiddo. She has such a sweet temperament and will generally be just fine to just sit in the floor and play with her toys all by herself. But, if you do pull her off of something she is climbing on or take something out of her mouth that she shouldn't have...goodness gracious! The girl has a temper! She will ball up her little fists, grit her teeth, turn bright red in the face and start shaking which all erupts into a big squeal of frustration. Then she's all calm and smiles again. :)

She is growing up so fast, I can hardly believe it! She absolutely adores her big sister Katherine and it is so sweet to see them playing together. Katherine is pretty good with her, but occasionally we have to step in to keep her from getting too rough.

As for the climbing...I may never be able to put the kid down again! This morning, I found her climbing the stairs, climbing up onto her walker and sitting on top of the kitchen table. That was only in a one hour period...and I was in the SAME ROOM! I cannot imagine what will happen if I ever have to take a bathroom break! Guess I will have a buddy attached to my hip at all times for the foreseeable future! :)

Here are some new pictures of the resident daredevil! Enjoy!

"Here sis, I'll give ya a push!"