Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year from the Kerpens!

Pictures Galore!!!

Okay, it's been too long since I went on a picture taking spree....and so, to entertain the doze--I mean millions of people who check this blog out...here are some updated pictures.

First, here is Kate just two days shy of her six-month birthday:


Here she is in her Bumbo, getting ready to sit on her own:

Here she is eating Sweet Potato, fed to her by her sister:


Here she is, post Sweet Potato, in the bath:


Here she is at the Bowling Alley, watching her sister bowl a strike (in bumper bowl, that is):


Here are a few pics of the two girls hanging out together:



And finally, here is Charlotte on a trip with her dad into the city to see Max and Ruby!!!! What fun!


I hope you enjoyed this photo adventure! Happy New Year's Eve Eve!

Kate's Christmas

Charlotte goes every year to hang with Daddy Chris's family at Christmastime, which left us with a little bit of quality "Kate time". While we missed Char a TON, this was really fun. Kate started singing this week....cooing to a fun melody that she hears every time her daddy sings his favorite song to her-- "You're a good good good good girl, you're the best baby in the world....you're a good good good good good good good good girl WOO HOO!". Kate kept the tune but sang "Gooo gooo goo goo guh, goo goo gooo goo goo goo guh!" Fascinating stuff! Anyway, here's a recent pic...she'll be six months next week!

The Elopement of Grandpa Robert and Grandma Rayni

Congratulations to our creative West Coast G&G!

Happy Five Month Birthday, Kate!

To celebrate, we tried oatmeal for the first time!

Why I love Shabbat..

Perhaps the greatest Shabbat dinner in Little Neck Kerpen history...

Phil, Dan, Carrie and Joanna cooking together.

Charlotte and Phil baking Challah.

A terrific game of Monopoly.

The smell of fresh pesto filling the air.

Kerpens united!

So happy to see the amazing, talented, thoughtful, and altogether terrific Uncle Dan-- appearing from the West Coast for Thanksgiving, and this special Shabbat. We love you.

This is what happens...

When your sister gets a hold of you and decides to play "dress up"!

theKATEbuzz

Here she is, the official office mascot for thekbuzz.

Oh, that wacky Kodak!

You see what happens when you can't sleep? Here is a lovely coloring book image of my daughters...it looks like something straight out of an A Ha video....remember "Take on Me"? Okay, first one to color in this pic wins a prize!

In case you're interested, here is the pic in its beautiful original form. Aren't they getting big?

Baby Love!

Here are two pics of me and Dave as babies....who do YOU think Kate looks like?

Conversations With Kate- Part 2

Apple Picking!

On our trip to the Berkshires, we stopped in Sturbridge at a place called Hyland Farm. They had a great variety of apples to pick, and they had their own brewery. They even had bands, and dancing, and activities for everyone. It was awesome. It was unseasonably warm, and so I've eliminated the pictures of mom and dad sweating profusely, however, these Charlotte photos needed to make it to the blog!

The Kerpen Family

Here we are! It's the first nice picture of the four of us!

Blogger Slacker!

OOOOH!

I am in TROU-BLE!!!!

I have been majorly slacking on the blog! Mostly because I have been away. First we went to the Berkshires for a wedding and a fall foliage trip, and then we went to Washington DC to visit Uncle Phil!

Here's a basic update and then I'll post some pics...Kate is wonderful, she's very verbal and does a lot of cooing and gooing and laughing. Charlotte is also doing very well, and currently has 53 stars on her star chart! (She needs 100 to get BUNK BEDS!!!)

:)

Sorry I haven't been posting. Look for a slew of posts to come right NOW!

Sad About the New York Mets

Day 24- My first mommy friend EVER

Hi! Long time no update!

So, this weekend, we went to a birthday party of one of Charlotte's very first friends. Priya turned four, and was part of a playgroup that I joined when I first had Charlotte. This playgroup was incredibly meaningful to me, as I had no friends with kids at the time, and it was nice to just have some women to talk to about poopy diapers and crying and so much more. We all ended up being pretty good friends, and now, it is such a joy to get together with them.

Here is a pic of me and Kate with my VERY first of the mommy friends, Keisha. Keisha lived in my building when I first had Charlotte. We first became friends when she ran up to me and excitedly said "I'M PREGNANT!". Note: I did not even know her at the time, I was just carrying Charlotte in an infant seat. Keisha's warmth and willingness to share with me made us instant friends, and our children still love each other.

I miss you Keisha! It was great to see you and all the other mommies!!!

Day 23- Manicurist from hell.

Let's go back in time a bit.

The year? 2003. The place, Forest Hills.
There I am, cutting my little 5 month old infant's nails, when suddenly, I hear a sharp cry. Yes, I mutilated my little Charlotte. She only cried for a minute, although she bled for quite a while, and I took a picture of my baby with her first band-aid to commemorate the experience.


Now, let's fast forward...
The year? 2007. The place, Little Neck.
Once again, I attempt a manicure on one of my children...except this time, it's THREE month old Kate! Same yelp, same blood, different band aid. (I guess I wasn't stocked with Backyardigan bandaids when Charlotte was little) Here's a pic of Kate post butchering.


Maybe I should stick to marketing. I guess I'll never be a manicurist. :(

Congratulations Kev & Ivey!

Beautiful wedding, beautiful instant family!

STOP! Hammertime!

Isn't it depressing that the youth of today don't know MC Hammer? No recollection of the gold lame pants...the hammer dance, 3-5-7...its just sad.

Day 22- CLEAN SWEEP

Have you ever watched a show, and felt like you were going to have an anxiety attack because it was too close to home? Well, I watched Oprah's "REORGANIZE" show which featured people who lived in complete clutter, and I nearly lost my lunch! I mean, normally, I live in a perpetual state of "messy not dirty". Things on the table, toys on the floor, lots of laundry to be done. But lately, with the addition of a new child, and therefore new stuff, clutter has gotten out of control. Case in point:


WOWSA. Now, true, these pics were taken MID clean sweep, but still, it shows the amount of STUFF we've got going on in this small space. And so, on one special Sunday, Charlotte and I decided to reorganize. And so, we did:


What a fun day this was. While Dave worked (and Kate napped), Charlotte and I bonded through the art of organization. We attacked every room, and while there's still some work to be done, it's not disorganized anymore. When our sitter Sasha came over that night, she was totally impressed...and since she's a neat freak, I really considered that the stamp of approval.

Hurray for Charlotte and Carrie...the Organization Nation!

Day 22- Happy Birthday Bubbe!!!

Bubbe turned 92 today! Isn't that awesome!?!




We celebrated at Aunt Bella's, our favorite Little Neck restaurant...where we take all of our favorite family members to have yummy home cooked meals with amazing service. We all had a great time!

Day 21- Formula.

I never really considered myself to be a "nature mommy". I always felt rather ambivalent about breastfeeding. I breastfed Charlotte and supplemented with formula from the time she was three days old, and I didn't feel an ounce of guilt.

However, with Kate, I was fortunate enough to be able to exclusively breastfeed her. It came easier, she wasn't quite as hungry, and it just seemed to work. Yet now, with going back to work and a variety of social functions to attend, I decided that it was time to supplement with some formula.

Of course, I didn't think that this would bother me at all. I have NOTHING against formula! In fact, I was always more offended by the lactation consultants than in favor of them...I felt pushed and pressured with my first baby. But now, as I knew my daughter was receiving her first half formula/half breastmilk bottle from our new, amazing babysitter, I felt really sad. I felt like I failed. :(

Yes, I know that this is silly. She is still going to be 90% breastfed...it's only for when I am out or can't pump enough. And who cares????? My Charlotte did very well with a formula/bfing mix.

When I came home today, I stared at my beautiful baby. She was sleeping peacefully. When she got hungry, I was so happy to just lay with her and breastfeed her. When she pooped successfully, I was thrilled. I think you just love your kids so much, you just want them to have the best thing, always. It's just defining that "best thing" for you and your family that's the hard part. There's never an easy answer. There's always guilt. There's always sacrifice. But, if you're lucky, there's always a lot of love too.

P.S. Similac Sensitive seems to be great! So far so good!

Conversations with Kate: The Miniseries, Part 1

Day 20-- L'Shana Tova!!!!!!

Today is the first day of the Jewish New Year-- 5768, I think! I'm wishing all of you a sweet and happy New Year. Here is a pic of my cousins, sans Reinstein crew...it's a cute pic, and its nice to celebrate holidays with family!

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Introducing...the HOOTER HIDER!!!!

I am thrilled to announce to the blogging community that I am now the proud owner of a "HOOTER HIDER". Yes, this is its actual name...a device created by some mom who is now a millionaire, I am sure. This is simply an apron with a trendy pattern on it, EXCEPT that the top has a wire in it, which enables the apron to stick OUT so you can see your child while you are breastfeeding. (As you can see, Charlotte is very interested in this feature.) Anyway, I paid $35 buckaroos for this thing, and it's worth every damn penny. I mean, can anyone tell I am breastfeeding here? I felt totally comfortable. This will extend my bf-ing for a bit longer, and also, I will continue to be stylish and chic. BRILLIANT!!! This mommy inventor gets the Carrie vote of confidence! I will pay 35 dollars for your silly piece of cloth any day of the week!!! YAY HOOTER HIDER!

Updated Kate!

For those of you who are looking for some soon-to-be-12-week Kate pics...here you go!

Man....I Missed Days!!!

Rather than catching up on specific days, I'm just going to post a few new bloggie entries here, and then start from today on.

DAMN!!!! I've been really good too!!!!

Day 15/16- Happy Birthday Mommy BFF!!!!!

Finally! A picture of mommy BFF! Day 15 of this weekend was my mommy BFFs Birthday, and so, in honor of all Mommy BFFs, I thought that I'd list some of the many reasons it's important to have a mommy BFF:

- You can discuss your children's doodies at length
- You can talk nonstop about your children without feeling weird
- You can use weird words, and its totally understandable b/c your kids use the same language (Helloieeeee)
- You understand each other
- You watch the same tv shows (when you get two seconds to watch tv) because your kids are on the same schedule
- They understand what its like to be married to Daddy BFFs
- They let you cry when you are freaking out over PreK, or when you think you are raising a monster
- They let you lose your patience, and never call you a bad mom
- They never judge.

Thank you Mommy BFF, and Happy BDAY!!!!

On Day 16, I went to brunch with my non mommy friends. This was equally fun and exciting. It's great not to talk about your kids once in a while, and discuss boyfriends, jobs, and life BEFORE kids!

Love to all friends, mommy or otherwise!

Day 14- In the office with Kate

(This stock photo is NOT me, and is being used because once again, my theKbuzz staff has my camera!)

My experiences as a working mother with an infant were completely different with Charlotte and Kate. During Charlotte's first three months, I was home...and I mean, completely, totally home. Staring at her little wrinkled face, I did nothing but love her, bite her tushee, and worry every time she did anything that I hadn't read about in "What to Expect when You're Expecting". When I went back to work, I went BACK to work-- 8:30 - 5:30, with some slight flexibility, but mostly, just full time like any other parent.

Now, with Kate, Dave and I have our own business. And so, I am required (if we want to make any money) to jump back in a bit earlier. However, because it is our own business, I can work from home, breastfeed whenever the heck I'd like, and bring Kate with me without any manager raising an eyebrow. This, to me, is a much better option.

And so, it is with great excitement that I report to you that Friday, September 7th, I spent the entire day in my office with Miss Kate. I watched the contractors build the furniture. I breastfed her under a blanket in the middle of meetings. I took her for walks while I was on conference calls. It was a great day.

I know this won't last beyond a few months...as she gets bigger, she gets more challenging to have at work. I've hired a sitter who is going to be FABULOUS for two days a week. I also have Dave to switch off with. It's going to be great. But for now, I'm celebrating my successful office day with my beautiful, smiling daughter.

:)

Day 13-- FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!

Today was Charlotte's first day of school! Even though it was only 1 hour, 10 minutes long....it was great to watch her first day of Pre-Kindergarten, and know that there's light at the end of the no camp/no school tunnel! Turns out she needs it as much as I do!

Here's a pic from class that Charlotte drew today....SO cute! I especially like the depiction of her teeth!!!

My girls at home

As I've mentioned several times before-- the girls have both been home this week. I took some pictures of what they do while they're home.

Charlotte has taken to tying ribbons around her, and creating new looks for herself. Shown here...










Kate, on the other hand, hangs out on Dad or Mom's lap for much of the day! Note the dress hiked above her diaper and her messy clothes on the futon...such is life when you have two in the house at the same time! Cleaning goes on the back burner...well, at least in this house!