Just because

Krista and I ran the Army Run Half Marathon. In the soaking rain...

On our trip to the Adirondacks

One year old!

Daddy, that's a fish!

For the time being

Updating this blog on a somewhat regular basis has become harder and harder, so I have decided to stop updating it for the time being.

I will continue to post pictures of Carice on Facebook, and we also have set-up a photo stream through iPhoto (use with iPhone, iPad or Mac). So either come and find me on Facebook (Facebook.com/katalijn), or send me an email if you'd like to be added to the photo stream.

This might not be a definite end of the blog, I might just decide to pick it up again in a bit.

Nine months and counting

It's been quiet on the blog front, and that is partly because it's been a very intense time, both good and bad.

Nolan's father passed away early June after a three month battle with duodenum cancer. His death has been hard on all of us. It is still surreal to think he is no longer here, and that Carice will grow up not remembering her grandfather. But she did provide some shine in this dark and sad time, and was able to lift his spirits.

We also had some very good moments. We were able to travel to the Netherlands and England to attend my sister Monika's wedding, and visit with friends and family.
The wedding was absolutely wonderful, with a beaming bride and groom, and lots of people to catch up with!

Carice was absolutely amazing on the trip. She was the perfect baby on all the plane rides, and was shamelessly flirting with everyone she saw. She enjoyed the Dutch strawberries, and made new friends with my parents dog, Resa.

All in all we are doing well. We are enjoying summer and just being able to spend more time outside. I even managed to get a tan for the first time ever! Nolan is enjoying his job, although it's definitely more challenging than his old one. But he's one that likes a good challenge!

Carice is still doing well. Her sleeping is not as solid as it has been, but she's also moving around way more (crawling, sitting up), so she might just be more restless at night. Still nothing really to complain about.
She's eating well, and even though she doesn't have any teeth yet, she has no issues munching down a whole piece of watermelon, or other hard foods like apples. There's not much she doesn't like, but her all time favourites might be strawberries and tomatoes. Luckily we're now getting tomatoes out of our own backyard, so they are hard to beat of course!

We had our 9 month check up last week, and she came in at a whopping 21.1 lbs (9.8 kg) and 68 cm. In summary a very healthy and happy baby!

Carice loves to laugh!!

Waiting for our connecting flight in Frankfurt

With daddy in Amerongen

With opa on the floor...

Reading with Oma!

What do you mean, you can't pull Resa's hair?

Who turned the light off?

Train selfie on our way to England

In the hotel in Canterbury

The beautiful bride and groom!

And look, it didn't rain :)

Family picture

Carice looking super cute!

Happy in her British stroller.

Eating yoghurt back home

High five, Zora!

Carice is six months old!

While I write this, I look outside and all I can see is snow, snow and more snow coming down. Honestly, I really don't mind the snow, but when we've had snow on the ground since mid-November,  and have not really had any days with above-zero temperatures, I can say I'm ready for some spring-like weather! 'They' had promised us some, but I've yet to see it.
I think I'm also having a mild form of cabin fever, but I'm sure that is only temporarily.

Yesterday Carice was six months old! Which also means that my mat leave is halfway done. But she is doing really well. Still sleeps and eats like a champ, which is resulting in a happy and healthy baby. We also started looking at daycares this week, even though it's still 6 months away. But it looks like we should be able to find something close to our house.
What is also remarkable is the bond between Carice and Zora. They just love each other! Really fun to watch.

Just giggling away.

Now we know why! 

Ready for another walk in the snow

Selfie!

Happy camper!

Sitting up on my own!

My new toy, a Jolly Jumper!

Want to play together?

Sweet Potato

I like you!

A lot!

Ready for summer!!

What is this thing?

Just photos of Carice, none of us. Lets try to change that for next time :)

Carice 5 months

Carice is now 5 months, and it's crazy how quickly time flies by! But it's been fun.

The last week of January, just before Nolan went back to work, we decided to go away for a few days. Since we didn't have Carice's passport on time, we had to stay in Canada and decided on Deerhurst, just west of Algonquin Park. A good choice. Nice and quiet, and snowy! We went snowshoeing, walking and most of all, we relaxed!

Carice all bundled up.

The view from the top.

The 'hill' we conquered!

A snowy walk!

Otherwise things are still going well. I take Carice wherever I go, and she's just an easy kid! I had her up at the PRF for a meeting, and she was on her best behaviour (and all the guys loved her!!).  She is still sleeping well at night, so no complains there (I have a harder time sleeping than she does...). Naps can be another story, but I'll take a full night sleep any day!

Nolan is enjoying his new job, and I think the routine that comes with it :) I'm starting to get back into the running spirit, but with Carice not sleeping too well during the day, it can be challenging. The fact that it's still bloody cold and snowy doesn't help either. But at least lots of sunshine!

Best friends already!

Yesterday we spent the day in the woods with some coworkers. It was great, with campfire and hotdogs, and Nolan even learned how to drive a snow mobile!

And the animals are happy too. Although Zora is done with winter!