Here’s a fun video of Clara saying “hi, kitty,” or at least that what we think she was saying. The password is claraiscute.

Hi, Kitty from Courtney Champion on Vimeo.

Clara and I were lucky enough to travel to Alabama earlier this month to meet her new cousin Ginger and see the rest of our family. Eric wasn’t able to come with us, which meant Clara and I traveled solo for the first time. Of course, there were no direct flights, so we had to change planes in Atlanta. What should’ve been enough of a layover in Atlanta ended up being a run-through-the-airport-to-make-the-next-plane layover (there and back). Thankfully, even with delays, we made it on time and without any major problems. Clara rode through the airport in one of her carriers, and didn’t have a care in the world. By the time we made our connecting flight in Atlanta, she was fast asleep.

We had a fantastic time with seeing everyone while we were there, and the beautiful weather made our trip even more amazing. We FaceTimed with Eric almost every day, and he even read Clara’s bedtime story (the first Harry Potter book) over the phone. Clara met her Nana and Grandpa Dave for the first time, along with her Uncle Brad, Aunt Barbara and cousin Amy. She also got to meet her Mimi, my mom, and her cousins Robbie and Andrea. We were also so excited that Mrs. Pam stopped by to hang out for a bit while we were there. Even though we were there for six days, it still felt like a whirlwind of a trip. Clara and I were both exhausted by the time we made it home, but I’m so glad we were able to make it down there before the end of the year.

Breastfeeding is something that’s important to us (and yes, I say us because it’s important to Eric too). Yesterday, Clara and I got the opportunity to participate in Richmond’s Big Latch On to promote breastfeeding awareness. The final counts came in at 150 people in attendance with 50 babies latched on! Here are a couple news stories from the event, and you can even catch a glimpse of us in them. 🙂

Story at the Richmond Times-Dispatch

Story at CBS

It’s official. Clara can roll from stomach to back and back to stomach, and she did both before reaching four months. That’s our girl! She’s been rolling all over the place for the last week, and I finally managed to catch it on video. She’s changed so much over the last month, but more to come on that later.

Clara Rolls Part 1 from Courtney Champion on Vimeo.

Clara Rolls Part 2 from Courtney Champion on Vimeo.

The past few weeks have been filled with fun for us. We had friends from Orlando here one weekend and then family from Alabama here the next. We were so excited when our friends Marlyn and Chris told us they were planning a trip up here. We hadn’t seen them in over a year, and it was fabulous to spend a few days with them. Their daughter Genevieve showed us all the things we’ll need to do in order to make our house baby proof. 😉

Christa, Zack, Christian and Blair came to visit the next weekend. We cooked out a couple nights, played a ton of Wii and got to celebrate Blair’s seventh birthday (complete with cupcakes). It was so amazing to have them here. Clara definitely enjoyed getting to meet her aunt, uncle and cousins.

It’s tough sometimes being so far away from everyone, but we’re so glad last month was filled with visitors. It’s crazy to think about how big Clara will be next time we see my family this fall, and then Christa will be the one with a tiny girl.

I am well aware that Clara can’t actually talk yet, but she’s started making lots of vowel sounds. Whenever we’re talking to her, she starts moving her mouth as if she’s thinking, “Hey, maybe if I do what they do, sounds will come out of my mouth too!” Our favorite one sounds like “hi.” It’s completely adorable. The video is sideways, but what matters is that you can hear her say it.  😉

[FMP]http://cooklikeachampion.com/threearethechampions/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Clara-Says-Hi1.mov[/FMP]

Just before her two month birthday, Clara rode on her first airplane. I was 17 before I flew, and Eric was 22, so Clara’s got a good start on growing up to be a well-traveled girl. She did wonderfully on the plane ride there (not so much on the way home, but more on that shortly). We flew into Atlanta Wednesday morning, and Eric’s sister was sweet enough to pick us up from the airport. After lunch and a couple hours in the car, we made it to Crystal’s house just before Eric’s dad and stepmom arrived. This was Clara’s first time meeting anyone in our family, and it was really special. She was a little disoriented, though, and wasn’t sure about being held by people other than her mom and dad. Still, we’re glad they got to meet her. The next morning, Eric’s grandmother, aunt and cousin came to visit for a few hours. We’re glad they were all able to make the trip to Crystal’s to see us and meet Clara. Of course, we didn’t get a single picture with our camera the entire time we were in Alabama, but here’s one from Eric’s dad’s. We didn’t get to spend a ton of time in Birmingham since the main reason we were in Alabama was for a wedding, but we’re very thankful for the time we did have there.

Friday morning, I left to bake cookies for the wedding reception while Eric packed our things and washed Clara’s diapers (yes, we successfully traveled with cloth diapers – woo!). The rest of the day was a whirlwind. We met our friends Melissa and David for lunch and then drove a couple hours to get to the wedding site. When we got there, it was time for the rehearsal and dinner. The wedding the next day was beautiful, and we had a fabulous time. We got to see so many friends we haven’t seen in such a long time (2-3 years). As you can see, Clara slept comfortably through the rehearsal and ceremony. 🙂

We left early Sunday morning and had breakfast with our friend Amanda before heading back to Atlanta. We were in the car about four hours, and Clara was not happy by the time we got to the airport. Thankfully, the TSA agents were kind and helpful while we were going through security. After a plane delay, we boarded the plane but waited on there for quite a while before takeoff. It was hot, and Clara and I were both sweaty. She was really unhappy and cried off and on for most of the ride, but at least it was a short flight. We were thankful to finally be home Sunday after a long day of traveling. Overall, I think Clara did wonderfully. I know it must’ve been overwhelming for her to be around so many new people in so many different places. We don’t have any plans to travel far away again in the near future, and I’m hoping it will be easier for all of us the next time around.