Where oh where has my baby gone?? I look at 13-month-old Morgan and just can’t believe that we have this precious little lady in our lives. Morgan’s personality is bursting through and we are in awe of how much she learns each day.
Morgan is generally happy and full of smiles, and Connor is still the master at instigating her true “belly laughs.” She dances anytime she hears music, can lean in for a hug and a (very wet) kiss if asked, and will hold up her hand for a high five. She also still loves to play dress up with the clean laundry!
After reading to her every night, Morgan is finally at the stage where she is interested in books! Her current favorites are Pat the Bunny, Little Lion, and Doggies. It’s so cute to see her bring a book to me, sign the animal that’s in it, and plop down in my lap to read together.
Morgan loves to pull on Connor’s clothes!
Communication
Morgan’s signing has really taken off! I can’t even explain how much fun it is to see. We endured a week or so of madness when she was constantly holding out her arm and shrieking for things, but now she holds her arm out and then signs “please.” How can you say no to that?? The signs we see most often these days are “Daddy” and “water.” Boy does this little girl love those two things! To top it all off, we even witnessed her first 2-sign request recently: “Water, please!” Other signs Morgan uses include dog, lion, dinosaur, outside, diaper, and get dressed. We see “outside” all the time because she loves to beg to go out!
Signing “Daddy” while watching him mow the grass
Sleeping
Over the past month, Morgan has been waking up usually just once during the night! Her nighttime is generally 7:30pm-6:30/7:00am, and she takes two naps. When she wakes up in the morning or from a nap, I usually snuggle with her in the glider for a few minutes. Sometimes she is ready to climb right off the glider and walk out the door! She always stops and grins at me as she’s halfway off the chair because she knows I’m going to laugh, wave, and say, “Bye, Morgan!”
Eating
I used to have a little baby who only needed to breastfeed, and the next thing I know, I have a little girl who eats three square meals a day, plus a snack! She still nurses to sleep, and sometimes asks for milk during the infamous pre-dinner hour (during which all children seem to have a rough time handling life).
Although Morgan often plays well in the living room (with or without Connor), she is frequently a bit clingy while I’m trying to work in the kitchen, and I often end up preparing meals with her on my hip. I think she’s mostly just curious to see what’s going on, and she wants to make sure she can sample a bite of everything!
Earlier this month, I thought I was going to need to add an eleventh Commandment: “Thou shalt not covet thy brother’s water bottle.” It started in the car, when I would give Connor his CamelBak bottle and Morgan her sippy cup. That crazy girl would throw her cup down and scream for Connor’s bottle! Being the generous brother that he is, he would give it to her once he was done drinking. This madness spread to the cups at the table as well. Deciding to leave nothing to chance, I bought two new CamelBak water bottles with the EXACT SAME design, and new sets of plastic cups with two of each color. This definitely goes on the list of “Problems I never had when I only had one child.” (But let’s be honest…I feel blessed beyond belief to be Mommy to these TWO kiddos.)
Big Brother
I can’t believe summer is almost over! Connor took a second session of swim lessons and further developed his skills. He’s still not swimming on his own, but he has gained a huge amount of comfort and confidence in the water, and is putting his head under like a little fish!
We have kept busy with trips to the playground or various parks, library activities, and of course, lots of LEGO building. Connor starts kindergarten on September 6th! He has been a little nervous, but he’s feeling much better after meeting his teachers and classmates at Open House.
Enjoying a morning at Mt. Trashmore Park

Chef Connor preparing “ice cream sundaes” at the library’s Restaurant Play event
Both kids had a blast another library event, Construction Play!

My two peas in a pod love riding in the wagon together!
Charlie’s sister and her family drove down from the Richmond area to spend a Saturday with us! The guys (minus Connor) had plans to do the high ropes course at the Adventure Park. The weather forecast was terrible, but they managed to squeeze in most of their reserved time before it stormed, and came home with vouchers to go back another time. Meanwhile, the kids, Michelle, and I enjoyed a relaxing day playing at home. Once the guys returned and got cleaned up, we all went to The Leaping Lizard for dinner. It’s one of my favorite restaurants in town! It was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Everything is so fresh and made from scratch. Morgan enjoyed hearing the sound of her shrieks echo around the small restaurant, and we tried to spend as much time as possible walking outside and looking at the chickens before it was time to sit down and eat.
Connor and Morgan enjoyed lots of playtime with Aunt Michelle
Another Saturday in August was spent in Yorktown with my Aunt Jackie and her family. Jackie is my mom’s sister. She came to visit us after Morgan was born, but I can’t remember the last time I had seen her before then. She has four sons and several grandchildren, and I hadn’t ever met any of them before. Three of her sons were able to come with their wives, and two of the grandkids were there as well. We all enjoyed spending time with everyone, and hopefully we will see them again!
The Lohr Family! From the left: my cousin Greg and his wife Alison; my cousin Tom (very back) and his wife Carolyn (in front of him); my Aunt Jackie; Bryan’s son Kevin, my cousin Bryan, and his wife Suzanne (in front of them); Kathryn (Tom and Carolyn’s daughter), and us!
Charlie took a week of leave at the end of August, and we all enjoyed having Daddy home for a “staycation.” Connor had lots of fun outings with Charlie, like going to the indoor trampoline park, building Legos, and doing the high ropes course at the Adventure Park!
Connor and Charlie loved their morning at the indoor trampoline park! Connor’s favorite part is the foam pit and “Ninja Warrior” course.
Connor was so excited to finally tackle the ropes course!