Tim, Ashley & Carter

So cool...

2012-01-20T13:42:00.000-08:00

From the Wild Card game against Cincinnati...wish we had been there!

One more holiday posting...

2012-01-18T12:38:00.000-08:00

A few more random pics taken over holidays...playing with some favorite Christmas presents, a fun New Year's Eve with Jack, getting ready for the Michigan bowl game in his Wolverine shorts that Uncle Michael got him AND watching the Texans win the first playoff game in Team history! (We're not going to mention their loss in the divisional game to Baltimore this past Sunday - grrrrrrr!)

Christmas...Part 2

2012-01-10T12:22:00.001-08:00

On Christmas Day, we came back to Dallas to celebrate with the Williams fam at DD and Pops house! We had such a fun time - Carter LOVED playing with all of his cousins!! And of course got even more fun presents...this child raked it in this Christmas! ;)

Being silly with cousin Ava...

Opening his Secret Santa gift...

And telling Colson "thank you!"

Spending some QT with Ayden over at our house...and lovin' it!

Christmas...Part 1

2012-01-09T07:03:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas celebration started with both Tim and I's work parties, the week before Christmas. The only pic worth posting is the one below, taken at Lamar . When Santa came in, Carter was totally cool with him! Gave him a high five...followed him over to his chair. And then when I asked him if he wanted to sit on his lap - he gave me a very loud "No!" So he wouldn't sit directly on his lap - he would sit with me or with Tyler and Cody (Stephanie's sweet Grandsons).

On the 23rd, we drove to Houston to celebrate Christmas with the Pollard family. We had tons of fun...decorating cookies for Santa, taking a trip to see the Prestonwood Christmas lights (a neighborhood famous for their fantastic Christmas decorations), and of course we opened about a kazillion presents! (And yes, there is a picture of Pappy with Alex's helicopter box ON HIS HEAD! Silly Pappy!!) We had a wonderful visit!!

Sweet Grandma...so thankful for her gifts!

Ahhhh....the beautiful madness that is opening presents...

Smartie Pants!

2012-01-06T12:52:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not, it is sometimes hard to get this little stinker to perform for the camera! I know, kind of shocking. Anyways, he has known his ABCs for several months now - but I couldn't ever get it on camera! He would start them - then get distracted and stop - again, shocking, I know. But we got a pretty good video of it the other day in the backyard (Although around "g" he gets distracted and asks if we are outside?! Lol!) He is definitely our little smartie pants - he also knows his colors & can count up to 15 (and has made it up to 19 a few times before! 19, I know, random!)

Carter...Future Dean Martin!

2012-01-04T10:26:00.000-08:00

So I think with the 124,327 times we watched Elf this Christmas season, we have all been singing "Baby It's Cold Outside" quite a bit! Now Carter is doing the same...Hilarious!! ;)

Family Pictures...

2011-12-19T09:00:00.000-08:00

My good friend Stephanie took these pictures of us, at the Frisco Heritage Museum a few weeks ago. It was FREEZING outside!! But we had such a good time. She is AMAZING!!!!! Obviously several of these pictures were on our Christmas card...but here are those, full size, and the rest of the pictures we took.

In the picture below, he was trying to put his foot up on the door behind him. It was so cute.

I think the picture below was one of my favorites of the whole day! Adorable.

Talk about a cheesy grin!

Everyone is asking about the picture below. Carter had chapstick in his hand - all day. And we were worried it was going to appear in every picture! So Tim took it from him, and put it in his pocket. So this is him trying to take it out! Haha!

Primrose Christmas Program...

2011-12-15T07:56:00.000-08:00

Last night, Primrose had a Christmas program for their kiddos, 1 year and up. Oh my gosh...as you can only imagine, it was eventful! These poor little ones - they just stare out into this vast audience with these blank looks on their faces. Thinking, "Who in the world are all these people?!" So Carter is in the Early Pre-School 1 class. He and another little boy are the only ones who are not 2 yet, so he is one of the little ones :) In the video, the first minute is pretty uneventful. His sweet teachers are just trying to corral all the kids, keep them on stage, keep them from melting down, trying to get them to participate, etc. He is in the back, by the teacher in the blue, Ms. Stauber (they are all wearing red shirts - his says "I'm on the nice list, trust me"). I think he spent the first minute messing with the display of stockings ;) But he soon makes his way to the front. He is swaying / twisting to "Frosty the Snowman," getting a little excited at the part of the song where they yell "stop!" He then gets distracted, noticing a Christmas tree in the room, and then comes the "jumpity, jump, jump..." portion of the song. Oh my. Needless to say, one of his obsessions lately is jumping. So he got a little over-excited at this point of the song! But it was just ADORABLE!! He did such a good job. We were very proud :) What a fun memory!!

Christmas Cookie Fun!

2011-12-13T21:00:00.000-08:00

DD and Pops came over Sunday evening to hang out, have dinner & decorate Christmas cookies! How fun!

Christmas is near!

2011-12-13T08:45:00.000-08:00

We have our house decorated...Christmas lights are up everywhere around town...We've watched Elf...You know Christmas season is upon us! :)

Our Christmas tree before...and after.

These stockings are hand-made by Tim's Grandmother, Emma. Tim has had his since the year he was born!

Carter loves this Santa choo-choo train. But it is HIGH up on a shelf - so he can't get to it! ;)

Our new Santa tree topper.

Jake could care less that we are decorating...

And clearly Tyson is exhausted by it all...

Deerfield, a neighborhood just north of us, does an AWESOME display of Christmas lights every year! So we had to take a drive through the other night. I tried to take pictures of some of the highlights. Boy does Carter LOVE Christmas lights!!!!

The bowl in the below picture ended up out the window at some point...I guess it's smashed on the street somewhere in Plano! Haha!

Tim has put Christmas lights in our front yard too! Carter likes to sit at the window and look out at them. So sweet.

All the boys on the couch together, even Jake!

The last month or so...

2011-12-06T09:05:00.000-08:00

What have we been up to over the last month or so?! We have been visiting with friends and family here in town and in Houston, including a trip to the Plano Fire Station for Cameron's 3rd birthday, among other things. Enjoy the random pics!

Our Little Man!

2011-11-30T17:04:00.000-08:00

This is Carter's school picture from this Fall. He was around 20 months old when it was taken. Below are pictures of Tim and I taken at the exact same age. Such a sweet little mix of Mommy & Daddy! :)

Future QB...

2011-11-30T08:13:00.000-08:00

Check this out! Carter, our future QB...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojrdyfBPRHE

Pumpkin Patch!

2011-11-07T09:06:00.000-08:00

We went to Houston the week before Halloween, for a variety of reasons. Alex's 4th birthday, our good family friends' 50th anniversary party and of course a trip to the Old Time Christmas Tree Farm Pumpkin Patch! Not a lot of good pics this year...couldn't get Carter to stop long enough to pose. But we still had a great time running around, climbing all over the pumpkins, and petting the goats of course ;)

Trick or Treat!

2011-11-01T06:36:00.001-07:00

Carter dressed up as a monkey last night for Halloween. He even had a little banana in his pocket - too cute! We took him trick-or-treating to two of our neighbors houses, and spent some more time just running around the neighborhood. He loved it! He was saying hi to everyone - he loved seeing all the other kids. Fun! Happy Halloween!

Hook 'em!

2011-10-07T08:52:00.001-07:00

Carter's ready for Tx/Ou weekend! Hook 'em horns!!

Trip to Austin - Part 2

2011-09-19T11:01:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Austin was barely 24 hours! So with the game being Saturday, we woke up Sunday morning, got all packed up & headed out to Lake Austin. We spent some time at Mozart's, out on the deck. Carter got to run around, look at the water, feed ducks, turtles and fish. And we got to eat lunch at super yummy Hula Hut (check out the last pics - Carter loved it as much as we did!) Nothing beats sitting out over the lake! We already miss Austin - can't wait to go back!!

Trip to Austin - Part 1

2011-09-15T12:17:00.001-07:00

Labor Day weekend, we took a trip to Austin for the opening game of the 2011 Longhorn football season! Gigi was in Austin for a wedding, so we thought it would be fun to meet her there & go to the game. Brave, huh?! Taking a 1 year old to a game. But it was AWESOME!!

Here we are trying to get a cute pic in our burnt orange before we left...

On the shuttle bus, on our way to campus.

We spent about an hour and a half at the Alumni Center before the game. Carter was the hit of the party - running around like crazy, playing in the dirt, with the leaves, you name it!

These next three pictures are sequential...Carter trying to put his horns up. So adorable! First pic - putting his hand up like Mommy.

Second pic - hand still up, trying to figure out what all these people are doing!

And finally, success! (Yes, I know, his horns aren't REALLY up). But he's 1! And when you tell him to "put his horns up!" this is what he does now. Cutest thing ever!!

View from our seats, hiiiiiiiigh up (and some other random pics). We didn't want to spend a lot on our tickets, when we weren't sure if we'd be there 1 minute, 1 quarter or what!

Pics on the bus ride home. We made it in our seats for a whole half!! Carter was an angel. But since it was already after 9, we decided to leave at halftime. He needed to get to bed :)

Gigi took Carter back to the hotel for bed, and Tim and I hit up Trudy's for some yummy Mexican food & drinks!

We had to drive by the tower on the way back to the hotel..lit up orange to symbolize the Horns win over Rice 35-9. Hook 'em!

Family reunion in Houston...

2011-09-09T11:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Carter and I went to Houston for my Great Aunt Dowine's 85th birthday! (She is in the black / gold in the picture above). We all called it a "family reunion" because it had been so long since we had spent any time together. We had a great weekend! I will explain pics as we go...

This is my Mom and I, with my 3rd Cousin Cathy and her Mom Jo.

This is my Grandmother (on the right) with her 2 sisters, Dowine and Cissie.

Family picture below. Me, Carter, my brother Scotty, his son Alex, my Mom and my Grandmother.

Another group shot. Alex, Grandma, Cissie, Dowine and I.

Sweet little Alex! He will be 4 in October!

This is my 3rd cousin, Kelly, and her son Owen. This is Carter "playing" with Owen. (Or, um, just trying to be rough & tackle him. Poor Owen!)

We went to Japon for dinner while we were in Houston. Tried to get a few pics of Carter & Alex. Not very successful! (sigh)

Alex and Pappy (my Dad) have a tradition on Sunday mornings of reading the paper together. It is so cute! Carter was invited to join. I warned them...it would be a disaster! But boy did Carter have the time of his life!!!

I think he is looking at the disaster that is now Pappy's room...probably a little proud! :)

Random pic at Grandma's just chillin! Sweaty from playing outside!!

Loving EPS1!

2011-08-30T07:03:00.000-07:00

These are pictures from Carter's first day in his new Early Pre-School classroom. He is doing AWESOME!

18 months old...

2011-08-26T07:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Carter turned 18 months old! Where has the time gone?! In such a short time, we have seen our baby turn into SUCH a little boy. Who knew that several months ago, when he started saying words, we should have been recording them. Nana Stephanie told me we should! But we didn't...and all of a sudden, he has hundreds of words. No, not kidding. The pediatrician wanted to know if he knew 8...seriously...8. Tim and I sat down last night and started trying to make a list. It's silly. We stopped. It felt like we were making a list of words that WE knew. So when I say hundreds, I mean it! (And he still does tons of sign language as well). It's adorable to hear him talk...He even speaks in sentences. For example: "Mama shoot ball?" "Baby shoot ball?" "Oh no! Where is it?" And he says "I love you" now. MELTS MY HEART!!

Moving on...he just moved up a classroom at school too. Generally they don't move the kids up until they are closer to 2, but they thought he was developmentally ready...and he was getting a little "restless" and "aggressive" with the other 1 year olds. Haha! So he is the youngest by several months, but doing great so far.

Favorite things...Carter LOVES school. He talks about Emery and Andrew in the mornings - his best little buddies, who he has been with for quite some time. At home, he has always got a football or a basketball in his hand. Yes, still a ball obsession. He also LOVES books. Especially his Elmo book. OBSESSED with all things Elmo. And his other favorite books are actually Little Golden Books. Bought them at Half Price books - didn't really know if he would be interested in them. And figured he would tear them up since they have "real" pages. He loves them! His 2 favorites are Count on Sesame Street and The Pokey Little Puppy. He loves playing with Tyson - and Grace. Although he mainly just chases Grace and tortures her with a flashlight. Learned that from Daddy. He loves to dance. He loves to sing songs - ABCs, Row Row Row Your Boat, Bumblebee Song, Ten Little Monkeys, Hot Dog (the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song) - just to name a few. He has also really started to notice airplanes. He loves to point them out in the sky when he sees them, or hears them. But when one flies by, he usually looks at me and says "More please?" Or "Again, again!" So cute. He has a little play airplane that he flies with his hand - even tries to make the right noises - adorable. (I think he learned that from Cousin Alex).

This is already so long - I should stop - although I could think of a million other things to say about our amazing little boy! Some fun random pictures below...from church (with his friend Park), playing at home & outside & with Jack, and even a few from the Fort Worth Zoo! YES - HE PETTED A SNAKE! Yuck!!!

Rock Star!

2011-07-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

The only way to stay cool...

2011-07-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

Water, water, water! I think that has been the theme of the summer. Most days that Carter and I spend together, we find some way to stay cool. So here are pics of some of our adventures. I will explain as we go... The picture above and below are from a water park in Bedford, celebrating Brayden's 1st birthday!

The next several are from what has to be our FAVORITE place for the summer. The splashground at Frisco Commons Park. We have played there with Jessy, Jackson and Nora. Allison met us one afternoon to hang out, Daddy has accompanied us a couple of times, but it is pretty much just Carter and I at least once or twice a week! It is awesome...only problem is when Carter gets sidetracked by bigger kids playing football, soccer, etc. Most of them have been so gracious with him, letting him get in the occasional kick or throw (see last pic).

The next few pics are from our trip to Old Town Aquatic Park in Lewisville. We went and met friends from church: Jennifer, Susan and Susan's three adorable little ones Luke, Sarah and Charlotte. We all had such a fun time...there was a splash area, a pool shallow enough for the kids to play safely, a slide, a lazy river...it was AWESOME!

A picture taken by Daddy. Speaks for itself. Lol!

The next set of pictures is from our trip out to Irving to go to a water park with Nana Stephanie, Kristen, Brayden, Misty, Emmarie, Cindy, Nevin and Roman. It was very similar to the water park in Lewisville. Such fun!

Houston - Part 3 - First Trip to the Beach!

2011-07-12T19:10:00.000-07:00

I have to say the BEST day we had in Houston, was definitely our trip to Galveston - Carter's first time to the beach. (And for you Galveston haters - I may be partial because I grew up on that beach. BUT the beach was clean and beautiful. And the water was clear! It was great!) Anyways, Tim and I are both SUCH beach people. We love the sand...the water...the heat...everything about it. And it seems that Carter followed right along in our footsteps, because he LOVED it! The picture above is when we first got there, and he was standing at the edge of the water just looking out in awe. And the first picture below, was when his tiny little feet first felt the ocean water. He had no fear! All he wanted to do was run out into the water and swim. He loved playing in the sand. And of course he made friends with whoever he could. He got to pretend surf on a guy's board...he played fetch with people's dogs...and of course got to kick a soccer ball with a little boy down the beach. It was such an awesome, awesome day! Cannot wait to go back to the beach!

Houston - Part 2 - First Trip to the Zoo!

2011-07-12T19:00:00.000-07:00

One of the most fun days of our trip was going to the Houston Zoo! Yes, it was about 110 degrees outside, but there was plenty of shade and plenty of places with nice, cool a/c. The boys had SUCH a good time! We rode the train through the park, went to the petting zoo and brushed the animals, and got to see tons of animals, of course. Our favorites were definitely the chimpanzees and the orangutans. Since it was so hot, they were all laying in the shade resting...which put them RIGHT by the viewing windows. You can see from the pics how enthralled Carter, Alex AND the monkeys were. It was GREAT!! And boy did the trip wear the boys out. You can see the proof in the last pic ;)

Trip to Houston - Part 1

2011-07-12T18:39:00.000-07:00

The last week of June, Tim had to travel to Houston for training for his new job. Since it was right around the 4th of July & the long weekend, Carter and I decided to go with him! It had been awhile since we had been to Houston to see my family. We had SO much fun! Boy, were we busy. We spent time with Gigi, Uncle Scotty, Alex, Pappy and even got to spend a day with Grandma. Below are just a few random pics taken throughout the week. While in Houston, Carter took his first trip to the zoo! AND his first trip to the beach, Galveston! It was an awesome week. Stay tuned for more pics...

Oops!

2011-06-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

In my rush to update our blog, I realized that I left out LOTS of other pictures from the past few weeks! A few of Carter's new favorite toy, a Pampers box...some random pics...and TONS from our backyard fun! (Check out the farmer's tan in the first picture below, WOW!) Carter has a swimming pool, a water table, his very own lawn chair and a slide! Can't wait for the next few months :)

What has been going on?!?!

2011-06-13T11:17:00.001-07:00

Wow, have I slacked this last month, or what?! The end of the school year was very hectic & busy, so I have not posted anything in a month! But praise the Lord summer is upon us! Hopefully now I will stay more current :) So what in the world have we been up to...

Mother's Day has come and gone. Carter got me a very sweet card, some beautiful roses and a stepping stone to put his handprints in, paint, etc. to commemorate the occasion. (Yes, we ATTEMPTED the handprints & decorating the stone this weekend...it is drying, so it is not yet complete. Will post a picture when it is TRULY complete.) Also, our family expanded a few weeks ago. Meet our new dog Jake! He is a 1 year old rescue, a German Shepherd / Lab mix. He is very sweet and very gentle with Carter. But he is very "puppy" and loves to play, run, jump, chew, etc. (Don't mind the e-collar on him in a lot of pics. Our first order of business when we got him was getting him neutered!) I think he's great...don't ask Tim what he thinks! ;)

Our mission over the past few weeks is to find the best parks, splash parks & places to play in Plano! (And what turns out Frisco, McKinney, etc). So tons of pics of Carter playing. You can tell that we live outside...his hair has lightened up so much! He loves playing in the sand...and thanks to Jackson for introducing him to splash parks! WOW, he absolutely loves it!! Whoever invented those is a GENIUS (And yes, he had a slight plumber's crack pretty much the entire time he played at the splash park last weekend). Cutest plumber's crack EVER though!

Looking forward to more summer fun! So stay tuned!!

Family Night at the Fire Academy

2011-05-10T06:57:00.000-07:00

Last week, we attended a Family Night at the Fire Academy in McKinney in support of Cole, Tim's brother. Here are a few pics from the evening...along with a very cool video below of Cole fighting a car fire (he is the one with the crow bar who opens the hood & trunk). It was awesome!

More fun in the backyard...and in the rain!

2011-05-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

Easter Egg Hunt!

2011-05-05T18:38:00.000-07:00

On Good Friday, Carter had his very first Easter Egg Hunt at his school, Primrose. He did great! He loved picking up the eggs, opening them up (to see what fell out) and then tossing them into his bag (or into whoever's bag was closest!). So cute! :)

Birthday party fun!

2011-04-21T09:42:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, Carter attended two AWESOME birthday bashes! In the morning, we went to Pump it Up to celebrate Jackson's 2nd bday. Carter loved the bounce houses, playing basketball, driving around in a little car & going down the HUGE slide with Mommy & Daddy (see the video below of him, Daddy, Uncle Cole & Colson all going down together). That afternoon, we went to The Little Gym for Jones & London's 2nd bday. We all know that Carter LOVES that place!! And yes, he did hold his basketball while he ate his snack & cupcake. Lol! What a fabulous day celebrating with our friends! Happy birthday to all of you guys! Thank you for including us in your celebration :)

Backyard Fun...

2011-04-14T07:59:00.000-07:00

Along with the countless hours of basketball that have taken place in the backyard already, Carter loves to put balls on his tee & hit them off. It isn't always baseballs...it is balls of all sizes. And it isn't always a bat he uses to hit them off...it's anything (i.e. see the random cake cutter/server thing laying in the yard? Yeah...). But this time, we caught pretty proper usage of the t-ball set. I will try & get some pics of the other random things he puts on there, and hits off. So funny!

March Madness!

2011-03-25T09:40:00.000-07:00

Think Carter is ready?!

Spring Break Fun!

2011-03-21T08:34:00.001-07:00

I can't believe Spring Break is already over! Last week was just THE BEST!! We had a few fun outings... Carter's first trip to Home Depot with Daddy - yikes! Of course Tim said he loved it - scary for me...2 boys who go crazy over HD! We went to a Williams family dinner at Japon celebrating everyone's birthdays from February & March (which was 6 of us, wow!). We took a trip with DD, Ava and Truett to the Sharkarosa Wildlife Ranch in Pilot Point to see / pet some cool animals! We went to dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings to meet Jackson & Jocelyn (and of course their parents & some other friends) to watch some March Madness (and reak havoc on the poor restaurant). We also had some visitors to the house throughout the week...Uncle Michael & Cate came over for dinner one night & brought over some super cool birthday presents for Carter (including a Little People Zoo, all kinds of animals, a Purdue jersey & Michigan basketball shorts - precious! I guess if Carter doesn't go to Texas, I'd be ok with either of those 2 Big 10 schools). ;) Cameron came over to play with Carter a few times & we even got a visit from Kristen, Brayden and Nana Stephanie! Boy does Carter LOVE having friends over to play!! Other than that, we spent the rest of the week hanging out & playing, playing, playing!! And I would venture to guess that 99% of our playing was done OUTSIDE. This boy...as soon as he wakes up, he wants to go outside. It's all he studies...and that is ok with Mommy!!! You can see that most of our outside playing had to do with helping in the yard & playing tee ball / basketball. Daddy is sure proud of him!!! Tim says golf clubs are next! :) What a great week!

1st birthday celebration!

2011-03-03T13:05:00.001-08:00

Carter had such an AWESOME 1st birthday celebration! These first few pictures are from dinner on Saturday night. Gigi, Pappy, Grandma (Carter's Great Grandma), Uncle Scotty, Rachel and Alex were all in town from Houston for the night. So we went out for a little birthday celebration dinner. We gave C a cupcake, and the sequence of pictures below expresses exactly what happened! (I think the tears / meltdown had more to do with how long dinner took & how it was past bath / bedtime!) His actual birthday party was Sunday afternoon & it was SO FUN! He had SO many people there celebrating with him. All our family from Houston, Tim's whole family including all of Carter's cousins & then tons of friends as well. I know Carter felt so loved (and we felt so blessed that so many people were there to celebrate this special occasion with him). His party was at The Little Gym, and it was GREAT! The kids had an absolute blast running around like crazy. And the girls who "led" the party were very sweet & did a good job keeping the kids entertained. The end pictures are of Carter playing with some of his gifts that evening...and the last two pictures are PRICELESS. He LOVED his balloons...and he held one, while he ate his entire dinner. So sweet! Can't believe our little man is 1! :)

1 year old...

2011-03-03T08:24:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness...our little boy is 1! It is so hard to believe. I can remember the day he was born, like it was yesterday (And if I can be honest for a minute, there are times that I just want to go back...have him all over again...experience this last year again. But at the doctor's office for his 1 year wellness checkup, a nurse named Mel, who is so precious & sweet gave me some great advice that someone had once given her. She said not to miss the joy of today, because you are spending so much time thinking about and mourning what has passed. Well put, and so I begin trying to not wish time back, but enjoy every great joy this little boy brings us each day!)

Anyways, Carter is seriously one big ball of AWESOME-NESS! He weighs 24 pounds and is 30 inches long. His doctor said he is doing great! (Except for a visit to the ENT that is now in order. Booooo!) He absolutely loves, loves, loves to be outside! We have spent so much time on walks / jogs, playing in the backyard and at the park. It makes me SO excited about getting to do so much fun stuff outside with him this summer! One of his favorite things right now is playing catch! Oh my gosh, does he love it! The only problem is, he does not differentiate between playing catch with balls & playing catch with keys, hats, sippy cups (see where I am going with this?!). He only eats table food now, and drinks whole milk (bye bye Enfamil! ) with a new favorite stepping into the picture...mexican rice! He also loves playing with his toys (especially his basketball goal) and playing with Tyson! (There are 2 videos at the end of the post where you can see him playing basketball & playing with Tyson - too cute!) And the walking...oh the walking! He is doing so great with it. I think he is finally figuring out that walking IS more efficient than speed-crawling! He can even walk, bend over pick up a ball, and then stand back up & keep walking. What a big boy! Pictures of his 1st birthday ~ coming soon!

Walk this way!

2011-02-14T09:24:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, Tim and I saw Carter take his first step in his room. (And I proceeded to cry at not only the thought of but the witness to him growing up before my eyes). Since then, 1 step has turned into 2 or 3 (usually followed by him falling down). We have tried and tried to get it on video, but have been unable to. Low and behold...Saturday, we got it! It is actually 6 or 7 steps AND for the first time, he didn't fall afterwards. We are so proud...what a big boy! (And once again, like I usually say before every video, ignore my screaming. GEEZ!)

11 months old...

2011-01-26T10:50:00.001-08:00

Carter turned 11 months old yesterday. I think I say "wow" every month. But "wow!" Almost a year old...unreal. This has been a super fun month, just like the rest. He has 4 teeth now, with others coming in probably as we speak. They are coming in so fast! He loves playing with his push toys. It's really funny because he tries to push EVERYTHING. From tiny toys to the huge ottoman that sits in front of the couch. I literally have watched him lean over & push the ottoman with all his might & get SO frustrated that he can't move it! He can stand by himself now...for several seconds (I have never counted, so don't know exactly how long!) He walks around holding onto everything, and can walk next to you, holding only one of your hands. Walking alone is just around the corner! Oh, and he had yet another haircut.

You can see from the pictures that bath time, eating, and rolling / throwing the ball TOP THE LIST of Carter's favorite things. Oh, and Tim's white Titleist hat. Seriously. This thing can make Carter happy INSTANTLY. He puts it on, takes it off, carries it around. And it's just that one! So bizarre...our quirky little cutie. Back to eating, oh eating. Baby food is pretty much gone now. He wants table food & he wants to feed himself! He eats all kinds of fruits and vegetables: apples, pears, bananas, peaches, carrots, green beans, peas, corn, and mashed potatoes (his FAVORITE. He actually scoops them into his mouth with both hands. Too cute). He loves yogurt, cheese, chicken sticks, turkey sticks, pasta and of course everyone's favorite, macaroni & cheese...YUM! And let's just say a MESS! (See the bottom picture and video for some "black bean fun" when we were out to eat one night).

Well his first birthday is sneaking up on us...trying to figure out plans. Everything I have thrown out, Tim has kind of described as "excessive" (I believe that was the word of choice). So we'll see what we come up with! :)

The picture to the left goes with the video below. We were at our favorite neighborhood mexican restaurant, Salsa Mex, a few weeks ago. And we introduced Carter to black beans. He LOVED them. The video shows how well he was feeding himself, and the picture is the messy disaster that was Carter when it was all over. Can you see the beans all over his face?!?! Too cute!

One more pic with Santa!

2010-12-30T09:41:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of Carter with Alex & Santa, that day we were in Grapevine. He took to this Santa MUCH better than the last! Maybe that's the key...take them to as many Santas as necessary, until they are comfortable enough to behave! ;)

Merry Christmas! (And Carter is 10 months old!)

2010-12-29T08:14:00.000-08:00

On Christmas day, Carter turned 10 months old! It has been a rough month for the little guy. He got sick the week of Thanksgiving, and has pretty much been sick since. Pink eye (twice), an ear infection that would not go away, RSV. Poor little thing! He is hopefully on the mend now, getting to spend 2+ weeks at home with Mommy. We have managed to have a little fun, in spite of all the sickness. Carter's favorite things are playing with his toys, walking (not quite on his own yet), taking baths, playing outside (especially with leaves), going for walks, taking baths and eating, of course. He is starting to turn down baby food, aggressively, might I add. I guess he just wants to feed himself, like a big boy! He eats toast, bananas, pears, cheese. We are experimenting with all kinds of big boy food. He also likes to help Daddy around the house (see the fireplace pic). And of course loves to tear up magazines (what?!?! Bizarre, I know). We also got a visit from Gigi, Uncle Scotty and Cousin Alex. We went to Grapevine for their Main Street Christmas festival. Santa and Frosty the Snowman were there, we took a hayride through downtown and all kinds of cool Christmas stuff. He is a little young to enjoy it all, but we still had a great time. Carter's first Christmas was awesome! We got to spend a lot of time with all of our families. Of course, Carter got an INSANE amount of gifts. It was ridiculous! Toys, toys, toys. Books, puzzles, clothes, a new Baby Einstein video. You name it! And he loves playing with all of it. And even had fun learning how to open his gifts!

Santa!

2010-12-14T13:40:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday, we had a Christmas Party up at my school. It was a family-friendly party, where everyone brought their kids (and all 23 babies born to teachers at Lamar last year!). There was a huge pot-luck dinner, Christmas Carols and of course SANTA! So we couldn't pass up the opportunity to put Carter in his lap. Here are a few pics. I know some are blurry, they are taken with a camera phone. But you get the gist! 1) Carter thinking..."Who the heck is this weird guy holding me?!" 2) "I'm good. Semi-smile for the camera." 3) "Mommy! I've had enough!!" (I know that last picture is so blurry, but it is so funny. That is me, in the red, leaning in to pick him up. And notice Santa's hands are off him, like, "I didn't do it!") More Christmas fun to come!

"Apples & Chicken...GROSS!"

2010-12-06T07:55:00.001-08:00

Dr. McElroy gave us the go-ahead to try baby foods with meats for Carter once he turned 9 months old. He said he would LOVE them. Um....maybe not? This was the first thing we tried. Apples & Chicken. Side note: He loves apples. Another side note: My opinion, how disgusting. Ingredients: Apples, Chicken, Water. Yuck!! Now the video...Tim and I got some good laughs. Don't know if it quite stands up to "Bananas Make Me Twitch," but still hilarious! The best part is that Carter does his little giggle laugh several times. Like he is trying to enjoy the situation with us. What a good sport! Although, I wonder if we are damaging his views on food & eating by all of this trauma we keep putting him through?!?!

9 months old AND First Thanksgiving...

2010-11-29T12:19:00.000-08:00

On Thanksgiving Day, November 25, Carter turned 9 months old! WOW. Hard to believe. (He weighs 22 lbs 4 ounces and is 28 1/4 inches tall). He has had a busy month. Along with getting his first 2 teeth (by the way, the 3rd looks to be soon making its appearance), he is crawling all over the place, pulling up to standing on anything and everything he can, and walking holding onto furniture. I fear real walking is coming very soon! Let's just say he is BUSY. Into EVERYTHING.

Clearly he is still very vocal. He says "mama," "dada," "baba," and considering he will mimmick ANY sound or word you say, we have gotten him to say "apple" and "duck." Random, I know. And the video below is just a little taste of one of his hilarious laughs. Yes, he has SEVERAL.

He is still eating like a champ. He will be trying Stage 3 foods and more and more table foods during the next month. And (sorry to say), he now loves real bananas. But no fear, those of you who love the banana video. People are already begging me to try more and more new foods so we can try and get priceless video # 2, to go along with "Bananas make me twitch!" :)

His first Thanksgiving was awesome. On Wednesday, we got to spend the day with Tim's side of the family. Carter got to see all his cousins & have a fun-filled day at Uncle Cole's house. And on Thursday, we make another trip to Houston to spend time with my side of the family. Carter got to play with Cousin Alex, they had so much fun! AND we even went to the Old Time Christmas Tree Farm, where we got to pick and cut down our very own Christmas Tree for Gigi's house! So fun!

Trip to Houston...

2010-11-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

We took a trip to Houston last weekend to visit Gigi, Pappy, Grandma and Uncle Scotty. We had a blast! Let's start by saying that this car trip with Carter was a LOT better than the first trip (when he was 10 weeks old). The last hour of the drive each way was still a bit painful...but what else could you expect from having an 8 month old sit in a car seat for 3+ hours!

Carter had lots of fun playing with Cousin Alex's baby toys. (We even brought one home!) He had his first popsicle (what a treat for his sore little gums). We had lots of fun eating at our favorite restaurant El Rincon (twice!). We went to the Pumpkin Patch & took lots of pics, got to pet a GIANT very aggressive goat and took a hayride! A jam-packed weekend & overall a great trip! :) Can't wait until Thanksgiving!!!

8 months old...

2010-10-25T06:08:00.000-07:00

Carter is 8 months old today! He has had an eventful month. As mentioned in the post below, he can pull himself up to standing now and (get this!) TWO teeth are coming through. I mentioned the first one, but sure enough, two days later, the one right next to it is making its appearance as well. This second tooth is REALLY getting the best of him too. Breaks my heart :(

This month, we went to the State Fair with DD and Pops (Tim's parents) and got to ride the Dart Train! Carter was an angel on that entire trip. Too bad the lines were SO long that we didn't get to do any kid-friendly activities at the Fair. :( Also, this weekend, we are also making a trip to Houston to see GiGi (my Mom), Pappy (my Dad), Grandma and Uncle Scotty! We have plans to visit the Pumpkin Patch, where we will take a hayride, a ride on a train and even get to pet some goats! So stay tuned for more pictures. He has gotten to / is getting to spend LOTS of time with friends and family!!!

Also this month, Carter experienced 2 HISTORIC events in baseball. He watched (I use that term loosely) Roy Halladay throw the 2nd no-hitter to ever be pitched in the postseason! AND he has witnessed the Texas Rangers not only win their first (and second) post-season series, but they are now going to the WORLD SERIES! Go Rangers!

No new updates on the food situation. Carter seems to be picky about his food's texture. So he's still eating TONS of baby food. (Gigi SWEARS we are giving him another banana this weekend to see what happens!) I need to upload a video of him talking these days. So many different sounds, syllables, noises. It is GREAT! Oh yeah! And everyone keeps asking how much he weighs now...21 pounds! Our adorable little chunky monkey :)

Milestones...

2010-10-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

Two major things happened for Carter yesterday...

His FIRST TOOTH made its appearance! It is BARELY through the gum, just a tiny little white speck. But it's there, to be seen AND felt!

Also, we got a letter from one of his teachers at school yesterday (actually a "Happy Gram"). Apparently while he was playing yesterday, he pulled himself up to standing ALL BY HIMSELF using the toy box.

More pics of all this fun next week, when he turns 8 months old. :)

7 months old...

2010-09-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Carter turned 7 months old! Where has the time gone?! Each day with him has just gotten more and more fun. The amount of 'talking' he does now is INSANE! He is so loud...screaming, yelling, actual syllables...And he has learned to make that kind of noise to get your attention (like when he "throws" his cup during dinner & wants it back!). He laughs constantly...and he has several different laughs. They are just adorable. Of course eating ranks up there in his favorite things! But somehow he has discovered that he has the option of turning down things. For example, no peas. Nothing with peas in it. No green beans. Basically he is learning that fruits outweigh vegetables BIG TIME! So we are desperately trying to find veggie/fruit combos that he likes. There just aren't many out there! Have not tried anymore "real" foods after the banana debacle. He hasn't started crawling yet...but he rolls around the room to get places. Very resourceful! He actually doesn't like to be on the ground laying / rolling. He will sit up & play but he would rather stand. He is strong, pulling himself up! And the biggest news...he started to wave today. And sometimes, he doesn't lift his arm up. But he looks down at his hand & is opening / closing it or moving it like a wave, just watching it. Melts my heart! And (Tim is the proudest of this), he catches balls when you throw them to him. Video below. (Please ignore my screaming...I am so loud! GEEZ!) Oh yeah, and a second haircut! He sat up in this cute little chair w/ a steering wheel while it was being cut. He was perfect!

Bananas make me twitch!

2010-09-13T07:25:00.000-07:00

Last night, while I was getting Carter's dinner ready, I decided to put a few small pieces of REAL banana on his highchair tray. He has only eaten baby food up to this point...but the doc said we could give him small pieces of soft or mashed up fruits / veggies, etc. (Side note: He LOVES any baby food that has bananas in it!). So, anyways, he was picking the pieces up, but not putting them in his mouth, so I helped him out! The video below is hysterical...he acts like he was poisoned!! What's even better is that after I was done recording, he spit out the banana. So the little tiny piece was in his mouth throughout all of this...and he never actually ate it! Priceless...

Carter's first Longhorn football game!

2010-09-04T19:07:00.000-07:00

Carter experienced a very fun football season last year (still in Mommy's tummy!). However, today kicked off his first REAL Longhorn football season! He watched Texas vs. Rice over at Ryan, Jessy and Jackson's house. The Horns won 34-17! We can't wait to take him to a game in person. I'm sure he'll bleed orange just like Mommy & Daddy! :)

6 month checkup...

2010-08-31T09:42:00.001-07:00

Carter went for his 6 month checkup yesterday. He weighed 19 lbs 8 oz and had grown to 27 1/4 inches. He has grown SO much!!! (over 3 lbs and 2 1/4 inches in 2 months!) The doctor was very pleased. He said he couldn't wait to see what he would be like at his 9 month checkup...because he thought he was already acting like a 9 month old! Then, we went to Chuy's for dinner after his appointment...and he sat in a highchair like a big boy! No more car seat when we are out to eat! It's so cute....but again, just growing too fast!!! :(

6 months old...

2010-08-25T08:03:00.000-07:00

Is this a joke? Our Little Man is half a year old?!?! Oh my gosh...I don't even want to talk about it! Makes me so sad that he is growing up so fast.

Anyways, Carter is doing awesome! He is loving school at Primrose. He has actually been spending a lot of time on the "older baby" side (where the kids are already crawling / walking). He does great! (No, he is not crawling yet. But as his teachers say, "He can sit up ALL DAY LONG!") He has also been going to church with us every Sunday. He is in the Little Village Preschool room with the babies who already crawl /walk, just like at school. And I swear he is the most well behaved one every weekend! :)

So other than being a master at sitting up now, he of course is still LOVING eating. Anything & everything we give him, he loves it! Although we think peas may be on their way out the door as of last night...we'll see! Also, his speech is developing so well...he makes so many noises & has started repeating sounds (like "da"). And we're pretty sure he says "hi!" Other than sitting up & eating, it appears jumping is now on the list of favorite activities too! Doorway jumper, stationary jumperoo, people's laps...wherever he is, he loves standing up & jumping. Oh, and he found his feet! And I LOVE it! It is too cute...

Oh...and did I mention that we gave him a sippy cup last week...and he knew how to hold it & what to do with it?! And he even got juice out! One more thing I don't want to talk about...see first paragraph.

We go to the doctor for his 6 month checkup next Monday. So I will post any new info. then.

Playdate with Brayden!

2010-08-10T18:45:00.000-07:00

Stephanie, Misty, Kristen and Brayden came over on Friday to spend the day with us. We had so much fun hanging out and loving on sweet little Brayden. Crazy how you forget what a 2 month old is like in such a short time! Now that Carter has started school and spends several hours each Sunday with other babies in the nursery at church, he loves babies! He is so intrigued by them. You can see that he wanted to grab Brayden (especially his face). We thought they were trying to hug ;) And how cute are their TX/OU outfits?! We couldn't resist...

Starting school!

2010-08-06T18:31:00.000-07:00

Carter started school at Primrose School of North Plano this week. He is doing so great, we are so proud of him! The first day was super rough on Mommy, but he did wonderfully. However, I think he is setting records for shortest naps in the history of daycare! (One nap on Tuesday afternoon was 15 minutes...really?!?!). So other than the lack of napping (not that we are surprised) he is having a wonderful time. The directors & teachers are awesome...they love on him so much (and don't get annoyed when I call all the time to check on him). He is making lots of new friends. And apparently his favorite time of the day is story time! Above is a pic of his first trip up there to meet his teachers. And why did I include pictures of him sleeping? Because this was at the end of his first FULL day, Wednesday. And the pic was taken at 6:30! No bath that night...no bottle before bed...we couldn't wake him! He was OUT! And slept until 8:30 the next morning!! Hopefully the naps will start working out a little better for him so he isn't THAT exhausted each day.

5 months old...

2010-07-25T08:50:00.000-07:00

Carter is 5 months old today! I cannot believe it...he is growing up way too fast! (As you can see below, he already had his first haircut). He is sitting up more and more on his own these days, and loves standing when he is being held. He is super strong. He loves books...especially books with bright colors, touch-n-feel animals & he really loves his newest book, Noisy Vehicles (thank you DD and Pops!). Being outside is still one of his favorite things...mainly in his swing, of course. But he also loves going for walks and has even been swimming a few times & loves the water! And of course his other favorite thing is EATING! He still loves oatmeal & has now had (and enjoyed) squash, green beans, carrots, apples, pears & prunes! We figured this little chunk wasn't going to turn down much!! ;) He has also enjoyed spending time with his extended family: Gigi, Grandma (his Great Grandma), Uncle Scotty and Cousin Alex all have visited from Houston. And he even had an evening with DD and Pops to allow Mommy & Daddy a long-deserved night out. :)

First haircut!

2010-07-22T15:42:00.001-07:00

Well, we finally did it! Carter got his first haircut today!!! He did SO well, we were very impressed. The stylist kept saying over and over again how well he was behaving for his first haircut :) He did have a meltdown at the end though. But don't they all?!?! ;)

Before & After

4 months old...

2010-06-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

Carter is 4 months old today! He went for his 4 month checkup this week and is 25 inches long & weighs 16 lbs 7 oz! Growing like crazy!! He can even sit up unassisted for up to 10 seconds before falling over. The dr was VERY impressed! His favorite things these days are playing in his gym with this mysterious baby he sees in the mirror (so funny that he has NO idea it's him!), being outside in his new swing and eating (what a shock, right?!). He LOVES his oatmeal! He actually forcefully throws his hands towards his mouth when I have the spoon near him. I think he is trying to help?! It's so funny...can't wait for him to try new veggies & fruits. Coming soon!

Disclaimer: I know his hair is out of control in some of these pics! We will be getting him his first haircut very soon. Everyone says "They shouldn't get their haircut until they are 1!" Umm....his will be longer than mine. And I am already SICK of people thinking he's a girl b/c it's so long. Too long to fix & spike...It's time!

Picture me rollin'!

2010-06-01T11:16:00.000-07:00

Ok...so the title of the post. For some reason, I have that song "Picture me rollin" by Tupac in my head. Why? I have no idea. I am tired & a little delirious from trying to get everything wrapped up here at school after being gone for 3 months! ANYWAYS....

Carter has rolled over! See, the post title isn't THAT off! ;)

*Side note: Yes, I know. ROLLING OVER is not what Tupac was talking about!

Watch the video below. He has mastered tummy to back...now we just have to go the other way! Yay!

3 months old....

2010-05-22T18:53:00.001-07:00

Carter will be 3 months old on Tuesday, the 25th! Wow!! He has had an eventful month. He is continually growing & changing. He is sleeping like an angel at night (but not a big fan of naps apparently). He has perfected holding his head up and he loves sitting and standing up...and I swear he will sit up unassisted soon, he is a STRONG boy!! He still plays in his Bumbo, bouncy seat, and in his gym. He loves going for walks in his stroller or in his Baby Bjorn (notice the pic of Tim carrying him on one of our walks....The Hangover anyone?! Should we name him Baby Carlos?! Lol!) Our newest toy is the Doorway Jumper. Tim absolutely lived in his as a baby. So we are hoping Carter enjoys his as much. (He is a little small for it right now though, so no pics yet!) :) Also, he enjoys being read to. His favorite book is called Colors. He discovered his hands a few weeks ago...and that is my absolute favorite thing EVER! He loves staring at them...and putting them in his mouth of course (which means he discovered the washcloth in the bath & how yummy it is....love it!). He still talks all the time, blows bubbles, drools like crazy. We even managed to catch him laughing...see the video below. So fun!

2 months old....

2010-04-27T08:25:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, Carter turned 2 months old. Where has the time gone?! We had his 2 month checkup yesterday. The doctor said he looks perfect! Little man is almost 23 inches now...and weighs 13 lbs 6 oz! WOW!

Here are some pictures of what he's been up to over the last few weeks. Still loves his bouncy seat (especially playing with Mommy in the mornings....check out the bed head!), playing in his gym, he sits in his Bumbo seat now, loves holding & shaking his rattles, smiling & LAUGHING...and he made his first trip to church (Picture above. Don't ask how that went! Let's just say I am quite familiar with the 'cry room' and boy is the name fitting! Ha!)

Professional Pics...

2010-04-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

Here are the professional pictures we had taken of Carter when he was 5 weeks old. The photographer came out to the house to take them....it was so easy!

Below are the pictures we had taken in the hospital, when he was 3 days old. He has changed so much!

6 weeks old...

2010-04-08T20:52:00.000-07:00

Wow, has time just flown by or what?! Carter turned 6 weeks old today! He has changed and grown so much.... Here are some pictures to keep everyone up to date (oldest, when he was about 2 weeks old to most recent).

In the last few weeks, he has grown out of his newborn diapers, clothes & pacifiers! You can see he spends a lot of time in his bouncy seat, playing in his 'gym,' watching March Madness in his longhorn outfit (good thing he fell asleep and missed our OT loss to Wake Forest!), smiling (you can see how much he looks like his Daddy) and also starting to coo and 'talk' quite a bit lately (where in the world does he get that urge to talk?!?).

We are really having a BLAST with him...we feel like he changes and grows every week. What a blessing!

Carter is here! Our first week...

2010-03-05T17:27:00.000-08:00

Carter Thomas arrived on February 25, 2010. Delivery day was pretty rough for the little guy...but when all was said and done, he weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz., was 21 inches long and healthy as can be.

Here are some pictures...Starting with a few shots from the operating room (when I got to meet him for the first time), some of our days at the hospital, on our way home and some of our first week at home (including his first bath). More to come, as he seems to change every day! Enjoy :)

Our pastor...

2010-02-01T08:43:00.000-08:00

Here is an article written about our Pastor, Matt Chandler, and his fight against brain cancer. This article is a very accurate, informative & eloquent portrayal of him, his family, his faith & his suffering.

Newspapers around our country (such as the New York Times and Washington Post) and newspapers in other countries (such as Finland and Mexico) ran this story, this past weekend. Please pray for the many eyes that will read it... and the many lives & souls it will hopefully touch...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100131/ap_on_re/us_rel_the_pastor_s_cancer_1

The nursery!

2010-01-27T09:51:00.000-08:00

We have finally finished Carter's nursery! As we were putting on the finishing touches last night, we both agreed that it was EXACTLY what we had in mind (good thing we share the exact same taste in decorating!). We don't feel like the pictures really do it justice...so hard to get a feel for a whole room when you can't even fit the whole room in a picture. (Not to mention the flash on the camera makes the wall color look weird?! The walls are a beige color, the ceiling a shade darker. Really similar to what our living room looks like, for those of you who have seen it). Anyways, here are a few pics...We can't believe he is due to be here in a little over 4 weeks. Wow!

Carter...in 3D!

2009-11-11T19:35:00.000-08:00

Today we went to the Dallas Pregnancy Resource Center and volunteered for a free 3D ultrasound (24.5 weeks). Let me start by saying this a wonderful, faith-based organization that focuses on assisting women in finding alternatives to abortion through sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The pictures were taken by a labor & delivery nurse who is in training and volunteers her time at the center.

The first picture speaks for itself. It's Carter's adorable little face!

The next picture is a side, profile view. His arm (and fist) are blocking his face.

The last picture is also a side view. His arm is again up near his face (this is how he fell asleep during the ultrasound). You can clearly see his ear, shoulder, arm and spine!

Sonogram...

2009-10-02T13:52:00.000-07:00

Here are two pictures from our sonogram this morning (approx. 19 weeks). The sonographer measured & inspected all of his organs, body parts, etc. Everything looked wonderful! :)

In the first picture, you can see his profile & his hand is up near his face (if you look closely, you can see his tiny fingertips).

We call the second picture, "Skeletor." The sonographer was trying to get him to lay on his back, but he kept flipping over to face us. So this is a head-on shot of his face...you can see the outline of his facial bones! :)

First Pics of Carter...

2009-09-22T13:42:00.000-07:00

Here are two pictures and a video from our latest ultrasound on September 3 (approx. 15 weeks).