It's been a long time since I've posted! Sorry everyone! Lets see...what has happened?

Well, we went to California on the weekend of the 7th for Cary's work Christmas party. We took the boys because I have family out there, and Natalie came up to Sacramento and kept the boys during the day and night of our party. It was so much fun! During the day, I met up with Cary's boss' wife and we took the kids (she has 2 about the same age as our kids) to a jump house place. Carson LOVED it! Caden was napping in the car with Natalie. :) The party with everyone was so nice and SO much fun. Then on Saturday morning we got up and drove to Fresno to spend time with my grandparents. We had a great lunch there and then drove to check in to our hotel and went immediately on to visit my uncle's church. We got to be a part of their Saturday night service - which is phenomenal! It was so awesome to get to spend time with my family out there. It was especially nice to introduce the boys to everyone and get to hang out with Natalie and Nathaniel (my sister and brother). We were very busy the whole time, but it was so worth it! When we got home, the boys were so tired that Carson slept in until 10 AM and Caden took 5 hours worth of naps on that Monday! Here's a picture of Cary and I at the party:



The other big thing that has happened is that Cary gave me my Christmas present early! :) I got a Nikon D200!! Our church photographer just bought it last year, and decided to upgrade, so he gave Cary a great deal on a nearly brand new phenomenal camera. I've been talking for a long time about how I would like to learn more about photography and maybe eventually (like when I'm good...) turn it into a small business. Now that I have a crazy nice camera, I suppose I'd better get busy learning! :) SO...here are lots of pictures I've taken over the last few days (Cary has taken a few of these too...)

Caden had his first taste of eggs the other day and loved them! He's gotten to the point where if we are eating something and don't offer it to him he starts squealing until you share.


He has also learned to go out and in the doggy door.




He also really enjoys feeding the dogs. He's so careful about giving them food, and then when they gobble it up he laughs his head off. Now if I could only get him to eat his fill first and share second.




(these next ones were taken first thing in the morning, so pardon the bed head)



"Mommy!! The wolves are coming!!!"


"The wolves?"
"Yeah."


"They're BIG scary wolves."


"Scary?? How scary are they?"
"THIS scary!"




Carson also got his first haircut that I've been happy with since Auntie Natalie moved to Cali. Miss Kosha gave it to him. She goes to our church, and worked with Natalie, so I had great faith in her, and it was well placed. :)


Here's a post haircut picture (This is such an obvious "cheese" picture. He was so not cooperating):




Carson has loved playing in the snow this winter. He has recently learned about throwing snowballs and making snow angels (which I have yet to get a picture of):








We had some friends over for dinner last night, which was a lot of fun, and Carson was playing with their little boy, and somehow during the play, Carson's chair tipped over into another chair, and he busted his eye. He cried pretty hard and I was wondering how his eye would look this morning, but it's healing nicely already.

Last night:




This morning:


We have our youth Christmas party tonight, which should be so much fun. On Sunday after church, we are heading to Arkansas to spend Christmas with Cary's dad's family. It should be a lot of fun, but we are driving with the boys... so pray for us!

The Little Things

No one in our home woke up this morning until 9 AM!!! We are so used to being woken up by Caden or Carson by 6:30 or so that we never set our alarm anymore. We must have all been tired though, because Caden woke up for his usual morning feeding around 5:30, and then Carson was the first to wake at 9. I feel like I should break out in song...Oh, what a beautiful morning!.... Then Carson spent the next 10 minutes changing from his nighttime diaper to his underpants all on his own without any leading from me. After that, Carson was "golfing" around our living room with a small ball and his drumstick, and when he hit it, Caden clapped as if on cue. It was the first time he's ever clapped, and I thought it was pretty funny that it was so appropriate.

Play Time & Snow Day

Carson and Caden have started playing together a lot more lately. Caden wants to do everything Carson is doing, and if he can't we will definitely here about it until he is sufficiently distracted. I can tell they are going to be the best of friends. Carson's doing pretty well having a playmate, although this has prompted lots of lessons on sharing. I'm sure it's hard to go from always getting every toy you want, to having to let someone else have the toy you want. He's learning though.

Caden's hair is much straighter than Carson's so I think he is going to sport the faux-hawk for a while...what do you think?

Carson in his super independence, has started changing his underpants randomly, and he always wants to do it himself... originally, this picture showed him in his skivies, and since he did it himself, he has one leg in a leg hole, and one coming out of the waist band, and the tag is hanging on his bottom instead of his waist. Since there are weirdos on the internet, I won't share the entire picture, but I did want to share how proud he is of himself.

This winter has been pretty dry so far, and today was the first snow that has been substantial enough to play in. Carson was so excited to get all bundled up to be able to play in it!






Caden on the other hand (who I was getting dressed at the time) was pouting because he couldn't play outside with Carson... I guess we better get him a snowsuit too... :)

YAY!!! Congratulations Lindsay, BJ and Hayden!!

Their twins were born this morning!! :) I'm sure she'll post on her blog when she gets a chance, so go to Table for Five. In the meantime, the girls are doing well and Lindsay seems to be too. They were 3 lbs 7 oz and 3 lbs 13 oz, which is GREAT!! And they were breathing on their own!!!! Praise the Lord!!! I believe she said it looks like they may only be in the NICU for 3 weeks!! Talk about a praise report!! Anyway, be sure to check on her blog because she's promised pictures after she rests for a bit. :) Congratulations you guys!! We are so excited and are praying for you!!!!!

Trick Or Treat?!

We trick or treated around my mom's neighborhood again this year before heading to our church's Chuck E. Cheese Family Night. I carried Caden and helped Carson knock on doors and let him charm the neighbors. Carson LOVED it! He's been looking forward to T-O-T-ing for days. One of the houses he dubbed the scary house. It was decorated with cobwebs and such and had spooky music playing from a very visible karaoke machine, but then, he is only 2. Anyway, he kept saying something like "cows scary, Mama. That a scary house." Well, I thought I had heard "cows" but then figured I must be mistaken. When we got to the next house, we rang the bell and waited and when the lady came to the store, he looked around timidly and asked me "no scary cows at this house?" Then I figured it out... He thought the ghost sounds from the previous house were cows! I about lost it I was laughing so hard. Forever more ghostly sounds going OoOoOo will remind me of cows. MOoOoOo! :) Too funny.

Backyard Fun and White Fence Farm

When we moved into our home, the backyard hadn't been touched for over 3 years. Needless to say, it needed a lot of work. Cary had to dig everything up. We had curbing laid to create a flower bed around the edge of the yard and had hydroseed sprayed. That was a few months ago, and it's looking really good. Unfortunately, it's been getting cold here at night, so it's probably dormant now, but by next spring, our yard should look really good. The flower beds will have to wait until next year for some attention, but Cary's been pruning the trees for fall. I'm so glad he is interested in yard work because aside from planting flowers, I really dislike it. :)

Before:


During:




and After:


Then today after church, my family and I took the boys to White Fence Farm. (Cary couldn't go because of a meeting he had to be at, so we'll have to take him next time.) It's an old farm that turned their property into a restaurant, petting zoo, and an all around fun place to be. They do carriage rides and they have lots of play areas for kids.

Is this not the coolest tree house EVER?






Meeting the pig...

My 8 month old

When Carson was little, I was so good about documenting every month. I love being able to look back at the things he was accomplishing. I want to be more diligent about doing that now. Especially with the rest of Caden's first year.

He will fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. Job 8:21







Caden is such a happy boy. His smile lights my heart, and his laughter fills our ears. I am amazed every day at the way the Lord has answered the prayers I prayed over him while he was still inside of me. At 8 months old, Caden is extremely mobile and fast. He's crawling, pulling up, trying to cruise the furniture. He's figured out how to pull open drawers, and he is constantly pulling things out of drawers and off of our coffee table. Thankfully there are only magazines on their for the most part. He is in to everything! He is fascinated by stairs (thus the baby gate blocking off that part of our house). He definitely keeps me on my toes. He's a joy to be around and is such a smiley boy. He laughs all the time and is constantly grinning at Carson. He thinks that everything Carson does is absolutely hilarious! He has become very vocal about his opinions. If I leave the room he squeals in protest, and if he wants me, he crawls to me as fast as he can, pulls up on my legs and grins with all his might like he's saying "aren't I cute?? Don't you just want to love on me!?" :) His grin is hilarious with his six teeth. The two top center ones are still working their way in so his teeth are all uneven. He's just as cute as can be. He's quite the conversationalist and loves to babble with you. He will repeat you if you babble something to him, and is saying da-da now. It's not in reference to anyone, but Cary can dream. :)

Now that he is healthy again, he LOVES to eat! Anything and everything in sight! If you are holding him and eating, he will literally try to take your food away from you! :) He makes the funniest faces when he eats. With the first few bites of food, no matter what it is, he scrunches up his face like it was the most sour thing he has ever tasted. Once his is adjusted to the flavor, he frequently does this double eyed wink thing. And grins at you like he is just so cute. I don't know how else to explain it, but it's really funny. When he was sick, we were lucky if he would eat half of a stage 1 jar of baby food once a day. Now he is eating 3 times a day plus snacks, and will eat a jar and a half in a sitting easily.

I know this has played a big part in the recent improvement in his night sleeping habits. When he got sick, he started waking up at least every 2 1/2 hours all night. Now, we're down to twice a night, and I have a feeling even that will lessen soon. He's taking more consistent naps now too. Generally, he'll sleep for 2+ hours in the morning, and an hour in the afternoon. Sometimes he'll take a 3rd short nap in the early evening, and he's down for the night around 7. All I can say is yay for sleep! It's amazing how much easier life is with a healthy baby after he was sick for so long. He is so busy and wants to be on the move so much that he fights sleep with all of his might. When he is tired, he rubs his head and sucks his thumb. But when you answer his cues, he will fight for all his worth. When he decides he's lost the battle, his compliance is immediate. He will be asleep within moments.

Silly song by Mommy that's the hit of the moment:
Ca-den, Ca-den
Caden, Caden Gary is my boy...

I know it's simple and silly, but it will catch his attention and calm him at any given moment, especially if sung at a whisper.

Here is a short video I took at the park today. His giggle cracks me up.

My 29 month old

But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Luke 18:16







I see very little of my baby in Carson these days, except when he is pretending. He loves to pretend with Caden's things. He wants to do nearly everything himself. We hear a lot of "I do it" around here. His other favorite phrases of the moment are "watch dis, Mama." Followed by an ecstatic grin and, "See DAT!!!!?" He loves all things sports, and since we have been to lots of my brother's football games lately, Carson breaks out in "Defense, defense, defense!!" and "We will, we will ROCK YOU!" at any given moment. It's hilarious.

He has been much more interested in Jesus lately, and loves to sing Sunday School type songs. Jesus Loves Me is a big hit around here, and he sings it by himself and gets most of the motions. It's very sweet.

His sentences have become more and more complex, and he surprises me with the way he uses complex words and phrases in context. He is also developing social skills a lot more. He has always been a social butterfly, but has been especially timid with kids in his own age range. He's always been content just to watch them. Well now, he wants to play, hold conversations, and does not hold back in the affection department - which has gotten him in a bit of trouble... Do any of you remember a few years back when a 5 year old was charged with some crime for kissing a fellow student? (I thought that was crazy by the way...) Yeah...that could so be my son! I've caught him kissing (totally innocently by the way) a few girls already, and he hugs his buddies all the time. But if the affection is not accepted, woe on the other child. The other day in MOPS, I walk in to pick up Carson (which is always a joy because he is so good for them and has so much fun) and see him smack this kid with such an angry look on his face! Well, of course, I immediately reprimand him. Kelly, his teacher who he's had for the last few semesters, informs me that he has already done that to another child. She said she put him in time out because she knew I wouldn't mind (which I didn't at all). I was just dumbfounded. She said she knew it wasn't like him and he actually wasn't starting out aggressively. It turns out, he tried to hug a kid earlier in the class. Well, that child didn't want to be hugged or understand why Carson was invading his personal space, so he pushed Carson away. Then Carson smacked him. Needless to say, Carson and I have had lots of talks since then about how important it is to be nice to our friends and how we DO NOT hit. Later that night when we were talking about this all again, I said "It's not nice to hit, right Carson?" and he responded with, "yeah...Miss Kelly put Carson in time out..." Oh the joys of toddlerhood. :)

Silly Songs by Mommy that are all the rage in Carson's world:

The Carson Song

There once was a boy named Carson, Carson, Carson
He like to (fill in the blank - which Carson will do for you, by getting in your face and repeating what he likes to do until you sing it. :))

Repeat this, filling in the blanks with everything Carson names until you tire of it, and then sing:

There once was a boy named Carson, Carson, Carson
His mommy loved him so-o, so-o
There once was a boy named Carson, Carson, Carson
And now it's time for bed...Fred.

Another big thing right now is giving "GOOD" kisses. To give good kisses, you have to purse your lips and "work them out" by wiggling them all around, and then kiss the recipient suddenly, which always ensues giggles galore. I don't know where we came up with this, but it's lots of fun at bed time. :)

Breckenridge Fun

We had a great time in the mountains. It was nice to get away for a while, even if we did have responsibilities. I was concerned about the boys' ability to sleep in the same room, but they did fine, even during naps for the most part. I must admit a dvd on the computer did help when I needed Carson to be quiet for a bit.

Carson loved playing in all of the fall leaves.


Where's Carson?


Caden experienced his first time with crackers and bits of finger foods, and LOVED it. Can I just say that meal times are so much easier when babies can eat while you eat?