Easter '08 Update

I've been a little behind on this update. I had been really feeling pretty good, but this week morning sickness is back with a vengence, and I'm even throwing up more often. Yay for me! The babe is doing well though, and had a strong heartbeat at our last check up, so for that I'm thankful...

We've been doing well here otherwise. Easter was a week long event for us. The weekend before Easter, our church hosted a community Easter Egg hunt that was huge. The boys had a great time, and it was a good warm up for Caden, who had no trouble grasping the idea that the eggs go in the basket. It was a super cold morning, but the sun was out, which was better than last year. It was a great day!







Carson was so patient waiting until the hunt began...


Caden enjoying the park after the egg hunt:


Then we spent our Wednesday morning coloring Easter Eggs. It was the first time I attempted this with Carson, and he did great!

Coloring eggs:




Waiting:


Stickers:


The finished product:


Easter Sunday, I went to put the boys outfits on them and get them ready for church, and the security tag was still on Carson's shirt. Ugghhh. So I had super cute coordinating outfits (not matching) for them to wear, and only Caden got to wear his. They looked cute anyway, but were NOT interested in posing for pictures before church. Too much excitement for what lay ahead I suppose...





Easter baskets...






Carson trying on his Buddy (from Toy Story) costume that he got from my parents:


Hunting for eggs after lunch:








It was a wonderful holiday and it was so much fun to talk about what Jesus did for us with Carson, because he's starting to retain stuff like this, although I know he doesn't grasp it yet...

In other news, Caden got his 8th (bottom right) tooth a few weeks ago and is working on his top first year molars, which is making for lots of wet shirts and a never-ending stream of snot. At his 1 year check up last Friday, he weighed 20 lbs., 5 oz. and was 31 inches long/tall. He's healthy as can be! Carson was also in at that appointment and at 2 years, 10 months, he is weighing 28 lbs., 1.6 oz. They didn't measure his height, but he is about a head taller than Caden when the stand together. Oh, and as you can see, we did get Carson's hair chopped. He calls this his "drummer hair" and often says that he's a "cool dude."

Yay for energy!!

My energy seems to be returning, and I am so excited! I know the boys are too. We have barely left the house for anything not required of us in weeks. Yesterday (the first day I felt more like myself) I took apart my whole kitchen, scoured everything and mopped the floor, did laundry, and gave myself a pedicure, all while playing with the kids and hanging out with them. Today, I was feeling good again, so we ventured out to Sir Bouncealots. It was Caden's first trip, and the boys both had a blast!

Watch this, Mama!


Caden's "camera" smile:

12 Weeks, 2 Days

I'm ready to look pregnant and not like I hung out at a buffet too long. Soon and very soon, I suppose...

Things they do

Carson speaks quite proficiently now. He has for quite some time, and I always smile at how he wants to speak so correctly. For example, if you ask him if he needs to go to the restroom, and he doesn't, he responds with, "No, I do not." many of the baby things in his speech have gone away now. *tear* Macha milk is now chocolate milk. He still has a few things that he says in his own way, and I love them, so I wanted to make note... He is constantly saying, "Mama, I need to throw this in the crash tan." Also, when you ask him what he is doing, he responds with, "anything." Well said, Cars...well said.

Right now, Caden is sitting on the top step of Carson's "pedal bike" while Carson rides it around the house.


Caden understands so many things now. I'm amazed at how much he knows. A minute ago, I told him to get on Carson's bike, and he walked over and climbed on up. He isn't speaking too much. He babbles, and has a few words that are still totally baby talk...da-da, ma-ma, buh-buh, da-dee (doggy), but the one that gets me is that he says thank you. I'm not even kidding! He likes to hand things back and forth. He'll hand me something and I'll tell him thank you, and then I'll give it back, and he'll say dank-dou. It's always in context, and he'll do it over and over. He also has a book about the wheels on the bus, and he is constantly bringing it to me to read to him. If you say "praise the Lord" he sticks both hands straight up in the air, and he LOVES playing where's Caden. He covers his eyes with the backs of his hands. It's funny. Another thing he does that cracks me up is his funny face. I'll tell him "You're so funny!" And he'll make the cheesiest smiley face and look straight up to the sky and sit like that for a few seconds, and then he'll do it over and over. Cracks me up. I should get pictures of these things...

Just one last thing...the little ticker thing to the left says the baby's tail is gone...whew! I'm so relieved...

Tail...so weird!!

Potty Training

There is going to be some poop talk...so if this bothers you, feel free to skip this post. :)

Potty Training with Carson has been hit or miss for the most part. He never, ever tells me when he needs to go, so I've always asked him, and we've gone or tried on my prompting. He does really good for the most part, but some days he just doesn't want to, and takes a lot of persuasion to sit on the pot. When he does sit on it, he goes, and accidents have gotten farther and farther apart. In the past month, I would say that we have probably had 20 days or so without accidents. On the other hand, the child has HATED pooping on the toilet! He seems to always wait to go until he is in a pull-up during nap time or bedtime...and I'm sorry, but I'm just not putting him to sleep in underwear yet - we've only left the house in underpants once, and we had an accident, so I'm just not confident in it yet. He's not yet 3, which I've been told is the more common age for boys to "get" it, so I've just been kind of sticking with it. I know that lots of kids have an aversion to going #2 on the toilet for one reason or another, so I asked him about it a few weeks ago, and he said he didn't like going on the toilet because it was hard. So we talked about that a bit, and I told him how good it was when he does go on the toilet, and how that means he is such a big boy, and I reminded him of his wonderful reward of 4 small marshmallows for pooping on the toilet - this seems so minor to me, but it makes his whole day. I hope it's always the little things in life that make his heart leap.

Well! Today seems to be a new day all together! About an hour ago, I asked him if he needed to go, and he said no, so I left it at that and figured I would ask him again shortly. Then about 10 minutes later he announces, "Mommy! I need to go peepee!" So we went, and sure enough! I was so proud, and he got an extra mini marshmallow (the quota is 2 for going #1) just for telling me that he needed to go. Much praise ensued. About 30 minutes after that, he is playing on the floor and suddenly gets very still and quiet, so I asked him if he needed to poo. Now normally, his immediate response would be a NO! and he would try and act busy in hopes that I wouldn't wisk him to the toilet - which I generally do in such situations. Instead, he looked at me and *happily* said "yes!" I was so proud, so we went, and he went, and much more praise ensued!

The other thing that he suddenly seems to have gotten is the nose wiping thing. He's known how to blow his nose since he was about 14 months old, but he generally sticks his fingers in it if I don't get to it fast enough. Well yesterday we were talking about this, and I told him that when his nose is running, he should tell me so that I can wipe it so his fingers don't get "yucky." I figured we would probably have to have that talk again, but several times this morning, he's come to me and pointed to his nose and asked me to wipe it. Needless to say, I'm super proud and so glad he isn't sticking his fingers in his running nose.

Oh, and evidently I used to be a big boy. When Carson was going #2, I was talking to him about how when he thinks he is done, he should try a little more, because inevitably, he has success in the toilet, only to go in his pants a little later. yech. So then the conversation goes something like this...


Carson: "When you were a little, little big boy, you had to go poopoo on the potty?"

Mommy: "Yep, when I was your age, I learned to go poopoo on the potty. It's really good to use the potty, huh?"
So Carson talks about this for a while longer, and keeps referring to me as "a little, little, big boy like me." So after a bit of this...

Mommy: "I was a little girl."

Carson: "No, a BIG girl. No, no...a big BOY!"

Mommy: "But I'm a Mommy. Mommies are girls."

Carson: "Yes. You were a little BOY like me!" :)

Whatever he says. :)

9 Weeks, 3 Days

I had my first true prenatal appointment today with my nurse practitioner...I just love her! She takes her time, and is thorough, and acts like she is truly excited about your situation. I was amazed when I saw what a difference 2 weeks makes to a baby! The ultrasound was so clear, and we could see the babies arms and hands and legs. So cool. I was also surprised to see the eyes already. I'm always amazed that they are fully formed so early and only have to stay in to grow and mature. How can anyone have doubt in who God is when they see stuff like this? The appointment went well, although things seem to be happening much sooner this time as far as I am concerned. Although my pants are still fitting, I feel like I can't hold my stomach in anymore - especially by the end of the day. I hate this time because you just feel and look pudgy, but there is no way I would fit into my maternity stuff yet. She said it's just a true sign that my body has done all of this before - and recently. This has all started sooner than it even did with Caden, but I guess that is just how it works. The baby is doing well, and is actually measuring ahead for now at 9 weeks, 6 days, but we're sticking with my original due date of Sept. 21. I get to go back to hear the baby's heartbeat in a month, and I'm pretty excited!

Happy 1st Birthday, Caden!!!

Caden's birthday celebration was SO much fun!! DeAnne and Tommy, Cary's mom and stepdad were able to come out for the event, and it was great to have them here. On his actual birthday (Thursday), we didn't do anything too special, but I did manage to take a few pictures to remember his special day. He was in SUCH a good mood when he woke up. It was like he knew something was special. I was taking pictures of him at breakfast, and every time I would hold the camera up, he would go from straight faced to this huge cheesy grin. He had all of us cracking up. He also started saying na-na for banana during that breakfast. He was quite emphatic about wanting that banana.





Here he is trying on his party hat...he was not a fan, but he did tolerate it for a few minutes.


On Saturday, we invited lots of friends and family to help us celebrate his birthday, and it was a great time. Another great thing, is that the weather was so nice for a winter day in Colorado. It was sunny and in the 50's! It was warm enough that many of our guests hung out on our deck. It was such a nice day. Caden did really well during the party, and was a ham for everyone. He loved opening presents, and did so well! I was a little worried, because before everyone got here, he was acting like he was ready for a nap, but he did great!

Here's a picture of the cake table. I was SO disappointed in the cake. They didn't do anything that I asked, and the crown wasn't even centered, but it did taste great.


I made Caden this plate (Carson has one as well from his first birthday), and I was so excited that it turned out well. :)


The birthday boy...


Carson LOVED singing Happy Birthday.


Caden knew exactly what to do with the cake. While Cary was lighting candles Caden took a fistful out of the corner! It was SO funny! So, as you can see, I ended up holding his hands so that he wouldn't burn himself on the candles...

Blowing out the candles:




Then we set Caden up with his very own cake. He was quite delicate... at first... :)








This was about the time the sugar coma started setting in...




Caden went down for a nap shortly after the cake feast, and Carson enjoyed entertaining the guests with his mad tee-ball skills:








It was such a fun day. Happy 1st Birthday, my sweet Caden!! At 1 year old, he has accomplished so many things! He is walking like a champ, and it is now his preferred method of transportation, even when we are shopping. He is saying Da-da, Ma-ma, Buh-buh (generally towards Carson), Do-Dee (Doggy - and this is typically yelled! :)), Na-na for banana, up, and hot. He loves to repeat words that people say to him, but these are his regular words. He waves and blows kisses, and is QUITE the flirt and is constantly flashing his bright smile. He loves to play independently and is always busy. He also loves to play with Carson, and thinks that almost everything he does is absolutely hilarious. He also thinks the dogs are funny, although, they tend to hide when he starts moving in their direction. He has learned to be a great sleeper; something I am so very thankful for. He eats everything we do, and has shunned baby/toddler food completely. It's pretty funny how aware he is about what others have, and he generally wants it. He also wants everything Carson has, and his desire is not up for debate. Funny boy. He loves to be outside, and I think this spring and summer are going to be so much fun with my busy boys. I can't believe that Caden has already been with us for a whole year. He lights up our lives, and we are so thankful for him!

Recent Pictures of the Kids

Weekend at Breck

Cary's sister Emily was surprised with a trip out here for her birthday by her parents and her boyfriend Shawn. It was so great to see her and get to spend some time getting to know her beau. :) We spent the weekend at a condo in Breckenridge. We brought one of our youth girls to watch the boys and Cary, Shawn, Emily and I spent the days skiing. SO FUN!! I haven't been in over 6 years, so it was so much fun to go again. Emily tried her hand at snowboarding and decided skiing was the way to go. We all had SO much fun!! :) The boys also had a great time seeing her, and Carson can't wait to see Auntie Emily again. Hope you had a fabulous birthday, Em!! So glad we got to spend it with you!!

Carson enjoying the tractor (that he thought was a taxi) at Walmart...






Riding in the Gondola on the way to the lifts:






On the mountain:




I sat in the snow to rest, and couldn't get up! I just kept sinking with every attempt. It was so funny, and my laughter only made it more difficult to stand. Ridiculous.


Thanks for a great weekend you guys!!