Toddler Happenings

This kid is cracking me up....he has been doing some of the funniest things lately. For some reason he adores playing in the bathroom while I get ready for work, mainly playing with the scale and pulling things out of the cabinet. So every time the bathroom door opens, he heads that way. I was picking up my bedroom and bathroom last night and Carson was following me around, and he thought it would be fun to throw a can of hairspray in the toilet! So as I am fishing that out, I look over at him and he had my underwear on his head!

When he is getting into something he is not supposed to, we tell him "ehhh, ehhh"  so now he walks around the house saying "ehhh, ehhh" only his version is a little more drawn out.

He also "plays superman"...he drapes a blanket or article of clothing around his neck and just strolls around the house. He loves to take one of Cory's tube socks (work socks, no my hubby doesn't wear tube socks regularly) and put it on the back of his neck and holds the ends...like he just worked out at the gym or something. He will do this with his baby blankets and our clothes. He loves dragging around articles of clothing.

He also loves to give us items and take them back...he will hand me a toy and I take it and say  "Thank you" and then he grins like "yeah right" and takes it back. He has been playing with the dogs and their tennis balls, he loves to throw the balls and watch them fetch, but he doesn't understand why they won't give him the ball back. He has also started to study and figure out the doggie door...Oh Lord.

He is getting cuter and funnier by the moment, I can't wait to see what is to come and what else ends up in our toilets :)

Talented Hubby

Cory loves his little projects, he made Carson's dresser before Carson was born, he made the frame for my big canvas picture of Carson (my Mothers' Day gift), and now he just finished a little book shelf for Carson. I love that he can make stuff for our children, it is so special.

Beach Vacation

We had our 1st Family vacation last week. We went to Ponte Vedra Beach near Jacksonville Beach, Florida. It was very pretty weather and scenery. I needed a beach trip and some yummy seafood. What I didn't need was for Carson and myself to get sick only hours before driving to the beach.

We were scheduled to leave around 5AM on Monday so that Carson would sleep for most of the 6 hour trip. No such luck. On Sunday afternoon I was napping with Carson in the recliner and I felt of his forehead and I knew he had a fever, it was 102.2. So I figured it was an ear infection like usual and we decided to go on to see a Dr. and get the prescription for antibiotics filled and be on our way as planned. Turned out, Carson had Hand, Foot and Mouth virus, and there is nothing you can do for it besides give him Motrin for the fever and pain. Typically with this virus (which is very common right now) babies get bad, painful blisters in their throats, hand and feet. Luckily Carson never got it on his hands and feet.

After Carson went to bed Sunday night I began to get sick with food poisoning. So the ride down to the beach on Monday was horrible. We weren't able to leave until about 11AM due to me still being sick and just couldn't get going. Carson cried most of the way and I felt terrible as well. Once we arrived we took him for a walk on the beach and he loved it! It was good to see him happy. But that night he woke up screaming every hour from the pain and fever. I felt so helpless because it would take forever to soothe him. I actually feared that we would get evicted - he was screaming so loud.

The next 2 days were much better, his fever went away and he perked up and we enjoyed playing on the beach and going out to dinner and then walking on the beach after dinner. I had no idea how exhausting it would be taking an "almost toddler" on vacation. Next time we will go with family so we can have some help and some time to relax. Carson liked the sand and walking in the shallow water on the beach after the big sand bar formed each day.

As for the Atlantic side versus the Gulf, it just doesn't compare. We both grew up visiting the Gulf and had so many expectations that were not met. We really wanted some crab claws but of all the restaurants we went to, no one had them on the menu. We did have some excellent seafood though. Another difference is the sand, it is much flatter and easier to walk on, but there are areas where millions of shells wash up and it hurts your feet, but we found some really pretty shells to bring home.

And I know it is cheesy, but I really wanted an airbrushed t-shirt for Carson for his 1st beach trip, but there were no stores like Alvin's Island, etc...within a few miles of our condo.

All in all, we did make some nice memories on the beach with our sweet baby, and had a nice family get away to a pretty beach.

FYI: I got a couple of good pictures of Carson, but at this stage in his life he is too busy exploring and studying  everything around him to look at the camera :(

The many shells...

This is Carson being friendly to people passing by on the beach :)

Pushed Birth

Courtesy of the Feminist Breeder blog I follow (also on Facebook). I am constantly reading articles, books, watching videos, etc...about birth interventions and their negative effects. Every time I read or see something that I feel compelled to share, I want to blog about it, I just don't know where to start, or how to tie it all in so that it makes sense to those who are not on the birth knowledge-hungry path I am on.

Anyway, TFB has posted an awesome website that sums it all up. If you are pregnant or ever plan on giving birth, you NEED to read this. Click on every link, it is so interesting and SO TRUE!

http://www.pushedbirth.com/

July 4th Weekend, 2010

We had such a nice weekend, relaxing and spending time with family. Friday night we went to my nephew's  birthday party at a water park, Carson loved it! Then spent the rest of the weekend cooking and hanging out with Nana and Papa.

This was actually Friday morning before daycare, he was in such a good mood, and walking so fast, he actually prefers to walk these days instead of crawl.

When we arrived at the party, as soon as he saw the water he wanted in! 

I can't wait to see him at the beach :)

They had little swings above the water, but he really preferred being in the water.

Here is the Birthday Boy, Andrew, 9 years old!

Playing in the water fall.

This was on the 4th in his outfit that Nana gave him.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday!

11 months old

Carson - what a character you have become:

• You keep me and Da-Da entertained constantly. 
• You have developed quite the little attitude, you get mad when we close the door b/c you love going outside, and you hate when we have to take something away from you that you are not suppose to have. 
• Heaven forbid we take your passy! I had to give you a bath the other night with it in your mouth :)
• You love your baths, some days after we get home that is the only thing I can do to make you happy. 
• You have been skipping your afternoon naps lately.
• You are getting better and better at walking, you are also getting faster. 
• You love to pick up the smallest things on the floor, I have one eye on you at all times. 
• You love to feed yourself, some of the finger foods you like now are: chicken, pork chop, potatoes, green beans, cheerios, puffs, cheese and whatever mama and da-da are eating - you walk up to us and spit your passy out to let us know you want a bite. I still feed you jar food to make sure you are getting enough to eat. Not sure how much you are throwing on the floor to share with your doggies. 
• You still don't really like the sippy cup, not sure what we are going to do when we try to wean you from the bottle.
• We have started to add a little cow's milk to your bottle to start getting you use to it, hopefully in a week or so we won't have to buy formula anymore, YAY!
• You got a new carseat last week and I think you are much more comfortable and love being able to see what is going on. I don't worry so much about you being too hot anymore now that you are facing forward.
• You now think it is extra fun to get up (for good) at 5:45 every morning; but you are so cute walking around/playing the kitchen in your PJ's while I fix your bottle and Da-Da is getting ready to leave for work, you are always in the best mood when you wake up each day. 
• You probably weigh about 20-21 pounds, are still in size 3 diapers and 12 month clothing.
• You have 2 teeth, one of which is still making its way up. I think you are about to get more soon. 
• You are a little dare-devil, you get one bruise and scratch after another :(
• You love to jump into piles of pillows and blankets. You love being naked. You really loved jumping into piles of pillows while being naked :)
• You love being chased, you even try to get the dogs to chase you. :)
• You love music, it is so cute when you bounce your knees and bootie when you hear a song.
• You do not like loud noises, it upsets you at daycare when other babies cry loudly, and you hate it when Da-Da wrestles with Chase b/c Chase barks really loud! You hate the vacuum cleaner, the blender and the lawn mower. 
• You have your 1st beach vacation coming up, I can't wait to see you play in the sand, please don't eat any!
• AND.........Your 1st Birthday party is around the corner as well, I am having so much fun planning the perfect party to celebrate you!!!!!!!! Mama loves you so much!