Carter's Owie

Well, Carter had his first "blood" injury today.  He was playing in the bathroom early this morning (his favorite place to play lately) and pinched his left pointer finger in the door frame.  Ouch!  I didn't realize at first what had happened until I saw his finger - purple, swollen and bleeding.  Poor buddy.  And then, of course, Brooks woke up and I could hear him running around in his room.  So I scooped up Carter and gave him lots of snuggles as we headed to get B.

As soon as we were upstairs and Brooks saw Carter crying, he immediately started doing acrobatics and making silly noises to make Carter laugh.  And it worked!  Within a minute or so Carter stopped crying and they were both playing on the floor, laughing!!  I love my big boy Brooks.  He has such a tender heart and hates to see people cry.  So he does whatever he can to cheer them up.

Carter was definitely more clingy this morning and spent a lot of time in the Boba carrier while I cleaned up dishes and packed lunches.  He even took a morning nap which is pretty out of routine for him.  So I guess his injury affected him more than I thought.  But this afternoon he's been happy and smiley.  His finger is just a little red now and since his hands are so chubby anyway, you can hardly notice the swelling :)  I'm thankful our first "real" injury was a small one.  I just need to be eased into the many more that I am sure to come with this kid.

Brooks' 3rd Birthday

First of all, I'm happy to report that we made it through this birthday without any puking.  And for that reason alone, I'd consider it a success.  But on Saturday, my Brooks baby (or not so baby) turned 3.  THREE!  Can you believe it?  I've found that celebrating birthdays are a little different as a parent.  We had a really fun day celebrating with a party and lots of good food, but I found myself throughout the day thinking about what I was doing at that exact time three years ago.  And I made sure to keep an eye on the clock for when 6:40pm rolled around - the moment our first son was born!  Ah, memories.  But as great as that day was three years ago, I certainly appreciate not having to be in labor every year ;)  Here's how we celebrated our day ....

For breakfast, Chris and Brooks headed to the donut shop where Brooks could pick out any donut he wanted.  And Brooks was as excited as a kid in a .... well, donut shop!

he picked one with white frosting and sprinkles

headed home with the loot

There was definitely more frosting eaten than actual donut, but that's allowed on your birthday, right?

Shortly after breakfast, we packed up all the food and party supplies and headed to Spellerberg Park for Brooks' party.  It was a baseball themed party inspired by Grandma Marty.  When my mom was here this spring she asked Brooks if he had a baseball bat.  When he replied that he didn't, she said "maybe you'll get one for your birthday."  And Brooks interpreted that to mean "I AM getting a bat for my birthday".  And then he decided he wanted a baseball party since he was getting a new bat anyway.  And since I didn't want to disappoint my little guy (and his request seemed reasonable) we had a baseball party.

That morning Brooks wore his baseball shirt and hat.  Carter even dressed for the occasion.

We started the party by playing a game of baseball, of course.  

Jake at the bat!

Jake's little sister, Celia gave it a try too!

Papa Gale was the third base coach.  And second base coach.  We discovered that playing baseball with two three year olds and a one year old requires a LOT of coaching :)  "Run to first base.  No the other first base.  That's third base.  [pointing to first base]  Over here.  Run over here.  You know what?  That's good.  You just stay on third base."  Brooks had a ton of fun and that's what really matters, right?


After the ball game, we brought out the baseball pinata.

Making that pinata was a labor of love I tell you.  Chris and I both spent hours paper mache-ing, painting, filling, etc.  We had to explain to Brooks ahead of time how pinatas work and he was super excited about it. Until he took the first two swings and decided he didn't like the loud noise of the bat hitting the pinata.  He declared that he was done and sat down. (sigh)

Jake, on the other hand, loved it!  He whacked that pinata until it split wide open.  I believe he was highly motivated by the candy on the inside :)

Next came presents ......

After opening the presents we at a "baseball" lunch with brats, peanuts, chips (just for Brooks :) and some fruit salad.  Then came the cake!

I'd say he liked it!  We are all so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family.  Brooks loved all of his gifts and he truly felt special at his birthday.  Thank you to everyone who came and to family who sent gifts for him!

Grandma Gale and Carter

Katie and Celia

 Later that afternoon we gave Brooks his "big" birthday present from us.  A new bike!!!

Brooks was pretty excited and wanted to ride it right away.  But he's never ridden a real bike before and the "pedal with one foot, then the other" concept quickly became frustrating for him.  We both tried to help him, but we realized this would take a little longer to learn.  Then he said "Daddy, I want to share my bike with you.  It's your turn to ride it now."  Translation: "I'm all done with this bike.  You take it."  He has ridden a few times since his birthday and I'm proud to say that he is learning how to ride it.  Slowly, but surely.

That evening I made Brooks a special birthday dinner.  I asked him earlier in the week what he would like and he requested chicken, fries, baked beans and green beans.  That, my son, is doable.  And I was especially proud that he asked for vegetables for his birthday.

So I made homemade chicken strips and fries, along with the requested beans. 

We all enjoyed the meal and ate until we were stuffed!  Then while we were eating, I looked over and saw this!

Earlier at Brooks' party, Carter took a short 45 minute nap in my Boba carrier around 11am and then didn't nap for the rest of the day.  I tried several times to put him down, but he wanted none of it.  So come supper time, he was really tired.  Obviously.  And it pretty much blew.my.mind that he just fell asleep.  No crying, no fussing.  Just fell asleep.  So weird!

We finished out the day with baths for both the boys and reading books on the couch.  It was such a fun day celebrating our new three year old.  It's still hard to believe it's been three years since he was born.  It seems forever ago and not that long all at the same time.  But it's been such a fantastic three years and I'm so excited to continue watching Brooks grow and learn and discover God's plan for his love.  We are all so blessed to have this special little boy (er, big boy) in our family.  Happy Birthday Brooks!

Watch Me Grow: 9 Months

Well, it's official.  Carter has now been on the outside just as long as he's been on the inside.  And he all of a sudden seems very grown up and far less dependent on me, which is both good and a little sad.

I can no longer get him to sit IN the chair.  So now he stands NEXT to the chair for pictures.

Here's what's new:

Stats:

• Carter weighs 19lb 11oz.  (I finally had him weighed!)  I would have guessed him for heavier.  At least he feels heavier when I'm holding him all the time.
• He's wearing all 12 month clothes now.  His shorts are a little long on him and make him look extra "stumpy" but he's cute!
• Carter now has 7 teeth, 4 on top and 3 on the bottom.

Eating

• Carter is sitting down with us and eating solids at every meal.  He's been doing really well at eating finger foods - cooked veggies, fresh fruit, cereals, etc.  So most of the time he just eats some of what we're eating, but other times I'll warm up some baby food I have made up in the freezer.  His favorite thing to eat for breakfast is oatmeal.  This morning I mixed in some applesauce and a dash of cinnamon and he thought that was pretty awesome!
• Favorite Foods: Oatmeal, squash, carrots, green beans, dry cereal, eggs, grapes
• Not-so favorite foods: applesauce, bananas (what kid doesn't like bananas??)
• Carter is still breastfeeding but not quite as often.  Sometimes when he gets crabby I realize it's been over 4 hours since he last nursed.  Nursing has also been a bit more challenging since Carter now has 7 teeth, but all in all he's doing well.

Sleeping:

• Those of you who have been keeping up with these posts will know that sleep has never come easy for this child.  The crying, and screaming and not sleeping was wearing us all down.  But now?  Now, you would never know that Carter had any sleep issues at all.  He goes down for naps and bedtime like a champ.  No screaming.  No crying.  Just sleeping.  Wonderful, beautiful sleeping!
• I usually nurse Carter on our bed before naps and bedtime.  Most times he falls asleep while nursing, but lately he's still been awake after he unlatches.  So in a crazy experiment a week ago, I tried putting him in his crib to see if he would, you know, just fall asleep.  (I'm delusional, right?)  I rubbed his back and sang him our bedtime prayer, kissed him goodnight and left.  The first time I did this he cried.  For a minute.  No joke.  It was a whole minute and then he was sleeping.  Amazing!  And now when I do this, he usually just lays in his bed and jabbers and coos until he falls asleep.  I'm not entirely sure this is my baby.  I mean, do you remember just 4 months ago???  But I'm not complaining.  Oh, no.  This new sleeping thing, my friends, is wonderful.
• Carter usually just takes one nap each day around 1pm, which is conveniently at the same time Brooks takes a nap :)  If we're home and he's bored he may take a morning nap and then a later afternoon nap.  But usually in the morning we're busy out and about so he stays awake until early afternoon.  Then he'll nap for about 2-3 hours.
• Bedtime is around 8pm.  He'll sleep a good 5-7 hours, eat and go back to sleep.  He may wake up one more time to eat, sometimes not.  Then he's usually awake for the day between 7 and 8am.

New Discoveries:

• Finger Food.  We started giving Carter some (very small) finger foods this month.  And he LOVES them.  It took him a while to figure out how to get them to his mouth, but he loves to feed himself.  In fact, he loves to eat so much that one day I found him under Brooks' chair at the table eating the crumbs off the floor.  Guess I need to sweep more often.

I told Brooks he needed to share his cereal with Carter and this is what I walked into.  That was one happy baby!

• Sitting in the bath.  Carter's been taking baths with Brooks for a while, but we've always set the baby tub in the big tub.  But since he is so very mobile, it was no longer containing him.  He sits very well, so we decided to take out the baby tub and just let him sit in there.  And he was happy.  He loved to splash in the water and play with the toys.  For about two minutes.  Then he started crawling all over the tub, over Brooks, pulling himself up on the side of the slippery tub, trying to chew on the faucet, pulling the plug.  Bath time is so much fun for him.  Not fun for us.  I'm in a constant state of "don't let the baby drown" panic as he's crawling everywhere. So needless to say, bath times are now very short for him.  Get in, play for two minutes, wash up and get out.
• The window.  We have a few really low windows and they're just the right height for Carter to stand and look out.  I find him here often watching the world go by.

• The Spray Park.  This last weekend we all went to the Pioneer spray park here in Sioux Falls.  Brooks loves to play in the water and given Carter's love of bath time, we figured he would too.  We were right.  He was fairly overwhelmed by it all and didn't smile much, but he loved splashing in the water and trying to "catch" the water sprays. 

New Abilities: (there were a lot of big ones this month!)

• Crawling!  Carter is now crawling on his hands and knees.  And he's everywhere!  I find him in the bathroom, under the table eating crumbs, in the dishwasher.  He is a busy, busy boy!
• Standing.  Shortly after last month's post, Carter mastered the ability to pull himself to standing.  And he does it often.  And recently he's even started to walk along the furniture.  Oh, this kid keeps me on my toes.



Yes, that's a fork he's holding and yes, I took it away.  (after I took a picture of course!)

• Climbing.  I'm sure this goes without saying, but with all this crawling and standing, Carter has learned how to climb... on Brooks' bed, in the dishwasher and recently up the stairs. One day he was in the living room playing while I was in the kitchen and when I came to check on him, he was on the fourth step up.  Time to get the baby gate!
• Signing!  A few weeks ago, we started using sign language with Carter.  We've used the words "eat", "more", "nurse", and "all done".  I wasn't really expecting him to sign back, but I thought we could start and eventually he would pick it up.  Then about a week ago, he had eaten all the snack on his tray and I saw him clapping.  I figured he was just clapping in celebration, but when I saw the frustrated look on his face I realized he was actually signing "more"!  So I gave him more snack and he was thrilled!  So was I :)  What a little smarty pants!!

• Making us laugh.  We've always tried making Carter laugh, especially Brooks, will silly faces, noises, etc.  But this month Carter has figured out the game and has started acting "silly" to make us laugh.  And it works!  He'll shake his head back and then look to us to wait for us to laugh.  And when we do, he shakes his head even more.  Or he's started just laughing at Brooks, for no good reason, just to get him to laugh.  And of course Brooks starts laughing which causes Carter to laugh harder and around and around it goes.  I don't think there's any sweeter sound than listening to my boys laugh.
• Clapping.  I think this may have happened a while ago, but Carter has started clapping.  Unfortunately, it also looks like his sign for "more" so I have to decipher which one it is, but it's really cute either way.

clapping!