Bouncy House!!

We went to our friend Tommy's birthday party today! We had so much fun! It was nice to be outside and enjoy the cool weather. And they had ...... a bouncy house!! Woo hoo! Carson wasn't too sure at first. I put him in w/ Elizabeth and he just sat there in the corner. But he went in again after lunch w/ the triplets and had a blast!

First attempt - didn't move from the corner. Despite watching Elizabeth having fun! I think he was too tired. Mr. C takes a while to warm up. :-)


Second attempt - with the triplets. Think he finally caught on to why everyone else was having so much fun! ;-)

Enjoying birthday presents!

Carson spent the day after his party trying on clothes and enjoying his new toys! Not a bad life. ;-)

"I love my choo-choo!!"

Trying on big-boy clothes

Wagon ride!!

Birthday Party

Carson's birthday party was the Saturday following his b-day (9/25). As I mentioned earlier, he was struggling that week w/ napping, and this day was no exception. It was as if he knew it was a big day. :-) We got about 20 minutes. Seriously. Lucas even took him driving around in hopes of getting a few more. They were gone forever and he said Carson only slept the last 10 in the car. So....I was expecting a meltdown for sure during the party. But he was so good! You could tell he was tired, especially by the end, but he did so well! He fell asleep shortly after everyone left though.

I was so stressed out planning everything - this was my first birthday party! And I'm not a very creative person! It's not like he would know the difference, but it was a big deal to me. But everything turned out just fine. It did, however, prove that we need a bigger house. :-) We didn't have a huge number of people there, but we were confined inside (it rained) and everyone in one little living room was chaotic! But it seemed that Carson had fun, so that's all that really matters. I had fun too! :-)

He was totally spoiled with presents! He got some really cute clothes and some great toys! He finally seemed to get into opening the gifts (and had some help from his older friends - cute). The Mickey Mouse choo-choo from Nana and Papa was a hit w/ the kids! They took turns riding it. And there would have been fights over the awesome wagon from Aunt Mandy and Uncle Bob, but we took that back outside quickly! We're very lucky to have such great friends and family. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate the day!!

Next was cake for the birthday boy! (Trefzger's - Mommy's favorite!) He started crying when we strapped him into the highchair, but once I set that cake down, his eyes lit up. He slowly but steadily ate and ate. I finally had to take it away, which caused a few more tears, but it wasn't too bad. Anyway, it turned out to be a great day! But I was kind of glad when it was over and we could just relax at home w/ our new little toddler!

Some of the decorations



Presents!


Cake!

"What is this.....?"
"Hmmm.....not bad....I think I'll have more....."
"Mmmm.....cake!"

One year checkup

Carson had his 12-month checkup on Friday. He received 4 vaccines (3 shots) but was a trooper! He only cried for a minute. What a tough guy! Dr. reported that he's a healthy (and big) boy!

Stats:

Height: 32.75" (99%)
Weight: 27.0 lbs. (94%)
HC: 48 cm (90%)

He was pretty fussy afterward and had a slight fever, but he took a decent nap (finally) and was in a relatively good mood for pictures that night! Can't wait to see how they turn out.

He's ONE!!

Wednesday (9/22) was Mr. C's first birthday!! We had a big day planned. But, as always, we were reminded that plans need to be flexible when you're dealing w/ babies. Or I should say toddlers! :-)

We started the day w/ a present! We got Carson his own chair for his birthday. He can get off the couch easily, but not on. We figured he needed a chair his own size. He's climbed up in it a couple of times so far on his own. Hopefully, he'll like it. It'll be good to watch football in w/ Daddy.

"Thank you Daddy!"


We headed to school - it was picture day! After that, we went to breakfast where Carson chowed down on his very own pancake. He tried eggs for the first time as well, but was NOT a fan.

Showing off his birthday shirt and bib

Yum - pancakes!

We headed back home to try to nap. It ended up being our first day (of several) struggling w/ sleep. We were planning on going to the zoo, but after fighting over napping for what seemed like forever, it was getting kind of late for that. So we gave up on the nap and headed to the park for a bit. He, of course, fell asleep in the car.


He woke up after a bit and played on the swings and slides. Slides were a first for him and he seemed to love them!



We headed home after that and got ready for the hotel. We got a room for the night so we could go swimming and hang out away from home. Carson finally decided to take his nap upon arrival at the hotel. :-)


Finally suited up and ready to swim!

We had the pool all to ourselves! It was definitely the most relaxing time we've had in weeks.

We had dinner and received a balloon delivery from Aunt Mandy and Uncle Bob!

I wish I could say that we enjoyed the rest of the evening, but like I mentioned, we began having sleep issues w/ Carson. Let's just say we had a very rough end to the evening. But otherwise, it was a great day and we had a lot of fun on his birthday! Happy birthday Carson!!

Carson's favorite things

Some of Carson's favorite things (in no particular order) ......

1. Walking! Carson is now pretty much a full-time walker!! So exciting! But he's fast! He disappears very quickly down the hall and out of sight! :-) Over the last week, he's definitely figured out how to walk. He's been progressing over the weeks, but now he just goes. If he falls, he gets right back up and starts walking again. He crawls once in a while still, but that little wobbly man is on the move!

2. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Wow. Does this boy like that show?! It's SO cute to see him bop to the songs! The theme song and the ending Hot Dog Dance are favorites for sure. We've DVR'ed a few episodes and they have now become our go-to when he's REALLY fussy and we just can't get him to settle down. I really hate to rely on TV - he probably is too young to be watching - but he LOVES it! And we just watch here and there. :-) But seriously, as soon as it goes on, the tears stop. It's amazing. Mommy kind of likes it too. I found myself watching the end of an episode the other day because he always falls asleep before the end. Haha. :-)

3. Dancing. He likes to bounces up and down, sitting or standing, as soon as any music comes on. Adorable. He kind of did a little twist/booty-pop the other day too. I can't wait until he really starts dancing.

4. Balls. His love of balls continues. He loves to try to play catch with Emma. Although, he gets really really close to her face and then tries to throw it as hard as he can. She's not a fan. But she's a good big sister and she plays along.

5. Shoes! He is oddly obsessed with our shoes. He likes to go pick up our shoes and bring them to us. Especially Lucas'. So funny to watch him drag along this big ole size 13. He's finally started wearing his own shoes on occasion too. I need to get better about it now that he's walking. But he didn't seem to mind the other day and they were still on when we picked him up.

6. Table food. Forget about jarred food. That's for babies. :-) He pretty much is over anything pureed and in a jar. Too bad we have some left to use up. But he moved to table food just a week or two ago at daycare, and he just loves it! He wants anything we're eating. At first, he wouldn't eat any real fruit or veggie and was still eating the "baby" versions. He used to spit it out each time. But he's doing so much better on fruits. Now we need to work on veggies. I try to mix them in with whatever else we're having. He's good though. They usually are the only things that dribbles down his chin.

7. Books. Oh my. Carson LOVES books. We're so happy he likes them. Daddy's a HUGE book-worm too. But......he gets really upset if you don't read to him when he wants to be read to. Which is pretty much all the time. L ucas said he disappeared down the hall today and into his room. He came out with one book in each hand. He walked up to Lucas, handed him the books, and raised his arms up in the air (to be picked up). My heart just melts when he does that. I love it! But the reading part, it's over and over and over. And he has his favorites too. He'll dig through a pile and (usually) pull out the same 3 over and over. (I Love You Through and Through, I Love You Stinky-Face, and Five Little Monkeys). You have to smile. But we may need to invest in some new books. :-)

This was tonight....



"Mommy....please one more time!"

Sick....Again

It feels like every other post is about Carson being sick! It never ends. :-( Illness hit again last week. Carson came down with hand, foot and mouth....AGAIN. We were told that most kids build up immunities after the first time they have it....but apparently we're just lucky like that. A little girl had it earlier in the week, and it hit Carson Wednesday night. Literally, as we ate dinner, the symptoms appeared! Over the course of the meal, one bump multiplied into 20+ all over his mouth, the palms of his hands and the soles of his feet. It looked awful! Normally, they get a fever a few days before the bumps, but he didn't have anything! Maybe it was because he'd just ended his antibiotics from his ear infection the week before? Who knows! He only had the bumps. I couldn't tell if he had any sores in his mouth this time, but he acted like it was bothering him. He was pretty fussy and didn't want to eat. He seems better now, but he still has spots all over his feet. :-( I guess it can last 7-10 days. I'm hoping that this second exposure was enough to give him all the immunity he needs for next time! We need a little bit of good luck in the health department. It's hard to see him sick. And Mommy and Daddy have to miss too much work! I, of course, would love nothing more than to stay home with him when he's sick (especially). Unfortunately, there are work obligations too. This working-mom thing is pretty tough sometimes. :-) On top of it all, I've also been sick for the last week and Daddy stayed home sick today. Emma's also not doing so hot and had to go get more x-rays on her hips today. We're in pretty sad shape right now. But we'd better get healed quickly because a big day is coming up soon................. :-)