Dedication at Church

We had our baby dedication at Church for Carter. All of our family came and watched Carter be dedicated. He did really well. He did not cry at all. What a great baby!!!

Pirates and Princesses

Ahoy there Mateys!!! Caden wanted to have a pirate drop off party for his fifth birthday. All of the boys dressed as pirates and Caroline and Sydney dressed as princesses. We played a walk the plank game, musical treasure islands and even had a treasure hunt. The kids also had fun taking turns hitting the pinata. We had pirate cupcakes and pizza and opened presents. We had so much fun and Caden got a lot of cool presents!!! Happy Birthday Buddy!!!

A Boat in our LIving Room????

Caden and Daddy bought a boat at Dicks for next summer. Well, Caden really wanted to try it out before next summer so we decided to blow it up and set sail in our living room. Caden and Caroline enjoyed putting animals and pillows in it to make long journeys into the ocean. I believe they sailed to Africa and Hawaii.

A Date with Mommy

Caroline and I had a girl's day (plus Carter) at Build a Bear. We went to the mall and built a bear. This was her first time and she loved it. She like washing and dressing the bear the most. She first wanted to name the bear Lucy and then she decided to name her Charlie. So she now has a bear with a fairy dress named Charlie. We had a very special day at the mall making a bear and eating lunch!!!

Myrtle Beach 2009

We braved taking the kids and our 5 week old little Carter to the beach. MawMaw and PawPaw came for a few days and then Grandma, Grandpa and Bethany came to stay the rest of the week. We had so much fun. There was a water park at the place we stayed with slides, pools and even a lazy river. We would go down there for the morning. Carter would snooze in the shade while the big kids played. After lunch and naps we would head down to the beach. Caden really enjoyed playing in the ocean and finding shells. Caroline just loved sitting in the big holes that daddy dug. I just enjoyed watching my sweet family have so much fun!!! The beach was one of my favorite places to go as a child and now I feel so blessed to watch my children enjoy it too!!!

7/9/09 @7:09

We went to the dr. for my weekly check up. They did an ultrasound to see how big Carter was getting. During the ultrasound they noticed that my amniotic fluid was low. The doctor was concerned about this so he decided that we needed to head over to the hospital. I wanted to go home first and get my bags and take a shower.
After saying good-bye to the kiddos and having a shower we headed over to the hospital. For a long time I felt great just having contractions here and there. I was even able to use the computer and watch a movie. Then they decided to speed things up by breaking my water and giving me more meds. to increase contractions. Wow! They started coming on super strong. I was begging for my epidural. The epidural is a miracle!!! Soon after the epidural is when Carter decided to make his entry. He scooted down so fast that his heart rate dropped and Dr. was nervous to get him out quickly. She and my nurse did a great job. He was born at 7:09 weighing a surprising 7.15. He was healthy and beautiful. I thought he looked a lot like Caden. Carter, we love you so much!!!
We had so many visitors in the hospital including proud big sister and big brother. They were so happy to see their new baby brother. They held him and gave him lots of kisses. The three C's are now complete!!!

You were loved even before you were born!!

I had three showers for Baby Carter. The first one was at my friend Laura's house. So many friends and family came. We opened gifts and played the price is right. It was a lot of fun. The next shower was at Brigs with my high school and college friends. We ate yummy waffles and opened presents. The third and last shower was in Burlington with family. We had lunch and cupcakes with "C's" all over them. Carter, you are truly blessed with many people who love you!

Fun at the pool

Early this summer we spent a lot of time at the YMCA pool. MawMaw and PawPaw would meet us there sometimes. We would swim in the big pool and in the small pool. Caden just loved going down the slide over and over. Caroline loved playing with her toys on the side of the pool. I loved just beating the heat and spending time with my kiddos.

Black band celebration

Caden wanted to go down the YMCA slide so badly. He had been taking swimming lessons in the winter to prepare himself for the "slide test". One day he decided he wanted to test for the band. He had to swim the length of the pool, tread water for 30 seconds and then get out and in the pool. I was really surprised that he wanted to do this and I really didn't think he would pass. The first try he did not pass just because there was a bug in the water and he didn't want to swim near it. He did not give up, he tried again. The second time we all stood beside him and cheered. He did it! He got his black band. I have never been so proud of his perseverance. Well, Braden passed that day too. We had a celebration ice cream party at the Barbour's in honor of the boy's great accomplishments.

Our Princess is 2!!!

Wow! We can't believe that Caroline is already 2. Her birthday party was at Kid's Together Park in Cary. All of her friends and family came to join us for the celebration. There was a lot of pink and many princess gifts. Caroline loved wearing her crown and being the birthday princess!
At 2 Caroline was already potty trained. She can hold conversations with long sentences. Her favorites are Scooby, princesses and dancing. Whenever music is on she wants to dance. Her favorite song is Sweet Caroline and she sings it all of the time. We love our "Sweet Caroline". :)

Elmcroft

On the first Friday of every month we visit Elmcroft which is an assistant living home that Maw Maw works for. The kids are able to play and do crafts with the residents. Everyone has a great time. The kids probably enjoy playing with the balloons the most and the residents just enjoy watching them.

Easter was an exciting time. We had our yearly Egg Hunt at Colby and Abby's house with our playgroup. Caden loved finding his 12 eggs and Caroline was just excited to find anything chocolate.
We also had our Egg Hunt outreach at church and Caden was able to help. We focused a lot on the resurrection eggs this year and bought "The Passion" for kids. Bobbie and Killian came over for dinner. Caden and Killian acted out the crucifixion for everyone.

What a great night!!!

We met several of our friends at the park by the airport. It was a great night. We packed our dinner and had a picnic while watching planes take off and land. Caden loved going up on the observation tower and counting all of the planes. Caroline enjoyed playing with her friends in the sand the pretending to be planes on the small runway! We can't wait to go back to this park!!!