Tis the Season...

....for fun and festivities.  This is by far my favorite time of year.  I love the decorations, the lights, the food, the time with family and friends, traditions old and new...the list goes on! And it is only that much more fun with Carson here. So a quick run through of how we have been celebrating...

Carson met Santa at the mall when Nana and Grandpa Whittaker were visiting.  Santa was very nice and Carson seemed to like him enough, for a strange man in a red suit.

We decorated our tree with Santa's little helper, Carson, and it was probably the longest tree decorating process yet! Although, I am certain next year when he can actually take the ornaments on/off it quite possibly will be even more of a project, but more fun with each year!

We visited the snow and took Carson sledding for the first time with the Riggs family. 

Carson had the honor of being Baby Jesus with Auntie Sara and Uncle Garrett as Mary and Joseph.  He was the most mellow, happy baby Jesus ever! He just looked around on stage and then sat through the rest of church on Daddy's lap.

We went Christmas light looking with cousin Benjamin, Uncle Jer and Auntie Molly-olly one night. Carson was mesmerized by all the lights.

And this is only the beginning...we look forward to more holiday parties and time with family and friends in the upcoming weeks.  Happy Holidays to your family from ours!

Happy 3 Months Little Buddy!

Monthly Photo with Hungry Hungry Hippo

Time continues to fly! We are now 3 months old and I can't believe it! He is continuing to change by the day it seems and more than ever I wish I could slow down time. Occassionally I will find myself thinking I can't wait till he can do this or I can't wait till he is old enough so we can do that. I keep reminding myself it will be here all too quickly and to savor where he is at now before it passes.

So 3 months pass and this is who our little boy has become....

- Talks, talks, talks...and louder by the day it seems! And more than ever chooses to be chatty while nursing which now makes that process way more long, but way more fun.
- Sleeps for the most part from 7:30 pm- 7 am waking at 2 am and 5 am to eat. Apparently we are growing a big boy!

- Loves sitting up...in the Bumbo, high chair, bouncer, a lap...you name it he'll sit in it.

- Enjoys reading books
- Is getting more coordinated a grabbing and holding toys, blankets, clothes, hair...
- Recently tried the jumperoo, doesn't get the jumping part, but none the less loves it.

- Which brings me to he loves to stand and getting quite strong at it!
- Smiles more and more

- Is a momma's boy! Which I love, but can be hard for getting breaks, thankfully he loves daddy A LOT too!
- Finally takes a pacifier and holds it in himself...only after trying every one made.

- Although is seeming like a thumb sucker the more coordinated he gets.
- Can lift his head and hold it up on his tummy for longer periods of time.

- Laughs! By far my favorite new thing!
- Splashes in the bath tub
- Still loves snuggling and napping with us
- Enjoys being sung to, even if mommy's voice isn't the best

I am constantly in amazement of him and who he is becoming.  Nothing could possibly be better than being his parents!

Feeling Thankful

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year and have much to be thankful for! At the top of our list we are thankful for our healthy baby, Mikey's job, me staying at home with Carson, friends and family.  It has certainly been a year of change, learning to take things as they come, and finding that good can come from situations when you least expect it. And with all that we had to be thankful for we had LOTS of family and friends to celebrate with!

We started our day with a very chilly 5K Turkey Trot with the Reed family...

My Running Buddy

Family before the race

We had Thanksgiving dinner at Mikey's aunt and uncle's house and my parents came with us.  It was a full and festive occasion!

With Nana and Grandpa

Our first family thanksgiving

With Cousin Benjamin

Family

Park Playdate

Buddies Luke and Carson

Luke 6 1/2 weeks Carson 11 1/2 weeks

My little man

This morning Carson and I went on a little playdate at the park with my roommate from college Serena and her two kids.  It really is a small world we live in....Serena and I were roommates almost 7 years ago, both ended up married, living in the exact some model home 2 blocks apart and just had boys 6 weeks apart!  We did walks together while pregnant and it was fun to finally get the boys (and her daughter, Jordan) all together this morning.  We look forward to many more playdates in the future with our buddies Luke and Jordan!

Happy Halloween

We had a fabulous Halloween with friends and family. It was a very full and fun packed day!

We had the chance to do a little wine tasting with the Reeds that day, which we have missed doing since being pregnant with Carson.  We tried facing Carson out in the carrier and he loved the opportunity to see, talk and smile with everyone!

1st whole family photo with Daisy

That afternoon Mikey's family came over to see the cousins on their first Halloween.  We had a full house! Carson and his cousin got lots of attention and it was seriously a paparazzi event with the amount of photos taken of these two boys.  They both did so well and cousin Ben was very interested in Carson and getting close enough to give kisses or steal his pacifier!  We can't wait for Carson to be a bit older and to watch these boys play and become the best of friends.

Brothers and Cousins

The cutest baby bat

 Cousin Benjamin the dinosaur and Carson the bat

 Carson's Halloween gift from my friend Alissa

A good night kiss and some love from Cousin Benjamin

 It has been so fun celebrating the holidays with our little boy and can't wait for this season to continue!

Jen and Greg Lane

This past Saturday we attended Jen's (a co-worker of Mikey) wedding.  Carson was a little rock star taking a 3 hr nap in his carseat (through the ceremony and part of the reception), then got passed around and snuggled by everyone.  Mikey and I even got a chance to do a little swing dancing which was fun!

Carson all dressed up and wearing shoes for the first time-

With the beautiful bride Jen-

My two handsome boys

Congrats Jen and Greg!!!

Clearly Carson had too much fun because we got our first full night's sleep since he was born!

Baby Bat

Carson got to dress up for his first Halloween Party for my mom's group.  It was adorable having a room full of cute babies in costume!
Carson and his little buddies...

Poor baby bat is all done with pictures...

Girl's Weekend

We had our 2nd Annual Girl's Weekend and it was fabulous.  It is so wonderful to continue a friendship from so long ago...elementary school, junior high and high school and still have such a strong connection with somebody.  We had a lot to celebrate this year and realized a lot had changed since last year- a baby, a pregnancy, home ownership and graduation from grad school all within 4 friends!  We can't wait to see what the next year will bring for all of us and what we will be celebrating in Fall of 2011!

Happy 8 weeks!

Happy 8 weeks to our little man! We can't believe how fast time is going by.  We fell in love with him the day met him and now over the past 2 months have found more reasons each day to love him more. He seems to change by the day. We are seeing more and more smiles and hearing more "talking" and enjoying every minute of it.
His monthly photo with Hungry Hungry the Hippo-

The things that we have fallen in love with about you...
- your mohawk...we think it is one of your best features
- your smiles
- when you sleep cuddled up on us
- the little rolls you are growing on your thighs
- when you roll over
- your grunts as you fall asleep or eat (you are a boy through and through)
- when you talk to us
- your snuggles
- watching you play in the bath tub
- that you love being outside
- watching you kick and move around
- that you like to sit like a big boy at the table so you don't miss anything
...and the list goes on.

We couldn't love you more and can't wait to see what new things we will discover about you as you continue to grow!

The Great Pumpkin Hunt

Last weekend we began our fall festivities...every year we head off to Bishops Farm, which is the Disney World of pumpkin patches.  This year was extra special taking Carson for the first time to get his pumpkin.  We went with the Reeds and had a blast riding the train (by far Brandt's favorite part), watching the pig races, a hay ride out to the pumpkin fields and not to mention some tasty treats.  Carson slept through his first pumpkin hunt, but mommy and daddy picked out a good one for him!
Train Ride-

Riding out to the pumpkin fields-

Searching for the perfect ones, a mommy pumpkin, daddy pumpkin and baby pumpkin-

Carson checking out his pumpkins

Happy Fall!