march comes in like a lion...

hanging around

enjoying the *cold* weather

after church

chad found carter reading to camden one morning

reading in our new bed

reading again on the floor

the baskets full of baby food i made

all my stored milk

happy tummy time

all three enjoying tummy time

and hopefully it will go out like a lamb. unfortunately it has been cold again so we have not been outside as much as the kids would like. it looks like this week will be a bit warmer so i am looking forward to that. the last week has been filled with lots of new and fun things. first off we welcomed two babies into this world. one is the kids new cousin mason born last monday to shawn and carrie and the other is our neighbors new baby ava. the kids, especially carter, are very excited about these new babies. carter also got his fill on birthday parties over the last week. both carter and camden got to go to a party twos saturdays ago and then carter went to a party on friday night and saturday morning. both of those parties were for preschool friends. carter had a great time and has been talking about his birthday a lot now. carter has been status quo. we often see him being more and more nurturing to camden and callan, and *talking* to them about how to behave. he also jumps at every chance to say that he is doing something that camden is not. such as "i ate all my dinner and ate with good manners, but camden didn't." we are trying to get him to focus on himself and worry about himself. the funny thing carter said this week was while going to the bathroom at church. chad was with him and he saw the pastor come in and go potty. he turned to chad and said "why is god going to the bathroom?" it was pretty funny to see how his brain perceives the pastor as god.
camden is becoming more clear with his speech and has really started using it to get a lot more things. he has also mastered the words to a lot of songs. just two weeks ago he was hit and miss on some of the lyrics but he knows almost all of them to all of the songs we sing. he also really enjoys singing and will have you sing with him until you can't sing anymore. he is also a willing participant in the dinner prayer. he reminds us to say it and knows all the words now. it is really cute.
i am going to post about callan in my next post since he turned 6 months on sunday. i also need to post that chad and i got a new bed from my parents a few weeks ago and it has changed our life. :) we got a king bed that we both have wanted for a long time. mainly because when i sleep i like to sprawl out and i don't like to touch anyone when i am sleeping. i felt like in our queen bed we were constantly waking each other any time we moved. we both got up several times a night and were tossing and turning a lot. little did we know that having a king bed with a memory foam topper would change our lives. we now have many nights that we don't get up to go to the bathroom because we are not aroused when the other one moves and we both have the freedom to stretch out while we are sleeping. i feel like a new woman, and i *love* my new bed.

Before I was a mom...

I thought this would never happen to me...


I am pretty crazy about what I let out of my kitchen for this above reason. Now that Carter is more responsible and understands what he should and should not do with art stuff I let me guard down a little bit. Carter and Camden were coloring this morning at the table. We left the crayons out after they were done because we were distracted. I went down stairs to put something away and heard Carter yell "daddy look at what Camden is doing." Then I hear Chad yell, "no, Camden, no! no!" I took a deep breath knowing that whatever was going on up there was not going to be good. Little did I know what was really going on. I was so afraid the generic crayon would not come out, but thank God it did. So I got a quick picture of the culprit and his art work.

rollercoaster weather

enjoying nice weather

loving the bikes

matching feety jammies

brothers

playing nice together

with my kids

ALL the boys

It seems like things have been busy over here lately and I blame it on the ever changing weather. We seem to be busier when it is nice outside. Of course we have had some nice days and some bitter cold ones lately. The boys are ready for every day to be an outside day. I am really ready for that as well. They really enjoy their bikes, chalk and just playing in dirt, but most of all they love the neighbors. We are so blessed to live in a great neighborhood with lots of kids. We all tend to meet up at 4pm in our driveways and just let all the kids play. The only downside to this is that I have to be outside as well since it is in the front. But even I have needed some fresh air lately. I feel like I have a big to-do list I need to finish before spring arrives. (then I will have a big spring to do list, such as putting shelves in our garage.) On to the kids. Callan is getting crazy big, and I am reminding myself every day to enjoy every moment. He is growing up so fast. In the last few weeks he has mastered rolling. He is even scooting his body places. He is all over the crib and really enjoys being able to move around. He is sitting for tiny amounts of time, and I am counting the days to when he can do this on his own. I think he will love seeing the world this way. He is still a very happy baby who enjoys taking in the world around him. I weighed him with his clothes on the other day and he was 17lbs 10oz. He is really enjoying his baby food and has tried all of the following: rice cereal, oatmeal, bananas, pears, apples, peaches, and carrots. He is eating several ounces of food at about 6pm and he looks forward to it. He knows when he sits in the high chair that he is getting food. He has starting laughing a lot lately. Carter can really get him going, and he is very ticklish. The funny thing is that when you tickle him, he giggles but also seems to have a look on his face like "I don't think I like this." He continues to be a laid back happy baby that goes with the flow. The only exception is sleep. He still naps haphazardly and can wake up several times in the night on a bad night. Usually he goes down (easily) at 7pm and sleeps till 4-430, eats and then back down till 6:30-7am. But for many unknown reasons he can still wake up several times crying, and we don't know why. He is almost six months and I really want him to sleep 12 hours. Is that wishful thinking? Oh well. In another six months I probably won't even remember it.
Carter has been doing a lot of sweet things lately. First of all he has had some times of not crying before Sunday school and swimming. This makes us very happy. Also, he has really been trying to include Camden in a lot of things and making sure he has what Carter has. My mom told me that at story time Carter came up to her and started crying. When she asked what was wrong he said he *lost* Camden. They both looked around the room and when Carter found him he was very relieved. He really wants Camden to come to preschool and swimming with him. I love seeing that they love each other and want the other one around. Carter hit two milestones in swimming the past two weeks. He first got a prize for keeping his face in the water for 5 seconds and then later that week he got to dive for a seashell. This meant he had to submerge his entire body and look for the shell underwater, grab it and bring it to the surface. His reward was to keep his seashell. He felt pretty good about his accomplishment. Carter is also telling some interesting stories lately. They really make you think about how his brain must work. One day at breakfast he asked me if Mrs. Fanton (preschool teacher) had a phone. I said "yes, why do you want to call her?" He says, "only if it is an emergency." I say "what kind of an emergency?" and he says "you know, if we looks a crayon or something." I guess to a child that is an emergency.
Camden is reminding me while I don't like the twos. This sweet, smart little boy knows exactly how to push my buttons, and make me crazy. We have had several battles of the wills this week, and battles they were! His clingy nature is getting worse. Although we did use this to our advantage on Sunday. He was whining in church and talking out loud. So after one timeout I told Chad to take him to the nursery. He hates being away from us so this was a punishment for him. He of course cried, but it only got worse when he found out that he was not going to get a doughnut after church since he didn't behave and sit through church. We had one sad little boy on our hands. We will see if that helps his behavior next week. On the good side of Camden he still loves to have one on one reading time at almost any moment of the day. Curious George and "the monster and the end of this book" being his favorites. He will walk around the house saying "uh-oh" and pointing to Grover stuck under a pile of bricks. He thinks it is funny that when you turned the page you buried him in bricks. He also *loves*singing songs. He can now recite a lot of words to twinkle twinkle, ABC's, ba ba black sheep, jesus loves me, row row row your boat, and if your happy and you know it. He just watches your mouth move and he spits out as many words as he can. He loves to say "like a diamond in the sky" He will keep singing until you are all sung out. He also plays so nice and is such a sweet boy on Tuesday and Thursday mornings when Carter is at preschool. I think he likes the alone time.
That is about all to report for now. We keep praying the the weather turns nice and stays nice. We need a lot of outdoor time!

*heart* fun

We didn't do too much for Valentine's day around here. Carter had a party at his preschool but otherwise it was pretty low key. My mom brought over some cookies with the kids names on them and the next day grandma Karen brought over a gift for the kids. I got creative (with help from my mom) and made a cookie bouquet for Carter's teacher. Here are the few pictures I took.

Carter with his cookie

Camden with his cookie

eyeballing the deliciousness

the teacher bouquet

Valentine's Party

Piper, Carter, Emma, Ashlynn

Emma and Carter

baby Callan taking a snooze

Camden and Maddie

Ashlynn, Emma, and Carter

I kind of forgot I had these pictures. At the beginning of February we had a little work party for all of our kiddos. We had lunch, cupcakes and lots of play time. All the kids got along and had a good time.

puddle jumper

pure joy!

The weather was SO nice the other day that we just had to get out. We played outside in the remaining snow without our coats on. We even took a walk, which made the pugs very happy. Since all the snow was melting there were a lot of puddles on the walk. I told Carter if he wanted to he could jump in the puddles. I didn't have to tell him twice. He ran to every puddle jumped as high as he could. When we got back to our house I took a few pictures. The shear joy on this little boys face made the extra laundry worth it!

First Solids

the first bite..

grabbing for the spoon

leaning in for more

finished face

On Friday night (February 11th) I decided to try some rice cereal with Callan. He loved it! He could not get enough. He is my first child to love it. I actually had to make more because he kept looking for the spoon. He was ready for solids too. He was able to keep it in his mouth and maneuver it. I am happy he likes it, but not happy to start making him baby food.

Camden's first hair cut

yep, this was his first reaction

then he was just sad

but eventually got over it

and waited patiently for his animal cracker

and done! he did not want to pose, he wanted his animal cracker

Even though Camden really didn't *need* a hair cut, we decided to get it done. He has very little hair and we needed to get the long straggly pieces cut off so his hair would grow. I guess we were spoiled with Carter because Camden wanted nothing to do with the chair. Nothing! He cried and tried to get us to let him down, but after about 5 minutes he was better. He was still unhappy but he conceded. It didn't last long and got his animal cracker and the world was back to normal. we got to keep a little bit of his hair for his baby book, and we got some pictures and video of it as well. I can't believe he was over 2 and still had not had a hair cut!

Sesame Street Live

With grandpa and grandma before the show

the show

they were playing during intermission

watching the show

excited about the show

Carter and Camden got a special treat last weekend. The Scribner's took the boys to sesame street live! Camden loves to name all the characters even though he has never watched the show in his life. He loves to read books about elmo and his friends so I think he was really excited about going. Al and Karen said they had a good time and Camden talked non-stop through the whole thing, except the last 15minutes when he feel asleep. Carter liked it, and really love the balloon and toy they got to bring home. They were two lucky little boys. Thank you Al and Karen for taking the boys. They loved it!

Callan is 5 months

Wow! he is almost half way to a year! I feel like he is changing the least of the kids, even though he is probably changing the most. He is just so laid back (for the most part) that he just lays around an snuggles and just seems like my little newborn. But he has hit some major milestones. He rolled over on January 23rd and he tried his first solid food on February 11th. I gave him some rice cereal mixed with breast milk and he is the first of all my kids to *love* it. He could not get enough. I am not at all excited about making baby food but I think he will be a huge fan of solid food. We will probably start slow, since I am lazy and don't want to make it, but I have a feeling he will like whatever we give. He has started to sit up a little bit and is strengthening his upper body. In general he is pretty lazy and doesn't want to have to do too much. I think it will still be a while before he sits on his own, but I think he likes the view and hopefully that will be motivation for him. He got to get out and go for a walk on Sunday and he loved sitting up in the stroller and being able to see everything going on around him. He is sleeping about the same. He has gone the last few nights from 7pm to 4:30 or 5am. I am still ok with this but would love it to be pushed to 6 or 7. I am just grateful for him not waking up anytime before 4. There were nights where he just woke up and cried at 1 or 3. I know things are going to change again, but I have enjoyed my sleep the last few nights. Naps are still hit and miss. He usually goes 2 hours and then needs a nap and that nap lasts around 40 minutes. Then depending on the day he will take a longer afternoon nap. We have also found that this boy is super ticklish. if you tickle him under his chin, or blow raspberries on him, he will give you a big belly laugh. I tried to catch it on tape but he was all giggled out.

overdue update

he wore this hat all day, even for nap.

look at all that baby chub!

the boys playing

one of the million times during the day he asks to hold his brother

ornery little fellas

sweet baby

having fun while Carter is at preschool

I don't know why I wait so long in between posts to do a general update but here are some of the new things the kids have been doing.
Callan rolled over for the first time from front to back on January 23. Although he doesn't do it a whole lot, he now can. He has also rolled from back to front as well but usually accidentally. This last month he has really become a good observer. He loves being able to be upright and watching what is going on around him. He *loves* his jumper but only when the other boys are around him playing. He likes to be upright most of the time so he can see what is going on. This also means lots of distraction while eating, which is not a lot of fun for me.
Camden is moving swiftly into the terrible twos. Defiant, stubborn, moody, and easily frustrated is how I would describe him 50% of the time. This boys wants what he wants, and can't always say what that is. This leads to tears that last a really long time. He can be so sweet and nice and smile, and the next second he is upset about something. I said last time that he doesn't like it when his food *falls apart* or his socks and shoes are not on at the same time. Now if you ask him to go get in the car he refuses unless you are holding his hand or holding him. (I usually just place him in the garage and he eventually gets into his seat) He has gotten really clingy lately. After nap he wants you to hold him (for a while) or when we are in public places ie; church, bible study, or preschool. I don't know what this sudden need to be with us is, but it makes it hard to do the things I need to do. I still believe that his vocabulary grows daily. He has started to say things like "up please mommy" or "can i have that daddy". He is putting the persons name with what he wants. He has a new found love of curious george. His favorite book is Curious George and the pizza and his second favorite is Curious George makes pancakes. I do not think a day has gone by that I have not read them. He will answer the questions in the book and finish some of the phrases. He still copies and does anything that Carter tells him to do. They even play well together for extended periods at times. Camden's new favorite game is to point at someone and say "you're grandpa" and then you say "no, you're grandpa" and he laughs hysterically.
Carter has also been going through a weird phase lately. He is usually pretty out going or maybe I should say willing to do most things. Lately if he is doing something that we are not doing like swimming or sunday school, he will cry right before he has to go. Nothing big, just 10-30 seconds of tears and then he is smiling and having fun. It is just not like him and we don't know why he is doing it. He says he just wants to be with us. I don't know why, we are not that fun. Every time I look at him I start to see a big boy, who is growing up right before our eyes. I realize more and more each day that he takes in EVERYTHING we say and do. This leads me to him doing something I am not fond of. He now does a dramatic "ARGGGGGG!" and lets out a big sigh when you ask him to do something he doesn't like. He even throws his head back. So I was getting a bit irritated by this the other day, and then I got upset at something and found myself saying "ARGGGGG!" and then mumbling something under my breath. So I ate my humble pie this week when I realized he was getting it from me. Nothing like your kids pointing out all of your flaws! He is ready for the spring and ready to play outside. This boy was born for the outdoors. He was excited this week at preschool because he got to wear his jammies on pajama day. This was the highlight of his week and he can't wait to do it again. He is always asking me to do crafts and color. That is his favorite thing to do inside. Although he is a good kid and really does try to please. He has been a bit of a handful lately, really trying to push his boundaries.