Baby Chen #4 - 19 weeks and gender reveal

Friday Victor had the day off from work and Erik didn't have school so we decided to go to the Baltimore Zoo for the day.  I have the official growth and development scan a week from now.  The kids can't come to that one, and I'm not sure Victor will even be able to come as my attempts at lining up a sitter have failed so far, so we decided to do a quick elective gender ultrasound on Friday.

The baby appears to be healthy and apparently is a little bashful but eventually we were able to get two clear shots confirming that my intuition was correct and that baby Chen #4 is another beautiful baby BOY!  Ha!  A repeat of my family (although I am the oldest with 3 brothers and Lainey is #2).

 I really felt strongly that it was a boy from about 8 weeks on so it wasn't surprising at all. Ha!  I would be happy with a boy or girl but knowing this baby completes our family seems like the gender, either way, impacts the family dynamics in a greater way than the other three did.  (I don't know if that makes any sense to people reading this, I'm not sure if it even makes sense in my own head!) 

So now 24 hours out I have been able to kind of visualize our little family and it's fun.  I love the knowing the gender ahead of the delivery.  This little boy will be (and already is!) well loved by us all.  I hope he can withstand the affectionate smothering he will receive from his second mother (aka Lainey!).   

Oh Lainey, she LOVES babies!  She and Carson are best buds but she really is bossy sometimes.  Don't worry, he holds his own ground and has started yelling out, " Dop it Lainey!" if he is annoyed. Haha!  

Little Lainey, I am guessing you will get 2 years with this new baby brother before he starts getting annoyed with his second mom.  :)  Lainey LOVES babies, and while she seemed quite convinced this new one was a girl, has adjusted to the idea of a third brother without any hesitation.  She can't wait for him to arrive.    She did suggest that we name him Charlotte though! That won't be happening.

Our sweet little boy sucking his thumb.

How is the pregnancy going?

Positive:  

This pregnancy continues to be very easy! I am so grateful for that!

Erik and Lainey have been able to feel the baby kick now (Victor has been able to for quite a while).

Baby boy kicks have become much more obvious - I love that!

Being able to run still - I ran 20 miles this week and really have felt good still.  This is the first pregnancy I've been able to run through. 

Negative:

I found a varicose vein!  Ahh!!! Made it through 3 pregnancies without them.  All I can say, is that I better not get stretch marks this time too (I don't have any from previous pregnancies!).

Very mild, intermittent left sided SI joint pain (hip pain). I may make a trip to the chiropractor soon to see if I can prevent a full appearance of this pain that I've had off and on since my pregnancy with Lainey.  It's always resolved after 2-3 visits.  So far I've only noticed it once and hope it doesn't become a regular thing again! 

Weight Gain:

+3.5 pounds

At this point I generally gain about 1 pound a week.  I am still wearing all my normal clothes. Strangers can't tell I'm pregnant yet but those that know me certainly can tell my stomach isn't as flat as it normally is.

We are so thankful for this baby boy! I am praying for a cool summer and uneventful pregnancy! :)

Joy Project

175)  Healthy kids - overall I am so grateful that my kids have no serious health issues.  This week I am just thankful that my kids have stopped puking. Ha!  Sweet Carson was sick with a GI bug for 6 days but has been back to his normal self for a week now.   I'm so thankful.

His appetite has kicked back into high gear the past few days.

All day long he follows me around saying, " Eat NOW!" and excitedly shouts out, "FOOD!" at meal times.  Haha!  I love my exuberant little boy!

176) Kids that behaved very well at the doctor's office last week, which was due in large part to tip I learned from my friend Michelle.  Thank you Michelle!

Crayons stay in my purse at all times now.

So simple and yet the novelty kept them entertained.

177) Beautiful weather.  Spring is so glorious in the DC area, the past month has been so beautiful.

178) A fun day together as a family spent at the Baltimore zoo - photos to come.

179)  Kids coming along to find out whether or not they are going to have a brother or sister in September.  

180)  A less crazy week at work for Victor, for the first time in 2 months. 

Boy or Girl?!

We will find out soon?!  What do you think it will be?  Boy #3 or Girl#2??    I put up a poll on the blog to keep track!

Joy Project

174)  Erik got to feel the baby kicking today!  So fun!

Notable Quote - Lainey

About 2 miles from home I hear her little voice from the back row of the minivan, "Look Mom! I'm the only one standing up!"

Hahaha!  She buckles herself in and apparently I didn't double check to see if she were buckled on the one day she decided it wasn't important.  Oops!  Thankfully she is a-ok and announced her plan to me not far from home.

Joy Project - Baby style

172)  Victor got to feel the baby kick him for the first time tonight.  That's always a fun moment!

173)  Being married to a helpful guy.  Victor has probably cleaned up more puke during the past ten days than most guys do in a lifetime.  I've been in charge of daytime stuff of course, but he's cleaned up all the night time puke (while I held a sad baby) and there has been a LOT of it!

Carson Update

Update (4/18/03):  We made it through the night puke-free!  Yay!


4/17/03:

Ear looks quite a bit better already, the right tube has been out since January.  His left tube has always been a mystery as it's quite waxy.  I flushed his ear with saline this time though and he definitely had/has an infection.  The good news is that the tube appears to be possibly still in the right place.  On Monday his ear drum was bulging and super red and the tube looked crooked/on it's way out.  Now his eardrum is not super bulged and the tube appears to be better placed than I originally thought.  In fact, his ear looks so much better already I really wonder if it drained overnight because it shouldn't have improved so quickly otherwise.  Not sure.

I asked his pediatrician if we could stop his antibiotics since his ear looked so much better but she was hesitant to do that (it's still infected just way better).  So I cut the dose back a bit and am making sure not to give it to him to close to bed time as I don't want that to upset his stomach in addition to the GI bug.

Regarding the GI bug, he is still puking.  6 days, always at night now.  Please pray that we make it through the night puke free!

Thanks!

Joy Project! - Race Photo!!

171)  Look what I found!  Someone did take a photo of us sprinting to the finish line.  I am so thankful!

Attack of the ear, again

Well, Carson has another ear infection.  He never had a fever but was acting completely miserable today.  Crying, fairly lethargic, not eating or sleeping clearly in pain somehow.  I called his peds office to make an appointment but they were too busy to see him today or tomorrow.  (Don't get me started.)  So instead of rushing to the urgent care I decided to look him over myself.  His right ear was fine.  His left ear was completely full of wax.  So I had to flush a big chunk of wax of out my miserable baby's ear.  FUn times.  When that was done his left ear was clearly red but he was quite upset so I waited until he had fallen asleep in my arms and checked it again to confirm that it was indeed infected.  It still looked awful so into the urgent care we went.  We are starting Ceftin once again (third ear infection since his tubes feel out 3 months ago).  Hopefully, he was be back up and running 24 hours from now. Poor little guy!  I'm afraid he's going to need another set of tubes which also would involve removing his adenoids this time.  Yuck!

Joy Project!

So despite the week of vomit and sleeplessness I have been determined to come up with a list of things that brought me joy!  I found quite a few.


156)  5K with Erik!

157) Getting to do my first in-office hemorrhoid banding procedure on a patient! Dorky? Maybe but exciting to learn a new skill, particularly since it's one a lot of GI doctor's don't know how to do.

158)  Tulips from work

159) 2 gift certificates for massages from Grandma Sandy

160) A nice necklace from my parents (Mom)  :)

161) Dinner out with Victor on Wednesday for my birthday.

Mom - would you have ever guessed that my birthday meal this year included crab cakes and swordfish?!  Haha!  I spent 32 years not liking seafood but have found a few things I love this past year.

162)  Warm and sunny weather all week!

163) Attending a GI conference this weekend (one night in a hotel)

164) Beautiful flowering trees everywhere you look!

165) Getting the seeds in my garden (almost a month later than normal, but they are in!)

166)  Fun time with Lainey this evening at the playground

167)  Watching Lainey mature - she can now ride her bike, with no training wheels, for 2 miles without complaint which is a big improvement from 2-3 blocks not long ago (before whining about being tired)

168)  Lainey sounding out one syllable words - she needs me to sound them out slowly for her but she gets the letters right almost always and spends most of the day asking me to sound out words for her. Ha!

169) Snuggling with my sweet Carson

170)  Lots and lots of baby kicks on my birthday - feeling tiny baby kicks never gets old!  I love it!

17 weeks - dorky facial expression

What brought you joy this week?

Erik's First 5K!!

The highlight of my week was running a 5K with Erik yesterday!  I signed him up for it about 6 weeks ago.  I asked him and he hesitantly said yes so I jumped at the opportunity.  In the past 6 weeks we've probably only done 4-5 actual training runs but I keep Erik active on a daily basis, walking, riding bikes, soccer, etc. so he is quite capable of sustained physical activity.

Pre-race self portrait

The morning of the race he told me, "I'm NOT going!"  He is quite a bit competitive and ran a 1 mile race with me in the fall.  But I think he was a bit overwhelmed by the 3 mile length (understandably) and a little bit nervous.

 (Little pre-race attitude/nerves!)

I really didn't give him the option to back out and knew he'd be fine once the race started.


He did even better than I thought he would!  He smiled and laughed the whole way.  We only walked 2x - probably for a total of 2-3 minutes and he finished the 5K in 36 minutes.  An 11:43 minute mile (according to the race link).  Pretty impressive for a 5 year old!!

When we were coming up to the finish line people sure were hooting and hollering at him.  "Look at that little guy! I can't believe he ran it so fast!"  They were sticking out their hands for high fives.  He just kind of ignored it but I know he liked the attention. :)

Afterwards I asked if he had fun.  I got a big "Yes!"  I asked him if he'd run another race with me and he very enthusiastically said, "Yes and I'm going to beat you!"  Hahaha!

This was a pretty big race (maybe 500 runners).  I think around 75-80 kids in the 13 and under category.  There was one other 5 year old (finished at 51 minutes), no 6 year old kids, 2 seven year olds, and a handful of 8 year olds.  I think he finished before all the kids 8 and under.  (A 9 year old placed 2nd in the 13 and under category though - finishing in 24:30!!)

I am so proud of my little guy and had so much fun!  I hope this is an event we can continue to participate in.  I am really hoping to be able to run two 5K's a year with him (one in the fall, one in the spring).  If we do that I bet I won't be able to keep up with by the time he's 9-10.  We'll see!

Post-race photo!

He was excited, just camera shy!

I'm super disappointed that there are no photos of us running!

Victor ran the race too (pushing the stroller) and finished ahead of us.

He had the camera but didn't think to take a photo as we finished (and I forgot to mention it 

to him before the race).

I was hoping the race photographer would have taken one but I don't think they did.

Oh well. 

Crummy Week

It's been a crummy week in our house.  Lainey told me Sunday evening that her stomach hurt.  This led to quite a bit of vomiting and a fever.  She didn't start acting normal until Tuesday afternoon.

Tuesday afternoon, Erik was a pill which is frustrating on it's own, but I was lacking sleep and trying to get the whole house cleaned (minus the bathrooms which I left for V) before his Mom got there that evening.  I managed but it was a long day.

Wednesday started early at the gym (6 AM).  I worked all day, which was nice - my colleagues bought me tulips and cupcakes, while Grandma Sandy watched the kids.  I was able to meet Victor for dinner that evening as it was my birthday.  We got home by 7:30.  The family including Grandma Sandy and her friend Roger sang to me (no cake which was my request but in retrospect it would have been nice to have something a little more exciting for the kids that day as they love birthdays and hardly knew it was my birthday).    We then got the kids to bed which was much more chaotic than normal because it was Carson's first night in a big boy bed.  He had been jumping out of his crib every time we put him in it for 4 days prior so it was time.  He's now sleeping on a twin mattress on the floor.  That first night he fell asleep by the door and not until after 10 PM.  Lainey, his best bud kept "checking" on him - so helpful - and was still awake when I went to bed at 10:45.  Long day!

Thursday morning Carson starting puking, in the car.  He threw up all day long (had a 6 hour break thanks to Zofran).  I thought he was better the next day but he threw up 2x Friday night and had diarrhea that day, vomited once Saturday, once tonight plus loose stools again today.  Poor boy has refused to eat since Wednesday which, if you know him if extremely unusual.  He is still drinking liquids and keeping most of them down but the boy is miserable.

Please pray that no one else gets it and that he starts to feel better ASAP.  I'm thinking about taking him in but I'm sure it's viral, I don't think he is super dehydrated, and I already have Zofran available (although haven't given it to him since the Vomiting has slowed down). This has been a terrible GI bug though.

There were good things about this week which I will cover in my next post but I just needed to complain for a minute. Ha!

Why?!

Update: 

Thinking back to this scenario I realize my parenting skills were a bit limited that day by a number of reasons.  I have been more tired and stressed out than normal this week. Victor has been working crazy hours for the past 5 weeks and was out of town this weekend, then Lainey got the stomach flu. Tuesday my in-laws were coming so I was frantically trying to clean the house that day (with the trio). Our day started early because Carson got out of his bed so the kids were tired too. Erik's antics started right at nap time so I was trying to deal with him and put the other two to bed at the same time. I really really needed him to just cooperate and clearly he wasn't interested in that! 

If I could have a do over I'd probably just ask him to go to his room if he couldn't stop whining.  If he wasn't willing I'd have "helped" him to his room right away instead of hoping he'd go there on his own (with the threat of lost privileges).  I do think his worse than normal behavior is partly because he was tired and partially because he's been needing some one on one time which I'm hoping to give him on Friday.

Good thing we get lots of chances to be good parents so we can make up for our less than stellar moments.  

Original:

Why do kids do things that are so dumb sometimes?

Today at lunch, Erik got up from the table.  I gave him one chance to come back and eat and he refused.  So I told him lunch was over.  I think he initially refused because I told him the next food choice was a carrot and peanut butter which he likes but didn't want at the moment.

Anyway, no big deal, right?

Well, he continued to complain, fuss, and fight about being hungry so I told him he needed to go to his room before I counted to five.  If he listened, he could come down in an hour and get a snack.  If he choose not to listen he would have to go to bed at 7 PM tonight (and still go to his room for an hour - that wasn't negotiable).

He didn't listen.  All right, staying calm I said, I'm so sorry you made this choice but now you are going to go to bed early.  You still need to go to your room by the time I count to 5 or you will lose $5 from your piggy bank.

Still didn't listen.

Okay - last threat while still calm.  Go to your room or you'll skip your soccer game this weekend.

I said this as I went to put Lainey down for her nap which gave me 5 minutes away from the stinker.  (Carson was in bed already.)

You guessed it.  He didn't listen.  In fact, he was peeling a carrot and scooping out peanut butter when I came back downstairs, clearly certain he would get his own way.

Not happening child.

So now, my last option was to move your behind now (before I get to 5) or you will lose the option of a snack (waiting until dinner for food) and I will swat your on your butt and take you to your room, in whatever fashion it requires.

Unfortunately, that is what is what he picked.  So that is what he got.  A very firm swat and half dragged up the stairs.

Why child?  Why?  I gave you so many good choices!  Why ignore them all and end up with a consequence no one is happy about.

And not only one consequence.  His total consequences for not listening when I asked him to come sit down at the table to finish lunch  and then when he didn't listen and got mad about lunch being over ended up being....

1 hour in his room
7 PM bedtime
Missed soccer game
$5 out of piggy bank
A swat on the behind
No afternoon snack

Really kid?  I don't understand.

I could have just skipped to the swatting and half-dragging but truthfully I hate that consequence and really it only happens about 2-3 X a year as he is generally motivated by losing privileges.


Tell me I'm not the only one with a child that at times is infuriating and so damn stubborn!

Any better ideas on handling complete disobedience?

Joy Project

147)  Beautiful weather!  4 days of 80 degree weather this week.  Thank you thank you!


Our 10 day forecast.....http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/Washington+DC+USDC0001:1:US

Those in WI feel free to visit as I see a lot of rain and snow in your 10 day forecast.  Yuck!

148) Planting the garden with Carson and Erik today (about 3 weeks later than normal)

149) A husband who cleans up puke. Poor Lainey was quite ill last night (midnight to 3 AM).  No more puking today but she had a 102 degree fever.  Thankfully, that seems to have cleared now.  Please pray no one else gets this virus.

Laundry from last night's adventure

150) Spending time at the park with the kids this weekend.  (Victor was out of town and got home just 3  hours prior to the illness hitting.  Good for me - bad for him.)

151) Watching Carson try to boss around our 4 year old neighbor.  Haha!  He's like a mother bird, scolding Tyler when he gets mad at him.  (I don't encourage this behavior but it does make me laugh a bit.)

Oh how this boy makes me smile!

He is too bossy to be the youngest child!

152)  A very generous birthday gift from a blog reader! Thank you.

153) Erik reciting bible verses from Awana with no hesitation.  He remembers them better than I do.

154) A child like faith - this is something I never had, at least in a religious sense.  Our world is so full of hurt and sickness that I think most, if not all, of us at some point end up questioning our faith/beliefs in whatever we might believe in. Wondering really can God be good, or truthfully is does he even exist? Faith is important to me.  It provides hope and comfort during hard times, and gives me a better sense of purpose I think.  But it's not without doubt.  At this point though, my sweet babies have no doubt in their minds that God is good and powerful and can fix everything.  Their questions will come, they have too, but for this brief moment in time they have such a blind faith and it is a joy to be able to witness it.

During advent season the kids start out in the service with us before

going to their Sunday school classes.  Carson insists on participating even 

though it's really only for kids 3+ (I sometimes have to pull him out for being too squirrelly.). 

This photo was shot during a loooong prayer, which only 1 of the trio was paying attention too (understandably). 

155) An extremely close friendship between Lainey and Carson. They are really good pals.

Baby Chen #4! - 16 weeks

Well, it's about time for a baby update.  I'm happy to report that this has been my easiest pregnancy.  Here what's been happening...

16 weeks

Total Weight Gain/Loss:  +1 pound  (I lost 3 pounds during the first trimester and have gained back that plus 1 back)

Maternity Clothes:  Nope, I don't usually switch over until after 20 weeks

Sleep:  This baby seems to irritate my bladder particularly at night so that keeps me up fairly often.  If I take Benadryl (which I do 1-2x a week) it seems like I can sleep at least 4 hours in a row before having to get up to go to the bathroom (instead of 1-2 hours!)


Cravings:  Crab cakes have been a consistent craving so far.  I could seriously eat 1-2 a day if I could afford it! :)

Symptoms:  None at the moment, aside from the wimpy bladder at night.  Overall, the first trimester was much easier this time.  I actually understand how my mom could say she liked being pregnant.  Never before could I have imagined enjoying a pregnancy (particularly the 1st and 3rd trimester).  I was still tired and nauseous for 4-5 weeks but way way less overwhelmed by it than before.  Thank you Lord!  Victor had 3 work trips plus I have 3 kids work part-time and we battled 2 bouts of viral junk during the first trimester so I am thankful it wasn't very bad.

Ultrasound of baby #4 at just shy of 16 weeks

Baby is due 9/22/13 - same due date I had with Erik who was born on 9/10

Activity Level:  Pretty similar as to pre-pregnancy.  I am still running about 4 days a week (Saturday, Sun, T, H) lifting weights 3 days a week (T, H, Sat), and Elliptical 2x a week (Monday, Wednesday).  Friday is usually a rest day.  When I run I go between 4-6 miles (depending on if I am lifting weights too).  I've slowed the pace of my runs down by about 45 seconds/mile (now a 9 min mile pace) so I don't feel completely spent at the end.  I have also decreased my max weight lifting a bit too.  I've cleared all activity with my OB who firmly believes that the more exercise the better during pregnancy, he does not adhere to the archaic HR max of 140.   I'm hoping to be able to run until about 25 weeks, we'll see.  This is the first pregnancy I've run during and I'm loving it (my first OB with Erik wouldn't allow anything that bumped your HR over 140 so I switched to elliptical and it took me 5 years to get back into running).




Complications:  None.  Dr. Kacaden did a sneak peak ultrasound this week so Lainey could see her sibling which was wonderful.  Baby looked great, although no measurements were made, or attempts to find out the gender.  He did mention that I have an anterior placenta which probably explains why this baby seems quieter than the others.  I can feel it and have since 14 weeks but it is much less frequent than the other pregnancies at this point.  The placenta is frequently posterior (behind the baby).  It's doesn't cause any problems when it's anterior but can make kicks seem quieter.  The placenta can also move still so we will see where it is on the anatomy ultrasound in a few weeks.

Fun Facts:   This is the first time I've had kids big enough to really understand what is going on and be excited about it.  It's been so fun!  Lainey in particular is SOOOOO excited.  She can hardly wait.  She talks about the baby girl all day long (in her mind this is a girl for sure - I think it's a boy - we'll see).  She wonders about how we will feed it, where it will sleep, will it be able to crawl, how does it get out, etc.  She puts her hand on my belly whenever I sit down next to her.  She's so sweet and will be a great big sister.  I kind of hope for her sake it's a girl (I truly will be happy either way and have no real preference) but if it's a third brother she'll adjust!  I recall telling my mom that she should leave the baby at the hospital if it wasn't a girl when she went to the hospital to have Colin.  Haha!  I wouldn't trade Colin out for anyone - he's great! 

We are very thankful for this new baby about to join our family.  I truly have struggled with feeling a guilty about being pregnant again as I know there are people close to me who are in situations whether it be infertility, health issues, or not finding the right partner yet that make it impossible to have a baby at the moment.  One situation in particular pulls at my heart and if there was a way to fix that situation I'd be willing to do just about anything, even give up the idea of a 4th baby.  But that's not possible so instead I will just be grateful that somehow I'm been granted so many amazing blessings in my life.  


For Comparison:

No blog with Erik until he turned 1!
16 weeks with Lainey
16 weeks with Carson

Micheal Buble and Sam

This video made my facebook page the other day.   I LOVE it and have watched it a few times.  Enjoy!

Beware - the language in the first 30 seconds is a bit offensive, just push through it!

Special Day with Lainey

I had an OB appointment this morning.  Victor stayed home which was nice and got Erik to school, helped clean the house, and watched Carson.  I'm still seeing my OB in Virginia (he is awesome) so each appointment is kind of an ordeal requiring a sitter or Victor to be home.  Thankfully, he's allowing me to stretch out the time between appointments for now so I have only been there twice (8 and 16 weeks) and won't go back again for another 6 weeks.

Anyway, more to come about the pregnancy sometime later this weekend.

I took Lainey with me, despite the 90 minute drive each way, and we had a wonderful day!  Dr. Kacedan did a quick 5 minute sneak peak ultrasound since Lainey was there (instead of the standard heartbeat check with a doppler).  She was so excited to see her newest sibling kicking and "swimming."  She's been so excited about the baby, so for her to actually get to see it in live action just added to that.  I really love my doctor and would recommend him to anyone in the DC area.

After that we stopped for lunch and then stocked up on groceries from Trader Joe's that aren't available where we live.

We then headed to my friend Karen's house.  Liam and Lainey played at the playground while Karen and I chatted.

Then we headed to Oxen Hill Farm.  This is a county park with a few animals - it's pretty small but it was a nice 45 minute outdoor activity.  We happened to be there at feeding time so Lainey got to feed the pigs.  That was fun because they fought over their food quite noisily.   (We were outside of the pen.)

We then headed back towards home, stopping for ice cream on the way.  Since it is finally nice outside we made a final stop to get pedicures.  Lainey gets a pedi/mani combo for $10 (used to be $7).  She's so cute and just loves it.

After that we called Victor and the boys met us for a quick dinner.

I then switched kids (feeling guilty because Lainey's had a lot of one on one time with me this month) and took Erik to Lowe's.  He helped me pick out some outdoor flowers, raspberry bushes, and strawberry plants, plus we stocked up on seeds for the garden.  We rushed home and Victor and the boys got all the plants in the ground before it got dark.  Whew!

A fun but busy day!  I meant to take a photo of Lainey and I together all day but kept forgetting.  This is the only photo I managed to take of our special day out.

Ha!

The pigs before the food arrived.

At least the day is documented here! 

I love having one on one time with my kids and make a pretty big effort to do so on a 

regular basis (even if it's just getting groceries with only one of them).

Carson at 2!

I figure I better get in my "birthday post" for Carson before he is 25 months old!

What's Carson like at two??

He is truly such a joy!  He is full of joy and takes delight at almost everything.  He is also a huge source of joy, laughter, and smiles.  I'm not sure I've ever met a happier person.

He is social and friendly.  Unlike Erik and Lainey who start off quiet and warm up slowly, he is usually raring to go and doesn't hesitate at all to participate in big groups or interact with strangers.  Today we were at the park and he starting jumping up and down with excitement when another kid came (he didn't know him).  He pointed to him and shouted out, " Up here! Come! Slide!"  Oh my little boy - how I just love him so much!

Carson plays well by himself too.  He loves puzzles, books (would sit and be read to all day long if possible), coloring, music (he sings and sings all day), building towers and knocking them down, cars and trucks, and playing outside.  He  can entertain himself quite well for 45-60 minutes although there is no guarantee that the mess he creates will take any less time to clean up.  Ha!

Carson likes to help me.  He unloads the dishwasher with me every morning, handing me everything piece by piece.  He sits on the bathroom counter next to me when I get ready, usually painting his face with lip gloss or some other benign make up. :)

Carson loves to eat although is fairly picky about fruits and vegetables.  He will eat carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, beans, cantaloupe, watermelon, bananas, and apples but that's it.  (Not too bad I guess.)

Carson is independent.  "No me!" and " I do it!" are common phrases.   He particularly likes to close and open doors - in the house, at stores, and on the van.

Carson loves his siblings and often greets them with an exuberant hug when they get back from school.  He and Lainey play together really, really well but also fight quite often.

Carson can count to 10 (sometimes), sings his ABCs, he is working on his colors although beyond blue and green is not consistent.  He is talking in 3 word sentences.  Most of what he says is pretty clear.   He makes a "T" sound instead of "C" which I find cute - "tar" for car, "Otay" for Okay.  Makes saying his name a bit tough though! :)

Carson is loved deeply by us all.  

I am so thankful for my joyful little boy and can't imagine life without him! 

Joy Project

146)  Lots to be excited about over here.  I'll let Carson tell you more about it.

and what the other kids thought about it....

We told the kids at just shy of 14 weeks I am now

15 weeks, 1 day - due September 22nd (same due date as I had with Erik)

Feeling great - more to come soon