Carver's Second School Christmas Program

In case you have forgotten the events of Carver's first Christmas program, please review.

Waiting to see the program! We're excited :)

Ok, so we are measuring success with baby steps....

Did Carver sing on the stage with his classmates?

No.

Did he stay in the general vicinity of the stage for the entire performance?

Yes!

That's him laying on the floor... apparently there was an issue with his reindeer hat-- the eyes fell off. Clear that was more than he could handle.

He hid under a table for awhile after the program.

The best picture I could get..... yeah.

Carver's 4th Birthday

This year we decided to plan a birthday party with friends for Carver. I love planning parties, though planning one for more than just family members proved to be a lot more stressful. To add to the stress, Carver was in the midst of his month of sickness so we didn't know until just a couple of days before the planned party if we would even get to have the party. So so stressful, especially for someone who likes to plan ahead!

The week of his party, Carver finally had some relief from his symptoms so we decided to go ahead with the celebration. It was fun, but Carver was definitely not up to full speed. We chose to do his party at the local children's museum, which he loves. The theme was.... angry birds. Not my favorite (how do you make angry birds cute??), but currently Carver is obsessed with them so I embraced the silly birds for his big day.

Angry birds party decor. We were so on the fence about whether we would even be able to have his party that, sadly, most of his party decorations had to come from Party City....

Balloons and treat bags.

Cupcakes! Daniel designed the toppers-- SO thankful for a husband that can do anything on the computer.

I adore this boy. Not sure what the face was all about but he is always so darn cute.

Carver missed a lot of school in the weeks leading up to his birthday party. Carver was SO excited to see his best friend Caleb at his party. They have been in school together since Carver started last year and they have such a sweet friendship.

Carver and Caleb-- best friends reunited!

Carver's very favorite room at the museum.

Carson loves the trains :)

Sweet Fin got a bicycle helmet while we were there (they were doing a bike safety event so all the kiddos got them)-- he didn't want to take it off!

Taking  a break at the end of the party. He did great there, but was definitely still in slow recovery from being so sick..

I'd say Carver's first birthday party with friends was a success! I am so thankful for all of the families that came out to celebrate with us.

Carson 18-19 Months Old.

My baby boy is growing!

He is still a little on the small side, weighing about 23 lbs or so. And he is feisty!

I peeled his banana. Apparently he was not ready for me to peel his banana.

The biggest change these last few months has been in his vocabulary. He talks all the time. He says short sentences and will wander the house saying "mommy mommy mommy mommy" over and over and over. Curiously, there are a few common words that he does not say: like yes and no. If he agrees with something he just says, "okay!" and if he doesn't he shakes his for no. I'm not sure how many words he has but it has been so interesting to hear him talking so clearly and in phrases and short sentences already-- Carver talked late (was about 3 before he talked so much) so this is new for us.

He has found the art of throwing tantrums and does it with much drama.

He laughs and laughs and laughs, especially when playing with his Daddy.

He is super affectionate. He still loves to be held. He hugs Carver, and pets the dogs, and smiles and waves at everybody.

Carson is sleeping very well. He usually takes an afternoon nap for 2 hours or so, and then sleeps for 12 hours at night and very very rarely wakes us up during the night. He loves naptime and bedtime because we always read books and spend some quiet time alone in his room before he goes to sleep. He goes right down in his crib with very little issue.

He is a very picky eater, but he'll eat anything sweet.

Fast food chicken nuggets made with horrible ingredients are a favorite.

He doesn't really watch TV, but he always wants Mickey Mouse Clubhouse playing in the background. He brings me the remote and says "Here, Mommy, here!" so I will turn Mickey back on for him, then he wanders off to play with something, just content that Mickey is on.

He ADORES Minnie Mouse. He has one with a purple dress on too.

This is my favorite developmental age. He is just so curious and becoming independent and constantly learning and seeking and changing. He is incredibly sweet but can hold his own with Carver.

And he keeps life interesting....

I can't believe we are on the downward slide to his 2nd birthday! Yikes! Time to start planning.

Sad, sick boy

This sweet boy spent about a month this winter being very, very sick. It started mid-November with Carver vomiting one morning before school. We kept him home that day and he was fine all day and for the next couple of days. Then, he vomited again one morning before school a few days later. So, we kept him home and he seemed fine for a few days. We repeated this pattern over and over. He would randomly vomit and sometimes have diarrhea, and then seem to be ok for a few days and then it would start again.

Eventually, about two weeks in he started getting more and more sick. We took him to the doctor and he was given Zofran and sent home. Then we went back and he was given more Zofran and we still couldn't figure out what was going on. Finally, the week of Thanksgiving he got crazy sick. Horrible vomiting episodes that left him completely drained and exhausted. Diarrhea that we just couldn't get under control. He wasn't eating and lost about 5 lbs in just a matter of weeks. By far the sickest he had every been and we just could not figure out what was wrong.

I was covered in all kinds of gross things over those weeks. Carver slept in a bed on the floor of our room for an entire month and some nights we would be up every hour, yanking him out of bed and holding him over the toilet as his little bony body was just wracked with violent gagging. It was so so sad.

You know when you are SO sick, and you find a position that works and you just can't move from it? This was his.

Then we had the very fun job of  "collecting" a stool sample and rushing it to the hospital (had to be there in 1 hour!), to have tons of tests run on it. And...

Nothing.

So, we were just at a complete loss.

Finally, after 4 solid weeks of this, in mid-December, Carver started getting a little better. He finally went one week, and then two weeks, without any symptoms. And slowly, slowly, our sweet boy finally came back to us. I can't tell you how much I missed him over those weeks. He was so sick, and so quiet, and so tired. Everything he isn't normally.

It was a month of pajamas, and pull-ups, and many many hours spent not leaving the house.

Hydrating...

Hearing him start fighting with Carson again, and watching him destroy the house fed my soul in a way I cannot describe. I'll take his normal crazy self any day, over that miserable emaciated child he became.

We are heading to a pediatric specialist in Atlanta in a couple of weeks, just to double check that all is really well with him now. More precautionary than anything, but I am so so very thankful that he is being himself again.

Carver-- 4 Years Old

Carver is 4!

What an incredible journey this has been with Carver over the last four years. The firstborn child, by default, carries a heavy burden of turning someone into a completely different person. He has challenged me, scared me, enlightened me, and molded me into a mother. And it has been no easy task, I can assure you.

I struggle to even believe that I have a 4 year old! The journey has been filled with ups and downs, guilt and blessings. It has been the most incredible 4 years of my life.

Carver is an amazing, sweet boy. He is charming, affectionate, strong-willed, defiant, smart, and feisty. He gives me reasons every day to get out of bed, be a better person and mom, try a little harder, and show a little more grace.

Though he has only been talking for a little over a year, he now talks non stop. And he is hilarious. Seriously. Here are some of the things I like to call "carver-isms".

* He refers to everyone as "she" or the very bizarre pronoun "herm"-- a blending of her and him.
* He asks repeatedly for "swaks" a.k.a. snacks.
* He calls Carson "brother" more often than he does by name.
* He calls his new game tablet his "orange phone"
* When he is ready to get out of bed he says he is ready to "wake up"
* His favorite food is s'mores poptarts, which  he calls "black poptarts"
* When he gets hurt he says he needs "a kiss, a big 'ol kiss, all the kisses"
* If he gets in trouble he tells Daniel (or anyone else around) that I am "being bad to him."

He has recently started informing me every single time Carson does something wrong or "bad." It is his new favorite hobby. The other day they were bothering each other on the couch and Carver told me every time that Carson touched him.

He is very repetitive, which I hope is just a phase or age-related. But, he will tell me the same thing about 20 times in a row. It is bizarre.

He LOVES to play games on the phone/iPad/Nabi. He is frighteningly good at these games and we are struggling, really struggling, to try to limit his screen time.

His appetite has picked up and he often eats two lunches and an untold number of snacks throughout the day. He weighs about 38 lbs. and he loves to eat....but only certain things.

His current favorite activities are: play doh, stickers, trains, and...angry birds.

He has a handful of best friends that he talks about, especially Eli and Caleb. For the most part he plays well with others, but he does have a quick temper which can be awkward at play dates :)

He adores the dogs, especially Lea, and he has a new interest in cats! Which would be super fun if Daniel were not so adamantly opposed to them...

We finally got him potty trained about 6 months ago. I'm not sure why I waited so long-- it was incredibly easy and uneventful. One day he used diapers, the next day he didn't. Maybe waiting until 3.5 years old is the trick :)

Carver is becoming more and more independent, which is a strange thing to watch. He's my baby, but he is so quick now to remind me that he is a "big boy." He is so incredibly sweet, quick to hug or kiss or sit in my lap. I am so thankful for him. I am so grateful that God saw fit to give him to us. I have so many hopes for his future, he is beyond precious to me.

Delia- 2 Years

Today is two years since Delia died. It has been a sad day. I miss her every day, but my heart hurts a little more today.

I like this picture of us because it encompasses a lot of small details about our relationship. She was always so exuberant after any time we spent apart. She was needy but incredibly affectionate. She was a comfort to me and something physical and tangible in our home that brought me needed companionship. She was always what I needed when I needed it.

And, I just miss her. I feel this grief welling up inside of me, but there is nowhere to go and no time to give to release these sad thoughts. I need a  moment, a quiet place, a reprieve from day to day to just be sad and not have to apologize for it.

I wish I had a moment.

I so love that sweet girl.

Halloween!

Halloween means a theme day-- woohoo!

Carson and I went to help out with Carver's class Halloween party. Carson had a great time-- it's hard to believe he'll be a student there next year. Yikes!

Carver's class-- Carver, Caleb, Evelyn, Emma, Jonathan, and Lincoln.

Carver, Caleb, and Evelyn.

Carson destroying the classroom.

Painting pumpkins with Ms. Jennifer (we adore her!).

Snack time!

Carson loved the school playground.

Treat bags for his friends at school!

And, of course, we did Halloween activities at home also.

Painting pumpkins :)

Funfetti cupcakes.

Pumpkin rice treats!

Ghosts!

Carver wanted to try on some of his old costumes :)

Trick or treating!

Though Angry Birds are not my favorite, they are Carver's favorite. So, he got to be a red angry bird this year. Sad day for me. But, fun that he now has an opinion about these things.

I see many more costumes that I dislike in my future.