Christmas in Winston

Probably the best part of spending Christmas in Winston Salem is that we get to see Daniel's extended family-- the ones we only see every year or two. The last time we were in Winston Carver was only 7 weeks old, so a visit was much needed.

Christmas Eve is always spent with the Redding side of the family. Daniel's Uncle Richard, and his cousin Angie and her family came over for dinner and we exchanged gifts after that. Angie has a son who is only a couple of weeks older than Carver-- it was fun to watch them interact and play together.

Playing with packaging from one of his toys. This sweater was a gift from a sweet neighbor

Christmas morning was relaxing and fun. It is entertaining even at this age to watch Carver open gifts and start to kind of "get it." Of course, he had a lot of practice over a two week period-- three birthday "parties," and 2 Christmases. In true kid fashion for the most part he enjoyed the paper and packaging more than the actual gifts. Out of all of the nice presents from Nana and Papa, the favorite was this red cup...

Showing Lea the coveted new cup.

The Bohannon side of the family comes over for lunch on Christmas day for BBQ and finger foods. It was great to visit and catch up and get to see everyone love on Carver for the day :)

Carver with Nana and Aunt Pam-- showing his typical enthusiasm for his pacifier.

An added perk was the impressive amount of snow that began falling around lunch-time and blanketed the world by the following morning. I love snow!

Playing with Ellen, Terry, and Emerson

These days I just do not get to see my friends enough. Ellen and I went from living together for two years in Asheville to only seeing each other once or twice a year. I hate it, I really do.

But, we did get to have a quick visit on Christmas Eve and I am SO thankful for any time we can spend with them. I love Ellen of course, but I also think that her husband Terry is truly great-- it only makes sense that their daughter Emerson is adorable, and so smart. (She does the cutest tricks!).

Oh please let's play again soon! And next time, I won't wear a sweater that makes me look gargantuan. Note to self: that sweater goes in the "get rid of asap" pile.

Birthday Party-- Part 1

On Thursday, December 23rd, we celebrated Carver's first birthday in Winston-Salem with Daniel's family. I absolutely loved the whole process of choosing party themes, finding and making the decorations, making the birthday cake, etc. It was a lot more work than I was anticipating but it was so fun. Luckily, Daniel was a big help and I even recruited Jenny to help when she was visiting earlier in the month. I think both parties (more about the second party in a separate post) were a big success.

For the Winston Salem party we chose a train theme-- with red/blue/white decorations. Daniel made the invitations and other party decorations and he really did such a good job. We spent several hours cutting out decorations and otherwise assembling things-- but it was fun :)

(Party favors)

The party was in the evening and most of Daniel's extended family were able to drop by. We had good food-- mini sandwiches, veggies, wings, cheese balls, etc and a really fabulous apple cake. And yes, I made it-- but the recipe was given to me by Ellen so I can say it was fabulous without being particularly prideful. Even Carver ate a few bites (a big deal since he doesn't eat "real" food).

We were overwhelmed with everyone's generosity-- Carver was showered with birthday gifts and more importantly, special attention from his family. We SO appreciated everyone helping to make the night special for him.

I think Carver's birthdays will always be a little bittersweet to me, but planning parties really is fun-- I'm already looking forward to bday #2-- though I hope it is slow in coming...

12 Months

Today is the big day-- baby Carver turned 1! Crazy to think of where I was 365 days ago on this night. Right now it is 9:40 p.m. and Carver would have been a little over 2 hours old. I was just coming out of recovery from the c-section and have basically no memories of that night. That is probably for the best.... I've made up for it by having thousands of memories of the last 12 months-- both big and small, but all significant in their own way. I cherish every single day I wake up to this sweet boy.


On to 12 month stats:

Not too much is "new" this month. Probably because I was a couple of weeks late posting the 11 Month update. But, here is what is going on these days.

1) Weight: ~23 lbs. (he wouldn't sit still on the scale)
Height: 29 inches
Clothing size: 12 months
Diapers: size 3

2) No new teeth-- still 4 on the top and 3 on the bottom.

3) Words: Mama, Dada, hey, and some variation of "Delia," which is how he refers to all three dogs.


4) Favorites: pacifiers (particularly MAM and Avent); DVDs (which he unloads from our shelf); "helping" me do laundry (i.e. stand in front of the washer and dryer and pull out whatever I have just put in); Dancing!-- he does it every time he hears music.

5) Still not eating any food with texture. Occasionally he will eat a few puffs but it is rare. His doctor is giving us three months before he refers us to a "therapist." Yikes!

6) He still goes crazy every time I change his diaper. You would think he would be used to it by now.

7) No stranger anxiety-- for the most part he likes everyone. But he does have some separation anxiety-- he'll cry if Daniel or I leave the room (not always but often) and he really hates it if you walk into a room and close the door with him on the other side.

8) Walking is coming along. Just in the last day or two he has really started trying harder and walking further. I'd say in the next few weeks he will really start to "get" it.

9) Lots of curly blond hairs-- it's getting a little long in the back...waiting for the top and front to catch up.

10) Visitors: Aunt Jenny came to visit for about 5 days. I loved it! She changed diapers, made bottles, put him in and out of his car seat, soothed during bad nap days, etc. Carver was sad to see her go-- when she said goodbye he reached for her and then laid his head on her shoulder. Sweet.

11) Carver is learning what "no" means but he doesn't like it. He's a little sensitive and will cry if you firmly tell him no. Then he will usually proceed to do it anyway.

12) He's stubborn! We can tell he is starting to understand the things he is not allowed to do-- but he'll do it over and over and over....

13) He can entertain himself in baby jail for short spells.

14) He still naps twice a day but I can tell he is starting to try to drop one. It depends on the day which one he tries to skip... I'm prolonging this as long as possible.

15) He LOVES going for walks, even in the cold.

16) He rarely wears bibs anymore. (Though, yes, he does have one on above). Partially because he really doesn't spit-up much anymore, but primarily because he takes them off immediately.

We are on our way out of town to visit family for Christmas AND to celebrate (2 times!) Carver's big birthday. Stay tuned after the holidays for some (hopefully) really fun bday pictures.

On your first birthday....

Dear Carver,

In just a few short hours you will officially be 1 year old. I have to admit, today has not been easy for me. Don't misunderstand, I am so excited to celebrate this milestone with you. These last 12 months have been the best (and hardest) of my life. When you came into my world everything else seemed to fall into clear perspective. Somehow the little things just aren't such a big deal. At the end of the day, as long as I know that you are happy and healthy and whole, then that is all I really need. I guess in ways you have both simplified and complicated my life :)

Bringing you into the world one year ago was the most defining moment of my life. You, sweet boy, gave me a clear and direct purpose. You see, I had always just kind of wondered what I wanted to do. What I really wanted out of life, what direction I wanted to take-- that sort of thing. But, then you arrived and I found exactly my purpose in life-- to be your mom. Now, I do hope to do even more things with my career and scholarly pursuits, as I like to think of them. Because I want you to be proud that I am your mom-- to eventually respect my career and my work. But, for right now, there is no place in the world I would rather be than right with you, every single day.

There are two truths that I am going to do everything in my power to teach you. Even if I fail at other things, I promise I won't fail in this.

First, you must know that the only thing that really matters in this life is that you love Jesus; that you know him personally, and that you choose to live for him. Your daddy and I can't make this decision for you but we will be the very best role models we can be for you, and above all else we will pray for you constantly.

Second, you must know that your Daddy and I love you unconditionally. There is nothing in the world that could ever change that. Nothing. We will never have a more important job than raising you. We will make mistakes-- probably a lot-- but we will always be your safety net, your safe place to fall. We will love you, encourage you, and believe in you. But, we will also discipline you and be firm with you when the occasion warrants. In 12 years or so I hope you will believe me when I tell you I do this because I love you, and I want you to grow into the most responsible, kind, and decent man you possibly can.

Even though I am mourning the end of this first year I am already anxiously awaiting what we will get to experience next with you. What memories we will make! I can't wait. I wish I was a perfect mommy for you. I so desperately want to do this job well. But, alas, I am not perfect--try as I might. I know that sometimes I am impatient with you, and I've even been known to tell you that you are driving me crazy, and I hate to tell you-- but in the coming years I will make many many more mistakes. Though I promise you will never feel unloved, and I will always tell you I am sorry when I am wrong. You and I are a team-- and we're figuring out this whole parenting thing together. So far, I'd say we are doing pretty well.

You, sweet boy, are my favorite thing in the world. My very favorite thing.

Happy Birthday.

Love,
Mama

Six Days

There are only six tiny little days until my sweet boy turns 1 year old.

I.Can't.Believe.It.

I can say with all honesty that I have loved every one of Carver's phases, as documented here in his month-by-month status updates. There are a few things, however, that I will sorely miss. These things I have imprinted on my mind and recorded in my soul. So many moments will be forgotten over the passage of time--but, these things-- I will remember every tiny detail.

1) The overwhelming emotion captured in that one day when your first child is born. Fear, excitement, worry, exhilaration, love, awe...the lists goes on.

2) This face:

They change so quickly. It was a matter of days before he no longer looked just like this. But, this is how he looked, that first time I saw my son-- I'll never forget the details of his precious face on that night.

3) Exhaustion. Sheer, utter, mind-numbing exhaustion. Followed by several weeks of extreme illness where I was sure I would die. Perhaps this isn't a pleasant memory, but it is a strong one.

4) We quickly realized that we had to break the nights up into "shifts." Daniel took the first, I took the second and then either my mom or Daniel's mom took the third. One of the most precious memories I have of those first weeks is of crawling into bed with Daniel after my shift and both of us being far too exhausted for words-- but he would reach over and hold my hand, and that is how I would fall asleep.

5) I was overwhelmed during those first months because Carver rarely let us put him down. During the times when I struggled the most I was comforted by the idea that years later I would look back and know that I held my son for most of the first 6 weeks of his life. Literally held him in my arms.

6) I miss middle of the night feedings. Really, I do. I miss those hours where the house was dark and quiet. I would sit on the couch, watching shows I had taped throughout the day (anything to avoid late night infomercials), while Carver ate and then slept. Usually I would sleep some too-- sitting up, holding Carver. I don't wish Carver still got up that often-- trust me, we did that for nine long months. But, I miss the quiet time-- when it was just the two of us.

7) I really miss the months before Carver could roll over. We would spend hours in bed together. Me dozing while he kicked and "talked," and moved his little arms and legs around. He would do this for an hour or two in the mornings and then fall back asleep for awhile. Which meant there was a stretch of time when I didn't have to get up until 11:00 a.m. or so. It was nice. Really nice.




8) I have loved the whole process of learning to do things with a child. At the beginning even simple things seemed so impossible once you threw a child into the mix. But, it was very satisfying--the process of realizing that I can manage to do just about anything with him that I need to.

9) In general, I really miss certain sounds he has made in the past and then stopped making-- or tricks and gestures that he only did for a phase and then moved on to other things. I wish he would learn new things, but keep the old cute little things too...

10) I miss his baby yawns...



And just for fun, here are a couple of things I do not miss.

1) Spitting-up-- Not gone, but very infrequent now.


2) Swaddling-- I liked that it helped him sleep, but I hated the process of swaddling him.

Thanksgiving

Last year, of course, I was in no position to be traveling anywhere for Thanksgiving. I would have never survived a car trip of any sort when I was 36 wks pregnant (and ginormous) last Thanksgiving. Then, Carver arrived just before Christmas so I had not been to Bartow for a holiday in quite a long time.



Luckily, this year we were able to spend almost a week in Bartow over the Thanksgiving holiday-- and I loved every minute of it. I like to do new things for holidays; travel or celebrate them at my own home...but there is just something about holidays in Bartow, celebrating the way we did while we were growing up. It's nostalgic, I guess. My current plan (or hope) is to never go more than 2 or 3 years without returning home for the holiday season. Christmas is my favorite-- but Thanksgiving this year was pretty fun too.

We began the trek to FL by attempting, for the very first time, to try driving overnight with Carver. We woke the poor sleeping baby up at about 11:00 on Monday night, packed him into the car in his pj's and headed out of town. All in all I would say that the drive down was a big success. Carver (and I ) slept the majority of the time. The girls were curled up on their beds on the floorboard of the backseat and baby Winston was snuggled up with Daniel in the front (we were in the big truck). Daniel stayed awake thanks to 2 "5 Hour Energy" drinks... I woke up periodically to check in with him and all was well-- though he got a little loopy after the second drink. Luckily by that time we were in Lakeland and meeting my parents for an early breakfast. We made the trip in record time-- always a plus with a baby on board.

My favorite part of being in Bartow is just getting to spend time with my parents and, more importantly, watch them play with Carver. He adores them. My mom is better at entertaining him than I am and is incredibly patient. I'm a lot like my mom, but I did not inherit her patience with kids. Too bad. We spent the first couple of days resting, eating, shopping, playing, etc.




For Thanksgiving lunch we headed down to Aunt Ginger and Uncle Dwight's house along with all of the family (my cousins) and had a fun time eating good food (classic favorites), and it was nice to see Carver interact with my extended family.


Friday we headed to Lowry Park Zoo which has become something of a tradition when Carver and I are in Florida. I love zoos, I always have. And, Carver has now been 4 times in this first year of his life. I'm determined that he will like zoos too. Next was lunch at Jason's Deli (one of my favorites). All in all a good day.

On Saturday, Daniel, Carver and I headed down to Naples for the wedding of our good friend, Krystal. We have known Krystal for-- probably a decade or so-- and it was incredibly special to get to a be a part of her day. The wedding was beautiful, she was beautiful, and I got to spend some time with some of my favorite people-- our Crestridge friends :) These girls have been an incredible blessing to me, and I love them dearly.

(Krystal, Erika, and Beth)


(The whole Crestridge crew)

Carver even had a friend to play with! These boys are about 3 months apart in age and I have serious plans for them to be good friends and camp pals. Can't wait :)

(Carver meeting [for the second time] Beth's sweet and adorable son, Noah)

Returning to GA after a visit in Florida is always hard for me. I miss my parents and I wished they lived closer. Christmas, however, is just around the corner and we have big plans for the holiday-- birthday parties, traveling, family time, etc. Carver's first real Christmas should be very memorable.

(Disclaimer: All wedding pics included here were stolen from Erika!)