Carter's Many Faces

Our little guy is stinkin' cute. Atleast we bias parents think so :) So since we are wrapped around his little fingers and smitten with his baby charm-I am posting a few pictures I've taken of his many faces.

  

 Carter has this crazy thing with his hands. He loves his hands by or on his face at all times. Even in ultrasound pictures we have, his hands are on or by his face! When he was being birthed instead of coming just head first he decided to sneak his arm out simultaneously-of course so he could keep it close to face. He also flails his little arms when he gets upset, and since they are on or by his face always, he tends to whack or scratch himself which generally doesn't make him too happy (aka mad as a hornet). And when he's eating or drinking a bottle he frequently confuses his hands for the milk source and shoves them in his mouth. Crazy boy. But an endearing trait for sure.

 

These are his crazy eyes :) We're still learning how to use and control them

His face that I like to call "Mr. Moo". That pouty look...Means he's hungry.

Getting Tired...

His "crazy for the camera" face.

He loves to stretch out and snooze!

"Look at me I'm cute!" face.

Complete Boredom...

One night while awaiting the arrival of our son... we were soooo bored. I walked in the kitchen to find my bored partner carving what he thought looked like a donut out of an apple. Doesn't really look like a donut......










So I decided to join the fun. Donut making became animal fruit art. I made the mice, and nathan made the pretty stinkin cool apple owl. But come on. Give me points for my scenery!

Come on, the poo-poo sprinkles!? Adorable right??

Tails of Ramen :) Way clever

Seriously way cool right!?

Of course Nate made an owl when i made mice. So his fruit animal would be dominant and intimidating. But my mice fear no one.

Thank you sweet boredom!!

Iron Chef Nathan!

Nate and I LOVE food. Let's be honest. We love to try new foods, we love to critique and discover foods, we love to create and experiment with foods, and we love finding new favorites. Whether it is going to a restaurant or whipping up culinary crafts in our own kitchen...we are all over it. But I have to say- Nate is seriously a brilliant chef! After being married to him for a year and a half, he still doesn't cease to surprise me with all of the creative and delicious things he can whip out of no where! He'll dazzle you with his fancy Bananas foster (a yummy dessert)! He'll wow you with his fillet of salmon beautifully plated! He'll astound you with his homemade chicken cordon bleu or fillet minion! And that is only the beginning! Each meal he designs begins with an appetizer, a beautiful salad, and if he's really going nuts- a dessert after the main course. After a long day yesterday, and Nate having been out of town, i was excited to see him that evening. And VERY excited to see this meal below awaiting my arrival.

This was my dinner. Fillet Minion topped with a tomato and yellow pepper all broiled with onion in a white cooking wine. Carefully placed atop wild rice and decorated with fluffily mashed potato-just enough to mix with the rice and be completely satisfied. Can you say beautiful??? Goodness...

We started with a poppyseed salad with strawberries and pineapple pieces. Delicious!! My honey even set the table with a candle :) Does he spoil me or what?

So he's brilliant. Seriously. And I love cooking with him and watching him get excited about it! We have such a good time. Here are a few other delights he's made me in the past.

I took these on my phone...forgive the crumby quality-just admire the art!

Folks this only GRAZES the surface of Nate's amazing skills. He spoils me rotten. In every aspect of our marriage and life. This is only highlighting one of the ways he does. But while I'm talking about my darling husband spoiling me, I want to throw in a random tidbit. Lately I have taken a liking to the wal-mart classic grandma style PJ's. Night gowns or the button ups...I love them! So along with my dinner last night,  Nate kindly went to grab some diapers from the store. I was pleasantly surprised when he came home with a gift of a new pair of PJ's. What a dear!! 

So there you have it. My husband is the sweetest and most amazing man alive. I'm COMPLETELY in love. And I'm so glad that he is all mine!!

Carter's Big Debut

Being pregnant was a hoot. Having your water break is still very unexpected. This happened to me on Sunday, June 12th at 1:00 pm. I was doing our household a favor and plunging a clogged toilet, when suddenly I was bewildered by the thought that I was in fact wetting my pants! Not in all of my pregnancy had I ever had problems with incontinence, so needless to say I was a little bit shocked. I sat down quickly and thought for a moment, then stood back up again-only to find that it was happening again! I couldn't possibly believe that my water had actually broken, so I told Nate we should load up the car with the baby's things just for future convenience, and we headed to my parents for dinner. My contractions grew pretty hefty on the car ride down, and upon arrival at my mom's we were sent away to be checked at the hospital. Of course, it was true- water broken, and admittance to the hospital....we were having a baby. I was nervous and excited and shell-shocked. At 5:30 I was started on Pitosin, and as contractions grew unbearable I decided around 8:00 that an epidural didn't sound half bad. Carter decided to grace us with his presence at 9:52 pm. Getting him here was the hardest work my body has ever been required to do....but the most rewarding to be sure. Here is a brief recap of the hospital.

Here we go...no turning back now!!

My sweet husband was at my side for every moment. Every contraction he was breathing with me and holding my hand, letting me know that all would be just fine. I couldn't have asked for a better partner to share this whole experience with. I love that man!!!

A couple sweet friends came to visit. Thankfully after the epidural was in place :)

This is my happy nurse, husband, and the nice man in the back who gave me the epidural. I don't remember his name....but bless him.

Finally!! Out he came. Swollen, goopy, and the sweetest thing alive.

Mommy, Daddy, and Carter for the first time! We're going to go ahead and excuse mommy for looking like she does in all of these pictures though. It's only fair.

Carter had an 8 on APGAR test one, and a 9 on test two. Good job son!

Papa loooooves his baby boy

Sometimes I sleep like this too now.

My baby 

So pregnancy is over. Done and gone for now! No more cravings, swollen feet and hands that become so huge and water filled they look like you have elephantiasis...no more sleeping vertically so you can breathe, no more pushing feet from your rib cage...all of this is over. I can hardly believe it. Now onward ho with the sleepless nights, the screaming, the poops, and the whirlwind of emotion. :) My husband deserves a blue ribbon and a gold trophy!! Welcome home Carter pants!!!

Bountiful Baskets!

So our pals Dan and Anna got us really into this great thing called bountiful baskets. You pay 16.00 a week for these plentifully filled baskets of fruits, veggies, and all sorts of wonderful healthy fresh produce! These baskets are pretty heaping...which is amazing, but a lot for a household of 2 to take on and finish in a week. Thus, Danna and ourselves have been tag teaming. We switch off buying each week, and split the contents of the baskets. It is BRILLIANT. We eat healthier, more creatively, and we enjoy making meals together. You order your basket on Monday, and pick it up Saturdays, so you start each new week with fresh produce and a chuck full fridge. Nate loves picking up the basket with me, even though pick-up time is at 7am on Saturday mornings (the sleep in morning of course!) But he gets soooo excited, there's no leaving him home. Here is documentation from our last trip.

First, you check in and they look up your order.

Then you find your baskets amid the slew of people and greens!

Each order comes with two of these white baskets. One with fruits and one with veggies!

You move all of the produce into a basket of your own...

Feel the overwhelming joy of bringing' home the bacon :)

(This is only a piece of the warehouse that they put this big event on in! A piece!)

Lovin' the steal of a deal

Pack up, and go home!!

Every basket we have gotten is a success! With fruits varying from blackberries, mangos, apples, oranges, cantelope, bananas, pineapples, etc. to vegetables like lettuce, potatoes, corn on the cob, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, gosh just everything imaginable! There is always so much to eat and for only a small price. We are so pleased with our weekly trip to bountiful baskets, and this is again, just the joy we find in one of the little things in life!!

Oh The Places You'll Go!............If You Can Get There.

Having a beach ball for a stomach has really opened my eyes as to exactly why pregnant women are so intriguing to watch. Getting out of the car, picking up a dropped piece of paper, putting on socks, sitting up off of the floor, or getting out of bed- all mundane and easy tasks! If you can get there. Now, to a very pregnant gal, It's not as easy as it sounds anymore. Now it is, hoisting myself out of the car, squatting to reach a dropped piece of paper (good on the thighs, tough on the rest) reaching for your life to pull a sock over the toes, rolling from side to side to sit up off the floor, and literally getting a rolling start to heave yourself out of bed. Entertaining? Yes. Nate loves it. But wearisome? Definitely. The other day I was standing in the kitchen getting dinner ready for my darling hubby, and what should happen....but I dropped a spatula. The argument I had in my mind at that moment was rigorous. "Do you REALLY want to bend over and pick that up?" "No.....not really....that's a heck of  a long way down....you think I should?" "But what if your center of gravity pulls you over and you fall flat on your face?? Could happen......." "Maybe...but it's excercise in a way. And that's good for me! Right?" Well, all of this ended in me hollering from the kitchen- "Nate! I need you!!" Of course he came a jaunting in, and saw me just staring at the floor bound spatula. He laughed and thought I was pretty ridiculous, but not having to bend that far over and hope I'd make it back- such a relief.
Being at the tail end of a pregnancy is not exactly all it's cut out to be. I have 18 days left til my due date and another Doctor Appointment today (One a week). The doctor checks your progression of course, things get a little personal....and always I leave that office waddling like a duck. The whole of it is truly comedic. As I STILL get bigger (oh yes. It's possible.) Nate and I find ways to laugh about things. As we were waddling through wal-mart yesterday I passed a fellow prego and her husband. She looked about like me, due at any moment the baby decided. As we passed each other, we couldn't help but make eye contact, notice each others discomfort, smile, and even laugh as we passed by. What a bonding moment. Someone who understood that picking up spatulas off of the floor was truly difficult. I can hardly imagine what it will feel like when I have my stomach back all to myself and can not only reach- but SEE my toes! A lady at church told me if I talk soothingly to my baby and "coax" him out, he will hear my voice, understand the instruction, and act on it! She may be crazy, but still......worth a try I guess. Ahem.
Dear Carter,
I know you are not due for 18 more days, but you are done baking! Full term, and all set to go. You have hair (probably very dark), lungs that are ready to breathe, eyes that blink with little lashes, and a strong healthy body like your papa's! Not to mention, I set up your room real cute. A crib, dresser, clothes, and even toys! So many exciting things are out here for you! And Daddy is getting soooo anxious. He asks me every night before we fall asleep if I am going to have you that night. We have our bag packed and we are ready! So mommy would really appreciate it if you took a leap of faith and decided to show her your cute little face just a LITTLE bit early. If you can. Just think about it. It would be fun. But if you can't....I still Love you! -Mommy

Beware the "Two Wisdom Tooth Tale..."

The thought of having a baby is so exciting! I have been looking forward to this for months! Sometimes it feels like it won't come fast enough...but now that I have 25 days until my due date and baby could come whenever from here til then....the thought is a little bit terrifying! Still exciting of course, but me? Have a baby! One minute it's inside of you safe and sound, and the next a nurse is handing you this tiny thing and telling you to take it home! Life as I know it is about to change FOREVER. Crazy? Yes. More exciting than anything? Definitely. I remember being little and seeing women pregnant and hearing horror stories about labor and deliveries, and deciding in my mind that a woman in labor is possibly the worst thing. And now here I am! The stork knocking at my doorstep! And what's funny, is you grow up and still see women pregnant....and they still feel the need to tell all of their horror stories! Why is this? It's almost as if the moment they see your blossomed stomach, they congratulate you, smile, then instantly pull out a comment like, "Well, good luck....I had a really rough go.....". Of course you have to ask what they mean for courtesy purposes, but who has the gumption to look at an expecting mother and say, "Well, it was fine- I just was in labor for 30 hours, my placenta tore in half so they had to get the baby out fast, who was struggling for life because their lifeline had torn, and after the brutal beating my body had taken, the recovery time was dreadful....blood clots....second hospital visit....blah blah....but you'll be fine!!". If one of these stories comes up, look out. Because someone is about to beat that story with something worse. Is that even possible? Sadly, it always is. It reminds me of Brian Reagan and his bit on "The two wisdom tooth tale..."

There is always someone who will be willing to one up the old wisdom tooth (or pregnancy) story. Hilarious. But being so close to giving birth- I think for now, I will disregard those and be soooo excited to meet my little Carter!! Then maybe I can come up with something good to frighten all of the prego ladies and win the wisdom tooth tale contest!! We'll see :)