Carson is 4!

What better way to kick off spring break than with a party!? Started the morning with some raspberry-stuffed french toast with vanilla custard. Of course, Carson was only interested in the huge bowl of raspberries which he ate pretty much all by himself.

Then we met up with the cousins at Chuck E. Cheese for lunch and had some fun!

Carson would not leave the pirate game alone! That's all he wanted to do and if someone else got on it he would watch and wait very patiently until they were done. I guess he either really hates pirates or really loves shooting them! 

Carson requested chicken nuggets for dinner so we had a little family party complete with the chicken nuggets!

For dessert, I made peanut butter striped delight... so good! Way better than cake! Carson and Jory could barely hold off blowing the candles...

After dinner was presents and the spanking machine!

 

We love Carson! He's such a sweetie (when's he sweet) and he's got the best smile complete with adorable dimples!  His imagination comes up with the best games and stories and of course they usually make us laugh. Every single day he says something that puts a smile on my face or lightens the mood, hence the "Carson quotes of the day." The other day he kept telling me "You're great, Baby!" He's been to speech therapy only twice but there's already been a huge improvement and his therapist kept saying that he makes her job look easy. I can tell that he is already becoming more aware of how he says things and he's already correcting himself. He's finally enjoying learning. It used to be a struggle trying to teach him something new but now he soaks everything up and he asks very intelligent questions. He loves to wrestle and that's the first thing he wants to do when Dad comes home. Carson is getting really good at games. His favorites are UNO, Dominos, Candyland, and Duck, Duck, Goose (he has a blast with it even when there's three of us playing). And you don't have to take it easy on him either because he usually wins either way. He's a good loser too. It was hard at first, learning to win and lose graciously, but now he's excited and actually "helps" other people to win. He ate a ton of salmon and pork chops the last time I made but I'm not so sure that they are his favorite, it could've just been a good day. He still loves fruit and would just eat that all day if we could afford it. I buy bags of frozen fruit just so the boys can snack on it. They eat them like popsicles! We've been working with him for a month or two teaching him to get completely dressed by himself. He's finally got it but he prefers to wear basketball shorts and t-shirts. He'll get dressed in the morning but then come home from school and put on shorts. It's also been a process, but he's learned to do his seatbelt up all by himself. That was a glorious day! It was all him too! I tried and tried telling him different ways of pulling the belt out and plugging it in but he's just not very physically coordinated (he gets it from my side) and he gets frustrated really easily. And we practiced and practiced until one day, it just literally clicked! He's been able to do it by himself ever since. It's such a relief not having to worry about those two things when I have a third on the way! Carson is always asking me if I'm glad that I won't have three babies and my response is always a relieved YES! Oh, and I have to mention the multiple names he's given for little sister, namely Mashed Potato. He loves making up names and words from his own language!

32 Weeks today!

My original goal was to take a belly shot every time I had a doctor's appointment but there's just not enough change to keep it interesting, especially since I'm going every two weeks now. Plus that's just too many pictures of me!

 This didn't turn out quite the way I imagined because the sun was setting in a different spot then it does in the fall. How dare it!

This week I finally remembered to have them schedule my c-section. May 19th is the big day! That's a week after Ryan graduates and I'm really hoping that she can wait that long even if we are really anxious for her to get here! Heartbeat sounds great and she's measuring right on. And I have to say that I'm feeling great! So much better than a month ago! I think I'm just about to the nesting stage and it's nice to have the energy to be able to get off the couch. She's quite the mover and I don't know why it's different with this one (maybe because  my uterus is thinner?) but you can feel her little legs and arms and feet when she sticks them out. It's pretty freaky! You can really feel body parts in there! And we're still tossed up on names so let me know if you have any suggestions!

Carson Quote of the Day

I made strawberry  angel food cake for dessert the other night. Apparently it was the first time Carson has ever had it because his reaction was:

Oh, my gosh! That's huge! Oh, my gosh! That looks delicious! Oh, my gosh!

Reese really busting it out!

Ryan and I are probably the only ones who think this is freakin adorable but I just had to post another video of Reese dancing. We watched it over and over again, laughing our heads off! The best part is the middle where he does a little head jerk and throws his hands in the air, then of course the splits speak for themselves! He's actually got some moves but Ryan refuses to admit that he might be a dancer when he grows up. What a a crack up!

Reese Recited

Reese found my bag of cotton balls under the bathroom sink. He got all excited and called them Marshmellow Mateys!  

I explained that they were cotton balls and not food. His repeated motton balls then wound up and chucked the piece of cotton right at my head! He runs around the house yelling motton balls and throwing them at people. So if you happen to stop by our house and there's cotton balls randomly strewn all over the floor, just know that Reese lives here!

Carson Quote of the Day

This one might be a little inappropriate but it's still funny!

Mom, why do you have different privacies? Is it because you are a girl?

Okay... yup... time to lock the door during showers! 

29 weeks

This last appointment was routine. Everything is measuring right on and heartbeat is nice and fast, 160, as always. It's funny because my boys were always around the 130 range so this one is for sure a girl! I have to keep reminding myself. My blood pressure was a little higher so that made the doctor happy and my glucose test came back with a green light. I was surprised to find out that I need to start going every two weeks now. That went quick! 

In other news, this week has been pretty crazy! Reese has seen better days, I'll tell you that! If you want to hear the long, dramatic story, read on... Last Saturday, Reese started coughing which I kind of expected he would get sick because a friend of mine brought her sick kid over (yeah, thanks) but he didn't have any other symptoms until Sunday evening when he started getting a little fever. I gave him some Motrin and sent him to bed. Monday morning, woke up with a fever of 101 and congestion so I gave him some more medicine but as the day wore on his fever got worse and worse. By the time Ryan came home from cat track skiing, around 7 p.m., his fever was a whopping 106!!! No lie, people! I couldn't believe it! I took him into QuickCare and the nurse got the same reading. It was one of those times when you could tell the nurse was trying really hard to hold back her shock. He was obviously lethargic, but still responsive. The doctor assured me that his brain wasn't melting but that they wanted him to stay for an hour so they could monitor him. They gave him some more Motrin and checked his oxygen which was too low, 82%, but it was increasing as the medicine started kicking in and Reese started getting more excited about all the attention. He had a right ear infection but obviously that wasn't the only issue so they did a chest x-ray to check for pneumonia. The doctor said "he wasn't convinced that it's not pneumonia" after looking at the results. He thought that it was combination of three things: an ear infection, a virus, and possibly pneumonia. The also put a urine bag on him which he ended up hating so we ended up ripping that off and he did just fine leaving a sample in a cup (that's my boy!). After a while, his fever got under control and by the time we left it was 101.5 and his O2 was 90. They put him on azithromycin and said to come back the next day for a re-check. We didn't get a lot of sleep that night.

Tuesday morning, went back in. They checked O2 again, 94, and his fever was under control. The doctor was still concerned about his lungs so he was going to talk to the radiologist and see what he thought but everything looked okay to him. 

Wednesday, I noticed that Reese was wheezing/crackling and there was some retraction while he was breathing during his nap while he was lying on his back. After my experience the day before with QuickCare, I wasn't in a hurry to go back even though they told me to bring him in if he started wheezing. By the time Ryan came home, the wheezing had stopped. 

Thursday morning, Reese woke up with really bad wheezing so I had my friend come over and stay with Carson because he was still sleeping and I took him into QuickCare for the third time. His O2 was actually 97 which was a nice surprise and he had more energy. The nurses kept saying that they wished every patient was as cute and cooperative as Reese was. :) The doctor put him on a nebulizer and gave us a prescription for some steroids and said that was pretty much all they could do because it might just be a virus. Needless to say, I am totally sick of health clinics! We have an appointment with his pediatrician in a half hour but I think everything will be fine. I'll update when we get back...

*update* Pediatrician said that he's still wheezing but he should be on the mend. Just keep doing the nebulizer treatments and everything should be good. I guess they're naming it bronchitis so that makes me feel a little better when compared to pneumonia. I didn't put in the details of how frustrating it was going to QuickCare on Tuesday but apparently they put it on file that I was upset so I told him what happened and he was totally on my side. :) He was frustrated with his staff and how QuickCare handled the situation so that made me feel good. I really like Dr. Worth and not just for this instance either. So if you need a pediatrician in Moscow, give him a call!   

Carson, on the other hand, is an ox! I don't remember the last time he got sick (knock on wood!). I guess it's a stage kids go through but I wonder if Reese is just going to be our "medical bill child." It seems like there's at least one in every family that is constantly sick or hurt and having to go to the doctor.
Carson was obviously a help with these belly shots. He's really developing a love for the camera which I love! He's always asking me if he can take a picture! We took him into a speech therapist yesterday to get evaluated for his lisp. He's not going to need a lot of work but he's going to start going once a week. And now that he's not sucking his thumb, I think he'll learn pretty quick. When she was working with him and he was saying things without his lisp, he just seemed so much older! I was glad that I was pregnant (no joke!) because I realized how big my baby was getting! It was one of those reality checks as a mom. Anyway, I think that about sums up our week... but it's not quite over yet.... 

Thing 1 and Thing 2 Party

People are always coming up to us and asking if Carson and Reese are twins. I used to have them dressed in the same outfits all the time but I haven't been doing that as often and they're still getting double-takes. Plus with the added benefit of not having enough energy for two birthday parties, I decide to throw them a joint party instead. The boys got Thing 1 and Thing 2 shirts when we were in Orlando so I got the idea to throw them a Dr. Suess party. When I told my friend, she said that she just did the same thing with her 5 year old twins and that I could use all her decorations that she made for their party! Score! It made everything so easy! Can you believe she made all this stuff?!

Here's the food...

The boys, anxiously waiting for friends to arrive!

I thought it would be fun to read a Dr. Suess book and then do an activity/game that goes with it. Mostly the kids just wanted to run around and be crazy but it was still fun and everything turned out fine. 

First up was Fox in Socks. After we read the book, we used fabric paint markers and each decorated their own pair of socks. Didn't get any pictures though because I hadn't told Ryan to play photographer yet. 

So then next was Fish Out of Water and of course the kids just had to go fishing! And just to give you a head's up, Reese is the destroyer of sunglasses and these little dollar-store treasures last about 2.3 seconds so keep your sunglasses and/or glasses out of reach!

Last up was Cat in the Hat. We have this ABC Cat in the Hat game that's like Twister except with the alphabet so we played that for a few minutes and then had Cat in the Hat cupcakes and sang to the boys. 

Then the boys opened their presents. Thanks Holly and Jackie and thanks so much for coming!!!

We actually bought the blue bike before Christmas on a really good sale and we were planning on giving it to Carson for his birthday. But when we went to WalMart and he tired out a 12 inch, it looked like he was going to grow out of it in a month and the next size up was a 16 inch. So we figured we give the smaller one to Reese and get Carson the 16 inch. They have some growing to do but I hope that they'll be riding them for a while!

Reese is 2!

So I'm a little behind... Reese turned two almost a month ago. It feels like he's been in our family for forever because I can't remember him not being a part of our family. He's such a joy! Reese is a happy-go-lucky type of kid that can make anyone who's in the worst mood smile. Even when he's in a bad mood you can make him laugh. He's the best hugger! He'll come running at you with his arms wide and throw them around your neck and just hug you for the longest time. But don't let all the mushy stuff fool you because he can hold his own! Reese is not afraid to fight back and he's beginning to be the bully on the playground which is actually pretty funny because he's also the smallest by a head compared to everyone else. People are always confused by him because he acts and talks like he's older but he's so close to the ground. He's going to make a great older brother for his little sister because he already likes wearing "bracelets" (my hair ties) and dressing up and, no, I'm not worried that he'll be a cross-dresser. :) His usual response for things (new clothes, more snow, yummy food) is "CUTE!!!" And he absolutely adores Carson and Ryan and imitates anything they do or say.  He's got a great imagination and is already coming up with stories and make-believe characters. His favorite toys are cars, especially Lightning McQueen (and he had a little crush on Sally for a while), and blocks. He can play with them for hours! We love this little guy and are so glad he's part of our family!

 

Here's a little video of him busting it out to Talking Trees, Ryan's band. He's not going all out like he normally does but Reese loves to shake his booty!

And sorry for recording it sideways, yes, I'm one of those idiots! But it rotated on the camera!

Jeff and Julie came over a few days before his birthday for a little party. We went out to dinner and then had pie afterwards.

Then on his birthday we made french toast casserole for breakfast and let him open a couple of presents. 

Then I think we went to McDonald's for dinner, I don't remember. But I do remember what we had for dessert... Boston Cream Pie Cake!

Miracle Worker

We tried a bunch of different things to try and get Carson to stop sucking his thumb. We tried a sticker chart which helped the most but didn't break the habit, we tried the "no thumb-sucking zones" recommended by the dentist, we tried scolding and scaring him by telling him his thumbnail was going to fall off or we were going to have to cut off his thumb, we tried reasoning with him and telling him he was going to have to get braces. We were even getting desperate and thinking about buying a $25 custom-fit "thumbuster" (but there's no way that would've worked because it was strapped on by velcro and my kids are too smart for that!). Enter Mavala Stop. This stuff has worked miracles for Carson! We put it on once and he completely stopped sucking his thumb for a good week. I didn't tell him that it was to make him stop sucking his thumb. I told him it was going to help his nail from falling off. He didn't complain about it or even try to wash it off. There was only one time when I saw him gag from the bitter taste. But we went to Cd'A for the weekend and he got frustrated trying to play a Xbox Kinect and out of habit the thumb went straight to the mouth and the rest of the day, that's where it stayed. So we came home and put some more on and later that day he actually came up to me and asked to put more on because it was wearing off! This morning I asked him if he needed more nail polish and he licked it and said that it was almost gone so he needed more! So we'll just keep this up for a while but it's such a relief to have found something that's affordable and that works!