Catch Up!

Well, to be honest I thought I would have a TON more pictures, but apparently all of the cute things he has done lately have been caught on my phone, and I still have no way of transferring them! Anyhow...

Tara came to visit and caught this precious face...

And this was over Christmas... Carter met his Grandpa Haynes!


And finally... the baby blessing!

The girls...

...The boys!

The girls were slightly outnumbered as you can see!



Knudsen Family...

... and the cousins!

Life here has been busy but fun... apparently I need to get the camera going again. I figure if I get one post for every four of Britt's than I am doing good!

Carter is growing so much it almost makes me sad. I feel like he always moves on before I am ready... I already miss cuddling with him! No this is not a secret way to say I want another... just amazed at how fast they grow up. Sometimes I get teary eyed at the most random thought. I also wish I could take still frames off the monitor, cause he does some pretty cute things there.

Jared is working so hard, and I love him so much. He is LOVING seminary until he spends a morning home, and then we all kinda miss him being home in the mornings. But We are getting along just fine, and still pray every night for good sleep~as it feels more off than on lately. Poor little guy can't figure out what he wants... or maybe that's just me.

Miss you all!

Stae

Finally, Pictures!

Here they are! I will fill you in as we go:

• We have had an awesome January. First we had Chris and Britt visit for a weekend, and it was a blast. Perfect weather, and some awesome runs (best I have had since before baby days) and the best part was... cousins!! Audrey and Carter are so close together it was honestly hilarious watching how different they are. With less than two weeks to separate them, they could not be more opposite.

• Above was the warm up, and below is the true personalities:

• Who couldn't love that! Audrey is the happiest little babe, while Carter has quite the demanding but cutest personality ever!

• Next milestone: THE BUMBO! We were laughing so hard at how many circles his upper body made the first time he was in it! It was making me dizzy, so he didn't stay long

• And then... SUCCESS! He finally decided to take a bottle. But he didn't just decide to take it, he wanted it all to himself!

• Then Grandma Knudsen came to visit, and slacker that I am I didn't get a picture of her with Carter, but I did get a picture of the awesome outfit she gave him... finally, a shirt that talks about mom and not dad!

• All the while, thanks to Rob and Jen he has had the appropriate attire for every BYU basketball game we have watched. I learned not to put it on early, just in case! It may be possible that he likes BYU better than mom based on these two faces!

• Following his progression through the month, mommy needed a way to set him down without laying him down, so the exersaucer was purchased... off of Craigs List of course! But he could not be more cute... and I am sorry about the baby talk!

• Also to be noted, he is getting pretty darn strong! We are SOOOO excited to sit up!! Tummy time is virtually non-existent because he rolls over so fast, I can't keep him there long enough! Tried to get it on video about a thousand times, not fast enough.

• And then of course, we had our four month appointment where Carter was given the OK to try solids... starting with the rice. There is for sure room for improvement, but it had to be documented!

STATS:

Healthy, mostly happy (except when with dad! /: ) little boy, weighing in at 15 lbs. 1 oz., and 25 1/2 inches long! We LOVE him!

Still to come:

• baby blessing pictures
• the night were 4 hours doesn't feel like a miracle
• when he gets more food in his mouth than on mom!

Stae

Heard a Funny Story...

So, a few weeks ago, we heard a great story that made us go, "really, someone would do that?" Here's how it goes.

A good friend of ours has a little boy whom they love love love. This little one is newly mobile, meaning he is getting into all sorts of mischief. One day while at his grandma's, he found the Glade Plug-In and thought it looked really interesting. While making sure to time it when no one was watching, this child who is not even 1 year old found his way to the plug in, and decided to taste it. When mommy saw what he was doing, she had a panic attack, ran over and finished off the plug-in herself before calling poison control.

Now any normal person might think, "Wow, not sure why anyone would do that!" We had a good laugh about the story, but in truth, tonight I am sitting here thinking about that crazy mother. While I can honestly say I would never have the "I want to experience what my child is going through so I will drink a plug-in" mentality, I realize a little more every day how precious our little boy is and how lucky I am to have not only a healthy child, but how lucky I am that I have the gospel in my life to understand that even if something happens, God loves my little one more than I do.

Just wanted to share that little thought. I love my little boy more than I thought possible. You hear that a lot, but it is so much more real when you have to watch your child go through something hard, big or little.

Anyways, just a thought.

Stae

Pictureless!

I have not loaded any new pictures on, not to say that there are not any! But they will have to wait! BUT I am getting way to far behind to ever hope to catch up. So here are the latest stats:

CARTER:
-growing like a weed... out of sheer curiosity we weighed him at our neighbors and he came in at 14 lbs 11 oz at 3 1/2 months old. Getting kinda excited for the 4 month appt!
-finally was blessed... good stories to be told with the pictures that we are waiting for.
-giggles that are the highlight of my life!
-loves his exersaucer and bumbo chairs. Head still wobbles a bit, but he sure looks cute!
-eating out of control - I can no longer keep up, so we started to suppliment... he now recognizes the bottle and sends VERY clear messages when that is what he wants!
-uses at least 3 bibs a day with the crazy mad drooling he achieves.
-attempting to sleep in the crib. Still does much better in the bouncer, but looks adorable in that huge bed.
-still the best cuddler in the world! I LOVE IT!
-recognizes mommy, which is fun for mom, not so much for dad. Actually screams with dad... any suggestions?

STACEY:
-started teaching again, and have only realized that I just want to be with my superman.
-trying to start running. doing really good at starting and stopping on a regular base... not so great on the consistency aspect!
-learned the best granola recipe ever! Yum!
-learned making granola and really anything else is much harder when baby has his way!
-has managed to brush my teeth every day, but cannot say the same for getting ready!
-LOVED LOVED LOVED having family to visit the last little while! Come again soon, and for anyone that hasn't come, visit while the weather is good!

JARED:
-always the allstar, he is rocking it with work (or work is rocking him... some days not sure which).
-loving seminary, and when doughnuts are present, he is the best teacher in the world according to the kids!
-gave his first baby blessing... how proud he was that the baby didn't scream the whole time!
-considering training for the marathon with me... shocking I know... but is not quite sold!
-only somewhat obsessed with Jimmer and the Cougars! Go team!
-still aspires to clean the high windows in our house... we will see how he plans to achieve this!

That's the fam... hope everyone else is well, and can't wait to share the pics and stories that accompany them!

Stae

Festivities 2010

Well, as usual, there is way too much to catch up on, so here we go!

THANKSGIVING

• Utah - Our first adventure with a long drive.. baby was amazing the whole way up! The way back was a bit of a different story, but we made it.

• Colds - Everyone was great! That is until we got there... then the sickness seemed to overtake both families, including both grandmas, cousins of all ages, and eventually hit baby. Thank heavens it wasn't RSV (we found out at yet another dr. appt. when we got home!)


• Introductions - It was so fun for all of our family to meet our baby. He was just starting to talk, smile and even play. He met everyone but my dad, who was still in Texas. I think it is safe to say first impressions are not the only thing that matters, but they are awesome still! Needless to say he still loved his time with his daddy.

• Smiles - Carter just barely started to smile right before the trip, so there I was, the crazy mom going "Look! Look!" every two seconds!

• GREAT dinners/brunch! We did a brunch with the Haynes side (mom made her amazing Orange Rolls from scratch and Nate went for his famous Maple/Pepper Bacon) and an awesome dinner at the Knudsens. Robin and the girls (all but me) made an amazing turkey feast, and it was so fun to have everyone at the table. Jared was in a bit of shock at how big his family is getting!


• Introduction to Gas Drops- what a life saver! Our baby went from cranky, to happy, and now somewhere in between... I think I need to up the dose! Let's just say dirty diapers have never made me happier!

CHRISTMAS

• Winter Wardrobe - We have forgotten what cold feels like here in Vegas! Boy were we in for a surprise. We actually went to the clearance rack in Vegas and found some adorable sweatshirts for baby. It was actually really fun imagining when we can take him skiing and playing in the snow!

• Utah again - Obviously. This time however, no one was sick, except Jared! It was only supposed to be a week and a half, but after driving up in a crazy storm, we waited out the next big one for the drive back, making it a two week vacation. It was really nice coming home though!

• Slackers - We actually did not buy a single gift until the 23rd, and then went the entire holiday without buying one gift for each other. Sad! I say it is Jared's fault with his QuiBids fiasco (Jokes honey)! I thought my gift to him was the baby. Apparently he thought the same after paying the bills!

• Gifts - But no matter how big of slackers we are, our family does not fit that description! Carter was spoiled by his aunties and uncles! He meant to say thank you, and I had fun opening them!

• Snow - and snow, and more snow! Between our drives from Spanish Fork to Salt Lake I can honestly say no one above Orem even has a clue! We got dumped on down south, and loved it! I had a blast shoveling, and all of the dogs - yes ALL 4 DOGS - were in white bliss! It was so deep some days it went up to Booker's chest!

• Babysitters - Some of the best gifts I got this Christmas were babysitters! Grandmas and aunties all helped out to give me my first real breaks. I got to go running, sledding, and even take a few naps!

• Mellow - Other than family parties, we did a lot of hanging out, missing the family that wasn't there, and loving the time with present family members, including cousin Champ.

• Exhaustion - Home again at last, and sleeping has become mom's favorite new activity, and when it looks like this, who couldn't love it!

• Pictures - we did manage to get some family pictures done, and some amazing 2 month baby/cousin pictures, so heads up! I will post them as soon as I get them!

Thanks everyone for a great vacation, we already miss you

and hope you had happy holidays!

So Many Pictures... So Little Time

Well, for the first time ever, baby Carter seems to be putting himself to sleep in the bouncer. Yeah!!

Where to begin?? Life here has been one adventure after another, as I am sure it is with all new mommies. However, reading some of y'all's blogs, I start feeling like I am outnumbered by pros!

It has been a bit frustrating for me, I won't lie, as far as getting back on my feet goes. After the c-section, I kept thinking I was doing remarkably well... and then... a fallback. And then another fallback. I still feel so blessed, but unfortunetly according to my Dr., my walks will continue to be postponed, and I am missing all of the amazing weather! Vegas is perfect this time of year, and I feel a bit trapped inside. But at least I am in good company! Our dog is a true gem, and our baby for sure keeps me busy!

We have some more adorable pictures to post, and I must say my favorite are the bath time pictures! We LOVE giving him baths, and he loves taking them! Check it out.

Also, these go back to the first week he was here.. day 6 or something like that. My girlfriend Megs took them and she did awesome! I love them. Look how little!

Who would not love a face like that?

Well, I know I don't have that much longer... the little monster sleeps in 20 min increments on days like today!

Hope all is well with everyone! And yes, I have officially joined that club where you really only blog about your kid. (:

So Dreams DO Come True!!

I will warn you know... This blog post may or may not be a novel. Depends on when baby wakes up.

Yes, that's right... I said baby. Again, most everyone knows by now, because it has taken me ages to get to this, and sometimes I still can't believe it! I am sure it scares all of you as much as it does me to think of me as a parent!!

The delivery was crazy, although I have heard of much worse, and to keep it short, we ended up with a C-section that both Jared and I saw way more of than we wanted to. Our stay in the hospital totalled 4 days, and we could not have been more excited to come home. Not to mention the dog still panics every time we leave the house, worried we may not come back again! Thanks to Brett and Chris for keeping him company. It was way better than trying to arrange a neighbor... I would have worried a ton!

My mom came down for the whole hospital experience, and for that I cannot thank her enough. I want you to know mom that could not have meant more to me. You are my hero, and my best friend. I am so grateful for all that you have done for me. I miss you more than you can imagine, and can't wait to come see you!!

And then there is Robin. Another hero, whose meals were so appreciated, and whose efforts cannot be acknowledged enough. Thank you for everything, from the welcome home to the minute you left. The comfort of having someone around, running errands, and helping me through some rough days is another one of those miracles that especially now I realize I could have been in trouble without!

So here we are, two weeks into this, and on the one side it feels like he has been here forever, and on the other, I can't believe he is real. Carter is my biggest joy and my biggest fear at the same time. I told Jared the other day that I feel like he has already changed our home. He has brought with him the Spirit and invited us to tune in much stronger to Heavenly Father's promptings. I can honestly say I have never prayed like I have the last few nights! I worry so much about him, and that I am doing things right by him, and that my body can make it through the recovery/adjustment phase. I feel so humbled, happy, exhausted and grateful all in one.

But through it all, he is doing great (I think!). He went into the Dr. today for some paranoid first parent worries, and weighed in at 8 lbs. 7 oz. which is 5 ounces up from birth. He has some goupy eyes, which for now are not to be worried about (blocked tear ducts) and a rough voice, which is no biggie as long as it goes away by Tuesday.

I have had a breakdown a day (mostly a night) and I like to blame it on hormones because I hate to think of myself as a goober, but mostly because breastfeeding has presented more challenges than I thought. Once again, thank goodness for an amazing husband! But it has to get better... or so people keep telling me. Patience is obviously a virtue that needs some work with me!

Let me be clear. Sometimes, lack of sleep and constant worry has me sounding a little backwards...

We have the most beautiful son, who through everything and anything that can lie ahead, really is my dream come true.

So here are the pictures, of which there are a ton, because it is our first born~ He He He ~

Here he is!! Daddy was being so brave...

And now all cleaned up!

Puppy-sitter #1...

and #2! (Also known as Uncles Brett and Chris!)

Favorite Froggy Jammies with Grandma!

A very tired mommy who was proud to have found her blow dryer again with her baby!

Who couldn't use a good burp?

Honestly... like father like son!

At least one of us relaxes when they sleep!

At this point, we are not sure who is into the bouncer more...

And lastly... daddy's favorite video. I think he can relate!

Enjoy!