...open the door and Carter jets as fast as his little legs will carry him next door to Uncle Stephen and Aunt Diana's house (Di Di) :). Carter LOVES going to their house and does not understand if 1) I don't let him go or 2) they're not home. This gets really fun if we ever have to park in the front of the house. And don't even think we'll walk visitors to their cars anymore...just not worth the meltdown, folks!
I had to get this on video. It's sad but oh so cute. Carter is heartbroken that they're not home:
Monday, March 12, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
Daily life in pics...
As I just uploaded photos, here's what we've been up to:
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| learning to pull our pants off during naptime |
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| January artwork at school |
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| loving the loungchair |
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| transitioning to the big boy sippy cup |
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| Mama's first lake loop since pregnancy--SO good to be back in the running swing! |
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| neighborhood V-day party |
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| helping Mommy vacuum |
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| sweet boy on Vday. Going to visit Aunt Diana |
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| Playdate with Aaron |
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| Practicing our warrior stance |
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| And it's not always smiles around here....this is daily life folks, lots of melt downs that thankfully can be cured with a blanket, ritz cracker, or redirection :) |
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| just love this sweet face |
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| grabbing the ice cream cone from Daddy--yummy Braum's peanut butter cup |
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| helping Mommy mop the floors |
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| jumping on the mattress |
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| enjoying beautiful weather at the Arboretum |
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| being silly with Daddy |
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| Kemp's came in town to visit--storytime in pj's! |
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| Getting spoiled with Grandma and Grandpa sending us cookies in the mail. Yummy Tiff's Treats! |
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| Playing at the park |
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| Storytime with Great Nana |
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| Carter came down with rotavirus last week--a good 6 days of vomiting :( |
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| LOVE this pic taken by my talented bro in law. Carter while playing with his cousins. |
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| My boys in their Texas gear |
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| Did I mention he LOVES the vacuum? |
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| Neighborhood bike rides |
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| Helping rake the leaves and plant spring flowers! |
February Trip to Austin
I finally uploaded pics, so we'll let the pics do the talking! We went to Austin the first week of February to celebrate my Dad's bday. Carter and I went down on Tuesday, Caleb joined us Friday.
We also went to see our friends the Kemp's and Wilson's while we were in San Antonio, but unfortunately, no pics were snapped :(.
On our drive back, we stopped at Grandpa and GrandmaJo's office to visit. GrandmaJo let Carter get on her computer....and then had to call IS, as a message came up that her computer was locked "due to an intruder".
Caleb ended up needing to stay and work in the Austin office on Monday and Tuesday, so Carter and I stayed as well! We got to stay with Nana and Papa and play at their house--but I didn't get any pics with them :(. It was beautiful weather, so on Tuesday before we left Carter and I went to Zilker Park--one of my fave places in Austin.
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| Before we left, Carter made Grandpa a homemade birthday card. Lots of finger painting involved which concluded with a bath. |
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| Carter must have known that we had a road trip ahead of us. I picked him up from school and he had refused a nap that day (which is actually very rare these days). So, he was asleep within 3 minutes of being in the car (I had to stop and get gas, hence this pic). |
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| However, what I thought was going to be a sleeping boy all the way to Austin ended up being a grouchy boy circa Hillsboro. So, we stopped where else but McDonald's! It was actually his first trip ever to McDonald's and Mama splurged on the yogurt parfait vs greasy food. We were so glad Aunt Ali could come visit us for our little break! Carter also had his first experience with bullying on the playground. First of many more to come, I'm sure! |
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| As you will see, I have good chronicles of some points and NONE of others. On Wednesday we got up early and drove to San Antonio to play with cousins. The girls LOVED Carter and Carter loved the attention! |
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| Haha, love this pic. She made him a "George Washington" wig out of bubbles in the bath! |
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| We decided to decorate Grandpa's gift bag...Carter's first experience with crayons = eating them vs drawing. |
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| Grandpa took off work on Friday and we had a fun filled day of Central Market, park, and lunch at a local Mexican restaurant before a long nap and family arriving for the party. |
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| I love this. My Dad and Jolie bought Carter this toy wagon to pull around. He is used to his wagon at home, so he would constantly take the toys out and try to sit in the wagon for his ride. |
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| Carter loves his Grandpa! |
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| Unfortunately did not get any action shots of the party, but here's the whole Ratliff fam! |
Caleb ended up needing to stay and work in the Austin office on Monday and Tuesday, so Carter and I stayed as well! We got to stay with Nana and Papa and play at their house--but I didn't get any pics with them :(. It was beautiful weather, so on Tuesday before we left Carter and I went to Zilker Park--one of my fave places in Austin.
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| Playing at Zilker Park, as Caleb says "our Cyclops baby" |
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| We were so close to downtown, Grandpa came and met us. We went on the train ride....and what do you know? There was a random man playing the guitar along the trail. Gotta love Austin :) |
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| Then Daddy found out we were only a mile away from where he was working, so he joined us for lunch! So fun! |
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| Weird lighting, but having a fun lunch! |
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| We went back for a little more playtime at Nana and Papa's, then decided that 7 days in Austin was a blast....but exhausting, and we were ready to get home! Happy 60th Grandpa and thanks for all the fun memories! |
Monday, March 5, 2012
15 months
I've been in a blogging slump, really if I'm honest just too lazy to upload pics--and these days,what's a blog post without pics? Unless it's a monthly post...so, at 15 months of age, our little man is:
Weight: 20 lbs, 11 oz (7%)
Height: 32 inches (75%)
Head: 18 1/2 inches (45%)
Size 4 diapers
12 month pants, 12-18 month tops
EAT:
Thankfully the pickiness has subsided a bit and he's back to trying new foods. There's not a whole lot of new info here, we're really just giving him what we eat. One night we went to Braum's for yummy peanut butter cup ice cream and Caleb gave Carter a bite. Once he realized the yummy goodness, he literally tried taking the cone out of Caleb's hand to devour the ice cream all on his own. Of course I didn't let that happen, but he definitely got his share :). He pretty much eats 3 meals and 2 snacks/day. Not a huge fan of veggies, but neither am I...so I just keep offering and maybe someday he'll love veggies like his Daddy. We transitioned to the "big boy" sippy cup (without handles) or straw cup for water, he still gets milk in the sippy with handles. Lately he's not really into his milk, will typically drink all 8 ounces at bedtime but the morning and naptime milk is hit or miss.
PLAY/DEVELOPMENT:
Gross Motor: climbs everything, climbs up big slide at park, walking backwards, squats to play, busy as ever
Fine Motor: will hold crayon and scribble about 2 inches, but not imitate drawing line; zips zipper on backpack, helps take arms out of shirts
Social: good eye contact, waves at everyone--gets sad if people don't acknowledge him after he waves (ie: at grocery store, while walking in Bob, etc), attends to finger plays and songs, claps, loves playing "chase", attends to up to 3 board books before getting bored
Language:
Receptive: knows head, belly, foot; follows simple 1 step commands (ie: "go get your shoes" or if I say "time for bath" or "time to brush your teeth" will walk to the bathroom door), understands most common words, will occasionally point to named items in books
Expressive: pretty much everything continues to be /dada/. Talked to pediatrician about it, as the SLP in me has a skewed version when it comes to my own child. He says not to worry, he's "all boy" and really is much more into climbing and exploring than talking, so I'll take it and not worry.He communicates very well without talking, so I guess he just doesn't have much need to talk right now. We added the "please" sign to his repertoire of signs this month, so he now pretty much gets whatever he wants by saying "please" because a) it seems polite (even though in his mind "I rub my chest and get whatever I want? awesome!" is more what it means than being polite) and b) it's pretty darn cute.
Favorite Toys: remotes, fridge farm, looking at candles burning, balls, battle ax, books, vacuum (like real vacuum cleaner--I don't think I've vacuumed my house this much ever--he goes to the closet where it's kept, signs please, grabs the vacuum, points to the outlet to plug it in, and watches in mere amazement as I vacuum!), bike rides outside, wagon,
Interests: very into cause and effect, LIGHTS, pulling plugs out of outlets, pushing buttons to see what will happen, "helping" put things away, turning light switches on/off, dogs (the real thing, not pictures or stuffed), going next door (have I mentioned that going in the front yard can be a huge meltdown if Stephen and Diana aren't home?!)
SLEEP:
A little rougher time sleeping through the night--not sure if he's starting to get night terrors but more commonly will wake up once during the night every 3-4 nights. We typically would let him just cry and he'll put himself back to sleep. However, about 2 weeks ago I don't even think he cried or woke up. I went to work as usual and when Caleb went to get him, he had vomited all over his bed and himself. Did not even wake up, cry, etc. Now at the first sign of crying/coughing I'm up there to make sure he didn't throw up on himself as I feel like the super guilty Mom who has trained her child to sleep through the night no matter what! He's still at 1 nap/day, but we've found if we give him a little "rest" time in his bed for 20-30 minutes around 8 (which allows us to get ready in peace--how handy is that?!) he'll be a much happier little boy. Naptime is around noon, would LOVE to push it to 12:30-1, but by noon he is DONE.
HEALTH:
Went to immunologist and looks like immunoglobulin levels we were worried about being low are actually in the normal range for his age. So, praise the Lord we have a healthy little boy with a fighting immune system :). On that note, his little immune system is currently fighting a 'lil tummy bug. He's been vomiting for 5 days now. No fever, no diarrhea, acts completely normal. Throws this mama for a loop--pedi diagnosed as rotavirus and says it has a 5-7 day course, so hopefully we're in the up swing. I'm thankful our little guy is still a ball of energy through this, but we are staying at home because you never know when he will vomit...and I'm learning that having the bathtub and carpet shampooer close by are much easier than having a sick baby out and about!
Dear Carter Boy,
Every morning when your Daddy gets you, you scramble to your feet with the biggest smile. That smile pretty much stays on your face all day and it makes our world so bright. You love to explore and I love watching you explore your little world and make new discoveries every day. Many nights your Daddy and I go and just stare at you after you've gone to sleep, you're getting so big and long in your crib! I'm the luckiest Mommy in the world. Love you sweet boy!
Weight: 20 lbs, 11 oz (7%)
Height: 32 inches (75%)
Head: 18 1/2 inches (45%)
Size 4 diapers
12 month pants, 12-18 month tops
EAT:
Thankfully the pickiness has subsided a bit and he's back to trying new foods. There's not a whole lot of new info here, we're really just giving him what we eat. One night we went to Braum's for yummy peanut butter cup ice cream and Caleb gave Carter a bite. Once he realized the yummy goodness, he literally tried taking the cone out of Caleb's hand to devour the ice cream all on his own. Of course I didn't let that happen, but he definitely got his share :). He pretty much eats 3 meals and 2 snacks/day. Not a huge fan of veggies, but neither am I...so I just keep offering and maybe someday he'll love veggies like his Daddy. We transitioned to the "big boy" sippy cup (without handles) or straw cup for water, he still gets milk in the sippy with handles. Lately he's not really into his milk, will typically drink all 8 ounces at bedtime but the morning and naptime milk is hit or miss.
PLAY/DEVELOPMENT:
Gross Motor: climbs everything, climbs up big slide at park, walking backwards, squats to play, busy as ever
Fine Motor: will hold crayon and scribble about 2 inches, but not imitate drawing line; zips zipper on backpack, helps take arms out of shirts
Social: good eye contact, waves at everyone--gets sad if people don't acknowledge him after he waves (ie: at grocery store, while walking in Bob, etc), attends to finger plays and songs, claps, loves playing "chase", attends to up to 3 board books before getting bored
Language:
Receptive: knows head, belly, foot; follows simple 1 step commands (ie: "go get your shoes" or if I say "time for bath" or "time to brush your teeth" will walk to the bathroom door), understands most common words, will occasionally point to named items in books
Expressive: pretty much everything continues to be /dada/. Talked to pediatrician about it, as the SLP in me has a skewed version when it comes to my own child. He says not to worry, he's "all boy" and really is much more into climbing and exploring than talking, so I'll take it and not worry.He communicates very well without talking, so I guess he just doesn't have much need to talk right now. We added the "please" sign to his repertoire of signs this month, so he now pretty much gets whatever he wants by saying "please" because a) it seems polite (even though in his mind "I rub my chest and get whatever I want? awesome!" is more what it means than being polite) and b) it's pretty darn cute.
Favorite Toys: remotes, fridge farm, looking at candles burning, balls, battle ax, books, vacuum (like real vacuum cleaner--I don't think I've vacuumed my house this much ever--he goes to the closet where it's kept, signs please, grabs the vacuum, points to the outlet to plug it in, and watches in mere amazement as I vacuum!), bike rides outside, wagon,
Interests: very into cause and effect, LIGHTS, pulling plugs out of outlets, pushing buttons to see what will happen, "helping" put things away, turning light switches on/off, dogs (the real thing, not pictures or stuffed), going next door (have I mentioned that going in the front yard can be a huge meltdown if Stephen and Diana aren't home?!)
SLEEP:
A little rougher time sleeping through the night--not sure if he's starting to get night terrors but more commonly will wake up once during the night every 3-4 nights. We typically would let him just cry and he'll put himself back to sleep. However, about 2 weeks ago I don't even think he cried or woke up. I went to work as usual and when Caleb went to get him, he had vomited all over his bed and himself. Did not even wake up, cry, etc. Now at the first sign of crying/coughing I'm up there to make sure he didn't throw up on himself as I feel like the super guilty Mom who has trained her child to sleep through the night no matter what! He's still at 1 nap/day, but we've found if we give him a little "rest" time in his bed for 20-30 minutes around 8 (which allows us to get ready in peace--how handy is that?!) he'll be a much happier little boy. Naptime is around noon, would LOVE to push it to 12:30-1, but by noon he is DONE.
HEALTH:
Went to immunologist and looks like immunoglobulin levels we were worried about being low are actually in the normal range for his age. So, praise the Lord we have a healthy little boy with a fighting immune system :). On that note, his little immune system is currently fighting a 'lil tummy bug. He's been vomiting for 5 days now. No fever, no diarrhea, acts completely normal. Throws this mama for a loop--pedi diagnosed as rotavirus and says it has a 5-7 day course, so hopefully we're in the up swing. I'm thankful our little guy is still a ball of energy through this, but we are staying at home because you never know when he will vomit...and I'm learning that having the bathtub and carpet shampooer close by are much easier than having a sick baby out and about!
Dear Carter Boy,
Every morning when your Daddy gets you, you scramble to your feet with the biggest smile. That smile pretty much stays on your face all day and it makes our world so bright. You love to explore and I love watching you explore your little world and make new discoveries every day. Many nights your Daddy and I go and just stare at you after you've gone to sleep, you're getting so big and long in your crib! I'm the luckiest Mommy in the world. Love you sweet boy!
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