Well check Monday

Yesterday was a day full of doctors, scales, pokes, tears, and band-aids, but we all survived and got good reports. Of course Carter decided to take the nap of all naps before we left and I had to wake him from a sound slumber to get out the door on time. Why doesn't he do this when we have no where to be??


The pediatrician was kind enough to allow us to schedule Carter and Caroline's appointments together. Carter for his 9 month well check and Caroline for her 4 yr well check.
Stats:
Caroline
39 pounds- 75th percentile
43 inches- above 95th percentile
TALL girl, Dr. Daniels estimates she will be around 5' 9 or 5' 10. I'm totally OK with that, she will be a tall beauty, I just want her to feel confident and comfortable in her own skin always!! 
Carter
20.8 pounds- 50th percentile
29 inches- 75th percentile
I actually thought he'd be higher up on the weight percentile, but I guess he's thinned out a bit. I'm so thankful that he has begun rounding the corner on head size so no need for CT scan or anything else.



The doctor thought both kids looked great. We discussed Caroline's sleeping in own bed fears and he suggested getting "monster spray" that she can keep by her bed to scare off anything that might come in. I think I'll mix up a batch today.  We also talked to him about Caroline's very limited attention span. He wasn't too concerned and said we'll just monitor her as she enters school.  Caroline had to have four shots, which was brutal because she had terrible anxiety about them. She began wailing before they even shot her, I'm pretty sure the thought was actually worse that the actual shots. For the rest of the night she told everyone she could about her four shots. 
The only concern I have with Carter is that occasionally upon falling asleep he will go into a dramatic shudder. The first time he did it, I was scared to death. Of course, as any crazy mom does, I hopped on Google and surprisingly it calmed me down because it seems lots of kids have infant shuddering spells. Dr. Daniels felt whatever it is, that it's benign.  Hopefully he'll grow out of it soon.  Carter was a bit low on iron, probably due to just being breastfed, but we did have to get blood drawn. He dealt with the poke great, but did not like being restrained for hte amount of time it took to fill up all the vials. Poor little man.



Later that afternoon,  we took Caroline to the dentist for her first clean. Her teeth looked great, no cavities!!  She seemed to enjoy the dentist, but was so shy and wouldn't say a word to anyone. She told me afterward that the paste was yucky. I agree, Caroline!  



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Some facts about our new 4 year old

At four years old Caroline is more entertaining and fun than ever. I feel like I have a little adult living with me, as she is very independent and wants to be a big girl so much!

Caroline loves to color, draw, cut, paste and anything involving crafts.
She can somewhat write her name, with lots of guidance and patience from an adult.
She is great with directions, she knows all the roads around us and where she is headed most of the time.
She still loves playing outside and is thoroughly enjoying her new play set.
Caroline is a great big sister, carries Carter around when we aren't looking, and takes care of her babies just like I take care of Carter.
Right now we are battling night time fears. She will not stay in her room all night, and most nights runs down the stairs wailing.  She makes a nap mat right by our bed and that is where she sleeps the remainder of the night.
She loves wearing skirts, dresses, and me fixing her hair like a princess.  (I tell her, no matter how I do her hair, that it is like a princess.  My little trick!)
Caroline is swimming like a fish. She can swim all over the pool and jump in and swim to the side.
She loves everyone around her so much, she has a huge heart. She talks about all the people in her life and will often say, "I sure love ____."
Unfortunately she uses the phrases I use with her, such as "You need to do this right now," and "I've already told you once, " etc. with Justin and me and doesn't seem to understand that we are the boss and can say that, but not her.
She also says, "Just kidding," as well as, "I know that," quite often.  It seems her new four year old self knows everything!
Four years has brought the girl drama. She whines and gets hysterical over really small things. I think it's an attention thing.
She loves Six Flags and Hawaiian Falls. She even rides the medium sized roller coasters at Six Flags, but she is not too happy with the Judge Roy Scream because she swears it gave her a cough.
Caroline has been asking about where God lives lately. She wants to know if Heaven is far away like Houston where her Aunt Annie lives.
She still eats well; loves chocolate milk, candy, gum, tortillas with cheese,  mac and cheese, fruit snacks, and cheese.  I have to hide candy around the house, she gets that sweet tooth from Justin.  Her favorite places to eat are Chipotle and On the Border, the "tortilla store."

I probably have more that I'm forgetting, but I'll record those later. We go for her 4 yr old check up next week as well as her first official teeth cleaning.

Love her so much!  What a gift she is!

My oh My, it's been 9 months!

And how fun it's been!! These days this active little guy is keeping me busy. Between preventing falls, chasing after him, guarding him from choking on Caroline's toys, and keeping him entertained and well fed, I'm always on my toes. I forgot how much vigilance little ones require once they become mobile.  He currently has a shiner on his right forehead where his new toy scooted out from under him while he was trying to pull up.  

 Lately he has been cracking me up with all his noises and new found strong will.  He will let me know with loud grunts and groans exactly what he wants.  He has also begun shaking his head back and forth when he is unhappy with what I'm doing. Diaper changes should be an olympic sport, and nursing is  challenging as he is more interested in what is going on around him.  I want to make it to twelve months, but am wondering if he'll wean himself earlier.  I still have lots of frozen bags so I feel confident he will get breast milk to twelve months, just maybe not directly from the source.

 Caroline and him play well most of the time, however he has begun getting into her stuff and that makes her mad at times. I have to remind her that he is a baby and does not understand.  It is also a challenge to keep all the tiny Barbie shoes and other itty bitty toys picked up.

I will find out his official stats at the end of the month, but I imagine he is around 20 lbs.  He is crawling, pulling up, cruising just a bit, and meeting all milestones just fine.  He loves puffs, crunchies, cheerios, and other little table foods I am dabbling with.   I am confident his big head is nothing but a big head, but I'll see what the doctor says. He is finally cutting his first tooth, I noticed it on his 9 month birthday. It is one of the bottom ones, but he won't let me look for long enough to know if it is the right or left.  He is beginning to take better naps, but we are still working on mastering two a day.  We love this little boy to bits and can't believe his first birthday is around the corner.

Caroline is 4!!

 It's hard to believe this girl is 4. I remember driving to the hospital ready to deliver her like it was yesterday.  I can even remember our conversation and exact feeling of nervousness yet excitement. We had her birthday party on Saturday, she could not wait!! She kept asking, "How many sleeps until my birthday?"  Her birthday was similar to last year, a splash party with water toys and the bounce house.

 Paige and Zach let us borrow the big slide....it was definitely the thrill of the party.

 Caroline was convinced she needed her goggles.

 Papa Mike made water balloons, of course the kids loved them!

 Caroline joined in the singing of happy birthday. She enjoyed her moment in the spot light!

 Opening gifts, Jackson was so funny with his commentary of everything we opened. Thanks to everyone who came and made her birthday special!  

This is Caroline on Sunday, her actual birthday,  all dressed up for church and looking so big.  For her actual big day we ate at On the Border, or the tortilla store, as she calls it and then went to Six Flags that evening. A rain storm scared most people off so we had the park to ourselves. Most rides we rode back to back because no one was there to get on.

Caroline has absolutely captured our hearts in the past four years. Now she is so much fun, no longer a baby and becoming such a big girl. I love our conversations, she cracks me up all the time. She is energetic, happy, loving, empathetic, kind, strong willed, stubborn, and funny all wrapped up!  I'm excited to see the young lady she grows into, I know God has big plans for her big personality. We love her so much!

Splash Park

My man Carter and big girl Caroline had a blast at the splash park Monday. What a perfect day for it, overcast and about 88 degrees! I'll take that all summer long. Unfortunately our day ended when Caroline slipped off the whale and landed on her face. Other than that, it was a successful trip, one we will probably make many more times this summer.

Life around here

Life around here is good. We've just finished a busy June and I'm looking forward to a slower July. Don't want my summer flying by!

Carter is growing and changing every day. Last week he began pulling up all the time and clapping his hands. Now that he is mobile he loves to find Boomer's water bowl and the shower. Not sure what is so exciting about the shower, but he screams when I pick him up and away from it. It's got to be discouraging to crawl so far, only to be picked up and not allowed to reach your goal. Carter loves Boomer and since Boomer is indoors a lot right now, he's having to take some baby abuse. Boomer doesn't seem to mind too much. Last month Carter began eating Puffs, he loves those things!

This summer I've been working once a week for Justin. I usually go in on Thursdays, I make a big fuss about it, but really it's not too bad. The best part about it is I get to really see what's going on with the business and get a feel for how things are going. He now has 3 employees and a new, bigger office.

So by now you know my brother is a fire fighter in Dallas! Well the other day, I turned on the TV and there was breaking news on the TV. Sure enough I saw my brother at the scene of a wreck tending to an injured person. Pretty cool, I was proud!

Caroline's birthday is this upcoming weekend. For her gift, all the family went in and bought her a nice big fort and swing set for the backyard. Justin has been busy trying to piece this thing together, it is crazy the amount of work it is. The box says 8-10 hours of work for 2 people. Since Justin is doing most of it himself, he is looking at 20 hours, that is on top of his demanding job! I would say he loves his little girl!!

Finally, I'll leave you with this funny story. Caroline and Carter play really well. Usually when I get ready in the mornings they play in my bedroom. Well yesterday morning, it got really quiet then from a far I heard Carter screaming bloody murder. I follow the screams and they lead me into his room, where Caroline is attempting to change Carter's poopy diaper. Carter is rolling around all over the place, Caroline has about 50 wipes, and there is poop everywhere!! Needless to say, the carpet needing cleaning and Caroline and Carter got another bath. I almost felt bad that I was so alarmed because she was so proud of what she was doing. She will make a great mommy someday!

Little Fish

Caroline has been going to swim lesson for the past two weeks. I have been amazed at her progress. She truly went from a non swimmer to a little fish....a fish that can swim from one side of the pool to the other. I am so proud of her and you can just see how proud she is of herself. She swims frequently during the summer, so it makes me feel good that she has learned to swim. Here she is diving, or belly flopping, off the board and swimming to her teacher!