Baby Carson Einstein

This is just a fun short video of Carson in "his toy" as Dave calls it.

Some Pictures (of our lives for the past month)

I recently received a call from BYU requesting that I bring Carson in for some kind of study. It had something to do with the development of baby brains and if they could differentiate certain stimuli at 5 months old. They put this net thingy on his head with a whole bunch of electrodes attached. He was thrilled to put anything dangling off the cap into his mouth so the study actually went really well. When all was said and done we got this rockin' certificate. We filed it away in the circular bin. This is our little Baby Einstein do-dad. Carson didn't like it so much at first but just in the last couple of days he had taken to it a little more. It is so cute watching him try to flip the plastic pages in the book and bonk and whack various bonkable and whackable parts.


So Dave was a bit incredulous that Carson could be as long as he is. I do have to admit that him putting on 8 inches in four months seemed like a lot, but lo and behold - he is as tall as they say he is. These pictures are of us trying to get totally accurate measurements. I don't know why we thought it would be easy to measure him when it's hard to even get a diaper on the kid.

These pictures break my heart. Carson developed a NASTY cough and wheeze. We became alarmed as it was getting worse and worse. When we took him to the doctor we were told the virus he had could lead to RSV or pneumonia. The doctor was concerned about the wheeze and told us to use a nebulizer to administer albuterol to him every four hours so his airways would dilate and he could breathe a little better. This is Dave holding his precious little buddy in the middle of the night. The nebulizer would mist albuterol into his face for about 10-15 minutes. We were to hold it about and inch from his mouth and nose till each treatment was gone.

This picture was taken on our anniversary. I was SOOO sick.
Carson isn't sure what to think of rice cereal. Each time we feed it to him he gives us the most sour face possible, the face gets less and less nasty with each bite until it goes away entirely. By the time that happens, he is grabbing at our hands, the spoon, the cereal, his bib, or anything and tries to shove it in his mouth because the food just doesn't seem to come fast enough. We laugh every time we feed him :).

Alright, Julie HH - this one is for you!

I figured it would be WAY easier to make this a post than a comment so here it goes.

-Cover 4 chicken breasts with foil & bake 1 hour at 350 degrees. When done, dice it and lay it in a 9 x 13 casserole dish and set it aside.

- In another bowl mix 1 family sized can of cream of chicken soup with 24 oz cream.

- Pour mixture over chicken.

-Smash 1 column ritz crackers and sprinkle it with 2 TBSP poppy seeds over the dish.

-Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes.

-Eat it over whatever you want - rice - potatoes - noodles - etc.

I LOVE this recipe because it is SOOO easy. None of the proportions have to be totally accurate. The first time I made it I measured it all out, since then, I have just added stuff till it's to my liking (the amount of chicken you use can also be totally variable). Also, I have left out the poppyseeds all but once. If you have them, add them. If you don't, it's not worth the effort of buying them. There isn't much of a difference. Lastly, if you want to buy the fat free version of everything, it still tastes great.

Rice Cereal for Mother's Day

I have reached a point where I can no longer feed Carson quite enough. He is a mammoth boy and eats like one. We went to his 4 months appointment last Friday. He weighed 19 pounds 11.5 ounces. He was also 28 1/2 inches long. Here is a funny thought for you. Assuming he quits growing at 17 like any average boy could, if he were to continue on at the rate he is going, he would be about 35 feet tall and 600 pounds. Strange proportions....
Because I can't feed him QUITE enough, we started rice cereal a few days ago. Just a tiny bit right before bed. He HATED it at first; I think it's nasty too though so I added a little bit of applesauce and now Dave and I have a rice eating machine. He is pretty cute and does so well eating it hardly any escapes onto his bib.
Also, yesterday for Mother's Day, Dave took Carson as much as he possibly could so I could have a break and finish up everything I/we had to do (teach Relief Society and a Primary class, choir practice, cookies for some dear friends who are moving, etc). I also wanted to throw bit of praise out to honor my mother. She is a wonderful woman who tries endlessly to do what is right; they don't make them any better than her. She is an even better friend than a mother, and that is saying somehting.

Bittersweet

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. Profound I know... you are all probably thinking, "duh Melanie" but this is an important day for me. My employment has gone from full time office manager and mother to just full time mother. Friday was the last day of work for me. My generous boss took Dave and I to the Chef's Table here in P-town to celebrate. I am sad to go. My kind hearted boss treated me very well and showed great appreciation for the work I have done for him. I enjoyed my job, and got quite proficient at it. Alas, it is time I move on. I now sit here on my living room floor next to my beautiful baby boy. He is my focus and my work now. I couldn't ask for a better calling in life. Nothing could have prompted to me to come to this screeching halt except him. I am happy to be here. What I do today will pattern what I do for the next who knows how many years until every child Dave and I will have grows up and out of our home. It is important to me to establish righteous traditions and habits. What I do today will determine my life tomorrow. I have goals and projects I would like to work on. I have other people in mind. I have chores to do. I have talents to strengthen. Wish me luck in this new phase of life.

Happy Anniversary!

Here's to two great years, and many more to come.

Good Aim

I threw this from the back bedroom to the couch in the front room about 20 feet away. I didn't mean to do this, but it's how it ended up. We promise we didn't touch the cloth to make it stay in place. (It's a cloth diaper - I use them for burpcloths). Poor Carson, didn't know what hit him...literally.


Not to worry, he was totally fine, just had no idea what was going on. This is the picture just after we took the cloth off his head. Daddy was holding him up for mommy to snap a quick picture.

"Love You"

For all of you out there who are worried about Dave's and my relationship, it's ok; I ALREADY know. It has come to my attention that Dave might be speaking inappropriately to other women but this is ok, and ok for one reason alone... he has said the same thing to men as well!

So funny!!! When Dave and I speak on the phone we always end by saying "I love you" in one way or another. We definitely mean it, but sometimes we are on autopilot. Well, there have been a couple of occasions latley (either early in the morning or late at night...both sleepy times) where Dave has accidentally slipped this into phone calls with various ward members when he says goodbye. Let me tell ya, to hear him say, "Love you, bye!" to the women is funny, but SO hilarious when it's to the men. We all know how men tell each other they are buds by slapping each others' bums, slugging on the arms, or giving each other those strange, motion loaded, wrestle-y hand shakes. Women on the other hand, of course give hugs, say nice things, and bake cookies for each other :). Generally though, neither gender routinely says "love you, bye" at the end of their phone calls. I know I digress, but I guess the point of the story would be, don't worry about Dave - if he tells you he loves you, he must like you. (Or, be comfortable enough to forget he isn't talking to me). At least that is what our marriage counselor says :)...

The picture is dark and doesn't depict it very well, but each time he has done this, he promptly whips around to face me with saucer-wide eyes and his hand flies to his mouth as though he has said a naughty word. We then laugh for the next few minutes until his inital embarrassment wears off and then a while later, he does it again...

He Loves Me...

He Loves Me Not...

He Loves Me...He Loves Me Not...
He Loves Me!!!