The Misadventures of Edra

Basement, Valentines and Snow

2012-02-14T17:32:00.000-07:00

Wow its been a while since I've updated the blog.
With Ed playing with the little man, I feel like I have a few moments to update the blogosphere on our happenings. (Thank heavens for Valentines Day and days off!) We have been so busy it feels. With finishing the basement, finishing Carter's big boy room, doctor appointments and just day to day stuff.....there doesn't seem to be much left of anything. Including energy to write on the blog. So sad.

So here's the update: I'm 25 weeks along. I've hit that uncomfortable part in my pregnancy (I swear its happened earlier this round than with Carter.) I am up every night for about 2 hours. For me its because I stop breathing. The baby presses on my diaphragm and what feels like all of my organs are getting pushed up into my lung space. It sucks and scares the crap out of me. I'm sure its become some sort of paranoia at this point. I feel huge but I know I have more to go which is a bit daunting and exciting at the same time. Baby is growing nicely and on track, albeit a bit on the heavy side. He's starting to hiccup and kick aggressively. I can see the kicks now. Which is AWESOME! I know he's alive and doing well which is so much more reassuring than waiting until the doctors appointment. My Braxton Hicks have started already. I forgot how they take my breath away! The doctor said they would happen sooner with this pregnancy than the last. Something about the body knowing what its doing now.
Ed and I were talking the other day. We still can't believe how fast this 2nd trimester is going. Before we know it, its going to be the end of May and we will have a little baby! Its weird how I don't feel this anxiousness that I felt with Carter. Granted, I am also not living 2000 miles away from family and friends and working full time. So circumstances are quite a bit different. Until I have that baby's room ready, I'm quite content to let the little one brew until I'm tired of feeling suffocated. (Which at this rate, may happen sooner rather than later. Seriously! Does this happen to other women too?)

Almost 2 weeks ago, we finished Carter's big boy room. We moved him over one room so the smaller room could be for the baby. I have to say, I am pretty happy with how it turned out. And so is Carter. Every day he plays during nap time for about 20 min - 1 hour instead of sleeping. Don't worry, its catching up to him. He hasn't let go of his nap yet. And at almost 2 1/2 years old I am grateful for everyday he hangs on to it.

Honestly, I haven't seen a kid love their room as much as this boy adores his room. I believe this is a good thing.

The basement is up and running and I can't believe I'm going to say this, but we use it every single day. Its so awesome! I didn't think it was going to get used as much or even loved as much. I have never had a house this big, so I suppose that was half of my misunderstanding. To say the least, its lovely having it done and Ed not having to work on it every night until 10 or 11 pm anymore. Carter is more than happy to have his Dad back too.

Welcome to our basement!

Stairway

Family Room View #1

He loves his basement so much

Family room View #2

Workout room. My favorite room

It also snowed recently. Its gone already, but it was such a nice visit for the one day it came. Carter and I were playing hookie from church trying to finish off the last dregs of our sickness. I pulled up the window blinds high for Carter so he could look out and see the big white fluffy flakes. That wasn't enough to satisfy his curiosity. We had to bundle up and head out. He doesn't ever want to touch it. Just watch it and look at his foot prints as he goes. Its quite cute to watch his curious brain try to figure this out. He called it, "Sew." We are still working on pronunciation of words.

He kept flinching when the snow would land on his face

He also did not like the "boots" I put on him

Waiting for Mom to open the gate....which never happened

He has an obsession with the camera lately. And I get this perplexed look when I take photos as he tries to figure out how he can copy what Mom does.

Sick, The Basement and Keeping Busy

2012-01-19T12:38:00.000-07:00

I love this photo. It reminds me of when he was little

A lot has been going on lately. A lot.
We are trying to finish the basement before baby boy makes his appearance. Which looking at how rough it is, is probably a good thing. I think what is most taxing is that Ed is doing it himself. We have had some AMAZING help from our brother-in-law Kirk and what would we have done without him! We are so blessed to have such amazing family be there at the drop of a hat. Especially since I am absolutely useless. In more ways than one. I'm as klutzy as they come and lets be honestly, if you had an accident prone spouse, would you let them near the saw? Drill bits? even a hammer? Ed won't so I haven't been much help. I watch Carter from the moment he wakes up, to the moment he goes to bed. I would be lying if I said it wasn't exhausting. Especially since the weather has taken a dive lately. So indoors it is!

Carter recently had another bout of the flu. I'm starting to think he is extra susceptible to it, as I swear I

don't hear other parents claim their child gets the flu as often as Carter does. He was down and weak for a couple of days. We spent a lot of time on the floor, covered in towels,

and watching shows. Ok I was watching the shows and Carter was sleeping on and off.

Since the relaxin hormone is wreaking havoc on my body its been a bit painful sitting cross legged on the floor for all hours of the day. Things to look forward to in the coming weeks.

At the end of Ed's weekend Carter started to feel a bit better (thankfully), and we were able to go

downstairs and hang out with Dad while he worked on finishing the electrical work and putting up lights. Carter was adorable. The whole time he followed Ed around the room handing him tools and trying to put the plate cover onto the outlet.

The excitement of having more space is really starting to get to me now. Especially with the walls painted, lights in and doors on. We still have a bit of work (who am I kidding, Ed has the work *grin*) to do like the trim needs to be put on the doors and the floor, railings put on the stairs, door knobs and some more painting, caulking the window and the trims then comes flooring! I can't wait until the inspector comes and gives the approval for the finished work.

And while all that work is being done Carter and I are doing everything indoors possible to pass the time. Cookie making, play dough, building with blocks, playing cars and dump trucks, trains, reading, cooking, cleaning.... you name it, we probably have done it.

Hopefully the next post will be all about the new basement.

December in a Nutshell

2011-12-21T13:49:00.000-07:00

I know we still have almost 2 weeks left of December.
But a lot has occurred. Part of it may have been shadowed by the recent events of late. The rest has been over shadowed by my exhaustion and Carter's influx of extra energy. And my goodness does he have a lot!
Its easiest to display with photos...

This is Carter casually leaning on the table while enjoying some Cuties

This is the face pre fall into the tree

This is what it looks like before he falls onto the tree. Sorry no post pictures

I was cooking lunch and he thought he needed to come rest by my feet while I finished

I get a lot of smiles usually while accompanying a naughty moment

He gets really excited to take pictures and them look at what he looks like

The Ward Christmas Party!

It was awesome times 1000 that Ed was able to get the day off to come

Luckily he is long enough to hid the belly that is there... don't worry there are pictures that will betray me in a few.

Such a goof!

Awesome meltdown visiting with Santa and Mrs Clause. You can tell I have my firm face on.

Check out that belly! And Carter is trying to flee

He saw the candy they were giving out and he paused for a second

No such luck. He's running!

Does he not look like Ralphie from the Christmas Story?

Giving me a good Carter rendition of Jingle Bells

We went to Temple Square and attempted to take our own photo... It was so cold we were struggling to get our fingers to do the work

Better but still a rough work of art

This sweet man offered to help

Gorgeous! This is the Temple Ed and I got married in 7 years ago

How cool is that tree? And how long does it take to light this one?

Another good shot

The lights have changed a lot over the years. I kind of like that part of it.

So so cold. But Carter had so much fun he clapped his hands every time we walked passed a tree or display. And he continued to say over and over, "Wow! Whoa!"

We couldn't take it anymore. Homeward bound!

Even the Conference Center grounds were lit up!

It has been such a fun month so far with the family. We have enjoyed all of the holiday shopping, last minute wrapping and decorating to its fullest. I don't think I will ever stop loving October - December as much as I do.

Gender Reveal!

2011-12-12T13:27:00.001-07:00

I am absolutely horrid at keeping secrets. Ask any one of my family members, including my husband and they will all confirm that I am horrible at lying and keeping a secret. No wonder I never got the lead in any of the high school plays!

So waiting until Christmas quickly became a moot point when the moment we found out I asked if I could call everyone and tell them.??? I was the one who decided to wait to reveal at Christmas. How lame of an idea was that? Clearly I'm not the only one with patience issues because there were plenty of comments on Facebook wanting to know as well :) Thank you to my friends who also wanted to know. Your encouragement brought me out of my 2 hour silence.

So now that I've told all of my family, its only fair to share with the rest of the world our exciting news.

I said it from the beginning of the pregnancy that I knew what it was. Clearly my intuition isn't too far off. That is a relief!

Now the wait until May 2012 is on. At least I can begin enjoying the "small" time of my pregnancy, as the "big" time will be approaching soon and I'm sure to not be as ecstatic then. Just joking.

Happy Christmas to all!

Cute picture from my phone

This is the same face I got when I showed him his little sibling :)

The Morning Of

2011-12-12T09:27:00.001-07:00

I am anxious, nervous, excited and a bit overwhelmed. I didn't think when I scheduled this appointment that I would experience this range of emotion.
To be completely transparent, I honestly didn't know if we would get to this point in this pregnancy. The insecurity that you are left when you lose a child is so palpable, so tangible that its much like being 16 dating a boy for the first time and not knowing how he really feels and or if he is dating another girl too. And definitely not brave enough to ask.

I'm sure a lot of this anxiety would be less if I had had an appointment in the last 5 weeks but its been a while since I've heard a heart beat, seen the little person on a black and white screen or even had an ok from the OBGYN.

With all of this aside, I think another fear hit me like a brick wall this week. For those who have heard of Michelle Duggar (the lady with a worn out uterus), she recently miscarried her 20th child. She was 20 weeks along. THIS shook me a bit. I know you can lose a baby at ANY point in a pregnancy. I have had friends who this has happened to and family. Its shocking, heart breaking and in truth a real disappointment for all parties. For me, when I left my 1st trimester behind I took a deep sigh of relief. I'm not out of the woods, but this is where Michelle Duggar comes into play. She LOST hers. I realize other factors could be in place. She is 15 years older than me. She has had 21 different pregnancies, health, stress etc could all be factors. But it still happened. So therefore it could happen to me, right? I sure hope not.

So today is the day we get to find out how Baby #2 is doing. I keep praying that everything is ok. Like I would have an instinct like last time that something was wrong. So far just anxiety is sitting there. If Ed were home he would distract me and have me take deep breaths. Thank goodness for cute Carter. He's definitely an excellent distraction.

Either way, I am grateful for what I have! In the meantime, if you see me and I look like I'm hyperventilating, you'll know why :).

A little late...Chicken Little!

2011-12-07T14:56:00.001-07:00

About 2 weeks ago I finally downloaded the photos from my camera and WOW did I find some good looking pics! So good looking that I'm going to blog about Halloween in December.
At least I am catching up at some point.
In order to distract myself (and you) from the impending date of next weeks gender discovery, I will indulge ourselves in cute photos of my Chicken Little.

Let it be known that I was apprehensive about his costume because you can't go BUY a Chicken Little costume at any of the local stores. And the sew your own patterns were hideous. So I put it together. By myself. Not really crafty, just common sense. So please keep this in mind when going through the photos.

He really was fascinated with grabbing his "feet"

So so cute

I love him

Finger painting with colored whipped cream

He loves my iPhone and taking his socks off. Silly boy

Helping Daddy Cook

Well now you have been sufficiently caught up.

Boy or Girl?

2011-11-30T15:48:00.001-07:00

In 12 days we will be finding out what we are having. Seem a bit early? Well it is. Our hospital allows you to check early for your gender if you want. Well, I want to.
While I don't mind which one we are having, I am a planner. I would prefer to have everything ready. First and foremost I want the baby to be healthy.
So I will be counting down the days to when I begin shopping for a little lady, or pull out all the little boy clothes.

What do you think its going to be?

The "Little" Secret....

2011-11-22T18:48:00.001-07:00

For those of you who know Ed and I well, know that we can't keep things secret for very long. We are the same couple that would have Christmas in November. The same people that can't wait until our birthdays, so we celebrate it the whole week and get presents every day. We just get too excited over it all.

So for those who have been wondering what that "little" secret it....

A BIG high five to those who guessed right.
We couldn't be more happy!

I've got a secret....

2011-11-21T15:53:00.001-07:00

My Mom always chided me when any secret telling or whispering occurred around her. She said it wasn't nice to not include people.
I've lived my whole life with this thought running through my mind any time I wanted to whisper something into someones ear.
I do have a secret. Not a huge one. But I'm more curious as to what people think it might be?
If you guess right, maybe I will fill you in.

In the mean time, look at this cute kid :)

Twice Hit!

2011-11-12T09:38:00.001-07:00

Twice our family has now been smacked in the face with reality and humbled to our knees. Thats right, the flu has hit our house.
And boy was this a nasty case. The kind that leaves your muscles sore and achy after. I swear as I get older the flu seems to hit us worse and worse. Luckily this time time Carter hasn't been sick for 2 1/2 weeks straight. Boy was that a rough ride. No this time its a 24 hour bug.
Now we are just waiting anxiously to make sure the husband makes it out unscathed. My friends and family were NOT kidding when they say, "Once you have kids, the sickness goes through everyone." Its true. Don't doubt it.
In the mean time, we will be eating chicken noodle soup for breakfast, lunch and possibly dinner.
Saltines are calling my name!

Time Out

2011-11-03T10:15:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the absence folks.

Between with what feels like a billion doctor appointments, helping with planning the ward Christmas Party and the crazy month of Octobe
I've been taking a mental time out. I've decided more than anything in the world I need to just spend some time with my family. My Carter and My Ed. Its been the best thing I could have prescribed for myself.

There is nothing amid the chaos of life that grounds me better than these two people. So please excuse me while I enjoy the fun a lazy day in pajamas can afford me.

I highly recommend it.

Wheeler Farm with Dad

2011-10-20T13:51:00.000-06:00

Two of my favorite guys. In one place!
Ed and I keep our weekends fairly low key. (We usually have appts or the Speech Therapist coming over on those days.) So we opted to go to Wheeler Farm yesterday as it was an absolutely GORGEOUS day.
Ed was surprised at how awesome Wheeler Farm is and was especially happy about the price. (For those who haven't gone, its free.)
Carter loves hanging out with Dad and LOVES the tractors so its a win win for him.

Li'l Sebastian!

Ignore my crazy face.

A little kid "crack" is always good.

I'm a Big Boy Now!

2011-10-20T13:39:00.000-06:00

Or so I'm sure Carter continues to try to tell us in his own words.
Since turning 2 he is even MORE adventurous, more into everything, more fascinated about the limits an object can reach (*read: destroys things), more 1000% boy. Is that possible?
I'm told Ed was the same way and I know the stories of him growing up. I've got a long road to travel. Should be entertaining.
So in the mean time, I decided once Carter turned 2 I was going to convert his crib to the toddler portion. (These things are genius. My parents didn't have these when I was growing up and I'm sure they would have liked it.)
Ed was outside working on some slight adjustments of OUR bed in the garage. So Carter and I trumped upstairs and got to working on his crib. The whole process fascinated him. He tried to lay on the crib side that we took off, he carried all the screws I needed all over the house. (That was an adventure finding them again.) Finally I completed putting the bed together. (It wasn't that difficult, Carter just adds 15 - 20 min onto each project due to relocation of some important elements.)
Carter is in love.

Seriously, he'd adorable!

He thinks its so funny to say, "Cheese!" and then run over to see how the picture looks

Practicing laying down for me

This is what happens in the middle of the night when he falls out of bed. He goes right back to sleep

Wheeler Farm with Friends 2011

2011-10-14T22:10:00.000-06:00

This time last year Carter and I went to Wheeler farm with some of our friends.
For those who follow the blog, you may remember this?

So this year, we weren't so lucky with a big pile of pumpkins, nor were we lucky with getting the kids to sit still. AND we expanded the group which is always more fun.

Let the photo montage begin.

Having some serious words

I believe this is the part where Carter saw the caravan of mom's with strollers and had to oggle them

Cute boys

Talking with the turkeys

Pigs

Oh my word he is cute!

Hey Chicken!

Bye....

Naturally enthralled by the tractors

Tractors... again

He's already pulling faces for the camera

Happy Friends

Also a side note: We met with the Optimologist this last week. Good news is Carter WILL NOT be needing surgery. His cross eye is stemmed from far sided-ness. When he doesn't have his glasses on, he goes cross eyed. When he has them on, he great! The doctor even recommended we reduce the amount of time we do eye patch therapy and advised that often times this is a situation we need to see if he will grow out of. Some kids never do and require glasses or contacts to correct the cross eye. For now, we keep wearing the glasses (which I am happy for. Look how cute he is!) and see how it goes when he gets older.

Little Cottonwood Canyon!

2011-10-13T13:33:00.000-06:00

Earlier this week, Carter and I were invited by our friends to go up Little Cottonwood Canyon to walk the boys on the Quarry Trail.
For a fraction of a second I was sad that the leaves weren't more vibrant. Honestly though, with faces like this

How could you be?

So we walked, explored, ate snacks in the parking lot and enjoyed the sunshine. It was a good day.

He had to run back and get his friend

Chasing

Carter LOVED exploring. Clearly we need to do this more often

He was so good about staying hydrated. His choice mind you

I love him

I told him not to play with the gas tank. So he went and got his fingers stuck

2 years and Counting

2011-10-10T14:08:00.000-06:00

I've heard every Mother I know say it.
Its a thought that crosses my mind at least 20 times a week.

My little boy is growing up

Last week was proof!
On Monday Ed and I woke up and sang Happy Birthday to Carter in his crib. He smiled at us and danced along. We let him have a day off of eye patch therapy as a treat. We hurried and got ready and stopped by Toys R Us for a couple of Hot Wheels and an airplane. (He carried it everywhere that day with him. Even to nap.) Then we raced over to the Hogle Zoo. We rode the zoo, the carousel and checked out all the animals Carter could handle.

We took him to lunch for his favorite meal (Lone Star Taquiera Bean and Cheese Burrito)

Then he got to open Mom and Dad's present to him.
The camera ran out of batteries right after this rough photo

On Saturday we had a BIG get together at our house. Carter was overwhelmed at first (As I'm sure most children who came were as well) then he warmed up to everyone and ran around wild.
It was SUCH a great party.
My sweet friend Stephanie took photos of the party. And THANK GOODNESS for her. As I probably wouldn't have even snapped more than 5 otherwise. Thank you thank you.

After the party we sent all of the new little pirates on their way and perhaps in a mini sugar high :)
Thanks to everyone for making it such an amazing birthday party for Carter!

Speech Therapy Progress

2011-09-24T09:34:00.000-06:00

*Disclaimer: This is no way is me bragging about my son. I know he is amazing as are all children. This is purely for those who are curious how his therapy is progressing.

Carter began speech therapy in August of this year (2011). While working with his therapist Jacque he has made some interesting progress. He speaks very little still. But each week we get a new word or an attempt at speech. This is brilliant to watch from my perspective. For those who are not familiar with speech therapy, its more Parent Teaching than therapy for a 2 year old. She gives me goals twice a month to work on with Carter and follows up on how we are doing with them. Some may still question my reasons for putting him in. Bottom line: He qualified, I am willing to get the help that I need to assist him.

Carter will make his progress with his speech when he is ready. I'm accepting of this.... now. Call it the control gene in me. There, I said it, I'm a control freak. :) In the mean time we have been working on his receptive language. Helping him understand words. I should have taken courses on this in college. Oh well. So I began showing him the alphabet flash cards. We looked over them a few times. Then I started to test how much he was remembering. Quickly, he proved he knew the whole alphabet by sight. Upper case and lower case. He has learned the following shapes: diamond, triangle, rectangle, square, circle, octagon, pentagon, semi circle, star, crescent, and heart. He knows numbers 1 - 10 by sight and can pick them out. He also is working on sounds of letters. Right now we are on the letter "M". We collect things around the house that begin with "M" and put them in a bowl. We use the flash card with the M on it and point out the object and sound it out. So far it seems to be working. He's not saying the words, but he will run up to me with the "M" card or an object that starts with the "M" and say, "Muh, muh, muh." He gets so excited when he knows he has gotten the sound right. He's trying hard to make the right sound with the right letter when he see's them on posters and in books and such.

Now we are working on colors. This doesn't seem to be coming as easy for his as the alphabet, shapes and numbers. Probably because everything that has a color to it, has a different object name to it. So we gather things that are the same color (harder than it sounds) and helping him identify the color. We have also been sorting the laundry into colors. He'll get it when he is ready but at least we are making progress.

I am so so proud of this little guy. He is so bright and such a happy boy! I am grateful for the help the therapist can give me in helping this little boy learn. But most of all, I am grateful for Carter. Love him to the max!

Miscarriage Blues and Other Fun Subjects

2011-09-23T15:21:00.000-06:00

Lately I haven't wanted to write. Could it be because of what I knew I wanted to say, just didn't want to say it? On some level, probably.
Ever since the miscarriage, I am asked frequently how "getting pregnant" is going. Its an interesting question. In my opinion, its a double edged sword. Its a reminder of what I failed to complete earlier this year. (Silly, I know. You can't tell someone to stop blaming themselves and it just turn off.) It takes me back to all the failed attempts since then to try to get pregnant again. How do you just turn this off? I asked Ed that. His response, "Just stop caring. But I know you, you don't do that." Thanks Ed.
So the question sits out there in a space and time that feels like forever (but I'm sure I come up with a response quicker than what it feels like.) I snap back to reality and tell the latest tale of no such luck. Or using other creative phrases, "Back to the drawing board." The silliest part about all of this: Millions of women have gone through the exact same thing as I have. Maybe not both sides of the coin like me, but none the less, others have miscarried. So why do I make it out to be the hardest thing anyone has ever done and its only happened to me? I don't know. I have no good responses to this. But I see the large group of friends of mine who are pregnant and want to jostle them a little. Remind them how lucky they are that they have gone as far as they have.

Some how this whole situation reminds me so much of that first break up you had. Promptly after the break up the first thought in your head is, "This sucks!" The next thought is, "I'm never going to find anyone who wants me!" Oh how wrong we were. But in the moment, you can't see past your nose. All you can consider is the loss that has just happened. Like you will never find love, or someone who feels as strongly for you as you for them. And then some time down the road, it happens. Its the same for babies I'm sure. I'm just at the "can't see past my nose" part.

As October approaches, I am lucky to have so many distractions for me. I refuse to let it be a mourning over what could have been. Its a celebration of Carter coming to our family. Frankly, Its going to be a great party for that little man. Its the candy industries highest profit producing time of the year. Plus, who doesn't love watching little kids dress up and arrive to your door requesting treats? I love watching their costumes. It thrills me even more that I get to take that little rascal door to door this year. He actually likes treats now. Shock and awe at that one.

So here's to Carter, here's to babies down the road (hopefully not too far), and here's to an amazing October! Cheers

The Truth About Me

2011-09-12T14:22:00.001-06:00

A good friend of mine said to me, "Sedra, you have to let it go. Confront it, laugh at the moment, then let it go." To paraphrase. It was a good long conversation.
So this is me getting it out there. It doesn't matter if you like it, or if you even want to hear it. If you don't, then simply leave this page. Either way, it works for me. So if you're curious, keep reading.

I have lived an entire life of wanting acceptance so badly, I would do almost anything for it. When I say almost anything, believe me, I have my lines I'm not willing to cross. With this in mind, I went to great lengths to secure friendships (Ones I didn't necessarily need), relationships (everyone has a pack of exes they didn't necessarily need either), praise, admiration etc. The list can go on and on. At some point, a person needs to say, "Enough is enough!" I'm ready to take responsibility for my feelings and making sure I am watching out for myself.

Here is the truth: I'm judgmental, I often am extremely critical of myself and others. I jump to conclusions constantly, expect way more out of people then necessary, I think everyone should be able to read my mind, and I can create drama in my wake. I get upset and angry over others success and sometimes wish for them to fail. (Side note: I am working on all these things. If you are judging me by these statements and think you are perfect out there, let me enlighten you: You're not.) The truth in the matter is this: I know I have faults. In fact that is part of the problem here, I look at these things that I despise in myself and perplex the whole problem over again. Its a vicious cycle. Enough said.

On the other side of the coin, I am an extremely giving person. I will give of my time, my means, my food, my everything. Often times, people take advantage of this quality. I take note of this change in the relationship, then begin the cycle above. I become critical, jump to conclusions and eventually end back at the self hate category all over again. I can be thoughtful, and helpful, and a support to lean on. I'm creative in my own way, and dang it: I'm a great Mom! I have a big heart (despite the terrible things I said in the above paragraph) and I will support those I love. I am a hard worker, I'm orderly, I'm usually willing to give anything a try at least once. Not terrible qualities to have if you ask me.

I believe I'm finally ready to stand up for myself. Remember this post isn't about letting everyone know how I feel and if I have ever thought negatively of you. Although if you have gotten this far, don't take advantage of me or my kindness. I probably have the guts now to tell you to your face that I don't like your actions. (As in the past I was always worried about hurting your feelings. Which is sad, because in turn I was hurting myself far worse.) Its about me telling myself. I can now look back on these things and LAUGH. With zeal. With long winded breaths after each outburst. I might even wipe a tear from my eye over it. Its time for me to stop comparing myself to others. And time for me to start hiya-ing life! Not that I have been sitting in a shell this whole time. I've got an amazing family to show for the things I have done right in this world. I look forward to this new desire to clear myself. Wrap myself up in my creativity I've bottled down in the depths of me. Write out loud! And become a better version of me.

How are you going to stand up for yourself today? Eh?

Playing with Dad

2011-09-01T15:00:00.000-06:00

The other evening, right after dinner. Ed starts putting Carter's shoes on.
I ask him what he is doing and he says,
"We are gonna run around outside."
This isn't a common occurrence right before bed. So I took my camera out and decided to take some cute pictures of the boys playing.

Goodness I love these boys

Utah Children's Museum

2011-09-01T14:47:00.000-06:00

While this adventure was far from what I was expecting,
looking at the photos I can tell Carter enjoyed this place quite a bit.
I think I will take the suggestion of some of my Facebook friends and go when its not so crowded. We definitely didn't expect it to be so wild with children and parents that don't care to watch them at 10:30 am. Lesson learned!

As for the outing it self, it was wonderful to spend an extra long weekend with Ed and having him there to play with Carter and get some awesome photos was well worth it!

So let the montage begin!

His pretend smile

He LOVED the water bit

And clearly didn't need neither Ed's nor my help in getting soaked

He thought I wasn't looking

My favorite part about this photo is promptly right after it, he gave the cart a final extra push into the wall. He's crazy.

I loved the sucked in cheek look. They still look chubby son.

Extra cute

He discovered the maze of tubes above him

This is what he was looking at

His absolute favorite part of the whole thing? These plastic squares sprinkled all over the floor.

Unsure of the noises coming off this machine and the children inside running it.

Dad is a bowling ball, Carter and I are the pins

Musical keyboard! And a game of backgammon. Odd combo and now I know I should have read the signs as I'm sure it makes more sense then.

I had to TRY to get a photo with me and him in it. As you have seen, he doesn't like to sit still

And he was right at home with the building blocks

Dad was ready to go

I love this little boy!

Proof of the chaos! And this picture doesn't show it well.

Family Photo

2011-08-23T14:01:00.000-06:00

We got tired of how much it costs to get family photos taken. So we are taking matters into our own hands.
Ignore the fact that there is a concrete jungle in the background. I blame Ed on demanding we take the photo at that exact spot. I have elected myself as the background picker outer for the next round of attempts. In the mean time, at least we have an updated family picture. Long time running, eh?
So enjoy the few photos we were able to nab while picnicking in the outdoors.

-Sed

I just love, LOVE overalls on this kid

In the heat of the day, I get this look at lot. I think his glasses slide down his nose a lot

You'd think I told him he could eat candy for the rest of the day

Being told, "All done playing" doesn't bode well with him obviously

For Daddy

2011-08-14T11:18:00.000-06:00

You!

Today we are missing Ed.
No worries, he is at work.

So we post these photos. To remind him that we love him.
And hurry home.

No. I don't want to come in.

I miss my Dad

Oooh!

I'm reading

I'm learning a lot while you're gone

Cheese

Mom you take too many pictures

We miss you!

Carter's Therapy

2011-08-08T21:28:00.000-06:00

So for those family and friends who are curious about Carter's Speech Therapy....
ITS BEGUN!
And we couldn't be more excited, (and a bit overwhelmed.)
We met with his therapist (Jacque) on Friday of last week. We set goals for the next 6 months. She kept them pretty simple to start.
Carter showed off his amazing skills at sign language, reading his books and the expert napper that he is.

Carter's first order of business is that he speaks more than he understands. Carter is considered a copycat talker. You say something, he will repeat the word. But only once or twice. Then he ditches it. It explains a lot of the blank looks I get from the little man. He just doesn't understand us. So we begin.

1) We are working at teaching him his body parts. When we ask him where his head is at, the goal is that he will touch his head. Surprisingly enough he has really picked up our little game. So far he knows his head, hair, tongue, ears, toes, and nose. We are hoping to get him to follow Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes in the next month or so.

2) Turn Taking. We are practicing the art of taking turns in conversation. Carter has a fairly good grasp on this so far. We practice this by pushing his tonka truck back and forth saying, "Mommy's turn." Push. "Carter's turn." Push. After about 10 turns of this he wants to move on. The goal was to get him to do it 4 -5 times so we're doing good.

3) Carter evidently has an under developed jaw. He doesn't chew food well. So I've naturally stuck with softer foods. He tends to spit things out that don't break down well by sucking or mashing with his tongue. So the ST (Speech Therapist) is having him eat meat/apple slices/carrot slices etc to help him develop his jaw.

She wants us talking him through everything we do and to do these practice things during times that Carter is already doing well in throughout the day. Like reading time, bath time, meal time, indoor play time etc.
So far we have had some really amazing days where I KNOW we are making progress. And other days where I am ready to pull my hair out by the time Ed gets home. I know I can't expect instant success, but I continue to try.
He has such a strong little personality running through that boy! I will always be impressed at how much he is trying. I see those little wheels turning when I ask him a question and he looks down at his hands like sign language will flow from them on their own.
Each day Ed and I hope that in the next year or so we will be happy we went through all of this for the little man.
Good things to come!

Baking Cookies with Mom

2011-07-25T13:26:00.000-06:00

Everyone remembers some fond memories with Mom or Dad in the kitchen. For me it was with my mom. She was there all day long with us while Dad was at work. We didn't live in a house hold of Little Debbies, Willy Wonka or the favorite Mars candy around the house. Looking back, it probably was her way of off setting the addict of sweets known as my father. Dad, I love you, but I think I got my sweet tooth from you :). We "occasionally" got to pick out a treat at the store. Which never felt enough growing up. (We were kids, we're supposed to always want more treats.) But Mom would bake cookies. And she wasn't afraid of trying a recipe out or making multiple batches until she was satisfied with the end result. To this point, I will always ALWAYS get excited over some delicious cookies, cupcakes or baked good.

So with knowing this prior information, you can understand my want for Carter to grow up loving it when Mom decides to bake a batch of cookies or make some cupcakes just for the hell of it. And in MY household, we do enjoy the cookie dough or batter. No need to sneak a bite in here. I will offer it before we even begin scooping. Another thing I have in common with my sister-in-law Tabrenia. We will always share eating the batter/dough.
Sunday was just such the day for testing out how much Carter is a Momma's boy despite his replica resemblance to one Edward Davidson. Once I heard the smacking of lips from my dear little boys mouth, I knew my suspicions held true. He likes baking (he watched the whole process from start to finish and tested the dough throughout each stage.) He likes dough, and he likes the cookies. High Five Carter!

He's trying to share with Dad

And just because I know there are some of you out there curious how Carter's patch therapy for his eye has been going.... The proof is in the pudding! He still is going cross eyed half of the time but its becoming less (much to my relief.) When he has the patch on his weak eye is straight the entire time.

My Cute Boy