Carter's Weekend Art Exhibit

This afternoon Carter wanted to do an "art project", so we pulled out the crayons, construction paper, scissors, tape and glue. Carter spent a little time coloring on the paper, but mostly he just wanted to play with the tape. He decided to tape his papers to the windows - Mommy said it was ok, we'd leave it there until Sunday - Carter's weekend art exhibit!I'm hoping next time he actually draws something on the papers before hanging them up on display. :-)

Fun times with Natalie & Jack!

We had the pleasure of having a visit from our friends Natalie and Jack today while their mommy went to an appointment. Carter and Natalie had tons of fun playing with Legos and a Curious George game, and generally giggling and being silly. Jack was a little exasperated that he didn't get to play with the big kids in Carter's bedroom. And Courtney napped during most of it. :-) But here they all are at lunch...

Sweet Natalie:Adorable Jack:My Courtney bug, who was THRILLED that I asked her to give up her booster seat for Jack and sit in a big-girl chair:And Carter, cooperating for the photo, as usual...We hope Jack and Natalie will be back to play with us real soon!

Morning sweetness

This morning I found Carter "reading" books to Courtney on the couch. So sweet! What sort of books was he reading? Why, Thomas books, of course!

McKenna Children's Museum

Today we went on a little outing down to New Braunfels, Texas to McKenna Children's Museum! We really enjoyed it - definitely worth the drive. It was especially great for preschoolers & toddlers - more so than the one in Austin. Here are some photos:

One of the kids' favorite things was the ambulance with working lights. Here are Carter and Courtney with Grammy - we love that Grammy gets to hang out with us on Thursdays!Courtney loved playing "patient". (or maybe she just needed a nap...)Once she got her second wind, Courtney cooked up a storm in the kitchen...While Carter worked on putting "siding" on the house...And putting "wallpaper" on the inside. Carter really loved this fun little house.Carter did a little grocery shopping.Hey, that cashier looks just like Grammy!There was a face-painting station, and Courtney was so excited - but then smeared the designs as soon as I finished. :-)Speaking of painting, my little Picassos created some masterpieces in the art room.Right outside the museum was a really cool water race - it was a fairly cold, gray day for it, but the kids loved it anyway.Thanks for stopping by!

Extreme Fun!

One thing the kids love to do is visit places with inflatable bouncy things! I've decided my favorite one around here is Extreme Fun - it has lots of bouncies, and none have age restrictions so Carter & Courtney can play together on everything - and best of all, the bouncies are all in one long row - easier to keep track of both kids that way, compared to the ones where they are arranged in a loop. Tuesdays and Thursdays are cheaper at Extreme Fun, so we like to focus our visits to those day. :-) (which is convenient since those are the days the kids don't have school!) They have tables you can use too, so we pack a lunch and hang out there until Courtney's naptime. Here are some photos...

Courtney couldn't decide which bouncy to play on first!Carter loves this big slide, so much fun to climb up and then go down FAST!Love this action shot of my little diaper butt. :-)And if you're wondering, the answer is YES - Courtney would wear her 80's sweater every single day if I let her, she LOVES IT! :-) Thanks for stopping by today!

Totally 80's Courtney!!

That's pretty much all I have to say about this...

Deb

For Christmas, Uncle Jon gave Carter a fish bowl with the promise that they would go together to the pet store and pick out a fish to live in the bowl. Well this was the day! Carter was so excited for his special outing, he waited at the window for Uncle Jon's arrival. He had never gone anywhere with just him and Uncle Jon before!Carter picked out a goldfish and named her Deb.He watched Uncle Jon transfer her to his bowl.Two hours later, Deb was floating. Or as I told Carter, Deb liked to sleep too much, so we needed a different fish... The next day I went and exchanged Deb for a blue betta who Carter named Dorothy, and so far Dorothy is still alive & kickin'...

RIP poor little Deb.

Lakeshore Learning Store

Today we took the kids to Lakeshore Learning Store, a relatively new store in Austin that has supplies for teachers and all kinds of educational toys. On Saturday mornings they have crafts for the kids to do - so it CAN be a fun, free outing, as long as you can get out of there without buying anything. We couldn't. :-) Here's Courtney making the craft.They also have a lot of the toys out of the packaging, so the kids can try them out. Carter had fun fishing for a bit.I really loved this store. I could easily spend a fortune there. It's probably best that I avoid it. LOL!

Kitty's Birthday Party!

Carter decided that today was Kitty's 4th birthday, so we had to throw a little party. Carter's friend from school, Aaron, and his parents were coming over for dinner anyway, so it was perfect timing for a birthday celebration.

The Dreaded Four Year Well-check

Carter turned four at the end of last month, so today he had to visit the doctor for his yearly exam. And this one was a doozie!! Two shots in each leg, PLUS bloodwork! I was not expecting the bloodwork!! Carter brought Kitty (his favorite stuffed friend) so that she could see the doctor too. I think this was the smartest move I've ever made as a parent - HA HA! It helped so much! And the nurse and doctor were so great about playing along. We got to weigh Kitty on the scale (she's 3.5 ounces, if you're curious!) and she had her ears checked and got a shot!! Kitty was brave for her shot. Carter, well - not so much. My poor sweetie. But, we got thru it. We went for ice cream after, and all was good in Carter's world once more.

Oh and fyi, Carter's stats were ~
Weight: 38.5 lbs (70th percentile)
Height: 41.5 inches (75th percentile)
BMI: 15.7 (55th percentile)

Here's Kitty getting her hearing checked:After the drawing of blood was finally over (UGH! I almost cried during this, it was awful!) I told Carter we could go for ice cream now, and he said "But *sob* I *sob* don't think *sob* I can go *sob* for iiiiiiiice cream!!" The poor kid was too upset for ice cream!! He didn't want his pants or his coat on, he thought they would hurt his shots too much. So despite our 30 degree weather today, I carried him to the car in just his shirt and undies, and convinced him it would be ok to drive thru "Old McDonald's" for the ice cream, and then eat it in the car. "Oh *sob* kay" So that's what we did!He was back to himself in no time. Aaaaah the healing powers of ice cream!

Evening playtime...

This week Carter's thing before been has been whipping up some mean grub in his new Play-Doh kitchen that Grandma & Grandpa got him for his birthday. Gotta love it when your kid loves the same toys that you did growing up! Well ok, we never had these fancy Play-Doh kitchens, but you know what I mean. Fun times!!

Hoppin' House

This week we visited Hoppin' House, one of those places filled with big inflatable bouncy things!! While bouncing was fun, what the kids enjoyed most was the big foam pit...

Family Photos at Hula Hut!

Monday was Papa's last night in Austin before flying back home to Michigan, so we all met at Hula Hut for a yummy dinner and a family photo! It turned out pretty good, considering three munchkins were involved. :-) Here we all are: me, Joel, Carter, Aunt Laura, Uncle Brad, Morgan, Grammy, Uncle Jon, Courtney and Papa. That's Lake Austin in the background behind us.I love this one of Carter and Grammy!I tried to get Courtney to sit for one with Papa, but by this time it was after dinner and she was ready to expire. When I finally got Courtney to look at me, PAPA wasn't looking!! Guess he was ready to expire too. :-)Bye bye Papa, we miss you!!

Outside Play

Just a typical day of play out in the backyard...

Somebody get this poor kid a sandbox!!Mommy, I wanna swing!!Ok, this is MUCH better.Carter tried out the new bat, ball & T he got for Christmas.He's a natural, he was hitting the ball across the yard in no time!My future major leaguer!!Even future major leaguers take time out to push their baby sister on the swing.I love my sweeties!!