12 months!

Wow....12 months old!! I cannot believe Carson is a year old already! I also cannot believe how much joy this little man has brought into our lives! It's hard for Nick and I to imagine our lives without our little guy.

A year ago, we were in a hospital, snuggling with our precious baby boy.



Now, we are chasing after our little walker, and hoping we get at least one snuggle in a day. :)

Carson is doing so many exciting things right now. He is:

-Walking all over the place! He also just started standing up on his own.

-Plays peek-a-boo with his hands, or by turning his head away and looking back at us again, or by hiding behind the couch and then popping out on the side with a big grin. :)

-He does "Soooo big" by himself. He tries to say "Soooo" with his arms in the air, and then brings his arms down on "big."



-Loves to "help" fold the laundry. :)

-Tries to say "banana," "cup," "dada," "so big," "all done," and other words that I can't think of right now. He babbles constantly, and loves to make other sounds like whistle, smack his lips, and roll his tongue like a Spaniard. :)

-He consistently signs, "more" and "all done" and is working on "please" and "drink."

-Loves swimming lessons, but is not so sure what to think about baby lapsit at the library. :)





-Shakes his head, "no thank you."

-Loves music and books.

-Is able to get several objects when we ask him to get them. (His receptive language impresses me each day!). It's amazing what he understands. :)

-He finished nursing on his 1st birthday, and now only drinks from a cup with a straw or a spout.

-Loves pretty much everything we feed him, except broccoli. :)



-Loves being outside.





Happy belated birthday Carson!! You are such a miracle, and we are so thankful for you!! We do not take for granted that God entrusted Carson to us. We are really trying to enjoy each stage he is at, because we know this season of life will not last forever, and one day, he will be in school, and then possibly off to college, and then hopefully one day married. So for now, we will just enjoy this stage of life. Happy belated birthday Carson!! :)

Walking!

We have a walker folks!! :)

Carson took 24 steps on his own tonight! For the past couple of weeks, Carson has been taking a few steps on his own, but tonight, Nick and I watched Carson walk away from us to go exploring, and he took 24 steps. :)

Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of him walking, but I will try to have the camera ready next time. :)

Man....we just love our little guy so much and can't believe he is almost 1 in a few days. :)

A Day in the Park

This past weekend, Nick and I took Carson to our favorite park in town called Weed Park.



Carson's first time on the swings...he absolutely loved it!:)



Carson in mid-swing...he giggled pretty much the whole time. :)



Walking like a big boy in the grass...not so sure what to think about the grass. :)



Family photo in the park. :)

If Carson could talk, he'd tell us to come back to the park next week. :)

11 Months!

Happy 11 months Carson!!



Carson is changing so much everyday. It's been so much fun to experience life through his eyes.

What Carson has been up to lately:
- crawls on his hands and knees.
- pulls up to a standing on just about anything, including mommy and daddy.
- walks/cruises along furniture.
- can stand on his own for a few seconds.
- can take a step toward me and Nick, and then falls on us.
- plays peek-a-boo.
- waves bye bye.
- babbles a lot. :)
- turns pages in books while we read to him. :)
- dances to music and when mommy and daddy sing.
- no longer eats baby food...just chopped up food.



Happy 11 months Carson!! We love you more and more everyday...we can't believe how fast you are growing up.

10 Months!

Happy 10 months Carson! I just can't believe how fast the time is going and what a big boy Carson is becoming.



This past month, Carson:
-eats pretty much all "big boy" food, just mashed up or cut into small pieces. The only food he doesn't really care for at this point is broccoli, so we will have to keep working on that one. :)
-pulls up to a standing position faster than the speed of light. :)
-walks/cruises from side to side while holding on to furniture.
-still does a very quick army crawl (more like the butterfly stroke in swimming), but does crawl on his hands and knees at times.
-signs "more" consistently.
-can stand on his own for a few seconds at a time.
-has 3 teeth...we call him our little hillbilly because he has only one tooth on the top. :)



Happy 10 months Carson...you are such a blessing to us, and we are so thankful for you!! :)

Happy 4th of July!

Carson attended his first parade on the 4th!



He did really well, but did not enjoy the loud noises of the marching band or car horns honking. Carson and I mostly hung out in the shade, while daddy fought for some candy. :) Let's just say Carson was more interested in my water bottle than the 4th of July parade...we still had a great time though. :)



On another note...Carson started signing "more" this weekend! We are really excited! I think it's pretty incredible that babies are able to communicate through sign language before they can verbally communicate.

All in all, it was a great weekend! :)

Baby Pool & Other Firsts

Yesterday, Carson swam/sat in his baby pool for the first time. He absolutely loved it! He especially loved to play with/chew on his bath toys, splash, and jump up and down in the water with mommy and daddy's help.





Also, since the day Carson turned 9 months, he started pulling himself up on furniture to a standing position. He also loves to imitate facial expressions, especially when someone says "oooohhhhh," clicks their tongue, and he can even whistle if someone whistles at him first. :) He also started clapping yesterday....so much fun!

We just love this little guy to pieces. :)

Happy Father's Day Daddy!

Happy Father's Day Daddy!



Thank you for loving me so much and for taking such great care of me. Thank you for changing my diaper every night before my bedtime and reading to me my favorite books with your silly voices. :) Thank you for giving me the best baths, for playing with me whenever you can, and building towers out of my blocks and plastic cups so that I can knock them over. You are the best daddy a boy could ask for...I am so blessed to call you my dad! You set such a great example for me of what a man of God looks like. You work so hard, and I hope I can be just like you. I can't wait to tell you how much I love you next year, but for now, this will do. :) I love you so much...Happy Father's Day!
Love, Carson (with help from mommy). :)

Also, Happy Father's Day to our dads! We love you both! :)

9 Months!

Wow...9 months already...where has the time gone?! I feel like each month keeps getting more fun with Carson!



This past month, Carson started doing so many new things! It's been so much fun to experience life through his eyes!

This past month, Carson started:
-army crawling everywhere...we can't take our eyes off of him for too long anymore :).
-eats cheerios with a pincher grasp.
-babbles a lot, and finally said "mama." :)
-eats stage 3 foods, and likes them all.
-can hold and drink from a sippy cup (a little help is needed at times). :)
-squeals and giggles when he is really excited.
-can get into a sitting position from his belly on his own.
-can stand on his own while holding on to something.
-loves going for walks in his stroller and being outside.
-does not like the feel of grass. :)
-will come and find me if I leave the room for a second. :)



Man...we love this little guy so much and are so thankful for him and the joy he has brought to our lives! We love you Carson...happy 9 months!! :)

Moo!

This past weekend, we went to visit our families so Nick could join the Martin men for free fishing weekend in Wisconsin. Here is my hubby's catch of the day...a 20-inch Walleye...way to go babe!



While Nick was out fishing with his family, Carson, Grandma, and I went to look at the cows.



Carson may be a bit too young to appreciate the complexity of the bovines. :)

8 Months!

Happy 8 months Carson...a few days late. :)

What Carson has been up to lately:

Carson continues to take 3 naps a day between 1 1/2- 2 1/2 hours and sleeps about 12 hours at night.

He sits really well on his own now! He can sit independently for about 15 min. at a time and then will topple over.

Carson pushes up on all fours, rocks back and forth, and lunges forward. He also started creeping forward this week, which has been so much fun to watch! We can no longer leave him in one spot and expect him to be there when we come back. :)

He is quite the little talker! He babbles and says: dada, baba, gaga, and a combination of those sounds. He hasn't said mama yet...but hopefully he will soon. :)

Carson is a thumb-sucker. He usually just sucks his thumb when he's tired and is ready for a nap.

We can't believe Carson is 8 months old already. It's amazing how fast the time goes and how big he is getting. We are really trying to enjoy every minute with him at each stage he is at. Happy 8 months Carson, we love you! :)

Mother's Day Weekend

This post is a little late...better late than never I guess. :)

I had a wonderful Mother's Day! We went to church in the morning, out to eat for lunch, and went for a walk as a family in the afternoon.

Here are some pictures from our walk with Carson.


Carson and mommy.


Carson and daddy.


Carson and mommy again.

Also, last Tuesday was my 27th birthday. My husband sure knows how to make a girl feel special. He came home from work during the day to surprise me with beautiful flowers, and he also planned a surprise dinner for just the two of us. He arranged for our friends, Mike and Andrea, to babysit Carson so we could have a date night in the Quad Cities. It was delightful, and Carson had a great time with the Gauss's :)

It was a great weekend and we are so thankful for the miracle of Carson. :)

Babadadababalala

Guess who started babbling this past week!!



He is quite the little talker! :)

Happy 1st Mother's Day Mom!

Mommy,

Thanks for being the best mom a young man could ask for! You make me feel so loved and you always feed me such good food. And, like some sort of superpower, you always know just the right time to put me down for a nap.



You really are the perfect mom, you loved me when I'd wake you up very late (or very early) and you always have so many smiles and kisses for me :)



I look forward to spending mother's day with you every year, but know that this one is my favorite so far. In fact, I'd like to award you "Mommy of the Year."

I love you and I look forward to our walk this afternoon. I hope you have a great day!

Carson (with help from Daddy)

7 Months!

Happy 7 months Carson!

What Carson has been up to lately:

• Carson now takes three 2-hour naps during the day, and then sleeps about 12 hours at night.
• He eats solid foods three times per day (along with nursing). So far, Carson has tried eating rice cereal, oatmeal, barley cereal, squash, green beans, and carrots. He seems to enjoy them all, but especially likes squash and carrots.
• Carson has 2 bottom teeth.
• Carson can wave "bye bye." This is pretty inconsistent yet, but he had a week where he waved "bye bye" about three times per day. :)
• He can sit up on his own for a few minutes at a time, and then he begins to tip over.
• Carson's favorite books right now are "Perfect Piggies" and "The Bear Snores On." We love how he giggles and smiles at the same parts in these books.

Happy 7 months Carson...we love you to pieces! (Pictures to come soon.)

Visitors

This weekend, my parents came to Muscatine for a visit! We'd like to say that they came to Muscatine to see Nick and I, but we think we know who they really came to see. :)

Thank you mom and dad for visiting us and helping us clean our house! We always have such a great time with you two, and Carson loved the attention from you both. :)

Home Sweet Home

Nick, Carson, and I moved into our house last Saturday!

Thank you so much to our friends who were so generous with their time to help us move into our home and get settled. Also, thank you to Katie for letting Carson nap at your house during the move! :) We appreciate all of your help so much!

We are so excited to make many more memories in our new home! :)

6 Month Stats

Yesterday, I took Carson to his 6-month check-up. Carson is now 17.12 lbs (75th percentile), and 27" long (75th percentile). Since his last appointment at 4 months, Carson has grown 2 inches, and gained 2 pounds...what a big boy! :)

Some other news...Nick and I are closing on our house tomorrow morning!! We are finishing up some packing and are planning to move into our house on Saturday morning. We are so excited to become homeowners...we can't wait! :)

UWEC Go Big Blue!

This past weekend, I got invited to the Division III National gymnastics competition at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. It was also the UWEC gymnastics alumni reunion. Here is a picture of the alumni that could attend the gymnastics meet.

Nick and I had a blast! It was so much fun to reunite with my college teammates and also watch some awesome gymnastics!

A Tooth!

Carson got his first tooth this past week! Which may explain why he puts just about everything into his mouth. :)

6 Months!

Happy 6 months Carson!!



Wow...where have the past 6 months gone! Nick and I can't believe Carson is 6 months old already.

What Carson has been up to lately:

• Carson nurses every four hours during the day, takes three 2-2 1/2 hour naps, and then sleeps about 12 hours at night.


• Carson ate rice cereal for the first time this morning, and did really well! If Carson takes after mommy and daddy, he won't have any trouble enjoying food. :)


• When I read to Carson on the floor, he now rolls over to lay on his belly to look at the pictures and listen to me read. I just love our reading time together!


• Carson now rolls over all of the time. He rolls over to reach for toys, during reading time, and while he sleeps. We think he may like to sleep on his stomach like mommy. :)


• He can sit up on his own for about 30 seconds at a time, and then he begins to tip over.


• Carson loves to squeal, giggle, and scream in a high pitch voice.


• When on his stomach, Carson sometimes brings his knees in, and pushes off the floor to move forward.

These past 6 months have been so awesome! Nick and I just can't believe how much we love Carson and being a family of three. We feel so blessed to get to parent Carson...he is such an awesome little guy! :)

The Real March Madness

As some of you in Muscatine may know, my husband and some of his friends started "Mustache March." As you can see from the picture, Carson (and mommy) is a little frightened. :)




Let's just say we are excited for April. :)

Guess Who?

Guess who has been sleeping for 12 straight hours for the past few nights?



Mommy and Daddy are so excited! :)

A House!

Hooray!! Nick and I bought a house!

Our home inspection is on Sunday, and if that goes well, we will officially be homeowners on April 1st!

We absolutely love the house! It has everything we were looking for in a home.

I have to say that I may get a bit nostalgic when moving out of our apartment. It has really become home to me over the past 3 and 1/2 years. Nick and I have shared such wonderful memories and many firsts together in this apartment. This was our first home together. We've shared three wedding anniversaries, and many dance parties in our kitchen (FYI-Nick is quite the dancer, as many of you know from any weddings you've attended with us). We've also cramped several of our friends in our living room to play games, and they were so kind and didn't complain that there was limited seating. I've set off many fire alarms due to my candle lighting (especially one pumpkin carving party) :), and this was Carson's first home. Many great memories here, but we are so excited to have a home of our very own, where we can finally paint. :)

Anyway, we are so excited, and have been praying for God's will and where He wants us to be. Hopefully if He doesn't want us to live in this home, the home inspection will go very badly, but we are hoping that this is where God wants us to be. :)

Rolling Machine.

Carson is a rolling machine! :)





For the past three days, Carson has been rolling over from his stomach to his back at least 10 times per day. He has been rolling over to reach for toys, and we also think he prefers to lay on his back. Way to go Carson...you are a rolling machine! :)

5 Months!

Happy 5 months Carson!

We can't believe our little guy is 5 months old today! Our world has changed so much since Carson was born, and we are so thankful!

This past month:

• Carson is on a 4-hour schedule, where he nurses every 4 hours during the day, takes three 2-2 1/2 hour naps, and then sleeps 10 hours at night.


• Carson has become fascinated with his voice this week. He loves to coo and scream loudly in a high pitch voice.


• He makes a lot of "wet razzing" sounds with his lips.


• He gets upset when we take a toy away that he is enjoying.


• He can sit on his own in a tripod position for a few seconds.


• He is ticklish. He giggles when we tickle his back, legs, stomach, and when we sing "This Little Piggy," while tickling his toes.


• Carson continues to love being read to, which makes me so happy!
  
  

These past 5 months have been amazing! Nick and I love experiencing life through Carson's eyes, and we can't wait to see what month 6 will bring. Happy 5 months Carson...we love you!

Great Weekend!

Nick, Carson, and I had a wonderful weekend together! Friday night, our friends Scott and Stacie offered to babysit Carson so Nick and I could have a date night together. Nick and I went to the Redstone Room in Davenport, to watch our friend Andy perform with the Andrew Landers Project. We had an awesome time listening to Andy and his band perform, and Carson had a great time with the Cochrans.

On Saturday, Nick and I went house hunting for the first time. About a year ago we got all of our debt/student loans paid off, thanks to Dave Ramsey, and we are finally ready to become homeowners. It was an exciting morning for us, but it sure is a lot to think about!

On Sunday, we went over to Mike and Andrea's house and watched the Superbowl game with a bunch of our friends from bible study. Nick enjoyed watching the game, and I pretty much chatted with the ladies the whole time. :) Carson sported his Packer gear and was all smiles. We were so excited that the Packers won! It was a sweet time with great friends!

Some of the guys...

Carson with his game face on :)

Packers Won Mom!