The Stinsons

June Recap 2011

2011-08-30T20:37:00.000-07:00

June was pretty uneventful around here, so this post is mostly going to be just a hodge podge of our life.

Lately the boys have been wanting me to take pictures of things they create or of funny faces they make just so they can see the pictures on the back of my camera and of course I oblige :) Here are a few things I was instructed to capture:

Parker's extremely long wall!

Carter's cheese face!

Sweet brother's just wanting a picture together!

And a little Mario Carts on the Wii! I especially like how it seems Carter knows exactly what he's doing when in reality his car was just going in circles :)

We made a trip over to the Splash Pad with Rachel and her girls only to get there and realize they weren't turning the fountains on because of inclement weather. But who says you have to have the fountains on to have a good time, definitely not our kiddos?

May 2011 | Recap

2011-08-18T16:44:00.000-07:00

May was jammed packed with all kinds of fun stuff! We had the Annual Chevron Family Baybears Game this month. The boys had a good time watching the game but it got pretty cool that evening so we left about half way through.

Parker had fun taking pictures with my camera at all the things we were seeing. As I looked through them most were of the backs of random peoples heads but he did manage to get a pretty good picture of the players on the field.

We also had Parker's last day of K-3 and Carter's last day of MDO in the 1 year old class this month. I absolutely loved both of their teachers this year and was sad to say good bye to them but we were also very excited about a little break during the summer!

These were some of the little goodies I made for their teachers end of the year gifts. The tutorial for the little apples came from here.

And the FREE printable note cards came from here. P.S. that site has some other really cute printables as well!

We also enjoyed a little beach trip with Bobby's parents this month. We had a great time playing on the beach and soaking up the sun!

While we were there we also went to the Gulf Shores Zoo. We'd never been before so I was a little unsure of what to expect but it was pretty nice. They had a lot of animals to look at and even feed and a small exhibit to pet kangaroos. The boys LOVED this! The zookeepers said to not make too many sudden movements and all I could think was Carter is one big sudden movement. He really surprised me though and he was actually very gentle with them! Although, I think one may have gotten a little aggravated with him because he kept trying to give it a hug but nobody got bit or malled so all was well :)

That same day we played a little put-put golf. The boys really enjoyed it. After we finished Bobby's mother and I thought a paddle boat ride would be fun...boy were we wrong. Once we get out in the middle of the little pond we quickly realized paddling that boat was no joke! Our thighs were killing us by the time we got out of that thing. Next time I'll leave the paddle boating to Bobby :)

I did a few mini sessions while we were at the beach and they turned out so cute I thought I'd do a little mini session with the boys, too! I got a few keepers but man, they are definitely my toughest subjects. In their defense I really shouldn't have started the pictures right before we went to dinner :p

Parker and I went crabbing the last evening we were there. Carter pooped out right before we were about to leave so we left him at the house with Papa. Now I have a rather unconventional method to catching crab. I like to spot the crab with my flash light then I proceed to squeal as loud as possible while frantically smacking down my net over said crab. As you can see my method works pretty well :)

Our water fun didn't end with the beach. When we got home Bobby blew up the slip-n-slide and the boys spent the afternoon running and jumping on it. I love Parker's face in these pictures. I got a ton of shots of him going down the slide over and over again and in every.single.one he is making this face, LOL!

I'll leave you with a Warning/Disclaimer: Do not let your child pick out your dog a new toy without first inspecting it, otherwise you may get home and realize it was meant for little dogs. That poor duck never stood a chance!

Recap | April 2011

2011-08-10T21:24:00.000-07:00

April was an extremely busy month this year. We went to a total of 4 egg hunts in about a 2 week period. The boys really knew what was going on this year at the egg hunts which made them that much more fun! We had to keep reminding Carter to look for eggs and stop eating the candy out of each egg before he picked up another one. We had so much candy by the time Easter came around I was sure the boys had a dozen cavities each!

The first egg hunt we went to the egg hunt was at Women's and Children's Hospital. They had lots of activities for the kids to do including face painting. Neither of the boys had ever had their faces painted and they loved it! Parker was a bit apprehensive about it at first but when he saw a friend of his had gotten his done Parker was all in.

The next egg hunt we went to was at the Goldman's with our supper club group. We are beyond blessed to have such an amazing group of friends! All the guys work at Chevron together and its been so much fun seeing each family grow the last 6 years or so!

Next we had our annual Playdate Egg Hunt at Julie's. The kids had a blast running around together, finding eggs, and seeing what kind of loot each other got while the mommies socialized. Aren't they a good looking bunch!

And lastly, Easter morning! We got dressed and enjoyed a wonderful service at church proclaiming our RISEN Savior! All the kids met in the fellowship hall and had a special little program and when I asked Parker what they had talked about he shouted "JESUS IS ALIVE!". My soul rejoiced!

After church we headed to Lucedale and had an AMAZING lunch with some of Bobby's family. After lunch we had a little egg hunt for all the kids and just relaxed and enjoyed each others company! Its always so much fun to spend time with them. Its really sad we don't make it over there more often.

We decided this year to not really do the Easter Bunny, per se'. We didn't tell them that he doesn't exist or anything like that we just told them on Easter morning they would be getting gifts from us just like Jesus did when He gave his life for us. One of those gifts was this nifty little sprinkler. Parker LOVED it and still does...

but Carter wasn't really feeling it ;)

I'll give you a guess as to who Parker was aiming that stream at...little stinker!

This month Parker also had his musical program at school. As a mother I live for these moments! I don't think there's anything much cutier than getting a bunch of children together and listening to them sing. PRECIOUS! Parker had this blank expression on his face most of the program but I did see him sing the majority of the songs so I was pleased.

Isn't he just the cutest little 3K preschooler you've ever seen?!?!

And his teacher Mrs. Sherry was so wonderful! She has such a special way with the children and Parker just adored her.

We also made a trip over to the splash pad this month. The weather had gotten warm enough to get in the water but not so hot that felt like I was going to melt into a little puddle on the pavement while they played.

And last but not least a couple random pictures just because. Isn't he a little cutie pie!

Bobby taught Parker how to burn leafs with a magnifying glass. Luckily for my sanity they're not able to hold the magnifying glass still enough to actually burn the leaf without one of us helping them...yet!

We had a wonderful April, busy but WONDERFUL!

Recap | March 2011

2011-08-08T21:42:00.000-07:00

Poor sad and neglected blog :( I've been working so hard on getting things at my photography blog up and going that I let this blog get VERY behind! Well, I hope to change that right now. Since I'm behind on several months I thought the easiest thing would be to do month by month recaps. A recap of the month = MANY pictures, so here we go :)

We left off with Mardi Gras, so I think that's as good a place as any to pick up. We went to one parade and watched from the Hargrove building downtown. I will ONLY watch the parades there from now on! It was wonderful being up there, away from the crowd. On top of that, in between the parades we went downstairs into the basement where Hargrove put out an amazing spread of food and even had a little area for kids to color and watch a movie!

The boys LOVED it and my friend, Lindsay and I could even enjoy the parades without having to worry if our children would be run over by other parade goers or get hit in the face by beads (believe me that is no fun!).

When we got home Parker got very creative with what he could make using all the beads we caught and when he decided on a road I thought a city was definitely in order! Can you see his little car noise face, LOVE IT!

March is a rather odd month weather wise in Mobile. You can be dressed like this...

or bundled up like this one day, then the next....

be on the beach playing in the sand :) I will admit we were a bit chilly that day but we had a blast playing in the sand and being out in the sun shine after being cooped up in the house all winter long!

Here are just a few other things we did or learned this month:

Paper airplanes are FUN and daddy can make some pretty good ones!

Parker pretty much mastered writing/spelling his name all by himself!

He's also becoming quite the "photographer"!

My baby has learned to jump and get both his feet off the ground!

And that he's becoming less and less of a baby everyday :(

Camping in the backyard = a GOOD time!

Bobby and I use to camp some while we were dating so we thought we'd test the boys on their camping trip readiness by having a practice trip in the backyard. We concluded that while they didn't do horribly we may not be quite ready for a full fledged trip yet. We also decided that when we do camp out again well make sure its not on a night when the moon was the fullest/brightest its been in 100 or so years! The boys had a blast though! They played in the tent all afternoon and asked a billion times when we were going to sleep. I don't think I've ever seen them so eager to go to bed :) They fell asleep quickly but poor Carter had a hard time staying that way because every time he'd move his new spot would be really cold so he woke up quite a bit. All in all though, it was a lot of fun!

We even had a little cook out with all the fixings...

and a picnic!

Then right before bed we roasted marsh mellows and made s'mores. Carter was a mighty good at making sure daddy got the fire going correctly ;)

Despite a rather restless nights sleep for Bobby and I, we had a great time at our little camp out!

Throw Me Something Mister!!!

2011-03-05T21:12:00.000-08:00

Has it really been over a month since I posted last on this blog? We haven't had a very eventful Feb. except for a cold that wouldn't leave our home but I think we're finally all starting to feel better.

This past week Parker had his Mardi Gras parade at school. To say he was excited is a bit of an understatement. Last weekend we went to a little parade a local neighborhood put together and that's all it took for him to realize Mardi Gras parade's = all kinds of goodies to bring home! He was so excited that now it would be his turn to throw out the goodies...that was until he realized he wouldn't be wearing the mask he'd made earlier in the week at school. This resulted in absolutely no smiles. Oh well, he was still the cutest little parade thrower I've ever seen!

This little guy however, was full of smiles! He was SO ready to catch some beads!

I love that they were able to pick out the costume they wanted to wear! If I were able to choose for him its exactly what I would have picked! PS: I just love that forced smile ;)

Look at the turn out! So much fun!

Carter's Birthday(s)

2011-01-26T20:59:00.000-08:00

Carter ended up having 2 birthday celebrations this year because I kind of let his party planning get lost in the Christmas time shuffle. Poor Carter! I'm afraid his plight in life will be that he was born 2 weeks after Christmas. I vow next year to start planning his party in Nov.

We had planned to have his party on his actual birthday but because I waited to the last minute to 1. decide where we were having it and 2. make the call to reserve our spot we had to have it on the Sat. after his birthday. To make up for it we took him and Parker to the Exploreum and then out to lunch. Here are some pictures from our morning.

He had a great time! I even scored him some free desert at lunch. I know our waiter probably thought I was lying when I said "its his birthday today!" and pointed to Carter but oh well!

The next weekend we had his party at the Watermelon Patch. He had all of his favorite friends there minus a few that couldn't make it. We frequent the Watermelon Patch for playdates a good bit and Carter always has a blast so I knew it would be the perfect place for his party and boy was I right! He had a GREAT time!

Happy Birthday Carter Evan! We love you so much and can't wait to celebrate many more years with you!

Rub-a-dub-dub

2011-01-23T21:25:00.000-08:00

So, I told myself I wouldn't post these pictures before Carter's party pics but I just got done editing them and I'm so stinkin' excited about how they turned out I just couldn't wait to post them. I'm planning on doing some sort of collage on the boy's bathroom of a selection of these but I haven't decided on which ones yet.

Happy Birthday Carter!

2011-01-08T21:01:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that in just two short years Carter has gone from this sweet cuddly newborn to...

...this precious little boy!

There aren't enough words to express the joy and love he's brought to our family! Over the last two years its been so fun to watch him grow into the sweet, funny and smart little guy that he's become. Even though he was a little slow to start talking you wouldn't know that now. He's vocabulary grows more and more every day (especially within in the last few months) and he's really starting to copy words we want him to try to say. It won't be long before he's talking our ears off! He even knows several letters (B, D, E and O) and will point them out on signs as we drive around town. Within the last week I've even noticed him starting to work on recognizing different colors, yellow seems to be his favorite (just like Parker). Smart little boy!

Its also been fun to see his and Parker's relationship grow over the last 2 years. They know how to push each others buttons (they are brothers after all) but sometimes I'm amazed at how well they get along. I love to hear Parker ask Carter if he wants him to play something with him and Carter will almost always give a very enthusiastic "YEAH"!

We've been blessed beyond anything we ever dreamed or deserve when God sent us this sweet little boy! Happy Birthday Carter Evan!!! We love you more than you will ever know!

You've got a Friend in Me...

2010-12-29T06:41:00.000-08:00

We've been doing some major Toy Story watching around here lately! And now thanks to Uncle Joey we don't have to just watch it on tv anymore! Instead we can have "reenactments" right here in our very own living room! Now to introduce the cast of characters

Buzz Lightyear!

He's known as one of the coolest toys ever and best friend to our second major character.

Woody!

He's the rootinist' tootinist' cowboy in the wild, wild west!

See what good friends they are!

Oh, no! It looks like Buzz has caught wind of some danger!

Look at Woody go! The Evil Genius isn't going to get him this time!

I'm proud to say they both lived to fight another day and remain friends til the end!

Christmas Portraits

2010-12-26T20:14:00.000-08:00

When I do a planned portrait session with the boys I really try to be very easy going about the whole thing which I must confess is rather difficult for me. I keep telling myself sometimes the silliness in the pictures at this age will only help me remember later in life what they're little personalities were really like.

I even got Callie in on the Christmas portrait action! She's so good about letting me do anything to her. I think she's quickly beginning to be my favorite subject!

The pictures of her were taken with my Christmas present from Bobby and the boys!!! I can't say enough about how great it is! I loved my old camera and it was perfect for getting started in the digital SLR world but I think the canon 60D is going to be just what I need to take my photography to the next level!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T13:56:00.000-08:00

Christmas Parade

2010-12-20T13:55:00.000-08:00

When I lived in Auburn we went to the City's Christmas Parade every year. I was even in it a time or two if I remember correctly. Anyway, since being in Mobile I'd hadn't made it to a single Christmas Parade. That is until this weekend! I loaded up the boys and we made our way downtown despite the rather chilly temperatures. Here's a peak at what we saw!

Enjoying a little lunch before the parade started rolling.

If you're wondering why Parker has such a concerned look on his face its because he didn't like that I was standing in the street while taking the picture. The whole time he was telling me "Mommy you not soppse to be in da road. A car might hit you!" My sweet cautious boy!

I think Carter was a little overwhelmed by everything. He kept a very straight face most of the time but I did see him bouncing a little to the beat as the marching bands passed by.

To say the boys loved the parade is an understatement! We will definitely be adding Mobile's Christmas parade to the list of our yearly Christmas traditions!

Our Newest Member, Thanksgiving and Dylan

2010-12-20T13:03:00.000-08:00

I'd planned on doing a post for each of these but as its almost Christmas and I'm just now getting around to recapping our Thanksgiving it'll be July before all our Christmas is up so hence the all encompassing post :)

I'll start with Thanksgiving. We went home for the entire week and it was nice having the time to really relax and enjoy our family. The boys had a great time soaking up all the grandparents spoiling ;)

While we were home I wanted to take some fall pictures of the boys for our Christmas card so we took them to the train station in Opelika. They were not super cooperative and it was pretty cold but I managed to get a few keepers!

One of my favorite parts of the entire trip was meeting my newest nephew Dylan Alan Baker! He is such a cutie pie and a very sweet baby! Well, just see for yourself!

And last but not least I'd like to introduce the newest member to the Stinson household....

CALLIE!!!

All Parker asked for for his birthday was a dog. We kept telling him we can't have a dog right now being that the house is on the market but when we move we'd talk about getting one. Weeellll...my sister decided that she wouldn't be able to keep their dog after she had Dylan so Bobby and I discussed and thought we could take her even though we're in crazy circumstances right now. I'm SO glad we did. She is the best dog and the boys are HEAD OVER HEELS in love with her. Carter gives her about 20 hugs a day and Parker tells her all kinds of things as if she's human and knows exactly what he's talking about. They're really so sweet with her and I think the feelings pretty mutual!

Cookies with Mrs. Claus

2010-12-18T19:03:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine took her little boy to make cookies with Mrs. Claus last year and ever since I saw the pictures and heard her talk about how much fun it was I was DYING to take the boys! I knew Parker would love it but I wasn't quite sure how Carter would do. We had a great time but I think I may have overestimated Carter a bit, well just take a look for yourselves.

They were decorating the boxes! Can you see Carter about to get into his cookies? I had to quickly stop him only to have him act like...

...this for the majority of our visit ;)

All was well again when Mrs. Claus came around and said he eat the frosting off his cookies with his finger.

I'm not sure Parker knew what to think about Mrs. Claus :)

But what I do know is he had a blast decorating and...

...eating his cookies!

I'm so thankful for my sweet friend Julie who to took/let me take the pictures in this post! I'm not sure how it happened but when I got to the shop the battery in my camera was completely dead.

Even though the cookie making was a little harry, we'll definitely be making this a yearly tradition!

Washington Square

2010-11-20T17:25:00.000-08:00

I've been looking for a new place to take picture of the boys so a friend told me about Washington Square. I was looking for a park or something that had some of those beautiful fall trees I've been seeing around town and while the square didn't have any trees like that in it, there were a couple in the yards surrounding the park. The houses lining the park's boarders were beautiful. I just LOVE old southern homes and this square was in no shortage of them. It also had some beautiful oak trees with low swinging branches that Parker had a blast hanging from. I really didn't even plan on taking any pictures while we were there but I grabbed my camera on the way out just in case! Take a look at some of my just in case shots! Although I love the way Parker looks in these pictures I must confess, I tried something new with my camera when I took these pictures and I'm not really sure why but they came out a little grainy. Needless to say I won't be using that setting again ;)

Around and around

2010-11-17T20:53:00.000-08:00

Ring around

the rosie,

pocket full

of posies.

Ashes!

We all fall

DOWN!!!

Hodge Podge

2010-11-17T20:18:00.000-08:00

This is going to be a hodge podge post if there ever was one. Nothing too exciting has been going on around here other than we FINALLY put our house on the market!!! I'm excited and rather nervous about keeping everything nice and clean for showings but I guess it'll be what it'll be!

Since that's pretty much catches everybody up on our lastest and greatest I thought I'd leave y'all with a few, okay several, new pictures of the boys!

We've had some good times at the park,

Made some faces that I LOVE,

Gave a few super heroes a run for their money,

And a even snuck in a wheel barrow ride!

I guess with normal fun like this who needs too exciting :)

Trick or Treat!

2010-11-02T13:42:00.000-07:00

We had a very busy but super fun Halloween! We're in the process of getting the house ready to put on the market so most of the weekend was spent doing odd jobs around the house but we did take some time out to dress up and get a little candy. We got the boys in their costumes and took them to the Kid's Fest at Cottage Hill Baptist Church. While I think they had a good time, there was so much to do and I think they got a little overwhelmed with it all so we came home and did a little trick or treating at a few of our neighbors' houses.

In case you can't tell Parker was a shark and Carter was a scuba diver! After looking in a magazine with Parker to get an idea of what he wanted to be he saw a shark costume and fell in love with it. When I saw one at TJ Max I just had to get it for him! Then the trouble came of what to do about Carter's cosutme. I knew I wanted them to coordinate but I was having a really hard time coming up with something when Bobby said "what about letting him be a scuba diver". I thought it was a great idea but knew I'd never be able to find one in his size so Bobby and I made enitre costume ourselves and I think it turned out pretty darn cute. We even had someone take a picture of Carter at the Kid's Fest and tell us we needed to enter them in a contest of some sort, LOL!

Pumpkin Patch Portraits

2010-11-02T13:13:00.000-07:00

We made our annual trip to the Pumpkin Patch last week and the boys had a great time. The weather was so nice and crisp that I think the boys could have run around looking at pumpkins all day long! I got some pretty cute portraits of them while they explored the many different pumpkins at the patch this year.

Happy 4th Birthday Parker!

2010-10-19T08:19:00.000-07:00

I didn't want to start this post saying my usual "I can't believe he's already 4" but SERIOUSLY I can't believe Parker, my first percious baby, is already 4!!! Time is just flying by...it makes me SO sad! Parker is beyond a blessing! He's such a sweet hearted little boy and has such a pleasing attitude, well most of the time ;) I just LOVE him to pieces! I mean just look at this face! What's not to love?!?!

We had Parker's birthday party at our house this past weekend. I thought a carnival themed party would be fun so we rented a bouncy house and had a few carnival games set up in the backyard.

The boys had a lot of fun wrestling in the bouncy house after it was set up the morning of the party!

Parker showing his skills with the "knock down the cans" game.

He was actually pretty good at knocking them down. He liked playing it so much we still have it set up in the backyard! :)

I made cupcakes for the party. Parker picked the yellow frosting which didn't surprise me at all considering he loves anything yellow!

Cole playing the "Corn Hole" game!

Some of Parker's little friends and their mommies having a carnival dinner (hot dogs and popcorn)!

Everyone singing happy birthday to Parker. He looks thrilled, huh? haha!

I think he had a pretty fun little party, filled with lots of friends, family and laughter! What more could a 4 year old little boy want :)

Beach Portraits

2010-09-25T19:46:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures I took of the boys while we visited Bobby's parents at the beach this weekend. Bobby was suppose to join us but they had an issue at work he had to help with so he didn't make it in the pictures :( On a happy note, I was able to get a picture with the boys!

Sweet 'Stache

2010-08-08T20:29:00.000-07:00

My dear husband is currently working a rather big shut down right now. The way I know its big is 1. because he told me, 2. he's been working a lot and he's the supervisor which means he's not suppose to "work" shut downs anymore and 3. because there are several other guys working on this with him. Now I'm not sure who to thank for this SUPER idea but Bobby and several other guys he's working this shut down with decided it would be a GREAT "team building experience" to all grow mustaches together. I personally love how they call it team building when really we all know they just wanted an excuse to see what they'd look like with a mustache. They're going to grow it until the shut down is over, which should be just another week, and then shave them off! I cannot wait! While its given me quite a few chuckles over the last few weeks, its starting to take over our house. Well, just see for yourself!

The both boys LOVED wearing the 'staches daddy made for them! Carter kept walking around the house saying "Yaook! Yaook!" I could barely take clear pictures because I was laughing so hard!

There's never a dull moment around here :)

Fairhope Fun

2010-07-31T14:05:00.000-07:00

Bobby's been working a lot lately with a shut down and once again this weekend are left Daddyless. The boys are really missing him so today I decided we need to get out of the house and go somewhere new! We made our way over to the bay then walked the Fairhope pier and played on the beach! Even though it was sirring hot the boys had a great time! Here's a few pictures I took of the guys taking everything in.

I totally forgot to post this...

2010-07-26T22:34:00.000-07:00

I started writing this post several weeks ago as a Week in Rewind post but never finished it. I almost erased it but thought it was far too funny not to share! Enjoy!

Carter's had a really rough time getting to sleep and then staying asleep this past week which means he'd usually end up in the bed with us, (seriously I have no idea how people sleep with their kids on a regular bases). Unfortuantely it wasn't just a night time problem either. He was having some trouble getting to sleep at nap time, too. Well, last wed. I put him down for a nap and he stood at the end of his crib and cried for about 5 mins. and then stopped but was still standing up. I watched him off and on for about 15 mins on our video monitor and noticed he had turned around with his back to the side of the crib just standing there. Then he decides to sit down and I thought to myself "finally, maybe now he'll lie down and go to sleep". Well, I start really looking at him because I noticed his head was down and he was breathing so deep it was making his head bob up and down and then it hit me...he was asleep SITTING UP!!! It totally cracked me up! I thought about sneaking in his room and lying him down but ever since we repainted his door and door frame it pops really loudly when you open it. So, as to not risk waking him up I just left him alone. He sat that way for at least 20mins and at one point I even saw him about to fall over but he caught himself and sat back up. Here's a picture of him on the monitor. Its somewhat hard to make out but he's sitting up in the upper left hand corner of the monitor screen.

Can you see him, haha?

18 Months, WHAT?!?!

2010-07-11T19:00:00.001-07:00

How is it possible that my baby is already 18 months!?!? Its as if we went to sleep one night and when we woke up he was no longer that cuddlie little infant we brought home from the hospital. Although I'm pretty sad about not having those sweet infant smells around, I have to say this is one of my favorite ages. He's not quite in the throws of the terrible 2s yet but is really starting to figure things out and understanding more and more. He's still pretty sweet, too! He'll be playing on the floor and all of the sudden he'll climb up in the chair where I'm sitting just to give me a hug...my heart swells everytime!

He doesn't have a whole lot of words other than dada, nana (that's mean mama), eera (here), and ook (look) but he understands a ton! He knows we say the blessing before meals and will fold his little hands while Parker says grace then he'll call my name over and over again until I ask him to say amen, too. It sounds nothing like amen but its sweet that he wants to say it. He wants to do everything Parker does and for the most part Parker's pretty good about letting him play along with him. He's also picked up some of Parker's not so favorable behaviors lately. One of which involves a hitting motion followed by a "nah (no)". He thinks its pretty funny and I must admit I've had to bite my lip several times in order to keep from laughing! He's just so cute its hard not to let out a little giggle :) I do realize I'm going to have to get this under control because very soon its not going to be so funny or cute. He's also learned (with the help of Parker) most of his body parts such as: nose, ear, hair, mouth, tounge, arm, hand, leg, foot, chest and belly to name a few. Along with his body parts he can tell you what the elephant, dog, cat, sheep and dionsaur say...the elephant noise is my favorite! My baby's becoming such a big boy!

4th of July

2010-07-07T19:00:00.000-07:00

This year I was pretty excited about the 4th of July. I knew both boys were finally old enough to be in awe of the fireworks and could stay up late enough to watch them. This year was going to be good!

That afternoon we set off a few smoke bombs Bobby bought earlier in the week.

He also picked up a couple boxes of poppers and the boys had a great time throwing them all over the patio in the backyard.

I also tried to take some pictures of the boys in their 4th/summer outfits. I decided I didn't want to make anything too 4th of Julyish so they could wear it for the rest of the summer and the crabs fit the bill!
*Side note: I could barely get them to sit next to each other let alone look at me and smile so sorry Carter has his whole hand in his mouth but you take what you can get ;)

We'd also decided it would be fun to take the boys to see the firework show at the USS Battleship down on the bay. We were all set to go! Carter had taken a late nap and I had even convinced Parker to take a nap that day (something he hasn't done in a few months now)! Well, about 30 mins before we left there was a torrential downpour! We were really worried it would rain again as soon as we got down there so instead we took a drive across the bay. We had an amazing view of both the Mobile and Daphne fireworks as we drove across the bridge! The boys LOVED it! I tried to get a few pictures of some of the fireworks, but with the car bumping so much they were all really blurry.

When we got home we shot off some more of the fireworks Bobby bought. Parker was a little hesitant about holding the sparklers at first but Bobby was able to talk him into it and by the time we were ready to go in he was holding it all by himself.

We also got out a couple of the fountain rockets but only shot one of them off. After we realized how loud the first one was we thought we probably would've been run out of the neighborhood if we lit the other one being as late as it was.

Even though we didn't get to do all we had planned this 4th we still had a GREAT weekend! We are so blessed to live in a place where we can have fun times like these in freedom and safety! Happy 4th of July!

Watermelon Festival

2010-07-05T15:13:00.000-07:00

We've had a pretty busy 4th of July weekend and while I'll post more about our actual 4th festivities first I wanted to share about the fun we had at the Watermelon Festival in Grand Bay. I heard about it through a local blogger who was posting fun things to do along the gulf coast this weekend. I didn't really know what to expect but the advertisement said free watermelon and I thought well if nothing else at least we'll get a little treat! I was actually pleasantly surprised by what all they had going on! The boys had a lot of fun playing in the bouncy houses, riding the little trackless train and checking out the petting zoo. There were also a couple local musical groups playing in a pavilion on the edge of the grounds and several crafters had booths set up selling some very cute handmade items.

I love the way the watermelon looks all piled up just begging for people to come eat up its sweet and juicy goodness.

Carter was more than happy to oblige the calls of the melon (and the man that kept yelling "COME GET THIS MELON!!!") but Parker...not so much :)

We also enjoyed a little fair food and...

a little sharing ;)

I think I need to add a porch and railing to our "musts for the next house" list just so I have a reason to get some of these cute little bunting flag!

Although I was a little apprensive about the festival, I'm really glad we went! The boys were in a super mood and we couldn't have asked for nicer weather! Just the type of fun we needed to round out our 4th of July weekend!

Froggy Jump

2010-07-02T14:35:00.000-07:00

Like most boys, mine are very intrigued by any and all little creepy crawlies, squirmy wormies or hippity hoppities that inhabit our back yard. Pretty much any little creature that creepeth across the yard is a wonder to these two little guys. This morning was no exception!

Its a little hard to see but the frog is right under Carter's hand upside down!

Can you tell Carter was bit excited about Mr. Froggy's visit!

This guy was pretty excited, too!

Thanks Mr. Froggy for making two little boys' morning!

School Time: Week 3

2010-06-28T12:36:00.000-07:00

Another week down means another post about our school time this past week! This week went much better planning wise. I was able to get Parker's stuff together every evening without much thought which makes for a much easier "school" day.

I also ordered a couple books

and a learning calendar (which I really like).

We had been using this bible

and while I like it, it doesn't have quite enough detail for Parker's age. Its great for younger kids that won't sit still for long because there are only a couple of sentences per page but Parker needs a bit more story to keep his interest. I had seen several blogs go on and on about how great the Jesus Storybook Bible is and they were RIGHT! I LOVE this bible! It reads just like any other children's book would and has beautiful illustrations. It also references how each Bible story ties into Jesus's life. If you don't have a children's bible for your preschooler I highly recommend it! The ABC Bible Verses is the book Parker's preschool program is formed from and I really like the stories in it. Each explains the corresponding bible verse in a very child friendly way without watering it down. I think its helping Parker understand what some of his memory verses really mean instead of being just words he has to memorize.

Also, I realized this week I've never posted a picture of our school board I made. Its pretty much exactly like the board over at 1+1+1 but without the pocket on the front (sorry for how dark the picture is, it was pretty cloudy when I took it).

Now onto our school stuff:
Letter: Hh
Number: 3
Color: Blue
Sight Word: "and"
Bible Verse: "Honor your Father and you Mother." Exodus 20:12
Bible Story: The 10 Commandments

I was finally brave enough to take some pictures of Parker doing a little cutting. I got the practice cutting sheet here and while I like it, I think it was a little too advanced for Parker's current cutting skills.

He did much better when cutting his memory verse so I may make a couple cutting sheets of my own with simpler lines.

He also worked on stringing some pasta on a pipe cleaner (this was actually one of Carter's trays but Parker begged to do it and Carter wasn't too interested so I let him).

Here he's working on his 1:1 counting the Pom Pom Number cards.

I gave him this sheet to work on while I did a little sewing one afternoon. I thought he'd have no problem with it considering he'd done one like it before so I left him to it. When he said he was all done I turned around and he'd stuck all the letters onto the little "h" side, oops. After I told him what he was suppose to do he got aggravated and wanted to go onto something else which was just fine. We did come back to it later on in the week and he fixed with little help. Also, excuse my son's dirty leg! I promise we do give baths around here...sometimes ;)

I've been meaning to post the Now I Know My ABC's letters we've been making but I keep forgetting to take a picture of them before we take the book back to the library, that is until now!

Carter's working on spooning. He's worked on this one before but this week he was actually able to get a couple on his spoon all by himself.

He also worked with the Monkeys in a Barrel. He had a pretty hard time getting them to hang by himself so he didn't spend very much time with these.

Well, I think that about sums it up! I'm hoping to do a Week in Rewind post later today so be on the look out for it!

Preschool School and Tot School

2010-06-21T10:45:00.000-07:00

This past week we kept things pretty light in the school department. This was due to poor planning on my part. I thought doing my planning on the weekends for the next week would work but the planning is taking a little longer than I thought. I've decided to do a couple weeks in advance that way I don't feel overwhelmed with it every Sunday night. We were able to complete the entire lesson plan for this week but didn't do much beyond that (as is pretty evident by the lack of pictures). Poor Carter hardly had any trays to do this week and the ones he did do I didn't get any pictures of them :(

I promise this won't be the case for the next two weeks. I already have both weeks planned out and all but a few projects put together. I think my goal will be to have 3 weeks done in advance! I also need to get my "stuff" organized a little better so putting it out every evening won't be a chore. Anyways, onto the important stuff.

We worked on the following things this week:

Letter: Tt
Number: 2
Color: Blue
Sight Word: :the"
Bible Verse: "Thou shall not steal." Exodus 20:15
Bible Story: The 10 Commandments

Parker's working on a color puzzle I made for him.

Here he's practicing the lines that it takes to make a "T" on his Getting Ready for T sheet.

Now onto the real thing! He did much better this week taking his time and trying very hard to stay on the tracing lines.

As with the first week he is blowing me away with how easily he is picking up his sight words! The easy reader this week incorporated this week's and last week's sight word so he was able to read most the words all by himself!

I did an assessment with Parker this week to see how much he already knew and what we needed to work on. Overall I was pretty impressed with what he already knew especially when it came to how many little letters he already knew considering we haven't worked on very many of them yet. There were a few things he needs a bit more practice with or some reminders on.

Parker's preschool program can be found here and Carter's Tot School ideas came from here. Also, here is a list of the blogs/websites I get most of my ideas or printables from in case you were wondering:

Confessions of a Homeschooler - she has a wonderful preschool program. I use a lot of her printables to supplement the program I'm doing with Parker from 1+1+1=1.

Totally Tots - so far I'm only using this site for their "Now I Know My ABCs" posts. I can tell they have some great stuff beyond this but I haven't had a chance to really go through it yet.

Making Learning Fun - GREAT free printables!

DLTK's - another wonderful printables site!

I hope that gives you all a few resources to start doing some "school" with your kids!

Sweetness!

2010-06-14T20:35:00.000-07:00

Just when I think having boys means a shortage in the sweetness department God blesses me with moments like these!

Praying Hands

Sweet Snuggles

Big Hugs

Schools In Session!

2010-06-13T20:27:00.000-07:00

While most of the country is out of school for the summer here at the Stinson house hold we're just starting back up! As you'll remember we tried to do a little of this while I was pregnant but with being pregnant and then having a newborn I didn't keep up with it like I wanted to/should have. I now feel like I have the time to get everything together and with both boys able to do "school" its been that much more fun to plan and do. I'm using the preschool curriculum from 1+1+1=1 and her workboxes idea for Parker. For Carter I'm also using the 1+1+1=1 blog but with him I'm doing the Tot Trays and Tools from her Tot School section. They are LOVING it! Over the weekend Parker probably asked a dozen times each day if he could do school today! This week we worked on:

Letter - L

Number - 1

Sight word - see

Bible verse - Matthew 5:16

Bible Story - Daniel in the Lions Den

Want to see exactly what we've been doing?

Parker reading from his Easy Reader for the Letter "L". I was amazed at how quickly he picked up on his first sight word "see"!

Working on his road letter. He put the cars on it at first (you can see a couple next to his arm) but took them off and starting drawing on it before I could take a picture.

These are Pom Pom Numbers I made to help Parker with number recognition and counting. He needs a good deal of work with counting 1:1.

He really enjoyed these!

We also worked on his gluing and cutting skills. I took pictures of the gluing but I was a little too stressed during the cutting exercises to take any pictures ;)

We also got out the playdoh just for a little fun! This was Carter's first time playing with playdoh and of course he immediately took a bite of it when I wasn't looking. After he realized it didn't taste very good he didn't try that anymore!

Parker also worked on his fine motor skills with transferring cotton balls with tongs. These are some of the Tot School Tools I mentioned above. I'm using some of them for Parker as well as Carter.

Carter working on pouring from one container to another.

Here he's trying to string pasta on a pipe cleaner. He had a rather hard time and wanted me to help him a lot with this one.

He did far better with this activity than I thought he would. To make this tool I took a old bread crumb container and punched holes in the top with a hole punch so he can stick pipe cleaners through the holes. All the pipe cleaners are different colors so when he starts recognizing colors we can add that level of difficulty to this exercise.

When I did school with Parker before I found that he didn't want to sit still for long while doing our bible study but I saw on this blog where she introduces rather important information to her kids while they eat lunch, GENIUS! I decided breakfast would be a perfect time for us and I was right. They both have been listening really well to the story and Parker actually wanted to talk about the story a little after its over. This was also I good time to work on his memory verse. I was worried this week's verse was going to be a little too much for him to remember but he actually surprised me by only needing help with a couple of words by the end of the week, WOW!

I can not tell you how much fun we are having with our "school" time! I feel like its given us a little more structure to our day while having LOTS of fun together!

This picture really has nothing to do with school but I just thought it was sweet. Parker's been teaching Carter how to sing and dance to London Bridge is Falling Down and they both get such a kick out of falling down together! Too Cute!

I'm hoping to be able to post our school fun weekly so stay tuned!

Its beginning to look a lot like SUMMER!!!

2010-05-20T07:48:00.000-07:00

I have been rather neglectant of my little blog and although I should probably do a post to catch everyone up I'm not. Instead I'm going to do it on our splash pad trip!

One of the many things I love about spring/summer in the south is that it comes early and last a LONG time. We've been making the most of these rather warm days by soaking up the sun and the water!

Easter Portraits

2010-03-31T11:52:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to taking some "portraits" of the boys with my new camera! I took these pictures a few weeks ago in their Easter outfits but with all the sewing I've been doing lately I just now finished editing them. I really like the shots I got but think I may go back in a couple of weeks when the garden is really in bloom!

Just Like Daddy

2010-03-27T20:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday evening Bobby went outside to do a little yard work and Parker went out with him. When Bobby pulled out the lawn mower Parker went and got his bubble mower and pulled it up right next to Daddy's big mower! Bobby said while he was putting gas in the mower Parker said to him "Put gas in my mower too, Daddy!" so Bobby told him to go get his watering can and put some water in it. Parker opened the little compartment where you're suppose to put bubbles and poured the water in, LOL!

Then Bobby started tightening up some of the loose boards on the fence, so Parker ran in the house to get his hammer so he could "help Daddy".

Can you see the little plastic hammer in his hands?

After the boards were fixed, I came inside to finish cooking dinner while the boys were still outside helping Daddy. A few minutes later I see Parker throw the door open, run over to the toy box, and beginning rummaging through it until he found his pliers then he darts back outside. Intrigued I peek out back to see what he was "fixing" now and I see Bobby clipping some bushes with the limb clippers and Parker pulling the leaves off with his pliers. Bobby said as soon as he pulled out the clippers Parker said "I have one of those tools, too"! Its amazing what they're little minds will come up with, haha! He had so much fun being just like daddy for the evening!

Little Boys

2010-03-27T20:29:00.001-07:00

Here are a few things you get when having two little boys around!

Amazing tricks

Busted lips

Dirty hands

Fearless acrobatics

Taking Advantage!

2010-02-26T19:58:00.001-08:00

We had new carpet installed in our living room today which meant all of your furniture had to be moved into other rooms for the day. I took advantage of the beautiful sunshine streaming through our unblocked windows and took of pictures of the boys playing in the wide open space. Enjoy!

These Faces...

2010-02-25T13:33:00.001-08:00

This child makes me laugh oh so hard!

Doesn't he look like a little bull dog, haha!

Snow Day

2010-02-12T20:10:00.000-08:00

We had snow today! I've heard its been as many as 14yrs since its snowed in Mobile! It didn't stick for long but it was fun to play in while it lasted. Parker seemed to enjoy it pretty well. I think he would have liked playing in it a little more if 1. it hadn't been so cold and 2. he hadn't learned the hard way that he can't run on our patio when its snowing and slick:( I have to give him credit though because after we changed his pants (they got pretty wet when he fell) he was ready to go out and play for a little while longer. As for Carter I think he really liked it! He LOVES being outside and this was definitely no different! Here are a few pictures of our FUN!

Bobby and Parker are working on collecting snow to make a snowball from the only place it really stuck.

Getting ready to launch it!

Carter at ONE

2010-01-28T13:22:00.001-08:00

This is definitely a little over due but better late than never, right?

When he went for his one year check-up he weighted 19lbs 11oz and was 30.25'' long! His doctor said he's looking GREAT!!! He got a few shots and cried for a second but was over it really quickly!

Here are a few things he's doing right now:

*Drinking whole milk - he did great with the transition!
*Drinking only from a sippy cup - this was not quite as easy to transition to.
*Sleeping from about 8pm to 7am the next morning (one of my favorite things I might add).
*Is still taking two naps.
*Standing all by himself and trying to take steps but is not quite there yet.
*Tries to take toys from his brother any chance he gets.
*Is eating solid foods exclusively and loving pretty much anything I put in front of him (even the green veggies)!
*Will wave bye bye occasionally.
*Claps when you ask him to sometimes.
*When you ask him what the dinosaur says he'll roar! Its hilarious to watch! Can you imagine where he might have learned this little trick ;)
*Will say dada but not mama yet :(
*Loves throwing balls to anyone who will catch it!
*Loves doing anything Parker's doing (he's practically his little shadow)!
*Has 8 teeth and is in the process of cutting one of his bottom molars.

He is one funny little guy! In one respect I can't believe how fast the past year has gone by but in another it seems like he's always been a part of our family. We are BEYOND blessed to have been given such a wonderful little boy!

Swings and Such

2010-01-20T06:44:00.001-08:00

No more freezing temperatures = a GREAT time at the park! See!

Things to Enjoy!

2010-01-18T20:06:00.000-08:00

Here are a few things we're enjoying in the New Year!

Our big guy is eating only table foods (he's not met a food he doesn't like) now and has mastered that pincer grasp!

Roaring fires!

Little guy standing all by himself!

Total fixation while watching the Land Before Time!

New counter tops (in case you were wondering we do have a faucet)!

Party time!

2010-01-11T12:31:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my baby is already one! He had a sweet little party on Sat. with our family and a couple close friends! He loved playing with all the kids that came and tried his hardest to keep up with them all. Here are some pictures from the party!

I made both cakes, the big cake and his smasher cake.

I think he liked it ;)

I think this little boy liked it, too!

Carter loves the rocking horse he got from his Uncle Joey!

Opening his presents!

Happy 1st Birthday Carter!

2010-01-08T12:59:00.000-08:00

I can't believe its already been a year since God blessed us yet again with a precious little boy! Over and over I thank God for the opportunity to parent such an amazing little guy! We are truly blessed beyond imagine! I can't wait to see what each year spent with you brings us. Happy Birthday sweet boy!

Merry Christmas!!!

2009-12-29T11:42:00.000-08:00

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Isaiah 9:6

We had a wonderful Christmas this year despite all of our colds! Parker was so much fun anticipating Santa and his excitement about celebrating baby Jesus' birthday! I love how each year he is more and more aware of what Christmas is all about. This year he was able to understand a lot more about baby Jesus and that Christmas is His birthday and that that's why we really celebrate Christmas. For several days before Christmas he used all types of different toys to make "cakes" for baby Jesus! It was so sweet! When we'd ride around looking at Christmas lights he'd see a manager scene and yell out "THERE'S BABY JESUS"! Although Carter didn't know what was going on, he had a great time playing with all the new toys Santa brought. We also went to see Santa at the mall and while Parker lost it and hid behind me and cried the entire time (I wish I could have gotten a picture of that), Carter sat in his lap and gave us a cute little smile for his picture! I have a feeling Carter will always be up for seeing Santa...Parker on the other hand may never!

Anyways, here are some pictures of the boys with there new toys on Christmas morning! Thank you to Gigi, Nana, Papa, Poppie and Grammie for all the wonderful gifts! The boys loved all of them!

Parker showing us that Santa brought him Lightning McQueen. It was the only thing he'd said he wanted from Santa this year.

He was so amazed that Santa ate the cookies he'd left him on the hearth the night before!

Christmas Cookies

2009-12-24T13:45:00.000-08:00

Even though Parker has a little cold that didn't keep us from baking Santa a nice big heap of decorated sugar cookies. Bobby said he didn't think he'd try one considering Parker, althought he tried really hard not to, coughed on them several times. I can't say I blame him but I went ahead and tried one since I feel like I'm coming down with what Parker's has. Parker loved it and here are some pictures to prove it!

Christmas Pictures

2009-12-20T20:50:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to get a few good pictures of the boys together in their Christmas outfits I made them. I haven't really got one I like yet but here are some of my so-so's. We did a couple photo shoots that's why some of these are outside and some are in. I think in order for me to get a good shot I'm going to have to get Bobby in on the action ;)

Hallway Fun!

2009-12-20T20:27:00.000-08:00

I don't know why but the boys love our hallway. I constantly find them rolling the balls down it and then squealing and racing each other to get it (can you guess who usually wins?) Anways, Carter was playing down there the other day while Parker was taking a nap so I took a few pictures of his fun! Our hall is actually pretty dark but it just so happened that he was sitting in the one spot where the light was coming through the window...just begging for a picture!

I guess the ball on my head is pretty funny!

Anybody still there?

2009-12-16T19:09:00.001-08:00

WOW, I bet y'all thought I'd dropped off the face of the Earth! Ever since Parker's birthday I feel like I've barely had time to sit down let alone write out a semi-coherent blog post. Brace yourself though because this one's going to hold A LOT!!!

Where to begin...I guess I'll start with Thanksgiving. We went home for the entire week of Thanksgiving. It was really nice to be home for so long so we could catch up with friends and family and not feel so rushed but we were definitely ready to be in our own beds by the end of the week. Bobby and I actually got up and did a little black Friday shopping while home. We had originally decided to go to look for this camera but when we saw it on ebay at a really good price the night before we went ahead and bought it!

I LOVE this camera! Bobby reluctantly let me open it early and I'm so glad he did!!! Here are a few pictures to prove it!

If anyone thought the blog was lacking pictures rest assured that will no longer be the case. I've had that camera in front of my face so much lately I'm worried my kids won't recognize me when I finally come out from behind it ;)

Now onto the most important thing...what the kids have been up to. Parker's verbal skills are surprising us more and more every day. He asks tons of questions about all kinds of different things (some I must admit stop me in my tracks). His imagination continues to amaze me! My baby is becoming a BIG BOY right before my eyes! He and Carter have been playing more and more together lately, too. Parker will get down and crawl around with him and they both just laugh and laugh. They are great buds! I hope they'll always have so much fun together.

Carter has also changed quite a bit in the last couple of months. He FINALLY figured out he could get places a lot quicker if he got up on his hands and knees to crawl. He started doing this right around 10 months. Shortly after he made that revolutionary discovery he also figured out he could pull up on the furniture. This has made things very interesting around here. He's in to EVERYTHING and we're constantly pushing things out of reach or moving things off the low tables completely. He is by far more "busy" than Parker ever dreamt of being at this age. He's completely fearless and he doesn't want it unless he's not suppose to have it. He's figured out that if he either wets his figure first or presses really hard on a little crumb on the floor it'll stick long enough to get it to his mouth. I'm CONSTANTLY fishing things out of his mouth and I don't know how updated you all are on how many teeth he currently has but it can be rather scary sticking my finger in a mouth with 8 pearly whites. I also think he hit a huge growth spurt over the last month. I kid you not he wasn't in 12 month clothes for more than 4 weeks before I had to start putting him in 18 month stuff! I can't wait to take him to the doctor for his 12 month check up just to see how much he's grown. Which also brings me to the fact that my baby will be one in less than a month! How did this year go by so quickly?!

This week he's started standing on his own for a couple seconds before falling down and tonight he actually took a couple steps! I was so excited because both of these first happened while Bobby was home! Maybe we'll have a walker before his first birthday!

Well, I think that just about catches y'all up! I'm going to really try to get better about keeping this blog updated and with that said I'll see y'all soon!

Happy Fall Days!!!

2009-11-01T12:17:00.001-08:00

This post is going to be a hodge podge of stuff so just bear with me :) I took Parker and Carter to a fall festival at the Watermelon Patch on Friday but forgot my camera so I have no pictures of us actually being there. I do however have a picture I took later on that afternoon of the boys in the pumpkin outfits I made them.

Here are a couple pictures I took of the boys in there costumes. The first couple of pictures is of the boy's getting ready to go Trick or Treating at our church and the next one is of Parker this morning. Bobby's mom made both of Parker's costumes. Didn't she do a GREAT job! The dinosaur costume was actually Bobby's brother's when he was Parker's age!

Just like Parker this morning I hadn't quite got all the Halloween/fall fun out of my system so I decided to roast some pumpkin seeds. I didn't really want to carve a pumpkin after getting the seeds out but I didn't want to waste it either so after seeing this pumpkin I knew it would make a great project for my left over pumpkin. Bobby was really sweet to put the holes in it and cut the top off for me! It made my whole kitchen smell like I was cooking a pumpkin pie!!! YUMMY!!! Here's a picture of my Pumpkin Incense Burner

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-23T07:41:00.000-07:00

This week we visited the annual Pumpkin Patch our church puts on. We always seem to schedule a trip on Parker's birthday and this year was no different! This year was Carter's first trip to the patch and I think he really enjoyed it. He especially liked trying to eat the hay and pumpkins ;) Parker loved picking out a few pumpkins to decorate and when we got home he helped me arrange them on the front porch. Here are some pictures from our day!

Its the simple things....

2009-10-22T20:20:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PARKER

2009-10-19T14:25:00.000-07:00

Three years ago today God blessed us with one of the greatest gifts we could have ever imagined! Parker you are the sweetest little boy I've ever met, so full of compassion, energy and just plain fun! I thank God each day he's given me with you! I can't wait to see how He uses you to touch others lives as much as you've touched ours! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET BOY!!!

9 Months

2009-10-17T19:20:00.000-07:00

Carter is 9 months old! It brings a tear to my eye to think he'll be 1 year old in only 3 months! He is such a sweet little guy! Here are some of the things he's doing right now:

Pulling up on things.

Still doing his "army crawl".

Has 8 teeth (and knows how to use them)!

Loves to make funny noises and copy noises mommy, daddy or Parker make.

Still enjoys most of his baby foods.

Always has a smile for anyone who talks to him.

Just started doing some fake crying (its pretty funny) to see if it'll get him what he wants.

We took him to the doctors for his 9 month check-up last Friday and he weighted 18lbs and was 28.5 inches long. He had to get a couple shots, have his toe pricked for an anemia test and have a vision test but he was such a trooper! He's such a good baby! God truly blessed us when He added him to our family!

Brotherly Love

2009-10-07T06:29:00.000-07:00

Beach Trip

2009-09-19T20:27:00.001-07:00

I know you all were probably thinking I was never going to update the blog. We've been super busy lately which included a little trip to the beach. We had a nice time! It rained for the first half of the trip but the last half was really nice! The boys really seemed to like the beach although Parker wasn't as keen on getting in the ocean this time but to his defense the water was pretty rough. I put Carter's feet in a couple of times but he didn't seem so fond of it either. Here are a few pictures of the weekend!

The boys in the condo before dinner.

Parker and Bobby working on a sandcastle.

One of the few times I was able to talk Parker into walking down to the water with me.

Tuesday's Tune

2009-09-01T12:53:00.000-07:00

They call me...Scrunchy Face!

2009-08-26T19:48:00.000-07:00

This is Carter's new favorite face to make!

First Week of Mommy School

2009-08-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the activities and projects Parker and I did in our first week back at Mommy School! I think he likes Mommy School even better than he did last year!

First we made cloud dough. It is a little softer to mold with than regular play dough which makes it easier for preschoolers to manipulate. I would post the recipe but I got it out of the Hands on Homeschooling book and she has a copy right on all of her materials. I'm sure if you wanted to make this with your child you could google it and find a recipe fairly easily.

We also made a Cars Lapbook. I got all the printables and instructions to make this book from a blog called Tot School. Here is the link to this Lapbook! I think I had about as much fun making it as Parker did playing with it!

In our Bible Study we're discussing The Story of Creation so I thought it would be fun to do a craft that explains and shows all the things God has created. We made this creation mobile found at DLTK.

We have a sitter...

2009-08-18T13:59:00.000-07:00

The little man can finally sit on his own pretty well! He's still a little wibble wobble but for the most part he's pretty stable. Just see for yourself!

Parker loves brother's new found accomplishment!

This really has nothing to do with sitting but Carter has started making this face today. He does it when he gets excited about something! It is so funny!

This is the only picture I got from my Dad's house. That cutie on the right is my step sister's little girl. Isn't she a doll!

Back in School

2009-08-17T14:03:00.000-07:00

I started the first day of Parker's mommy school today. We did this last year using this program and although it was really helpful, the combination of being pregnant and then having a newborn didn't help me to stick with it like I should have. Aside from all of this Parker still managed to learn a few things ;) I'm going to list them here so at the end of this school year I can see how far he's come and all he's mastered!

He knows all he's upper case letters by site and a few of the lower case
He also knows the sounds a few of the letters make
He can count to ten but doesn't know them by site yet
He knows all of his basic shapes
He knows all of his colors
He knows several songs such as: Patty Cake, The Wheels on the Bus, and God is so Good
Is saying his prayers at night and with a little prompting he can even think of a few things to pray about or thank God for on his own

This year I'm not planning on using any curriculum in particular. I've gone through the Hands on Homeschooling 2 year old guide and will focus on what he didn't get from last year as well as working on some things from the HOH 3 year old program. A friend told me about Tot School and I have found MANY ideas for projects and activities I want to do with Parker from this site. I'm also using many of the free printables from DLTK. I'm SOOOO excited about this year! I'll be posting some of the more exciting activities we do along with pictures!

And he's off...

2009-08-15T07:51:00.000-07:00

While the boys were away Carter mastered the army crawl! He was moving a little when he left but now he can go from one side of the room to the other! I told Bobby I was going to call him my backwards boy because while he can crawl, he still can't sit up completely unsupported and while he does now have two top teeth they are not his two front teeth...they're his incisors! Bobby keeps saying he looks like he has fangs, haha! Here's a video of the little guy in action!

Mr. Fang!!!

Away too long!

2009-08-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

I've been absent from our dear blog for far to long but we've had a very busy couple of weeks! Last week the boys went to stay with Bobby's parents for 5 days while Bobby and I stayed home (well I stayed home, Bobby had to work). I was a little apprehensive about being away from them for so long, but it was a wonderful and much needed break...thanks a ton Nana and Papa! While they were gone I was able to get some sewing done for the boys that I've been puting off for a while. I got several outfits done for them but not nearly as many as I would have liked. I also did a little shopping. Mobile has some great little boutiques and antique stores I've seen while driving here and there but I've never had the chance to go in. I didn't buy anything but it was REALLY nice just to be able to browse without worrying if a) someone is going to break something, b) someone needs to go potty or have a diaper changed, or c) have a complete meltdown and needs to be carried out of the store kicking and screaming. Bobby and I also were able to get in a game of golf one morning. I hadn't played in a REALLY long time and not that I was a pro before but my absence from the game we very apparent. We had a good time anyway! I can't wait for the days when it will be easier for us play more together.

We went to pick up the boys on the way to my Dad's where we stayed for the weekend. We had a great time visiting with them. Dad and Dixie live on a good bit of land and Parker had a blast exploring with Poppy and Grammy. We also went to the zoo and Parker LOVED seeing all the animals. Dixie's son and daughter came over one evening for dinner and the kiddos had a great time playing together! It made me wish even more that we lived closer!

There is a lot more I could say about our stay but no time. Also, we did take pictures of our visit just not with my camera so I'll try and get some and post them later.

Confession

2009-07-29T20:17:00.000-07:00

Hi. My name is Hannah and I am a blog stalker. There, I've said it, it's out there and now I can begin the rehabbing process! Seriously though I LOVE reading blogs! I have quite a few that I keep up with ~~like I know these people~~ on a regular basis. So, since some of you may very well be blog stalkers like me I thought I'd share some of my favs.

Fly Through My Window I found this blog recently when looking for some cute sewing ideas. I truly feel like we could be good friends in real life. She's not only a awesome crafter but is also a woman of God. And for the icing on the cake, she's an AUBURN FAN!

Bring the Rain Oh, how I long to write like Angie! She is an amazing woman with a GREAT big love for Christ. Please take a few minutes to check out her blog and read about her precious girls!

Eastern Shore Moms This is a great blog for those living in the Eastern Shore area. She does a great job keeping residents of the gulf coast updated on deals and events in and around our area.

Bakerella All I can say is YUM!!!

My Charming Kids Although I'm not in complete agreement with some of Mckmamma's ways, she is a very interesting lady seeking Christ with a sweet baby named Stellan who is in need of much prayer. If nothing else please check out Stellan's story and flood heaven's gates with prayer's for this precious little boy!

Kate McRae My heart just breaks for this beautiful little girl and her God fearing family. Please be in prayer for them!

I'm embarrassed to say these are just a few from a very long list. Also, if any of you blog stalkers know any REALLY GOOD blogs feel free to share them with me ~~because as you can tell I have nothing else better to do with my time than to read about complete strangers~~!

Week in Rewind

2009-07-29T19:44:00.000-07:00

This is a little tardy but I've had some sewing to do this past week so blogging has had to be put on the back burner.

Well the first thing noteworthy to tell about is both boys will be going to stay with their nana (Bobby's mom) on Sat. for 5 days. We'll be meeting her in Greenville on Sat. afternoon and then we'll swing by and pick them up on Thur. on the way to my dad's. I would be completely lying if I said I'm not a little apprehensive about being away from them for that long but I know Bobby's mom will be great with them. I'm also very excited about all the things I have planned while they're away. Bobby and I are planning on playing golf either Sat. or Sun. and then we'll be going to Ruth's Chris Steak House to celebrate our 4th Anniversary. Bobby has to work during the weeks so I've decided I'm going to use that time to 1. clean the house from top to bottom, 2. catch up on some sewing for the boys, and 3. check out some of the local antique shops and boutique I've been wanting to go in but wouldn't dare take two children into for fear they would break something. I'm so excited!

Parker was in the bathroom about to go potty when I walked by and just so happened to peek in and see he still had his underwear on while sitting on the toilet. As I said something he also realized what he had done and started laughing saying "I not go pee-pee wit my unawear on, dat so silwee!" He thought it was so funny that now he'll do it on purpose and then come out of the bathroom to tell us what he had done. Oh the things he comes up with these days. I've really got to start writing them down so I don't forget them.

Carter is cutting yet another tooth. Still not one of the two front teeth though. I checked this morning and it doesn't look like those two front teeth are going to be coming through any time soon so I fear he's going to have a pretty funny smile for a while. Once they come through a little more I'll try and get a picture of his snaggle tooth grin for you all to see.

*Sorry about the no picture rewind but I don't really have any this week worthy of going on the blog. I'll try and get some for next week.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-07-22T19:12:00.001-07:00

A couple of weeks in rewind

2009-07-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

Sorry I missed a week in the rewind but we really haven't had a whole lot going on recently.

I overestimated Parker's potty training abilities and took him to Hobby Lobby with his big boy underwear on. He did really well while in the store but on the way home he just couldn't hold it. I had to take his car seat completely apart to clean it. It was in need of a cleaning anyways but it definitely wasn't something I wanted to tackle on that particular day. Needless to say we won't be leaving the house without a pull-up on for quite some time.

Yesterday was Bobby's 27th birthday so Parker made him a card and we also baked brownies for when he got home. Unfortunately Bobby started a shut-down this week and he didn't get home until 10:00 last night!!! He was exhausted! I felt so badly for him that he had to spend most of his birthday at work, so we're going to do some of the stuff we had planned tonight instead! Here's a picture of Parker working VERY hard on daddy's birthday card!

Carter has gotten really good a reaching for what he wants and if it's brightly colored it makes it even more appealing. This was made even more obvious the other morning while the boys were laying on our bed. Parker was sitting with his back to Carter watching cartoons. Carter noticed the brightly colored mickey mouse faces on Parker's underwear and started trying to pick them off Parker's bottom, haha! What's even funnier is Parker was oblivious to it until I started laughing! I know they're going LOVE this picture one day!

A few evenings ago I was getting the boys ready for bed while Bobby was on his way home. I promise you it wasn't more than three seconds after I had put Carter in the bath tub and turned around to call for Parker to come and get in the tub that the power went out. It completely freaked me out because I looked back at the tub and I couldn't see Carter at all. I immediately felt around and snatched him up...he was perfectly fine of course but it still made my heart leap into my throat. After I got my heart rate back into a normal sinus rhythm, I got our Coleman lantern out and finished giving them their baths, talk about resourceful huh?!

6 Months

2009-07-16T12:33:00.000-07:00

Can you believe my baby is half a year old!!!! It's like I blinked and he wasn't that cuddley little infant we brought home from the hospital anymore...ok well, he's still pretty cuddley but he's definitely not an infant. He went for his 6 month check up and weighted 14lbs 7oz and is 27inches long. I was a little concerned about his weight but my dr. said he's just going to be tall and thin and not to mention he was a month early. He eats like a horse so I guess if she's not worried then I won't be either! Also, I thought I'd give a run down of all the things he's doing and likes right now:

He has, count them, 3 TEETH!!! Two on the bottom and one (the mose recent) on the top but it's not one of the two front teeth so he's going to have a funny little smile for a while ;)

He absolutely adores Parker. He is constantly laughing and smiling at him and when Parker starts running toward him he gets really excited and starts kicking his feet and waving his arms. They've even started laughing at each other in the back seat while we're driving around. It is so funny to listen to!

He's taking 3 naps and is sleeping anywhere from 9 to 11 hours at night! What a blessing that has been!

I am in the middle of weaning him and he's doing really good with the bottles and formula. I probably won't have him fully weaned until he's about 7 months but so far so good! He's also eating three solid meals a day and loves just about everything I've given him minus the green veggies (surprise, surprise!).

All in all he a pretty happy little guy (minus those days of cutting teeth)! God has truely blessed us in these last 6 months!

Cow Appreciation Day

2009-07-15T08:01:00.001-07:00

Chick-fil-a had their annual Cow Appreciation Day last week! They were giving away free combo meals if you dressed up like a cow so we decided it would be a fun way to get free food for lunch! I dressed the boys up and Parker LOVED looking like a cow for the afternoon! I made Parker's "costume" from the little starter kit on chick-fil-a's website and I borrowed a sweet little cow suit for Carter from my good friend, Rebecca! Here are a couple pictures she took of us all ready to go get our FREE food!!!

Week in Rewind

2009-06-29T11:55:00.000-07:00

It's that time again! Time to rewind the week and see what we've been up to! Brace yourself, this is going to be rather lengthy!

I think Parker is OFFICIALLY potty trained!!! He has been pee-peeing and pooping on the potty for the past week and as a mini celebration of that I took him to target and let him pick out his very own big boy underwear. For the record he chose Cars, Diego and Mickey Mouse! He also conquered another hurtle in the potty training battle today by going pee-pee on the potty at Target!!! I was SOOOO VERRRYYYY proud of him! I know so many people have said boys are harder to potty train than girls and from the many horror stories I've heard I would have to say that is normally very true but I think Parker is one of the exceptions. I attribute much of his successful pottying to letting him do it all by himself! For him I think he needs that independence and to be able to figure it out all by himself. He even shuts the door while he's in the restroom...it's so cute!

This has all been rather bitter sweet for me. While I'm REALLY excited I only have to change one bottom now, seeing my baby in underwear now makes it even more painfully obvious that he is not a baby anymore and is moving farther and farther away from being one everyday. I guess they've got to grow up some time, right?

I started bathing the boys together a couple weeks ago to save a little time during the bedtime routine and I think they both really enjoy it. It's taken Parker a little while to realize he can't splash around as much anymore but I think it's working out really well. (sorry for the flower on the picture but as you can tell Carter's not really so good at the modesty thing yet, haha!)

Carter has finally realized that he can make some pretty neat noises and has been amusing himself (and not to mention the rest of us) non-stop with them. He is really into the fake cough right now and is too funny to watch when he really gets into it. I'll try and get some video of it soon.

Parker has started saying some really funny things lately but it seems like there has been more than usual this week. For instance last night he and Bobby were playing on the floor when Parker notice Bobby had a scrap on his leg and asked "what dat?" Bobby in turn said "a boo-boo." Parker with his little compassionate heart said "what happen...ou pall down?" Another on occurred while we were shopping at Target the other day (can you tell I like Target a little bit?). I was in the women's section looking at shorts and all of the sudden Parker kept repeating (to no one in particular) "I pee pee in the potty! I pee pee in the potty!" Good times!

There will be more details to come, but this past week I was asked to do one of my outfits as a giveaway on a wonderful blog I recently came across called http://www.easternshoremoms.blogspot.com/. We haven't worked out all the details quite yet but I'm am so honored that she thought so much of my clothing to want to do this contest! Check back in the next few days for the low down on when this is going to take place!

This picture has really nothing to do with anything we did this week, I just thought it was cute!

I hope everyone has a GREAT week and see you at the next rewind!

Not Me Monday renamed!

2009-06-22T12:53:00.000-07:00

Bobby decided he doesn't like the format of Not Me Monday and since this is "our" blog and not just mine I'll be doing things a little differently. I'm still going to post the little funny/interesting snippets from our week but from now on I'll just tell it like it happened instead of trying to disguise it with a "not". I'll also be calling it Our Week in Rewind! So, here we go!

Parker has been pee-peeing in the potty REALLY well for the past few days! I'm soooo proud of the progress he's been making! He sometimes won't even tell me he has to go he just takes off his pull-up and runs into the bathroom to do his thing. We're still having some problems with number 2 but from what I've heard that's to be expected, especially with little boys.

Carter tricked me into thinking he was making some strides into cutting out his early morning feeding this past week. He went 11 1/2 hours last Sunday and it was HEAVEN! He's only done this a hand full of times. I'm hoping he'll be past it by the time he turns 7 months so I won't have to perform a little tough love on him ;)

I've started making some of Carter's baby food to save a little money and it's working out great! So far I've made sweet potatoes, carrots and bananas. He LOVES them!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful Daddy!!! I miss you so very much and can't wait to see you in August! I hope your day was a GREAT one!

Not Me Monday!

2009-06-15T15:23:00.000-07:00

I bet you all thought I'd totally forgone the whole Not Me Monday thing! Well I haven't, so here is my catch up Not Me Monday!

While Bobby was about to give Parker a bath he did not realize the shampoo/body wash was out and called down to ask me if we had anymore. I definitely didn't tell him to look under the sink in the bathroom b/c I was pretty sure there was some in there. He did not find a bottle, hold it up for me to look at from down stairs and ask if this was it. I in turn did not say yes because it looked like a bottle I've used before. The next morning when Parker got up I could not figure out why his hair looked so greasy even though I knew he had took a bath the night before. Finally I did not decide to investigate further by taking a look at exactly what Bobby used on his hair only to not find out it was LOTION!!!

I was not sitting on the couch nursing Carter while Parker was sitting next to me with his Teddy Bear the other night. I wasn't really paying too much attention to what he was doing until he said "all done". At that moment I did not look over to see him pulling down his shirt. When I asked him what he was doing, he did not tell "feeding Teddy". I asked him to show me how he feeds teddy and he did not pull up his shirt and put Teddy to his bare chest and start "nursing" him. Don't you just love 2 year old pretend play!!!

Carter absolutely loves his baby food! But he's not the only one, Parker has not started asking for the foil off the top of the baby food containers so he can lick it clean. He's definitely not been asking for more, either!

Last Sunday I did not have the worst stiff neck I've EVER had in my life. It was not so bad that I had to miss church and bible study because I could not even turn my head to face straight ahead. It was AWFUL! On top of everything it is still not 100% a week later!

Parker did not have his first day of Mother's Day Out last Tuesday and he did not have a WONDERFUL time! All the activities were focused around fire trucks and if you know anything about my little guy you will know this was right up his alley! It was so cute listening to all the fun things they did! He's so excited about going tomorrow!

Pretend play is not in full swing at the Stinson house hold and I'm definitely not getting a kick out of all the things Parker is coming up with. For instance I was not totally cracked up when Parker put Teddy in time out the other day. I did not also hear him telling Teddy "no ell me no!", translation "you don't tell me no!". I wonder where he's heard that before, hehe?

Carter is not rolling onto his stomach all the time these days! It is also not his favorite way to sleep now. He's definitely not loving his new found mobility, as you can see!

Putt Putt Golf

2009-06-13T19:08:00.000-07:00

We took Parker and Carter for their first game of putt putt this evening. Parker LOVED it !!! Carter would have too, you know if he could swing a club, walk or talk ;) We went to a small putt putt place near our house. It wasn't the nicest place I've ever been to but Parker didn't know any better so he thought it was great! They had a lot of big animals figures throughout the course and he was totally enthralled with them. I think he would have been just as happy to walk around and look at all of them as he was to actually play golf. He did pretty good hitting the ball, too! He'd start out hitting it from the tee but then if it took to long to get it to the hole he'd just pick up the ball, place it pretty close to the hole, then hit it in. All in all it was a good time! Here are a few pictures of our next Tiger Woods (they were taken with my phone so pardon the quality)!

FYI: If you're reading this post and live in the Mobile area and are thinking about taking your family to Funtasia please be advised the course is NOT stroller friendly. We ended up having to take Carter out of the stroller several times so we could pick it up and carry it up steps or over bridges that were too narrow to push it over. I think if we end up taking him with us next time I'll either wear him (which would have been way too hot) or just carry him in the car seat. Oh well, live and learn!

On a subject totally unrelated to putt putt golf, Parker used the potty 4 times today!!! I think we're finally ready to start potty training! I've been doing a little research and I think we've devised a plan for how we're going to go about this. If it works fairly well I'll post it but until then I'd love to hear how some of you did the whole potty training thing!

Rolly Polly

2009-06-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

Carter has been rolling over for quite some time now but this afternoon he really got into and nearly rolled from the playmat in the middle of our living room all the way to the chair I was sitting in. You can see from the pictures below that a pretty good ways! You might also be able to tell from the pictures that he was pretty proud of himself :)

Welcome Back Sale

2009-05-30T19:35:00.001-07:00

Check out Hannah Jo Creations Blog for info on my Welcome Back Sale that will be begin on Monday when I reopen my shop!!! I'M SOOOO EXCITED!!!!

Yummy!

2009-05-18T20:07:00.000-07:00

I meant to post an update on Carter's doctors appointment last week but I've had so many other posts to make and some how this one got lost in the shuffle. So here it is!

Carter went for his 4 month check up last Monday and he weighed 13lbs 1oz and is now 25 inches long! He's getting so big! I noticed tonight he's pj's are starting to get a little too short and they're 3-6 months! I looked back at Parker's weight when he was 4 months and I can't believe he was at 18lbs and 15oz! I think Carter's going to be my little guy which is just fine with me! Maybe he'll be able to get a little more wear out of his clothes than Parker did ;) He also got two shots and was pretty fussy the entire afternoon but the next day he was back to his happy little self! He's sleeping about 8 to 9 hours at night still. I'm hoping within the next couple months he'll cut out that early morning feeding (around 4:00 or 5:00) and start sleeping until 6:00 or 7:00. I'm trying not to complain too much because I know it could be A LOT worse! He's also starting to laugh when I tickle him under his neck and I can even get a little laugh out of him when we play peek-a-boo! I just love this age!

Tonight we gave him his first taste of cereal and he LOVED it! He ate the entire bowl! I'm hoping this means he's going to be good eater like his big brother! Here's an action shot of the meal, sorry it's a little fuzzy.

Here are a couple other pictures of the big boy!

Carter with his best bud, Duckie Man!

Not Me Monday!

2009-05-18T19:49:00.000-07:00

It's that time again! Time for me to come clean about all the things I did or didn't do this past week. Please keep all laughter to a minimum, thanks!

I was in a fog this past week after being awaken by Parker at around 6:00am so when he asked for some juice I definitely didn't get a glass out of the dishwasher only to find out later, after I had given him juice in that cup a couple times, all the dishes in there were dirty. I would never do something so absent minded!

I would never have to wash a load of towels three separate times because I kept forgetting to put them in the dryer and they had started to smell a bit sour.

On another cleaning note, we have ants. The reason we have ants would not be because I had a mound of dishes in the sink which contained a couple of Parker's syrup soaked plates he'd had waffles on. I'm not such an horrible housekeeper that that would happen to us!

I know boys love bugs so it's a good thing I don't have a 2 year old male that likes to play in ant beds. Every time I turn around the child has his hands all in the ant beds in our yard as if they are mini sand boxes (that is if he would ever do something so mischievous, which of course he wouldn't). And can you believe he's not been bitten, seriously not even one little bit!

Hannah Jo Creations

2009-05-16T21:09:00.001-07:00

Please check out www.hannahjocreations.blogspot.com for info. about the reopening of my shop! I'm soooo excited about what's to come!

Mother's Day

2009-05-12T14:59:00.000-07:00

I had a WONDERFUL Mother's Day!!! It started on Sat. when Bobby watched the boys so I could go get a pedicure. It was fabulous and MUCH needed! Sunday morning he let me sleep in and when I woke up he had my favorite breakfast (a bacon and egg bagel sandwich combo from McDonald's, in case you were wondering) waiting for me! Parker brought me the card he picked out from him and Carter and told me Happy Mother's Day or something kind of like it. That afternoon while Parker was asleep I was feeding Carter and he fell asleep. Normally when he does this I will wake him up (and I almost did) because I don't want him to get in the habit of nursing himself to sleep but this afternoon I decided to just let him be. It was so nice just holding him and starring at his little sleeping face.

While my baby was slumbering, I decided to do a little web surfing and came across the Wallace Family. In case you don't have time to visit their site and read all about this precious family I'll give you the condensed version of their story. They're a family of 6 that was recently reduced by one, you see their 14 month old little girl was born with a rather serious heart condition and two weeks ago mother's day she went home to be with Jesus. The blog is being written by her father and he is very open about what their family has been going through during this extremely difficult time. By the time I finished reading all his posts I was bawling like a baby. I just kept looking at Carter and praising God for the health of my babies. I can't imagine the pain they must be in right now, especially so close to Mother's and Father's day so I just ask for prayers on behalf of them and their family.

After every one's nap Bobby and the boys took me to Shogun Japanese Steakhouse! I think I've posted about this restaurant before but I can't iterate enough just how AWESOME the food is. Needless to say they practically had to roll me out of there...oh so yummy!

This Mother's Day was extra special for me as this was the first with my completed family (barring God doesn't have other plans for us). Knowing this is the first of many Mother's Days I am able to spend with the two loves of my life is so heartwarming. They truly are the greatest gifts I have ever been given and I praise the Lord everyday that He chose me to care for and nurture them. God is GOOD!

Not Me Monday (except it's Tuesday)!

2009-05-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

This is something new I'm going to try on my blog 1. because I think some of you might get a kick out of my household follies, 2. because it'll be fun to look back on one day and 3. because this is MY blog and I want to...so there!

The purpose is to confess all the crazy things that's happened to me during the week but hiding them behind a "Not me" statement. Ready? Here goes nothing!

I definitely did ~~not~~ leave Parker alone eating a yogurt while I went to my room to get dressed only to return to the kitchen a few minutes later and find him elbow deep in it. He did ~~not~~ also use it as finger paint to paint my kitchen table. That would ~~never~~ happen to me!

Half way to Disney on Ice I did ~~not~~ realize I had forgotten to bring a diaper for Parker. Nor did my sister have to ask one of the ladies sitting next to us if she had a diaper I could borrow. I also would ~~never~~ forget to bring a change of shorts for Parker when we went to the fountains and have to go to Gymboree and buy him a pair. Then, once in the store I definitely would ~~not~~ also end up buying him a new shirt, swimsuit and romper for Carter! Seriously, I think I have a problem!

I would ~~not~~ sleep so late on Mother's Day morning that we missed church. Dear Lord please for give me!

Carter has been sleeping so well lately that he did ~~not~~ wake up Monday morning at 1:00am to eat. It's almost as if he was saying Mother's Day is over, time for you to remember who's the boss around here ;)

Parker has a deep love for watching big trucks as we drive around town. He knows the interstate is the best place for him to see them and even knows which way we have to turn out of our neighborhood to get to the interstate. So the other day when we were leaving the house and he kept telling me to turn in the direction of the interstate and I didn't he did ~~not~~ have the BIGGEST fit EVER! My little angel would ~~never~~ do something like that.

Well I don't know about you but that was kind of freeing! PS next week this will be posted on Monday (or at least that's the goal).

Disney on Ice and some cousin fun!

2009-05-11T19:15:00.000-07:00

Last week my sister, her two children and her new boyfriend all came down for a visit. Shannon wasn't able to come down when I had Carter so when I found out that Disney on Ice was coming to town I thought it would be a great time for them to come and meet Carter and see a fun show all in the same visit. They got here right before I was going to start getting Carter ready for bed so he was getting a little bit irritable but being that he's such an easy going guy I thought he'd still be up for meeting his Aunt Shannon...boy was I wrong. I handed him over to Shannon and he was fine until she started talking and then he lost it! I don't mean a little fussy cry either! You would have thought she was beating him with the way he wailed. I tried several times that evening to let her hold him and every time he screamed. It was kind of funny considering he's NEVER done that with anyone else before. It must have been that he was tired because the next morning she held him and talked to him and he just smiled at her like he'd known her his whole life. Go figure!

Parker, Michael and Karmen had a GREAT time playing together. You would have thought they're around each other all the time with the fun they had! Seeing Parker interact with them also made me realize just how good it's going to be for him to go to MDO starting in June. He learns so much playing with older kids. It gets him talking in more complete sentences and he even seems to want to try new and different things he normally wouldn't just because he sees them doing them. Although I know not everything he picks up from other kids will be "good", I'm still very excited to see how much he'll grow from participating in the program.

Wed. night we took Parker, Karmen and Michael to Disney on Ice while Bobby stayed home with Carter. They had a blast! Then Thur. morning before they headed home we went to the Eastern Shore Center and let the kids play in the fountains. All in all it was a really nice visit! Here are some pictures from the few days they were here!

Disney on Ice: Worlds of Fantasy featuring Cars, Little Mermaid, Lion King and Tinker Bell

This is where they stood pretty much the entire time we were there.

Parker loved his Lightning McQueen hat, he's still wearing it around the house!

For some reason Karmen started feeding Parker popcorn. They thought it was hilarious!

Parker and Karmen dancing to one of the songs during Tinker Bell.

It's practically impossible to get all four kids to look at the camera and smile at the same time! This is as good as we could get!

Carter's 3 Month Pictures

2009-05-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

I had Carter's 3 month pictures taken last Tuesday (yes I know he turned 4 months on the following Friday but technically he WAS still three months when the pictures were taken). Anyways, here's the link for the pictures. If you want me to order any of them for you please let me know and I can add them to my order. Enjoy!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

2009-05-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all the mommies that visit my blogs, but especially to my mommy! You have taught me everything I need to know to be a great mommy and for that I am forever grateful! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!

Bumbo

2009-05-04T13:06:00.000-07:00

Carter has just recently been able to hold his head up well enough to sit in his bumbo seat and he REALLY likes it. Turns out he's not the only one! Parker loved that he was able to sit next to his brother and put his arm around him! Too cute!

Where have you been all my life!

2009-05-02T20:03:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day has come a little early this year! I've been wanting a serger for a while now but to be honest I was a little intimidated by them being that I'd never used one until now. Not only is it incredibly easy to use, but it's cut my sewing time in half!!! I made a pair of shorts the other night and literally from start to finish they only took me about an hour and half! Before the serger I was sending at least that amount of time just doing the overcasting stitch on my regular sewing machine.

As part of my Mother's Day gift Bobby is also letting me invest a little more money into Hannah Jo Creations so when I open back up in June I'll have several new outfit designs for sell. I'm taking the shop in a new direction and I can't wait to open it back up. I'm going to be posting some of my designs on http://www.hannahjocreations.blogspot.com/ soon so I'll post a link here when those are up.

Update!

2009-05-01T10:36:00.000-07:00

I just realized I haven't posted anything since Easter! Not too much has been going on around here. Everyone is doing well! Praise the Lord Carter didn't end up getting HFMD! I can't tell you how hard I prayed he wouldn't get it. I can't beleive how fast the boys are growing! Carter has started grabbing at the toys hanging from his play mat and he can also hold his head up far when he's on his belly. He's such a sweet baby! Parker has been absolutely cracking Bobby and I up with some of the things he says. When Bobby leaves to go somewhere and tells Parker bye he always say "Bye man!". Most of the time Parker just says "bye bye" but this morning I guess he finally realized what Bobby was saying because he said "bye man" right back! We just busted out laughing. Then the other night Bobby told him it was time to take a bath and Parker says, just as serious and matter of fact, "I take bath in morning, k?" The way he said it was just too funny so we decided to let him skip a bath that night. I can't wait until Carter starts talking. I having a feeling the both of them together are going to have us rolling in the floor!

Earlier this week I took Parker to sign him up for he's "school" aka MDO. He was SO excited and while the director was showing us around he kept asking if he could go in his classroom and play. I don't think I'll have any problem with him wanting to go each week ;) He'll also be starting a summer camp at the Watermelon Patch in June and he's pretty excited about it too!

Next week my sister is coming down and we're taking her two kids and Parker to Disney on Ice. I think they're really going to like it! I post some pictures next week. Now for the reason most of you visit my blog, PICTURES!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-13T20:11:00.000-07:00

We had a FABULOUS Easter! At first I was pretty bummed that we wouldn't be able to go to the Egg Hunt at Bellingrath and go to church on Sunday, but it ended up being a rather nice weekend. It was kind of nice not having the hussel and bussel that usually comes with a holiday weekend.

As I had talked about in my previous post I had several things planned for Parker and I think he really enjoyed all of them. We even watched a church service on tv from one of the local baptist churches. I absolutely didn't want to miss hearing about the great sacrifice my savior made for you and me! It was a wonderful sermon! He has RISEN INDEED!!!

Here are some pictures we took of the days activities!

These are the boys Easter baskets! I bought Parker's from Pottery barn for his first Easter so naturally this Easter I went back to Pottery barn for Carter's but to my dismay they had discontinued them! I was so sad but then I got the bright I idea to look on ebay and I found one. It was already monogrammed with his name and ever thing! Pretty cool, huh!?

Parker checking out what the Easter bunny brought him!

Look at my cute little bunny!!!

Carter's checking everything out with his new duck buddy the Easter bunny brought him!

I was so excited about dying eggs with Parker for the first time this year! It had been several, several years since I had dyed eggs...I forgot how much fun it is!!! I'm not sure who had more fun, Parker or me! Later I used the them to make some very yummy deviled eggs.

Later that afternoon Bobby hid some eggs in the backyard for a mini egg hunt for Parker. He LOVED it! After he'd fine one he'd say "where some more?" and then when he found the next one he'd say "dere it is!". I was impressed at how well he did at finding them. We only had to help him find a couple tough ones.

After dinner I made some sugar cookies and let Parker decorate one for him to eat. I was going to let him decorate them all but he was sticking his fingers in the icing and with the HFM Disease I didn't think it would be such a good idea to let him touch them all! The one he made looked pretty yummy!

All in all it was a GREAT day! We were able to praise our Lord for the AMAZING price he paid for our sins so that we may reign with him in heaven one day and we managed to have a little fun, too!

What a week!

2009-04-11T19:33:00.000-07:00

We've had a very interesting week here at the Stinson house! Some of it good and some not so great. I think I'll start with the good seeing as I feel like the not so good parts have kind of taken over this week.

Well for starters, Carter has rolled over by himself three times!!! I can not believe he's only 3 months old and already starting to roll over. Parker was around 4 or 5 months old before he finally conquered that milestone. I've been a little nervous about Carter sleeping in his bed because although he can make it over onto his belly he can't quite get his arms out from under himself which causes he's face to be smooched into the floor/mattress. I've been sleeping with the video monitor screen on and every time I hear him make a noise I have to check to make sure he's still on his side or back...so far so good!

Also, Carter turned 3 months old on Wed.! I know I say this every time he turns a new month but it's hard to believe my baby is already 3 months old! This means he is officially no longer a newborn. He's such a good baby too, so laid back and easy going! He'll lay on his play mat and talk to his toys for such a long time. He especially likes the little vibrating fish toy we have for him. He gets so excited when he sees it that he'll start kicking his little legs and waving his arms up and down. I know he's not doing it on purpose but he even looks like he's making a fish face when he sees it. Here's a couple pictures of him with it.

Now for the not so great part of the week. Parker has had Hands, Foot and Mouth Disease since Tuesday. For those of you who aren't familiar with it, it's a rather common childhood illness that gives the infected person a rash on his/her hands and feet and blisters in his/her mouth...hence the name. You would think by the name it's something someone gets from a third world country! It's really not even that serious of a disease although it is HIGHLY contagious. I called our pediatrician and she said there's nothing you can do but give Tylenol and Motrin for the discomfort. They also told me to make sure he doesn't get too dehydrated because the blisters in his mouth will cause him not to want to eat or drink anything. He's been pretty pitiful for most of the week :( Because of the blisters in his mouth, he's not really ate much more than yogurt and bananas for the past few days. We only had a couple really rough days and one night he ended up sleeping in the bed with us so I guess it could have been worse. My biggest fear has been that Carter will get it, so I've been trying with all my might not to let Parker touch him and I've been washing my hands like crazy before I pick him up! So far nothing has shown up on Carter but this thing has such a long incubation period that we probably won't be out of the clear until the end of next week :(

I was told that they are still contagious until the sores in their mouth are gone so we decided to forgo the Easter Egg Hunt at Bellingrath today. We are also going to have to miss church tomorrow as well. Of all the weekends for this to happen of course it's going to be on the one when we've got so much going on! Oh well, I guess their always next year. I decided since we can't do all the things we'd planned on outside the home, I'd bring a little fun to us so tomorrow I'm planning on doing a little egg hunt for Parker in the backyard. I also thought he'd enjoy decorating some cookies and dying some eggs. I want to make sure he's aware of what the true meaning of Easter is so I also have a craft planned to help explain Christ's resurrection to him. Who knows...this just might be the best Easter ever! I'll post some pictures from the day soon. Until then everyone have a VERY blessed Easter! He Lives indeed!

Easter Eggstravaganza

2009-04-04T19:06:00.000-07:00

This morning our church put on their annual Easter Eggstravaganza so we decided to take the boys and check it out! They had several activities set up for the kids, a hay ride and even a pony ride. When we got there the first thing Parker noticed was the horses. I asked him if he wanted to ride and he said yes, which wasn't really so surprising. I figured when it got to be his turn he'd chicken out, so Bobby and I debated whether we wanted to stand in the extremely long line for nothing but to my surprise when his turn can he got on the pony and made it through the entire ride! As he was riding he kept telling the pony "giddy up horsey"! On the ride home he told us "I big boy ride da horsey". It was precious!

They also had a ball toss set up that Parker really enjoyed. Bobby tried to explain to him that he had to throw the ball in the bucket but instead Parker simply walked over to the bucket and dropped his ball in. He was pretty proud of his "throw"!

Claiming his prize for the ball toss!

This is what Carter did the entire time we were there...he had a great time!

They also had a Easter bunny that you could have a picture taken with but when I asked Parker if he wanted to sit in his lap he said no...oh well, maybe next year! All in all it was a good time on a beautiful morning! I just LOVE spring time!!! Next weekend we're planning on taking the boys to Bellingrath Gardens for the Easter Egg Hunt on the Great Lawn. I took Parker last year and it was so beautiful! I'm planning on dressing them in their Easter outfits and taking pictures so hopefully they'll cooperate ;) I'll post those pictures next weekend! Until then, get out there and enjoy this beautiful spring weather God has so richly blessed us with!

Long Time No Blog

2009-04-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

I realize it's been a while since I've posted the latest going ons at the Stinson abode and that's because there really hasn't been anything too blog worthy to write about! Everyone's doing very well...growing way too quickly! Carter has been sleeping all night for the past two weeks minus one random night about a week ago! I can't tell you what a blessing a full nights sleep has been! God knows exactly what I can and cannot handle and I truly think that's why he has blessed me with two GREAT sleepers ;) Carter is such a happy baby and really only cries if he's hungry or sleepy. The only complaint I have is he's not a very good napper but I think he's trying to get in enough feedings during the day so he can make it all night. He's like a little camel!

Parker is getting to be such a big boy! He's new favorite thing to do is watch Planet Earth over and over again. We were a little worried some of the fighting and killing scenes would upset him but all he says is "they not nice". I'm amazed every day at all the things he already knows and how much more he is learning. He knows all the ABC's and even a few of the sounds they make, can count to 10 without skipping any numbers, and knows all of his colors. He still absolutely adores Carter and asks me to put him on the floor all the time so he can lay next to him and talk to him. Although he's still like a bull in a china shop when it comes to his little brother, I can tell he's really trying to be more gentle. All in all he's a pretty good little boy!

Bobby and I are so truly blessed! God is so GOOD!

Parker thought it would be funny to put his sunglasses on Carter!

Could they look anymore alike?

I HEART Appliques

2009-03-12T13:49:00.000-07:00

First let me say I'd put the cute little heart symbol in the title of this post instead of the word if I knew how to. If anyone could advise me on how to do that I would certainly appreciate it! And while were on the subject of blogging tutorials could someone please tell me how you insert a link in your post but have it as just one word instead of the entire copied link. Does that make sense?

Now for the real post material! I have just learned how to do appliques on my embroidery machine and I'm TOTALLY obsessed! I found a website where I can download super cute inexpensive designs. It's called http://www.swakembroidery.com/. If you do any type of embroidery you must check it out! I also was informed by a friend of mine a website that sells inexpensive blank children's clothing to do my appliques on. It's called http://www.monag.com/. I have soooo many ideas for outfits for the boys...I just wish I had the time to do them all. Here are a few things I've made so far:

I'm also planning on selling some appliqued items on my etsy shop when I open back up in May. I'll be sure to post some of those when I've ironed out all my ideas!

No One's Safe

2009-03-09T13:44:00.000-07:00

Bobby has always told me you're never safe from a picture being taken of you when you're sleeping with your baby and he's right!

Bobby and Carter

Bobby and Parker

2 Months Old

2009-03-09T12:46:00.000-07:00

Carter turned 2 months old yesterday. It's hard to remember what it was like not to have him a part of our family. It feels like he's always been with us. He's smiling and cooing more and more every day and he LOVES watching his brother play around him. As shameful as it is to admit this, he also really likes to watch tv. Sometimes it comes in handy in the evenings when he's fussy and there's nothing I can do to make him happy. I don't let him watch too much so I guess its okay ;)

He went for his 2 month check up today and he weights 10lbs 4oz and is 22 1/2in. long. The doctor was very happy with his growth and said he looks wonderful! He also got 2 shots and did very well with both of them. He'd pretty much stopped crying by the time the nurse was putting on the band-aides. I guess I have two tough little boys on my hands ;)

Yesterday after church I decided to do a little "photo shoot" while he was still dressed in he's church outfit so here are some of the pictures that came out half way decent. Enjoy!

That half smile just kills me!

Big yawn!

Must have been a sweet dream!

This signaled the end of the "photo shoot"!

First Smiles!

2009-03-04T19:39:00.000-08:00

Carter smiled at me for the first time a few days ago and although the pictures don't do justice to just how precious that little smile is, at least I was able to catch a little bit of it. You have to be quick on the draw to catch those first smiles! That face just brightens my day!

Couldn't you just eat him up!!!

STRONG!!!

2009-03-04T19:33:00.000-08:00

Just in case you were wondering Bobby taught him this:

It's a Hard Knock Life For Us...

2009-02-21T20:31:00.000-08:00

I just love it when babies sleep like this! Man, he's got it rough!

Play Time!

2009-02-21T20:11:00.000-08:00

Now that Carter is awake for longer periods of time I've been putting him on the floor to play with some of his toys and watch Parker run around. Parker loves laying next to him and "helping" him play with his toys. I have to watch them pretty closely because while Parker is trying to be sweet by playing with his brother he sometimes isn't as careful about where he moves his arms and legs and he's been know to bonk Carter in the head on accident. I know Parker is going to just love it when Carter gets a little older and can actually play with him.

The Many Faces of Parker

2009-02-15T09:55:00.000-08:00

It all started with "mean face" and while my dad and Dixie were here they added to his repertoire by teaching him the "happy face" and the "surprised face". I'm not really sure how it all started but it's pretty funny!

The Mean Face

The Happy Face

The Surprised Face

Where has the time gone...

2009-02-10T12:29:00.000-08:00

It seems like we just brought Carter home last week! I can't believe that he's already a month old! Luckly, he is such an easy going baby and has been an absolute blessing. Each day he is becoming more and more alert and even staying awake for longer periods during the day. I can't wait for him to crack that first smile which I think will be any day now.

He had his one month check up yesterday and weighed in at 8lbs! I couldn't believe how much weight he had gained! It is so encouraging to see such a big weight gain while nursing so I couldn't be more happy. He's also grown half an inch since birth which puts him at 20inches. All in all he's doing great!

*I'll post more pictures of both boys soon*