Trip to the Zoo

Sarah and I took Mary Grace and Carter to the zoo today. We're having a really pretty, breezy fall day here today. We're not used to the cooler temperatures though and it was really cold in the shade sometimes!

We had some good luck with the animals today. First, one of the bears was hanging out near the water again so we got some good close up views of it.


The zebras were all hanging out by the front fence instead of hiding in the hut today.


The meerkats were running around playing.


One of the gorillas was the most active I've ever seen at our zoo. He was actually playing a little.


George, the baby chimp, was full of energy and kept trying to climb up at the window to see people.



Today was the first time that Carter actually seemed to see the animals. He'd point at them and do a little scream (sort of like he does when he sees a dog when we're out walking or running). Taking him to the zoo is going to be so much more fun now that he'll get something out of it. And he stayed awake the whole two hours we were there (I think that's a first).

Carter dressed up in his fall clothes for a walk after dinner tonight ...


Carter finally seems to be over his cold. His last day with a runny nose was Sunday. Besides having a fever a few times, this illness wasn't too bad.

I've been trying to get better about not letting Carter have his paci other than for naps and at night. I had let him have it a lot when he was sick so that he didn't put as much other stuff in his mouth that I would then touch (I still used a TON of hand sanitizer when he was sick). Here's a picture of him trying to get a paci he saw on top of this table ...


Here's a funny picture from the other day. I turned away from Carter for about 10 seconds and when I looked back, he had cheese on his head.

Carter

First Bike Ride

We took Carter on his first bike ride this afternoon. We rode about 4 1/2 miles around our neighborhood. Carter isn't a big fan of the helmet but pretty much left it alone once we put him in the trailer. It kept slipping though almost over his eyes so we need to get it adjusted better. He fell asleep after 5 or 10 minutes and woke up once we stopped moving after returning home. He was not happy when he woke up and was wearing that helmet! Hopefully he'll get used to it.

Carter ready to go ...


Just getting home ...


Carter didn't look too comfortable with his head off to the side ...


I hope to take Carter out a lot this fall and early winter to some of the longer greenways around the area.

Carter set off our Carbon Monoxide / Explosive Gas Alarm again tonight. He crawled through the hallway with a dirty diaper, and about a minute later, the alarm went off.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

It rained ALL DAY. Actually, it poured all day. We've gotten about 3 inches of rain today. So we were stuck inside all day. We managed to get out for lunch at least to Red Robin.

Carter wasn't feeling too well again today. He's had a runny nose all week but that seemed to be the only thing wrong. Today he had a fever again. When I took his temperature before his afternoon nap it was 100.6 F. I gave him some Tylenol and he ended up taking a 2 1/2 hour nap. His temperature was down to 99.3 F when we put him to bed. Hopefully he'll be feeling better tomorrow.

During Carter's long nap I finally got around to putting latches on the kitchen cabinets. I need to get some more latches so I can lock up our bathroom cabinets as well. Getting dinner together and cleaned up was so much easier now that I'm not trying to keep Carter from pulling things out of the cabinets that could break or are heavy.

Cades Cove and Look Rock

I took Carter up to the Smokies and Foothills Parkway today. We left the house right before Carter's morning nap and he slept for part of the drive. It took us just under an hour to get to the beginning of the Cades Cove scenic loop.

I quickly remembered why I hate Cades Cove and vow never to drive around it again every time I go there. I cannot stand getting stuck behind someone going only 5 mph who constantly stops in the middle of the road when they think they might see something in the woods. There are plenty of pulloffs throughout the one-way one lane loop, but so many people think they don't need to use them. And then someone in the car in front of us always seems to be smoking and we're just forced to breathe their smoke the whole time. I'm way too impatient to enjoy this sort of drive, especially when Carter is fussing!

I put all the windows down as we drove and Carter looked out the window most of the first half of the drive. For awhile he was content with watching the trees pass by.

About 2 miles in, we saw a bear. This was the first bear I've ever seen in the Smokies. We've seen plenty in Shenandoah (even had one walk through our campsite), but had never come across one in the Smokies. It was in a tall bush on the side of the road. Lots of people were stopped, most of them in the middle of the road, so we couldn't miss it. Carter and I got out for a minute (after pulling over, of course), but I didn't want to get too close with the little guy. (Someone did offer to hold Carter while I got closer to take a picture, which I, of course, quickly turned down!)

Here are the really poor photos I got of the bear. Holding a wiggling baby and trying to take a photo with the lens really zoomed in does not lead to a very crisp picture!



For the first time ever, we didn't see any deer in the cove. The only other wildlife we saw were some turkeys at the entrance of the loop. We stopped at a couple of the structures in Cades Cove to get out for a few minutes and take some pictures. I stopped at a few places that I haven't been too before.

The Methodist Church ...


A field in Cades Cove ...


The Dan Lawson Place ...



Carter was not as happy the second half of the loop. He fussed a lot and kept throwing the toys that I'd give him. They'd quiet him down for about 3o seconds each before he'd chuck them. I think he was also frustrated with having to drive so slow!

After we finished the loop at Cades Cove, I fed Carter and then drove over to the Foothills Parkway. Carter took another nap on the drive over there. We went about halfway down the Parkway to the trail for Look Rock. There's a short hike here to a tower with some good views. The hike was only 0.5 miles each way and paved the whole way. It was easy, but Carter was pretty heavy on the uphill section!


Carter liked being in the backpack. He seemed to really enjoy when I put him on and took him off my back! He was all smiles whenever I did that.




The tower ...


The views from the tower (it was pretty hazy today) ...




Carter looking a whole lot like Brian ...


Carter saying "This is so boring!"


Carter took another short nap on the drive home. We were gone from the house for only about 5 1/2 hours. It's really nice being so close to a great park. Carter and I need to get out more during the week and hike this fall!

Flu Shot

I managed to get Carter his seasonal flu booster vaccine today. We ended up calling the health department this morning and they had gotten in 8 doses. When we got there, there were 6 doses left with a few kids in front of us. So Carter was "lucky" enough to get a shot today. They didn't know when they are getting in more vaccines. It's crazy how quickly everyone is running out this year!

I asked about getting the H1N1 vaccine there and the nurse said they haven't decided how they are going to administer them yet. She said they are considering doing one mass vaccination on a Saturday at the Convention Center.

This evening we stopped by Addison and Kelsey's softball game for a few minutes. Addison pitched and Kelsey was playing second base. They used to play at the fields by our old house and I used to take Charlotte running over there so I've seen them play a few times before. They won their game tonight 4 to 1. Carter was more interested in eating his book than watching the game ...

Uh-Oh

Here's a video of Carter saying "uh-oh" (and a bunch of other sounds).

Before our walk with Sarah and Mary Grace today, I took Carter over to the swings for a few minutes. Here's a cute picture I got of him ...


And here's a random cute photo of Carter wearing my sunglasses ...

Fall is Here

Though it's still warm and doesn't feel much like fall yet, we're in the middle of our fall project of landscaping our backyard.

When we moved in, there were two trees in the backyard, one of which was a dead dogwood tree. The other is a silver maple. All that we managed to get done last year was to make the bed around that tree. We put in edging, killed the grass, and covered the area in pinestraw.

Here are some pictures I took last September:



So this fall we have finally managed to put in 8 plants in that bed. We decided to add a second bed along the fence on the other side of the gate to match the first one. We put in 9 plants into that bed so far and just need to find a tree that we like for the center of it. I've also bought lots of bulbs that I need to plant and then we'll be done!

Here are some pictures I took today:



Our maple tree has gotten at least 10 feet taller this year. It's trunk has also gotten A LOT thicker. Look at it's "stretch marks" ...


We also planted a camilla bush in one of the small empty beds along the back of the house. We have one other bed along the back of the house we'd like to add a few plants to if we have time. There are some yews in that bed right now but it needs something else in front of the yews.

Carter's been a trooper as we've often had him sitting in his stroller screaming at us to hurry up as we plant. He's not a big fan of being forced to stay in one place, but we all made it through. This past weekend we kept having to dodge rain showers. I got soaked twice when it started raining when we had dug a hole but not put the plant in yet. I made Brian take Carter in and I stayed out to play in the mud (it was actually fun) and finish up the plant we were working on.

Sick Baby

Carter still has a runny nose. He had his first real fever yesterday too of 100.9 F. His fever seems to be gone today and his nose is a little less runny. This sickness hasn't been slowing him down too much. He was a little more cuddly with us this weekend though. He would actually sit in our laps and watch TV for 10 minutes or so. He's never done that before. Also, today, he fell asleep in his Jumperoo while I was taking a shower. Carter's never fallen asleep outside of his crib, playyard, bouncer, carseat, or on one of us before. So I guess this cold has been making him a little more tired.

Carter was supposed to get his second dose of the infant seasonal flu vaccine last Friday but our pediatrician's office ran out the beginning of last week. They don't know when they are getting more in either. I called the health department and they are getting more in this week so I may take him their to get his second shot.

Carter's got a new word - "uh-oh". He repeats it after Brian or I say it. It's a little mangled still, but we know what he's saying!

Carter is starting to wave. He's been doing it a little for about 2 weeks, but he's starting to get good at it now. He'll usually only wave to Brian and me though.

Carter's still generally sleeping through the night. In the last 4 weeks I've only had to get him 2 or 3 times. He still often wakes up around 3:30 or 4:30 am, but he never gets too upset and goes back to sleep. Sometimes it takes 5 minutes and other times it takes more like 30 minutes.

Carter is finally not throwing up after eating, most of the time. He probably only throws up once a week now. It's so nice that he's not ruining his and our clothes anymore!

Atlanta

Brian found out on Monday afternoon that he had to go to a conference in Atlanta from Wednesday through Friday. Since it's an easy drive down there from Knoxville, we decided that this would be a good trip for Carter and me to tag along.

The conference didn't start until Thursday morning, but Brian was able to leave work just after lunch on Wednesday so we could drive during the afternoon. It rained all day Wednesday. Carter thought my umbrella was hilarious. When we went to storytime at the library in the morning and dropped Charlotte off at the kennel he laughed so hard at the umbrella that was balanced between the top of the car and the door as I got him out of his carseat. He kept trying to grab it and pull it down as we were walking too. He only succeeded at getting us wet once.

We managed to just beat most of the traffic around Atlanta and got to the hotel around 5:15 pm. We were staying on the north side of town in the Sandy Springs area so we made it in a little over 3 hours. Carter did great during the drive. He slept for the first hour and was content for another 3o minutes. We stopped after that to change his diaper and then I sat in the back with him so I could feed him a snack. I played with him some the rest of the drive, but he didn't need too much entertainment to stay content.

We stayed at a Staybridge Suites and ended up having a perfect room for us all. We were in a corner room so we got a separate bedroom from the kitchen and living space that had a door. We set up Carter's playyard in the living area away from the bedroom and were able to keep lights on and the TV on after putting him down for the night. If we didn't have that, I'm sure we would of had to go to bed at the same time as Carter and we'd probably still wake him up anytime either of us made a noise (he can be a really light sleeper).

The only bad thing about the room was that the floor was really dirty. Carter will not stay still and I had to give in to him crawling around the nasty floor (I can't stand even walking barefoot in hotel rooms - it grosses me out). He ended up with black knees and feet right away.

It was really pouring when we got into Atlanta and did not let up for a couple of hours. We got most of our stuff into the hotel room, heated up some food for Carter, and went out for a quick dinner. When we finished eating, we took Carter to REI for the first time. Hopefully this will also be one of his favorite stores someday. Brian and I both realized how much we really miss doing stuff outdoors and hope we take advantage of the fall and go hiking a bunch.

We got back to the room, got Carter off to bed, and got to just hang out for a bit. Carter slept through the night and woke up around his usual time of 6 am! The hotel had exterior doors so we kept hearing suitcases rolling by and people talking, but luckily none of it woke up Carter!

On Thursday, after we dropped Brian off at his conference, Carter and I headed downtown to the Georgia Aquarium. It was still raining so I figured the aquarium, though very expensive, would be a good activity for us to do. We bought my ticket a few minutes before it opened so Carter and I were some of the first people in the aquarium. Brian and I went to the aquarium a few years ago a couple of months after it opened and it was insanely crowded. It was SO MUCH better this time. Carter and I headed over to the Cold Water Quest section first to see the beluga whales. We had them all to ourselves (except for an aquarium employee that was hanging out to answer questions). It was really cool.


Some of the other cool things we saw was one of the alligators swimming back and forth in his exhibit (they usually don't move in all the exhibits we see); the whale sharks, manta rays, hammerhead sharks, and sawfish in the giant Ocean Voyager tank; and Carter's favorite, the jellyfish.

My opinion of the Georgia Aquarium is that it's not the biggest or best aquarium around, but you do see some animals you don't see at many other aquariums. And it is really expensive - $27 for an adult admission. We did take our time and spend 3 hours there though. It started to get a little crowded before we left so I'm glad we got there so early.

After the aquarium, Carter and I went over to IKEA until we had to pick up Brian. It was pouring again so we had to find another indoor activity!

After picking up Brian and stopping by the hotel, we headed out to dinner at Outback. Carter did pretty well. He's not great when eating out takes longer than 30 minutes. He really liked the coasters though ...


Carter didn't do as well sleeping Thursday night. He woke up once around 12:30 am and I was able to rock him back to sleep after about 30 minutes and then he woke up again around 2:30 am. I fed him this time and eventually was able to get him back to sleep again after about an hour. Carter ended up sleeping in to 7 am though Brian had to be back at the conference early so we still got up at 6 am.

Since Brian was done around lunch on Friday (and it was still raining), Carter and I did a little shopping in the Sandy Springs area. I found him a couple of cute things for fall. We had hoped to go to the Atlanta Zoo in the afternoon with Brian, but we decided it looked like the rain was going to continue so we headed home after lunch.

Carter took a 30 minute nap as we headed out of Atlanta. We stopped at some outlets in Georgia along I-75 since we were headed home early and got some more fall clothes for Carter. When we were headed out of Chattanooga, we hit traffic from an accident that delayed us almost an hour. Carter took another 30 minute nap as we sat in traffic. Overall he did well on the almost 4 hour drive. We were also able to get Charlotte from the kennel on the way to the house since we got back to town early. We got her in the car about 2 minutes ahead of another major downpour.

Overall we had a good trip. I'm really glad that Carter and I joined Brian on his trip.

Explosive Gas

Carter seems to have a bit of a cold. He woke up with a runny nose this morning.

About an hour after Carter woke up, he had a VERY stinky diaper (which I figured may of been because he seemed to be getting sick). I took him upstairs to his room to change him. About half way through his diaper change, an alarm started going off. I thought it was the smoke detector, but Brian discovered it was our Carbon Monoxide / Explosive Gas Alarm. It was saying "GAS" on the display and beeping VERY loudly every other second.


I finished diapering Carter and took him downstairs. Our heat, fireplace, and hot water heater use natural gas, but we didn't smell any natural gas. We figured the detector was just having a false alarm, but we went ahead and opened up the windows just in case. We took the batteries out of the alarm, reset it, and put it back upstairs in the hall where we keep it plugged it.

The alarm didn't go off again but we were still a little worried that maybe we just weren't smelling the natural gas and maybe we should call our gas company to come check it out.

We decided to pull up the instructions for the alarm online to see if there was any information about possible false positive alarms. In the instructions we found a comment about not placing the detector above diaper pails because high amounts of methane gas can cause a gas alarm.

So, apparently, Carter's diaper was SO STINKY that he set of the explosive gas alarm! That was one yucky diaper!

We're Back!

Brian had to go to a conference the second half of this week in Atlanta so Carter and I tagged along. I'm too tired tonight to post about the trip. I'll do it this weekend. But here is a cute picture of Carter at the Georgia Aquarium.