Thursday, November 25, 2010

First Teeth

Rylan has teeth!

I noticed this morning that his bottom middle teeth have officially broken through. His left one is completely through the gum and the right one is just starting to show.

Maybe (please!) he'll start sleeping better again!

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

2 Year Checkup

Oh, goodness! I should of known it was going to be a rough appointment when we pulled into the parking lot of the pediatrician's office and Carter pointed at the building and said "no".

Carter did fine in the waiting room but as soon as we got into the exam room, he started to freak out. I think he was expecting to get shots and was scared. Carter did awesome when he got his flu shot, but I had brought him along when Rylan got his 4-month shots. So maybe that made him scared. Thank goodness Rylan was great during the entire appointment. He slept through the first half and then just chilled out in his carrier the rest of the time not making a sound.

Carter didn't even want to get undressed and fought me the whole time. Then he clung to me and I had to rip him off me to get him measured as he cried so hard. I was so embarrassed because they do these measurements in an open area outside of the exam rooms and everyone got to see and listen to us. I also felt terrible for Carter and didn't know what to say to distract him or make him calm down. Brian is so much better in these situations. My brain tends to just freeze and I go blank on ways to help Carter out.

It didn't help the situation that the nurse we had today wasn't very friendly. Instead of giving Carter some time or talking to him to try to make friends with him, she just did what she needed to do to get her job done. I think that if she would have taken a little more time to talk to Carter or play with him, it would of helped him out some. I know it still wouldn't of been perfect, but I think we set him back and he is even more scared of the doctor's office now.

After measurements, Carter had to have his finger pricked so the nurse could do a couple of blood tests. He didn't know what was going to happen, but he was still freaking out before he even got pricked. I hate having my finger pricked (it hurts!) so I can understand why Carter continued to cry. Again, I wish the nurse would of been better because I know Carter is going to remember having that done the next time we go to the pediatrician.

I finally calmed Carter down and he was playing when the pediatrician showed up. Carter immediately got super clingy and it was difficult to do the exam. Carter is still not over his cold so he was blowing snot everywhere and wiggling all over the place. I think that the pediatrician still did a thorough exam, but it was hard. Carter warmed up enough by the end of the exam to tell the pediatrician how old he is and "bye" (but I was holding him by then).

Everything was good except I was told to ditch the paci immediately (which we were already planning on doing after Thanksgiving). The pediatrician said Carter is starting to develop an over-bight, his top teeth are starting to slant out a bit, and when he closes his mouth, his developing a gap between the top and bottom teeth. All of these things seem slight right now, but I know they will just get worse. That was why we were planning on taking the paci away anyway. I think our pediatrician was trying to scare me into action a little bit. I still feel bad right now that we didn't take it away earlier - I don't want to do anything that hurts Carter!

Carter had to get one shot after the pediatrician finished. So there was more crying but we got through it and I calmed him down during our 10 minute wait to make sure he didn't have a reaction to the shot.

When we were finally able to leave, it was pouring outside. I had expected the rain so I had an umbrella for Carter and a blanket to put over Rylan's carrier so they didn't get too wet. It was still not fun getting them into the car as I got soaked.

So here are Carter's official 2 year measurements:
  • Weight: 25 lbs, 14 oz (25th percentile)
  • Height: 33.5 inches (30th percentile)
  • Head Circumference: 19.5 in (60th percentile)
And here are his stats from 18 months:
  • Weight: 23 lbs, 1 oz (14th percentile)
  • Height: 31.5 inches (26th percentile)
  • Head Circumference: 49 cm (82nd percentile)
If Rylan doesn't slow down, he's going to weigh more than Carter soon!

Monday, November 22, 2010

Fun at the Zoo

We met Meredith with Blaine and Hudson at the zoo this afternoon. It was a gorgeous day in the mid-70s and breezy.

We got there a couple of minutes before Meredith and I took this picture while we were waiting ...


I told Carter this morning that we were going to the zoo and he kept saying "zoo, ahh-ahh" all day long. So I think Carter was happy that we spent most of the afternoon looking at the gorilla and gibbons.


My little zebra ...


The boys loved playing on the jeep. Carter has a hard time letting anyone else drive but he eventually let Blaine have a short turn ...


Carter had lots of fun at the zoo. This may be our last time going for a little bit since it looks like it'll be getting cold soon. Hopefully Carter will understand!

Rolling Over!

Rylan finally rolled over completely today from his back to his stomach. He's been getting close for a few weeks now. He'd get his lower body turned over but his upper body was just on his side His hands would be together and he'd be stuck like this ...


Today Rylan got all the way over and pushed up on his arms. After doing it once, he turned over 3 more times almost immediately.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Rice Cereal = Yuck

I put Rylan in Carter's booster seat today to feed him some rice cereal. I put a blanket in the seat to make it a little more snug so Rylan wouldn't tip over but he probably would of fit just fine without it.


Rylan is still not a fan of rice cereal ...



Saturday, November 20, 2010

Lowe's Build and Grow

Brian had some work to do this morning so I took the boys to the Lowe's Build and Grow workshop.

Ever since Carter got his Handy Manny tools from my dad, he's been really into Pat, the hammer. It's the only one he can say the name of. Carter was very excited that the Handy Manny toy he got from Mary Grace also included a small Pat. So he's always saying "two pat" and finding both of the hammers amongst his toys.

The one tool that the kids use at the Build and Grow workshop is a hammer. So when I told him we were going to Lowe's to go build something, he grabbed big Pat to take with him.

You can see the blue plastic hammer in Carter's right hand in this picture I took as we were walking through Lowe's ...


Carter insisted on using Pat to try to hammer the nails in instead of the real hammer.


Carter ended up switching hammers with me and insisted that I used Pat to hammer in the nails as well.

We eventually got the project finished and here's what we made ...


It's a snowman gift card holder. In two weeks the kids start making a train! It has three cars and the kids get to make one car each Saturday. We're hoping to make it to all of those workshops.

Rylan was with us today. He did good - no crying. Just a very serious expression on his face as he tried to figure out what all the noise was around him (dozens of little hammers make A LOT of noise).

Friday, November 19, 2010

NC Trip - Day 8

I'm finally back to posting about our NC trip. Rylan is still not sleeping well so I haven't had the energy to blog much at night. I'm going to try to finally finish posting about this trip this weekend (hopefully).

On Friday, October 22nd, we spent the day with my mom. Rylan slept awesome overnight (unlike now). I only fed him once that night around 12:45 am and he didn't get up until 5 am. I did move him to his bouncer at 2:15 am when he woke up, but that was it. That was his first (and only) night with only one feeding.

We got out of the house pretty early (around 9 am) and headed over to the Fort Fisher Aquarium (link). The aquarium is pretty small and Carter ran through it fast. We spent the most time checking out the alligators, including this cool albino one ...





Carter listening to the ocean in a shell with my mom ...


Carter checking out the fish with Brian ...


Family photo outside of the aquarium ...


After the aquarium, we headed over to the beach just down the road. We had packed our lunch and had a picnic on the beach.

The BOB stroller is good for more than just jogging. It's so big that it creates plenty of shade for Rylan so he doesn't get sunburned!



When we first got to the beach, Carter did not want to touch the sand. He didn't like walking on it or for any of it to get on him at all. Luckily he eventually loosened up and had fun playing with some toys we had brought along with us.


Carter enjoyed destroying the castles that Brian built for him ...


I was surprised when Carter started playing in this water that was trapped in a low spot several yards from the ocean. It was freezing! He didn't even seem to notice his shorts getting wet (except for the one time he lost his balance and soaked one side).


I eventually convinced Carter to put his feet in the ocean. Immediately after this photo was taken, Carter fell down. This one inch wave managed to make him off balanced! Carter was really soaked then!


Brian and Carter walking back up the beach ...


My mom and the boys (after Carter got a quick outfit change) ...


We went back to my mom's house after the beach and put Carter down for a nap. When he got up, we went to my mom's school where she's a teaching assistant because they were having a fundraising event.

Carter got to sit in a fire truck ...


And swing on the swings with my mom ...


And play on the playground for a bit ...


Carter is so strong. He could hang like this forever. He can even pull himself up a little bit.


My sister (Karey) and her fiancee (Mike) came to Wilmington for the weekend to meet Rylan. We all went out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant and luckily the boys behaved well enough. It's still hard for us to take them to restaurants with waiters that take longer.

After dinner we went back to my mom's house and hung out for a little bit until we needed to get the boys in bed. Carter really liked Mike and kept going to him to play. My sister and Mike did give the boys some cool presents, including this aardvark that Carter likes to attack people with (we have no idea why) ...


And the "Bear in Underwear" book is currently one of Carter's favorite books.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Rylan's Eyelashes

Both Carter and Rylan have crazy eyelashes. Carter's are super thick, long, and straight, just like Brian's. Rylan's are thinner, but long and curled. Here are a few pictures I took of Rylan the other day that show off his lashes ...



Bad Colds

The boys and I are sick, sick, sick. Carter started it off with a runny nose yesterday. It's a faucet and he's really congested this time too (usually it just runs and he can still breathe fine). He's so noisy when he sleeps. He sounds like an old man snoring.

It was inevitable that Rylan and I would get sick with all the kisses Carter gives us lately. I started getting a sore throat this afternoon and Rylan woke up from a nap this afternoon screaming and clogged up with snot. It's gross. I hope we all get over this soon and don't pass it on to Brian.

The weather cleared up today and it warmed up a bit (near 60) so we met Amy with Caitlyn and Alek at the zoo. We spent a lot of time in the children's play area and then saw a handful of animals before heading home.

Here are a few cute pictures from today:


Wednesday, November 17, 2010

New Words and So Much More

Carter's vocabulary has exploded again. He has lots of new words, including zoo, play, boat, house, pee, poop, and many more. He's still not very clear and often needs us to translate, but we're getting closer to having conversations.

When Carter doesn't know the answer to a question we ask or where something is at, he'll tap his chin or lips with his index finger and make a "hhhhmmmmm" sound. It's so cute! I need to get a video of this.

When I ask Carter if he wants me to help him and he wants to do it himself, he'll tap his chest with his hand and say his name (which sounds something like "car-car").

Carter likes to be silly when doing puzzles with us. He'll often put a piece in the wrong place and then look at us out of the corner of his eye with his eyebrows raised. Then he'll shake his head, say "no", and put the piece in the correct spot.

Carter picks up actions from books really easily. Some recent things were looking up and looking down. Brian's the best at teaching him new stuff like this.

When Rylan is crying in the car and finally stops, Carter will say "yea!" (which often startles Rylan and gets him crying again). Sometimes Carter will keep saying "mama" as if asking for me to make Rylan stop.

Carter and Rylan are interacting more and more. Carter is good at making Rylan laugh at him. He also gives Rylan hugs and kisses all day long. Hopefully they are going to be good playmates soon!

Monday, November 15, 2010

Happy Birthday Carter!

Carter turned 2 years old today!

Brian took the day off of work and Carter was so happy to have him around all day. He's still really attached to Brian.

We started the morning with some birthday pancakes. Because Carter loved being sung to and blowing candles out at his party, I decided to do both for every meal today.


For couple of weeks I had been telling Carter that he was going to have a birthday soon and that he was going to be two years old. It started to stick about a week ago. Whenever you ask him what happens on his birthday or how old he is now, he responds with "two".



We had leftover pizza from the party for lunch (and dinner).



We opened up presents after Carter's nap.


We gave him a tricycle, a Mr. Potato Head, a toy guitar, a puzzle (from Rylan), and a Lego farm set.







Carter also got some presents from his grandparents including some trucks and a bookbag. We're planning on having a little party for him when we see everyone for Thanksgiving so he'll be getting even more gifts then!

Me and the boys ...


After playing with all of Carter's new toys, we watched "A Bug's Life" and ate popcorn. It rained most of the day and was just dreary. Cuddling up on the couch was a perfect activity for that kind of weather (unfortunately Rylan didn't agree).

After dinner, we sang to Carter one more time and had cupcakes. I took a video this time to show how much Carter loves being sung to


Happy birthday Carter! We love you!!!