Tyler James Carr

Finally posting some pics of Ty. It's a lot easier on Facebook so I've got lots posted there. Here are some from the hospital.

He was born April 22 at 9:13 PM.

9 pounds, 9 ounces. Big boy!

21 inches long.

Smiling on the second day!

I think he looks like Libby in this pic.

He is now 2 weeks old and 9 pounds, 14 ounces! I'll post some recent pics next.

2 weeks overdue, Birthday party, and misc.

A quick update. I'm still pregnant! I don't know too many women that actually make it to this point, and I know why! It's uncomfortable and waiting becomes a weary task! Funny how fast time flew by the first nine months, then all of the sudden switches into slow motion until the baby comes. Every night I hope to wake up in labor and every morning I hope to go into labor that day. Looking back, this will seem such a short time, but right now it feels so long!

Had a check-up Monday and everything still looks OK for Ty. He is measuring in at 9 pounds, 2 ounces and I wouldn't doubt if he actually weighs in more than that when he finally comes. I expected this, especially 2 weeks out from the due date!

I know I've already posted this pic, but I cropped it and think it's a halmark pic so I'll put it here again. Libby and her friend Lucy at the zoo. BFF.

Spring is here and we actually have some beautiful trees and flowers at our new house. I'm so glad! We have 2 gorgeous dogwoods in the backyard that recently bloomed. I had to get some pics of them!

I love dogwoods and am so excited to have these trees in our yard!

Back in May of last year when we visited Orlando , FL for Ben's graduation, we picked up a princess castle for Libby's birthday. Well, things got crazy and Libby had ample supply of toys from Christmas, so we held on to it. After her recent bout with Rotavirus and finally getting around to planning a birthday party for her, we decided it was a good time for her to open it. She loves it! Especially all the figurines. She's watched Beauty and the Beast (one of her new favorite movies) about a million times now so she recognized the beast and Belle right away. Found them set up like this after she had been playing with them and went down for a nap and I had to get a quick pic of it. She always sets the figurines up facing each other, deep in conversation no doubt. She also put the little figurine for the rose behind them, although you can't see it in this pic. I love having a girl!

We finally made it to the park for a quick party for Libby before Ty arrived. She had fun with Annie, the Plewniak crew and some new friends (a buddy of Matt's from work came with his wife and 2 kids). She mostly loved the part where we sang Happy Birthday and she got her cake, that's really what makes it a birthday for her! I'm so glad we were able to squeeze it in as she completely understood what was going on.

Cute Cousin Annie:

Birthday Cake!

So happy! Thanks to everyone who was able to make it so last minute!

We went to a photo op that Matt found out about at work. They had animals to pose with at Mayo garden center last weekend so we brought Libby down. She was so scared of this huge rabbit! Funny, she loved the baby sheep even though it was much larger. This was the only pic that I thought worth putting up here. My camera started acting up (think the battery was low) so I didn't get any great pics, but we did have one printed that was pretty cute.

Ever since I saw a bit on the news about a family that makes and sells honey buns, I've had an inkling to make some of my own. How hard could they be, anyways?

Well, turns out with a little patience waiting on the dough to rise, they aren't hard at all. So, for my first attempt at cinnamon rolls semi-homemade with no recipe, here's what I got:

One word describes it well: Wow!

Guess you can't really go wrong when your ingredient list is Kroger bread dough (my short-cut), butter, brown sugar, honey and cinnamon. :) (Especially when making them healthy wasn't the goal.) They were delicious and really hit the spot!

What can I say, I have to find something to bide my time otherwise I would go crazy!

So good!

Libby enjoyed them as well, now I'm just waiting for the sugar rush. :)

Here I am (maybe the only prego pic with Ty) 9 months and 1 week pregnant.

I definitely don't look like I did 9 months pregnant with Libby. Probably because I'm 10 pound lighter than I was with her! So glad I was able to keep it 10 pounds below the 50 pound weight gain mark. That was my goal.

Here I am at 8 months with Libby. I can't seem to find any 9 month pics with her. Maybe I missed it being right around Christmas.

Libby is cracking me up throughout the day with everything she says. She says much of what is on her mind these days and I actually understand most of it! I love it! Some of the phrases you might hear multiple times throughout the day are "So cute" refering to any animal or baby, "holy cow" (love it when she says this, especially when it's combined with "look at that"), "so tired" (usually when she doesn't want to do something I've asked her to do), and, of course, "please juice" or "choc milk please" and "diggity dog moonie" (asking to watch the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse show).

It has been so fun to finally get a glimpse of what's going on in that little mind of hers. As I thought, it's some pretty hillarious stuff. Sometimes I get moment-by-moment updates of what she's doing or thinking. Sometimes I just catch her talking to her baby or other toys.

She's so sweet and loving and I love all the spontaneous hugs and kisses that I get on my hand, arm, cheek, whatever is closest to her.

Oh, I almost forgot, she can now count to 10 by herself! I haven't even been working diligently on this with her, but I just heard her one day count all the way up without missing a beat. Now for the alphabet.

That's all for now. Hopefully some new baby pics soon, we'll see. :)

Due Date and Rotavirus!

So today is my due date. I know it's going to have come and gone, this time without me giving it more than a thought or two... Very different than with Libby.

I'm not anywhere near where I wanted to be at this point, but I guess what needs to get done will eventually get done. This weekend threw me way off!! Why? One evil word... Rotavirus. :(

A terrible stomach virus that lasts up to a week or two!! And Libby got it! We took a chance not getting the vaccination for it as sometimes kids get it from the vaccination itself, and I guess I'd rather have a 2-year old with it than a 2-month old, if you have to experience it at all.

Matt is now convinced that Ty will get the vaccination and I'm just about on board with it... after I talk to the doctor a little more and get some more info.

I don't know where or how she got it, but it is bad!! We ended up at Children's hospital on Sunday (she started throwing up on Friday) and we were just released this morning (Tuesday). We didn't expect that long of a stay (didn't even expect an overnight) but I'm glad we brought her in as the IV helped replenish her fluids quickly. I'm so glad to report that she is almost back to her old self and it's soooo good to see her smile and hear her little voice talking again!! Amazing how much I've missed it these last few days. I LOVE MY SWEET GIRL!!

Over all I'm sooo thankful that I haven't gone into labor early or on time as it will probably be another 5 days to a week before our house is rid completely of every last germ from that horrible monster and I wouldn't want Ty coming in to that and worrying about him getting it. I would also never have been able to send Libby away when she needed me most, makes me want to cry just thinking about it. So, thankfullly the Lord has good plans and his timing is perfect. Though I wish we'd never had to experience it, I know He is working for our good through it and I'm SO glad He didn't plan for her to have it when we had a newborn in the house!

Now we're just praying that Matt or I don't get it. Not as common or as harmful in adults, but it can happen.

Thanks to everyone who has been praying!

Now to house cleaning and dissinfecting and more prep for baby (with hopefully a few days to rest and enjoy some of this nicer weather we've been having).

Don't have any pictures. I debated bringing the camera as Libby looked so pitiful, but I didn't think this was something I wanted to remember, though she might have appreciated the pics when she's older.

Some catch up

I've got a lot of catching up to do. Sad thing is, it won't happen. We've been having a lot of computer problems and I lost a lot of my pictures that I've taken in the last 4 months or so. So I'll post what was left and recently taken.

Fun With Friends

Things started warming up around here for a little while so we tried to get outside and enjoy the pretty pre-spring days while we could. We went to the zoo not too long ago and I did snap a few pictures.

Libby and the meerkats: A friendly giraffe came to say hello. I think this is the closest I've ever seen the giraffes at the zoo. They normally hang out in another area.

Some friends of ours came as well. Libby and Lucy have become pretty good friends (for 2 year olds). They kept holding hands while walking through the zoo. It was so cute! Friends.

Then they were sliding down the slide together. Libby kept following right behind Lucy, but riding on her stomach backwards. Don't know why she enjoyed riding this way.

They loved the playground area, though!

Finally sliding the right way.

A while back we babysat Annie and loved it! Libby actually got really sick after she left, but thankfully Annie never got it. Here is Libby introducing Annie to her favorite movie: Toy Story. Annie... not too interested. :) Wait till she gets a little older, Libby, then she'll enjoy it with you.

I put a pillow on the floor and laid Annie on it. Libby, of course, curled up right next to her for the "moonie".

So photogenic! She is ADORABLE and I LOVE my little niece! We'll watch her anytime! Libby was sharing her favorite baby with her, that's rare.

SO CUTE!

And happy!

Biltmore

We went to the Biltmore recently to celebrate our 5 year anniversary and Valentines Day. It was great to get away for a little trip before the baby and I had a great time! Wish we could do that more often. Not many flowers were blooming yet so we were able to take advantage of the time to really enjoy the intereior of the house. They don't allow cameras inside so I have limited pictures of the outside.

The orchids were blooming in the greenhouse. Got a few pics of them.

This was the only flower blooming outside at the time, so of course I had to snap a few pics. I think this is Forsiythia (don't know how to spell it :). I love playing around with my camera. Especially with flowers in the spring time.

You can see the house in the background.

The Biltmore house.

Front view with the grounds and fountain.

Clock tower at the winery. The clock tower is original to the grounds. This would be cool in black and white, but I haven't had a chance to do any touch ups or changes yet.

Home Life

Don't have any Daffodils, Tulips or Iris' at our new house yet. So I had to pick up a bunch from the store for inside. The sun was streaming through the window and I had to grab my camera to snap a few pics. I love my camera! And spring flowers!

Our picture window in the kitchen with the sunlight and warm air streaming in.

Love this one! Another that might end up in black and white somewhere around our house.

Enjoying some more warm weather outside.

Picking some of our "flowers" in the yard (mostly weeds, dandelions etc.)

Had a typical "little girl" incident happen the other day. Libby round my lipstick while I was upstairs for a few minutes. Surprisingly, she only got it on her face neck and a bit on her pjs and hair. None on the couch, thank goodness! Had to snap a couple of pics before I cleaned her up. Great color for you, Libby. :)

Fitting that this picture would follow the previous ones, although this is not from the same day. While we were remodeling our bathrooms, we didn't have a bath for Libby. So she had to either shower with me (got a lot harder as my belly got too big to squeeze us in there together) or the sink, which she is a bit too big for. So thankful for a bathtub now! It's a lot easier, cleaner and roomier!

Bathtime in the kitchen sink.

Libby has become quite the little helper even before Ty has arrived. She helps me clean up, cook, and grabs me things as I need them. She loves to sit on the counter and help me cook (thanks Mom, for introducing her to this at your house, I wouldn't have thought to include her in these little teaching moments). She always want to help with dinner now and watches intently everything I do.

She helps when she can, like sprinkling cheese on the pizza.

But preffers to eat it! She's definitly learned from me as I learned from my Mom, taste as you go is the best way to cook! She tastes everything as I'm cooking.

Speaking of tasting and eating, I'm so thankful that she loves most foods and will try most anything (sometimes with a command instead of a question. :) She loves all fruits and veggies and eats well on her own, which makes it easier on me. Feeding her healthier foods has also benefited me as I usually eat what I feed her.

She's still growing and learning so fast! Almost too fast! She talks in whole entences now and it has been a blast hearing whats going through that little head of hers. She picks up on song lyrics on the radio, which means I have to be more careful what I'm listening to in the car. And also picks up on phrases she hears us using (also something that makes us have to watch what we say!) Her most recent one that cracks me up is "Howy Tow, Wook dat" (translated "Holy Cow, Look at that"). It cracks me ups every time she says it! She is so intelligent and I'm having fun watching her learn so much! She can now count to 10, and that wasn't even something we practice on a consisten basis. She just lined up her chairs the other day and I heard her count to four. Since then she's counted things up to 10! I'm so thankful she doesn't only learn when I'm teaching her, but picks stuff up as she goes. She learned Ring Around the Rosies at church and came home singing and dancing to it. It took me a few minutes to figure out what she was saying, but made me laugh after we figured it out. This Sunday she came home singing "All sings work a color" (translated "All things work together") from the song they sing at church that ends with "for the good of those who love the Lord", but she hadn't gotten that far yet. She just spins around the living room singing the phrase she knows over and over. We do listen to this song at home, but she didn't start singing it till she came home from church. Amazing what they pick up from church, 1 day a week. Makes me so thankful to know that they give time and effort into planning what our kids learn in Sunday School.

Libby's favorite day of the week is "Church Day" and she asks practically every day if it is church day. I think she might learn her days of the week just counting down to Sunday. I love it!

That's all for now, until I get some new pics (which should be soon if I remember to bring my camera to the hospital). I'll try to get a couple of last minutes pregnancy pics with Libby, but I don't know how many more days we have as a family of three. I'm due in 8 days, but he could come anytime between today and 22 days from now. Libby keeps me busy enough that I can wait. Not to mention all the house work that I have to do, Whew!! I'll also be posting some "after" pictures of our bathrooms as our vanites and sinks just went in today! Just a few finishing touches left and we're good!