Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Things are different now. After baby, I mean. There are the obvious things like newfound skills (such as being able to speedily change a diaper on my lap in a dirty public bathroom) and the fact that "sleeping in" now means staying in bed until 9am. But there are other things, little things that I didn't expect. I've been pretty much on-time to work every day since I went back (a totally new concept for me, made more remarkable by the fact that I'm generally the one that drops Carter off at school). I'm drinking a cup of coffee every day (I never got this routine before - but it's decaf as caffeine still doesn't do it for me). I use facial moisturizer every morning and night (a new-found fear of ageing?), and I put on some make up (at least eyeliner) before work every day. Also, my nails, which did not get the predicted length and strength of pregnancy, are now growing quite long. This is actually somewhat unfortunate as I need them short so that I can stick my fingers in Carter's mouth.

There is one thing, however, that hasn't changed at all. Despite my mother's insistence that my chronic knee pain would subside after the pelvic-altering experience of giving birth (as hers supposedly did, and which a doctor once confirmed was quite possible), my knees still creak. Of course, I notice it less because I'm so tired.

4-Month Check-Up

We had Carter's four-month doctor visit today. He's still long and lean. He weighed in at 15lbs, 4oz (50th percentile for his age) and is 28 inches long (50th percentile for a 9-month-old). He was really showing off for the doctor - grinning and laughing and wriggling all about. She said he looks healthy!

More Hat Cuteness

Our friends Laura and Erik came over tonight and brought Carter this very cute hat for the winter.
 

Boy in a Hat

Depending on who you know better - Thomas or my Dad - you may think that Carter is really starting to take after one of them when you see this picture. Thomas and my dad are both known for wearing hats like this, but I didn't one for Carter (we found it at Old Navy) because it was too small!

All Three of Us

Per my dad's request, here's a picture of all three of us. Sort of. Even with my long arms and amazing "thelma & louise" skills, it is hard to take a picture of three people. We had a pretty lazy weekend all in all. We attempted to catch up on sleep by napping whenever Carter did. Thanks to daycare, Carter does actually nap these days, which is nice! I'm off to DC early in the morning for a business trip. It's just a day trip, so I'll be home late tomorrow night. I'm taking the Amtrak Acela Express for the first time - I'm hoping that it will be somewhat easier with the pumping... If I fly I'd have to check my pump because of the liquid ban, which seems silly for a day trip. I have another trip to DC next week, so I'm going to see how the train goes tomorrow before I decide how I'll go next week.

4 Months Old!

Carter is four months old today! In anticipation of turning 4 months, Carter has regressed and now only sleeps 4 hours at a stretch at night (that's 4 hours at the most - more often its 2-3 hour stretches). So we're pretty tired. Plus, I have a cold. But, tiredness aside, you can see in this video that the last two months with Carter have been pretty fun.

"Look, Ma - Feet!"

Finally, success! Here's the video of Carter and his feet for those of you who haven't already seen it on our website.

Birthday Thanks

Just a quick note of thanks for all who became pirates for one day (especially little t). I enjoyed all the great names and special thanks for Elizabeth for a great birthday dinner and hounding you all to discover your inner pirate. If you neglectd your pirate duties, you can still add your name, it's fun all year long!

Arrrrrrr.

Fall Clothes

We did a little shopping last weekend to get some fall clothes for Carter. He really enjoys being dressed, so he was happy to model a few things for you.


We ended up getting 6-9 month sizes in onesies and overalls. They weren't too too big, and we figure we'll get more use out of them, since he'll probably outgrow the 3-6 month size pretty quickly. We have a pediatrician visit next week so we'll get the scoop on his height/weight then. 

Foot Video and Pirate Reflection

I be proud o' yer pirate name posting. And in return, I tried to post the video of the wee one, but alas, me computer (or me skills) be broken. So I posted the video on Carter's page on our website.

In case you were wondering, we have one "Iron", two "Dirtys", two "Mads" and five "Captains" (as far as pirate names go). Seems like too many captains to me. And two of us captains living under one roof...

Happy Birthday, Thomas!!

A Birthday Wish

Today is Thomas' birthday. And all he really wanted from his blog readers was for you to respond to his Pirate Talk post with your own pirate name. So, come on. It isn't just Thomas' favorite day because it is the day of his birth, he also loves today because it is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. So get in the spirit, and add a comment with your own pirate name.

I've been trying to post a sweet video of Carter playing with his feet (he discovered them this weekend) since yesterday, but there seems to be a problem with YouTube, or Blogger or, perhaps, me. So I'll get it posted when I can (perhaps as a reward for posting your pirate names...).

My Boys

I just wanted to share this sweet pic of my boys:

Pirate Talk

Thanks to Rob and Stubbie for reminding us of that fast approaching day of...well, linguistic joy(?) or interest maybe: International Talk Like a Pirate Day, Septemeber 19 (also another famous day, for those who care, sniff...)

I expect everyone to watch the video (link below) and then follow the other link to take the quiz and post their own pirate name so we can all celebrate properly on Tuesday.

Yarrr! (I'm agreeing with myself for those you have watched the video).

http://loadingreadyrun.com/showmovie.php?x=480&y=360&url=talklikepirate.mov

My pirate name is:

Captain Tom Cash

Even though there's no legal rank on a pirate ship, everyone recognizes you're the one in charge. You're musical, and you've got a certain style if not flair. You'll do just fine. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

Out on the (Crowded) Town

We were reminded today just how many people are in NYC. During the summer it is easy to forget because the city (relatively) empties out on the weekends. In our neighborhood, you can run weekend errands without having to navigate packed sidewalks and don't have to stand in ridiculous lines. But as soon as September hits, the city fills back up with people.

Carter was a real trooper during our long day out today. Most of our errands centered around buying him some fall clothes, but we also went to lunch and to see an architectural lighting exhibit.
Several of you have asked if Carter's eyes are changing color, probably because the red-eye fix I use in many of the photos posted here turn his eyes to brown. But nope, as you can see from the picture above, he is still a blue-eyed babe. They could still change, but they are blue for now! 

Birth Certificate Reflection

In reference to the below mentioned recently received birth certificate of my own, I feel I must air out a few thoughts I had upon comparing my birth certificate with Carter's.

First, take look at the above certificate and marvel. THIS is a birth certificate. Not some medical "Record of Birth" with only vital stats or, what Carter got, which is some 1/4 sheet of paper with balloons on it saying "Happy Birthday" where they pasted his footprint.

I began life certified, that right, CER-TI-FIED, by the hospital, that I had successfully completed all that had been asked of me up until that point in my life. Granted, that was pretty much developing enough internal organs to sustain my own life, but all in all that is a pretty impressive accomplishment for being zero to negative nine months old. And for all that I received a certificate with a giant GOLD STAR on it.

Now, that is how one should start life. Already ahead, feeling confident (a feeling I have not forgotten, just ask my friends), proud of what I have done and ready to expand upon it. Kids today, they have no direction, no motivation. I blame the lack of gold star. I'm not saying it can't be overcome, but just to be safe, I'm going to go get a big gold star and make sure Carter knows...


he's certified.

Like Father, Like Son

Carter (the elder) recently sent us Thomas' birth certificate. We were comparing Thomas and Carter's birth stats, and they match up pretty well - same length, almost the same weight (Thomas was 1.75 ounces heavier) - except for the feet. I hope this reads as well on the internet as it does in person. Check out their footprints (I didn't doctor the sizes):

Thomas' left footprint

Carter's left footprint

A Boy and His Bunny

That's right, people. He's a carnivore:



(His eye is red because I had just accidentally stuck my nose in it during an overzealous kiss...) 

A Milestone...sort of

I say "sort of" because it doesn't really count until we see it happen; BUT, Carter's daily school report (pictured) indicated that he rolled over today! I know that he would do some things for the first time at school and instead of at home, and I expected to be sad about that. But I wasn't sad to see that he rolled over at school today. I felt two things:

1) proud that he figured it out, and
2) excited to know that if I lay him on the floor and stare at him, there's a much better chance that he'll do something!

Of course, as soon as we got home, we put Carter on the floor and watched him wriggle, but he didn't manage to roll over. His technique is much better today, so I'm sure it will happen at home anytime now...

A Very Special T

In response to Rachel’s post on the Kimbro blog about their first day back at Sunday School, I offer up the following video taken when we were in Madison for baptism of the Kimbro kids (be sure you have the volume turned up).

Chore Day

Today we completed our annual task of painting our rooftop with aluminum paint. It was a beautiful day, and not too hot, so it was a good day for it, though the sun hitting the highly reflective paint made it a bit rough on the eyes. Carter didn't seem to mind the chore. He slept through most of it!

Things that Aren't Fair

I imagine that this may become a series on unfairness, as there are many, many things that aren't fair. But today, I'll mention just one.

The giant panda at the Atlanta Zoo gave birth this week. This is of special interest to us because Carter's favorite stuffed panda is from the Atlanta Zoo.

Giant pandas are, more or less, human-sized. They are 4-6 feet long and weigh 175-275 pounds, on average. And yet, their babies weigh only about 4 ounces, about the size of a human hand. For those of you who are blissfully unaware, a human baby weighs in at over 7 pounds on average. If you look at the video of the baby panda, you'll see how tiny the baby is compared to the mother. I wonder if the mother even noticed that she was giving birth.

Of course, giant pandas also start to reproduce between 4-8 years of age and only live to be in their late twenties/early thirties, so there are things that aren't fair to the panda too. But still.

On a serious note, there are very few giant pandas left in the world, so we do hope that Lun Lun and her cub are doing well, unfairness aside.

Farewell Sammy

My parents had to put our family cat, Sammy, down today. He lived a very full life and weathered three differently crazy family dogs. Actually, his first name was Goldie when we first got him because we thought he was a girl. When the vet told us otherwise, my mom suggested that we name him Sammy because Sammy Davis Jr. had just died and he had been in a movie called The Golden Boy. (I can't actually find that documented anywhere, but its family lore now, so it matters not.)

Sammy and I had a touch-and-go relationship. Mostly, I wanted to love on him and he wanted nothing to do with me. While this is a trait that most cats have in common when it comes to me, Sammy was somewhat justified in wanting to stay away from me. One morning when I was in high school, Sammy kept climbing in my drawers as I was trying to get dressed. I thought I'd teach him a lesson by shutting him in the drawer for a few minutes. Needless to say, I forgot to open the drawer again. And not only was I gone to school all day, but I spent the night at a friends house. Sammy wailed so loud that he woke my mom up about 3am and she rescued him. He held that grudge for a very long time. Rightly so.

Sammy loved catching birds, rodents and squirrels. Like all cats, he loved boxes and soft places to sleep. Sammy did not like riding in the car, but he loved exploring outside. Sammy was a good cat.

Goodbye Sammy. You will be missed.

Let's Go Braves!

Since we didn't go the game today, we dressed up and cheered on the Braves (at least until bed time). Thanks to Cart-Cart and Nonna for the cute outfit.

Sweet Theodore

Pics below of Carter and his stuffed panda Theodore, so named after a bear that Thomas had as a child. Carter enjoys rolling around with Theodore, holding on to his ears and sucking on his face. We assume that Carter enjoys it anyway. I suppose that he could actually believe that he is fighting for his life against a ferocious bear. But I'm going with the idea that he loves his Theodore. He's so soft.

Bathtime Boy

Bathtime is one of Carter's favorite times. So here's a video of his bath earlier this week - edited down to a minute and a half.

Sizing Up

Carter is growing like a weed and is moving into bigger sizes just as the weather is starting to get cooler. He's still growing in to some things, such as this cute hoodie that Stubbie and Shannon gave him:
But he fits nicely into some other things, such as this cute sweater that Rachel's mom made for him:
He's solidly in 3-6 month sizes now, but we had to buy a 6-9 month size for these footie pajamas because he's so long!