Carter's 4th Birthday

Here's a little slide show of Carter's birthday festivities!

Birthday Breakfast

It's taken me several days to get out a post on Carter's birthday, and this will be a very short one. I had to leave the evening of his birthday for a business trip, and only got back last night. So the first birthday post will be quick, and I'll try to get a party post up tomorrow.

For breakfast on the morning of his 4th birthday, Carter got a funny face pancake and chocolate milk, prompting him to spontaneously exclaim (for the first time ever), "My Mama is the best cooker!"

But perhaps the best thing about his birthday morning is that Thomas and I both got up when he called us -- with very limited grumbling.

Finishing Touches

We've been putting the finishing touches on our front yard landscaping, including this new spot for sittin'. It's a great spot for (not so patiently) waiting for friends to come over.



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Housekeeping

Carter spent last week in Arkansas with Mama Helen and Daddy Phil. Here's a story that Mama Helen shared from their time together:

I was cleaning the bathrooms (specifically the toilets) on Friday and Carter was very curious, following me and watching the process. I explained the bowl brush, and he said his mom and dad don't clean the toilets. I suggested that the house cleaners do that at his home, but he insisted that his bathroom has never been cleaned.

Might want to let him watch sometime, so he won't be too shocked someday when he has his own place, that toilets do indeed have to be cleaned sometimes.

So, yes, we do have someone clean our house because, honestly, if we didn't, the toilets probably never would have ever been cleaned. But maybe we need to explain a little more to him about cleaning (I thought he knew why every other Tuesday is my very favorite day)...

In other areas, Carter is hyper-informed about how things get done. Just today, I told him that we were out of bread, and he informed me, "That's okay, we can just make some bread." And then he proceeded to start telling me what ingredients we would need to do that!

Sunday Project

Thomas got motivated this morning to build the workbench he's been planning for the garage. Carter's enthusiasm for the project came and went throughout the day. First, he was wow-ing us with his ability to use a drill; then he was painting his own woodwork (and then he was sneaking back in the house to watch PBS Kids).

Thomas, Carter, Matthew and I all had a hand in completing the workbench today. And we wrapped up the project just before we had friends over for dinner!

Thomas gets Carter ready to "help" with the circular saw

Carter takes a break from the workbench project to paint his wood sculpture

What Carter and Thomas had completed by themselves by the time I got out of bed:

The finished product at the end of the day! (Notice how Thomas and Matthew decided to re-use scrap wood instead of buying shelf brackets? I'm so proud!)

Waffles

Even expert waffle makers like Carter have bad days in the kitchen...


- Posted by T using BlogPress from my iPhone

The Way to a Boy's Heart

THIS is how you make sure your boy loves and remembers you, even when you "live in New York".

Yeah. That IS a whole plate of whipped cream. With sprinkles. Not even gonna try to justify it.

Your Opinion?

So, now that we've painted our house and have removed the tree so that you can actually see our front door, we need your help. Should we paint the door wine (to match the shutters) or shoudl we leave it white? Leave your answer in the comments!

Carter's Impressions of New York City

Carter recently did a new drawing on the computer. When asked what it was, he responded, "It's New York. Where Mama lives."

(Sadly, we can't share the drawing because cousin Anna apparently got a hold of it before he could save it. Picture a very sad boy shutting himself in the laundry room: "She ruined my New York picture!")

When asked if he could re-create the picture, he responded, "No. I don't want to. It's New York. It's just a bunch of big buildings."

When asked to elaborate about New York, he says, "It's only for girls. Only girls go there. It's not for boys."

And that's what he knows about New York.

Garden Transformation

From this

To this

Thanks to a little of this

And a LOT of this

First, let me clarify that the camellia bush/tree was very, very sad looking when we cut it down (I don't have a picture of just how sad it was). The snow this winter didn't treat it well. Plus, I didn't like it. So I refuse to feel guilty for cutting it down. So...there.

Donna is my gardening guru! You may remember the smaller scale garden transformation she executed when we lived in Brooklyn. She's teaching me a few of her tricks, and she pitched in a lot of labour to put in our new flower bed and bushes in front of Carter's window. she and I had fun, and the front of the house looks much better (you can actually see our front door now!)

Thank you, Donna!

And... thanks to Thomas for wielding the chain saw!