Adjusting to 3

I was extremely nervous about having our third baby. Everyone kept telling me how hard #3 was and it made me terrified! Brooklyn was/is such a temperamental little girl and I wasn't sure how she would do with another baby here. Carson is only 3, which means I would have 3 kids ages 3 and under. Jason and I want our kids close together so we wouldn't want it any other way, but that doesn't make it any less challenging or stressful. With Jason being in school and working full time, it meant it I would mostly have to do it on my own. I was prepared for the worst.

We brought Morgan home and I just kept waiting for things to explode.....but it never did. The kids have been so excited to have her here and I actually adjusted fairly easy to 3. Granted there are HARD days, and times when I'm overwhelmed, but for the most part we are adjusting to 3 kiddos just fine.

One of the first days home from the hospital, Carson insisted that we make a birthday cake for Morgan. He wouldn't stop talking about it, so one night after dinner we made a cake. I let Carson pick out the decorations, so the cake is very boyish. Morgan slept through her entire "birthday" party.

Carson loves playing in the snow and one day with the girls were sleeping we took him outside and played. He loved it! The snow was too soft to make a snowman, but we made snow angels and ran around.

Jason took the kids to the Lowe's kids workshop to get them out of the house and do something fun with them. They built a Christmas train and got to decorate it with stickers. They always look so cute in their little aprons and they really enjoy building things there, especially Carson.

Brooklyn's hair is getting so long! She looked so cute one day that I had to take a picture.

The kids wanted to make sugar cookies one day so I pulled out all of the Christmas cookie cutters and let them go for it. They had such a hard time waiting for them to bake. They patiently stood by the oven and watched the whole time. Afterwards I gave them each a plate of frosting and the sprinkles and let them go to town. Carson used an entire container of sprinkles on his cookies. The sprinkles on top were thicker than the actual cookie. What can you expect from a 3 year old, I guess. :)

So far our adjustment to 3 kids has been a good one. Morgan is a sweet baby and the kids love her to pieces. Hopefully it stays this way!

Carson's 3rd Birthday!

I can't believe my baby boy is 3!!! Where has the time gone? It doesn't seem that long ago that we were anxiously awaiting his arrival and now he is a little boy! Since his birthday was on a Sunday we celebrated the day before. We had a pool party and invited lots of friends and family to join us. Unfortunatly, Carson didn't feel very good when it came time for his party. I asked him on the way to the pool if he was excited and he said, "No, but I'm getting that way." He said it so matter-of-factly that I couldn't help but laugh. He didn't want to swim and cried until we got him out of the water. Poor Carson! He just sat by the pizza and soda and was content to watch everyone else.

Since the kid loves Dinosaurs we had a Dinosaur cake for him. He was super excited about it and he loved it. He also got spoiled with lots of fun presents! He got more Legos and a new Lego table, elephants, snakes, trucks, a batman toy, dinosaurs, cars that go in the water, a new piggy bank with lots of change to put in it, and I'm sure there was more that I can't remember. He had a great day and we sure do love him so much! 

A few fun things about Carson: 

• Carson is still in 24 month and 2T clothes. I have to fold the waistband over on all of his shorts and pants to keep them on.
• Carson is incredibly observant. We can be driving down the road and he will point out buildings or stores that we have only been in once and tell me exactly what they are. He will also point out things in the distance that he notices as we drive. He knows where we are probably going depending on which way I turn out of the neighborhood and knows which stores are on which streets.
• Carson loves Legos. He loves to build things and I love that it is something he and Jason can do together.
• Carson is a little bit of a scaredy-cat. He doesn't like to get wet unless it is his own choice. He doesn't like to run through sprinklers, get sprayed in anyway, etc. He liked the fireworks as long as they were far away. He is my sweet little boy.
• Carson is a cuddlebug. He needs lots of physical touch to feel loved. He likes to snuggle and cuddle, hold hands, and hug.
• Carson loves Curious George! He could watch that show all day long. He has a Curious George shirt that is his favorite.
• Carson likes to eat at Chick-Fil-A and every time we pass it he yells out, "Mom, there's the Chick-A-Way!!!" 

According to Carson:

How old are you? 3

What is your favorite color? Blue

 What is your favorite animal? Sheep - because it makes me happy. (random!)

What is your favorite book? Comes from the lib-ary

What is your favorite TV show? Curious George

What is your favorite movie? Polar Express

What is your favorite song? Twinkle Little Star

What is your favorite food? French Fries

What is your favorite drink? Milk

What is your favorite breakfast food? Chicken Nuggets (he doesn't get those for breakfast, fyi)

What is your favorite snack? Fruit snacks

What is your favorite thing to wear? Curious George Shirt

What is your favorite game? Rubber Duckies (what?!?!)

What is your favorite toy? Legos

Who is your best friend? Maddie! 

What is your favorite thing to do outside? Mow the lawn with Daddy

What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Puppy

Where is your favorite place to go? Birthdays

Where do you want to go on vacation? Disneyland

What do you want to be when you grow up? 44 pounds (haha)

 

Brooklyn's Birthday Pictures

For Brooklyn's 1-year birthday pictures we went to  Caralee Case. She is the photographer that has done both of my kids' newborn pictures and she did Carson's 1-year birthday pictures. We just love her!  She does a fantastic job - even when my kids are grouchy and refuse to smile. She always manages to get good pictures. Here are my favorites!

Brooklyn's Birthday Party

I know this is super late, but it's better than never! Brooklyn turned 1 on May 31st. We just had a small celebration for our little family that night since we weren't having her "family party" until the next week when my mom could be here. We ate Spaghetti (her favorite) and homemade raspberry lemonade cupcakes the night of her birthday. She loved them both.:)

The next week we had her family party. She got spoiled with a stroller and baby, a castle, a bouncy ball, squeaky shoes, new sippy cups, and lots of love. 

Brooklyn's cake turned out amazing. She had her own little cake and everyone else devoured the big cake. After practicing on the cupcake a few nights before, she knew exactly what to do with the cake. 

Poor Carson fell asleep right before her party started and missed the entire celebration! I debated waking him up and I really wish we would have. The next morning he was so sad that he didn't get to sing "Happy Birthday" to his little sister and have cake. I let him have cake and ice cream for breakfast, he wore a party hat, and he sang to his sister. He sure does love her and they are becoming the best of friends.

We sure do love our little Miss. She has a huge attitude and is 1 going on 16. I can already tell she is going to give us a run for our money. She is constantly moving and is super smart for her age. At her 1 year check-up the doctor said she already does everything an 18 month old would be doing and has the personality of a toddler. Yes, I know. He was amazed at her vocabulary and her ability to understand and follow directions.

Here were her stats:

Height: 29 inches - 42%

Weight: 19 lbs 10 oz - 47%

Head: 18 inches - 72%

Birthday

This year my birthday was on a Sunday and the kids and I traveled back from Salt Lake that day. Jason stayed home that weekend to work on homework so I didn't get to see him until the evening. He did a great job making my birthday special this year. He even bought me a cake! It's the first time since we have been married that I have had a cake for my birthday. Good job, Honey!

He surprised me with a new iPhone 5, which I was so happy about. He also gave me a gift card to go get a new temple dress since the zipper in the back of mine is broken. I got a skirt and blouse instead of a dress and I love them.

My mom gave me a candle and she and Ashely got me the new watch I had been looking at for a while. Carly got me a Vampire Diaries shirt (it's kinda our thing), Zach and Haleigh gave me earrings and a gift card for Target, my in-laws gave me a new book, Dan and Amanda gave me an awesome shirt, and April gave me lots of goodies (including a new cookbook and zebra cupcake liners). It was an amazing birthday and I was spoiled. Thank you everyone!!

While everyone was singing to me, Carson grabbed some of the icing off my cake. Then he ran away really fast. Good thing we caught him on camera!