Pictures from the last month

We took the kids to the zoo on Saturday. We do all the extras! Feed the giraffes, ride the train, feed the birds, ride the carousel. It was a big day of fun! Plus, it was beautiful weather.

Feeding the giraffes.

Easter Sunday. Yes, it was cold (snowed the night before). So, cute Easter outfits with long sleeve shirts on underneath. I love putting them in matching outfits. Doesn't Carson look like a little J.D.?! The boys matched all the way down to their socks!

I think our kids really enjoyed Easter this year. The new clothes, the great songs in church, the Easter eggs, the cake, the relaxed day of fun with just our family... And, we can tell because at the end of a really good day around here they tell us goodnight by saying... "Happy Easter Day!" Today is April ... weeks after Easter and they are still saying "Happy Easter Day!" at the end of the day. They are too cute for words!

Hunting Easter eggs in our winter coats! (See that adorable coat that Natalie has on... her Granny Jill made it for her!)

We enjoyed an at home day on Easter. We got take out for dinner, took LONG naps in the afternoon, baked a cake and decorated it for dessert. I think more sprinkles made it on the floor and in their bellys than on the cake! Then, the kids thought it was someone's birthday because we were having cake. So, they decided it was Mommy's birthday and sang to me. Okay, why not!

We don't take a piece of the bunny off with our fingers... we just dive right in and eat it! Isn't it fun to be a kid. Natalie is referring to the chocolate treat as eating "bunny ears."

J.D. can take more bites faster than I expected. I took my eyes off of him for one minute and the bunny was almost gone...

Look at this big guy! He loves sitting up and being a part of the action around here.

This picture was taken the week of the endless fevers and snot... doesn't she look adorable anyway. Granny Jill made this coat for her. We wear it all the time.

Traveled in March to attend my sister's baby shower. Isn't she adorable. We took this picture to show that she was the pregnant one... guess I shouldn't have stood sideways.

She loves her little brother!

Can't get enough of this girl. She is precious... love her more and more everyday.

Mommy's New Hair

Those are my sister's eyes!

Haven't seen my original hair color since college... and I didn't realize how long ago that really is now! (over 10 years of haircoloring... oh my... now I guess we shall see if there is any gray... certainly didn't have any before children... hmmm).

I love it!

Fevers, Snot and General Crankiness

Since last Friday, we have been couped up with fevers, snot and general crankiness. Poor J.D. and Natalie- they feel horrible this week. All they want to do is lay around and watch t.v.- and if you know our kids- that is saying something. Natalie doesn't even want to eat- and that really says something!

In one day, I was coughed on, sneezed on (gross!), and vomitted on (grosser). Oh, and I forgot, Carson had to get in the mix... so he pee'd on me while I was trying to change his diaper. There is just so much of bodily fluids one can take!

Today, we were at Target (a desperate outing). Natalie sneezed... it dripped down her chin and splatted on the cart- GROSS! J.D. laughed hysterically- he thought that it was great fun. He is such a boy.

These are the days, having three very little ones with very large needs, that make mothering hard. I only have two arms to hold, one lap for them to sit on, and only so much energy/patience when we are only getting about 4 hours of sleep a night.

I'll be happy when this virus has run its course...

TWO.. The baby girl is TWO

Today our baby girl turned TWO. I wish you could hear her say it. "TOOOO" in her little pixie voice. She is precious... I love her more and more everyday. What she was really looking forward to today was blowing out her birthday candles. As many of you know, we start birthdays with Cupcakes and Eggs... a Smith Family Tradition. So, she blew out her candles all by herself. We had Disney Princess plates, cups, and napkins. Chocolate cupcakes and scrambled eggs. She got a tricycle and princess helmet from Mommy and Daddy. A new dolly from Carson and a purse filled with candy from J.D. Not to mention numerous other gifts from grandparents, great-grandparents and friends.
Her past year has been fun-filled. To think that a year ago she wasn't walking or talking is mind boggling. She didn't have much hair a year ago and wasn't sleeping through the night. Now, she runs almost as fast as her brother, has enough hair for pig-tails and hair bows, talks in her own language- we are understanding more and more everyday and now shares a room with her brother and can't fall asleep until he is in the room with her. And, of course, she became a big sister. She fell in love with dolls (still loves her helicopters, cars and airplanes), but we catch her playing 'mommy' a lot. She can count to 4 with ease... knows the other numbers up to 10 but doesn't always get them in the right order. Likes the colors red and blue and pink. She can sing the doxology; row, row, row your boat; twinkle, twinkle little star; Jesus loves the Little Children; Jesus Loves Me; can get most of the Lord's Prayer said with help and is learning new things everyday. We love our little Princess!


Birthdays are like Christmas morning... presents awaiting first thing in the morning. Dining room decorated for birthday... cupcakes and eggs!

Natalie opening presents with her new purse on her arm... note to self... don't fill purse with lots of candy... sugar at 7:30am is not a good thing.

Tricycle for Natalie with princess helmet... can almost reach pedals... J.D. can help.

Cupcakes and Eggs! Yummy... lots of princess stuff.

Love this stinker face... her 'cheese face'. Almost hope she never grows out of this. Hat from Mamaw... goes with a super cute swim suit that will be worn in Hilton Head this summer.

Random Pictures

Carson Andrew Smith... name means "Mommy's Warrior"

Carson is growing so fast... he gained 3 lbs in one month! I'd be exhausted if I almost doubled my weight in a month :) No wonder babies sleep so much.

Natalie at The Little Gym... check out the cutie pie pig tails!

She is ADORABLE...

The Christmas picture... that lead to the Christmas coat... A lady in the mall made friends with us while we were in line for pictures with Santa... after pictures were done... she said, 'there is an adorable coat in Macy's that would be perfect for your little girl. I would like to buy it for you.' Can you believe it... who does that happen to? So, she did... and Natalie has a precious winter white dress coat that will always remind us of the lady God used to help us learn the lesson He is teaching us- which is to be gracious recipients.

The Little Gym

At the end of last semester, the class all got medals for their achievements at The Little Gym. J.D. wears his at least once every day!

Natalie on the balance beam.

Look at her go!

Bubbles at the end of class. What fun... bubbles indoors...

Parachute play....

Obstacles... balance... jumping... our kids have no fear.

swinging on the bars

more swinging on the bars...

We love the Little Gym. They are owned by a super sweet couple, who you can tell loves kids and love what they do. The classes help our kids learn gymnastics skills, gross and fine motor skills, we are making new friends... and it is just plain fun.

Pictures...

Natalie loves ELMO... she calls him "Melmo". She has an Elmo shirt, Elmo shoes, a Tickle Me Elmo (Extreme Edition)... how precious!

Carson... in daddy's lap... He is a happy kid... loves to smile and it starting to giggle.

Carson lives in the swing... thank you Nana! He loves it. It has a mobile, a mirror, it swings like a swing and/or a cradle. It is the cadillac of swings... Susan, you need to register for one of these!



J.D. is such a big boy. This is him at The Little Gym. He is getting really good at keeping his balance. This semester he is in a child-only class... no more parent-child classes with him- very SAD day... but, of course he loves it. He listens really well to his teachers, gets along with the other kids and is the star of the class. He is really good at gymnastics.

Jason

As many of you know... Jason went into the hospital 5 days after Carson was born. He had 10 inches of his intestines removed... and has been recovering well over the last couple of weeks. He has gained almost 20 pounds and we are hopeful for 20-30 more! For the first time in 20 years eating is not associated with pain! Praise the Lord. He is eating so much, enjoying foods he hasn't allowed himself to eat in a long time, and gaining energy and strength daily. The next surgery will be later this spring... we will keep all of you posted!

Kids say the darndest things...

1. 'Pickles and Tandy, Pickles and Tandy' ... said by Natalie... she must be exploring opposities in her world...
2. 'Pick a Nose?' Natalie is living with her finger up her nose... oh so lady like. Wants to pick her nose and anyone elses for that matter.
3. 'Licorise jumps' ... said by J.D. meaning he was jumping with his tongue hanging out of his mouth... yes- lick-ish jumps...???
4. "Ah- goo" ... said by both J.D. and Natalie to Carson, so precious.

Sleep Deprivation Will Lead To...

Sleep deprivation will lead to... (please keep in mind this all happened in less than 24 hours).
1. I lost my keys... so I took Jason's... and was off to do some errands. Found my keys (after I had been to a friend's house, church, Kohl's, home again, Target and home again) on top of my car.
2. On further inspection of the top of the car... I found a box of chicken nuggets... from the night before... that had also travelled all over town that very day.
3. Put Natalie's shoes on the wrong feet, noticed she was walking funny in the snow... thought she was being a bit princess like... didn't realize what I had done to her for over 20 minutes.
4. Burnt cookies... yes, really burnt them badly... when I had guests over... so burnt cookies with witnesses... AHHH!

The Birth Story

Okay... a lot of you have been asking for the 'birth story'. So, here goes!
Before Carson was born my mother said she was going to consult the Lord as to when she should arrive... didn't want to come to soon... didn't want to plan to come too far after the birth. So, I began to joke that my mother, American Airlines and The Lord (of course) were going to determine the date and time of baby #3's arrival. Little did I know just how accurate that combination was going to be... My mom's plane landed at the Colorado Springs airport at 2:35pm. I was reading a book while waiting in the van in the cell phone waiting lot. In the book, I jotted down 2:37pm as the first serious contraction that I thought I should be timing. And, they started to come every 3-4 minutes... so, I picked up my mom, told her I was having contractions (but thought it could be false labor AGAIN), brought her home- yes, I was driving, did a craft with the kids that she had brought for them, and then went upstairs at about 4:45 to see if the contractions would get any stronger, space out, etc. Well, I laid down and the contractions started one on top of the other. Jason started the car and we were off to the hospital. We checked into the hospital at 5:15pm (at 7cm!), the doctor broke my water at 7:08pm and Carson arrived after one MEGA push at 7:09pm! This is the way it should be! It was a delightful birth experience... Jason did all the right things... said all the right things... it was lovely (yes, a bit painful for the last 3 minutes...) but perfect all the same.

Carson Andrew Smith

Carson Andrew Smith
November 17, 2007
7:09pm
6lbs 15 oz
19.5 inches

Halloween

Natalie was Nala! She loved to roar. I wish you could have seen her get down on all fours and scrunch up her face and ROAR! And, now 2 weeks later- she is still roaring... she is precious!

J.D. wanted to be a dinosaur, bear, alligator (all the things that show up in his nightmares... hmmm?). Anyway, we found a dinosaur costume and he loved it... wants to wear it all the time still!

Here are the kids in our driveway helping Jason get the fire pit set up for the night. We don't get many trick or treaters... I think because we are at the top of the hill and there aren't a lot of kids in our neighborhood... but, we like to invite our neighbors over for smores and cider anyway. The kids went to about 5 houses with Jason- got a bunch of candy--- they loved it...

In other news... yes, baby # 3 is taking his/her own sweet time in arriving. This is the longest I have ever been pregnant... considering J.D. was 17 days early and Natalie was 12 days early. I am hoping that this one arrives by Wed or Thursday... but- I think s/he is very content where s/he is at the moment... please pray this child comes out soon!