The Rettigs

Playdate with the Ridge Babies!

2012-02-01T06:06:00.000-08:00

I've posted before that there were 6 women pregnant at the same time last year at my school. We've been really good about scheduling playdates for them to get them all together and see how they've grown. Times have change as they used to lay nicely on a blanket. Now they are all rolling, moving, and one is even crawling. So, it was a little more difficult to take a picture this time. As you see the progression of the pictures, it pretty much sums up trying to get 6 babies to take a picture at the same time. Someone was always crying, trying to move, leaning over, or poking someone else! It was hilarious! The babies did not, however, appreciate the humor in it, but the moms did!

The best I could get at least no one is crying...YET!

Reagan is off and Jane has poked Miranda in the ear!

Jane is trying to hug Miranda for poking her in the ear, we lost Reagan who crawled away, Lola is confused as to why her mommy left her on the couch with all these babies, Carter is leaning as Reagan was propping her up and Jack is saying, "what in the world!?!?"

Priceless!!!

Carter learned how to jump!

2012-01-31T17:56:00.000-08:00

I am not sure she could be any cuter if she tried! What a spaz!!

Nana and Poppi's House

2012-01-28T11:44:00.000-08:00

We visited Nana and Poppi for the day today. Carter got to meet her Great Aunt Suzie and Great Uncle Terry (oops I didn't get any pics!) and got to visit with our family. It was a fun day!

Kisses for Pooh!

Sitting in the cradle at Nana's house, she looks so huge!

We headed outside to enjoy the great weather!

Daddy offered to help and then Sean said, "look Daddy, teamwork!"

So serious!

Poppi joined Sean on his bike.

Racing!

And then out for a hike in the woods!

Carter was a happy girl!

Reading with Poppi!

There were a lot of other people to see but unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of the rest of them! Sorry!

Sean's BIG Tower

2012-01-26T11:38:00.000-08:00

This is the first tower that Sean built completely on his own. He was pretty proud of it as you can see!

"the flavor"

2012-01-25T15:57:00.000-08:00

While we are enjoying a nice dinner (that Dan prepared--I know I am so lucky!) of pork BBQ Sean tell us, "I really like the flavor of the BBQ" LOL I guess he's been watching a few too many cooking shows with Daddy! ha ha

A typical Wednesday evening

2012-01-25T11:37:00.000-08:00

When you have kids, you often look back and wonder what you used to do with all of your free time. I know I used to watch a lot more TV, take a lot more naps but have a lot less fun! This is just a typical Wednesday evening in the Rettig house. Playing and being silly on the floor!

Luckily, he is pretty gentle with her...for now!

SMOOOCH!

Love!

Goofballs!

They love each other!

Big girl chair at dinner

2012-01-23T11:34:00.000-08:00

We decided it was time for Carter to be able to join us at the dinner table so we got the chair out of the attic for her. She literally just woke up before I took these pics that is why she looks so sleepy. She seems kind of confused too, like why am I sitting up at the table? We haven't started feeding her any food yet but at least she gets to join us while we eat. Though, it seems unfair as she has quite an obsession with watching us eat! I am sure when the time comes, she'll be so excited for some food!

Huh? What is going on?

yawn...

I can get the hang of this.

Won't. stop. moving

2012-01-23T11:30:00.000-08:00

Carter doesn't just look like her brother, she acts like him too! She definitely inherited his activity level as well (which I am guessing came from Dan!) She is a wiggler! She doesn't really ever stop moving. She is always in a completely different place in her crib than where we put her. I've posted many of her pics with her arms out that's because she is always as Sean would say, "flailing!" lol When she learns to crawl and walk--Sean better watch out! His toys will never be safe again!

Whoa, sliding down....

Striking a pose...

Mommy, stop taking pictures!

Another pose..

Her usual picture pose.

This is all in the span of 45 seconds while I was taking her pictures.

Bedtime

2012-01-23T00:30:00.000-08:00

Starting at 7pm we do the same thing every night. It is very structured and we don't really veer from our routine. If we are out to dinner or have some other plans, of course we adjust but when we are home it is very predictable. It helps keep things sane with a 3 year old and 4 month old and for both of them to get to bed (clean!). So we start with Carter's bath, PJ's, read books, and bed. Sean is the same but just starts after Carter is done. Plus we throw in brushing teeth for him somewhere. Somehow it creates a nice peaceful bedtime transition where we are all happy. Too bad Mommy's bedtime is shortly after the kids! I took some pics along the way tonight.

Carter enjoying her bath tonight

Getting dry (Yes it was Sean's and we use it even though it is blue)

Cozy PJ's

Books, I obviously read them to her but couldn't take a pic of myself doing that!

Bed!

PJ's, he picks them out and gets dressed by himself

Teeth brushes, which he also does by himself (with a little help)

Brushing well!

picking out a couple of books

Reading together, it is usually all three of us (Carter is asleep by now) reading together.

Then everyone is asleep! Usually by 8:30pm.

Old and New

2012-01-22T13:47:00.000-08:00

When I was looking through old photos for some Giants' pics I saw a couple other ones that caught my eye. I know I've said it before but Carter looks JUST like Sean did at her age. The eyes are identical. It is so fun to see the similarities in the two of them. I wonder if she'll have a similar personality? I think she'll be a little more laid back than Sean. Not that he is high strung but he is a little more emotional and "bossy" (not sure where he got that from!?!) :o) Carter is just sooo easy going. Today, we went to breakfast after church and it was 30 minutes past her nap time (Sean would have m.e.l.t.e.d. down immediately) and she happily sat in her car seat while we all ate breakfast. In fact, knock on wood, there has yet to be a time when she even made a peep while we were out to eat. Sean caused so much drama sometimes we'd actually get our food to go and eat at home! Talk about no fun. We'll see how her personality develops...whatever it may be we are enjoying every second!

Sean 4 months

Carter 4 months--same big eyes!

Sean very tech savvy as an infant....

And Carter too!

Reading the same book!

It was a Sean favorite!

The only differences we can see so far are Sean's eye lashes were a lot longer and still are quite long. Also, he was born with a lot more hair, it all fell out and grew back in blond. Carter had a little hair at birth and it hasn't fallen out but come in fuller and it is brown, a light brown but not blond. She is a little lighter than he was weight wise but longer in length. We'll see how much she'll continue to look like him growing up?!?

Let's go G-men!

2012-01-22T13:31:00.000-08:00

Dan is a huge giants fan as most of you know. Sean has followed along in his foosteps. He has been forced into being a giants fan...from birth! Here is a walk down memory lane.

Sean 4 months

Sean and Daddy September 2008

Sean and Daddy September 2009

Today is a very important game and we are all geared up in the Rettig house. Dan has even resorted to wearing the exact same thing each weekend (saturday included). Sean also wears his giants shirt and I wear my giants sweatshirt. Carter even joined in today with her Giants bib. GO BIG BLUE! I am posting this now because if they lose I'd probably avoid bringing it up as it'll be a sore subject around here.....fingers crossed!

Carter 4 months (yes shes wearing a dress and tights under her giants bib!)

GO GIANTS! You'll often hear Sean exclaim that!

My loves all dressed in blue!

Good seat to watch the game! (no we don't let Carter actually watch TV!)

Yay!

Learning about Jonah

2012-01-22T13:19:00.000-08:00

Sean learned today that Jonah is more than just his buddy from school. The children's church lesson was all about Jonah, the big fish, and his story. Sean came home talking about what he did in church school today. He then found his children's bible and was looking through it to find out more about Jonah. He seemed really interested in it. It was a proud moment to walk into his room and find him sorting through his bible. I had to (of course!) take a picture!

Grunty McGrunterson

2012-01-22T11:58:00.000-08:00

Carter has developed a new noise lately. First she was coo-ing a lot, then it became more of a squeal, and now she is on to grunting. It is super cute except during prayer time at church when the whole congregation is silent...ha ha jk its even cute then :o)

Family game fun

2012-01-21T15:13:00.000-08:00

Since Carter was snoozing Dan, Sean, and I decided to play a game. It is a super fun game that you use play doh in for the game pieces. You try to get to the end without getting smashed. If you spin a "smash" you can pick anyone to smash. Needless to say, Sean wasn't so happy when his playing piece got smashed and put in the recycling bin. Once he pulled himself together he was able to finish the game and beat both of us! (fair and square!)

The game

Boo hoo hoo, Daddy smashed my piece!

I won, now I am happy!

We are working hard on good sportsmanship skills, lets just say they need a little work!

My mom's story

2012-01-21T03:00:00.000-08:00

Many of you know from my facebook posts that my has been diagnosed with breast cancer. For the longest time I didn't post anything on facebook or on this blog because I didn't want to share something so personal. Plus, the blog is about my family and I thought that it was inappropriate to share. But, honestly that just isn't the case. I cannot pretend it isn't a huge part of my life right now. We are a family and this is affecting us. Dan and I more so than the kids but it has affected us and will continue to do so. Since November 4th, waiting for news from the Drs appointments, scheduling surgeries, and frequent visits to NC to be with my family have been a large part of our life. Going back to work helped keep me from worrying too much because when you are super busy with a full time job and two kids its hard to stop and worry too much. I am the anti-worrier of the family though anyway. I just know everything will be ok so why worry about it? My Grama Bliss always told us that everything happens for a reason and everything always worked out the way it is supposed to. So, I am going to go with that.

After her double mastectomy and lymph node removal, we thought we were on the road to healing before chemo. Nope...more bad news. The right side was taken for preventative measures (she carries the cancer gene) but it turns out that side also had the beginnings of cancer that did not show up on the scans. That meant more surgery to remove the right side lymph nodes which are located in your chest and arm. She already has limited mobility in her left arm due to the pain of the removal of the lymph nodes so it was a tough decision to go back and do the right side as well. She opted to be cancer free and not have the chance of it returning looming over her head. We all agreed was the best plan. In a couple of weeks she'll begin a 24 week of chemo-therapy. She has been told she will lose her hair so has prepared with her wig already. After chemo will be radiation and several more surgeries.

No one really likes to see their parents in pain and, as a mom myself, I know it is hard for my mom to show emotions like in front of me because she wants to keep me sheltered from seeing her that way. It is hard to hear your mom crying on the phone, in person, or especially in a picture that captures that moment forever. I am glad Jenn did the photo shoot of the pics you'll see below. I know it has given us all that push to fight this even more so than we had before. Jenn is a very talented photographer and right now my mom's biggest support aside from my dad. I am glad the pictures turned out so well and so many responded with such love and support. I know every time I see them I remember that mom is a fighter and in a year or two we'll all look back on this and think about how tough mom is and how strong she was.

I've made the tough decision to go through genetic testing to find out if I am also positive for the cancer gene. I just couldn't go without knowing my status. If I am positive I'll have an 80% chance of getting breast or ovarian cancer by the age of 70. In a week or so I'll know my fate. Will I be at an increased risk for cancer or will I be safe? I am in a totally different place in my life though than my mom was when she found out she carries the gene because I know there are things I can do to prevent this from happening tome if it turns out that I am positive. The preventative measures may seem drastic to some, but I don't want to be in the same position that my mom is in, ever. I'll fight this before it even starts.

Thanks again to everyone for their prayers and support. It means a lot to my whole family to have so many thinking and praying for us. I know we'll all get through this.

Scooter-ing around

2012-01-20T18:16:00.000-08:00

As I've said before, Sean loves his scooter. We don't get too many chances to go outside and ride with the weather being so cold. So, he just rides it around the house from room to room. It looks like next weeks weather is a bit warmer and in the 60s. We should be able to get outside and ride around the neighbhorhood. Though I am happy he can play outside, I'd much prefer the colder temperatures. I mean if it isn't cold, how will it snow?!?! We would love a snow day around here (for many reasons!)

Wheeee!

Growing and changing every week!

2012-01-18T15:03:00.000-08:00

Carter is growing so fast and changing all the time. She is doing a lot better on her tummy now and often rolls over on her own to play like that. She can pull her head up much higher than before and somehow she manages to get from end of her crib to the other and turned around each night. If only we knew what she was doing in there! She recently found her feet and though they are further away from her mouth than most babies (since she is so long) she does manage to get them to her mouth on occasion. She is also very "grabby" with her hands. If you have food in your hands she'll try to get it, she often pulls hair, grabs at Sean and tries to touch the computer keypad. She is quite the busy girl and doesn't really ever stop moving and wiggling. She loves to watch Sean and of course laugh at his siliness!

Holding up my head pretty well these days!

Hello, Baby doll.

Reading a book. Look at those eyes!

Baby push ups! Just like Mommy!

Oh, I found my feet.

Don't bother me Dad, I am sending an email....

Rolly Polley!

2012-01-16T11:14:00.000-08:00

You put her down like this, and in with in a few seconds...

She looks like this!

She isn't a huge fan of being on her tummy for extended amounts of time so I am not sure why she rolls onto her tummy so often. Soon enough she'll be rolling from one side of the room to the other!

Sweet Carter is 4 months!--updated

2012-01-16T10:38:00.000-08:00

We cannot beleive it, but Carter is 4 months old already! Shes had a big month filled with new milestones. Here is a quick update on Carter:
*still loves her big brother
*smiles 90% of the time and laughs everyday (mostly at Sean!)
*reaches for objects and gets them to her mouth
*rolls over and sleeps on her tummy most of the time
*loves to smile at strangers in order to get them to talk to her/pay attention to her
*sits peacefully in her carseat at restaurants (Sean never did this!)
*is able to make it in the car without crying *most* of the time
*loves her new babysitter and the other babies that she spends the day with
*loves sitting in her bumbo seat or her excersauser
*sleeps in her crib for naps and is no longer being swaddled at night or during naps
*takes longer than 30 min naps (yay!!)
*sometimes even falls asleep in the car! (whoa!)

As you can see Carter just brings this family so much joy. Every minute that she is awake brings happiness to all three of us. Sean loves being her big brother and is loving that she is able to play a little more with him and respond to his silliness! Her smile can melt anyone's heart! Here are her four month pictures.

***I forgot to add that she is 13 lbs and 6 oz and is 26.75 inches long. That puts her in the 75% for weight and 98% for height! She is still continuing to grow at the same pace. A tall girl perhaps?!?***

Being the wiggle worm that Carter is, these pictures are getting harder and harder to do!

Laughing!

2012-01-15T10:41:00.000-08:00

As I've said before, Sean can get Carter to laugh so easily. It seems whatever he does, she finds humorous. He got this cazoo at church today and decided to grace us with his musical talents all day. At least Carter enjoyed it!

YUM!

2012-01-13T10:58:00.000-08:00

Sean likes to be Daddy's "helper" in the kitchen. Tonight on the menu is eggplant parmesan! It was delicious as usual! Dan has his matching apron on also!

Another great dinner!

My loves!

2012-01-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

I am not sure they could get any cuter if they tried!!!!

Sean reading to Carter

2012-01-10T10:09:00.000-08:00

Sean has been "reading" to Carter quite a bit lately. It is super cute that he reads to her just like we read to him.

Sean and his Scooter

2012-01-07T10:32:00.000-08:00

We were lucky to enjoy some nice warm January weather. The video isn't great (as I am racing Sean) but it shows how much fun Sean is having riding his scooter! Once the weather gets warmer, I am sure we'll be riding around the neighborhood everyday!

First week=success!

2012-01-06T08:27:00.000-08:00

It seems the anticipation of going back to work and getting the kids up and out of the house was actually worse than just doing it. Everything went smoothly according to plan and we even left a little early on Monday morning. First, we go to Carter's "School" (babysitters), then Sean's School and then Mommy's school. It seems like a lot but it isn't that bad given that all three of our schools are located with in a half of a mile from each other. It really makes drop off and pick up pretty easy! I stayed busy at work and since I got a good report from the babysitter around 10 am through email I wasn't worried about Carter at all. She is napping great, loving playtime, and just being her usual happy self all day long! Sean loves being at school so much that some days he cries when I pick him up. It is kind of annoying that he gets upset but I am glad he loves school that much! I hope each week continues to be as successful as the first one! Whew, what a relief! :o)

A roller!

2012-01-05T08:36:00.000-08:00

Carter hadn't shown much interest in rolling lately but all the sudden in the past few days she has begun to roll a little. I'll look away and then see her on her tummy while playing or hear her fussing when she gets her arm stuck mid-roll. I was pretty ok with her not rolling as it makes life easy to leave her on a blanket and know she cannot move! Well, today I went into check on her during her evening nap (as she was napping for an unusually long time!) and she was on her tummy sound asleep! Then at bedtime, I put her down on her back and then tucked Sean in. When I went back in 10 minutes later to check on her she was, again, sound asleep on her tummy. It was so cute I had to take a picture! She has been napping so great this week. I am not sure if it is because of being so tired from playtime at the sitters, her sleeping on her tummy sometimes, the new noise machine I got for her, or just her age and being able to self sooth. She is even going to sleep without her paci sometimes and sometimes even falling asleep in the car!?!? What? That is unheard of with her. We live so close to the sitters but sometimes she'll fall asleep in on the car on the way home...go figure! I hope this napping progress continues! It sure makes life easier and for a happier Carter!

So precious!

Stories before bed

2012-01-04T08:28:00.000-08:00

You all know that Sean loves to read and we are happy that Carter loves to read, too! Tonight we had storytime for everyone in mommy and Daddy's bed. Sean even got a chance to read some books to Carter.

Snuggled and reading together.

Sean reading to Carter

He does a great job!

Playtime!

2012-01-03T08:24:00.000-08:00

The playroom has proven to be well worth it! We spend most of afternoons/evenings hanging out in there after we all get home from school. Carter has her own toys but obviously her favorite thing to do is just to watch her big brother play. Soon enough she'll be following him around everywhere he goes!

Right in the middle of it all with Daddy and Sean.

She got a car! Sean thinks it funny!

She loooves her big brother!

Whoa, that castle looks soo cool!

What? My toys are not as fun!

Ha ha, look at her face!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T08:03:00.000-08:00

We had a great New Year's Day (and last day of vacation). It started off right with some strawberry stuffed cream cheese french toast made by Dan and Sean. Then, Dan and Sean headed outside to take down the Christmas lights in the nice warm weather. We all headed to the park later on for some outside fun and "scootering" and then enjoyed some playtime together before dinner. It was the perfect start to a new year. We have quite a bit to be thankful for!

YUM!

Sean is a good helper!

He looooves to ride his scooter. He probably rode almost a mile that day!

Carter enjoyed the view from the baby bjorn!

Playtime!

BOO!

Sean's been going to this park since he was Carter's age!

My loves!

Back the grind!

2012-01-01T05:03:00.001-08:00

Today is our last day of winter break and though most people will be enjoying the day off tomorrow, we'll be heading back to school. Its ok, we've had 2 weeks off and enjoyed every second of it. Tomorrow will be a trial run to see how the morning goes. Though I did return to work in December the kids stayed home with family so tomorrow is the first time we'll have to get both kids up and out of the house at 6:50 am. Yes, that is correct. We made a babysitter change and Carter's new babysitter is located very close to Sean's school so I am taking both of them in the morning each day. Because I have to be at school at 7:20 and drop Sean off at 7:15, I'll be dropping Carter first at her sitters around 7:00 am. Hopefully this all works out and I can make it to school on time. Since I've been home with Sean for almost 6 months he is finally sleeping in, but now we'll have to wake him up at 6:30 each morning for school (bummer!). Carter also sleeps in until about 7:30 so we'll be waking her up earlier, also. We might be adjusting some bedtimes in the evening as well. We'll see.

This week back will be a tough one but I'll try to update if I can. Wish us luck and keep your fingers crossed that all goes according to plan each morning in the Rettig house!

NYE 2011

2011-12-31T04:18:00.000-08:00

We didn't have exciting New Year's Eve plans but it was a great one, nonetheless. Sean absolutely loves riding his new scooter (from Santa) and was outside riding it around the neighborhood several times today. We had to take advantage of the great weather in the 60's. Sean and I did some shopping together and made some Christmas exchanges while Carter hung with Daddy. Before dinner we took a long walk around the neighborhood, I'd say about .5 a mile and Sean rode his scooter the entire time! We came home and Dan made another great dinner, Chicken picatta, parmesan orzo rice, and veggies and bread (which he was able to use several new Christmas gifts to prepare). It was delicious and a great family NYE. I can't say that I stayed up to "ring in the new year" but that was ok, I needed sleep. Carter has been sick with a cold and has been having trouble sleeping, last night she slept through without any problems, thankfully. She has been waking up a lot because she is so stuffed up, poor thing! Sean boycotted his nap today and then after that long scooter ride had trouble even staying awake during our stories before bed. He literally fell asleep as his head hit the pillow!

The fall of 2011 started with a great event, Carter's birth but there were quite a few bumps in the road along the way and so we are hoping 2012 will be a great year and everyone can be healthy and happy!

Happy New Year!

The new scooter!

Picking up some speed!

He isn't nervous about riding in the road like he used to be! Thank goodness!

Carter is hanging in her exersauser!

Happy even though she is sick.

Back for round 2 and a walk around the neighborhood

Carter enjoyed the walk

Going up a big hill!

Whew fast!

Lunch with the girls!

2011-12-30T12:13:00.000-08:00

Carter and I joined a few friends for a girls lunch. One of my close freinds, Andrea, had a baby a week and a half after me. Her daughter's name is Lola. Carter and Lola will be going to the same babysitter on Monday, so they'll be friends for sure. We got a few cute pics of the babies interacting with each other. I think Carter liked Lola! More fun times are on the way for sure!

They've met before but they really seemed to look at each other this time!

So cute!!

Carter and "Miss" Lauren

Carter and Emily

Christmas Day Fun in Charlottesville

2011-12-28T12:08:00.000-08:00

After we got all our presents sorted out and organized we were able to have a nice relaxing family day together. Sean got to play with all of his new toys (and beat everyone in air hockey) and we also did some family pictures before dinner. Carter got to wear his pretty new Christmas dress. After that, Carter went to bed, and the rest of us enjoyed a delicious Christmas dinner! It was a great day!

Carter played with her new baby doll.

Getting some snuggles from Aunt Annie

Reading a story with Poppi

She likes Aunt JoAnn!

Sean sneaking in the newly engaged couple's picture!

Aunt Al, Uncle Dave, and the kids

Will he love to cook like Daddy!?

3 generations of Rettigs!

All the guys and their new aprons! Yes, we encourage them all to cook!

Nana and Poppi and the kids

The Whole Gang (minus Aunt JoAnn-thanks for taking the pic!)

Time for some more air hockey! Beating Drew this time!

Time to eat!

Christmas Morning December 28th in Charlottesville (#3)

2011-12-28T11:42:00.000-08:00

Once again, it was Christmas morning for the Rettig family and Sean's excitement for opening presents had not diminished! He came into our room to wake us up around 7:30 am and we all headed downstairs to open our stockings. He was happy to see that there was a kitchen set waiting for him downstairs that will stay at Nana and Poppi's house. We all opened our presents in our PJ's and then had home-made sticky buns thanks to Nana, which is a family tradition (I really look forward to those sticky buns each year!) We were all spoiled once again with lots of great gifts. My most favorite gift from that Christmas would have to be our brand new camera. I literally wore the other one out. You know I get good use of our camera! So, now I have a new one to take pics with and post on my blog. Between the new camera and my new bloggie (which is a hand held type of video camera the same size as a regular camera) I'll be keeping everyone in the loop with the Rettig fam! Whew, we finished Chritsmas #3 and by then had forgotten what we even had already been given! We are so lucky to have such generous families! Carter has a new wardrobe from now until Summer. She might wear a new outfit everyday for a month! Sean got quite a few cute new outfits as well. Christmas is over and Sean is sad but if he is anything like me as a kid he'll just start looking forward to next Christmas already!!

Opening up his first gift.

Carter loving on Aunt Annie

Sean got a real toolkit, like actually a real hammer...he is pretty excited!

Sean and all the guys got matching aprons! Go Giants!

Playing a little air hockey on his Sean sized air hockey table!

Carter had to wear a new outfit!

On the road again, to Charlottesville

2011-12-27T20:24:00.000-08:00

Whew, on to the next family and the 3rd (yes, 3rd) family Christmas! We left NC with a car load of presents and spent the next few days in Charlottesville with Dan's side of the family. It was so fun to have everyone under the same roof and we had two reasons to celebrate. Christmas and Dan's sister, Anne (or Annie as Sean calls her ) got engaged! Our first order of business after their arrival was to celebrate their great news! We celebrated with champagne, Sean did with juice! It was a nice way to start our Christmas Eve!

Showing Nana and Poppi how big I am!

Love for Aunt Al

Yay for the happy couple!

Celebrating with two of his faves!

Christmas in NC (#2)

2011-12-25T20:13:00.000-08:00

Once again, it was 7:30 am and several people were awake on Christmas morning and our littler sleeperhead (Sean made that word up and it kind of stuck) was still sound asleep. So, we went in and woke him up to bring him downstairs to open his stocking from Nama and Poppy. At our house, we have a family tradition of opening up stockings right away in our PJ's and then everyone showers, we have a huge family breakfast, clean up, and then dig in on the presents. Yes, I know you are all thinking that it is torture for kids to do that to wait that long but really it was never an issue for my sister and I. We like that we take our time and spend the morning opening gifts slowly. Most people are done before we even get started! This year was no different, we had a nice family breakfast around 9:15 am that my Grampa and Dad made (home made pancakes, yum!) and then Sean decided to be "santa" this year and hand out all of the gifts. Him knowing most of his letters paid off because he was able to "read" the labels enough to give the correct gifts to the correct person most of the time. He actually got so caught up in handing out gifts it was several minutes before he realized he hadn't opened one yet. We thought that was super cute that he was happy to hand out gifts instead of rip through all of his. His biggest gift from Nama and Poppy was the last one and of course the biggest hit with Sean. His own firehouse! He literally screamed out loud when he opened it. It was a great day with family where we were all spoiled as usual!

Opening up his stocking

Helping Great GrandPoppy (that is what Sean calls him) make pancakes

Sean's breakfast

Handing out the first gift

Looks like Carter is getting the hang of this present thing..

Good job handing out gifts!

Ooh fun airplanes!

Opening up her own gift!

He was in love at first sight with his fire house!

The aftermath!!

Christmas Eve in North Carolina

2011-12-24T20:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve morning we drove down to NC to be with my family for Christmas. Sean was excited to see his family but also for more presents! It was great to get to spend some time with my grandparents who live in NY. They hadn't seen Sean since last Christmas, but he quickly warmed up to them. Our first order of business was to decorate sugar cookies (a tradition). My grampa and I frosted while Sean and my grama did the sprinkling. After that we took some family pictures, courtesy of Auntie Jenn and then exchanged our home-made gifts for the 11th year(another family tradition). It was a great Christmas eve and we got some great family photos!

Decorating cookies with Great Grama (G.G.)

Look at her eyes checking out the wrapping paper!

Cuties!

Nama and Poppy and the grandkids

The whole gang!

The Rettigs

Grama and Grampa Bliss with the great grandkids

Carter and Auntie

Someone likes to look at herself in the mirror!!

Grampa got a fourth of July decoration from Jenn

Dad got a home-made frame from Grampa (he literally made the frame!!)

Grama got home-made hand scrub

I got several new hand made scarves

Dan got a picture frame from me (no I did not make the frame!)

Nama got a picture frame from Dan with the kids hand/foot prints in it

Auntie and Sean got sock snowmen from Nama

It was another successful Christmas Eve and home made gift exchange!

Christmas Dinner and tacky lights

2011-12-23T19:46:00.000-08:00

After playing with all of the news toys all day we got ready for dinner. We started a tradition last year of going to Maggianos (Italian) for dinner on our Christmas in Richmond. We took a few pictures before hand and headed out to do a quick tacky light tour before dinner. Sean loved all of the Christmas lights. The houses we visited have been on the national news for decorations that they put up. The house is only about a mile from our house. Dinner was fabulous as usual and Carter got quite a few looks in her super cute Santa dress. She was an angel and hung out in her car seat while we all ate. Sean enjoyed his dinner quite a bit. It was a great way to end a perfect Christmas Day!

Big bro and little sis.

Family pic.

Carter enjoying the lights from her car seat.

Sean enjoyed the stop light decorations.Whoa! That is only one of the houses!
Snowman!
Daddy and Carter
Sean enjoying his raviolos, plain of course
Looking around the restaurantMommy and Sean

What a great night!

Our Family's Christmas-December 23rd (#1)

2011-12-23T19:17:00.000-08:00

Much to our surprise on Christmas morning, around 7:30 am Carter was waking up for the day and the house was still quiet....No sean? We creeped into his room to see him still sound asleep. So, we had to wake him up for Christmas! Dan got the video camera ready so we waited upstairs for a minute and I came downstairs with both of the kids. Sean was kind of speechless. He just kind of pointed at all of the presents. A few, from Santa, were unwrapped like his Cars 2 oil rig and his scooter. He was in awe. He quickly understand that his presents were wrapped in green Cars wrapping paper and Carter's were wrapped in snowman paper. He even helped Carter open a few of hers. Overall, Christmas morning was a success!

Santa came, yay!Opening up the first gift!

Pretty excited!

Carter's gift from Santa.

Showing Carter some of her new books.

His playmobil castle was a hit!Aww, love for brother.Reading some books with Daddy.

It was a great Christmas morning at the Rettig's!

Our Family's Christmas Eve- December 22nd

2011-12-22T14:17:00.000-08:00

On the Rettig Family Christmas Eve we decided to bake cookies and so we did, all day! Just in time to put them on Santa's plate. It was a great day of baking and fun and the excitement from Sean was just amazing to see. He was so excited for Santa to come. He even told "Silly" the Elf goodbye and that he would see him next year!

Sean likes to use the mixer.

Ready to roll out the dough!

Time to cut out the cookies.Carter enjoyed herself from the bouncey seat while we baked.

Ready to bake!
Ready for Santa!
Sooo excited!

2011-12-21T11:27:00.000-08:00

I finally was able to capture Sean and Carter laughing at each other. Sean is the best at making her laugh. She loves her brother!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mp1u0QtvT4&feature=youtu.be

Get together with Friends

2011-12-20T12:11:00.000-08:00

Somehow we managed to go several months without getting together with our close group offriends and all of their kids (It has been a busy fall!). One family moved to Singapore and was just visiting for Christmas. So, we were able to get together (minus one family) and the kids had a blast. With 8 adults and now 8 children, it is a little crazy, loud, and chaotic but fun at the same time. Sean enjoyed getting to play with his buddies and was disappointed when we had to come home. Miss Carter was an angel as usual and stayed up way too late but handled it fine. She finally fell asleep in the car close to 8:45 pm. What a trooper!

Decorating some Christmas cookies

Ryann was meeting Carter for the first time. Well it wouldn't be a kids picture if there weren't multiple children crying. We definitely should have taken the pic at the beginning of the night, not the end! Can you say meltdown?!?

Soo tired!

Goodbye fancy dining room, hello playroom.

2011-12-19T18:02:00.000-08:00

For years I've said that I would never have a playroom in my dining room. I would never want someone to walk in my house and see a room full of toys. I held strong for quite a while and now finally gave in. They don't have to walk far to see a room full of toys--our living room! With having two kids and a fairly small house the "kid stuff" was literally over taking our living room. So, we decided for a little make-over. We put the dining room table up in the attic and brought down a big comfy chair that we already had. Sean's train table came downstairs and we moved all the toys out of the living room. It is amazing how fast you can fill up a room with just one little boy's toys! Carter hardly even has anything in there, yet! Sean is pretty happy with our decision, obviously. He has been playing in there all day and is super excited to have space for all of his toys in one place. We were even able to find a relatively inexpensive storage unit to keep everything organized. I was excited to use labels to organize everything. Now, if he just keeps it like that, we'll be all set!

Looks a little different now!

For their projects and art work.

A big comfy chair for us to sit in.

Sean has been using the train table to play on with other toys.
Nice and organized and a few bins are even empty in anticipation of what is to come after Christmas!Love me some labels!! I hope he uses them. (he better!)

What a big girl!

2011-12-19T17:58:00.000-08:00

Today was Carter's first time in the exersaucer and I think she liked it! She has great head control so we figured it was time to give it a try. How is she big enough for this already!?! I wish I could freeze time for now because she is at such an adorable stage. She is such a happy baby and even though she is super sick with a running nose and congestion, she is still just as smiley as ever!

A visit with Family in NC

2011-12-18T17:50:00.000-08:00

We were able to spend the weekend down in North Carolina with my family and grand parents. They haven't seen Sean since he was a baby and obviously had never met Carter. It was great to be there. As many of you know, my mom is currently battling breast cancer. She recently had a double mastectomy to rid her body of the cancer. It has been a tough couple of days for her but she is on the road to recovery and we all know she will fine. We appreciate all the prayers and support that we have received from friends and family.

Sean and Carter with their Great-Grandparents

Snuggling with Poppy

I survived!

2011-12-17T17:54:00.000-08:00

Well, I made it through my first week back at work. It was a busy, busy week which helped keep my mind off of the kids. Monday and Tuesday the kids were home with Dan. I got a few pictures texts and even a cute video of Carter talking sent to my phone. Wednesday through Friday, Nana was here to take care of the kids. So--they were in good hands which made my transition back to work so much easier. I am not going to lie, there were some tears on Monday morning but it wasn't as bad as I was assuming it would be. January will be a little different when Sean is back at school and Carter is at the babysitters, but we'll just take it one day at a time. For now, I am going to enjoy every second of my two weeks of break and leave it at that :o)

Sean's Santa Pic 2011

2011-12-13T19:13:00.001-08:00

How can you not buy the pictures from school when they come home looking like this!?!

Silly is a sneaky Elf!

2011-12-10T17:43:00.000-08:00

Sean wrote a letter to Santa this year. I think he did a great job! We decided to leave his letter out on the table for Silly to take to the north pole. The next day, Sean found Silly had left him a note in return and he was even holding the marker that he wrote the note with.

Sean's note to SantaHe is obviously pretty proud of himself!Left it on the table for Silly to take the north pole

That sneaky Silly!

This morning, this is how Sean found Silly. He has been getting himself into trouble while we are all sleeping!

A note from Mommy.

2011-12-09T21:00:00.000-08:00

Dear Sean and Carter-

Today was my last day as a stay at home mom, at least until summer breaks rolls around again. I have a few things I wanted to tell you both. Sean-you and I have been a team (because Daddy traveled quite a bit this summer) for quite some time now. Since June, I've been home and it has been great getting to spend so much time with you. I loved going to the pool with you this summer and going to the library, and the mall and I especially loved our two beach trips. I went back to work for a few days, but really not that long. It has been a long time that we've been together now, which is why going back to work, will be that much harder. I loved our family of three and thought there was no way that life could get any better. But, I was wrong, it did get better and that was on Sept. 8th 2011 when Carter joined us. I knew you loved her from the instant you met her. You are a great big brother, you take care of her, help Mommy when I need something, you make her smile and laugh and you just love her sooo much. She loves you back. I can see it in her eyes when you come into the room and the way she watches you all day long. It is so special to see you two together and I know there are only more good times to come.

Carter-You are such a sweet girl and leaving your smiles for someone else to enjoy all day is heartbreaking to me. I know it'll get easier but the thought of not being with you every second of the day, is hard. I know you'll be fine because you are such a good girl and will make anyone who is with you so happy to be around you. I have loved every minute of being home with (well except that one week where you refused to nap, lol). You are so happy all of the time and you just make me and your Daddy and Sean smile so much! I am going to miss that giddy whole body smile you give when you wake up from your nap and you see me come into your room, or the constant coo-ing that you do all day. I know our time will be precious when I get home from work. Believe me, I will be racing out of work each day just so I can get home to see you as soon as I can. I hope you won't miss your brother too much either. He'll be at school learning lots of great things and you'll be at the babysitters with some other little babies around your age.

I just wanted to tell you both, when you read this one day, that I loved being home with you and that you both mean the world to me.

I love you both,
Mommy
PS. Please don't grow up anymore. I want you to both to stay like this forever.

Cheese!

Sean took this picture!

Cupcake fun!

2011-12-09T12:52:00.000-08:00

Sean and I made some cupcakes today to take over to a friends house for dinner/dessert. Sean was a great helper!

He put the cupcake wrappers into the pan.

Poured in the (pre) measured ingredients

Mixed it up!

Yum, lots of sprinkles, thanks to Sean. They turned out great!

What a handsome boy!

2011-12-09T12:51:00.001-08:00

Sean had his Santa pic taken at school today, so he got to dress up a bit! What a handsome boy!

Cutie!

There is always time for a snuggle before heading out for school!

3 months already!

2011-12-08T12:50:00.000-08:00

Its official, Carter is 3 months. She has moved past that "infant" stage into a fun, smiley, loving, sweet baby! She has changed so much in the past month. Here are a few of her milestones:
*laughs all the time (especially at big bro!)
*smiles all the time!
*coos and talks to us a lot more
*she is reaching for toys and grabbing on to them, sometimes getting them to her mouth
*wearing size 6 mo clothes
*she has great eye contact and looks right at you when you talk to her
*she pays attention to the books when you read to her
*she is able to lift her head up a little better while on her tummy
*she naps for more than 30 minutes at a time (woohoo!)
*she started coo-ing in the car instead of crying, which is a pleasant change! (double woohoo!)

She just makes us so happy everyday, Sean included. I cannot imagine what life used to be like without our sweet little girl. She completes our family!

3 month pic with her polar bear.

Grabbing onto a toy.

I don't hate the car anymore, mommy!

So big! (Ps. those are size 6 mo pants that are getting short on her! Tall girl!)

Reading before bed. Our favorite!

Tummy time!

2011-12-08T12:49:00.000-08:00

We've been working on tummy time lately! Carter is very strong at holding her head up and sitting up without a lot of support when you are holding her, but on the floor, she still doesn't lift her head up as much as Sean was at this age. She is getting better though! She also has started to really enjoy sitting up in the bumbo seat.

Well hello, blue eyes!

Melt my heart!

Doing a little reading!Whats up?!

She was in the process of "talking" to us, sounds like "cooooooo"

Dinner time conversation at the Rettigs

2011-12-07T00:00:00.000-08:00

Somehow the topic of going to the Dr. came up at dinner last night. Sean said, "I don't have to get a shot," and then went on to say that, "I am not going to cut the cord". I said, "huh?" and he said, "I AM NOT GOING TO CUT THE CORD," like I was deaf or something, ha ha. I told him that I heard what he said but I just didn't understand what cutting a cord has to do with getting a shot?!? He got a little frustrated and Dan and I still wondered what he was talking about and then Dan realized what it was. Dan said, "you mean you don't want to get a shock," and then Sean realized that is what he meant! I guess him and Poppi had talked about it while outside decorating after Thanksgiving. We had all had a good laugh.

After that, Sean proceeded to fake sneeze and make Carter laugh across the table. Breakfast for dinner, a good story, and belly laughs from Carter=a perfect dinner! :o)

What a cute boy!

2011-12-06T14:03:00.000-08:00

So, many of you know I am not all about the girly pink princesses-y type stuff. Don't get me wrong, I love to wear pink but I just don't dress Carter head to toe in pink everyday. I wear the baby bjorn quite often when we are out and about as it gives me a free hand to hold Sean's hand in the parking lot and Carter really enjoys seeing what is going on. So, all you can see of her is her pants and shirt, and face obviously. She has been wearing jeans and a red or gray colored shirt both times, nothing pink. The past few times we've been out several people have commented on how cute HE is. I am like, "it is a girl", they say, "oh, whats her name?" then I say, "Carter". But not like that helps! Oh well. I might be able to get on board with some hair bows when her hair grows in. Maybe that will help! She does have some pink and purple, it isn't just my first choice for when I buy her things. When we went Christmas shopping at the toy store the other night I couldn't for the life of me pick out anything for her that didn't have wheels on it!! I found this awesome bus that was pink and wanted to buy that and Dan is like, "she isn't going to want that kind of stuff!". Geez. I guess I am stuck boy mom mode! What will I do if she wants to dress up like a princess one day?!?!. Gasp!

Really, really...

2011-12-06T13:58:00.000-08:00

Sean obviously picks up his mannerism from what he hears from Dan and I. Luckily, we don't cuss and we spell out words that we don't want him to repeat like crap, or stupid, etc. I must say, "really" a lot because it comes out of Sean's mouth often. But, when he says it, it sounds like, "lily". So, he wants to get his point across he'll say, "mom, I am LILY, LILY, LILY, LILY, LILY, LILY, hungry". I think it is soo cute but Dan insists on correcting him. He can actually say, "really" but for some reason, "lily" it is. Not that we are encouraging this but the other day there was a lot of traffic and he was in the back seat saying, "Dad, all these cars are lily freaking me out!". Oh geez. Oh, that is the other thing, notice how I said, "dad," and "mom". Somehow we turned into that instead of Mommy and Daddy!?!? I unfortunately also passed on the eye roll slash over dramatic sigh when I am annoyed. He gives us the "Ugh, 'eye roll'," all the time, oops.

The Bumbo seat..fun for all ages!

2011-12-05T15:57:00.000-08:00

Sean being the skinny little person that he is, fits perfectly in Carter's bumbo seat and likes to hang out in it often.

Carter's first time hanging out in the bumbo.

Its kind of sad that he still fits in it!!

Baby Playdate!

2011-12-04T16:01:00.000-08:00

As I posted about before there were a lot of babies born around the same time as Carter at my school. So, we make a point to get them together from time to time. This time we had 4 out of six. The girls are all growing and moving and smiling! A little different from the last time we got together! Carter doesn't look like one of the younger babies!!

Miranda 5 months, Carter 2.5 months, Jane 4.5 months, and Lola 2 months

The Bethlehem Walk

2011-12-02T14:51:00.000-08:00

There is a local church that sponsors what is called the "Bethlehem Walk" which is like a walking/interactive play about the life of Jesus. We were able to participate in it this year and enjoyed a great night. It is a "walking play" so you travel through the city of old Bethlehem and the characters walk you through and explain things as related to Christmas and the birth of Jesus. It was quite the experience as the line was insane and we ended up waiting for 2 hours to go on the 1 hour tour/play experience which would have been fine if we didn't have a 2.5 month old and a 3.5 year old outside for that long! Luckily they had fire pits at each stop we were able to warm up a bit and Carter was all snuggled in her car seat that she didn't seem to mind. She slept pretty much the whole time and we didn't even get home and get them all to bed until 10pm. Whew, it was a crazy night but fun and Sean had a great time. Besides the baby Jesus part, riding the school bus was the best part of the night. Due to the massive amount of people we had to park in a satellite lot and ride a school bus and that was super fun for Sean! It was his first time on a bus and boy was he excited!Riding the school bus!

All snuggled and warm!

Big bro checking on baby sister!Sean was up close and personal with many of the actors!

Related?

2011-12-02T14:41:00.000-08:00

You can certainly tell these two are related!!! I found a picture of Sean when he was the same age as Carter is now. Wow!!

They obviously both love the bouncey seat!!

Carter is 12 weeks!

2011-12-01T14:33:00.000-08:00

We cannot believe how fast our little girl is growing up! She is smiley all the time and laughing more, also. She started reaching for her toys and of course still thinks her brother is pretty funny.I think I am so cute!Don't squeeze too hard, brother!

Love that smile!

I figured out how to eat my hands!

Silly the Elf is BACK!

2011-11-30T14:44:00.000-08:00

Silly the Elf has made his return trip from the north pole to the Rettig house and boy is Sean excited! It is such a cute tradition that helps make the days leading up to Christmas more fun (you know when you were a kid it seemed like it took FOREVER for Christmas to get here). Last year, Sean named his Elf "Silly" and so that is his name forever. We've read the book to re-fresh Sean's memory, 1. you don't touch Silly, 2. He watches you while you make good (or bad!) choices and reports it to Santa, 3. He flies back to the North pole each night and hides in a new spot, etc. Every morning Sean runs down the stairs to find out where Silly has hidden this time. Dan and I make it pretty easy for him but we might start getting more creative to see how Sean reacts. It is a great tradition that I am sure we'll continue for years to come! Here are a few of Silly's hiding spots.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-26T14:23:00.000-08:00

We traveled to Charlottesville for the long weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving with Dan's family. The weather was really nice and the everyone enjoyed spending time together. I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked but here are a few.The sign says, "Carter House"

Out for a walk in the neighborhood.

Sean got a ride!

Thanksgiving Program at School

2011-11-22T18:29:00.000-08:00

Well, I was all organized and had everything laid out so that we could get out of the house at 8 am and to Sean's school early for his program. The diaper bag was packed, I had the camera, the video camera was charged....or so I thought. So, I didn't get to video the program and then I am noticing the quality of the pictures is not so great. That is disappointing. Let me just describe it as easily as I can. There was a little singing, a little dancing, and a little nose picking (but at least he didn't eat them!). Sean seemed super proud of himself and all of the kids did a great job considering how many songs they sang (it was a combination of the two 3 year old classes). It was a great first experience and Carter was an angel as she was hanging out in the baby bjorn front carrier. Here is to looking forward to many more singing programs to come and having video of them as well!

Snuggles before we left for school.

All dressed up looking cute!
At least one of them was singing...lol

Follow Your Bliss Photo Shoot

2011-11-21T18:51:00.000-08:00

While we were in NC we had a great photo shoot with my sis. Here are a few of my favs! There are too many to post!

Christmas decorating....a little early!

2011-11-20T18:16:00.000-08:00

We decided to get the Christmas decorations for the inside of the house done a little early this year since we'll be coming back into town on Sunday afternoon after Thanksgiving. Sean was, to say the least, excited! He helped Dan get all of the stuff down from the attic and marveled at each new ornament as it as pulled out of the box! He insists that we keep the lights on at all times and often is caught playing with many of the ornaments. The best though was the day after we put up the tree he woke up early and came running downstairs to see what was in his stocking....uhhh your over a month early on that one buddy! We need to get through thanksgiving first! He keeps trying to change the day on the advent calendar and we aren't even to December yet!! He will be busting with excitement by the time Christmas actually comes!

Carter looks excited to help!We seem to have an excessive amount of ornaments just about 38 inches high...hmmm..

ok, that is exhausting, time for a snooze!

A few things...

2011-11-18T17:01:00.000-08:00

Brr...it was our first really cold morning of the Fall. I guess winter is on its way. I cannot really bundle her up too much as she gets so upset in the car she oftens get overheated and sweaty. Halfway to Sean's school I realized her hat was completely over her face...oops! At least she looks cute it it! Sean got a new dinosaur hat as well.Hmm, I'd like to lick the blanket!

Rawr!

We've been working on tummy time a lot lately. She isn't as good with head control on her tummy as Sean was at this age. She'll tolerate a few minutes on her tummy. There was even one day that Sean and I looked down to find her on her tummy because she had rolled over. We didn't see her do it but she did!

Tummy time is tough!

While I am here I might as well eat my hands!

Getting stronger!

She had one rough night of sleeping which made me nervous. I've been really enjoying not waking up in the middle of the night! She was back to normal the next night with her usual 8pm-6am routine. She also usually goes back to sleep until I wake her up around 8:15 because we have to go take Sean to school. Napping is still a work in progress. She is at least sleeping in her crib and she does go to sleep on her own but won't stay asleep for more than 45mins to an hour at the most. The problem is that isn't enough for her so even after that nap she often shows signs of tiredness quickly after. Sean's school schedule doesn't help at it almost always falls during a "nap" time for her. So, we'll just do the best we can.

Sean still is in love with his baby sister. I asked him who he was going to marry the other day. It used to be me, now he is going to marry Carter! The thing is she soo loves him back. Once he comes near her she just smiles at him! He loves making her smile so that works out nicely!She is getting so big!! 10 weeks already!

Kisses for baby sister!

She loves him back!

Tonight we had our Friday night picnic in the living room with pizza and Cars 2. Sean got the movie about a week ago and has been re-enacting it with all of his cars figures all day everyday. That boy loves Cars!! He has been doing wonderful at school this week (after a rough couple days a week or so ago) and has been practicing for his big Thanksgiving performance next week. I'll definitely be getting that on video!! 3 year olds singing songs in unison?!? Not sure how they'll pull that off but I can't wait!

What a great day!

2011-11-15T17:56:00.000-08:00

So, I am convinced that my children decided to give me a bday present just a day late. First off, Carter made it all the way TO and FROM Sean's school without crying (I did have the static on full blast, but whatever works) Then, all day she napped so great! I decided to re-visit the sleeping in the crib plan. This time, once I noticed she was tired, I swaddled her up, gave her the paci and walked away. Within 5 mins she was sound asleep. She slept for 45 mins. I was so happy! About 45 mins later she again showed signs of being tired (because she needed a longer nap than 45 mins) so I did the same thing and she fell asleep on her own AGAIN! I actually had to wake her up to take her to pick up Sean's school. Wow! So around 1pm she needed another nap. This time she fought it for a few mins but also passed out and then slept for 2.5 hours! I laid down with Sean at 2pm thinking she'd wake up any minute. Well, I woke up an hour later at 3pm and she was still sound asleep. So, figuring she'd be hungry I came downstairs to make her bottle. I waited and waited and she finally woke up at 3:30pm. Then, she was practically falling asleep again while eating so I put her back down and she slept until 4:30 pm. WHAT!?! Who is this child? All afternoon she was so smiley and happy and I think it was because she finally got the naps she needed! She might have been extra sleepy because of her shots yesterday but who knows? Sean also had a great report at school! It was a wonderful day. Now lets hope for more like this! :o)

2 month check up

2011-11-14T18:09:00.000-08:00

Carter had her 2 month check up today and did great! She is officially 12lbs 2 oz (75%) and 24.5 inches long (98%). When I heard she only grew 3/4 and inch since last time I thought her height was slowing down but the Dr. explained that still puts her at the 98% percentile! What a big girl! That explains why she is wearing 6 months pajamas comfortably!

Carter's room

2011-11-14T17:58:00.000-08:00

Carter slept in her bed for the first time last night. She was getting too big for the bassinett...literally! She was sound asleep by 7:15pm, woke up at 5:15 am to eat and then went back to sleep until 8 am. I think it was a success!

Even though the bed is so big, she still seems so big to me!

Seems like she is ok with the idea!

All snug as a bug!

Carter's new chair

2011-11-12T17:55:00.000-08:00

While the kids and I were visiting my parents in NC Dan was home working on a special project for Carter. He re-finished an old rocking chair for her room. We figured we'd use the chair for her monthly pics. So here is Month 2.

Children's Museum of Greensboro Part 2

2011-11-11T17:35:00.000-08:00

Sean and I spent the day together and visited the children's musem down at my parents house. We had a great together. Sean loves the museum that he calls, "Nama's Museum"
Camping!

Riding in the fire truck

Filling up the racecar

Curious George Exhibit

Cashing out

The levers

Carter is 2 months old!

2011-11-09T07:37:00.000-08:00

She had her first laugh last night! It was so cute!
PS. Those are totally jeggin's she is rocking except her legs are too skinny to fill them out!

Bathtime fun for Carter

2011-11-08T18:14:00.001-08:00

Carter has loved the bath since the first time we put her in the water. She has been getting very excited in the bath and kicks and splashes all around. It is her favorite time of day! Even if she is tired or fussy she is always happy in the bath. We even got a couple belly laughs afterwards!

The Park with Nama.

2011-11-08T17:50:00.000-08:00

It was a really nice day today so we headed over to the playground and had some fun!

I love my Nama!

Getting brave!

Being Silly

Brotherly love.

2011-11-08T17:42:00.000-08:00

Sean's infatuation with his baby sister hasn't diminished a bit! He loves being around her, making her smile, feeding her, and talking to her. When he talks to her he says, "hey there, sweetie." It is really cute that he copies what Dan and I say.

Big and Little!

Yardwork with Poppy

2011-11-06T17:36:00.000-08:00

Sean enjoys spending time outside and in the garage with his Poppy. They found lots of fun things to do!Taking a spin in the riding lawn mower.

Having fun!

A Sean sized leaf blower!

We love smiles!

2011-11-04T17:34:00.000-07:00

Smiley girl!

"But I don't want to take a nap!"

2011-11-04T07:08:00.002-07:00

I've been battling with Carter all week trying to get her to take a nap. Yes, it is wonderful that she sleeps through the night and she is an angel when she is not tired, but at some point she has to give in and NAP! She fights going to sleep like it is actual torture. So, I've been trying a new method where I put her in the crib half awake and encourage her to go to sleep on her own (I won't even go into how long this takes and what I have to do to get this to happen!). It was pretty ugly the first day but since then it is improving. It is still a huge production to get her to fall asleep but hopefully we are on the right track. After a whole day of hoping to get her to fall asleep, this is how we find her while we are eating dinner. I guess she is proving to me who is boss!!I feel like she is saying, "I'll take a nap, where and when I want to mommy!"

almost 8 weeks update

2011-11-02T10:08:00.000-07:00

Whew, where has the time gone! Here is a little update on our Miss Carter!
*she smiles often and is so close to laughing
*starting to make adorable coo-ing noises
*sleeps through the night! (She has done this since 6 weeks but for fear I would jinx things I didn't mention it!) Most nights it is 8:30-6:30 some it is 8:30-5:30...either way it is awesome!
*shes loves to play on the floor or sit in her bouncey seat
*she is not a great napper, but with the aforementioned sleeping at night, we are ok with that!
*she still screams in the car. I keep my radio tuned to her favorite channel to buy us some time before the crying ensues....88.9 fm pure static!
*she eats about 4 ounces at a time and goes about 3 hours in between eating

She is such a sweet, happy girl! :o)

Halloween!!

2011-10-31T10:28:00.000-07:00

Sean has been looking forward to Halloween for quite a while, it might be the dressing up but I am guessing it is the candy! He dressed as a Pterandon which is one of his favorite kinds of dinosaurs. He even has the squacking noise they make down! Carter was a cute little pumpkin. We hadn't planned on taking her out trick or treating anyway, so the costume was more for pictures than anything. I have to say though, she did turn out as one cute pumpkin! Half way over to the neighbors she fell asleep in Dan's arms. She was quite a cute sleeping pumpkin, also! Dan and Sean headed out to trick or treat while the girls stayed home to pass out candy. They didn't make it too far up the block before it started raining. Sean hit about 7 houses and was happy to come home. He really wanted to dump all his candy out and see what he got. I can remember that being the most exciting part!

Helping carve

Sean opted for "scary" pumpkins this year

The Fam

Mommy and the kids (Carter was asleep!)

She looks like a french pumpkin! ha ha

Daddy dressed up, too! The double stuff racing league

Trick or treat!

After the little snooze she is a happy girl!

Two happy kids!

Dumping out his candy to see what he got, do you see the candy in his teeth?

A unexpected family weekend in NY

2011-10-30T13:07:00.000-07:00

We spent the weekend in Long Island and were able to see lots of family! It was great to see everyone and introduce Carter to everyone that loves her! The reason we were able to see everyone, was a sad one. Great Grandma Rettig passed away and will be missed. We wish that was able to meet Carter.

The 7 hour trip was much dreaded but to our surprise, the kids did ok. If I sat backseat I was able to keep Carter entertained in between naps. On the way home they both slept from 1:45-4:15 and woke up as we pulled into the house. I even got a little nap myself! It was nice!

Great Grandpa Rettig and all 4 of kids great grand kids

Aunt Annie and Nana

Second cousins, Elaina(3) , Carter (7w) , Sean(3), and Amelia(2)

Sean and Elaina, instant friends

Aunt Annie meeting Carter for the first time, I think Carter likes her!

Aunt Vicki

Great Grandpa Rettig meeting her for the first time

Second cousin, "Miss Lauren"

Poppi makes her smile!

Nana and Poppi missed the kids!

Blue eyes?

2011-10-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

We have been hoping that Carter's eyes would remain blue and in the past few weeks they have become even blue-er...so maybe they are here to stay. Her and Sean have the same shape though the color is a little different. Lucky they both got those pretty blue eyes from Daddy!Carter at 7 weeks.

Sean 3 months. He has bigger eye lashes than she does.

Boogers....

2011-10-25T09:57:00.000-07:00

From our bedtime conversation last night...

Mommy: don't pick your nose Sean
Sean: Oh, I am not going to eat the boogers, I am just going to put them on the floor.
Mommy: oh nice
Sean: Sometimes I do eat my boogers even though I know they are dirt. I like dirt.

Oh lord.

Learning from big bro!

2011-10-19T11:02:00.000-07:00

Sean is teaching Carter all sorts of things already!
Sean is teaching Carter all about his animals and the noises they make.

She looks like she is listening!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-16T22:47:00.000-07:00

We visited the pumpkin patch for some fun! Sean had a great time picking out our pumpkins and also enjoyed the hay maze, playground, and hayride!

Carter enjoyed from her stroller!

Riding out to the pumpkin patch.

Hmm, this looks like a good one!Whoa, heavy!Found a few we like!

Hayride fun, mommy sat this one out....ACHOO!

Peek a boo!He loved the maze! It was just the right size for him!

Boo!

2011-10-15T10:41:00.000-07:00

Auntie was here for the a long visit and we had a lot of fun. Of course she took a few pics while she was here!

Her shirt says, "My auntie loves me"

Snuggling!

Sean's Fall Festival

2011-10-14T22:31:00.000-07:00

We attended Sean's annual school Fall Festival, or as Sean would say, Fall Festi-ball. Sean got to dress up, play games, do some crafts, eat cupcakes, play on the playground, and see his teachers and friends. Carter was an angel and slept the whole time in her stroller.

A Pterandon!
Well Auntie's Picture is a little better!

Making a halloween bracelet.

Working on a monster mask!Cupcakes, yum!

Carter got to wear her first pair of jeans!! So cute!

1 month check up

2011-10-14T10:08:00.000-07:00

Carter had her 1 month check up today (though a few days late) and she did great! She is obviously growing as she is now 11 lbs and almost 24 inches long. That is 2 inches and more than 2 lbs in 5 weeks! She did great while we were a the Dr.'s office (minus the blood curdling screams on the way there--she hates the car!) and she did ok when she got a shot. She cried for a bit but calmed down pretty quickly and actually fell asleep in the car. This was a novel concept for us....I was so surprised! I was able to go grocery shopping, get home, unload the car, and unpack the groceries while she slept peacefully in her car seat. I'd like to request a little more of that in the future, please! I hope she gets over the car thing or it is going to be a long few months while we all just listen to her scream whenever we go anyway...we'll see...

The other day in the car, Carter wasn't screaming yet and so I asked Sean what she was doing and his response exactly was, "flailing!". ha ha She was just about to start screaming and she was waving her hands around. I just thought it was funny that is what he said to describe her! He is a pretty good sport while she screams in the car. Luckily, we live close to most everything so it isn't that long of a drive no matter what we need to do.

Smiley Girl!

2011-10-13T10:38:00.000-07:00

Carter has been pretty easy going since she was born, and she recently started smiling quite a bit. She is even getting close to making cute "coo-ing" noises. She is most happy/smiley first thing in the morning so Sean and I enjoy those smiles together everyday!

A playdate times 6!!

2011-10-11T18:06:00.000-07:00

When I was pregnant with Carter there were 5 other teachers at my school who were also pregnant due in June (2), July (2), and then September. We got together with all the mommies and babies and tortured them by taking tons of pictures! The oldest baby was 3 months and the youngest is 3 weeks. There was always someone eating, crying, or sleeping for the couple hours that we were together! It was fun and we plan to do it again!

Bathtime...finally!

2011-10-09T17:58:00.000-07:00

Carter followed in Sean's footsteps and had an umbilical cord that would not fall off! His took at least a month and hers fell off around 4 weeks as well! We've been waiting to give her a real bath for a while so we were excited to see how she did. Sean screamed the entire time from the moment his foot his the water until we took him out. After that, he was fine and loved bathtime. Carter loved it from the start. She was very calm and relaxed and as you can see from the pictures she loves looking at herself in the mirror!

Who is that cutie in the mirror?

Its bathtime for everyone! It is good thing that we have a good sized bathroom! It was a family affair!Whoa...crazy eyes!! ha ha

The State Fair!

2011-10-09T17:49:00.000-07:00

Sean has been learning about the state fair at school and so we decided to go today. He didn't remember that he has been twice before but this year he was FINALLY tall enough to ride all of the kids ride. We did...uhm....lie about how old he was in order to get him in free and ride the rides for free! He could definitely pass for 2 year old! Anyway, he had a blast riding all of the rides. Sean and I rode the ferris wheel together and he really enjoyed that. He wasn't nervous at all even though we were way up high. It was an overall fun day. Hopefully next year Carter will be able to enjoy it a little more!

Nemo!

He didn't understand that he could make it spin!

Ferris Wheel with mommy

Helicopter with Daddy

They got a good seat!

Having fun!

Happy One Month Carter!

2011-10-08T14:18:00.000-07:00

Carter is one month old today! We cannot believe that it has been a month already!

A smile!

2011-10-07T16:05:00.000-07:00

Carter is starting to pay attention to you more when you talk to her. You can tell she is able to see a little further away and we've even got a few smiles this week as well!

Smile!

After a bath, looking at mommy!

Looking at her cute self in the mirror!

New Haircut!

2011-10-06T16:15:00.000-07:00

Sean got a new haircut!

Ohhh, handsome!

4 Weeks old!

2011-10-06T16:02:00.000-07:00

4 weeks old today!

Feeding baby sister...

2011-10-05T16:11:00.000-07:00

Sean was excited to feed Carter for the first time!

It wasn't me!

2011-10-04T11:11:00.000-07:00

Our conversation from earlier today:

Sean: (playing/talking loudly)
Mommy: "Sean, shhh..your sister is sleeping"
Sean: "Oh, that wasn't me, that was just the Velociraptor"
Mommy: "riiight"

Sean at school.

2011-10-03T11:05:00.000-07:00

You can tell from the pics that Sean loves school! He is learning a lot and really enjoying himself this year!

Students of the week!
Working on the letter "D"