Carson's Soccer Game

Carson played well last Saturday. He scored 3 goals (really 2 and 1 assist, but we don't understand the concept of an "assist" just yet, so he will tell you he scored 3). He is doing better each game. As a Mom, I'm proud of his sportsmanship on the field (no fighting). :) But I know Dad (who is in Asia) would be proud to know that he's doing MUCH better at defense and is starting to get a little more aggressive at retrieving the ball. Go Red Hots!



The big kick



Can you tell he just scored a goal? Classic. This is his expression every time he scores.



Too much sun...need more Gatorade...soccer is tough...

Creed - 1 Month

Oh I'm so torn! I'm both happy and sad to celebrate my baby's one month birthday with him today. Happy because God blessed me with this beautiful little boy that has learned (just within the past 3 days) to sleep for a 5 hour stretch when we lay him down at night! Woo hoo! Atta boy! We lay him down around 9 and he doesn't wake me up until 2. What a blessing! I'm still getting up with him twice - again around 5 AM, but we're working on stretching out the second half of the night as well. Way to go big boy!

The part of me that's sad is realizing that one day, not long from now, he won't need me anymore. He'll become more and more independent. And unlike with the other two boys, I know that this is my last rodeo. My last time to be a mom to a baby. So, I'm cherishing every moment. I stare at him often...just to make a mental note of how sweet he looks each day.

Today is a prayer of Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for sweet Creed. Thank You for the quiet times at night that he and I get to spend together, rocking in his yellow chair. I feel so close to You when I hold one of Your precious gifts. Thank You for blessing Rusty and I with a spirited, handsome little boy one month ago today! We are humbled by your faith in us to raise Creed in today's world. May we do you proud! :) Amen.

Creed's Official One Month Picture - I'll use Elmo to help us track Creed's growth each month. The smirk on his face cracks me up - is that a smile I'm detecting?

Sweet Creed

Creed and Mom

Jonah consoling Creed...sweet brothers

Jonah's 3rd Birthday Celebration(s)

Well, I can't believe it - our little boy is THREE! My heart just breaks at how fast he is growing up. Pretty soon he's going to lose his cute little way of saying Creed (Tweed), his need for Mommy or Daddy to kiss each boo-boo, his excitement over the little things (like using the potty by himself), his willingness to shout, not sing, the words to all of his favorite songs in Sunday School without caring who is watching him. Lord - thank you for my sweet, sweet Jonah. He is a blessing to our family.

Here's celebration #1 - Birthday Breakfast (consisting of cinamon roll and banana)




Here's celebration #2 - Birthday Party at School (we brought the spiderman cupcakes that we made the night before)




Here is our birthday celebration with all of our little friends. Jonah had a blast feeding the ducks with friends and riding his bike all over the place. Special treat: Dad got to leave work a little early and join us at the party!





Here is our celebration at Mimi's house with family. Can you tell that Jonah loves Spiderman? His favorite gifts were anything Spiderman related (he got two costumes - one for him, one for Carson). He also received Iceman and Firestar action figures...this provides entertainment in the car. :)

Hurricane Ike

What do you do when it rains all day? Go outside and play in it of course! The boys (minus Creed) enjoyed this - they even got to ride their bikes through the puddles AND Dad brought the soap and hose to the backyard so that they could take a shower OUTSIDE. The boys were speechless. They had a blast and have been talking about it ever since.

Carson and Jonah

Carson saying "cheese"

Jonah making a big splash

Creed - not so crazy about being outside

I did it!

Well, after a lot of nervousness/anticipation, I got Carson and Jonah off to preschool ON TIME this morning and Creed and I went to make a few returns. I'm not sure why, but I was really nervous last night. I even told Rusty it felt like I had a big exam the next morning and I hadn't studied at all (nightmares from my first Audit class at Tech). Anyway, Rusty has been amazing the last two weeks while on paternity leave and it ended yesterday. So...a lot of pressure went into me getting it all "right" today.

There is a 15 minute window to get both boys walked into two different schools and safely delivered to their classrooms (with Creed in tow) - success! I sighed as I dropped Jonah off and Creed and I headed to Wal Mart and the mall. While at Nordstroms I dropped my wallet, didn't realize it until I had left (did I mention that it was pouring down rain and I didn't have an umbrella?) and was subsequently late for a lunch date (sorry Gina). BUT, everyone was safe, we all survived the day and I picked the boys up on time. Woohoo! Day one - check!

I just have to take a moment here to talk about how much I love my husband. Minus the early morning hours (Rusty is a far cry from being a "bright eyed-bushy tailed fella" when he wakes), he has been an AMAZING dad over the last two weeks. I honestly don't know how I would have survived without his help. The best part was that we just made a really good team. It was awesome - God knew just what we needed from one another - He always does! We got to share the little funny stories that the boys would come up with (Carson came home from school one day and said "Mom and Dad what starts with A and don't say apple because I already know that one!"...and Jonah loves Creed to death - almost literally! Many times over the past two weeks we've looked over to see Jonah smothering him with a hug. The poor guy doesn't know how to gently love Creed. Anyway, I'm going to miss having Rusty here. Props to Ernst & Young for offering paid paternity leave to it's employees. I encourage all new super dads to take advantage!

Jonah's First Day of School

Jonah enjoyed his first day of preschool today. He got to take his lunch and he felt very much like a "big boy". I was a little nervous - when we attended meet the teacher Jonah didn't say a word to anyone. However, when I walked him into his classroom they had playdough set out and he went right to the play area. He didn't even turn around and wave! :(

Isaac's Visit!

Uncle Bubba, Aunt Rha Rha and Isaac all came down for a visit and to meet Mr. Creed. We had sooooooo much fun playing with Isaac - as we always do! It's just boys, boys and more boys! :) Here are some pics from our funfilled-Saturday...

Carson's First Soccer Game

Well...it was quite a game. Needless to say, we need a little work. Tigers - 10 Red Hots - 1 That's alright - there's always next week! Coach Rusty has his work cut out for him. I showed up with T, Jonah and Creed in tow. It was nice to go on a walk (the park that Carson plays at is right up the street from our house). Here are a few pics of my soccer star and the rest of the team.
Man on the Run!

Team Huddle with Coach Rusty (and snacks)

Jonah - Carson's #1 Fan (sitting in his Mickey chair)


"That's 'otay' Carson - you're still #1 in my eyes!"

Time with Creed

Aunt Debbie, Granny and Ken offered to let the boys (Carson and Jonah) come and visit them in Bowie for the weekend. Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE my boys, but the thought of getting to spend some quality time with Creed and Rusty sounded very appealing. Plus, I knew the boys needed some attention that we weren't able to give them at home. So, off to Bowie they went! We've received many phone calls giving us updates. Apparently, this is what we missed:

1. Granny fell and broke her wrist at the lake. :(

2. Jonah put make-up on (WHAT!)

3. Jonah went #2 in the potty. (Hallelujah!)

4. Carson had a blast driving the John Deer tractor out at the lake.

While all of this excitement was going on in Bowie, Rusty, Creed and I slept A LOT! We caught up on some much needed sleep. Here are some pictures of our sweet baby boy.