A Very Spooky Halloween Morning

Happy Halloween everyone! Carter and I got up extra early today so he could pose for some cute Halloween pictures. Since he has 2 outfits, a costume, and a glow in the dark hat, I thought it was a good idea to at least get a few shots out of the way.

We hope no black cats cross your path today and that you indulge your inner child and eat lots and lots of candy - or steal your kid's candy after they go to bed!


Carter in the onesie that Ashley, Josh, and Gage Hinton gave him and the cute stripey socks and bat hat that Nadine gave him.


As you can see, he wasn't having the hat! This is a better shot of his cute pumpkin onesie.


I like this one because he's just about to break into a smile. Look at that big round belly and those chubby cheeks!

Welcome to the Blog

Hello to all of our family and friends. We started this blog to keep everyone up to date on Carter and our goal is to do one or two posts each week.

Stay tuned for Halloween pictures very soon. Carter is going to be a brown & white spotted horse and Katlin is going to be a white bunny. We hope to get some professional pictures taken of them both in costume as well as some candid shots from Friday night.

Leave us a comment so we know you are reading!

Love,

Derrick, Ashley, & Carter Pennington

Carter 7-8 Weeks Old

As you can probably tell, I can never resist and opportunity to take pictures of Carter...especially when he's sleeping. These are some pictures from the last week that I wanted to share. He continues to grow and change, but still looks so much like his Daddy to me!


Snoozing away in his car seat. He must be having a good dream because I see a little smirk on his adorable face.


Laying on the counter in his white jammies after a bath.



He looks so long and lean in this picture but there are many cute little fat rolls under there!

Carter with Papaw in his sweater vest after church.

Looking like a linebacker in his "Majoring in Naptime" shirt - size 3 months!

Baby Bama Fan

This year has been a GREAT year to be a Bama fan. Each Saturday, Derrick gets out Big Al, the mascot stuffed animal that plays the fight song, and he and Carter cheer the Tide on during the football game. Here they are celebrating the victory over Tennessee.





Sleeping the day away next to his buddy, Big Al


It almost looks like Carter is trying to stay something to Big Al in this one!

Carter & Katlin Meet Again

Mom, Carter, and I went to visit Katlin & Lindsey at their house in Southaven the week before I was starting back to work full time. We painted Lindsey's kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom (with help from Scott's mom, Mrs. Gail) while Lindsey took care of the babies. These pictures crack me up b/c Carter's thighs are HUGE and Katlin is still so tiny!



Thunder Thighs and the Frog Princess


Tummy Time - or for Carter, Sleepy Time



Look at that tiny smile on Katlin's face

Carter & Katlin at Mom's House - Saturday, October 25. I couldn't resist the opportunity to try and pose them together...though you can see how uncomfortable Katlin looks. Right after I snapped this, Carter's head started falling down right into Katlin's lap! They were 8.5 and 7.5 weeks old.

Hanging Out at Home

Derrick and I are enjoying Carter so much and are just amazed at how much he seems to grow every single week. Here are some pictures of us hanging out at home.


Playing on his bug activity mat


A little overwhelmed by the activity mat at Nana's house



Asleep on MiMi's chest at Mandy's Housewarming party



Sitting in his chair posing with his custom Vermont Teddy Bear - I just want to reach inside this picture, pick him up, and cover him with kisses!

Asleep in his bouncy seat - those cheeks remind me of his cousins Kirsten and Emma

Carter at Murray State Homecoming

Karen, my other sorority little sister from college, and great friend, came to visit a few days before we traveled to Homecoming at Murray State. Here she is snuggling the little man right before bedtime.

Poor Karen always runs into bad weather when she comes to town - once it was a tornado, and this time it was rain so hard she couldn't see a foot in front of her. We enjoyed the visit so much and the extra hands to hold Carter while we shopped for shower gifts.

I love this picture of Karen & Carter. He looks so content just snuggled under her neck. I can't wait for Karen and Shane to have a little one of their own!

Karen & Carter at Homecoming. She has a way of getting him to sleep and keeping him happy.

At Lynn Carlisle's wedding shower. From the left - Rhiannon, Karen & Carter, Jaime, Kim, me, Lynn & Carson, and her friend with little boy, Will.

Special thanks to Ashley, Josh, and Gage Hinton for letting us stay with them and tag along to all of their Homecoming activities. Neither Ashley nor I got pictures of Gage with Carter...I guess we will just have to visit again soon.

Carter Meets the Weez

One of my good friends from college, and sorority little sister, Allison Richmond came to visit Carter, Derrick, and I while visiting Memphis with her family. She has an adorable nephew already, but I think Carter stole her heart as well. I told Carter his Aunt Weezer (affectionately known as "The Weez" in our house) was coming to visit, and he promptly messed up his cute outfit and decided to wear the Daddy's Little Wingman onesie from Target.


Auntie Weezer and Carter


Allison, Carter, and Ashley - a cute little picture

Cater Goes to Dinner at Nana's

Derrick's Dad, Pete, is a wonderful cook. We try to get together once a month with the family and have dinner at Pete & Kelley's (aka Nana and Pop) house. Here is Carter enjoying time with his extended family and being spoiled rotten!


Carter & Aunt Shannon


The boys - Garrett, Derrick & Carter, and Pop


Shannon, Zack, & Derrick on the back row. Savannah, Nana, Carter, and Thomas on the front row. If only Carter could have held his neck up and looked at the camera!


Carter with Shannon's kids, his cousins - Thomas, Savannah, and Zack

Carter Meets Cousin Katlin

As many of you know, my sister and I were pregnant at the same time. Our babies were due almost exactly one month apart - Carter on September 7 and Katlin on October 4. Due to unforseen circumstances, Katlin was delivered on Tuesday, August 26 at 12:02 a.m. and then Carter was born one week to the day later on Tuesday, September 2 at 2:18 p.m.

After spending nearly 3 weeks in the NICU and Baby Sleep Room, Katlin got to come home, and we didn't waste any time getting the babies together. In the pictures below, Katlin weighs approximately 5-6 pounds, and Carter weighs 9-10 pounds....double her size!

MiMi with her two most precious possessions - the babies!

Holding them side by side to do a head and arm size comparison. Carter looks like he's been lifting some weights compared to Katlin's tiny limbs!

I put both of the babies in Katlin's Pack & Play - Carter was sleeping and Katlin was curious, just looking around and wondering who that big ol' boy next to her was.

Look closely and you can see that my mom put Carter's arm around Katlin - too cute!


I love this crying face of Carter's - he looks just like Derrick to me. Katlin, as you can see, is having none of it and just wants to wiggle away!

Bath Time = Not Happy Time

This is a picture of Carter's first bath. As you can see, his little umbilical stump was still on, so we were giving him more of a "sprinkling" than a real bath. He cried (very loudly!) the whole time, and Derrick and I were frantically trying to go as fast as possible while still getting him clean. Thankfully, he has gotten more used to baths and actually seems to like them now.

Finally all warm and wrapped up in his hooded puppy dog towel after the bath.

Carter at Church

Derrick & I attend Central Church, and I was so anxious to bring Carter to church with us after he was born. The pictures below are of him at 3 and 4 weeks before we headed out the door.


I think he looks so precious in this gown, but Derrick wasn't too crazy about it.


Full length shot so you can see how adorable he is!



Carter was just 12 days old in this picture - and Mommy still had some baby weight to lose!

Carter & Mommy after church. The flowers in the background were still so pretty from the hospital after Carter was born that we kept them around for 2 additional weeks!

Football Fanatic

Carter doesn't know it yet, but he's going to love spending time with all these folks every fall / winter during football season. Though none of them root for the team he and his Daddy love - ROLL TIDE - we always have a great time when we're visiting.


Carter & Mr. Ken - he calls Derrick his Chinese Step-Son, so I guess this makes Carter his Chinese Step-Grandson!


Carter with Meaghan, Emily, and Riley. They loved holding him so much that it was like having built-in babysitters.



Carter & Meaghan...look at the little smile on his face. She was so good with him - knowing just when he needed to be rocked, talked to, or have his bottom patted!


Carter with the girls again, this time being held by Riley. Look at his cute little Alabama socks.


I'm not sure either Carter or McKenlee look very comfortable here, but they were having fun anyway.

Carter & Friends

Carter has had so many visitors and friends who wanted to come meet him and hold him. Here are just a few pictures of those who stopped by during Carter's first month!



Above, Jordan Lee, daughter of Ashlie Lee, a friend I used to work with. She is actually expecting her second child next June - yeah!


Jeff & Lindsey Robinson. Jeff was one of the groomsmen in our wedding and he has 3 girls of his own. We spend lots of time with Jeff, Lindsey, and their girls during football season.



Carter and Lindsey - you can tell she's a Mama - perfectly comfortable holding the little one!



Kennedy Beall, Scott & Susan's daughter, holds Carter on the Boppy. We couldn't convince her brother, Jack, to slow down enough to hold him. He was too busy playing with GiGi!

Carter's Photo Session

I love this one - it shows his "serious" face!


His umbilical cord stump had just fallen off the morning of the pictures, which was pure luck! I love how one foot has it's toes curled and the other is open!



Is this not the sweetest picture you've ever seen?



Obviously, this is a favorite, since it's the masthead for the website!



I love that you can see his whole body - just wish his eyes would have been open for at least one picture!


One of the best gifts we received for Carter was a portrait session at Lasting Expressions Photography at Wolfchase Mall from my cousins Mandy, Shel, and Sarah. We took Carter when he was just 11 days old to have his pictures made, and were so happy with how they turned out.



We took the first pictures with his outfit on, then wanted his other pictures done naked, so we'd always be able to remember how small he was. As soon as we got him undressed, he started screaming. We couldn't get him calmed down, so I took him in a dressing room to feed him. This calmed him down, but maybe a little too much....while eating, he peed all over me. All Derrick and I could do was laugh...this is what we're in for with a little boy!



After that, the rest of the session ran smoothly, and we think our photographer, Elisa, did a fabulous job. We'd recommend the studio to anyone - the prices may be a little higher than average, but the service and staff are excellent.