Stair Monster

As renovations on the new house continue and since we closed on our old house last week, we have moved in with my parents, Carter, dog, and all. His favorite thing to do is climb the stairs and he's gotten really fast already. As you can see from the picture, we try to keep a little gate up so he can't sneak up there when we're not looking, but it's like he has a sensor that goes off in his mind as soon as the gate is open...and he thinks - escape to upstairs!


Hopefully mom and dad won't catch me....


Uh-oh, they see me!

King of Bed-Head

Carter has always had pretty crazy & wild hair...but lately, he has been waking up with hair sticking in every direction literally. I tried to get some good shots of it over the weekend, so check out the side and front views below!




I might have crazy hair, but I'm still cute!

First Doctor's Visit for # 2

When I went for my first doctor's appointment for baby # 2, I had an ultrasound to make sure all was well with me and the baby. Right as I was laying down on the table, I looked on the bulletin board in the room and saw my sweet little Carter's announcement almost right in the center. His is the black and white picture of the hands by the face and the polka dot announcement right beside it. I just couldn't have been a more proud mama!

It's amazing how long ago it seems that he was so little...I miss just being able to hold him for hours. Now, he is way too busy to hang out with mom - there are stairs to climb, toys to play with, and all kinds of places to discover!

Big Brother Carter

For those of you who don't know, Derrick and I are expecting baby # 2 in March of 2010. I'm not due until the very end of the month, so from today, I have exactly 6 months to go. We told our friends and family by having Carter wear a shirt on his birthday that said "Big Brother" on the back. It took about 15 people reading it to figure it out and guess that it meant we were having another baby.

So far, most people think it's another boy....how about you? I really love the name Cole if it's a boy, and Carly if it's a girl. As you can probably tell, I like "C" names, so if you have any cute suggestions, leave me a comment!

Tigers Game

A few weeks ago, we took Carter to his first Tigers football game. He had a great time tailgaiting, but when we got into the actual game, he was scared with all the loud clapping, hollering, the booms of the canons as the players took the field, etc. He lasted a grand total of about 10 minutes before we had to leave and go home. Oh well....at least we tried!


You can see how happy he was here...


About to break into a cry...

Carter's Birthday Party

We had Carter's birthday party on Saturday and had a great time. He got so many gifts - lots of new toys to fill up his new gameroom - and had lots of fun playing with his balloons and gift bags! We've been playing with new toys all weekend.

Thank you to all of our family and friends who celebrated with us!


Carter's Cake


Mommy & Carter


The Penningtons

With his birthday hat

Carter & Daddy

Everyone singing to the birthday boy

Mom...I got icing on my finger

Now I want to use a big boy fork!

Feeding Daddy

Not too much, though...it's my cake

Yummy yummy cake

Really digging in now!

Wednesday Night Birthday Dinner

On Wednesday night, we took Carter to dinner with some of our family at Booya's. He ate an entire soft taco, snuck a couple of tortilla chips, half an order of fries, and part of a chocolate chip cookie for dessert. He also drank some fruit punch (cut with water), because they didn't have juice or milk.

Thank you to MiMi, Big Daddy, Aunt Lindsey, Uncle Scott, Katlin, Nana, Pop, and Aunt Shelby for celebrating with us :)


Getting messy


Yummy cookie!


Mom, Dad, and Carter

Carter & Katlin

Wednesday, September 2

Here are some pictures of Carter on his birthday. I woke him up by singing to him...poor baby, but he did give me a little smile!


Happy Birthday, Baby!


The singing was too much - need the paci!

Longer shot of the big boy in his crib

Happy 1st Birthday, Carter!

The Story of You

The day came when we saw two lines
We’re going to have a baby – we were on cloud nine

Anxiously waiting to see who you would be
And finding out you were our little boy – yippee!

Picking out the furniture and bedding
We made sure your room was the perfect setting

Dilated to 4 centimeters for over 3 weeks
Then finally an induction, we were too excited to speak

At 2:18, our long awaited gift arrived
A big 8 pound boy, the most wonderful surprise

Staring at you in the hospital all night long
Singing you lullabies and silly songs

Nursing and rocking you – what a treat
You have made our family complete

Learning to sit, roll, and stand
Changing from a baby to a little man

Hearing your laugh, your cry, your voice
These sounds make my heart rejoice

You love to read, play, and snuggle
Hide from Mommy and cause some trouble

From bottles then to sippie cups
Sleepless nights to waking you up

This year has flown by – I can’t believe you’re one
Thank you for making me a Mommy and being such a great son

For all the blessings you bring and loving me so true
My heart is walking around outside my chest….it’s in you.

Happy 1st Birthday, Carter. I love you and cannot imagine my life without you. You bring new joy to each day and more love to my life than I could have ever imagined.

Mommy