We are Back

We are back... it was SO great to see my husband. Carson got the biggest toothless grin anyone ever saw.
But I already miss my family.
I love the way they interact with Carson and how he lights up around them.
I love my brother's absolutely fabulous cooking and watching the little boy that used to tag around behind me have a Proud Papa glow.
I love how my mom has the most unselfish, tender heart in the world. She can make Carson laugh quicker than anyone. Someday I want to be just like her.
I love seeing my little sister nurture the kids. She would give her nephews anything. She loves to cuddle Carson. She is not a morning person but if you bring the baby to wake her up she is all smiles.
I love Pops always wanting to do everything to help everyone. I will miss the mornings where everyone else was at work and he would have his "Carson time" before going in. Oh yeah, and he kept bringing me fair scones.
I love how Beth loves my brother so much and "gets" him.
And I can't say enough about my nephews Shawn and Xarik. Xarik already has a little personality. He looks you right in they eye and smiles big. Shawn talks to Carson like he is a big kid... and plays with him. He asks him questions like Carson can answer. "We are going for a walk, Carson, are you excited?" "Do you want to play with the turtles Carson?" Carson gets so excited when he is around he starts flapping his arms and for a second you may believe he is actually going to fly.
Last night Shawn was pretending to cook (like his dad) and brings Carson a paper cup "I made this drink special just for you Carson" So cute! Shawn also says "Now I have three babies to take care of. Xarik, Carson and the baby in Kris' tummy."
I love you guys!

Stalker

Gramps and Carson

It is beautiful this week in Puyallup, 70 degrees and sunny... a rare occurrence up here in the rainy state.

Carson and I decided to take a walk yesterday. It ended up being a pretty long walk because I thought I could find a secret neighborhood or make a cool discovery. That did not happen. We were walking along with a lot of traffic most of the time.

At one point, I noticed a man come out from a side street. He was pretty far behind me but something about him made me feel a little nervous. I reassured myself and walked on... pushing Carson a little bit faster which was ok by him.

I turned a few streets on the way back to my parents, low and behold "weird guy" was still behind us and getting a little closer. Again, I reassured myself. We were on a busy street, he was probably just walking this way too.

I looked back nervously a few times as I got closer to the house. My parents live on a dead end that is gated. As I turned up the dead end I look behind and saw the guy starting to jog up a little. This was not reassuring. The gap was closing even more.

When he turned down the dead end behind me my anxiety increased. I knew Pops was home so I called his cell phone. No answer. I called the house phone. Still no answer. Now I felt truly nervous. I fumbled with the gate that turns into their condos. Once inside the gate I felt a little more relaxed. Surely this guy would see the gate and turn around. Plus, I was getting close to the house.

As I turned around I saw the guy come through the gate. Panic set in. I practically ran.. the garage was open. I pushed Carson into garage, quickly grabbed him out of the stroller (waking him) and closed the garage. Then I ran up to the front door and locked it... I saw the guy outside the front window looking around.

I ran upstairs calling "DAD! DAD"... poor guy... he had shampoo in his heard the panic in my voice.

"Dad, someone was following me and they are right outside the house!"

"Is he tall and dark haired with black t-shirt?" he asks from the other side of the door as he looks out of his bedroom window.

"YES!"

"That's the neighbor." ha... relief. Immediate feelings of stupidity. But, more relief.

We had a good laugh. If you saw the guy though and he had followed you for about a mile and a half you would have felt a little worried too. Trust me. And what are the odds he lives in the same condos??

Frequent Flyer

No pics to upload yet... but Carson and I are in Washington hanging out with the family and having a fabulous time!
My little frequent flyer was a pro on the flight again. In fact, at the end of the flight a lady turned around and said "I want to see this sweet baby who was so good." That's my boy!
We flew in with the BYU Cougar Tour group, they were flying out to see the Cougs play the UW Huskies. There were almost 150 people on the tour. All BYU alum.
My little sis couldn't leave work right away and she was supposed to help me get the bags since I had two suitcases and a carseat and stroller and Carson... plus diaper bag of course. When she called I reassured her... don't worry, I just flew in with every bishop and stake president in Utah. They are breaking their backs to see who can help me the most! There were actually 4 men standing by me at the baggage belt practically fighting each other to see who could be the biggest help. We were in good hands.
We miss Justin though. This morning when he called and I put him on speakerphone Carson just lit up... his arms start flapping, he started talking and smiling and straining to reach the phone. Carson is sure a daddy's boy.

Great Weekend

We had a terrific weekend. One where everything just works out great. It started on Thursday. Some friends of mine had a condo in Jeremy Ranch for the week and offered to let us use it Thursday and Friday night! What incredible friends I have!
Carson and I drove up Thursday afternoon while J was at work. We went for a lot of walks around the beautiful neighborhood. I try not to get jealous of homes I can not possibly afford at this time in my life. But wow! I would love to live up there. It was so gorgeous and quiet and Carson loved walking around.
It was actually less of a commute for J to come there after work so we had fun. We took Carson into the pool for his first time. It was a little chilly but he loved it. So far this kid has expressed no fear of anything.
On Friday, Carson and I got up and went on a long long walk. He just loves being outside and now that he can sit upright in his stroller and see everything he couldn't be more content. Then we went to the outlets. Carson made a LOT of friends at the outlets. People and kids kept coming up and talking to him, and he loved the attention.
After work, J and I played games and picked up food to go and went on another long walk. It was very relaxing.
We left Saturday morning and spent all day just hanging out and enjoying our little family. Then on Sunday it was my friend Jill's bday. I made my first layered cake. It was a delicious mess! This was quite an accomplishment for me. I am not so good at the whole Betty Crocker baking thing. I was going to start the cake before church and was all excited, only to discover that the round pans I thought I had to make the cake in were actually PIE PANS! So, I had to borrow some from a neighbor who gave me very specific instructions. The whole kitchen was a frosting disaster ever... but it was fun and could quite possibly induce a sugar coma.
We spent Sunday barbequing with Jill and Steve and playing games. Carson gave Jill lots of birthday kisses which was very sweet. I am still waiting for my kisses. Apparently, I am not high up on the priority list:)
Then yesterday we saw Justin's cousin Jessica's baby girl. She is so cute! Just 4 weeks old. We ended up going to a bbq with Tom and Liz and their 2 week old baby, Jessica and Katelyn, Nick and Essie and Andrew and Liesel, and Cam and Liz (and baby Shellum in Liz's tummy). We had a great time!
What a fabulous weekend! And I leave for Washington for a week tomorrow.... get to see my family again and go to Kristin's baby shower.

For the Love of Balloons

Carson loved the balloons we got for Daddy's birthday. We had five in the back of the car with him on the ride home from the store. He was in complete awe. When we got home, he was asleep and holding the strings with both hands. It was difficult to get him out of the car withouth the balloons tagging along.

As we got set up for J's bday, Carson just stared at the balloons. Then, trauma occurred. His favorite balloon caught in the fan! You should have seen the panic in his face. I think he may have believed they were alive. Luckily, since he is only 7 months, he was easily distracted with another balloon.

Nothing has ever been more hilarious in his life than Daddy bumping the balloons with his face. Who knew.

Yesterday afternoon I had a typical "April" moment. I went out to check my mail and locked the door behind me. Smart. I was so happy that I had brought Carson with me though I was not very upset. See, he was in his high chair playing happily when I decided to check the mail. Last minute, I thought I would bring him with me and went back and grabbed him. Can you imagine if I would have locked him in??? The broken window would have been expensive to replace.
So, Carson and I walked up to a neighbors and hung out. We called J and he came home early. That was fun. Maybe I should lock myself out more often.
The advice Justin gave me was that if I ever lock Carson in is to not break the window but kick in the door instead. Thanks, Honey. I will make sure that happens.

My Son is a Future Redneck

Need I say more?

We had a great time at the cabin at the Archery Deer Hunt Opener this weekend. The guys were up way before the sun every morning, hiking around the mountain...doing the things guys do when they get all dressed up in their camo "costumes".

Here are a few things I learned this weekend:

Zack is moving to Texas to live in a camper trailer and hunt domestic pigs gone wild--seriously.

After sleeping in a loft with 4 adults, 2 children and a baby... I will never complain again when my husband wakes me by flipping over. Also, air mattresses are very loud when you toss and turn.

Grandpa Mark has been trying to install a working toilet since I met Justin four years ago. We still need to dump a bucket of water in it to flush.

Apparently, the corn muffins I made were for "poor" people. But, it is perfectly kosher to eat Vienna Sausages for breakfast.

The closest we saw to a bear was Grandpa Marlo... when he growls. However, Tyler actually saw a mama bear and two babies. As wonderful an experience as that may have been, I will pass on seeing bears in the wild.

As much as I think my cooking skills are improving, even using their recipes, I will never cook as good as Susan or Grandma May.

Don't let Tyler go through the food line first, he will get 3 1/2 of the 4 lb roast before anyone else gets a turn.

Esther is better at word games than me. Oh yeah, and as she states "I win a lot".

Cody is a card hustler.

I discovered something else, but I think it is still a secret. A three year old told me the secret though!

The air is definitely fresher up there! The food tastes better... there is nothing so peaceful and wonderful as hanging out at the cabin where the only chaos is that caused by the family!