Paint & Pool

Fun day at a friend's house spent spraypainting. Carson really likes to squirt water, but this is his first time to squirt paint and he thought it was really cool. We also spent a little time in the pool cooling off.

Melt my heart....

Cameron learned a while back how to kiss (which is actually an open-mouthed wet kiss) and he'll give you a kiss if you ask. Well, today Cameron and I were playing on the floor with some pretend food. All of a sudden he stopped playing, turned and looked at me and leaned in for a kiss. It was the sweetest moment. Okay....everybody now, "AAAAHHHHH!".

Cameron is 1!

I can't believe that it has been a year since Cameron's birth. It has been a good year and I am surprised at how smooth and easy it was taking care of 2 children. Cameron is a very sweet, easy-going child. I can easily change his naptime by getting him a 10 minute cat-nap before a busy day and he'll be in good spirits until a long nap later. He is a serious child and will only smile and laugh if something is actually funny. But get him going and his laugh will melt your heart. Putting him on a riding toy will always make him smile, but he always checks me to see that I am smiling first. He adores his brother and I think he sometimes thinks that he is also 4 1/2 years old. He will follow Carson around and learn all that he can from his big brother. He has the most incredible balance of any baby that I have ever seen. He hasn't had near the bumps and bruises as his brother due to the fact that his balance is so good and he catches himself well if he falls. Of course, he is still nursing but refuses to nurse in public as he is too distracted. I love having 2 healthy boys in my life everyday. I didn't know how much I would love being a mother until I was one.
I decided to put some pictures of Cameron's birth in honor of his special day and also share a couple of recent pictures. Cameron was born at home and it was sucha beautiful birth, I wish I had birthed Carson at home (he was born in a birthing center). A whole year has gone by, where did all the time go?
Happy Birthday Cameron!!!

Cameron's Birthday Watermelon

Our preschool co-op had a pool party that happened to be on Cameron's 1st birthday. I took the opportunity to have an impromtu party by bringing a watermelon and a candle. We all sang happy birthday and Carson helped him to blow out the candle.

Saveena's Birthday!

Our friend's little girl recently turned 2 years old. They had the party at Grisham Farms for an animal-themed party. The kids really liked touching and seeing the animal up close. It was such a fun day! Cameron is really starting to participate in more activities. He really liked the seesaw.

Coppell Middle School Band

At the end of May, we went to Coppell to hear Henry's Band (the boys' cousin). We first met for dinner and then made our way to the school. They started playing at 7:00pm, but both Cameron and Carson were so tired we had to leave early. We loved hearing the band play and were impressed at how well they sounded. Carson's doll Tommy even came to hear. It was very hard for Cameron to sit still, he kept crawling away from Aunt Beth! Carson was surprised to see what a school looked like. He has only read about a schoolhouse from Little House books and he said that Henry's school was big, tall and like a 'doctor's building'. I suppose he thought it would be a little more home-like like when Laura and Mary went to school.

Memorial Day cookout

On memorial day weekend, we went to my parents for a visit. They are in the middle of doing some remodel work on their home and they very kindly cleaned up the construction zone for our visit. We swam and had a nice visit. We also went to my brother's house for a short while who was having a big cookout. Now for the BIG news....Mark and I went on a date for the 1st time in 4 1/2 years!!! Did you hear me...out withOUT children for the first time! Wow! We went to see the new Indiana Jones movie. We just went to the movie and back but it was a little weird to just have the two of us. But it was fun!

Pinecone Birdfeeder

Carson and I made pinecone birdfeeders a couple weeks ago. It was a VERY messy project. First, you spread peanut butter on the pinecone and then sprinkle birdseed on the peanut butter. Cameron was close by to watch the messy craft. The squirrels ate every bit of peanut butter and birdseed before the birds even knew that it was there.

Good Eyesight

In the car, Carson is reading the road signs...

Carson: "Mom, I can read road signs up to 12 miles away!"
Me: "Wow, that's far!"
Carson: "Well, Ms.Chauncy said that little Calin can spot a bug a mile away"

Toothpaste experiment?

I was brushing my teeth with some new toothpaste that I had bought. When Carson chimed in:

Carson: "How does it taste?"
Me: "Minty"
Carson: "Well, then why do they say it is an experiment?"
Me: "No, honey. Spearmint is a type of mint"

Baseball Game

We recently went to see a Frisco Roughriders minor league baseball game. We invited a family from our homeschool group. Carson adores their daughter, Sami. We only saw a little of the game since we spent most of the time watching the kids on the playgroup and in the restaurant eating dinner. It was a fun night!

A private moment? Yeah, right!

Mark and I were having a short private discussion in the hallway while the boys were in the playroom. When Carson came over to be with us, I told him that Mommy and Daddy were having a private conversation and to please go back into the playroom for a minute. He came back in a few seconds teary-eyed saying, "Mom, I think that you are mistaken! Husbands and wives aren't supposed to have private time when they have children!"

Rollerskating

We have been going to the skating rink for their stroller skating time. You can skate pushing a stoller and beginner skaters can learn. Carson hasn't been able to skate well on the regular skates so I recently bought him some rollerblades at a garage sale and he was able to skate the first try. I was so proud of him. He is getting so big!

Wheels Playday

We invited some of Carson's friends to come over for a 'wheels playday'. The children brought over their bikes, scooters, and skates. They rode around the cul-de-sac and had a great time. After that, we went into the backyard and the kids played on the swingset and built a jet fighter out of wood in Carson's shop. I made lemonade for everyone which tasted great and helped us cool off in the heat.

Carson's workshop

Carson has decided that the area between the trees and fence in the backyard is his workshop. He will go back there and spend hours making various things with wood, tape, shovels, water...anything he can get his hands on. He recently made a potato cannon that is made of wood and pvc and shoots mulch. He also has taken his retro metal firetruck and is modifying it into a flying motorcar called Hychanilitis (I have no idea where he came up with that name). Last week, he took a 2x4 and painted it red and made a sign to let everyone know it is his shop. It says "Carson's Shop" if you can't see that.

Cameron climbing slide

Cameron has decided to make my life more challenging. It is so funny that he refuses to walk, although he climbs this steep slide. He climbed all the way to the top. Mark is outside right now trying to create a way to keep him off it while we work in the yard. He is such a character!