Homeschool open gym

We went to Eagle's Wings Gymnastics last week where they have an open gym twice a month. We went with my friend and her 3 children. All of the children had a good time - we built a fort out of the large pieces and Cameron got to play too :)
I think we'll try to make this gym every time since it is so friendly to babies.

Fun Park Day

Last week at the park, we had a great time. Carson loved hanging out with his friends. In the first picture, the boys all created bows and arrows using sticks. The last picture was slide pile-up. It was a fun game that they played until I had to break it up when too many kids were getting hurt. I think the record was 10 kids going down the slide at the same time. They had a blast while it lasted.

Completing the Garden Beds

We had dirt delivered to fill our garden beds. Carson couldn't believe that a real dump truck came to our house! He was in awe as he watched the bed on the truck rise up to dump the load. Tonight he planted marigolds in the corner of his little garden bed. I am no gardener, but I think they are great for organic gardens because they keep insects out of your garden. Mark has the green thumb in the family.

Our new camper!

Some women want diamonds, fancy cars and designer clothes. Not this one. The only thing that I dreamed of is a popup camper....and my dream has come true!!
I love camping and continue the tradition with my boys. However, I do enjoy comfort and I have had it with sleeping on the ground. Breastfeeding on a blowup mattress is the most uncomfortable thing! I am so excited to have a bed to sleep in :)
Well, on Saturday we opened it up to clean it and load it up for our next camping trip (probably next month). Abuelo and Abuela were over for a visit from Fort Worth. They played with the boys and helped set the camper up. Between the camper and my parents' visit, Carson was bouncing off the walls with excitement. I was pretty excited too. Here are the pictures of the camper and my parents visit:

Dancing to traffic?

Cameron has always really liked music. Lately, he lets us know just how much. He dances to EVERYTHING! Anytime he hears music or something that can be mistaken as such, he starts dancing. It is so cute. While Carson played the keyboard, he was rocking his head back and forth so hard while standing up, that he knocked himself over (again and again). One day after getting out of the car in a parking lot, he started dancing by shaking his head back and forth and swinging his arms. I couldn't understand why he was doing that until I realized he was dancing to the freeway noise! Mark, Carson and I were cracking up!! I'll try to catch it on video and upload soon. What a sweetie :)

And then there were two little cooks...

Cameron decided that he wanted to start helping with the pancakes that Daddy cooks. He just barely fits in the learning tower with Carson. Carson was so proud to have his brother with him.

Gift-making

Carson's friend is turning 10 and he is really into robots. So Carson decided to make him a birthday gift - a robot and a knife. We really love having a room designated for crafts. Carson just goes in and creates the most amazing things. He really wanted me to take a video of him working on his creation. So, here goes....
Update: I uploaded a picture of Carson giving his friend his robot. He was so excited.

Playday

A friend of mine has just had her 6th and final child (2 of them are grown) and they came over for a playday today. Carson loves them and it was such a fun day. The baby is so cute. Cameron decided to sit this one out and take a nap.

Going Bonkers

We went to this really neat family fun center called Going Bonkers. Carson and Cameron had a great time with their friends.

Snow Day!

We woke up Tuesday morning to snow on the ground. Carson was so excited. He was so worried that it would melt while he dressed. After playing, he really wanted to keep some snow in the freezer to make 'Blueberry snow cream' when his blueberry bush produces fruit.

Hibachi

We hardly ever go out to dinner (4x/year). Tonight we went to a Hibachi grill called Geisha. Carson was so excited - he especially loved the onion volcano (bet you couldn't have guessed that!). He loved the food. We had sushi roll for an appetizer which is one of his favorite foods. He and I shared fillet mignon and lobster (his choice). He has been wanted to try lobster forever and was thrilled to see it on the menu.

Bam-Bam

Cameron has a little ball pounding toy and he just loves it. He could do this all day. The video shows what he likes to do. He is doing so much and it just blows me away. He is officially crawling and has even ventured down the hall exploring without me. He is 9months old today and I just don't know where the time has gone.

Park Day

We go to the park two times a week with one of our homeschool groups. Last friday was such an awesome day for the park, we were there for almost 5 hours! The day was well attended and we had a blast. I love that Carson gets to play with children of all different ages. I tried to get some good pictures of everyone, but getting kids to take a picture together is like herding cats so I only got about 1/2 of them in the picture.

High-tech skin cells?

Last night I took a bath with the boys in our huge tub and for some reason, Carson and I started to talk about skin cells.

me: "Old skin cells die and new ones grow everyday"
carson: "Really?"
me: "Yes, right now we are washing off the old ones"
carson: "Yeah, the bath is deleting our skin cells......CLICK!"

Cameron is Famous!

A friend of mine teaches Baby sign language classes and the ABC morning show did a segment on it this morning. Cameron was one of the babies showing signs. He did great! He signed ball on cue. He is only 8months old and he has 4 signs so far.
Carson was really excited to go to the studio. I had to explain what a TV station is since he hasn't really ever watched TV and doesn't know there are different channels. I don't think he really understood that the video in the greenroom was being played on everyone's TV.

Follow this link to see the video:
http://www.wfaa.com/video/nspparent-index.html?nvid=222216

How tasty is that orange?

Take a look at the video and I think Cameron can show you just how tasty that orange is!

Baby wearing

Carson has been wanting a baby sling to carry his doll, Tommy for a long time. I finally bought one for him and he wants to wear Tommy everywhere we go. It is so cute!

Live Wildlife Show

On Saturday, I nursed Cameron to sleep in bed and left him with Daddy. Carson and I went to the library where the Fort Worth Zoo was having a live wildlife show. It was so cool and free! During presentations, Carson is beginning to really listen to what is being taught. He is facsinated by what they know and what he can learn. Only a few months ago, he was a wild child during any presenation and did not want to listen or sit still. It amazes me how quickly he is maturing.

Our new garden

Carson and Mark are building our new organic raised garden beds. There will be 4-4'x8' beds. They are also making a special 4'x4' bed just for Carson. We'll probably put herbs in that one. They also planted a blueberry bush and we are thinking of putting a fruiting tree in - maybe apple or fig.

Carson Swim Lessons

Carson started a second session of swim lessons last week. We take them through the Plano Park and Rec and have been happy with them. The pool is perfect for him - the entire side of the pool that Carson is on is 3ft high. They have open swim for $1 and I think we'll take the whole family soon during those hours.

Cameron as a Native American?

Cameron was wearing Carson's feather headband from last year's homeschool daycamp. Too cute for words!

Cameron pulling up

Cameron has been pulling himself up for a few weeks now. He does great holding on to the edge of the train table - take a look. Yeah Cam!

Valentine's Day

Today is Valentine's Day. Carson has been looking forward to this day for a long time. This was one of our busiest days in a while! I'm exhausted. First, we went to pick up our dairy from Mr. Mike (farmer). Then we went to Whole Foods and bought some filet mignons and merlot for a special dinner surprise for Daddy. After that we went to Carson's swimming lesson. It is a small class with only 2 other children. Carson forgot his goggles and one of the instructors let Carson borrow his so we avoided a major catastrophe. He put his head under one time and was very proud. Cameron and I played near the pool with his toys. They have a class for 9month olds and I am thinking about maybe putting Cameron in a class next session.
When we came home, I put Cameron down for a nap and we worked on Carson Valentine's box. We used a laundry soap box that worked just perfect.
After lunch, we went to our homeschool valentine's party. We reserved Jump Town for our group and Carson had the best time. There were so many children (almost 50!!) which means a LOT of valentines for his box. He was so excited that he started opening them in the van on the way home. He loves to read them over and over. It is nice that the party is candy-free so we don't need to worry about a bunch of junk food.
I put the nice dinner together and took a picture of Daddy as he walked in the door. He even brought a pot of mini roses for me! It was a such a nice dinner. Carson loved the candles and Cameron LOVED playing in the mashed potatoes! After dinner, I gave Carson a valentine's gift of homemade heart shaped cookies, a heart balloon and a book. He was so excited about his day. I think we are going to stay home tomorrow and sleep all day (I wish!)

Playday

We went to our friends' house for a playday yesterday. Carson had a great time. Afterwards, we came home and he rode his scooter in the cul-de-sac. He loves riding his bike and scooter. We are so lucky to have found such a great home with a place for him to ride. As usual, Cameron is along for the ride! He loves to be in his carrier.
We also started a crytal growing experiment and erupted a volcano. So much to do when you are 4 years old!