It's Rodeo Time!

Today the boys and I met up with some friends and headed down to Reliant Park for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. There were a few hiccups (think two kids and only one stroller), but we had a great time. Carter enjoyed seeing and petting all the animals, but LOVED the John Deere exhibit the most. Here are some pictures from our outing ...

I suspended the "no pulling animal tails" just this one time. The wallabee was just too irresistable for him.

Here is Emma and the Llama

Joanna, Awbrey and Claire get their turn with the Llama.

Yeah, they put the baby goats behind a fence so you DONT pet them. Carter didn't care.

Here are the three of us and our "official" rodeo picture

And now on to Carter's favorite pictures. He had to sit in every single vehicle. Fortunately for you all, I didn't take and/or post every single tractor picture.

Carter and the girls

Carter says "My turn!"

Cole is tired of all the action

Carter on the Front Loader, it's almost identical to the one that Awbrey and Emma gave him for his birthday.

And Carter on the Z-Track (I think it's like a mower)

I'm going to get a double stroller this week. Then I'll head back to the Livestock Show again - Carter had a blast. Plus I didn't end up eating any Fair Food - isn't that a sin ...

Time for yardwork ...

Well with March weather comes yard duty and outside playtime. The temperature has been in the upper 70s lately, maybe even 80 today. Though there is a pretty strong breeze that tricks your mind into thinking it's much cooler. So we went out and started some yard work this morning and yesterday Brian beat the sun home so we played in the water hose.

Carter and Daddy putting the finishing touches by blowing away the debris.

"Carter - you should blow the grass, not your brother"

Cole says "Boy this yard work is tough, I'm exhausted."

My three boys after playing in the hose

Cole telling us "Hey, why are you dangling me?"

Cole says "Hey, stop rolling your excavator on my head." Carter loves construction vehicles, he can name lots of different types and can tell the difference between excavators, backhoes, rollers, front loaders, etc.

Carter posing for the camera

Cole with his first documented smile. He's been smiling on and off for almost a month now, but this is the first one where I could grab the camera in time.

Carter visits the dentist

Now that Carter is two and getting his last few baby teeth, it was time for us to take him to the dentist. But not just any dentist - it was Dr. Zummo - the same dentist I went to when I was his age. And the place still looks the same. Lots of painted Toothbrush Cowboys riding horses on the walls, and plenty of toys in the waiting room. There was even a Galaga video game in the waiting room - maybe Brian will want to go next time :)

Carter did wonderful at his visit. The hygenist really cleaned his teeth and gave him a goody bag with a Lightening McQueen toothbrush. He just sat there while she scrubbed away. She even flossed his teeth and he didn't even move. I asked her if I could bring him in every day - but that would get quite expensive ...

We did get a good news/bad news report though. Good news was that he has very strong enamel on his teeth which should help prevent cavaties, of which he had none (yeah Carter). BUT - the bad news was that he has pretty small mouth. Which means his teeth will eventually run out of room and need braces around 11 or 12 to correct overcrowding. So better start saving!!

Carter was actually excited to go the dentist this morning. He was running around the house dancing and yelling, "Dr Zummo - TEETH." I pulled out the video camera, and of course, he stopped. But I did get a little vide of telling me who is dentist is. He gets a little camera shy and forgets what he was doing 5 seconds prior. But you get the jist.

Sibling Similarities

Well for 6 weeks everyone has been comparing Cole to Carter, Cole to Brian, Cole to me, Cole to the mail man. Well not the mail man, but you get the idea. So I thought I'd post a picture of Cole wearing the same hat Carter did when he was little. I've always thought they looked quite similar, but this picture is my proof.

Carter in 2007, 2 days old

Cole last week

Yes, Cole has more weight on him because he's 5 weeks older than Carter in that picture - but you see what I'm talking about.

6 weeks

As February comes to a close I am astonished at how fast time flies. I remember the first 2 or 3 months with Carter seemed like forever. The days were long and the nights were longer. The days were long because he slept all day and I had nothing to do but stare at my newborn baby. The nights were long because he was awake from sleeping all day.

Now this time around, I feel like someone turned on the "warp speed" control. Cole turned 6 weeks on Tuesday. He is still very much a newborn in my eyes, but he is also taking more of a baby/infant shape to him. He's put on some weight now and smiles every now and then. He's cooing more and more every day as well.

Carter is adjusting well to having a baby in the house. I still don't leave them alone unsupervised. Carter likes to pull on Cole's arms and say "Up, Down", "Up, Down." He doesn't quite grasp the idea of soft and sweet quite yet. Though he's getting better.

One of Carter's favorite things to do is push Cole in the swing. Fortunately it has a limit to how high it can go. Here's the during and after shot. Make sure to note Carter's goofy grin in the second one and the frown starting to appear on Cole's face as Carter walks away.

I need to put some family pictures of us on the blog. But I first need to take some! Maybe I'll have Mom take a couple this weekend of all four of us. I don't want to do a big family portrait yet because Cole is still pretty young. So we'll probably wait until he sit up and smile for the camera. Then I'll shell out the $$ for a good photo.

One milestone Carter is hitting is that he's doing really well in swimming lately. At the end of the year he had mastered floating so he was promoted to the next class (Goldfish). He's only been going for 6 weeks but has learned to use his arms and kick while his face is in the water. He'll do that for a couple seconds then flip over and float to catch a breath. Then he'll turn over and kick and paddle his arms again, repeating the process until he reaches the side of the pool. He's making great strides. We are so proud of him. I'm anxious to get him in Mom and Dad's pool this summer and see how he does.

Well I'll leave with a cute sleeping photo of Cole I took earlier today and another yawning photo (I just love yawning photos, can ya tell).

One Month Today

Cole is one month today and I'm surprised to say that he is 8 1/2 pounds! He's growing so fast, though it's funny that some of my friends baby's were never even this small. He is starting to have many more awake and alert moments and isn't sleeping all day long. Though he is still sleeping quite a bit. Of course those sleeping times are still in 3 hours blocks :)

Here he is earlier today. I love yawning pictures.

Carter is in Austin this weekend visiting Grandmama with Grandma and Grandpa. That gives Brian and I a weekend alone with Cole. This is actually the first time we've left Carter for more than one night and the first time for him to take a trip without us. But he's in good hands and probably won't even miss us! So while Brian takes his renewal class for his handgun license tomorrow, I'm going to treat Cole as a piece of luggage and carry him around town while I shop for a new pair of tennis shoes and a few other random things I can't do with 2 kids! Then tomorrow night Brian and I are going to smuggle Cole into the movie theatre. I figure he'll sleep the whole time in my sling and if he gets hungry, I'll feed him and then he'll go back to sleep. We'll see how it works!

Carter's language is developing alot lately. He's putting together 4 and 5 words now, and making sentences. It's amazing how one day it just clicks for them.

Off to relax on the couch since I don't have to feed, bathe and put Carter to bed tonight!

Finally, I'm getting time to post!

My how fast time flies. Cole is 4 weeks old today! And it's been two weeks since I posted ... yikes! So let me catch you up on the past two weeks.

The boys had there well child check ups recently. Cole was 2 weeks and had gained 15 ounces in the 15 days after being discharged from the hospital. He was 7 pounds 5 ounces (if you recall, he was 6 lb 10.5 oz at birth and 6 lb 6 oz at discharge the next day). The doctor was very pleased at his weight gain. He also officially "grew" 1 1/4 inches and is up to 20.75" long. But I'm pretty sure he didn't grow that much in two weeks, I'm thinking it was just a real good job of stretching him out by the nurse :) Carter is 36 1/8 inches tall and 28 pounds 14 ounces. He is in the 85 percentile for height and 65 percent for weight, so he's on the tall side and about average for weight.



Matthew and Allison came in for a couple days and played with their nephews. They have been on the go. I think I heard Matthew say he has spent 6 nights in Denver during the month of January. Among several trips (work and pleasure) he and Alli went to Hawaii for a week. His company rewarded his sales department for hitting their 2008 goals. Plus Matthew was named Salesman of the Year at his office and Allison was the top fundraiser in Colorado. Man aren't they the "Power Couple." Here's a picture of them and a picture of Matthew with and his co-workers with Kirk Herbstreit who was staying at their hotel.

**pictures coming, my computer doesn't seem to like Hawaii ...**



Cole had his first bath last week. His umbilical cord came off right after his bath, it was hanging on by a thread. Carter enjoyed helping bathe his baby brother. Here are some during and after photos.



And lastly here are a couple random pictures of Cole and Carter.

Big yawn!!!!


Carter playing with Cole, but little does he realize Cole is sleeping.



Upclose and sweet.

While the cats away, the mice will play

So this is what happens when you leave a two year old to their own devices while you try and check your email ...

He opened and licked at least 10 suckers and asked for "more" when I took them all away. This is just a glimpse into the silly thing Carter does now that I have my hands full. Fortunately I keep the knives and scissors under lock and key :)

Brotherly love

Quick post to upload a video of Carter holding Cole this morning. If it appears too dark on the screen, I apologize - it was dark in the house considering it was 6:00 in the morning. Carter now asks to "Take Him" - meaning, he wants to hold Cole. He also yells "Pacificer" as soon as Cole makes a peep. It's funny. He is adjusting quite well to having a little brother. Though he has been waking up in the middle of the night around 2ish the past three nights, I think it's all the changes - new room, new bed, new brother, etc. But other than that he is the greatest big brother we could ask for, and then some.

I apologize for any unreturned phone calls or emails. I find it hard to get 20 minutes of quiet time. I'm really making an effort to spend as much one-on-one time with Carter as possible. So when I do have some down time, I'm probably napping.

Finally Four

We are officially a family of four! Cole Aaron Shelton was born Tuesday, January 13th, at 9:52 in the morning. He weighed just an ounce and half more than Carter was, at 6 pounds 10.5 ounces and was a measly half inch shorter than Carter at 19.5 inches. I compare the two because I'm astonished at how small he is. I just didn't remember that. I guess I'm just used to carrying around a 28 pound, 3 foot tall 2 year old!!

I had a doctors appointment on Monday afternoon and everything was going quite well, but Cole had a sudden decel in his heart rate that raised a concern for my doctor. She thought he might be putting some pressure on his cord. So since I was just a couple days shy of my due date, she sent me over the hospital to be induced. I called Mom and she drove in with Matthew from Austin. It's funny how God works, as Matthew wasn't planning on being in town for the birth. But since he had flown in to be with Grandpa in the hospital, he was able to drive in with Mom to meet his newest nephew. SO - they came in to be with Carter while Brian stayed at the hospital with me. Just a reminder that the Lord always has a master plan.

The next morning I started having fast and furious contractions and quickly progressed - so much so Mom went racing to the hospital yet again, and had Matthew drop her off at the curb. The doctor did her rounds and came back to deliver Cole so that Mom could be there. I only pushed once and the little guy came out. What a great delivery!

Here is Brian smiling after watching Cole be born.

Here is the official weigh in.

Uncle Matt and Cole

Sissy drove in from Abilene so that she could help out as well. She and Mom did a great job seeing that Carter was taken care of while Brian and I were in the hospital. Here she is holding Cole while Carter meets his brother and gives him a kiss.

Here are "My Three Boys"

I begged my doctor to let me go home the next day, fortunately she obliged. One last photo from the hospital.

And here is Cole sleeping on Daddy's stomach - one of his favorite things to do, next to eating :)

I would upload pictures of myself, but unfortunately they are all while in a hospital gown in a hospital bed during labor. Um yeah, not gonna put those on the Internet. Hopefully I'll get some tomorrow after I take a shower. We'll see ...

Carter turns TWO!

Wow - that's hard to type. My little boy is two years old. While his birthday was Thursday, we threw a party yesterday with all his friends. He has been singing himself "Happy Birthday" for days now. And still today, he sees his toys and says "Presents - Happy Birthday To Me!" It's adorable. I was hoping to get it on video, but I everytime I try he just stares at the camera and says "Cheese." Well trained.

Considering I am 39 weeks pregnant, I did keep the party low key (well, low key on the "Tera Scale"). The kiddos made their own pizzas and wore aprons with their names on them. I meant to get a good group shot, but it's hard to get 7 two year olds, a five year old, a one year old and two infants to sit still.

Here is Carter blowing out the candles on his cake. I think I should have re-thunk the black and red icing! It was cute, but boy did it make a mess.

I tried to get a picture of the three of us, but Carter wouldn't look at the camera - though his friend Jacob did :)

On Thursday we went and had his pictures taken then had lunch with Brian. Afterwards we went to the park with his friend Awbrey and it was a gorgeous day. That evening Brian took us to Carter's favorite restaurant, Mission Burrito, so Carter could get his most favorite meal - TACOS! He had a really nice time. Here are a couple shots from his portrait session. As usual, I have tons of prints I can put in the mail to anyone who wants them.

I had a doctors appointment on Friday and everything is going really well. I'm due in 6 days and the doctor won't let me go past my due date. I'm going back tomorrow to see how things are progressing and then discuss inducing for the end of the week. I've done a ton of walking so hopefully this little boy will drop on his own before we have to evict him.

The nursery is all ready for the baby (yes, still unnamed). And Carter has officially moved into his big boy room, which he fondly calls (rather, yells) "NEW ROOM!" He's very proud of it and was excited to show all his friends yesterday. It isn't completely done, I'm waiting on some art work that a friend of a friend is painting. But here are some pictures. He's slept in there for naps and bedtime for a week now. PLUS - Brian has put him down the last two nights without any objection from Carter. What nice timing since #2 is just days away. We are still working on not letting him play in the crib; he loves to jump in there. I tell him he's a big boy now and that he'll break the crib for the baby. Seems to work most of the time. We are so proud of Carter's flexibility and adaptability; I was expecting a bigger battle and didn't get it. He's such a great kid.

While this has been such a celebratory week, it has also had some somber moments. Dad's dad was life flighted to the hospital on Wednesday evening after slipping into a coma. Mom and Dad left early Thursday morning and have been taking care of Grandma and spending lots of time at the hospital. Jerry and Lois are there as well and spent last night at the hospital with Grandpa. Please keep our entire family in your prayers. It doesn't appear Grandpa is going to make a recovery, but we pray that whatever God has in store for us, that we make peace with it and find solace in his master plan.

I'll update more on Grandpa and the upcoming arrival of "Baby Boy" as things progress.