Having Worlds of Fun (and Oceans of it, too)

Because of the move and the short amount of time we had Lexie, we had to take a short vacation this year. We went up to Kansas City and went to Worlds and Oceans of Fun, and we also got to see some of our family. It was really fun, but way too short.

"Okay dad, here's what we are going to do."

Carter kept "helping" Monte look at the Worlds of Fun guide.

Lexie doing what she does best...texting. "OMG MMISL"--- Oh my gosh. My mom is so lame!!!!!

"Do you think I look cool?"

The weather was really nice when we were there. (Which means it's too cold for me to go on a water ride.) Monte and Lexie enjoyed the log ride.

For some reason the boat ride has always been one of my favorite rides. Lexie was nice enough to ride it with me. I embarrassed her to death on this thing. I laughed uncontrollably when we were at the top. She would slap me and tell me to stop every time. But she was laughing too, so I think deep down she actually liked it.

Monte and Lexie love to play the fair type games. We like to call it "winning worthless crap."

Monte won a bear for Carter.

Lexie won him a monkey. We also got a sea turtle, a picture of Vanessa Hudgens (with clothes on), another monkey, and something else that I can't remember.

"Mom, quit taking pictures and let's go swimming!"

Carter LOVED the water!! He was at a perfect stage for this. He could sit up by himself, so he could splash and have fun. But, he's not crawling yet, so I didn't have to try to keep up with him or worry about him scratching his knees in the kiddie pool.

Lexie loved taking Carter down the kiddie slides. She is great with him. She was taking him on everything, and he adored her for it.

Carter also enjoyed splashing in the big pool with Monte. He splashed and laughed all day long. He got a ton of water in his face, and he didn't mind at all.

"Hey dad, that lifeguard is kinda cute. Do you think she's too old for me?"

They had an amazing obstacle course. Lexie made it all the way across. (It was difficult. I tried it, but you won't see those pictures on the blog.) I think Lexie is ready for Survivor or The Amazing Race.

This is June. Isn't she adorable! She is one of the family members we got to see.

7 Months Old

Wow. Time is flying by. I can't believe Carter is 7 months old. (Not to mention Lex is almost officially a teenager.) The day after his 7 month birthday, Carter waved bye-bye. (Actually, he waved "hi".) Now he will do it even if you don't prompt him. Last night he was sitting on Monte's lap, and Carter looked at me, started waving, and made a sound that sounded like hi. It was so cute. We swear he knows how to say "hi", but we are not counting it as a first word because it's not mama or dada ;-)

"Hey, these aren't cupcakes!"

I broke tradition. It was a very busy day, and I didn't have time to make cupcakes. I went to the Neighborhood Market by my house, but they didn't sell cupcakes. We had cookies, and these are the greatest cookies ever made.

"Whoa! That was fun!"

"For me?"

Lexie bought him a present.

"How did she know red paper is my favorite?!"

"Oh, I like this, too. Paper and a duck...SCORE!!"

We have a new nephew!

Chandler Blake Moore arrived last night. He weighed 8 pounds 14 ounces and was 21 1/2 inches long! Congratulations Brian and Melonie.

What Carter is doing (Massive Post)

I have decided that instead of trying to make a post about each thing that has happened in the last month, I will just give you an overview in pictures. It has been a big month for him. I can't believe he is almost 7 months old! It is going too fast!!! He is a very good and happy baby. He is trying really hard to get a tooth right now, so he is (very) fussy at times. But, he still manages to ham it up when we are in public. HE IS A FLIRT!

Eating and LOVING it!!

Yummy, Winter Squash!

I have started making some of his baby food. I didn't think it was possible to like food more than already did, but he really likes the homemade stuff.


Don't say all gone, please don't say it!

First Fourth of July

All American Boy

He actually liked the fireworks. (When he noticed them.) We were afraid he would cry because of the loud bangs, but I guess the pretty colored lights made up for the bang.

Sitting

He started sitting really well on July 5th. We still put pillows or the Boppy behind him when we are downstairs (the rug is not thick). He has started throwing himself back really hard, especially if he gets mad. It is not a gentle fall backwards, it is a forceful throw. I love it when he does it while I am walking down the stairs with him. j/k I am scared that he will eventually throw himself out of my arms and land on the tile. He is such a daredevil!

Happy 1/2 year birthday!!

Yay, cupcakes!!

Ooh, can I have one?


Finally I get a taste!

(I gave him a small taste of the frosting.)

Shadow Discovery

This was the first time he noticed a shadow. It was so funny. He kept slapping it and yelling at it. Every since then he loves shadows. One night he slept in the pack and play in our room, the street light caused the mesh on his pack and play to make a shadow. When he woke up in the middle of the night, he was so noisy playing with the shadow.

plays in his room

He likes to play in his room. If he gets fussy, I put him in there and he usually gets happy. One day I left the room for a minute, and when I came back he had turned the basket over and toys were everywhere.

He loves the mobile in his crib

I try to use the crib only for sleeping, but this is the one exception. He loves his mobile. He tries to grab the animals as they go by. In this last picture, it was making a clicking noise because it couldn't go around anymore because he was holding on for dear life. Unfortunately, I think the mobile is about to go bye-bye because he will soon be able to put himself in the sitting position.

Cat Lover

He loves to "play" with the cats. Baby (the white cat) is very easy going. She lets him pull her hair and her ears, and she doesn't try to do anything to him. Tinkerbell, on the other hand, won't let him get close enough to touch her. He almost got her once because she was sleeping next to him, and she hissed at him. (That will get her evicted.)

Electronics Junkie

He loves to play with the remote, cell phones, laptop, etc. We need to get him a toy laptop to play with.

Carter has learned to clap! We don't have pictures of it yet, but it is so cute. If we say, "yay," he starts clapping. The funny thing is, he is like the Energizer Bunny. He keeps going, and going...

Another thing he does that we don't have pictures of yet is a fun game called "Up." First, Monte would say, "up" and Carter would raise his hands in the air. It was so funny, like Pavlov's dogs. It seemed uncontrollable. Now, he raises his hands up when he wants you to lift him in the air. (He has gotten a bit lazy though. Now he only raises one hand.)

Carter loves faces. He grabs our faces all of the time. He also likes to rub our faces and slobber all over them. Well, actually, I am the only one that lets him slobber all over my face. Monte and Lexie think it's wrong.

Swimming with Daddy

I know I said I would try to post in order, but I am already breaking that. We took Carter to the neighborhood pool tonight, and he had so much fun. We went to Oceans of Fun a few weeks ago, and we discovered that Carter LOVES to play in the water. (We new he loved baths, but I wasn't sure how he would feel in a big, not warm pool.) He loves to splash, bounce, and lay in the Superman position. Surprisingly, he doesn't mind getting a ton of water in his face.


Bounce me more daddy! Bounce me more!!


I just love this robe. It works great after swimming. He has a really cute Elmo one too. I think this picture makes him look big. He really isn't as big as he looks here. Well, maybe he is and I am just in denial that my baby is getting big.

Father's Day

Look at my two handsome men. I got these shirts for Monte for Christmas (before Carter was born). It was so nice of Carter to grow into his just in time for Father's Day.

Monte is a great dad! I am very lucky to be married to such a wonderful man.

Leaving Cali

Well we did it. We moved from Cali. It was hard to leave, but I am glad that I am back with my family and friends in Arkansas. I was going to make an online scrapbook of all of our favorite places and what we will miss about Cali, but I decided against it. (Too boring for you all!) I am making one for us to keep at home, so if you ever want to see a picture of where I spent all of my time (Target and Babies R Us) just stop by and I will show you the album.

Here are a few pics of some things.


This is The Crab House. It is a great restaurant on the wharf. We ate here right before we got engaged, so it is a very special place to us. We also love to look at the decorated crab shells hanging on the wall.

We always enjoyed going to Pier 39. Behind us are the famous sea lions. There are a ton of them there.

Lexie's last day of school outfit. I think the move was the hardest on her, but she will do better when school starts and she makes new friends. I do feel sorry for her. I know it must be tough at that age leaving your friends.

This is Ana (the nanny), her son Rey, Carter, and Isabela. I really miss her. She was so good with Carter.

We do miss the fun things to do in the Bay Area, but what we miss most are the friends we made. We had friends that became family to us. I loved the people I worked with. To all of our Cali peeps: Thank you for taking us in and being our extended family. We miss you.

Napa Valley Wine Train

To celebrate our anniversary, we took a train through the Napa Valley. It was beautiful!! I am not a big drinker, but I do enjoy an occasional glass of wine. We had wonderful appetizers as we rode up the Napa Valley. [I felt like a classy lady from the 20s or 40s or something, riding a train through the countryside. (I wonder where Lexie gets her dramatic personality?)] I even tried caviar, which is a big thing for my vegetarian appetite! Then we had a delicious lunch on the way back. It was so much fun.

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This is Carter's post. He was sitting on my lap while I was posting, and he was really wanting to help me!!! He is such a good helper ;-) I am having trouble decoding what he said, but it kind of looks like he wants 54 puppies.

Murphy's Law

Too bad Lexie couldn't ride with Monte from Cali. She loved riding in the big truck!! Monte jokingly asked if she wanted to ride with him to Bentonville, expecting her to say no. She obviously wanted to. I told her she should wear her trucker hat, but apparently you don't wear those when you are really riding in a truck. GOSH!!


Sorry it has been so long since I posted. Our move has gone by Murphy's Law. Everything was going wrong, but at least we made it. I just got internet service. I have a lot to post, so please be patient with me. I will try to post in order.


Carter has started doing a lot in the past month. Lexie has started golf, and is getting more used to the idea of living here. (But, she is still not happy about it yet!!)