So tired after a long walk!

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At the pond

Carter and I are meeting some friends at the pond for a walk and are enjoying the little baby ducks.
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ANTS!

So we were sitting on the living room floor this morning playing when all the sudden I see one ant. So I squashed it. Then I look over and see a whole bunch more. Needless to say I started freaking out, grabbed his breakfast and we headed out to the patio. I didn't want to go inside until Dave got home and could help me deal with it. Long story short, the bubble gun was broken so I had to improvise and grab whatever I could find on the patio that closely resembled a toy. This is Carter drumming on a hard hat!
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In case you thought it was a fluke...

So smart!

Carter's Uncle Derek, Auntie Nikee and cousin Andrew got him this super cool toy for his birthday and one of the many cool things about it is the shape sorter. Carter has gotten VERY good at it! See for yourself:

He's definitely his father's son. Shapes and colors.

Thanks for the banana mask Dad!

It's great for the skin!
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Is it summer yet?

It was warm yesterday so we dressed Carter in some of his summer clothes when we went over to Jeff and Rachelle's. I put his glasses on him before we left and he wore them until I took them off him when we got there! Such a good boy!
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Not a great day.

The morning started out great! Carter looked adorable, I fit in a pre-pregnancy dress, we got to church on time... then it went down hill.

Dave had to pick some of our friends up at the airport and of course right after he left Carter fell and busted his lip open, he spit up, he wouldn't sit still for more than a second and he fell almost every time I let him walk.

On top of all of that, yesterday was my first day taking Progesterone. I have to take it for 10 days after which I have to take the Clomid. I was seriously having hot flashes all during church which I tried to play off as just being warm in my sweater but a number of my friends were actually cold. I was so happy when Dave showed up that I actually started crying. Sad. Anyway, now Carter is napping and Dave and I are just relaxing. Hopefully things will get better.

Dino PBJ!

Diaper rash

Photo removed because Daddy says so.

Carter recently got really bad diaper rash so one of the ways we are trying to heal it is by "airing it out" aka letting him run around naked. We realize this is dangerous with a little boy but as we have super stained old carpets anyway we can just clean up any accidents that may occur. He seems to be enjoying it.
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Napping in Emery's crib

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Risky Business

Carter has some 80's style sunglasses Brook got him a couple weeks ago. This prompted the idea of putting him in a white onesie, white buttonup shirt, socks, and the glasses to transform Carter into Tom Cruise in the movie Risky Business. Here are the results:

The ghost of Mother's day past

Mother's day 2008

Mother's day 2009

This mother's day, like the past 2 mother's days has been full of emotion for me. All for different reasons of course.

Mother's day 2007: My first round of Clomid. We were working toward an IUI that cycle and I was so emotional about it I wanted to run away. So we decided to spend the weekend with the Philpotts (who at the time were 3 in number.) I was happy to be there and have the distraction but at the same time nervous and scared about the upcoming IUI and VERY emotional from the Clomid.

Mother's day 2008: I had everything I wanted and more. I had a perfect little baby and had seen a miracle. It felt good to prove the doctor's wrong and to be celebrating the day I had looked forward to for 2 years and never thought I would be a part of.

Mother's day 2009: Starting the journey, again. This was a very weird Mother's day for me. It was kind of a mixture of the 2 previous. I was grateful to have my little miracle eating breakfast with me on the patio and stealing bites of my strawberries, but after my doctor's appointment the previous Friday I couldn't shake the feeling of that Mother's day 2 years prior. Of the longing and the feeling that a very tough road lie ahead for me and my family. It's hard to think that Heavenly Father might have different plans for your family than you do. In fact, I know he does because just when I feel like I know exactly how it's all going to shake out something different happens. I am trusting that things will work out and am confident it will be in a way I could never imagine. I am just so grateful to my little guy for giving me hope and comfort. There is no better feeling than having to take a break from writing a blog to rock and sing your little boy to sleep. The same little boy who we were told by numerous doctors would not be conceived without help of a procedure of some sort. Well, he was. He is a miracle and I have since discovered that more than one miracle can happen to one family. There is no limit on the amount of miracles you can receive and that is what I will be praying for as we start out on a very familiar journey.

That being said, I got some test results today from my blood test on Friday. Good news: all of my levels look normal, my thyroid, glucose and prolactin are fine (which is funny because my prolactin was slightly off last time). Bad news: I haven't ovulated in over a month. It doesn't take a genius to figure out where there is no ovulation, there is no egg and therefore... no baby! The nurse that called me didn't have my full chart in front of her so she is planning to call me back and let me know where the doctor wants to take it from here. Until then, I will be praying and just chipping away at those 5 lbs.

I am grateful for the blessings in my life and I know that I just need to be patient and not only rely on the Lord but also on my husband, family and friends for strength, my son for hope and the doctor's for help. Thanks for being there guys and a very happy Mother's day to all who are or will be mothers.

The patio

First things first, Dave asked Carter if he wanted to give his doll a name and he said ya and when he asked him what he was going to name him he said "Al", no joke! He doesn't even talk but he said Al. So that's his dolls name!

Carter and Al

Since Carter has been fussy with eating lately we've moved a lot of his meals outside to the patio. He seems to do a good job of eating out there and it was a nice day so it's kind of win, win, win.

A grilled cheese before his nap:

crackers for his afternoon snack:

Glaring at mommy for taking so many pictures...

Carter won the match!

Carter loves Olives (I have no idea who he gets that from) so when I make him a burrito I give him some olives and avocado. I usually hide the olives until he's done with his burrito but this time he found them and went for them!

Only in Utah!

An upper and a downer

I was anxious to start the day today. It was my day off and I had scheduled myself pretty tight. I started off with my long awaited doctor's appointment. I was hoping to go, get an exam and leave with a prescription for Clomid so we could get going with the trying. Not at all like that! Granted, I was not looking forward to the exam, but let me tell you, that was the highlight of the appointment! Here's TMI for you all... I had to pee in a cup (which I hate), get my finger pricked (which I hate) AND get blood drawn (for which hate is not a strong enough word!) On top of all of that the nurse practitioner (who has full access to my medical records mind you) now thinks I might have Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome or PCOS as some people refer to it. She also wanted MORE tests and lab work for both me and Dave which we were pretty sure we were done with. Needless to say, as she's talking to me I start BALLING my eyes out, which then prompted her to say she thinks I might also have post traumatic stress from the last time we tried. Oh no, that's not even it!!! She tells me she's not going to give me Clomid until I lose 5 pounds!!!!! Are you serious? I've lost 11 lbs already, what does she want me to do?! Throughout the appointment she kept saying "lose 5 lbs" or "overweight" and I'm thinking to myself, "well duh, I know that. Why do you think I've already lost 11lbs!!!!! You're killing me smalls!"

Not a happy appointment.

She was going to make me go to the lab another day because she wanted my blood tests to be when I was fasting but luckily because of my nerves I had forgotten to eat breakfast so we were able to do the tests that day and save me the stress of worrying about it.

After that appointment I was already running late so I went straight to my next appointment which ended up being a happy one. I set up rewards for myself in 5 lbs increments (starting at 10 lbs) and the first was to go SUPER blonde! So I went and got my hair colored and eye brows waxed. I joked with my stylist that she should get her psychiatric license cause she could charge more for what she already does! It was nice to vent and get some much needed "hairapy" as I like to call it.

I was running even later after that appointment so when I got home I put myself back together and then went to Wheeler Farm with mom's group. It was nice to be around friends and outside in the nice weather (could have done without the smell though) and it helped me to kind of gather my thoughts about the beginning of my day and recoup a little. I ended up chasing my child around because he's become a walking fool and got so exhausted (losing blood didn't help I'm sure) so we left and came home to finally relax.

Carter running all over the place!

Me, Carter and my 10 pound reward hair

It's been a rough day with ups and downs but it will get better. On the way to my first appointment today I heard the perfect song for today and even though it was sung by Miley Cyrus I wanted to share the lyrics with you all.

I can almost see it
That dream I am dreaming
But there's a voice inside my head saying"You'll never reach it"
Every step I'm taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking
But I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing
The chances I'm taking
Sometimes might knock me down
But no, I'm not breaking
I may not know it
But these are the moments that
I'm gonna remember most
Just gotta keep going
And I, I got to be strong
Just keep pushing on

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

Holding hands.

After that kiss Carter and Emery decided to take a step back in their relationship and just hold hands.
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Walking and chewing a basketball!

Now there's talent!

It's official!

A past due hodge podge of pictures

I've been putting off blogging since California so here is a random assortment of photos from then until now.

Flying on his birthday

Sitting on the car on the side of the road after barfing on the way home from his birthday flight.

Dinner on his birthday

On a forklift with Daddy at Ceramic Tile Center

His first In N Out

His first time standing by himself! Thanks Auntie Nanny Hailey for inspiring him!

Meeting Atticus

Riding in Scarlett's car seat and very happy about it!

Snuggling with Mommy

And that's that. Now I don't have to feel guilty about being behind.

Hobbit

This was today's picture but to me it looks more like a hobbit than my boy!
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Mouse attack!

Sitting in his chair watching TV.

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What's cooking?

Carter was so great about eating until a few days ago he started getting fussy around meal time. I'm pretty sure it's his teeth causing this sudden change, but even so I'm not allowing him to become a picky eater or even worse to not eat. Yesterday when he wouldn't eat his dinner I decided we would take it to go and I put him in the moby wrap and went for a walk around the pond. I just kept putting pieces in his mouth whenever he would finish one and he ate all of it. My thinking is a change of scenery is all he really needs. I told Dave this theory and this was today's pic of the day! At least he's eating right?
I also need ideas of what to feed a little kid who's just starting out on solids. Please let me know what worked for you. We want our little boy to be well rounded, in more ways than one!
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PHOTOS!

Click here Go to CLIENTS and the password is Mann!
Enjoy!