BIG Laughs!!

Let me start with this - I could watch this video over and over and over and over....you get the picture.

I ran to the grocery store this evening for a few items and as I was unpacking, Carson started to giggle. At first I couldn't figure out what he was laughing at. I quickly discovered it was when I touched the plastic bag. I grabbed the Flip as fast as I could - we could NOT miss getting this on video.

This makes my heart fill up with so much joy. He is such a happy baby - always smiling (except for people he doesn't know - he stares trying to figure them out). I hope these smiles and giggles continue forever!

Many Firsts...

This Thanksgiving was a day of many firsts....

• First Thanksgiving with Carson
• First Thanksgiving not spent with family
• First time we actually had to cook Thanksgiving dinner
• First turkey cooked in a crockpot
• First time to Hollywood

We certainly missed being with family, but we had a great weekend! Greg made a turkey breast in the crockpot - it was delicious! I made the sides and they actually all turned out great! (for those that know me well, I'm not the greatest cook) Carson even had some turkey and gravy baby food for lunch! We watched a lot of football too! The Aggies beat Texas - woo hoo!! (I'm not talking about the OSU game)

On Friday we went to Hollywood and strolled around looking at the stars. Here are a few pics we took.

Guess who dressed Carson today!

If anyone guesses me, you're in trouble! I may not have the best sense of fashion (as I sit here in my sweat pants and t-shirt) but I certainly know that you don't mix stripes! Greg and Carson ran some errands today and they were out of the house before I saw Carson dressed for the day. He likes to hang out in his pajamas until lunch time. :)

So, when they got back, I came out of my cave...oh, I mean the office and saw what Carson was wearing. He obviously didn't care at all. In fact, he was all smiles! I couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap a couple of pictures. You can't see from this view, but his shirt has dinosaurs on the front. So, dinosaur shirt, striped doggy pants, and Wizard of Oz socks (please see previous post referencing the socks). I was cracking up!

Normally, Carson has a few spit ups throughout the day that require an outfit change - nope, not today. He wore this all day long!

In other news, we went to Santa Monica yesterday afternoon. We had a great time! Shopping, lunch and lots of site seeing. Throughout the Third Street Promenade (http://www.downtownsm.com/visitors/index.html) there are performers in the streets: singers, dancers, musicians, etc. After lunch we spotted a clown. Keep in mind, Carson has never seen a clown. So, we cautiously approached. As the clown was making balloon animals for kids, Carson was in a deep stare. I'm thinking - cool, he's totally digging the clown. Then the clown made eye contact w/ Carson. That's when he lost it. The saddest little face you've ever seen and the tears just started rolling. Needless to say, we thanked the clown for his time and moved along. Clowns really are kind of creepy if you think about it. Guess we won't be going to a circus anytime soon!

We have a critter in the house....

Well, not necesarrily a critter, more like an inch worm. I was able to get a video of Carson working his way across the floor. I have a feeling he's going to get the crawling thing down very soon! Enjoy!

Clean Bill of Health

Today was Carson's 6 month check-up and he passed with flying colors!
Length: 27.5 inches (89% for his age)
Weight: 17lbs 3oz (50% for his age)
Head: 17.5 inches (75% for his age)
In conclusion, we have a tall, thin, genius on our hands!

We also had to get some shots, which are never fun. You can see that look in his eyes when we lay him down and some strange lady comes walking up to him. First shot - no crying. A look of panic back and forth from me the the nurse, but no crying. Now, the 2nd and 3rd shots - that's a different story. Poor little guy. If you have children, you know that look. The "holly mother of Mary", stop breathing, turning red, opened mouth, closed eyes and scream at the top of the lungs look. Yup, that's what we got! But, right after we picked up, he calmed right down.

We are so proud of our little guy! I could go on and on but I won't. I will though, predict his future. Here it goes:
Genius child that gets a full ride to any college of his choice. Afterwards, he's drafted into the NBA and makes millions of dollars - therefore, retiring his parents at an early age because they did such an amazing job raising him.

A mom can dream, can't she?!

6 months - where did the time go?!

Yesterday, Carson turned 6 months old! I can't believe it!

Carson's first tooth is coming in and when I say it's sharp - it's sharp! He's sitting up on his own with very few tumbles. And, he's starting to pull himself along the floor (army crawl). You can just see in his eyes that he's trying to figure out the crawling process. It's just a matter of time before he is mobile!
I love to watch him as he experiences new things. He has such a look of wonder in his eyes. When the wind blows the leaves on the trees in the back yard, he just stares in amazement!

We are excited for all of the new things he'll learn over the next 6 months - I just hope they don't go as fast as the first 6 months did.

Thank goodness for technology

Let me start with a shout out to Kim Cravens, my dear friend from work. Earlier this year, she introduced us to skype. Funny thing is, Kim lived in Australia for 6 months last year. We never skyped with her while she was 'down under' but as soon as she got back to Dallas, we skyped! She was just 25 miles down the road, go figure!
Anyways, back to the reason for the post. Skype has been, and will be, a great asset while we are in California. Last night we got our first skype call since we've been here! It was the Hodges: Gerald, Karen, Missy, Mickey and Justin! Gerald was amazed with the technology! haha We had so much fun seeing everyone and catching up. I made them pose so I could take a quick pic!

Today, Trey called us! We got to see Sophia and Wyatt, man I miss those kiddos. Sophia even waved at Baby Carson (I don't think he will ever be just Carson to her, it's always Baby Carson). I held Carson up so everyone could see him - not a good idea. He started screaming and wouldn't stop crying. We're blaming Trey for this! haha (we love ya Trey, but we have to blame somebody and Sophia looked too cute with her pigtails!).
We will work on getting Carson used to people talking to him through the computer. So...if you skype us and he cries, don't take it personal!

Happy Halloween...and some other stuff!

We had a great Halloween! Carson was a pumpkin, and the cutest little pumpkin I've ever seen. There's an area in Redondo Beach called Riviera Village. Very cute with lots of little shops and restaurants. They shut down the streets and the stores handed out candy to the kids. We weren't sure what to expect but it turned out to be a huge event!
Here are a few pictures of Carson's costume and some shots of the village. The weather was perfect and Carson had a great time - he got some serious people watching in!

I have to put this one in here too. Afterwards, we had to run by the grocery store and Carson was crying in the back. We couldn't figure out what was wrong, he had been in such a good mood just moments before. When Greg was taking him out of the car seat, we figured out why he had been crying....he couldn't see! haha

Here are some shots of the Village area.

We even found a couple of places that remind us of home...or at least the names do!

We also wanted to share a picture of Carson in his overalls that Gramps picked out for him. For some reason, I think he kind of looks like he belongs in the lollipop guild from the Wizard of Oz! I think it's the socks! haha

Our little guy is getting big! He loves to laugh at his daddy and he's getting very good at sitting up on his own. He's in such a world of exploring right now, it's great. We take him out in the backyard and he can't get enough of it. When the wind blows the leaves he just looks around in wonder. He is definitely soaking it all in!