Tea for Three

{January 25th, 2012}

Addie had been wanting to have a Tea Party for awhile. We finally planned it! It was low key and just basically a play date. She invited her best two little friends and we had Tea for Three (plus Carlee!) It was fun to see them be total girls! I wanted to take a picture of each of them but Kate was not having it, so Sadie, Addie and Carlee is all I got. They lifted their pinkies when they drank their "Tea" (really water) and loved all the finger foods we had rounded up from the pantry. Girls are so much fun!

Pumpkin Patch

This year there was a Pumpkin Patch close by our house. Every time we drove by it Addie begged to get out and pick a pumpkin! Finally Malea called and said she was going so we decided to tag along. The boys were gone hunting so it worked out perfect. Addie loved everything about the patch. She loved the train ride, the pretend horse, the teeter-tater, the goats, sheep and big goose, and she loved picking her pumpkin! Carlee was an angel as usual. She just sat in her stroller watching everyone go by. I couldn't ask for a better baby! (Other than she has found her voice and yells at everyone now! Ha!)  It was a fun evening spent with my girls. :)

Carlee's One!

{September 22, 2011}

My Sweet baby has turned one! I know what you are thinking, she can't be one yet! Wasn't she just born? Didn't I just see their Christmas Card and she was tiny? Has she even had a chance to even roll over or sit up yet? Yes, it's hard to believe my baby is one, trust me I know...

Since this is my last First Birthday Party, I decided to get a little more creative! I had seen a tiny party while blog stalking one day and since Carlee is pretty tiny, the planning began!

We had tiny sandwiches, tiny fruit kabobs on toothpicks, tiny treats, even tiny cupcakes and ice cream cones (forgot to get a picture of the ice cream, oops!) plus lots more!

I decided tiny things are fun to eat, and maybe (just maybe) not quite as much fun to make! ;)

And, this tiny girl was the star of the show! Thank you to everyone who came and made her birthday so much fun! Happy First Birthday Carlee Jane!! I love you so much!

Carlee 11 months

 {August 22, 2011}

All 4 top teeth came through at the same time. She looks a lot older now. She is a busy little thing. She is pulling herself up on to the couch and furniture. Her little red check are finally going away, I am keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't come back! She is a joy!

Carlee 10 Months

This is a crawling, baby doll loving, human vacuum, bow hating baby. She doesn't get mad very often, but when she does look out, she might try to bite anyone in reach. Carlee's top teeth are trying hard to come through, but nothing yet. Her nose has been running like crazy and she chews on anything and everything to relieve the pain, but she is still a great baby. Smiling, cooing and laughing is what makes up most of her day. She still sleeps through the night and takes two naps. She loves to rub her head and suck her thumb. Her hair is stick straight and sticks up like a peacock most of the time. I put gel, lotion even aloe vera in it to help it lay down, no luck so far. Between the stick straight and being rubbed all day it, Carlee could win a crazy hair award. Not sure what I am going to do about it either! We still lover her though. :)
Can't believe she's 10 months already.

Carlee Janer

Love this girl.

9 Months

Wow, Carlee is 9 months old! Kind of hard to believe...

9 Months

16 lbs 2 ozs

27 1/4 inches

Carlee is done nursing, and she loves the bottle. The transition was really easy. I kind of lost my milk, so I think she loved the formula because she was starving! She also loves all vegetables/fruit. I found this baby food that I can just squeeze into her mouth (or attach a spoon onto the end) which I love!! We have tried all kinds broccli, pear and pea, sweet potato, pumpkin, apple and blueberries, quite the combo's huh?! She loves them all. I buy them at Diapers.com, why didn't I use this earlier? Looove it! Carlee now rubs her hair while she sucks her thumb, hope she doesn't rub it out! I try to put a blanket in her hand, but she just drops it and starts rubbing her head. Funny funny girl! She still takes two naps a day and sleeps through the night. (Cue the angles singing! :)) She has had the rash under her eyes for about a month now. It looked like a sunburn, then it got blotchy. I showed Tim and he got us some medicine. Hopefully it will take it away soon. She poops at least twice a day, lovely. She is army crawling and putting everything she can find in her mouth. She waves bye bye. She says mamama and dadadada. She looks when you call her name. She loves attention and flaps her arms up and down when you talk to her. She is SO SO happy pretty much all the time. I am so thankful Heavenly Father sent me this sweet little spirit. She truly makes our lives so much better. We love you Carlee!

8 Months

Carlee 8 Months
Teeth have finally appeared! Carlee loves to bit, and now it hurts! She is starting to figure out how to sit up by herself. She is really content sitting on the floor with a couple of toys in front of her. Carlee makes happy noises all day long. I think she just wants to be heard amongst all the noise. The only time we don't love her squealing is at church! She has been in the car seat a lot this month, because of school programs, dance recitals, and baseball games... she doesn't seem to mind, luckily she can take a  great nap in it! She finally moved to a size 3 diaper. She now sits in the shopping cart without her car seat and loves it.

This is one smiley happy baby, and we can't seem to get enough of her! Love you Cars!

7 Months

Carlee 7 months
Still no teeth, just a little gummer! She is sitting up better by herself. She loves food and is still nursing great. She pulls my hair and pinches my skin while she nurses. I can't wear necklaces anymore because she pulls and breaks them. It's a good thing I don't wear long earrings! I took her back to the doctor and she gained another pound, so I think she will be fine. She's just mini little bundle. We love her to pieces.

6 Months

Carlee is 6 months old. She is growing and rolling and smiling all the time. She weights 13.81 lbs (11%) and is 25.5 inches long (41%). She is a whopper!! ;) Dr. Thompson wants me to bring her back in a month because her weight has fallen a little on the chart, he wants to watch it. I told him it is just because she is such a easy baby. She hardly cries so sometimes I forget to feed her! With 4 kids it's like that saying "The squeaky wheel gets the grease." I guess Carlee needs more "grease" it's just that she doesn't squeak! :) I have started feeding her twice a day with solid foods and she loves it. She likes to eat in her Bumbo when everyone else is eating dinner, she grins and looks around so proud to be apart of it all. She is now bathing with her sister, both love it. She isn't sitting up yet, but getting closer. She is pulling her headbands off a lot lately. She squeals and coos. Addie said "Carlee has bubblegum teeth." Gavin and I thought it was a great analogy. She does have "bubblegum" teeth! Probably not for to much longer though, she is biting and rubbing her gums on everything. I think a tooth will be popping through anytime. Love this girl so much.

5 Months

Oh Carlee, Carlee Carlee. how much do I love you? SO Much! You are such a bright spot in all our lives. You smile at everyone that talks to you. You eat applesauce, squash, sweet potatoes and cereal. You are having a little hiccup in sleeping through the night, but I know you will be getting right back on track. You now sleep in your crib, Addie moved to a big bed and you share a room. I hope you will be best friends someday. Your feet sweat and are stinky sometimes. You love holding your feet and roll from side to side but not all the way over. You hate laying on your belly. Still love your thumb and nursing, I actually love it too. Can't believe I  love you to nurse, but I do.  You love the bumbo, until your neck gets tired, then you get mad and want out quick. I still bath you in my bathroom sink, I am not ready for you to be big enough to take real baths. Your nails are like razors, you claw me all the time. Please stay little, I love you so much.

Carlee Eats Rice

Rice cereal really isn't that tasty, especially when mixed with formula! I know, I tried it! Carlee tried it too, she thought it was alright. What she was really interested in was the spoon! Crazy that she is old enough to eat rice. Next thing I know she will be getting married! ;)

4 Months

This sweet baby is 4 months old today! She is growing and changing daily. She sleeps most nights for at least 8 hours. She finds her thumb and sucks it a lot. She still loves to ride in the car. Two days ago Addie tipped her over while she was in her swing. Luckily she didn't fall out of it. She did get a bump on her forehead probably from the wood floor. It was scary, but she was okay. She went a week without pooping and then had a major explosion! :) I can tell her digestive system is changing. Her smile brings me more happiness than words can describe. Love you Carlee Sue the good girl too!

3 Months

 We have made it to 3 months! This is when I start knowing life is going to be okay. We are gaining a routine and she is sleeping through the night!! Life is so good! Carlee is still sweet, we all can't seem to kiss, love and hug her enough. She is a joy. She is starting to laugh and just yesterday she looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. We have put her in the Bumbo a little, she needs just a bit more neck strength to really love it. One thing she does love is watching football or basketball on the couch with her dad. He finally has some company during the Jazz games and he is loving it. She had a runny nose and cough around Christmas.  I was worried she would get a fever and become a lot worse, but she didn't. Hooray! Having a baby in the winter is a lot different, but she is making it through just fine. We love you Cars, Carl or CJ!

2 Months

Carlee was 2 months old on November 22nd. (She will be 3 months tomorrow...think I'm a little behind!) Her second month of life was so fun! She is a darling little thing. Her first smile was for Gavin at about 5 1/2 weeks. Now she smiles and coo's all the time. She loves mornings and is so happy when she wakes up. She likes her swing and loves to ride in the car. If she is crying or fussy all I have to do is get in the car and before we even leave the driveway she has quit. Her hardest time is still in the evening. She gets a pretty fussy right about the time I need to fix dinner, clean up dinner and get all the kids ready for bed. Isn't that typical? My busiest time of day, is when she is sad. She started sleeping through the night at about 2 1/2 months. Hallelujah! 

At her 2 month appointment she weighted 11 lbs 31 oz and was 23 inches long. She is growing like a weed, she gained 5 lbs. She also received her shots, she cried for a little while but was okay after. She had a lump on her leg, but didn't get a fever. 

We love our little Carlee Jane!

Carlee's Blessing

 November 7th was such a wonderful day. Blessing day is always stressful, but I guess by the fourth one I kind of have the hang of it! Gavin did an amazing job giving Carlee her name and a blessing. He blessed her with health and wisdom, along with the strength to choose the right. It was such a powerful blessing, words can't even express how grateful I am that Carlee received it. 

 

And what is Blessing without a luncheon??  There was lots of yummy food to share with family and friends. Roast, Cheesy potatoes, lots of salads and great desserts. The typical LDS dinner... thinking about it right now makes me hungry! Thank you to everyone who helped make this day so special. I find great strength from the support my family has received.  This day will be treasured forever.

One Month

My baby is growing right before my eyes. Sometimes I think will she ever see me and smile, then the next minute I think oh my heck, she is a month old! She has her fussy time in the evenings from about 8:00 pm - 11:30ish, but other than that she is a great baby. She eats great, poops great and snuggles really great! I don't know what we would do with out this little bundle of joy. She is so sweet.

Carlee Jane

I can't get enough of this little bundle of joy. Here are a few more pictures of us at the hospital.
I stayed an extra night, and by the time Friday morning came I was dressed and packed up by 7:30 am waiting for Gavin to come and get me! It took them a while to get me discharged, but we were home by 11:00 am and I was so glad. There is just something about coming home that is really nice.

 When we got home, I cut off all her tags and gave her a bath. Man, they have a lot of tags on babies these days. She even had her name taped to her leg. I guess I am thankful, because I made it home with the right (and the cutest!) baby! ;)

On Saturday (Sept. 25th) her "billi" (is it with one L or two?) count was high so she had to go under the lights. I had never had a baby under the lights before, so I was traumatized. I cried and cried, but it worked out fine. She had to be in the "suitcase" for two days, but was done after that. We kept getting her blood tested, but finished that up last Friday the 1st. I am happy that is over with, I felt bad getting her blood drawn so many times.

And last but not least, here is a sneak peak of the pictures Bradi took of my sweet baby. Isn't she cute!?

I had to share! 

Isn't it amazing how love grows, I never could of imagined that I had enough love in my heart for more babies after I had Landon and now Carlee is number 4 and my love has grown and grown and I love her just as much as my first. I am so grateful for the blessing of Motherhood and for these sweet little spirits I get the chance to take care of. My life is blessed.

A Baby Story...

It all begins on September 22nd at 11:30 am.  We finally got the call that there was room in the "Inn!" I had been waiting, and hoping they would call since 5:30 am. I was nervous and those hours felt eternal. We dropped off Addie to Bradi's and there we were in the hospital to deliver our 4th. 

Here I am getting ready to be induced.

(**Note this is the long version of my delivery.. just skip down to the pictures of cute Carlee if I am boring you with all the details. :))

I was planning on a quick delivery since all my babies have come relatively fast. I thought we would have a baby by early afternoon, all the kids could come and see her, and life would be blissful. Well, I guess good things take time, and this little girl must have been really good, cause she took her sweet time! I got my epidural at about 3:00 pm and that made my blood pressure go up. I kind of freak out when they put needles in my back, I told the Doctor that my feet already numb and he hadn't even done anything! They got my blood pressure back under control and then Dr. Thompson broke my water at 5:30 or 6:00. (I thought once he did that Carlee would be here within the hour. Nope, I was wrong again!) At 9:00 pm my epidurial started wearing off, and I was in pain. Then my blood pressure went up and up and up. They put an oxegyn mask on me and I freaked out. At this point my blood pressure was about 210+ over 117. I had never seen so many nurses in my room before. I was at a high risk for a stroke, so they gave me magnesium. The medicine wasn't as bad as I had though I just had major hot flashes. Finally they rolled me over on my side to see if they could get my epidural to work (it didn't help) and she was finally ready to come. I pushed a couple times and Carlee Jane was finally here at 10:10 pm.  As soon as I delivered my blood pressure went down to a manageable number and everyone took a big deep breath.

Carlee Jane
6 lbs 4 oz

19 inches long

Here she is! I can't even explain the relief I had when she finally made it to earth, and I knew she was healthy. She is so sweet. I think she took her time that day, because she knew we needed to figure out her name, so she gave us a few extra hours to decide. Gavin thought of her name while we were waiting for the phone call from the hospital to go in. I love it and think it fits her just perfect.

She was sucking her fingers right after she was born, it was so cute.

She loved her First Bath. Doesn't that look like if feels good?

Now we are complete. I love each person in this picture so much, there are no words to describe it. This is what my life is all about.  

Thank you all for you support, and concern it means a lot!