X-Diamond Ranch

Well once again we went to our favorite place, X-Diamond Ranch, up in Green, AZ. They have such nice cabins tucked away from the world, and of course a great place to fish. We went up with our good friends, The Browns, and had a great time playing, fishing, eating, and playing in the snow. With all the snow we got this year Nate was not sure what fishing would be like. He did not have much luck on the River, but on the ponds he did great and all the kids got a chance to catch some too. We had a great time and hope to make another trip up there soon.

These where Ryder Browns "Buzz Wings" and Carter absolutely loved them. He has so much fun running around and saying "Buzz light year to the rescue".

Colter Caught the biggest fish of the trip

It was cold and snowy one of the days!

Elk

Not sure if the fish appreciated being held like that!

The kids wanted to go sledding, so on the way out we found a nice hill and Dads and kids had a great time!

The face of a "BIG" fish that got away!! (he was so mad)

Fun pictures

We have been having lots of fun at our house. We have been enjoying time together and the wonderful weather outside.

Big Boy Bed

Yesterday when daddy came home from work, Carter and I were in Carter's room putting away his clothing and changing his sheets. Nate suggested that we take the front off his crib and start him in his big boy bed. Carter was a little unsure about it until he saw how cool a big boy bed was. We took the front off and Carter loved it. He just thought it was so neat that he could get in his bed on his own. We all went to the store to get a side rail for him and put it on. He was so excited to go to sleep.



This morning, I heard a door shut around 7am, so I got up to see what it was. I came back to my bed to turn off the monitor and turned around to Carter saying "Hi mom". It scared me to death. He was so excited that he got up on his own. I am sure we are going to have some early mornings with him. We have gone and looked at his "Big Boy Bed" many times today. He loves it.

An unexpected Week

This week I was not expecting to do the things that I did, but it was a great week. Tuesday Carter and I had a great day at the Zoo. We saw all the animals and just had a great time. He even got to feed an Elephant. Carter did not want to leave.

Standing like a flamingo

Bear

Needless to say he was tired from all his adventures. In the evening I asked him to go and get his jammies so we could get ready for bed. He however came back with a pair of his "big boy" underwear that we had gotten months earlier for when "I" tried to potty train him with no success. He wanted to wear them. I sighed and said well he had to go pee pee in his potty to be able to wear them. So he went and sat on his potty. Nothing happened, but we insured him that he could try again in the morning.

Well morning came and he was READY and WILLING to wear that underwear. I was not intending to spend the day sitting on the floor, reading books, playing with play dough, singing songs, or doing anything I could do to keep him on the potty until he went, but I did. I was kind of dreading it because of the stress is caused me the first time. I got him lots to drink and encouraged as much as I could. After our millionth trip to the potty and after 4 straight books he gave me the look of "what is going on"? He was going pee pee. I was so excited! Because I was not expecting to do this I did not have any kind of prize, stickers or treats to give him. So we made up a potty dance and danced around the house.

We of course had he lots of accidents, but also had many successes. I was exhausted by the end of the day. Luckily for me I had signed up for a gardening class that was in the evening for 1 1/2 hours, so Nate was on duty. I needed a break and it was good for him to be involved. Carter did great. No accidents with daddy and he even pooped in the potty. I have just been in amazement of all this. The next day he only had one accident and pooped again, and by the third day he did not have any accidents, and even stayed dry through his nap and the night.

I am sure there will be many accidents to come and "Potty" issues to deal with, but I am just so proud of the success Carter has had. It is such a testament to me that you cant force a child, or anyone, for that matter to do anything they are not ready for. I am so glad that I was able to drop everything to spend the time to focus on what Carter was ready to do. Even though my sharing time will probably suffer this week, we have no food in the house and I have a pile of things to do, I have so much enjoyed the quality time Carter and I have been spending together. The TV has barely been on and we have just played. I wish I could organize my life so I could live it that way. I have been happier and so has carter. I am so proud of Carter and cant believe his is growing up so fast.

I am still not 100% sure how to handle leaving the house and having to go potty in public, but I guess I will address that when it becomes a issue. :)

He wanted to bring the potty outside. You do what it take, right?

Cutest Daddy Ever

This little story has it's ups and downs, but mostly ups. Yesterday we got our hands on a big dishwasher box and Nate's first thought was "Carter and I can have fun with that"! So we packed it in the car and headed home. To make sure the dish washer does not move around in the box there are these super strong cardboard sticks that they stick in all the corners. We brought those too. So after daddy got done with work around 5pm, Carter and daddy headed to Ace Hardware to get some supplies to make a fort and swords with our new found treasure. I was at home getting dinner together when I heard the garage open - They were home!! (Here is the down part) Nate walked in holding Carter and said the me that they needed "Nurse Nancy". I looked up and my poor little Carter had a bloody chin. I did not want to freak out, so calmly asked what happened. Carter had tripped and fell square into a corner of a low shelf. You could see the mark of the "L" on his chin that the shelf left. The corner part hit pretty hard and we questioned if he needed stitches. We took him into our room to clean up. He was so brave and let me wash it up and get a Spider Man Band aid on. He will have a nice bruise and hopefully wont scare too bad.
Once we were done doctoring him up he was ready to play with daddy. They spent the rest of the evening using tools and constructing the coolest box fort and "Sword Fights" I have ever seen. It has 2 windows and a door, sword holders inside and out, a door knob with key hold and lock and even a light (my idea). Daddy is going on a scout camp out this weekend, so Carter and I will have to spend some time decorating a bit.

Using his real key

We have all spent lots of time in his Fort with him and that is the first thing he asked about when he woke up today. I am so thankful to have a fun and creative husband that does this kind of stuff with our kids. It is things like this that they will remember.

I realized I don't have any pictures of his chin. I will try and get one to post later.

New things I love:

I have discovered a few things that I love and wanted to share:

1. Breathe Right Nasal strips:
- Kind of a funny thing to love, but I do. I have to admit, I snore. I think more so now that I am pregnant, but I do. Nate is a terrible sleeper so it does not help that I am keeping him up too. So after many nights of Nate sleeping in the front room because I was snoring, I went out and bought these strips. They are the greatest thing. When you put it on, you can immediately feel your nasal passage open up. They look kind of funny when they are on, but they work great (at least for me). The only time that you feel them are when you first put them on and when you look in the mirror. After the first morning, I asked Nate if I snored and he said NO. I have not snored since. It is great. Nate even has worn it a few nights and thinks they are great. So if your snore or just want to breath deeper with an open Nasal passage, try them out!! (it has not made Nate sleep 100% better, but at least I am not the thing keeping him up!)

2. Reese's Crispy Crunch Bar:
- I love Chocolate. I love peanut butter. And I love them together. I love just the normal Reese's cups, but sometimes you just want more texture and crunch to it. Well the other day I was at the check out stand at the store and was scanning the candy bars and saw something new I had never seen before. I was in a spontaneous mood and just picked it up and threw it on my basket. Usually when I eat treats like this it is after dinner for a sweet treat and it takes me a few days to finish the bar. Well this night, I think it was gone by the time we got all the groceries put away (Nate helped eat it too)! I don't know, but something about it is just great. It is kind of a cross between a Reese's and a Butterfingers and a few peanuts sprinkled between. Don't be fooled by the Reese's Fast Break - Not the same, and not good at all!

3. Half Tee's: (check out link)
- My mom finds some of the coolest stuff. This is a shirt that is basically a glorified sports bra - but it is a shirt. Obviously sometimes you need a shirt under another shirt for coverage, but you don't want all the extra bulk of another layer. I especially like it being pregnant. I think it is a bit pricey for what it is, but it is a great idea and I like it.

4. My Kitchen Cafe: (Check out Link)
- My wonderful sister introduced this blog to me when she shared a YUMMY looking chocolate chip cookie bar recipe with me (still need to try them). But this lady started this blog as a way for her to keep and organize all of her favorite recipes. She takes great pictures of all the food, which in my opinion is what makes a recipe! If it looks good, I am going to want to try it. She also shares her opinion on the recipe and shares tip of what worked and didn't when she made it. She has made all the recipes and has a ton on her blog. I have made a couple of meals from her blog and they past the Nate approval test. I plan to try lots more. - Check it out.

5. Arizona Winters:
- Ok this one is a given. I love that it is Feb 18th and we can go outside and play at the park, go on a walk or drive around with the roof down off the jeep any time of day. It is great. I know I have a different opinion of Arizona in May - especially this year, but it is worth it for the 4 months of "winter"!