It's Down Syndrome Awareness Month!

Little did I know...

 

Little did I know what the Lord had planned,

something he knew before the world began.

He set me up all along,

to be a very special kind of mom.

I used to wonder what all the disability was for,

I even wanted to learn more.

So I set out to help a man,

he had cebrebral palsy and couldn't stand.

He taught me that he was a person with dignity and brains,

he could even drive me in his car down the lane.

Then after him I became an OT,

I wanted to help people like him you see.

I studied and studied and learned all the right things,

but words weren't enough to make my heart sing.

So then down the road I was working with others,

living my dream and helping the mothers.

But that wasn't enough the Lord said to my soul,

he allowed me to conceive, He had another goal.

Then one day I found out at work,

your child will be like these, and I will be your providential stork.

At first I was afraid and cried for many days,

but the Lord brought peace to my heart saying "for my ways are higher than your ways."

Then my baby was here, he came after a very hard and long night,

he was an angel, the most beautiful thing in sight.

Now fast forward a few years later, I am no longer the teacher,

he is teaching me and making me a believer.

My love for him will never change,

he is my son, through storm, sun, or rain.

Little did I know, but I'm so glad now that I do,

that everything the good Lord put in my past was pointing me to you!

 

For my beautiful son Carsten, I love you more than anything!

 

Down Syndrome Awareness Month!

Creed of Babies with Down Syndrome

My face may be different
But my feelings the same
I laugh and I cry
And I take pride in my gains
I was sent here among you
To teach you to love
As God in the heavens
Looks down from above
To Him I'm no different
His love knows no bounds
It's those here among you
In cities and towns
That judge me by standards
That man has imparted
But this family I've chosen
Will help me get started
For I'm one of the children
So special and few
That came here to learn
The same lessons as you
That love is acceptance
It must come from the heart
We all have the same purpose
Though not the same start
The Lord gave me life
To live and embrace
And I'll do it as you do
But at my own pace

-author unknown

October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month!

Fun Facts about Down Syndrome:

*Down Syndrome or otherwise known as Trisomy 21 occurs in approximately 1 out of 800 births a year.

*There are three types of Down Syndrome: Trisomy 21, mosaic, and translocation

*Trisomy 21 is when there are three copies of the 21 chromosome in every cell which occurs during initial cell division resulting in every cell having 47 chromosomes instead of 46

*Mosaic Down Syndrome occurs when there are three copies of the 21st chromosome at some point in cell division resulting in some cells with 46 chromosomes and some with 47

*Translocation Down Syndrome occurs when extra genetic material from the 21st chromosome is attached to another chromosome, typically the 14th.  This is sometimes caused from a parent carrier and other times spontaneous

*Carsten has 14/21 Translocation Down Syndrome

* Trisomy 21 is the most common

*Translocation Down Syndrome accounts for about 3% and mosaic 1-2% of children with Down Syndrome

*Many people with Down Syndrome can lead independent lives

*Some people with Down Syndrome get married and go to college

*People with Down Syndrome have hopes and goals and dreams just like any other person

*Many times people with Down Syndrome have higher receptive skills than expressive (meaning they can understand more than they can express)

*A typical stereotype of children with Down Sydrome is that they are so "loving", they are indeed "loving" and "special" however have different personalities just like anyone else does including temper tantrums, disobedience, and the ability to make their parents crazy just like as any other child :)

*Some things to avoid saying to a parent of a child with Down Syndrome (from my experience): "he is so lucky to have been given parents like you" (just the usual you are so lucky or blessed to have him will work:)  "God gives "special" children to "special" parents" (we are no more special than anyone else even though yes God has ordained Carsten to be in our family just like any other child is ordained to be in theirs) "well that's just the way the chromosomes fell", "they are kind of like dogs, you can yell or hit them and they'll still love you back" (yes, this was actually said to me!:) "is he mild or severe?"  (this question is okay however we don't really "label" anymore and the abilities of a person with Down Syndrome can not really be detected until later in life. "how cute his little tongue is sticking out" (LOL, okay, children with Down Syndrome have tongue protrusion because their mouths are weaker than ours so the muscles don't hold the tongue in as well, typically it gets better with age and increased muscle tone.  I write these from a heart of laughter not of bitterness just so you know:)

*"Rosa's Law" was just passed by Congress to officially change the wording of Mental Retardation from federal laws to a person with an intellectual disability!  So from now on please no "R" word, it hurts, this comes from a person that used to use the word probably everyday growing up.

Okay I have two hungry mouths to feed, more to come later.....


 

"It's Down Syndrome"

"It's Down Syndrome"  I heard those chilling three words almost four years ago on a phone at work and my world forever changed.
Grieving, loss, numbness, hurt, pain, questioning, tears, many many tears.
Then the words began to evolve and one day became, "a boy with Down Syndrome" something I could personalize, there was a ray of hope.
More learning, waiting, and wondering mixed in with a dash of hope.
Suddenly he was here, it was no longer a "boy with Down Syndrome", it was now "my son with Down Syndrome."
Hospital, sickness, waiting, hoping, praying, then finally "we're going to fix his heart this week"
Tears of sadness turned to tears of happiness, more hope, expectancy, but still unknown.  
The day finally arrived, time to go home!  Therapy, appointments, feeding tubes, vomiting, lots and lots of vomiting.
 But also in increasing measure there was laughter, joy, hope, happiness, smiles, giggles, fun, relationship, rejoicing over milestones, a normal family.    
As months went on, I realized that the words I heard in my office at work so long ago had become void.    Now, forever, the words have permanently become Carsten, just Carsten, my gift, my beautiful son.



It's Down Syndrome awareness month!  I will be blogging some as I can about Carsten and Down Syndrome so please check back in later this month!

 

Carsten's 3rd birthday party!

Crazy us!

My good friend Sarah from grad school and her husband Joel and her daughter Makenna

Chad and Jeremy one of our friends living here from AR

Miss Brooke (Carsten's "girlfriend" from Kansas:)

I'm three!

Brooke's baby brother Alex and their dad Andy

Blue spongebob cupcakes courtesy of yours truly (okay so not as good as his first year cake but they tasted way better)

New to the east coast life

Whew!  Wow, finally a breather.  Okay so the last what 2 months have been literally crazy out of control this is seriously the first time I've sat down at the computer!  If you all know me you know one of my favorite movies is Overboard with Goldie Hawn, I know I know old and corny (I still cry at the end every time)!  But the last few days all I could think about was how I feel exactly like she did at the end of her first day working at the house and the three boys find her sitting on the couch and all she could say was bababa  ba  ba bababa.
You have to see the movie to understand:)

Anyway, yes we are finally SETTLED in North Virginia in a little suburb called Burke.  I absolutely LOVE it here, my only complaint so far is there are NO drive throughs anywhere, nada.  Welcome back to city life I suppose.  It's just too hard with two kids to just "stop by" and grab a coffee, boo, oh well I've had to resort to my faithful Folgers.  Chad's commute isn't too horrible (yet) and we've already got Carsten started in all of his therapies.  We've have a ton of doctors appointments and school paperwork to turn in trying to get his IEP (individualized education plan) finished.  I'm still waiting on the official meeting and more testing, but I'm hopeful that Carsten will start school this fall!  He will most likely be at an elementary school that has a special needs preschool program 5 days a week in the morning.  He is so wanting to talk and babbles more and more and his sign language vocabulary keeps increasing.  I'm really hoping that this is the year he will take off with language and eating.

Our baby boy turned 3 on July 17th!  We had a little birthday party for him two weekends ago.  Lots of kids running around, spongebob pinata, cupcakes, the works.  My good friend Sarah and her family even came to visit from Illinois, what a treat that was.

Today is Miss Chloe's 6 month birthday!  She is quite a delight to watch grow as she is babbling a little bit now, rolling everywhere, laughing, and watching every move her big brother makes!  It's so much fun seeing their relationship develop.

Other than that, we are excited to be in DC and so thankful to have friends around this year.  I am meeting new moms every week at therapy and praying a little group will develop between some of us.  Chad and I have been to a church the last few weeks that we have really enjoyed called Fairfax Community Church.  We tried the mega church McLean Bible (I will save that experience for another blog:)  We will prayerfully see where it goes but I'm hoping we've found a spiritual home.  Hope this finds all of you enjoying your summer!  After two summers in Atlanta and now here in Virginia with record highs I hate to say it but I'm ready for some nice fall weather!  I was so hot yesterday running both kids around everywhere I told Chad to just go ahead and sign us up for Alaska next, ha!  I'm obviously not so much into blogging at this time in my life but I will try to update and post pics when I can (i.e. if the kids are ever both fed, asleep, and/or happy at the same time which is rare but nothing is impossible with God right?

      

    

Carsten Eating Update

A lot of people ask how Carsten's eating is going when I talk to them so I thought I would post a quick update on that this morning. He has made very good progress so far with the vomiting and ability to take in a larger amount of food. The nutritionist was here last week and Carsten has grown in both height and weight!! For a while he wasn't gaining any weight and Chad and I were getting a little concerned with the protocol from Baltimore, whether it was going to work. About a month before Chloe was born the vomiting kind of hit a pinnacle and brought Chad and I literally to our knees. He got a stomach bug and was vomiting multiple times a day. Other than the bug, he was still having reflux quite often (like a few times a week at least) but ever since one night when Chad and I were literally in tears, the reflux seemingly disappeared! Praise God! It was like the Lord knew Chloe was coming and he gave us all a little break. Since then, we have been able to increase his intake to about 10 ounces of food for lunch and dinner and 4 ounces of milk (which I think contributed to the weight gain). I am still a pureeing fool and spend much of my time pureeing and preparing his food and then manually feeding him four times a day. It is very time consuming and puts an extra burden on our family (especially for family outings) but we are thankful that he is eating and so we continue with the protocol from KKI. Lately, Carsten has been a little more aversive to his drinks and eating. It takes him a minute to get going with his bites, I believe it's a control issue that was spurred on by Miss Chloe and I'm hoping with time it will go away. The vomiting is rare these days (when I say rare I mean maybe once every two or three weeks if that) except when Carsten gets really hot. There have been a couple of times at a park or an inside gym where he gets too hot and out it comes and I mean everywhere! We are hoping he will continue to grow out of it as he gets bigger but know that it's something we will have to deal with for quite a while still. We are still going to weekly feeding therapy and working on solids. He still does not have good oral motor skills and cannot manipulate food in his mouth so the food ends up getting stuck on the back of his tongue and he gags, making it quite scary for me to attempt solids with him at home. We do work on gerber puffs a lot and he does okay with small pieces. We are still working on independent drinking and feeding, he has shown some increase in desire to put things in his mouth, using a pincer grasp to pick up food and knows how to tip his cup to drink but has little control and it ends up everywhere. He can and does drink from a straw but only water, go figure! But we praise God for his progress and maintenance of his oral intake and are looking forward to being in DC and hopefully getting better services. He will start preschool this fall in what sounds like a very well equipped preschool program for children with special needs, I am VERY excited about it and know that Carsten is MORE than ready to start school. His sign language is really coming along (as is mine:) and he is learning signs faster than I can learn them:) He is starting to use it spontaneously, meaning he will initiate a sign without me asking him for the word. This is encouraging that he has a desire to communicate and will with time and patience.

Aside from eating, we are getting ready to make our PCS June 12th. We will be heading to Arkansas for a couple of weeks then making the long trek out to Washington. We will be living in (I guess considered a suburb) Burke, it is just west of the city but will be somewhat of a commute for Chad. We ended up in this area mainly because of the services for Carsten and what other people recommended. I am excited and just trying to get things in order, organized, and honestly doing my best to just keep both kids fed, dry, and happy :)

They are starting to interact a little more which is so much fun to watch. Chloe watches every move Carsten makes and they are smiling at each other now. Carsten likes to hold his big sister and kisses her all the time and then signs "thank you" because we always say thank you to him after :). Chloe is finally growing out of her Colic, PTL! She is MUCH less fussy throughout the day and sleeps most of the night, sometimes she eats at about 2 or 3 and some nights she will sleep till 6, so I really can't complain. I have given up dairy food along with breastfeeding and if you know me it has been REALLY hard. I am starting to get used to my new diet now though and not missing cheese and milk as much as I did at first. I have noticed a huge difference in her eating when I have not had any dairy. So we will keep going as long as we can, my goal is 6 months to a year, I am just so thankful she is eating after everything we've been through with Carsten.

We will be in Arkansas from somewhere around June 12th through the end of the month. We would like to see as many people as we can so give us a call!

Happy Monday!

Momma Bridges

Fun Pics

"Carsten who stares at goats" Coming soon to a theater near you.

Chunky Monkey. Could I look anymore like my daddy?!!!

Swimsuit model boy :)

Happy Monday!

Easter Family Pics

Here are some pics from Easter weekend. Had our first "real" outing as a family of four, went to Stone Mountain on Friday and broke out the ole double stroller, talk about working off those pregnancy pounds I told Chad they should use those things for PT tests in the military! Saturday was the egg hunt in our neighborhood, thanks to me and my awesome gadget abilities none of which got recorded, I swear I thought the play button was on, total Kari move. Anyway, Carsten fanned out better this time, he managed to retain his easter basket and even got about 10 eggs with the help of his dad of course:) Church Sunday and Chloe's big debut, notice she's looking at her crazy brother in our pics, I couldn't get her to look forward but she was a doll I can testify. We did our best with our automatic camera, makes you really miss extended family on these special days. Happy Easter!

Real meaning of Easter

Wow, surprised to find this article on Easter on FoxNews website.

Easter at the Kids Spot

Carsten had his first Easter celebration today at his little gym The Kids Spot. He goes every Thursday for a moms day out program, he loves it and I really love it! Today the Easter bunny was there and they had a little egg hunt, we had ample practice yesterday in the living room so he was ready to go! He found about 5 eggs until another little boy stole his basket, oh well. It was fun and the first time Carsten has gotten within arms reach of a big character in a costume so big big progress for him, yeah! Maybe next year we'll actually get a picture with Santa:) Chloe was there all dressed up and bows in her hair. It was a fun morning and now Cman should be ready for the egg hunt Saturday in our neighborhood. (wow I can't believe I've blogged two days in a row) Enjoy!

Here ya go

One of my very hilarious, cute, and successful attempts at stealing some attention away from my sister!



















This is what happens in the target cart when we refuse to take a nap at home!






















Daddy giving me a much needed break!























Miss Priss and her first smiles!

Four Words

IN OVER MY HEAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I do miss you my blogger friends.  I apologize for my lack of blogs lately as I've been buried in diapers, crying, eating, throwing up, sleep, (or lack thereof) guarding the infant from her overzealous sibling, and dinner making.  Yep, that's about it these days plus or minus a few things including my own daily showering:)

One day I will see you again I promise, hopefully sooner rather than later when more of a normal routine sets in.  Right now Chloe is taking up pretty much all of my time.  We are struggling with colic, constant breastfeeding, and what we'll call a VERY "high maintenance" little girl.  I can barely set her down during the day or she'll scream her head off, will not take a pacifier.  It's like her internal alarm goes off when she's not physically touching me or her dad and she doesn't like it!  This is all new territory for me and confirms the fact that Carsten was literally an angel when he was a baby.  Not so much these days however, he's having a hard time adjusting to sharing all the attention and he lets me know it pretty much all day long with his screaming and crying.  On top of this we are getting ready to PCS (move) in June to DC and trying to find a house and getting things in order.  So thank you for your continued prayers for our growing family and I hope to blog more in the future.  I will keep putting pictures up when I can.  And I promise the birth announcements are on their way so be looking in the mail!!! 

(For some reason I can't get pictures to download right now so I'll post them later)

 

  

Flying solo with 2!

It's my first official day as a mom of two!  My parents left yesterday afternoon and Chad went to work this morning, that leaves me ALONE and RESPONSIBLE for two children, yikes!!!  I have to say it's going smoother than I suspected, I've even taken a shower already and we're headed out to the pediatrician at 4:30.  However, you might as well call my new role the "diaper changer" or "feeder" because that's literally ALL I do!  I seriously have to give good ole' Octamom and Duggar mom some credit here, I don't know how they do it!  I think since last night I've changed at least 20 diapers.  This is going to be crazy but fun, I am so blessed!  Will post new pics soon!

  

Pictures with Dr. Broadney

Just got back from my follow up OB appt.  I absolutely LOVED my OB, she was so sweet to us the whole time I was excited to bring Chloe in for her to get a quick snug!  She was so encouraging to me the whole time and always made me feel at ease.  Oh and a couple other cute pics of Chloe in her pink and brown, I never thought I was the girly type and have always worried about having a girl but I think I'm going to get used to this dressing up stuff really quickly!  (I've had her in two to three outfits a day just for the fun of it)!  This one was from her Nana. 

Meeting my sister for the first time!

 Chloe and Carsten

 Here are some pics of Carsten in his big brother t-shirt meeting his new sister!!  When he saw me coming down from the elevator in the wheelchair with Chloe in my arms his mouth dropped open, his eyes rolled back, and his head started to droop:)  He definitely knew "someting was not quite right" and that his world would forever be changed.  After he warmed up a little to her we got him to sneak in a few kisses on her forehead, now he wants to look at her in her crib constantly, points at her, and will give her kisses (only if you tell him too:)   

As for me and Chloe, we are spending time bonding and learning the "art of breastfeeding" (more like bootcamp training than art) while my mom helps take care of Carsten.  I am learning a whole new vocabulary of words such as "latching on" "let-downs" "football hold" and "cluster feeding" :)  It has been a challenge for me so far but I'm determined not to give up without prayer and a good fight.  We are so blessed to have both Carsten and Chloe and we can't wait to watch them grow and blossom together.  The Father has blessed us beyond measure and are hearts are so full even though our eyes are tired.  More later but first back to learning my new "art" ;)


      

Chloe Abigail is here!!!!

Introducing Chloe Abigail Bridges

February 11, 2010

8lbs3oz

20 inches

Chloe Abigail has arrived safe and sound, praise God!!!  Thursday was quite a day to say the least all starting about 4:30 in the morning.  Our c- section was scheduled for 8:00am and we went into the OR at 9:00.  Chloe Abigail arrived at 9:49 am.  I have been busy ever since recovering and learning how to care for a newborn again.  Chad is enjoying having a daddy's little girl.  This has been a whole new experience for us to say the least and quite different from last time.  We are overwhelmed with thankfulness for God's grace and his beautiful gift.  We arrived home today and Carsten got to meet his little sister just a few hours ago.  More blogs to come about the birth story and Carsten meeting his new sibling but just a few sneak peaks of our little angel!     

24 Hour countdown!!!!

I thought I would get one more blog in before the big day tomorrow! Our C section is scheduled for 8:00 tomorrow morning. Between my anxiety and the constant contractions thinking the baby is coming sooner I haven't been able to sleep very late in the mornings but I am getting pretty good rest still at night so I'm thankful. At my OB appointment last week I was 3cm and having contractions 10 minutes apart and they have been coming and going ever since. Needless to say I told my mom to get on a plane and then of course we've just been staring at each other ever since:) But I'm glad she's here and don't have to worry now about who will watch Carsten. I have one more appointment today so we'll see what she says, I was wanting to try a VBAC but I think we're going to go ahead with the section tomorrow if nothing happens today or tonight. We are very excited and can't wait to see baby!!!! We appreciate your prayers and will update as soon as we can. We have an email list together so I'm sure if you're a reader here you're on the list. Love to you all and soon to be family of four!

The Bridges
Psalm 139

Hats, toes, and stomach bug randomness

Playing hats with daddy.  Starting to learn about clothes and body parts thanks to Mr. Potato Head!!  But hats is definitely a favorite. 

 The stomach bug going around here in Stockbridge came to our house last week.  The baby and I were very lucky to miss out on that one.  But I did get lots of fun snuggle time with Cman, isn't it sad how us mommies take advantage of all the good snuggles when their sick, that's our job I suppose and hey we'll take it when we can get it right?:)   

My just for fun pedicure, justified by the fact that I literally cannot reach my toes anymore, notice the alternating pink and blue, which will it be?!!  My mom said that's something I would have done in high school, I couldn't help it though I thought my OB and the nurses in the surgery room would get a kick out of it:)!!  11 days and counting if not before, 38 weeks today!!!! 

Baby Shower

The sweet ladies from my bible study threw me a little baby shower today after church. I just about cried when they asked me because I didn't think I'd get one.

They are all so sweet and they made it very special for baby and I:) I got a whole bunch of target gift cards I can use (had to keep it gender neutral) maybe for a bunch of girl outfits, maybe:) These are some of the women from last semester that walked and prayed us through our Baltimore experience, I'm very grateful for them.

Me and my new bud Eli

Getting ready for church and a playdate with my new friend Eli.

Watch out Ladies!!!

I haven't blogged in a while because Carsten is keeping this pregnant momma very busy and literally out of breath!  I finally have a moment to sit down, relax, and write a little update.  Things are great, busy, but great.  I am now officially 35 weeks 4 days along, feeling like I'm carrying a bowling ball in my belly or at least that's how my back feels.  Being pregnant with a toddler is a WHOLE different experience this time around.  You just can't avoid picking them up and having to cart them around everywhere, it's impossible.  They "say" you're not supposed to lift heavy objects for 6 weeks after a C-section, yeah right, we'll see how THAT goes!  We're most likely planning on a C section the 39th week (around the 8th of Feb) unless I go into labor before then I might try and give it a go.  Needless to say, I am very ready to get this show on the road, but I'm also thankful that he/she is still safe and sound hopefully growing nice and plump and I try to remember that with every ache and pain and yes, episode of incontinence, LOL!

We have finally narrowed our names down to a boy and a girl choice, sorry you'll have to just wait and see!
We're getting really excited to hear, it's a BOY or a GIRL, we absolutely have NO idea.  It's so funny how people love to give you their opinions on what it is, "Oh it's a girl I can tell by the way you're shaped,"  or "It's a boy I'm sure, you're so low."  I even had a nurse with some kind of telepathic powers tell me in the elevator in Baltimore who I'd never talked to before say, "Honey I'm so sorry, I hate to tell you this, I know you want a girl but it's a boy!"  It was a little creepy I have to say because how would she have known that but then she changed her mind about a week later so who knows!!  But I have to say one of the worst comments I've been getting a LOT lately is "when is your due date?"  after I tell them it's "Oh honey, you're SO big, do you think you're going to MAKE it THAT long!"  LOL!  Whatever the baby is, they (not literally "they" Lord help me if that was the case!) will be a blessing and we're so ready to meet him or her. 

Other than that, just trying to keep the house somewhat organized "just in case" and I need to get a bag packed this weekend.  I've been having lots and lots of Braxton Hicks so I know it's getting closer.  We've enjoyed spending time with our new friends that have a son with Down Syndrome named Eli, Chad has been on some travel duties, and we did find out that we will most likely be moving to the DC area around June!  I'm so excited to get up there and be closer to some military friends, get Carsten going with school, and have some stability at least for a few years.

I've been involved in a women's bible study this year at my church and we just started a new book called "Calm My Anxious Heart" by Linda Dillow.  I love the book and have read it before but never done it in a group setting.  It is a large group of women of all different ages and I'm excited to see how the Lord works this semester.

Well dang, he's up and it hasn't even been an hour!  Gotta run but I thought I'd post this poem real quick.  Quick Fact: Many people with Down Syndrome have a Simian Crease, it's a singular line that run through the palm of the hand instead of the typical three.  Carsten doesn't have the Simian Crease for some reason but the poem still makes me cry everytime :)

 A Line Across His Hand


by Deborah L Sardone

The day my son was born the sun shone in the sky
My life would change forever and here's the reason why
You see my son is different, things did not go as we planned
For my son was born with a line across his hand

A line across his hand
A line across his hand
Things did not go as we planned
Because of the line across his hand

They said that he would be slow to learn and never read or write
But when he took his first steps it was a special night
They said he'd never be a man and always be a burden
But he'd show them wrong, it was the one thing I was certain

A line across his hand
A line across his hand
When his hand's held in mine
I can't see that line across his hand
Oh how very hard it was to learn to tie his shoe
There were days we thought it was something he'd never ever do
But then one day he made the bow up right and neat
Oh, his life ain't always easy but his victories are sweet

A line across his hand
A line across his hand
That shoelace didn't care
There was a line across his hand

I always dreamed we'd play with a baseball and a bat
But in our life together we jog the High School track
There are many things that he can do and things that he can not
He's much more than the sum total of the syndrome that he's got

A line across his hand
A line across his hand
Don't judge who he is by
That line across his hand

If I had the power to change his life I'm not sure what I'd do
But his life has been a blessing 'tho I've shed a tear or two
I love my son more than I believed all those years ago
I guess in this life we do reap what we do sow

A line across his hand
A line across his hand
Doesn't change the love you feel inside
that line across his hand

Now my son is grown and holds a job and has a lady friend
He is proud and kind this message I will send

A line across his hand
A line across his hand
They were wrong, I know that now
This boy of mine's a man



    



   

 

Carsten's Christmas with Nana, Aunt Nae, and Uncle Boo

Well Carsten is finally done with his Christmas! Chad's side all flew down last weekend and Carsten got to open another round of gifts! He quickly became a pro at ripping the paper off the boxes, he definitely knows what they're for now:)

He got a lot of fun stuff including a rocking horse from Toby's parents and a new table for crafts and a first Thomas the train set. We still haven't figured out how to keep him from tearing the tracks apart, I think we might have to glue them but he sure does love trains and cars now.

We got to take them to the aquarium again and the Coka cola museum which was pretty cool and YES I cheated and drank a few sips of coke and YES it was oh so wonderful!!!! :)

Enjoy the pics. We were so glad everyone could make it down here.

Love you all!! Happy Birthday to Nana today and Happy 37th Anniversary to my parents!!