My Middle Child

Carter's turn for a little acknowledgement. He is a middle child after all and they do tend to get lost in the mix, but he is not any less important than my other two. I even had a problem finding a nice picture of him b/c he is either with his brothers, eating something or giving me a goofy grin, so the photo is from about 6 months ago.

Carter has two side, the sweet affectionate side where he will always give me a hug and kiss, (unlike my oldest child) and compliments me by telling me I am beautiful and pretty( he sure is going to know how to work the ladies when he is older :) He is my big sweet little man. He has a sweet smile and genuinely cares. Then there is the other side where he throws a fit, cries and runs away b/c he didn't get his way and threatens that he will not love me if I don't comply with his demands, but this quickly passes and is soon back to his loving self.

Carter is almost 5 and currently in preschool and doing awesome for how little time I spent with him learning his stuff( again second child thing, I need to work harder on that) He can count to 14 then jumps to 18 up to 23. He recognizes most his alphabet and some of the sounds they make. He has mastered writing his name as well, must have been all those Valentines he filled out. :) He is a very social guy, he loves to make friends, even though he is a little timid at first with a little encouragement he goes right up to them. He likes to hang with his big brother and protect his little brother.

He is my imaginitive child. He likes castles, pirate ships and all the little guys that go with them and making up these little stories or scenes. He likes to do puzzles and be crafty( like play-doh, paint, and coloring) He also likes to help bake. He is the closest I am going to get to my girl, haha he may not like to here me say that in about 10 years, oh well. But he also enjoys being outside building forts, riding bike and running around with the neighbor boys. We love him for who he is just the way he is( mood swings and all!) We love you buddy!

My Firstborn Son

I just wanted to take the time and post about each of my boys individually and reflect on who they are and what they love, instead of always posting about the youngest( I admit to doing this most often) or grouping them as "the boys". So I will start with Riley my firstborn son....

Riley fits the role of big brother well in both good and bad. He cares about them and helps them out and tries to teach them all that he knows, but he can take it a bit far and be a little bossy too.

He is quite smart, he catches on to stuff very quickly and does not need very much instruction. He is great a spelling( he gets that from me) and he likes math( which is good b/c I am terrible at it- he gets this from his dad.) He has an amazing teacher this year, I could not have asked for a better teacher, they work so well together and I know Riley is learning so much from him. He is my techie. He likes to be on the computer, playing the Wii or PS2, watching t.v/videos, playing the Leapster. I anticipate in the future him being up on the new phones, ipads,ipods and whatever else there will be( can you tell I am not that educated on technology, I used to laugh at my parents when they couldn't figure it out, it was simple, Ha! Now I am in their shoes) He loves to hang out with his older cousins( not sure how much they love it, but..) I think he can't wait to be older and it's coming soon enough, he is almost 8! Right now its the middle of winter and he enjoys sledding, but also likes soccer, maybe soon he will try football. He also enjoys riding his dirtbike. He is VERY competitive and does well racing against someone, but when we ask if he wants to go to races he seems unsure. We will see what this summer brings. He also likes to read and is an advanced reader for his grade. He likes a variety of chapter books and will read whatever I pick up at a second hand store. He is a wonderful, loving boy, all his own and we love him to pieces.

A Weekend Away

A few weekends ago we headed to Shipshewana, IN to Splash Universe for a little fun. We went with John's side of the family and had a great time. There was plenty for the boys to do. I actually did not see the older 2 almost the entire time we were at the waterpark. Levi was a little apprehensive at first but warmed up to it. Its a great place for young families and not too far away from home.

Levi's 18 Month Pictures

here are a few of my favorite poses....

Christmas Cookies

Yesterday after Levi went down for a nap the boys and I made some Christmas cookies, its a tradition over here and we always have lots of fun and a big mess!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!!!!


rolling, cutting, and decorating

the finished product, the boys did a great job! enjoying their cookies