Mr. Social

One of my favorite and least favorite qualities of Carson's is his ability to socialize with ANYONE!  He just goes right up to them with all the confidence in the world and starts a conversation.  (Much like my dad)  I remember a time at the park, where he marched right up to a group of teenage boys and said, "Hey, you wanna play tag?"  How could they say no?  Last week Carson and I ventured out to the Science Center.  We had been playing for a good 2 hours, and I was ready to call it a day.  Well, Carson had his sights set on a couple of girls instead.  He engaged them for 2.5 more hours!!  Here they are saying good-bye.

Oh, Carson...

The other night at dinner the conversation went something like this...

Carson:  Eww!  Mom, why is Cooper licking his penis?
Camryn:  He doesn't know better, Carson.  That's how dogs clean themselves.
Carson:  Ya, because they don't have hands to scratch it and move it around if they need to.  I can't lick mine.  See? (As he tries to stretch his neck)
Camryn (under her breath):  It's a good thing you can't, Carson. 

Never a dull moment with that child!

Dinosaur Diggin'

Carson had President's Day off, and I watched the neighbor's kids.  I knew we wouldn't all survive if we stayed home all day.  So, we piled in the car and headed to the Natural History Museum.  They have a cute exhibit where the kids get to be paleontologists and dig for dinosaurs. 

Beckett, Finley and Carson in a dinosaur footprint

Pirate Party

The birthday boy requested a pirate party, so we headed to an indoor play place with a pirate ship!  All of the kids had a great time, and I didn't have to clean up afterwards! 

 Ahoy, Mateys!

 Camryn brought her friend, Kira, to help her survive the all boy party!

 Neighbors, Finley and Beckett

 Look at those cute faces!  Neighbors, John David and Rex

 The Birthday Boy!

This picture was the best of many attempts.  It was hard to smile while you were saying "AARGH!" and looking through the spotting scope.  

Look Who's 5!

Carson's Christmas Sing

This was our last Shadyside Presbyterian Nursery School Christmas Sing.  :(  It's so cute to see all of the kids so dressed up.  They're excited to put on a show for their families!  Carson has been giving us sneak-peeks of the show over the last few weeks.  Unfortunately, I kept running out of memory on the camera, so I don't have any songs in their entirety.

Isn't she the sweetest little thing?  I love how Carson has his hands in his pockets!  He and Eva are good friends.  They play after school almost everyday while the moms chit-chat!

Carson Got 6 Punches!!

Carson is such an energetic little guy.  He's always going and rarely sits still.  Preschool is no different.  His teacher has started a punch-card system with him.  She basically divided up his day into 6 segments.  At the end of each morning, he and his teacher sit down and decide together whether or not he earned a punch for each segment.  On this particular day, he earned all 6!!!  We make a huge deal out of these days by celebrating with rewards such as lunch at a restaurant of his choice, a trip to the library, a walk in the woods, etc.  Today, Carson chose to take a trip downtown to check out the gingerbread houses and train display. (There are literally hundreds of gingerbread sculptures designed/constructed by kids and organizations around the city and surrounding areas.)    Good job, Carson!  We're proud of you!

Strangely, he CAN sit for hours watching trains!  Just like his great grandpas.

Baby Luke

This is the little guy Carson and I will be taking care of starting in January!  Don't be getting any ideas, Carson!  It's fun to have a baby around, but it's also fun to be able to give it back.  I enjoy sleeping through the night!

Tag, You're It!

Carson has never been shy.  Ever since he could talk, he's been making friends.  ( kind of reminds me of my dad!)  He will literally go up to ANYONE and ask them, "What's your name?  My name's Carson."  Well, last night was no different.  We took Cooper for a walk and decided to stop at Blue Slide Park for a bit.  When we got there, 7 or 8 high school age boys were hanging out on the play structure.  At first I thought, oh great, Carson is probably going to overhear some choice words to start trying out at preschool.  But before they even had a chance, Carson had them all playing a game of tag!  It was hilarious.  They asked Carson what the rules were, where base was and who was "it."  He loved having these "big kids" doing whatever he told them to!

Carson's New Friend

Carson likes to spend a lot of time digging in the "garden" with his friend, John David.  (our neighbor who is 3 years old)  They usually find worms and other gross bugs.  On this particular day, Carson came running to me yelling, "Mom, Mom, I found a lizard!!"  I had no idea what he could possibly be talking about.  Pretty sure we don't have lizards here in Pittsburgh, but they've found bears in Frick Park and wild animals in Ohio, so I guess anything's possible.  When he finally reached me, I realized it was a salamander he was talking about!  He had a lot of fun watching him squirm around. 

Camryn took this picture on my phone when we were driving to the JBF sale last month.  I wonder what he's praying for in his sleep?

Carson's 1st Day...Finally

I don't know why Carson's preschool always starts so late.  Yesterday was his 1st day.  He is going 5 days a week for 3 hours each morning.  (Great for both of us!)  It is amazing to see the difference between our two children.  Camryn was so apprehensive about going to preschool.  She only went 2 days, but they were full days from 8:30-3:00.  Regardless, she cried every morning for 6 months!  Carson, on the other hand, asked me several times yesterday when I was going to leave.  He WANTED me to go home!  From one extreme to the other with these 2 kiddos! 

Saturday

"Dancing" away Saturday morning to our latest favorite song!

P.S.  Only 10 more months in this OLD kitchen! 

Lip Gloss

Carson was using a carrot stick or cucumber slice to apply Ranch Dressing (lip gloss)!  Gross!!

What's For Breakfast?

If Carson were in charge of our menus this is what we would have for EVERY SINGLE meal!  Saturday morning I asked him, "Carson what do you want for breakfast?"  His reply, "Easy Mac!"  It's Saturday and I don't feel like arguing...

Flashback Friday

I found this video in my YouTube account.  I had forgotten all about it.  Look how calm Carson used to be!  This is from his 2nd birthday.

Chef Carson

Carson has been attending "Summer Break" at our church.  Each Thursday they introduce the kids to a new activity.  The first week was pottery and this week was cooking.  Next up, gardening and sewing.  Carson especially enjoyed this week!

All Boy

This morning Carson was watching "Super Why".  Princess Presto and Wonder Red wear big, beautiful dresses at the end when they sing.  Today when he was watching, he shouts out, " I'm just going to look under their dresses and see their underwear!"  Where does he learn something like that?!

Another Celebration

Yesterday Carson had another birthday celebration bringing the grand total to 4!  He took cupcakes to preschool where his friends made him a poster and sang "Happy Birthday" to him.  It was also his day to be the line leader!  He was so proud!  (Not proud enough to have a trouble-free day, however.  We decided it was best for me to NOT help out in his classroom.  I'm pretty sure he can't handle having more than 1 person to answer to!)