Birthday Party

Carson did not overly enjoy his first birthday party -- too many people, too loud, too much going on, etc. As you can see below, he pretty much said, "To hell with this cake!" He did, however, eventually calm down (after Cheerios and milk with Paw-Paw) and enjoyed playing in the mounds of wrapping and tissue paper his gifts produced.







We did get Carson to tie in to his cake on his actual birthday. Just like his mom, he loves butter cream icing!

Pee-wee's Playhouse

Carson's Playhouse has a much better ring to it. (Not to mention that Pee-wee creeps me out.) For those of you with kids, you know how their "loot" begins to consume every open space in your home. As a result, we created a playroom for Carson in our lower level. He was overwhelmed when we first showed it to him, but he's slowly getting the hang of it.

Shift Work

"Big 'ole pile of shiffffttttttt work
11 to 3
3 to 11
11 to 7"

I don't personally work shifts, but I am knee-deep in "shift" work these days! And my blog is suffering because of it, as is the laundry, emailing my friends, time with Nate and Carson.....the list could go on.

(Mom, listen to Kenny Chesney and this will make sense!)

Right of Passage

Don't they all do this?!

NOGGIN

In an effort to help my kid "learn," I have updated our dishNetwork package and thus added NOGGIN (and BRAVO - Yeah!) to our channel repertoire. I still have no clue what Yo Gabba Gabba! is, or how the heck to pronounce Ni Hao, Kai-Lan. Carson and I will learn together, I guess....

(Other Mommas - I seriously am clueless when it comes to Kid-TV. Any program suggestions?)



(For the record, that is Nate's Skittles wrapper!)

Wedding Bells - 9.10.05

Four years and counting!

Shoe Limitations

We went to the mall yesterday to get Carson his first pair of "big boy" shoes. (He is about to move in to the Elephant Room, a.k.a the 1-yr old room, at day care, and apparently the elephants have a shoe rule.) Anyway, my dad has very wide feet, and so does Nate's dad. (I happen to have very narrow feet, but that's beside the point.) As luck would have it, Carson has extra wide feet too. That's right - he wears a 5 XW, which means our only shoe options for our tank are New Balance and/or Stride Rite.

Fred Flintstone would be so proud!

Speed Racer

Those damn tigers!

Despite the fact that my Illini got their butts kicked, I had a great time at the game with my Mizzou hubby.

Illinois 9 - Missouri 37

Walking in Memphis

Then I'm walking in Memphis
Walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale
Walking in Memphis
But do I really feel the way I feel

Yes, I feel (felt) frustrated after a five and a half hour trip home from Memphis last weekend did not result in a car nap for Carson. He did eventually fall asleep, as we were pulling in the damn driveway! The last half of the trip consisted of constant whimpers, back-arching like no other, and some serious "tune out" by Mom and Dad. (Amy, I can only wait until Carson's pulls an "Are you done ignoring me?" moment. She is seriously so smart!)

Regardless of the drive home, we had a great time with the Corless Clan. How I managed not to take one single picture during the trip, I don't know. Oh, well - it's the quality time we spent with friends that matters most, right?!

We miss you guys already!!

Chicken of the Sea

I'm talking tuna, Ms. Simpson. (I personally think Nick and Jessica will hook up sometime in the next year.)

My cat Monster has been getting a scoop of tuna every morning for several years. This stopped, of course, when we brought home Carson. I decided to stop neglecting my cat about a week ago and reinstated the "breakfast tuna." Two Saturdays ago (I have been disgustingly busy at work lately. Slacking with blogging is the least of my worries!), I put a scoop of tuna on a plastic lid and Monster went to town. Seconds later I saw Monster dart into the dining room. Kitty, I just started to re-spoil you. What's the deal?

The deal is Carson. He crawled over to the pile of tuna, squeezed it between his hands and ate it. Gross!

Do you know how hard it is to get rid of tuna-smell? Very - my kid smelled like rotten fish the rest of the day.

Ms. Kim

I miss you already! Look at how big I am getting:

Chester the Cheetah

If Frito-Lay ever gets tired of its mascot,
I have another option.

It's official - Carson said "Ma-ma!"

8.17.09 - He may not know what he is saying, but he's saying it. Finally, the letter "M" is now a part of Carson's vocabulary. Yeah!

Bitter Sweet

Nate and I spent this weekend (alone) at Table Rock Lake. Grammie and Paw-Paw were gracious enough to spend Thursday, Friday and Saturday at our house taking care of Carson. The "directions" I left for my parents consisted of chicken-scratched food options and a very rough outline of Carson's typical day. Vacation must have been on the brain when I put together the "directions" because normal me would have left two copies of a novel-like Word document next to the phone, which would have been accompanied by directions to the nearest Urgent Care, Carson's doctor's office number, the pediatrician exchange number, directions on how to decipher each of Carson's moods, the difference between a "healthy poop" and a "worrisome poop," etc. I did pull Carson's insurance card out of my wallet just before we left, so the mommy in me never totally checked out.

After a few days by the pool, a couple's massage, wave runner rentals, many glasses of wine and outlet mall shopping, we were ready to come home to Carson. We definitely enjoyed our time away, but really underestimated just how much we would miss our little bug.

Swimmer's Ear

Carson was sick on Sunday so he didn't really have an interest in pool time during Grandma's BBQ, but he did manage to smile big while Aunt Carrie helped him strut his stuff. : )

So You Think You Can Dance

Boss Ross

This is what Ms. Kim and all the other infant room teachers call me at school. (They were calling me this way before I became the oldest baby in the infant room.) Last Friday, I decided I better live up to my name. Since I can now crawl and no one else in the room can, I decided to "flex my muscles." I crawled in to Jack's lap, pull up to my knees and yanked his binky right out of his mouth. I then put Jack's binky in my mouth.

I really am a good kid and don't plan to make a habit out of doing mean things to my friends, but I did feel the need to let everyone know who's boss of the infant room. Who rules the infant room? Carson (a.k.a. Boss) Ross does!

I'm free...

...to wreck Mommy's kitchen! Come to find out, she has named a cabinet after me. It's filled with my sippy cups, banana cookies, Town House crackers, bottles, formula, dinner bibs, fruit snacks, baby utensils...ummm, lots of other cool stuff - all things I have yanked off the shelves and thrown on the floor. Fun! I've heard her say a couple of times this past week, "Stay out of your cabinet, Bud." (I started crawling a week ago, July 24th to be exact!)

(Check out my big-boy seat!)

...to chase the cat! Monster-kitty is kind of afraid of me, I think. His tail is the coolest toy ever!


...to get off of the rug in the great room. I've been stuck on that thing for the last 10-months. It's finally nice to see what else this place has to offer.



Finally, I am MOBILE!

Big Daddy's House

My obsession with HGTV has fizzled slightly. I have now moved on to The Food Network. I don't have time to cook anything remotely gourmet, but for some reason I really like watching Giada make pasta. (What's with her obsession with lemon zest?)

In my last post, I was at my whits end. My hubby must have picked up on it because while I was in Chicago last week he taught Carson how to feed himself, hold his own sippy and crawl. Seriously, the man is a Saint. As Nate put it, "A little tough love from Dad works wonders." Translation: Carson's "fits" don't work on Daddy.

I am okay with the fact that my son has me wrapped around his little finger. Speaking of wraps, the winner of last season's The Next Food Network Star makes a mean hot wing wrap on his new show Big Daddy's House . Now, my big daddy may not be able to make a hot wing wrap, but I bet he could get our son to feed himself one!

James and the Giant Peach

Carson is a peach, except that....he won't feed himself peaches, or anything else for that matter. Seriously, he won't pick food up off of his plate. Oh, and he won't hold his own bottle or sippy cup either. He can pick all of these things up, he just won't bring them to his mouth. Uggggggggg. When I cut up food, put it in front of him and walk away, he SCREAMS like I'm beating him. And when I put it in his mouth for him, he literally looks at me and says, "Mmmmmmmmm."

For the record, he eats like a truck-driver when food is put in his mouth for him. HELP!!!

(Sorry, Mom & Dad - no time to add pics. I'm off to Chicago for work. You'll have to wait until Sunday evening to get your Carson-fix!)

The Three Musketeers

Sammy & Rylee (and Carson) - they are Carson's best friends at school. They have been together since he first started actually. I found out yesterday that both Sammy and Rylee will be transitioning to the toddler room at the end of July. I seriously almost shed a tear! Rylee turned one on July 1st, so she's slightly overdue for the transition, and Sammy turns one at the end of August, so she's a little advanced. Regardless, they feel it best for the two girls to make the transition together. Umm, what about my kid?! They can't leave my little man behind, can they? Who is Carson going to play with now?

Carson, looks as if Roman will be your new BFF by default. No offense, Roman, but BOO.

Addition & Subtraction

I am so good at math....we have added two people to the Ross family in the last seven days and have lost one bachelor.

I have a cousin! Lucas Paul Ross was born on 7/7 and weighed 7 pounds and 7 ounces. Get big, Luke, so we can play!


I have a new aunt! Melissa Valentine married my Uncle Boog on 7/11. I had a great time giving Grammie & Paw-Paw hell while Mommy and Daddy danced the night away at the reception. Welcome to the family, Aunt Melissa!

Oh, no.

Oh, yes! Carson has mastered being a cutie...



...as well as:

Kabobfest

For the past two years, I have hosted a family BBQ at my house for my mom's side of the family. This year's event pretty much revolved around Carson-watching. My family's attraction to Carson is best described as "vulture-like." It was cute, really, and allowed me time to take care of the food and down a few beers throughout the day. Life is good!

And by the way, Carson is 9-months old as of Monday! Here are his big-boy stats:

Weight - 22 lbs. 12.5 oz (85%)
Height - 30" (95%)
Head Circumference - 45.6 cm (55%)

What's on the menu?

Again, if Carson could speak, it would have gone something like this...

MOMMY: "What do you want for breakfast today, Baby?"

CARSON: "I'd like diced peaches and pears for breakfast....and a few Ritz crackers. By the way, I ate mashed up spaghetti and meatballs for lunch yesterday at school. I also had corn and diced peaches. What do you want to eat for breakfast, Momma?"

MOMMY: "I believe I'll eat crow, Kid."

Carson decided to graduate to table food yesterday. That's right, just hours after I blogged about my frustrations. Coincidence? I don't think so...Carson, you continue to teach me valuable lessons and put things in to perspective. I love you, Bug!

Another one bites the dust.

I love my kid dearly, but I am annoyed with his "non-baby" progress. Here we go...

1. Carson will not drink from a sippy cup. When you put it in front of his face and attempt to put it in his mouth, he screams and throws a fit. When you put the cup on his high chair tray, he runs it through his Ritz crackers and Puff supply and then hurls it on to the floor. Annoying.

2. Carson has no interest in holding his own bottle. Why would he? Mommy let's him lounge in her lap like a "pig in slop" (I'm pulling from my rural vocabulary with that phrase!) while he devourers a warm bottle. Carson must some how know he'll have to feed himself for many years to come, so why rush it? Annoying.

3. I am Carson's personal PEZ-like Puffs dispenser. He will eat 20 Puffs in one sitting, if I feed them to him. He does pick them up off of his high chair tray and hold them, throw them and move them around; he just won't put them in his mouth. (Side note - he will self-feed Ritz crackers, just not Puffs.) Annoying.

4. Carson will not eat table food. I think he's texture-averse. He ate a nearly-crunchy-green-bean-rice-cereal concoction like a champ yesterday, but he would not eat mashed potatoes off of my plate. When I put them in his mouth, he "fake" gagged and spit out the mashed potatoes. When I tried to trick him into eating a spoonful of half-green beans and half-potatoes, he spit it out. When I gave him a spoonful of chunky green beans and rice cereal, he ate it and then smiled at me. Annoying.

I am a first-time mom who is trying to transfer her professional, left-brained, project leader, persuasive, control-freak skills in to raising a strong-willed 9-month old boy. If Carson could speak, he'd say something like this....

"Another one bites the dust
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone, and another one gone
Another one bites the dust
Hey, I'm gonna get you too
Another one bites the dust "

Wildlife Reserve

a.k.a. My Backyard - take a look at our friendly "neighbors."

Not just a deer, but a Buck.

These two were playing in the sun like puppies!

My Daddy's Day

This week was my daddy's first Father's Day, so I tried my hardest to make him feel special, because he's the best daddy ever! After we got up on Sunday, we snuggled on the couch together and played on the floor. It was fun!


Mommy and Daddy and I went to breakfast with Grammie and Paw-Paw since they were in town for the weekend. (They came in for Daddy's Open House on Friday, which Mommy said was a success!)


After Grammie and Paw-Paw headed back to Illinois, Mommy and Daddy and I went to Grandma and Grandpa's house for dinner. Check out the picture Mommy took of us - Nathan Earl Ross, Carson Earl Ross and Kenneth Earl Ross - what a good lookin' bunch of men we are!

It's a Jeep thing.

You wouldn't understand.


(Nate's first baby is in this picture - Maverick!)