Bineout!

Strange title, I know! Chris and I have heard this word frequently this week. It has been a couple of weeks since we've had to put Carson in timeout, but apparently it's importance and purpose is sinking in. In Carson talk, "bineout" is also "timeout!" She dutifully put herself in timeout the other night after she continued to do something I asked her not to do! She must have seen "the look" from me and then said, "Bineout Mommy" and walked downstairs to the bottom step. I went with the flow and let her sit and she even said, "yarry (sorry) mommy" when she stood up! It was so sweet and competely hilarious at the same time! Maybe we'll have a little rule follower?!
As a side note since writing this...nutcrackers, baby dolls, our dog, and many other items have gone to bineout too!

Christmas Cookies

MMM....Sprinkles!

While in Columbia last weekend for the Holiday Market, Carson was quite busy baking Christmas cookies with GiGi! What does any child do while making cookies? Turn the sprinkle bottle up and drink sprinkles, right??? Who cares about the cookie cutters! We're still eating yummy sugar cookies she made and can't wait to do it again!

A new Christmas Tradition

I found this adorable placement at Target this year. It's been fun counting down with Santa each morning at breakfast. We're excited for the holidays and hope you all are too!

Mommy Time!!!

Back view of the new "do"

Cheese!

Paula Deen's Peanut Butter Chocolate Trifle

First I should say, I have so much to update and not enough time. It has taken me about a week to write and include the Thanksgiving update, pathetic, I know! Here's a few things we've been up to (in list form):

1) Carson and I went back to Columbia this past weekend so I could go to the Holiday Market - one of my favorite Christmas traditions! The Junior League of Columbia does a great time putting this together and they always have cute things to see and buy. It's also fun to see old friends and catch up on things! My mom met me out there for a while and then went back home to keep Carson while I enjoyed some "mommy time." THANK YOU MOM!

2) After church on Sunday, Chris stayed with Carson the rest of the day so I could enjoy another day of "mommy time!" I wasn't quite sure what to do with myself! On a whim I decided to make some drastic hair changes and chopped my hair off for a new, more up-to-date look! I've never had my hair this short and it's fun, freeing, and much easier! Sometimes you just need a little change! I then met Lauren M. for dinner and shopping. It was fun to get away and chat -thanks Lauren!

3) Tuesday was Bunco night with some friends...do you see a pattern? More "Mommy time!" We changed things up a bit this month and did a Christmas ornament swap and Christmas games. Elizabeth found a cute Christmas lyric game on the internet -we had to fill in the blank with the missing word from the song. I certainly didn't win this one! We had a great time and the ornaments we swapped were SO cute! (will post pictures soon)!

4) We are having a week of snacks at work this week. Today was my groups turn to bring food. I decided to try a new Paula Deen recipe - Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownie Trifle. Yes, folks, your pants can get tighter just reading the recipe! My friend, Brooke, made it several weeks ago and said it was yummy so I thought I would give it a shot. It was quite good and not one ingredient is good for you - you should have guessed that when I said it was a Paula Deen recipe!

5) Chris finally has his "Daddy time" night tomorrow with friends from work - he completely deserves it after spoiling me with all of my "mommy time!"

Thanksgiving Days 3 & 4

We made it to little ol' Cameron, SC for Thanksgiving with Mimi and Papa! Our day began early with a yummy breakfast and lots of playtime with Carson. My Aunt Millie even stole some time to read Carson a book! The weather was perfect outside and we were able to take Jack (our Brittany Spaniel) outside to play too! My Aunt Pat prepared the entire meal for everyone including pumpkin pie, keylime cheesecake, and molten chocolate cakes for dessert -YUMMY!

Carson and I stayed in Cameron until Friday morning since daddy had to drive back for work. On our way home Friday we stopped back by Columbia and met my mom and brother for lunch at Grouchos - again...YUMMY! I think I need to change the title of this post to "Stuffed" because all it sounds like we did is eat, eat, eat!!!

After a good nap in the car, Carson made it back home and was excited to be back to toys and her dad! We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

Thanksgiving Travels Day 1 & 2

Sharing a laugh with Uncle George during bath!

Sweet Baby Chase!

Our Thanksgiving was busy and packed full of visits with family! Tuesday afternoon we all headed to Columbia to visit with GiGi and Uncle George. I'm such a bad mom and took no pictures that day, but my mom came to the rescue and sent several bathtime photos from that night. On Wednesday, my mom, Carson and I visited Courtney Nelson and baby Chase before leaving for my grandmother's house. Carson had her first attempt at holding a "real" baby and didn't even get jealous when I hogged him for almost an hour! Chase is adorable and doing well! Our Columbia visit wasn't over until I headed over to Southern Children for their 40% off sale - I love a good deal! I bought several adorable smocked dresses for next summer and only wish my smocking abilities allowed me to create them as quickly as I can buy them! :)

Looking Cute!

Excuse the bare feet - we did eventually get tights and shoes on for church!

Tis the Season

I know some of you will find this obnoxious since Thanksgiving isn't even here yet, but we pulled out all the Christmas decorations this weekend and had a great time putting some of it out/up! When you have children, 1)I think you get more excited for holidays so things get done earlier and 2)you have to plan, decorate, and shop when you can or when the timing is right! This weekend was perfect...the weather was cold and we were all in the holiday spirit. While Carson was napping, Chris and I moved/rearranged furniture, hauled the decorations downstairs and got it all ready so she could "help" when she woke up! Yes, we have a fake tree. That started last year when we were still juggling a little one, hectic schedules, and tired bones! We thought we could save money, create less mess, and most importantly, the lights were already on the tree (the most stressful part). I completely miss having a "real" tree, but in the end, it is easier with the other. As a side note, toddlers DO NOT like Nutcrackers. Admit it, they are a little scary looking! By the way, how do you post pictures in correct order on this?

Sneak Peak!

Here's a sneak peak at Carson in her adorable Christmas dress! We got all dressed up last Wednesday for pictures with Santa at my school. Folks, I talked this up big time...we read books about Santa, we visited Santa at the mall twice before this day, and we "talked" about what we would do Wed. morning....it still didn't work. Needless to say, there were tears, and there were many, "No Anta!" (no Santa). I ended up in the picture too and I've never heard such an emphatic, "Bye Santa!" coming from a little one -she was definitely ready to get out of there! As soon as our Santa pictures come back, I'll be sure to post!

Charles "Chase" Thomas Nelson is here!

Some of you may know a friend of mine, Courtney Moore Nelson, from Columbia. Unfortunately, Courtney lost her husband, Chuck, to cancer several months ago. I am so excited to post that she delivered a healthy baby boy this afternoon...Chase Nelson, who weighed 8 lb, 11oz.! Everyone is doing well and we know his dad is watching and beaming from above. I hear Courtney had many supporters there with her today! Courtney- I know it's been a long and emotional day. You will be a great mom and I hope you find joy in Chuck's little legacy each and every day!
As soon as I get a picture, I will post!

A Package!

I love the clothes, but boy this box is fun!

"Hurry up Mom!"

What motivates a child to take a bath and quickly get pajamas on without fussing? A PACKAGE from GG (my mom)!!! What's wrong with a little bribe, right? Thank you SO much GG for the adorable Christmas outfits and pajamas you sent Carson. Even though she pulled all the clothes out and tossed them aside so she could climb in the box and pop the bubble wrap, I know she was excited and thankful! I'm so ready for Thanksgiving to be here so we can wear the red and green! Sorry for the dark pictures, not sure what's happening with the camera...and yes, that's my life in the background of the middle picture...piles of laundry! At least they're folded!

Another Little Skyhawk!

Congratulations to Sarah Preston on the birth of her 2nd daughter, Mary Duffie! She was born one week ago and weighed exactly the same as her big sister did, 7 lbs. 7 oz! I hope to see you guys the next time we're in Columbia!!

Pigtails!

My 1st pigtails! Do I look cute or what?!

We're Blogging!

Welcome to our blog! I've been wanting to create a blog for a while now. I spend so much time each day reading all of my friends wonderful blogs, but I've never started one for Carson. Solution: start one, email all your friends to tell them you have one, and now you have to keep posting..no excuses.
Why blog? What could be a better gift to your child than a "storybook" of their life?! I want to post the good, the bad, the funny, and the gross! I hope to compile all posts for her to have when she's older. Who knows how long it will last, but we hope you enjoy hearing about our daily adventures, and folks...it's always an adventure with a toddler!