A Carr-istmas

After 4 1/2 years of marriage we finally managed to squeeze in all of our family into Christmas for the first time and it was an unbeliavable feeling to be surrounded by the ones we love for 3 days straight. Chris and I felt so fortunate this year to be able to do this and hope next year won't be completely scattered with all of these new babies entering our family. Maybe the craziness of 2011 is why God gave us this Christmas with all of our family to enjoy and soak in. I hope all of you had a great Christmas as well, I would love to hear about it!

Here are a lot of just a few pics that I snapped throughout the weekend...

Christmas Eve- Carr Family

Christmas Day- Lister Family

Day After Christmas- Wheeler Family

Okay so maybe I did a bad job of taking pictures at my parents house, but with a face like that, can you blame me? I spent most of the day with my sweet niece Cayley, just love her so much!

The Name OF the Game Is . . .

Or I guess I should say the game of the day is name that baby.    Chris and I finally decided on a name for our baby boy and decided to share it with our families on Christmas. We can't wait to meet him in April...

The 2010 Year in Review

This year has been packed full for the Carr family. I thought it might be fun to take a look back at the year and remember all of the things we experienced. You should do the same, it really brought back a lot of feelings and memories I had forgotten about:

In January my parents lost a very important part of the family, their 15 year old dog Bucky.

In February we went to Puerto Vallarta and celebrated Valentine's in Mexico.

In March my brother got married!

In April we got a new patio in the backyard and watched our garden flourish!

In May we brewed our first batch of beer and my parents got a new puppy.

In June we traveled to Lake Travis with our friends Michael and Sarah, revamped the garage, attended my company picnic, celebrated one year of renovations in our new house, and watched in aww at the BP oil spill.

In July we celebrated our 4 year wedding anniversary in Los Angeles, attended our annual Church Has Left the Building charity event, celebrated Aaron and Trish's wedding, built a walkway and gate, had bats in the backyard, and went to Garner State Park with my family and friends.

In August, we found out we were pregnant, welcomed Paisley Britan Lewis into the world, left my wallet at HEB, and finished my craft room.

In September we announced we were expecting, did some major yard revamping, found out my sister is expecting, and had a house warming party for family.

In October, we had a great halloween and learned to be more prepared next year with way more candy!

In November, we found out we are having a bouncing baby boy, we decked the halls, and celebrated Thanksgiving at our house with my parents.

In December, we found out Chris's sister is expecting also, got new ovens, made Christmas cards, had our annual Christmas church party, hosted the Carr Christmas eve at our house, celebrated Christmas with both of our families and attended my good friend Meagan and Dusty's wedding! Wow, that was a lot this month- pictures to follow in my next post.

24 Week Update

How far along? 24 weeks - 16 left to full term!

Baby's size? Clocking in at about 13 inches long and 1 1/2 lbs.

Weight Gain? 9 lbs as of Monday. The constant weight gain, I admit, is always shocking to me.

Stretch marks? Not that I know of. My doctor insists this cannot be prevented with Cocoa Butter, still I can't help but use 2 handfuls (yes handfuls) a day trying to lather myself up.

Belly button in or out? Out. And it is strangely odd to see it through my shirt. The first day I noticed it I spent the entire day trying to push it back in. Chris finally caught on to what I was doing and told me to stop- it was no use. I have stopped obsessively trying, but every now and then I still give it a little try- maybe it will stick one of these days. :o)

Sleep? Getting comfortable at night is a challenge, but staying comfortable is even harder. I have to switch sides every few hours to fall back asleep. And switching sides really isn't all that easy either...

Foods I am loving? SWEETS!!! I hope it is just this time of the year and the fact that sweets are everywhere because I don't normally like sweets that much. (Sugar plums dancing in anyone else's head?)

Foods I am hating? Not alot, but still struggling with chicken, oddly enough. Not sure if I will ever understand this one. Will our little boy also dislike chicken? Strange.

Movement? Oh yeah, this little man is active all day and all night. Last night I was sitting on the couch when he went into one of his marathons, so I lifted my shirt over my belly to show Chris how strong and active our baby is. Funny thing is, Dusty, our over spoiled- momma's boy- must be in your lap if you are on the couch- dog would not sit with me for the rest of the night. I guess he was freaked out by all of the movement in my belly. I wonder if he understands at all? I am guessing no.

Symptoms? This week hasn't been much different than the last, but this month has been vastly different than last month. Should be no surprise since it took me 20 weeks to gain my first 5 pounds and only 4 weeks to gain the next 4- my body is trying to adjust to these drastic changes. I am having: sharp pains in my sides (well uterus to be technically correct) if I lean the wrong way or rollover at night too quickly (I hear this is called the round ligament), a really sore tailbone pretty much every day, and pain in my upper rib cage which I have found I can relieve if I stretch or straighten up my back which tends to lead to more sharp pains in my sides. I am not complaining at all, just observing the odd nature of pregnancy and how it manifests in every woman so differently!

What I miss? Not being stared at while walking across the office at work, the gym, or the grocery store. I suddenly realize I have always been the person staring before and now I am the one being stared at. I miss some of my favorite clothes, but more than anything I miss my workouts- Step class, running, Total Conditioning and dancing. I took for granted being able to make my body uncomfortable for the fun of it. It doesn't require a whole lot of exercise these days to reach my maximum recommended heart rate of 140.... sigh. It's all worth it!

What I will miss? Being able to carry around my baby 24/7 in a nice convenient place where he is automatically fed and does not need a diaper change. Oh yeah, and of course I will miss my free time, I hear that is a rarity for parents of newborns.

What I'm looking forward to? Umm besides holding, kissing, and gawking at the miracle God created when he arrives.... In the near future I can't wait to paint the nursery, assemble the crib... well get the crib first, then assemble it, and spend some much needed R&R with my hubby.

Weekly Wisdom: If you find yourself walking out of your heels, but are having a hard time figuring out why, you may have developed a waddle. And never assume your legs are ready if you stand up too fast, they may have not gotten the message or are not use to supporting your new and improved bod.

The bump:

Next appointment: In 4 weeks, January 17th for my glucose test. Not too excited about this one.

CraigsEasy. . . say what?

Alright all of you Craigslist fans, if you haven't heard of CraigsEasy yet, I suggest you hold onto your seat. It will change your Craigslist browsing forever!

I am a huge fan of Craigslist, however, its biggest downfall is not being able to see the image in each listing in the main search results. The mastermind behind CraigsEasy has created a site that compiles your search into a single listing with pictures! All you have to do is download the button, search Craigslist as you normally would and simply hit the Easy button. Now you have a list of items for sale with pictures!

So have you tried CraigsEasy yet? If so, I am sure you are hooked. And if you haven't, you will love it! Go to the link below and follow the directions (let me know if you have any trouble).

God is Great, God is Good

... let us thank him for our food. By his hands we all are fed, give us Lord our daily bread. Amen.

My gratitude this week is short and sweet. Thank you God for giving me everything. We are all so very blessed and yet blinded by our own little bubble we live in each day. Most of us live in communities where it is hard to imagine not eating 3 meals a day, driving wherever we need to go, and talking to our loved ones whenever our heart longs for them. Much is taken for granted and much praise is to be given to the one that deserves it all. May your heart be filled with gratitude today as you spend time with your family and friends.

God is Great, God is Good!

The man behind it all...

We had our company luncheon today with Mr. Adams, a.k.a. the Titans' owner, a.k.a. my boss. Even though he has received a lot of bad press this year for obscene gestures and sticking up for Vince Young (can't say I follow him on either of those events), it was still very moving to hear him talk about the recent passing of his wife and his 67 year marriage to his best friend. This is the first year she has not attended the luncheon at the Junior League with our company and I have to say her presence was truly missed. Now you know a little more than you ever thought about a man that you will probably never meet. Happy Thursday! Oh and sorry about the grainy picture- the camera on my phone was not impressive. I did, however, win a door prize- yay me, I never win anything!

Oh. De de dear.

Okay, I am a HUGE fan of Etsy. However, I suddenly realized today that some people seriously come up with the weirdest ideas. I wasn't even searching for these things... they just came up under my other searches. Wow! Thought you could use some laughter today. Enjoy. (Read the titles)

Have you seen anything weird like this lately? Share- I love to laugh too! :o)

Jingle All the Way!

A very creative way to Christmas carol this year perhaps?

(psst pause the music player on the right sidebar of the blog first)



If you liked it there are a few more on You Tube by the same church here.

These Are a Few oF My Favorite Things

Because I have been blessed with some really great friends who have done some extensive research on all things baby and have been kind enough to share them with me, I felt it was only right for me to pass on the helpful resources to all of my fellow first time moms (or at least provide the resources for you if you aren't there just yet). The internet can be very helpful, and yet very overwhelming with the abundance of information out there, which can also be very misleading. Use these resources as just a guide, whatever fits your style. They are not necessarily right on every account, but for the most part I found them all very helpful. Enjoy and let me know if you find any others!

Lucie's List- Baby Registry Help
Baby tips- Really helpful blog with baby tips
Babygizmo- Baby product reviews
Nesting Tips for new moms Great article for getting ready for baby
Baby Room Bio- Nursery Inspiration Gallery
Decorpad- Nursery Inspiration Gallery
Modernbaby- Nursery Inspiration Gallery
Coochicoos- Nursery Inspiration Gallery
Roomzaar- Nursery Inspiration Gallery
Baby Name Wizard- Help naming that Baby!
Nameberry- Help naming that Baby!
Ohdeedoh- Miscellaneous Decor, Crafts
Library for newborns- Start reading to that baby early!
 
P.S. We have our baby bedding picked out, but it's a surprise for now. And we have started on the nursery, some furniture pieces are already in the room. Exciting! Stay tuned for Project Nursery when the holiday festivities calm down a bit.

Weekly Gratitude

I am grateful this week for ...

• Being done. That is with the cold I caught last week and with my Christmas shopping. I don't think I have ever been done this early before.
• A successful annual Christmas party at our house. The new ovens worked great, the food was delish and everything went just as planned. Did I mention I sure do love me some Christmas?!?!?

• Another Christmas party to attend tonight for Chris's work. Fa la la la la. :o)
• Getting to see my sister and brother (and their families of course) in t-minus 2 weeks. Even better, they are coming here which means we don't have to travel. It's a Holly Jolly Christmas this year!

• Being shown up by a dog. Chris and I may not be photogenic but our dog Dusty sure is. I literally have at least several dozen more just like these:  

I acknowledge that I take these things for granted each and every day and am fully aware that there are many people in this world that do not share my same gratitudes from which God has given me happiness. What are you grateful for today? Much, I am sure!

You can't teach photogenics

Our photoshoot last Saturday went (yep just went, not well, not great). I say that because in the process I learned it is hard to take pictures on a windy day while fighting back a cold with two individuals that seriously scare cameras away. For some reason we have never taken great pictures. We are just not meant to be serious at all. However, we did end up with a few that might qualify as decent. I thought I would share. We really are a happy couple I promise, we just don't do a very good job of showing the camera. Hopefully our child will not inherit this trait. I want great pictures!

An Early Christmas Present

I have never been great at waiting until Christmas day to open presents. Now that we are officially "an ole' married couple," we are now giving each other things for the house for Christmas. So sweet- I know.

Take a look at our new and improved mirror for the kitchen (haha). We have a feeling our little boy will have his fingerprints all over it this time next year.

And a look at it before:

Merry Christmas!

Decking The Halls (Part 3)

This year I decided to make our Christmas cards from scratch. I bought the materials, cut the pieces, taped them together, stamped our names and voila. Same day pictures via Kodak at Target after our Saturday photoshoot with my mother-in-law and our cards are out in the mail for the delivery. I figured why not do it while I still can... next year I will be a little distracted. :o)

Weekly Gratitude

I am grateful this week for ...

• A tacky Christmas sweater party to attend tomorrow. Oh yeah, you bet we will have pictures to share.
• Taking some pictures for our Christmas cards this weekend and some beautiful weather in the forecast!
• Half way done with my Christmas shopping. I love giving gifts, but I am grateful to be almost done with the crowds and long lines.
• The internet. I am currently trying to watch as many tutorials about my new camera as humanly possible. I am just soo excited to have it, and I have absolutely no clue what all of the buttons do.
• Memories. Driving into work this morning I suddenly remembered the yearly scavenger hunt for Christmas presents with my sister and brother. I cannot remember one year where we didn't find them.... haha. My poor parents had no idea. They thought they were so smart to hide our gifts in our camper with the door locked. Little did they know that my sister and brother had corrupted me too and had me crawling through the storage compartments to get inside and unlock the door for them. Ah, memories.... What do you remember about Christmas as a child?

 

I acknowledge that I take these things for granted each and every day and am fully aware that there are many people in this world that do not share my same gratitudes from which God has given me happiness. What are you grateful for today? Much, I am sure!

Decking The Halls (Part 2)

The lights are up!

Dusty is on guard duty!

And the train is full steam ahead!

So much fun, Ho Ho Ho!

And It Finally Happened!

A lot has happened since my last post, duh Holly, it has been umm over a week. We celebrated Thanksgiving, my birthday, and had an eventful Black Friday. All very fun and very exciting. However, in the midst of all that is fun, my hormones seem to have to taken me to the edge. Just. A. Bit.

Let me begin by telling you we bought a chair on Black Friday from Baby's First Furniture. It was a great buy for our nursery, and as Chris said when we got the chair home, it would NOT be going in any other room of the house other than the nursery.. haha. It is a chair that only fits a kids room. The chair is so incredibly comfy, super soft, and will be a great chair for our little boy to crawl up into each night. That being said it was an emotional buy. It wasn't an intentional buy, but one we stumbled upon in the clearance section when we went to order a chair. Once the chair was home the debate began. Since the chair was a display chair in the store we were determined to clean it. When Chris took over the cleaning process I was convinced without a reasonable doubt that he had ruined the chair. That the fabric would never be the same again... yada yada yada. Long story short, he did something completely different than I would have done. I admit now it was a little insane at the time, but I was already on edge about buying the chair in the first place. Hysterical bohooing started and from that point on it was nonstop. Next came the "you don't love me" and "you did this to hurt me" emotional breakdown.

Looking back, yes it is just a chair. And yes furthermore it was a great buy intended for our little boy to wear the heck out of it, but I could not get it out of my head that day that he was intentionally doing something against my will to hurt me. Man hormones sure can mess with your mind!

Good news is I am back down on earth now. Brain is working normal again and I can now attempt to tackle the rest of the nursery without fear of another emotional meltdown- I hope. Fingers crossed.

I love my husband. Sorry sweety, just 4 more months of this sweet, sweet mood I am in. :o)

Decking The Halls (Part 1)

"It's the most wonderful time of the year!" And no wonder, who doesn't like to decorate, shop, wrap presents, bake and sit by a warm fire with hot chocolate in hand?! This year I am a little bit more Suzy homemaker than normal. Maybe it's the new house and extra space or maybe my creative juices (a.k.a. hormones) are flowing, but all of our decorations are up! This year I even decided to make my own wreath. Here's how it went (sorry for all of the pictures that follow, but it was the only way to illustrate the process).

Started with a plain wreath on sale from Hobby Lobby $12.50

Added various accessories (also on sale) for $25

Pine cones

 

Silver picks

Silver flowers

Maroon Hydrangeas

And smaller maroon garnish

A repurposed sign from an old gift that had fallen apart

Added a few finishing touches (ribbon and ornament balls)

And... Tada! (All for under $40)

Then I moved on to the Christmas Tree!

The Stockings!

And finally, our miniature tree (which Dusty thinks is his)

What about you guys? Are you in the Christmas spirit yet? How are you decking your halls this year? Stay tuned for some more holiday hoopla (trying not to overload you with the longest post ever!). I just love this time of the year!