Carlysle's Christening

We finally got around to having Carlysle's Christening. I have been really bad about putting things off and before I knew it she was eleven months old. We decided to have the christening at the church I grew up in (and also the church Joey and I got married in).....Bethlehem United Methodist Church in Bishopville, SC. The service was beautiful and Carlysle didn't cry!!! We were so worried that she was going to burst into hysterics when we handed her off to the minister. She has a little stranger anxiety.....ok a lot of stranger anxiety. But she did great but he was also really fast so she didn't have much time to react. It really was beautiful and I'm glad we finally got it all planned. We had a luncheon for friends and family afterwards. It was wonderful to spend time with everyone. We really appreciate everyone traveling to be here. I would also like to thank my Mom, Miss Jennifer and Cindy for all their help. It was such a wonderful day!

FYI.....she did have on a christening dress but by the time we started taking pictures we had already changed her clothes. However, we will be putting her back in the dress and "staging" some christening pictures.

Milkshake Junkie

Occasionally Joey makes milkshakes (and other fattening things) for himself because he is trying to gain back some weight he unintentionally lost......yes everybody you may roll your eyes now. Carlysle is at the point where she wants to try anything you have. Gone are the days where you just plop down on the couch and veg out. Within seconds she is crawling all over you digging in your bag of....um....veggie sticks (or bbq potato chips). So of course she had a fit when Joey sat down on the floor with his strawberry milkhake. She literally dove over my legs pointing her finger at it, while grunting. So, we let her have some and now she's hooked.

And here is what happens when you take the milkshake away..........

New Snack.....that Carlysle will never get to have again

Well, I was trying to be a good Mom and buy the healthier "whole grain" fig newtons. So, while I cooked dinner I let Joey give Carlysle one for dessert. Which I realize sounds cruel....."fig newtons for dessert" but she's young and has no idea what options are out there for dessert. I have no idea if this is a common theme among the fig newton family but our experience with the whole grain was disastrous. They turned into a crumbly mess. I'm not sure she ever really tasted anything more than crumb. So here's my warning to other mothers regarding whole grain fig newtons......only allow them on Daddy/Daughter nights!

Young and the Restless

I hesitated to play this video because it doesn't speak well for my parenting skills. But I promise you this is the only time of day when the "Noggin" channel is not on.....well except when Days of Our Lives is on, or Dawson's Creek, or Dr. Phil, or Oprah.....ok ok nevermind. Anyway, in my defense "Young and the Restless" comes on at 12:30 which is lunchtime so Carlysle is always sitting in her highchair which has a clear view of the TV. Everytime she hears the theme from "Young and the Restless" she whips her head around to look at the TV. Joey was home for lunch one day recently and finally got to see her do it. We decided to find the song on the internet and save it on our computer. So randomly throughout the day I'll play it and she always stops what she's doing and looks at the TV. I promise we do educational things during the day too....for instance she already knows all the character's names on "Days of our Lives". Kidding.

Goldfish (i.e. "Crack for Babies")

We have discovered the beauty of a delicious cheddar snack called "Goldfish". Ok really I've know about them for years and I'm quite fond of them. Now I have created a monster......a monster that I now have to share my favorite snack with. Carlysle is truly obsessed with Goldfish. Here's an example: She was sitting in her exersaucer one day eating Goldfish, because Mommy was trying to get ready to go somewhere. Well, apparently she dropped several of them because at this point she is still an amatuer and only 2 out of 5 make it into her mouth. Later that day I sat her in the floor of our room while I went to the restroom. When I returned I had one of those panic moments when you think "I only left her for 1 minute", with the bedroom door closed, "Where could she possibly have gone?" The pictures below show where I found her. It didn't take long for her bloodhound nose to sniff out the remaining Goldfish. This was too cute so I had to take pictures......

Peek a Boo

This is a video of Carlysle playing Peek a Boo with her Daddy. This laugh she does absolutely cracks us up. It's not her normal giggle......it only comes out at certain times and I finally got some of it on video......


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qlSgsB7JOw

The Grantsmanship 3rd Annual Golf Blowout

This year for the 4th of July we attended the "Grantsmanship Golf Tournament" at my parents house in Cypress. Yes, Don has built a golf course behind the house and it's really quite impressive. The weather was perfect. The men played 36 holes of golf while the women.....um, ate the wonderful bbq and sweets. Well, actually we also watched the babies play in the whale pool and then we.....ate. We also sat around and chatted and then......ate some more. Wow, no wonder my pants feel a little snug. Anyway, here are some pictures from that fun-filled day.

If you were looking for pictures of the men playing golf......there are none. Well, there are but I don't have them yet. Coming soon........