Tantrums...A Parent's Nightmare

It started out like any other evening, other than we just came from a very mind stimulating event, the Rodeo. There was a lot going on, the horses, the kids, the new faces, a lot for a little toddler’s mind to take on.

We got home a little later than usual and Daddy went to take Carson’s sneakers off and unleashed the beast. I thought maybe it would just be a simple, “I don’t want you to take my shoes off, I want them back on” kind of whine. It turned into screaming and falling on the floor in frustration. This was our first, all out, over tired, stimulated, full speed ahead temper tantrum.

I let him go for a bit, but the later it got, I knew he needed to go on the potty and get in for a quick shower. It took the two of us to try and get Carson’s clothes and diaper off and two of us to wash him up, all the while he was screaming and kicking. Geoff had to hold him so he wouldn’t hurt himself.

I came to the point where I mentally removed myself from the situation and asked, where as a first time parent do I stop and let him sleep in dirty clothes, sweaty body, all for the shear fact of not letting him go through this tantrum and letting him be. I wanted an answer to fall in my hands, What do I do?

Just like we do with adults, we need to pick and choose our battles with our children. It seems so much easier with adults, because, well, they are who they are, whatever battle you choose to fight or not, isn’t going to shape them into a different person (although sometimes I wish it would).

We are responsible for Carson’s upbringing and shaping him into a responsible, loving adult. Wow, is there a bigger task on the face of this planet? All of this thought process coming from this one experience.

The battles were laid out in front of Geoff and I last night, we chose to fight that one and lovingly explain to Carson that Mommy and Daddy love him and its bath time, everything is ok. I don’t know if we picked the right the battle or not, I guess I won’t know. I do know, once I finally dried him off and got the diaper on; he squeezed around my neck and just wanted to be held.

We haven’t experience this in public yet and I hope we never do, I sure hope to not ever go through this again, for Carson’s sake and ours. Although after this experience, if I ever see a mother or father going through this, I think I will definitely give them a pat on the back and let them know, they aren’t alone and they are doing the very best job that they can do.

Cheers! (letting out a big siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh, thank goodness that’s over)

My sweetest Angel

Project: BIG BOY BED

I was hesitant about writing this blog, as to not jinx myself. Well, here goes nothing...

A letter to my Angel:

Dear Carson,

You have inhabited Mommy and Daddy's bed for quite some time now. People told us we were crazy. "You'll never get him out" they said. We have endured our fair share of opinions on you sleeping with us.
The snuggles, the snuggles are incomparable. You slept on our schedule. You went to bed with us and woke up with us. Vacations..a breeze. No need for a crib, rollaway, pack n play, you were right there with us. Now don't get me wrong, we tried to do the traditional, put you in your crib, cry it out and go to sleep. You refused the crib since you could pull yourself up, which happened way to early at 6 months! To sum it up, it wasn't happening.

It was never a problem before, you sleeping with us, however, it seems that you grew overnight. To top that off, you like to sleep sideways and your feet always end up in my face. That being said, Mommy and Daddy agreed, it is time you get your own bed.

The box came in on June 17, 2011. You checked it out, looked at it and were off on your way. When Daddy came home, you helped him pull the box in your room and assemble your new big boy bed. (Daddy wouldn't let me post photos, but they will be in your book). You slept with us that night and in the morning I woke up and said, "that's it, no more". I was on the EDGE of the king size bed, Daddy was on the other EDGE of the king size bed and you were sprawled out in the middle, sideways again....sleeping very contently.

Here we go: Nap time..I rocked you to sleep, put you down in your bed and you stayed down for an hour.
Bed time: I rocked you to sleep and you slept until 5am! Then we snuggled ;-) You didn't have time to go sideways in 3 hours.
Next day, nap time:.I rocked you to sleep and again, you stayed down for about an hour or so.
Bed time: You stayed in your bed, however, we had some bumps. I ended up sleeping on your floor and Daddy came in and found me at 5am. Rough day for Mommy on Monday.
Monday night: You went down around 930 and slept until 730am!! That's my boy!

You've got it Carson. I'm so proud of you. Your growing up overnight. You look like a little boy when your sleeping in your big boy bed. You were ready, you proved it to us. It was time!

With your dogs by your side checking on you constantly in your bed, your baby days in the crib are a thing of the past. Another milestone checked off with many more to come.

Love you my sweet Angel. Love you Forever.

Below are photos I have taken since Carson started going in his big boy bed.


Turbo checking him out

Sound asleep


Tuna waking him up

"Goldenlocks" and the 3 dogs. Whose been sleeping in my bed?

He's officially a Keys Baby!

The trip, the trip I have waited for. Memorial Day in the Keys with Carson. He's been to the keys twice now, but has yet to experience his first Memorial Day in the Keys. Geoff and I have been going to Memorial Day in the Keys since about when we first met. We've been taking our own boat since 2006. Last year was the first year I missed.

We spent 5 days on the boat and Carson handled it like a pro! He put his life jacket on with no problem at all. Without a question, every time we got up on a plane, the kid was zonked out. I'm talking comatose zonked out.

He also had his first ocean trip. It was short, quick trip, but it was still another first to be documented. Again, no problem. We bought a bean bag for the boat which was recommended by friends of ours. This made the ocean trips much more comfortable with handling of the waves and holding Carson. I'd like to say, it was the best purchase for the boat so far. Highly recommend purchasing a bean bag for the boat with little ones.

Carson and I cruising out in the ocean

On Friday we spent the day at the sandbar. It was wonderful. It took Carson a bit to get used to walking in the water, but once his fears were calmed he was ready to go.

Walking with my Angel in our Heaven

One of the days, we rented paddle boards and had a great time. I cautiously took Carson on my board. The first time, I took him right in the shallows by the dock, I wasn't too sure about taking him in the deeper water. Geoff came and got him and he screamed to go back on. So, I took him with me. We paddled in the bay and he sat there pointing in the water, so relaxed. I told him we were searching for "fishies". To our amazement, he loved being on the paddle board. Really though, how could you not.

Paddling in the bay

Carson definitely is taking after Mommy and Daddy with our extravagant amount of LOVE for the Florida Keys. I always say, my heart skips to a different beat once we hit the 2 lane highway into the keys. Once that sun goes down, I'm sold. I think Carson is too by the look of the picture below. He's officially a Keys Baby!!

Our Angel

An Angel sent from Heaven above,
from God to us a gift of love.
We've been blessed to watch him grow each day,
and we ask you Lord to guide his way.

On May 22, 2o11 we had our son, our sweet Angel, Carson Dedicated to the Lord.
We spent the morning at Community Christian Church in Tamarac, FL with our family and friends.

During the ceremony, as they named each child, they played photos submitted by the parents. Of course, I had such a hard time choosing between 5-8 photos of my thousands. But, I think I did a pretty good job picking out our favorites.

Once the each family was announced, the Pastor prayed for each family and asked for the support and love of the church and family and friends of each child.

Afterwards, we had a luncheon at Nannie and Papa's house courtesy of Nannie, Papa and Grandpa. It was a beautiful afternoon.

We were so happy that our family from Ft. Myers and Jensen Beach drove down to share in Carson's special day. Carson had a wonderful day playing with his cousins and visiting with everyone who loves him so much.

A Big thank you to Nicole and Eva for taking such great photos during the Dedication.

https://picasaweb.google.com/LKEllison0281/CarsonSDedication

And a very special thank you to Carson's Godmother, Danielle and Godfather, Zack. Thank you for playing such an import role in Carson's life.

Thank you to everyone for the blessings, support and love showed on our Angel's very special day.

More teeth

Just a note to the blog:

2 more teeth coming in. 19 Months. Carson is getting his 2 lower canines and he has been a beast. We actually gave him tylenol the other night to calm him down.

Happy Mother's Day 2011

1 Year Later....

I'd like to say that I'm loving Mother's Day now more than my Birthday. ha! I had such a great day. And I was spoiled rotten! My mom bought me a beautiful Lladro of a mother and son, Geoff got me a spa day to go to with another girlfriend/mommy. And then, my brother Joey got me a spa day. I received so many cards and thank you very much to everyone for thinking of me on Mother's Day.

Just like last year, we packed up and headed for the beach for Mother's Day. This time, we brought breakfast along with us, so needless to say, we were there early. We had a VERY BUSY day ahead of us, so we ate our breakfast, played for a bit in the water, and then we left.

Carson in the water with Daddy

We went home, finished cooking and packed up for my parents house. There, we spent the rest of the day with family from near and far, and close friends. Delicious food, swimming in the pool, icy beverages, laughs and great memories made for a wonderful Mother's Day.

Carson showing Uncle Milt his ducks

Click the link for Mother's Day 2011 photos:

https://picasaweb.google.com/LKEllison0281/MotherSDay2011?authkey=Gv1sRgCLGR-JvQlKyrmgE&feat=directlink

Hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day.

Happy 4 Years and 1st Cinema for Carson

Today Geoffrey and I celebrated our 4th Wedding Anniversary. Whew! It seems like yesterday that we were partying in the Florida Keys and having the time of our life. Cheers to many many more!!

Last year for our anniversary, our first with Carson, he was very sick with a double ear infection. Needless to say, our priority was at home with our little guy.

This year, we attempted to go out on a date, just the two of us, but it just wasn't meant to be. We planned on going to see the movie, Source Code and taking Carson along, that probably wasn't the best movie to keep his attention. Change of plans and RIO it was.

We went to a 6:25p.m. movie, which ended up being perfect timing. We were both a little nervous as to how he was going to react, but my gut was telling me it was going to be A-OK! As the previews were showing, Carson just sat there in awe. I don't know that he really knew what in the world was going on. Then the movie started, same reaction, just watching and listening. Movie is going and going and there he is, relaxed, eating his veggie straws and M&M's watching the movie with Mommy and Daddy. What a PERFECT Anniversary.

At the end of the movie, I sat him in his own chair and he clapped when it was all over. Another sign, that the itty bitty baby is in our sweetest memories and best photos. Carson is turning into the sweetest little boy. I've said it before and I'll say it again....I loved the baby days, but toddler days are SO MUCH FUN!

And yes mothers, I did bring my 18 month old to the movies (GASP). You never know how it will go unless you try! lol. Let your kids surprise you!! :)

***RIO such a CUTE CUTE CUTE CUTE Movie. I'd go see it again. Can't wait to buy it on DVD when it comes out.

A Royal Affair

Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

Prince William of Wales slipped a gold ring onto the finger of Catherine (Kate) Middleton today, and the couple vowed to love, comfort, honor and to keep each other in London's biggest royal wedding in three decades, and Carson and I had a front row seat to witness it. The wedding was beautiful, Kate was stunning. I had goosebumps and was overwhelmed with all of the love and happiness that surrounded the wedding.

Carson particularly liked the horses. He pointed them out as soon as they came on the screen and was just watching them. There was one point where you could clearly hear the horses feet clappering on the ground.

Of course, there are tons of bahumbuggers out there who were not interested in witnessing William and Kate exchange their vows, but aside from all the love and mushy gushy of a fairytale wedding, this was "History in the Making". I am happy to have witnessed it and to have watched with Master Carson Michael of Sunrise. hehe..He's royalty in the Ellison house.

Watching the Royal Wedding with his Mum, early this morning.

Notice the "morning" hair ;-)

Half way to 2, 18 Months Old

18 Months Old

Height: 33inch
Weight: 22lbs 12 oz

I find it very hard to believe that in just 6 months, my little boy is going to be a full-fledged toddler.

Nowadays, Carson eats whatever we are eating, however, I find him being a little bit more picky with foods that he was never picky with before. My mom mentioned the same thing. Although, no matter how picky or cranky he is, I have no failure with these snacks: grape tomatoes, pretzels, grapes, raisins, goldfish, teddy grahams, cheerios or graham crackers. As for meals, pretty much a no fail with a PB&J, Peanut butter and banana sandwich and chicken and rice. He now has 14 teeth, so he does very well chewing pieces. He feeds himself with silverware, extremely well. With 14 teeth, we brush his teeth, twice a day. Brush brush brush!


We are also considering packing up the highchair. We put his booster at the table with us and he is very content sitting with us, wherein the highchair, once he is done, he wants OUT. I have no problem packing up the highchair, more room in the house. Right now, we just leave it at its lowest level and leave his snacks and water on the tray.

Just like his momma, he has a sweet tooth. We've made a few trips up to the ice cream store by our house and he recently had his first ice cream cone, strawberry ice cream with sprinkles. That was a huge hit and not AS messy as I expected.

Carson is into EVERYTHING. He keeps us on our toes. He has perfected his fast "walk" and is turning into a run. It's always enjoyable to watch him when he is on the move.

Getting into trouble

Carson likes to try and dress himself. He knows the concept, shirt over the head, feet in the leg holes, shoes and socks on the feet. He has put a shoe on by himself a couple of times. I love when he puts our shoes on and tries to walk around. I am so grateful for my camera on my Iphone, I am able to capture all of Carson's best moments.

Trying on Daddy's shoes for size

We are still working on the potty and Carson still does very well. Where we are now: If we see him trying to go poo poo (he makes a very distinct face), we tell him, hurry lets get to the potty. He books it to the potty, and attempts to pull his pants down. Sometimes we make it, sometimes we don't. Then there are other times where he already went poo poo and goes into the bathroom and looks at us like, hello. At our 18month c/u, our pediatrician recommended that we really work with him now getting on the potty. Not to push it too much, but really practice with him, because Carson does understand the concept.

As far as napping goes, Carson weened himself down to 1 nap a day. This happened in between 15 and 18months. He goes down around 1/130 and sleeps for about 1.5 to 2 hours. As for the crib, I have 100% thrown up the white flag; Carson wins. HE HATES THE CRIB! We now have a family bed. Maybe we have had a family bed for some time now, I am just now admitting to it. ha!

Never in my life did I think that would be a situation I would be dealing with, but I've tried it all with this kid. He cried it out, I rocked him to sleep, it was on occasion that he would sleep straight through the night. Eversince we "gaveup" and put him in our bed, its a different world. We tell him its bedtime, walk him in the room, put him in bed and lay with him. He gets comfortable and just like that, he is out until 730/800 in the morning; sometimes even later. AND he doesn't wake up in the middle of the night and we ALL get a good night's sleep and wake up refreshed.

We are in the process of converting Carson's crib to a big boy bed. We are thinking if we make it a bed and it is not a crib, we can slowly wean him out of our bed and into his room. It's really trial and error. Eventually, everything will fall into place. I have faith that with enough mistakes, we will figure it all out. haha.

As you will recall in a previous blog post, he repeats what we say. However, I think I posted that too soon, because he repeats what we say, when he feels like it. All of a sudden out of nowhere, he will repeat a word. But, for the most part, he babbles and babbles and tells us stories and points to everything. We so badly just want him to spit it out, but that day will come, soon enough. We have our flash cards, we do the colors, he knows the animals when we ask him to point to the duck or dog, etc.

Our evenings and weekends are spent making memories with Carson. The fact that we are both full time working parents, we cherish every moment with him. We recently took him for his first ride in the bass boat in the lake behind our house. Geoff went fishing and we sat there and he pointed out the birds and the lily pads. Not even a whine about the life jacket. Even if he did whine, its jacket or no boat.

On the boat in our backyard

When Geoff is working or busy on the weekend, I sometimes take Carson to the beach. At first he wasn't crazy about it, but now he loves it. He enjoys digging in the sand, playing in the surf. He is all ready for the summer in South Florida.

Carefully carrying his "building" water to the castle

We have toyed with the idea of Carson starting pre-school in the Fall. We have gone back and forth, researched different pre-schools, did the numbers for price and compared. My last decision was to ask the pediatrician what his thought was on Carson attending at 2 years old. His response, "not unless you want to see me more often". That being said, we are going to hold off until next summer or Fall, being closer to 3 years old.

We have so many big events coming up this summer. Our biggest, we are super excited for is Carson's 1st Memorial Day trip to the Florida Keys. Last time he was there was in Mommy's belly....Stay tuned.. :)

The Ellison Family Vacation

The Big Ellison Family Vacation! Our vacation plans started with traveling to Madison, FL for Jacqui and Griff's Wedding, which I have to say was beautiful and so much fun! We decided to rent a camper instead of doing the whole hotel thing and eating out, etc. THE BEST WAY TO GO!! We headed out on Thursday and made our first stop in Wildwood, FL, which is just outside out Gainesville. To those who have never traveled outside of Broward County, you have to do it. North Florida has so much to offer, we fell in love!

Carson loved the camper. It was a new toy to him. He liked walking around and constantly inspecting everything. We stayed at a KOA and Wildwood and the experience was great, again loving it much more than a hotel. The convenience of being gone for a week and having everything you need right there, perfect!!

This was our setup in Wildwood.

In the morning we packed up to head to Madison, FL for Jacqui and Griff's wedding. We brought along with us our neighbor's Polaris "sidebyside". I wasn't all for it in the beginning, just thought of it as another hassle, but Carson LOVED it. If even for a second he thought Geoff was going for a ride, he was running as fast as his little feet would take him to get to the 4wheeler. HE was even content just going in circles. It was wonderful being in the "country". In the morning we would wake up, make breakfast, go outside and play. One night we sat by the fire and Carson roasted his first marshmallow for his first s'more. Of course I passed down my sweet tooth to Carson because that kid LOVED every bit of that s'more. The last night we were in Madison, he fell asleep by the fire. I think he is ready for country living. During the day, he hunted acorns with Aunt Patty and became a filthy mess. Gee, is this what kids did before electronic games and tv, actually played outside. ;-)

At the fire

Carson and Geoffrey going for an afternoon ride.

At Jacqui and Griff's Wedding. Congrats Mr. and Mrs. Bishop!

After leaving Madison, our journey led us to Crawfordville to visit with very good friends of ours, the Morgans. Having the camper, we just pulled along side their house and once again, very convenient. While there we went to Shell Point Beach Park. At this point, Carson was still not fond of the sand or water. It took him quite some time to get used to it, but after watching Travis and Chase have so much fun and inch their way in the water more and more (when Daddy wasn't looking), he was all for it. He was playing with the boys in the sand and even inched into the water, just up to his ankles. Travis and Chase were very good with him and extremely patient.

At Shell Point Beach Park (panhandle, aka, the bend)

The next day we packed up the kids and met my cousin, Lori at Wakulla Springs. We had a great day and the weather couldn't have been better. We took the river boat up and down the spring and Carson's attention was focused on all of the wildlife. We saw tons of birds, turtles and alligators. We may not be so excited when we see a bird, but a bird to Carson is like gold. He gets so excited, "bir, bir, bir".

After the boat ride, I made sure Carson and Geoff, stuck their toes in the water. I've been in a spring before, but these boys have not. The water, year round, is between 68 and 72. Burrrr...

Because of Carson's practice the day before, no issues with playing in the sand and getting his feet in the water.

At Wakulla Springs

From there, we left Crawfordville to head to Tallahassee to visit with my cousins, Lori and David and their two dogs, Chai and Chloe. The weather was beautiful, we spent the rest of the afternoon outside, drove around the 4wheeler and Carson had a great time with all of that yard to run in with the dogs.

The next morning, Lori took us to the Tallahassee Museum. I was expecting a museum, inside, cold, ya know, a museum. This was the best museum ever. It was almost as if we were at a zoo, covered in the most beautiful cypress trees and happy animals everywhere. I thoroughly enjoyed spending time there and couldn't help but fall even more in love with North Florida. Carson is very interested in the animals, so all it took was one glance and he would mumble up a storm about this animal and that. The only time he was hesitant was Geoff holding him up to the rail. He was holding on to Geoff for dear life.

At Tallahassee Museum

Carson playing outside at Lori and David's with Chai and Chloe! He had so much fun!

We left late that afternoon to start heading home. Since this was our first long trip with Carson, we tried to do the leg of the trip while he was sleeping. He was not a happy camper if he was awake in the car seat. Therefore, we drove to Gainesville, stopped at Cracker Barrell and had dinner. Went in the camper, changed him, got him ready for bed, jammies and all. He was out as soon as we were back on the highway. We drove to Orlando and stopped for the night and drove the rest of the way first thing in the morning, again when Carson was sleeping.

Carson was very well behaved on the trip. Geoff and I both agreed that it was very hard to go back to work after spending so much time with him.

It was the BEST family vacation. I know Carson may not remember all of this one day, but he can always look at all of the photos and know where he went as a child. Who knows what the Springs will be like in 20 years, if the beach in the gulf will be as beautiful as it was or if the Museum will still be around.

The older he gets, the more fun he gets!!

ALL OF OUR VACATION PHOTOS ARE VIEWABLE BY CLICKING ON CARSON'S PHOTO ALBUMS!

Repeat after me

Lately, we have really been going above and beyond to get Carson to just "spit out" what he is trying to tell us. Bless his heart, he will tell us an entire story in "Carson language" and when we don't really understand what he is telling us, he furrows his eyebrows and becomes agitated, sometimes even throwing his hands in the air.

We started asking him to look at us when we tell him a word or ask him a question. For instance, I would say, "Carson look at mommy's mouth" and then say, "Where's Turr-bo". He'd watch me speak and then try, but it never came out.

All of a sudden the past couple of days, when you say a word and ask him to repeat, he repeats! When visiting family friends Friday night, we heard an airplane and he immediately looks outside and my mom and I looked at each other when we heard "airplane".

Then last night at Publix, our friend Paige was with us and she was in the produce and said Apple, then she said.. it sounded like he just said Apple.

He repeats, "Stop it" when we tell Tuna to stop barking. Not only does he tell her to Stop it, he runs at her with his shoulders pressed up and then points his finger at her, Stop it. You really can't help but laugh at this.

He says Papa for my dad. We'll say, papa, and he just rattles.. papa papa papa papa. I thought for sure he recently said Daddy. But when I tried to get him to say it again, he lips were sealed.

Of course, if anyone comes around and tries to prove my blogpost and anything that I say, Carson will make a liar out of me. ha! Not only that, he will look at you like your loonie.

This is the time where we have to really watch what we say and everyone around Carson because the little Angel has turned into a blossoming parrot!

POOPS all about it!!

A couple weeks ago Geoff and I were out shopping and we came across a Backyardigans potty seat. Many of you know, The Backyardigans is Carson's FAVORITE! He LOVES The Backyardigans. We decided to buy it and store it away for when it was "time" to potty train. When we got home, Carson saw the potty seat and immediately was curious what this new object was in the house. What the hey, we put it in the bathroom and figured we would let his curiosity run wild.

Last night while Geoff was watching Carson, he put the seat on and let Carson sit on the potty with his diaper on. Today before I was going to give Carson a bath, he grabbed the potty seat and was putting it on top of the toiletseat. I lifted the top and put the seat on, took his diaper off and let him sit there. I was curious to see what would happen. He was very comfortable, just jabbering away while I sat, anxiously on the tub, waiting. All of a sudden I hear a trickle and Carson did pee pee in the potty! Of course I was making a big deal and then he reached for the toilet paper. This is getting good, I promise. I gave him some toilet paper and just like that, he wiped himself and then put the toilet paper in the bowl! ha!! I just about lost it, I was hysterically laughing, I couldn't believe it.

I thought he was done, how could it get better. Then...I saw the face, watched the eyes squint and kerplunk, there it was! My 16 month old son did poo poo in the potty!!!! Immediately I'm calling Geoff and my mom because I just couldn't believe what had happened. I was clapping and screaming and Carson had a smile from ear to ear, he knew he did something big. He then wiggled off the seat and went to the handle to try and flush. Of course I paused to take a "proud mommy" photo of my big boy's first poo poo in the potty!!!!

Still.... it gets better. I thought it was a fluke, no chance, I still don't think he is in anyway ready to potty train, but it is fun to get him use to what is to come. Tonight before bath, he was grabbing at the seat, so I put the seat on and let him sit. Just like that, I heard a little trickle and then he looked in the bowl. He did pee pee again. He sat for a minute and then the face. He squinted and all of a sudden, kerplunk!!! Carson did poo poo in the potty twice in 1 day!!!!!

Of course, my mom immediately ordered the exact potty seat for her house so they could practice whenever Carson wanted to. Amazing, I tell ya, the kid blows me away every day. Now if he could just talk to me and tell me what he is thinking. haha. One thing at a time.. :-)

Maybe this will make a blog post

I have a dear friend, a dear friend who I have known since she was the young, wild, crazy, its 3:00 p.m. are you awake yet, friend. In some ways, she was like the younger sister I never had but vicariously got to live through. Aaahhh... yes...We all know... Ms. Eva Marie Cimino. The lover of horses and Kenny Chesney, the beach and the gym.

Last summer, Eva came with Carson and I to the beach one fine Saturday morning while Geoff was working. We had a great day and of course, Eva makes a smart comment later on how it didn't make a blog post. If you know Eva, you can hear her in your head saying this.. then she would innocently hold the "I have chocolate chip cookies over your head".

Then there was another day that Eva babysat Carson all day and had a great Carson and Eva day.

Then there was yesterday. Eva was full of smart remarks.

This is yesterday...Carson's version.......................

Today, Mommy and Daddy took me to the park, they kept talking about going to a shower, but I didn't see a bathroom. I fell asleep on the way to the park, but when I woke up we were there and I was ready to play. My friend, AUNTIE Eva was there and she was so happy to see me. She kept hugging me and giving me kisses. She keeps saying she is Auntie Eva, not Eva. I tried to say it, but no one understands me.

I like to listen to her, she makes me laugh. Every time someone said something she didn't like, she did her eyebrows like I do and then told them "No Cookies".

After eating a hot dog for lunch and having a conversation with my buddy, Trace, we finally made it to the playground. There, Auntie Eva went on the slides with me. She was so much fun, she even let me sit on her lap down the slide and then let me climb up the slide.

We had a great day and at the end of the day, I even got a chocolate chip cookie because I was such a good boy. Daddy gave me the cookie so I even got to get real messy while eating it and I had chocolate all over my hands and face. Yummy!

Just when we were leaving the playground, I heard Mommy and Eva talking and Eva said to Mommy.. "Maybe this will make a blog post"...............

Love,

Carson

xoxo

15 Months Old

I remember being at a playdate at the McCormick house and there was a friend there and her son was 15 months old. I said to myself, wow, I can't wait until Carson is 15 months old. That moment, seems like yesterday. Carson was about 10 months old then. Blink of an eye.

Height: 32 inch
Weight: 23lbs 7 oz

Food: He eats whatever we eat.
Favorites: FRUIT and VEGGIES <=Yes, as weird as that may seem, when all else fails he will take fruit and veggies over anything. Loves Bananas, Kiwi, Strawberries, Raspberries, Blueberries, peaches, pears. Aunt Patty's Strawberry Jam on toast. <=Loves! Loves Guacamole from La Bamba. Loves beans. LOVES tomatoes. Dislikes: broccoli, I wouldn't say he hates it, but he isn't crazy about it.

Some new things we have tried are peanut butter and chips and salsa. The dr gave us the ok on peanut butter since Carson didn't have any reactions when we gave it to him. He said that peanut butter is actually a great source of goodies for Carson.
He loves Chips and Salsa. When we go to La Bamba we can now give him his little dipping dish of salsa and he dips the chip in there with perfect form!
I recently gave him his own piece of pizza to see what he would do with it. He ate pretty much the entire piece and took all of his own bites without me cutting pieces.

He is doing so much better with silverware. One night for dinner I gave him a bowl of cheerios and milk. He dipped his spoon in and went to town. Same thing with vanilla ice cream. I can't wait to take him to Jaxson's for an ice cream date.

Carson received a bike seat from Grandpa for Christmas. He seems to like it once he is in the seat but he isn't crazy about getting in the seat and then putting on the helmet. He really only goes on the bike with Geoff, as Geoff has explained he doesn't want me riding the bike with Carson. That's ok, I know he's jealous I can go over sweet jumps with my bike! He doesn't want Mama showing Dada up!

Teeth: All four of his first molars have broken through. I think he has a total of 12 teeth now.

He knows where his belly is and especially his eyes. When you ask him where his eyes are, he blinks at you. When you ask him where his belly is, he lifts his shirt.

Words: I don't know if we have any new specific words. Carson has pretty much developed his own language. It's a guessing game as to what he is trying to tell us, but as long as he points, we can pretty much figure it out. I'd love to know what he is trying to tell us. He even furrows his eyebrows and purses his lips during a "story time" to mommy and daddy about his day.

When getting ready to go somewhere, he assists me in getting himself dressed. He knows his feet go in the holes for shorts and the shirt somehow fits on his head. The best is the shoes. He knows the shoes go on the feet. He knows if he has shoes on, it means we are going somewhere.
Last night, I was making dinner and I took his shoes off and he cried and brought them back to me. I put them back on and he went on his merry way throughout the house. It's the little things.

Saying goodbye this month to the nighttime bottle and he is still taking two (2) naps a day, only an hour long.

LOVES BOOKS AND PUZZLES! LOVES! LOVES! LOVES!

Sleep: I don't even really want to brush on this subject. He still wakes up at night, he still comes in our bed, he still needs to be rocked to sleep.. blah blah blah, your kid sleeps through the night. I'm not exhausted from this because now it is just routine. Geoff doesn't mind him in the bed, as long as when Carson doesn't sleep parallel or turn around and you have a foot in your face. So we don't have any arguments about it, just thankful Carson is the only one.

Potty: Not even going to think about potty training, but the funny thing is.. When Carson poops, he now walks away and hides. This from what I hear is a big step in the right direction to one day potty train as he knows he "has to go".

Temper Tantrums: We asked the pediatrician who advised us that this is all normal right now. Carson started slapping us or slapping himself or sitting down on the ground with his face down when he doesn't get his way. We ignore it and wait until he is done or when he slaps us we tell him, not nice and show him "nice".

The road from baby to toddler is very interesting. Exhausting and tiring for all three, but so rewarding. Carson is becoming his own person and we are lucky enough to be with him every step of the way and guide him in the right direction.

Thinking about him, I can't wait to go pick him up and get the hug from him where he squeezes around my neck and then pats my back. Then turns my face towards his so he can give Mama a big kiss. So sweet he is.

Happy Holidays and a Happy and Healthy New Year

Happy Holidays!

It seems as if within a blink of an eye, Christmas was here and now it's gone. In 11 months we will be unpacking all of the Christmas goodies again and ready to celebrate another Christmas and New Years.

We started getting ready for Christmas by making handmade ornaments with 2 of Carson's girlfriends, Sophia and Kailyn. He wasn't thrilled about putting his hand in the dough, but he did it.

Geoffrey and I took Carson to see Santa at Bass Pro Shops. He was NOT happy. He wanted nothing to do with Santa. I submitted the photo to Sun Sentinel in the "Scared of Santa" section and the next thing, there it was in Sun Sentinel.

Christmas Eve we spent at my parents house with family and friends. We had a great time and Carson was spoiled rotten. We had the opportunity to see Santa again and he wasn't thrilled, but he didn't cry. He was very excited by all of police lights and sirens when Santa came down the street.

Carson helping Mommy decorate the tree

Christmas Day was everything I expected it to be. Not so so much fun for Carson, but fun for Mommy and Daddy watching his reactions to everything. He started to open the gifts and pulled little pieces of paper, but he was bored with it after a minute. Diesel helped him with the rest. For Christmas we bought him a Magna Doodle and his first crayons and coloring book. He received puzzles, books, clothes, toys, a jelly fish tank (which he loves), his first pair of cowboy boots, money for college and so many goodies from everyone. We are so happy and appreciative that Carson has so many people that love him. In his language he says.. "m u gufgbcas" <==That is Carson's Thank you. Mommy and Daddy thank you so so much.

Merry Christmas from Carson and his Mommy and Daddy



The Ellison Christmas Tree all ready for some action

Carson opening his magna doodle

Christmas Morning after we opened our gifts we went to Grandpa's house to open gifts with Grandpa and Uncle Jeremy. Afterwards, they came back to our house with Nannie and Poppa and we had Christmas morning breakfast. We cleaned up, packed up and headed to Melbourne afterwards to see Aunt Patty, Uncle Charlie, Jacqui and Griff. We normally would have gone the day after Christmas, but since I wasn't off work on Monday, we went up on Christmas Day. We had a wonderful visit, a delicious dinner and lots of laughs fireside at night.

To end the New Year, we ate at La Bamba's for dinner and then came back home to celebrate with April, Billy, Sophia, Jay, Monique, Stacey and Rai. Geoff had been working 24 hour shifts and wasn't suppose to be there at midnight. I have to admit, I was a tad bit disappointed because I've kissed Geoff at midnight since I was 17, not a year missed. Low and behold, just before midnight, he walked in the door to wish us a Happy New Year and then back to work he went. My dearest Carson somehow stayed up until 12:30am!! He wouldn't go to sleep. Refused the idea of going to sleep, sleep was un heard of for him. At 12:30 it was as if someone turned out the light and he was out until 9:30am!! New Years Day, Carson and I spent the day in our jammies while Daddy slept.

First Family photo of 2011

We bid you farewell 2010. Looking forward to meeting all the new babies of 2011 that our friends are expecting and celebrating a very, very, very exciting engagement!!! Congrats ___ and ___!! We loooove you!!! (I'll wait until they make the announcement) (It's BEN AND AMY) :) :) :) Smiles for Miles