October 2009 Archives

This evening, we power-packed Halloween in! 

We started by going to Homemaker's for their Halloween Treasure Hunt.  It was an in-door trick or treat event, and it was crazy-busy.  Thankfully I got the kiddo's there early.  We had a great time!

Then we headed home, dropped Charlie off with Daddy, and Carter and I went to Creepy Capers, Ankeny's Halloween party.  There were activity centers throughout the Lakeside Center, and Carter loved playing the games, getting treats, and checking out other Halloween'ers.  She was amazed by everyone's costumes!  At one point, she couldn't help but touch Snow White's dress.  And she kept staring at Mr. Skeleton's protruding bones.  It was cute!



It's a Bird!  It's a Plane!  No ... it's SUPER GIRL!



Don't be afraid ... he won't bite! 



My Super girl and tiny tiger, off to beg for treats



It must be a kid thing, but Carter made it about 14 seconds before dumping her bag to scavenge through to see her loot!



... Charlie slept through the whole thing!



Yep ... he's still asleep!  But Carter and I had fun!



My spook-tacular family!



Look out for creepies at Creepy Capers!

 

We decorated a Halloween cookie ... it never ceases to amaze me that in such a quick time she can be covered in whatever she's trying to eat!



SPOOKY!!! 



BOO!  Happy Halloween! 

I don't know for sure what my favorite holiday is, but I'm fairly sure Halloween is Carter's favorite (it's definitely in my top 3, for sure!).  It's been a fun week, with costumes at dance, treats at Triad and theme days at daycare.  Tonight we're headed out to Trick or Treat (in true Halloween-fashion, it's been raining since last night, it's windy and cold!  Good times ...).



Super-Girl at Hip Hop Wednesday




Tinkerbell (or "Carterbell"!) at tap/ballet Thursday



The tap/ballet girls ... or animals, fairies and princesses!



Grr!  Scary face!  Treats and masks from Triad



Eyeball candy ... ewwww!



Monday @ daycare:  Jammy Day (she's been looking forward to this week for months!!)



Tuesday @ daycare: "Mixmatch Day,"  She couldn't say "mismatch," but she certainly dressed the part!



Wednesday @ daycare:  When you grow up day.  Her teacher, Miss Tarah, said that Carter asked Tarah to call her "Doctor Susan" all day.  Dr. Susan??!  Who's that?



Thursday @ daycare:  Decade Day (it's also picture day.  Let's hope they remembered to change her clothes before professional pictures!).  She loved the boots!



Friday @ daycare:  Costume day and the big Halloween party!  YEAH!!!

There's not much new to report with Mr. Chalupa.  He's still eating, sleeping, and pooping a lot (well, not so much pooping this week, which has made him a bit fussy). 

Carter continues to be an excellent helper, wanting to feed him and cuddle him.  She had a couple super-grouchy evenings this week, but we're going to chalk that up to no naps at daycare.

Some pictures from the brink of cute:



"HEY GUYS!!!"



Our little muscle man



Pretty sure that's a smile :)



My biggest helper, Carter Kay



Snuggle-time, reading books



Carter reads to Daddy



Best part of being a Big "Cissy:" bottle duty, not diaper duty!



Carter, Mommy and Charlie



Quality tummy time



Charlie checking himself out - gotta look good for the ladies!



Peek!

Daddy is notorious for being the Tickle-Monster around here.  He's been tickling Carter since day one, over four years ago, bringing her into full-belly laughs.

Now he has a helper!



It all started innocently enough, with Carter loving on her little brother ...



.. then Mr. Arms and Legs got squirmy, and got fingers in her neck, her most ticklish spot.



She giggled, hooted and hollered, and he just kept squirming! 



There were a couple bops to the nose, by both parties ...



... but they still love one another!
(Poor girl doesn't stand a chance down the road!)

This evening, Andy and Rory came over with the intention of carving pumpkins.

Instead, Andy, Rory and Andy made dinner (Paella!  Yum!), while Carter, Charlie and I carved pumpkins.  That's okay - I'd rather eat :)

Carter wanted "spooky" pumpkins!  So we did our best to be frightening, but she didn't want to scare Charlie, so we had to be careful.  This is what we ended up with:



Our little punkins with their pumpkins



Chopping veggies for paella!  It's the best!



Mommy and Carter carving pumpkins



75% of a happy family!



Carter wanted to put him in the pumpkin ... for the record, I didn't do it (but it would have been CUTE!)



Punky's pumpkin family



I'm thinking Charlie doesn't love Halloween as much as Carter!



Happy Halloween!

So here is Baby #1, Carter Kay, at one week:



And Baby #2, Charlie, one week old today:



They have the same little pug noses, bright eyes and forehead wrinkles, but I don't think Charlie's going to have the red hair.  But it's early ...

Phew!  What a long but wonderful week! 

Charlie has been the best baby ever!  We really couldn't ask for more from him.  He's sleeping in a fairly-regular pattern of 4 hours sleep, 30 minutes or so of feeding, 2 hours of sleep, another 30 minute feeding, then 4 more hours of sleep.  He can be a pokey night-time eater, but I'll take it for 4 hours of sleep!  He's eating well, day or night, and he's already starting to put some of his baby weight back on - his cheeks are getting rounder!  He rocks tummy time, and is one of the best snugglers, hands down.  I think I've even gotten a smile or two ... which could really be his happiness over a fart, but I'm counting it!

Carter continues to be the best helper ever!  I really expected some type of meltdown or upset girl, but she's been fantastic.  She wants to help with bottles and blankies, and whenever he's upset (which is rarely - when he's hungry, has a dirty diaper or is being harassed by his dad!), she runs to get him a musical toy to calm him.  She calls him, "Baby" is a sweet little adoring voice.  And she loves our bedtime time ritual, which now includes Andy holding Charlie while we read one of Carter's books (usually Purple-licious or Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, our current favorite's). 

Here is our week in pictures:



Monday night was our first night in our new bedtime ritual: Charlie and Carter snuggled while Andy sacked out at the foot of the bed and I read "The Great Gracie Chase," an all-time favorite book



Yep, that's our Prince Charming!



One proud big "Cissy" and her sweet little brotha



"I'm ready for action, guys!"



I'm pretty sure that smile is 100% fart-related, but I like to think it's pure parental love!



Clean puppy ...



Pissed puppy!

 

The two most amazing little guys around, sleeping off the day's adventure.  If I were on my 100%, absolute best behavior every single day for the rest of my life, I still don't think I'd be deserving of such a wonderful life! 

So our first night on our own went pretty well.  Reflecting back upon our first night with Carter (being up every 30 minutes to a screaming newborn who was starving, but refused to eat, and ending in tears from both her and I, and one extremely frustrated and helpless Daddy ...), it went wonderfully!  We fed Charlie at 9:30, and he was wide awake for the first time all day!  He and Andy spent some man-time together while I got a little sleep.  We switched off at midnight.  Charlie decided he didn't want to sleep alone, and Andy was worried about him anyway (THAT's a good Daddy!), so they laid on the floor together.  At 3am, I tagged Andy out, but Charlie was more willing to sleep on his own in his crib, and he made it to 6am for another feeding, and we were all up at 8am, after spending some quality time snuggling Carter and watching cartoons.

I ran a couple errands, then Andy made some progress staining the playground while Charlie slept.  When he woke up, we had a little tummy time (which he seems to enjoy - I believe he may be plotting his escape), then we hung out in the sunny lounger to work off the yellowish skin coloring he has. 

Andy got in a round of golf (we all need a break sometimes!), and Charlie and I worked on adjusting to the crib.  He made it nearly an hour there, sleeping on his own.  I think he work up hungry around 1:00.  I fed him, and must have fallen asleep in the chair with him.  When I woke up, it was nearly 2:00, and we were both still exhausted, so we curled up in our bed for a bit longer (it was heaven!).

Mackenzie and Natalie came to visit later, which was wonderful.  You get into this world of baby, and you forget everyone else is still out there, living day to day!  It was nice to catch up, and to show off one beautiful little man!

Carter helped give Charlie his first home bath.  I don't know what she was expecting, but she stood behind Andy and I with fingers in her ears and a helpless look on her face.  When we got him out of the tub, she held his finger and stroked his hair to calm him.  He's finally able to poop (until about 4:30 ... then 4:33 ... then 4:38, he hadn't pooped since we left the hospital).  We luckily made it out of the tub without him pooping all over, but he did make a big ol' mess in the towel.  Carter was not amused.

To wrap up our evening, Carter chose a book ("Purplelicious," no surprise here!), and we all curled up to share.  It's 8:35pm - Charlie just fell asleep with a full tummy and a half-smile, Carter is curled up, quietly snoring with her penguin, and Andy's been asleep for nearly half an hour.  Wish us luck on our second night, and a fun Tuesday of errands, check ups and a flu shot for Andy.

"Universally Cute" Charlie, basking in the sun

Absolutely NOT happy after the bath!

Charlie and Carter, snuggling up for a book

As Andy says: "You're faster than the average woman.  You incubate babies 10 days faster!" 

Just like his big "Cissy" Carter, Charlie arrived exactly 10 days early, and we're very excited to meet him!

I began contractions Friday (10/16/09) around 4:30am, and again at 5am, 5:15am, 5:40am, and 6:15am.  They lasted about 10 - 15 seconds each, and weren't painful, so I figured we were in for another Carter-like labor.  So I went to school.  I counted through the day and made sure everything was a go, knowing I would most likely not be back Monday.

Later in the afternoon, contractions began to grow longer and slightly more painful.  Around 2:20pm, I went to check out the situation and found that the mucus plug was beginning to go.  In a slight panic, I alerted my co-teacher RaeAnn and the 8th grade language department (who were all thrilled!), and my co-teacher Chris, who was teaching our Math 8 class (the kids were a buzz as I simply said, "I gotta go!").  Andy picked up Carter and met me at home.  She stayed with Rory and Andy (and had a ball), as we headed to "pick up the baby."

We arrived at the downtown hospital around 3:45pm, and we were officially admitted at 4:20.  At that point, I was 4cm dilated and in some pain.  By 5:30, we had a room but no drugs, I was 7cm dilated, in need of an epidural and ready for the show!

Dr. Mintzer broke my water around 5:45, then we did the epidural (looking back, the epidural THEN the water breaking would have been smarter!!).  They told Andy he could take a break as they administered the epidural ... and he almost missed the show!  They said 15 minutes; he was back early, and I was holding back pushes.  Amid pain and unhappiness (the epidural didn't fully kick in until I was about done), I pushed.  A total of 5 pushes was all it took to bring little Charlie to the bright world. 

He was born at 6:19pm, at a healthy 8 pounds, 9 ounces, and 20 and a quarter inches long.  He immediately let out a wail, and I got to hold him while Andy cut his cord.  We were both cleaned up, and the three of us became acquainted.

Andy brought a very curious Big Cissy to visit Saturday morning.  When Carter entered, she had an interested but unsure look on her face.  We situated her on the couch, and got her all cozy with her baby brother.  She just watched him with awe, repeating, "Awww Baby" in a sweet, protective voice.  She checked out his fingers and toes, and you could see her falling in love with him!

We did get an over-night stay Saturday, due to my A positive and Charlie's A negative blood types.  He's also a tad high on the jaundice scale, so he gets to tan by the sunny window for a few days (lucky!). 

We were both discharged Sunday morning, around 11am.  We're happy to be home!  The Bumsted's and Anderson's came to visit (thanks, guys!), and we've been generally lazy and snuggly otherwise, which is fine by all of us!

Without further ado, meet Charlie James Chalupa!



Charlie welcomed the world with a big ol' wail!



Two super-exhausted Chalupa's! 



The proud papa



Meet the new man in my life



A wink and a smile??

Saturday October 17, 2009 ...



Big Cissy Carter comes to adore her baby brother





You're a lucky guy, Charlie!  This Big Cissy will treat you right!



My babies!



Our little monkey!



One big, happy family

Sunday October 18, 2009 ...



... a little tummy time :)



Tummy with with Carter Kay



Everyone's working on their fitness now!

After a morning's adventure to the pumpkin patch with the 3's, 4's and Pre-K's at day care, all I can say is: God bless childcare providers!

I helped with Carter's group outing this morning, despite the rainy, icky weather.  It was pretty sloppy at the pumpkin patch, but to 30 3, 4 and 5 year old's, mud doens't matter!  We still ventured into the hay bale maze, animal barn and corn pool (always a winner!).  And everyone left with their own little pumpkin!  We had a great, albeit hectic!, time!



Weeee!  The corn pool rules!



Look - Carter, the center of attention!  Big shocker, right?!!



Everyone "swimming" in the "pool"



Erin being boiled up by Carter!

Yes ... that's still counting.  This boy is a true Chalupa: stubborn until the very end!

Last week, I was dilated to 1 cm.  My doctor said that if I was dilated to a 3 or 4 at this week's appointment, we could go ahead and schedule to be induced Saturday 10/17 or Sunday 10/18 (he's on call this weekend). 

Well ... as suspected (and slightly hoped for), I am no further along.  Baby Chalupa really likes it in there.  In the intelligent words of Carter Kay, "it's so warm and snuggly in Mama's tummy.  My baby doesn't want to come out!" (just imagine that in her cute little Carter-voice!).  According to my doctor, we have the option to induce this week, but he recommended (unless we really, really wanted to do it this week) that we wait until next week (I think he foresaw himself being bored at work this weekend, and was slightly trying to convince me to go this week to keep him busy ;)  ).  So I've scheduled my week 39 check-up for Tuesday afternoon.  Cross your fingers for progress and a baby next week (he said initially we could induce Friday 10/23, which would be ideal for both Andy and I).

Here's my question:  we're waiting to induce until the 23rd (obviously.  The doctor recommended it, if Charlie's not ready, let's let him hang out in there.  We've waited this long - what's another week at this point???).  So what happens when I go back in a week and there's still no progress .. but now he's bigger???  That sucks!


28 weeks and 4 days ... otherwise known as 200 days pregnant.
Large and in charge!
Any time now, CJ!

Understandably so, as the 4-6 year old soccer league continues, Carter gets a little better each week.  This week, she was a beast ... until she got her finger stepped on and a splinter (how do you get a splinter in a rubber-and-plastic elementary gym?!??  Only Carter!).  After some TLC, a pep talk and Daddy-surgery to remove the splinter, she was back in and bringing her A game. 

Next week - a goal!



She might not always be at the front of the pack, or even into what's going on at a particular moment, but look at that face.  She loves this!



Carter-Beast, kicking the ball, helping her team and being all around awesome

Somewhere ... Bill Cosby is laughing at us ...

This afternoon, after much rain and chilliness, we ventured to the pumpkin patch.  I kinda forgot rain + dirt = mud.  Despite the cold breeze and muddiness, but still had a great time.  Carter got to "swim" in the corn pool.  She thought it was the greatest thing ever!  She jumped from the hay-side, slide down from the slide and threw corn everywhere!  After playing for a bit, we took the tractor to the pumpkin patch to find Carter's "perfect punkin."  Daddy had to lug it back it was so big!  And, of course, we had to stop at the general store for tasty fall treats!

And ... when we got home ... Carter and I had corn kernels everywhere.  I stripped down for bed and corn fell out of my bra.  Carter went potty, and corn fell out of her butt.  We got a good laugh from that!



Carter and Daddy



Carter and Mommy



Corny Carter!



Carter and Mommy, burying toes (FYI, corn is cold!)



CORN FIGHT!



Andy: "Let's jump heads first, Carter!"
Carter: "Noooooo!"



Look out below!!



Daddy dumping Carts in the corn!  She loved it!


Corny Chalupa's!!!




Tractor ride to the punkin patch



That's the one!!!



Super-Daddy hauling the perfect punkpin back



Punk at the Punkin Patch

Carter and I made Halloween cookies.  Actually, our conversation went something like this:

Carter:  "Mama, you can share these cookies with your kids at school."
Me:  "I could.  Did you know one of them wasn't very nice to me Friday?"
Carter:  "Then he doesn't get a cookie!"
HERE, HERE!



We used store-bought sugar cookie mix (per the recipe), but we made our own frosting.  Now that's big business for us!!



Big Girl got to frost cookies all by herself!



Our master piece cookies!

Week #3:

*  Apparently not as good as week #2

*  Much improved over week #1

Carter still struggles to run, run, run for her 8 minute "quarter" (she's B team, so she only gets to play the 2nd and 4th quarters!  And, even then - on her own accord - she sometimes doesn't really play!).  We realized when we encourage and cheer, she's more involved.  So we have become the Carter Chalupa Cheer Squad. 

Next week, there will be banners.



Going after the ball



.... she totally got a piece of that one!



THUMBS UP, DUDE!  Carter was in it to win it!!!



Our Black Team (we suck, but we're cute!)

When I picked Carter up this afternoon, she was drawing a picture.  She made a heart all by herself.  I asked her what she loved, and she said, "my mama."  (Awwwww!)  Then she drew a picture of me.

She started with my head and big ears, then added my earrings.  Then I got a stick body and a big ol' belly!  She looked at me, giggled, and told me, "That's your big belly, and my baby.  I love you both." 

Awwwww!



So cute, so accurate, and so perfect!!!