Meeting Santa!

Brad and I took Lillian this week for her first visit with Santa! With Lillian's apprehension of men with facial hair (my sweet daddy scares her every time!), we really were anticipating a full-throttle meltdown! What we got was something I have never seen before - Lillian so overwhelmed she was emotionLESS. I think the picture describes it pretty well! :)

Photo Shoot

I now have a serious appreciation for child photographers! Brad and I spent hours - MANY HOURS - today trying to get a picture of sweet Lillian for our Christmas cards. Maybe this was the fundamental flaw in the plan, but I seriously went in thinking... got cute kid, got Holiday props, we should knock this out with a few shots. Does 164 attempts sound like I had any idea what I was getting into? I acknowledge that I am a bit of a perfectionist, but truly there were only about 5 pictures out of all we took that were decent. Brad and I both can sum up the experience in one word - Exhausting!
Two humorous thoughts to close with... 1. Brad said today that next year, he doesn't care if we have to go to the Wal Mart photo studio, we're not doing it ourselves and 2. Initially Brad mentioned getting Emily and Lillian together in the Christmas card picture. Those of you who've spent any time around Emily (aka - the Badger) know why this is funny!
Here's a few of our favorites from today.

No question, she'll know what to do with her stocking on Christmas morning!
Lillian was very intrigued by this "prop"!

Almost December?!

Seriously, HOW can it be almost December? This is humorous since I'm just getting around to posting the pictures from Lillian's first Halloween. Does this fact leave anyone surprised when I admit that I haven't done any Christmas shopping yet? I swear, there was a time (not too long ago in fact) that I was incredibly organized and efficient. Of course, those were also the days that I was able to take showers uninterrupted, sit while I ate and take naps at my discretion! :)

Back to the reason for the post... Lillian celebrating her first Halloween as a super cute zebra!

Can you see the fear and confusion on her face as I was putting the costume on?

We had a moment where she embraced the new duds...

The moment had passed...

9 Months

I realize that every mother feels this, but as I get ready to post Lillian's 9 month update, I can't believe we are here ALREADY! Another stay-home-mom made a comment to me when Lillian was extremely young and now I am starting to completely get it... The days go by so slowly, but the time goes by too fast.
As far as Lillian's "stats" go, we still have a big girl! She weighs just over 21 pounds, which puts her in the 90th percentile and is 29 1/2 inches tall, which puts her off the chart. She still loves to eat, but we are in a transition period. She is weening herself from baby food (she doesn't like it anymore), but hasn't quite mastered "real food". Let's just say that meal time at the Carter house has become a bit challenging - Cheerios anyone? That's a balanced meal, right??? :)
She crawls everywhere now and pulls up on everything! Bath time has become interesting since Lillian is no longer content to sit and play with her toys. No, she wants to stand and hold onto the edge of the tub the whole time. She doesn't talk yet(with words), but is constantly making sounds! Brad says that's one thing she and I definitely have in common... and I'm certain that's a compliment to both of us! :)

Lillian in her lowered crib... HA! Working on a little Auburn cheer...

And She's Off!

It's official, Lillian is crawling! As of this past Friday, our little girl is mobile. Since I am getting to stay home with her, I just assumed that one of the perks is that I would get to see all of her "firsts" - wrong! I stepped out of the room for a minute (seriously, ONE minute) and I came back in to find her crawling around. Yep, this is SO my child! :)

One Very Special Day

Last Sunday was an unforgettable, incredible day for the Carter family... Brad and Lillian were baptized! Brad never had the opportunity as a child and missed his scheduled date when we joined our church thanks to my emergency root canal. Not that I am thankful for that, BUT how amazing is it that daddy and daughter got to share in such an amazing event!
We had about twenty family members come to the service and over to our house afterwards for lunch. I would like it noted that not getting up with a squirmy child in front of the entire congregation OR the 20 people coming over to eat gave me an anxiety attack! :) It was a truly GREAT day and we would like to say "thank you" to everyone who made it so special!

The Carter Clan...

The Lee's...

Lillian couldn't be happier than sitting with uncle Chris and Carson!...

Eight Months

Like most of my other friends with babies, I am trying to update the blog each month with Lillian's "stats" so that one day, I can put it all in her baby book. Let me start by saying I am absolutely loving being Lillian's mother! Now let me be clear, I have LOVED her since day one, but I am really starting to ENJOY this awesome responsibility God has blessed me with. While being a stay-home-mom was NEVER in my plan, it was obviously in His and I am trying not to take this wonderful opportunity for granted.
So, sentimental stuff aside, I have a really cool little girl! Lillian eats like a champ (I SO respect this) and has four 8 oz. bottles a day and three 4 oz. jars of baby food (I won't mention the amount of teething cookies and puffs :)). If for no other reason, I know this is my child because she loves to sleep! She sleeps 12 hours every night and is now taking about 2-3 hours of naps during the day. She has three teeth now (2 bottom and 1 top), but looks like another top tooth will be here any day now. She is doing LOTS of babbling and has said "dada" and "momma", but has no idea what she is saying (as much as I would like to believe that she does). Mobility is something we just don't quite have yet and I am starting to think that we may bypass crawling and go straight to walking (she seems much more interested in that). She is already pulling up on things and we are having to lower her mattress. The past few days I have gone in after her nap to see her smiling at me over the side of the crib (very cute, but not very safe!). Lillian is turning into a social butterfly and I couldn't be happier. She loves other children and with the exception of the poor lady who works at the dry cleaners we use, likes adults as well. She goes to Mother's Day Out at our church and the teachers told me that Lillian is their easiest and friendliest child. As the person who is home with her all day, every day I can't say I wasn't a little surprised by the "easiest" part. :) Finally, she loves animals (that's my girl!) and unfortunately finds our pets much more entertaining than they do her. Oh, I almost forgot, she thinks NOTHING is as great as her daddy!

Lillian at her granddaddy's birthday party...
Lillian laughing at Emily...

This face cracks me up...

Lillian and her boyfriend, Trent...

Lillian and my best friend's little girl, Julia...

Check Out My Chompers!

Lillian has had two bottom teeth for awhile now, but I was finally able to snap a picture of them today. I absolutely love this beautiful, "toothy" smile! :)

A Visit With Granddaddy!

Lillian got to spend last week with her very favorite grandparent (and not just b/c he is her only grandparent :)) ... my dad! We went to Pensacola so that Brad could work that area and also because my dad talked him into participating in a race his running club puts on. Let's just say that it was already 95 degrees at 8:00 AM on the day of the race, so there will not be any pictures from that particular part of the weekend. The quote "this is the dumbest idea I've ever had" pretty much sums up that event!

Although Lillian has been to the beach before, she had never actually been ON the beach until this visit. Whether or not she will be a "beach girl" is the topic of much conversation/debate between my dad and I. He was born with an overwhelming love for the ocean while I HATE sand and would much rather have a pool! The verdict is still out on Lillian's preference.

Finally, my dad volunteered to keep Lillian one night so that Brad and I could have a "date night". We were super excited to have some time alone together that didn't involve paying a babysitter and jumped at the opportunity. The night started perfectly with a nice, relaxing dinner at Hemingway's (really good restaurant!) but quickly took a turn. It was the weekend of the Bushwacker Festival (should have been a red flag, I realize) so Brad and I thought that we would go listen to the bands playing on the boardwalk. I'll make this story short and sweet by saying that Coolio (yes, the rapper) was the main act that evening and we were the only "non-thug" people around (yes, at the beach!). Seriously, is that not so mine and Brad's luck?!

Lillian with her granddaddy...

Date night started with high hopes...

It didn't start well introducing Lillian to the beach...

Things slowly started to improve...

By far, the happiest moment of day one...

Day two went much better...

6 Months and Fun Visits

I know it's surprising, but our baby girl is already 6 months old! :)

We went on Friday for Lillian's 6 month check-up and here are a few of the highlights... She weighs 17.2 lbs which is in the 90th percentile and is 27 inches long which is in the 95th percentile. I know that I have mentioned it before, but it will just be amazing to me if I have a tall child since I come from such a long line of short people! She was already eating three meals a day (a mix of fruits and veggies) along with her four bottles, so there really isn't anything new there. We are moving into the Stage 2 foods however, so she will be eating more and having some combo foods now. So far, there isn't a single fruit or vegetable that she doesn't like, but bananas and sweet potatoes are by far her favorites! She is still not a napper, but sleeps between 11-12 hours a night so I won't complain. Also, Lillian had her first tooth break through last week and it looks like a second one will be here any day now!
We were so excited to have my aunt (Linda), uncle (Chris), and beautiful cousins (Meridith and Caroline) come up from Auburn last weekend to visit! Linda came and stayed with us (aka - took care of us) when Lillian was first born but this was the first time since then that we were able to spend time together.



Also, my friend, Lauren, brought her sweet little girl, Reese, over for a visit. I think it is so cute how children respond to other children... Lillian couldn't take her eyes off of Reese. It was also fun to see how Reese wanted to help so much with Lillian (she helped feed, change and hold her) and this is a very good thing since Lauren is about to have her second little girl! :)
Please have a good laugh at us trying to get a good picture of the two of them together.

Vacation... Not for Sissys!

A mother recently shared this quote with me and I love it! Probably because "The Carters" just went on our first family vacation and I now understand how true that statement really is. It's amazing how a four night trip can actually be a two week event with the planning, packing, unpacking and trying to return Lillian to her normal schedule (this is still a work in progress). For 35 years, vacations have been relaxing events that revolved all around... well, ME. I have come to realize however, that the days of sleeping in (we were up by 7 every morning), lounging with a pina colada by the pool all day (the one virgin pina colada I did get melted while I tried to make Lillian stop crying) and dinners at nice restaurants (the words "kid friendly" were used to discuss any and every dining option) are long gone. Let's just say that the torch has now been passed to the new queen of the house - and I wouldn't have it any other way!
Thanks so much to the Reeds for the fun trip to the beach and lots of great memories!!!

Family Picture...

Getting ready to try the pool...

So, she didn't instantly take to the water...

Things went much smoother with Trent... Us with the Reeds at the pool...

At least she enjoyed chewing on the float... Sometimes a girl just needs to nap... I think she really liked this hat...

Not as much as she likes her daddy though...
Day two went much better at the pool...

Our big girl can now sit up...

The kids patiently waiting on their dinners...