And now another post just because she's so cute...

This is my mini-me - we have a very similar picture of me as a baby!

9 week comparison

Some people are saying how much Gus and Carson look alike and others think they couldn't look more different. Here is each at 9 weeks of age - you decide!

Our Whirlwind Holiday Season

One of the great perks about BJ's company is that they shut down for the week between Christmas and New Years, so for the first time in both of our adult lives, we actually had a long break at the holidays. My parents and brother arrived here in TX on the 21st, we spent a few days getting ready for Christmas and celebrating here, then we packed up and headed to Shreveport for Christmas with my Mom's side of the family, and then we hit the road to Greenville through the 1st of the year. It was wild and exhausting, but memorable (we'll probably stay put next year!)


Learning some Lax moves with the new sports set from Gigi and Papou


Never did a child get so excited about a hat and some gloves - he wouldn't take them off


Visiting Grandmother in Shreveport


Hugging Gigi


Gus wanted Santa to bring him a "Big Choo Choo" and so he did...


And this how Carson spent most of Christmas - snuggled up with me :)


Love that sweet smile (she started smiling really big at 5 weeks - melting our hearts everytime)


Gramma and Papa


Nonnie


With Papa Odell's hat


Hanging out with his buddy Liam




Visiting Bea


Carson and Nonnie

We arrived back home on January 3rd and we're finally starting to settle into a routine for the first time since Carson was born. I'm actually looking forward to quiet boring winter at home with my babies (I give it until the 2nd week of February before I'm ready to be on the go again!)

Carson Rebecca Boling has arrived

Carson's Homecoming

Sweet boy the next minute...

Welcome to life with your big brother...

Sweet baby girl

Gigi and Papou meet Carson

Happy to finally meet my baby girl (it was a looooong pregnancy)

Proud Daddy

Cheeks!

So our daughter is 5 weeks old and I'm finally blogging about it (largely in part to a month with intermittent or non-existent internet, but we're back online, so get ready for lots of posts).

Carson Rebecca arrived on Wednesday, November 9th at 12:51 AM, she weighed 8 lbs 2 oz and was 17.5 inches long. She's beautiful and we feel truly blessed to have welcomed a healthy baby girl into the world.

My parents arrived at 1:30 PM on Tuesday, November 8th. We picked Gus up from school at 2:00, had a late lunch, and we're outside playing in the yard when I went inside to use the bathroom and my water broke at 4:00. My parents had driven 1600 miles from PA to get here in time to take care of Gus and be here for Carson's birth - they arrived just in time!

We are slowly adjusting to life as a family of four, we've been on our own for almost two weeks now and we're still here to tell about it. We hope to be online and blogging more in the coming weeks, because lets be honest, I'm no scrapbooker and without the blog my kids won't have any record of their childhood beyond pictures!

Girly Girl Budget Nursery

So we are 2.5 weeks or less away from baby girl's arrival and our nursery is finally on its way to being finished. Other then hanging the curtain (which may require professional help), the mirror and the custom artwork to come (via the very talented artist Gigi) we have a complete girly girl room ready for her arrival. We painted the room a light chalk pink and striped the accent wall with the pre-existing green, light pink, dark pink and white. Other then the chair and the pink chandelier we haven't had to purchase a thing for the nursery thanks to my very generous sister in law who did a super cute nursery for her daughter 9 years ago - and it still looks great!

Craigs List glider for $65

We also scored an orange BOB Double Stroller on Craigs List this weekend for $250 - they retail for $600 - we still need a few attachments for it - but it was a great deal and anyone who knows me knows what a bargain hunter I am!

We spent the weekend enjoying fun Halloween festivals at Gus's school and our church and we finally toured the hospital where we'll be delivering. Its all starting to come together and with only a few days to spare I'm finally starting to feel "ready" to welcome baby girl.

All Moved In and Over

Its been a crazy month to say the least. After 2 months of urban living in downtown Fort Worth, we closed on our house in the burbs on September 16th. We spent the next month unpacking, painting, and getting organized - leaving little time for phone calls, emails or blogging!

The Monday after we moved in we went to the OB for our bi-weekly appointment and my placenta previa still hadn't cleared up, so our doctor gave us the news that we might be delivering 4 weeks early. I just about had a breakdown in the parking lot after the appointment. We've had an ultrasound every week since then, and got a 2nd opinion this week and we're happy to report that my placenta has finally moved and we are clear for a normal delivery. So many prayers were answered and stress relieved after our appointment this week.

I'm 36 weeks pregnant, and finally starting to feel settled in Texas, just in time for newborn upheaval - but we're so excited to meet our baby girl. It hasn't been until the last week or so that I've actually had time to really process her upcoming arrival and really get excited about it. Moving 3 times in 6 months will cut into your pre-baby nurturing time just a bit!

We've been overwhelmed by the kind people we've met. We joined First United Methodist of Keller last weekend and have started to become active a bible study there. We are constantly meeting new friends on walks in the neighborhood or just at the park. Texas really is just as friendly as its reputation - its also just as hot weather wise.

We went to the pumpkin patch last weekend and it was 85 degrees, but despite the heat we had a great time as a family. We went on a hay ride, BJ and Gus on a death defying train ride, and had popcorn and sprite for lunch - it was so much fun.

No fear on the bounce house

I think this train ride would have sent me in to Labor

Horsies - a new obsession (along with cows) since we moved to TX

Gus has grown up so much since we left SC, he is such a little man now. He sings and wants us to sing all the time, he knows all the verses of Wheels on the Bus, and can sing most of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - it comes out like "Twinkle Twinkle Star, Up Above, Diamond in the Sky" - its the sweetest thing. His love of football has won his Daddy's heart, and he wants to wear his Clemson jersey every Saturday. He wakes up asking for the "ball show" and cheering "Go Clempson! Go Tigers!" - we think he might be behind the winning streak :) He loves preschool and Gymboree and hasn't met a stranger yet. He actually hugs other kids at preschool so much they have to ask him to stop because he is so big he knocks them over - this makes me laugh.

We look forward to sharing more in the next few weeks now that we're more settled.

Little Monkey Goes to School

Our little buddy started preschool yesterday, his report at the end of the day said - he ate very little, slept like a champ, and was happy and played all day - sounds about right! He was all too happy to pose for these pictures before school.

We celebrated Gus's first day of school and BJ's birthday with jambalaya for supper and derby pie for dessert (the birthday boy's requested meal). Gus said Happy Birthday Dada all day long - it was so sweet.