Book Worm

This morning Nathan was very interested in a book he spotted next to our rocker. I handed it over to see what he would do. He really knows how to enjoy a good book!

He took in each page....

enjoyed the colorful illustrations...

and even tasted the yellow bananas. (hey, they smell good!)

I think I have a book worm in the making :)

Four Month Check-up

Our healthy 4-month old!

Weight: 17 lbs 8 oz (95%)

Length: 27 inches (100%)

As always, Nathan was very cooperative and happy during his check-up. And then came the shots...he actually did pretty well considering it was 3 shots in the leg plus 1 oral vaccination. Here he is the following day. You can see 2 of his "boo-boos" on his chunky thigh. Poor little guy. (He's feeling much better now.)
Our little cutie
He's been working on sitting up. He usually leans forward like this but it's amazing how strong he is getting.
One of his new tricks is pulling his pacifier out of his mouth and then trying to put it back in. He's still working on the letting go part. He usually pulls it right back out of his mouth.
Nathan has also been squealing the last few weeks. He loves exploring with his voice. It's so fun to see (and hear) him develop and discover new things.

Work it!

Yesterday Nathan was in such a happy and talkative mood when I came to pick him up at my family's house. We were having fun just watching him. Then my dad brought out the "big" camera. Nathan really knows how to work the camera. He began his photo shoot sitting up on the couch but then fell to his tummy. He pushed up with his hands and smiled right at the camera and all of us watching:)
He then started to twist and turn and, of course, smile right at the camera. It was very cute. After the "photo shoot" he just talked and talked. He had a captive audience between my parents, Ryan, Rebecca and me. We have so many fun "conversations" now.
Once we got home, Nathan needed some down time. Here he is just relaxing with his teddy and paci.
What a day!

The finished product

How cute is this little hand and foot print? I love it!

Decisions, decisions...

Halloween is coming and we have some big decisions to make...

To be Nemo

(this costume is hilarious)

or Mickey Mouse?

I thought Nathan would make a great little chipmunk (just look at those cheeks) but I haven't come across such a costume yet. My mom and Rebecca picked up these 2 costumes last weekend for Nathan to try out. I'm leaning towards Mickey Mouse. Plus a teacher I work with has a Minnie Mouse costume I could borrow.

What do you think?

Back to School...

means back to work for me.

Well, I survived moving to a new classroom, unpacking and getting the room ready for the first day of school. The first 7 days have gone well and I have a great little class. But I do miss Nathan! We're very lucky to have both grandmas close by and willing to watch him while I'm at work. My mom even brought Nathan by a few days last week during my lunch time. That was a nice surprise.

I'm happy to say that I've been leaving school around 3:30 pm each day. (This is a big deal since in the past I usually stayed at work until 5pm or later.) I'm learning to be very efficient with my time during the day and it also helps being my 5th year teaching 1st grade. I'll post a picture of my class soon.

Last night

Funny faces before going to bed
We had Nathan sitting up and he was playing with his soft blocks. He has become more "grabby" and aware of his hands within the last few days. His latest thing is he likes to scratch his fingers on the back of couches and chairs...they make some interesting noises.

Rub a dub dub

Nathan loves bathtime! Don't forget the cozy bath robe and slippers.

(I think the robe is a tad bit short...he's a growing boy.)
Nathan sitting up with a little help from mom...work those abs.

Hot seat

Nathan tried out his new little seat the other night and as you can tell it was a hit. This was his immediate reaction to it.

We were cracking up because he looked so funny sitting up in his seat. He even put his arms up on the "arm rests".

Just hanging out

Such a serious face...but notice the arms. He looks pretty comfy.

The Carter Crew

Saturday we had an early birthday dinner for Kelly before she left for BYU. Since we were all together my mom wanted to get a family photo. (Thanks Grandma Carter!) I think it turned out pretty good for being a spur of the moment photo shoot. Just look at the symmetry...we organized ourselves very well.

A safe return

Here's Nathan surrounded by all the Carter girls. What a lucky boy!

My parents and Ryan and Kelly returned home from Europe last Tuesday. We went by to say hello that night. Unfortunately their suitcases didn't make it with them so we couldn't check out our souvenirs just yet.

Nathan is bummed that he can't sample the yummy chocolate. But he received some cute outfits and shirts from Germany, France and Italy. And a children's book en francais.

Too much of a temptation...he had to attempt a bite.

I'm getting closer...Well, it was worth a try!

Bitten

If you love great deals then you may be interested in checking out BITTEN, a clothing line designed by Sarah Jessica Parker. I first heard about it on Oprah and was looking forward to checking it out because every item is under $20! The philosphy behind the clothing line: "It is every woman's inalienable right to have a pulled-together, stylish, confident wardrobe with money left over to live." Sounds good to me! I was disappointed when I found out that the clothing was only sold at a store called Steve and Barry's... never heard of it.So of course I was excited to find out that there is a Steve and Barry's not too far from us. On Saturday we went to Garden Grove with Kevin's family to eat at Perry's Pizza. Why did we go so far for pizza? Well, it's thick-crusted, square-shaped pizza that Kevin's mom loves. There use to be one in Torrance. It is very yummy. (I actually meant to get pictures at the pizza place.) After our pizza dinner, Kevin and I decided it would be fun to walk around The Block at Orange, which was close by. It's an outside shopping mall with a bunch of fun stores, including a Steve and Barry's. I was so happy to finally check out the clothing line.Kevin and Nathan hung out while I shopped. I grabbed a bunch of stuff to try on and came away with a floral top, 2 pairs of jeans (I couldn't resist $15 jeans) and some plum ballet slippers. I will definitely be going back for future shopping trips. Check out the clothing line here.

While the parents are away

While my parents are in Europe, Rebecca (my youngest sister) has been staying with us. She's a great little helper. We've been having fun hanging out together.

Playing b-ball
Rebecca is so good with Nathan.

I love Nathan's pose in this picture....he looks hilarious.

Rebecca scrapbooking a page all about Nathan.
Thursday night we had Matt, Sandi and Rachel over for dinner. Kevin and Rebecca made a delicious dinner of Chicken Cordon Bleu, rice pilaf, broccolini and rolls. Yum!
Nathan napping during our dinner.Aunt Sandi with Nathan
Nathan relaxing in Rebecca's arms this morning.

Totally comfortable.

We spent some time at the pool this afternoon. Rebecca went swimming while Nathan and I relaxed in the shade. It's been warm the last two days but it felt nice and breezy out by the pool.

12 weeks

Nathan is 3 months old today!

He's still wearing 0-3 months clothing but not for much longer. He responds to us with lots of smiles and coos which is so much fun. He loves to watch ceiling fans, his star mobile and the TV. He is a great sleeper at night. He continues to amaze us each day with every new little thing.

Insert hand in mouth

Since birth Nathan has enjoyed sucking on his hands and fingers although he depended on luck in the beginning to bring them to his mouth. But now he's able to bring his hands right to his mouth for slurping satisfaction.

Here's the one-handed chomper. Sometimes he tries to get both hands at once...pretty funny. I'm wondering if we have a thumb sucker on our hands.

Sunday Best

Someone was very smiley this morning while getting dressed for church. I'm sure it helped that he had a full belly and a clean diaper. :)

I missed all the real big smiles.

I think he looks very GQ here with the shirt tucked in and all.

The sweater vest was a little bulky but he still looked adorable. The shoes didn't last very long but they sure were cute. I was excited that he could finally fit into this outfit.

Daddy and Nathan

Mommy and Nathan

And off to church we go...we were even a minute or two early today!

Tummy Time

Here's Nathan enjoying some of his tummy time.

" To lift this head takes strength! And once I get it rocking there's no stopping me from rolling over."

(unless I get stuck )

The halfway rollover

Nathan surprised us by rolling from his tummy to his back around 7 weeks old. I missed it because I was in the shower at the time. I actually have a video of him rolling over but I have yet to figure out how to get it onto my blog.

Sometimes you just need to take a break...

Nathan's buggy playmat...he loves the butterfly that plays music and lights up when you touch it.


"I think I'm ready to crawl now."