Our New Baby Girl

For those of you who don't know, this is our new baby girl. Jeff had been doing some heavty research on breeders and we found a great one in Charlotte. We went out to visit her when she was two weeks old and picked her out of the litter. And then we went out Saturday and saw her again (she'll be four weeks old on Tuesday). She's a blue great dane. (contain your shock and awe, and remember I had one growing up and absolutely adored her!). And we wanted to add a large dog to the mix of the Carter Family.
We are having a hard time picking out names, it's been a battle and we just can't settle on anything we all like.
After spending a little more time with her this weekend we saw a little more of her personality. She's a sweet little lover! So our top two names are "Bella" and "Kona" so for now her name will be Bella Kona. (HAHA).
Anyway, we get to pick her up the first weekend in May!!!! And couldn't be more excited:)

Zack and Alexis

Friday night we had Jeff's sister Melissa and her family over for dinner. We all had a great time, specially the kids!!!!!!!! They just love their cousins:)

Whoo Hooo

Jeff had been interviewing all last week and more this week, well he had accepted two jobs that he wasn't thrilled about. But today he had his second interview with Quicken,
AND HE GOT THE JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WooHoo, go Jeffie go!
It's the job he wanted and just in the nick of time, as his separation from the Navy is saturday:)
I'm so happy for him.

Jeff's Collage

Ch ch chh CHANGES!!!!!!!!!

Well things have been running how things normally run with the Carter's....in a SPRINT!!!!
You never really know what's going to happen with us, and if anything is/and-or/was planned, chances are it changes (except the wedding, that's going to go without a hitch;).

So to start, Jeff had a super-mega influx of interview requests today. He was on the phone non-stop this morning setting up four interviews for next week, and one tomorrow. There are some very good prospects in this bunch.

We officially took Deagan's pacifier away. We had been talking about it FOREVER, but it just never seemed like the right time. Something was always happening and we thought it wasn't fair to take away his security item. Well, then his daycare lost two paci's in two days! And we didn't have any more at home. That was it, they were all gone. I was at school one night when Jeff was putting him to bed, and there was no paci, so Deagan had to do without. The first night was a little rough and he was up by 6am. Then last night he went down and didn't wake up once until we woke him at 7:30. So three days and two nights down!!!!! WAY TO GO DEAGAN! He's taking it well, considering he's had it in his mouth every day since the day after he was born! (woah, i'm terrible! Olivia had it taken from her when she was 12months old!). I was just a bit more of a softie with Deagan....

As for me, I'm working on my final portfolio projects for my classes in prep to get my certificate. They are both theme based series, and I'm focusing on family relationships. It's exciting for me, I'm taking pictures of friends and building my portfolio.

Olivia is Olivia. Not taking to kindly to our busy-busy lifestyle that we've fallen into. Seems we never rest, and it's making her mad. She's the one that keeps us all grounded. She'd prefer to stay at home and play everyday, not go view over 20 houses in a week.

Oh yeah, and Maverick is doing well too. He's loving having Jeff home and anticipating the arrival of his big sister soon. He's a fisty little guy who thinks he's just one of the kids, and he is!

On to the meat and potatoes of this blog. Remember when we moved into a new house a month ago? Yeah well, looks like we'll be moving out soon! We planned on renting until september, but then decided renting just isn't for us and we can't help but take advantage of the end of this housing market...(the landlord's an ass, but that's just the short of it).
More importantly,
WE PUT AN OFFER IN ON A HOUSE AND THEY ACCEPTED!!!!!!!!!
So, now we are just waiting for them to set our closing date and get the ball rolling.
It's a screaming deal on a foreclosure of a home where the owners were given a job related transfer, got a new home, and couldn't keep the double house payments. It's 4Bed 2.5bath, full finished basement. Colonial style. It's in Howell, in a cute neighborhood where everyone has 1-2 acre plots. From talking to the neighbors we've gathered that it's a pretty tight little community. And best of all, there are 22 elementary aged children at the bus stop!!!!!! It's everything we've ever wanted, land, big house, tight community. We can't wait. Now lets just hope the closing goes smoothly!!!! (and quickly)!
I'll give more details later.

My Handsome Hubby

All dressed up for a job interview!
He's so adorable in a suit;)

Airplanes in the Sky

Deagan was fascinated by an airplane flying low in the sky.

Stuck in a Tree

We found a huge tree bottom that was large enough for the kids to sit in!
They had fun (mixed with a little fear):)

Goofing around at the park

Baby Face

There is something about these cheeks that makes me all warm and fuzzy. Maybe it's knowing that there is still a little piece of baby still left in him as he grows so fast. Olivia had these cheeks, but not for this long. It's sad knowing that he'll soon grow out of these cheeks:(

Trying to get into trouble...

Who Wants COOKIES?????

Jeff the School Man

For those of you who don't know, Jeff is going back to school to complete his bachelor's degree. He just met with the advisor this week to enroll and she suggested he apply for a few scholarships. So last week we scrambled to write an essay to attach to some of the applications and get them in on time. Well he just found out today that he won a $3,000 scholarship!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so excited for him:)
What a relief and good for him that finally all of our life events are bringing him some good!

Olivia the Queen

Olivia has settled right back into her old self and much of her true character is emerging with daddy home now. She loves to display to us just how intelligent she is. She'll throw things out in conversation, just as if she were an adult too, in attempts to impress us. She is like a secret silent sponge who absorbs things and sits on the information and waits until she can use it at just the right time. And she does, in the right context.
Just this week she used the word, "predictable!" Yes. She's three and she used the word predictable.
Deagan was acting crazy like Deagan does, when I turned to her (mind you she was sitting nicely at the table as brother ran around like an untamed wild animal) and I said "Did you see that Olivia?"
She looked at me with her flared nose (see bathtub picture) and eyebrows in a matter-of-fact way and said, "Oh Mom, that's so predictable, that's Deagan!"
After I picked my jaw up from the floor, I looked at her and said, "You're right, that's just Deagan!"
Then she smiled her Olivia I'm-so-proud-of-myself smile.
Priceless!
She amazes me every day!

Ahh relaxation

There is nothing better at the end of a long day than coming home to a nice warm bubble bath, a pint of Ben and Jerry's Phish Food ice cream, and a glass of Frambrois!
I'm lovin' this new place:)

Bathtime Fun

This is Olivia's new face, I'm not quite sure how to read it yet.
Daddy enjoyed some bathtime fun entertaining the kids. He taught Olivia how to juggle...and get everything and everyone all wet! He had them laughing histerically:)

Crazy Tricia

Some of you may know, some of you may not...but when Jeff is around I turn into a crazy sleeper. We used to contribute it to the hormones after having kids, but that doesn't quite work anymore. I must fall into a deeper sleep than when he's not there....or something. Because it doesn't happen when he's not home. So last night I had another "episode" that was so hillarious, I thought I'd share in hopes of highlighting your day with a laugh.
So it was about three o'clock in the morning when Deagan decided to run off the end of the dock and jump into the water. Silly Deagan didn't remember that he doesn't know how to swim. So his silly mommy had to jump in after him! So pour Jeff hears this THUD and wakes up in a panic. Poor Tricia hears the same Thud and wakes up in a painful panic. Jeff peers down. I glare up. Only to realize that here I am looking like an idiot having just propelled myself from our bed onto the floor, or into the water if you so chose, completely out of it. He helps me up and back into bed. Jeff falls asleep fast. I however, do not. For I have a massive pain in my thigh from pulling a muscle jumping into the water/ off of the bed to save our son.
Commical yes. Stupid maybe. Hillarious definetly.
The best part was this morning when I was in the car driving to school and Jeff was in the van driving the kids to school when we were on our cell phones discussing the events of the moonlight. In between tearful laughter, Jeff's response was, "Did you think you would really be able to see him making a splash that big?"
Go ahead, laugh your ass off, because I still am and obviously wasn't embarassed too much...if I posted it on the blog!

Jeff and I on our front porch

The only picture that was taken during the whole move-in weekend!!!!!!
(Thanks to Kelly and her cell phone!)

We're Home!

We are officially moved into our new place and it feels fabulous!!!!!
Saturday we had our family and friends over to help with the big move. We ended up having eight guys to do all of the heavy lifting. Everyone met over at the new house and then carpooled to the storage space to unload all of our stuff. It went pretty quickly, less than an hour in and out. Then came the fun part....
They had to unload it all and carry it up a few various flights of stairs. I think everyone developed a severe dislike for stairs very quickly!!!!!!! (sorry guys).
But that part went quickly too. Not only did everyone help with the heavy lifting, but much to our surprise, they stayed to put it all together and unpack. Grandma and Joan (with a fractured foot) unpacked the kitchen and filled our cupboards:) Jeff and I thought we'd have a weeks worth of work ahead of us, but everyone cut that time drastically. THANK YOU!!!!!
It's so funny how much stuff we had in the old house, and so little things it feels like we have in the new house. It could be because we more than doubled our home size, and now it feels empty, but in a good way. That house in slidell was a great starter home, but we out grew it fast! This house just feels much more comfortable!
Our kids finally have their own rooms. With their own beds.
Jeff's sister Melissa kept the kids for the weekend so we could get things accomplished much faster. We drove out to pick them up and the kids fell asleep on the way home. We didn't get home until almost ten. Olivia hadn't seen her new room all together yet! And she was kind of out of it, not quite sure what was going on....she knew, but she was groggy. As soon as we got to the top of the stairs she peeked out of one eye and saw this adorable reading corner that my mom had set up with flower lights (pictures later). Other than that, her room is almost identical to the familiar place she grew up in. Well, when she first saw it she was in awe with silent amazement. She smiled the most beautiful smile. I layed her on her bed and she said, "Momma can I just lay here for awhile and look at it?" It was quite a moment.
Deagan on the other hand wasn't so sure. He knew his crib and his rocking chair, but all of the other furniture was basically foreign to him. It had been in storage since he was about ten months old, so he had no idea. We rocked a little extra time talking about things and then he was fine. He had a little smug smile on his face and said he was ready for bed.

What a night. What a weekend.
We are all here, under one roof. For the first time since June!
It's an amazing feeling.
Now we've got so much ahead of us. Unpacking. Settling. Job hunting. School. Wedding. Relaxing.
It's going to be a great summer!

Thank you to Tom, Joan, Kathy, Tony, Grandma (for all of the fabulous food), Andy, Kelly, Melissa, Randy, Mark, Jen, Bill, John, and Grandpa. We couldn't have done it without you. You've made our lives so much easier and filled us with love and hope for the future. Thanks for the support!

P.S.- A BIG shout out to Brian, Allie and little Jeff in Oregon. Thanks so much for the cake! It was amazing tonight, after our long hard weekend and late night to settle in on the couch to a nice piece of chocolate cake! It was the perfect ending to a great weekend. THANKS!

Yell It From the Rooftops!

HE'S ON HIS WAY HOME. HE'S ON HIS WAY HOME. HE'S ON HIS WAY HOME:)
FINALLY:)
YEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Finally, some pictures!

Well It's been awhile since I really posted some pictures. I've been just a bit busy...with Jeff's short visit over valentine's day weekend and getting things ready to move to the new house. So here are the pictures all the way back to Valentine's day!
Hope you enjoy,
Tricia

New House

Here's a pic of the kids, very tired, haning out at the new house on the couch while I was unpacking some small stuff!

Playing With Daddy

These two were "Hanging out" during olivia's skating lesson. Notice the matching sweatshirts, jeans, AND SHOES!!!!!
Too Cute!

Olivia's First Time Bowling

Two weekends ago, Olivia was invited to her friend Isabele's fourth birthday party at Brighton Bowl. She was a little scared at first, but warmed up fast! They had a cool new aparatus that the kids just set the ball on and gave it a little push...then the ball flies down this ramp thing and knocks down a bunch of pins. The kids loved the fast action. She's so adorable with her little jeans and jumping:)

Basket Sliders

In my bedroom, the kids have a Kangaroo Climber. Well Olivia discovered that it's much more fun to go down the slide in a laundry basket! And to squeeze your brother in there too....lots of laughter!

The kid loves to brush his teeth!

PASSED OUT!

This is what happens when Daddy comes home and we spend FOUR hours @ IKEA!!!!!!!

My Handsome Hubby

Playing Tag with Great Grandpa Bob

The kids all dressed for Valentine's Day:)

Disney Princesses on Ice

This afternoon I treated my mom and Olivia to the Disney Princesses on Ice show at the Palace. It was a great time. Of course, my mom spoiled us with princesses lights and goodies. Olivia was fasinated by everything. She was so full of questions trying to figure everything out. She would say, "wow that princess is a great singer" every time a new one came out and the recording played with sympony music:) She wanted to know if the spotlights hurt their eyes and how did they see where they were going with it shining on them so bright. She wanted to know where they went once they passed through the curtain offstage and if the princesses were all "friends." Because she didn't know that Cinderella knew Belle and Ariel. But they must be all friends if they sing and dance together.
I even caught her singing some of the songs! She was beaming ear to ear the whole two hours. And the show was fabulous. The costumes were extravagent and so beautiful. The lighting was great. The props looked real. The music and sound took you away. It was so well put on, I would go again in a second! And I can't wait to see if they do it again next year:)

Us Girls at the Show

Deagan's bye kisses as we were leaving

The princesses on ice

This is the best we could get with our little pocket camera tucked into my purse! It was a great show!

Olivia on the car ride home!

Poopey...

The day before yesterday Deagan turned a year and a half old!!!!!! My baby is a full fledged toddler, he's almost two.
Yesterday, DEAGAN POOPED ON THE POTTY FOR THE FIRST TIME!!!!!!!!
YEAHHHH, Go Deagan! We were at the new house waiting on our furniture delivery and he came to me and said, "Deaga go poopey." And naturally I thought, great thanks for telling me. But he ran away fast as lightning. Olivia looked at me and said, no momma I think he wants to go on the potty. So we ran screaming with joy, plopped the boy on the potty and off he went!
WOW! It's just fantastic. I hope he trains fast. He's already full well aware of when he does what, now it's just getting him to know to go on the potty.
Now, I'm not jumping ahead of myself with unrealistic expectations, but I am sure celebrating this giant leap!

Out of the mouths of three year olds!

Yesterday we were shopping at WalMart. Deagan always makes a point to say goodbye, wave, and blow kisses to the cashier, but Olivia just sits mute. Well, yesterday as we were walking away, the cashier yelled, "bye honey!" Olivia got all excited and yelled, "she knows my name, she knows my name:)"