Independence Day!

We decided to have another small celebration for the 4th. It's easier for us, and easier to deal with Carter. So we just had a couple friends over, and my parents stopped by for a little bit, too. We kept the menu simple: hot dogs, brats, chips and dip, and potato salad. And alcohol.

{Rob and Nicole}

{My beautiful family}

The BBQ......I'm so glad our patio sits in the shade in the evenings. Makes for *slightly* cooler weather.


{My brother, Dana, and his girlfriend, Tracy}


{My parents}
Look at my child! Can he be any more of a ladies' man?! Good lord!

After the BBQ, my parents left and we started the show. Carter really ooooh'd and aaahhhhh'd at the smoke bombs. Probably because they weren't loud!

And he got to hold his own sparklers this year. He did great! He was waving them all over the place.....but still pretty cautious. I think he's still getting the hang of this firework business.

Quite focused.

And he was quite the helper! He was always running down with Eric or my brother when they were lighting the fuses.

And eventually, he wanted to come sit with mama.

There was quite a bit of activity in our neighborhood. There were definitely lots of illegals going off - I wish I had bought some. Next year, I definitely will.


{watching with mommy}

Some of the neighbors' shows.

Carter was up sooooo late. But every time I would ask him if he was ready for bed, he would tell me "noooooo".

Even though he was clearly hanging on by a thread.

And the moon put on quite a show, too!

Happy Birthday, America!

Five Years Ago

Five years ago yesterday, he was still here.

Five years ago today, we lost him.

Five years ago, we had to say goodbye.

Five years......really?

It seems like last week.

The boy and I took flowers.

And sat and talked to Grand-Papa.

And wished he was here to see the many things he has missed.

His first great-grandchild.

A dance at my wedding.

His own children.

His loving wife.

My heart breaks as I listen to one of the songs played at his memorial...."Dance With My Father" by Kellie Coffee. If you haven't heard it, go find it and listen to it.

And tell me it doesn't MOVE you.

It moves me.

And today, there was a little angel playing with Grand-Papa.

And the light shining down tells me.....he knew. He was smiling.

Bonding

Since Eric is out of town for work for a while, it's just me and the kid. And I love it that way. We always have a fun time together!! And from the sound of it, this week will be spent mostly at the pool. Woo hoo!!!

Today, though, we spent most of the day at home. My brother is moving, so we went to see his new digs. And it was really hot outside, so I decided on the ride home that we were going to hit the pool.......the one out back.

And since Eric is gone, the timer function on my camera has become my friend.

Carter has taken on a new fascination with the hose. He loves squirting people!! It's hilarious to watch him.....and he's always quite peeved when the pool is full and it's time to turn off the water.

But before that happens, he has to load the pool with his arsenal of toys.

Which includes every single ball in the yard.

And the hoop, of course.

And his cute, little tush. It was a perfect day to soak up the sun....mid-90s.

But then he was greesy from all the sunscreen, so he hit the indoor pool for a good scrub-down.

And then we goofed around in the kitchen while I prepped dinner. The camera was a royal pain for these last two shots. It wouldn't use the auto flash, so these are quite grainy. Oh well...I still love them.


Tomorrow, we hit the big pool with my two cousins. Always guaranteed to be a good time!

An Addition to the Family

We have a new member of the family. Her name is Nicki.

My aunt has been promising her girls a dog for years now. And they finally bit the bullet and got one! And she's dang cute!! She and Carter are the best of buds.....and she's so much smaller than Carter! It's so cute.


She already has several new toys to play with.

And a nice, fancy house!! Which Carter had to explore, of course! It was just his size.

I think he would have slept in that house all night long if we had let him.

I'm sure Nicki is going to have a fabulous summer with the girls!!

Another First

This last weekend was Dairy Days in Meridian. Which is a celebration of.......other than dairy, I'm not sure! There was cow judging all over the place - and I think Carter was quite stunned to see a cow in real life. He sees them all the time in his books, and even knows that a cow says "moooo". But to hear those mooooooo's in real life? I think he might be a little scared now. But we will get past it.

We walked around to many of the vendor booths and even won a frisbie. We had our choice of many different prizes, but Carter wanted this bright, yellow frisbie. Then we grabbed some lunch and watched a dance-off between some of the local mascots. The Texas Roadhouse Armadillo definitely won - he knew his moves!!

Then we made our way over to the carnival. This carnival is quite scaled down compared to the big fair in August. But there were still several small rides for Carter.

The first ride was the big merry-go-round. Eric offered to ride along so I could grab some pictures. I'm glad he knows the priorities in my life, lol! So we bought some tickets and got in line.

Eric got Carter situated on a rather wild horse and explained the rules of the game.


Even after hearing the rules, Carter wasn't too sure about what was going on. I think because his horse was a little too excited about the whole ordeal.

Nonetheless, the ride started, and 'round and 'round they went. We tried several times to get Carter to smile and wave, but his concentration was too intense.

So Daddy had to force a wave!

Next up was a solo ride. This ride specifically stated that you had to be UNDER 48 inches tall to ride. Meaning.............we had to let him go by himself. And trust me - we stood there for a while and debated whether or not to do this. He's not even two. We had no idea if he would actually stay confined to his seat, or try to make a get-away. But once we saw that one of the carts was a "doddie", we had to let him go.

So, once again, Eric took him in and explained the rules.

But you know what? Those people that invented these rides and put those little blue fake steering wheels in there? Genuises I tell ya. He was quite distracted with those wheels for quite a while. Meaning.....he wasn't crawling out.

And it was so hard to watch him do it all by himself!

My little guy.....all alone in that big "doddie".

At least he glanced my way!

I can't wait to take him to the big fair this August so he can ride more rides!