Fisherprice.com

I thought it would be fun to tell everyone that I sent a lot of pictures of Carson into Fisher Price's website and these two were selected for January 2008. They are on page 20. It was fun to check and see if one of the pictures I submitted actually got on the photo gallery for the month and these two were both on there. I actually thought that the other pictures I sent to them were a lot cuter than these, but it was cool to see them up on the website for the month of January.

One Of My Heros

Sunday night as Dave and I were headed home from Granny's house, Dave received a text message from Noel stating that the Prophet had passed away. I started to think how sad I was because I would miss him and I started to cry. Dave was a little choked up. Yet, we both had a little warmth in our hearts to think of the welcoming he got as he returned to his Father in Heaven.

I would have to say that President Gordon B. Hinckley has got to be one of my all time heros in my life. I remember when I was nine years old, after President Hunter passed away, they called President Hinckley to be the next Prophet. I loved him immediately. I wanted to follow everything he said to do. I wanted to try to be like him and make sure I was doing the right things in my life. That impression stayed with me as I grew up. I listened to him in junior high and high school and I continued to try to be the best I could be because I loved him. I knew he was truly a prophet and follower of Christ.

He is the prophet I grew up with. He helped me to know what I wanted in my life. A temple marriage, a family and to be a good member of the church. His outlook on life was awesome. He didn't preach...he taught. Other religions respected him because of that. He didn't judge anyone and he just told people to "stand a little taller". No matter what religion, that is good advice to take. We can all better our lives in some way so that we can make a greater impact on other people's lives.

I know that President Monson is going to be a great prophet because I know that this church is true, but nothing can replace Pres. Hinckley and the impact he has made in my life. I am grateful where my life has gone to because of him. I could've been a lot worse, and trust me, there were temptations in my life during my teen years that could've been destructive. The world could've had an easy grasp on me, but Hinckley's words and testimony kept me on my feet.

I am grateful to know that he is with his wife. He has lived a good life and he returned with honor!

Tags

Here is a story about toys. You spend a lot of time looking for the right ones, a lot of money because batteries are not included, and you spend a lot of time wondering if it will help them to learn when they play with it. Well, in this house, toys are not as fun as the tags that come on them. I don't know what it is , but Carson loves the tags on anything that contains them. The past few days I have been watching to see what kind of things he grabs or plays with to prove my point.

Here is Carson playing with his little lion that came with the Bright Stars Arch toy he has...of coarse he goes for the tag.

Here is Carson after feeding him some sweet potatoes. The washcloth even has tags. He loved that!

And here is Carson again. He loves his exersaucer. He has lots of fun pictures of him smiling and being happy in it. If you don't believe me, go to my myspace page. Mostly all of the pictures I have on the little picture video is Carson in his exersaucer....pretty sad. Well, this is he favorite toy to play with. You can guess, it's because it has a tag on it.

Our Baby Boy...5 Months Ago

My Favorite

A Thing Of The Past

For the past 5 and a half months of Carson's life....okay his whole life, he has loved to be swaddled. It has been nice because it would help him fall asleep pretty quick, as long as he was rocked to sleep. That is another subject that needs to be fixed. But the past few days, Carson has been throwing a fit when we start wrapping him up in his swaddle blanket. I just thought that maybe he is just having a harder time wanting to go to sleep. Who wants to take naps? Wait, a sec...I do! I love naps. Anyways, Carson was screaming today when I swaddled him and I went in, unwrapped him, and walked back out. The screaming stopped immediately and his eyes shut before I could walk out of the room again. I picked him up and he slept on my shoulder for a minute, which is not like him. He is so squirmy when he's awake and he doesn't really want to cuddle. He wants to go, go , go. I let him fall deeper asleep and then I lied him down and tucked a blanket around him. I am glad that he is starting to wing off the swaddle blanket because it was getting too small for him and he couldn't stick his legs straight out. It's just something else to make his mommy sad because he is growing up too fast.

The Dreaded RSV

Dave and I have had a hard week...whatever! Carson is the one who has had a hard week. Monday he started to get a really wet cough, so I was concerned. I called Dave at work and told him I was going to take Carson to the doctor because I have never heard that cough come from him before. He has been sick with a cold and runny noses before, but this was totally different. The doctor told us it may be RSV and that he may get worse. It definitely got worse. Wednesday night he started to get his fever. It was really high. He started to cry. It took me about 45 minutes to get him calmed down. Every time we would move him the crying would start all over again. That night he would not even let us put him down. We both took turns holding him and getting him when he cried. One of use would finally get him to sleep and we would lay him down in his crib. Seven minutes later, he was crying again. I even held him in my arms and lied down in bed for a while to see if he would sleep. It worked for about 30 minutes, but that was it. I feel bad because we should've changed his pajamas because he was wearing fleece. We should've put him in something to cool him down. I kept thinking how you get the chills and kind of cold when you have a fever, so I was concerned about that. Dave and I both stayed home from work. I felt bad considering it was my fourth day, but I am sure they understood. That morning around 8 I told Dave I was extremely tired and needed to lie down for a while. He woke me up at 8:30 and said "is it bad that his temperature is at 103?" That's when I called the doctor and then Kirstin. She told me about the life saver....Motrin. The doctor told us how much we could take. He also gave us an antibiotic in case he had either a sinus infection or something else. It's the pink bubble gum antibiotic that I used to take when I was a kid. I still think it tastes yummy to this day. He is doing better. He still has his nasty cough and runny nose, but the fever is under control. We are blessed to have so many people help us during this time.

It was a tough little bend in the road this week. Dave and I are exhausted, but we have a baby that is almost back to normal...well he still isn't eating very well and he's still got his RSV, but he is smiling again, which is normal. It's amazing to think how my parents did the same for me. You don't realize how much they do for you until you actually becoome a parent. Dave and I love Carson so much and we are so happy to be his parents.

The Teeth

Now that Carson has his two teeth, he is starting to slobber, chomp and suck really hard on anything he can get his hands on. So, I think pretty soon his top two teeth will be coming in. Although it's hard when they are fussy, it is well worth it to see the character those teeth really bring to a baby. When he smiles, those two teeth poke out on that little baby smile and it's so fun to see.

Dave started school this week. He has two classes on Monday and Wednesday and one class on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. So he has school every day. It's hard for him considering he comes home late on Monday and Wednesdays and then on the other days he has to stay later at work to catch up on the time he has missed.

I started my new job yesterday. It was hard! I was so nervous. They weren't extremely friendly, but with me being so shy that doesn't help either. It goes both ways. It was so different from what I am used to, but soon I will get the hang of it. Tomorrow I work with a doctor that I already worked with at Jordan Valley so it will be easier I think.

Like I said, change is hard, but we all need to go through it so life can get better.

Priceless

The Baby: 13,000 Dollars

The Hat: 9.99 Including Matching Outfit

The Two Combined: Priceless

When The Lord Closes A Door...

I wanted to write a blog about the family. There have been a couple of changes, but none too drastic. I am starting my new job on January 8, which is this coming Tuesday at Utah Surgical Center. I am really excited, nervous and sad. I am excited to start a new job and meet new people. I am nervous to learn everything all over again when I just left something that I was very comfortable with...and meeting new people. It is nerve racking to learn all new doctors and remember everything they want for surgeries. I am sad because I am going to miss all the other people I worked with at the hospital and Dr. Slawson, who was my favorite surgeon to work with. I promised him I would come back to Jordan Valley, but going to this surgery center works better for me as a mom. I am really sad to leave Carson. I know that he will be with people we love and he is going to be well looked after. I wrote a 2 page schedule and instruction "manual" for my mom and sister. My mom probably would've done the same if she had to go back to work and I can see Gina doing it when she becomes a mommy. I am trying to keep him on a schedule so on my days off he isn't all confused. Kirstin and Angela may have an opportunity to take part in that "manual". :)

My job is going to be great! Not only does it pay better than Jordan Valley, I get more breaks, they have profit sharing (bonuses) every 3 months, and free lunches everyday! You can't go wrong with that! It's weird because I have to sign up for a couple of days a month where I have to worry about lunch, I buy it or make and then they reimburse me. I get a Christmas Savings Plan or Vacation Savings plan that pays me 5% interest. They take what I want out of each paycheck. I signed up for the Christmas savings plan and they give me the check the 31st of October. If I dip into it before then, they won't pay me the 5% interest. I will get all of my money back anyway, so it's nice to have that money I won't see in my checking account. I won't be tempted to spend it either. Last but not least, there is no call!! No 2 a.m. surgeries. They are all so nice. I went in to get my paperwork done and they all were so friendly and eager to meet me.

Dave didn't get his job in the marketing department at Usana. He feels okay about it considering he has some other opportunities in the legal department. I hope he doesn't mind me telling everyone. We know that when the Lord closes a door, he opens a window. Things happen for a reason and when he graduates in May, we will see other windows, maybe even doors of opportunity open for him. He has to take 2 Spanish classes and his Advanced Mangament class and he will get his Bachelor Degree in May from the U. We are really looking forward to that moment. With school and work, Dave is really good at helping me with Carson. He is a good dad. He can make Carson laugh a lot more than I can. He's very helpful and Carson loves his daddy! We are proud of him for trying for that job.

As for Carson, he is still growing. We are trying to get him to fall asleep on his own instead of rocking him to sleep. It's hard, but we are still picking him up if he wakes up to calm him down. I would be scared too if I was a baby and woke up and it was all dark. Sharing a room with him is hard, but it's only temporary. I will be more grateful for a 2 bedroom apartment or a house when we get one. Carson can sit up on his own pretty well, with a few wobbles. He is eating rice and oatmeal cereal and occasionally some sweet potatoes, squash and today my parents fed him a little bit of banana. I am now regretting taking back my diaper genie. Just kidding. We have a little trash on our patio that works just fine.

I know that if we have the faith and pray to Heavenly Father for things we need and want in life, He will make it possible. Life is good. Change is hard, but life is good.

Happy New Year

Dave, Carson and I had a very fun new years eve. It was really nice to spend some time with his family. In order to keep Carson on his schedule, we had to leave before midnight. He didn't sleep on the way home, but when we got home, we made him a little bit of cereal and put him in his exersaucer and got to celebrate the coming of 2008 with us. We gave him lots of hugs and kisses and sent him to bed. Dave and I followed. I guess that once you have kids, the partying stops. Well, I have really never partied on New Year's Eve. Here are some pictures I took right at midnight. I was saying "happy new year, Carson" to him while taking some pictures. I got some cute ones. Dave and I were talking about new year resolutions. Of coarse there is the typical one about losing weight and exercising everyday. Then by January 14, the resolutions are long gone. I hope that everyone can make some sort of change in their life for the better. That is the only type of resolution that I believe in. We hope all of our friends and family have a happy new year.

Cute Sweater

I told everyone on my Christmas blog that I would let you all see the cute sweater my brother Nate and my sister-in-law Angie gave him for Christmas. Handsome, handsome!

Sweet Potatoes

On December 21, we started to feed Carson some baby food. We have been giving him rice cereal for a couple of weeks now, and decided it was time to introduce him to some veggies. Kirstin gave me some extra baby food that she had left over from when the twins were eating it. So, we gave him Sweet Potatoes. He loves them. He did really well with them. He is so funny. I didn't know they would be so messy, considering I am a first time mom, so we had all of his clothes on. Luckily, with some Shout, we got all the potatoes out!! Since then, I have learned to keep him in his diaper. It is so funny because it will be all over his mouth and he will stick his hands in his mouth then rub his eyes. We are always prepared with nice warm wash cloths for him after he is all done eating. He now has 2 teeth that have broken through, so he will be eating solids before we know it!! He's growing too fast.

Little Feet

I found this picture that we had taken at Kiddie Kandids. His feet are so little!

Christmas 2007

This is what Carson got for Christmas. It wasn't much, considering it was his first Christmas and Santa knew he was too young to remember it. We had other people spoil him, so we knew that Santa didn't have to.

This is Jackson and the twins opening their gifts from Nana and Papa.

Dave and I are blessed with very generous parents. My parents got us a filing cabinet, that picture by Simon Dewey, and a complete stocking with Jones soda, nuts, bananas, oranges, chocolate oranges, Toblerone candy, batteries, Similac for Carson, etc. His parents got Carson a Peek-a-boo Rain forest thing for his crib that plays soothing music to help him sleep. It also has cute characters that move so he'll watch them and get tired. He is still a picky sleeper at night and needs to be rocked to sleep, but he really likes listening to it for naps. Peggy and Randy also gave us a DVD player for our bedroom, a folding table for camping and a Welcome doormat, which is so much nicer than my other one. Maddie had Carson and gave him this adorable mooing cow flashligh! Thanks Maddie! Gina and Beau gave us a gift certificate to Chili's for a date night and Nate and Angie gave us a baby sign language book that will come in handy.

This is the gigantic puppy dog that Gina, Beau and my parents got for him. It's so cute. My brother Nate and Angie gave him the cutest sweater, that I need to get a picture of and add it later.

This present was from Noel. She is so creative! I am sure we will get a lot of use out of our ice cream cups and scoop! Dave eats ice cream all of the time.

This is the picture my mom and dad gave us for Christmas. It's called "He Lives" by Simon Dewey. My favorite one by him.

Gina and Beau got this for Carson for Christmas. It's a fun toy that converts into something as he grows.

This is the Jumperoo that my parents got him for Christmas. He loves to jump! He has a blast in there!

Here are the Mangums on Christmas opening some gifts. I love drawing names for the kids because it's so fun to see what they all get!

Carson had Nicolas this year. We gave him a Spider-man football. We also had Doug and Kirstin. We thought it would be fun for them to have a movie pack considering they got their new projector for their new basement!! We got my parents an itunes gift card, some pyrex bowls because they bake their chicken for their diet, and some kitchen shears, since they were using their paper scissors to cut their chicken. We got Gina and Beau and Nate and Angie Ikea gift cards because they both love Ikea. We got Randy and Peggy a hot chocolate maker with some cute mugs to go with it. Dave and I were so blessed this past Christmas season. Not only do we have such a fun little guy to share with it, but I got a new job that I hope I will enjoy and things have been going well, thanks to Heavenly Father. We were so happy to share this season with the ones we love.

All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth

I wanted to just to a separate blog about how Carson cut his second tooth on Christmas day. We thought it was really fun, yet we felt sorry for the poor thing!