So Sorry...

Meijer Gardens on Saturday, May 1...butterflies, blooming tulips and flowers, tree forts, and a real water Great Lakes play time:)

Okay, I know I have been bad before about getting photos up- but I think this is longest I have gone- over 2 months...I am so sorry!!! I have been taking lots of pictures, but with my camera on my phone and now have discovered I don't have an easy way to upload them to my computer- so it will be a slow process of emailing them all to myself to be able to save them to the computer and then upload them here (technology saves us so much time, right??:)


In reality a lot has happened in the last two months, so many fun, new things in our family...Easter, spring has been beautiful, outdoor play is in full bloom, Oak has been potty trained since first week in March, Isla is crawling all over and trying to walk some, too (with our hands of course:) for a month now...and babbling all the time....just so much!


So, I am really sorry that we have not shared our March and April 2010 lives with you yet...but we will soon!!
Thanks for understanding and loving us still:)!

Mid-Winter Break

Old Mission Peninsula Lighthouse

Traverse City Children's Museum

Isla in her first swimsuit...Alan got chills she looked so cute...don't you just want to squeeze those adorable chubby legs?

Oak warmed up to swimming again after about 5 minutes (since he hadn't swam since last September) and wanted to jump to Daddy over and over again

Alan got a 4 day weekend at the end of February, so with no extra money, we decided we needed some fresh air and to get out of town...we found a very affordable, clean, nice, with a pool hotel in Traverse City, northern MI...one of the best year-around tourist towns on Lake Michigan...and took off for 3 nights. It was such a nice respite as a family...we enjoyed the travel, the beauty of the northern snow, winter on Lake MI (the water was still a beautiful turquoise and blue even though it was 10 degrees out), wineries and vineyards (some of the best in the U.S. on the 45th Parallel), swimming in the pool (Oak couldn't get enough of it), good food, fun shops, and an overall friendly place. Alan now has added "own a cherry farm or vineyard on Mission Peninsula" to his list of things to do before he dies:) It truly is a great area, and we had so much fun as a family just getting away for a little bit!

6 month old Isla BooBoo

Yes, more nicknames abound, as our little chunk-a-munk (sorry, Suzy, to steal that from you, but it is so fitting for Isla right now:) grows and changes. She is over 6 months old now and has been rolling around, sitting up to play with toys, trying rice cereal, and giving lots of gooey, open-mouthed kisses...oh, I almost forgot, she cut her first two teeth yesterday and today (amidst beginning our real effort at potty training Oak...fun times at the Carter house this week;)

Here she is with her big, beautiful smiles and all...we love you, Isla BooBoo!!

New Year- Happy 2010

Can you believe we are in 2010...I remember 2000 like it was yesterday...wow!!
We have started our new winter 2010 routine and schedule this week, and it is going well...things are busy again...but, we are trying to prioritize our time and have fun while we do everything (even while changing the 14th diaper of the day:)
This week, Oak is continuing to show his growth and ever-changing mind...in his artwork and puzzles, games, and play...also in taking more responsibility for certian duties...we love our son and are so proud of him and amazed at the little boy he is becoming!
Isla decided as her new year present to us to start to roll over and sit up- she has done both this week several times...and I wish there was a way to show you her amazing smile and giggles, I can never catch on camera...I know what it means to smile with your eyes now, our girl does it. We love her so much and can't believe how wonderfully we have been blessed!
Both kiddos light up our days...I have caught them several times this week making each other laugh so hard by doing silly things...precious moments... I know Isla looks kinda goofy here, but between trying to sit up for the first time and the crazy cloth diaper...so funny, she started to lean and slowly went left a few seconds after this picture:)

Sweet, sweet, precious Baby girl
Making play-dough pizza "for everyone come over tonight for party Oak's house" in his exact words!!

December was so much FUN!!

We can honestly say we had a great Christmas season this year, not too busy, not too slow, just right. I think it was due to Alan putting his foot down and saying after over a year and a half of being too busy that we needed a month to just "be"...so we said no to a lot of things and only went to the festivities that we had to be at or wanted to go to, we spent lots of time outside sledding and having snowball fights, followed by cups of hot chocolate, followed by lots of movies (Oak is becoming a movie buff like his dad;), played tons of cars and tickled/wrestled for hours. It was so great having Alan home for over 2 weeks...I think I enjoyed this holiday break more than one I can remember...probably due to having both kids and loving to have our daddy around to play with! For Isla's first Christmas and Oak's third, it was so beautiful to watch them...the beauty of the sights and sounds around the house and town, Oak loved our tree so much that he cried when we took it down last week...he understood that it was Baby Jesus' birthday we were celebrating and that we made cookies for his party...Isla was mesmerized by the lights every morning as we turned them on in the dark...Oak was appreciative for every gift he received (amazing in my book , for a 2.5 year old) and concerned about Isla getting nice things, too. Alan and I enjoyed seeing our kids bring the spirit of Christmas alive in our hearts...of true love and sacrifice, of giving of all that you have for others. We love this time of year...and this year, we loved it so very much!!

We felt so blessed to have our family, a warm, safe home, and wonderful friends all over the world...so many do not have these amazing riches, we pray God's provision and peace for all those in need...it was an amazing season to give thanks and rejoice in all that God has given and blessed us with!

I love this picture- both beautiful ladies looking out the window:) Play-time at the Children's museum- Daddy and Grammy had not been there before Isla's first time in the sled- she went down with me a few times and Alan said her eyes were wide as could be-but I heard her giggling:) Last year, Oak hated the snow...this year, we can't get him out of it...he LOVES it! He wants to build BIG snowmen and sled AGAIN AND AGAIN...he walks up the big hills all by himself and sometimes even carries his own sled...we are loving being in the winter wonderland with him...so much fun! Christmas traditions Isla's first Christmas- she was awake long enough to open her stocking on Christms eve and pose for some cute pictures

Oak joined the annual tradition of making Christmas cookies on Christmas eve before candle-light service- he used the entire bottle of sprinkles on those three cookies...yummy! Isla watched wondering if she could get her hands on some...not til next year, sweetie...Cute hubby!! Cute kiddos!! Oak making Christmas treats for neighbors and friends