So Lately I've been thinking as to when "Mommy Bias" sets in. You know what I'm talking about, the whole "my kid is the best in the world" attitude. I have been aware of Mommy Bias for a while having taught/coached 150 students each of the last five years and dealing with hundreds of mommies and daddies suffering from said condition. However, now that I am a Mommy I am starting to see things in a different perspective.

For some it kicks in early, just a few days home from the hospital. These are the ones who say "Johnny came home sleeping through the night". Come on... really?!?! I don't believe it. Babies don't sleep through the night. If you are a new parent and you aren't tired, you're lying and if your baby really does sleep for 8-9 hours at a time, don't share it with other parents. This is not a time to brag unless you want the death stare from a sleep deprived former friend.

Then there are those whose Mommy Bias comes to them about 8 weeks in. You might hear them say, "Being a Mommy is the  best job in the world (insert high pitched bubbly voice)" or "Susie never cries". I may just be a realist, or it may be the fact that I grew up with a Mom who never let me lie, but whoever thinks being a parent of a newborn for the first time is easy is seriously mistaken. Yes parenthood is a wonderful and rewarding job, but it is not easy. Carson was not an extremely difficult newborn, but there were times where she cried and cried and I had no idea of how to make it better. She would sleep 6 hours straight one night and 3 the next. During this time you are tired and often times cranky and it truly is a wonder that I never hit anyone during weeks 6-12.

I think for many people Mommy Bias is going in full gear around 4-5 months. This makes sense because this is when the milestones are more noteable. Often times you hear new mommies asking "so what is Betty doing now?". I will admit I am guilty. I tell everyone I can that Carson is rolling like a madwoman and I am jealous as all hell when I see a baby of the same age sitting without support. I don't know what it is but I truly believe that your DNA is altered when that child is welcomed into this world, you are capable of things you never thought possible. My poor children have no idea of how competitive I am...

Mommy Bias has it's benefits. For one, if your mom doesn't think your the greatest, who will? She's supposed to be your biggest fan and love you unconditionally. I can honestly say that I think Carson is the coolest baby on the face of this earth. I love her chill demeanor, but like her mother her mood can change at the drop of a hat. She doesn't mind the car, which is a Godsend because she spends a lot of time in that little car seat. It's so cool when she laughs and I like that she likes it when I sing. She's the perfect baby for me and that's what it's all about isn't it?

So don't worry about me. I will not be the mom who when you ask how I am, I give you a play by play with every accomplishment Carson has reached in the last 24 hours. I will not lie telling you how perfect she is. I will not exaggerate her capabilities nor one-up your baby's milestones. As she gets into school I will not see her with rose colored glasses and assume that she can do no wrong. I will not accuse the teacher when she earns a C instead of an A and will definitely not call the coach when she doesn't make Captain. I will not do her Science project for her and claim that she came up with it all on her own. And I definitely will not think that she is a professional writer, scientist, artist, musician, hockey player, or any other activity that she does. What I can promise is that I will be her biggest fan. I will encourage her to try things outside her comfort zone. I will cheer her on when she's successful and comfort her when she fails. My baby may not be the best at everything, but she'll always be the coolest to me.

I read through the advice cards that were given to me for my baby shower the other day. I can't tell you how many people said to enjoy every second because babies grow so quickly. I now understand what they were talking about! The first couple of months seemed normal, now I feel like we are rolling through the days. I barely have time to feed myself and do the laundry... much less update our blog :)

What happened in Carson's 5th month of life... May 6 - June 6?

• Mother's Day was AMAZING! It was the best Mother's day I've ever had. On Saturday, May 7, Jim and Carson surprised me by taking me to Tiffany's so that we could by a bracelet to celebrate my first Mother's day. On our way in we saw a little girl walking out carrying her own light blue bag. We told Carson not to get any ideas. Carson had so much fun on her first trip to that fabulous lady's wonderland. I love my bracelet and I will use it to look back fondly on my first Mother's day. I fully understand that in the years to come it will be traded with macaroni necklaces and hand painted self portraits. I will trade the tiffany blue box for hand-crafted gifts with pleasure; no matter the gift, it's the love behind it that counts. We finished the day by going to "Celebrate Mama" which was an outdoor fair in Bethesda. It was a great day.
• On May 8, Mother's day, Carson and I spent the day with the Taylor girls. Auntie Em had a luncheon for her fraternity at Lebanon Valley. Grandma, Aunt Cait, Carson and I went up to Pennsylvania. Carson was a trooper and was in a good mood most of the day. We had a fun time taking pictures around campus.
• The next week, May 14, we were back at Lebanon along with Grandpa and Daddy for Auntie Em's graduation. We were so proud of her. She did a great job in college. Carson did not like the long ceremony, but she was happy to go out to lunch afterward to celebrate!
• May 21st we continued our graduation celebrations when we went to Baltimore to celebrate Dee's graduation for her Master's in Speech Pathology. It's so funny to think that last year about the same time Dee was living with us and we had just told her that we were expecting. Now Carson is here to celebrate her graduation... Crazy!
• May 28th rounded out our graduations for the month. We went to Marlinton West Virginia for Cousin Tanner's graduation from high school.  We went to graduation in the morning and spent the afternoon hanging out with Net, Uncle Billy and Cousin Zachary along with Grammy and Granpa at Tanner's graduation party. Carson just loved being passed around talking to all their friends. One nice older gentleman even offered to feed her icing from his cake... thankfully he did not.
• Her 5th month ended with her BFF's 1st birthday party. Charley had a small celebration. It was so much fun watching her open presents and eat her very own CareBear  cake. Carson's 1st birthday will be here before you know it, especially if the months keep flying by like this one did!

Noteable milestones:

Carson is...    
     ~ rolling
    ~ giggling
    ~ reaching for things
    ~ eating food
    ~ loves grandpas (she could watch both of them all day long!)

4 Months

Dr. Check Up
12 lbs 15.5 oz
23.5 in long
16.25 in head circumference

This month has been a little bit tougher. Mom went back to work. Carson took some time to get used to the routine. She has started to consistently sleep through the night and is much more aware of her surroundings. This summer is going to be so much fun!

Carson's first Easter was a lot of fun! She got Easter Baskets from both grandmas and mommy! Such a lucky girl!

We went to church with Grandma Taylor, Auntie Em, Aunt Cait and Jody. They came to Olney for breakfast and we attended Olney Baptist Church. We were heading into church, saying hi to the greeter when I looked down and spied little brown mushy stuff protuding from my darling daughter's diaper.... Yep that's right. We were in our Sunday best and Carson had a blow out. Thanks. 

I got her cleaned up and luckily didn't have to change her dress. After church we went to Grammy and Grandpa's with the Meadows Fam. We had so much fun playing with Cousins Audrey and Tyler. We ate so much too!

Easter is such an exciting time for us. I hope and pray that Carson will know and understand the real meaning behind the holiday in the next few years. My ultimate dream is that she accepts Christ early and spends her life serving Him.

To all my true and faithful friends who have checked this website day after day with no avail. Alas, a new post has arrived. It's so big that I believe that I'll make it two :0 !

It has been a busy month and a half my friends. First, and most life-changing, Mommy has returned to work. It was not nearly as traumatic as I had anticipated, however, it has thrown my life a curve ball. Long gone are the days that I got to get the dishes done, play with Carson, take a walk and relax with my husband all within 24 hours. Now it's a grab bag and I get to pick one or two. We are getting by just fine though. Some days are better than others.

When I first returned to work our sweet child was an angelic sleeper. She went two weeks in row sleeping from 9ish until 5 or 6 the next morning. She was a perfect baby... or so I thought. It was all just a tease. After two weeks in, she began to wake up again at about 3:30 or 4 every night. That has continued for the last couple of weeks with one or two exceptions. I really can't complain though. She wakes, eats, burps and then returns to sleep. It makes for a tired Mommy when my alarm sounds at 5:30, but all is good once I hit up the caffeine and get to work. I was thankful for a smooth transition. While I'm at work both grandmas have been taking wonderful care of baby girl. She has settled into a regular routine and is definitely enjoying being doted on by her loving grandparents.

One aspect of her routine that has improved is bath time. The days of traumatic bath experiences are long gone and it has actually become a fun time for Carson, Jim and I. First, she LOVES lying on her changing table. She talks and talks when we are getting her ready for the bath. She finds the shadows on the wall very interesting. (It took us a while to figure out that she was looking at the shadows bouncing around. We originally thought she was staring at a blank white wall....not promising). Once she's in the bath, she splashes and splashes. We love to sing songs and talk about her day. Bath time is the perfect ending to every day. Here are some videos of our fun.

Carson is 3 1/2 months old now... I can't believe how fast it's gone. It's quite funny in retrospect because the first month and a half felt like an eternity. She is definitely showing more and more of her own unique personality. Here's a list of some fun things that she is doing now.

• Talking - She talks and talks. We love to have conversations with her and she loves to talk back. It's especially fun when she gets really loud and excited.
• Eating her hands - She has figured out that her hands are hers and now that she knows that she can control them, they are constantly in her mouth.
• Pushing her chest/head up - She can push up and look around. Her head control is getting better and better and she is becoming steady while she looks around. Tummy time is still not her favorite, but she enjoys it more when we prop her up on her boppy pillow.

We go back to the doctor next week! We're excited to see how our little Carson has grown.

That's what Carson is... Fifty (per)Cent in every way. We went to the doctor and she is weighing in at 10 lbs 5.5 oz. She is 22.5" long with a head circumference of 15.25". She is in the 50th percentile in every one of those measurements. Who knows, maybe that's where 50cent got his start....

At 2 months Carson has changed a lot. She is much more alert and paying attention to her world around her. She absolutely hates tummy time, but is getting stronger despite her complaints. The child NEVER stays still. You always have to have both arms around her when you are carrying her around the house. Lately she has been arching her back and throwing her body backwards. I believe it's her way of making a point and probably going to give me a heart attack one day. Overall she is a happy baby, but she definitely lets you know when something is NOT ok.

A couple of milestones we hit this month:
    ~ Smiling (our favorite)
    ~ "Talking" with lots of coos (our second favorite)
    ~ she is supporting her head more steadily
    ~ she puts weight on her legs to "stand up" on someone's lap
    ~ she no longer detests bathtime and it has finally become somewhat soothing
    ~ she can pick her head up at a 45 degree angle when not sobbing profusely
    ~ she is interested in patterns and some toys
    ~ she found both of her hands and uses them as pacifiers... trying hard to get the whole fist in at once
    ~ she turns her head towards certain voices and sounds


Mommy goes back to work soon. Prayers will be appreciated :) It will be more of an adjustment for Mommy than Carson. Luckily both grandmas have graciously stepped up to help with child care so Carson will be in VERY good hands.

We did it! I caught a smile on camera. Felt kind of silly smiling behind the camera without realizing that she couldn't see my face... she's probably laughing at the idiot of a mother she has ;)

Her personality is coming through every day. Carson likes to be entertained. She becomes bored easily, but loves it when we are silly with her. We are so blessed to have a happy healthy baby. 

Carson is growing more and more alert each day! She started smiling this past weekend. It was so exciting! She smiled at me first and I started screaming for Jim. Of course once he came upstairs she made a liar out of me and was stone cold. It took a couple days but she finally smiled at Daddy. It's still not consistent enough to take a picture, but I caught a little one on video this afternoon while she was playing on her play mat. Smiling is most definitely the coolest thing she's done!

The least coolest thing Carson has done happened this past Sunday. Carson and I were rocking in the glider upstairs and I was on the phone catching up with a friend. As I was finishing the conversation, I looked down and I saw a small orange stain peeking through her onesie. I knew at that moment that it wasn't going to end well. I took Carson to the changing table and my worst fears were revealed in the tiny offwhite onesie. It was there I found our very first blow out. The kind that went up the front of her stomach to the point that if I took her shirt off as it was, she was sure to eat poo. Being the mature parents that we are I started screaming for Jim to come upstairs and he proceeded to take a picture with his phone (Lord help our child). We took her to the bathroom where Jim held her by her armpits and I sprayed her down with the hose. It was a scene from Three Men and a Baby. It was definitely an experience. The only thing worse was when she did it AGAIN out the back later that night. Oh the joys of parenthood.

It's Carson's first Valentine's Day!