One Year Portraits

     Karsyn had her first official photo shoot when she was only 9 days old.  I was a nervous wreck!  Here I was, a first time mother, who HAD no idea of how you get a 9 day old baby to cooperate during a photo shoot.  That's where having a good photographer comes in.  We used Gail Jones Photography, and believe me, Gail is awesome! 

     I learned right away that the key to a successful newborn shoot is to relax, and let the baby be in a deep sleep.  That means feeding them if need be, to make sure they are in full slumber.  If you've read my earlier blogs, you know that I breast fed Karsyn.  So I guess this my first "public milking."  I was very inexperienced and somewhat cringed at the thought of "whipping it" out and feeding her, in the middle of a photo studio!  Luckily, it was a small, private room...with few on-lookers.  When you breastfeed, one of the first things you learn is that you may have to "whip-it-out" at anytime...and well, for the most part you get used to it.  Justin made the comment the other day that breastfeeding was exciting at first (from a male point of view), but it gets old pretty quick, and boobs become the norm.  Ok, back to the photo shoot.  Here are a couple of her newborn pictures.

 

 

Pretty sweet, huh?  I told you she was good.

     Karsyn turned one on December 1, so we had her portraits made the second week in November.  My sister Kim won a contest on GJP's Facebook page and let us use the credit towards the One Year shoot....AWESOME!  Our friend, Crystal Osborne (whose family owns the Hayloft) was very gracious and allowed us to take her photos at The Hayloft.  If you haven't been there before, you should.  It's a beautiful venue, and suited our personalities to a "T".  

     Gail met us (Justin, myself, Karsyn and Meme) at the Hayloft and we had a great session.  Again, I'd like to give a "shout out" to Gail for being such an Photographer!  In a way, it's sad to think that Karsyn has grown so much, but then again, it's such a joy to see her develop her own little personality.  Let me tell you, I believe this little girl is gonna be a pistol!

This was after she SMASHED the cupcake and was ready for more!

Look at that smile!

She LOVED the cake.

Love this girl!

This was one of the first pictures she took...love the trees, and especially that little grin!

Boo Boo the Baby Elephant

     Last blog I mentioned that Karsyn was pulling up to everything.  As most of you know, falling is quite common in the early walking stages.  Right before Halloween, Karsyn fell in my parents' living room and got her first boo boo.  My Mom thinks she fell against the recliner.  Anyway, it looked just like carpet burn.  Of course, it was nice and "scabby" the day after, which was Halloween.

Hey.

 

Little honey BOO BOO

     Halloween was pretty low-key for us.  Halloween fell in the middle of the week this year, and Karsyn goes to bed fairly early, so late-night trick or treating was out of the question.  We decided to take her to the Trunk or Treat at McLeansville Baptist Church.  Justin's brother Joe and his family go there, as well as some of my family. Before we went to the Trunk or Treat, we had to "make the rounds."  I picked her up from my parents, then we stopped by Nana & Pops house, went 2 houses up to Austin & Vernes, then went to Paw Paw Frank's, and finally made it over to the church (and Justin's Mom was there too).   Boy did they have a set up!  They had a giant inflatable slide, games, popcorn, bbq and cars decorated for candy-giving.  Although Karsyn couldn't eat the candy, we wanted her to have the exposure, and "take it all in."  (plus we could eat what she couldn't)

     Seeing that Karsyn is cute all the time, finding the perfect costume to match that was key.  Back in September, we had bought her a pumpkin suit from Toys R Us.  It was cute, but it was still lacking.  We happened to be in Carter's one day, and came across the perfect costume....A baby elephant!

Look at me!

I can hardly stand the cuteness!

     We knew this was the one because everytime she would put it on, she would giggle.  She was the cutest thing!  Below are some actual pics from Halloween.  Wouldn't you know, she isn't smiling in any of them.  She's still cute though!  By far, the cutest little elephant I've ever seen.

You want me to carry a bucket?

Just look at those eyes & lips!

New Year...still playing catch up!

Hello 2013!   2012 has come and gone...and it was such a good year, and not to mention FAST!  We have had so much fun and made a lot of memories.  (all of this made possible, by the one and only Karsyn May)  
Starting a new year, makes me realize how terrible I am at keeping up the blog.  I know, I know, you've heard it before, and my apologies are no good.  So, I'll spare you with the apologies, and just give a simple sentence that sums up my thoughts:  I suck at blogging.  There you go.  
With that being said, I would, however like to make a statement for the good...I do want to document our life(especially Karsyn's), and I do want have people read about it, and I do want to get better at it.  I will try.  Maybe I should make a resolution to blog more...? 

Let's get down to it....THE RECAP since the last blog.  My last blog was back in mid October, and I do believe I was playing catchup then to.  Shame, Shame.  So much has happened since then, and that makes me feel even worse, because some of Karsyn's big milestones have happened, and I have kept my audience (if there is one?) out of the loop, unless you have been following me on Facebook. (which I'm sure most of the ones reading this have)   

Gosh, where do I start....how about New Shoes?  (for Karsyn that is)  In Early October, Karsyn was pulling up to EVERYTHING.  This could only mean one thing....Walking was right around the corner.  With that being said, the need for "Real" shoes arose.  Real, as in Real Walking shoes, Real as in Real Expensive.  LOL.  One Saturday, I was having lunch with my friend Christen from College at Harper's.  After the meal, I decided that we should walk across the parking lot to Stride Rite and have Karsyn fitted for shoes.  It was convenient, and having Christen there made it so much easier.  The selection was pretty slim, in the "Pre-Walker" variety....but of course my child would show interest in the most expensive pair.

They were Minnie Mouse, of course, and they just so happened to be $45!  Aren't they cute though?  I was very pleased with how Karsyn acted in the store.  With it being a Saturday and the fact that they only have 2 associates working, Stride Rite was a Mad House, or maybe a "Foot Frenzy".  Nonetheless, it was CRAZY, and I had a busy 10 month old on my hands.  Once we were finally helped, Karsyn sat just as still as the guy measured her little foot.

SOLD!, to the cute little girl with the "sprouting hair."  It took K a little while to get used to wearing shoes, but she managed.  And, putting the price aside, I think we scored a pretty sweet deal.  Perfect shoes for the perfect girl.

Still in October...
We took a family trip Boone!  There's nothing sweeter than fall in the mountains, with the ones you love.  Our trip consisted of Myself, Justin, Karsyn, Mama, Deddy, and even Kim and Kenzie!  We had a wonderful time, and even got to see the peak fall foliage.  Our day started with a tour of "The Rock", or Kidd Brewer Stadium.  We walked on the track, and let Karsyn crawl through the inzone.  With perfect timing, she just so happened to "fill up her diaper" in the middle of our tour, and had to be changed on a park bench!  After that, we headed into downtown and stopped at the Mast Store, and had lunch at Macadoo's.  Karsyn was tired from the ride up, so she slept in her stroller all through lunch.  We made a stop at Mountaineer Mania (to get K an ASU sweatshirt) and then hopped in the Tahoe and headed to the parkway.  We drove up to the Viaduct (along with everyone and their brother) and took a short hike to show Kenzie one of NC's treasures...  On our way back down the mountain, we stopped and got some fresh apples and cider.  It was a good trip!

Mom, is this artificial turf, or mountain grass?

Come on Papa!

Diaper change on the bench...

How about the family portrait?  I guess the word attempt is more fitting.  Too funny!

Beach Trip - Family of 3!

I'm a little behind in the world of blogging.  (What's new, right?) I love to do it, but I have difficulty "keeping up." I know I'm about a month behind, but I'm trying to play catch-up.
We took our first beach trip, as a family of 3 the week after Labor Day.  We has such a good time!  We found out that Justin's cousin, Sherri (whom we LOVE) was going to be down the same time we were going, so we decided to stay at the same place they were.  We went to Kure Beach and stayed at the Sand Dunes Motel.  It was definitely not a 5-star accomodation, but it was clean, convenient, and nicely priced.

We just got a standard ocean front room with (2) beds and a little kitchenette.  Justin and I slept in one bed, Karsyn slept in her pack-n-play, and the extra bed was a catch-all for all of Karsyn's toys.  We were only gone for 4 days, but it seemed like we packed for a month!  Seeing that it was a MOTEL, and not HOTEL, meant NO ELEVATOR!  Poor Justin.  He had to lug everything up and down the stairs everyday.  He did it, with only minimal complaining.  Anything for his girls, right?  All kidding aside, Justin's a good one.  I think I'll  hold on to him.

Here's the back of our Tahoe, PACKED!

The May-Rig all ready to go

Being Karsyn's first beach trip, we wanted her to get the full beach experience.  (How much of an experience can a 9 month old have??)  We did a lot of things, that she probably won't remember, but hopefully our pictures and stories will mean something to her one day.  For example, "Hey, do you remember that time you pooped on the beach and we didn't have an extra diaper??"  At the time, we were in a panic, but now we can laugh about it.
Karsyn experienced many firsts on this trip.  She experienced her first time in the ocean, first time in a pool (not just our blow-up backyard pool), she slept in a tent on the beach, she rode the ferry, ate late-night ice cream, she visited the aquarium, she took her first "aqua-dump", and most importantly(to Justin), she witnessed her Daddy devour 12 plates of crab legs!

Daddy feeding me oatmeal

Hanging out with Cousin Reese after breakfast

She's always been the perfect baby, but even on a roadtrip, away from her bed, she was still so well-mannered, and smiled the WHOLE time!  Justin and I really are blessed to have such a wonderful child.  Here are some pics from our trip...

Already asleep, in the driveway at home!

Killing time, reading, like a smart girl

My LIFE.

She LOVED the ocean.  No Fear.

Late-night ice cream makes me silly!

K-O-ed (knocked out) on DA BEACH

Just happy to be here!

The only use this bed got, was for play

at the NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher

After one of her several "Aqua-DUMPS"

Still just as happy as can be!

Sitting in the backseat at a Rest Stop, taking a milk break

Therapeutic Pickles

Yep, you read it right, Therapeutic Pickles! 
Having lived in the south all my life, I have always been around "homemade pickles."  My paternal Grandmother (Maw-Maw) still makes pickles every year. Even though, they're sweet, and not really my favorite, they're still always a hit.  Justin has never understood it, but my family always eats pickles with cake.  I guess it's that whole salty/sweet thing.  While I've been known to have a sweet pickle with my cake, I'm really more of a dill, garlicky kind of girl.  I did a little Internet research and decided to try my hand at them.
So, right before we went to the beach (actually it was the night before), I started my pickle making process.  I know you're probably thinking, "What moron decides to make pickles the night before they leave town???"  uhh....that would be this girl!
First step was to get 15-20 pickling cucumbers...I did that.  I also gathered my other ingredients (Vinegar, Sugar, Garlic, Dill Weed, Dill Seed, Whole Peppercorns).  I decided to take a couple recipes, and alter them to one "kick-ass" pickle recipe.  So that's what I did.  I didn't use any alum or anything like that in my recipe like that. 
After gathering my ingredients, I cut up the cucumbers (BY HAND) and placed them in a brine overnight.  The Brine is what makes the pickles crispy. (so you don't have to use Alum)

I washed the cukes, and then sliced them...BY HAND

Next, I sliced them (BY HAND) and place them in a salty brine, overnight.

This was a 2-day pickle process.  Day 1, cut up cukes and placed them in brine overnight.  Then on Day 2, I added the liquid and other ingredients and placed in the jars.  So on the morning that we were supposed to be leaving for the beach....I was making pickles!  They turned out fantastic!  They were loaded with dill and garlic...so while they aren't the best for your breath, they are quite tasty.  I will definitely be making more! (but maybe not the night before a beach trip!)

The hardest part about the whole thing was cutting up the cucumbers.  My Mom asked me why I didn't use a mandolin.  My response was that cutting them by hand makes them look more "homemade."  In all honesty, I did find it Therapeutic!  I know it sounds weird, but it was totally Therapeutic!

Pretty In Pink

We love Target.  Who doesn't right?  They basically have the same things as Walmart, but they are totally on "another level."  The Target near our house (in Burlington) has recently had a grocery store added, so we shop there even more frequently.  We've actually found some things are WAY cheaper than at Food Lion or even Walmart.
They also have an awesome Baby/Kid department.  We buy diapers, baby food, clothes, toys and lots of misc. items at Target.  At one of our recent trips, Karsyn found her a must-have.....A Pink Easy Chair!

The sign above it says "Under $10"...but believe me, it is not that price.  I think it's like $65, which really isn't that bad.  We may have to give Santa a call, and pass along a couple hints, because she is just TOO CUTE in this chair.

Of course, the pink dress she's wearing, as well as the Minnie Mouse doll add to the pink cuteness.  After all, little girls are PRETTY in PINK!

Rabies & Babies

Back towards the end of August, Fire Station 28 hosted a Rabies Clinic.  We made it a point to take the 3 dogs.
Calm down!  I know this is too much excitement to handle....but this is what our Saturdays consist of.  Man, I'm getting old!  I know that's not the norm for a fun saturday morning, but we try to have a good time at whatever we're doing.
I'm not against the vet by no means...but for a simple rabies shot, the clinic is the way to go.  At the Vet, you pay $15 for the shot plus an office visit charge.  Well... that adds up for 3 dogs.  At the clinic, the cost is $5 per dog.  So it's a huge savings.  This was the second year that we have gone to this particular clinic.  Station 28 has got it going on!  They know how to make things work, and in an efficient way.  They actually do a drive thru.  The only time you have to get out of the car is when you have to sign the paperwork.  I highly recommend it.
This year, we had Karsyn, so she got to experience it.  She enjoyed herself very much.  (Mostly because she got to ride in the car, not in her carseat, while we were in the line.)  She sat in Justin's lap while we waited.

Last year, we (me, Justin and the 3 dogs) all piled in my Honda Accord and went to the clinic.  This year, we drove the Tahoe, and put all the dogs in the "way back".  Little Bit was the only one that could easily escape.  She found her a cozy spot on top of the rear seat.

Now can you tell me that your Saturday morning was more fun than that??