Cute when she's mad

These were a couple of pictures taken of Ryan (at 8 days old) at a friend's baby shower. I guess she didn't want me to mess with her hat. It's hard not to laugh at her "mad" face.

Play Time

Time to test out the play mat.

Hey, this is pretty fun....
Eeek, big brother is attacking me!

Kisses from my big brother. That's more like it!

Week 1

A few photos of our last week...

We came home from the hospital.

Carter wore his "big brother" t-shirt.We watched Dad dig us out of the snow.We've been sleeping.We played with toys.We played on Dad.Ryan had her first bath.We're all trying to rest as much as possible.And last but not least, Carter and Dad have been rockin' out on the Wii!

Ryan Michele Meek

Ryan Michele Meek was born Saturday, February 6th at 2:56pm. She was 2 and a half weeks early so needless to say her parents were very surprised at her arrival. Ryan weighed 7 lbs. 1 oz. and was 19.5 inches long. I will get into the details about her birth on another post. Mom, Dad and big brother, Carter, are rather tired but doing well. Below are a couple of pictures of Ryan and the family. Stand by for video of Carter welcoming Ryan home.

35 weeks

Yes, this is me at 35 weeks. I only have a handful of shirts that still cover the belly. Luckily for you I am wearing one of them in this picture. The dark circles under my eyes are the result of our neighbors dogs. They have two very loud dogs that bark outside our bedroom window all day and all night. Our house is full of light sleepers so the barking is not good for any of us! If the dogs weren't enough, sleeping in general has become a challenge these days. I still feel pretty good and the number of pillows I need to get (and stay) comfortable is still much lower then it ever was while carrying Carter. However, this time my snoring has become an issue. I snore so much I even wake myself up at night! I swear Kyle and I spend all night tossing and turning. Sad to say this will be the best sleep we'll get for the next 6 months!

So what else do I have to report? Not much. I guess that's why there has been a lack of postings. My doctor took me off all the medication for the spondilitis in preparation of delivery. I'm supposed to watch for symptoms and if anything starts to hurt I'm to get back on them pronto. I had my 34 week check up for the baby on Thursday. Her heartbeat is strong at 150. Starting next week I'll be seeing my doctor on a weekly basis until delivery. Right now the baby has not turned. The doctor expects her to move on her own around 36 weeks, but if not then they will try a "version" to get her head down. I've had a couple of contractions, but nothing unusual for 35 weeks and for the second pregnancy. If you'll remember Carter was 2 days late. I don't expect this baby to come early so, MOM, there is no reason for you to change your flight from your Costa Rica vacation. We still have a lot of time left!

How is Carter? He's good. He is working on saying peas (please) more. He has it down pretty well. He just doesn't understand why sometimes we still say no when he says it. Also we've been working on our colors and letters. All colors at this point are blue. He can point out the letter A and say it. If he gets any others right it's more of a lucky guess. One down, only 25 more letters to go. We've been talking about the potty a lot more lately. He's sat on it a couple of times, but no action so far. He does tell us when he poops now so I think we're at least headed in the right direction. Carter is officially in a big boy bed and feels it's necessary to sleep with at least 10 stuffed animals and 2 books. Carter loves oatmeal, bananas, waf-wafs (waffles), all fruit, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, rice and peas. He also likes pretty much any snack food. He is a snack food junkie! He hates milk. I can't even get him to take a sip. He now drinks OJ with calcium in the morning and lots of water throughout the day. He loves to watch tv (much like his mom and dad, I guess). He loves Elmo, Thomas the Train and The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. He spends most of his days playing with his trains, being chased and tickled by daddy, riding his trike (in the house) and building with his blocks. Two months from today Carter will be 2 years old. He is certainly not a baby anymore!

Carter's Entourage

Carter's Entourage started out simple....

1. Mr. Monkey - a.k.a. Monks. Carter's numero uno.
2. Bear, Bear - the white bear that wears a stripped hat and scarf. Also doubles as Carter's choice for a pillow.
3. Blanket - the only non-stuffed animal in the group.

These were his standard go to guys. He slept with them, played with them, and carried them around. Don't get me wrong, they remain his top 3. However, it seems the entourage is growing on a daily basis. 4. Elmo - A few months back Carter fell in love with Elmo. So he added a small Elmo doll to his group. I'm not sure where that Elmo is now, probably under a couch or at the bottom of a diaper bag somewhere. But not to worry, he's added 2 larger-sized Elmos to the group.

5. Pooh- Not just any Pooh Bear, but Big Pooh. Oh yes, it is a larger-then-life stuffed Winnie the Pooh Bear. Once Carter was able to carry him on his own, he became part of the group. We tried to explain to Carter that a smaller Pooh would be better. But instead of swapping out the two stuffed animals, both are now part of the entourage.

6. Dog - A pink dog given as a gift to Carter's soon-to-be sister. Somehow he latched onto this guy and thinks it's his.

7. Oh Toodles - Better known as Mickey Mouse to you and me. Carter is a big fan of the Disney show; The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Toodles is a giant Mickey-head shaped computer whose main function is to distribute the day's Mousekatools whenever Mickey and his gang shouts out "Oh Toodles". Carter calls the show and anything related to the show Oh Toodles. Therefore it's only fitting the Mickey Mouse stuffed animal that is in his gang is called, what else, Oh Toodles.

8. Duck - Donald Duck. Oh Toodles can't go anywhere without his pal, Donald. Therefore by default he has made his way into the entourage as well.

I think that sums up the list for today. Who knows who else will be there tomorrow. There are some alternates like Mr. Giggles and gorilla, but they aren't the everyday peeps.

For now we sit back and watch Carter in amazement as he carries his entourage back and forth from his bedroom to the family room. Surprisingly it only takes 1-2 trips to round everyone up. Of course he's tripping over them and is usually carrying one in his mouth. (he's even carried Big Pooh by his teeth before!). Sometimes he gets frustrated and asks for help, but he is most proud when he brings them into the room all by himself.

You're probably asking you're self, (A.) could this blog be any longer and (B.) is it possible that Carter sleeps with all these guys? Yes, and Yes. Oh what a sight to see!

holidays

What a great Christmas season! Carter was so fun to watch this year. He learned that Santa says Ho, Ho, Ho and Carter says it every time he see a present or an image of Santa. He also became obsessed with the movie Polar Express. There were days were we watched it 2 or 3 times a day. He just couldn't get enough of the train!

Christmas Morning: Santa brought Carter a work bench and a trike (Carter calls it his bike). Both were big hits! Mom and Dad got a flip digital video camera. Expect lots of video in the future. I'm lovin' this thing! We spent Christmas day with Nonna, Papa Big, Aunt Lisa, Uncle Vince, Cousin Morgan and Cousin Mitch. Carter loves spending time with his cousins. He wouldn't let Mitch out of his sight.

Over the weekend Kyle's family got together at our house to celebrate Meek Christmas. It was a full house to say the least! We had family visit from Anderson, Evansville, Massachusetts and Florida.

We were lucky enough to have snow while the family was here. All the kids (big and little) enjoyed.

Needless to say, we were exhausted by NYE and did nothing! Catching up on some much needed sleep was quite relaxing. The holiday season was busy and crazy but it extremely special to be able to spend it with so much family and to watch Carter experience the wonders of Christmas. It is still hard for us to believe Carter will have a 10 month old sister next year. 2010 promises to be a big year of change for us and we are looking forward to every minute of it!