So, have you seen the movie Hitch?

Hadley had a severe allergic reaction to our neighbors cat. Seriously, this picture doesn't even show you half of what really happened to her face. I could not believe how fast her face changed. I thought in the movie Hitch when he had an allergic reaction to the fish, they just exaggerated his face for entertainment sake. I didn't know it could really happen!! Oh believe me, it can. But unless someone is having trouble breathing, don't worry, just dope them up with Benedryl, put some Zaditor drops in their eyes and give them a cold rag to put on their face. Yeah, I was ready to bolt to the emergency room, but luckily we have an awesome pediatrician who gave us his beeper number a long time ago and he is great at calling us back fast. After the whole thing was over, it was actually pretty hilarious! I just wish I would have taken a picture sooner!

Braelyn's First Photo Shoot

My sweet little Braelyn is 3 days old in these pictures. Our awesome neighbor John-Erik Brammer came to our house and took these amazing pictures. He seriously does a great job, I highly recommend him. He is very patient and easy to work with, he makes sure everything is perfect. Check out his blog, http://www.brammerphotography.blogspot.com/

Baby Braelyn!!

Introducing Braelyn Tyler Carlson!!

She came into our family on 8/9/10 at 3:53 pm, weighing in at 7lbs 7 oz and 19 inches long!
We are so glad to finally have her here, she is such a great blessing. We already can't remember life without her. She is a perfect combination of Hadley and Lexi, finally proving that they are sisters! They love her so much and are very excited to help take care of her. Thank you for blessing us with your beautiful spirit, we are so lucky to have you in our family. We love you Baby Braelyn!!

Lagoon!!

We went to Lagoon again for Italian Days! It was a blast...for the kids anyway. It wasn't too bad for me either, but it would have been more fun if I wasn't 9 months pregnant! My kids are little dare devils. I was surprised I didn't go into labor just watching them get on some of the rides. Hadley thinks she is one of the big kids now and wanted to go on everything! I about had a heart attack watching her get on The Bat, The Wild Mouse and the swings. She wanted to go on the Wicked and The Rocket but thank goodness she was not tall enough. I was definitely not ready for that. She thinks she will do it next year but I'm pretty sure I won't be ready then either. Lexi was not afraid of anything either, although when she got off the Tidal Wave I asked her if she liked it and she said "no, I was freakin out!" But she did end up going on it again, along with a bunch of other rides I thought she would be too afraid to go on. They had a great time, I can't wait until next year when I can actually go on the rides with them!

Hadley and Kayla waiting to go on the Bat!

The famous Carousel!

Lexi on the little boats by herself....Hadley was too

big for them this year (sad)

They are so freaking cute!!

Hadley's First Day Of Kindergarten!

My baby Hadley has started Kindergarten! I always tell her she is my baby and she gets mad at me. I told her it doesn't matter how old she gets, she will always be my baby. She was so excited to start school. She couldn't wait to go to bed the night before and she wanted to have lunch super early because she thought that would make it come faster. I tried all day to talk her out of going. I told her it was okay if she wanted to stay home because I would miss her. She responded with " it's okay Mom, you'll be fine I will be home in time for dinner." She is so cute! I was so proud of her. She was so big and just couldn't wait to get there. She looked a little nervous a couple of times but she was very brave and excited to be there.....Then there was me. Seriously, I am the biggest baby. I try to blame it on the pregnancy but honestly my reaction probably would have been the same pregnant or not. I cried when she moved up to Primary! So I was already fighting back the tears before we even got into the class room. We helped them find their name tag and they drew a picture of themselves and hung it up. Then it was story time. I think the book was called the Kissing Heart, it was a real tear jerker! The mommy raccoon gives the little raccoon a special kissing heart to take with him to school so he won't be sad. Then at the end of the story one by one, the kids got up and took a heart to their moms or dads and said I love you and goodbye. It was horrible! It took all I had not to let Hadley see me cry. I was a wreck the second I turned for the door. I felt like such an idiot, I couldn't wait to get to my car and throw myself a pity party. I know it's a good thing and they have to grow up, but does it have to happen so fast? I swear she was born yesterday. Kindergarten is a huge step! Our lives will never be the same. I know she is ready and I am so proud of her. I am so thankful that I get to watch her grow and learn and discover new things every day. That is just one of the many great rewards of being a mom. I love her so much, she has blessed my life in so many ways. I just hope she knows how much I love her and that I will always be her number one fan. She is such an amazing little girl and I am excited for this new adventure in her life.

My cute Kindergartener all ready for school!

Lexi had to have her picture taken too!

She is still real jealous that her sister gets to

go to school and she has to wait until September!

Hadley and Ryan on their first day!

Hadley coloring her picture!

Hadley got a crown and a treat for having a July birthday!

She was so excited about it. She had a great first day!

Happy Birthday Hadley!

Hadley's birthday finally came! It is so hard for her to have to wait until the end of the month. Lexi asked her if it was her birthday and she said "yes, it's my favorite day ever!" Hadley is such a sweetheart. I cannot believe how mature she is getting. I am having a hard time believing that my baby is 5 years old! She literally thinks she is so big. She loves helping out around the house, her favorite thing is doing the dishes. She loves teaching her sister new things and can't wait to help me with the new baby. She told me once that 3 kids will be a lot of work so she better just be in charge of the baby and I should be in charge of Lexi. She loves having responsibility. I love having conversations with her about her life, she is so observant and learns so much every day. She cannot wait for Kindergarten which starts next week. I cannot believe it is coming so soon. I am really having a hard time with letting her go out into the big world, this is a huge step. I know she is ready, but I definitely am not. We are so blessed to have this beautiful girl in our home. We love her very much and would be lost without her. She has a very strong personality and can be very stubborn at times but we wouldn't have it any other way. She is just as sweet and loving as she is stubborn! We have learned so much from her. I can't believe my baby is growing up so fast. I depend on her for a lot of things and she is a great helper. She takes on the oldest child role very well. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have it any other way! Here are some pictures of her big birthday bash! She was so excited about her party, afterwards we went out to dinner with the Barfuss family and they sang to her and she got some ice cream. She thought that was pretty cool. She was really excited that her birthday kept going after the party and that Maddy went with us, they are best friends! Oh yeah, she has finally decided to start changing her earings. On the way home from dinner she said "mom and dad, how about you start teaching me to change my earings by myself cause I'm 5 now and I think I'm ready." It is all down hill from here, she's going to think she's ready for a lot more things than I want her to be!

My beautiful 5 year old...she is so big!

All the girls eating cupcakes!

More presents!

Another pinata!

Hadley had to have pin the tail on the donkey this year. It was a huge hit!

I did get pictures of all the girls playing but I thought I would stick with just my girls

for the sake of not having to upload so many pictures!

My cute girls! Happy Birthday Hadley, we love you!