Happy First Birthday Carter!

Well, today my littlest man is 1 year old!  I have no idea where the past year went.  It has certainly had its ups and downs.  And a TON of challenges.  However, watching him grow and become his own person, has been amazing.  He has gone from this little baby that was born almost 4 weeks early, to a tank.  He is so full of life, and tries to do everything that Pierce does.  He even says "I love you" now at one year of age.

Since Carter is such a tank, I wanted to spend the day with him and Pierce doing crazy outdoor stuff.  Since Pierce does have Hand, Foot, and Mouth, I knew it couldn't be too crazy since he wouldn't last long.  So my genius idea was to load Pierce up with Advil, and take both of the kids to Kent Falls for a simple picture session.  Last I knew you could not swim there, and Pierce has a fascination with rainbows and waterfalls right now.

When we arrived at Kent Falls, there were people everywhere swimming...including in the falls themselves.  And of course Carter saw water and bee lined for it.  Pierce?  Well, he decided to be a two year old and throw a tantrum...I mean a throw myself on the ground and kick and scream tantrum...because Carter was in the stroller and he wasn't.  After a brief time out and some persuasion, Pierce joined Carter in the water, and they had a blast!

After we played there for a bit, we came home for some simple down time.  They both needed it, and honestly, I did too.  It is not easy having a sick two year old that wants nothing but up, and also a needy one year old that is teething.  When Dan came home, we took off back to White Memorial to play some soccer. And the funny part was, that as long as I held Carter's hands, he kicked the ball and ran after it.  It was awesome to have all 4 of us playing soccer for a good hour.  I cannot wait until next spring.  And, we couldn't have a birthday without a birthday treat, so we went to the Arethusa Farm ice cream shop.  Yummmmm.

However, the business of the day has caught up with the boys.  Carter is over tired, Pierce is just wanting mommy, and mommy is enjoying some me space while I type this.  But, I guess I should go help Dan since both kids are screaming, and get off.  In the meantime, here are some pictures from today...