Birthday Boy

Carter may be my favorite little person in the world right now. It's hard to deny. He's been through a lot in his two short years of life, but has become this amazing little boy, so full of love. He turned two on Sunday and was so happy to celebrate with family. He was most excited about blowing out his candles, which he did four times.

He opened his presents, and was genuinely excited about everything. What an easy birthday for me!

Earlier in the week, Jeff was out of town and we had just gotten back from the girls' gymnastics class. I wasn't really in the mood to make dinner (as is usually the case when Jeff is gone), and thought about stopping at Carl's Junior and letting the kids play there for dinner. But I didn't. And I wish I would have. Because in my haste to make dinner for the starving mob, I opened a can of corn, but didn't take the top all the way off. Just pried it up so that I could make some quesadillas for the kids. McKay was crying in his high chair and I was trying to take care of him, too, and I didn't see Carter grab for the corn. It wasn't until I heard the crying, and saw the blood, that I realized what had happened.

I picked him up and grabbed a paper towel, trying to assess the damage. It was quickly apparent that it was more than just a little cut and was probably going to need stitches. Carter was not happy at all and couldn't hold still, so I snapped the whip and ordered the other kids around ("Take care of McKay!" "Don't let those quesadillas burn!") so that I could take care of Carter. I consulted with Jeff over the phone, and then my neighbor next door, but I knew that he needed to get it stitched up. So Jeff called the oral surgeon he works with a lot and he agreed to meet me at his office. I sent the kids next door and left.

He ended up needed six stitches to close it up. And the doctor thinks he probably cut an artery because there was so much blood. Even an hour and a half after it happened, it was still gushing.We tried some laughing gas to get him to relax, but that seemed to bring up unpleasant memories of breathing treatments in the hospital or something, and only made him madder. I held him down while the doctor stitched him up and finally got him to stop screaming by telling him stories. It looked nasty, but at least it was closed.

We kept it wrapped up during the day, with lots of neosporin and a splint, and then took the bandages off at night so that it could dry out. He has healed amazingly quickly and is about ready for those stitches to come out. He hardly complained at all after the stitches went in and I only had to give him ibuprofen twice for pain. He is a tough little guy!

There are so many reasons that I love this little boy. Here are just a few examples.

1. I was changing his diaper one day and he was squirming all over, kicking his legs. I told him he needed to hold still, and that he was hurting my tummy. He looked at me with those big eyes and said, "hurt tummy? Sorry mommy." He really is so polite. He always says "thank you" when I do something for him and is so quick to apologize.

2. Yesterday we stopped at Costco and I asked the kids to help me unload when we got home. Damon said he would, but he REALLY needed to go to the bathroom (and Damon usually is helpful, so I know he wasn't trying to get out of it), but the girls walked right in the house, ignoring me completely. I got Carter out of his car seat and he immediately headed for the passenger door, picked up a bag of frozen corn, and tried to carry it in the house. The only one who was willing to help me! He is very helpful and I find lots of things that he has "put away," or thrown away. 

3. He is talking so well and everything he says is SO cute! My favorite from last month was when we went in to get McKay in the morning (always the first thing he wants to do). We walked in and McKay was waiting for us. Carter got all excited and said, "I found it! Bubba's awake!" We have repeated that often and Carter will say it to get a laugh. He also likes to say, "Go Damon! Shoot the hoop," sing the ABC song, and tell me he's ready for lunch. Love it.

4. He is so gentle and affectionate. He loves to hug and kiss and is so sweet to McKay. It warms my heart. Unprompted, he will hug and kiss him and never wants to see him cry.

5. He loves, and gets excited about, all kinds of things. He got a little train set for his birthday and is always so excited to play with it (and take it to bed with him). He loves balls and his popper and Barbies and puzzles and books. He just started being able to do the puzzles and file folder games I have in the closet and it's amazing to see his little mind growing all the time. It's also hard to say no to him because he's so sweet. Dangerous combination.

He was so excited at the Pinewood Derby the other night. He loved watching the cars race down the track and would call out "Go!" if they weren't moving fast enough. As soon as a race finished, he screamed in delight and yelled, "Again!" 

I know we are so lucky to have this fuzzy headed little boy in our family. He makes all of our lives better. Happy birthday Carter Edward!