Where are the Longs?

This is what most of our friends have been asking. We took a little vacation to Boise for three whole weeks! Being unemployed does have its perks! :)

We visited with our families and friends and then followed the Goldsmiths to the Oregon Coast for a few days. We had a wonderful time as always.

It took about ten hours to get to Boise. This was our first car ride with Piper-girl. She was a pretty good traveler. There wasn't a ton to entertain her with. She was a little bored.

We pulled out all the stops to keep Carter-boy happy. It was pretty much Toy Story, booty snack and cookies the whole ten hours!!

Yep, double fisting it!

Time with Grandpa and Grandma Long

Carter loved being outside at Nana and Papa's.

We need to get this kid a dog!

The Oregon Coast was a little chilly but Carter still loved being outside in the sand.

After a stroll on the beach we had to come in and warm up with some hot chocolate.

It was hard to come home, but Carter has been keeping pretty busy lately baking cakes. This consists of getting out the tupperware and blocks, transferring the blocks to different bowls and cups and plates, and then lots of tasting. I have become quite a connoisseur of his "chocolate cake".

The little chef

By the way, have you noticed Carter's new smile: buck tooth chipmunk?

Carter's Birthday

Carter is two! I can't believe it. We are so thankful to Jesus for such a fun little guy and for two wonderful years with him.

Carter two years ago:

Aunt Britty came this weekend to help us celebrate.

We took Carter to the Children's Museum. He loved it. But the highlight of the day was his present from his friend James...."booty snack". I think he ate the whole bag that day. Hey, it was his birthday!

Carter's Imagination

We are discovering that Carter has quite the imagination. He is always pretending that his food is various kinds of animals. At breakfast he will tell me that his toast is a horse and make it gallop around his tray. Yesterday at dinner he said that tomatoes in his pasta were mice. He would take each one out, snuggle with it, and then eat it.
Today he came up with quite an elaborate story. He told me that there was a raccoon outside and that it was going to open the door and bite his toes and fingers. (At this point he points to his hand and says "right there, right there"). He then proceeded to prepare "raccoon snacks" which consisted of puzzle pieces in a bowl. He told me that he was "ready". When I looked out the window with him and told him that I couldn't see a raccoon, he informed me that it was because it was hiding. When the raccoon didn't show up he settled for feeding the "raccoon snacks" to Buzz.
Where does he come up with this stuff?

The Last Couple Weeks

I haven't updated the blog recently because we haven't been doing much but being sick. And by "we" I mean Carter. Poor little guy.


Piper is growing so fast. She is turning out to be quite a beautiful happy baby!

The Longs came for a visit this weekend. It was very fun to have them here. We took them to Pikes, Theo Chocolate Factory, and Carkeek Park. Carter called them "This", "That" and "the kid".

Getting out of the house

Well, we have been venturing out of the house a little more these days. So far, so good. This weekend was exceptionally beautiful here the in the Puget Sound. Today it was 57 and not a cloud in the sky. We all went down to Carkeek Park and let Carter throw rocks and shovel with sticks. We couldn't get him to look at the camera because he was too busy.
He has been talking a lot these days. He refers to himself as "Carter-boy". He loves to have me narrate his activities to Piper. He will do something and then say "Tell baby". It is so fun to have him talking so much. We get to see what goes on in his mind.
Last weekend we went to the Aquarium because it was not nice outside. That was also a big hit. Andy tried and tried to get him to touch a starfish, but Carter is not super brave. In the end he got up the guts to do it. Daddy was proud.
Piper Rose is doing well. With Carter, I was a nazi about his schedule, but her....she pretty much does whatever she wants. This week she is going to start taking naps in her bed I think, but that is what I said last week. She is smiling a lot now and we managed to catch it on video.

Christmas 2008

We had a wonderful Christmas. The Goldsmiths were here for a whole week. All in our little apartment. To most people this would be a nightmare, but we have a ton of fun! We had a white Christmas which was very fun and very rare for Seattle. So, given the snow (because no one around here plows the roads) and a brand new baby we have not done a whole lot since the family left. I have yet to venture out by myself.
Having two kids is a little crazy. I feel like things are out of control pretty much all the time. And the fact of the matter is that things are out of my control...But I am very thankful that Jesus is in control. Even in all the craziness, it is a lot of fun. It is so sweet to see Carter interact with Piper. I love having a tiny baby to snuggle. I wouldn't trade it for anything!
Well, I am going to have to stop blogging now so I can go take a nap while the babies are down for their naps. Awwww, nap time.....glorious nap time! :)

Carter-boy, enjoying the Goldsmith tradition of raspberry soup for breakfast

A very fun Christmas present, that cannot be ridden unless you are wearing the hat.

Enjoying some tea while watching the snow fall

The snow bear that Andy, Ben and Papa made

She is starting to wake up a little now. She has really big dark eyes that I am hoping are brown like her Daddy's.