What a difference a year makes....

Wow, what a difference a year makes. We are so very grateful that Carter is a healthy happy little boy. He turned 1 on 5/20/10 and decided that he was done with only the occasional walking and decided to take off..literally! He walked from our kitchen to the front door the morning of his birthday and there has been no turning back. He is so very proud of himself as are we. It still shocks me a little when I see him walk into a room. Just seems like yesterday he was a baby and now he is approaching toddlerhood at an increasing speed. He had his 12 mo check up and he is 25lbs 2 oz (81st%), 30inches tall (72%). He has 8 teeth and is working on his molars. He has been off the bottle since he was about 11 months old and LOVES his sippy cup and whole milk. He is now eating what the big kids eat at school...no more baby food. Always a blessing and a curse. Trying to get all the veggies and fruits in is always a new challenge with the difference in textures. We are lucky that he likes food and is a good eater. As you can tell from his stats, he doesn't miss many meals. :)

His teachers and classmates threw him a little party at school on his birthday. I provided the blueberry muffins....no cupcakes in the infant room. :) Then we had a party at the house for family and close friends. He had a ball and we had so much fun watching him.

Annual Mother-son birthday picture.

His classmates made this cute banner for him. It is signed with all their hand prints/ foot prints

Sitting at the big table eating his muffins
Birthday boy!

The birthday cake His smash cake
Getting ready to dig in!

MMMM. Cake!
Taking his bike for a spin

Loving his new lawn mower. He pushes it all over the house.
The Crew: Erich, Ella Catherine, Carter and Reese.

Graduations

We had 3 big graduations in the family this year. Christopher graduated from Christian Brother's High School. Cori and Michael graduated from eigth grade. We are very proud of all 3 of them.
Michael receiving his History award at his eigth grade acheivements ceremony.

Michael, John, Chris and Debbie before Christian Brother's High School Graduation 2010

Lori, Kelly and Cori at St. Joseph Catholic school eigth grade graduation 2010

School Pictures

Carter's DayCare Class "The Lady Bugs": From Left to right: Miss Anita, Molly, Sarah, Gabriel, Sofia, Miss Linda, Lucia, Sloan , Carter

Ella Catherine's Preschool Picture "The HoneyBears": from left to right: (top) Shufei, Micah, Ilan, Ella Catherine, and Miss Kenithia (middle) Miss Kristin, Ivy, Bella, Chris and Tanner (bottom) Zuri, Bryce and Lucy

Nashville Flood

May came in with a BANG this year in Nashville. The first weekend in May, we received over 13 inches of rain in less than 48hours. As a result it caused massive flooding all over the city of Nashville. Before our power went out on Saturday I was in disbelief as I saw an 18 wheeler completely submerged in water on I-24 and the mobile home that it had been carrying actually floating down I-24. I knew that the Harpeth River which runs along side our neighborhood was swelling and that it could come over its bank but I never fathomed how far above the bank it would actually rise. We realized that we were flooded in when Matt tried to run to the grocery store for me. For the rest of the morning we tried to get some work done around the house all the while keeping an eye on the rising water as it continued to rain. Mid-morning Matt put on his waiters and began going from house to house helping our neighbors salvage their belongings as the water continued to rise and start invading their homes. What started as salvaging belongings turned into saving people from their flooded homes. Our neighbor had a bass boat and he and Matt drove around rescuing people. Around 5pm Matt came back by the house and told me to pack a bag for myself and the kids with at least 3 days worth of clothing and supplies. I think initially I was in shock but eventually began packing. The kids and I waited in line to get on a boat and be transported out of our neighborhood to safety. It was such a surreal experience to be taken by boat accross an area that we usually drive and walk. the current was unbelieveable! The kids were excellent through the whole process. One of Matt's co-workers and friend met us on the other side and drove us to Kimberly's house. Matt stayed back and continued to help people get themselves, their children and their animals on the boats and off to safety. He got Baylor and Elway and they took the very last boat out that evening around 9pm. We were not very concerned about our house flooding but we had no power and very little food. The Nashville Rescue team was telling us it could be as long as a week before we had power. Luckily, we were house sitting for some friends and we actually went and sat in their house! We can not say thank you enough to them for letting us invade their home while they were away. We are VERY blessed and VERY lucky that our house did not sustain any flood damage.

Our hearts go out to those that did have their homes flooded. It is devastating to drive through the hardest hit areas and see all the debris on the streets and the gutted homes. You honestly can not imagine the extent until you see it first hand. We continue to pray for all the families affected and are trying to work through our church to reach out to people and help. Please keep Nashville in your prayers.

Georgia and Colorado

Cori enjoyed fixing Ella Catherine's Hair and Ella Catherine enjoyed playing with Cousin Cori

Pop helping Ella Catherine go accross the monkey bars at the park

Ella Catherine playing at the museum

Happy Couples first dance

3 Generations of Lynch Men. (Next time we want a picture of the 3 generations of James Lynchs. Uncle Jimmy I know you are reading this so remind us!!)

Carter's Goose Egg. It got unbelieveabley huge!

Matt's cousin, Amy, got married last Saturday April 24th in Estes Park, Colorado. So, Carter, Matt and I (along with Grandpa, Grams, Uncle Michael, Uncle Christopher, Aunt Katie and Uncle Shannon) flew out to Colorado for the wedding. The Wednesday before the wedding Nana and Pop drove up from Georgia spent the night and then took Ella Catherine back with them to Georgia on Thursday for a big girl's weekend. We had a great time in Colorado and I think she had an equally good time in Georgia.

When we got to Denver on Friday we had heard rumors about low temperatures and snowstorms and the rumors were true. It was snowing like crazy up in the mountains. So much so that the bride and groom were delayed to their own rehearsal dinner. No one minded the delay as it allowed us all time to catch up with family. The wedding was beautiful and elegant. The scenery was breathtaking. The wildlife was unbelievable. The company was outstanding. We had a wonderful trip.

It was Carter's first time in an airplane and I can honestly say that he did, ok. Not great but not bad. Flying with an infant is challenging because of their schedules and tight quarters. Carter has never been a baby that liked to be rocked or patted to sleep. He would much rather be put down and left alone. He doesn't fall asleep with the mom bounce and sway or pat. Infact, all of that usually makes him angrier. So, I knew the airplane would be a challenge. Luckily, I brought "the closer" (AKA Matt) with me. He is completely unphased by crying and screaming. So, when Carter got irritable he just got up and went to the back of the plane and worked his magic. When he came back my little monster was once again an angel. He did great at the wedding but had a little fall at the reception. I knew when he fell that it wasn't going to be good. I wasn't sure what he hit but I knew I needed to get him up, comfort him and get him out of the room quickly as he was going to wail. And wail he did indeed but I can't say I blame him. He hit his forhead on the metal leg of a reception table. I now know where the phrase goose egg came from. (See picture below). Luckily, Matt's cousin, Theresa, is a sports medicine MD and gave him a quick neuroexam. It cut our night short as we left and headed back to our cabin to monitor our little man for an hour or so before he went to bed, but it definitely made me sleep easier knowing that he had been checked. Surprisingly the next morning the bump was gone and only a blue bruise was in its place. Kids are so resilient.

As for Ella Catherine, she had a ball in Macon with Nana, Pop, Becky, Cindy (AKA aunt Kelly), Cori, Uncle Brian and Aunt Lori. Nana and Pop took her to the museum and the park. Cori and Uncle Brian played ball with her. Aunt Kelly colored and played bubbles with her. She was Nana's little helper and helped make dinner and even made some banana pudding. She was a very good girl and was very excited to see Matt on Monday. He met my folks half way to pick her up.

We have had a good week at home and are recovering from the Nashville Flood and being evacuated. story and pictures to come.

Baby Kisses

I had almost forgotten how great it is the first time your baby kisses you. Carter started giving those open mouthed slobbery baby kisses this weekend and it was absolutely WONDERFUL!!! You can ask for a kiss and he will give you one with a BIG grin on his face and it is often followed by a little baby chuckle (one of the best sounds on the face of the earth). This morning when Matt got him up he laid a big kiss on him and it made his day! God has truly blessed us!

Spring is here!

We are so excited that Spring is finally here! Our sinuses are not so happy about all the pollen but it is a small price to pay for the beautiful weather. We have been enjoying lots of outdoor time.

Easter weekend Nana and Pop came to stay with Ella Catherine and Carter while Matt and I had our first adult weekend since Carter was born. We went to Louisville, KY for my best friend, Jennifer's wedding. It was so nice to be able to sleep in and actually get a full night of uninterrupted sleep. The wedding was BEAUTIFUL and we had a BLAST! We have decided that we need to go back and actually get out and enjoy the city as this trip we only enjoyed sleeping in the hotel room. :) We got home just in time for the Easter bunny's arrival. We can't thank my parents enough for taking care of the kids.

A little update on the kids:

Carter is now 10 1/2 months old. He gave us a scare about 1 month ago. He had pneumonia and almost ended up in the hospital. Luckily the antibiotics worked and in 24 hours you would never have known he was sick. He is standing up by himself now and will walk holding 1 finger. It is only a matter of time before we have a cruiser. He is just as happy as he can be and his chuckle is one of the highlights of my day. One of the other highpoints is his bear hugs. He LOVES to give big hugs.

Ella Catherine is a delight and a handful all in one cute little package. Matt and I are well aware that she is no longer a toddler but a little girl. It really is amazing how muh she has changed in 3 years. Much to her dad's delight she is really starting to become interested in sports. She has started wanting to play baseball with Matt in the yard. She can throw the ball pretty well, has a pretty good arm on her but we are still working on the catching. I have a feeling that she will have her own little glove and teeball set here before too long. :)

Spring morning anxiously waiting to be able to go outside

Hunting Easter eggsStanding up by himself

Beautiful Spring day at the parkElla Catherine showing Carter the flowersMe and the kidsMatt and Ella Catherine (LOVE this Picture!)MS walk at Percy Warner (whole family minus Baylor participated)

Throwing the softball with daddy in her tutuCarter loving the car