Tried & True

Tonight we leave 2009 behind us and enter a new decade. 2009 was a monumental year for us and in 2010 we will be full swing into the second chapter of Kariana's life. Instead of recording New Year's resolutions I won't keep, I've decided to make a list of the things that I found most helpful during Kariana's first year. Some of these are pieces of advice that were given to me. Some of the advice I regret ignoring and some of the advice I followed and found extremely helpful. Some of these are products that became the stables of our lives during 2009. It will be interesting to see if any of these products are still around when Kariana has children of her own. Most importantly I am recording these for Kariana so when she has children of her own I won't have to say "Uh, I don't know. That was a long time ago."

#1 Sleep when the baby sleeps. Everything (and that means everything) else can wait.

#2 Pampers Swaddlers Sensitive for Newborns. Huggies Pure & Natural Diapers.

#3 Dr. Smith's Diaper Cream. It's OTC but you have to ask for it because most pharmacies keep it behind the counter.

#4 Buy a humidifier.

#5 Little Noses Saline Spray . . . Vicks Baby Rub . . . Infant Tylenol!!

#6 Enfamil AR (for any parents dealing with infant reflux).

#7 Fussybaby.net. I will keep these images in Kariana's baby book. They worked for her.

#8 Diapers.com. Online home delivery of everything you need for baby.

#9 Gerber Organics & Earth's Best Baby Food. I tried all of the new fancy baby food products but kept coming back to these two.

#10 One ounce of pure organic Prune Juice in baby's bottle each morning. Works like a charm.

#11 Cheerios!!!

Facebook: My Year in Posts

The social networking site, Facebook, became a mainstream form of Internet communication during 2009 and I, of course, couldn't be left in the dark ages. This is my year of status updates for 2009. Apparently, Facebook is recording everything that we say. As I read through my year in posts I notice that most are about Kariana (big surprise). There's a lot about Longhorn football. The Horns are going to the BCS National Championship Game next week. The changing of the seasons is noted and a few important world events were recorded. Most of all I look back at my life in 2009 on Facebook and I am grateful that I was able to re-connect with so many long lost friends. Some of these friends are from high school and I haven't spoken to them in 20 years. Many of them are from college and law school.

Here is my year in posts:

Cara . . .

is leaving work to take Kariana to the pediatrician for her 4-month visit. We get shots today ● is wondering if she will ever get to sleep through the night again ● is trying not be grouchy that she is stuck in the office working on a filing while her hubby has the day off and is home with K ● what goes in must come out ● is wondering if anyone (in Houston) has noticed how beautiful the azaleas are this year. Spring is here! ● caved and ate a Crave Cupcake (with a shamrock) despite her diet. Figured I deserved it since everyone is torturing me with their Spring Break pictures ● Batter Blaster ● Kariana just peed all over daddy's suit. Is it possible that she knew what she had done and she was laughing AT us and not WITH us? ● is looking forward to Easter and seeing Aunt Kari ● has decided that despite thinking Thin Mints were her all time favorite she is really addicted to Samoas ● when hell freezes over and pigs fly . . . . wash your hands ● Happy 6 Month Birthday Kariana ●Happy Mother's Day to all of my favorite mothers and grandmothers!! Hugs & Kisses ● Wishing my hubby a Happy Birthday today ● skedaddled ● Happy Father's Day to my hubby, my dad and all of the other great dads out there ● HOOK 'EM HORNS ● loves short weeks! And the 4th of July ● cliché but thanks again FB for putting me in tough with long lost friends ● NAP!!!! All four of us :) ● apparently interpreting baby noises is part of my new job description - can someone please figure out what “bla bla bla . . . . bla bla bla . . . . . WAAAAAAHHHHH” means and let me know ● feels old when she has twentysomething friends on FB and re-reads their posts several times and still can’t figure out the meaning of their version of texting shorthand ● is trying to remember what she forgot ● and Kariana went to the new HEB Buffalo Market this afternoon. Overall more HEB than Central Market. Nice that the prices are more HEB and you can find the basics. Also liked the kids' carts but will have a hard time competing with the videos that the Kroger across the street is installing in the kids' carts ● Kariana is taking a marathon nap. Both grandpa and the fresh Oregon air are wearing her out ● has always loved Hwy 101 but Hwy 101 with a sleeping baby is even better ● Why is everything I need now at the bottom of my purse? Grrrr! So tired of digging ● The weekend and Longhorn football. Wahoo ● Is tired of the golf clubs in my living room. No, they do not make a good accent piece :( ● doesn't get Mafia Wars ????? ● Yawn. . . . stretch . . . . coffee . . . more coffee . . . . TGIF everyone ● really needs to read more often ● is rethinking her running/jogging playlist and needs a few new songs to get her motivated. Any suggestions ● is watching Duran Duran on Palladia! I'm a true 80's child ● feels so professional when she brings her lunch to work in a plastic Target baggie and then proceeds to pull out of her purse a pacifier instead of her office badge. Just call me Denny Crane ● "Goodnight Moon," my favorite time of the day especially when it includes belly laughs and kisses ● is now one of those mothers with a sniffling, sneezing, snotty nose kid that she used to look at with disgust when their crusty nose kids got too close to hers. Sigh ● has two comments this morning 1) really? Obama? and 2) the Horns are back in action this week! Hook 'em! ● is walking downtown and it is windy and I see rain clouds. Bring it on cool front ● is birthdayed, Halloweened and footballed out! Hook 'em and back to #2! ● is wondering whether she should call Kariana "her baby" or "her toddler". She's acting more like a toddler but just the other day she was still a baby. Sigh! Maybe I'll stick with "munchkin” ● is loving Google's Sesame Street charaters this week ● Should have bought stock in hand sanitizer. It's the new classic - sort of like Coco Chanel ● is getting into the holiday spirit and listening to Sting's new Christmas album, "If On a Winter's Night . . ." It's magnificent. I LOVE this time of the year ● made an Advent wreath at church this morning and now on the way out to get the Christmas tree. Let the decorating and festivities begin! Christmas music a must ● Christmas tree is decorated even though the bottom branches look a little bare but if a one year old is anything like the cat I'm not taking my chances ● just realized that she thinks the outcome of this year's college football season is shaping up to make up for her disappointment with Tiger's transgressions ● I will, of course, watch and support the Horns this evening but I refuse to patronize Cowboys Stadium not so much for my dislike of the Cowboys but because I think it is a shame that Jerry Jones is monopolizing the Big 12 Championship Game. And shame on Mack Brown for supporting this and not wanting to rotate cities. Okay, just had to get that off my chest this morning. Hook 'em Horns! ● The only real communication my 1 year old seems to have mastered so far is "no" with an adamant shake of the head. Sigh! ● Santa Claus is coming to town ● Trying to plan this year's holiday menu keeps leading me back to pre-ordering from Whole Foods again. What's my excuse this year? ● will miss Charlie but now has George in the mornings and Diane in the evenings!!

Sippy Cup

I borrowed this photo from my friend, Kinsey's, blog. Thanks Kinsey. The photo was taken at her son, Zach's, first birthday party. It was quite a throw down for a one year old's birthday party, but two things struck me about this photo. First, I don't have many images of the gals from Kariana's playgroup. Here is a few of those gals with their husbands. I love these gals dearly. They have made the first year of Kariana's life a lot of fun! I look forward to Wednesday afternoons when we get together. The second thing that struck me about this photo is the sippy cup in my hand. It's not unusual to have a drink in your hand in the typical group party pic, right? But it's usually an adult beverage of some sort not a sippy cup. I'm sure I have plenty of those photos from college and beyond tucked away safely in a photo album. Don't worry there were plenty of adult beverages at the party. Adult beverages are a must with a room full of one year olds, but it looks like I've traded in the adult beverage for a sippy cup. Oh, how our life has changed over the past year, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Who really knows what's in the sippy cup anyway!

Christmas 2009

Santa was good to the Carlson household despite Kariana's unwillingness to sit on his lap this year. Maybe Kariana made it up to Santa by having her first words be "ho . . . ho . . . ho . . ." That is, of course, right after "woof . . . woof . . ." which seems to apply to anything that walks on two or four legs - dogs, cats (including Stripes), squirrels and even birds! Anyway, I digress. We had a wonderful Christmas 2009. Grandpa Carlson came to Houston to spend a few days with us and I'm not sure who had more fun, Grandpa Carlson or Kariana! For the first time we attended the 4 o'clock children's service at our church and we weren't disappointed. It was much more fun than trying to keep our eyes open for the 11 o'clock service and we were home in our jammies early and ready for Santa to come down the chimney (wait, we don't have a chimney, hmm?) Grandma and Grandpa Bergen spent Christmas Day with us and I made a honey glazed ham, scalloped potatoes, greenbean casserole and the Carlson's famous port wine cranberry dish. The pecan pie came from Goode Company - yummy! I'm not sure which gift is Kariana's favorite because she runs from one toy to the next in toy overload! So far her new kitchen seems to be a hit. She's been cooking everything from her shoes to her new Skippy the Smart Pup (a gift from Grandma and Grandpa Bergen). Poor Skippy is toast!

It Runs in the Family

I couldn't resist one last attempt with Santa. This time at Berings, our local hardware store. And this time a family photo even though the rest of the family wasn't as gun ho about another photo opportunity with Santa as I was. Berings had a beautful Santa Claus but I have to admit not the most friendly. He must have been at the end of his shift so Whole Foods definitely wins in the jovial category. Oh well, it made for a classic picture and I promised my family this was the last Santa picture for 2009.

We dug a few old photos out of the albums and had to laugh at Aunt Kari with Santa Claus when she was one year old and me with Santa Claus when I was two years old. I guess it runs in the family.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

This year Kariana is still a little too young to understand what Santa Claus is all about. She doesn't know that Santa will fly through the air on his sled with his nine reindeer, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and Rudolph, on Christmas Eve. She doesn't expect any presents to be waiting for her under the Christmas tree on Christmas morning. So far Santa is just a big scary man in a red suit who says, "Ho! Ho! Ho!"

Santa Claus - Not Impressed!

Kariana met Santa Claus on Saturday morning but she wasn't impressed! I've been wanting to take Kariana to meet Santa Claus even though my expectations weren't high and I knew it probably wouldn't be a big success. I couldn't bear to drag her to the Galleria and stand in a long line for an adventure I knew she wasn't going to be pleased about. Then I saw an advertisement at Whole Foods. On Saturday morning, Whole Foods was advertising a breakfast with Santa Claus for the kiddos. I thought this would be the perfect setting - more of an intimate gathering with Santa - for Kariana. So I dressed her up for her photo opportunity and off we went across the street to Whole Foods. God bless the staff at Whole Foods. They are wonderful. We made several unsuccessful attempts to snap a photo of Kariana with Santa, but anytime Kariana even got close to the man in the red suit she started crying. The entire staff was trying to make her smile but not a chance. We were able to snap this one quick shot and as you can tell mom had to be in the picture. I snapped a few pictures before we left the house and at least those turned out pretty darn cute. Oh well, there's always next year.

Surf's Up . . . in November no less!

We spent our Thanksgiving 2009 at Aunt Kari's house in San Diego. Aunt Kari has the cutiest house in Solana Beach just a few blocks from the beach. The weather was perfect so we spent time at the beach each day. Kariana loved the water. We had a hard time keeping her from getting soaked by the waves. We visited the San Diego Zoo and saw koala bears, pandas, leopards, elephants, hippos, monkeys and, of course, llamas! We also saw a baby cheetah. We had our Thankgiving feast on the terrace at La Valencia Hotel in downtown La Jolla. Enjoy these photos of Kariana playing in the water on the beach and the animals at the San Diego Zoo.





San Diego Zoo