Weekend at Smith Mountain Lake

The Carlson's joined the Reemsnyder's at Smith Mountain Lake this weekend for a little R&R and a chance to continue what's becoming a nice yearly tradition to visit with our good friends Shea and Jim. We could not have asked for better weather and had fun enjoying the lake and watching Ella and Brady play, er, dodge teh chaos of three dogs who expressed 24/7 excitement over teh opportunity to swim in the water. Cooper, forgetting his fear of heights, took his first dive off the dock and took his second ride on the jet-ski. While he had fun, Ella and Brady decided very quickly how much they dislike life jackets. By the looks of the pictures, you might feel sorry for them but don't let their pouting faces fool you - they had just as much fun as their parents did and even had a one-up on all of us with a boat-ride nap on the way home from the "lake" bar. It wasn't the beer, we promise....hahaa. Finally, this weekend marks a very important, yet exiting, milestone for Ella since she decided to take her first attempts at crawling. She's no speed racer yet (we'll leave that up to Brady!) but she had had enough of him taking full ownership over the floor so decided to exude some girl power. Video to come!


Erika and Shea pose for their traditional yearly photo...from bellies to babies!

Tim and Ella pose in front of Hickory Hill Winery. We all concluded that while the ambiance and hospitality were grade A, the wine was anything but. Nonetheless, we had a picnic outside with a complimentary glass of wine and best of all, we saw first hand how a small winery packs and labels their bottles! Tim even corked one himself!

Brady is all smiles while waiting for his lunch!

On the boat with Shea and Brady

Are we having fun yet!?!?

Actually, no.....not yet.

These life jackets aren't too manageable...Besides, talk about crazy tan lines!


How come mommy isn't wearing one of these stupid vests?

'Nuf said. Respectable sign posted at neighborhood watering hole.

Ah. And for one glorious moment, the world stops and life is good. If you've never seen two men get excited over a 3 pound large-mouth bass, contact Erika for the detailed slideshow. As you can imagine, the fish made their day and will go down as one of the best fishing stories of all time.

If Tim ever says that Cooper isn't spoiled, just remind him of this photo. Seriously. The funny thing is that Cooper totally expected this ride. He was a total natural. Born to ski? Hell yes. That's our little neady wheaty.

Our precious little E.

Back in Action

After a very busy few weeks, the Carlson's are "back" in Reston and ready to enjoy the last month or so of summer at home. Although circumstances around all our traveling have been less than fortunate, we've had extra opportunities to see our family members in Oklahoma and Connecticut and feel blessed for that time. Plus, Ella just received an award from the FAA as the most traveled baby in 2008. Can any 10 month old baby out there beat 8 plane trips since birth!?!

Despite all the recent traveling, we've squeezed in a few events here and there - most recently was the amazing wedding of our good friends Shaun and Sandra. It was such a wonderful celebration and so much fun! Also,Tim and Erika took some time out to visit a couple of wineries and were pleased that Ella didn't need a sip of wine to be her normal relaxed and happy little baby - certainly making our wine date so enjoyable! Below are some pictures from the past month or so....enjoy!

At the Wineries....

Enjoying some free time...

Ella wears her mommy's dress from some 30 years ago!!

Pool time - Ella can't get enough of the water

Family Time....

in Mystic:





In Oklahoma:
At the beach...

Sandra and Shaun get married! July 26th

Let's Get Professional....

We had a photographer come out and take pictures of Ella in July.

What Big Teeth You Have!

Ok, so maybe Ella hasn't quite gotten ALL her teeth in and to such large proportions (thankfully!) but her two bottom teeth have certainly made their appearance! The bottom left is a little ahead of the right but they both have poked through. Much to our delight, the rough nights of Ella waking up due to her teething discomfort seem to be over; we've been enjoying her regular routine of sleeping through the nights....phew. She has become thoroughly fascinated with her new teeth, though as we often notice her rubbing her tongue against them. Additionally, we've begun feeding her little pieces of fish and fruit and it's amazing to observe her "chewing" the food with those strong gums of hers. How does she know to do that? Every little development of hers is just fascinating to us - she brings us such delight!

Celebrating All the Daddy's Out There!

HAPPY 1ST FATHERS DAY, TIM!

It was a fun-filled weekend celebrating all the father's in our lives! After welcoming home Monica from her African adventures, we drove down to Williamsburg for a nice long weekend of relaxation and Ella adoration! Senior and junior Carlson dads were well cared for with great meals, beautiful weather, boat rides, and dock fishing. Life doesn't get much better than that! Having Aunt Monica home was an added bonus to our Williamsburg visit - she's been the missing link for so long and her homecoming was a special treat to everyone. Plus, Ella found her aunt utterly fascinating and quite entertaining, as evident from her loud laughters!

We made it back home on Sunday in time for a father tennis match: Buehrig vs. Carlson. It was a battle of the fathers! But we were happy to have been able to celebrate both our fathers this weekend and spend time with our families. We hope that all father's out there had a very special day...HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

The Carlson daddy's with their kids

Ella plays in the pool

Cooper gets thirsty!

Tummy time in the water!

Drying off with grandma and aunt Monica

Enjoying an evening on the dock

Tim and Erika

Say cheese!

The Buehrig and Junior Carlson dads with their kids

Opa with the girls

Vegas, Baby

What better place to have a bachelorette party than in Vegas!??!? Sin city provided a great time for the girls of Sandra's bachelorette party and we seemed to do it all! From the Thunder Down Under (girls only!), great dinners, a little gambling, lounging pool side, to bachelorette games and scavenger hunts, Sandra is now officially ready to tie the knot!

Tim handled little Ella just fine and Erika sailed through the weekend without too much guilt from being away...phew! Here are a few pictures (PG rated, of course) to highlight the weekend...the rest will have to remain unseen - remember, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!

Rocking in Vegas

A little pre-partying in the hotel room.....

A little treat for the gals

Living it up at TRYST

Cameron Diaz is eyeing Sandra's cute dress - even movie stars can be envious!

Line 'Em Up

Phew! What a week for Ella! We're embarrassed to admit it, but Ella's social calendar was busier than her parents - with some of her baby friends in town, she had several events to attend. With cookouts, pizza parties, and pool time, life just keeps our little one busy!

Last Sunday, after Erika attended a delicious brunch at Meredith's with her girlfriends (thanks, Meredith!), we headed over to Rachel's for an early evening grill out and a chance to see her little boy Ethan and some other baby buddies. The weather couldn't have been more perfect and we made use of our pack n play out on the deck - a perfect "accessory" which kept the babies contained and entertained!

Ella, hanging out with her buddy Claire

Rachel and Ethan

Double Trouble

Erika/Ella, Christi/Claire, Rachel/Ethan, Trissie/Teagan

Ella, Claire, Ethan, Teagan (not sure why photo won't flip)

Next up was pizza at Christi's and a chance to meet Kyndra's little girl, Hayden and spend more time with Teagan, Ethan, and Claire! It was a pretty comical evening for the mom's - we all agreed that multiples would be tough and extra credit goes out to all multiple moms out there! At any given time, a baby was either burping, crying, nursing, feeding, pooping, peeing, squeeling, or sleeping. Wow. All the moms agreed on one thing: all those babies sure made it hard to have any type of intellectual conversation or discussion not interrupted by all the burping, crying, nursing, feeding, pooping, peeing, and squeeling! Next mommy dinner get together might be without babies!

Photo Preparation: timing is everything

The Initial Set-Up: So far so good

Houston We Have a Problem: Ella examines the issue

Taking Charge: Ella consoles Claire. But what about Ethan? Hayden and Teagan appear to be conspiring about something...

Losing It: Ella consoles to no avail.

Ella the Anchor: Domino affect

Some alone time with Ethan...

Body parts make great pacifiers: Claire opts for Ella's toes; Ella sticks to her hands

Lastly, Ella had some more pool time, too with her newest friend Aya. The moms brought the girls to the pool Thursday evening once the weather cooled off a bit and had fun watching the babies splish and splash in the water. With only 8 days separating their birthdays, Ella and Aya are equals when it comes to playing together!