Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

Since I haven't blogged since the tragedy at Carter's school (for which I've provided a brief update at the very end), I wanted to put something a little "happier" at the top of the queue...  So what better than a picture of the cutest little boy on the planet hugging my favorite college mascot?

The KU Alumni Association hosted a happy hour in August (free food and beer!) and in the corner of the brewery, they had a giant inflatable Jayhawk.  As soon as Carter saw it, he ran up to it and gave it a big hug (cue "AWWWW!" from everyone in attendance) - and I captured the sweet moment with my phone camera:

All of the Greenies are looking forward Fall and a little KU basketball!!!  This is the year, folks!

Hope you had a nice long Labor Day weekend!
Kerrie

PS Just a quick update on the daycare drama:  Sandra (Carter's teacher) was indicted, but only after the Attorney General passed the decision off to a Grand Jury at the 11th hour.  Sandra's immigration status is in question (and before you get all judgmental on me and complain about the illegals in this country, take a step back…).  She was brought to this country by her parents at age 9 and I can only guess that at NINE she wasn’t questioning her citizenship or questioning whether the paperwork was filed to allow her to freely stay in the US...  While the daycare DID complete the background checks during her hiring, they aren’t required to check citizenship status.  And sure, I’m not a lawyer, but I don’t think ANY state is required to fully check and ask for documentation about your immigration status during a criminal background check (sans Arizona…).  So all those idiots on the media pages throwing daggers at my daycare owners calling for them to close up shop for hiring illegals, well, get off your soapbox.  They followed the rules, they did the background checks, and again, this is a horrible, unfortunate tragedy.  Plus, I don’t frankly care WHAT your citizenship is when you’re providing safe, loving care for my son!

I digress…

So because Sandra’s immigration status is in question, the family (who I might add does NOT want to press charges  - remember, the little boy that died was Sandra’s nephew) cannot post bond.  If they post bond, Sandra will be transferred to an immigration holding facility in El Paso and will subsequently be deported to Mexico.  No one wins in that scenario.

As such, we all wait.  The Greenies were unable to attend Gabriel’s funeral (it was on a Thursday), but we sent a generous sum of cash to Gabriel’s mother and a heartfelt sympathy card.  They’ve also opened a bank account to help cover funeral and legal expenses.  I also wrote a very thorough character reference letter for Sandra and I will be the first in line to testify on her behalf when it comes time to do so.

With our legal system moving so quickly here in New Mexico, I can only imagine that Sandra’s case will not come up for 2 more years.  The last case that I’ve read about was a woman that left her 1 year old in the car while she went for a doctor’s appointment.  That was in 2009 and it’s just NOW in the legal system.  Sandra’s already missed her own son’s 1^st birthday by sitting in jail and will no doubt miss many more.  IF, and a big IF, she is convicted of “child abuse resulting in death,” the _minimum_ punishment is 18 years in jail.  At age 19, that’s nearly a lifetime…

Our heart still goes out to Sandra and the whole family.  Wish I could invent that time machine and go back to that horrible morning in August…

Heartbreaking Tragedy

[Caveat: Some of this is not in the news yet... This is MY interpretation of the course of events and my text may not be re-published without my permission.  I'm only writing this to empty my brain, not to start rumors or incriminate anyone.]

On Monday, there was a tragedy at my son's daycare center.  A 2-year-old boy, one of Carter's friends, was accidentally left in his carseat in a locked car behind the school and perished in the blazing sun.  The boy was a relative of Carter's teacher (the individual that [allegedly] left the boy in the car) and the boy's mother is a teacher at another daycare (same owner, across town).  The car was parked behind the school in a lot that is not easily visible by anyone, so it is not surprising that he was not found until the late afternoon when the first teacher went home for the day.

I cannot fathom the pain the little boy must have felt, nor can I fathom the pain that Carter's teacher will have to live with for the rest of her life.

I arrived to pick up Carter about an hour after the boy was found and the place was crawling with cops, media, and rescue workers.  There was not a dry eye in the place (myself included), as this is a horrific tragedy that one cannot wrap your brain around.  I was escorted by the police to pick up my son and was not told anything about the situation.  However, one of Carter's former teachers very quickly explained the situation, but did not name names.

After leaving, I checked the news stories, put it all together, and nearly threw up.

It. Was. Carter's. Teacher. That. Accidentally. Killed. A. Little. Boy.

This is something just so tragic and something so preventable.  I am still wrapping my brain around this (precisely why I'm typing this blog...). 

But what really gets to me is reading the news stories online. I am sickened by how the media and the public are so quick to judge.  Calling Carter's teacher a murderer.  Fire her!  Close the school!  And worse, suggesting that she be left in a hot car to die as a suitable punishment for her crime.

Well, when I arrived to pick up Carter, I saw her.  She was being interviewed by the police.  She looked like a ghost.  An empty shell of a human.  I know her.  I trust her.  And I have no doubt that this was an accident and as "punishment," she will by nature pay dearly for the rest of her life.  She didn't mean to do this.  She did NOT murder that little boy.  She does NOT need to be left in a hot car to die as punishment.

Around 7PM, the owner called me to tell me that the school would be closed on Tuesday so that everyone can grieve.  She very steeley explained what happened and as I predicted, it was a non-routine event:

1) Carter's teacher was bringing the boy to school because the mother was unavailable; something that was done by her about 3 times a year.

2) She teaches an older class of 3's, so she wouldn't have quickly noticed if he was in the younger class (because she was busy with my kid's 3's class) and the teachers in the 2's class would not have quickly noticed, since he was not a regular student.

3) No one would have checked the employee cars in the back lot because the majority of the kids are dropped of by their parents in the front lot, like myself, or the employees' kids arrive at the same time as the employee; plus, the cars should be empty during the day.

All of these events are non-routine.  When the kid was found in the car, the staff did everything they could to "save" him, but by then it was too late.  He was dead.

I read stories like this from time to time on the news and people always wonder how you could "forget" your kid in the back.  Well, while it's not something I've done, I can easily see how it could happen.  I drive the same route every day.  It's routine.  So routine that I often forget something (my laptop, my coffee, etc.).  So what if it WASN'T routine?  I'd say my forgetfulness would be amplified.  And it could happen.  And it does all over the US.  And it's a preventable tragedy.  My car has a sensor that can determine whether or not a child is in the front seat...why haven't car manufacturers included an alarm system that can sense whether a kid has been left in the car?! 

I'm not making excuses for her, nor am I defending her.  What I'm doing is NOT judging her.  I know that she IS a good teacher.  I will continue to send my son to this school.  And I will continue to trust in the care that he will receive there.  They are an extension of our family and will continue to be.  While I can only guess that she will no longer serve as his teacher, if she DOES return, I will hug her tightly and forgive her. 

More than anything, I'm saddened that she will have to live with this pain for the rest of her life.  She is young and has a long life of hell to face.  The family is no doubt destroyed.  She had to face her family when they found out about the boy's death.  I can't even fathom the hell this would be. For example, I couldn't imagine having to call my brother to say I accidentally killed his son.  I couldn't even find the words.


Above all, I am heartbroken by this tragedy and have cried many tears.  I hugged my kid a little tighter yesterday and I slept horribly.  Tomorrow will be a new day and it will be different school that my son will continue to attend.  But we will continue to send him there.  Period.

My advice to all of the parents out there:  Take a minute to hug your kid/kids today.  Kiss them, love them, and cherish them.  Now, I'm going to play with some trucks and squeeze my kid a little tighter.
~kerrie

Congratulations to DOCTOR Kristin!

This post is a little over due...  But better late than never!  Oh wait, that's what we say about our pal (and neighbor), Kristin!  It's ABOUT TIME she finished college!! :)  Only kidding, Kristin!  It is with great honor that we were able to share in the celebration of your graduation (from her chemical engineering studies, I might add...) from graduate school at UNM! 

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

For fun, I thought I'd post a few of my favorite shots of you from our 2008 trip to Ireland!  Here's the lovely DOCTOR Kristin taking in the sites (and even a pic with DOCTOR Justin snuggling on a bench) - and trust me when I say that her smile is even bigger now that she's got that diploma in hand!

We couldn't be happier for you and congrats on finally finishing the big one!

Your pals,
Kerrie (and Matt and Carter)

School Pictures 2011

It's been a while since I posted some "stats" on Carter. Since we don't have to take him to the doctor as much as we did during his first couple years of life, we don't have as good of a handle on his height, weight, etc. But let me say this: We have a very healthy and happy big boy!

Carter just rounded the 2.75-year mark and will be turning 3 before we know it! He's the tallest in his class (of 2 year olds) and while we haven't measured him, he's at least 3.5 feet tall. He's hanging steady at the 35 pound mark and is out of diapers (thankfully, he was in size 6 and I don't even think they MAKE a size 7...). He's in mostly 3T clothing (although we have him in 5T PJs because he's so tall) and needs to be in 4T pants because he often looks like the flood is coming...

Potty training is nearly complete (still in overnights, since he's not quite ready physically for that), but he'll have the occasional accident if he's super-engrossed in playtime (he'll forget all about the potty...). Cutest part is when he washes his hands after going to the potty. He'll say "every time wash your hands?" Awww... Our little germaphobe - just like Mommy! :)

Last time the doc checked, his ear tubes were still in position and that's a big relief for us. I like to think we've avoided a zillion ear infections by having the tubes in. We've had WAY fewer colds this past year, which has been nice because every time Carter was sick, I got it. Then Matt got it. Then Carter got it again, repeat, repeat, repeat.

Carter has had a couple haircuts, but he's still mostly blond. It is a little darker than even a year ago, but not much. He tells me that his hair is "white," so maybe someday he'll tell me it's "brown" like Mommy and Daddy.

He still eats pretty much everything we put in front of him and eats very balanced meals. So we're pretty blessed that he'll try and eat pretty much everything and anything! He's permanently on soy milk since he's allergic to milk, but it hasn't phased him in the slightest. His current love is soy eggnog and fruit cake, so yes, Mommy is quite proud! :) Only food we've found that he would absolutely not eat was the chicken nugget meal from McDonald's. He tried a bite of "chicken," pushed the package aside, and said, "yukky!"

School is still wonderful and I think his development is right on target. He knows most of his numbers (to 10), his ABCs, days of the week, and he's got a pretty lengthy vocabulary. The kid is nuts about books and has his own personal library to chose from. We're going to have to start cutting back on book time at night, because he'll make us read 15 books before bed if we'll let him. Might have to start cutting that to about 5 books to keep him on a sleep schedule...

He's still a fan of Kansas and will often say "Rock Chalk Jayhawk, KU!" (Grandma C should be so proud!). Carter likes swimming, playing outside, running, and all-things-that-go. We have a zillion trucks, trash trucks, diggers, and cars. And lately it's superheros, so he's now enjoying Spiderman, Superman, and even Star Wars. Daddy should be so proud, eh?

And finally, I thought I'd post Carter's school pictures from November. They had a professional photographer come in and take photos of all of the kids, just like they do in elementary school. We had three shots of Carter to choose from and this one (below) is my favorite (and I have no idea why he's looking at the ceiling...):
This next one is also cute, but I guess he wasn't in the mood to smile:
And this last one makes him look like he's really pissed off (or constipated)...so it makes me chuckle:
Thanks for reading and hope you're staying happy and healthy too!
~kerrie

Crazy Week (Friday) - Backwards Day!

And the final day of "Crazy Week" at school was "Backwards Day." Matt chose his "Back to the Future" shirt (get it? backwards, Back to the Future? Clever, isn't he?!).

He was quite the busy-body this morning, so I only got a few shots from the side and back, so here they are:
When I got to school I noticed that some kids had their clothes not only on backwards, but also inside out. D'oh, why didn't I think of that?!

Hope you're week has been crazy too!
~kerrie

Crazy Week (Thursday) - Crazy Hat Day!

Thursday at school was "Crazy Hat Day" as part of "Crazy Week." Carter wore his octopus hat (a gift from Daddy that I wrote about a while ago - link takes you to the post) and I'd say he looked the cutest in the whole class!

He didn't want to wear it the correct way (eyes in the front), so in these pics I asked him to move the legs so I could see his face:
Awwwww... My 'lil boy has dreadlocks! :)
~kerrie

Crazy Week (Wednesday) - Rainbow Day!

And the "Crazy Week" fun at school continues...

Wednesday was "Rainbow Day" and Carter was dressed to the nines! I took a couple pics right before school (and he was playing with a fake spiderweb in a few shots, as we're taking down the Halloween decor this week):
And the cooler was pretty exciting too:
The pants are actually part of a PJ set (another great hand-me-down from Amelia - THANKS!) and they were perhaps THE most awesome rainbow pants anyone could ask for! Don't you agree?
I think we should have a Crazy Week at the office too, eh? How fun would that be?!

Happy rainbows!
~kerrie

Crazy Week (Tuesday) - Crazy Hair!

Day 2 (Tuesday) of "Crazy Week" at school was "Crazy Hair Day." To play along, I sprayed up Carter's hair with some blue and orange hairspray (Matt said they didn't have red at the store, or else he would have gone with red and blue...go KU!).

Again, Carter was a great sport about it and here he is before school:

(and then he started playing in the kitchen drawers...) The back side:
A bird's eye view:
And then when I picked him up after school, he had pink and blue hair. And a mohawk... See:
Pretty cute kid, even if he is a little too punk rock for me! Happy first day of November!
~kerrie

Crazy Week (Monday) - Pajama Day!

Carter's school is having "Crazy Week" this week, because, well, they felt like it! So far, the kids and teachers have been all out CRAZY in support of the silliness. Day 1 (Monday) was actually Halloween and to celebrate it in conjunction with "Pajama Day," I decked Carter out in his glow-in-the-dark skeleton PJs (a super awesome pass down from Amelia - THANKS!).

I took his photo before school and asked him to say, "Happy Halloween" and here's what I got:
Pretty happy kid in them there PJs! Happy [belated] Halloween!
~kerrie (and matt and carter)

Graduation Congratulations!

Just a short post to say...
to our nephew, Daniel, on his graduation from preschool! A few pictures of the happy graduate:
(And we weren't there, but I swiped these photos from Katrina...tee hee...thanks Katrina, great pics!)

Here's a pic with the proud grandparents (Grandma and Grandpa C):
Awwww....we're so proud of Daniel! Good luck in kindergarten in the fall!!!
~kerrie (& matt & carter)

Souper Bowl School

It appears that I'm a few posts behind and well, frankly, I don't care! Life is getting pretty busy around the Greenie house with a very-soon-to-be-two-year-old that pretty much doesn't stop moving...

And speaking of moving, have I mentioned that Carter is now in the "two's class" at school? Since he was pretty much towering over the other "one's," his teachers opted to kick him out to the next class. He is totally loving it (and the teachers just adore him)! Biggest challenge for us, no more sippy cups. That's right, our big boy uses a cup now. What does that mean for dinner time? We clean up a lot of milk...

Thought I'd post one of his final art projects from the "one's class" - yes, another let's-glue-food-to-paper-and-call-it-art project:
I don't keep his foodie projects, so I snapped the pic before it went into the trash.

I'm all out of segues, so I'll just more right into some photos from Super Bowl Sunday. Grandma C shipped us our very own antique Campbell's Soup pot so we filled it with some chili on SBS. Just check out this fantastic dinner presentation(!):
Carter was ready to chow and ate about 3 bowls of chili (see next pic). And speaking of eating three bowls of chili... Have I mentioned lately how ready I am to have him out of diapers (see that segue? Chili to diapers? Man, am I good or what?!):
Maybe next year my Chief's will make it to the Super Bowl and we'll have a big 'ol celebration and eat FOUR bowls of chili. Yeah, probably won't happen (the Chief's...we can so eat that much chili), but we'll still celebrate in style!
~kerrie

School Pictures 2010

It's been a while since I posted some "stats" on Carter. Since we don't have to take him to the doctor as much as we did during his first year of life, we don't have as good of a handle on his height, weight, etc. But let me say this: We have a very healthy and happy little boy!

Carter just rounded the 22-month mark and will be turning 2 before we know it! He's the tallest in his class (of 1 year olds) and while we haven't measured him, he's at least 3 feet tall. He's hanging steady at the 30 pound mark and still can fit in size 5 diapers and mostly 24-month clothing (although we have him in 3T PJs because he's so tall).

Last time the doc checked, his ear tubes were still in position and that's a big relief for us. I like to think we've avoided a zillion ear infections by having the tubes in.

Carter has had a couple haircuts, but he's still mostly blond. It is a little darker than before, but not much. I keep it cut short so that shampooing is pretty quick (and Carter LOVES the bath...and splashing).

He still eats pretty much everything we put in front of him and has gained a new appreciation for "cookies." We rarely have cookies in the house, so it's kind of funny that he REALLY wants one after dinner. It's hard to say no because he asks for one so cutely :)

School is still wonderful and I think his development is right on target. He knows most of his body parts (including where the "poo poo" comes from...although he's showing not much interest in using the potty) and he's got a pretty lengthy vocabulary. I thought for one of my future posts I'd put together a list of all the words he knows. Would be a fun reminder once he's older and talking non-stop, eh?

He's big on coloring lately, as well as reading books. I'm glad he's enjoying the stories and we read 3 or 4 books minimum each night before bedtime. Matt does a better job at making silly sounds than I, but I'm trying...

And finally, I thought I'd post Carter's school pictures from November. They had a professional photographer come in and take photos of all of the kids, just like they do in elementary school. We had three shots of Carter to choose from and this one (below) is my favorite:
This next one is also cute and I like that he's holding onto the ball:
And this last one makes him look like he's really pissed off...so it makes me chuckle:
Thanks for reading and hope you're staying happy and healthy too!
~kerrie

Christmas Recital 2010

Today was Carter's very first Christmas Recital! His school (again, it's really a "learning center"...we're just teaching him early that it is fun to go to "school"!)... Anyway, the school organizes this splendid, annual event for all four of their locations around Albuquerque and this year's was held at the Albuquerque Convention Center.

All four schools have classes from infant to Pre-K to some after-school-care-only-aged kids. Each class (except the infant classes) performed a Christmas song, complete with fun, festive outfits. We were not told in advance what the kids in his class (the 1-to-2-year-olds) would be performing. Matt and I actually thought he'd be doing something with drums because he's been banging on EVERYTHING as of late. And when he's done banging, he'll tell himself "Bravo!"

Anyway, the event started out with the older, Pre-K-aged kids performing "Silent Night." It was very well organized, the teachers were on stage to help guide the kids through the performance, and all of the kids participated. It was entirely adorable (as well as hilarious)!

Carter's class was the lucky #2 performance. I won't lie, I had tears in my eyes (as did many in the audience). Our little elf was just so adorable on stage, I couldn't help myself... And well, the fact that as they performed "Jingle Bells," every single one of his classmates stood there in fear, stiff as a board. It. Was. Hilarious. But since they were just so dang adorable, the crowd loved it!

Matt and I were so proud of our little guy that we were indeed beaming with pride after the performance (the parents of the toddlers are asked to collect their children immediately after their performance so the teachers could continue to help corral the kiddos for the remaining performances). Once we got back to our seats, several of the families around us said, "He was so cute!" "Great job!" etc. etc.

Anyway, yes, I know you don't want to just read about it, you want to see it all for yourself.

So first, let me orient you - below is Carter's class of cute little elves on stage with his two teachers (Brenda - left; Diana - right). In the first photo (start of performance), Carter is third from left. In the third photo, Carter is fourth from left. If you're having trouble, the second/fourth photos are identical, but I've added a note in case you can't spot him - click to make pic bigger.

There photos are here to also help orient you for the videos that follow (and I'm still learning how to use the Flip, but I'm pretty sure I can edit them, add captioning, etc....I'm just too lazy to read the manual...).
And now, if you really want a laugh, Matt caught the entire performance on video. There are 6 parts, each no more than 40 seconds in length. As you can see, very little "performing" from our kiddo, but doesn't he look adorable? (And for the record, his teachers REALLY know the routine!)

Enjoy! (And you can make all of these full-screen but clicking on the 4 arrows in the bottom corner of each video.)

Christmas Recital - Part 1 (Carter's moved to 5th from right):



Christmas Recital - Part 2 (Carter's the tall one in the middle - and check out the kiddo on the left making a break for it!):



Christmas Recital - Part 3 (Carter's still in the middle - the tallest kid):



Christmas Recital - Part 4 (FINALLY, a kid is dancing...but not Carter....):



Christmas Recital - Part 5 (Carter's moved to the back of the pack):



Christmas Recital - Part 6 (Still 5th from right, behind the one kid that finally "dances"):



What'd ya think? Entirely adorable, eh? Next year, when he's in the "Two's" class, he should be a little more in to it. But we'll always have the memories of this one (and yes, we'll share with his future girlfriend...)!

Hope that you have a wonderful weekend!
~kerrie

PS Yes, I know I need to get some posts in from November, but these were too good to pass up tonight!

Furniture Relocation Specialist

I'm sitting at home today with a heinous head cold (long story short, I've had about 3 zillion sinus infections in the last year and cannot seem to get a good diagnosis as to WHY I keep keeping them....) - anyway, since I'm on some gnarly head meds, I thought I'd do a little catching up on the blog. Also figured that this was NOT a good time to make engineering decisions or correspond with my clients...

So, hope you have fun catching up with me!

This first post is about Carter's knack for relocating the furniture. Apparently wherever we seem to put the furniture is WRONG and MUST be corrected immediately! A few shots of Carter relocating his snack table before school:
Oh well, we don't mind him relocating the furniture as long as he puts it back. Oh wait...

Also wanted to share a short little video of Carter's second favorite obsession - dancing. They have music time every day at school and the kids "sing" and "dance" with the teachers. Well, while poking around on the internet the other day, I came across the "Gummibar" song (that's with an umlaut over the a) on youtube (link takes you to this wonderful, wonderful song...). Anyway, as SOON as I played the video, Carter went nuts! Dancing, spinning, clapping, and just having a blast. Tried to catch it on camera, but didn't quite come out as hilarious as it really was...

If you're so inclined, here's the 12-second video of Carter jammin:




And a photo of that uber-enjoyment:


The kid's a nut, I tell ya! But we still love him!
~kerrie

Pre-School Snacks

Alrighty, folks... This here is a massive attempt to catch up on some blogging... I've been a working, traveling fool and have had VERY little time to even see straight, much less take photos and blog about the "World's Cutest Kid." So TONIGHT is the night for some blogging marathoning.

Hope you have fun reading and catching up with me!

First up, a fun little post about Carter's fashionable wardrobe choices, some lovely artwork from school, and even some before-school snacking shots.

We'll start with Carter's "Space Man" look. Another great hand-me-down from Liam, our kiddo sports the celestial look as good as any professional! Here are some shots of some pre-school milk and Cherrios:

Occasionally Carter won't obey the rules and sit down to snack (which yes, is one of the phrases he knows how to say - "Sit down!"), so he'll pick up his snacks off the floor so he doesn't get busted:
Next, some of that "lovely" artwork from school... Apparently the stick-random-things/foods/spitwads/etc. qualifies as "art" these days, so I'm enjoying capturing (but not saving...) his creations. This one is a fish with some goldfish crackers glued to it:
I kept it on the fridge for a couple weeks before I snapped a photo of it and you can see the lovely grease plume that took off on the page (hahaha!):
Another glue-crap-to-the-page - this one is a cereal bowl with some Cherrios:
Anyway, I guess whatever is fun at school is good enough for me!

Here are a few more shots of some of his modern fashion choices. Plaid shorts (this is Carter's accusatory pose...):
Innocent and, yet, trapped in these silly shorts:
Some more morning snacking:
Guess he was a little tired and decided to lay back down and catch a few more zzzz's before we went to school:
Yet the tasty snacks kept drawing him back:
Another day, more snacking. This next shot (if you click on it, can see better) really shows off his morning hair style. We call it the "Fresh out of Bed Look":
He doesn't mind... As a matter of fact, all that really mattered that day was shoving more Cherrios in his cheeks:
All smiles, of course:

And that folks, was an exciting post about clothing and snacking. Keep reading, the next post is bound to be JUST as fun! :)
~kerrie