The Carroll Family

Fall 2011

2011-10-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

We haven't posted in such a long time and have so much to share with everyone about what we've been up to! Baxter has been playing soccer since the beginning of September and LOVES it! He's playing on a team with mostly other 3 year olds and while they don't score many goals they do have a lot of fun! The picture above is from a superhero birthday party we attended, what fun!

A couple weekends ago we went with our friends the Carothers to a local arts and crafts festival called the Red River Revel. We had a great time checking out local artists, great music and really fun children's activities.

The boys loved dancing to the bluegrass music!

Our family was busy this past weekend.

We went camping Friday night at a place close to our home and had a great time! The boys loved exploring the campsite and climbing all around. The night got very cold and we wound up heading home as soon as the sun came up the next morning.

Boyd absolutely loves doing or at least trying to do whatever Baxter does. He definitely surprises me and most of the time scares me. I was sure he was going to lose a tooth on this log balancing trick, but of course he did great and made it all the way to the top by himself!

Baxter and Daddy set up the tent!

Boyd supervised the tent assembly

Once we got out of the tent and realized how cold we all were, the boys sat in the car snuggled in blankets watching the "emergency" DVD player while Warren and I packed up the campsite. Oh well, we tried really hard not to use the "emergency" DVD player while camping!

After camping we headed to Baxter's soccer game and then later a friend's costume birthday party. The boys loved getting to wear their halloween costumes early! On Sunday we went with our friends the Quinlans to the local pumpkin patch where you can pick the pumpkins off the vine. There was also a "jumpy thing", corn maze, corn bin and a GIANT SNAKE! Baxter, Boyd and Mommy were all brave enough to hold the snake!

Happy Birthday Boyd

2011-03-21T08:31:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it but Boyd is now 1 year old! We had a lot of fun throwing Boyd a green themed party in honor of his birthday being on St. Patrick's Day. Boyd is busy, busy trying to walk on his own. He can't wait to get into everything his big brother is playing with and make lots of messes. Boyd is such a sweet, happy child and our family is so blessed that God chose us to be Boyd's family. I love you sweet Boyd and I can't wait for many more birthday's to come!

Merry Christmas

2010-12-14T11:30:00.000-08:00

Well I have a few free minutes and I thought I would make a quick blog update! Since I posted we have had some big changes around our house! We've added a new kiddo to the bunch! Henry Boyd Carroll arrived March 17th, 2010 (St. Patrick's Day) which feeld like forever since then! (I know I haven't posted in a really long time) Boyd is almost 9 months now and Baxter is 2.5 years old. Both boys are into everything and have a really great time playing together. Baxter is a fantastic older brother and loves helping "Boyyyyddddyyyy" out with whatever he needs/wants. He refuses to call him Boyd but instead "Boyyyyyddddyyyy" in this really high pitched singing voice, which is very cute! Baxter says all sorts of funny stuff and I wish I walked aorund with a tape recorder to capture all the cute little things. He calls restaurants "restrunks" and Wal-Mart is "Lawmart" and he likes to wear his "Light Buzzyear underwears" now that he's a big boy. Boyd is starting to be more vocal and babbles all the time which makes for a happy and loud household! We have been busy this past year with a trip to Mexico for our 30th birthday, a trip to Yuma, AZ in September to visit the Alexanders and we even threw a hospital stay in there for Boyd when he got RSV bronchiolitis! We went home to Alabama for Thanksgiving and had so much fun with both sides of our family. Some pictures are posted below of our past year! (if i can get them to work) We can't wait to see The Alexander family over the Christmas holiday and I know all the kids are going to have a blast hanging out with each other. Thanks for checking on our blog and hopefully it won't take so long to update next time!

Time for an Update!

2010-02-24T14:34:00.000-08:00

You would think since I'm on bedrest that I would have gotten around to updating the blog before now but you would be so surprised what you can waste your time doing! So where to start...I'm now 34 weeks pregnant with baby #2 and at 32 weeks I started having problems with elevated blood pressure and contractions. I was hospitalized for 2 days and my mom came to Shreveport to help which was amazing. The doctor let me go home on medication for the contractions but to try and keep this little baby boy inside a bit longer he put me on "modified" bedrest until I'm 35 weeks. I'm sure most of my friends reading this know me well enough to know that bedrest is not a good thing for me and in fact in some ways stresses me out more than being at work and doing my normal thing. Warren was able to come home from his deployment early (the day after I was released from the hospital) which is such a blessing! It was a trying 5 months while he was gone and Baxter and I are thrilled to have him home with us!!! My twin sister knows how bad I would be at bedrest so she drove all the way from Yuma, Arizona with her husband, 2 yo little girl, 1 yo little boy and black lab to enforce my "rest"!!! They are a family of saints, I tell ya. Praise and thanks to all of my friends and family who have taken care of me these past few weeks. I couldn't have done it without your prayers, support and insistence that I STAY SEATED! I'm now seeing my doctor twice a week and the plan is try to go back to work next week when I'm 35 weeks. My partners at the practice are ready for me to come back to work and help out (winter is a busy time at the pediatricians office) although they have all stated they don't want to deliver my baby at the office! Since Warren was able to come home a little early and he has some time off work he has decided he's had enough of just sitting there staring at me like I'm a time bomb...so he is trying to finish the kitchen renovation we started last summer. I am so thankful that God has taken care of me and our new little one during this time. It truly is a blessing to see His love for us, to read His words of encouragement and feel His arms of protection around us. It's been good for me to slow down and take time to realize what's important and what God has to offer to me every day that I have so briskly overlooked in the past. God is so good and faithful to me and I can't praise Him enough for that. Thank you to my friends and family who have been God's hands and feet during this time serving us and loving us so dearly. Thank you. I tried to post pictures but it keeps giving me an error message- I'll see if I can figure it out and post some later.

Finally!

2009-10-31T12:43:00.000-07:00

Well I'm not sure anyone checks the blog anymore but I finally had some down time and thought I would update for anyone that still checks it (Mom, Sarah, Alice)! Baxter is growing up so fast and is so very busy! Talking all the time and running around the house. I'm glad I have a chance to get used to the business before baby Carroll#2 makes his or her great entrance in April! That's right, we're officially crazy! They will be exactly 2 years apart and hopefully Warren and I won't lose our minds in the process of having 2 kids. I've been busy working as a private pediatrician here in town and love my new job. God has truly provided blessing after blessing and my job is just one of many. Warren has stayed busy with training for his ironman and work which means he isn't home a lot but we love that we can talk to him on video webchat when he's far away. Warren completed his ironman in September and we are so proud of him. He had a little wreck on the bike portion but thankfully nothing too bad. Maverick (our yellow lab) is adjusting to life as a single pet (Hunter our other lab unfortunately passed away in September) although having surgery to remove his dew claws has provided its fair share of setbacks! We've been busy with Halloween festivities lately and some pictures to show off our costumes (superman one day and a dinosaur the next).

Here is the McGough clan up at the lakehouse this past August- we had so much fun!

What cutie pies! (Baxter, Emma Kate, and Mason)

Baxter's first haircut by GiGi- he sat so still, I was impressed!

GiGi and Baxter post-haircut

Warren during the marathon part of the ironman and showing off his road rash from the crash on the bike portion

Warren after the race (12 hours long). I'm married to a real IRONMAN!

We were all tired after such a long day. It rained so much the night before and morning of that thought about stopping the race because of flooding but decided to go ahead with the race anyway. It made for some yucky, muddy conditions but nothing a shower couldn't fix!

The wonderful men in my life!

Gemma and Pop came to visit last weekend and we got to go to a pumpkin carving party

Baxter got to wear his halloween costume to school- he was pretty excited.

We went to a halloween party last night and this time he wore his dinosaur costume-too bad he came down with a fever and we had to go home early.

That's all the pictures and updates for now but hopefully I won't be so slow about updating next time!

Quick Update

2009-05-17T20:28:00.000-07:00

We headed back to Alabama last week to visit family and then to Panama City, FL for Warren to do a half-ironman race. I'm so proud of Warren and how talented he is. He did AWESOME and I'm so amazed at how tough he is. I'm pretty proud of Baxter as well. He is such a thoughtful son and decided to learn to walk on Mother's Day (video to come later)! It was great to be with family when we had such an exciting milestone. We had fun with all the family and really enjoyed GiGi and Granddaddy's new lake house and boat. We can't wait to go back!

Here's Emma Kate, Alice, Nelson, Presley (Nelson's girlfriend), me, Baxter and Warren up at the lake house on Smith Lake

Emma Kate enjoying the boat ride with Alice

Emma Kate is the FEARLESS tube rider- STANDING UP!!! while riding with Alice and GiGi

Baxter riding with Daddy on the boat (still need to adjust to wearing the life jacket)

Mason and Alice- he was so cute laughing at his mommy!

Panama City Beach, FL- Baxter's first trip to the beach!

His face speaks volumes! It may take another trip before he loves the beach as much as his parents do!

Baxter and mommy waiting for daddy to finish the swim part of the race

GO DADDY!

Heading out on the bike after the swim- I had to book it off the beach (carrying Baxter, diaper bag, towel, toys and breakfast) to catch this shot before he left the transition. Maybe I should have gotten a medal too!

After the race- we're so proud of you Warren!

3 other guys from Warren's work did the race (Will, Chris, Chris, Warren, Baxter) and they all did a great job!

On our way back from Florida we stopped in to see Pappa and Helen

Mother's Day- I know I'm prejudiced but don't I have the most handsome, sweetest little boy!

Just before the rain rolled in!

What a good lookin' family

Me and Emma Kate- she is growing up into such a sweet little girl

Best buds (Mason and Baxter)- it's hard to believe they are only 5 months apart in age- what fun they will have together.

Happy Birthday Baxter!

2009-04-25T19:52:00.000-07:00

Well I finally found my cord to download pictures from my camera!!! We had a wonderful Easter quickly followed by Baxter's first birthday. It is amazing that a year has gone by so quickly since God blessed us with our sweet son. Baxter is growing up so fast and is learning something new everyday. He is such a loveable sweet child and we are thankful every day that he is our son. Baxter was a little under the weather with a cold then followed by an ear infection. All along he was getting teeth and over the past month went from no teeth to 5! We hope you enjoy the pictures!

This boy absolutely loves swinging...

...and his daddy!

The Alexanders drove through Shreveport and it was great to visit with them

For the past year Baxter has been staying with Lisa during the day in her home with her kids and one other child. Lisa and her family are moving back to the mission field in Africa and will be greatly missed. This picture is from Baxter's last day with Aunt Lisa. William and Mariama (left) are Lisa's kids and Nathan (right) is another child that she keeps.

Here is our pitiful attempt at dying Easter eggs! Baxter was NOT having fun!

Here's the little man with his Easter basket.

Baxter's 1st birthday cake!

Singing Happy Birthday

He finally got the hang of eating the cake and loved grabbing handfuls

Our friends Mary Linnea and Riley loved helping Baxter open presents

Look at our crazy teeth

He has some big shoes to fill

Here's one more tooth and since this picture one more has come through making 5

Here's little man trying to help put together the table and chairs his GiGi and Grandaddy gave him for his birthday.

We've been having fun!

2009-03-12T17:48:00.000-07:00

It has definitely been a while since we posted so I'll have to fill you in on what we've been up to. Work was pretty busy for both Warren and me during January as well as February which made our down time at the end of February much needed. Our friends Mackey and Mickey added a new addition to their family, Brady Michael Quinlan. He is adorable and we are so happy for our dear sweet friends. GiGi came to visit during Feb and while she was here Warren and I found out we had some time to take a vacation. All the grandparents excitingly offered to keep Baxter and so Warren and I headed off to Ambergris Caye, an island off the coast of Belize. We had a blast and highly recommend it to anyone planning a vacation. On our return from Belize it was snowing in Birmingham! This of course was Baxter's first snowfall and we had a blast introducing him to the snow. We were home for about 5 days and then off again to Birmingham for our friends Christi and Chi's WONDERFUL wedding. Following the wedding we visited GiGi and Grandaddy up at their new lakehouse. We can't wait to spend some time there this summer.

We had a great time on New years and let the kids see some fireworks

Warren and I did the Dustbuster Duathlon- at least we finished!

Mackey and Mickey's baby shower!

Brady Michael Quinlan is here!

We saw Pappa while we were in Birmingham

We also got to have dinner with our friends Jan and Kert on their way through Birmingham

Here we are on our boat going from San Pedro, Belize to our resort

This is our room at the resort which was quite romantic!

Here's a shot up the coast of Ambergris Caye- it was absolutely beautiful!

We went snorkeling this day and swam with sharks, sting rays and eels

We then caught a couple fish of our own

The flowers were true to any tropical island paradise, fresh flowers in our room everyday!

This is the front of our resort

Baxter's first snow!

A little tired from traveling but good to see our Baxter

Our friend Dale came to visit for a night- we just wish we could have seen Holly too!

Beautiful Christi Perkins Hu and her handsome groom

Baxter apparently loves giving flowers, we're raising such a gentleman!

Baxter loved playing on the pool table at Gigi and Grandaddy's lake house

The Holidays in Birmingham

2008-12-31T10:21:00.000-08:00

I know it's been a month and half since we posted but of course its been crazy busy! I finally have a day off from work and figured I would update the blog. We went home to Birmingham for both Thanksgiving (2 days) and Christmas (4 days). We really enjoyed seeing our families and Baxter enjoyed playing with all of his cousins. We are so blessed with such loving families and our time in Birmingham was so much fun! Here are just a few pictures from our trips home.

Thanksgiving Pictures

Baxter and Pop (Warren's dad)

The Carroll Family

He had the best time playing in the leaves...we couldn't get him to look at anything else!

Nelson was able to come and spend thanksgiving with us and Warren's family

Baxter and his great grandmother

Christmas Pictures

Baxter picking out his Christmas tree

Mommy, Daddy and Baxter at home in Shreveport before Christmas

The McGough Family down in Montgomery at Pappa's House

Christmas morning, waiting to go downstairs to see what Santa brought!

Emma Kate and Mason gave Baxter a Radio Flyer retro rocket, Thanks!

Baxter with all his grandparents

The McGough, Carroll and Alexander Families

We had a lovely date night with Alice, Matt, Hank and Carrie- it was so nice to catch up with everyone! (Thanks, Sarah)

Baxter and his Grandaddy

I'm so glad Jan and her husband Kert stopped by on their way to the beach

Uncle Matt helping Baxter practice crawling

Arizona or Bust!

2008-11-11T18:33:00.000-08:00

We had a fantastic time on our trip out west. Warren , Baxter and I loaded up in the car and drove to Yuma, AZ to visit my sister Alice, her husband Matt, and their two kids Emma Kate and Mason. It was such an awesome trip and the week we spent together just makes us all wish we lived closer together. Here's some pictures of the kids and all the fun stuff we did. We went to San Diego and visited the zoo one day and then of course we hit the park there in Yuma. We were able to meet several of Alice and Matt's friends and they were so sweet and welcoming. We can't wait for another visit although next time we might fly (not quite as many hours in the car). I will post some videos as soon as I can download them - having technical difficulties.

They had fun playing together although Baxter's still figuring how this whole playground thing works

Baxter and Emma Kate having fun at the park (he's not really that much smaller than her!)

Our family at the pier in San Diego (Seaport Village)- Baxter's first sight of the ocean

Fun at the San Diego Zoo can be so exhausting!

Emma Kate was great about petting the goats - as long as Daddy was nearby

Long day at the zoo!

Alice and Abbey in front of the 17 year old Giant Panda - the exhibit asked for silence and so we rushed the kids through very quickly just waiting for one of them to scream or shout...gotta love having kids

Emma Kate really had fun watching the monkeys - she called everything a "mooonkee"

Getting all 3 children sitting in one place with the eyes open and not crying is DIFFICULT!

Now you can really see how big Baxter is! He may be her younger cousin but he's definitely not smaller.

Busy October!

2008-10-26T15:35:00.000-07:00

Sorry! It's been over a month since we've posted and boy, has it been a busy month. It started off with Warren coming home from his deployment in October 3rd. We went to the base, watched his plane land and then they took the families out on buses to the planes to meet the guys. It seemed like FOREVER from the time his plane landed until we got to see him but in reality it was only an hour a half. Haha! It's awesome that he was gone for only 3 months, it could have been extended longer and Baxter and I are thankful to have him home. Baxter is sitting up, rolling over and babbling up a storm. We went to the local "Red River Revel" and enjoyed the arts, crafts and of course the funnel cakes! Last weekend we went to San Antonio where Warren and his friend Steve-O did a triathlon. It was great getting to spend some time with Shawna and Easton as well. We visited the Alamo and the RiverWalk. We had our sunday school class pumpkin carving party last night and Baxter and Warren dressed up like a cowboy and his horse. They are so cute! Once again, I'm sorry it has taken me so long to post our updates but hopefully the cute pictures and videos will help!

Here's our picture out at the plane when Warren came home

Baxter and Abbey at the RiverWalk in San Antonio

Baxter loves sitting all by himself

We had a blast touring the Alamo- a lot of neat US history

I was close by so don't worry I would have caught before he fell into the fountain!

Easton and Baxter taking a wagon ride to the Park

Abbey and Baxter at the Frisbee Golf Course- we had a blast playing with Dale and Holly

Funnel Cake at the Revel, mmmm, nothing like it!

Who knows? Maybe Baxter will take up wrestling. He's definitely winning here!

My cute cowboy and his baby horse

New Talents!

2008-09-18T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our little guy is growing up so fast and I wanted to share with everyone his new talents. He has started trying to hold his own bottle and to stand on his own (holding onto something of course). He's only 5 months old and it seems like he's growing up so fast. We're ready for Warren to come home so he can be here for all the other fun new things Baxter's learning to do!

Fun Times

2008-09-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

We've been busy these last couple weeks. Baxter and I went to Memphis, TN to visit our friends Jan and Kert and do a 5K road race. We had a blast and really appreciate their hospitality. Jan and I boxed on the Wii while Kert laughed and took pictures. Kert also took us for a slow ride around the neighborhood in Jan's dad's convertible mustang. This past week GiGi has come to visit and we have loved having her here. We went to the SciPort Discovery Museum with our friends (Mackey, Riley, Riley's GiGi (Mrs. Sugar), Jessica, and Avery). Baxter loved watching all the activities and getting his picture taken. He is also practicing sitting up and getting very good at it I might add. We can't wait to meet our new nephew/cousin Mason and we want to congratulate Alice and Matt on their new son!

Jan ran with her niece Elaine and I ran with Baxter, the kids were so great and really seemed to enjoy the run.

Elmo was a little scary

Jan was definitely better at boxing than me, we had so much fun

He's getting so big and of course already trying to learn his numbers, haha

Maybe we've found a future construction worker or...

an astronaut??!!

Riley loved petting the animals

Our little musician!

Baxter Laughing!

2008-09-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

We miss you Warren! While Warren's been gone I have been trying to capture all the new things Baxter does on camera so that Warren doesn't miss anything. This week I found out that Baxter is ticklish and had to catch it on video to share. Some of the pictures are from when my sister Sarah visited and helped us out. Hope you enjoy the pictures and the video!

Here's Baxter with his aunt Sarah- thanks for coming to see us!

What a beautiful smile

All the "boys" enjoy getting to know each other better! (under very careful supervision)

Baxter has started reaching out for things and Hunter just froze and didn't know what to do

Our little acrobat loves to lie halfway upside down; when he gets in this position he just talks to himself and laughs, its really cute

Here's the video of Baxter laughing, just ignore the goofy looking mommy in the video!

More pics from Guam

2008-08-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody - everything is going well here in Guam. Between work, homework, and training, I pass the time here...and now we're a couple weeks closer to time to come home. Here's a few pictures of the island from the air and some from a hike we went on this weekend.

Here are engines #1-4, with Ritidian Point and Northwest Field (the old B-29 airfield) in the background at the closest part of the island.

Andersen AFB is on the left, Tarague Beach in the middle, and NW Field on the right. You can see the whole island of Guam in this picture.

Here I am at Tarzan Falls, which is located in the south-central part of the island. It was pretty hot, and because the trails weren't labeled well, it took us about 7 miles of hiking round trip to see this waterfall. It was pretty cool, though.

Here's my artistic picture of the falls.

Afterwards, we were lucky enough to scrounge up some food at a local establishment.

Baxter Rolled Over!

2008-08-17T13:14:00.000-07:00

I am so excited that Baxter finally rolled over! And he did it on his 4 month birthday. In retrospect I shouldn't be in such a hurry to see him become mobile as it will only get harder to keep track of him, but it sure is fun seeing him do new things! I was walking in to the room when he rolled over the first time and then quickly got the camera to catch it the second time. Aunt Sarah was here this past week and did such an amazing job taking care of Baxter. I'm so blessed to have such wonderful family who truly go out of their way to help me out. Hope you enjoy these videos of Baxter loving to do new things.

Baxter Rolling Over

Baxter swinging in his jumper when uncle Nelson came to visit

Hafa Adai!

2008-08-10T01:35:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody - Hafa Adai! That's the common greeting here in Guam. I'm settled in here now and working, working out, and studying. I can't wait to get home to Abbey and Baxter. Guam is a pretty island, as you can see in some of these pictures.

This is the Bryce Canyon as seen from the air.

Just cruising.

Here's the Marshall Islands - pretty cool to see after nothing but water for hours and hours.

And Wake Island.

This is Tarague Beach, right on base here - I rode my bike down from our house to see the water.

Here's the view looking over the cliff to the water, running distance from the house.

Our house is here, down by the golf course - we're about 6 houses away from the fairway, though.

Here's our house - four of us live here.

Here's the view from the driveway - if you look between the houses, you can see down to the water. We're right across the street from the gym and the dining hall, so our location is pretty convenient. As you can tell, this is a little rougher than Matt's deployments...he had it easy.

Baxter's Bed

2008-08-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

I know its been a while since I posted but I have been soooooo busy with work. Baxter and I are missing Warren but we know that one more day without him is one more day closer to him coming home!!! Warren's parents came to visit and help take care of Baxter when I had to work over the weekend. They took some great pictures of Baxter and also sent some that we took before Warren left. We had a great time with Nelson when he came to help us out last week and we can't wait for Sarah to come this week. Hope you all have a great week and that we can talk to you or see you soon.

Our little guy loves to stand up!

We love it when Gemma and Pop come to visit

Here's some pictures of the crib Warren built. Warren finished it about 3 days before he left and I absolutely love it. He did such a great job. The wood came form my grandfather and Warren has been working on it since about March. It turned out beautiful and will be such a precious piece of furniture for our family to enjoy. I have the most talented husband and I am so proud of him.

As you can see Baxter sleeps so good in his crib! Thanks Daddy!

He's becoming so strong and curious. He loves to push up and look all around.

What a handsome guy!

Baxter got some adorable swim trunks and while Warren was still here we went swimming in the baby pool Gemma and Pop got us.

What a great way to cool off during the hot summer.

We miss you daddy!

2008-07-31T19:07:00.000-07:00

Well we have had a pretty eventful last couple weeks and I'm sorry I haven't posted in a while. Most of you know that there was a B-52 plane crash abut 2 weeks and they were some men that work closely with Warren. They were stationed in Guam at Anderson Air Force Base and their plane crashed into the ocean without any survivors. It was the same plane that Warren flies and he also left for Guam last week, exactly 7 days after the crash. He will be there for several months and we miss him so much. I'm adjusting to life as a "single" working mom, which definitely has its high's and low's. We have some wonderful friends here who have been amazing in helping us out so much and I can't thank everyone enough for their support. Before Warren left we were taking a whole bunch of pictures and I hope you enjoy them. We also have had several friends and their families come through Louisiana to visit us and here are some pictures.

We went to the farmers market one weekend and made it a point to find a watermelon bigger then Baxter!!

At church last week Warren dressed himself and Baxter the same. Aren't they so cute?!

Here's Baxter first try at solid foods!! We think he really liked the rice cereal although he wore more than he ate. We wanted to feed him from the spoon before Warren left so that he could be there and I think Warren and I enjoyed it more than Baxter!

Our friends the Yengos came to visit last week on their way from Oklahoma to South Carolina. We're so glad they stopped through (from left to right: Alyssa, Amelia, Baxter, Warren, Caitlyn, Lily, and Chris)

Later on the same day our friends the Stiles stopped through on their way from Texas to Florida. (from left to right: Warre, Baxter (head only!) Brian, Alli, Sherri, and Lyla) I had to work this day so unfortunately I didn't get to see everybody but I know Warren and Baxter had a great time.

This is our friend Dale helping Baxter enjoy his johnny jumper. Dale and his wife Holly have been a huge help in taking care of Baxter whenever I need help and I really appreciate it.

This is Jeff and Warren on Jeff's way from California to Florida. We have loved getting to see all of our friends this summer as they criss-cross their way across the country and we would love to have anyone else that wants to stop in!!!

More Pictures!!

2008-07-12T13:43:00.001-07:00

We hope you enjoy all of the pictures, so it took so long to get them loaded.

Baxter's dedication at Broadmoor Baptist Church, We are so proud!

Our friends the Quinlans and the Gaspards came to church with us

Baxter's best buds!! (Easton, Jake and Baxter-right in the middle of naptime)

Baxter wearing the 4th of July outfit I made for him

Warren, Baxter and me at the Firecracker 5K road race

Baxter loves his doorway jumper, even though he's still a little too small to jump a lot

Our friend Tommy (Warren's college roommate) stopped by on his way through town

Baxter (12 weeks old) and his new friend Brooks Carothers (5 weeks old)

Go Daddy!!!

2008-07-09T11:25:00.000-07:00

I just had to post this picture that was in our local newspaper's sports section. That's Warren in the blue shorts looking at his watch at the starting line of the Firecracker 5K. I'm not sure about the old guy running next to him-yikes. Warren and I had a great time running on July 4th with the other 4000 participants even if it was super hot! I was so excited that of all the people they took pictures of they put Warren in the paper! We both achieved our goal of running fast enough to win a glass mug (even though my time (Abbey) was not very good). Oh well there's always next year! There were these people tearing up the course with their baby joggers, maybe Baxter can do the race with us next year- he's still a little too young right now. It was a great race and a lot of fun. If I ever take the time to download some pictures off the camera I will post some more from July 4th weekend.

Baxter's Dedication

2008-06-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

Today Baxter was dedicated at our church here in Shreveport - Broadmoor Baptist Church. He was a perfect angel through the whole dedication and the rest of the service. We had some friends, Mackey, Mickey, Riley, Toye and Sutton, come to share in this wonderful day. We know God is blessing our family and we will continue to teach and raise Baxter to know and love Him.

More Smiles!

2008-06-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

We've been capturing more smiles on camera and our little guy is becoming quite sociable. Baxter went this past week and stayed a day with the lady who is going to be keeping when I go back to work next week. He enjoyed himself and it was great knowing he has such a wonderful place to stay. We hope everyone is doing well and that you enjoy these pictures.

The occasional frown- he has quite a pouting face when he wants

Trip to Kentucky

2008-06-19T18:13:00.000-07:00

A lot has been going on since we last posted. Unfortunately Abbey's grandmother who lived in Kentucky was diagnosed with lung cancer about 2 and 1/2 weeks ago and passed away about 1 week ago. Abbey's mom flew in from Russia along with Nelson and Sarah, who were there visiting during their summer vacation. Alice, Matt and Emma Kate came in from Arizona and we all met up in London, KY for the funeral. We were able to visit with almost all of our extended family and we enjoyed seeing everyone even if it was difficult circumstances. Unfortunately work kept Warren in Louisiana but we were glad to get home and celebrate Warren's first father's day on our return. We got a few pictures of Baxter's first plane ride and then several of the whole family. There were a lot of young kids there as it seems as if all of my cousins are new moms and dads. I have 20 aunts and uncles, 23 first cousins and it only grows from there. I want to thank everyone for their prayers and support for me and my family. There are also some great pictures of Baxter and his new smiles - they truly are blessings every day!

Here's Abbey and Baxter practicing to carry all the bags for the flight (I carried on all the luggage (the backpack), the diaper bag, the carseat and the baby). I felt like a pack mule!

Baxter on his first flight and with his in-flight snack!

Baxter with his aunt Rachel (Abbey's cousin)

Baxter with his GiGi and GiGi's twin sister, Aunt Brenda. We love you!

Baxter with his godparents- Alice and Matt

Baxter with Abbey's aunt Sue

Abbey and Baxter on the left with all of her first cousins and their spouses and children- Wow, Big Family!!!

Aunt Sarah with Baxter

GiGi (on the far right) with her brothers and sisters

GiGi saying goodbye at the airport- We miss you and love you!

Baxter made Daddy a Father's Day card! We're so proud of our little prodigy.

Baxter with one of his stellar smiles!

Baxter's getting so big

2008-06-03T19:21:00.000-07:00

Baxter and I are really loving our time at home together and although I miss my work I'm still not quite ready to leave my little guy. I have a few more weeks and trying to make the most of it. He really started smiling at us these last few days and each one makes all the sleepless nights just fade away. I always get such a burst of energy when I see those little smiles. He's getting so strong, holding his head up and hanging onto his toys. Here's some pictures of our past week.

We met Warren at work one day and had a picnic lunch, Baxter really enjoyed it as you can see!

Baxter loves playing with his stuffed animals and learning all their names.

He's getting so big and in this picture looks like he's thinking "help mom, I don't know how to let go!!!"

One of our friends Easton came over and spent the day with Baxter and me - you can sort of see that Baxter is laughing. We really had a good time but I'm glad I have only one child right now, thats about all I can handle.

Growing Up!

2008-05-27T08:12:00.000-07:00

Baxter is getting so big so fast and I'm sure it will only keep feeling faster. He's holding his head up and really making eye contact now. I keep trying to coax out an intentional smile but no luck yet. We'll definitely keep trying. We hope everyone had a great Memorial Day. We went to Caddo Lake (close to Shreveport) with some good friends, the Sugars. We really enjoyed ourselves and are so thankful to have such good friends. Here's some more pics from our trip back to Birmingham and some from since we've been back in Louisiana.

Emma Kate having fun with GiGi's glasses

Emma Kate driving us back to Birmingham!!!

Emma Kate and our friend Riley (they had a great time playing together)

Warren, Easton and Baxter- the guys just hanging around

Baxter and his aunt Jan

Erin "Giesa" and Emma Kate "Tater" playing with the car

Fun!Fun!Fun!

2008-05-24T12:35:00.000-07:00

Sorry we haven't posted in a while but hopefully we'll get better. We went to Birmingham and had a great time getting to see friends and family. Alice and Sandy Mulvaney threw a wonderful baby shower and of course Baxter stole the show (even though he slept through the whole thing!) We had a great first Mother's Day and we were able to spend some time with both GiGi and Gimma. Warren had to come back to Shreveport a few days earlier so Baxter and I stayed in Alabama and went to visit Pappa (Abbey's grandfather) with Alice and Emma Kate. Alice, Emma Kate, Nelson (Abbey's brother), Abbey and Baxter then drove back to Shreveport for a week of fun in Louisiana. Emma Kate had a great time with the "baaa-beee" which is what she calls Baxter (it is so cute!) and Alice and Abbey had a wonderful time getting to spend time with each other even if it was crazy busy with 2 young kids. We want to thank everyone for making such big efforts to see us while we were in Birmingham and for those we didn't get a chance to see we hope it won't be too long before we can visit with you!

Here we are at Pappa's house

Warren and Baxter all painted up!

Erin Harkey in town all the way from New York City

My old roommate and longtime friend Katie Beaton

Baxter, his aunts and 2 of his girlfriends Emily and Emily!

Some pics from the shower (thanks Sandy-your house is beautiful)

19 Days Old!!!

2008-05-06T10:37:00.000-07:00

We have now been parents for 2 and 1/2 weeks! We're getting the hang of 3am feedings and changing diapers, but it seems you can never fully wrap your mind around how much you love this new little person. We can't fully describe how much we love him and we can't thank God enough for him. Abbey and Baxter had their first day at home together after GiGi left and Warren went back to work. Everybody survived but was even more thankful for all the help they have had over the pat couple weeks. Here's some pictures of our week, we hope you enjoy. We can't wait to see everyone in Birmingham this weekend and for everyone to meet Baxter!

I'm 1 week old!

2008-04-24T12:14:00.001-07:00

Well we survived our first week of being parents! Baxter is doing so well and other than looking a little yellow (jaundice) he couldn't be better. Warren was able to take some time off work which has been great for these first few days. Baxter's Gigi (Abbey's mom) comes back to visit today and his Gimma (Warren's mom) and Grandpa Carroll are coming again this weekend. Hopefully uncle Jeffrey (Warren's brother) can make the trip from Alabama as well. Baxter has become quite comfortable in his new home and has even spent some time getting to know his dog brothers, Hunter and Maverick. We want to congratulate our friends, Pat and Noel Pearson on their beautiful baby girl, Annabelle, born April 20th. Thank you everyone for the calls. All the love and support has been so helpful and we can't wait to see you soon! P.S. we are trying to figure out how to post more pics to the .mac website but until then I will try to keep putting them on this page.

2008-04-19T09:32:00.000-07:00

Well he's finally here! Baxter Warren Carroll made his arrival into the world on April 17, 2008 at 12:35 pm weighing 6lb 12oz and 19 inches long. He is absolutely the best baby ever and we couldn't be more excited. Sorry everyone it took so long to post the pictures but we didn't have internet access at the hospital and we have just gotten home. Both sets of grandparents have been to see him as well as his aunt Katie. He can't wait to meet his aunt Alice, uncle Matt, aunt Sarah, uncle Nelson, uncle Jeffrey, and cousin Emma Kate. We have such wonderful friends here in Shreveport who were all so sweet and came by to visit at the hospital. Baxter can't wait to meet the rest of his friends and family! We'll post more pictures soon.

New Blog

2008-04-09T08:52:00.000-07:00

We finally decided to set up a blog so we can share all our fun times with family and friends. To update everyone we are now living (together) in Shreveport, LA. Abbey has almost completed her 2nd year of Pediatrics residency at LSUHSC-Shreveport. We have a great house, our 2 wonderful dogs (Hunter and Maverick) and we are so thankful everyday for God's continued blessings. Our most exciting news is that we are expecting our first child. Abbey's due date is April 30th and we can't wait to meet our new son! Here's some pictures of the ultrasound, the house, and us-hope you enjoy!

18 week 3D ultrasound of his face! (He's smiling)

Hunter and Maverick enjoying Mardi Gras

Easter Sunday- Abbey is 35 weeks pregnant and Warren is participating in Mustache March (A competition for the month of March where they grow out a mustache-thank goodness its April!) That's our house in the background.