Fun with Friends

On Tuesdays, Chad goes to a men's bible study with some friends from church. April and I have taken this opportunity to have some mommy/baby time with our precious little ones. Piper is only 10 days older than Brayden! I learned today that trying to take a picture of one baby is hard, but two babies!!...it's next to impossible! This was my best attempt (Thanks Greer for helping!)

Cool Dude

Brayden has a hard time with the bright sun, so mommy bought him some baby shades! Isn't he precious!?!

Happy FIRST Father's Day!

I think Chad really enjoyed his first Father's Day as a daddy! Brayden and I took him to Bonefish for his favorite meal (salmon with lemon butter) on Saturday night. We didn't know Bonefish was going to open for lunch specially for Father's Day!!! Then Sunday, we got up and dressed Brayden in his Polo outfit to match daddy! Then we went to church and out to lunch together. That night, we went to Great Grandma's house to grill out steaks and celebrate our late Papa Rod's birthday. We miss him so much, and we know he would be so proud of Brayden! It was also a celebration for my mom's birthday! We gave her her birthday present, then for dessert, I bought Chad an ice cream cake with his favorite ice cream...cookie dough! We also gave him a coupon for a car wash and a card from me, one from Cali, and one from Brayden! It was a great day and I hope Chad knows what a great daddy he is!

Daddy and Brayden at Bonefish


Daddy and Brayden at church

Brayden in his Polo! Just like Daddy!

Grilling out-Brayden always trying to look at daddy!

Daddy's special ice cream cake!

Again, and again, and yet...AGAIN

On Tuesday the A/C went out on us and they said they "fixed" it. Then on Thursday (yesterday) it went out again and they said they "fixed" it again. Then today (Friday) the A/C has gone out for the THIRD time in four days!!!!!! And it is the hottest day of the year! Enough is enough! On Monday, the air people are going to have me in their office!

My poor sweating baby boy and I got in the car and took a trip to Grandma's house...who happens to have a working A/C unit! And now we are back home because they are trying to "fix" our unit yet again. Arg!

You've got to be kidding

No, you are not seeing things. Our A/C is out AGAIN. Yes, it was just out two days ago. I've been watching it, so I caught it before it got WAY too hot for all of us. I called the air people and had yet ANOTHER fit. They came out and "fixed" it...riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight! And lukcy us....it's supposed to be 105 tomorrow!!! Who do I have to threaten to get my A/C replaced!?!!? The answer will be revealed later!

My neighbor...the spaceman!

This is the sight Brayden and I encountered walking out of the house this afternoon. Any guesses...its my crazy neighbor! He is always building or working on something, so I just couldn't imagine what this contraption was for. Lucky for us, he wasn't letting out some poisonous chemical...just spraying mosquito repellent!

2 Months

At this exact moment, this is what my baby boy is doing. Why??? This morning he had his first shots (notice the band aids on the picture below). I don't know who it was worse for, me or him! Brayden is always really fun and alert in the mornings. At the doctor, he laughed, smiled, and cooed at me and his pediatrician. We put him on the table and I held his hand...he was smiling and then INSTANTLY started to cry. Having a baby who never cries, then can't stop was really hard! Well, we made it though and now I'm watching my baby boy sleep in his play pen. I have him in the den so I can keep watch over him. He is getting Tylenol every 4 hours for fever. He cries when we touch his legs, and wants to be held a lot! (I don't mind that too much!) We are in for a long 2 days, so I'm finding myself unable to take my eyes off him! That's why I've got him near me in the pack n' play!
The shots were awful, but the rest of the visit was great! Brayden is weighing 11 pounds 6 ounces (50th percentile) and is in the 90th percentile for height at 24 inches! We are doing great on the nutramigen formula and our baby boy is growing well!

Just Chillin'

Brayden likes to lay around on the couch and look around!

Night Time Routines

One of our favorite times with Brayden is during our nighttime routines. We start off by taking a family walk. We have usually taken him in the stroller, but he seems to enjoy the carrier more now that he is more alert to his surroundings. Then we sit in the garage and have our family time. After that, we give Brayden his bath, which he has come to love! This makes mommy very happy! I hand Brayden off to daddy, who then wraps him up and cuddles while I clean up the tub and get out his PJ's! We lotion him up, clean his nose if needed, diaper him, comb his hair, and put on his PJ's! (We like the snap up pajamas because they are easier to change him in the middle of the night!) Then daddy rocks with him in the rocker and they sing songs off the radio. Around 10:30 he gets his bottle and goes down for the night. Brayden seems to do well with this routine because this is the longest sleep stretch we get out of him. He has gone as long as 5.5 hours straight before. He is a great sleeper at night, we just wish he wouldn't be up to feed as often as he does. I will say...he is getting better now that we got his formula straight, but mommy would like him to go just a little longer between bottles! Daddy has been a great help though, so after we dress our baby, I go lay down until his first middle of the night feeding. I enjoy our night time routines because its the one time of the day I know we will all be together!

after bath time

Love my alligator PJ's!

Game Night!

The Cubs play tonight at 8:00pm and daddy is VERY excited to have a buddy to watch the game with! He got Brayden all ready to go (too bad the game never came on because of a game delay!). So we put out Brayden's Cubs onsie for tomorrow too!

Emily this pic is just for you!!!

Not again!!!

Look close....
Yes, that is our air conditioning thermostat. It is reading 79, when it should be reading 70!!! And it is 90 outside!!! If you haven't been following the blog, then here is a quick recap.

For the past 3 years we have had A/C issues! This year when the A/C went out I happened to be NINE MONTHS pregnant! No A/C and full term is not a good combination. So I called and had my hormonal breakdown with our air people and they replaced all that was wrong...free of charge. So...

It went out AGAIN today! I noticed it was getting warm, so I cut it to 70 and NOTHING happened. Then my poor baby boy started getting fussy and was really warm. So I stripped him, put on some shorts, and called the air people back. Needless to say...my mommy claws came out! I was not a happy mama, and you know what they say-If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy! Poor Chad! But my mommy complaining got me a technician 30 minutes later and within the hour my thermostat was on the way back down in numbers. Free of charge too! So now we are back to trying to find our A/C problem. For 3 years we have been dealing with this A/C! I've been after a whole new unit since the problems started...after all it is a new build. We have been dealing with it the 3 years we've been here because its just been us, but now we have our special boy to think about. So I dare the A/C people to mess with me! I WILL get what I need for my baby boy!

My Little Monkey!!!

Pictures just too cute not to post!!

Loving Life

I just have to say...I am loving life with Brayden in it! I feel like having Brayden started a whole new life for us! I feel like I have just been born myself. The whole world looks different in the most wonderful way. I stare at my precious baby boy all day long, and could all night if I wasn't so darn tired! Each day he just amazes me more and more. And I know I'm his mom so I am biased, but goodness gracious he is cute! God is so amazing...I can't wait to see what we are in store for with my sweet boy!

Brayden's Baptism

Daddy and I are from very different backgrounds when it comes to Brayden's baptism. I'm from a strong Methodist background which believes in infant baptism, where as daddy was baptised at a young adult age. They also differ in that one is a sprinkling and one is a submersion baptism. We decided together to do both for our baby boy. We decided it was our job to communicate to Brayden that when he is older, he can decide what he wants to do when it comes to church and baptism and we will support him no matter what.

Today we had Brayden baptised at my family Methodist Church. It was so special! The entire sermon revolved around Brayden and what God says about raising children. The pastor who has been a friend of my family for 7 years was able to be there to baptise him which made it all the more special. Brayden had a precious white outfit and socks with crosses embroidered on them, and we managed to make it through church with nothing on it! His great grandparents, grandparents, Aunt Britt, Godmother Amanda, cousins, and many more family were all able to be there. It was a great day!

This fall when our church does baby dedications, we will also take part in that. Then when Brayden is at an age to decide...he will make the decision when to have his submersion baptism or if that is what he wants to do. We just want our baby boy to know that there is a great God who gave him to us, and we long for him to have a great relationship with him.

Daddy!

As I've said only 100 million times!...one of my favorite things to do is watch Brayden and daddy spend time together. Our sweet boy cannot take his eyes off daddy. He just stares at him and smiles. I know they are going to have a great relationship as he grows up! He is already passing on his daddy wisdom such as: which songs to listen to, not to get "too big for his britches", and to make sure he always spits up on mommy! (Which unfortunately for me...he has listened to!)

I don't think so!

Brayden has been given some of the cutest hats, but he is not crazy about them as you can clearly see!!!

Finally's!

Now that Brayden is 8 weeks I finally:

• Can sleep while Chad does feedings
• Can sleep while Brayden does!
• Got the house clean!
• Feel comfortable carrying him without the fear of dropping him!
• Don't feel helpless and scared about meeting his needs
• Got over the fact that I will not have privacy for many many many years to come
• Can clean his bottles in a timely manner-yes it used to take forever!
• Can get the diaper bag, him, and myself ready to go out in less than 10 minutes!
• Know the names of everyone who works in the mall and at Target
• Know the cries he makes to know what he needs
• Know what he does and doesn't like to do
• Don't mind other's holding him
• Can change a poopy diaper without any problem with the smell
• Found the time for JUST Chad and I-usually Brayden's nap time
• Feel normal again!

I think the baby stole my brain!

Ever since Brayden's arrival, I have had a hard time thinking for both of us! I have actually been to Target twice in the last month and forgotten what I went for! When I am leaving to go somewhere, whether it is out of town or just to get gas...it is like preparing for vacation! So many things to remember:
diapers
bottles and nipples
wipes
change of clothes
blanket
changing pad
burp cloths
pacifier
cell phone
keys-and where I put them last!
cutting the A/C in the car on if its too hot out
By the time I have gotten my baby boy ready to go, I have forgotten the "to do" list in my head! I have had to start writing EVERYTHING down and keeping it in one central location. Wow!...and its summer...Lord help me when I have to go back to work!!!

Rainy Day Nap

We took Brayden out for lunch and a ride today, but then the day got gray and nasty. So...we came home and had our first family nap together! It was so much fun! As a matter of fact...Brayden and daddy are still asleep! :)

Aunt Britt

This week, my sister came into town for a job interview. This was the first opportunity for her to hold Brayden. When Brayden was born he was so small and fragile, she didn't feel comfortable holding him. I can't blame her...I was nervous myself! But now that he is a little bigger, she enjoyed spending some time holding him.