Starbucks and M&M's

So we've been a little bored around here and Brady has found some out of the ordinary toys to keep him busy while he's teething. Whatever keeps the boy happy...right? He loves digging in a bowl full of M&M's and dumping them all on the floor.

All grown up!

Well, finally we are seeing signs of Brady's first little toother. He had a pretty fussy day (which considering the fact that this was my first day back with him after our trip to Phoenix) I must admit I had my feelings hurt just a bit. He woke us up yesterday morning with some grumpy words instead of his usual coos and by a few hours into it, Brady had a runny nose and a lot of fussiness. After some frustrations, we finally headed to Target to get out of the house. Who doesn't feel better after a trip to Target? While there during one of his crying episodes which is fairly uncommon for my boy (he's usually a big fan of getting out) I noticed a shiny little spot on the inside of his gum. I stuck my finger in there and low and behold, I felt the corner of his first tooth poking through the surface of his gum. Poor baby! I felt awful for being so frustrated w/ him for being so fussy. After some Orajel and some grape flavored Tylenol and a chew ring I think he's feeling a little better today.

Here is just a random picture of him at his 6 month appointment w/ the pediatrician. I forgot to post his stats so here they are:

Height: 28.5 inches

Weight: 19 lbs 10 oz

Head Size: Well let's just say this is off the charts :) So my son has a big head....the doctor said it is probably genetic and that he wasn't concerned about his head size since he is developing normally in all other areas. Of course that just gives me something else to worry about.

Besides that, the three of us are doing well. It just hit me yesterday how fast Brady is growing up. Now with teeth on their way and crawling around the corner, I realize that time w/ my sweet son is passing all too quickly. I hear him waking on the monitor so I best go cuddle the little guy.

Sunny Phoenix and the Pima's

Check out the mountains in the background. This was my view from the pool yesterday.

So Austin and I headed to Phoenix on Wednesday morning. He had to come for a 3 day business trip and I tagged along without Brady. This is the first time in the 7 months we've had him that I've been away from him for longer than 24 hours and I sure do miss the little guy. Braden is home w/ Coco this week and from my 8 million calls at home, I've learned that they've had a great time playing, playing and playing. We thought about bringing him, but 1. he would never have made it on the 4 hour plane ride w/o fussing, 2. the time change would have made my early riser get up even earlier, 3. he's still sick w/ his first cold and 4. it's good for Austin and I to get away alone.

This resort is amazing! Outside our honeymoon, this is perhaps the nicest resort I have ever stayed at. We are on some Indian reservation, the Pima Indians to be exact. Who are the Pimas...I have no idea b/c I have yet to read all the little "for your information" signs that are posted all over the resort about Pima people. But we have seen a real live coyote wandering right in front of us and a million different cactus and a heck of a lot of sand (no rattlesnakes though or scorpions though) so I officially feel like I've been to the southwest.

Austin's been in meetings all day, so what have I done...a whole lot of nothing. I've managed to sleep in a little more than usual although Brady has officially set my internal clock to now wake me up earlier than pre-baby days. I've laid at the pool, read some great books (and a few shallow magazines), had a few appletini's and a lot of Starbuck's coffee. Oh and I must say, Austin and I have had some ridiculous Southwestern style food down here at some amazing restaurants. Let's just say they make some killer guacamole out west and I don't even like avocados. It's just been nice to go to dinner together or have a drink together and date again. With that said, only a few hours till we head to the airport and fly back to see our sweet son. He'll be sound asleep for the night before we get home, but I cannot wait to hear him talking in the morning.

Best Friends

Here are some pictures of Braden's best friends:

Tyson

Max (My best friend Annie's baby who is about 17 months old right now. She and Max just came and stayed 5 days with us...hallelujah for adult conversation)

Bo (My friend Ashley's baby who is 3 weeks younger than Brady)

And no, Braden does not sit in his pajamas all day long even though it appears that way from all of these pictures. Although today it is snowing outside so we both sat in our pj's until well after 2pm.

Highchairs

So we finally caved in and bought a highchair. I resisted one for the longest time b/c I was insistent upon not cluttering our house with one more baby item. As it is, it looks like Babies R'Us threw up in my house. We have officially moved furniture out of our family room to make room for the swing, the exersaucer, the bouncy chair and all the eight million books, blocks, teddybears, trucks, mirrors and every other thing that jingles, rattles, squeaks or lights up. I finally took back the unopened portable highchair we got from a shower and used the money to buy a highchair which now sits in my kitchen, tucked under our bar. On Super Bowl Sunday, we put Braden in it for the first time and he absolutely loved it! It's great too b/c I can throw all kinds of pacifiers, spoons, plastic bowls and any other kitchen item on the tray and he'll beat them together for a good 15 or 20 minutes which allows me just enough time to get a drink and take a breath for a few minutes. Here are some pictures of the sweet little man in his new favorite toy. Also, we tried prunes yesterday and the boy loved it...so did his diaper today! Who knew prunes were so tasty.

Of course, here is Braden w/ that one finger in his mouth. If you know Braden, you know how much he loves to chew on that one finger.

The finished product:

Hallelujah!!!

We made it to 6:30am today! Well actually 6:34am, but who's counting those extra minutes right? Of course I was awake at 5:45am wondering why I hadn't heard from Braden yet, so I never could get back to sleep, but when I went to check on him, he was turned on his side, sound asleep. Sweet baby...

6 Months, Retirement and such

So I've slacked off already! And at the request of family, I'm posting some new pictures. Let's just say we've been a little busy. Between 5:30 am wake up calls from my son, my recent retirement (yes, I beat my daddy to retirement and I'm officially unemployed) and all the crazyness in between, I haven't had a lot of time to post. Life is good though and we are so thankful for God's provision and blessing in allowing me to stay home full time! Braden is getting sweeter and sweeter every day. He's been happily squealing a lot (okay a whole lot) and he's added "ba-ba" and I think I've even heard "ta-ta" to his vocabulary...still waiting to hear "ma-ma." We are finally getting on some kind of schedule for naps and I'm realizing every day what a gift and blessing this sweet child is to Austin and I. We find ourselves missing him while he naps and even though 5:30 is awfully early, it is so sweet to hear him on the monitor cooing. Thankfully he's been talking to Brown Puppy in his crib till almost 6:15 or 6:30 in the morning so that means Austin and I can lay in bed and listen (well a lot of times we laugh) at all of his noises, squeals and bouts of endless "da-da, da-da." With that...here are some pictures of the little munchkin sitting and such: