Spring is Here!

I am finally getting back to my new hobby, digital scrapbooking. I started learning how to do this right before Brady was born, but once he arrived I went into survival mode for a few months and didn't have much time for any sort of hobby. I'm very glad to say things are getting much easier for us. We still have plenty of bad days, but I'm starting to enjoy life again :)  The above layout is one I created this weekend. They are supposed to be side by side, but unfortunately technology & I don't really get along, so I don't know how to do that on here. Enjoy!

Spring is finally here - it was 80 degrees here today. Unfortunately it won't be long until the temperature gets so hot and the humidity so high that I'll refuse to go outside. I've always joked that in the north you're trapped inside during the cold winters and down here you're trapped inside during the hot & humid summers. Just one more reason why I'm looking forward to moving home - escape this heat!

Finally, an Update!

I know it has been way too long since my last post, but I've been a little preoccupied lately since I finally decided to join facebook. I've been having too much fun stalking peoples profiles to spend time updating you over here. A lot has happened since my last post. Brady turned 4 months old on Friday. He discovered his feet about 2 weeks ago and finally rolled over (tummy to back) last week. Rob & I were so excited for him. He did it 4 times, but then the next day acted like he had never done it before and hasn't done it again since. I think he has forgotten already!

My parents came down to visit for the weekend and we had a great time visiting with them. We even took Brady to the beach for the first time. On Sunday we were really looking forward to going downtown to eat brunch at the Spot of Tea, but I completely forgot about all the stupid Mardi Gras parades and we drove right into the mess. We saw some VERY interesting people. Anyway, we just turned around and came home because we couldn't get anywhere near the restaurant and figured there was a good chance they'd be closed anyway. Here are some pictures from our beach trip...

Now for some really exciting news.... My niece, Macy, is turning 1 year old next month and I was really hoping that somehow I would be able to make it home to celebrate with our family. Rob & I talked about it and decided that I should take Brady and fly home to visit! We'll be in Cincy for about a week and a half! I am so excited, yet so nervous at the same time. I hope I can handle Brady all by myself on the airplane and in the airport during our layover. And I hope having him out of his normal environment for this amount of time doesn't totally screw up his "schedule." Lately though he hasn't had much of a schedule anyway. I definitely think he is going through the "4 month wakeful/sleep regression" phase right now. He went on a nap strike about a week ago, but I think that is starting to get better. Then on Saturday night starting at 3 am he woke up every 45 minutes! Thank goodness my parents were here so that they could help out with him on Sunday morning while I went back to bed! Last night was better in that he only woke up once (but stayed up for 1.5 hours). My mom got up with him first, but he wouldn't go back to sleep so I eventually had to get up and nurse him back to sleep. I hope this phase doesn't last too long!

He Likes the Exersaucer!

We tried out the exersaucer for the 1st time 2 weeks ago and it was a big fat failure. This week, however, he changed his mind. He loves it. He just stares at all the toys in amazement. This boy is becoming so much fun!

And one from tummy time yesterday...

Randomness...

I've been meaning to post for a while now, I just haven't had much motivation lately. Sorry to keep you waiting. 

Brady has (somewhat) been trying to roll over lately...

...but it's kinda hard when you have a 17lb wiener dog holding you down.

Brady is officially too big for his infant bath tub and now gets bathed in the big boy tub. My back is killing me from leaning over this every night. I miss the kitchen sink. 

He took his 1st nap on his belly last week. It made me nervous, but he fell asleep during tummy time in the middle of the family room floor, so it was easy to keep an eye on him. 

We're FINALLY having some success with the Bumbo. He screamed like a madman the 1st few times we tried it, but he can now last 10-15 min before he freaks out. We have a really cute video of him that I will try to post later this week.

I am loving our cloth diapers. I intend to devote an entire post to this someday...

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In the past 3 weeks we have had 2 showings, 1 no show, and a realtor caravan. It's really hard trying to keep the house spotless all the time. I took a bunch of pictures though to commemorate the cleanliness. In case you didn't know what my house looks like, here you go...

View from the entryway 

Brady and I even spent one afternoon in Target buying up things like new throw pillows, rugs, and new towels to spiff up the place.

Master Bath

I've even been buying fresh flowers for our kitchen table and bedroom...

The office and Brady's room are my two favorite rooms. Probably because they're the two I put the most effort in to. See that wainscoting? I did it myself! These pictures really don't do the room justice...they're really dark. The room is really cute in real life. To see picture of Brady's room click here.

Plain guest bath.

Laundry

Ugly guest room.

We're supposed to have another showing tomorrow morning. Pray that it goes well!

Look Who's 3 Months Old!

My little lumberjack. I can't believe how quickly time has gone by. I remember that first week home when things were so difficult wishing that he were this age. Now here he is and I'm eagerly anticipating him turning 6 months and starting solids and (hopefully) starting to crawl and being able to sit unassisted. It makes me think how I really need to slow down and enjoy him. I still get frustrated though because I feel like he still can't do much. Rotating him between his swing, bouncy seat, and activity mat is starting to get old. We also do a lot of tummy time and read him books but he gets bored easily with those as well. I'm sure this next month will bring lots of changes and growth.

I have to admit that I've been feeling very down these past few days. I am really missing Ohio and our family and friends up there.  We were so excited on Saturday because we thought we were finally going to have a showing for our house. We spent the entire afternoon cleaning and then left during the supposed "showing" time, only to return home to a message on our machine letting us know it was cancelled. I was so disappointed. I feel like we're stuck and are never going to make it back. I'm really wishing we had never bought this house right now. It is so hard to be down here without much help and not many people to talk to and keep me going through the day. Please pray for us that we will be able to sell our house quickly. 

Mr. President

Brady received his White House Greeting a few days ago and I finally got around to scanning it into the computer, so I thought I would share it with you. We have another congratulatory note that we received in 2004 for our wedding. I hope Obama's administration continues doing this because I think it's really neat. I'd love to get one for each child that we have.

In other news Brady slept a whopping 10 hours and 45 min last night before waking me up, completely refreshed, at 6:45 this morning. It was glorious! Then to top it off he even took 2 naps this afternoon. One for and hour and another one for 2 hours! He is normally a horrible napper, so this was wonderful. 

Hope everyone has a good evening!

MIA

Merry Late Christmas and Happy New Year! Sorry, it has taken forever to write a new post. Things just don't seem to get done as quickly as they used to! I hope everyone's holidays were as good as ours. My entire family came down to visit for Christmas and we had a wonderful time. Brady and Macy were finally able to meet (although I'm pretty sure neither of them cared). I can't wait till Brady is Macy's age. She is so interactive and can do so many things on her own. It's crazy to think about how different Brady will be in just a few more months. By the way, he is officially a beast. We took him to the doctor this past Tuesday and at 2.5 months he is a whopping 17 lbs 5 oz and 27 inches long! He is completely off the charts! Macy is 9 months old and 20 lbs. He's almost her size!

I decided not to write any resolutions this year, mainly because I always tend to forget them by February. I can basically summarize though and say I really want to focus on being a great wife, mom & homemaker. That pretty much encompasses everything that I could want to accomplish. 

I know I should have more to write about since I haven't posted in forever, but my mind is totally blank right now. I have a severe case of the brain farts. I'm sure I will probably think of 10 other things to write about tonight and be back on here with another post though. Stay tuned....