Toddler chronicles November: 14 months

Man keeping up with a blog is difficult with a toddler. Ha!!! Braxton loves computers so working on this during the day is no longer an option since he wants to "help" mommy.

Braxton and Piper!

Here is a list of new things that Braxton is doing:

*Try's to imitate any word

*Can shake his head for yes or no

*Learned to say "Pop"

*He is a dancing machine. His favorite jam is "hot dog" from Mickey Mouse clubhouse but he doesn't really discriminate. 

*Loves peak a boo

*Braxtons favorite people in the world are "agger"(jagger) and dd

* Favorite and only show is Mickey Mouse clubhouse. He will sit for a whole episode....this is the only time he sits still other than eating or sleeping

*Terrified of the vacuum cleaner

*Sings E-I-E-I-O

Sweet snoozin babies

Decking the halls...

There is not much in the world that is cozier than cuddling up on the couch in a dark room with a beautifully decorated Christmas tree lit up and a Christmas candle burning! Mindlessly staring at a Christmas tree is therapeutic to me and turning on those little lights is the first thing I do on most evenings when Braxton and I get home. 

This year I decided that in addition to our big family tree in the living room, Braxton also needed his very own tree in his room to admire. In the perfect dream world in my head I imagined him laying in his crib and staring at the lights as he drifted to sleep. In reality, the lit tree is a huge distraction at bedtime so it must be unplugged before the milk and storytime segment of our evening. 

I decorated his tree with Santa but decided that it had to be personalized so I placed our favorite Instagram pictures from 2013 on his tree. Braxton loves to run into his room and point at each of the pictures one by one. He stands and points while listening to you label each person in the pictures which are mostly all Braxton because let's face it he was our favorite thing about 2013!! Most of our evenings consist of a 5 minute period of Him pointing, me stating that's Braxton and him repeating "B" over and over! And as if this routine could handle anymore cuteness, B also must lean in and land a big fat smooch on several of the pictures each time.

So glad my little man loves his tree but even more so I'm so glad he is already so sweet and affectionate! 

Toddler Chronicles October-14 months.....

November 5th 2013: I cannot believe that our baby boy is 14 months old. In my mind that is soooo old and yet the days of him as an infant are still so fresh on my mind. Luke frequently comments on how strange it is that he cannot recall exactly what Braxton looked like as an infant without looking at a picture as a reference and I must agree that its true! How crazy is that? I mean obviously I know that he was adorable and he had a thick head of dark hair and his eyes were a grey in-between color that no one could pinpoint (they still are). I can remember that he was so small and so helpless but I cannot remember specific features without the help of "old" photographs. I cannot imagine what our recollection will be like when he is a teenager.

Braxton now has 10 teeth total....his 4 front teeth on top and bottom, and then a molar on top and bottom on the right side of his mouth. Luckily, our sweet boy has never had a lot of problems with teething so its hard for us to know exactly when his chompers bust through.

I am coming to the realization that Braxton is a sensitive little guy. He has always been a snuggler for sure and now he loves to give great big hugs with a sweet pat on the back to all of his friends and family.....just last night in church he gave a little boy behind us about 15 big hugs and even a smooch. Braxton loves to pucker up and pass out kisses at home and at school. A few weeks ago his teachers sent us a note home stating that Brax had been hugging and kissing all of his friends. And our guy is not a cheek kisser, he likes a big slobbery kiss right on the lips with the smack noise included. I love it! And I love that my lil man is a lover and not a fighter because this momma still cherishes every time he falls asleep on my chest with his arms wrapped around me.

Braxton Cole also LOVES music! He loves music of all kinds whether its the radio or someone singing. And he loves to dance to said music whether its with hand movements that he has learned at school or if its his own signature "white boy" moves! It would be a rare occasion if we didn't have at least one dance party at home daily!

Other things our lil dude loves: wagon or truck rides outside, playing with trucks or balls, and being outside with daddy while he is working on projects (I would say crafts but projects sound more manly...hehe)! Braxton loves pictures of all sorts and loves pointing to people in pictures at school and has just started kissing the people in the picture at home. We are also working on catching a playground ball with inconsistent success right now!

Braxton is still not much of a talker but does say.....mama, dada, more, "dis" for this, bye-bye, hi, pop, ball, and dog. I'm sure he is saying so much more but I don't speak baby so I can't make out most of it. He signs more and all done. This past week he has started nodding for yes which is pretty darn cute! 

Thankful

November is always a month where we take a step back to count blessings and express thankfulness for all that God has blessed us with. I try to be thankful daily but sometimes it is hard to remember during the hustle and bustle of daily life. Some people choose to express their thankfulness daily on Facebook during November but I feel too much guilt if I forget and let's face it, with a toddler on my hands I will inevitably miss a post or two. Instead I thought I would post 30 reasons of thankfulness here...

1. I am thankful for Luke: this man could not be a better father to Braxton! He is the perfect mix of fun and disciplinarian. I can't help but love him more everytime I see him cuddle my sweet boy or rough house with him in the floor!

2. I am thankful for Braxton: this lil guy is the perfect mix of Luke and I. He is all boy with his rough housing, banging, and throwing but at the same time he is the best cuddle bug with the sweetest smile and best kisses! I truly cannot remember life without him!

3. I am thankful for health: our little family has been blessed this year with good health. Other than one little procedure for PE tubes and a couple of viruses we have all been as healthy as a horse. 

4. I am thankful for our friends: Luke and I have been blessed with excellent friends that love us like crazy, understand that life with a lil is hectic and still include us even though we frequently have to say no. There is nothing that makes a mommas heart swell more than knowing that her friends love her lil!!

5. I am thankful for dance parties and music: Braxton loves music which is good because so does his momma. B loved for us to sing to him as an infant and now he loves dancing around like fools. He immediately stops what he is doing when music plays on tv and he has some pretty advanced dance moves. Ha

6. I am thankful for family: We have been blessed with extremely caring and loving parents who in turn love Brax with all their hearts. We are so lucky to have parents who are always willing to watch our boy so mommy and daddy can have a break.
7. I am thankful for my job: I love all my munchkins and co-workers! Even though some days are hard and sometimes I'm tired, there is nothing in the world I would rather do. Watching my sweet littles meet milestones and make progress is so rewarding.
8. I am thankful for my warm house and warm clothes: it's so hard for me to understand but I know that there are so many others in the world who are not as fortunate as us
9. I am thankful for my motivation to workout: It's hard to get out of bed at 4:30AM but I feel so much better when I do so I'm thankful for the drive to keep on keepin on.
10. I am so thankful for Braxton's school: my boy is so lucky because his teachers really LOVE him. I am so thankful that I can go to work with no worries because I know that they care for him like he is their own.
11. I am thankful for fall: It just doesn't get any more beautiful than this time of year. Leaves changing, crisp mornings, and the smell of burning leaves. I just love it!
12. I am thankful for Dr. Pepper: and all of its bubbly goodness:)
13. I am thankful for boot and scarf weather: or in other words...Fall again
14. I am so very thankful for sleep: I appreciate and truly understand the importance after life with a newborn. Nothing makes me happier than curling up under the covers after a long day!
15. I am thankful for pictures: new and old that help us to chronologically remember all the important events in our life. Pictures are some of my most cherished worldly possessions.
16. I am thankful for chocolate: yum..yum...
17. I am thankful for home cooked meals: you cannot beat a good home cooked meat and potato Sunday afternoon meal!
18. I am thankful for travel and family vacations: I love to travel and see new places. I am so thankful that we have already had the opportunity to take Braxton to the mountains of Colorado (Luke's favorite) and the beach (my favorite). Where should we take him next year? hmmmm
19. I am thankful for technology: it's amazing, right? I am able to keep up with all of my college friends through instagram and facebook and Braxton loves to facetime his cousin Jagger. I will admit that I do not make actual phone calls as often anymore but I do love seeing pictures of everyone's adventures.
20. I am thankful for Razorback football: even if the season is not going as previously hoped. I love football, and tailgating, and calling the hogs!
21. I am thankful for Cole Elliot Hill: its crazy to think that today marks a time when Cole has been gone as long as I knew him. Cole will always hold a special place in my heart...he was the first one to accept me as part of the family and he was the glue that held his family together. He was Luke's best friend and I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to know him.
22. I am thankful for family traditions: the ones that Luke and I carry on from our childhoods and the new ones that we have started with Braxton
23. I am thankful for tiolet paper: I mean could you imagine life without it.
24. I am thankful for Braxton's sweet kisses
25. I am thankful for a clean house with candles burning
26. I am thankful for those brief moments when I am able to catch up on all my paperwork
27. I am thankful for sunsets and sunrises
28. I am thankful for chapstick: can't make it through a day without it
29. I am thankful for Luke's comfy pants to wear around the house: pretty sure we fight over them frequently
30. I am thankful for pecan pie: because lets face it....it delish!

Happy Halloween!

I love Halloween and when I say that I mean I REALLY love Halloween! 

 It was always my favorite holiday growing up and still is today!

Here's a brief summary of why I love Halloween!!First and foremost fall is by far the best season so Halloween always has a little of that leaves changing, crisp air, bonfire smell to me. Next, when I was little Halloween always meant rushing home from school or leaving early so we could get dressed up and then head to Grandma Gerkie's to Trick-or-Treat with ALL of my cousins!!! And don't get me started on Trick-or-Treating.....Trick-or-Treating meant starting at dusk and walking up and down streets asking for candy from complete strangers until every light was turned off. It meant filling up a pillow case full of candy and not getting to stop even if you were falling asleep on the sidewalk! Once my cousins and I were slightly older Halloween took on a new meaning when my mom along with my aunts and uncles started taking us to haunted houses to scare the mess out of us and then laugh about it!!!

Last year Braxton was only 8 weeks old when my favorite holiday rolled around which meant we had to start small. We spent the afternoon at the Fayetteville Square watching some friends Trick-or-Treating! We then spent the evening at Uncle Kyle and Aunt Lulu's house passing out candy! Braxton slept through much of the event!!

This year Braxton was old enough so we could really enjoy the holiday. We started the afternoon at the Fayetteville square for some daytime Trick-or-Treating. Then we headed over to our friends Owen & Ava Kate's house for the good stuff! We went Trick-or -Treating and Braxton did excellent riding in his truck door to door! We were probably out for about an hour this year before festivities were cut short when Braxton decided to poop in his costume...hehe

Overall we had a great time and we discovered that Braxton loves candy!! I cannot wait until next year to do it all over again! I hope that I pass on my excitement over Halloween to Braxton so that he has fond memories of a fun, family holiday as an adult!