Happy Easter!

We had a fun weekend celebrating Easter as well as Colby and Josh’s birthdays. Here are some pictures (and stories) from our festivities…

-Coloring Easter Eggs with Daddy-

Disney Princess Easter Eggs, of course!

-Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt-

With Brady in tow, we decided to attend the neighborhood Easter egg hunt, held at the local school, rather than venture further away from home. Although we had high hopes from the start, it quickly went down hill when we arrived at 10 and discovered that the Easter egg hunt was not starting until 11. (What do we do with a newborn and toddler for one hour!?) To make matters worse, the sponsors of the event had games planned for the kids but they were all geared for kids over the age of 5. The games were held in the school gym and someone thought appropriate Easter music would be loud hard-core techno music - every time we got close to the gym, Abi would say that she wanted to leave because “the music is too scary!”. After one hour of wondering the halls of the school, it was finally time for the Easter egg hunt so we headed out to the playground (in the rain, of course!) Due to the number of kids, the Easter egg hunt lasted all of about 35 seconds. As you can see, Abi made the most of it and got some candy, which was the highlight of the morning. Oh, and did I mention that the Easter Bunny had a MUSTACHE.…seriously!!!

Walking in with high hopes for a fun Easter egg hunt…

Even Abi is not sure about Mr. Easter Bunny!

-Colby’s 3rd Birthday Party at XXX Rootbeer in Issaquah-

-Cute Pictures from Easter Morning-

Searching for treats left by the Easter Bunny…

Helping Grandma make cupcakes for Daddy's birthday celebration!

Springtime Fun

With a weekend of temperatures in the 70s, we were fooled into thinking that spring had arrived. Unfortunately, this was followed by several days of rain and snow showers are actually forecasted for Monday. I guess that’s life in Seattle. While it was nice we took full advantage of the beautiful weather and spent it outdoors at the zoo, the park and working in the yard.

-Woodland Park Zoo-Enjoying a Picnic

Taking on Double Duty

Getting a boost from Daddy to see the animals

-Trip to the Park with Cynthia, Colby & Paige-

-Hangin’ Out Around the House-

Abi playing with her new bubble machine. Apparently she thinks that the bubbles will listen to her when she calls out to them!

Daddy Relaxin’ With His Kiddos…

Our Big Boy!

I’m Yours - This is Abi's favorite song. As you can see, she got a bit distracted when she heard a car outside and thought Daddy was home but she knows all the words and loves to sing it!

Funny Moments

Here are some funny moments that occurred during Brady's first month of life. I thought I should document them before I forget (my memory is definitely not what it used to be - this becomes extremely apparent when I play the game, Memory, with Abi. She beats me every time we play and I actually try to win!)

1) Josh came home from work a few weeks ago and Abi looks at him and says, "Daddy, have you met my friend Brady?"

2) Before Brady was born, I didn't realized how different it is to change a girl's diaper and a boy's diaper. Not only do you need to worry about the chance of being peed on at any moment, but Brady has 'anger poops' (Josh creatively coined that term). As soon as we take off his clothes to change his diaper, he gets very cranky. During the act of changing his diaper, he has the uncanny ability to poop at the exact moment the diaper is being switched or at the exact moment that you reach for another wipe. It honestly feels like he does this on purpose to punish us for changing his diaper. Well, let's just say we should buy some stock in Resolve cleaner. We have been busy cleaning clothes, changing pads, furniture, carpet...it seems to be getting a little better as he is getting older, or maybe Mom and Dad are just finally getting the hang of it!

3) As I was getting ready to feed Brady the other day, the following conversation ensued:

Abi: "I want to do it, I want to do it!" (she said as she hopped on the couch and lifted up her shirt).

Me: "No, honey, only Mommy can feed Brady. Mommy has milk that Brady needs".

Abi: "I have milk, Mommy. It is chocolate milk".

Abi Turns Three!

On Saturday, March 21st, Abi turned three years old!  We had a great Princess themed birthday party.  All of Abi’s best friends attended and she had a great time!  Again, a special thanks to our friends and family who helped make the party so wonderful.

The Birthday Girl

 

 

 

 

 

Fun with the Parachute

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yummy Cinderella Cake!

Opening Presents with the Girls

Princess Pinata - Instead of the traditional pinata, we opted for one with pull-strings.  Unfortunately, with this type of pinata, there is no way to determine which string will cause the candy to release.  Luckily, all the kids got an opportunity to pull a string and as we started round 2, it was the birthday girl’s turn and she picked the lucky string.  As the candy fell out of the pinata, Abi just starred at the ground, a bit confused and stunned, but with a little reassurance, she quickly got the hang of it and grabbed her bag to collect the goodies.    

…it was a mad dash for the candy!

Abi and Her Friends

Cynthia and I with Abi, Brady, Paige & Colby

Uncle Steve Meeting Brady

Just a Cute Picture of Brady Enjoying the Festivities

Our First Few Weeks

Today Brady is two weeks old. Overall, everyone is doing well despite keeping very busy. Not only have we have been adjusting to life with a newborn while trying to continue some sense of normalcy for a three year old AND recovering from delivery, but we have also been planning a 3rd birthday party for one very excited little girl. As if we weren’t busy and sleep deprived enough, Josh, Brady and I also got hit with the flu/cold bug that has been going around! Last weekend, we successfully pulled off one perfect Princess party (thanks to all of our friends and family who helped – we could not have done it without you!). Stay tuned for some birthday pictures.

Brady is a very good little boy. He is just as laid back as Abi but contrary to her, he loves to be held and cuddled. I finally got my cuddle-bug! We took Brady to his first doctor’s appointment last week and the doctor was amazed at his weight gain – he is completely off the charts for a baby his age. Josh is hoping that this continues so his dreams of having his son play football might become a reality.

Abi is doing well too. As you can see from the pictures, she loves Brady (who she still calls “baby boy”). She is very interested in what he is doing and always tries to be a big helper. Despite being a great big sister, Abi has been quite challenging for Mom and Dad lately. Since Brady was born, she has decided that she doesn’t want to eat anything during meal times (although she is always ready for snacks or desserts!) and likes to do anything but what she is being asked to do. I guess this is to be expected.

Here are some pictures from Brady’s first few weeks…

-AT THE HOSPITAL-

One Proud Papa

Grandma & Abi meeting Brady for the first time!

One of my favorite pictures

-AT HOME-

  

Brady meeting Grandma and Grandpa for the first time!

Goofy Abi wearing one of Brady’s hats

Aaawwww….so cute!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Abi & Daddy Playtime

Baby Boy Arrives!

On March 9th, we welcomed Brady Kenneth to the family. He was born at 7:25PM, weighed 9lbs 8oz., and measured 21 1/2 inches long. After a long day of laboring, our happy and healthy baby boy was born via Cesarean section. Despite the tiring day, Mom and baby are doing wonderful.

Here are a couple of photos from his first day of life...

Still Waiting...

Since I was induced 10 days after my due date with Abi, I was warned early on that I would probably not deliver until at least my due date with this pregnancy; but I still thought that there might be a chance. Well, here we are 4 days away from my due date and still no baby boy! My doctor did agree to induce me on my due date (as long as it is not too busy at the hospital) so we are crossing our fingers that Monday will not be a popular day for women to give birth.

Abi is becoming quite interested in baby boy - especially now that we got his room, cradle and car seat set up. She often asks me what the baby is doing - "Mommy, is the baby sleeping?, "Is the baby moving?", "Is the baby crying?". I think she believes that my belly button can be used as a telescope to see the baby - she often puts her eye up to it (as if she is looking through it) to see what he is doing. Upon looking, she usually confirms to me that he is sleeping. She also uses my belly button as a microphone to speak to him. It is truly adorable! She likes the 'idea' of having a baby brother and being a big sister but the true test will come when he actually arrives and reality sets in that he is here to stay!

Hopefully we will have some good news to share soon so stay tuned...