Hometeaching according to Tom...

My Big One-Year-Old Boy

Braxton had his one year well check on the 27th. Here are his numbers:
30.5 inches tall (75%)
22.6 lbs (66%)
Head circ. 18 inches (38%)

Here are some of the new things our little one year old has been up to.

Braxton loves craisins. A 3 lb bag from Costco lasts us about 3 weeks.
He is a picky eater, but has six foods that he will eat consistently every time:
craisins, cheerios, toast w/ peanut butter, yogurt, grilled cheese, and oatmeal.

I love this picture. It is my new favorite. We have been teaching Braxton how to wave hello and bye bye. He will do it sometimes, but moves his whole arm (like a barbie, haha).

Figured out how to drink from a straw

Loves books, balls, and cars

Love of my life. Second to Kyle ;)

He looks so peaceful when he sleeps. Don't be deceived-- he is a crappy sleeper!
That is a whole different post though.

Standing and walking. His favorite place to play is in the kitchen. He likes to take the lids on and off of the tupperware and to roll his golf balls on the hard floor.

Obsessed with buttons, zippers, strings, knobs, etc.
Here he is eating the buckles in his infant carseat.

He loves anything that makes noise. Don't worry, there isn't advil in there!
And I love how he crosses his ankles.

Fell asleep on my lab the other day. It's hard to tell, but he was sitting facing me and bent forward to rest his head on my lap. Not sure how comfortable that is, but he fell asleep like that...

Watching TV with Uncle Chad. Braxton will watch about 2 seconds of TV before he is bored and wants to play.

Loves being outside. Loves going for walks in his stroller. watching the cars drive by, and going to the park and playing on the swings.

Learned how to clap his hands. This picture was taken right outside the temple. I would say "Yay for the temple!" and he would get all excited and start clapping.

Putting his golf balls in the cup holder for his new big boy car seat.


I love, love, love this stage of child development. It is so much fun to have a one year old. Everything is funny and there is the perfect balance of parental reliance and independence.
Braxton is still a little mama's boy, but sure gets excited when Daddy gets home and they get to wrestle and rough play. When he is tired or hungry though, you can bet he wants his mama.
I am trying to wean this guy. I never thought that I would be nursing past a year. If I could just get this turkey to sleep through the night again, we would hardly be nursing at all. No worries, it will happen soon enough. Braxton started taking steps a few days before his birthday and by the next week he was everywhere. It is so cute to watch him toddle around. Plus, now that he is walking, I make him go throw away his diapers after I change him. He walks all the way from his room, through the living room and into the kitchen and throws the diaper away. It's awesome! Braxton also has a new fascination with kids. Both babies and bigger kids. He loves to touch babies, but he isn't very soft. And he laughs at them all the time. It is so cute!
We are currently working on a couple things with him: folding his arms for prayers, waving hi/bye, pointing out items in his books and to things that he wants (ie- pointing to his sippy cup if he wants a drink instead of just screaming). It is getting easier to teach him new things because he understands SOOO much more now. He can follow simple commands like "Let's go throw your diaper away" or "Let's go in your room and read stories and get ready for nap time."

I love my son so much. Each day I have to spend with him is a blessing. I always wanted to be a mom, but to experience it is so much better than I ever expected it to be. So grateful to have this sweet and silly boy in our family.

Love Notes

So in our ward's Relief Society, we have a fun little tradition of writing "love notes" to the girls in our ward. We have a binder that gets passed around each Sunday during Relief Society and in this binder are a bunch of envelopes, each with the name of a sister in our ward. As the binder is passed around, sisters are able to write little notes to each other and leave them in the envelopes. Not something typically done in a traditional family ward, but it is a lot of fun.

This past Sunday I got a love note that truly touched me, and I wanted to post part of it.

"...I love watching what a good little mom you are for Braxton. You have so much patience no matter how wiggly he gets. During the Sacrament I was sitting in front of you and I think I even overheard you trying to tell Braxton about Jesus. He is so blessed to have you as a mother. Thank you for your wonderful example..."

I read this note for the first time during Relief Society. It made me tear up just reading it. Actually, every time I read it I start tearing up. Yes, this is a really sweet note, and yes I do try to teach Braxton about Jesus during the Sacrament (that IS what it is for, obviously). But that isn't what got to me. I really feel like this sister was prompted to write this note to me. Last week was a rough week. Every day seemed to be filled with situations that left me thinking, "oh man, I really should have handled that situation with Braxton better" or "wow, I really need to be more patient with Braxton today." I think I really just needed to hear that I am a good mom and to be reminded that I am trying my hardest. Because I am. I try dang hard to be the best mom I can be. And I think I do a pretty good job. Most of the time. But sometimes I fall a little short and I get a little short-tempered. Especially when I am overly sleep deprived. Which pretty much describes every day last week. I am just very grateful for this sister that LISTENED to the Spirit and HELPED ME in my time of weakness and for my Heavenly Father that knew I needed a little pick-me-up.

Braxton's First Birthday!

Our little man turned one on February 22nd! We can't believe that it has already been a year since our sweet little baby was born. We had a little get together with some of our family that lives in the area-- just small and low key. Perfect for our little guy.

For his cake, I made cupcakes into The Very Hungry Caterpillar. It is one of Braxton's favorite books.

(sorry the picture isn't that great. I promise it looked a lot better in real life!)

Braxton wouldn't even touch his cupcake. I was kind of disappointed that he didn't smashed it and make a huge mess, but that's ok. It's just the way he is-- very cautious and reserved.

Here's a picture of my big 1 year old boy! I can't believe how grown up he is.

Sadly, I don't have any other first birthday pictures. Only videos. So here is a video for all the family back home of Braxton opening one of his presents. Thanks to all of our family for the presents! Our little guy sure is spoiled!

23

February is a busy month for our family. My birthday was on the 10th, Braxton's is on the 22nd, and then there is Valentine's Day smashed in the middle. Needless to say, all these celebrations break the bank... and our budget. :S So stay tuned for future posts!

My birthday was on a Friday. We didn't really do much to celebrate because Kyle had class, and a test, and work. So while he was busy studying away, Braxton and I went on a walk to the temple. I love taking Braxton to the temple. We talk about the temple, the missionaries, Jesus, the Angel Moroni on top of the temple, etc. Of course, we sit and look at the fountain, too. Here is my Braxton Buddy next to the fountain. Excuse my hand in the picture. I didn't want him to jump off the ledge, and I'm too lazy to crop the picture. :)


We didn't do any celebrating that night due to Kyle having to work, but he did bring me home these pretties. (Side note: I always get flowers for my birthday and chocolate for Valentine's Day because the flowers are ridiculously expensive right after my b-day).


Saturday, we celebrated all day. We went to lunch up in Salt Lake at The Cheesecake Factory. Delish, as always. We ordered the Avacado Eggrolls as an appetizer and split the Bang Bang Chicken and Shrimp. Our dessert was the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle. Oh my. So good.

After lunch, we went and walked around the mall and I bought this shirt at H&M. Thanks, Kent and Debbie.

We went to a bunch of different stores and I spent some more birthday money, which is surprising because I usually don't find much that I like. While shopping, Kyle made me try on some peach colored skinny jeans. And I'm not going to lie, I looked dang good. He knew it, and I knew it. But I couldn't buy them. Why? I don't think I have a flashy enough attitude to pull them off. They are attention-getters. And I am not that kind of person. Plus, I'm not really in to the whole 80s colored pants that are coming back in style. I don't know, any thoughts on this?

Anyway...

That evening, Kyle made me a special birthday dinner: King crab legs, asparagus, and mashed potatoes. It was so good! I was so stuffed that we had to hold off on cake.

This is the beautiful cake that Kyle made for me. Triple chocolate fudge with cream cheese frosting drizzled over it. And yes, he did sing to me; and yes, I blew out all 23 candles. :)


My birthday was so much fun. Kyle treats me so well-- I am very spoiled. Thanks to everyone for all the cards, messages, and phone calls. I am looking forward to another wonderful year.

Little Moments...

My baby turns one on Wednesday. Of course, this occasion will be celebrated with presents, balloons, and lots of cake smashing. However, as I look back on the best year of my life, I can't help but be a little sad about all the little things that I am sure I have already forgotten about my sweet boy. So here are a few things that I always want to remember about my almost-one-year-old boy.

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My baby is usually really good at playing by himself. He is a curious little guy and is easily entertained by the little things he discovers around the house. Every once in a while though, he will come back over to me, crawl up on my lap and rest his head against my neck or cheek. He will sit there for a minute and then climb down and start playing again. Even though he can't speak, I know this is his way of saying "I love you, Mama."

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Today, we were walking down the stairs to the parking garage and Braxton started giggling out of no where. I have found him doing this a couple times, usually when he is playing with his toys or found something fun to play with in Mommy's room. It always makes me smile that he finds himself so entertaining that he can't help but crack up.

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Braxton loves being upside down. Anytime we are sitting with other people around us (Relief Society, Sunday School, waiting rooms, etc), he will throw himself backwards and lay upside down with this big goofy smile on his face until someone looks at him, smiling, and he starts giggling and sits back up. Then he will throw himself back again. Lather, rinse, and repeat about twenty times. He is such a little entertainer.

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At home, when we are just hanging out and cleaning house, I will sometimes growl at him and hide behind a corner. I love how I can hear him super speed crawling and breathing excitedly as he comes and finds me.

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At bath time, I will take Brax into the bathroom and stand him up against the tub while I start the water. Then we go out into the bedroom and take his clothes off. When we go back into the bathroom, he is so wiggly and happy and excited to get in the bath that he practically jumps out of my arms.

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In the mornings right after Brax wakes up, we sit in the rocking chair together and snuggle. Then when he gets wiggly, I pull up his blinds and sit him on the arm of the rocking chair so he can look out the window. He loves to sit there and watch the cars and people passing by, bang on the window, and play with the window tract and sill. He loves seeing what is going on outside.

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There are probably a zillion more things that I could write about, but I think this is probably good for now. I love my son so much. I think it is fair to say that he has taught me far more in the past year than I have taught him. I love my sweet little guy. He makes life so much happier and has brought our family so much closer. I feel so blessed to be his mama. I hope that years from now when I think back on my first year as a mother, I will be able to remember the joy and happiness that radiates from my son and the love he has brought to our family.

So far...

2012 has not been very forgiving to Braxton. He has caught just about every nasty little bug out there and has literally has been sick most of the year. He has been in this cycle of getting sick, getting better, almost back to normal as far as eating, sleeping, number of diapers in a day, etc. and then he gets sick again. Here is his running tally for 2012:

Flu
Cold
Two Teeth
Ear/Throat Infection

That's a lot for just a month into the year. I feel so bad for my little buddy. We have had wayyy to much of this:

And this:

And not nearly enough of this:

Ya... More of this would be nice. I miss my happy little boy. He is on antibiotics right now to help his ears and throat so hopefully within the next three days he will start feeling better. And maybe he'll even stay healthy this time.