The Magician

On Wednesday Brock left for work at 4:50am. Braxton (who normally doesn't wake up until 5:30) heard the door shut and awoke ready (and screaming) for a bottle of milk. I ran into the kitchen to make a bottle. As I make the bottle the phone rings. I'm thinking, "who would call me at 4:52am?". I run into the bedroom to grab the phone. It's Brock. He says, "I'm in the driveway warming up the van and I forgot my wallet. Can you grab it for me? (he only had one set of keys and would need to shut off the van to unlock the door to the house). I quickly scan the bedroom where the wallet should be and I don't see it. I proceed to sprint around the house...bedroom, bathroom, living room, kitchen, entry way...and can't find the wallet (as the baby is still fussing for a bottle). I call Brock back and tell him I can't find the wallet. Now, Brock is freaking out (Did he leave it on the bus last night? Did he drop it outside of the jail where he works?) and says he needs to leave or he'll miss his bus (because he drives to the park n' ride and catches the bus downtown). I get the baby and start feeding him the bottle. Brock calls about 10 minutes later and asks if I can: 1) look for the wallet one more time before I leave for work and 2) get the phone number for his credit card so he can call to have it cancelled. I promise to do so. The baby finishes eating. I start turning over everything in the bedroom looking for the wallet. Everything. Must. Be. Checked. And, do you know where I found the wallet? Our dear baby boy hid it at the very bottom of his toy box. Hmm....do we have a little magician on our hands? I quickly called Brock and gave him the good news. We were SO THANKFUL that we found it. So much excitement and all of it before 6am!

1 year photos

We took Braxton for his professional 1 year photos (the day before he got his forehead scar!).

Giggles

Here is a video with Brock and Braxton playing together. Brax is laughing because Brock is putting a toy in his mouth and taking it out. (just a side note: the website is upgrading its video capability...if you the message "unable to process the video" just check back later).

3rd tooth

Braxton got tooth number three this week. He is doing great and we go back to Urgent Care tomorrow get his stitches taken out. And...here is a video I took this morning of Braxton playing with an orange plastic ring.

Funny!

Brock took Braxton to the mall yesterday & pushed him all around in the stroller (the baby looked like a real "bad ass" wearing his leather jacket and showing off his newly stitched forehead). A random lady walked up to them and said, "oh dear baby, what a horrible cut you have on your head!" Brock looked at the lady and said, "you should see the other baby!" The lady was shocked and walked away quickly.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Today started out great with Braxton and I meeting our friend Erin & her 15 month old daughter Ruby Rose at Sovereign Grounds (a cool coffee shop with an indoor play room for kids!). Ruby is adorable and it was fun to have the kids play together.

Braxton and I then went home where he tripped and fell bashing his forehead into the corner of the wall. I took Braxton to Urgent Care (Brock wanted to save the $25 by sewing the wound himself...). Braxton bled all over the place and got stitches that look like shoelaces. Brock gave him the new nickname of "Lace Face". MLK Day started out great but after the trip to Urgent Care overall it wasn't much of a holiday for Braxton this year.

healthy!

Braxton had his one year doctor's appointment today. He weighs 20 pounds 14 ounces which puts him at 21% (meaning 79% of the kids his age weigh more than he does). He is 30 inches tall which puts him at 57% (meaning 43% of the kids his age are taller than him). He is a tall and skinny little boy that is 100% healthy. And...he is a pretty smart guy too. Here's a photo of him redecorating our kitchen yesterday.

Walking

One Year Old!

Our baby boy Braxton is 1 year old.

Here are some details about him:

He is an “observer” and he loves to watch people.
He loves music and singing.
Favorite fruit: mandarin oranges.
Favorite veggie: sweet potatoes.
He often prefers to use his left hand (we wonder if he may be left handed like his momma).

He has two teeth.
He loves to chase cats.
He loves climbing stairs, chewing on stuff, and walking.

First Birthday Party

Braxton's First Birthday was this week. Highlights of the party included Grandma Debbie coming to visit this weekend and eating apple-cinnamon mini-muffins with birthday candles. We also remembered the time we spent at the hospital ICU when Braxton was born by eating graham crackers and chocolate milk (which were free in unlimited supply while we were at the hospital...one of our rare happy hospital memories). Also--on his birthday we let Braxton eat pizza for the first time!

First Professional Haircut!

Braxton has been having several bad hair days lately. To solve the problem we kicked off our first annual birthday haircut! Here are two "before" photos and two "after" photos.

Noodle Eating

Reflecting on 2009

My favorite memory of 2009 started with struggles. Braxton was born a month early and was in the hospital Neonatal ICU for a week and a half. After several days in the ICU the nurses began to tell us “Braxton is doing great. I’m sure the doctor will release him tomorrow” and every day the doctor would tell us “he can’t leave yet.” Days of struggling with the doctor were really difficult for Brock and I to deal with, yet we were not allowed to take him out of the hospital against the doctor’s orders because it would be a formal action of child endangerment. So…we waited and waited. On the 10th day in ICU, the doctor (which we, by this time, completely hated) finally told us that Braxton could go home. We. Were. Very. Ready. To. Leave. As we packed our things, the doctor changed Braxton’s diaper and Braxton took the opportunity to pee right in the doctors face. Sweet Justice. That is my favorite memory of 2009.

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As I think back over 2009 I am overwhelmed with how very blessed we are. Our healthy baby boy is getting bigger, smarter, and full of more personality every day. We have food in the refrigerator, we have running water, and its freezing outside but our home is warm and cozy. We have loving family members and friends. God has truly blessed us beyond measure.

Happy Video

This morning Braxton and I were playing peek-a-boo after he ate nearly an entire adult size can of mandarin oranges and two handfulls of Kix cereal. He was in such a happy mood. Here is the video.

Happy 2010

For New Year's Eve Brock and I had a few friends and relatives come over to hang out with us and ring in the New Year. We spiked Braxton's hair so the party could begin. Here are a few photos of the group which included: Doriean, Denise, cousin Melanie, Jen and her 2 year old son Luke, Roxie, Elise, Brock, Braxton and I.
On January 1 we drove to the Mall of America. We walked around Nickelodean Universe and saw some of the photo borders that Doirean created for the Mall of America (she works in LA and has design accounts for several theme parks like Disneyland and Valleyfair). We also met up with Lauren, her mom, and Avery and had dinner with them to celebrate Lauren's birthday (which is January 1).