Merry Christmas!!

It's so very hard to believe that today is Christmas. Chris made it home last week and he is scheduled to fly out tomorrow afternoon. We all made it to church last night for Christmas Eve service at church which we hadn't been able to do in several years. We came back to Dads afterwards and enjoyed just being together. Santa made a visit and brought Braxton everything he had asked for. (I had no doubts!)

I can't help but reflect on how life has changed since last Christmas. I do that every year and always wonder where we'll be in a year and the experiences that we'll have gone through. This year was full of experiences that were painful and difficult. Somehow, in every thing painful or not, we grow and learn from them. It's sometimes hard to see the joy in some things.

Here's to family and good memories in 2011. May we continue to grow, continue to laugh and love, and continue to hope.

Of all the things in life that offer no guarantee, family and memories are two things that never fail us.

My New Favorite Thing....

Yesterday I went into Costco after church to pick up one thing real quick. Well, you all know how that goes. I walked in past a sample and OMG!! Chex Mix has a new flavor: Muddy Buddies!! Did anybody else love these as a kid (or even more so as an adult)? They were so darn good but so much work to make!!
After trying them and getting Braxton's approval I had to pick up a bag.
They are so delicious. I think I'll have to go back and pick up a few more bags because it seems that they are around only for a limited time. Let me know if you pick up a bag for yourself!!

Christmas Pleasures

Braxton has been so excited and into Christmas this year. We were going to go get our tree from the mountains again this year but with everything else going on we came to the conclusion that was going to be one thing we had top let go of this year. I kept telling Braxton we were going to get to a tree lot and pick one out and don't think he didn't remember. Every afternoon he'd ask, "Are we going to get our Christmas tree?" Finally, we got all set up and decorated this past week and Braxton told me he wanted to sleep under it! I told him we'd sleep under it on Saturday and after getting my dad's queen size blow-up mattress blown up (I don't think I could handle sleeping on the actual floor!) we were all set and he was SO excited. I thought it would be neat for him to fall asleep with the lights on the tree on but after about 45 minutes of him staring up at the ceiling and blowing I decided we'd have to go old fashion and cut the lights out. He slept great. I, on the otherhand, was kicked and slapped and rolled all over ALL NIGHT. At 5am he informed me he was "stopped up and needed his nose blown and some juice!" I ignored his demands for as long as I could. We finally got up about 7:30. I wouldn't have had it any other way~~

Amazing Grace

Today was Brax's big day. He had three little hernias right in the middle of his stomach that we noticed about 7 months ago. He had been complaining of his "tummy hurting him" and after taking him into the doctor and being referred to a surgeon the concensus was that they should be corrected now while he was young and were essentially causing no problems.

We arrived at the georgeous Levine Children's Hospital this morning at 6am. I was so very impressed with the facility but even more so with the staff. After we got in our room and he changed into his gown (which he hated because it was too big) the doctors and nurses started coming in. But what was so wonderful was what they did for him! They brought in crayons and markers and let him color on his bed sheets which he loved. We had to have a quick talk about not doing that at home! They gave him a little mouse looking doll that had all kinds of bracelets, a blood pressure cuff, heart monitors, and bandaids on his belly so that they could actually show and talk him through what was about to happen. They also brought in a beautiful quilt that was handmade by a lady for him to cover up with during surgery, recovery, and to bring home.

Brax has been in a great deal of pain today but I'm hopeful that it will subside tonigt after a good nights rest. Thank you to all that have called, texted, and prayed for our little man today. I included a picture from tonight. He's enjoyed hanging out on the couch.

I'm also so very greatful for having such a wonderful facility close by and for the amazing medical teams that work within.

Amazing Grace.

Big City Venture

I Wuv Dis City!!

These were the words said by my son on Wednesday morning as he sat in an apartment over looking New York and New Jersey. We just returned from an amazing trip up to visit with Chris and Ali for the Thanksgiving holiday. With all of the changes that took place in our lives this year we thought it would be a good idea to do something different for Thanksgiving. Brax did great for his first plane ride and was a real trooper as we hustled and bustled though the city. He walked almost the entire time and absolutely loved the subway.

After arriving on Tuesday morning we walked into Times Square and saw various sights in the city. On Wednesday we went to Radio City Music Hall and saw the Rockettes perform their incredible Christmas performance. We went to FAO Schwartz and retrieved a new "Busch" (that is NOT to replace the old one per Brax) and even walked on the BIG piano from the movie Big with Tom Hanks. (click on the link to see what I'm talking about) We ventured into China Town and Little Italy later that night. We found some fabulous finds and ate real good too!

On Thursday we all went to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade and we watched from Central Park. Our most favorite balloon was Spiderman! We enjoyed Thanksgiving lunch at Gracie's Diner. We had chinese food for dinner that night. Would it be hard for you to believe that hardly ANYTHING is open on Thanksgiving day?
We had a great trip and look forward to another visit real soon. Special thanks to Chris, Ali, and Mark for making our time so memorable!

Enjoy the pics!!

A Request

Braxton has been asking for a pretty big gift lately: A baby brother. The other night he told me he wanted a baby brother "right now!" I wrote about Zoie and how I hadn't gotten over to see her yet. Zoie is now seven weeks old and since yesterday was a holiday at work I thought it would be a perfect day for us to go and visit. She is absolutely adorable and was awake for a little bit while we were there.
Take a look at the pictures and you decide how Braxton felt about her. I had to get a real quick picture of him with me and Zoie. He was a little more cooperative when I wasn't the one holding her.
Later in the afternoon Allyson asked him if he still wanted a baby brother. He said, 'Yeah, just not at my home!"