Today we signed Brody up for his first "sport." Ive been really excited about this because not only do I think it will be hilarious - but my main objective is to wear him out! We signed him up for Blastball (which he innocently calls blasketball). It is pre t-ball. There is only one base and it honks when you hit it. The idea is to teach kids to run, hit, catch and throw. There is no scoring or positions and parents are on the field with there kids the whole time (just picture it - six three year olds and six parents all rushing for the ball). We just paid $35 for a spring full of entertaining Saturdays!
Brody is so excited. I guess we may have hyped up registration a little too much, because after it was done (which took about 2 minutes) he kept asking when he gets to make new friends and play "blasketball" And, to top it off...he got a football jersey warm up suit from my Aunt Lori for Christmas and he wore it today - so now he calls it his blasketball clothes. Stay tuned - Im sure the pictures will make you laugh! We think the games start in March or April but we aren't sure yet.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Birthday & Cousin photos
A few weeks ago my sister and her son Aiden came to visit with us. We went to get the kids pictures taken - twice - trying to get a good shot of the kids together. We ended up with a pretty cute one and several cute ones of the kids individually (for their birthday photos) - special note to family....being watching your mailboxes!
All three cousins together!
Our little man
Our little lady
Together - finally at least one cute enough I can put on my wall! I asked the photographer when it gets easier to have a professional group photo taken. She didn't really have good news for me, she said that as soon as the kids stop being wiggly they often give fake cheesy smiles instead - so it goes from one frustration to the other. Until then - these at least capture the moment.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Brody Birthday Pictures & Train Museum
Brody's train cake...
We spent Brody's birthday with my parents and Amy and Baby Aiden. We had dinner and Brody got to use the "red plate" for his special day. Its a family tradition of mine from growing up that we are incorporating into our family.
He is my "big boy" now - he has shown his growth by fighting us on wearing bibs and sitting in his booster seat! But, he sure is cute!
On Saturday we went to the Train Museum at Fair Park in Dallas. It was a fun activity to do with Brody and he LOVED seeing all the trains up close. He'd run from one to the next saying lets see more trains. He definitely has the concept of "more" - in the sense that after all his presents were opened he asked for more, and the next day he played with all his trains and brought me the catalog (aka his "card") and told me "I need more of these ones"
Big Trains...Little Boy
What little boy wouldn't love to climb all over under the trains?
Ella enjoyed the outing and has really taken off with her walking. She is assisted in the pic by my dad, but she is now walking all over the house and today at church she discovered how to squat down and then get back up by herself. She has been practicing all day.
I think this is the best picture we've had of the four of us ever - all smiles and looking at the camera. My hair is a bit wind-blown, but hey I'll take smiles over hair anyday.
Our happy birthday boy...We love you Brody!
We spent Brody's birthday with my parents and Amy and Baby Aiden. We had dinner and Brody got to use the "red plate" for his special day. Its a family tradition of mine from growing up that we are incorporating into our family.
He is my "big boy" now - he has shown his growth by fighting us on wearing bibs and sitting in his booster seat! But, he sure is cute!
On Saturday we went to the Train Museum at Fair Park in Dallas. It was a fun activity to do with Brody and he LOVED seeing all the trains up close. He'd run from one to the next saying lets see more trains. He definitely has the concept of "more" - in the sense that after all his presents were opened he asked for more, and the next day he played with all his trains and brought me the catalog (aka his "card") and told me "I need more of these ones"
Big Trains...Little Boy
What little boy wouldn't love to climb all over under the trains?
Ella enjoyed the outing and has really taken off with her walking. She is assisted in the pic by my dad, but she is now walking all over the house and today at church she discovered how to squat down and then get back up by herself. She has been practicing all day.
I think this is the best picture we've had of the four of us ever - all smiles and looking at the camera. My hair is a bit wind-blown, but hey I'll take smiles over hair anyday.
Our happy birthday boy...We love you Brody! Friday, January 16, 2009
Happy 3rd Birthday Brody!
Its birthday time again at our house! More cake, more presents, more fun! I really am amazed that my baby boy is three already. I think about the night before he was born at that day and remember so many little things that aren't really that important (i.e. we all watched the 2-hour opener of season 4 of 24 right before leaving to check in at the hospital at midnight). It was such a fun day for us and completely overwhelming when he made his debut. 
Birth (I won't share one with me in it, because unlike with Ella I did not look very good. 18 hours with constant fluids running in me made me look like a puffy marshmallow. These pictures are why I cared so much to make myself look good when having Ella. I learned the first time.)
At his first birthday party with his Great Grandpa Mullin 
On his second birthday with his Grandma Burton. She took him to breakfast with his daddy because I had just had Ella.
At Ella's birthday on Saturday. He looks like such a little boy these days. He has just about lost all his "baby-ness"
Here are three silly things we LOVE about our Brody:
1 - If he were to be a TV character he would be Monk. He is very concerned about details, if his cup touches one table at the pool, he must travel around and have it touch EVERY table at the pool. Perhaps he has a slight case of OCD, but more likely he is a real good mix of his mom and dad.
2 - He is going through a phase right now where he kisses my hair. Don't know why, he just pulls some away from my head (gently) and kisses it...several times a day.
3 - This one is mildly gross...but still funny. He has been doing GREAT on the potty. He has a habit that after he goes #2 he will look at the toilet and tell us what letter it looks like. It is really funny, and we've seen A LOT of different letters.
More party pictures to come!
Birth (I won't share one with me in it, because unlike with Ella I did not look very good. 18 hours with constant fluids running in me made me look like a puffy marshmallow. These pictures are why I cared so much to make myself look good when having Ella. I learned the first time.)At his first birthday party with his Great Grandpa Mullin On his second birthday with his Grandma Burton. She took him to breakfast with his daddy because I had just had Ella.At Ella's birthday on Saturday. He looks like such a little boy these days. He has just about lost all his "baby-ness"Here are three silly things we LOVE about our Brody:
1 - If he were to be a TV character he would be Monk. He is very concerned about details, if his cup touches one table at the pool, he must travel around and have it touch EVERY table at the pool. Perhaps he has a slight case of OCD, but more likely he is a real good mix of his mom and dad.
2 - He is going through a phase right now where he kisses my hair. Don't know why, he just pulls some away from my head (gently) and kisses it...several times a day.
3 - This one is mildly gross...but still funny. He has been doing GREAT on the potty. He has a habit that after he goes #2 he will look at the toilet and tell us what letter it looks like. It is really funny, and we've seen A LOT of different letters.
More party pictures to come!
Thursday, January 15, 2009
My Big One Year Old
We took Miss Ella in on Monday for her one year check up. She is quite the drama queen - especially when it came to being weighed. Full on pouty face with head bent down hidden between her legs. The office staff all cracked up at her expressions, it really would be hard not too. She cried through the whole exam, but we did get it done. She weighed in at 19 lbs 14 oz (25%) - foward facing carseat here we come! She was 31 inches long (95%) which really surprised me. I didnt realize how tall she was. AND, of course there is the head. First measurement put her off the charts and jumping up like 10%, so the Dr. re-measured and the next measurement put her back down at the 95%, the same curve she has been on for awhile. She is growing well and even though it has only been a couple of days since her birthday I swear she seems so much older to me already.**Please note that per a grandfather's request, a more modest picture of Ella has replaced her previous bath photo (hopefully no weirdos have looked at my blog lately)
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Ella Turns One!
One Minute Old...
One Day Old...
One Week Old...
One Month Old...
One Year Old!I can't believe my baby is already a year old! It seems to have gone by so fast, but at the same time we can't remember life without Ella. She was a very easy newborn, and has grown into a beautiful, spunky and serious little one year old. She is always on the move and is curious about everything she sees. She loves music and dancing and doesn't like carseats or diaper changes.
We celebrated her birthday today with my mom and dad, my sister Amy and her baby Aiden, and our family. We had lunch and played at Chuck E Cheese and then had cake and presents. She was much more fun to watch eat cake then Brody when he turned one. He didn't want to get messy at all, but Ella dove right in and enjoyed every bite! 
The "after" cake picture
Ella's princess castle cake
The top layer with the "E" came off and became Ella's cake.Monday, January 5, 2009
Our California Adventure
We flew out to California on December 26th. It was a long day, but we made it there in one piece! That night we celebrated a belated Christmas with Grandma and Grandpa and spent time visiting with our good friends from Sacramento, Paul and Lisa and their daughter Izzy.
They had driven down that day too, so all the kids were tired but we still had a good time. The next day we celebrated Christmas with my family in Costa Mesa. Brody had fun with his new cousin Aiden that he met for the first time. I love seeing him talk to babies and explain what is going on. He made sure to introduce all of us to Aiden - very cute!
Aiden was blessed the next day by Brandon. It was a day of twists and turns. My grandpa was supposed to do the blessing but ended up being really sick. It turned out nice though and we spent more time with my California family. 
Grandpa and Brody driving the car in Autopia.
Daddy, Brody, Mickey and me. This was the longest line we waited in - it was so decieving!! It kept saying your almost there, you made it, etc. We must have waited close to an hour. If we had known we would have used the scooters to get us through faster - but from the outside it looked like no big deal. I thought the picture turned out cute though. And after seeing Brody's cars clothes the photographer invited us back to see Cars land that opens in 2012.
Great Grandma Kimbrell, Brody, Grandma and Ella on their electric scooters.
We had such a good time at both California Adventures and Disneyland. It was fun to make memories with our families there. The kids did great - we ended up staying at Disneyland until 10:00 that night! They were wiped out the next day and we spent the day relaxing again and then we had dinner with my grandparents and Brandon watched another football game with my grandpa.
They had driven down that day too, so all the kids were tired but we still had a good time. The next day we celebrated Christmas with my family in Costa Mesa. Brody had fun with his new cousin Aiden that he met for the first time. I love seeing him talk to babies and explain what is going on. He made sure to introduce all of us to Aiden - very cute!
Aiden was blessed the next day by Brandon. It was a day of twists and turns. My grandpa was supposed to do the blessing but ended up being really sick. It turned out nice though and we spent more time with my California family. Monday the 29th we braved going to Disneyland's California Adventures with my whole immediate family. It was so fun and the kids did so much better than I expected. It was busy, but I think the longest lines were for parking and for food - its so annoying. 
We really liked the Bugs Life 3-D show. I loved watching Ella try to reach out and grab the bugs as they'd fly in front of her. Brody's highlight was playing in the water fountains. He had quite the crowd gathered around him and was doing circles giving them all high fives. I should have sold tickets to make back some of our admission! People were filming him it was so funny. By the time it was over he was soaked and exhausted! 
He fell asleep right before the parade - which of course was the only place to see Lightening McQueen. I was shaking him and tapping his cheeks trying to rouse him to see Lightening McQueen. I think he caught a glimpse, but then turned around and fell back asleep. I was able to finally get his attention and he saw most of the other Pixar characters.
The kids had to have Disney gear - so here is a picture of them in their hats. Ella of course could barely keep hers on for the photo, but Brody wore his most of the rest of the trip.
We really liked the Bugs Life 3-D show. I loved watching Ella try to reach out and grab the bugs as they'd fly in front of her. Brody's highlight was playing in the water fountains. He had quite the crowd gathered around him and was doing circles giving them all high fives. I should have sold tickets to make back some of our admission! People were filming him it was so funny. By the time it was over he was soaked and exhausted! 
He fell asleep right before the parade - which of course was the only place to see Lightening McQueen. I was shaking him and tapping his cheeks trying to rouse him to see Lightening McQueen. I think he caught a glimpse, but then turned around and fell back asleep. I was able to finally get his attention and he saw most of the other Pixar characters.
The kids had to have Disney gear - so here is a picture of them in their hats. Ella of course could barely keep hers on for the photo, but Brody wore his most of the rest of the trip.
It took us a day to recover from California Adventures - Brandon and I got massages the next morning. It was the best ever! The kids took good naps and we rested and ate food from restaurants we don't have in Texas.
We rang in the New Year by playing games, watching the ball drop and then getting into bed at about 12:05. Real exciting huh? Im just too tired to stay up later than that and I don't want to fight crowds to go out anywhere. Plus, Brandon and I will take any opportunity to play Settlers of Catan.
January 1st was of course spent watching the Rose Bowl. We spent some time with my grandparents who were recovering from their colds too. Brandon's grandparents drove down from Sacramento to spend some time with us also, so we enjoyed the evening with them.
January 2nd - we braved Disneyland! We have been planning for awhile to take the kids while Brody is still free. It was again a very busy day, but we made it in the park a lot earlier by learning from Monday's experience. Brandon's mom and grandma are having mobility issues at the moment, so they rented scooters to get around the park. It was great because we got to skip most all the lines and go in the handicap line. It made visiting the park on a busy day so much easier (except for navigating the crowds!) We were quite the sight, 2 scooters a double stroller and five walking adults. It made us laugh to watch the scooters hit each other, other strollers and an occasional person who wasn't paying attention. It made for a very fun day.
Grandma, Brody and me on the Buzz Lightyear ride.
Grandma, Brody and me on the Buzz Lightyear ride.
Grandpa and Brody driving the car in Autopia.
Daddy, Brody, Mickey and me. This was the longest line we waited in - it was so decieving!! It kept saying your almost there, you made it, etc. We must have waited close to an hour. If we had known we would have used the scooters to get us through faster - but from the outside it looked like no big deal. I thought the picture turned out cute though. And after seeing Brody's cars clothes the photographer invited us back to see Cars land that opens in 2012.
Great Grandma Kimbrell, Brody, Grandma and Ella on their electric scooters.We had such a good time at both California Adventures and Disneyland. It was fun to make memories with our families there. The kids did great - we ended up staying at Disneyland until 10:00 that night! They were wiped out the next day and we spent the day relaxing again and then we had dinner with my grandparents and Brandon watched another football game with my grandpa.
Our last day in California started early to go over and have a play date with some of our best friends the Douglas'. Brody is great friends with their twins Molly and Hannah. They had an Odyssey before we did and so now Brody calls our car his Molly-Hannah car. They had a good time getting reaquainted with one another. The girls welcomed a new baby sister while we were there too - so we got to dote on Baby Leah who was born just so I could hold her. 
We headed to the airport in the early afternoon and it was really pretty easy to get through the airport to the gate. The only thing I wish would have gone differently was I wish the kids would have slept on the plane. Neither one took a nap. Fortunately a lady behind us had a 9 week old maltesse puppy that she used to help distract Ella. That was great. We landed and my mom and dad were their to help get us home. The kids were so tired, they just wanted to go to bed. I was thrilled that they slept in this morning. It was freezing today so we stayed home and I cleaned up Christmas while they played with their new toys. I love getting ready for the holiday, but I also love the feeling of putting my house back together when it is over. We had a great time in California and look forward to going back sometime soon!
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