Joy

The laughter of a child brings such joy! A dark day can turn bright just by hearing a little giggle from a baby. I love how Mike can get Brody laughing. It may be at the end of a long day. I'll be in the other room doing laundry, taking a shower, or just getting ready for the next day and I'll hear laughter pouring from the living room. I can't help but smile!

Morning Workout

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings Mike and I lift together. Brody usually sleeps until 7 am...so he's usually still asleep when we lift. There have been a few morning where he wakes up while we're still lifting. I think he just wants to get to spend some time with his Daddy in the morning. Just because he wakes up doesn't mean that we stop lifting. We'll take him into the weight room with us and take turns holding him while the other person lifts. People like to tease us by saying things like, "He'll be benching 45's by the age of 3!" or "They start training young around here!" Here's a picture from this morning:

Brody Clapping

Brody has discovered the art of clapping....and the attention that it gets him! Sometimes I'll catch him practicing when he thinks no one is watching. What I find really humorous is when he starts clapping when he's upset! He'll be crying and clapping at the same time. Then he'll look up and see me laughing and he'll start cry/laughing!



P.S. I told you I'd upload the video tonight....I made it with almost an hour to spare.

Picture Post

The photo session went really well last night! We didn't get home until bedtime...so I didn't have time to upload the video. I will tonight!!! Here are a few pictures to hold you over.

Brody just after eating oatmeal for breakfast. Rolling around the office.
"Do I HAVE to smile?"

Random

I have a fun video to post but I just haven't had time the past 2 nights. Maybe tonight...

This afternoon we're going to get Brody's 6 month pictures taken. We bought a package from a photographer in town where he takes a picture at 3, 6, 9, & 12 months. At then end of the year we'll get a framed set of pictures (1 from each session). The photographer is really good and the 3 month pictures looked awesome...but they're so expensive!!!! We paid $40 for the promotional package (that's not bad), however, it costs almost that much to get ONE 5"x7" picture! No thanks! Sorry.....but ya'll will just have to enjoy the pictures that we're taking. When we went to pick out the 3 month picture the photographer actually tried to get us to buy a $350 collage! It was really cute...but I think I'll try to take my own pictures for that price!

When I was home for a snow day (was that last week?) I got caught up on Brody's baby book journaling. Now I just need to order some pictures to put in there.

Wow...this is a really boring blog. I'm just rambling. My mind is full of things I need to do today. Let's see...I'm also supposed to get dog food and make a deposit on my way home from work. I'd give you my grocery list...but if you're not asleep yet it'd put you to sleep. Oooo...here's something fun. This is something that I'm gonna make (ingredients are on my grocery list) from my friend Ray Ray: http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/?q=recipes/turkey-florentine-meatball-heroes I let you know if it's good :)

Another new blogger...

They did it!!!! Daddy Ken and Grandmommy started a blog. For those of you who don't know...these are my dad's parents. Their link is on the left under "Texas Friends". Be sure and comment to let them know how much you enjoy their stories.

Sharon (Grandmommy's sister) told me she is going to start a blog after her retirement officially begins (she retired but hasn't really left the office yet as they were still short handed).

GG...where are you with getting a blog started?

I told Tyler and Ann that I'd give them a year of marriage before we start bugging them about starting one...so they have until this July ;)

In the Dark

I meant to blog about this on Friday but I just never got around to it.

I stopped by the grocery store on the way home from work on Friday. As I was walking into the store I almost ran into the old man walking in front of me. He was walking really slow and PUSHING the door open!? I thought, "That's strange. Why's (**is this a TX word? spell check doesn't like "Why's" as in Why is?**) he PUSHING an automatic door?" As I followed him inside I realized that he was pushing the door because the electricity was out, therefore, the door wasn't opening automatically. As soon as we entered the electricity came back on. I didn't think anything of it (our town tends to have frequent outages). Before I could even get to the first aisle, the electricity went out again. This time it stayed out! It made for a very fun experience! Usually when you're in the grocery store it is BRIGHTLY lit! Have you ever been in there in total darkness? Since it's a small town grocery store...there are only FIVE aisles and I know them like the back of my hand. I didn't have any trouble finding things in the dark. A few of the workers were walking around with flashlights offering to help people shop by holding a flashlight for them. Luckily they have a 30 minute battery backup on their registers...so they were still able to check people out. Maddie (the lady that sacked my groceries) said that if the power is out for longer than 30 minutes they have to close their doors. By the time I got home, the power was back on...so I'm sure they didn't have to close the doors.

I was kinda sad that it was all elderly people in the store...no kids. I think that kids would think it was so fun to get to walk thru the grocery store in total darkness! Maybe it'll happen to me again someday.....

Hangin' with the Hound

Here are a few pictures I took of Brody and Remington hanging out this afternoon.

"Is Remington really MY dog?""If he's my dog...why is he eating my hand?!?" "YAY!" Brody was clapping for the camera.
I like this picture because Remington's head looks HUGE!

Will you be my Valentine?

Valentines Day...

A single day on which us men must do something wonderful for our wives that's suppose to make up for the other 364 days of the year.  I would like to suggest to the men who read this blog, that you take time each and every day to not only tell your wife how much you love and care for her, but show her. Be that man that God has called you to be....

^{Ephesians 5:25 "}Husbands,love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her"

That being said... It doesn't mean you can't enjoy the Holiday!

Staci,

I love you

Just three little words
don't seem like enough
for someone whose smile
still brightens my day,
whose touch can make me forget
the rest of the world.

But even though "I Love You"
can't express the depth
of my feelings for you.
I hope you know what's in my heart.

...............................................

A Beautiful Morning

The sun rises above the hillcrest,
As does the joy of my heart;
Rays of warmth and love,
From her I will never depart.

Fresh dew upon the grass,
Young birds chirp in their nests;
I watch her gently sleep,
My love to her I silently profess.

I enjoy the stillness and calm,
Watching as she smiles and dreams;
She brings me to stillness and peace,
Like that of a slow flowing stream.

My heart and soul flow with love,
And I smile as I quietly reflect;
I’ve been handed a sweet princess,
A sweet princess to love and to protect.

A vow to myself I make,
As she quietly sleeps away;
To love and always cherish her,
Until my last breath... until my last day.



- Michael Brieck -

~Love, Mike

Weekend of Firsts

We woke up at 2 am this morning because the power went out at our house. We'd heard sleet last night and the winds this morning were tremendous! I was afraid that the power lines were down because of ice and wind and was going thru scenarios in my mind as to how we'd stay warm! Luckily it didn't stay off for too long. When I got up at 3:45 to go to work the wind was still howling. I looked on KDOT for road conditions and it showed that the roads in our area were snow/ice packed. I decided to wait until daylight to try to make it in to work. When I called Junior at 7 am he told me not to risk it and to just call it a snow day :) The local school district had a 2 hour delay so we got to relax together for a little while this morning. I think Brody really enjoyed relaxing with Mike...

(The stain on Mike's sweatshirt is from construction...not Brody ;)

Yesterday was Brody's 6 month appointment. He weighed 17 lbs 6 oz (50th percentile) and was 27 3/4" long (90th percentile). He had to get 3 shots...but he took them like a champ. He cried as they gave them to him, however, he calmed down really fast as Mike comforted him. We've had a lot of firsts in the past few days....Friday Brody rode in the shopping cart at Home Depot for the first time (sitting up), Saturday he got his first fat lip when he did a face plant from a seated position, he got bananas for the first time, he got to take a bath with Daddy, he moved to the log crib upstairs for his permanent bed, and on Sunday he clapped with Daddy!

It's hard to believe 1/2 a year has already gone by. Each month we take a picture of him with a football. Here are a few of the pictures.

Brody - 6 days old

Brody-2 months old

Brody - 6 months old

Good News!

I know...2 posts in one day is unheard of...but I was too excited to wait until tomorrow to share this news
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DAD STARTED A BLOG!!!! You'll find his link over to the left under TX friends. What's even more exciting is that he told Grandmommy that he'd start a blog if she would. So....now I'm expecting Daddy Ken and Grandmommy to have a blog soon. And.....if they can have a blog....so can GG, and Sharon! *hint, hint* If you haven't checked out Caleb & Audria's blog yet...make sure you do. Caleb is a genius with the camera and the video's on there are guaranteed to make you smile :)

I love blogs! *sigh*

Nails

This morning I took on the task of trimming Brody's nails. If you've ever trimmed the nails of a baby...you know how hard it is while they're squirming around! Their fingers are so tiny! One time I thought I had a grand idea. On one of our trips to TX Brody fell asleep in his carseat. I climbed in to the back seat and started to trim his nails while he was asleep. Sounds perfect...right? Well, it would've been if we were sitting still. However, the first bump in the road caused me to cut into Brody's thumb...which resulted in him waking up screaming! Don't worry...he was fine...but I learned my lesson about cutting nails in the car!

So here's the question of the day. What is the craziest thing you've ever done to trim your child's nails?

Dew 30

It's very rare that I get to hold Brody while he's asleep. He's usually put to bed while he's sleepy yet still awake. Saturday afternoon he fell asleep on me and I thoroughly enjoyed cuddling with him for over an hour on the couch.

If you know Mike, you know that he LOVES his Diet Mountain Dew. When we were building our house every hour I'd hear Mike and Dwayne holler out "It's Dew 30!" meaning time for another Mt. Dew. I have no clue how many cubes of dew we went thru that summer! Well Sunday afternoon I walked into the living room to find this (guess Mike's starting him early):

(Don't worry...he wasn't really drinking the Dew)

Today I went to a meeting about radio advertising. Brody went with me and was such a good boy! He played quietly during the entire presentation! The speaker even bragged on him to the crowd of people. He was still in a happy mood when we got home and I was able to get a few cute pictures. I love this shirt that is a hand-me-down from Collin.

1st Super Bowl

Last night we went to Dwayne and Rene's to watch the Super Bowl. It has become a tradition for them to host the youth group Super Bowl Party....and for Mike to set up a projector the maximize our viewing experience. This year he also set up our sound system so that we could enjoy surround sound. I forgot my camera, but Rene took a few pics.

Mike, Brody, and Tyus (Dwayne and Rene's 3rd child)

Brody played with toys while we watched the game.

Jeremy (the youth minister), his son Gabriel (on the left) and Cedric (Dwayne & Rene's youngest)

Mike was excited to see the Colts win...but Brody and I didn't make it to the end of the game. We left just after half time. I had to get home to feed Brody and get him to bed. I went to bed late (9 pm) after I was pretty sure that the Colts were gonna come out on top. We usually turn on the radio for Brody at night....but Mike had the sound system at Dwayne & Rene's. I think the dead silence interrupted Brody's sleep pattern. He woke up twice last night! He fell back asleep as soon as I gave him his paci...but I didn't! The first time it took me 30 min. to get back to sleep. The second time it was an HOUR before I fell back asleep! Ugh. I'm tired today!!!

Cellulite Cure

I got to work this morning to find an email from Mike with a link to Rachel Ray's website. I assumed it was a recipe. Nope! She had a doctor on her show last night who was talking about cellulite. I think he is now the hero of every man in America! Check out this link to see what I'm talking about http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/?q=cure-for-cellulite For the full effect, watch the video of the doctor explaining his theory. Don't show this to your husband unless you want him pressuring you to follow the night time therapy (the last sentence in Myth #3)! lol I'm wondering how much of this is science and how much of this is just because he's a man? Do you honestly think a woman doctor would give these recommendations?!?!?

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Brody's very talented ;) He can curl his tongue in a funny way that Mike and I can't. Here's my feeble attempt at getting a picture of it:

It's not as bad in this picture...but Brody has the inevitable drool rash. If you have any home remedies...PLEASE let me know!!!