My baby is almost ONE!

12 months ago, you were this tiny 6lb 13oz baby.

You have grown to adore this big brother.

Your smiles and laughter have become contagious.
You started with a little roll over, and now we can't get you to slow down! Your bright blue eyes get me everytime!

You have learned many new things and are so curious.

You even have a few tricks up your sleeve.

And this is you now...ready to take on the world!

Baby girl, I can't believe you are almost one year old. This last year has been a whirlwind of excitement, changes, and growth. You have been a constant source of smiles and laughter, melting my heart over and over again. I love your curiousity and have been amazed by all that you are able to do. From rolling over, to crawling, and now pulling up and cruising you have never stopped on your search discover new things. It is a joy to watch you play with your big brother. I love how much you adore him and want to do everything like he does...you almost drive a car and make car noises as good as he does! And it put tears in my eyes to hear you calling for "bubba" the other day. I can only hope that the next year of your life is as exciting as this one was. I pray that you continue to grow into a beautiful little girl who loves her family, friends, and God. I love you Brayden!

(I am posting this a few days early because the next 72 hours are going to be a whirlwind. We have family coming in to celebrate Brayden's birthday on August 2nd and Kenny's installation as pastor on August 3rd.You can expect LOTS of pictures after this weekend is over!)

Thoughts Please...

Tonight we had the privilege of having someone from Saladmaster in our home to prepare dinner. Saladmaster sells cookware that is Titanium Stainless Steel and allows you to prepare and cook your food without using oil and water. In turn, this makes your food healthier and more nutritious because you aren't putting extra "stuff" in your food and you aren't cooking out the nutrients, etc. (If you look on their website it explains it A LOT better then I just did!!)

It was a really great experience. The food was delicious and so simple. I enjoyed learning about how to cook in a healthier way and that it really is simple and not time consuming. I know that this can probably be done with "regular" cookware, but the part that got me was the pan test they do at the end. The demo person puts 4 different pan types on your stovetop. He used 1 of our aluminuim non-stick skillets and one of our regular stainless steel sauce pans. He used a pot that is made of the same stuff crockpots are, and of course a Saladmaster sauce pan. Then he boiled one cup of water in each pan along with a tablespoon of baking soda. They all came to a boil and then we tasted a drop of each. The water from his pan just tasted like salt water. The water from our stainless tasted like what it would taste like if you licked a metal pole outside. The skillet tasted like what it would be like to lick a battery and the crockpot one was the worst!! I can't even decribe how nasty it was and how much I wanted to puke (sorry if TMI). The point of the test was to show how much the pots and pans we use give off the chemicals that are found in the metal. It makes me sick to think of how much we have ingested and how once it is in our bodies it doesn't leave.

The catch is that it is REALLY, REALLY expensive!!! Saladmaster is so expensive because of the use of titanium and other waterless, greaseless cookware is also pretty pricey.

What do all of you blog readers think about this? Do you do waterless, greaseless cooking in your home? What kinds of pots and pans do you use? Do you think that all of this is a load of you-know-what? Have you ever heard of this concept before? I want to know...please share your thoughts!!!

In the middle of nowhere...

is this fun little spot...

Treasure Island in Sunray, Texas!!!!

Haven't heard of it?? Me either until last Friday! We drove the 75 miles through windy roads, corn fields, and small dilapidated towns to find this fun little place. It was totally worth it...$3 admission (kids and adults), cheap drinks and snacks, lots of water, and even some fun slides!

Brayden and Tristan
Kennan and Mason
I included this last picture just to prove that I actually own a swimsuit. I haven't been in one since last summer when I was pregnant with Brayden. I ordered this one online and got it on Wednesday afternoon...just in time for our trip to the waterpark and Galveston (in 2 weeks). I have to admit...I am a lot more comfortable as a pregnant mommy in a swimsuit than a not pregnant mommy who looks like she hasn't lost the baby weight. Oh well...it was a fun trip!!!!

WOW!!

Thanks to everyone who commented on my last post. I think we all pretty much came to the same conclusion...we should comment on blogs that we read and hope to make some new friends. Don't be shy people!!!

And for a reward...PICTURES! Yesterday we went swimming at a church member's home with some friends. The kids had a blast!!


Stay tuned...I have another deep thought brewing!!!

Time for some audience participation...

Okay friends, family, blog lurkers. I have some thoughts to share and want to know what everyone thinks.

I love reading blogs. In fact, you could say I might be a little excessive. I read blogs of friends, family members, and strangers just like I am sure all of you do. I use google reader to do most of my reading and then go to the blog to comment. Is it okay to comment on a blog you "stalk"?? What do you think?? The reason I read that blog is because I think the person is funny, we have something in common, or I know them even though they might not know who I am for sure. Will it freak that person out if I comment and they don't know me?? These are questions I have been asking my self for awhile now.

What do you do? Do you sit back and read quietly or comment and hope to make a new friend? (hint, hint...all of you lurkers out there comment! I want to make some new friends today!!)

Watch out boys...

there's a new girl in town!!!

Okay, that's about all I have to say...just wanted to share some cute pictures of my kiddos!! Oh yeah, and having a sick daddy/husband over the weekend is no fun. NO.FUN.AT.ALL.

It's Official!!!

WE.ARE.HOMEOWNERS!!!!

This is exciting...terrifying...nervewracking...all at the same time! Hopefully the roof won't fall in anytime soon and the air conditioning doesn't go out. I'm not ready for that!!!

These are some of the beautiful flowers that are growing in our backyard right now...thanks to the previous owners. They did a wonderful job with the garden. I have a lot to live up to!

We are feeling quite at home these days. The backsplash is complete, transition pieces are on the hardwood, the backyard is newly mowed. We even had our new neighbors over for dinner the other night. They have seven sweet kiddos who all played so well together and kept Kennan and Brayden quite entertained! She even blogs!!! We found out we actually have a lot in common...towns we have lived in, colleges we have attended, people we know. It is a small world!

Kenny is settling in quite nicely at the church. He has 2 services, a session meeting, and a funeral all under his belt. The congregation is great...very welcoming and inviting. (For those of you wondering, we prepared bread (very difficult and time consuming) for our potluck the other night and everyone was able to sign up on a sheet for when they wanted to come...so no one would get their feelings hurt!!) I digress...my point of talking about Kenny at the church is to let you know you can watch our Sunday morning services LIVE!!! The church has set up 2 cameras in the sanctuary that record the service and display it live on Sundays. Or you can watch it later, as it also archives the service. Pretty cool, huh??

The first of many...

Tonight is the first of many dinner nights we have planned at our house. Kenny and I had this idea after he got the job at the church...invite members of the church over to our house for dinner so that we can get to know everyone a little bit better. You can do things like this with a small congregation.

I am not second guessing our decision...I know it will be fun...I just hope everyone has a nice time, the meal is good, and my kids behave!

So let Potluck at the Pastor's Place commence!!!

Photography Class

So I am really enjoying the photography class I am taking at the junior college here in town. It isn't so much a class on how to use your camera, but a class that gets you thinking about the kinds of pictures you take...lighting, angles, etc. Every week we have a different "assignment"...the first week was nature, the second week was self portraits, and this week was portraits of others. We submit our top 3 or 4 photos for the week and the class votes on which one out of all the choices was the best and then the teacher submits it to the local newspaper to be published. Well...I won last week...and it was for a self portrait. It's kind of awkward to see yourself on the projection screen (and here on the blog for that matter), but I guess everyone else liked it. My parents have been begging to see it, so here is the winner!

Anyway...now that that is over with...here are the ones I am submitting this week for portraits of others. We had to do a close up, one with the environment that a person enjoys, a group shot, and one other.
Well, what do you think? You should try it too!!!

I lied...

Read my previous post first to understand this one...

After you save your "wordle" in the gallery, it does give you a code to put it on your blog. When you save it to the gallery that means it is public and anyone can see it and use it on their blog. I don't think anyone will care too much about using my wordle on their blog!!! You can see mine on the left sidebar towards the bottom...

Check this out!

So I have seen people do those word cloud things before...you know, where it pulls out the 50 words you use most often on your blog. I did one here and it is really neat! You can pick the amount of words you want it to do and even change the font and colors. The only problem is that it isn't something you can put on your blog...it doesn't give you a code or anything, so I had to save mine to the gallery and then copy it into my pictures. I think it is more for making t-shirts and posters, etc. You should try it!
Am I a bad mom that Kennan's name is about 10x bigger than Brayden's??? I have to keep reminding myself that I had this blog for a year before she was born...so Kennan was the topic of a lot of my posts! If you try it, let me know what you think!

All About Kennan

I realized that I haven't said a whole lot about Kennan lately. He is growing up soo fast...today he asked me how old he would be on his next birthday. That is when it occured to me that I have an almost 3 1/2 year old which means I have a little boy who will be 4 next year. WOW!! Anyway, here is a post dedicated to my sweet boy...

Kennan LOVES to eat. He could eat all day if we let him. Breakfast in particular is his favorite. He eats about 3 breakfasts each morning...cereal and yogurt, then some oatmeal, then a fruit. The kid can't get enough! And no, he doesn't always eat with his feet on the table. He was mimicking his baby sister...
Kennan loves his daddy. They are pretty good buds and daddy seems to be Kennan's "favorite" parent choice.
Kennan enjoys playing with his friends and prefers the older ones. Here he is with Jackson, who is 5. Notice the goggles...Kennan had to have his on because Jackson had some on.
Kennan is really good about making up new words, giving existing words new meanings, and making up new words to old songs. For example, in this picture Kennan was explaining to me that the pile of dirt he had just created was called a "Presbytery". Yes, we are Presbyterian and I guess we talk about that a lot...but comparing that to a pile of dirt?? I guess if I thought about it enough there might be some theological connections...(thought all of you Seminary blogging buddies would enjoy this one!)
This kid is always busy! Here he is the other night before bed...I guess something needed some serious work in our house! He has all of his tools stuck in his pants and in his hands. Kennan loves to play, pretend, imagine, read...you name is he does it!
Kennan is a great fly swatter. Our new home (and town for that matter) came with an abundance of flies. They are everywhere!!! Well, the other day Kennan informed me that he needed "that orange thing to get that pesky fly. I am going to smack it and get it dead." I thought I would humor him and it would keep him occupied for awhile. Little did I know he would actually do what he set out to do!!! Hopefully I don't have to pay him for his services.
Kennan loves Brayden. He is such a great big brother. It is so fun to watch them together and to see the way he cares for her. Like any siblings, he sometimes gets a little frustrated with her, but for the most part they get along great! He loves to make her laugh and teach her new things. And she loves to do everything he does!
Kennan is a great helper. He enjoys doing little jobs around the house for me which is a big help! On this particular day "Bob" was around to do the work...
Kennan has quite the sense of humor. He has recently become attached to his "safety helmet" and enjoys wearing it to odd places...like the sno cone stand. He doesn't have a bike, or a tricycle, but the safety helmet sure does come in handy!!
He is so darn cute and such a good kid! I love him and am blessed to be his mommy. It melts my heart when he says "Mom, I love you to the sky and back"...

11 Months Old!

How can it be that my baby girl is 11 months old?? She is such a joy and brings so much excitement to our lives. Here are a few things you might want to know about Brayden... She has become pretty adventurous. She wants to be where the action is and has no problem putting herself into precarious situations. She has been found with her hands in the (clean) potty water, mouth on the trashcan, and fingers on the computer wires. This is a girl that needs lots of supervision and baby proofing!!!

She now has 5 teeth...3 on top and 2 on bottom. She loves to bite, chew, drool on, and taste everything she gets her hands on!
She adores Kennan. I know I have said this before but she is so content in his presence. It is so sweet and special to watch them interact!
She sometimes has bad hair days!!! And...I adore her curls!!
She has become a great eater! She dislikes baby food and loves to eat finger foods. Peas and carrots are the faves right now, and she can't go without yogurt and oatmeal in the mornings. All that worrying I did about her eating so many months ago is long gone!!

Thanks to everyone for your comments on the last post. It's nice to know who is reading!

Things I am Thinking

I feel like I have so much to say but can't remember all that needs to be said. Something will happen and I think "I need to blog about that" but since we didn't have internet for so long...I have already forgotten!! The best way to do this is to start typing and see what happens.

Things I'm Thinking...

1. I cannot believe that Brayden is going to be 11 months old on Wednesday. That means that she is going to be 1 year old in a month. It doesn't seem like I had her that long ago...time really does fly.

2. I love living in a house! It is so nice to be able to do laundry without looking in the cushions to find quarters for the machine. Having a backyard for Kennan to roam around is wonderful. He loves playing in his "sand box" (aka: an area of the backyard that might have once been a garden and is now weeds and some black dirt).

3. Kenny officially starts at the church tomorrow. We have been waiting for this day since he started Seminary in September of 2005. He has worked hard for this and I am excited to see what God will do through him for the people of our church and the community.

4. On the flip side of that...I am a little nervous about the whole "preacher's wife" idea and raising "preacher's kids". I know everything is going to be fine and I hope we live up to the expectations that everyone has for us.

5. I am taking a photography class with a few people from the church at a community college in town. They met last week for the first time but tonight was my first time to go. Our assignment for this week is to take self portraits. Ummm...not too sure how that is going to go!!!

6. Dish Network and DVR are the coolest!!! When we were in Princeton we just had the basic cable service that came with the apartment (we weren't allowed to have anything else). Well...we didn't know what we were missing!! I am DVRing (is that a word??) everything!! Food network is one of my faves!

7. On that note...I am confessing that I am addicted to reality TV. I think it is because I am able to see people doing things that I would never do, be able to do, or want to do. I am hooked on The Next Food Network Star, Design Star, The Bachelorette...you name it I probably have it DVR'd.

8. My parents are coming to see us this weekend. I am excited about showing them our new house and relaxing a bit. I miss my brother. He is busy at camp this summer and won't make it out here to see us at all. But I am looking forward mid August when we go to Galveston for a week with my family. It will be like a vacation...haven't had one of those in awhile!!!!

9. Thinking of my brother at camp makes me remember that Kenny and I met at summer camp 9 years ago this month. Our 5th wedding anniversary is in August. Really...where has the time gone???

10. The last thing I am thinking is that you people better comment!! Anybody reading this out there????