On being a Girl-Mom

So as a girlmom, I feel SUCH responsibility to teach my girls to be grateful, humble, bold, gentle, confident, gracious, compassionate, loving, hungry for JESUS... and for justice...and for peace...and for love.   

MAN!  Parenting is a tough job.  It's such a responsibility.  Such a GIFT.  One that I NEVER could have dreamed up in my head.  The joy that I experience EVERY single day because of my 3 little beauties.  The meaning that my life holds because of their lives and because of their dependence on me.  The PRIDE that I feel.. in who I am in Christ.  The confidence that I have discovered in...really EVERYthing about myself...because I am who God created.  I am who I am because that's what God CHOSE to make me.  And He CHOSE me to be "mommy" to Aves and to Camo and to Palmer. 

I feel SUCH peace knowing that HE is drawing them to Him ALL the time.  That HE will NEVER fail them....even though I do daily.  I feel such an INTENSE and burning desire to do them justice in exemplifying everything that God calls me to be as a person, as a wife, as a friend, as a daughter, and as a mom.  And I feel SUCH excitement at the thought of teaching and raising and correcting and loving on and enjoying and relishing in my 3 sweet babygirls.

It's a funny feeling to know that I am SO unworthy, but at the same time....to feel such trust in myself.  Although...I guess it's less in myself and more in my God.  I am just sooooo thankful that He loves me, that he created me, so that B-Riz and I could create and LOVE our little babes!  Thank you Lord.  May you CONSTANTLY be re-directing my path as I am CONSTANTLY stepping off the narrow course.  You are so good, and I am so thankful.  May my 3 daughters be PILLARS in Your Kingdom!

Christmas Season 2013. A Whole New World!

Christmas Season 2013:  Our first real tree.  THREE babygirls to love on.  A new city.  A new casa.  New jobs.  A clearer understanding of Jesus and why we get to celebrate this superfun and joy-filled holiday.  A REALLY cute advent calendar that helps us do just that (thanks Olivia June Designs...check her out on etsy!).  Closer proximity to familia, which means more family time. 

This Christmas season is DEF bringing with it some new experiences.  We are SO thankful for a God who gives us The Holy Spirit to lead us, speak to us, and draw us nearer to Him.  Despite the challenge of adjusting to a place withOUT so many of the people we LOVE with our whole hearts, we are enjoying this FESTIVE time of year feeling as sure as ever that God has lead us to this place we are in, and that His purpose is good.  Because HE is good :)

SO THANKFUL that God continues to work.

Welcome to 2013

Well!  A lot... LOT... has happened since 2013 hit the books.  Our presh little SweetP, Palmer Elyse, was born on January 24.  SUPER easy delivery (after getting stuck 872 times trying to get a successful IV running!).  The big girls adore her, as do we.  They are the greatest helpers and love to hug her, pet her, hold her, and read her books.  If she frets in the slightest, they are right by her side with something to cheer her up! :)  Sib-love.

B-Rizzle finally landed the job he's been eyeing for the better part of 2 years.  We are now in the Houston area while Brian dives into the surgical world!  Still with Alcon, which is definitely a blessing.  Seriously a terrific company, great people... our entire family is so blessed to have found them! That happened in April.

B and I jetted off to the Dominican in late April... our final P-club trip with the pharma side of Alcon.  It was SO nice to get away and spend time TOGETHER....no distractions :)  Plus, we always love spending time with Brian's Alcon counterparts who live elsewhere (yes you: Hays, Andersons, Englands...) I got some intense sun-poisoning (EW), but it cleared up just in time for the bro's wedding in Nashvegas.  Thank goodness.  Also- the DR is where the hubs gave me the go ahead on a 4th child if my heart so desires when the time comes to decide.  :) :) :)

Rileton and Miss Becca Lynn tied the knot in May up in Nashville.  We spent an awesome 4 days hanging with them, celebrating with them, showering them with attention and preparation assistance.  Who am I kidding?  With 3 childrens in tow, I wasn't much of a helper, but I was there to keep the mood light!  ;)  So incredibly thankful that one of my 2 fav brothers found the woman of his dreams and can finally call her his WIFE :)  Miss you guys!

Major major curveball in our little fastball world:  We moved away from our "home" of McKinney, Texas.  We left behind an amazing family of some of the most cherished people in our lives.  We will cherish them forever, but the adjustment from doing life with them daily to catching them on insta or chatting on the cellular periodically is a tough one!  There is no doubt that God has led us to where we are, and we are loving the time spent with my fam and friends in The Shoog, but our hearts are not whole without a few precious pieces that were left back in the D-F-Dub.  We love and miss you so, Wegs, Simants, Longinos, Stengles, Raineys, Selphs, Burbanks, Berrys, Yanceys, Judds, Webbs, Barbers, J.Pars/almost-Cooley, Claytons, Cabans, Carrols, ... (whoa alliteration!)...

We are now living WITH my parentals, in my hometown, and are building a new home in Spring, Texas.  It is a complete start-over...but one we are excited about!  It's exciting to feel led...it gives a feeling of peace and anticipation... and TRUST that God will just continue to provide for us in so many unforeseen ways.  For now, we are THANKFUL that my parents invited us to shack up with them.  We are using the heck out of their pool...and maybe contemplating putting in our own up in spring! I am super thankful for the time I'm getting to spend with my lifelong friends here in SL.  And trying to use this weird timeout from life in the way God means for me to :)  Relaxing, being still, nurturing some relationships that have been difficult to nurture for the last 10 years, and soaking in Curry-time! 

That's 2013 in a nutshell for the Bradfords so far!

 

Baby Numero Tres!!

So.  We found out shortly after our trip to Hawaii (which took place back at the end of April, but I have yet to blog about) that we are expecting out third little nugget!  SUPER exciting news.  We have been pretty anxious over the last few months to find out the gender of this one.  I felt a little worse in the first tri than I did in my first 2 pregnancies with the gals, so a BIG part of me has been thinking "boy".  Plus, Avery can't stop talking about wanting a "baby brudder", EVERYONE in both of our families would LOVE to add a boy to the grandkid/niece mix... so... boy talk has been pretty normal around these here parts.

A great friend of ours (Angela Yancey, our FAV L&D nurse in the world/ wife of B's great college buddy) called us down into Dallas to do an early sonogram to find out the gender, because at my doc we weren't going to find out until almost 22 weeks along!  AH!  We have been praying for a boy for quite a while and basically just... NEEDED to know :)

So... on Wednesday, August 29th, we found out that we are expecting ....

Yes.  That is correct...another girl.  It will be 3 girls for the Bradford Familia... expected end of January 2013.  Woohoo!! Bring on the craziness & girl-drama!  :)  3 sisters... I can't lie...I'm pretty pumped to experience a lifetime of the 3-sisters dynamic, especially since I never had a sister myself!  And, I hereby declare my public permission for B-Rizzle to add a few man-outings each year!  Poor guy will NEED some extra man-time in his life :)  Best daddy ever.  And I have no doubt that ALL of his daughters will be completely in love with him for their wholllllle lives. :)

The Silly Gilly Gumble.

A few months ago, Avery became totally enthralled with scary stories. I literally have NO clue where this came from, as I am not a fan myself... especially when it comes to the munchkins. However, Avery created this scary story of her own that she would share with us ONLY while huddled on the couch, hiding underneath a big blanket w/ a flashlight. Goofy child. (Video coming soon. Child loves to perform.)

The main character of said "scary story" is a Silly Gilly Gumble. What is that, you ask? I have no friggin clue. But Aves & Cam talk about it all the time. Aves tells stories about it. They say that it's at our front door and they run & hide from it. Well...apparently, its scariness has worn off, because a couple of days ago as I was eavesdropping on the girls' naptime chatter, I heard them talking TO the SIlly Gilly Gumble. They were comforting him and telling him that it was okay, his mommy would feel him all better. Then, C-Lil dropped something, Aves asked the SGG to pick it up, and Cameron SHRIEKED with excitement, "Oh! THANK you Silly Gilly GUMBLE!!"

Toddler imaginations are quite hilarious. Always entertained around here :)

Fathers Day 2012!

The more life I experience, the more aware I become of what an amazing dad I have.  The Randster has been SUCH a massive blessing to me and to my bros.  He loves us so fully and tells us CONSTANTLY.  He taught us so many important life lessons, exemplified a life that honors Christ and loves people. He has served and provided for his fam with JOY for as long as my memory goes back. I am so thankful for the love, confidence, joy, passion, generosity, and kindness that he has taught me :) Love you sooooo much pops!!

On to my hub... B Riz is a special dude. A super awesome daddy.  Our little ladybugs are so BLESSED to get sooo much time with their daddy :)  He plays with them, wrestles with them, snuggles with them, reads to them, tucks them in at night, eats dinner with them, helps them with their prayers.  He teaches them how to throw and catch, disciplines them when it's needed, laughs with them, sings with them, dances with them...

He loves his daughters completely and I'll venture to say that they will NEVER have to wonder about the truth of that statement.  :)

I'm SO thankful for a guy who is such a tremendously AWESOME father to my babygirls! Love you B riz. You are the #1 man in our lives and you make all your girls super happy! :) Happy Fathers Day!!

5 Year Anni!!

B-Rizzle and I have been married for 5 terrific years :) Craziness. It has seriously been the bomb. Back when we were dating we thought life together would be absolutely perfect (minus a couple of annoyances that we'll live with until the day we die, ha)... despite all of the warnings that marriage is such "hard work". I'll agree 150% that it takes constant maintenance to keep the marital bliss workin', but man... I am super pumped about how FUN and enjoyable the past 5 yrs have been.

We celebrated the day by hanging out with our girlies all day long and then got a babysitter to head out to dinner & a movie that night (one of our fave things that we NEVER do anymore!) Loved it. Ps- Snow White & The Huntsman was pretty good...just fyi :)

Brian is the absolute perfect partner for me. I was never a believer in finding the "perfect person", I just figured you fall in love and make it work with someone as long as you're compatible and calling on Jesus :) Well... over the past 5 years, I have come to appreciate Brian more and more and more. He stretches me where I ABSOLUTELY need to be stretched. He has challenged certain beliefs of mine that most definitely needed to be challenged. He has neutralized some of my extreme characteristics and tendencies. And he handles the annoying parts of me with SUCH gentleness and love and grace that I literally can't believe he hasn't snapped on me at some point. I love that man beyond words and LOVE being married to him, making decisions with him, raising a fam with him, road-tripping w/him, hanging out with him every day... he's my bestie, my fave, and the person I trust more than anyone in the world! Love you, Boo. I look forward to the rest of our life together with SO much excitement and thankfulness. You are awesome and I love you mucho. Thanks for EVERYTHING :)

We Have Visitors!! :)

Magen & Aaron arrived yesterday for a little weekend visit. The girls are superpumped to hang with their buddies! They still talk about being flowergirls in their wedding back in March. They were totally diggin some Princess Storytime last night.

So was Aaron. Obvi :)

Averton is THREE!! :)

My leetle first born munchkin is now a 3-year-old. Cressy. GOSH I miss her little baby moments, her baby noises, her mis-pronunciations of a million different words, her hilarious toddler grammatical errors... but I am loving watching her become a big girl. My first born, I love you so so so so so soooooo much :) Had SO much fun celebrating you today and making you feel super special.

We started the day off with breakfast cinnamon rolls (as Aves calls them), made cupcakes (her fave), opened presents, went to Gattitown (per the bday girl's random request), and got frozen yogurt! Terrific day letting Averton boss us around :)

At Aves' party (a couple weeks after her actual bday!), she kept throwing her arms up in the air & telling us "Mom! Dad! This is the best birthday EVER!!" It SO was NOT. But she SO thought it was :) And that is 100% all that counts. We played at the playground, grilled on the egg, ate lots of watermelon & cupcakes, then splashed it up @ the splashpad & played in the pool. The kiddos were WIPED out afterwards...just the way we like it :) So thankful for a healthy angel nugget to celebrate 3 years with. Pics to come.

Guests @ Averton's Partay:
-Mommy, Daddy, C-Lil
-Big Poppy (Nonni in spirit!)
-Nana & Papa
-Aunt Amy
-Kelly & Carson
-Casey, Greg, Tatum, & Hank
-Alicia & Noah
-Jenny, David, Jake, & Sophia
-wayyy too many cupcakes
-scorching sun
-an unacceptable # of flies. ew.

HAPPY THIRD AVERY NICOLE CUTIE PATOOTIE!!

Floater.

Welp. It finally happened. Cameron released the dreaded floaters tonight during bathtime. It scared the CEE ARR A PEEEEE out the littles. They spotted them, jumped to their feet and huddled in the corner of the tub screaming...LITERALLY screaming as if they were about to be eaten alive...until I was able to scoop them up... haha. Don't worry, I SWIFTLY rescued them from the nastiness and rebathed them. Hilar/Sicknast. Ohhhhhhh little babies. You never know what to expect :)