We're Home!!

OHHHmygoodness.  Feels like we've been gone FOR.EH.VER. We had a super fun time over the Christmas holidays...will share details in another post soon!!  For now, we're HOME!! Yippeee!!! Back to unpacking boxes, getting moved in & settled....well, as soon as we celebrate the start of 2011 with our awesome friends The Longinos tonight! 

Happy New Year!! Hope everyone is safe and has a superrr fun and/or relaxing night.  Can't wait to post about our 3 Christmases OR our 2010!

 

Moooooving...

Spent all day Saturday moving.  (posting some pics later) Thx to the Wegs/Selphs/Bradfords for all of your help!! Can't BELIEVE how fast you ppl made it happen!  We really are so thankful for your help!  We feel superrr blessed to have met such insanely generous ppl here!! 

I'm a genius.  I was in charge of getting the utilities switched.  Um. FAIL.  We stayed at the Wegs' all weekend while they were out of town and are sleeping on the floor in our old apartment tonight.  Elec should be on in our house manana.  Like I said...FAIL.  To the Weghorsts: We can not thank you enough for letting us "housesit" this wknd! 

Speaking of FAIL... since we also don't have internet right now, we missed the finale of The Sing Off.  {SADNESS}  Lovelovelovelovelove listening to those ppl make beauuuuutiful acapella music!  And SO bummed I caused us to miss the final show!  I'm inviting myself over to my brother's gf's house to watch her DVRed version.  Thx in advance Allie :)

I lovelove receiving Christmas cards.  Since we're in the middle of a move we aren't getting to enjoy a Christmas-ed out casa this year!  So the cards are basically it.  So if you sent us a card- THANK YOU!!  You have added some major Christmas Cheer to the Bradford fam!

"Is this real life???"

Yesterday I played chauffer for a grrrreat girl!  Aves, Cam & I drove her to the doc and then drove her home later because she had to be put under for a quick little operation!  I was SO looking forward to driving a delirious, loopy post-anesthesia patient home...but was totally disappointed to find that she was 100% with it!  Ha.  Better for her I guess.  Bummer for me :) Love you SNL, but I was hoping for an experience more like this one...

Cam, Aves, & I stopped for a super quick lunch before MY doc apmt and as usual, Avery was making friends with everyone in the joint.  Yelling hi and byebye everytime someone came within 20 yards of her.  

B met me at the doc to take the girls home to nap so that I could take my SNL back home.  Avery was soooooo tired!!  She held on pretty well, we only had a few melt-down moments at the doc.  Even when she is mid-tantrum or in tears she still manages to wave hello, say byebye and blow kisses to all of her spectators.  It's kind of hilarious.

What should have a been a 45-50 minute trek taking the SNL home turned into a 3+ HOUR VOYAGE across Dallas, back, and then back, and then back again.  A set of forgotten keys kinda played into that.  Oops.  Oh well.  We got to chat.  ALOT.  And then I was able to make a quick (not really quick at all) stop into Sprinkles so that B could finally judge for himself the deliciousness that is Sprinkles Cupcakes.

Those cupcakes, along with a bottle of sugary goodness (Big Red), kept B & I company last night as we packed our lives away.  We've still got work to do, but hey- we're gettin there!

Here are some pics from earlier in our week:

 

apples (or- "appees") are aves' new fav food.  she ovciously couldnt WAIT to get them in her belly :)

 

a brave attempt @ "cheeeeeese"

 

pics before naptime are never a good idea...

 

aw, all better.  thanks big poppy!!

 

jolly nonni. jolly camo.

 

aves ADORES uncle yiyi.

 

future singer/songwriter? ;)

 
 

when i finished changing cameron's diaper, i looked over to find ave hard at work!

 

my super pretty mug i got at our bunco gift exchange! yippeeee! now i might have to pay a visit to anthro to finish off the collection!  there's something about a supercute mug that makes coffee taste EXTRAdelish!

happy aves navigating us through kroger :)

We move manana.  Pumped!!  Happy Friday!!

Cameron: 5 Months!

My youngest child is 5 months old!  Whoa.  When Ave was this age we though she was getting "soooo old" and now with Cam it's easy to realize she is still such a teeny little baby.  She truly does get more and more fun every day.  We love our babymunchkin a LOT!!  Her cute little smile makes me soooo happy and sometimes even makes me cry ha! 

WEIGHT: 15 pounds

• fav toys: playmat, jumperoo, anything to chew on!
• never has been a big paci fan
• no longer sleeps with paci
• poops once a day (praise the Lord!)
• 6oz every 3 hrs
• always looks like she's trying to whistle!

• i think she's going through a growth spurt bc she's been eating a TON the last couple of days!
• stares at her big sis non stop
• gets mad when you give her attention and then give it to someone else (middle child??)
• loves kissy sounds
• is getting a LITTLE more of a giggle noise going.  pretty dang cute.
• loves the outdoors (like any baby i think??)
• is wearing 6-9 mo clothing
• rolls over like crazy for her daddy but notsomuch for me...??
• is totally content in her bumbo if she's got something to chew on
• loves kerbey and giggles at her sometimes
• sleeps about 10 hrs a night
• LOVES bathtime.  like....LOVELOVES. she splashes like cuh-raaaazy.  cuteness.
• does NOT like to be snuggled unless super exhausted
• likes attention and freedom at the same time.

WE LOVE YOU CAMERTON!!!  Our little goobers are growing up! We are some super lucky parentals bc our girlies are sweeeeeeeetsweet babies!! :)

Oh my dearest sleep, where have you gone??

I think Avery logged on to my twitter and read about everyone else's kids refusing to nap.  This child has NEVER not napped.  Until today.  We tried twice.  Lots of tears and no sleep later...back to the living room she came!  And tonight she's so super pooped!  

And as for me...I'm pretty sure the weekend is finally catching up to me.  I am tired.  Can't wait to go to bed!

Sweet dreams!

 

Prayers

I saw these prayer requests on kelly's korner and wanted to pass them along!

This fam found out 2 weeks ago that their 1-yr old has Stage 4 Neuroblastoma.  Please lift up Jenna, her parents, and the doctors and nurses who will be caring for her!  I absolutely can not imagine how it must feel to find out that your child's body is being taken over by cancer... Here is her caring bridge site.

This family has twin 20-mo old girls.  One of them passed on in her sleep a few nights ago.  Please also pray for them.

Sex Cake, Bieber, Homemade Caramel Sauce, annnd a WrestleFest

Yesterday was one of those days.  I ran around like a crazy woman in order to get everything done, but pretty much forgot everything!  I bought gifts for a couple of little girls at our church so that we could wrap them all at our Lifegroup party that night (left them at home).  I bought all of the ingredients to make the eggnog cupcakes I've been dying to make (forgot Baking Powder & had ZERO possible substitutions).  I ran to CVS to get Baking Powder with my 6 spare minutes (they didn't have any).  I put formula into a teeny little container that was easy to pour into the bottle for the babysitter (left the formula at home).  I went to plan B and made Sex Cake instead but forgot to buy Caramel topping (had to make my own, which actually ended up being way better!)  I'm a genius.

On my Target trip I had to get 2 gifts for our white elephant exchange.  The limit was $10 ...so I picked up a Best of Bill Cosby DVD (pretty legit gift if you ask me) and a Robert Pattinson wall poster.  I came home with a superrrr cute sock monkey wine bottle cover.  LOVE IT!! I would share the rest of the gifts but they were mostly related to inside jokes, so it would make ZERO sense.  I also came across these beauties

...but they were over the $$limit.  Too bad they didn't have adult sizes or they would have been in Jacci's mailbox tomorrow!

Here is the super easy and DELECTABLE recipe for the homemade caramel topping I was forced to make.  Seriously.Delish.  Kind of glad I forgot that little ingredient! I will never use store-bought again.

• 1 cup sugar
• 6 T unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1. Heat sugar over medium heat until it's completely melted.  Whisk the entire time so sugar doesn't burn.  Should NOT boil.
2. Once completely melted, add butter and stir until smooth. (It will foam up a bit at first)
3. Remove from heat and slowly pour in heavy whipping cream.  (Again, will get frothy)
4. Stir quickly until mixed well.
5. WAH-LAH!!

This was probably the 873rd sex cake I've made in my lifetime, and this caramel sauce made it the BEST one yet. As Aves would say, "Num nummy!!"

(This will be gone by tomorrow afternoon...not lying.  Ask Jacci.)

Immediately following Avery's nap today, we had a wrestle fest on the guest bed.  The phase of life that little Aves is currently in is awwwesome/hilarious/high entertaining.  Brian and I are obsessed. She is such a goofball and she keeps me, B-Riz, and Cam super entertained!

After working up an appetite we went to have a snack and watch Wonderpets.  Yipppeeeee! 

 

Avery's First Sleepover!!

Since we stayed out super late on Saturday night along with The Wegs, Tatum just spent the night with us and Casey came to get her the next morning.  Aves and T were sooooo happy to see each other in the morning!  It was the cutest thing ev.  They squealed with excitement and snuggled and giggled on the couch until breakfast.  Cute little bffs.

 

We're doing this again soon.  That's all I have to say about that.  Cuteness.

The Weekend that Wasn't a Weekend

We had a blast with Nonni here!  Aves adores her.  She loved seeing her Uncle Yiyi and Big Poppy too!  Thanks for stopping by you guys!  We love you!

Riles and I stopped through Einstein's on the way home from the airport.  Cinnamon Swirl bagels+Honey-Almond Shmear=delectable goodness in my mouth!  We drove RIGHT by Sprinkles too... which created an intense craving that was later curbed by some Sex Cake... YUM.

The going-away party for Brian's manager was fun on Friday night.  Avery loved making new friends and Cameron loved meeting everyone!  The group is growing!  New babies popping up everywhere!

Jakey's bday party on Saturday was so so super cute.  That child is the smiliest happiest boy I've ever met.  Love him.  And he is IN LOVE with Cameron.  I think it's about time his mommy & daddy gave him a younger sib!  Thx for the invite Barber Fam!  Love you guys!

Saturday night's partays were super fun too!  It is RARE that Brian and I go on dates...so we took advantage of having a babysitter and stayed out for 8 hours!!  So much fun meeting some super cool people and hanging with our buddies.  The Wegs know how to throw a party :)

Church on Sunday morning was REALLY good.  I loved the message about making the choice to live a great story.  We can't be afraid of taking risks and of listening to and FOLLOWING God's calling.  John Makenzie (our preacher) had a legit balance beam up on stage that he used as a prop.  At one point, he was laying on it, hugging it with his arms and legs...clinging for dear life.  Hilar.  Hope Fellowship is a goooood place!

Our Lifegroup party last night was the bomb.  DELISH food.  Super fun peeps (can't stand that word, but for some reason it fits...).  Ridic games.  Gift giving.  White-elephant hilarity.  Love and so thankful for these guys!

And nowwwww it's Monday and it doesn't even feel like we had a weekend.  Lots of fun though :)

This coming one will be another weekend that feels nothing like a weekend bc....we're moving!! Yippeeeeee...

Toddler Head Banging...not a fan.

Avery is getting so much better at pronouncing people's names!  And she gets super excited to have visitors!!  Aunt Amy (Mamey) came to visit for a bit yesterday and then my mom arrived in Plano to spend a few days with us- yay!!  We always love some good Mamey & Nonni-time around here :)

Avery got to spend lots of time w daddy yesterday.  She seems to get more attached to him as she gets older.  LOVE IT.  She is always thrilled when we come back home from anywhere because she expects daddy to come out to the car and get her.  As we pull into the apartment complex she starts saying, "daddy daddy daddy" nonstop.  Little preshling :)  The highlight of her daddy time yesterday was mosdef their superfly dance party.  This child lovvvves to shake her groovethaaang!

I'll go ahead and address to beautiful mess you see above that is my living room.  With a 5 mo old and a 19 mo old, baby stuff is taking over our lives...and every square foot of our home as well.  I don't mind it so much...but the clutter is a little bit OOC.  I am so looking forward to having a game room at our new place!  Only 8 days until the big move!!! Yay!

Question for toddler moms:  Did your little ones go through the head-banging stage?  Aves is totally there..and it's getting worse.  She's now to the point where she'll smash her head against whatever she can find (the highchair, a table, the ground, the wall...) multiple times in a row and then start crying and want to be held (duh...that has to hurt!)  She now has 2 bruises on her head!! It drives me crazy that she is jarring her brain multiple times a day and causing herself pain! Well this morning I got an email with information on headbanging that helped put my mind at ease (a little.)  Thank you BabyCenter!!

Here's what I learned!

Possible reasons your toddler may bang his head: 

• Self-comfort. As strange as it may sound, most toddlers who indulge in this behavior do it to relax. They bang their head rhythmically as they're falling asleep, when they wake up in the middle of the night, or even while they're sleeping. Some rock on all fours as well. Developmental experts believe that the rhythmic motion, like rocking in a chair, may help your toddler soothe himself.

• Pain relief. Your toddler may also bang his head if he's in pain — from teething or an ear infection, for example. Head banging seems to help kids feel better, perhaps by distracting them from the discomfort in their mouth or ear.

• Frustration. If your toddler bangs his head during temper tantrums, he's probably trying to vent some strong emotions. He hasn't yet learned to express his feelings adequately through words, so he's using physical actions. And again, he may be comforting himself during this very stressful event.

• A need for attention. Ongoing head banging may also be a way for your toddler to get attention. Understandably, you may tend to become solicitous when you see your child doing something that appears self-destructive. And since he likes it when you fuss over his behavior, he may continue the head banging in order to get the attention he wants.

• A developmental problem. Head banging can be associated with autism and other developmental disorders — but in most of these cases, it's just one of many behavioral red flags. Rarely does head banging alone signal a serious problem.

Crazy Busy

It seems like there is just not enough time in a day!  We've got a lot going on around the Bradford casa. What with nap schedules, mealtimes, bottles, diaper changes, and then everything else in life, I'm not even sure a 30-hour day would cut it. 


Avery is a busy little bee.  She's really starting to talk more and more and more...repeating most things she hears out of mommy & daddy's mouth, obsessing over animals sounds, being a sweet little mommy to her babydolls & stuffed animals.  It is SO sweet.  She is also loving entertaining her baby sister.  Melts my heart.

 

  

Cameron has become a little person!! She is so animated! That child loves her jumperoo, squeals like crazy pretty much all day, cannot get enough of her big sister... She is changing so much and I love it, but at the same time, I want her to STOP IT NOW!!  I lovelovelove having a teeny baby around, and although as she grows she gets more and more fun, I will SO miss the baby stage!  And this time around, we are NOT expecting to add another teenytiny anytime soon! 

Our move-in date is Dec.18th, so I'm starting to pack things up with any free moments I can find in the day.  Progress is SLIM, but we'll get there :)  I know if I don't get it all done, my awesome Lifegroupers will hook me up with some help!! (wink, wink)

This weekend is going to be ridic.  On Friday evening we've got a going away party for Brian's current manager.  Saturday we've got a first bday party, a meeting with our new landlord, and then 2 super fun Christmas parties hosted by a coworker and then a friend that night.  Annnd finally, on Sunday we've got our Lifegroup Christmas party.  SO PUMPED about this wknd.

I've also gotten my hands on a few new things.  I've started a new fitness blog (check it out!!).  I'm starting to invest a lot more into my training business (live in the Dallas area and need a trainer/consultant?? email me! fitnessbyroxyb@gmail.com!)  I'm in the works with a friend of mine who is an amaaazing wedding planner in DFW to get some cool stuff going (check out her blog!) And last, but mosdef not least, I was introduced to something that I truly believe is life-changing.  If you don't know what stem-cells are...you should do some research.  They are the future of medicine and are allowing for a natural way for the body to heal and repair its own cells!  This discovery will truly change lives...and as a skeptic of these types of things... I have done my research.  Believe me.  I just can't help but to back this company and help spread the word.  Stay tuned for more info in the near future!

Although we're busy around here, we are loving life and enjoying all of the places we are being led!  I am amazed (but not the least bit surprised) with the awesomeness that God had in store for Brian and I when he led us to the Dallas area. 

K, gotta go fold laundry and then the worst part...actually put it away (boo!)...before my momma arrives tomorrow!  Happy Humpday!

Thanksgiving 2010

I realize that I am super belated in posting about our Thanksgiving...but with 2 little ones under the age of 18mo it can be quite a challenge to find an extended period of free time.  So after 827 attempts at completing this post...tonight is the night!

Avery spent a few days before T-Giv in F-Burg w my parentals.  They had a partay of a time.  I'm pretty sure Ave thinks that place is heaven on earth.  Here are some pics from their fun time together!

 

Morning reading w/Nonni!

 

Yes.  That, my friends, is a closet.  It's where Aves sleeps when we're in F-Burg.  I promise we're not abusive.  She rather enjoys her cozy little nook!

 

Enjoying a lovely breakfast w Big Poppy!

 

Putting her baby "nigh-nigh"

 

Dress up w Nonni.  Sweet mask.

We all arrived in Sugar Land on Wednesday and had an early T-Giv meal on Thursday so that the boys (& Allie) could head to ATX to catch the Horns game (which we will NOT be discussing...)  It was our first Curry holiday without Pawpaw, so we were all kind of anxious about it.  We were pumped to all be together again, and to spend time with Nana, knowing how difficult the day would be for her.  Well...at the last minute...she called in sick, so we spent the holiday without BOTH of them.  It felt really strange, but as I assume is typical after a loss, we were all acutely aware of how much we love each other.  We had a great time hanging out, catching up, joking around, watching football, & getting fat!

 

A delicious Lebanese T-Giv meal w the Curry Familia!  This was obviously the cool kids' table :)

 

Cousin Tucker lovvves little Averton.  And she adores him.  So sweet.

 

Sweet cuzzies.

 

My Uncle Bill and my bros have some strange inside joke involving milk & cereal.  Sooo...as he & my Aunt Karen drove up to the house in F-Burg...this is what we saw.  HILAR.  I can only imagine what people thought as my uncle passed them on the highway w milk & cereal bungeed to the top of his truck...

 

Aves was super attached to her daddy after being apart from him for 3.5 days!!

 

Lovin the sink bath.  Cutie pie.

 

My babygirl all bundled up to go play outside...her activity of choice for the entire trip!

 

If you're nice to Averton's best friend, you win her heart.  Uncle Reidster learned the way to her heart verrrry quickly!

 

The whole Curry/Bradford gang. SO blessed to call these ppl my fam.  For realssss.  PS- is that view not insanely awesome?  Greatest thing to wake up to every morning!

 

My happy little family of 4 <3

 

B-Riz & his ladies under the pretty lights!

 

This pic absolutely does NOT do it justice.  This little area in Johnson City is seriously GORGEOUS.

 

 

Grandparentals loving on super bundled little Camo <3

 

Avery was thrilled about going to see Santa.  She seriously couldn't wait to get to the front of the line...

 

Hm.  Not so thrilled.

Holiday season is the best!  Love spending time with the coolest fam ever and can't wait until we get to spend another week and a half with the Bradfords & Currys!!