Monthly Post

I am just plain terrible! Trying to find time to post these days has been tough, but Grandpa Bob and Grandma Ginger came for a visit, Pumpkin Day took place, playdates including awesome pretzels and cheese dip happened, trips to the Fire Department and Halloween...I am making time :)

Her first soft pretzel...success :)

Grandma Ginger loving on Teagan...

Grandpa Bob loving on Teagan...

Teagan flirting with the Fireman!

Grandpa Bob loving on Braden...

L-O-V-E-S the pumpkin cup and prizes Grandma Becky and Grandpa Kelly sent!

Texas Tech Soccer Player and Texas Tech Cheerleader...

We hope everyone had a Safe and Happy Halloween!

We'll post the rest of the pictures as soon as possible!

Goodbye September, Hello October!

So much has happened since our last post!

Mommy went to visit Dana Labor Day weekend. Miami and Dana are a GREAT fit for Mommy! Immediately after I arrived, we headed over to Dana and Kosta's for breakfast. True to form, Dana had an amazing spread of blueberry muffins, sausage balls, bagels and strawberry cupcakes! Life doesn't get better than Dana's baking! We headed out to a HUGE outlet mall and shopped for miles. That evening, we took a very short trip to the local pizza joint. When I reference a joint, I truly mean joint! Awesome pizza served at an establishment the size of your closet. Old school cash register, tight quarters, great price = so worth it! On Saturday, we went up to Lincoln Road, had a fantastic lunch, walked it off, then headed back to Dana and Kosta's. Dana and I had such a late lunch that we just wanted to enjoy the breezing evening on a patio with live music and a few glasses (or bottle each) of wine. We found the perfect spot, Chocolada. Sunday was laid back. What better place to kick back then Le Tub? The burger was well worth the wait! I cannot wait to see Dana, be it in NC or FL!

We have been going on play dates with Jacob, and of course Jacob's mommy and daddy (Shannon and Joe)! The boys have been having a blast and Teagan LOVES all of the Shannon, Joe and Mommy attention! Shannon, Joe and Jacob let Braden, Teagan and I tag along to the Zoo. The Asheboro Zoo is such a peaceful and beautiful place. It was drizzling at times, but the temperature was comfortable for the 6 miles of walking we did that Saturday! Hanging out at Shannon and Joe's is also tons of fun! Braden experienced his first motorized play vehicle and after his first ride, he is hooked!

When Daddy gets time off, we take full advantage! We went to Sunrise Pancake House last weekend and had a great breakfast!

This weekend, the kiddos and I have been hanging at the house. We must have watched the movie, "Cars," six times this weekend! We went for a walk yesterday afternoon and had lunch at the restaurant today. Overall, it's was a laid paid and relaxing weekend!

On Lincoln Road...

At Le Tub...

Braden on the Jeep

Teagan is just the cutest darn driver!

Braden's reason for coming to the zoo...the monkey's!

Riding the Carousel

Teagan's ride thru the zoo...

Braden spotting the Sea Lion

Kissing the turtle goodbye! Braden loved the turtles...

...almost as much as he loved the cotton candy!

Daddy and Braden, what a beautiful sight!

Our munchkins :)

Ready to ride!

Round four of hanging around watching "Cars"

Teagan's first kiss...

VACATION

So my mom, Grandma Becky, came out for a visit and we are ready for her to come back! I'm not sure who wants her back more? Teagan, who is the apple of grandma's eye. Braden, who gets to wrestle and play trucks with his "mawmaw." Or me, who enjoyed the adult company, lil' cat naps and late night dessert. Either way, we would like to see her again VERY soon!

The Sunday after Teagan's party, mom watched the kiddos so that Nigel and I could have some alone time. We grabbed some lunch, headed over to the Outlets to pick up fall and winter clothes for the kids and then just drove around and enjoyed catching up! Nigel watched the kids for the rest of the evening so that mom and I could catch a movie. It was a wonderful, relaxing day! I had to work on Monday and Tuesday, so mom brought the kids up to work for us to have lunch together. It was a nice treat seeing them in the middle of a work day :) Wednesday we lounged around the house and played ALL day. We headed out to Conway to meet up with our photographer for Teagan's 1 year photo session. The sneak peeks turned out AMAZING! I cannot wait to see the rest! After the work out, I mean photo session, we went to a little cafe and had a very quick bite before our drive back. Actually, mom and I took turns eating as Teagan was in rare form...not in a good way. Teagan was clearly exhausted from her pampering and hamming it up for the camera...she passed out 10 minutes into the ride home. So mom, Braden and I grabbed some ice cream and stopped by to say hello to Daddy. Braden was in heaven as a huge group of bikers were leaving the restaurant. (Braden loves motorcycles, trains and big trucks...a lot!) Thursday and Friday were full of playing, cat naps and shopping. We went to Braden's Open House for Mother's Morning out on Thursday to meet his new classmates and teachers. He didn't want to leave. I'm pretty sure if he had a room full of juice, chocolate milk, his tent, his books, trucks and trains, he would be set! On Friday we went to get Braden and Teagan's fall/winter shoes and coats. The trips turned out to be a huge success, but we were SO tired from this excursion! My Uncle Steve and Natalie drove down on Saturday. We met up at the restaurant for lunch and Nigel was able to take a break and eat with us :) We headed home to pack up for the pool, then went over to meet up with Steve and Natalie. The pool temperature was perfect, the kids had a blast and it was so nice hanging with my family! After naps and showers, we met up at Ella's for dinner. After dinner, we went over to Calabash Creamery for some delicious ice cream.

Overall it was a great week! One I would love to do again, soon :)

Typical morning in our home...

"Mawmaw" and Braden reading

Another morning of lounging...

Hanging out by the pool

Before dinner at Ella's

After dinner at Ella's

Grandma and her TeaCup

Rockin' at the Creamery

I love my family!

Hey mom, this purchase was such a good idea...

...Jake thinks so too!

Braden's first day of school! He is growing up into such a handsome and sweet little man :)

Let's Play Catch Up

Hello All! We've missed you blog world :)

August has been a busy, busy month! My BFF came out for a visit the weekend of Teagan's birthday. It was FANTASTIC! We had a perfect and relaxing weekend! Beach, Papis, family, BFF...what more could a lady need?

When we took Stacey to the airport that Sunday, Daddy, Braden, Teagan and I headed over to Toys R Us to spend the Gift Card Grandpa Bob and GG got her for her birthday. After we purchased her Little People Sail Boat and Little People Dump Truck, both in pink, we headed over to Chuck E Cheese. The kids had an amazing time, Nigel and I enjoyed the family time and overall it was a HUGE success!

Teagan had her 1 year appointment on the 13th. She is doing incredibly well! She is in the 80th percentile for height and the 75th percentile for weight; therefore, she is taller than 8 out of 10 girls her age and weighs more than 3 out of 4 girls. Of course Grandpa Bob said, "If she keeps this up, we can nickname her biscuit!" Leave it to Grandpa Bob to see the silver lining in Teagan's stats! Teagan has been taking a few steps here and there, but in the last two weeks has truly started walking! (Short footage to follow!) It's crazy to think that we have purchased our last can of formula, our last supply of "baby" towels, our last set of onesies...this year has been amazing and we look forward to continue watching Teagan grow :)

Today was Teagan's birthday party. Thank you Dana for being so creative (and supportive)! There are many things I could not do without you and I am so blessed to have you in my life. I will definitely be blogging in a few weeks about my incredible Florida getaway to see Dana! Teagan's party was a HUGE success! There were friends, cupcakes, presents...fun was had by all! My mom flew in yesterday. I'd like to say it was for my birthday; however, she is helping with the kids over the next week and I am VERY lucky that my mom is here. It is a breath of fresh air to have her by my side and it's only been 24 hours :)

Thank you Grandma Jackie and Grandpa Mike for the baby doll and the Little People Airplane. Teagan carries her baby, hugs her baby and even took her baby to Papis tonight! Braden and Teagan are having a BLAST with all of the Little People toys. I believe by Christmas we are going to have a Little People village! Thank you Dana and Kosta for the Truck Book and Pink Laptop! The kids are having SO much fun lining the laptops next to one another and playing together! Teagan is constantly trying to steal the Truck book and Braden spends most of his time running in his room with it and shutting the door so she can't get in (it's actually quite entertaining!). Thank you Grandma Becky and Grandpa Kelly for the Little People Happy Sounds Pink house. We are just now discovering all of the "happy sounds" a house can make! Who would have ever guessed doorbells, toilets and phones would have such entertaining sounds :) The "Thank You's" go on and on and on...actual "Thanks You's" to follow :) We are SO lucky to have such wonderful friends and family!!

Hello August!

I cannot believe it is already August! What I also cannot believe is that our precious girl is almost a year old! Funny how I couldn't wait for her to sleep more than 3 hours at a time, then to hold her own bottle, then to crawl, and now she is starting to feed herself solids. She drinks out of a sippy cup. She has even taken a few steps and is a pull-up, stand and a step away from walking! Wow! This should be a busy and fun filled month!

My BFF is coming next weekend for a visit. Stacey hasn't made it out to NC yet, so it should be a nice, relaxing, beach filled weekend! Teagan (and my dad) have a birthday coming up next weekend. Teagan has her 1 year photos coming up mid month. My mom is coming out here for 10 days towards the end of August...and then there is my birthday! Ohhh what a month August is going to be :)

A few nights ago, I was talking to Nigel on the phone and doing some laundry. I was telling Nigel how nice it is that Braden and Teagan like to hang out and play in Braden's room together...then there was a lot of laughter. In true parent fashion, I grabbed the camera, not knowing what to expect, and caught this...

Braden is constantly finding ways to make Teagan laugh! He likes to race her around the house, crawling quickly beside her. He likes to dance in her face and make her giggle...he will do just about anything to get a laugh out of her! In the above instance, he was dancing on the toy chest and making one of the noise makers inside play music. That would be Braden's creative way of not getting in trouble for bringing the toys that we just put away out again :)

Teagan likes to shake her groove thing! Our lil pumpkin "drops it like it's hot" as often as she can!

Feeding herself...

Future Papis bartender?

(Teagan's thinking) Daddy, that looks good!

(Teagan moves in) I think I'll share :)

(So, Braden thinks) Daddy is so good at sharing, I'll have some too!

Off to Calabash Creamery after lunch at Papis!

Oh yes, she is just THAT cute!

Thank you for visiting...

...Brittany! We had SO much fun with you :)

I LOVED having the company. We relaxed, hung out with the kids and when I finally got to take some time off we went to the outlets, to the movies, to a late lunch... it was AWESOME hanging out with my sister! What's missing, you may ask...my other sister Alison, that's what!

Miss T is a bonafide tantrum thrower! She thrusts her little body forward, bending in half. She lets out her little cry and produces a handful of little tears. She knows how to pull your heartstrings with her little ways :)

Braden is looking more like a young man and less like a little boy. It's so odd when we reflect back just two short years ago.

Daddy and our young man.

Mommy and our handsome boy!

Don't mess with Teagan...see how she is always watching!

Another fun fact is that the kiddos are at an age where they are starting to play together. Braden is learning Teagan's limitations and he is an amazing big brother!

We went to the Giggling Mackerel while Britt was visiting. Braden had his first taste of calamari...and we believe he liked it!

It was really nice having Britt help with the kiddos at night. Such a good aunt :)

She is also an AWESOME sister...she watched the kids so Nigel and I could go out on a date! We had SO much fun...and great margaritas at Papis afterwards!

Britt and Teagan loving on one another...

Brittany, thank you VERY much for coming out to visit. I miss you very much and cannot wait to see you again...as soon as we possibly can! Love you!

Swimming Pools, Standing, Questions, Oh my!

This weekend has been jam packed with fun! Friday, after work, I went to pick up the kiddos and headed back to the pool to meet up with our friend Anita. Fortunately, the pool was VERY empty, so we had an absolute blast! Braden LOVES to jump at you in the water...whether you are looking/ready, or not! (We are working on that...) Teagan loves the boat floaty! Mostly because she can just lay her precious head to the side and watch the water, stick her fingers in the water and toss her toys gently into the water. After our swim fun, we headed over the McDonald's...perfect stop after the beach or pool! We came home, finished dinner...as we were starving and ate half of our meal in the car, took baths, played for about half an hour and passed out. Nigel had the first half of Saturday off, so we went to grab an early lunch, quickly ran into the dreaded Walmart and came home (dreaded Walmart due to vacationers...love to see them come to visit...happier to see them go!). The kids and I had a very relaxing evening watching Ratatouille and pulling every toy in the house out into the living room. Nigel came home around 10:30 pm, so we were able to hang out and catch up! Two hours later, we went to sleep...six hours later the "mommy, juice please" request came in :) Braden watched Disney, while Nigel and I rested for about another hour. Nigel graciously got up and let me sleep until 9 am...it was HEAVEN! We got ready, went to Abuelo's for lunch, then headed up to the pool. For any of you that are members of a community center or your neighborhood pool, you may be familiar with the concept that if someones child has an "accident" in the pool, they have to shut the pool down for 24 hours. So, when we arrived at the pool today, there were signs posted everywhere that the pool was closed. Naturally, as Nigel and I used to work with the staff at the Village Activity Center, we asked why the pool was shut down. Sure enough, someones child had an "accident." I understand that accidents happen, but do wonder if the parents are using the Splasher or Swimmer diapers that are $6-$10 for a pack = lack of embarrassment of your child leaving an "accident" in the pool... just a thought. Anyhow, we went to the indoor pool, which was actually quite nice!

Overall, it was a nice, quite weekend...oh, and as for the question portion of my title, Braden asked me a question on Friday night that I didn't quite understand at first. I stopped recording, spoke with him a bit and refilmed (while coaching) the question originally asked. I think my parents will get a HUGE kick out of the question asked!

Loving the water toys Anita brought her!

Braden learning to blow bubbles.

Happy Pumpkin girl hanging out by the pool!

Braden gearing up for the 1-2-JUMP!

Jumping...I LOVE the grin on his face!

Exhausted...as is George :)

Standing and clapping :) She is just so coordinated...now only if she would start walking!

Daddy and his baby girl!

He just looks SO grown up!

But still such a handsome little boy!

This is the original question Braden asked when I started filming him...

TOO FUNNY!