How to Choose the Best Christmas Card?!?!

since i am one of those mommys who a.) loves to show off my kids and b.) loves to explore and spend hours on 5 or 6 different websites trying to decide on the PERFECT christmas card, i just couldn't resist the offer recently made by SHUTTERFLY! they are generously offering 50 free cards to bloggers! and since their cards are festive and fun and more reasonably priced than so many other sites i decided to go with shutterfly this year! See some examples here:
http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards

since adding a baby girl to our crew in july, we are excited to find the perfect card for our family of (now) 4! many family members that are far away have not seen baby presley yet so we are looking forward to using this card and the pictures to introduce her to the world! her big brother has grown up so much since our last trip to pennsylvania, so they will enjoy seeing him as well. we are many miles apart (sigh) but somehow pictures and the perfect card in the mail during the holidays make it seem a little closer!

shutterfly is also offering regular christmas cards without pictures, which are perfect for keeping in touch: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards and many other gifts for family and friends this holiday season: http://www.shutterfly.com/photo-gifts.

check out shutterfly for your gifts and cards this year ... they rock! oh and if you're a blogger you can check out this offer at this site: http://blog.shutterfly.com/5358/holiday2010-blog-submission-form/

brady's newest word

when brady was around 10 months old he would say "momma" and "dada" like a champ. well he stopped ... and now he NEVER says those words. but instead, he likes to say "shoes", "dog" and "cat". well friday daddy stayed home with brady because "aunt colleen" wasn't feeling well. when i got home from work, daddy proudly announced that brady had learned a new word. i couldn't wait!

"TREES". his new word was "trees". not "mommy" or "daddy", but "trees". he gets really excited to say it, and he actually points to the tree through the window when he says it. so cute.

it's amazing to see brady discover new things and start to recognize what words mean. i love how his little brain is constantly working and soaking in everything that goes on around him. billy and i always talk about how cute, funny and smart he is ... and then laugh because EVERY parent feels that way about their baby.

dr. saade keeps reminding me that he's not a baby anymore ... he's a toddler. but he'll always be MY baby. and i love that little boy...

happy birthday brady (on october 3rd)!

is it possible that brady is already ONE? the past year has really flown by and we have loved every minute of it!

we had a very small family get-together for brady's birthday ... and had a blast watching him crawl around and be mr. social (just like his daddy). he loved the presents and the balloons but wasn't so sure about the cake ... until he tried a bite of the icing!

oh ... and we survived the 12 month shots! it wasn't happy or easy, but we survived. poor little man ... he was so upset. he got 4 total ... 2 in each leg. he weighed in at 23 pounds (75% percentile) and was 31 inches long (90th percentile). his head measurement even registered in the 75th percentile, which is shocking because the boy has GOT a big 'ole noggin! looks like we might have a long and lean little boy on our hands. well, okay ... maybe not so "lean".

i know i'm his mommy, but i do think he is adorable. everywhere he goes he just randomly smiles at people. he is so happy and even 5 minutes after his shots, he was smiling, talking and pointing at random things while saying "ooooh", as if he had forgotten all about that mean 'ole nurse and the pain he endured. what a trooper!

happy birthday brady william. we love you!

almost a YEAR old!

okay ... after looking at some friend's blogs in the past couple of days, i am once again reminded that i am the worst blogger to ever walk the face of the Earth. but the truth is ... when i get home from work, i just want to soak up as much time as i can with brady ... then once brady goes to bed i want to be with my sweet husband. therefore i just run out of time! i am realizing that lack of time is how an organized person quickly becomes unorganized! sometimes i feel the stresses of trying to be everything to everyone and other times i just laugh as i look around at our messy house that was once organized, even though billy does a great job of keeping things in order when he is home.

so brady is almost a year old!! it is SO hard to believe. that little man is the captain of my heart! he is so much fun right now. he is crawling with amazing determination, standing up with a little bit of assistance from any object he can find, free-standing on occasion, and walking behind a little grocery cart, which he thinks is really funny. he can walk while holding on to our fingers, but it looks more like he is marching. it is precious how high he thinks he has to pick up his feet to take a few steps. i love that little boy. when i tell you he is all over the place ... he REALLY is all over the place! he is into everything, but especially likes to play with things that aren't meant to be played with (i.e. dog food bowls, air conditioning vents, breakable plates that are on display, the fireplace, cell phones, computers, doorknobs, the blinds, doggie door, etc.). we have to watch his every move because he can get himself into trouble FAST. he thinks the word "no" is funny, no matter how forcefully we say it. he is laughing and smiling like crazy and is a very happy baby (sorry ... "toddler") even though it feels like he has some molar activity going on in his mouth. he will occasionally say "momma" and "dada", but "dog" is by far his favorite word. he has really started to interact with buck and izzy, but especially loves to hold izzy's toy while she jumps and barks and squirms in frustration that he has her toy. he laughs outloud at her and loves that he is playing his own little game of "keep away". i always knew they would be best buddies.

i've never been a morning person. i love to sleep and i have constantly struggled to get myself out of bed in the mornings. i've always been that way. but the highlight of my day is definitely hearing brady wake up around 7:00 every morning and watching him talk and play in his crib until we go get him. he is thrilled to see us and always greets us with the biggest smile he can muster up (see picture). he squeals in excitement, as if to say "bring it on, world!".

this anti-morning girl has suddenly found a reason to LOVE getting up in the morning!!!

we are blessed, and thankful beyond words, for our little angel. life is good!

eight months old ... with SIX teeth!

i cannot believe baby brady is EIGHT months old already! he is such a funny, sweet and happy baby. he has grown and changed so much over the past eight months. today i was staring at him while he sat in the bumbo seat playing (um, well maybe "banging" is a better word) the piano that aunt marilyn gave him ... and i just grinned from ear to ear. i am "that mom" who can't get enough of her baby, talks to strangers about her baby, brags to pregnant women about how much fun they are going to have, and gushes to just about anyone that will listen about the most perfect baby that God has ever created. it's amazing. everyone asks if brady is crawling yet and the answer is "no". i'm actually glad about that. i'm not ready for him to be mobile yet. billy and i like knowing where he is at all times. we like that we lay him on a blanket and he'll roll over a million times, but will generally stay in the vicinity of that blanket. he is, however, starting to get up on his knees from the belly position which i think is a clue that he is starting to grasp the concept of crawling. that's how his buddy bennett started out anyway.

we had our first family vacation over memorial day weekend to vero beach, florida. billy's mom was able to join us for the weekend, which was so much fun. she and brady loved being able to spend time together. the weather was not good for us ... it rained almost everyday, but we were still able to put brady's feet in the sand and let him feel the waves. of course mommy was insistent that he wear 50+ sunscreen, a UV protective outfit AND stay under an umbrella, but i think he enjoyed it just because he loves being outside. we had a blast. it was worth being in the car for a total of 20+ hours just to have 5 full days with my boys.

so ... life is still great ... and we are still loving this parenting journey. from the moment we peek over brady's crib in the morning and see his amazing smile and those big blue eyes, we know that ALL days will be good days. we are blessed!

some new pics...

i told you they were cute! here are some updated pictures of brady. yummy!!! oh and if you need a great photographer, please let me know. he is awesome!

a new perspective on mother's day...

it's funny ... i've spent my whole life celebrating MY mom on mother's day. i thank God for my mom. she is an amazing woman with a huge faith and a beautiful spirit. i am blessed beyond words to have had such a great influence in my life. i cherish celebrating this day with her. it's a tradition and i hope it never ends!

this year was even more special for all of us. for the first time i realized that someone (although he is too little to know it) will be celebrating ME on mother's day. wow. what an honor! all the mom's at church on sunday morning received a standing ovation and i just sat there, holding my baby in one arm and billy's hand in the other ... with tears in my eyes. it seemed so surreal. i can only hope and pray to be HALF the mother to brady that my mom has been to me.

billy and i are both truly, truly blessed with strong and honorable mothers. it was an incredible day. happy mother's day!!!