My Current Obsession

It all began a few weeks ago at Activity Days. We sewed these darling headbands for the girls and talked about what a great talent sewing can be. It got me thinking of all of the fabric I have sitting around just waiting to be used. I realized that sewing is just another one of those things that I know how to do, but I am not great at. I love sewing, I love creating projects, and have recently come up with some pretty big ideas that may or may not turn out fabulously. I have just had the sewing machine sitting out, just ready for my hours of daily sewing. I made a new blanket for Boo with this adorable cowboy fabric, finally started on his Peter Pan halloween costume, which I wish I had a pattern for because the shoes alone took me 3 hours and 5 tries. It was lame, but I am really happy with how they turned out and I cannot wait to see him in his cute little outfit. So basically all this blog post is saying is that I am obsessed with sewing right now. I spend way too much time at the fabric store, and countless hours searching sewing and fabric blogs. Obsessed much?
COMING SOON ON OUR BLOG:
Bradens 4 Month Milestones and his Wild Life

Apples to Apples

We have decided that instead of sitting around on our Saturdays, we would like to take little Saturday field trips. We began at Apple Hill. Devin and Braden have never been and it is such a part of Autumn in Sacramento, that I didn't want them to miss it. We had such a fabulous time enjoying the beautiful weather and the amazing scenery of Placerville. As always, Braden was a gem, minus the drive home, and he loved being outside and amidst the greenery.

We found out that Braden loves grass as much as Dev does!
Braden hardly wanted to look at us. He was so fascinated by all of the GREEN!!

Since Braden has teeth, he has started to gnaw on everything.

We gave him his first taste of an apple and he loved it. He cried when it was all gone.

The fishing pond

Out of the Woods

About three weeks ago, we took a little trip down to Guatemala to visit Devins parents who are serving a mission there. They got to spend an entire week with Grammy and Grandpa, and we all had a great time together full of late night chats, perfect weather, beautiful surroundings, some great classes at the CCM, and delicious Guatemalan black beans, which I became obsessed with, only to later despise and vow to never eat ever again. The thought even makes me cringe. Anyway, getting there was a bit of a nightmare thanks to our flight being cancelled about twelve hours before we were to depart. Luckily Dev was trooper and figured out how to get us from San Fran to Guatemala and arrive at the exact same time we would have, had things not gone south. Unfortunately we had a 7 hour layover in Mexico City, a destination I will never go to ever again, but got to eat at the delicious McDonalds. A real treat. Braden had a little run in with some crazy lady with no teeth who so graciously kissed him and stuck her dirty ol finger in his mouth. I swore to Devin if Braden ended up with hand foot and mouth, someone would pay. Anyway, Mexico City was a horrific experience, but we made it to Guate and had the time of our lives.

SUNDAY

• Grammy came and took Braden, and Devin and I got to sleep in until almost 11 (we had a 20hr travel day on Saturday, so we deserved a little sleep)


• attended church with the missionaries and felt their sweet spirit, even though Devin had a little bit of a hard time with the translating sometimes


• went to Presidents class where they taught the Latins about their family and about being great missionaries

MONDAY

• Drove to Antigua, an old charming little village, complete with a "Wood Factory", Jade Factory, and plenty of Guatemalan natives


• finally got to get my own wooden apples that are a must have, I cant wait to display them in our new house


• had lunch at a beautiful hotel, the restaurant was basically a covered outdoor-ish place and it poured while we were eating which was so neat
  
  
  

  Notice the cobblestone street, and the colorful buildings. Antigua is a very old city in Guatemala, and the cobblestone is almost everywhere.
  

  

  At the fancy hotel where we had lunch

Braden and his Pal

TUESDAY

• drove to Iximche ruins on our way to Lake Atitlan, enjoyed the history there, and thinking about the way life must have been, the landscapers cut the immense lawn with machetes....really!!



• continued on to Lake Antigua, possible location of the Waters of Mormon; gorgeous, humongous lake

• Devin and I did a sweet zip line course and got to see Monkeys in the wild
  
• enjoyed the beautiful gardens at our quaint hotel where I think maybe 5 rooms were being occupied
  
• took Braden for a little dip in the gigantic pool sized jacuzzi
  
• had precious chat time with Mom and Dad, ate delicious food, and just relaxed
  
  
  

  View of the Iximche Ruins
  Braden sporting his sun blocking turbin, and enjoying his favorite color, GREEN and a rendition of the "tree of life" in the background

Us with our gracious tour guides

I took a quick fall into this pool right at the top of a 20ft waterfall. Dev thought I was a goner.

Atop Lake Atitlan

The view of the lake and one volcano from our hotel room

WEDNESDAY

• traveled across the lake to Santiago Atitlan where we got our first true taste of Guatemalan life


• I fell in love with the people and the simple lives they lead. It made me cry to think of how little they have, but how much they love their lives. I think all of the little Guatemalan ladies in the catholic church where we were thought I was feeling the spirit...


• Met Bradens first little buddy in Guatemala, Juan el Bautista


• ventured into the market place complete with a butcher block full of fresh meat... it was very smelly, thank goodness I was not pregnant


• enjoyed more talk time, more great food, and more R&R

Women in traditional dress selling beans and other food

THURSDAY

• one last look at the beautiful lake during our patio breakfast where Grandpa and Devin lured little birds to eat from their hands
• my tragic illness began

• drove to Chichicastananga on our way home and stopped at one of the largest markets in Guate. I spent a little time in an authentic Guatemalan bathroom. One lady asked us to pay, but since someone was in her bathroom and there was no time to waste, we luckily found the next one and it was free of charge, but not of germs.
• traveled back to Guatemala City and just got to rest from our travels

Beautiful flowers on the steps of a "must-see" cathedral

The many different colors in the markets were incredible

FRIDAY

• went to the giant relief map of Guatemala, we got to see basically a 3-D map of Guatemala that had been created by a man 100+yrs ago who traveled around Guate on horseback, Dad showed us where a bunch of BOM sites were on the map


• went to another market, where I took another bathroom trip, which this time I needed a thorough shower after... I was thinking how gross it was that all of the ladies there were wearing flat jelly shoes, until I realized I was wearing flip flops.... so gross


• attended Dads BOM history class; it was a huge overview of the timeline of the BOM. I couldn't believe Dad had 3hrs worth of BOM history memorized. It was awesome!

Shockingly we didnt find all of Bradens christmas presents at the markets, but we did pick up this sweet little beanie which he has already worn quite proudly.the relief map... can you sort of picture how big it is?

SATURDAY

• Devin became deathly ill thanks to the coughing and wheezing that was going around at the CCM (MTC) and took an extensive nap on the couch


• spent the majority of the afternoon watching the BYU game with Crappa's 80 yr old temple missionary friends.... man those guys can talk


• walked next door to the temple for some photos


• tried to savour our last hours together

Braden enjoying a good BYU victory.

Its best for everyone when the Cougs win!

We had such a fabulous and uplifting time. We enjoyed so much the spirit of the CCM and seeing Presidente and Hermana Christensen in their element. We told them they should ask to be called to Spain for their next mission so that we can all travel and see Europe next. Thanks for letting us come visit Grammy and Grandpa. We love you!

To My Peops

Braden with Gram and Gramp C in Antigua Guatemala. So CUTE!!

Friends:
I realize I am mega behind on my blogging. It bugs me more than it bugs you. TRUST ME!! I know Devin went on a sweet backpacking trip. I know I went to Utah, said goodbye to my little sister who magically is in college. I know Braden met his fairy Godmother, McCall. I know I took a crazy exotic vacation and havent said a word about it. I know my baby is 4 months old and nobody knows how much he weighs except me and Dr. Delmar. I know we are living with my parents and more than half of you didnt even know that. I know the search is on to find ourselves a humble, but perfect home for our now growing family (and when I say growing, I dont mean that I am pregnant, I simply mean that now that we have one kid in our Caboodle, there are bound to be more hiding up in heaven waiting for Braden to grow up so I will beg Heavenly Father for another rambunctious baby to be sent my way). I know I thought I was going to die when I was sick, Braden was sick and Devin was sick. It wasnt pretty. Believe me. I know Braden is sporting his first two teeth in his itty bitty mouth. And I certainly know that.... well thats about all I know at this point. Basically, I am trying to tell myself that I have to get caught up. If not for you, then for me. I feel like my blogging talents have been lost somewhere between here and Guatemala. Maybe they were stolen on the metro in Mexico City?! Anyway, thats an entirely different post. For now this will have to do because everytime the boy sleeps, I have to take advantage of the nap for me. My tired and sick little head need it. So be patient little ones. The time will come when all of your curiositys regarding the comings and goings in our life will be answered. And in the meantime, pray pray pray that we will get this house we put an offer on. And especially pray if you want us to stay in the ward because we want to stay, but you have to want us to stay too! XOXO.

RE: Babies

I forgot about my friend Jessica who is having a girl at the end of this month. Sorry Jess. Not to mention the fact that she is 9mo prego with a two year old and moving to Colorado next week. Such a trooper!

Braden Loves New Friends

So 2009 is the year of babies I guess. Really I am sure to miss someone, but I cant even count on 1 hand how many new friends Braden has been blessed with this year, or even just since he was born. Honestly. Are we in a baby boom or what? Does a poor economy signal to everyone that its time to have a baby? Who knows, but we sure are greatful for cute friends for our cute boy. So lets just say congrats to all those guys and gals who have come into the world. All of them are darling, although I cant lie, some I haven't met in person yet. Thanks to distance, or this dang cold that has now trapped Braden, Devin and myself in bed for hours on end. Hallelujah for cold and flu season. As soon as we walked out of the car after Guatemala, we were told we had Swine Flu. Really? Swine Flu?! Lame. Thank goodness there is no swine flue hear, but come on! So heres to ALL Bradens new friends; Olivia Wooley, Carter Christensen, Carter Anderson, William Wyeth, Layla Duerden, Corinne Norris, Sydney Abarca, Emilia Lapointe, Marshall Bowden, Rozzi Wellman, Ryder Mckeon, Paxton Baird (who was welcomed into the world on Wednesday), Olivia Clegg (whose arrival I am waiting to hear about), Garrett Wadman, Baby Rogers, Baby White, the baby who cannot be named, plus all the babies of aquaitances, and the gillions of babies throughout the world. If I forgot about your baby, I am sorry. Braden is a lucky boy with lots of friends. 2009 is the year of the BABY! Its either that, or I am just at the right stage in life where everyone that I know is having kids too. I guess its probably the latter.

Braden Boy

Could we be any more in love with our Braden boy?! We couldnt! He is the best! I know I say it all the time, but its true every time I say it. He is such a sweetie and is just such a great little buddy. I am sure it just means he is going to be trouble when he gets older, but for now, I will just take what I can get a love him all day long. There are a bajillion things about Braden that make him so amazing, but I will spare you the pain. This is really just for DadC and Grandma Deena anyway.

1) He sleeps through the night, no thanks to us of course. He just did it on his own when he was about 3 wks old, and we love him for it! I never even had to try any strategy. Awesome!
2) He is pretty skinny still, but has this insanely round belly that shakes when he laughs, like a bowl full of jelly. Well it doesnt do that, but he does have a big belly. My grandpa is convinced there is something wrong with him, but I will wait for the doctor to tell me that. And for now, I will just keep feeding him the massive amounts of formula he loves so much and watch him grow! Seriously he grows so fast, I can watch him while he does it. Its nuts! Also, his belly gets lopsided when he leans to the side. Now that is weird.
3) He is wide eyed and bushy tailed. He gets very concerned when he cant see what is going on in the world, hence he never likes to be cradled. I swear one day he is going to open his eyes just a little too big and his eyeballs are just going to fall out. Some would say he has the eyes of an adult.

4) He is not a sit back and enjoy the ride type of kid. He is a man of action. Today I laid him down with his head towards the tv and a few secon.ds later, I looked back at him and he had done a 180 and was watching tv. How it happened, I have no clue, but now I know. At his 2 month appointment the dr was wondering why he is rolling over, and I wonder the same thing. He is a mover and a shaker.
5) He is having a sever hair identity crisis. On top his hair is blonde, his mullet is still dark brown, not to mention that outdoors, his hair has a tint of red. It cannot be tamed and no matter what I do it just ends up sticking straight out, plus he is starting to grow more hair and so he has really long hair and then his new hair. What the hair!! Not to mention the bald line he has around his head as though he has been wearing a baseball cap for the past 12 months of his life.

6) He enjoys his exercise. He loves standing up, and can do it with me holding just his hands. He is get really good at bicycle legs, and has even recently taken up the back stroke.
7) He is my own miracle baby. Many of you know that I have epilepsy, and throughout my life, the main causes of my seizures have been from lack of sleep and stress. I thought this whole mom thing could turn out being so hard and that I would be sick a lot, but I know that Heavenly Father tailor made Braden to meet my needs as a mother because he is unlike any baby I have ever known. I have been so blessed by this little dream baby so that I can stay healthy and take care of my little monkey.

8) He has a smile that could light up this whole town! It is so contagious and I LOVE it! His smile is nothing less than Gods handiwork complete with his tremendous lack of teeth and his gigantic dimple!
9) Just look at him. Need I say more?
10) He giggled for the first time the other day, and I about died laughing. It was the sweetest sound I have ever heard, and I cant wait to hear it again!

I AM A MOTHER

So now that Braden is almost three months old, I feel like I have experienced enough of what its like to be a Mother that I can fully say that I am one. I have been pee'd on, smiled at, cuddled on, thrown up on, been the comforting hug he needed,watched his excited eyes, enjoyed him in his sleep, all of the typical stuff. I never expected what would happen this morning, and I certainly wasnt ready for it, but when stuff like this happens, all you can do is jump and enjoy the ride.

This morning, typical of every morning I was not ready to wake up when Braden was ready for me to be awake. This morning I felt like I had been hit by a train in more ways than one, and just for two seconds wished that my kid would sleep in until 10am this morning, then wished Devin didnt have to go to work today (I almost asked him to work from home just for a couple hours this morning so I could keep sleeping), then wished I had a nanny to take care of my kiddo when I felt like I do today. But of course, I opened my eyes and turned my head over to see Braden kicking his legs and smiling away and remembered how in love with him I am and how dang cute he is, even when I feel like a train wreck.

While he was chowing down, practically choking on his bottle he drinks it so fast, I could tell that he was having a little bit of a situation in his pants, just gas I assumed, because it was silent and scentless. When he was through eating, I quickly took off his diaper to find a surprise inside. I hurried to grab more wipes and started cleanup. As I looked to the side to grab another wipe, once I had moved the diaper away of course to prevent feet and hands in the contamination, I hear the Wells Fargo wagon coming down the track just in time to catch it with the wipe, but it just kept coming. Braden, Braden, Braden, what am I supposed to do, the wipe is fully covered and wont catch any more of the oil spill so I do what any mom would do to protect her bed from a natural disaster. Thats right, it all went right into my hand. That was when I was through with today. I wiped all the hazardous waste off my hand, finished cleaning up his cute little bum, and diapered him as usual, with the most irregular washing of my hands 80 times in steaming hot water.

So today has already ended for me. My to-do list has been dashed in order to take a day for my sanity. Except wait Braden is getting shots today. So how is this day going to end up? I have no idea, but already I have had a bright brown start to what would have been a potentially busy day but has within the first 20 minutes of being awake, become a "ME" day.

And for all Braden knows, his tummy is full, his intestines are empty, his diaper is clean, and his Mommy is smiling at him. All is well in Braden land! I love being a MOM! Oh and in case you were wondering, the sheets remained without a trace.

The Cutest Boy

Braden is so much fun! He is so adorable and has been in such great moods lately with smiles galore! It is so cute! Thanks to one of my friends, he even gets a little play time in each day. He loves this little gym and really gets a kick out of all of the little features. He just lay in it and watch the lights and look at all of the bright colors. It is so great to be able to have something to entertain and distract him for a time. There is a little monkey that came with the gym that Braden just loves. He will just sit and stare at his little monkey friend forever and then look away, but then start staring again. The little monkey comes everywhere with us because he keeps Braden entertained.
Nap time with the monkey!

Just thought this was a funny picture of my silly boy!

I Believe in Santa Cruz

This past week Braden and I got to go on a little trip to the beach! It was great. We had a fabulous time, I enjoying the much needed sun, sand, and waves, and Braden enjoying his time in his home-made tent and listening to the relaxing sounds of the sea.

Using the Barney chairs and a boogie board I made Braden some shade. (Naturally as soon as we got there, the beach umbrella went inside out and was completely thrashed.) We all had big plans to shred again, its been a long time, but of course the swells were so flat you really couldnt even boogie board. The weather was pretty cold so the little girls were the only ones brave enough to get in. Sarah was even attacked by a wave and got knocked to the sea floor and had sand everywhere. Her hair was on big sandy mess. It was pretty funny to watch. I on the other hand, steered clear of the water. My feet never even touched the water. When I think about it, as much as I love the ocean, its pretty sad that I didnt take advantage of my time there. But at least I did get some sun for the first time since I had Braden. The beach was complete with two dead seals, a dead bird, one skinny dipper enjoying the ocean, kite surfers, and of course annoying drunkards. We walked down to the Surfing Museum at Lighthouse Point, and watched some kiddies surf at Steamer Lane. In the evening, we headed over to the Boardwalk for some rides. Its been a while since I have been there and I must say that I was unimpressed and so nostalgic for some Disney magic. It was like a permanent county fair. Everything about the Boardwalk made me miss Disneyland; the cleanliness, the music, the noise, the stench, the rides, the people, EVERYTHING!! We were so sad that Daddy couldnt come join in the fun and cant wait to take him to the beach.

Braden looked so dang cute in his fall-time get up! I cant wait to be able to bundle him!!