4 Years...Can you believe it?

It's hard to believe that it's been 4 years since Braden entered our family! Braden turned 4 on Monday! We love him so much and don't know what life would be like without him. He is so smart (of course I think so anyway). He knows the alphabet (thanks to Leap Frog Letter Factory), loves to color and draw pictures, play with his brother, play games whether it's on dad or moms phone or the computer or just a real game he loves games. He amazes me everyday. The WHY?? questions have begun and I'm sure won't end soon with this kid. I have to remind myself regularly that things that seem so simple to me, he is just learning about and it's so interesting to him.

We had a kids/cousin party Saturday before his birthday. The kids seemed to love it. We kept it simple--games, playing, pizza, brownies and ice cream. Oh ya, Braden does not like cake or frosting or balloons--your typical staples for a birthday party. But he loves brownies and ice cream (just like his dad) so that's what we did and boy was it easy to prepare. He's a funny boy! He makes me smile and laugh.
Practicing Pin the tail on the donkey before the kids arrived.

The birthday crew--Jason, Kyle, Miles, Braden, Jake, Luke, Avery, Abby, Kyden, Quincy, and Taylor. Thanks for coming! It was a lot of fun!
Playing pin the tail on the donkey with Grandpa.
Braden doesn't exactly like to be sang to either. I finally got it out of him that he doesn't like when people sing loud. He doesn't do well with lots of kids screaming--that's the reason he didn't like nursery.

We gave him a bike for his birthday. I love the look of pure joy on his face. He was pretty excited which made us happy. It's hard to put into words the joy you feel when you see your kids happy!

We did a family party at Blast Off which was fun. The boys loved it


Here's the crew all playing mini golf. Thanks to everyone who came and for the fun birthday presents! It was nice to have you there!
You might say that Kyden likes Braden's bike more than Braden. But since the weather has been junky, Braden hasn't been able to ride his bike outside yet so Kyden has taken over. It just gets rolled around our house. I don't know what we'll do when Kyden realizes he can't ride it.
We love Braden and are so proud of him. He is growing up so fast and teaching us so much every day. I think children are sent to us to teach us more than we teach them. Seriously! Love you Braden!! And we're glad that you had a wonderful birthday!

Handsome Boys

Braden asked me a while back as I was getting him ready for church "When is dad getting one of these?" Meaning a suit. Guess it's been a while since Jason wore his suit and Braden has worn one since he was 18 months old. So here's my handsome boys all dressed up. Love it!!
And this was the first Sunday Kyden got to wear a suit since we found a new one for Braden and passed Braden's down to him. I think they look so good all dressed up--like little missionaries.
Zonked right out after church at Grandpa and Grandma's house. He still has his binkie for nap and bedtime because I don't want to face getting rid of it yet. Fun!!

We love Sunshine

We are so excited to see some sunshine and play outside a bit! It helps the days pass by until we can play outside everyday without freezing our buns off! But I now have to lock the deadbolt, not to keep people out, but to keep Kyden from sneaking outside. I'm afraid he's the child that will always push his limit. He's already ran into the road a handful of times. Oh boy!
Kyden thought he was so cool under this laundry basket. One of his favorite things to do now is drag our laundry basket out to the front room, dump all the clothes out, spread them everywhere, and play with the basket. The boys love to make messes but they don't realize that I spend the majority of my day picking up after them. It's great! Guess some things have to give when you become a mom--dinner doesn't always get going on time, the house is hardly ever clean, some days go by and I wonder "What did I accomplish today?", pj days are a must, .... I have to remind myself that this stage of life will pass and to enjoy everyday the best I can. The days of taking care of children will be over before I know it and it will be a sad day. My boys test my patience, but I love them so much. I don't know what I would do without them. It's hard to think back to life before kids. It seems so weird.
Here doggie, here doggie! Kyden begged Jason for a bone from his ribs and thought he was so cool trying to eat it. He just didn't get that it was hard and he couldn't eat it. Although Jason does tell us about the Haitian people who would eat the bones. They love to suck the marrow out. Not my ideal food.
Braden and Kyden were invited to my cousin, Quincy, birthday party at Blast-Off. It was the first time they had been there and they loved it. Now that's where Braden wants to have his birthday party. We'll see about that one.

If you look close, you can see that Kyden is wearing some of Braden's boxer underwear over his pants. He put them on by himself and wore them all day. He thought he was pretty cool (well he always does). I think that Jason was a bit embarrassed because we took him dinner at work that night and I didn't want to fight with Kyden to take them off so I let him wear the underwear. Whatever--pick your battles!

I finally took on the adventure of making homemade bread. I think it turned out pretty well especially since I realized my Kitchen Aid wasn't big enough half way through so it was a mess. Oh well, good learning experience anyway.
Another pile of toys and books and stuff. The boys favorite thing to do. I don't get how that is a fort, but it sure it to them. The things they come up with! Quite the imagination.
I found Braden one night asleep in his bed just like this. I had to take a picture.

Our Boys

This is how we found the boys room the other night:
Yep, they pulled every single piece of clothing out of there dresser. Braden felt pretty bad because all he was trying to do was "Find that one shirt". Well, he didn't find it until I found it for him. We had a quick discussion on asking mom to help when you can't find something. It was funny until I had to fold all the clothes back up to put them in the dresser.

We are so proud of Dad! He is the best! We are just so glad to have him home spending time with us!
Man, this little boy is such a character. He makes me laugh everyday. He gets into everything, finds things he's not supposed to have, and has a little temper. But he sure is a cutie!
He figured out that he could roll the computer chair wherever he wants to get things he wants, but is not supposed to get. This time it was his binkie or "me me" as he calls it. He only gets it at nap and bedtime but wants it more often than that. It is going to be a monster of a time weening him from his binkie. I'm not looking forward to it!
Loves, loves, loves his pillow. I think he would rather have a pillow than a blanket. When I get him out of bed in the morning, he has to empty his crib in my arms which includes 2 blankets, a pillow, Pooh bear, and whatever else may have been left in there the night before and I have to carry it all plus him to the couch. He is so funny!
And this little guy LOVES puzzles. He is already smarter than me. He put this United States puzzle together all by himself. What a brain!! And he was proud of it--which he should be!
Ky with Braden's underwear on his head. He cracks me up all the time with things he comes up with.

He's home

Our wonderful father and husband is home! He ended up being gone just over 2 weeks! It really was a blessing that he got the privilege to go to Haiti and spend time with the people there. He mostly translated for doctors. He loved playing with the children and making them laugh. He is so amazing! I am so lucky to be married to such a wonderful man! Thanks babe!

Isn't this picture so precious?! This little boy is so cute! Jason said this little boy was very shy but asked if he could get his picture taken with Jason. How sweet! What's amazing to me is that although the people of Haiti have seen such devastation, they can still smile and look as if nothing is wrong. I have learned so much over the past month! What a blessing!

Update on Jason

Well, we hear from Jason every couple days which is always nice to hear his voice. He is staying very busy, but doing good. He has mostly been translating for doctors and helping them when there are no other hands available--something I hope to never do (I don't do well with doctor stuff). He has seen many of the families that he knew on his mission which is hard to see them in the circumstances they are in yet very comforting. If all goes as planned, we will see him this Thursday. They were originally staying 30 days, then 21, now 14. I think as they got over there, they realized how exhausting it is for all of them to go, go, go everyday and see the kind of things they are seeing--emotionally and physically draining. We are excited!

As for us we are surviving. No really, we are doing good--as good as can be without our husband and daddy. We have had so much support from everyone around us and it is so wonderful! Thanks to everyone for your love and support and prayers. We appreciate it and so do the people of Haiti!

We will post pictures of his trip when he returns!

Our Hearts Go Out To...

Our hearts go out to the people in Haiti. Jason served his mission there and as a missionary became a part of many families there. He loves the people. When the earthquake hit, he wanted to know everything he could about it. And I don't blame him. It was sad to me but I don't really have many ties to anyone there. He now has the opportunity to serve them again. He left for Haiti with US Aid Thursday to translate for doctors or whoever, help clear out fallen buildings so they can rebuild, and whatever they need him to do. He will be gone for 2-3 weeks. I know that he will be blessed while he is there. I know that I am being blessed also with comfort because I worry about him but I am at peace when I do worry. I really am so glad that he has gotten this opportunity to go. He truly loves the Haitian people and this is his chance to go back and really make a difference. The Lord has a hand in everything because this trip came together in less than a week and everything worked out so he could go. Also, the first day he was there, he saw one of the only families that he really wanted to see while he was down there. The Lord makes miracles. I admire him for going! He is amazing and I am so blessed to be his wife! Good luck babe! Love you tons!