Pool Time

On Monday, we met my neighbors at the Clarksville Aquatic Center. This was our first time...it was really nice. Since Sophie had on her life jacket, Braden wore his and he loved floating around. He loves to do what the big neighbor kids do so he just followed them around the whole time (I'm sure annoying them at times too, but they are pretty used to it.) Hee hee!

Braden, Sophie, Natalie, and Justin

Last night we celebrated Chris' mom's bday. We went out to dinner and then came back to our house for cake and ice cream. I'm pretty sure Braden thinks every birthday is also his! Here he is helping Gma Cindy blow out the candles.

Blueberries and dangerous vehicles

This morning we went to Bryant's Blueberry Farm for our annual blueberry pickin' day. If you haven't been, I highly recommend going! The blueberries are only $2.00 a pound and of course you probably eat a pound while you are there. :) Here is a link to their webpage if you want to check it out. http://www.bryantsblueberries.com/ It is fun, fun!

Tonight Chris took Braden to his Aunt Vickie's for some fun on the farm. Braden had a blast driving the tractor with Great Uncle Bud and driving the 4-wheeler with Daddy.(good thing Mommy wasn't around for the 4-wheeler part). He also got to pet a horse, mule, goat, and dog so he was in heaven. :)

Lately...

We have just been enjoying the summer with playdates, pools, and popsicles. :) Braden and I have been enjoying our time together with no agendas. We have had playdates several times each week and I'm loving all of the free time! I know that the free time will be ending soon (uh...like Sept. 20th) so I'm just soaking it up for now. Poor Chris has been busier than when school is in session but this next week should give him some relief. He has been teaching summer school, subbing for a college professor, mowing, and doing all of the wonderful home projects his wife assigns him. :) Braden and I are looking forward to him being home a bit now so we can venture out on some family days.

Playdate with "Little Jackson" (Michelle's Jackson)

At least one popsicle a day in this heat...Mommy eats a few too!

Of course you have to get out the bubbles often in the summer! Braden and Sophie love chasing the bubbles wherever they go.

Enjoying a snack on the back deck and cheesing for mom. Oh yeah, check out the new haircut too...it's finally growing on us a bit (and I LOVE not having to brush it in the morning).

Chris working away in the heat....the playground is finished so now he has a little bit of time to put the timbers down, stain them, and mulch. What a guy!! Braden always says, "tank yuuuu Daddy." It's pretty cute. :)

Yeah for #2!!

So you know you are a mommy when the talk and thought of poopy makes you write a post on your blog! Ha! I just had to share....Braden FINALLY went #2 on the potty today!! Woohoo! He has been perfect on going potty but could not get the other down so I'm hoping today is the start of full blown potty trained. :) We will see.

On another note, we decided to completely chop Braden's hair tonight. I have been thinking about it forever and we finally just took him to Chris' mom's and did it. We are not sure how we feel about it yet. He had SO much hair and it was long hair so now we can see his whole head and forehead and he looks like a completely different kid to me. Chris thinks he looks like Eddie Munster...which can't be good. His hair is really dark now. We'll have to see if it grows on us. :) I'll have to post pics later b/c it was sort of spontaneous and I didn't have my camera so I used Chris' mom's.

Family visit in Spencer

Yesterday we went to Spencer for my cousin's highschool graduation party. It was great to have all of the family in one place since I don't get to see everyone that often. The party was so nice (good job Elaine & Mom) and Braden had a blast! He had so much fun that I had to put him in tub before we could even leave my aunt's house to drive home. It was a mix of the sandbox, the mud, and the rootbear floats that were all over his body. :) Boys will be boys ( I guess I should get used to this).

We are in Hawaii!!! Oh wait, just Spencer :)

My mom and I

Braden playing with his 2nd cousins

Yummo! I think he was enjoying his first ever rootbeer float

First time on a trampoline-I was a nervous wreck!!!!! That's my dad in the background. I tried to make people stand on all of the sides because the statisitics of trampoline injuries were going through my head (oh you mommies out there know what I'm talking about-ha!).

Zoo water park

On Friday Braden and I met some friends at the zoo for the water park. We actually didn't visit any animals this trip and just had fun getting wet. Braden absolutely loved the sprinklers just like he did last year. This year I let him go over to the "big boy" area with the boat and slides. I thought the water was freezing but the kids didn't seem to mind. :)





This was not intentional. He turned over on the first curve-too funny!

Pretty big boys....just lounging by the pool

Summer = Popsicle time

Braden enjoyed his new playground with a neighbor last week. Emma came by to play and eat popsicles. They looked pretty cute with their blue tongues sitting at the picnic table.

Water Fun

Braden got a hold of the hose tonight and discovered rather quickly how to get Chris wet wherever he would run. It was hilarious. Of course I was not a target because I was "holding the camera" so I enjoyed watching the other two get soaked with freezing water. You have to love summer!

Tiger Woods? Ugh, No

Chris has been on a huge golf kick lately and thought Braden and I should join him Saturday night. Ha! Braden's interest level lastest about 3 seconds and my huge belly got in the way a bit. :) Braden did enjoy the putting green and ran around like a dog chasing every ball wherever we hit them. Then he would put the balls directly into the holes...and according to Braden, that's where they were supposed to stay. Not quite a Tiger Woods yet but we'll keep trying. :)

Yard sale goodies!

I am loving these huge Saturday subdivision yard sales! Chris and I are never really looking for anything specific but it's always fun to find great toys that are so cheap (because we need more toys?!?!?!). Braden already loves yard sales and thinks it's Christmas at every house we stop at. My exciting finds for this weekend are this great tool bench above. We actually already had one, but this one was better and such a great deal. It came with so many battery operated tools that make lots of cool noises and the tool bench itself has a flip shelf so you can work on the top part with screws or flip it and work on a car motor. Ha! We got everything for $10. Love it! Since Braden is OBSESSED to the point of needing an intervention with the CARS movie, we also found several more cars to add to his "collection." Would you seriously look at this table of cars? Could we fit a few more on there? He loves them and sleeps with one each night. Here is a little video of him naming some of his favorites.

First pool day of the season

On Friday, Braden and I met my friend Amy at the pool with her two little cuties, Alex and Emily. The baby pool was still super cold but the kiddos didn't seem to mind. Here they are enjoying their lunches.

First Movie

On Thursday Braden and I met Tyler and Sarah at Great Escapes for the boys' first movie. It is so great because they have a free movie every week for kids so if your kid is out of control, you could just leave. :) Braden absolutely loved the movie and barely moved the whole time. He is a bit of a t.v. junkie so this is one playdate where my kid can shine-ha!! We saw Horton hears a Who and he has been talking about Horton and his flower every since. Guess where I'll be every week this summer? Yep, you guessed it! The free movie at Great Escapes.

Do the potty dance!! :)

Braden has shocked me again! I really thought his potty training business was going to give me gray hair and take forever!!! I am pleased to announce that Braden had ZERO accidents today and told us he had to go potty every single time!!!!! WOOHOO!!!!! He basically had it after his nap yesterday. It was becoming quite the fight to put him on every 30 minutes, so I finally just kind of let it go to see what would happen and to my surprise he told me each time he had to go.

This morning I had my last Bible study and debated whether I should go, but then just thought I'd put him in a pull-up and see what happened. He thinks the pull ups are just another pair of underwear and he stayed dry the whole time (2 1/2 hours)! Now that we have this part down pat, at least around the house, I'm wondering how I will go anywhere. He goes on his little potty so I'm not sure what to do when we're at like Target and he has to go???? I guess I need to start getting him to use the big potty too. Not sure? Any thoughts on that one? Also, he still hasn't pooped on the potty. He didn't even go today which tells me he is probably holding it..then again he never went in the pull up at church like I thought he might. Hmmm...the mysteries of potty training. :0 Anyways, I'm super thrilled!! He definitely has the pottying part down and did it in just a few days.