The Adventures of Brady's

Fun in Japan comes to a stop

2011-03-12T17:39:00.000-08:00

Ben had the day off on Friday and we had planned to go to base in the afternoon. By 11:00 Lucy and I were ready, but Jack had fallen asleep, so we decided to let him take a nap, and Ben wanted to take one too! My friend Ashley was going to go shopping with some of our other friends around a mall at a nearby train station, so instead of waiting around for the boys to take a nap, we decided to go shopping with them and meet up with Ben and Jack around 2:30 for lunch and a trip to base.

Lucy and I had fun, just the two of us, shopping with our friends and when 2:00 rolled around we decided to head to the train to ride it to Yokosuka-chuo to meet Ben. I was still walking with Ashley when Ben called. He said that he forgot to feed Jack before he left, so he had to hurry and feed him and was just getting ready to leave the apartment and head to the train station. By this time it was already 2:30pm. So Ashley and I parted ways, as she was heading to base to meet her husband, and I decided to go back to the train station and wait for Ben's train to come. We sat down and waited for about 10 minutes, and then at 2:45 the ground started to shake. At first I thought I was losing it because I seemed to be the only one who felt it. But as it kept going and getting bigger, others around us started to feel it too. I didn't know if it was ever going to stop. Lights in buildings around us were swinging inside and it was hard to keep your balance. I picked up Lucy and got to the middle of the side walk where we were standing and I was praying that the buildings wouldn't collapse on us. It seemed like the quake lasted for at least 5 minutes! All the lights and power went out at the train station and people were in utter panic. Crowds gathered around the train station as a man with a megaphone was announcing something... I couldn't understand it, as it was all in Japanese. I was starting to panic as my mind raced with all the possibilities of what was happening to Ben and Jack. We waited at the train station for about 15 more minutes, as another quake started, it wasn't as big, but we sure felt it. By this time, people were trying to call whoever they could, but no one's phone seemed to be working. I asked a man to use his phone to try to call Ben, because I didn't have a phone. When I tried to reach him, it was just a busy signal. "What could have happened to them? Where they on the train? Are they okay?" As my mind was flooding with worry, I couldn't help but break into tears. When I finally got myself together, I went down to see about getting a taxi home, but where there were usually rows and rows of taxis, there were none. They were all gone. What now? The only thing I could think of was to go to Nirvana's, a restaurant that we have been to frequently, where I knew the man who worked there spoke English, and perhaps his phone was working. When I walked in and asked him, he said the landline was down, and as I said "thank you, anyways,"with tears in my eyes, he pulled out his cell phone and offered it to me. I dialed Ben's cell phone number two or three times, and it wouldn't connect. The man at Nirvana took the phone up to the street and kept trying until it finally was ringing! I spoke to Ben for a few minutes...He was at the train station waiting for the train to come when the earthquake hit, he was walking home and going to ride the apartment shuttle to base and I was going to meet him there! What a relief! We had a plan and I was feeling much better! What an answer to my prayers, that Nirvana man!! He offered Lucy and I some drinks and a place to sit so that we could put ourselves back together and regroup. By this time I was feeling much better and excited to see my husband and son!

As we were walking to base, there was a store with the news on and it was in English, we stopped to watch and listen. I learned about the tsunami in Sendai and that the whole east coast of Japan was on high alert with tsunami warnings everywhere! I was right by the base, where water surrounded us... I was beginning to become scared again. Lucy and I waited by the main gate of the base and after about an hour or so, no bus ever came. I was starting to worry. Ben knew I was at the base, maybe he was trying to take a taxi to come and meet us?! I had no idea what he was doing at this time and with no way of getting a hold of him, I asked several people coming out of the base if I could use their phone, but they had no service. By this time it was about 4:45pm. It was getting colder and the sky over the water was turning black... a woman riding her bike out of base asked if we were waiting for somoeone. I said yes, to which she replied, "If I were you, I would get to higher ground. The water level is going down out there." GREAT! Now I was in complete panic mode. My only thought was how I was going to save Lucy. At this point I was thinking it was the end. The end of days. I was never going to see Ben or Jack again. I was a complete mess. I was sobbing. Lucy just kept asking what was wrong. I told her I thought something bad was going to happen. She said, "something scary?!" Yes, I was afraid so. As I was standing outside, trying to figure out what to do, everything just seemed to get quiet. The wind stopped, as did the traffic. There seemed to be a hush over everything... like the calm before the storm. I became panicked! I threw Lucy in the stroller and just began to run. I knew how to get home, it was about 5 miles away. I figured if I ran the way the shuttle goes, or even if I saw a taxi, I could check to see if Ben was in it. I had so much adrenaline, that I really could have run the whole way. I passed the street that the train station was on, and wondered about the train... was it running yet?... I saw a couple walking, and the man looked American. "Do you know anything about the trains? Are they running yet?" I asked him as I ran up to him. He said no, they were totally shut down. He asked where I was going and I told him Kurihama. That is far, he told me and it would take over an hour to get there. I knew this. He offered for us to go back to their apartment with them. They lived on the 5th floor, which would be safe from any tsunami that might hit. I was so grateful to have some help. They offered me their computer as well as their landline phone to try to contact Ben. They gave Lucy some pens and paper to draw with while I frantically wrote emails and searched Facebook to see if any of our friends were on. They weren't. (I didn't know it at the time, but the power was out at our apartment.) I called my mom at home to get our landline phone number to our apartment, and she was definitely worried about us. I had woken her up with my phone call, and after I told her what was happening, she was up and watching CNN to figure out what was going on. It was dark by this time, and I was feeling sick to my stomach as I saw some navy ships leaving base to go out to sea, where it would be safer for them. It was almost 6:30pm by this time. I kept trying to call Ben's phone with the landline phone and by a miraculous miracle, I was able to reach him. He was at our apartment complex at the Mintling's apartment. He had thought I was with Ashley and her husband this whole time, but I told him about what had happened and how we were at the couple's house we had run into. Ben told me about the power being out and Jeff, the man whose apartment we were at, said he would give us a ride home. The traffic going towards our apartment was very minimal, but going away was gridlocked. All the power was out along the way, it was hard to see. We finally made it home around 7:15ish pm where I embraced my family!! We left the Mintling's and went home. We got the kids in their PJ's and I fed Jack... the last time I nursed him was at 11:00am! They were sleeping and so we went to bed also. I kept feeling small earthquakes throughout the night. Our power was back on when we woke up and informed our friends and families that we were safe.
Throughout this whole ordeal, Lucy was the best she has ever been, thank goodness! What a trooper, she kept me sane most of the time!

This will be a day that will not be soon forgotten... I don't think I have ever been so terrified in all my life....that will be the last time I leave the boys at home to take a nap.

Swim shorts and earring swap

2011-03-09T14:27:00.000-08:00

While we were at the New Sanno, Lucy just HAD to try on Jack's swimming shorts. I thought, why not? they won't fit her anyways, and she will see that and then leave the subject alone. Little to my surpise, she WAS able to get them on and they fit her just fine! (they are a size 3-6 MONTHS!)
I guess she is a little on the petite side!

Lucy got some new clip on earrings this same day and so in return for letting Lucy try on his swim shorts, Jack got to try on Lucy's clip on earrings...

I am glad they are learning to share!!

New Sanno Hotel

2011-03-01T15:49:00.000-08:00

In Tokyo, there is a DoD hotel (Department of Defense). It is run by the government and is very Americanized. On Sunday, they have a magnificent brunch, and we were lucky enough to go! Mmmmm... just writing this makes my mouth water! They have a ton of fruit and veggie trays, different breakfast items... bacon, sausage, eggs, hashbrowns, waffles...etc.! There were also lunch meals like chicken parmesan, penne pasta, and a HUGE meaty cow leg, that they have cooked and cut meat off for you! Live piano music played while we dined and pigged out!! To top off all our delicious food, there was a desert table with cheesecakes, cookies, brownies, and a soft serve ice cream machine with all the fixins'! We were in heaven! We loved going so much we ended up going three weekends in a row!

Just A-nerfer Birthday!

2011-02-09T16:17:00.000-08:00

Another birthday has come and gone! I can't believe that I am 25! Ben and I were talking the other night, and we definitely do not feel that old- maybe 20! For my birthday this year, we didn't do too much! Ben had to work, so the kids and I spent the day at home, lounging! Then we had a quick dinner on base with Ben when he got off work. He bought me some new Nike shoes, that have a pedometer in the sole and connects to my I-pod, and while I am walking it knows how fast I am walking and how far.... I love this because it is so fun to see how far we walk during the day. Most days are around 5 miles!

(Mine are very similar to these)

We rode the bus home, and while we were on our way home, we were chit-chatting with some friends and didn't notice Lucy had bitten off a piece of a foam nerf dart and put it up her nose! (just like one of these)

She was crying and I had to hold her hands down at her side until we got home, so she wouldn't mess with it and make it worse. When we got home we got out the tweezers and Ben and I held her down and tried to get it out, but I think WE made it worse! it was so far up her nose we needed a flash light to look up her nose to see it- and even then it was hard to see!
The next morning I got and checked Lucy's nose, and sure enough, it was still in there! I got the kids ready and we went to the Emergency Room on base to see if they could do anything for us. The ear, nose, throat doctor saw us and he said that he could surely get it out! He had to swaddle Lucy up in a sheet, I had to lay on her chest, a Navy guy had to hold her head still, and a nurse had to hold her legs while the doctor retrieved the piece of dart! What a relief! I don't think she will ever do that again...hopefully!

Tokyo- Ginza

2011-02-09T15:48:00.000-08:00

Ginza is a district of Tokyo, and has the most expensive shopping and reminded me a lot of Times Square in New York City. There were a ton of people walking around and the buildings were tall and seemed to be endless. Ben really wanted to go the the Sony building, which we did, and there were so many fun things to see in there. They had all their TV's, computers, cameras, phones, and other fun electronic things to test out!

We also went out to eat at a curry restaurant. It was fun to wear the bibs that they gave us, and it was a good thing too, because slurping up all those noodles sure can make a mess!

Mikasa Park

2011-02-09T15:37:00.000-08:00

Right outside of the base there is a park with lots of water fountains! There is one fountain that has speakers around it and at specific times they place music and the fountains are synchronized with the music! it is pretty neat!

Yokohama

2011-02-08T16:44:00.000-08:00

When we first got off the train, there was a big mall, and in it we found the looooongest escalator that we have ever seen!

In Yokohama we went to the Mitsubishi Minatomirai Industrial Museum, which was a lot like the Discovery Center, but not a lot of things for kids. They had different exhibits for Space, Sea, Automobiles, Energy, and Ocean. Ben really liked the energy one because they had a model of a nuclear reactor, just like the one on the boats. He tried to explain it to me, and most of it made sense, but if you asked me to tell you about it today, I would have no idea!! Good thing he knows!

We also went to the AnPanMan Children's Museum. AnPanMan is a cartoon character here in Japan that is very popular. We see him all the time on kids' backpacks, clothes, shoes, etc. Lucy has really become a huge fan. We watch him on TV sometimes, even though we have no idea what they are saying! So to say that Lucy enjoyed this place, would be an understatement! She loved it! And when she is happy, EVERYONE is happy!

Lunch at Hard Rock Cafe

The last thing we did in Yokohama was go to Cosmoworld, where they had a GIANT ferris wheel that we rode in. While we were on it, they had a voice recording of all the things we could see out of the ferris wheel and some history of Yokohama... and lucky for us it was in English!

Inside the Ferris wheel cage

Climbing up the Mountain

2011-01-24T19:36:00.000-08:00

Two weekends ago, we rode the train to the end of the tracks to see what we could see out the windows at the different stops. At one stop we saw a Buddha type thing and a tall red tower and said to ourselves "we will go there someday." Well that someday was Saturday. We didn't have any other plans for the weekend and thought it would be fun to get off the train where we saw the temple and see if we could find it. Sure enough, we did! We only made one wrong turn on the way. When we got to the base of the hill, we left the stroller and had Lucy walk with us while Ben carried Jack in his "papoose"! Lucy did really well walking up all the stairs, but I made her hold my hand just in case she fell backwards. Here are some of the pictures we took-

Some of the stairs up to the temple

There was a huge cemetery all along the way up. They take really good care of their cemeteries. There are water spouts and brushes hanging on them to clean the headstones. They also clear all the leaves and sticks off of them too.

This is When we got to the hill- resting in front of the Buddha guy

These two guys were on the outside of some door. I thought they looked a little scary

The view from the top!

This is the Red tower that is to the right of the Buddha temple.

There were a ton of these statues. I am not sure what they are for, but a lot of them were dressed up and had some small toys placed in front of them. (I guess I had better do a little bit of research)

We stopped to rest at a small picnic bench and we had a few snacks from my stash in the backpack- and I took a few pictures of cutey Jack!

Costco Shopping

2011-01-20T04:00:00.000-08:00

Today Lucy, Jack and I went on a trip with a group of people from the shipyard to Costco! The bus left at 10:30am and came home at 3:30pm! It was the longest time I had ever been at Costco... but it was also the most fun I have ever had there! It was just like the Costco's at home, they sold a lot of Japanese food, (well, duh... we are in JAPAN!) but for the most part it felt like being home! They even had a food court that sold hot dogs, pizza, and ice cream!

The entrance into Costco.... i love the feeling of something familiar!

Here is Lucy waiting to go in, with some friends that live right below us and we are becoming good friends! We are enjoying have good friends!

The Costco cart... they only have one seat instead of two!

The checkouts, and the front of the store

the have the same flower spot as they do at home!

people waiting in line for the samples... a crazy mob!

the sample lady handing out the goodies

I found this in the frozen food section... it is frozen spaghetti!

Ahhh yes! Sweet Dr. Pepper!

I wasn't sure what these things were... until I looked at the price tag.....

FISH PASTE!!

The sign for the food court... nothing like a Costco hot dog!

The kids and I went to the bathroom at Costco, and this was the sign above the changing table... I like the "keep watch" part!

These are all the carts that people leave with their bought stuff in while they eat lunch... everyone is so trusting, I just love it!

All the people at the food court... we had to wait for 5-10 minutes for a table to open up!

It was another fun day here in Japan!

A funny sign

2011-01-17T17:07:00.000-08:00

On most of the elevators here there is this funny sign that I just died laughing at the first time I saw it!

It is a true sign! The other day we went to the grocery store and right as the doors were closing, Lucy stood up in the stroller and put her fingers in the door! She sure did cry! Luckily it was just the tips of her fingers. So next time you see a sign like this.... LISTEN!!

Sushi Dinner

2011-01-17T17:02:00.000-08:00

On Monday night we had sushi for dinner. I have only had it one other time while we have been here, and I wasn't too thrilled with it. We decided to try it again for some dinner time fun! Well, needless to say, we probably won't be getting that again for dinner for awhile. I am not a fan of sushi or the idea of raw fish. Even writing this right now makes me feel kinda sick. But we still tasted it all and funny enough, Lucy liked it the best!

a FULL weekend

2011-01-17T16:56:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was such a fun one... especially because Ben got Monday off for Martin Luther King Day. On Friday night the kiddos and I met Ben on base and decided to scope out the Shopper's Plaza a few blocks away. It was just like a typical mall... lots of clothes-expensive, of course; a food court and there was even a fun play place for Lucy. We hit that first! They had some of the weirdest toys I had ever seen. Like big stuffed animals stuck to soft poles that rotated around and a big netted area that had big balloons that were pushed around with fans... Lucy hated this!

Then on Saturday, we went to Chinatown in Yokohama. There were a ton of restaurants and small stores selling clothes, jewelry, produce and knick knacks. There were two temples that we saw. Inside there was a vendor where you could buy incense. Then there were big stairs up to the Temple where people would light them and do their worshiping. It was neat to see all the detail put into it.

We bought Lucy a cute Chinese dress that she wears to bed almost every night! She calls it her fancy dress. We walked around a lot and by mid afternoon the kids were tuckered out. We found a place to sit down and rest while the kids took a nap. When they woke up we walked around some more before heading home.

On Sunday we went to Church. What a relief to finally be able to communicate in English and to be somewhere familiar. The Church is the same in Japan as it is in the states. What a blessing! Lucy went to nursery and was so happy to have some friends to play with and to sing songs with! She has been begging to see some friends! Church was in a building with 6 floors. The chapel and Sunday school was on the third floor. On the 6th floor was Relief Society, the mother's lounge- which had a great big couch and a big comfy arm chair in it- and nursery. On the 7th floor was young men and young women's classes. I am not sure what was on the other floors, but it was crazy to constantly be on an elevator to feed Jack or to go to our different classes.

After church, there was a free Magic man on base at the movie theater. His name is Craig Karges the Mentalist. He was really good and left us wondering about everything he did! We also saw Megamind at the theater and Lucy just loved it! It was the second time that we have taken her to the movies. The first time we spent the whole time in the hallway watching the movie through the door windows! She actually sat in her own chair and was intrigued the whole time! We liked it too! We would definitely recommend this movie!

During all this madness, our sweet little Jack was so good. He just went along with all the activities and never made a peep. We are so blessed to have such wonderful, fun children to share this great experience with!

A day of exploring

2011-01-09T19:21:00.000-08:00

On our first Saturday in Japan, we spent most of the day exploring shops around the base and bought a smaller stroller on base that will be easier to take on the train and up and down stairs. I really liked being on the base, it was like a mini-America. We were able to speak to others around us and order a hamburger in English. We walked so much that I got a huge blister on my foot and Ben's ankles have really been hurting him. By the end of most days, he is hobbling around the apartment like an old man. Hopefully our bodies will get used to all this walking.( I guess we are just getting old. hehehe!) Then on Saturday night we were invited to someone's house from the project that Ben is working with. They have been living here for about 2 1/2 years and will be here for 2 1/2 more years before they return to the states. We had sushi, which was my first time eating it, and it was actually pretty good. Lucy enjoyed it as well. We used chopsticks and realized how much we stank at using them. So, we bought some at the store to use at home and practice so we won't be too embarrassed the next time we ate in public. I met quite a few other women who have come with their husbands who are about the same age as us. Some have kids and Lucy was excited to see some friends her age. (She has been asking for Melanie and Collin since we got here!) It was a fun day, but of course I forgot our camera, so no pictures from that day. But I do have a picture of a drink that we bought out of a vending machine while on our ventures. It is a corn drink, which is warm. It tastes just like the juice from a can of corn and while Ben was drinking that last sip, there was a mouth full of corn at the bottom! Kinda gross!

First trip to the Grocery store

2011-01-05T20:29:00.000-08:00

Today was Me and the kids first trip to the grocery store. There is a small shopping complex about 3 minutes from our apartment that we can walk to pretty easily. There is a drugstore/ 100 yen store (like a dollar store) on the bottom floor and the top floor is a grocery store. I found a few essentials like milk and bread and some other non essentials like pepsi and ice cream. As I got to the check out to pay I couldn't find my wallet and started to panic. I thought for sure someone stole it from out of the bottom of the stroller as I was looking at different things trying to figure out what they were. My heart was pounding and I felt sick. But then I found it on top of the sunshade on the stroller. PHEW!! what a relief. Note to self: put wallet in a safe spot.

... just a cute picture of my little Jack all bundled up and ready to head to the store.

Our Japanese Digs

2011-01-05T20:19:00.000-08:00

I was so worried about where we were going to be living here in Japan. I know that everything here is smaller and I expected something close to a sardine can.... BUT was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at our apartment and found we had TWO bedrooms and TWO full bathrooms. Which makes for a good night sleep for all! Lucy likes to have her own room and has made special spots for her books and barbie doll. Jack is currently sleeping in a suitcase, which is actually working out rather well. We really like it so far!
Here are some pictures of our place.....

The Living room where we try to watch Japanese television....

...our quaint kitchen with two fridges. The top and very bottom drawer are fridges and the middle drawer is a freezer. Luckily we have a small oven and 3 burner stove, a microwave, toaster oven and DISHWASHER!...

...Washer and Dryer, which I haven't used yet but will try to figure out in the coming days.

...and this is why I can't figure it out....

...Hallway leading from the living room/kitchen to the bedrooms. Lining the walls are tons of cupboard space which is where all of our clothes are...

...This is our bedroom and jack's "bed"

... Lucy's bedroom...

...one of the two bathrooms, they both look the exact same, hence one photo...

...the view from the balcony....

That is our home for the next couple of months!

What time is it? WHO KNOWS!!

2011-01-05T20:06:00.000-08:00

FYI- it is 17 hours ahead of Seattle time here in Japan. So at home it is 8:04 pm Wed. night and it is 1:05pm Thursday afternoon here. Pretty crazy and our bodies are still learning to adjust. Lucy woke up at 3:30 this morning asking for her breakfast... hopefully this doesn't last too long!

I think we're turning Japanese... I really think so!

2011-01-05T20:03:00.000-08:00

We are officially American tourists in Japan. Let me tell you how the journey began...

Jan. 3rd 6:00am- I wake up to shower and get ready to finish packing the last of our bags before we head out to the airport.
             7:30am- I wake up the kiddos and get them dressed and fed and ready for the plane ride. by 8:30 we are all ready and waiting for our dear Marcie to come and pick us to take us to the airport.
             9:00ish- we are off to the airport which takes approx. an hour to get there. We enjoy good company and chit chat as we drive.
             10:30am- Arrive at the airport and check in at the desk. One of our bags was 65 lbs. so we had to move some things around a bit to get everything to the weight limit of 50 lbs. (i brought an extra, small bag just in case... good thing!)
             11:30ish-We make it through security with minimal damage and head to the gate. we got to ride the subway train thing because the gate was so far away! We have Burger King for lunch as we wait for the plane to board.
             1:45pm- We are on the plane! Relaxation from here on out..... NOT! But seriously, the trip over to Japan was not too bad. Lucy watched Aladdin and Cinderella alot and didn't sleep a wink! Jack slept on and off, but never got fussy. He just liked that we were constantly holding him. I got to watch some movies that I had really wanted to see- Easy A, which was pretty funny, and Life As We Know It, which was funny and cute and I would recommend it. The food on the plane wasn't bad either. Lucy had some vegetarian pasta, which was surprisingly good and Ben and I had roast beef and mashed potatoes. It was alright, MOM-yours is SOOOO much better! ;) They also served us some lunch right before we got off the plane in Tokyo. We had turkey and cheese hot sandwiches. Also, quite tasty. Man, airline food is just getting better, or maybe I was just really hungry. Anyways...
        Jan 4th 4:30ish pm(japan time)- We deboard the plane and head to immigration and customs which was a breeze because we didn't have to wait in the hour long line, thanks to the kids! We are all tired and grouchy by this time.
            5:30pm- We meet some people holding PSNS signs and they tell us we are waiting for all the 150ish shipyard workers to come and then they will put us on a bus or train depending on where we were headed.
           6:30pm-We are finally herded to the buses where they take everyone's luggage and put in on this mini semi and we get on the bus and are headed to the shipyard, where we will take a taxi to our apartment.
          8:00pm- We arrive at the shipyard and are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our luggage, which doesn't come for about half an hour. We all stand around and wait for off base taxis to come and get us. And once again we don't have to wait in line for the taxis because we had kids and it was chilly outside.
         9:00pm- We arrive at our apartment and scope things out. Much better than we had anticipated, which is always a great thing. We find Jammies for the kids and ourselves and crash for the night. After over 24 hours of being awake we are exhausted! and Ben had to work the next day... what a trooper, sure do love that guy!

Big Sis, Lil' Bro

2010-11-05T13:37:00.001-07:00

Slowly, but surely, Lucy is beginning to get used to her little brother!! This morning Lucy was sitting on the bed with Jack and she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek and said to him, "I love you." I knew it!!

Trick or Treat

2010-11-02T14:34:00.001-07:00

This year was a great Halloween. Lucy was old enough to figure out the whole candy situation and she was super excited about dressing up! I think she is the cutest Ladybug ever, if I do say so myself! On Saturday we spent most of the day in our jammies carving pumpkins and eating candy and just hanging out together. Then Saturday night was our ward trunk or treat, and that was so fun for Lucy and us! we got to see good friends and chit chat the night away! Lucy got a bucket full of loot and we all went home happy! On Sunday we went to Ben and Marcie Cozzens for a delicious roast meal and once again enjoyed great company! It is so nice to live around great friends, even though our families are far away!

Now for Thanksgiving!

It's the little things...

2010-10-28T14:15:00.000-07:00

Lucy has been whining ALL day... I had to wake Jack up to eat and change his diaper before we went to the Dr... He puked all over the bedspread... I started crying! Then this little voice came up to me and said "It's alright mommy, just calm down, calm down. Wipe your tears off." This made me laugh because that is what I always say to her! What a sweet girl! It is good to know that Lucy is here to take care of me! Sure do love that goofball!

One Week

2010-10-25T17:23:00.001-07:00

Has it been one week already?! I can't believe how fast time is going for our family! Jack is a week old already and has just found his sweet little place in our home. He is so adaptable to almost everything. It is so nice, considering Lucy was a little bit of a handful when she was born. Jack would sleep all day if I would let him! We just think he is such a cutie and we sure do love having him in our family!

Lucy still is learning to live with her brother. She will ask to hold him and as soon as we try to hand him to her she throws up her hands and says" I'M DONE, I'M DONE!" But she does like to get on the floor with him and lie down next to him and rub his belly... but this only happens when Daddy is at work and she is bored of me."Hooray for being a week old!"

Our Little Man... Jack David Brady

2010-10-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

He's here! He's here!! After almost 10 months of waiting to meet our sweet mister, Jack David Brady finally decided to come! He was born October 17, 2010 at 8:43 pm. He was 6 lbs. 11 oz. and is an angel baby. No complaints here! Lucy is still getting used to her brother, but is adjusting well. I am still finding it a little stressful to be alone with both of them and I don't get much done around the house, but it will get easier, right?!

36 weeks

2010-09-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any pictures for this pregnancy... I guess I got a little busy with painting and working on the house!! But I finally got around to it! I am now 36 weeks pregnant and getting ready to have this baby! Pregnancy is generally easy for me, so I don't really have anything to complain about, I just want to see my sweet mister! The only thing that really is bothering me is HEARTBURN!! But, as I recall, it went away almost instantly after Lucy was born-so I am looking forward to that. Only a few more weeks until we can bring home a new brother for Lucy!!

Spending time together!

2010-09-06T13:47:00.000-07:00

I am slowly but surely realizing that our time alone with Lucy is coming to an end! With this in mind, Ben and I have been trying really hard to make sure she feels special and that she gets more attention than usual! This weekend we spent together, just doing some fun things! On Friday night we went to Chuck E Cheese's for a par-tay! And boy, was it! We found it so hard to spend all of our 120 tokens! Lucy loved the little rides and was such a help putting the tokens in the machines! We won 400 tickets and bought some cotton candy, suckers, tootsie rolls, and other small treats and enjoyed them in the car on the way home! It was a very fun night!
Then we also spent some time at the BEACH this weekend! I didn't even know that Washington had sandy beaches, but we were lucky enough to find one! The water was a little cold, but the weather was better than we had anticipated! Lucy was most content on Ben's shoulders as we strolled down the beach- she was less likely to get wet there! We found a ton of sand dollars and smooth pretty rocks. There just happened to be a kite in our trunk so we flew that for a while. I buried Lucy in the sand and we just enjoyed spending time together! It is weekends like these that make you realize how special family is- and how exciting it will be to grow our family to 4!

Kitsap County Fair

2010-08-31T13:48:00.000-07:00

Last week we went to the local county fair. It was so fun! Lucy enjoyed looking at all the animals and watching all the people... but she definitely loved the greasy food! Like mother like daughter! For dinner we had hamburgers and fries, then we had some scones with jam, then to finish it all off, we all shared an elephant ear. Needless to say, I was up in the night puking!
We watched a hypnotist-which wasn't as good as others we have seen- and then there were these funny brothers who juggled and did different tricks. They were very funny and Ben loved them!! All in all we had a fun family outing! I love that Lucy is big enough to go out with us and partake of the fun things!

Working On The House... upstairs family room

2010-08-20T14:16:00.000-07:00

BEFORE...
I love our fireplace, but I am not a fan of the wood! And I really don't like white walls! So after a few coats of primer and paint we have an enjoyable place to sit and relax!

AFTER...

p.s. it is a little hard to see, but i got the coffee table at the thrift store for $1.50!

Working On The House... the kitchen

2010-08-20T13:59:00.001-07:00

BEFORE...

When we first went and looked at our house, I loved the kitchen! It isn't very big, but it is cute and plenty big enough for all my things! Another thing that attracted me was the big window that makes the kitchen so light. But i HATED the brown cupboards! SO... I did something about it and this is what I got!

AFTER...

Working on the House... bathroom

2010-08-19T10:53:00.000-07:00

BEFORE...

Things are coming along in the house, slowly but surely!! I have taken pictures of the bathroom upstairs, so that will be the first thing I post. It is amazing what a little paint will do to a room. The nice thing about doing this bathroom is that I used all the same decorations that I already had- which makes the transformation cheap! I spray painted the white light fixture brown and bought a new mirror at Ross.

AFTER...
More to come!!

Where Have You Been??

2010-08-06T10:34:00.000-07:00

Well, really, where have I been is a more appropriate question! It has been a long while since I have posted to the blog! Our New home takes up most of my time now, what with painting and decorating and keeping Lucy out of things, I haven't had an extra ounce of time!! But this weekend, Ben's parents are visiting so I am taking a break! Ben and his dad are working on tiling the downstairs bathroom and his mom and I are spending time chit-chatting and playing with Lucy! So I am going to make one super-post for now. There will be more to come of the house later!

Lucy went potty on the toilet for the first time!!

Lucy got a hand me down slide from the neighbor!

The Flowers that Ben got me for our 3rd Anniversary

making banana bread and enjoying the batter!

My Brother Matthew came to visit us for a few days and we went to Seattle to see the sights!

Lucy and her cousin, Hannah, having some home-made cotton candy!

Yum Yum!!

At the Boise Zoo

Dancing at the Zoo

Smile!

Riding the giraffe

Our first meal at our new home- sandwiches!

Our little goaties that are clearing out the brush as we speak!

Goofy Girl

2010-06-22T22:07:00.000-07:00

I have been really bad about updating the blog and probably will be even worse now that I am going to be so busy with the new house-SO- here are some random pictures to keep you at bay (I am talking to you, MOM!)

HOME AT LAST!!

2010-06-22T21:59:00.000-07:00

We have finally gotten our keys to our home after what feels like an eternity! It is such a weird feeling to be able to go in and start taking things apart and not worry about being able to or not! I can paint and redo anything I want- that is a GOOD feeling!

GOOD FIND!!

2010-05-20T09:19:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, we went to the St. Vincent thrift store and I was WAY impressed! I found some good finds, but the best was this crib bumper for "the boy". It is a pottery barn kids and it was only.....ONE DOLLAR!! AHHH! I couldn't believe it!

Bowling

2010-05-20T09:12:00.000-07:00

At the bowling place here in town they are having a great deal for the month of May during the weekdays... $2.oo games and free shoe rental!! So we took advantage and Lucy really liked it! The pictures explain themselves!!

One Fine Day

2010-05-13T12:45:00.000-07:00

Today was a GOOD day! Lucy and I snuggled on the couch this morning and watched "Aristocats" together. She really enjoyed the singing and it was hard to keep her on the couch and away from the front of the screen!! Then we got ready and headed out to the Good Will to see what we could find! We got a few good finds, but nothing for "the boy" yet!!

We came home and decided to enjoy the weather a bit. We packed a lunch and took it outside, and much to my suprise, they opened the pool at the apartment complex. So we had lunch "poolside". Lucy loved looking at the water and it was hard to pay attention and eat her sandwich! We will save swimming for another day! Then we went and gathered "treasures" (rocks, sticks, pinecones, etc.) from the ground and put them in Lucy's sand bucket.

These are the days that make everything worthwhile! I LOVE BEING A MOMMY!

It's a... BOY!!

2010-05-12T16:51:00.000-07:00

Well, the waiting and wondering is finally over!! We are having a BOY!! I am actually quite excited, more than I thought I would be. Lucy says that she is glad she is getting a little brother, and I am pretty sure Ben is too!! Right after the appointment, walking to the car he said, "It looks like we will have to keep the Mustang after all." Oh, I sure do love him!!

Now time to fill up his wardrobe!!

BOY OR GIRL??? You decide!!

2010-05-10T12:54:00.001-07:00

On Thursday We will find out the sex of the baby!!
I have NO idea- but maybe you do!

Boy or Girl

Girl

Boy

Create a Poll | More Polls | by Tjshome.com

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

2010-05-09T13:05:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day to reflect upon the wonderful things that our mothers do for us!

I love my sweet momma and all the great things she does/sacrifices for her family!

I wish I could be half the woman she is!

I LOVE YOU MOM!

Calendar

2010-05-04T11:57:00.000-07:00

I found this big picture frame at the Good Will the other day, and thought "I could do something with this!" And sure enough-I did! I made a calendar, which we have need since January, to write all of our important dates on--Birthdays, Dr's appointments, the day we move into our new house :) , you know, all that fun stuff!

yeah, that's right, I hand stitched the WHOLE thing... kind of a pain!

A New Home for Three (and a half!)

2010-04-28T11:59:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a while since I last posted, but there really isn't anything new going on... until today, that is! The other house we put an offer on, fell through, so we have been looking, and looking, and looking some more! But we put in an offer on a new house and it was accepted today!! We are very excited to be moving in about two months to a place that is OURS... where we can paint the walls, plant flowers, mow the lawn, and start a new journey of home-ownership together! Lucy is just going to love being able to run around outside all the time-I think a sandbox would be great! And I am excited to decorate a new nursery and bring our sweet new baby home to this house!! (this is the real deal! 1.1 acres)

We are going on a Jet Plane!!

2010-04-11T17:02:00.000-07:00

Well, Lucy and I are! We are going to Boise for a WHOLE week to visit my family!! We are leaving tomorrow evening! It will be sad to leave poor Benny behind, but absence does make the heart grow fonder! I am looking forward to having a few less meals to cook, and Lucy can't wait to see "Nana" and "Jodee" (joey!)

New things are A-happening!

2010-03-26T09:05:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I have posted, but with good reason! First of all, we have put an offer in on a house and the bank has accepted it! So... if all goes according to plan, we will close on the 17th of May!! YEAH!!! We are just so excited about this! The house is great and I am very much looking forward to turning it into our HOME! The thing I love the best about the house is that it has a lot of potential.... which means there are a few things that need to be worked on, but I can see a magnificent end result in my little mind!
On another note- Here is a picture of another thing to come! See if you can guess?!

GOOD LUCK!!

Scentsy Party

2010-03-12T10:19:00.000-08:00

I am hosting a Scentsy party next week, March 17th, from 4:00pm-7:00pm. It will be open house style, so feel free to come whenever you would like!! If you can't make it, but would still like to order something, you can email me and I can order before the party is closed!
*Feel free to bring children! There will be goodies to munch on!!

Hot Tub

2010-02-10T12:13:00.000-08:00

Our new apartment complex has a HOT TUB!! It is so relaxing to go and sit in at the end of the day. But I think the one who enjoys it the most is Lucy! She thinks she can swim and is so not afraid of the water. we stand her on the edge and she will jump right in! (we catch her, of course!) It is a fun thing to do together as a family!!

The Space Needle

2010-02-10T11:34:00.000-08:00

For my special Birthday treat this year, Ben made reservations at the Space Needle is Seattle. Oh, how I had been looking forward to this fun date! It turned out to be a great event-filled evening to say the least!!

Our friends Ben and Marcie agreed ever so kindly to watch Lucy for us. So after we dropped her off at their house Friday afternoon, we drove to Bremerton to catch the Ferry to Seattle (which we would have missed if we hadn't of RAN from the parking lot to the ferry). So, we enjoyed a nice relaxing ride over to Seattle.

When we got to Seattle, we didn't know when or how to catch a bus, so we just started walking, uphill, to find a bus stop. And our reservations were in about 1/2 an hour at this point, so we needed to hurry. In order to be faster, we ran. I did not anticipate the running part and so I wore some cute, but very hurting, shoes. We finally found the right bus to take us straight to the space needle, and we got there at 5:46. (our reservations were at 5:45).

Our dinners were GREAT!! I had steak with crab legs... yum yum! Ben had prime rib. It was all so delicious! The restaurant is at the top of the Space Needle, and is spinning the whole time, not fast, but so you can see all around you. It was pretty neat!

Since it was my birthday, they brought our dessert with candles! it was very fancy! After dinner, we rode the elevator one more floor up to the observatory and looked out at the city and used the telescope binoculars. It was a very fun, delicious, memorable meal!!

Now we needed to catch a bus to take us to the ferry. Little did we know that after 7:00pm the buses were not free, and charged $2 per person. We did not have any cash. So we started walking the mile and a half to the ferry. (remember i have on the bad shoes!) My feet were hurting so bad, I had to take off my shoes and carry them. It was getting close to the time that the ferry was going to leave so we ended up running again to try and make it in time! We then decided to go to a store and get some cash back to ride the bus. Now we had $4 and were ready to catch a bus... but which one?! We stood at this bus stop and buses kept coming but we weren't sure which one to get one. Finally we decided to get on the next one that came and get off as close as we could to the ferry. (we were about 6-7 blocks away.) So, we get on the bus, pay our money, and two blocks later, the bus driver tells us that we need to get off here because he isn't going to stop anywhere near the ferry! what a waste of our money. We said to each other it would have been faster to just have walked/ran the rest of the way.

Anyway, we made it to the ferry on time. We went to Ben and Marcie's to pick up Lucy, and by this time it is 10:30pm. We went inside and she was sleeping so we started talking with Ben and Marcie, and before we knew it, it was 1:30am!! They offered to let us crash on their floor, and we did! In the morning, Lucy was kinda shocked to see up sleeping on the floor, and Melanie was excited to have visitors so early!!

What a great and exciting day!! I love all of our adventures, and can't wait for many more to come!!

Outside the Space Needle

At the Observatory

Our fancy dessert (with CANDLES!)

Elise at dinner

Ben at dinner

FREE BREAKFAST!

2010-02-09T08:57:00.000-08:00

This morning, i was looking on Slickdeals.net, which is a great website, and i saw that Denny's is giving away free grand slam breakfasts until 2 today. Lucy and I hurried and got dressed and had a breakfast date! It was super fun and totally free!! Go and get yours! But hurry, today until 2pm! GOOD LUCK!!

Last day of 23!!

2010-02-02T11:51:00.001-08:00

Last night after Lucy went to bed, Ben made me a Birthday crown from a balloon, and so i wore it on my last day of being 23!! And of course, Ben took some pictures of me wearing my sweet hat!

So, Good bye 23, Hello 24!!

Our Lucy is Growing up!

2010-02-02T11:31:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that Lucy was ever a little baby! It doesn't seem possible that this adorable little girly was once not able to even roll over! Now She is EVERYWHERE! She can throw the ball and play catch with Daddy, Ask for milk from the fridge, sit on the floor and play with her babies for hours, and Loves to go shop-shop with Mommy! Lucy is a true blessing and we are so grateful for such a sweetheart to be here in our home with us! Here are a few recent pictures of the little rascal!!

We rode on the foot ferry to Bremerton to get some ice cream, and Lucy loved sitting on the bench like a big girl!

She was looking out the window to find the fish

Lucy loves to sit with ALL her animals on her! And it had to be on the couch!

She thought it was pretty funny!

This is such a fun stage and gets more fun by the day! WE LOVE YOU LUCY!!

Turning an apartment into HOME

2010-01-25T14:04:00.000-08:00

I have done it! Everything is unpacked and we have been in Port Orchard for exactly one week! It feels good to have a place to live and cook again... but eating out was good too! It was a huge pain finding a place for everything because this apartment is a lot smaller than our last, and it doesn't have much space for storing things. I had to get creative and hide a lot of things under our bed and Lucy's crib. Anywho... here are some pics of the new place. :)

Lucy's room

Lucy's/Guest bathroom

Our Bedroom

Our Bathroom

Dining room

Kitchen

Living room

As you can see, it is a little small, but is warm and we love it! The complex has a swimming pool and hot tub, so we are excited to use it!!! They also have free tanning here and I have already taken advantage of that a few times!

We don't live too far from friends so that makes the move all the better! we have been playing with them a bit! We love it here and love how green everything is! A HUGE change from desert!

SO, THAT IS OUR NEW HOME!!

We have arrived!

2010-01-20T10:57:00.000-08:00

We are now residents of Port Orchard, Washington! It is funny, but it still feels like we live in Idaho, because we have ALWAYS lived there! But the differences are of course, lots of water around us and the weather has been great!! No snow, 50 degree weather, and SUN!! I think we are getting a little spoiled though; the rain is sure to come! Ben has started his new job and so far he has just done orientation stuff but I think the good stuff will come shortly! Lucy and I are busy unpacking and trying to find spots for our goodies to go. Our new apartment is a little smaller than our last one, so we are going to be making a trip to Goodwill today and get rid of some of the stuff we don't need that is just taking up space. My goal is to have everything in its place by Friday! HAH!! we will see! But when everything is in place i will take some pictures and videos and post them! Until then, wish me luck!

WASHINGTON

2010-01-06T09:22:00.000-08:00

Ben's job at Puget Sound in Washington is official and his first day is January 19th. And I don't think the move could come any faster, especially with this wet carpet business! We are working on getting a hold of the moving company and setting up a day to move, so the sooner the better! I will post more later, when we get to Washington! Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers on our behalf!

Welcome Home... or not!

2010-01-06T09:13:00.000-08:00

We came home from Boise on Sunday night, and much to our surprise we had swimming pool in our kitchen and living room! The kitchen sink had been leaking while we were gone, and flooded. We had a guy come and try to suck as much water as he could out of the carpet, but it is still soaking wet and it has been 3 days! It is really stinky! Our manager fixed the sink, so now we can have clean dishes, but there is no furniture in the living room because of the wet carpet. we have fans all over the place and have to leave the windows and doors open. And it is freezing outside- just to add to the fun!! So, hopefully it will get better soon!

Christmas time 2009

2010-01-04T13:28:00.000-08:00

I am a little late on the Christmas post, but better late than NEVER! We spent a few weeks in Boise with our families around Christmas, because Ben had some time off of work! It was fun! We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with Ben's family. Ben's mom always has a fun family night on Christmas Eve and we have lots of treats and snacks and the kids usually act out the Nativity. We always have so much fun there! Then on Christmas morning we woke up about 8:00 and we went downstairs to see what Santa had left for us!! Lucy had a great time! She got a really cute chair from Santa, but wasn't interested in it until 3 days after Christmas! There was just so much going on and was pretty busy opening all the other presents (hers or not!) After we opened all our presents, we got ready and spent the rest of the day at my parent's. We opened some presents and my grandparents came over for dinner. It was really fun, and I know that they love to spend time Lucy. We had a really fun time in Boise and are glad that Ben had a few weeks off to enjoy some time with family!

Lucy's new beads

Ben's Christmas present

Lucy helping daddy

Lucy on her new chair

Opening presents

JOB OFFER!

2009-12-16T09:02:00.000-08:00

Well, Puget Sound said they would take two weeks to reply to us and let us know about a job, but.... two days later they called and offered us a job! AND WE ARE GOING TO TAKE IT!! Washington here we come!! This is such a scary, exciting, stressful, happy time in our lives! I am not sure when the job will start, it all depends on how long it takes to get the paper work done! Now, I have to start organizing things so the movers can pack it more easily! That's right... they are going to pack and move all of our things for us! I am so glad! That is the worst part of moving! What a good Christmas present!

Our Seattle weekend!!

2009-12-14T08:37:00.000-08:00

We have returned safely, soundly, and OH SO TIRED! But it was well worth the fun we had! Here is a rundown of our trip!

On Thursday morning we left for Seattle. When we arrived that afternoon, we got a really nice rental car, and if it were in our budget, i would really like a car like that. It was a Pontiac G6. Then we went to a nice lunch at 13 coins. Then we rode on the ferry! What a fun thing to do! I really liked it because we could just park the car, and ride and play for an hour instead or being stuck in the car driving!waiting in the car for the ferry to let us on!

Elise and Lucy on the boat!
Our familyLucy looking through the gate on the boat

Then on Friday, Ben had his interview at 7:30 am. So Lucy and I got ready and went to our friends house. We were able to see Marcie and Melanie for most of the day! Marcie made us a delicious chicken salad sandwich lunch and we were able to chit chat for a bit!
After Ben's interview I asked him how it went, and he thought it went well. But we won't hear anything for about 2 weeks.

On Saturday, we had a fun-filled day with our good friends Ben, Marcie, and Melanie! We all went to Tacoma and rode on a fun train with Santa. It was funny to see Lucy and Melanie with Santa, they were both very skeptical!

After our sweet train ride, we all went out to eat! We weren't really sure of the area, so we picked a place from the GPS, and it turned out great! We ate at Anthony's restaurant right on the water. It was so pretty! The food was great and the company was best!! We always have so much fun with Ben and Marcie. We love them so much and who knows, maybe we will be spending a lot more time together!
Ben and Elise
Ben and Marcie
Melanie and Lucy holding hands
The girls again

The weekend went by too fast but we had so much fun! We had a great time and made so many fun memories!

Oreo Dessert

2009-12-09T14:19:00.000-08:00

I made this oh so delicious Oreo Dessert for our ward party tonight, and I thought i would share it's goodness with you!
Recipe:
1 package of oreos
1 stick of butter, melted
1 package of cream cheese
1 Cup of powdered sugar
1 big package of chocolate pudding
1 16 oz. tub of cool whip

Crush up all oreos, except for 6 cookies, with a rolling pin. Mix crushed oreos with melted butter. Press into a 9x13 pan. In a seperate bowl, mix cream cheese and powdered sugar. Fold in 1/2 tub of cool whip. Layer on top of oreos. Make chocolate pudding as directed on box. Layer on top of cream cheese mix. Use the rest of the cool whip on top of chocolate pudding. take the last six oreos and crush up a little and sprinkle over top! TA-DA!!

I'm going on a trip and I'm taking......MY FAMILY!!

2009-12-08T10:32:00.000-08:00

Seattle, Washington

This weekend, Ben has an interview at Puget Sound, the naval shipyard in Bremerton, WA. They are flying him down, and paying for a rental car, hotel, and food!! SO... We decided that Lucy and I would come along for the trip, and make a fun vacation out of it!! We only had to pay for a ticket for me, as Lucy is under two and free! I am so excited and proud of Ben for always doing good things for our family! I know he will do well and impress the pants off the interviewers!! And while we are in Washington, we get to see our good, sweet friends BEN, MARCIE, AND MELANIE!! I am just so excited, I can't wait! So, wish us luck and We will let you know how it goes!!

First Kiss!

2009-12-06T07:06:00.000-08:00

On Saturday night we had our friends, the Sloan's, over for dinner! It was so much fun! Ben and I made a turkey and we had all the fixings for a Thanksgiving/Christmas feast...mashed potatoes, gravy, broccoli, jello, stuffing, rolls, and homemade pumpkin pie! It was delicious! Anyways, back to the main reason for this post! Lucy and Krew had their very first kiss last night! It was so funny, and i am glad that i got it on video! It is short, but oh so sweet!

Growing up!

2009-12-05T08:59:00.000-08:00

It is still hard to believe we have a little girl! I took this picture of Lucy a few days ago, and she is looking so big to me! She is definitely growing up! Her hair is long enough for pig-tails and she doesn't cry when i do it anymore! And what a girl she is! she loves to wear mommy's necklaces and bracelets! She loves to kiss and hug her babies! I love that she is so girly! Gotta love Lucy!

Dresser update

2009-12-02T08:19:00.001-08:00

Ever since I finished our dresser, I felt it needed a little something more. So, one day Ben and I were shopping at the Idaho Youth Ranch, and found this mirror. I really liked it, but we had no where to put it. So once we had the dresser, I thought about that mirror and we went back to see if they still had it... and they DID!! and it was 50% off! I am pleased with the way it turned out!

Lucy's Birthday a.k.a Thanksgiving

2009-11-28T05:59:00.000-08:00

Well, this year Lucy's birthday fell on Thanksgiving! It was fun because we had more time off of work and was able to spend more time at our parents house and spend Lucy's birthday with our families!

In the morning we took Lucy downstairs and had decorated for her. My mom bought her a fun tent and set it up for her with toys and presents inside! I think she really liked it!! We went to Ben's parents house after she opened all her presents and spent the rest of the afternoon there! We had a delicious dinner with them, but the most amazing thing to me was all the pies that Ben's mom made!! She made: pumpkin, apple, cherry, peach, mixed berry, chocolate, cheesecake, lemon meringue, coconut, banana cream, and eggnog pie! It was extremely delicious and inspires me to start a new tradition with our family!
After all that fun, we went back to my mom's to celebrate Lucy's birthday! My grandparents came over to share the fun day with Lucy. Her highchair was all decorated with balloons and bows and she had turkey and mashed potatoes and gravy! She really loved it! Then came the cake! I thought she would just dig in and mash it around all over the place, but she was very dainty and made sure she was getting every piece in her mouth.... but the she got a little bored with that and then it was everywhere!!
All in all, I would say the day was a success! I have been planning this day for what seems like months, and now it is all over and we have A ONE YEAR OLD GIRLY! We love our little Lucy and are so thankful for the sweet little person she is turning into!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY AND THANKSGIVING!

Opening Presents!

Blowing out the candle

Playing in her tent

Eating Cake

Yum Yum!

Taking Pictures!

2009-11-21T06:38:00.000-08:00

Last night Lucy and I set up my hair cutting chair and took some pics in front of our Christmas tree! It was pretty fun, at first... the smiles slowly died down though! So we brought in the dog! She just loves Charlie! ENJOY!!

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree....

2009-11-20T08:25:00.001-08:00

Well, I had a little time on my hands this week, and after talking to my mom-who already had her tree up a week ago- I put up the Christmas tree and decorations! It was a lot easier that I thought it was going to be, what the Lucy and the Dog! But They helped a lot, and we got it all done in one afternoon! Ben was sure surprised when he came home from work! Now we can enjoy the Festivities much longer!

Our Christmas tree. I had to put it up so it wouldn't get chewed or ripped down!

Cute earmuffs... getting ready for the snow!

I just added the picture of Lucy and Charlie for fun!!

New Dresser

2009-11-20T08:18:00.001-08:00

This past week I have been working on our new dresser... well, new to us! Ben's brother gave it to us and I thought, "I could do something good with that!" So I have been sanding with Ben's vibrating sander, but it was taking forever! So Ben had a friend at work who's dad had a belt sander, and that baby did the job!! So after a long hard week, I have finally finished and am very happy with the results! THANK YOU STEVE AND LAURA FOR YOUR GENEROSITY!

sorry no before pics! i guess i wasn't thinking!

TIME FLIES...

2009-11-16T08:00:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe how fast this last year has gone by! This time last year i was huge pregnant with Lucy... and now SHE is getting huge! (in a super cute, good way!) Life seems to be going by so fast lately and Lucy will be ONE YEAR OLD next week, so i thought i would put up some pics of when she was a tiny newborn, which only seems like a few months ago!

The First night we brought Lucy home!

She was so tiny!

I love this picture! She looks so much like Ben to me!

Three months old!

Our Little Ballerina

2009-11-01T18:40:00.000-08:00

This year for Halloween, Lucy's first, we decided we would dress her as a ballerina! (because i had already made her a tutu like 6 months ago!) I think she liked her outfit and she sure looked cute! We didn't do any trick-or-treating, on account of getting our new puppy! But I don't think that Lucy minded one bit! And there is less candy around the house for me to eat!

Christmas Came Early!

2009-11-01T17:44:00.000-08:00

Well, this weekend was Christmas in our family! (well at least for me!) We were looking online at a few PUPPIES for sale in Utah, and i found some that were so cute!! so i showed them to Ben after work on Friday. We talked to our managers Sat. morning and Sat. afternoon we were on our way to West Jordan, UT to pick out our sweet little addition! We all loved him from the first time we met him! His name is CHARLIE! He has been so good to Lucy and I think that they are going to be great friends! We take him out about every hour and so far no accidents in our home, but it has only been a few hours! I am so excited for the fun (and time-consuming) years ahead for out sweet little family!

Just Hanging Out with Lucy

2009-10-21T11:52:00.000-07:00

I just LOVE being Lucy's momma! I am so thankful that i GET to stay home with her and have fun with her! It would be so hard to leave her and miss so many milestones in her life! I am thankful that Ben is such a good husband and works so hard for Lucy and I, so that we can stay home together! I love my eternal family and am so blessed to have a beautiful, healthy little lady and a sweet caring hubby! I LOVE MY FAMILY!

Our little animal Lover

2009-10-19T11:22:00.000-07:00

Lucy just loves animals....and we ALL love ice cream! So we like to go to Reed's Dairy and get the best of both! They make delicious ice cream and Lucy loves to go and visit the goats and sheep! I am glad that she likes animals, because I do too! One day we will have a little one for her to play with!! (an animal, i mean! Don't get any ideas!)

Swim Class

2009-10-12T20:44:00.000-07:00

Lucy is now in a swim class! We were a little nervous that she wouldn't like it, but she ended up loving it!! It was fun! The teacher taught us some fun games to play in the water! The class is 1/2 hour, twice a week for four weeks! It is a fun thing to do with LUCY!!
-sorry about the quality of pics, it is from the video camera!

Happy Birthday Ben!

2009-10-12T19:40:00.000-07:00

Today was Ben's 24th Birthday! He had to go to work, so Lucy and I got up early to make breakfast and after Ben went to work we took some balloons and decorated his car! For Ben's birthday dinner he chose steak and shrimp! It was oh so yummy!! It was a fun day and I am glad that I have such a GREAT husband! It is fun for me to dote on him! Love you, Ben!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Splish Splash, Lucy takin' a bath!

2009-09-30T10:35:00.000-07:00

Lucy LOVES to take a bath! she gets one every night... but last night, Lucy and I were playing in the living room and Ben went to turn the bath on for her, and as soon as she heard it, she went running (well, as fast a her little legs could go!) to the bathroom!! What a silly little girly!

New headboard

2009-09-30T10:31:00.000-07:00

i am a HUGE fan of BE DIFFERENT, ACT NORMAL! and i saw a post for a tufted headboard, and i fell in love. over the past few weeks, i have been gathering material to create a fancy headboard for our plain jane bed. and this is what i came up with!!Now we have the start of a fancy room!

"Walkin' On Sunshine..."

2009-09-30T09:51:00.000-07:00

Well, it is official...we have a WALKING child. By ten months, Lucy has mastered the art of toddling around. Of course she gets into everything and i have to keep all the doors in the house shut, or i would never find her! It is a fun stage, and we love every minute we get to spend with our precious gift from Heavenly Father! Lucy is a choice spirit, and we are blessed to have her in our home!