Mine

I've done A LOT of thinking in the past couple of weeks about my life and I have realized that people will come into my life and people will leave my life. People will love me and some may not. Friends will come and friends will go. But THE ONLY THING that will ever remain the same is that these two boys will ALWAYS be mine! Mine to love and hold (as long as they will let me), to teach, to learn from, to have fun with, to grow with. They are mine and I am so grateful to God for giving them to me! I don't think I deserve them, but I am ever so grateful for them! 

18 Months Old

Braxton turned 18 months old on January 3rd! THIS BOY!!!! 

He is wild, crazy, fearless, happy, caring, sweet, mischievous, silly and one of the best things that ever happened to me! Braxton wakes up ready for the day with a smile on his face and he is non stop until he takes a quick nap during the day and then non stop again until bedtime! He is generally always happy and smiling and just enjoying life-I need to take a lesson from him on that! He is not much of a talker-he really only says mom and more, which sound a lot alike, He meows like a cat, roars like a monster and vrooms like a car. He understands everything I tell him though-like when I tell him to throw something away, find his brother, give me a kiss, get his blanket, etc....He love his Daddy and gets so excited every time he sees him! He loves trains and cars and loves doing whatever his big brother is doing-which Conner doesn't always like. This boy is non stop and full of energy! He loves to climb on things, jump of things, break things and hit things. He loves to eat and will eat anything you give him! He has 10 teeth-but it only looks like he has his 4 bottom teeth. 

I can not imagine my world without Braxton! I know that he was sent to me at this time for the right reason. He is a constant joy and brings me so much happiness that I need right now! I love you Bubba! 

Life lately-Via Phone Pics

I generally take my pictures on my cell phone-which isn't always great-because it's quick and easy and usually on me. So here is our life lately using cell phone pics! 

This little guy loves to steal my drinks from me! 

I usually only give him a few sips and then take it away! 

It's rare when this one naps and they usually only happen in the car! 

I'm not the greatest mom at this point in my life right now-but I'm trying to get better at doing some fun, festive things. We went to visit Gardner Village and The Witches one day with my sister and her kids! It was perfect weather and the kids had fun!  

 Brax is a tropper when running errands! No matter what he is doing, he makes it fun! 

And he looks super cute in hats! 

 Preschool has been great for Conner! He is not huge on arts and crafts, but seems to like them at school. They made Monster Hats and this is his scary Monster Face! 

We were festive again and visited Petersen Farms! The kids had so much fun in their costumes, picking pumpkins and seeing the farm animals!  I love our tradition of going here and then Chick Fil A for lunch! I hope we continue it forever! 

Conner is 4

My little Monkey is 4 years old now! I feel old having a 4 year old! I still think of him as my little baby, but he is quickly growing in every aspect of his life. I always say that Conner looks like his dad but acts just like me-which is good and bad. We have the same personality which causes us to butt heads a lot and is something that we are working on.  Conner is very head strong and loves things done his way and on his own time. He doesn't really like being told what to do or how to do something from someone else. But he loves to tell other people what to do! He loves things to be in order. He has to have things done in a certain way and if people don't do it that way he corrects them.

Conner is also my best friend and side kick! He loves to be with me and do whatever I am doing. If I have to leave him, he is always upset and lets me know and is always glad when I come back. He loves to run errands with me or do chores with me. He also likes me to do what he is doing-which I can't and don't always want to do. He likes me to help him with things like going to the bathroom, or getting dressed which he knows how to do by himself. I am working on getting him to try and do those things by himself.

Conner is still having food issues. He always tells me that he likes "his" food and doesn't want new foods. But over the summer he tried several new things and liked them-like slurpees, sno cones, raspberries, blueberries, frosting and yogurt smoothies. But I still can't get him to branch our from chicken nuggets as a main meal.

Conner is very loving and compassionate. He can always tell when I am sad or feeling down and he knows how to cheer me up-a simple hug and kiss! If Braxton gets hurt, he will run over and hug and kiss him. If he hurts someone, he will tell them sorry and make sure they are ok. He is also good at catching me off guard and telling me things like "I'm the best" or  he loves me at random moments when I need them the most. I love him for that.

Conner has grown physically, but socially as well. He will play on the playground without me having to go with him. He doesn't mind going off and playing with other kids that he knows (still a little shy to new kids). He is more talkative to our relatives when he is around them and his teacher said that he loves to interact with the other kids in class-major improvement from last year! He is also learning lots of new things in school like how to write! He also has a great memory. He can hear a song once and know the words to it. He remembers small details of things and he remembers things that happened a year or two ago. I'm hoping this will be a great trait when he is in school.

I love this kid so much! He is a huge part of why am I am alive today! He teaches me everyday and I am so so thankful to have him as my son! Can't wait to see him grow more this year and hopefully I can document it better! 

I Love You More Than...

This is just something that I want to document so I don't forget!  Conner and I like to play a game with each other, usually as I tuck him in for bed. One of us starts and says "I love you more than...." and then we list something. We usually say diet coke, ice cream, peanut butter cups, Chick Fil A...you get the idea. Last night got really silly and we were laughing hard! We were listing things like the carpet, curtains, the fridge, the car, the moon, the sun, different foods, different animals and then he started saying poop and pee and I said enough and we went to bed! I love Conner so much! 

Words

Today I told Conner that he was cute. He said "Mom you're always cute!" I love that most days I feel crummy about the way I look or I am too hard on myself about what I ate or the number the scale said. But to this little boy...I am cute! And tonight, Conner went swimming with his uncle while I stayed home with Braxton. When he got back he ran and gave me a hug and kiss and said he missed me. This little 3 year old boy has no idea how powerful his little words can be! I love him!

My Boys

I am so in love with these two boys! They are my world and the reason that I am alive and breathing today! They drive me crazy some days and push my buttons and test my patience, but they also make me learn, grow and want to be a better person all at the same time. They are so opposite from each other, yet have so much love for each other.

 My most favorite time of the day is in the morning. We are all sleeping in the same bed right now and Braxton will wake up first. He always smiles the second he sees me awake and comes and climbs onto me. Then he will go and smack his brother until he wakes up. Then they lock eyes and both of them go crazy inside (I can literally see this happen) and they start to smile at each other, connect in some way and start making noises at each other. Conner always says "It's a good morning Bubba" and Braxton always smiles back at him. I love this moment and I love that I get to see it happen each day! They truly love each other and that makes me incredibly happy! 

These boys keep me on my toes every day! Conner loves to look on Pinterest on my phone and find something fun to do and I do my best to create some version of what he wants to do. He is very cautious and is slowly starting to try new foods and new activities. Braxton is crazy! I call him a crazy animal a lot. He is so adventurous and outgoing. He is messy, dirty, loud and all boy! He is also an excellent eater and I love giving him new foods to try and seeing his reaction. These boys are total opposites, but I love them both so much! I am one lucky lady to be their mother!