More of Dane at 14 months

Dane's new word is "Daddy". He says it ALL the time, whether Daddy is around or not. He does say it specifically to Daddy too so that's how we know it's an "on purpose" word. :) Another new one is "hi" and he LOVES to watch ceiling fans spin round and round. Oh, and point at and touch every one's nose, eyes, and mouth. What a bright, curious little guy!

It's been a sweet morning...

When I came home from the gym early this morning, Aaron and Cade were rocking in the rocking chair together in the dark. It was a much needed scene for me to see. I almost cried.

I then showered, still dark outside. Afterwards, I could hear Dane talking in his crib so I went in to get him. He'd look up at me, smile, lay down and hide his face from me, look back at me, smile and laugh, and hide his face again...such a sweet happy way to start my day.

Later this morning I realized I hadn't given Cade a hug yet so I asked for a big hug. He's so good about throwing his arms around me and squeezing tight! As we were hugging he said quietly in my ear, "I want to be a good boy for you today mommy." And my immediate reply was, "Oh Cade, that would make me so happy. And I want to be a good mommy for you today too. I love you so much!"

Dane, 14 months

Dane ~ 14 months

Our baby boy is 14 months today.

Sometimes I look at him and can't believe he's growing so fast and sometimes I still see him as "baby".

I'm thankful that he's healthy even though he's a little small. That said, I LOVE that his small size makes him look like a baby still cause I'm not even close to being able to handle another child right now. So, since he's small, he satisfies my want for "baby".

Thank you Dane for being the most wonderful, fun, energetic, light-hearted, healthy baby in the whole world. We love you and thank Heavenly Father everyday for sending you to our family!

Dane right now.....

• Talks, babbles, and rambles constantly like he's part of the conversation. Then, when we laugh, he joins in and laughs too!
• 7 teeth total: 3 on top, 4 on bottom. First tooth to cut on top was his fang!
• Fastest crawler ever and into everything!!
• stands alone for up to 5 seconds.
• sleeps like a champ!
• Can say with meaning, "Dada", "uh-oh", "gook" (book), and "cheese"
• Lightning-quick hands! I'll take something from his hand, set it on the counter and walk away. Next thing I know, he's got it back in his hand. Magic!
• Won't wear a bib anymore.
• Will go to anyone. Very social little guy but definitely a mama's boy.
• Walks with assistance.
• LOVES to slide and swing at the park.
• Climbs stairs as if he's been doing it for years.
• Learning to sign "more", "thank you", "all done", "eat", drink".
• Can crawl head-first into the bath tub so we have to keep the bathroom door closed.
• He LOVES water and knows where to find it, i.e. sink, tub, toilet....
• Smiles, laughs, smiles, laughs, smiles, laughs.....you get the picture. :)

Year 2010

The new year brings a renewal for me in many areas. I have been motivated to be better at studying my scriptures through reading the Sunday school and RS lessons ahead of time, and the scriptures connected with them. I'm so excited to be studying my Savior Jesus Christ this year at church in Relief Society and Young Womens and really look forward to strengthening my testimony of Him and my relationship with Him this year.

Starting this new year off exercising sounds like a great idea and I'm looking forward to bettering myself inside and out. I will be doing a muscle strengthening video at home and going on runs while pushing the boys in the double stroller as many days a week it doesn't rain so I'm looking forward to that. I hope to inspire Aaron to get moving too. It would be great to be healthy and fit this year together. I plan on running 2 half marathons (one in spring and one in summer) and a full marathon in the fall this year so that is something to look forward to and keep me on my toes with training. Wish Ryan lived close so we could run together, it helps to have a running partner to keep me motivated! :)

I also plan on keeping in touch better with family and friends, not only through updating my blog more regularly but writing through emails and snail mail and making phone calls as well. I feel blessed to have such a wonderful family and small support group of friends and hope to strengthen those ties this year.

I am the only one that can make these changes in my life. I am the only one that can help me truly progress and be happy and balanced. I look forward to the challenge it is to stick to such goals but I am a very self-motivated person and because I know my success is entirely up to me, I'm ready. Bring it on 2010. Here's to a better Brynne!

December 2009 Update

December has been a very busy month for us. We've been packing it full of activities that only this wonderful season brings. I have been saving them for one big update so I could list them all in the order we did them this month. It's a lot of pictures and I knew it would be a long post so I chose to do them each in their own little posts. We have had such a great month and I love the fun of lights and presents and cookies especially with excited little kids in the house. That being said, most of all, we worked really hard to make sure Cade knew that even though those are all fun things about Christmas, we celebrate Christmas because of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. We've read scriptures, sang songs, and held Family Home Evenings focusing on Jesus and His birth at this time of year. Cade is only 3 so he can't fully appreciate and understand the true meaning but if we make this a priority every year, he'll get it and appreciate it someday.

I'll post pictures of tonight's Blevins' Christmas Eve gathering and of course of all the fun on Christmas Day after things slow down a bit.

Enjoy this update and have a very Merry Christmas!!!

Letter to Santa

This year Cade is very aware of what is going on during Christmas. We've been talking a lot about Jesus' birth and have been reading the scriptures that tell of this glorious event. He has a better understanding about the true meaning of this wonderful season and I'm so happy about that. But he is a kid and let's face it...all they want is presents presents PRESENTS!!! So we started a list for Santa and eventually sent him a letter. I wish I had taken a picture of the actual letter but this is what it said,

"Dear Santa,

I've been a really good boy this year. I help my mommy, and daddy, and brother Dane. This Christmas I would like:

1. Lightning McQueen's truck Mac
2. The trouble cars: Wingo, DJ, Boost, Snot Rod
3. Lightning McQueen's race track.

Thank you!

Your friend,
Cade"

He folded it, stuffed and sealed it in an envelope, and addressed it to Santa Clause, North Pole, Far Away. We first took it out to the mailbox and had intentions of leaving it there for the mailman to pick up but since I had some other letters that needed to be dropped off at the post office, we dropped it off there instead.








He was so excited to send Santa a letter and has been talking about how he got the letter at his house at the North Pole and is getting his presents ready to bring to him on Christmas. I've got to admit, this is a fun part of Christmas with little kids. :)

2009 Christmas ornaments

We do ornaments for the boys each year. This year I found some wooden ones we could color and fill with a picture of them in 2009. So for Family Home Evening one Monday this month, we did our ornaments. Cade did a great job coloring his train and I did Dane's penguin. Later that week I put pictures in them. I thought they turned out so cute!



FHE treat was hot chocolate and marshmallows. Yummy!!


Mallow on the nose!

Cade's school Christmas Program

Cade's school class (plus 3 other 3yr old classes) put on a very nice Christmas program for parents, grandparents, and anyone who'd like to come. He was fortunate to have both sets of grandparents, his aunt Kretha and cousins Emma and Natalie, and Mom, Dad, and brother Dane there to support him. I took video, leaving Aaron to take pictures so with all the moving around and the dim lights, these pics are about the best they could have been. Here he is sitting up in his spot waiting patiently for his part in the program, next to good friend Joshua Walker (who's face is blocked by a girls head).



Here they are, the bell ringers as all kids sang "Come on Ring Those Bells," the song Cade knew the best but turns out he didn't sing one word throughout the whole thing. He had been practicing with his class for weeks and we worked on songs at home but when it came time to sing, I thought he'd sing so loud and so proudly. Nope, not a word. Oh well, I think he was distracted by all the people watching them. He sure was good bell ringer though! Yay Cade!!! (friend Joshua with the really light blonde hair)

Etable Christmas Trees and cute boys

On Cade's last day of school before the Christmas break, they had a small party where they made these cute Christmas trees. Turn an ice cream cone upside down, ice it and then decorate. So simple and so cute! So here he is showing and enjoying it.






Dane wanted some sugar too so I gave him a few mini m&ms. These seem to be the perfect little treat for him. Look how happy he is!

Friends and sugar cookies!

It's not Christmas until you've made and decorated sugar cookies. My good friend Brenley invited us to her house for just this reason! I made and brought the cookies and she had all sort of fun things to decorate with. The boys ate the frosting, marshmallows, and sprinkles so the real hard work of icing was up to us moms. We had a fun time and I always love getting together with this fun girl! Thanks Brenley for such a great time!!

Brenley with her son Mac

Leave it up to Cade to be super silly for the camera. :)

Mac's favorite part, licking the icing!!!

Just a few of our masterpieces. YUM!

A night in Bethlehem

Every year our ward puts on one of the neatest experiences I've ever participated in, a Night in Bethlehem. The gym is transformed into the small streets in Bethlehem and you can find booths covered in cloths, baskets, and ivy. Vendors sell cheese, olives, fruits, spices, pitas, and other foods that might have been sold back in the days during Christ's birth. Everyone is given a small cloth pouch filled with coins from which we purchase our goods with. If you did not come in costume, the tailor shop has costumes fitted just for you. We all dressed up and enjoyed a Bethlehem dinner bought from the vendors and a very nice musical and scriptural program. Aaron and his father sang a number while playing their guitars that was very nice and we all had a great time. It's was neat that the ward focuses on the humble beginnings of our Lord Jesus Christ instead of having a HUGE ward dinner just to end it off with Santa Clause. This spiritual experience is just what I needed. :)

Dane, Aaron, me, Cade, and Aaron's dad Craig


Dane, Aaron, his mom Julie and dad Craig.



My mom and her husband Gary, goods vendors, selling spices and homemade ornaments. "Spices, spices...."


Grandma and grandpa with Dane. The flash of my camera takes away from the special feel of dimly lit street lights in Bethlehem. Imagine it being darker with the soft glow of white Christmas lights in trees and above booths.

There were woodworking and pottery booths for the kids to make things. Cade's here getting ready to work his clay.

Showing mommy his clay snake. I remember him being happier than he actually looks here.

The boys playing with a few other kids

Our family in Bethlehem.

new area rug

The house is all decorated for Christmas and our newest addition, area rug, completes the homey feel. We've been looking for a while and finally found this at TJ Maxx Home Goods. Aaron and I both loved it INSTANTLY! Merry Christmas to us!!!

Today, Christmas Eve...

And here we are, Christmas Eve. The advent calendar my mom and I made is complete with baby Jesus as the last addition for Christmas Eve......

And the boys are ready for Santa to come and place presents under the tree where they today sit so patiently for this picture. We love you boys and are so excited to see the joy on your faces tomorrow morning! Merry Christmas!!!

Football Funnies

While watching the Civil War football game (Oregon Ducks vs. Oregon Beavers) this Thursday, a friend of ours got off the couch to get a few more lil' smokies to eat. When he approached the crock pot, Cade asked him, "Are you going to have some smokes?" We all laughed SO hard which of course made Cade laugh too. I hope that doesn't come out of his mouth while in a checkout line!


At another point during the game, Cade, while holding the remote control, told us, "I'm going to control myself. I know JUST what to do!"

One more funny.....my mom was playing cars with Cade during the game and he said to her, "this car is a classic. That means it's old. You're old Grandma so that means you're classic." Now THAT'S classic!!! :)

Proof

Proof that we were there too!

Strawberry shortcake, The Verizon Guy, and our kiddos!

And the bees....too cute!

Blevins Halloween Party and Pumpkin patch

We had our annual Blevins Family Halloween Party--costumes and all! We dressed up, ate, painted/carved pumpkins and then made and ate homemade doughnuts. Everyone was able to make it except for Ryan's wife Ashley who had studying to do and Kretha who had to work and couldn't find someone to close for her. We missed them but at least Kretha could join us later for doughnuts.

We do our party on a Sunday so we have the best chance of having everyone there. I was sick so wasn't feeling all that well and Dane had the roughest evening he's ever had so it was a bit stressful with him. As soon as we got him in the car driving home, he calmed right down so we're thinking he was overwhelmed with so many people in a small space. Poor guy. But we had a lot of fun.

Here's the costume rundown (didn't get a pic of Ryan, Chris/kim/Hannah or the Stefaneks, sorry!):

Scary Grandpa Gary and the Queen Bee Grandma Brannies


This ware wolf sat out on the front porch waiting for all the grandchildren so he could scare the living daylights out of them. As soon as Cade saw him, he ran all the way back down the lawn to the cars and wouldn't come up to the house until we insisted Grandpa take the mask off. He likes to scare the kids any chance he can but it's all in good fun!


D Flash and his beauty Wonder Woman.

ow owww! Love D's navy thong and Britt's tall red boots!

Getting ready for the party. Cade's a space ranger this year. He loves to wear his costume as often as I will let him. Should keep him warm in the rain and cold while trick or treating this year.



Dane has this bee costume I got him for 25 cents at a used children's store and a really cute lion costume Cade wore his first Halloween. We're bouncing back and forth between the two since we have 4 chances to dress up this year. Blevins party, Cade's school party, ward party, and trick or treating. fun fun! You know I LOVE a chance to dress up in a costume!



And this is from a few weeks ago when Cade's school had a pumpkin patch day. It was cool but not rainy so it was great! We took a hayride out to the patch, chose a pumpkin, and then got to enjoy the corn and hay mazes and pet some animals. It was a fun day and Dane was such a sport in the hiker pack.

Wow, when I get the motivation to sit down, upload a ton of pictures and write a lengthy update on Dane, bloggers image loader won't work. Great. Who knows when I'll get time and energy to do it again. Sorry Dane, your Ode to Dane post will have to wait. :(

New Moon.....coming soon.

I'm pretty excited. :) And the short-haired Jacob's not looking too shabby too!

School days, school days.....

Yesterday was a BIG day for Cade. He started preschool!

I really like his school so far. I was given a recommendation by 2 other mom's in our ward who's boys were enrolled in the 3 yr class so I quickly looked into it and got Cade registered and in the same class. So starting off, he has 2 friends already, his teacher is really nice and has been teaching for a long time and seems to still have the passion and enthusiasm for teaching so that's reassuring. :)

He goes Tuesday and Thursday for 2 3/4 hours. Has sharing time on Thursdays and gets to bring the class snack every 10 weeks. They have free play, crafts, outdoor play, story and song time, etc. I'm really excited for Cade to have this time away for himself, to meet and socialize with other little buddies. And it gives me alone time with Dane which is wonderful--I'm so excited!

Here we are out in the driveway, he's on his way!....

When we got to school, right outside his classroom they have coat hanger pegs with each child's name on them and a plastic bag for their coats, hats, etc. Cade's putting his jacket inside his.

Jacket and school bucket are hung on his "Cade" peg and he's all ready for class! Isn't he a handsome little fella?! I can't believe my baby is 3 already and going to school.

He was so excited it was hard to get his attention for pictures but I was able to snap a few of him at the table playing playdough with his church (and now school) buddies.

From left to right: Joshua Walker, Cade, Owen Fuller. Teacher Dianah far right.

And just one more with the gang before I left him there.

He is so independent, I knew we'd have no problem with tears. If he was a little weepy, I know it would have made it harder for me to leave him but no problem here! After school he wanted to tell m all about it.....how he played with cars, and had cheese crackers for snack, and I even heard a few unfamiliar songs from him throughout the day so I know they did some singing too. He can't wait to go back tomorrow and bring something to share with his class. I think this is going to be a really great school year for him! :)

And after school, he had his 3 year well child check with his new doctor.

He's 37.6 pounds -- 75th %

He's 41 1/2 inches tall -- 95th %

He passed the Denver Developmental Screening Test with flying colors and couldn't be any healthier! What a blessing!

Mt. Pisgah hike 2009

About a month ago, we did a hike together as a family, the first REAL hike for Cade. Mt. Pisgah is a constant incline, most adults huff and puff their way up the mountain so we had no idea how Cade was going to do. We came prepared to carry him piggy-back every so often while the other carried Dane in the hiker. He did an incredible job--walked a bit slower than daddy wanted to go--but only was carried twice the whole way up and down. This kid has energy!

in the beginning

dane took a little snoozer

halfway up

(cade 3, Dane 9 months)

Dane was amazing, as usual, and we enjoyed a really nice summer eve together and watched a pretty remarkable sunset on top as well. This is how I like to spend summers with my family--together, doing anything outdoors!

Living/Dining Room

Okay, so I believe it's time for a few updates.

We'll start with the main room which is our living room/dining room and flows into the kitchen. Picture window and sliding door looks out on the backyard and patio so we're located on the bottom, backside of the house.

Before:

Walls used to have wood paneling and red foil wallpaper beneath. Big brick fireplace with big wood stove, dirty dark brown shag carpet with cracked white tile underneath, kitchen had linoleum floors, only 2 old light fixtures, benches built into the wall under main window........just a strange looking room.

After:

Wood paneling, red foil wallpaper, dark brick fireplace, wall benches, old light fixtures, wood stove, shag carpet......GONE! Aaron and his dad drywalled every wall in the room, texture, painted, and now it has nice white trim top, bottom, and around windows. fireplace has been primed and painted, wood stove is removed because main chimney pipe is cracked and we couldn't use it anyway. Warm colored laminate wood floors replace the carpet and linoleum that was in the kitchen---it now looks and feels great! Aaron wired new outlets, light switches, and installed new can lighting throughout the whole place. Super nice!

Two hardworking men!

This room looks and feels brand new! It's not totally done but I knew I needed to show what has been going on for the past 2 1/2 months of our life!

Oh dear. Soooo much to blog about. We have floor all throughout our place now. a picture really speaks a thousand words so I'll post one later today. And I'm SO SICK of painting and will be glad when my door frames, and trim are DONE! My mom is an angel, watches my boys so I can get work done. LOVE THAT LADY! Anyway, we're not "moved in" yet but getting real close! By next weekend we'll have our OWN SPACE. Hooray!!

Dane's amazing and so much fun--can't get enough of that kid and Cade's signed up for fall sports and I'm searching for a preschool.......we're jumping into real kid-life around here....things are about to get real busy!

Pictures to come this afternoon! I PROMISE!!!

Wednesday evenings at Oakway

It's late and I don't know where my camera is at the moment so I found this picture off of a friend's blog. I want to post about it cause it's one of the things I've especially been enjoying about the summer so far here in Eugene/Springfield. Every Wednesday evening at 5:30 the Oakway Center has a free mini outdoor concert in their lovely courtyard. The musical groups and genre of music changes from week to week....jazz, Jamaican steel drums, big band, Latin flavor, etc. The boys and I usually go by bike and meet up with my mom there. Every Wednesday we enjoy these concerts in the warm summer evenings. This picture shows a day when I watched Cade's little buddy Easton.....I had him until about 7 or so, so I just took him along with us, in the car this time. Good to find out my Camry fits 3 car seats in the backseat. :) Anyway, my friend met us there to pick him up and listened for little bit. These concerts have been a great way to enjoy summer outdoors here, bike ride and all. Matter of fact, we just enjoyed it tonight and I've decided the big band group from tonight was my favorite overall. Great music for Swing, Charleston, and Lindy hop. I didn't have my partner (aaron couldn't come) so I didn't do any dancing but I sure boogied in my seat while all the kids around us shook and shimmied. I love summer and will be sad when it's over.

i have pictures of a few things that are coming along here at the house but would rather post before and after shots when they are all done. dane is 9 months now so I'll do a post on him soon
and we've been up to lots of fun stuff this summer that needs blogging. i'm really behind but hope to catch up soon!

Baby blessing and good friends

Last Sunday we had a great reason to visit our old stomping grounds in Salem. My great friend Erica and her husband Stephen had their new baby Stephen blessed in church and invited us to come so we were able to attend our old ward again. Before leaving right after Sacrament (i know, sounds bad but we did an "after the blessing BBQ at Erica and Steve's....a legit reason to leave early, right?) I gathered my Salem girlfriends together with all their boys for a group picture! Yep, you heard me right....B.O.Y.S.

In picture from left to right (kinda): Sharon with Calvin and Grayson (to your right of Cade), Emily with Max, Erica with Stephen, me with Dane and Cade in front, Capri without her cute Wyatt. :(

All 5 of us girls have boys only. Erica's baby Stevie was the last addition to the group right before we moved so I wanted a picture of such a unique situation. Us girls and our boys spent the the past 9+ months together enjoying play groups, swim days, library visits, morning walks, etc. and loved every minute of it. I sure do miss you girls and Cade and Dane miss their buddies too! Thanks for being such wonderful friends to us up there in Salem!

This week we've been doing a lot of this......

Cade doesn't usually wear a life jacket but in this pool he has to--NOT exactly kid-friendly. Sweet goggles too, eh?! Dane and his cousin Hannah. Her first time at the pool! :)

and we're going again tomorrow increasing the number of days we've swam this week to 6 times in 8 days. Wow. Do we love to swim or what? :) It's the only way to beat the 105 degree heat we've had this week. :)

We love summertime!!!!

Back from Utah and back to work

So we just returned from a great trip to Utah. I know I say this all the time but I will post pictures soon since we did some REALLY great stuff: new temple open house, family BBQ in the most gorgeous setting, A day and a night in the mountains, girl time.......it was a memorable awesome trip that deserves a post all of it's own! I'll for sure do it soon!

Following up on our place and paint colors....I was pretty set on doing a bright orange accent wall with white, chocolate brown, and silver gray but now I'm having thoughts of going back to a neutral color so I can decorate with anything I want. Choosing to go with orange would be totally fun and SO me but would be more difficult to find a choice rugs, curtains, tile for a back splash in the kitchen, etc to choose from. We might find like 1 or 2 rugs to choose from and what if I don't LOVE either of them? Going with a light tan, cream, or other neutral color seems as though my options would be wide open for choosing matching decor. So I'm still struggling with my decision. Thanks to all of you who have left detailed suggestions. I have read them all and have found some great advice. I've even looked online to see swatches of your specific paint colors if you told me so thanks for your help! :) We're still working on the bathroom but the wall color is pretty much decided so I still have time before having to choose paint for the living room. I'm searching magazines for living rooms that look light, beautiful, clean, and relaxing. I hope to find the perfect color for me. I have plenty of pictures of the renovations so will upload some soon!

Need help!

Help! What is your dream living room wall paint color? We will have a warm cherry wood floor and the room has white trim (like crown molding) but I'm going crazy and can't decide on wall color. It has to be lightish cause the room has very little natural light as it is so I'd like it to stay bright in there. And I plan to decorate with chocolate brown/green apple green or chocolate brown/RED. Please leave your BEST ideas! thank you!!!

A little bummed

I have to keep reminding myself that blogging is my journal...."blogging is your journal Brynne, don't worry that you only ever get 1 comment." It still sucks though. Thank you Em for being my one and only reader.

Phew! We made it!

We made it. We're here and all our stuff has been either unloaded and stored in any possible spot we have so far or in a storage unit. Most of it is in the storage unit since this afternoon. We didn't have one lined up on Saturday so everything got loaded into the house, upstairs and down, and I've been going through every box one at a time, organizing what we have room for, getting rid of stuff we don't need, and repacking it back up to take to the storage unit. My brother helped quite a bit yesterday but really it's been Aaron and I since Saturday. We get a lot done when the boys are asleep at night. Thanks to some guys from our Salem ward we packed up quickly and then the girls came in to help me clean. It was soooo nice to not have to do that alone and a huge thanks to Sharon for watching the boys while we packed the trucks and cleaned AND Capri who helped clean and stay after to see me off. Love you girls! My mom had guys lined up here in Eugene so that when we arrived, they were all ready to help unload. Thanks guys and thanks MOM. You're the best!

There is still alot to do but we're making progress. I'll post pictures when I get a breather.

p.s. Next post meant to be read right after this one. Tells what we've been doing SINCE the move.