all about him

oh this little boy is my sunshine. (that song is our current favorite) he is going to be 9 months on the 26th & it's hard to believe. he is so full of energy & always on the move. little tid-bit i just have to share since i never saw this coming, he will not lay still to have his diaper changed nor to be dressed or undressed. this leaves me literally following & sometimes chasing him around to change his diaper or dress him. i usually find myself putting something on the couch or somewhere he can reach while standing & i change him while he is distracted. now, this isn't so bad at home, but try going anywhere else he may need a change...the mall...a long car trip...church! yes, the other sunday as i'm on my hands and knees in my dress chasing brog down to change his pants, one of the sisters just stops, laughs & says, "that is great!" she was kind of in shock that this is how we change diapers, PS, this woman has 4 kids, including twins whom are 2 months older than brog & she thought it was crazy! anyways, brogie keeps us on our toes & always laughing. he loves to say ma ma ma ma over & over again along with ba ba ba & da da da, it's adorable of course. he has his top 2 teeth and the 2 teeth next to them & that is also adorable. he pulls himself up to everything & on Labor Day he stood on his own for the first time. what? yes, he is starting to stand on his own. he did it again a few days later and he just looked at me all scared like "what am i doing?" then he fell. i'm not encouraging this since i'm not at all ready for him to be walking but i don't really have a say. he loves his puppy & follows her everywhere ( the feeling isn't mutual) & he has to be a part of everything you are doing, doesn't matter what it is. i just love watching him discovering things & learning, he is my little buddy.  i'll end my post with some of the pics from his 6-7 month session since i'm sure brog's nap will be ending soon.

the haps

so it has been a crazy long time since i have taken the time to post anything on here but as you all know, life happens. we have been so busy, it's hard to believe it's been 2 months. sadly as i sit here thinking of what great things i could post, i can't come up with many. this should be a post filled with lots of fun & exciting things but it'll mostly be a picture overload. let's see, since my last post, brog is now 8 months! he is crawling, quite speedily i might add, and is pulling himself up to everything. namely, me & holds on as tight as he can by pinching the skin above my knees. he has 3, going on 4 teeth and is an absolute riot. he loves any food you are eating & expects a to have a bite after each of my bites. he loves chocolate milk & banana bread. he has always loved bath time but it's even more funny now that he smiles & giggles as he tries to climb up the side of the tub to get in. he adores kids. he understands his name & the word kiss. if you ask him, he will plant a big, wet kiss right on your lips. he also enjoys kissing his reflection anytime he sees it. he loves  his puppy & being outside. i could go on & on about him forever but i will stop here for now. since my last post, harvest is in full swing. boy oh boy. could it be november yet? i say this because yes, i have received word that we will be in harvest until the middle of november...jealous? i'm just glad i have my little buddy here to keep my company! i have also changed jobs...again. i went back to my old job i left last summer. it allows me more time with brogyn so i couldn't pass that up! i am working a lot now but it will slow down soon since we are in a transition of owners. wow. can you believe it? i am sitting here trying to think of little events to fill my post with & i leave out the most important one of all. brogyn's blessing. what a truly amazing day. he was blessed by his daddy on august 5th. i was filled with so much happiness and emotion all week in anticipation of the big day. jake gave a wonderful blessing and we had so much support from family & friends. i was even lucky enough to snag a 5 generation picture with my great grandpa, grandpa, dad, myself and brogie. but i am an airhead and spaced getting a picture of brogie and everybody who stood in the circle: jake, my dad, todd, grandpa larry, grandpa bowlin, grandpa heward, great grandpa heward and rex gerratt. sigh...oh well. staying on the church topic, my great husband was called to teach the CTR 5 Primary class! his response to me directly after he told me was "everybody is going to want to be in my class" "well since the kiddos get to choose which class they want to go to"...was my response back. he didn't think i was funny. but i am excited for him to be in primary with me. although we won't be in the same class (i teach sunbeams) it will be fun to have him & brog with me. PS, brog LOVES Primary! he is a very busy and rambunctious and curious boy who never sits still but in Primary, he sits right on my lap and just listens and sings along. it's adorable. we also were able to do some fun family pics and some individual pics of brogie (i'll post later). i hope to get the ones off my phone posted soon of the 5 generation pic and a few others of my baby boy. that's all i can think of for now...enjoy!

it's your {half} birthday, shout HOORAY!

june 26th was brogie's 6 month birthday. i have known since i was pregnant with him that i wanted to celebrate him being half a year with a little half birthday party. it really snuck up on me! in honor of the day, we barbecued little slider hamburgers & i made mini cupcakes, then our awesome family filled in the rest with salads and appetizers. i also made brog a cupcake of his own and stuck a #1 candle in and pushed it in so only half of the 1 was showing,he was not impressed that he couldn't eat the cupcake! it was a fun, low key evening with grandparents & great-grandparents just celebrating and having fun with the man of the hour! originally, this was supposed to be a gift-free party but who am i kidding? they are grandparents!! so he was thoroughly spoiled. he got everything from new swim suits to a toy car to a john deere cell phone and my personal favorite, a walker ( i guess that's what they are called?) i now have no excuses for a dirty house. he loves that thing. it took him a whole 10 seconds to realize he could walk in it & was so cute. brought a tear to my eye seeing him so grown. before i know it, he will be walking on his own...to kindergarten.
a few things he is up to lately:
he finally lets me sneak a little snuggle without him grunting at me and pushing away
he growls while chewing toys
he has his 2 bottom teeth, they both came without me knowing it, way to go mom of the year!
he is THE biggest cheese ball.
he likes to be upside down
sunglasses, paper & tags seem to be his favorite chew toys
still hates his car seat
feeds himself with a bottle but likes to twist the bottle in circles while he eats
LOVES squash (just like daddy), sweet potatoes, & white gravy, hates bananas
he is a pretty good sleeper...for now
is in the BEST mood of the day first thing in the morning
i usually wake up to him humming/singing at 6am versus crying
tries to get away from us when we are trying to change his diaper by rolling to his tummy
hates getting dressed & undressed
still has daddy & i wrapped around his finger

he had his 6 month check up wednesday, he is 15lb 15oz & 27.5" long! he is 95% in weight & 25% in weight...still long & skinny! we love him so much & are looking forward to the next 6 months!

the aforementioned cheeseball, you can barely see his little teeth 

5 months...already?

my oh my. my little stink bug is just growing & won't stop!! he turned 5 months may 26th. he weighs 15 lbs give or take, i don't know his exact height, we just know he's long & skinny! he cut his first tooth a few days ago and is working on #2. he is absolutely hilarious with the cutest little personality. he is quite the spitfire and is rambunctious and very curious. we have discovered that he has great hand eye coordination, which he did not get from me, and is very determined. when he sees something he wants, he will get to it, no matter what. he is rolling over two times in a row now and has the general idea for crawling. he can support himself with just his arms straightened & will go on his knees with his bum in the air just gotta put those two together!! but i can wait a little longer for the crawling thing...he is already all over the place! he is so giggly & smiley & has quite the talk box. he's a little show off. he loves sleeping on his side with his head cocked back..weird! speaking of sleep, he is sadly off his nightly routine of sleeping 8:30-5, 5-7-he is now 9-1, 1:30-5, 5-7!! makes for one tired mama! i'm hoping he gets back to normal soon! can't believe he is on his way to being half a year! we love this little man more than anything, can't wait to see what he's gonna do next!

just a few weeks old

5 months

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam

i am so excited! i have been called to be a Sunbeam teacher! what a wonderful opportunity & definitely what i needed-wise bishopric we have. i've always had a passion for teaching & i love little kids so this will be such great 'practice' for when i get my degree. i think i have decided to switch from teaching 2nd grade to Kindergarten, there are a couple years difference in age but it will give me an idea if i'm making the right decision! i start this week but don't actually teach til next week since the other teacher is going to show me the ropes this week then we will alternate...wish me luck!!

memorial weekend

what a crazy, long weekend! i had been looking forward to this weekend for a while & had big plans for brogie & i-but plans rarely work out with a little babe! we were planning on going to oakley on saturday where my family camps every year for memorial day. i knew jake would be working so it would be a nice outing for us..,WRONG! brogie had other plans. i went to pick him up from brenda's friday after work and jake's pickup was there...weird since it was like 3:00 in the afternoon during hay. i walk in & brenda tells me, brog was great but it looks like he's got a little runny nose oh & jake is downstairs really sick. i go down & he is not looking so good. so i left him there to sleep & went to get some sick supplies from the store w brog. jake made it home & wasn't doing any better, brog still doing fine though. well as the night went on, brog was getting worse. terribly runny nose, coughing & being really fussy. by the time his bedtime rolled around, he was not doing well so i started out sleeping on the floor next to him in his room. that didn't last long. he soon ended up in my arms just moaning and crying, trying to sleep but would wake himself up by coughing. it was heart wrenching. so helpless. i gave him some medicine & checked his temp. my thermometer just kept climbing after 100.1 so i decided to wake my poor sick hubby up to tell him i'm taking bubba to the ER. turns out, he had an upper respiratory infection & beginning stages of bronchitis. the most horrifying part of the night was when they called the respiratory therapist down to suck out his nose! jake was balled up trying not to throw up so i had to literally hold brog down so he could suck his nose! i cried the entire time. then he said he didn't get as much as he would have liked so he stuck a teeny, tiny tube up his nose to get deeper...saddest thing i've seen & i'm not done yet! after all that was done, TWICE, he started coughing it up. the saline had broken up all the mucus and it was so deep in his chest he was choking on it--terrifying! but he did survive. it was the longest 2 days but we made it through! he is still fighting a runny nose but i'm pretty sure that's due to his little teeth coming in! we did end up going to oakley sunday after church for a bit, which was freezing but fun. glad brog's first time being sick is over...now on to the next.

in oakley, he was not impressed i put his bear suit on him!

my day

what a wonderful mothers day weekend! i was surely spoiled with love from my two boys! jake started the weekend out by giving me "mothers day card #1 from him" that was good for a day of shopping! then we went to have yummy thai food. if that wasn't spoiled enough, he gave me card #2 sunday, which was from brogyn, with the cutest poem written: "i know you've been yearnin' for some curbin' so on this mothers' day, that's what you're deservin"! if you didn't get that, he has scheduled for our front yard to have curbing laid in 3 weeks! so it has been fun looking for & coming up with fun ideas. but to tell the truth, having brogie is the best gift i could ever ask for (how cliched & cheesy is that?!) he is, after all, the reason i even got to celebrate. being his mother is an absolute blessing & i am grateful everyday he has chosen me to teach him & guide him through life. he is, as i have mentioned, the funniest little guy! i just laugh all day with him & just wonder, are other babies this funny? not a chance! (that's the mommy in me!) but it was a wonderful day spent with my favorite boys & our wonderful mothers. now to get working on fathers' day!

haha! i could not resist buying him that fedora!

twinners!

being a big help on the dock!

4 Months

oh jeez, 4 months already?! time is flying at a rapid rate and it's stressing me out! brogie turned 4 months old on april 26th. the little rascal. he is so much FUN. i love every second with him. he rolled over from his tummy to his back the sunday after easter now we are just working on his back to his tummy...he is getting close! he is also spotting things he wants, grabs them & they go immediately to his mouth. he tried rice cereal on may 6th & didn't quite know what to think of it. we tried it again last night & he liked it a bit more. he now thinks he's a pro and tries to hold the spoon himself. he is always on the go, meaning he squeals until whoever is holding him stands & walks with him so he can check things out. he is so smiley & giggles at the most random things. he loves his daddy, especially grabbing his beard. he is now reaching for people to hold him, it's adorable when he is reaching for you, not so much when he doesn't & would rather stay in the arms of the person already holding him. not gonna lie, makes me pretty sad when he does that! he is wonderful & a true blessing in our lives. i have learned to much in our short 4 months together. i feel as though i am a different person...for the better.

in other news, spring is here! meaning, i never see my hubby. he is working so hard 7 days a week & still making time for brogie and i. they will start hay on the 15...blah. can't believe it's this time of year again. i remember starting hay last year and being so worried i was going to be too sick to cover scale house since i was newly pregnant. hard to believe that it was a year ago that i was about 7 weeks pregnant!

oh & how could i have forgotten? the most exciting news! i am finally going back to school this fall! i am so happy. i was enrolled the semester after we were married, but we quickly moved to raft river so we decided i'd take a break so we could focus more on jake's career. my time has finally arrived! i met with a counselor a couple weeks ago & we discovered that between my ISU credits, my test out credits & my CSI credits i am 11 classes from completion! i am meeting with my early childhood education advisor tomorrow to get my schedule worked out. i know it's going to be difficult especially having an 8 month old by the time a start but i am so ready to finally get this process i started 8 (wow) years ago done!!

first easter with 3

what a wonderful Easter weekend! we had a low key Easter but fun nonetheless. saturday we decided to take advantage of the wonderful weather & spend the day in twin shopping for a lawn mower- actually the real reason we went was to eat at Prasai's...the best thai food ever, but we did make it to home depot to do some pricing. we ended the day with a nice walk around our wonderful neighborhood and a movie after brogie fell asleep. sunday was craziness! it seems no matter how early i wake up on sunday, i'm going to miss my first church meeting! we had great plans to go listen to our good friend speak in another ward @ 9..no such luck! brogie had other plans. we did, however, make it to sunday school but brogie didn't like that idea either, so jake spent the class time in the hall...he didn't complain! Sacrament meeting is always wonderful on easter, the primary sang & it was so great,  the Spirit was strong & in our hearts all day. after church, we rushed to my aunt's for a bit & watched the kiddos' hunt eggs, then off to grandma b's for another egg hunt & yummy dinner. after food & fun at grandma's we headed back home & spent the rest of the night playing outside, taking long walks & visiting with neighbors. brogie's first easter was wonderful even though he has already forgotten! i was bummed that we didn't get a family easter picture, but i got some of little brogie & all his loot! he's cuter to look at anyways!

from mom & dad.

everything goes straight to his mouth!

so spoiled & couldn't care less! he did enjoy the tag on
his giraffe though!

the death of me

is it just me or is this the best easter candy in the world? easter needs to come & go so i will stop eating these! just thought i'd share in hopes that i'm not the only one who is willingly packing on the pounds with these amazing little things!

3 Months

here i am again, this must mean another month has come & gone. my handsome man turned 3 months old March 26th. not sure why i'm still so surprised that time goes this quickly! he is so much fun & i still can't get enough of him! here are a few things he's up to:
everything goes straight to his mouth, rattle, burp rags, mom's hand
he is slobbering a lot & ends up soaking his shirts sometimes!
still loves telling us his stories but he talks longer, louder & alot more
does really well sitting up with something supporting his back
still loves his baths & is getting braver by kicking his little legs and waving his arms
has the biggest blue eyes
has the funniest facial expressions & raises his eyebrows
wants to walk more than anything
hates to cuddle
loves to stand with mom & dad's help
loves to practice taking steps
is finally sleeping through the night!!
no longer likes his passy
grabs his rattle
he now hates tummy time, but holds his head up really well
still tries to hold his bottle & does pretty well at it
he can also spot his bottle and stares at it, it's so funny!
i'm not sure of his stats just yet but he is definitely growing! his little pants are always too short and his shirts are baggy! he's just so skinny! his hair is growing on top and he is losing some of it on the back. i just love to love on him! & how could i forget--he loves his shades & thinks he's pretty cool while wearing them, oh how i love him!!

in other news, i have been back to work for a month now. it was very difficult at first but is getting better. it's easier when little guy is sleeping when i leave him. he is in the best mood in the mornings so when he is awake he is talking and smiling and ready to play...that makes it really hard to leave! luckily, i only work 8-2 & my wonderful mother and mother in law watch him so i don't have to worry if he is ok. nothing else exciting going on, that's the life of a new mom! everything consists of brogyn & i wouldn't have it any other way. we have managed to go out on 2 dates though. both times we went to the movies, which is my favorite. spring planting is right around the corner...that winter just went way too fast! before i know it, it will be harvest again! easter is this weekend & i am so excited since it's brogie's first holiday. i got him some fun  things for his basket & i've decided this easter is more for me than for him since he has no clue what's going on, but it's still so fun!

this little man...

this little man is the light of my life. he is so special. i can't get enough of him.
this little man turned 2 months on February 26th. wow. he is growing so fast & learning so much.
this little man at 2 months is measuring 23 1/2" long and weighs 10lb 11oz. & 3 months developmentally.

he also...
LOVES to stand and bounce in mama's lap
can hold his head up on his own
loves to talk and concentrates so hard getting each sound out
always has the hiccups
hates getting his nose sucked with the syringe
loves to cuddle at night before bed
is working hard to get his night time routine down
loves his bed time music
sneezes a lot
helps hold his bottle
only takes his paci when he is tired
loves going on walks
hates his carseat
loves to ride in the car
is convinced he will get milk out of his fists if he sucks hard enough
has the most precious morning smiles
is so long and skinny his 3 month old pj's are too short

i love...
his big eyes staring sleepily at me as i feed him before bed
how he holds on to the neck of my shirt while being fed
his little feet
holding hands before bed
his smell
his cry
his smile
how he defiantly avoids my eyes when he's mad at me

i love everything about this little man

showered with love

this post is really late but i wanted to share about my beautiful baby shower that was given to me by my amazing family & wonderful friend, melissa. like other things, i had been thinking about & planning my baby shower for over a year. i knew i wanted a shabby chic/vintage feel & for it to be more of an adult party.  i got exactly what i wanted & more! melissa was able to find some wonderful vintage pieces to decorate with and my family made some of my favorites: pickled asparagus, salsa, chicken salad puffs, chocolate chip banana bread & cupcakes. i'm so grateful to have such wonderful family & friends.

time flies

brogyn is one month and one week old. wow. i recall hearing from other mothers how quickly time flies with their newborns and now i understand what they meant. it's actually kind of depressing- he is no longer a newborn, he is a baby. he has progressed so much i can't even believe it. his legs are so strong & he LOVES to jump up & down in my lap. he also loves his tummy time & believe it or not, he rolled from his stomach to his back. he has remarkable neck muscle strength and rarely loses control of his head. he is very alert & is now smiling & cooing with a purpose. i weighed him about a week ago and he was 9lbs, i haven't measured him yet. he is perfect. he is, however, in a little routine of waking up every 2 hours during the night thinking he is so starved he will wither away if he doesn't get fed that instant. it's ok because i love his cry. his hair has lightened a little and in the right sunlight, it has a reddish tint...just like his daddy. he had plenty of hair on the top of his head when he was born, but he has lost it and now has what we refer to as "old man hair" we adore him. i miss him when he's sleeping. i find myself staring at him, waiting for him to wake. we call him slim jim because he is so skinny. his knees are knobby and his arms are long. his double chin has come in quite nicely & he always has a milk mustache. i couldn't love him more.

A Baby Story

So our little man finally made his way into the world on December 26 @ 6:00 am, 3 days before my due date. he weighed in at 6 lbs. 6 oz. and measured 19 inches long. he is perfect & the love of my life.
Here's Brogyn's Story:
On December 23, i had a doctor's appointment. he checked me and said we were close. i was at almost a 2 at 80% effaced. when i got home i noticed some bleeding, which was heavier than i thought it should be after being checked. i went on about my day doing some baking for my family christmas party that night. after a short nap, i was still bleeding and he wasn't moving. at every appointment, every doctor kept saying he is one of the most active babies so i was pretty concerned at this point. he constantly moved, so for there to be no movement for that many hours was a problem to me. we finally made the decision to go to the ER here in burley. they monitored the baby & checked me once again. i was still a 2 but brogie still wasn't moving. after an hour of no movement, the nurse called the doctor. he told her to use this little vibrating tool to give him a little shock to see if he is just in a hibernation mode...luckily he was. after the little shock hit him, he was going crazy! we were released and went home. sadly, i wasn't up to any partying so we called it an early night. i wasn't feeling the greatest the next few days & had a feeling i would be spending christmas in the hospital. well, on christmas night at 11pm, i started timing contractions. being a first time mother, i had all these thoughts going through my head: are these actual contractions or are they in my head? am i timing them right? am i ready for this? i finally called the hospital in TF & the nurse told me to make my way to twin when they were 20 min apart. well, i talked it over with jake & he kept asking me if we needed to go. after some hesitation or thinking this is just a false alarm, we decided to go. good thing since by the time we were on the interstate my contractions were 4 minutes apart! it was 1am at this point & jake got us there in 30 min. upon arriving, we were taken to the delivery room. i was checked for progress and was at a 3. the nurse didn't seem too concerned & was taking her time setting up & we enjoyed small talk. she offered the epidural but i declined saying my pain was tolerable at this point...BIG mistake. my water broke soon after that and about 30 minutes later, the contractions were pretty intense- i told the nurse i was ready for the epidural. well, me being naive & never actually being in the hospital before i didn't realize how long it would actually take. by the time the he got there i was dilated to a 5 almost 6 & by the time everything was in place i was almost a 7. sadly, it didn't do anything to my right side. i had some relief on my left side though. well, the doctor came in about 30 min later and checked me. i was so tired that when he told me we're about to have a baby i just looked at him confused. he told the nurse to get me to crown & call him. well, i pushed with her for about an hour & she called the doctor. i pushed with him for another hour & brogie was finally born! he ingested a large amount on miconium so the nicu nurses came up to clean out his lungs. this had to be done about 3 more times over the course of our stay. overall, there weren't any complications & he is healthy & happy!
the next day, when we were preparing to be released, the nurses took him & did his vitals and weight. he was down to 6lb 1oz, which is completely normal. we were scheduled to see the pediatrician the next afternoon & found out his weight dropped to 5lb 12oz. the doctor instructed us to supplement with formula for the next week to get his weight up. we went to the doctor again on the 4th and he was up to 6lb 12oz and 20" long! he is so sweet. he has his dad's nose & forehead & my lips and chin. he has the funniest facial expressions & has a sweet little glare he gives me when i steal a kiss. we are in love!

39 Weeks & 2 Days, Christmas Eve

Perfect.

Proud Daddy.

2 Weeks Old.

2 Weeks Old.