Fun Bath Time

Braxton recently enjoyed sharing bath time with his cousin Peyton! Oh, they are so fun at this age!!

Teething!!

Braxton is in the process of teething like crazy!! He now has 4 top teeth and 2 bottom teeth, with one more tooth trying to come in on the bottom. The bottom one has been bothering him for about a week now. His gums are swollen and he's been trying to use anything to get it to "cut" through. While driving to and from daycare he's become quite resourceful in using his tennis shoes to "teethe on". :-)

Rocking Chair

This week Braxton has been intrigued by the rocking chair in his room. Up until this time he hasn't shown any interest in it, even though we have put him to sleep in that chair since he was a baby. He's been trying to climb up into it, but hasn't been very successful. He's at that stage where he get's frustrated if he can't do something, so we've been helping him successfully get into the chair. He'll sit up there and be as content as ever. Dave and I will rock him back and forth and he is just as excited as ever! Next on our list to get...Braxton his own chair!! :-)

Sponge Time

My new word for my son is a sponge...let me explain! People are always asking how he is doing and my response is that he is such a sponge! He is at that age where he is taking everything in. Just the other day we went to the grocery store and Braxton was wide eyed and just looking and wanting to touch EVERYTHING!!

Here's is just a little of my conversation with Braxton.

Mommy: Braxton that is a banana. Banana's are yellow. Want to feel the yellow banana peel?

Braxton: (no words yet) feels, laughs, and then tries to eat the banana peel

Mommy: Braxton this is a tomato. Tomatoes are red. Want to touch the red tomato?

Braxton: (no words yet) feels, laughs, and then tries to eat the tomato

Now imagine me doing this throughout our 30 minute trip to the store! It was such an enjoyable time knowing that I was able to help satisfy my son's curiosity about the world around him! We are excited to continue to introduce new and exciting things to our son and know that this is the prime "sponge" time. I am anxiously awaiting summer as I'll be able to be at home with my little guy and watch as he learns throughout this "sponge" stage!

Braxton plays baseball in the house

For Braxton's birthday, he got a baseball tee, bat, and ball from some good friends of ours. Braxton has caught on rather quick as to what he's "supposed" to do! It's so cute to watch as he learns and plays ball in the house. It won't be long before I'm sure I'll be telling him no playing ball in the house! :-)

Braxton's First Year

This video highlights my sons first year in a month by month format. As I created it, it was very emotional to see his whole first year in a digital format from the first time we saw him in a sonogram to the first time we laid eyes on him and as he has grown throughout his first year. This video is to my son with love! Love, Mom!

Braxton turns One!

This weekend we held Braxton's first birthday party! It was such a joyous occasion surrounded by the love of our friends and family. We held his birthday party at our house and had a BBQ and cake and ice cream. Braxton had his own birthday cake in which he was able to "dig" into! He enjoyed it greatly and before mom realized it had devoured half of it. :D Braxton enjoyed all of our friends and family that were able to come and celebrate with us. He also enjoyed playing with all of his cousins! The kids had a great time, as well as the adults. As our son grows, we reflect back on all of the blessings that he has given to our family and just the sheer amount of joy that he brings to all around him.

Playdate with Cousins

This weekend Braxton and four of his cousins had the chance to play together at his birthday party! Braxton enjoyed playing with cousins Alisha, Robbie, Eddie, and Peyton. The kids played hard all day together and the house was full of laughter and lots of running! I can already tell that all of them are going to be the best of friends. I am anxiously awaiting May when all of them will be together again for my niece's graduation plus his two other cousins Amber and Chelsea who weren't able to make his party. What a fun time it will be!!! Hurry up May!

Happy Birthday Braxton!

Today Braxton turned one! It's hard to believe that our "little" guy is one! Happy Birthday Braxton! I snapped a picture of him in his "Birthday Boy" shirt that I made for him! It was fun to test out my craftiness. I also made cupcakes for Braxton to take to daycare today which he greatly enjoyed as did mom and dad. We are looking forward to celebrating this weekend with all of our friends and family!

Growing by leaps and bounds!

Braxton is growing by leaps and bounds everyday!! We continue to be amazed at how much he is learning and how curious he is about the world around him. Braxton has recently became very interested in music. He likes to play all of his musical toys, as well as mom's pots and pans, to make all kinds of noise! He has also started dancing to the music that he hears and plays. It is definitely too cute! Dave captured a great video of him playing in the kitchen with my pots and pans. He was entertained for a very long time!

Braxton has also became very knowledgeable about the praise that we give him when he does something good. We will tell him, "Good job Braxton!" and he'll clap his hands and smile the biggest smile ever! We recently added a high five to the end of his clapping! It's adorable! We'll have to get that on video so you can share in the joy that we experience daily.

We also are seeing Braxton become more and more independent each day. He likes to be the "big boy" and doesn't like mom and dad helping him at times! We have also made the switch to sippy cups with whole milk and a booster seat at the kitchen table! Braxton likes these news challenges and has adapted quite well. He enjoys sitting at the table with us and is learning how to keep his plate on the table and food on his plate! :D He also wants to drink out of whatever cup or glass mom or dad are drinking out off. If we are drinking out of a cup with a straw, Braxton wants to too. The straw is another one of his newest tasks! Now I just need to get a stash of bendable straws, since most restaurants don't have these, so it's easier for our little man to drink out of.

This weekend Braxton also found much joy out of a balloon he received at Applebee's! He was so excited when the waitress gave it to him. He squealed with delight and had the whole restaurant in smiles while he "loudly" played with the balloon! I think our waitress enjoyed the "extra break" off from work too. :D

Other than that, Braxton still continues to have good routines throughout the day. He normally is up around 7 am and ready to go for the day. He takes an hour morning nap and 2 hour afternoon nap. When he's not sleeping he is definitely on the go! He enjoys all of the kids at daycare and is learning so much from the "bigger" kids. I pick Braxton up at 4 and then he goes nonstop until we start his bedtime routine at 7. We definitely treasure each and every minute with our baby boy! We are so blessed with him!

Braxton's First Easter

This weekend Braxton celebrated his first Easter. Our Easter day started off with Braxton getting his Easter basket and goodies, attending the early service at church, then coming home for his 2 hour morning nap, and then back to church. Once back at church we attending the lunch potluck, and then the kids went off on their Easter egg hunt. Braxton enjoyed his first time hunting eggs! Braxton was off and running with the bigger kids and didn't waste anytime in finding eggs! He had a great time, as did mom and dad! We captured lots of video and pictures to share with our friends and family. Enjoy!