A Little Past 31...

Oh, my sweet Braddock...where do I even begin!  This child jumps into life head first, all with intense determination and a song in his heart.  He came to us in the middle of the night...no Brethine, Vistaril, or bed rest could hold him...he was ready to enter this world and enter it he did!  This really seems like it was not that long ago... 

 I remember how absolutely terrified we were.  I am such a planner, and this went nothing like we imagined.  Our nurses delivered him, revived him, and the amazing respiratory therapists from the NICU at WK-South came and took him soon thereafter.

 I don't think I could have ever understood the true love of a parent for their child until that moment.  I felt like my heart was leaving with him in that little incubator.  I knew when I was pregnant that our lives and priorities were forever changed, but not until those few terrifying yet beautifully unforgetable hours did the true weight and emotion settle in.

 Hard to believe how tiny he was...he literally fit in the palm of Michael's hand (something we may have to remind him of a few years down the road!! :)

Amazing how life changes in an instant, huh?  He seemed so tiny, so fragile*-more on this later*- (and although how easily I forget it now having had two in diapers for almost a year) but it took me a good solid week and a half before I mustered up the courage to change his diaper. Thank goodness we were still in the NI because the nurses were literally holding my hand through it, I was that afraid. 
It's hard to imagine that is the same child!  He is as strong as an ox, and has a will to match!  When he sets his mind to something, he will complete that task...maybe needing to "stop, take a deep breath, and think" a few times to prevent a frustration melt down, but dad-gommit he completes it...all the while singing his heart out.

 9 months old...

and almost 2 years later...

give or take "a violin, a trumpet, or "geetar"...

Braddock has the memory of an elephant.  He blew me away the other day as he was 'reading' to Abram "Snowy Day," "Goodnight Moon," and "Mike Mulligan" ver batem....and tonight I heard him trying to do "Fox in Socks!"...I'm not sure if it's because it's because of the musical aspect, but that child can have a song memorized and will be singing it back to you after hearing it only once or twice. He sits there and listens, almost zoning out, and then will stand up, start dancing around, and singing his heart out.  His current favorite (aside from his nursery rhymes, veggietales, and Dr. Jean) is Zac Brown...more specifically "Chicken Fried" (those men must have two year olds who eat like birds because this song has seriously encouraged Braddock to be a little bit less of a vegan!).  He sings, "You know I love my chicken fried!  Cold milk on a Friday night, a pair of jeans that fit JUUUUUST right, and the radio uuuuup, I like to see the sun rise.  See the love in my Mommy's eyes, feel the touch of a precious child, and know a mother's love..."

That brings me to another point....his sweet voice.  Well, more specifically, his accent.  He has this uncanny ability to turn single-syllable words into double or triples.  

Milk= Me-Yilk

Bread = Bray-yed

Bed=Bay=yed....etc.

 I know that Michael and I are both born and raised in the south, but I'm really not sure where he gets his intense drawl!

He also absolutely loves to be outside, and adores anything and everything about it.

swinging... (13 months, then 31 months)

and all things nature.  Lately he has been obsessed with leaves and acorns...

but is perfectly content walking around outside and singing, or playing his "geetar or violin" (he uses his T-ball T and baseball bat).
He also loves his animals, and cannot sleep without turtle, tiger, elephant, Fred, Fred's geetar, Poley, Corduroy, Baby Bear, Brown Bear, glow worm, Rattlin' Dog....and I feel like I'm still missing someone...Giraffe!...

 He also loves real life animals and has such compassion for them.  At the park the other day (collecting acorns), he was looking for squirrels because he just knew they needed a snack!  He also loves his Nestle dog, and has taken to snuggling and playing with him quite a bit, but they've been buddies for quite a while now...(3 months old)

Before he was born I remember praying for his heart...for him to have compassion, and empathy, and the desire to serve.  These past few weeks I have been absolutely blown away by the tenderness of his spirit.  He is developing such a thoughtful heart and he has a willingness to give.  He is quite the big brother...if he gets a toy for himself he usually remembers to bring one for Abram.  If Abram is upset Braddock will hug him, sing to him, or do something silly to make him laugh or distract him.  If he is about to leave a room he'll say, "come on Abram!  Let's go play in there!  You can do it!"...and encourages him along.

This compassion also has another element...sensitivity (this is where in some ways I still see glimpses of that fragile newborn).  His feelings (and possibly pride) can be easily injured...I remember one day a few weeks back he was playing his guitar, and we began to laugh because it was seriously adorable...and he took the laughter as though he was being made fun of, and he was crushed.  Suddenly these big ole'crocodile tears came streaming down his little face. It broke my heart, and took some major comforting and encouraging to draw him back out.  Also, as much of a performer as he is when he is in this comfort zone, when he steps outside of it he is intensely shy and equally tender.  To the observer he seems very serious and slow to warm up, and in this situation his smiles are few and far between (when outside this comfort zone).  In fact, it has just been over the past few weeks that he is getting to where he will run up excitedly to his Sunday school teachers, and we have been attending this church now for a little over a year.  He is hesitant in new situations, is intimidated at the thought of being left alone, and is not a fan of departing from his routine (heaven help him, I've ruined him for life)...unless it involves chocolate :).

But even in this I am seeing growth, and he continues to surprise me.  Yesterday he had his first 'big boy' hair cut.  We had been talking about it for several days, and even pretended to cut hair on some of his stuffed animals to show him it was "A-okay" and actually a super-fun, big boy thing to do! Knowing the sometimes tender nature of his personality I was secretly terrified we were going to go in and he would crumble...

 ...but he was charming

 ...a little bit scared...

 ...but more determined than afraid...

...and he made it...and was a CHAMP (and was so proud of himself)!

Funny how that same fragile determination that we saw some 31 months ago, although in different ways, still presents itself today.  Doodlebug, you are an absolute gift and a tremendous joy.  My boys (all four of them!) light up my world.

Thanksgiving 2011

What a weekend!  Michael snuck in the backdoor Wednesday night during bathtime, and the boys were absolutely elated.  Braddock had been saying all week..."Daddy coming home Wednesday!  Gonna fly to the bed!" (that's their special thing...Michael flies Braddock like an airplane or helicopter and then drops him off in the bed for a tickle/tumble match).

Abram absolutely lit up when he saw Michael.  He had been super fussy from his teeth still trying to come in, and from not being able to nap very well because of the teething, but when Daddy popped through the door his demeanor totally changed and he grinned that Abram grin :)

Being upside down is one of his favorites lately...that and sheets (I was folding sheets that morning and he about literally fell on the floor he was laughing so hard at me shaking the sheet up and down like a parachute).

Braddock was excited to show his Daddy all the bubbles in the tub!

Bedtime stories with the boys.


The next day was Thanksgiving and we were super low key, stayed in our PJs and just enjoyed being together.  Braddock loved watching the parade and searched for "drums and trumpets and geetars and violins" and then Nestle plopped himself over by the TV and watched all the fancy dogs in the dog show...
I wonder if he remembered those days when we worked with Mrs. Jane in confirmation/therapy stuff and was checking out gait and "stand" positions? LOL  I think he was probably more interested in the turkey...

Glutton!

 (He's actually not in time out this time!  LOL...I guess he's been there a lot lately with his habit of trash emptying.  Here he was just playing with Abram in the window)

After naps we loaded up the car and went to pick out a Christmas tree!

Braddock enjoyed pointing to all the trees, until he found the hay....

and then he was totally enthralled!  The man who owned the shop warned us about manure since the tree lot was in a pasture, but at that point he was so happy playing in the hay we figured we'd take our chances and could always just hose his shoes down if we had to.  :)
Michael wore Abram in the Ergo so I could wrangle Braddock and take pictures...

....and I think secretly he wanted more snuggle time (when Abram woke up from naptime throughout the weekend if Braddock was still asleep, he'd strap him into the Ergo to go for a walk :)!
Abram loved looking at all the trees, and would reach out and touch and sniff them (an issue we are dealing with now is trying to keep him from pulling up on the tree and playing peekaboo with the lower branches!).

And nothing beats the smell of the tree stump (Braddock called it the "tree house trunk" and held it all through dinner)

The field where we got the tree...

Braddock was so thrilled that there was a barn!

"loading up"...blowing me kisses :)
We got home that evening and fixed plates for us to all eat dinner together.  Braddock helped sing the blessing...(this was the last picture where Braddock was not in what I will affectionately call "Wild Bill" mode)

Abram ate everything within reach and looked at Braddock as if to say, "Brother!  What's the matter?  This is seriously good stuff!  But if you're not going to eat it, push it my way!!"

...and Braddock...well....let's just say we are thankful for vitamins and milk (he is in a stage now where texture has become a huge factor, and he's not a fan of 'new' foods...I know there will probably come a day where he will totally raid the fridge and pantry and nom everything in sight, but right now it is a little unnerving how much like a bird he can be!).


Friday morning we decided to go and have a picnic at the park and just relax and play together.

Where Braddock goes Abram goes...he is definitely his little shadow these days...and if Abram starts to go where Braddock can't see him he hollers out, "Hey, Abram! Where ya goin!"

Not sure about this sand stuff!

Braddock wanted to build a snowman...unfortunately Mommy is not the best at sand art, but he was excited about it!

Watching Braddock climb up the slide...

Knocking on the "bubble"

One of my favorite things about riding in the car with them...Abram will look over at Braddock and squeak until Braddock turns to look at him, and then they smile and start to laugh at each other.  Sometimes driving down the road out of nowhere they'll both just start laughing and laughing :)






Naptime...Abram was helping tuck Braddock in...

Love.

After a busy day Michael was worn out, too :)

That night we went out on a date night and got some Christmas shopping done!  We were totally the two goons who danced by the fountain and the Christmas tree to the boardwalk music :)  I hope I didn't break too many of Michael's toesies with my two left feet!

The next day was Saturday, and after Braddock and Michael went "mudding" during Abram's morning nap,

(Braddock "drove" while Michael hosed off the residual mud)

we decided to hit up Target with the boys to scout out what they were drawn too...

LOL, no surprise there!  He was drawn at first to the puppy dog guitar, but then once he spied the microphone he became ob.sessed.  There were major major tears when we had to tell it "night night" and put it back in its "resting place" (luckily Santa knows just what to get!)
 Saturday night Michael went to hang out with one of his good friends and I had a girls night with some fabulous ladies.  We had been trying to do a girls night for such a long long time (time has a way of completely slipping away from me!), and I am so so glad we were able to all get together.  We sat around the kitchen table with a jar of nutella and caught up...I seriously laughed so hard my face hurt.


It was a wonderful weekend, and a time to be thankful for all of the many many blessings I so often take forgranted...amazing family, precious friends, and so much more.

Sunday came so so quickly...and so to take our minds off of the changes in our house, we cranked up the Christmas music and had a dance party...well it started as a dance party, and then ended up a piano jam session :)

(Abram was singing)

"Yay!!!!" Big finish!

Even Giraffe got in on the action!