THE BEST CHRISTMAS EVER!!

The title pretty much says it all. Brandt had so much fun this year and I enjoyed every second of watching him. My parents do the 12 days of Christmas for us, so by Christmas he had the unwrapping thing down. Only problem was he didn't want to open anything once he started cause he was happy playing with what he opened first. It took a couple hours to get finished. Guess we (and Santa) should have controlled ourselves a little better when it came to shopping since he would have been completely satisfied with any one of his toys. Oh how I appreciate and treasure him and the simple ways he finds joy. Too bad he can't stay this size forever because I really don't look forward to the day when he wants a cell phone, I-pod, car... or whatever better comes along in the next 10 years. We spent most of the holiday and the following weekend with family and enjoying playing with Brandt. Couldn't have asked for anything better!! (Well, other than a couple days off work other than just Christmas day since I had to be at the office and Bryce had to plow)

A Child's Prayer

Brandt has started helping with saying prayers. Most of the time he just repeats a word here and there and then starts saying "amen, amen..." when he's sick of it. Yesterday morning he started adding his own thoughts and it went something like this:

me: Dear Heavenly Father
Brandt: Father
me: We're thankful for this day
Brandt: day
me: we're thankful for our blessings
Brandt: blessings
me: thankful for mommy
Brandt: mommy
me: thankful for daddy
Brandt: daddy
me: thankful for grandmas
Brandt: grandmas
me: thankful for grandpas
Brandt: papas
Brandt: and hees
me: yes, thankful for horses
Brandt: and cows
me: (suppressing my giggles) yes and thankful for cows
Brandt: amen!

How much better off and happier would we all be if we had the simple gratitude of a child?

Decorating the tree

We cheated this year and bought an artificial tree since Brandt and I were both miserable the entire month of Dec. last year because of our allergies. Can I just tell you it has been our best purchase all season. Not only are we not sneezing our heads off, but I didn't have to listen to Bryce cuss once or watch the tree go flying off the back porch like every other year when it comes time to put it in the stupid tree stand. SO NICE!! Brandt had a ball helping us decorate it and has stayed out of it pretty good. He loves to antagonize his dad by standing next to it and grabbing the lights. He stands there staring down Bryce prepared to run away giggling when he gets after him for messing with them. He's such a tease, and knows exactly how to get to his dad. Cracks me up every time!

Reflections on 2008

So, this is the season when I typically look back over the last year and sort of evaluate what I have (or haven't in a lot of cases) accomplished, how I've grown (sometimes it's just out unfortunately), how things have changed, and decide where I want to go from here. There have been many ups and downs including the passing of loved ones and the birth of new loved ones. Of course the person who comes to mind most for me is Brandt. He has grown and changed so much in the past year and I'm hoping that I've also grown as a mom. He started walking in Feb. at 9 months old and hasn't slowed down since. He turned one on May 4th and had a fun time with the Well's cousins coming over for a slumber party, and then he got to have 2 parties-one with the Thompsons and one with the Pugmires. Bryce decorated a John Deere cake for each party and Brandt enjoyed having his own piece of each cake. It was messy, but totally worth it since he had so much fun. Some of Brandt's favorite summer activities included going for rides in his wagon, playing at the lake, being a rodeo clown in the 4th of July parade with Dr. Campbell's office, feeding the ducks at Willow Park, moving cows with grandma and grandpa (especially when uncle Kevin and aunt Kelli let him get on the horse), and camping at the Thompson and Pugmire reunions. He was the center of attention with all the cousins. He is very social and gives other kids lots of hugs and kisses, rather they want them or not. He even has a girlfriend named Joslyn and they usually get in at least one or two good kisses at church every week. He is rough and tough and definitely all boy. He loves to wrestle with his "daddy, buddy, Brycie", or anyone else who happens to be sitting/lying on the floor, including his cousin Amanda Jean who is a year younger than he is (sorry Jana!) He also loves to tease (just like his dad) and is constantly making us laugh with his dramatic antics. He is a climber and a thrill seeker (also like his dad) and not afraid of anything. He is a great helper with household chores such as laundry and sweeping (not at all like his dad) and helps me every chance he gets. If you ever want to see someone who can really dance, just hang around when the music comes on and Brandt will show you some moves. We never missed an episode of "Dancing with the Stars," and he danced along with every couple. Now he can't get enough of rodeos, especially the "bullz" and "hees" and laughs everytime a poor cowboy hits the dirt.
As far as Bryce and I go, probably our greatest accomplishment this year was reaching our 10th anniversary on Aug. 28. We actually left Brandt for the evening (thanks to Jared, Lisa, and kids) and went to Logan for dinner at the Olive Garden. It was only the second time we've ever left him for anything other than to go to work, but it made us decide to try harder at squeezing in date nights more often. Other than that we stay pretty busy with work. Bryce works extra hard with his regular job at Bear Lake County Road and Bridge and he's also taken on working with his dad for the Georgetown irrigation part-time. I work with wonderful people at Dr. Campbell's office and couldn't ask for better right now. He's so kind and caring with all his patients and also takes the time to take care of practically my entire family; grandparents on down. I love being able to serve people in our community every day and am learning valuable skills as I go. We are blessed to have what we do in such an unstable world. We love living in the beautiful Bear Lake Valley surrounded by family and friends who care for us and help us more than we probably deserve. Of course Bryce also loves the benefit of being surrounded by great places to ride his snowmachine. All in all, we are very blessed and look forward to spending the next year watching Brandt continue to grow and learn.

OUT OF THE STONEAGES

Ok, so never thought I would do this, but guess I'm starting a blog. I mostly just decided that I have such a cute kid and I love to talk about him and show off his cute pictures, so I might as well create one more way to do that :) Actually, I've enjoyed following the going-ons of various family members on their blogs over the last few months and thought they might like to see what we're up to once in awhile as well. So, I am a complete novice at this and not too creative, so please don't judge me too harshly for that. I also don't actually have a computer at home, so who knows how often I'll actually post anything. Guess I'll just give it a go and hope everyone will be patient and understanding!