The Case of the Missing Diamond

I know that it has been almost 2 weeks since my last post but right after I wrote Wednesday's blog, I went into the kitchen and noticed that my diamond was gone!!!! I guess that I had lost it somewhere in Bellevue! I was so upset and called Guy crying. It is such a sentimental piece and so special to Guy and I. However since it was insured I was able to get a replacement diamond for free and my new ring should be ready sometime this week. So sad. :( On a side note-make sure to get your prongs tightened around your diamond once a year! Didn't know that!

Our little family has been so busy with parties, retreats, and get togethers. Last week we went to Rockbridge for a Young Life leader weekend! We had a great time! Braylen loved being the center of attention. And he loved playing with the other kids. There were 8 small/2 big kids and 5 moms from our area in NKY! Wow! Our community has grown so much. We all shared a tiny 2 bedroom/2 living room pull out couch room. Friends of ours brought a little car to push their baby in instead of using a stroller, but every time Braylen walked outside he went right to that car. He was so sneaky about it too. He loved it! The fellowship, food, worship, scenery, was great! Guy and I bought the Chronicles of Narnia on CD and it was so fun to listen to during the ride. I highly recommend it. It made the trip go by quickly. Braylen slept for only 2 hours both there and back but had a great time entertaining himself during the other 4 hours. He is such a good boy.

Braylen has been teething so he has been quite fussy. He had a 101 temperature all day on Friday but seems to be feeling better. He fell asleep in my arms Friday morning because he just felt so bad! He NEVER does that. I of course loved it but once he woke up he had a fever. Poor kid. But he is better now. He is just so much fun. He copies everything we do now! He's so observant now. Yesterday I took the garbage can out from our cabinet to throw some things away and Braylen went over, picked it up and put it right back where it belongs. Today he went into our bedroom, picked up one of Guy's shoes and then tried putting it on Guy's foot. He's so smart. Oh he also went up to this little boy at Cracker Barrel and tried to give him a hug. The little boy just pushed him. Punk.

This week we are having 2 Boone Young Life get togethers, bible study, and then a wedding to go to on Saturday. Lots to do! Can't wait to work out this week! I ate so much food over the weekend! Diet starts Monday! But for real. I'm thinking about taking Braylen to the YMCA's outdoor pool tomorrow but I'm not sure if it will be warm or not!

I will update the blog more often! Here are a few recent pictures of our sweet baby boy!

Bellevue

What a beautiful day! Braylen and I met with Aunt Jess and Grandma Hicks and spent the morning walking and shopping in downtown Bellevue. They have some super cute shops and Jess and I scored some awesome spring jackets from the consignment shop Bella On the Avenue. Then we had lunch at the Bellevue Bistro which was awesome. Best chicken salad ever! Braylen had a grilled cheese. Braylen was a good little shopper but by the end we had to let him out of his stroller to walk on the sidewalk. Of course he said hello to everyone who passed by. He is not shy at all. He just has so much fun doing anything. He loves being outside too. He runs really fast and makes these funny noises. Hilarious.

I was just looking at our wedding pictures and I just still tear up thinking about that day! What a wonderful day! Everything was just so beautiful. I'm so thankful to be Guy's wife!

Tonight we have our all area club for Young Life. It should be a good time and we are hoping more Boone students will come out with us. Braylen is spending time with Collin and Aunt Barb and Jeff. He will have a blast I am sure!

Have a great afternoon!

Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

So one week down of the dinner challenge and we didn't do that bad. I only had to cook two dinners though. Ha. Our life is crazy. Thursday we had a rehearsal dinner, Friday Guy was the best man in Mike and Kim's wedding (which was soooo beautiful!), Saturday we did a big group hangout with friends and watched the new Star Trek (which wasn't that bad!), and Sunday we hosted the Young Life booth at the First Church Mission's Fair. We had a very busy schedule. We also took Corinne to the airport on Saturday morning so she could fly to Ireland! We miss you!

Braylen has been figuring out our bedtime schedule and has been very adamant about not going to sleep! Last Tuesday he started freaking out before I put him down and the next two nights he was the same way! Finally last night and tonight he did fine. We just had to let him cry it out, which only last for a few minutes. He's awesome. He has been the center of attention and has loved it! At Mike and Kim's rehearsal dinner, he had so much fun. And then today at the mission's fair he went around to all the other booths just waiving to people and saying hi. So cute. He even went up to strangers to give them hugs! He is not shy at all! I love that kid. I'm so looking forward to hearing him complete real sentences. His other word is "uh." It's the universal term for EVERYTHING. "Abee" has been more of a song lately. He'll sing "abee" and just sway his head or pick up his feet to dance.

Guy and Braylen bought me a Zoo membership for mother's day so I am hoping to go this week! But we'll see what happens. We have another very busy week. Monday-hang out with YL students, Tuesday-bible studies, Wednesday-All area club, Thursday-Domec's, Friday-leave for Virginia and the YL leader retreat. So much to do! God is good though! Also congrats to my cousin Ryan for graduating! Can't wait to find out if you and Jen are having a boy or girl! I think boy! Hm....maybe girl though. :)

"Abee, Abee, Abee"

"Abee" is Braylen's new favorite "word." He says it all day long. I have no idea what it means. Up, hold me, feed me, happy.....he uses it for everything! I can't wait for him to start actually talking. It's so funny! He woke up this morning saying it.

Yesterday, after I worked out at the Y, I took Braylen to the swimming pool. We saw Bob Boswell and talked with him for a little bit and then went on swimming. Braylen loves the water and since he's been putting his hands into our toilet (YUCK) I figure I should get him into water a lot more. I dunked him a few times and he comes up all wide eyed but he laughs after wards. He thinks it fun. We came home, ate lunch, and both took naps! Braylen slept for like 3 1/2 hours! Yea BabyWise! For dinner, I cooked Chicken Taco Salad (I posted the recipe below) for me, Braylen, and Corrine since Guy was away at bible study. We had study over here at 8pm for the girls and it was good to catch up.

Today we spent time with Grandma and Grandpa Hicks. Braylen had a good time playing with grandpa while I showed grandma how to import picture onto her computer. He played with all of their toys and books. Now Braylen is napping (and coughing). Tonight we are meeting with the Domec's since tomorrow (our normal day to meet) is Mike and Kim's rehearsal dinner. Can't wait for their wedding!

We have been experiencing a difficult time in our ministry these past few days, as a former Boone County YL student, Laura Chaney, died suddenly in her dorm room at WKU. Guy and I were not her leaders but a few current students knew her well, as does one of our co-leaders, Chris. Chris is also the best friend of Laura's older brother. There have been a few prayer vigil's and Guy was able to go to one last night at the Chaney's house. It's been hard knowing what to do since we are new to the school and because YL is not that well known there. Please pray that the Lord would open doors for us to share His message of hope and love to students who are lost. What a wake up call to us all that life is short and you only get one shot at accepting Jesus into your heart!

Thanks for reading!

Chicken Taco Salad

1 pound boneless chicken

1 can corn, undrained

1 can pinto/black beans (or both), drained

1 can chopped tomatoes or tomato juice

1 packet taco seasoning

Chopped lettuce

Shredded cheese

Sour cream

Crunched up taco chips

1-Boil chicken for 20 minutes and then shred with a fork.

2-While chicken is boiling, on low/md heat add corn, beans, tomatoes/juice to large saucepan. Mix all together and allow to cook.

3-Add shredded chicken and mix in taco seasoning.

4-Top with lettuce, cheese, sour cream and chips. Other toppings: guacamole, cilantro, salsa.

30 DAYS!

So not only am I doing 30 days of dinner, I'm also doing the 30 Day Shred by Jillian Michels. I showed up to YMCA this morning and met my friends Amy and Summer and found out we are doing the shred once again. We did it for like 2 months back in Feb & March and it was intense! I wasn't following a strict diet then so now that we are making more healthy dinners at home, I will hopefully notice a difference. Dinner was great tonight. I made laughing cow chicken cordon blue-a low fat version. You can find the recipe here. Delicious.

Today flew by! Braylen was hilarious this morning. He woke up at 8:30am (it was nice to sleep in) and when I went to get him out of his crib he didn't want me to pick him up. He kept scooting away from me. He was so talkative too. So I said okay I guess I'll leave you in there. And he said "noooooooooooo!!" and pointed at me. I'm not sure if he knew what he was saying or doing but if he did I'm impressed! So then he let me get him out. He took a short nap this afternoon and then was fussy when he woke up for a little bit. After dinner, Corrine and I took Braylen to the park. He is getting more confident about climbing on the swing set and sliding down the slide by himself. Then he wandered over to the baseball field and just watched the kids play. It was so cute! But I am exhausted! I am laying here in bed while Guy meets with Stephen Saunders (a former YL student that he meets with every week). I am ready to go to sleep!

Bible study with my friends tomorrow night. I am looking forward to more accountability and fellowship.

Thanks for reading! Good night!

Happy Mother's Day!

We have had such a busy and wonderful weekend! Friday night Braylen and I hung out with Aunt Jess while Guy and Vince were at a bachelor party. Guy is the best man in our friend's wedding this coming weekend so he hosted a poker night at our house. Jess and I spent the night at mom and dad's house and stayed up watching "Say Yes to the Dress!" on TLC (I love cable!) and we baked a cake. Then we woke up the next morning and drove down to Butler State Park for Mother's Day activities with my mom's side of the family. It was so much and Braylen had a great time. There was this group of like 15 kids that he just loved waiving to (although none of them waived back!!). One little boy had a big wheel and Bray freaked out every time he rode by. He loved that thing! He also had a good time pushing his lawn mower around and singing/dancing to "Ring Around the Rosie." We drove home around Braylen's bedtime thinking he would fall asleep in the car but that little rascal stayed up the whole time! He just sang and laughed at himself the whole ride home. He finally fell asleep in his bed once we got home. He's so cool.

Today was Mother's Day! I tear up thinking about how much I love our little boy and how much joy he brings to our lives. He is so amazing. I'm so blessed to be able to stay home with him everyday. Guy allowed me to sleep in a little bit this morning and got Braylen up and ready. I had some time to myself to get ready for church. I feel like I am NEVER alone so that was nice. We went to church and then to a nice lunch with the Jon, Peggy, and Amy (on a side note-Peggy informed me that it's really NOT "pronounced 'dough-mac' but 'dough-MEC'. I just think dough-mac is how most people say it. However the correct way to pronounce it is MEC.). We went home to put the munchkin down for a nap and then back out to mom and dad's for the Hicks' side dinner. Braylen had a rough evening and seemed to be more fussy than normal but after he had some ice cream in him, he was good to go. He definitely got dizzy during his "ring around the rosie" dance but it was hilarious. We had a great day and I am very thankful for my wonderful MD gifts. I was reminded by a friend that it is the Lord who I should be thanking for today's amazing blessings and gifts. He is always so good and gracious and makes everything possible. May He always be the first to thank and praise everyday of our lives!

Tonight Corrine is coming to stay with us and tomorrow is day 1 of the 30 day Dinner challenge! I already planned out our week and will keep you posted with how things are going! Good night!

Day Two

Braylen is napping right now so I thought I would take a few minutes to update our new blog. These past few days have been so crazy and I still have a ton of cleaning, laundry, organizing to do. But first I need to watch the Lost episode that I missed last night! :) Priorities right?

I've been trying to keep track of how many calories I eat and have realized that I consume way too many carbs everyday! Anyone know how to stop craving them? Weight loss is so frustrating and hard!

This morning Braylen woke up at 6am! Guy had to wake up early for accountability so he went up there and calmed him down because Braylen was of course up and ready for the day (he wakes up singing by the way). So then Braylen fell back asleep until 8:45am! Yes! He is awesome. We had to go shopping to buy snacks for Guy's party tomorrow night and I asked Braylen to go get me his shoes and he totally did! He is so smart! At the store he was waving to everybody and saying "ba-bye!" He is the coolest.

Tonight we have dinner with Jon and Peggy which will be nice to catch up. And this weekend is filled with parties and Mother's Day activities! Can't wait!

Also Monday starts a new 30 day challenge that I have set up for myself. The challenge will be to not eat out at a restaurant for dinner for 30 days! I have not cooked a meal for my family in FOREVER and I feel like the Lord wants me to serve them with a good, healthy meal. I'll keep you posted with the results and will hopefully add recipes to all the meals I prepare.

Not sleepy

For some reason I'm not tired! It's 11:30pm and the boys are asleep but I am wide awake. We had a busy day today. This morning Bray and I went to the YMCA so that I could have some "mommy" time and when I picked him up from child watch, they told me that he had climbed on top of the table like 10 times! He is crazy. Then we went to storytime at the library. There were about 15 or so babies and mom's there and Bray had such a great time! He danced and talked to everyone there. He was not shy at all and was really in his element. Loves being the center of attention. Then we came home and ate lunch. Today he tried black beans and of course loved them. He got the juice all over his face and hair so I gave him a bath afterwards. He is just so much fun! Then we met up with my parents for dinner which was great. Bray made friends with an older couple behind us. We went shopping afterwards and I spent way too much money. Corrine (our co-Young Life leader at Boone County) is staying with us for a week or so and I needed to buy bedding for her. We organized the extra bedroom upstairs and added a bed that we borrowed from my parents and it looks so cute! I hope that she feels comfortable there.

I want to use our blog to inform family and friends what is happening with our little family. We love Braylen so much and I am excited to write down and record the crazy things that he does everyday!