Wow, it has been a while

I have not blogged in so long. I always have good intentions but I never quite make it. We have been busy. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in Richfield. Brinley was a little overwhelmed by all the people but she warmed up after a while. We got to hang out with the Berry's and watch Devan play basketball over Thanksgiving weekend and Brinley just adores her cousin Brooklyn. We had such a good time hanging out with family. December was busy. We drove down to Richfield for the Christmas party and the light parade. Brinley loved running around and seeing all the people. She did not like Santa. Am I a bad mom for letting this happen?

The morning we got back from Richfield I got really sick. I will spare you the details but I got sicker than I have ever been in my entire life. So sick in the short 3 hour span that I was up by myself that I was literally scared I was going to die. Aaron ended up calling an ambulance and I went to the hospital where they loaded me up with all sorts of drugs and got me feeling good enough to go home. It turns out I somehow contracted C. Diff. A nasty bug that I never should have gotten. It has been a slow recovery but I am so excited for Christmas.

Brinley is growing up so fast. She is already 11 months old. She loves Sesame Street and can point out the characters. She has been watching Christmas Eve on Sesame Street and loves to pretend she is dancing when Big Bird dances. She picks up on so much that she amazes me. She has such a sweet, happy personality and I feel so lucky to be her mommy.

I will do my best to blog more. Until Then Merry Christmas to all my loved ones!

How lucky am I? What a handsome man!

Thank you to my wonderful sister for taking and editing our family photos. Love you!

Thank you Thank you

Thank you so much to everyone who voted for Brinley. She got 2nd place in the contest! You guys are awesome.

Please Vote for Brinley!

Our little Brinley is in a costume contest for our local radio station 97.1. Please follow this link and vote for her

http://www.971zht.com/pages/halloween/cuties09/

She is entry 009 in the 0-2 category, the adorable little giraffe. Please vote!

Halloween is coming!

We took Brinley to Gardner's Village to get some pics of her in her new costume. Enjoy!

Sorry, No Pictures

Life is so busy, I keep thinking I will have time to blog and then the time gets away from me. Brinley is growing up so fast. She is walking everywhere. She can now walk faster than she can crawl. We took advantage of my last 7 days off and Brinley, my mom, and I went to Idaho to see the Berry clan. We didn't tell anyone that Brinley and I were coming. It was a nice surprise. We had a great time hanging out with everyone. Brinley loved being around all the kids but was a little fussy because she got a cold. We are all battling her cold now, she shares everything.

While we were in Idaho she started saying Mama. It melts my heart. She can now say Mama, Dada, Hi, and girl. She will wave hello and goodbye and she has a great sense of humor. She will be nine months old next week and I can't believe how fast the time has flown. She is the sweetest little girl.

Since I last blogged I also had a birthday. It was the big 3-0. I had to work for most of the day but when I got home my whole house was spotless, and decorated for my birthday. Aaron had invited Brandey and Codey over to surprise me and he had cooked a complete meal. Besides all the food, he made brownies and fresh bread. Brandey brought guacamole and her mom's home made chocolate chip cookies. All my favorites. It was an awesome day. Thanks to everyone.

I have an awesome husband. We left him home to work while we took off to Idaho and when I got home he had repainted our great room and kitchen. He also made us a new coffee table. The house looks amazing, it was a wonderful surprise. Aaron is so great. Poor guy doesn't really get thanked enough or appreciated enough. He is such a great dad to Brinley and husband to me. He takes the brunt of my grumpiness which is most of the time these days. So Aaron, I love you and thank you.

Oh and I guess I lied about the pictures, here are some from my phone.

More to come when I have some time.

Dear Long Forgotten Blog...

Dear Neglected blog,
I am sorry but I am tired. One day I will actually take the time to update you on my wonderful little Brinley. I will tell you all the cute things she does, like walk all over the basement (she only walks when she knows it won't hurt when she falls) I will tell you how she goes up to the TV when So You Think You Can Dance is on and shakes her little booty. I will tell you how she leans in to give you a kiss on your nose and bites it (with all three of her teeth). I have a million things to update. I would love to tell you about singing and story time at the library which she loves, the zoo which she also loved, and the fun birthday party we went to, once again she loved it. However, Brinley has an ear infection right now and I am back to 7 On so I am tired and a real update with pictures and all will have to wait...Yawn...

She Walks...

Just a quick post to tell you all some amazing news. Brinley took 5 steps all by herself today. She is amazing. I couldn't be prouder.

That is all for tonight. I am two days in to my 7 on and I am tired. The 7 off makes it worth it. As soon as I can figure it out I will post video of Brinley!

And so it begins

Today is the first day of my new 7 on 7 off schedule. Lucky me I get the 7 off first. I am so excited. I get to spend the next 7 days with this little one.

Which means she will appear in more pictures like this:

Notice the clothes and the bow.

I am so excited to spend more time with her and Aaron. We have some big plans. Most of all I want to be more active. I am hoping to take her on lots of hikes and walks. We are also going to attend some story times at the library. Anyone who is a stay at home mom who reads my blog, lets get together! I am excited for my new shift and the fun things it will entail!

More pictures

Daddy's girl

Check out these pearly whites!

Practicing standing like a big girl

See ya later! I'm going for a walk.

I know, I know, its been forever!

We have been pretty busy lately. I keep meaning to update the blog but it never happens. I just got home from work and Brinley is asleep so I will try to give an update.

Brinley is now 7 months old! I can't believe how quickly the time has gone. She is growing and changing every day. She can now climb up the stairs by herself. She figured that one out on her own. She can crawl super fast and she can stand up on her own! She practices all the time. She finds something to pull herself up on and then pushes away from it to see how long she can balance. She can walk along the furniture or the wall or anything else that will stay stable for her. She really wants to walk and actually tries. She can take 3 little steps before she falls. She is such a funny girl.

She has become rather shy lately. She takes quite a while to warm up to people she hasn't seen in a while. She doesn't really let many people hold her. She actually doesn't slow down long enough to be held anyway. She is a sweet kid, she gives kisses and hugs and has a smile for everyone. She loves animals. She loves our dogs, the neighbors cats, the horses down the way. She reaches for all animals and shows no fear.

She is still having fun staying home with Daddy during the day. I start my 7 on 7 off on September 1st! I get to be off for the first rotation. I am so excited! I almost forgot, Brinley now has 2 teeth and one on the way. She is such a big girl!

Here are some mostly random pictures of the last while.

Hey Mom, what ya doin'?

Play, play, play

We borrowed this table from our friends Doug and Tiffany and she loves it! And yes she does occasionally wear clothes just not in most of these pictures.

At the aquarium with cousin Kennady. How do you get a 7 month old and a 16 month old to hold still for a picture at the same time?

Yummy, sweet potatoes!

I have many more pictures to add but my computer keeps freezing when I try to add them.

Too big for her britches

Our little Brinley started crawling on Monday. She is a bit wobbly but getting faster and better every day. I can't believe she will be 6 months old in just a few short days. She is learning new things every day. She is now pulling her self up to stand on just about anything she deems stable which doesn't always mean things are stable. She is finally eating solid foods, she likes sweet potatoes and tolerates rice cereal. Carrots make her dry heave. She really loves her teething thing filled with ice. Her teeth are giving her fits, they keep popping through and then going back in. I wish there was more we could do for her. Here are a bunch of pictures from what we have been up to lately.

My sister and her family came down and Aaron took Brinley with them to the zoo. Sadly I didn't get to go. My schedule switches to 7 on 7 off on September 1st and then we will be having some fun!

My friend Deepika got married. Isn't she a beautiful bride!

Brinley eating some rice cereal.

Yummy

This was on the 3rd of July. This little thing filled with crushed ice is a life saver!

Hanging out with daddy on the 4th.

She is an old pro at sitting up by herself these days.

Crawling machine!

And for my next trick I am going to attempt to walk.

Happy 4th of July

We just wanted to wish everyone a Happy 4th of July! A special happy 4th to Ryan who is in basic training right now. We miss ya Ry!

5 Months Old

I can't believe my baby is 5 months old today! I am the luckiest mom in the world. Brinley is the best baby ever. We have survived her first ear infection, she was a champ through the entire thing. She is getting her two front bottom teeth right now, hence the drool covered clothes in many pictures. Brinley has such an amazing little personality. She wakes up in the morning with a big smile on her face. She reaches for everything and wants to inspect it and figure out what it is and of course what it tastes like. She is happy and laughing all the time. She is now scooting along on her back when she wants to get from point A to point B. She will get on her hands and knees and rock back and forth but no crawling yet, I wish she wasn't growing up so fast. I am looking forward to watching her grow and progress every day. We love you Brinny bear!

The Boys of Summer

This weekend we headed up to Providence, UT to watch our nephew Devan play baseball. We love it when he has games so close by so we can see everyone and watch him play. He is such a good little player and he is very versatile. This season we have watched him pitch, catch, and play in the infield. I am so glad we got to watch. I wish Davis would have a game close by too so we can watch him play. Brinley isn't feeling so good so she was a bit fussy but she slept on Papa's lap and let everyone hold her and play with her. She got so hot that we had to strip her down, she is one hot blooded kid. She is growing up so fast, she is sitting up on her own now, she is still a bit wobbly but she can sit on her own for 30 seconds or so before she topples.

I love her little toes hanging out

Sleeping on Papa's lap

Brooklyn wanted to build a fort with a blanket

Brooklyn and Uncle Aaron. He has always been her favorite.

Sweet Baby Sam


He loves to have his picture taken

He is only 9 months old and already walking!

Nana making Brinley smile

These two cousins are going to be great friends.

Brinley likes cousin Devan!

Davis was ready to go home after a long day of ball games.

I am so greatful to see my family whenever we can. Brinley and Sam are only 5 months apart and I hope they grow up close friends. Brooklyn just loves Brinley and Brinley lights up whenever she sees Brooklyn. I can't wait for them to be able to play together. Thanks for a fun day everyone!

Rock Band

The other night we had Aaron's brother and sister and their spouses over along with Brinley's cousin Kennady for a little rock band party. We had a great time and it was really fun to see everyone. Brinley loved watching everyone play and sing. Ryan is leaving for basic training on June 9th. We wanted to hang out a bit before he goes. We are going to really miss him but we are so proud of him. Good Luck Ryan, we love ya!

Stay-At-Home Daddy!

Well as most of you know I have been home for little over a month with Brinley. I quit a good job welding and now spend all day with her. I miss work (a little! ) Mainly I just miss the money, but the benefit package with my new job is amazing, who else gets to go to the aquarium with their daughter for work! I have watched as she progresses daily, and it does not get any better than that. I am amazed at how fast she learns things, one day she switched and became all active and responsive. We have been lucky to have such a great little girl. It is a little weird though, going to the grocery store or anywhere else for that matter and being the only male pushing a baby around. It's like a special club to be in, or out of. When I see another male with a baby I give him the "nod" or the hand wave that Harley riders give other Harley riders, we have all seen it and some of us have been lucky enough to get and give it. Thanks Larry! But when it comes to all the lady folk out there they look at me as if they are on the Harley and I am riding a scooter! I think that they will come around. One check out lady asked if I was PRETENDING to be a stay at home dad! HUH Anyways I will try to get more posts up along with pictures, but I am just now learning how to manage my time with a beautiful little girl.

4 Months Old!

We took Brinley in for her 4 month well child exam. She charmed her nurse so much that she asked another nurse to do Brinley's vaccinations, she didn't want to be the one to make Brinley cry. Her doctor said she is perfect. She can roll from her back to her tummy and from her tummy to her back. She holds her head really well and grabs at anything she can reach. She weighs in at 13 pounds 13 ounces which is between the 50%-75%. She is 25.8 inches long which is off the chart for her age. Hopefully she will be tall like her daddy. Here are some recent pictures.

I took the day off to go to the doctor with Brinley and Aaron and to hang out with her after. She seems to be doing better than the last time so we got out her pool to let her have some fun.