Our Newest Addition

I figured I would start off this post with a picture of Andrea's newest trick. She now loves to "smile" whenever a camera, or even cell phone, is pointed in her direction. So here is a picture of her all ready for church "smiling" for the camera. (And yes, that is a Tessy blurr passing by).
Next- Last Monday when Ryan said, "I really don't have much to do at work this week" I thought, "Maybe I could talk him into taking a day off". I really should ignore it when he says things like that! But he was able to come home "early" on Friday so we ran some errands in Salt Lake and I talked him into going to the Discovery museum at the Gateway. After taking a tour of it 2 years ago I knew I wanted to bring Andrea some day. However, Ryan and I soon realized she is still too young to fully enjoy the experience. So we didn't stay long but Andrea always likes watching kids play. Here she is driving one of the cars.

And this is Daddy helping her load balls into the beehive.So although it seemed to be a waste of money, at least we can look forward to going back one day.

Now for the title of this post, we have a new addition to our household...

Meet Bracken:

I was contacted by a co-worker about a month ago for advice as far as daycare once his wife went back to work. I was immediately excited about offering myself as an option. Bracken's mommy is only working two days a week and some of those days will be Saturdays when his Daddy will be home. So that meant a babysitter would only be needed roughly 6 days a month.

Ever since I decided to stay home full time again I had been praying for a way to keep our "fun" money available. This would be perfect! Besides that, I know how important it is as parents to find a babysitter that you feel comfortable with and allows you to relax while working. Brett and Dy seemed to like the idea as well.

So Monday was my first day with the little guy. The first hour was a little hectic when I had to soothe Bracken while I prepared his bottle, and Andrea was not happy seeing me hold another baby! But after both sweeties were fed and diapers were changed the day couldn't have gone better. Most of the day when Andrea was awake Bracken was asleep, and when Andrea was asleep I was able to give Bracken some one on one time. At one point they were both asleep and I didn't know what to do with myself!Andrea was so cute when he first arrived and wanted to keep holding his hand as you could see in the first picture. Then once I put him in Andrea's rocker she wanted to show him how it was done. By the end of the day when Brett came to pick up Bracken Andrea had really become attached and tried to get his car seat straps undone. I think it will be a lot of fun seeing these two interact!

Merry Christmas to all...

This year's Christmas was so much fun with Andrea around and I can't wait for each Christmas as she grows! At least she is at an age where she can still get excited even if she doesn't understand all that is going on. We still waited to put our presents under the tree until Christmas eve, simply because we were worried she would open any present she found. It was fun playing Santa though, since we usually just throw presents under the tree as soon as they are wrapped. Christmas Eve also included our traditional PJs, which Ryan and I have always done anyway.


Christmas morning we started a fire and began opening the gifts. Andrea's stocking was full of baby treats and some new binkys while Ryan's had the traditional chocolate orange and Bob & Tom CD as well as other goodies and Jazz tickets. My stocking was stuffed with goodies that I probably shouldn't eat, and some pearl earrings from my favorite jewelry store, Shane Co. Let's not forget Tessy who, even though the Dr. told us not to, got her own special treat from Santa in her stocking.

Andrea really never got the hang of unwrapping the gifts, which shocked us all, but she was sure excited once the gift was open. She received some necessities, as well as a book, a bath toy, and a music table from Santa. Ryan spoiled me, as usual, with a DVD player for upstairs, a vest, levis, and DVDs. He received a new GPS, CDs, a Wii game, and a indoor/outdoor temperature gage thingy.

My favorite part about Christmas is that we live in the same city as both parents so it becomes a full day of celebrating. The Lees were so excited to spoil their newest grandchild and Andrea received a riding princess car as well as a rocking pony that sings and talks. She has got the rocking pony down pretty well these days and I know that in no time she will have fun driving that car around! Ryan and I were also spoiled, getting a lot of things which Linda considered "boring" but were very very much appreciated!

We discovered as we unwrapped the gifts at my parents that they had been very busy! Andrea received an adorable bank styled like an old money truck made by Grandpa Jim that was even personalized, it is being proudly displayed on the shelf in her room and will be filled in no time. Ryan and I received a beautiful Afghan which must have taken my mom more hours than I would ever have patience for. I've already used it and it definitely fulfills it's purpose.
Here are a few pictures of Andrea and her cousins, Brigitta and Roland. It's always fun to see them interact!

So as you can see this was a wonderful Christmas for us, and I think Andrea would agree that her first one was definitely memorable!

Ho Ho Ho

Well it was that time I'd been waiting for all season long. Time for Andrea to meet Santa! Each year the Army Depot holds a meet and greet with Santa that includes a lot of great giveaways. I had heard other employees talk about taking their kids or grandkids in the past so I was excited to go this year. I was a little worried about Andrea's reaction, but she did very well. She seemed very interested in Santa and Mrs. Clause (what is her first name anyway?) and was in no hurry to come back to Mama. With the weather being unpredictable lately I was worried that Ryan may not be able to come with us and miss out on her first Santa visit. But luckily the snow stayed away ,and he was there. I wanted to take a picture to prove that Daddy always likes to be a part of things. Not only did Andrea get the creepy stuffed Santa you see in the photo, she also received a bag full of toys and goodies. Plus Ryan and I grabbed some cookies before we left. So I would say it was a pretty successful milestone!

On another note, I've decided to quit my job (again). I finally decided that I have been selfish in my desire to work. Home is where I need to be. I really do love my job and co-workers, but things at the credit union will be changing anyway, so I figured it was a good time to break away. In a way I feel like I am giving up my last bit of independence, but I guess that is what motherhood is all about. However, I am looking forward to getting a set schedule going with Andrea and I think after a while I'll get used to this staying at home full time thing.

Halloween

Here are the photos that many of you have been asking for. I started sewing Andrea's Halloween costume the beginning of September and finished last week. The pattern wasn't too tough, but me being the picky person I am wanted to make it tri-colored, like a beagle would be. It was tough to figure out what colors were going to line up when I sewed them together. I am very pleased with how it turned out and maybe by next year I will have forgotten how time consuming it was.

Isn't she the cutest beagle ever! (No offense Tessy)

This was the closest I could get Tessy to come for a picture together.

Last Wednesday Ryan headed to Louiseville Kentucky for a landscape expo with his boss. I wasn't too thrilled about him not getting home until Halloween night but I guess I can't choose when the expo would be scheduled. While he was gone my days were filled up pretty quickly which is always good to pass the time.

Friday I took Andrea into the credit union to visit all of the departments. Another exciting year of creative themes! There were dead golfers, the H1N1 virus, Santa and elves, M&Ms, and more! My department dressed as Yankee fans, but since I normally don't work on Fridays it didn't matter much to me what they chose. I did go in for a few hours to work so one of them brought me a Yankee T-shirt. Andrea was distracted enough by the costumes that she didn't even mess with her doggy hood, any other time and she yanks it right off.

Friday night Kristi, Tara, and I decided it had been too long since our trip to Denver and it was time for some girl time. Linda and Gary actually suggested the idea and are always willing to give me a break. So we headed to Gardner village for some fun fall activities. We did a witch scavenger hunt with a reward of a chocolate chip cookie at the bakery for 25 cents (normally 90 cents, wahoo). We decided to get tickets for the "Witch-a-palooza" dinner show that night, I'm so glad we did because it was getting COLD outside! Now those of you who know me, know that I've seen a lot of plays, and been in quite a few too. I can honestly say that this was probably the funnest show I'd been to. My expectations were low, and maybe that helped, but I was blown away by the talent! Plus they involved the audience so much, we were all clapping and singing (well, except the young couple at our table who seemed "too cool" for that sort of thing). I would definately attend this show again! The food was good, the atmosphere was fun, the company was great, and the cast was adorable! So, to say the least, our girls night didn't dissapoint and we all agreed we need to get together again soon.

I think Kristi was in the middle of saying "Witchapalooza" when the picture was taken.

Once Halloween arrived it was time to take Andrea around to the family. I headed to my parents first, Ryan still hadn't landed. I always love seeing Eric and Amy's family costumes. This year they were "Little Red 'Hiding' Hood" (Brigitta), the woodsman (Roland), The Big Bad Wolf (Eric), and the Grandma (Amy). Amy chose not to wear her costume two nights in a row, which I don't blame her, but I think Eric always likes dressing up. Amy sewed all of the costumes and she does such a beautiful job!

Once Ryan landed he came to my parents to eat quickly before we went to pick up his parent's and head to his grandmas. Andrea got fun suprises from all of the family, we'll so did Ryan and I. It's good to have Ryan home and I really appreciate my family who helped while he was gone. Linda and Gary always made sure I had been fed and I know they are always there when I need them!

The House of Sorrow

Last Friday Ryan and I thought it would be fun to let Andrea try Grandma and Grandpa's hot tub. We turned the temperature down to a reasonable temp for a baby, put her in her floaty swim suit from Aunt Sandy, and hopped in. We were suprised that she didn't have much of a reaction at all. She didn't love it, didn't hate it. She acted real listless and sleepy. Afterwards I noticed she felt quite warm and her cheekies were a little red. When we got home and took her temperature it read 99.9. I thought this was due to the hot tub and gave her a luke warm bath and Tylenol hoping that would help. In the middle of the night during a fussy spell I took her temp again and it was 101.4. After a while of snuggling up against me my chest was covered in drool... "teething" was my first thought. After another day of fussiness and Saturday night a temperature of 101.7 I was worried! We headed to the doctor Sunday as soon as they opened and found out our little one had strep throat. The doctor said it's unusual for any child under 2. I'm sure it was so frustrating for her not to be able to tell us what's wrong, just the fact that our little girl was out of sorts should have been enough of a clue. During this fun weekend of sickness the dog had peed in the kitchen and Ryan said it was mostly blood. We called the vet Saturday but they had no openings until Monday. We figured it was just a bladder infection and some antibiotics would do the trick. Monday afternoon I got ready for yet another doctor trip, this time dropping off our sick Andrea, well-druged, at the in-laws while I took our other babe to the doctor. As the vet, who graduated with Ryan and I (makes me feel old that someone our age has been through that much schooling), felt around you could literally hear rocks clinking in Tessy's tummy. She explained that those were bladder stones and that surgery was needed. After seeing the x-ray for myself, my heart broke. This poor dog had grape-sized rocks in her bladder that had been forming for years. So on Wednesday Tess went in for surgery and came home that evening. Her initial recovery was scary! She had the shakes, wouldn't open her eyes, and seemed ill-tempered. After an hour or two of rest she popped right up seeming her old self again. Grandpa Gary was kind enough to babysit our patient on Thursday morning while I headed off to work. Today it's my turn, and she is doing quite well. She wants to do more than she should and I'm trying my best to stop her from licking her wounds so we don't have to use the lampshade collar. We actually had to use the baby gate already, not for Andrea, but to keep the dog from going down the stairs.

Andrea is doing so much better, now she is just frustrated that she can't crawl or walk. It's been a stressful week but I am so grateful for my mom who can babysit Andrea while I work and give her the medication she needs, instead of dealing with a daycare that wouldn't give her the love a Grandma would. My in-laws are also such a huge help always begging to take Andrea or the dog off our hands to give us a break. Although we have so many helping hands I'm glad that as the mother I can have most days home to create some stability for my baby and some comfort for the dog.

We are Family

It's finally time to catch up on my blogging. I tell ya... that Farm Town on Facebook really is a time eater!

More Family Pictures
First, family pictures. We've been meaning to take a big family shot of the Lee clan for a while now. Last month the timing and weather was just right to do it. Of course I asked my "go-to" photographer Sheri, but she had a last minute trip that changed her plans. She and I agreed that Kristi could do a fabulous job, if she was willing. After a little coaxing she agreed. We still used Sheri's farm while she was away and I think they turned out beautifully! Thank you so much Kristi, you don't realize how thrilled we all are with the photos and they will be displayed proudly! I think you'll agree that they are adorable, here is a sample, a large sample, but there are about 20 that I love!

Living Room
A lot of our summer was dedicated to remodeling Ryan's parents living room. We had been promising to help out with this project for a few years, so it felt good to get it done. It really was a family affair (I apologize for those who don't know the family ties of the following names)... Gary dad did most of the tear down of old paneling and patching of walls. Sandy and Fernlee made a special visit to help refinish the ceiling and get the project going. Rick helped install a window and Tyler helped texter the ceiling and walls. Then it was up to the Lee's to finish. Linda was always willing to babysit so I could lend a hand and that helped more than she realizes. They really were very patient in letting Ryan and I work on it when we could. Linda said she was hoping it would be done before school started and I think I was touching up the paint Sunday night before she started school on Monday, talk about cutting it close! I think it really turned out nice with the two tones. New carpet and furniture helped to finish it off. Now we just need to get the family pictures framed and up on the walls.

Linda may not appreciate me posting this one but I thought Gary playing on the floor with Andrea was cute.

Park City

This year for our 6th anniversary I told Ryan that the only present I wanted was a full night's sleep. So the in-laws were gracious enough to have a sleep over with Andrea, which they seemed to really enjoy. We chose to spend just one night in Park City, those church callings really cut into the weekend! You may remember that last year we chose the same destination, but I had the worst cold I had ever experienced and being pregnant I couldn't take much for it. So most of our time was spent in the condo watching movies, making hot cocoa for my throat, and trying to sleep. The sleep was interrupted by two fire alarms going off in the night and the fire truck lights flashing in the window. This year we thought we would give it another shot and I enjoyed every minute of it. My wish for a full night's sleep didn't quite happen, hotel beds are never as comfy as our own, but just knowing that it was possible was good enough. We walked Main Street (of course) had a delicious dinner and then soaked in the hot tub. The next morning after a yummy breakfast we realized that we got up before the shop keepers and headed back to the hotel for a quick nap. After check-out we headed back to Main Streeet for the mandatory Christmas ornaments and fudge. We made a quick visit to the outlets, but the crowds scared us away after picking up an outfit or two for Andrea. We took the long way home through Provo Canyon, stopped at South Towne Mall, and headed home. It wasn't a long trip but just what I needed after 7 months of restless nights.

Zoom, Zoom, ZOO!

I apologize for my slacking... but when I slack at posting that usually means I been busy with fun things to post!

Andrea had her first visit to the zoo last Thursday. She wasn't able to spot the animals yet but loved looking at the people. This little girl is so interested in the world around her. If I had to guess her future occupation it would be some kind of inventor or engineer. I thought maybe after riding in her stroller around the zoo she would eventually fall asleep, no way! Not when there are new things to see.

We rode the carousel which she loved! And the train was too quick for her to really focus on anything flying by but she enjoyed the ride. As soon as we were back in the car she was out for the count! We used the rest of the day to look at car dealerships, which leads me to my next update:

New car! We loved our Mazda 3, we bought it brand new after 1 year of marriage so we thought we were pretty hot stuff. Although I thought I had planned for the future with 4 doors and a back seat we soon realized that it was not a big enough back seat when we actually had to put a car seat in there.

We started looking at BMW X5s and Mazda CX-7s. Ryan was a little turned off that the CX-7s looked exactly like our 3 inside, what's the fun in that? So Ryan was using his BMW mechanic cousin to decide on a good X5. Thanks Rusty for all of your help! While we were at a dealer looking at the best X5 we had seen, we noticed an Acura MDX on the lot. We briefly checked out the Acura and told them we would be back the next morning. Ryan said since it would be my car, it was my choice. I knew right away I wanted the Acura. It was newer than the beemer and was in better shape. Ryan had to do all kinds of research that night but ultimately agreed with my decision. This makes our sixth car in six years of marriage, what can we say.... we get bored easily I guess.
As you can see Andrea's car seat sits properly now, instead of hitting the front seats. We also have third row seating or "Tessy storage" when folded down. We tell Andrea that we bought this car just for her, because honestly we did. Talk about a high maintenance kid, gets her own car at 6 months old!