Thursday, January 31, 2008

Go!


Brendan hasn't figured out how to scoot himself just yet but he loves to sit on his little car and play with all the fun knobs and compartments. He'll entertain himself for quite a while, which gives me and Chris some much needed rest. Unfortunately, most of the time we use the extra minutes to pick up his other toys he's scattered around our house. He's quite the mischeivious little guy but oh so fun. Thanks Grandma Near! Brendan loves his birthday present so much!

Legend

I love this little tiger. He was mine when I was young and his name is Ra-Ra. I put him up on Brendan's shelf that holds all the fun little things I've collected for him that I don't want him to be able to ruin just yet. But Brendan loves him and is always staring at him way up on his shelf... so I usually break down and let him run around with Ra-Ra. All the while, I'm super nervous that the battery is going to die... again.


Here's the story. My dad bought me the tiger after I'm sure what was endless nagging while we were at WalMart or some other similar store. I loved that tiger (I confess, I still do), especially because when you squeeze him, he roars. How cool is that!?! Well, I squeezed him to my heart's content and one day he stopped roaring. There is no way to put in a fresh battery unless you want to snip open his adorable furry tummy and try to rig it somehow. I was heart broken.

Then one stormy Illinois night, my sister and I were sitting watching tv when there was a flash of lightening and a rumble of thunder. At the same time, we heard a strange roaring noise from the other room. It was Ra-Ra. He mysteriously started roaring again and ever since then I've been very stingy with him. I don't like him to be squeezed for fear of that battery finally giving up.

Well, Brendan has changed all that. He'll probably wear that tiger dead but maybe another storm will come along and magically bring him back to life.

PS- this is a TRUE story as far as I can remember. Ask my sis.

Monday, January 28, 2008

Puppy Love

My friend Angela was taking care of the world's cutest puppy for a few days, so we HAD to bring Brendan over to see her. I wasn't too sure how he'd react or if he'd be too rough for a tiny little pug but he did surprisingly well!

He was really excited and kept standing up and then falling down. He just couldn't control himself around the puppy and he kept squealing with delight.

Then he found the tv and that stole his attention. He has a thing for buttons on tv's. He can't resist. So he spent several minutes turning Angela and Jandon's tv on and off. Over and over again. He also enjoyed the game where I yell "No, Brendan" and get up to stop him but he acts like he's walking away so I sit back down, which gives him enough time to turn back to the tv and turn it back on and off. We play that lots.

Brendan was sad to go and didn't want to leave their tv or the puppy, especially since there probably is not a puppy in our near future. But at least we'll have the memories~ thanks, Angela!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

To a beloved Prophet


We just heard on the news the President Gordon B Hinckley died tonight at the very respectable age of 97. We're pretty sad here but glad that the Gospel will continue on and that President Hinckley is now reunited with his dear wife. I feel extra grateful to have the blessing of the Gospel in our lives.

Friday, January 25, 2008

You want me to show you tough...



I laughed long and hard at work today over this. Enjoy!

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Some of my favorite things

The past week or so has been quite fun. Brendan is growing up so fast and doing new things each day- it's a great time right now, which is why I haven't blogged so much lately. I've having too good of a time being with Chris and Brendan. But I'll give you an overview of my favorite things lately.

1- Brendan has learned to dance. Below is Brendan dancing in a corner. He managed to remove his socks (one of his favorite things and happens now at the first moment the shoes come off) and he must have liked the feeling of his bare feet on the box- which motivated him to do a little shimmy on the box.



It's so fun to see him wiggle his little butt when our cell phones ring or I'm playing music in the kitchen. Right now we are especially loving the Beatles Number One album. We both have fun dancing to those songs. :)

2- Brendan's new ball.

We were lucky to get this green ball- Target's selection of cheap plastic balls consisted of about 100 pink and purple balls and 1 green ball. Bad selection but I'm guessing they're still on low inventory from Christmas? That's my only explanation. But he loves the thing. It makes him laugh without fail. It's sooooo fun to watch.

3- Eating!

Brendan is eating a lot better. I think he may be past the "I'll chew this to get out the flavor and then spit it out" stage. I'm crossing my fingers anyways. He's done really well with spaghetti, any kind of pasta, bananas, toast with a little honey, graham crackers, and Spaghetti O's (maybe not the most nutritional but if he's eating it, I'll take it!).

He's also using a spoon, but I use the word "using" in a very loose way. He likes to hold it and dip it into his bowl, and then proceeds to swirl it around and eventually he'll stick it in his mouth. Sometimes food manages to get stuck to the spoon and makes it's way to his mouth but more often than not, he makes a real mess. But he's learning and taking initiative, and that's really cool to me.

So the Near's are having a ball with our little boy and loving every moment of it. We hope all of you are having as much fun!

Monday, January 14, 2008

Robot Love

My latest find on eBay. I seem to be going through a robot phase for some odd reason. Don't know what it is but I stumbled upon him and I had to have him. I can't even express how much I love this little guy- he's the perfect addition to Brendan's room! I had to let the two get acquainted and it was love at first sight.

Here Brendan is trying to figure out what this robot does exactly.

He also had to pass the taste test. The final verdict...

Monday, January 7, 2008

Oh my...

I have a lot to catch up on and I've gotten behind on my blogging. Things around our house have been a little unorganized as we've been trying to get back to our routine and get ready for Chris' new semester (and last semester!). Plus, we've been battling some sicknesses- but I think we're finally back on track now!

Our Christmas vacation was awesome. We had an amazing time with all of our family and I was especially glad to have time with my brother and his wife. Ian and Erin, thanks for coming- you guys rock!

Brendan has such a good time with them. He's never been one to shy away from more attention.

The real star of the week was Mary. It was an incredible experience to all be gathered together for her blessing and she looked too adorable in her outfit.


She really is such a good natured, calm baby. Maybe next time, I'll be lucky enough to have a baby like her... maybe.

Brendan had the time of his life, seriously. He's never known such freedom- and he got to eat whatever he wanted, which was apparent by the 5 poops he was taking a day. I think he may have gained a few pounds with me this holiday season.

We did get a chance to celebrate his birthday a little early so we could all be there for the action. Except, there wasn't much action. He wasn't really in the celebrating mood, much to my astonishment and disappointment. But at least we got some cute pictures:


We had to work pretty hard to get him this messy and you can kind of tell by his face that he's not too happy. But at least my cat, Sam, made his happy.

He went nuts over the cat and I think he loved that stuff lion so much because the fur reminded him of Sam's fur. But I could be wrong. Either way, he loved Sam and would get over-excited every time he saw him. And he would make this weird noise, too- it was a little odd but adorable. There are LOTS more pictures- too many to put here, so take a peek. We all had so much fun- thanks Mom and Dad. We miss everyone!!!!

Thursday, January 3, 2008

Happy Birthday to my Bear

Our little Brendan is a year old today. Can't believe it went by so quickly and what's even more unbelievable is how grown-up he seems. He's a walking maniac and even attempts to run (which I'm really hoping doesn't happen too soon), he loves to shove food in his mouth, he babbles non-stop, and he gives the best hugs and kisses. There'll be pictures galore to come but unfortunately, I'm not feeling so hot today so it'll have to wait. I think all the traveling, stress and disgusting airplane air finally got to me. But to my adorable Bear, I love you and I can't wait for what 2008 has to bring for us! You are the best and I'm the luckiest mom ever. xoxoxo