The Brown Family Adventures

Veterans Day

2011-11-11T17:42:00.006-05:00

I have to start by thanking my Dad and husband for serving this great country and affording us the freedom we have. I also am very thankful for such an amazing mother that took care of Lee and me while dad was away. I don't know how mom was so strong and brave through it all.

I decided now would be a good time to finally share Chris' homecoming from 2009. I have attempted to edit the video numerous times in the past two years, but I have not been able to get through it to make the video. Military homecomings bring out a lot of emotions -good and bad- that I otherwise try to supress...but here goes...

Michael was 17 months old when Chris came home from his 12-month deployment to Iraq. We went to a hanger and waited. The soldiers got there, but were kept behind a mesh "wall" so that they could give over their weapons and debrief before joining the families. They put up a video so that we could watch them all come into the hanger. It was PURE torture to know Chris was yards away from me, but we couldn't be with him yet. After what seemed like an eternity, they got into formation and entered our section of the hanger. In the video when they enter the hanger, Chris is the 4th row back and closest to the camera. The video is terrible because I was shaking so bad that I couldn't get the camera attached to the tripod. Then I got so distracted by everything, that I forgot to turn the camera to the formation. Oh well. Michael is the one that screams "Dad" while the rear-detachment commander was talking.

Thank you to all of the men and women who have served our country!

Michael Skating

2011-10-29T12:00:00.000-04:00

We took Michael skating for the first time in July.

He enjoyed it so much that we had to buy skates for the house!

Beach

2011-10-28T16:00:00.000-04:00

Fishing

2011-10-28T09:00:00.000-04:00

Michael loves to go fishing with daddy. This past time, he said they didn't catch anything because he was too loud and scared the fish away. Maybe next time!

Michael's 3rd Birthday

2011-10-27T15:12:00.002-04:00

Michael had a great 3rd birthday. He had a train/pool party. I can't believe my baby is so old!

EdVenture

2011-10-27T09:07:00.000-04:00

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-06-14T14:31:00.004-04:00

We had our big Easter egg hunt with the Tylers again this year. We put candy in eggs, and we also put out some special eggs with pennies, dimes, and a dollar bill! The bonus put a little pep in Thomas' step.

Lee helped the kids dye Easter eggs. Michael had never dyed eggs before and he really enjoyed it.

And during all of the commotion, Mimi was kindly taking care of Matthew. He couldn't be a part of the egg hunt because he went CRAZY anytime we put him in the grass. I'm glad to report that he has since gotten over his grass aversion.

Summerville Azalea Festival

2011-05-31T14:20:00.003-04:00

Chris ran the Cooper River Bridge run in Charleston this year. We were very proud of him because he did really good! After the run, we went and walked around the Summerville Azalea Festival. I went every year growing up, so it was nice to be home for it this year.

I think the Brown family is now black listed from the festival. Michael was very excited about riding some of the rides. He got on the helicopters and was flying high in the air until the ride came to an early stop. The ride operator stopped the entire ride to yell at Michael for banging the bar. Pulling the bar back made the ride go up and pushing it out made it go down...I was thinking...if you don't want the kids playing with the bar...that shouldn't be part of the ride! Oh well, onto the train ride. Michael jumped in the engine where a big, shiny bell hung right above his head. You better believe Michael was standing up ringing the bell during the ride, which then had the train operator yelling at Michael. Once again, if you don't want a child to stand and ring a bell, perhaps you shouldn't hang it right above his head! Oh well, he had a good time!

We always enjoying spending time with my parents and the Tylers while we are in Summerville. We tried to get a good picture of all of the grandchildren, but it was harder than pulling teeth with this crew!

Random Pictures

2011-04-28T11:35:00.003-04:00

Guess it is time to play catch-up on the blog!

First cereal - NOT a fan!

Myrtle Beach Marathon

2011-02-22T20:00:00.000-05:00

Chris ran his 2nd marathon this past weekend. It was in Myrtle Beach so we made a little vacation of it. Saturday morning, we had to get up at 5:30 to drive Chris to the run. Michael cried, "no car, me go night-night." Poor guy. We drove to mile 2 to see him run. Michael was shivering and still wanted to go back to sleep. We spent the next 3.5 hours driving around trying to see him run. The race basically blocked all roads so it was really frustrating trying to get places. We finally made it back to the hotel with enough time to nurse Matthew and go wait outside for Chris to come by. I got some looks for having my son chomping sour patch kids in his sleeping bag at 8 in the morning, but by that point I was willing to do anything! We got stuck in traffic for over an hour and couldn't make it to the finish line. We parked where we could and I packed the kids up one last time. By the grace of God, we suddenly see Chris coming towards us (there were 3,000 runners so I couldn't believe we happened to pull up and find Chris)! He swooped Michael up and started running. I quickly followed with Matthew in the stroller. I thought this was really sweet until I realized there was over 1.5 miles left in the race! I saw Michael get down and "run" which caused Chris to walk. I couldn't let him finish a 26.2 mile race by walking because of Michael. So I ran with the stroller through the grass to catch him and get Michael back. I felt like a dagger was going through my heart and I muttered I was going to freaking kill Chris the whole time I ran, but I caught them. I demanded to have Michael back and let him finish his last .2 of a mile! We caught back up to Chris and Michael was so proud of himself because he ran a marathon with daddy. Needless to say, the entire family was exhausted!

The hotel we found had an indoor water park for Michael. He was so happy.

The first time he has been in water since last summer:

New Years

2011-02-22T16:42:00.000-05:00

We got Michael sparklers and poppers for New Years this year. He had a great time and kept asking to do more.

Michael or Matthew...Answers!

2011-02-22T13:00:00.000-05:00

Chris and I got a new 27" Imac computer for Christmas. We were really excited about it and got busy importing our 5,000+ pictures of the boys. The program Iphoto identifies each face in each photo so that you can sort etc. The computer couldn't tell Michael and Matthew apart and would ask us which boy it was. We thought the labeling would be simple...until we started questioning if a picture was of Michael or Matthew. So I thought I would share some pictures of my boys. I've numbered them incase you are bored and want to play a little game...is it Michael or Matthew?!? You can email me your guesses (sallydavisbrown@gmail.com) or if you are brave, you can leave your answers in a comment!

1. Michael 2. Michael
3. Matthew
4. Michael
5. Michael

6. Michael
7. Michael
8. Matthew
9. Michael
10. Matthew
11. Michael
12. Michael
13. Matthew
14. Matthew
15. Michael
16. Matthew
17. Michael
18. Matthew
19. Michael
20. Michael
21. Michael

22. Matthew
23. Michael
24. Matthew
25. Michael
26. Michael
27. Matthew
28. Michael

Snow!

2011-01-23T09:27:00.003-05:00

We left Summerville early on the 26th to get home to the snow. Michael slept on the drive home and then woke up and couldn't believe there was snow! He was very excited about playing in it until we told him he had to put on a jacket. He threw a royal fit and cried the whole time we were out there. The only good picture we got of him was because Chris hit me with a snowball. Michael thought that was hilarious until he remembered he was wearing a jacket. Please notice he is actually NOT wearing a jacket, he is wearing a light pull-over fleece. I don't know what to do with this boy!

Matthew came out long enough to say he saw the snow.

Yes, he is still crying about the jacket. A surprise snowball attack from the neighbor could not even snap him out of his fit!

The snow melted after a couple of days and then we had another snow storm come through. The second storm came with ice so most of the state shut down for almost a week! After a week and a half we still have some snow on the ground, but it is almost gone. All of the snow made Chris and me want to go skiing and miss our days in Alaska. I do have to admit that snow without the negative temperatures was nice!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-21T08:21:00.000-05:00

We had a great Christmas with both sides of the family this year. Michael was really excited about playing with his presents this year.

We came home and had Christmas morning at our house. Michael came downstairs and was more excited about the fire going than his gifts. Once he saw his train set, he forgot all about the fire!

Giving Mamoo the quilt I made for her.

Holidays

2011-01-19T09:05:00.005-05:00

We really enjoyed the month of December. Chris had two weeks of working half days. It was great having him home at lunch everyday! Michael got into watching the Grinch that Stole Christmas. I came downstairs to find that Matthew had gotten into it as well! We face him so he can't see the tv and somehow he always moves so he can watch.

Michael decorating the tree.

Christmas Lights at the Zoo

2011-01-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

After our ride on the Santa train, we went to the Christmas lights at Riverbanks Zoo. Michael REFUSES to wear a coat, so we dressed him as warm as we could.

Michael's first ride on a carousel!

Michael's first time riding the train at the zoo. All of the other kids had their parents ride with them. Michael hopped on, closed his door, and didn't look back!

Michael's first hot chocolate.

Ok, so after writing this, I realized it was big night for us with a lot of "firsts" for Michael. Thanks YaYa and Grandpa (or as Michael likes to call him - "Old Man")!

Train Ride with Santa

2011-01-05T20:27:00.004-05:00

YaYa and Grandpa Brown came and we all went on a train ride with Santa. It is a real train that goes 10 miles and Santa is on board at Christmas. Michael was very excited to be on the train and was hopping between our seats. Then his normal naptime came, and he became Grandpa's boy. He quickly ditched Grandpa when he heard Santa come on our train car.

Matthew finally woke up for a picture with Santa!

Michael had a great time. He now asks us to ride any train we see.

Michael's Trip to the Dentist

2011-01-03T20:15:00.008-05:00

Michael went to the pediatric dentist for the first time in the beginning of December. He did amazing. He let them clean and polish his teeth. He also cleaned his own teeth, used the sucker, and blew air in his ear with their instruments. I was very proud of my big boy!

Matthew

2010-11-29T11:19:00.002-05:00

Matthew was not happy with my previous blog post when I mentioned he was not a smiley baby. He has really turned a corner and will give us huge smiles when we talk or sing to him.

Matthew rolled over a month ago. I was so proud of him, but then he wouldn't do it again. He screams on his stomach so it is really hard to get him to work on it. I'm happy and proud to say that he has now perfected rolling over and does it whenever we put him on his stomach!

I took Matthew to the doctor last week because he is spitting up a lot. He can't lay on his stomach because he screams in pain (and then spits up), he screams laying on his back (and then spits up), and he randomly screams sitting up with us (and then spits up)! He weighed 11 lbs 10 oz. She said he was a good size, but she wasn't happy with his growth chart. He had been growing in a nice curve, but this last time he dropped off. He still gained weight, but he didn't stay in the percentile he had been in on the chart. The doctor put him on acid reflux medicine and is hoping he will eat more and be able to keep it down. They put him on a half of a pill, but it doesn't seem to be working so we will have to discuss this at his appointment this Friday.

The doctor also heard a heart murmur. She said they are really common, but it was a little concerning since no one had heard it before then (normally they are born with them). We had to take him to the pediatric cardiologist for an echocardiogram. We should get the results this week.

Update: Matthew's results came back normal. He doesn't even have a murmur! Glad I was never too worried!

Megan - writing this made me made me think of y'all. I think Matthew has been listening to our conversations on reflux and heart problems. I hope you guys are doing well!

Boo at the Zoo

2010-11-28T11:12:00.000-05:00

Michael had a good time at Boo at the Zoo. Unfortunately it was extremely hot that night so Michael had to take his dog outfit off after an hour.

Michael got to go see some animals up close and got to touch one!

I thought Michael would NOT be interested in the foam zone. He doesn't like to get things on his hands for feet so I wasn't even going to push it. He was REALLY hesitant at first, but then he really got into it. We couldn't get Michael or Will to leave there!

Best buds!

Michael did great getting candy and treats from all of the stations. There were a ton of kids there, but Michael would go right through the crowd to get his goodies. Matthew slept most of the time and was a good boy when he was awake which made for a nice evening at the zoo!

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-28T09:12:00.005-04:00

We took a trip to the pumpkin patch at a local Methodist church. Michael had a great time looking at all of the pumpkins. Michael picked out a "baby pump" and has been asking to eat it ever since.

After a few days, Chris decided to carve a pumpkin with Michael. He thought it was really neat until he touched it.

Once the hand got some on it, he jumped around the counter while screaming to wash his hands.

Chris worked really hard on our first ever pumpkin carving. Michael was asleep while he did the carving. The next morning he went into the kitchen and said, "whoa, dada cave dog pump." He had to get really close and look at it because he couldn't believe it.

October

2010-10-23T08:56:00.000-04:00

Michael is great with Matthew. Since Matthew joined the family, Michael has been "taking care" of random toys. He got one of his trucks from our room, rocked it, sang "night night...night night" (his version of rock-a-bye baby), and then tucked it into his bed. He came back and did the same thing two more times for his other trucks. When they were all in bed, he closed his bedroom door and told me "shuhh, truck night night." You also never know what you're going to find in Matthew's car seat and the bouncer. He likes to rock them, sing to them, and then strap them in. We're very happy he is being so sweet to Matthew and his toys :)

Matthew has started sleeping from 8pm until around 7:45am!!! In the beginning, he was really inconsistent with how long he would sleep from night to night. All of a sudden, he became VERY consistent and was sleeping longer. Then Chris and I figured out why...he found his thumb! Oh my, we have another thumb sucker. He isn't sucking it NEAR as much as Michael was at that age so I am hoping he will just use it at night for a little bit and then give it up. Hey, a girl can dream! :) I can't complain too much considering I have been getting full nights of sleep for a couple of weeks now!

Matthew is not a really giggly or smiley baby. Michael wasn't either for that matter. When he does decide to share smiles with us, he melts my heart!

Lee and the kids came to visit us a couple of weeks back. Michael had a GREAT time with them. It is kinda sad because I think he would LOVE an older sibbling. They enjoyed riding up and down the road on Michael's toys. I didn't realize that the gator was in 2nd gear and had to book it up and down the road to make sure the kids didn't fall out...man that thing can move! We got all the way down to the houses at the end of the picture when the gator died. I had to push the thing with all three kids all the way back to the house. Chris then kindly informed us that one of the kids had knocked the gear shift out of gear and in 2 seconds had it going again. Glad I pushed them all that way!

Zoo Trip

2010-09-10T13:24:00.004-04:00

Chris was finally able to take his 10 days of paternity leave. It was SO nice having him home with us! I was able to catch up on some much needed sleep, Chris finished painting the upstairs of the house, and we took some family trips. We decided to go to the zoo the Tuesday after Labor Day. It was in the mid-80s and there were hardly any people there. We got a bottomless Icee, took our first trip to the botanical gardens, fed the birds and the farm animals, and walked around the entire zoo. Michael and Matthew were both angels. It was my favorite trip to the zoo yet!

Matthew

2010-08-25T13:04:00.003-04:00

Michael has been an amazing big brother. He is very gentle and loving towards Matthew.

Even at 3 in the morning, Matthew can manage to bring a smile to my face!

These are Matthew and Michael's hospital pictures (Matthew is on the left and Michael is on the right). Michael had over a pound on Matthew, but otherwise, I think they look a lot alike!

Matthew Allen Brown

2010-08-13T14:23:00.001-04:00

Matthew Allen Brown joined the family on August 4, 2010 at 3:06 AM. He was 6 lbs 2.1 oz and 19.5 inches long.

Chris and I took some pictures of Matthew in my belly the day before I was admitted.

I was admitted on Wednesday, August 3rd at 5:30 in the morning to start the induction. They got my IV started and then we had to wait until 9 for my epidural and 10 for a doctor to get in the building in order to start the pitocin.

Michael was born a few hours after I started the pictocin so I was expecting it to be about the same with Matthew. WRONG. Hours would pass and the nurse would tell me I had progressed another 1/2 cm. I couldn't believe it. Nighttime rolled around and Matthew was still not here. I hadn't slept in 20 hours and I hadn't eaten or drank anything in 30 hours. I finally fell asleep for an hour only to be woken up by extreme pain. It was time. Matthew was born at 3:06am and was extremely healthy. Apparently he was facing up instead of down which is why I labored so long.

At 3:30am, the poor family got the call to come to the hospital. A huge thanks to Dad for staying at the house with Michael, Thomas, and Ellison who were fast asleep in their beds!

Michael came to meet baby Matthew Wednesday morning. He wasn't quite sure what to think and was a little confused that baby was not in my belly. He has since gotten over that and is a very loving brother. He must know where baby is at all times, gives him kisses, and strokes his sweet little face like I do!

We were released around dinner on Thursday. We would have gotten out sooner, but we were waiting on Matthew's bilirubin levels to come back. They were getting high, but that will have to be another post!

When we pulled into the drive, Michael ran outside clapping for baby. He wanted Chris to take 'baby side' (baby inside). He clapped some more and then demanded Chris put 'baby there.' The only problem with this was he wanted the baby to lay on the floor with him. When we told him baby was not going to lay on the floor, he sobbed. He eventually got over himself and visited baby in our arms.

Thanks to Mike and Mindy for driving down and waiting it out until Matthew arrived. Mindy had to drive back the next morning to go to work with NO sleep. Man, Wednesday would have been easier on EVERYBODY if Matthew hadn't taken his sweet little time!

A big thank you to Lee, Thomas, and Ellison for making the journey up to Columbia and for adapting to the situation so easily. They ended up spending the night and then Lee had to drive back EARLY the next morning (without any sleep) for Ellison's appointment. Thanks for taking care of Michael while we were away. He was extremely happy they were there spending time with him.

Thanks to Dad for coming up and helping with the kids. I really appreciate you keeping them so Mom and Lee could come to the hospital.

A HUGE thank you to Mimi. She came Monday afternoon and stayed until the next Tuesday afternoon. I dont' know what we would have done with Michael without her help! Michael could care less that we were not there because he had his Mimi! I seriously can't thank you enough for all of your help!

July 2010

2010-08-02T13:43:00.003-04:00

We went to Greenville for Chris' 28th birthday. We went to the neighborhood pool with Grandma and Grandpa. Michael had a good time playing and even swam by himself!

Michael would NOT put down his snack for the picture!

helping daddy blow out his candles

Chris had a military ball. Apparently there are several of these a year due to his position...I can't wait :( It wouldn't have been so bad if I didn't have to wear high heals and stand for ungoshly long periods of time. At 32 weeks pregnant, I was wiped for a couple of days afterwards!

Random

2010-07-19T15:10:00.002-04:00

I realized I have very little time to catch up on our family pictures before Matthew comes! Here are some random pictures since March.

Roxie was running around the back yard with a stick in her mouth. Since Michael is part dog, he had to join her!

Ritas gave away frozen treats on the first day of spring or summer. I can't remember which because my brain is shot at this point! Anyway, there was no where to sit so we had a picnic in the back of the car. Michael had to have all three cups to sample from.

Michael loves to wear sunglasses like daddy. After a while, he has to put them on top of his head just like daddy.

Swim Lessons

2010-07-15T14:51:00.004-04:00

We have been spending a lot of time at the pool this summer! Michael loves to play in the water and even started swim lessons this year.

Michael loves hanging out with his best buddie Will. The boys have a great time playing in the pool together!

Michael enjoys holding onto Chris neck while Chris swims around the pool. It makes me laugh because Chris looks like a dolphin giving rides at Sea World. Michael will do just about anything when his pool balls are involved.

Michael is convinced Chrissy is his second mother!

Michael working with his swim instructor

Michael has started swimming by himself with his swimmies on. I am really happy about his love for the water!

Michael's 2nd Birthday!

2010-06-06T09:00:00.005-04:00

Wow, where did 2 years go!?! I can't believe my BABY is 2 years old! I really like this age. He is able to communicate what he wants and is a huge helper. Everyday I laugh as I realize he is exactly like Chris! He is extremely independent. He asks to go outside, demands that the dogs go with him, and then tells me, "No Mama, go" as he pushes me back inside and closes the door on me. He also has Chris' OCD regarding cleaning. He took a glass of my water and walked out of the room. Less than a minute later, he came in the room yelling, "oh NO, wawa, oh NO!" He handed me a wet oven mit so I headed downstairs. I couldn't find the water so I asked him where he spilt it. He took me upstairs and showed me where it was. I had to laugh when I realized he had spilt it right outside of my bedroom, ran downstairs to get a towel from the kitchen drawer, there wasn't a towel so he got the oven mit, ran back upstairs, cleaned up the water, and then admitted his spill.

Michael got a John Deere for his birthday. We went back and forth on which riding toy to get him, but we decided a two seater would be best. That way when we have friends over, they can ride and Michael can take Matthew around when he is older.

Michael had a dog themed birthday party. We had a great time with a smaller group of family and friends.

Like always, I cooked too much food so we were eating on it for a long time! I have to say a special thanks to Chris. He is always very supportive in my cooking and spent hours helping me make the cupcakes! I also have to thank my mom for coming up Thursday night so that she could watch Michael while Chris and I got everything ready for the party! I don't know what we would have done without Mimi.

Michael really enjoyed the dog bowls being on the edge of the table. He went around helping himself to food the entire day. Everytime we looked at him, he had a huge mouth full of treats.

Great Uncle Tommy brought Michael a motorcycle for his birthday. Michael loves it. He especially enjoys riding it up and down the street when we let him.

Happy Birthday Michael!

Retaining Wall

2010-06-04T12:52:00.003-04:00

When we bought our house in Columbia, we wrote in the contract that they had to build us a fence and that we wanted it up to our property line on the hill. All of the other fences around us were stopped at the bottom of the hill because it was cheaper and easier. We didn't like the fact that we were losing 20+ feet of property so we decided to make our yard different than all of the rest.

Chris did ALL of the work himself!!! We watched every penny and used a ton of coupons for all of the plants. In the end, we ended up saving WELL over $8,000 by Chris doing everything! Most of you know that I call Chris the energizer bunny. He lived up to his name once again. Lowes delievered 900 retaining wall blocks to our front driveway. Chris moved every one of those 26 pound blocks to the back yard along with 200 bags of mulch and a couple of tons of rocks. He dug out the separations in the wall, dug trenches, put down rocks for drainage, built the walls while leveling every single brick, leveled the dirt on the hill, planted the plants, installed a drip irrigation system for each plant, and put down all of the mulch!! I could go on and on about the amazing job he did, but I will stop here!

Before and After:

We put in two weeping cherry trees (they get 20+ feet) on the ends of the top layer. The top layer also has silverberry bushes that will get very large, nandina that will get to a medium size, and lirope that will be short. The bottom layer has a mix of single yellow and double red knock-out roses. It also has lithodora that will eventually trail over the bricks on the bottom.

digging the wall out

Michael was REALLY into trying to help daddy. He actually would shovel the gravel into his bucket and take it to the back. I could barely get him inside most days and we went through a lot of stain stick!

I can't wait to watch the plants grow during our time here. Thanks Chris for all of your hard work and dedication to making our house better!!!

Zoo

2010-06-02T09:00:00.000-04:00

Grandma and Grandpa Brown gave us passes to the Columbia Zoo for Christmas. Michael LOVES the zoo. We took a stroller, but big man had to walk the entire zoo. I couldn't believe it because it I was exhausted from walking the whole thing. Every animal we saw was, "WOW, see."

Lee, Thomas, and Ellison made the journey up to Columbia so we went to the zoo. The kids all had a good time seeing all of the animals. When Chris and I took Michael he was obsessed with the cow, but he would NOT touch it! Chris tried everything, but he would rip his hand away and scream, "NO!" When we went with Lee, he rubbed the cow several times! Lee paid to have the kids feed the giraffes. I said I wasn't going to do it because there was no way he would feed them. He watched Thomas and Ellison do it and then Lee shared her food so he could try. Of course he had to prove me wrong by actually enjoying feeding them!

We went into the snake and lizard area. I almost wet my pants when Ellison did a snake tongue back at the snake (he was against the glass sticking out his tongue).

So if anyone wants to go to the zoo, you just need to take a little trip to Columbia! Megan - I think Hayden would love all of the animals, so just let us know when you book your ticket :)

Easter

2010-05-30T13:22:00.005-04:00

We had a great Easter! It was the first Easter Chris got to spend with Michael and me. We love having him home with us. We went up and spent some time in Greenville. Michael enjoyed an Easter egg hunt with his cousin Brayden and spending time with his grandparents!

We hit the road and went to Charleston as well. Michael enjoyed another Easter egg hunt with Thomas and Ellison. Apparently the military Easter egg hunt paid off because he was SERIOUS about getting all of the eggs.

Of course he had to get trains in his Easter basket. We took him an outfit with shorts for church and a cold front came through. Thankfully Aunt Lee bought him a very handsome Easter outfit so he didn't freeze!

I thought it would be sweet to get a family picture. Michael was not having any part of the family picture. He just wanted to get back to his eggs full of candy from the egg hunt earlier! Oh well.

Easter Egg Hunt

2010-03-29T09:02:00.006-04:00

Later, we asked him if he wanted to see the bunny again. He quickly yelled NO. Oh well.

The FRG (military Family Readiness Group) had an Easter egg hunt on Saturday. I didn't think Michael would be into finding the eggs since there were a lot of kids and distractions there. I was wrong!

I mean he really got into it!

He was happy when he found the eggs, but he was nuts when he found out they had chocolate in them!

Matthew Allen Brown

2010-03-21T20:00:00.004-04:00

Here is our little peanut at 10 weeks. Though it is hard to make out, his head is on the left and he has an arm and leg sticking up.

At 18 weeks, we found out we are having a boy! We were supposed to go in on a Thursday, but we ended up having to go in on the Tuesday before. Michael decided to jump straight on the baby so we had to go make sure everything was ok. Matthew Allen withstood his brother's abuse and gave us a thumbs up on the ultrasound. We had to go back Thursday for our full ultrasound. Matthew is an active baby! Dr. Addy caught him playing with his toes :) (incase you can't tell, his head is on the right and he has his right leg propped up while playing with his toes)

Snow in SC!

2010-03-19T14:00:00.000-04:00

We actually had snow in Charleston, SC!

I took Michael out right when it started snowing. He opened the porch door and was shocked to see the white stuff falling! He went outside and looked at it for a while and then decided it was safer on the porch.

The next morning we actually had some accumulation! Michael woke up and ripped open the curtain to see if it was still snowing. We got in the car and went to Mom and Dad's to play.

The dogs thought they were back in Alaska!

You should always keep an eye on Aunt Lee!

Chris flew in the next day from Hawaii. There was still a little bit of snow for him to see. The snow really made me miss Alaska. But as I got Michael dressed to go outside, I realized I was alright with the snow melting 2 days later!

Good Times with the Tylers

2010-03-17T19:41:00.003-04:00

I miss living right down the road from the Tylers!

Lee took us to the Charleston Children's Museum. Michael had a great time for a while...

and then this. He was in his collapse and throw a fit everywhere stage. Thankfully this stage only lasted about 2 weeks.

Michael loves to go to parks. He especially liked throwing rocks with cousin Thomas!

Sitting with his girl.

Christmas

2010-03-16T08:36:00.003-04:00

We had a great Christmas with Chris home this year! We went up to Greenville for a few days before Christmas.

Of course Michael snuck his thumb in right before the timer went off!

Playing with cousin Brayden

We all went to the lights in Greenville. Michael had a good time even though it was very cold.

We came home Christmas Eve night. We opened gifts at our house, went to Lee's house, and then headed over to Mom and Dad's. They got him the push convertible. He wouldn't get out of it and had to have the rest of his presents taken to him in his car!

2.5 months later

2010-02-01T10:07:00.004-05:00

Ok, ok. I have been really bad about updating the blog. Things have just been a whirlwind since Chris got home from Iraq! I guess I will dedicate this post to our last bit in Hawaii.

Michael continued to enjoy the playground down the street. He started swinging from all of the bars. He would jump off platforms while swinging on bars. When he would release down to the other platform, he would die laughing while I cringed. We definitely have a little monkey on our hands!

Shortly before we left, there were HUGE swells and the waves reached 50+ feet. We decided to sit in traffic to go to the best place for waves. It took us over an hour to go less than 10 miles! It was worth it though! On the first picture, notice how small the two surfers are compared to the wave. The second picture has a surfer right in front of the roaring water. It was crazy!

Michael continues to love water. It didn't feel right sending the boys in the pool in mid-December, but they had a good time!

Michael was NOT a fan of Santa this year. Maybe next year!

We left Hawaii December 15th to come back to SC for the holidays. Based on Michael's behavior in the first 30 minutes of the plane ride, I thought we were in for it. He was well overdue for a nap and was acting out of control. Chris patiently walked around the plane with him and got him to fall asleep. He ended up being a very good trooper.

Hiking

2009-11-29T18:45:00.005-05:00

We bit the bullet and purchased a new Nikon D90 camera since our D70 was stolen by Delta. I am extremely happy to have a nice camera again!

We decided we would venture out and go hiking. We found a trail that was supposed to be covered in guava. I love picking fruit and Chris likes hiking so we thought we would have a good time. WRONG! We had about a half mile hike from the car to the trail. Michael was able to walk himself on monkey tail so he was happy. Chris stopped to see which trail we needed to take and Michael kept going straight to the trail. Once we actually got on the trail, we had to carry Michael the rest of the way. He was NOT happy about being carried and cried the entire time. We went for a good mile and never saw a single guava tree. We decided to turn around and venture back. As soon as we got off the trail and started our hike back to the car, I spotted a guava tree. I was not happy that I went on that crazy trail when I could have just picked them at the trail head. Oh well. We learned never to take a 18 month old hiking!

Later that day we decided to go to Sharks Cove so I could go snorkling. We got there and it was cold outside so I wasn't too excited about getting in the water. Chris felt the water and told me it was way too cold for me to get in. We stayed to let Michael play with his toys on the beach. We couldn't keep him out of the water! He made me feel like a little pansy! Michael LOVES the beach and water...if I hadn't given birth to him, I would swear he isn't mine!

Yes, he is bathing in a baby pool. Our tub has mold under all of the epoxy and just looks dirty everywhere. I would claim it is because we live in the ghetto, but we don't. I called the owner and she said it is just the problem of living on the ocean. Anyway, there was no way I was letting Michael in that tub, so I bought him a pool. He loves bath time with Daddy and I love not giving him a bath!!!

North Shore

2009-11-13T14:28:00.006-05:00

We live about 2 miles from Haleiwa (where we like to go to the beach). The waves are really starting to pick up and the surf competitions are gearing up. I guess the big competition doesn't start until there are at least 20 foot waves. Michael has a good time running around and throwing sand. He might just turn out to be a beach baby after all! On the way back from the beach, we stopped in the location where the turtles like to rest. It was really neat getting right next to this huge turtle!

Though we like going to Haleiwa, we have the beach right across the street from our condo. There is a park down the street on the beach where we go everyday when it is not raining. Michael loves to play on the playground, chase birds, swing on big boy swings by himself, and explore the beach. The playground has smaller slides, but Michael has to go down the huge slide. He enjoys going down and then climbing all of the way back up it. I don't know how he does it!

He will never look or smile for pictures. I convinced him to look towards the camera by screaming "BIRD."

Halloween...oh boy Halloween. The first two pictures were taken back home. He was ok with his alligator costume at first, and then he lost it. Roxie tried to comfort him, but it didnt' work! The third picture was Halloween in Hawaii. Seeing that it was a blazing and sticky 87 degrees (no AC), he was NOT into his fleece costume. There wasn't really trick or treating at the condo so Michael and I went to the food court on post. Michael and I enjoyed our pizza dinner and playing on the playground. I'm looking forward to next year when Chris will actually be home and Michael will actually enjoy trick or treating!

Homecoming!!

2009-11-05T14:08:00.006-05:00

After 18 months of separation (6 in Hawaii and 12 in Iraq), Chris is finally back with the family! They came in at 8 on Sunday (November 1st) morning. Michael and I got to the airfield around 7:15. They brought them in on buses, but took them behind a mesh wall to deprocess before we could see them. They had a video screen set up so we could see them behind the wall. It was basically complete torture. I had a front row seat so I was excited....until they came in and stood on the other end of the hanger. Michael clapped, waived his flag a mile a minute, and screamed dada. When we finally got to see Chris, Michael was in shock that he wasn't flat after all! Chris talked to him while I held him. After a minute or so, I aksed if he wanted to go to DaDa and handed him over. For those who know Michael's current level of separation anxiety, you know how worried I was about Michael going to Chris. To my surprise, he went right to him and stayed with him until Chris had to get his bag. Chris tried to give him to me so he could get his stuff, and Michael wasn't too excited about coming back to me. It was seriously a miracle!

The first day went well. Michael was only a leech on mommie a couple of times when he was really tired. He loves playing with daddy and only wants me when he is tired. Chris had 3 days off of work and had to go in today. He will have redeployment stuff for a week and a half so he should have short days. We're getting spoiled having him around so much. Thanks for all of the prayers and support while Chris was gone! We are very glad to have him back!!

Hawaii

2009-10-31T13:52:00.005-04:00

First and foremost, I must thank my sister for making the big trip out to Hawaii with Michael and me. We seriously could not have made it here without you. It broke my heart to drop you off at the airport!

As most of you know, we made it to Hawaii. We had a 45 minute flight to Atlanta, a 4.5 hour flight to Los Angeles, and a 5.5 hour flight to Hawaii. Michael can not be contained and does not sit still for more than 5 seconds. I was extremely worried about the flight, but it could not have gone better. There were a few brief moments where I thought he was going to lose it, but dum dums and the dvd player saved the day.

The Major came and picked us up from the airport with her family. They were seriously the most amazing people I have ever met. They took us on post to get Chris' car, and then they escorted us to our condo in North Shore. The transition at the condo has been rough. There is no air conditioning and there are shutter type flaps with screens to let in the breeze. Since there is no wall on the bottom half of every window, the entire complex can hear if Michael cries (and I can hear them). He quickly learned that he could scream to get his way. We have been here a week now and he is FINALLY not screaming about everything. Michael thinks the steep stairs are a toy for him. He is now saying upstairs and downstairs when he wants to go either way so that is helping cut down on the tantrums.

We took a trip to Dole while Lee was here. Michael spent the entire time chasing birds. He fell down and scraped the right side of his face. He had a awful scab over the entire side of his nose. Poor guy.

Lee, Michael, and I found Turtle Beach. We were able to get 3 feet from a sea turtle! I could have gotten closer, but after seeing Lee get taken by the swells of North Shore, I stayed on the sand!

I am very happy to say that my next post will be Chris' homecoming!!! We can't wait to have him back home with us!

Update

2009-10-01T14:02:00.004-04:00

Sally has been a little busy lately so I decided to add some photos she sent me. This will give you a little look at Michael and how he is growing. Michael is turning into quite the little man. He is very inquisitive and likes to see just how far he can take things. He definitely keeps Sally on her toes but she is doing an amazing job with him and all the other facets of being an Army Spouse. I’m not really sure how she managed to deal with Michael having the Flu, getting the house ready for the market (in 5 days), and preparing for Hawaii. Sally has proven what she is made of and just how tough she really is. Not too many people can fathom what it takes to be an Army spouse but if anyone ever needs an example they can just watch Sally. No matter what the challenge she fights through it. She will always be my hero. I can’t wait to be back with her and Michael.

A Week of Traveling

2009-09-12T10:58:00.005-04:00

As we get closer to our redeployment I have found myself traveling around theater more often. This past week should be the last of it. I spent a majority of the week out working with our incoming and outgoing brigades. These are a few pictures I took during one of the trips.

The sandstorm came out of nowhere. It rolled in as we left from chow one day. The picture really doesn’t do it justice. There was a clear line between the blue sky and the incoming dust.

The sign was at one of our stops. The funny part is, right above it is a reference to Alaska and that was actually what caught my eye. Standing there looking at the sign made me think of being back and made me really miss everyone. I hope everyone is doing well and I look forward to coming back. See you in December.

Growing up

2009-07-13T11:01:00.003-04:00

Michael is getting another tooth so he has been pretty whiny and clingy lately. He decided it was much funner to play on my leg than to play on his own. Lucky me! :)

Wow, a whole year. The first one was his announcement picture and the second was taken when he turned one year. I don't think that he has had any drastic changes. Heck, it looks like he still has the amount of hair he was born with! He is growing into such a big boy more and more each day.

The Beach

2009-07-05T14:04:00.004-04:00

I'm going to try to catch up on my posts!

We took Michael to the beach while Chris was home. He HATED it. On the walk back to the car, I felt disgusting. I had sand all over me and it was hot and sticky. Chris and I decided we hate the beach and have no desire to go hang out on it. So in the end, we were not too surprised Michael wasn't thrilled with it.

Michael's Birthday Party

2009-06-10T10:06:00.005-04:00

Michael had a great 1st birthday party. I was quite busy making food and then I decided to make him an outfit two days before they party. Chris' parents came down Friday morning to spend time with us. Mindy made the mistake of asking what she could do to help! So I put her to work on the cupcakes. We worked all afternoon and were pretty tired afterwards. Mindy - I got a new cupcake decorating book for your next visit :)

If I had to characterize Michael during this time, I would say this time is all about sitting in chairs. Chris and Pop Pop started making Michael this rocking chair before Chris left for Hawaii. They didn't get too far on it so Pop Pop was very sweet and finished making it for Michael. He LOVES his chair. He sits in it all day and takes toys to play with and rocks himself in it. Michael's chair is the same design as the full size rocking chair in his room. If he disappears, it is a guarantee that he is rocking in the big rocking chair. He is VERY proud of himself for pulling up in it and getting on his belly to back out of it.

Michael cracked me up eating his cake! He pincher gripped pieces off. Though you can't tell my the frosting all over his mouth, he was actually very neat about getting pieces of the cake. He ate half of the ark before we took it away!

We had an amazing group of friends join us for the party. While I am sad that Chris is away for this time in his life, I am very thankful for having such great people in our lives. I don't think that Michael would have such special friends and playmates if we were anywhere else!

I think Michael had a good birthday party. He was exhausted after the big event and took a nice nap. Thanks to all for making it such a special day!

Happy 1st Birthday Michael!

2009-05-28T08:22:00.003-04:00

I can't believe our little guy is already a year old! Michael got the best birthday present a boy could ever get...his DADDY!!!

Michael went running through the terminal door when Chris came in. It was SO sweet until we realized that he was just trying to escape. He was in shock when he realized "flat daddy" is not always flat. Ever since we got home, I haven't been able to get him away from Chris. He is in love with Daddy.

Michael spent half of his birthday upside down. He loves to do sumersaults (he put his head on the floor with his behind in the air for you to flip him) and to hang upside down.

Michael had a rough first birthday. He had a doctor's appointment where he got 5 shots and blood drawn. He wouldn't get out of Chris' arms for an hour after he got his shots! He weighed in at 19 lbs 8 oz and was 29 3/4 inches long. He is 10th percentile for weight and 50th percentile for length. Though I feel like he is a lightweight, the doctor is not worried about his weight given Chris and my size.

Michael was VERY excited about the laugh and learn chair the Tyler's gave him for his birthday. Now we just have to train him to sit in it!

As the days of nursing have come to an end, I bought his first gallon of whole milk. Buying milk really made me realize that my little boy is growing up. It is sad and exciting at the same time. Happy birthday Michael!

Cousin Brayden's Birthday

2009-05-17T08:27:00.005-04:00

Ok, so I'm a little behind on posting! On May 1st we went up to Greenville for Cousin Brayden's first birthday party! We survived the ride up there and made it up there in one piece. Michael had a good time at the party. Uncle Bryan pushed Michael in the swing and took him down the slide. He then ran around the rest of the time while I chased him. Needless to say I was pretty tired after the party! On our way home we stopped in to see Truman. Michael was all over the place at his house, but Truman loved it!

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-09T13:12:00.010-04:00

Have a wonderful Mother's Day.

Light at the end of the tunnel

2009-04-27T22:13:00.003-04:00

Whew...after 2 weeks of being sick, Michael is finally back to himself! For those of you who don't know, he had pink eye and then got an ear infection in both ears. They put him on too strong of medicine that made him extremely sick for 3 days until I got it changed. After days of 5+ outfits a day and 3+ sets of sheets, I am VERY happy he is better. I was about to loose my mind! Oh yeah, he got two new chompers in during all of this making for a total of 8! I was trying to carry him through the store today and he kept trying to get down. I finally put him down and then walked down the aisle with him walking next to me. Seeing my son walking through the store made me realize that he has grown up WAY too fast!

Easter

2009-04-14T10:00:00.006-04:00

Michael and I had a rough Easter. We didn't get to go to church because big man had pink eye! He got a runny nose the day before. He HATES stuff being on his face, so he would rub his snotty nose and get it all over his face. Apparently it got in his eye. I felt so bad for him!

We went over to Mimi and Pop Pop's house for Easter lunch. Luckily, Uncle Tommy came and looked at Michael's eyes and called him in some medicine. I tried to keep Michael away from the Tylers (except for a picture), but I didn't think about Mimi. So, now Mimi is on the same pink eye medicine as Michael. Sorry Mimi!

Ellison looked so beautiful in her little, pink dress. I wish the kids would have cooperated and looked for a picture. Michael ran off like a one-eyed pirate each time we tried to get a picture.

Poor guy. The good news is that the medicine worked miracles and had the swelling down almost immediately. The bad news is that I am the only one here to try to get drops in his eyes. I have to sit on him while pinning his arms down, hold his head in between my knees, open his eye with two fingers, and put the drops in with the other hand. He HATES them and screams and cries when I do it. I will be glad when it is all over.

At least it was a first Easter to remember!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T08:15:00.000-04:00

Great Grandpa Adams

2009-04-06T21:45:00.000-04:00

Ok, I've had this post as a "draft" for almost a month now so I guess I better post it!

Grandma and Grandpa Brown and Great Grandpa Adams (from Washington state) came and spent the weekend with us on March 20th! Grandpa Adams had never been to Charleston before so we went downtown Charleston. We took an hour long carriage ride. It was pretty neat because Michael and I had never been on a carriage ride! Michael did really well; Grandma and I passed him back and forth to keep him entertained. We definately wouldn't have made it through the ride (or the day) without cheerios. We thought Michael was going to bust open from eating too many cheerios....good thing they are healthy!

Overall we had a great weekend. Hmm...Mike and Mindy might not agree with me after their air matress deflated the first night! Oh well, at least we got a shopping trip out of it!

Will work for food...

2009-03-26T09:40:00.003-04:00

This past weekend, Grammy and Mimi worked together to get Michael to walk on video! After this walking session, it was like a light bulb turned on. He now walks around all day. He is still slow and sits down a lot, but he is getting there!

The CAT continued...

2009-03-11T21:46:00.003-04:00

My new CAT!

2009-03-10T10:10:00.004-04:00

Michael got a new CAT this week. I'm highly allergic to real cats so his CAT is a big, yellow Caterpillar dump truck! The dump bed snaps back so that it turns into a walker or a rider. He is in love with his CAT! He walks from the back door to the front door while pushing it. When we first got it he would cry when he got it stuck against a wall, but he is figuring out how to pull it back out and face it the other direction. I am going to upload some video of him walking with it later tonight!

Grandma and Granpa Brown came down for the day to visit us on Saturday. Starla and Bryan had to work so they brought along Cousin Brayden. The boys had a good time playing and exploring together. I had to take like 60 pictures to get one where all three guys were actually looking at me.

This is the shot we got most often...their butts and backs of their heads. My Nikon is in the shop so I am using a point and click that just can't keep up with these boys! Ellison came over for a minute to join in on the fun. Poor Thomas is sick so he came but stayed in the back yard. I am so thankful for being around family while Chris is away! I think it is really good for Michael to grow up around other children so close to his age.

Oh, and by the way...we are now over 1/3 of the way done for this deployment! Yipee! :)

February

2009-02-22T20:01:00.015-05:00

I was looking back through all of the pictures I took in February for Chris' website and realized I was pretty slack about updating this website! So here is a recap of February.

Superbowl

Michael is obsessed with flat daddy! He sat on flat daddy, pulled on Chris' head, and snapped flat daddy's neck :( It made me a little sad, but I couldn't be upset with him because he kept saying DaDa and touching flat daddy.

He loves to play with the caning on the rocking chair and actually rocking the chair

Warmer weather = yard work. Michael was a trooper and enjoyed helping mommy rake up some leaves.

He is growing into such a big boy!

Michael's first encounter with grass. Lee came over a couple days later and quickly learned how much Michael HATES grass. I was outside playing soccer with Thomas and Lee was inside with the babies. She brought both of them outside to get some sunshine. When she tried to sit Michael down, he started screaming, lifted his legs so that they didn't touch the grass, and did everything he could to climb back in her lap. We are working on his fear of the grass, but he still does not like it at all!

Every morning I get Michael up, feed him, feed the dogs, put him in the exersaucer with cheerios, let the dogs out, and then read my nightly email from Chris. EVERYDAY Michael has to crawl under his exersaucer to eat the cheerios he dropped that morning. He checks several times during the day to make sure some didn't magically appear.

Good times with Thomas!

I looked out of the window and saw Roxie with a stick in her mouth! She never plays with sticks so I got the camera out. I went outside to take a quick picture to turn around and find that Michael followed me to the door and was dying laughing at Roxie. He enjoys moving the curtains so he can look outside. I finally gave up on keeping the bottom rod hooked in and just let him have at it.

Michael changes by the day. He has two bottom teeth, two top teeth that have broken through and are still coming in, and two more top teeth that are about to break through! Needless to say we have good days and bad. They seemed to really bother him today. He says mama, dada, and bye bye (while waiving - but he does it when HE wants to not everytime I ask him). He took his first step by himself today, but he has to work on his confidence before he will be off walking. He throws a tantrum when I try to convince him that he has the balance, strength, and ability to walk by himself. He stands by himself all day long, crouches down without assistance to pick up objects, stands back up without assistance, and cruises the furniture. He is just too scared to walk by himself so he grunts at you if you ask him to come to you. He is really into throwing tantrums when he doesn't get his way or I take something that he wanted to play with. He closes his eyes, bounces up and down (whether sitting or standing), and grunts at me. I don't know what I am going to do with this head strong little boy throwing tantrums, but I do know I'm not giving into him. He knows what NO means and is actually starting to really listen to me. I let him have pretty free reign; when he gets too far I tell him to come back and he actually listens about 75% of the time! I am enjoying his growing independence!

Iraq Update

2009-02-15T19:49:00.001-05:00

I recently took a trip to meet with our Iraqi counterparts. I met with the G1 from the Iraqi Ground Forces Command. Most of them spoke decent English and we had a translator for the ones that didn’t. They got a little excited when we came in and started talking to them. Especially when they found out why we came to see them and our intent for the next few months. So in honor of “The American G1” they cooked lunch for us. The L1 (My Boss) was a little apprehensive, but using my pestering way I convinced him it was the right thing to do (maybe it was me making fun of his Ranger Tab). Well, I ended up regretting it later. As you can see we had Karp freshly acquired (little scared to ask where it came from) and cooked for us. It was actually good. The meat was a tender and had a good smoky flavor. It was more of the method for consumption that bothered me. If you don’t know, they don’t use utensils. They eat with their hands and use bread to help pick things up. In the tradition we went along for the ride. So, I watch the Soldier sample a portion and deem it fit for consumption (customary in a lot of traditions especially military). He then proceeded to serve the food to us (once again no utensils). I had no issue with this since I had just watched him wash his hands. So, I commenced eating and felt pretty good about my decision to join them for the meal. If nothing else it provided me humor watching the L1 eat. It was upon completion of my portion that the tides shifted. Our host realized my plate was empty and he didn’t hesitate to refill it for me. This was very kind of him but the no utensils thing was really starting to get to me. At this point in time everyone was picking at the fish and enjoying their meal. In my opinion a little too much. It really started to bother me as I watched them continually slurp their fingers as they ate. It almost sounded like a good southern barbeque with a fat helping of ribs. So obviously I was a little grossed out by the new helping on my plate. Once again, I didn’t want to offend them and so I cleaned my plate. I think you know where this is going. Yup, a third helping of fish. This time I argued, unfortunately they said I was too skinny and I needed the extra food. At this time, I looked over to the L1 and realized our rolls had since reversed. He was still enjoying his first helping and now laughing at me, as I had a horrible look on my face and felt like the fat kid in Willy Wonka. Thus, the number one lesson I learned from this is: It doesn’t pay off to clean your plate.

“Victory over America” Saddam started this after the gulf war. He felt that since we left and he lived that he won the war. So, this is his tribute to the victory. As you can see it was never finished, and will never be.

“Al Faw Palace” former palace of Saddam.

Building opposite “Al Faw Palace”.

One of the last remaining Mosaics of Saddam. Notice how large he is and how he protrudes from the wall.

“Al Faw Palace” in the morning sun.

Super Mimi

2009-02-05T20:44:00.008-05:00

Michael and I are hanging in there. He has a cough and a runny nose. We have been hibernating at home trying to get him better. I ate some bad chicken on Tuesday (don't ask - it was my own fault) and paid the price all of Wednesday. I talked to Chris that morning and told him that it is times like this that I REALLY miss and need him. Even though I'm 27 years old, I like to be babied when I don't feel good. I guess moms always know what you need so super Mimi swooped in and saved the day yet again. She took care of Michael all day so that I could stay in bed. She even made me chicken noodle soup and removed every piece of chicken from it! THANKS MOM - I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW WHAT WE WOULD DO WITHOUT YOU!

Michael turned 8 months on January 28. I can't believe how big he has gotten and how he is developing! He is in a stage where he HAS to stand at all times and stands without assistance for long periods of time. I am amazed by his balance and drive. He takes after Chris 100%! He is into everything these days. He dumped an entire box of nerds out on the floor the other day. I have vacuumed them up several times, but he still manages to find another somewhere. I saw him put something in his mouth the other day so I swiped his mouth to pull out a nerd! I can't believe he can pick up that tiny little thing and put it right in his mouth. It is also becoming more apparent that I am going to have a climber on my hands! He tries to climb on anything and everything. Today, I was eating lunch on a tv tray and he climbed up and was standing with both feet on a ledge about 5 inches from the ground. I also had to go out and buy him his own computer. I talk to Chris daily on my computer and he things it is the best toy ever made and attempts to hit every key and grab my webcam. So, I finally broke down and bought him his own toy computer in hopes that I can get a few minutes with Chris without him trying to go wild on my computer. So far it is working! I guess the point of all this is thank goodness Chris should be home in November!!!!

Spoiled Rotten

2009-01-26T12:22:00.004-05:00

Grammy and Grandpa Brown came to visit this weekend. Michael went to the aquarium on his first outting without Mommy. Chris and I were both jealous that Michael made it to the aquarium before we did! From the looks of the pictures, I think he had a GREAT time!

I didn't know what to do with myself while he was gone. I talked to Chris some, worked on a video, sewed some, and cleaned some. I just couldn't hold still and work on one thing because I am never able to do anything! I really enjoyed having them down this weekend. It is quite a treat having some extra hands around. I think they might need a few days to recover from the weekend!

Bubble Gum

2009-01-18T21:32:00.002-05:00

Pictures

2009-01-14T20:52:00.005-05:00

I thought I would put up some pictures from the past two weeks.

He is really into bouncing on my bed. I know, he is everywhere and the bed it dangerous, but don't worry, I am there every second (and he hasn't fallen off)! He really likes to get on his knees and bounce, sit and bounce, stand and bounce...yeah he just likes to bounce. It makes me smile and think of the Silly Monkey book.

Make sure you enlarge this one to see his two front teeth!

Hope everyone is doing well!

Iraq

2009-01-11T19:01:00.007-05:00

I got some new pictures of Chris so I thought I would share them. He has now been in Iraq 2.5 months so we are hoping he only has about 9.5 months to go! He is working insane hours 7 days a week so I think he is pretty worn out more than anything else.

They had their deployment badge ceremony the other day. He reached in his pocket and pulled out his badge to show me. I asked him why he was not wearing it and he said he figured everyone over there knew he was deployed. I kindly informed him that after being away from his wife and son for 1.5 years (.5 year in Hawaii before deployment) to get that badge, he WILL wear that badge with HONOR when he comes home. He has no choice. I am proud of him and want him to flaunt it! Since they don't give badges to the spouses for their service while the soliders are gone, maybe I'll just have to sew a lightening bolt (25th Infantry Division) on my sleeve too.

Postmark...Iraq!

2009-01-03T09:02:00.004-05:00

Michael is into everything he can get his grubby hands on these days. I mailed Chris a box of edible goodies the other day. I guess Michael wanted to see if he could make it to Iraq in a flat rate box! What a good boy...he already realizes how cheap mom is!

I guess he reazlied these were cramped quarters so he decided to stand up in the box to get out. He is into pulling up on anything that has a grip which is a REAL pain for me. I think Michael and I should have gone on that show Baby Borrowers. His energy and craziness would surely scare off any teens from having kids! Of course I wouldn't trade him for the world...I might just invest in a straight jacket!

Christmas

2008-12-27T18:58:00.004-05:00

Michael had a very good first Christmas. We missed Chris a lot and we can't wait until he is home for Christmas next year! Michael and I woke up and did presents at our house.

Then we headed over to Lee's to exchange presents over there. Chris called, so we headed back home to see him on the video. He waited to open everyones' gifts with us so it was a little bit like we were together. I didn't wrap my new sewing/embroidery machine that I got, so I just watched him open his. After we talked to Chris, we headed over to Mom and Dad's house. We enjoyed a GREAT dinner and opening way too many presents.

Michael was very tired after our long day so we came home and put our pjs on.

Grandma and Grandpa Brown came the day after Christmas so Michael and I were once again spoiled with a ton of gifts! They left today so Michael and I are taking it easy after a very busy week!

A run for my money

2008-12-17T19:35:00.003-05:00

Can I just tell you how tiring a crawling 6 month old is?!?! He is into EVERYTHING and doesn't give me one minute of rest. My brain and body need rest so I will only be putting up pictures tonight. I will try to write more later!

All I want for Christmas...

2008-12-09T09:21:00.004-05:00

Michael is doing great. I can't believe how much he has progressed in just 2 weeks. He has been working on his "crawling" and can now move 4 crawls before his arms or legs give out. He can move 4 feet while you blink an eye so I really have to be careful! He really likes to sneak over to the Christmas presents. For those who have presents under my tree - I will go ahead and apologize now for the drool and crinkled packages!

All I want for Christmas is my other front tooth....my other front tooth. His one tooth is slowly coming in and is sharp as a razor!

He has tried carrots, squash, and applesauce since we wrote last. He eats really well for a couple of bites and then is done. He is really into the world around him so he quickly loses interest in eating. Those orange foods are evil. I think he tries to get it everywhere when it is orange colored.

We went over to Lee's to have a playdate with Ellison and Juliette (I will have to add pictures of the three kids later...blogger won't let me add more). At 3:30 I put Michael in Ellison's crib to take a nap because he hadn't slept since 8:15 that morning. He was quiet when I put him down so I snuck back up there to see what he was doing - big surprise he wasn't sleeping. He crawled to the opposite side I put him on and found her bunny. He never went to sleep in her bed. I guess he was confused by all of the pink!

Michael is still enjoying the dogs. Roxie tends to get on the bed more so she gets more time with Michael.

With all things considered, we are doing really well. Michael went for his 6 month appointment and weighed 15 lbs 10 oz and was 26.5 inches long. The doctor is very pleased with all of his development. We think that it is going to work out for Chris to come home sometime in May for his mid-tour R&R break. Though it is still a ways away, Michael and I are very excited and are hoping time will pass quickly. He has already been in Iraq for a month now...hopefully only 11 more to go!

Hey

2008-12-02T14:09:00.011-05:00

Well I figure it is about time I give an update. First of all I am safe and doing fine. This isn’t Disney Land, but I’m sure I have it a lot better than most of the Soldiers over here. Change that, I know I have it a lot better than those Soldiers. Sometimes I have to remember that it is not supposed to be easy. So I don’t complain about the mile walk to the chow hall and gym. Or not having a bathroom and having to walk outside in the middle of the night when I drank too much water. Overall this place is great compared to where I could be.

Last time I mentioned my CHU (Containerized Housing Unit) and I am happy to say I have moved. From the pictures it doesn’t look like much but it is heaven compared to my last place. If you don’t know CHUs are basically big shipping containers dressed up for living. They keep getting better and some even have their own bathrooms now. As far as mine I share it with another Captain and we live about 40 yards from the latrines, and about 100 from the showers. Over here that is prime real-estate. The most important part is I am closer to the office so the boss can find me anytime he needs. Not like he generally has to look too hard since I am always in the office.

My day generally consist of me waking up at 0400 so I can get a workout in and get some chow (do them back to back so you don’t have to walk the mile , each way, twice). Then I get a shower and go to work hopefully prior to 0700. I am in the office until 2000 at night with two breaks for chow and sometimes I go to a small weight room outside the office for an hour. In the office I do a lot of the same stuff I do in the rear with the biggest addition being casualties. Unfortunately this is the worst part of my job and it would be great if I never had to process another one. The worst part is not all of them are enemy related. I have never understood how someone could end their life but it happens and it isn’t always the brand new private that has never left home before. In my short little month I have been surprised.

At night I try to go for a run to help blow off frustrations from the day and to just get out and burn energy. So far I average 2 runs a week. That is why I have to walk the mile back and forth to the chow hall and run back and forth to the gym. Generally I am in bed by 2200. This is the basic cycle I live. Every day is the same, the work just changes a little.

I think of everyone all the time and I pray that everyone is doing well and staying safe. I am never too busy for emails or to read the blog so if you want to update me feel free. I love to hear from everyone. I know some of you want an address so I have put it below. If you would like to send something, I only ask that you send stuff for my Soldiers. I really don’t need anything and it is always nice to get treats from home, no matter who’s home it comes from.

Ok the important stuff pictures:
My upgraded CHU, inside and out.

The Shower and latrines. Notice all the wonderful boulders? Trust me their fun to walk on. The best part is their everywhere. I guess the flip side is the mud.

Our thanksgiving celebration. I am very thankful for the group of Soldier I have. I couldn’t ask for a better group.

My battle buddy and I in the great abyss. This is part of our walk to CHOW. It is quicker then taking the road. It also has less gravel.

Ok random pictures of bunkers and building we pass by to get to chow. Soldiers actually live in the buildings that don't have holes through them.

No not snow. Nice thought though. That is the dust and sand in the air(on a clear day). The other picture is one very lonely lady bug.

CPT Brown, Chris

25th STB 25th ID G1

COB Speicher

APO AE 09393

Happy 6 Months!

2008-11-29T11:44:00.006-05:00

We had a big Turkey day as Mom, Dad, the Tylers, and my Uncle Tommy came over to my house for Thanksgiving! We had a nice meal and Michael and I enjoyed having some company. Don't worry, Flat Daddy did not miss the big event; he had his seat of honor right next to me!

Michael turned 6 months old yesterday! It is really hard to believe he has been with me for 6 months now. He had a pretty big week this week. He started "crawling" on Tuesday and has only been perfecting the art ever since. He lifts up his belly, sticks his legs under him so his butt is up in the air, and crawls forward with his arms. He is still kinda wobbly and it takes a lot of effort, but he is getting the hang of it. He can now "crawl" to anything he wants which is bad news for me. And since big man hit the 6 month point, he got to eat some green beans!

After the first taste, he made an AWFUL face and couldn't figure out what I had just put in his mouth. He ate a couple more bites for me, but kept turning his head and not opening his mouth. I thought that he had done good for the day so I put the spoon down. I turned my back for one second and before I knew it Super MiMi had gotten the spoon. Somehow MiMi got him to finish the little dish I had made him! I couldn't believe it - MiMi is going to have to come feed him everyday! We will be on green beans for a couple of days and then will try some carrots. He kicks his little legs, leans forward, and opens his mouth when I am cooking and eating so I am hoping that he will be a good little eater for me. I guess time will tell!

Thomas

2008-11-25T22:49:00.004-05:00

I put Michael down for a nap today. He was having way too good of a time so I went to check on him. He was having a ball sucking on the Tiger's tail on his bumper. Looks like I will be tacking that one back down!

Lee had a really bad morning this morning. Ellison had a doctor's appointment at 9:30; Lee called at 9:25 in tears because she couldn't find her keys anywhere. She asked to take my car so I told her to take the car and give me Thomas. He was really good for me. I got a frog dog toy and played with him outside for 45 minutes. I would throw it and we both would run for it. He was squealing with delight. He also likes to go on and off of my back porch. Chris called while we were outside so I was talking to him and standing at the porch door watching Thomas. He was playing on the porch. Oh, did I mention that his "playing" on my porch consists of locking the door! Since I was on the phone I wasn't thinking straight so I watched him lock the door. He then starting jumping up and down screaming "SaSa, SaSa, SaSa." I told him to stand right by the door while I walked around to the garage. I walked around and realized I had locked the inside door to the garage out of habit. I WAS LOCKED OUT FOR REAL!! I thought...oh my...is this what having a two year old is like?!? Thank goodness Chris will be home when he is that old! Anyway, I walked back and tried to put the door in a position to help him unlock it. For the first time EVER, Thomas was able to get the door open!!! After that, I decided it was time to go inside! Thomas enjoyed playing inside too. I think they should change the recommended age for children's toys to 2.5 year olds. Since he is really too big for the bumbo it stuck to his butt when he got up! It didn't slow him down though - he was able to crawl over to another one of Michael's toys. It was also great when he turned Michael's jungle gym on himself and then got down and watched the lights! He definately provided some laughs today!

Michael and the girls...

2008-11-24T22:30:00.004-05:00

I am including the progression of pictures so you can see what the dogs endure in the mornings. It starts out innocent, one of them sticks their head over where he is. He starts by rubbing her head. Then he likes to pull on her cheeks or ears. Both girls are very good with him, they just sit there and endure it! Roxie looked at me with one longing eye - her other eye was blocked by Michael's finger in her eye! On this particular morning, he got carried away and tried to suck on Roxie's ear. For some reason she moved after that!

Life

2008-11-22T09:01:00.003-05:00

Michael and I are doing well. He is growing up so fast! He is into everything he can get his grubby hands on. He scoots to items that are out of his reach so I can't blink an eye with him! He has gotten very consistent with bedtime - down at 8pm up at 8am. I am very lucky that he was always been a great sleeper! I need to have some time for myself to stay sane so I am really enjoying knowing he is down 8 to 8. I have a website set up just for Chris that I update daily. I will try to be better about keeping this one up-to-date as well. Here are some of our daily pictures we take for Chris.

As you can see, Michael LOVES to play all day long! He was obsessed with some ribbon I had out; so obsessed that I finally had to put it up! He loves playing with his leap frog table Lee got him. He actually gets pretty mad when I take him away from it.

I took Michael to the doctor the other day for a little cough. He is fine and weighed 15 lbs 6 oz. He will be 6 months on the 28th of this month and will starting baby food. We will see how that goes!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

2008-11-17T08:40:00.004-05:00

Happy birthday Grandma Brown! We are looking forward to seeing you next week. Hope you have a GREAT birthday!

The girls and flat daddy

2008-11-14T11:10:00.000-05:00

Roxie and Tigger wanted to let everyone know they are doing ok. They went to the vet and both weighed 58 pounds. Their feeding amounts have now been cut down so they wish they had never gone to the vet!

Michael always really enjoys for flat daddy to watch him play. Please don't mind the 50 thousand references to "DaDa." I have to mention DaDa a lot in hopes that he will say it soon. I also tried out a new setting on the video extraction software...obviously I won't be using this setting again, but I think you get the idea!

Update

2008-11-12T06:19:00.003-05:00

I am safely in country and starting to get settled in. The first leg of our flight went well until we landed in Canada. I thought it would be nice to see snow one more time before deploying but I got a little more than I asked for. The pilot was a little scared of the snow and ice so we sat on the runway fro 12 hours waiting for it to lighten up. Once the snow lightened up and daylight broke the crew had been up to long and needed to rest. So they decided to walk us across the runway into the basement of the airport for an additional 12 hours. Luckily the Canadian spirit came out when the CEO of the airport found out we had been there on the runway all night. He contacted the local Canadian Air Force unit and they brought us blankets and pillows and the airport bought us food and drinks. Eventually we took off and made it to Kuwait. Less than 24 hrs later we departed Kuwait for Iraq. I am now settling into my new home and trying to start working. As you can see the CHUs are not the greatest and I am trying everything I can to move. I guess we will see what happens. Overall I guess the conditions are good considering I am in a combat area.

I hate taking naps!

2008-11-10T17:05:00.001-05:00

Goodbye

2008-11-06T09:00:00.002-05:00

Well, the day is finally here. My cell phone is officially turned off and I will be out of contact for a few weeks. As most of you know Sally and I have been preparing for this day since we met, and I think we are in the best place in our lives for this new endeavor. Michael and Sally have a great support base and will do great while I am away. The past few months they took over the reigns and the household is in very capable hands. Most men would shutter at the thought that their family no longer needs them but for a military family this thought is more of a relief than anything. Sally is an amazing person, wife, and mother and even though she never imagined herself as a single mother she will do great without me. I think we are as ready for this day as we will ever be. I appreciate all the prayers, love, and support for my family over the past few years and especially as we made the transition to a separate household. I will keep everyone in my thoughts and prayers while I am away, and I look forward to returning and seeing everyone again.

Giving Mom a run for her money...

2008-11-05T09:56:00.003-05:00

B-Day

2008-11-03T11:17:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday Sally!

Enjoy your day, you deserve it.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T21:48:00.007-04:00

Our Halloween festivities started this afternoon when Lee, Ellison, Thomas, Michael and I went to the Halloween carnival with MOPs. Thomas had a great time there. He is at an awesome age to really get into Halloween. We waited in line 30 minutes to get his face painted to match his doggie halloween outfit. It was no big surprise when he refused to let them paint it. Lee then showed him how it was done by getting a dot on her nose. Lee being the sneaky snake she is, pinned Thomas down and gave him a big eskimo kiss before her nose was dry. Poor Thomas didn't know what had happened!! When we were done trick-or-treating, I walked past a mirror while holding Thomas. He looked at himself, touched his nose, and said "what's on Thomas' nose"!?!

We rushed home from the carnival to prepare for trick-or-treating. The kids all got dressed up in their outfits. Michael looked really cute in his tiger outfit and behaved himself while we walked Thomas around. Seeing Thomas' excitement provided one of the best nights of my life. I can't wait until Michael is 2 and can really enjoy the night!

After our fun-filled day, I now feel like I have been hit by a bus! Hope everyone had as good of a day as we had :)

Pictures

2008-10-29T21:18:00.004-04:00

Ok, I know I have been bad about updating. Michael and I have been very busy and time just seems to get away from us!

Michael went to the nursery at church this Sunday. I was nervous about this since he has never been left with anyone besides family (the longest I have EVER left him is for 2.5 hours with mom when I had a MOPs mothers night out). The workers picked up on my uneasiness and assured me he would be fine. As the tears starting filling my eyes, I decided it was time to leave him. He did a great job there and I did ok. I figure I will get better as time goes by. He sported his new outfit I made him. I put a separating zipper (like a jacket zipper) in the crotch so that I don't have to do snaps each time I change him. I'm wondering why ALL children's clothes don't have zipper crotches!

Happy 5 months big man!!!!

P.S. For those of you who don't know, that is a nice strawberry birthmark on his chest. It should go away by the time he is 5 or 6 years old.

Down on the Farm

2008-10-17T16:08:00.011-04:00

Michael , Lee, Thomas, Ellison, and I went to the fall festival today with MOPs (Mothers of Preschoolers). There is nothing like loading the van with 2 infant carriers, a toddler carseat, and 2 adults! Thanks for being a trooper Lee! Michael seemed to enjoy himself and was very well behaved.

So the best event of the day was when I tried to take a picture of Ellison and Michael with the pony. When I went to take the picture I said...oh no...the pony is eating Michael's stroller. Then Thomas popped out from behind Michael's stroller and I realized the pony was chomping on Thomas' head!!! He didn't seem to mind. I couldn't control my laughter as Thomas rubbed his hair wondering what just went on.

Michael HAS to be getting teeth soon. He chews on everything.

What a good cousin!

Washington DC

2008-10-06T11:16:00.007-04:00

Michael and I made the big trip to Washington, DC to see Chris run in the Army 10-miler. Grammy and Granpa Brown gave us miles to fly up here so we didn't have to make the 9 hour drive! We can't thank them enough for being so thoughtful and generous! We are very proud of Chris for finishing the race in 69 minutes and some odd seconds.

Most people would be exhausted after running 10 miles, but Chris came back to the room and asked if we were ready to go downtown. The weather was beautiful so we enjoyed walking around the monuments. Michael enjoyed himself more when Chris unbuckeled him so he could chew on his toes (and anything else in sight)! I also have to include a picture of the killer squirrel. Ok, it wasn't really a killer, but it scared the poop out of me when it started chasing me .

Thanks

2008-09-28T03:47:00.002-04:00

Sally and Michael, I want to thank you for coming to visit me. I threw this together real quick so it would help you remember your trip. I hope you enjoy and I can’t wait to be back with you.

The Beach

2008-09-13T22:38:00.008-04:00

I thought I would show the reality of Michael and me at the beach. I am allergic to the sun (for those who are in disbelief just ask my sister) and I can't have my baby burn so we hide under our umbrella! We went to the beach today in search of turtles and crabs. The sun was piercing and the waves were huge, but we found what we were looking for.

Rollover

2008-09-09T01:39:00.004-04:00

Well phase one of Michaels master plan is a “GO”. He has officially rolled over. We say it is official because we have it on video and can prove it to the world. Michael has been rolling onto his side since day three, but he could never make it all the way over because of his arm. About a month ago he could make it over, but once again, the arm would get in the way so he would roll onto his back again. That arm is no longer a problem. He is a pro and he refuses to lay on his back now. So without further ado, I present to you Michael the Magnificent.

Bumbo and Chili's

2008-09-01T17:34:00.005-04:00

Michael is growing into quite a big boy over here in Hawaii. About two weeks ago he realized that he can do a lot of things with his hands. He likes to hold and taste the wire toy Lee gave him and the monkey from his jungle gym. He is getting enough head control to sit in his bumbo chair though we still have to give him a little help every now and then. Chris did a rough weight estimate (by holding him while weighing himself) and he weighed in at 13 lbs.

We went to Chili's the other night for dinner. Chris gave Michael the camel that is on his carrier. He grabbed on and held that thing for a good 3 minutes. The camel is one of those that you pull down and it vibrates as it goes back up. Michael would get big eyes and stretch his little arm up when it would go back up until Dad pulled it back down for him. He figured out what this camel guy was about and pulled it back down himself. Chris and I couldn't believe it! He obviously had a pretty good time at Chili's.

Did I mention I have the best parents in the world?!? They have had Roxie and Tigger the whole time I've been gone. Dad sent me a picture of the girls (which Mom will probably yell at me for putting up). It appears that they are JUST fine without me and and not too worried I'm gone. I can't thank you enough for keeping those wild barbarians!!

Pearl Harbor

2008-08-25T17:24:00.015-04:00

Michael has now officially been on his first boat ride. We visited Pearl Harbor the other day. The tour that is given starts with a 30 minute movie on the events that took place. Chris gave Michael his pacifier in hopes that he would be quiet. Of course it didn't work! He was talking to his pacifier for the first 10 minutes. Then he decided to have a HUGE explosion in his pants. Oh, did I mention you are not allowed to take anything into the tour area. So Chris had to walk all they way back to the car to change him...what a trooper! After the movie, we took a boat ride to the Arizona memorial (the white building in the background). It was crazy seeing the ship right under us. We even saw oil that is still slowly leaking from the ship. The rest of these pictures were mostly taken for Pappy Davis. With all of his time spent on ships, we thought he would appreciate these pictures.

On the way home we got to see a very pretty rainbow. Chris is back working now so Michael and I are hanging out at the house. It is not as fun without him, but at least I can try to get Michael back in a steady routine.

Airport and Dole Plantation

2008-08-20T01:00:00.010-04:00

Now that I have the connection for my small camera, I can put up pictures from our plane trip and the airport. Michael and I survived our first flight from Charleston to Atlanta. When we landed, I realized that I had 10 minutes before my next flight took off and they hadn't opened the plane's doors yet. I RAN from the end of the B terminal to the A terminal with Michael strapped on in his B'jorn carrier and wheeling a suitcase and huge diaper bag. When I was about to die from not being able to breathe, a nice guy took my bags and carried them the rest of the way to the gate. Sadly, the doors were closed. Luckily we got a direct flight from Atlanta to Hawaii an hour later. I had originally purposely booked the flight to stop over in California (for feeding purposes and my sanity). I got very lucky since there was a seat available for Michael on both flights. Even with the extra seat, I think that flight was the LONGEST 9.5 hours of my life! Michael did really good though and we both made it through.

As most of you know, Michael had a very special outfit to wear to meet Daddy in the airport. It is hard to see in my blurry picture, but I made him an outfit that matches Dad's and has BROWN embroidered on the pocket. The picture is blurry because I was excited about seeing Chris, excited about Chris seeing Michael, and I was exhausted! I will have to get some better pictures of the two in their uniforms next week.

As you can see, Chris is really making use of the B'jorn carrier. We went to the Dole plantation the other day. And no, you are not seeing things...I am actually showing my legs in a pair of workout shorts/skirt. This place is freaking HOT and all I have here is long pants! Anyway, it was pretty neat seeing all of the different pineapples at Dole. I told Chris that the words I would use to describe the Dole plantation are HIGHWAY ROBBERY! The pineapples were $6 and more, so we left there and bought a Dole pineapple at the commisary for $2.5...go figure.

Hawaii

2008-08-18T20:47:00.009-04:00

As most of you know, Michael is not a smiley baby. Back home, he is all smiles and giggles for about an hour each morning, but after that, you really have to work to get a smile. Michael has been nothing but smiles since he saw Dad. It is really cute and sweet.

We have been busy running all over the island. We went up to the North Shore and visited the beach. We also indulged in the famous Hawaiian shaved ice on the north shore. I have a lot more pictures, but they are on my other camera that I don't have the connection for. Don't worry, Mom is mailing it so we can upload more pictures! Hope everyone is doing well back home.

ALOHA!

2008-08-15T18:10:00.003-04:00

I just wanted to let everyone know we made it to Hawaii! We are about to go out so I will write more later. I just wanted to share a few pictures!

They Grow Up So Fast

2008-08-02T08:40:00.012-04:00

I just don't know where time goes these days. Everyday I realize that my boy is growing up before my very eyes! While it is very exciting to see him develop mentally and physically, it is all happening too fast. I guess they can't stay babies forever.

I have a new trick that Mom doesn't want to talk about. I think this picture says it all!

We made the big journey up to Greenville last weekend to see Grandma, Grandpa, Great Grandma, aunt Starla, and cousin Brayden. Grandma and Grandpa had everything ready for his big arrival; they had even bought diapers and wipes!!! Michael really enjoyed kicking the ball on the activity gym they had bought. Lee saved the day when she let me borrow the same ball to attach to the gym I had already gotten.

Michael also has a new friend - cousin Ellison. It is really hard to believe he was that small just 7.5 weeks ago!

Michael went to the doctor on his 2 month birthday. He weighed 11 lbs 4 oz and was 23 inches long. The doctor was trying to listen to his chest and then he said "do you have a pacifier or something? This is the most verbal child I have ever seen at 2 months!" I put a pacifier in and Michael kept "talking" even with it in. Little does the doctor know that Michael is mouthy ALL of the time...since the time he came out. For those of you who haven't spent time with him, his mouthiness is not fussing, it is grunting and baby talking. He also got several shots that day. I felt really bad for him when they gave them to him, but he had a good day and night after them. Speaking of good days and nights, I didn't set my alarm last night. Michael always wakes me up between 6 and 8 hours since his last feeding. After 9.5 hours, I woke up in a complete panic. Since there was no sound on the audio monitor, I turned my video monitor on to find a perfectly content sleeping baby. He was so tired it actually took me a while to wake him up to feed. I truly think God only gives you what you can handle. Michael gradually built himself up to sleeping more and more at night. I never even had to make him cry to extend the feedings. I know, I am a very lucky mother and everyone hates me. :)

8 weeks

2008-07-23T15:37:00.005-04:00

Sorry I haven't written in a while. I have been busy updating my sister's blog with news on her new baby girl Ellison Ann. They are both doing great. There are pictures on Lee's website at http://www.thetylertrio.blogspot.com/.

As for Michael, he is doing great. I measured him and he is now 23 inches! In the picture, he is with Dr. Addy who delivered him. I think seeing him again brought back some bad memories for Michael :)

We have been having a lot of tummy time to continue building his neck and arm muscles. Once things settle down with Lee, I will post some videos!

Grandma and Grandpa Brown

2008-07-15T11:11:00.020-04:00

Grandma and Grandpa Brown came to visit me this weekend. I had a GREAT time with them. Mom keeps whining that they need to come live with us.

They were very patient with me and got me to drink 3 oz from a bottle. For all of those wondering if I like this bottle thing, just look in my eyes. I really didn't want to take the bottle, but Grandpa sang me a song about drinking my bottle so I surrendered. Don't mind the dogs panting and drinking in the background. They were very excited about Grandpa's singing!

Grandma stole me away and got some pictures of my head control. Mom is kinda worried about how strong my neck, arms, and legs are. Dad thinks I'm going to be crawling in no time!

Happy Birthday Chris!

2008-07-10T12:09:00.006-04:00

Happy Birthday Chris!!! It is hard to believe this is our 8th year of celebrating your birthday together. I love you and miss you!

Big Events

2008-07-08T15:16:00.009-04:00

Michael and I made the big outting to church! We got up at 6:45 to eat and get ready for the 8:45 service. I called mom on the way out to have her save us a seat, and she informed me that church wasn't starting until 10:30 (due to July 4th). Man I was mad. We went home and cleaned some until it was time to go again. Michael did really good until half way through the sermon. He started stretching and grunting. For all of you who have spent anytime with Michael, you know what I'm referring to! I took him out and sat in the back until the service was over. He is a mouthy little thing, but all things considered, he did really good. He was a bit needy when we got home. He wanted the pacifier that he normally wants nothing to do with and gags on. I don't think we will be making it to early service again anytime soon. I was so tired I broke down and had a mello yello. I have only had caffeine like 6 times since I got pregnant so it was quite a treat! I felt like a million bucks the rest of the day.

Michael also had a big day on Monday...Auntie Lee fed Michael his very first bottle! As you can see, he wasn't too happy at first. Thanks to Lee's extreme patience and loving touch, he eventually did a little better. I offered another bottle at the next feeding and he drank 2 oz in no time! I think he is getting the hang of it. We are having to learn how to drink from a bottle in preparation for the plane trip to see Daddy on August 13th. We are counting down the days!

Hanauma Bay

2008-07-05T03:24:00.006-04:00

Well as most people were still sleeping in their beds I decided it would be nice to get up and go play in the ocean. I packed up my snorkel gear and drove to one of the local hotspots for snorkeling. I figured 6:00 AM would be early enough that I would miss the crowd and I was almost right. When I arrived around 6:30, there was probably 50 people already at the beach enjoying the water. I just figured every one had the same idea until I got closer and realized about half of them had at least 30 years on me. So this made me feel a little out of place, but so I geared up and had a great time.

This is a nature preserve so it is one of the few beaches where you can not fish and this is the main reason it is such a good spot to snorkel. Another reason is the fact that it is a volcano crater and is mostly protected from the waves and surf of the ocean. I saw tons of fish and had a great time. The pictures really do not do justice to the fish but I guess that is what you get when you buy a cheap disposable underwater camera.

Baby Michael and Cousin Thomas

2008-07-03T11:38:00.004-04:00

I think Thomas is going to be ok when Ellison joins the Tyler family! When we brought Michael home, Thomas would talk about "Baby Michael" and want to "Pat Pat" him. A week ago I asked Thomas if he wanted to hold Michael. He said yes. I went to put Michael's legs on him and he got a horrified look and said "No, no, no" and hid his hands from me. Thomas has obviously progressed. A week later, he held Michael and was very good with him. He was very gentle and even held Michael's hand. Michael and I visited the Tyler home yesterday and Thomas brought a blanket and asked to hold baby Michael. It was pretty funny and neat that he remembered that he had a blanket on him when he held the baby (for support). Good job Thomas!