Mission: Accomplished

About 5 weeks ago, Ryan decided he was going to run in a 1/2 marathon. He had not been running previously, so this was more of a motivation to get back in the gym. He trained pretty consistently for a few weeks and then got sick. So for a whole week he was out. With the race just a week or so away, he got back out there and started running. Lots of people laughed at him and thought there was no way he could just up and run a 1/2 marathon. I was a little worried given his heart condition, but knowing my husband and how competitive/stubborn he is, I knew he would not only finish, but he would do pretty darn good. And I was right.

This past Sunday morning him and my sister-in-law Marci, ran the Rock 'N' Roll 1/2 Mararthon in Dallas. Todd, Dan, myself and the 2 little boys went to a few different stops along the way to cheer them on. Nena, Pops, and the 2 big boys met up with us also so we could all watch and support them! I was super impressed. I could have watched the people run all day. It was really fun! Here are the spectators...everytime they'd fall asleep it would be time to get back out into the coldness. They were troopers and were GREAT!



I got texts at the start, the 5K mark, the 10K mark, the 10 mile mark and the finish line. Ryan finished in 2:38, could not have been more PROUD of my husband! Way to GO!!!!!!!

Nephews Birthdays!

Our 2 sweet nephews are 3 days shy of being exactly one year apart. Crockett turned 2 on March 22nd, and Noah turned 1 on March 25th! A busy and exciting week!!!

Crockett and Aunt Jess came in town on Crockett's birthday and we spent the day with them celebrating Crockett's birthday! We had pizza and cake at LuLu's house on Crockett's actual birthday. Braidy and Crockett always have the best time together and play really well with each other. Except when they were playing outside and Braidy dumped a TON of soil on Crockett's head. Crockett is very tolerant of Braidy...I just hope he doesn't teach him some of his "terrible two" antics! The next day we took the boys to "Chicky-Fay" for lunch (aka Chick Fil A) and then to the Science Spectrum. Lunch was exhausting with 2 2 year olds. Quin might be my saving grace. I just look at him and am able to settle down despite the craziness that is Braidy Spencer Curry. The Science Spectrum was fun fun! We saw fishies, turtles, snakes, the big scary dinosaur and played on lots of toys. When it was time to go, Braidy made a mad dash to the kiddie maze and hid from us. Luckily, we caught him after not too long. We had a fun day celebrating Crockett's special day! Happy Birthday Crockett! We love you!!!!






That weekend, we headed to Dallas to celebrate Noah's BIG first birthday!!! I can't believe he is already one! Time flies! We celebrated his birthday on Saturday with a MONKEY party! There was a bounce house, crawfish, balloons, a kid's dream! We brought him a new sandbox and he seemed to like it...just hope he doesn't eat all of sand! We had a blast watching him eat his cake and enjoy his party. Despite being super tired, he was so happy and really enjoyed the party! Happy Birthday sweet Noah-man! We love you!!!!

Spring Break

Better late than never, right!? I am trying to play catch up today on the blog. So, Spring Break was a few weeks ago, and while it was pretty uneventful, we still had a few photo ops. John was with us most of that week so him and Braidy had LOTS of fun playtime together. They are either the best of friends, or wanting to kill each other! Usually both within the same minute. Here are a few pictures of our week!

We moved into a very "established" neighborhood back in July. One of the main reasons we love the area is all of the trees. However, our house is one of the very few with NO, I repeat, NO trees in the front yard. So....thank you Uncle Sam for our 2 new trees in our front yard! Braidy was fascinated (and so were we) with the machine that dug the enormous holes to put in the new trees.


St. Patricks Day was Thursday. John was with his momma, or he would have been in the "green" picture too! We made sure daddy wore his green so he wouldn't get pinched. We also wore our green to the doctor, and poor Quin was diagnosed with RSV...he looks pretty happy to be so sick!


One night Ryan and I went out on the trampoline with the older boys while Quin slept. It was a BEAUTIFUL night and the boys were jumping, flipping, and sword fighting! These 2 are very entertaining and VERY energetic! They were pretty impressed that momma can still do "flips"!

4 month old baby

4 months old today! Wow, that's 1/3 of a year, but let's not try to think about it like that just yet. I love this stage. Ok, I love every stage. Here's what Quin has been up to lately:

1. He rolled over for the first time today. Yes, the day he turned 4 months! I put him on his back on his mat to play, and I came back in the living room and he was on his tummy! I rolled him back over, and sure enough, he did it again! Go Q!

2. He caught RSV and was diagnosed with it yesterday...and an ear infection. So breathing treatments every 4 hours have kept me busy. Between that and feeding him every 3 hours, there goes the day! Wouldn't change it for the world though...well I could go without the breathing treatments...but as long as they are helping, I'm good!

3. He has regressed some in the sleeping department. He was sleeping 10-12 hours a night, but now he wakes up once at about 3 or so. Between you and me, I love this. It is the only time of the whole day where it's just him and I, and a quiet, dark house. It's a very special time that, even though I'm sleepy, I truly cherish it. Now, if it was a 3 time a night thing, I might feel differently =)

4. When we went to the dr. yesterday he weighed 16lbs 10oz, but that was with clothes and a pretty soggy diaper...but I'm guessing about 16 1/2 pounds or so.

5. He drools 24/7. Braidy wasn't much of a drooler, but this babe is a drooling machine.

6. He belly laughs and it's the sweetest sound in the world. You have to act really dumb, but it's worth it.

7. He is still the happiest baby on the block. He continues to be super laid back and is cool with just laying or sitting and watching the world. (Just like his momma)

8. We have at least one blowout everyday. When the kid poops, he POOPS! Goes straight up his back and we get to change clothes and do laundry. Oh well, thankful for a working digestive system!

Here are some recent pictures of our 4 month old!

thirty

My husband turned the big 3-0 last Thursday! I'd been secretly planning a few fun surprises that day, so we were excited that 3/3 finally arrived. His secretary at his office (whom we all LOVE) asked for some pictures of Ryan as a baby/kid that she could blow up and decorate his office with. Ryan's mom sent me some great ones, and the poster that Patrice made was perfect, as were all the BLACK streamers and balloons! Ryan was a great sport, he appreciated the effort everyone made to make his day at work special. Braidy, Quin and I went to the office for lunch, but Quin wasn't feeling very good so we made it a quick visit.

After work, I told Ryan I was taking him to Outback and that a babysitter was coming to watch the boys. He had to run to baseball practice really fast after work, so he was in and out in 10 minutes. I purposely left the house "undone" so he wouldn't read into things. The minute he left I started cleaning. I didn't leave TOO much to be done because I only had about an hour. At 6:45 some friends started coming over for a little surprise party. Cliche' but I had to do it. Bighams catered it and Mrs. Camps made her famous strawberry cake (R's favorite!), so I kept it simple on my part! They all parked down the street so when Ryan drove home from practice he wouldn't see a bunch of familiar cars! He walked in the door around 7, and SURPRISE!! He said he really was surprised. I'm glad, because I'm usually horrible about covering my tracks. We had BBQ and enjoyed visiting. I missed much of the party because poor Quin was sick, but I hope everyone else enjoyed themselves!



And for the final surprise. I've been saving my pennies for a few months now, and most of the family went in with me, but his present was an IPAD 2! It comes out this Friday, so he had to wait an extra week, but I know it will be worth it!

I am so thankful that Ryan was born 30 years ago. He is such an amazing husband and father to his boys. He provides for our family, he is a wonderful spiritual leader for our home, helps me around the house, and never tires of playing with his boys. We all love you so much!!!

Yummy!

pretty much in love with this little guy with the big ol cheeks!









And just for fun...here's a comparison of Braidy and Quin, both at 3 months old.

momma rambles

For me, blogging serves a few purposes. To remember the stages of life that pass all too quickly. A place to put pictures other than in a folder on the computer or in a shoebox under the bed. A place for funny stories I want my children to be able to read one day. And a book I can read in the years ahead when I need to be reminded of the wonderful and sometimes challenging parts of parenthood. After all, isn't every stage a challenge of some kind?

We are at a few different stages of life right now, but let's keep it real. The good. The bad. The ugly.

We have an almost-6-year-old who is discovering his independence and deciding what is "cool" vs. "not cool". John would be a very happy kid if he could wear Under Armour shorts and t-shirts everyday of his life. It is often a battle that involves pouting and tears when we choose jeans or nice shorts for him to wear to school. He still plays like a "kid", but seems so grown-up in other ways. He still idolizes his daddy. He is super excited about baseball season starting back up this week. He comes home talking about addition and "taking away"...and all the other "hard stuff" they do in his school. I love watching John love on his brothers. Braidy is always So excited when John comes back to our house for the week. They usually tackle each other/hug and hug and hug when he gets back.

We have a 2 1/2 year old. Enough Said.

Just kidding. He can be just the sweetest boy you'll ever meet one minute, and then you turn around and he's "roar-ing" at you with a mean look in his eyes. One minute he is smothering momma with kisses, and telling me "I sure wuv you!" and the next growling at me. He is a terror pretty much anytime he needs to be "contained". Example 1: eating at a restaraunt. My sweet mom and step-dad took us to dinner the other night for Ryan's birthday. I'm pretty sure we won't be getting another invitation to a public place for at least 7 more years. Don't get me wrong, I love this stage. I love hearing him say new things, I love hearing him sing "Jesus Loves Me" in the car and clapping for himself afterwards, I love hearing him tell me "Wuv-eww" out of no where, but MAN, this age is a challenge! I want him to be independent but at the same time I want him to respect others and obey. I don't want him to be the bully in kindergarten that always gets in trouble. I want him to be a fun kid that people love to be around. Some days that is Braidy, other days it is not. I love the fact that he is strong-willed and will be a great leader like his daddy one day, but how do you teach him balance?

And we have a 3 month old. He pooped ALL over me tonight. I mean, a lapful. WITH his diaper on. He was saving it up for me, I feel sure. I feel like the "baby days" are slipping away faster than I can begin to realize. I still savor the time I get to rock my baby just the two of us right before he goes to bed. I try to memorize what he smells like, what his ears, nose, lips, fingers look like, I try to soak it all in because before I can blink he'll be in a big boy bed going to bed with the big boys. I am not ready to even entertain the thought of feeding him big boy food yet. I want him to be my baby as long as possible. I know with Braidy EVERY stage was my FAVORITE, and I still feel that way with Quin, but with Braidy I didn't know how fast it would all go. With Quin, I know how fast it goes and I was almost in mourning from day one because I knew how fast he would go from infant to toddler to little boy. I am trying to document every minute of his life, but how do you balance wanting to remember every detail, to just enjoying the moment?

I am so grateful and so lucky to get to be a mommy. I love each minute (yes, even the challenging ones) that I have with these precious baby boys. I pray and pray that God will help me be a good mother who not only LOVES my babies (after all, that's the easy part), but also teaches them and disciplines them when needed. Someone who shows them how to love others by example and someone to teach them what is really important in life: Jesus, family, & our friends.