Friday's Favorite

We got a few inches of snow here yesterday. It's beautiful, bright white, and cold. Maybe that's why I've been longing for some warm sunshine, sandy beaches, and salty ocean water.

Brady was a mere eight months old. We lugged the diapers, bottles, and all the extra baggage an eight month old requires and flew to Florida to visit Mike's Uncle Jim and Aunt Donna.

I remember being so excited to take Brady to the beach. I just knew he'd love the sand. I wasn't sure how he'd like the ocean. But, in true Brady form, the little guy dove right in. He splashed, he crawled, he laughed, and he ate sand. As in, a lot of sand.

This is what stands out in my mind from the trip.



















Now, it's January and we're bundled and layered and I find myself thinking about a beachy vacay. It would be a whole new experience this time. I'm still just as excited to see how Brady would like it. It's one of my most favorite things about being a parent...seeing things through your child's eyes and enjoying whole new experiences. This time, he would be more observant about flying on an airplane and would be able to say what he wanted to do, where he wanted to play. We'd be able to tell him not to put the sand in his mouth, eyes, hair, etc (but that doesn't mean that it would stop him).

Oh, and he'd be wearing big boy unders.

Friday's Favorite

It has been a week. I mean a weeeeeeek. As you know, we've been potty training. It really has been going extremely well, with just a minor bump in my laundry. No biggie. I can deal. What's made it rough is being cooped up in the house. all.week.long.

I've been edgy, putting a bunch of pressure on myself to make sure "this is it" when it comes to training. I can't tell you how many times this week I just wanted to throw a diaper on that cute little bum of his and just go somewhere. I didn't. I persevered. With the help of a great husband and a.lot.of.prayer.

Then, last night, after an especially treacherous day in the trenches, a miracle. Brady went #2 in the potty! We had been trying in vain all week to get him to go. He just couldn't. See, he normally "goes" around a corner, in private...standing. So this whole sitting thing was a bit much to grasp. Then, last night, just a bit before his bed time, he got it. And, I tell ya, it couldn't have come at a better time.

Isn't that the way God seems to work? When we're at our lowest and just really needing a boost, wham! Poop in the potty! I never thought I'd be so excited about poop (or say it so many times in a blog post-sorry about that-but not really), but I'll tell you. That icky poo in the pot made my entire week. It literally washed away an entire week's worth of feeling battled and worn down and replaced it with feelings of competency, joy, and just overall euphoria. All that accomplished by poo! Imagine! I was still feeling the high when we went to bed. Talk about perma grin.

And, for the record, yes, I do believe God cares about poo. Why? Because I care about poo. He's a big God, but cares about the smallest of details. All we have to do is ask. In every situation. Including poopy situations.

Now, I know this potty war training is not over. But, after last night's stinky victory, well, I think Mary Tyler Moore's theme song said it best: I'm Gonna Make it After All!

So, with all that said, here's my Friday Favorite. My little stinker, back when he was a toothless wonder.

May your pot be filled with whatever brings you joy today. As for me, well, I'm hopin' for more poo.

Friday's Favorite

For Mike's birthday this year, Brady picked out a birthday card (all by himself!) that said "Happy birthday to the big man, from the little man." Ever since then, Brady will randomly say Mike is "the big man" and he happily calls himself "the little man". I love it.

These pictures were snapped when Brady's Nanny was visiting. The entire two weeks she was here, Brady refused to nap in his bed. So, every afternoon he would usually crash on the couch. This particular day, Mike cuddled up with him and I just happened to have my camera handy. I love how you can sense their bond, even while they're sleeping. (It bears mentioning that the day after she left, he happily returned to his crib. Thank heavens!)

So, here they are.

The big man and the little man.

Man, I love these guys.

Friday's Favorite...and Catching Up

Happy Friday, friends!

A lot has happened since my last blog post. I had my wisdom teeth removed, my mom celebrated a (pretty big milestone) birthday, we decided to send Brady to preschool, and we decided not to send Brady to preschool. Ok, it doesn't really sound like much when I write it out, but it certainly has felt like a lot.

The wisdom tooth removal took more out of me than I thought it would and, quite frankly, more than I care to admit. They had been bothering me for quite awhile and I kept putting it off, but finally gave in and had all four of them (surgically) cut out  removed. It's been two weeks and a day since they came out and I'm still sore and achy and dosing up on Ibuprofen (couldn't take the pain pills). But, thankfully I have a loving, patient, and helpful husband who has put up with me and a mother that came to help watch my very active two year old son.

I have some pictures from my mom's birthday that I will post another time. It was a good day, but what made it cute (in my mind) was Brady's "Happy Birthday, Grandma!" every two seconds. Said with love and enthusiasm each time. Her birthday was last week, but last night at dinner he leaned over to her and said it again. We rolled with it. Why not? It's nice to be celebrated, even on non-birthdays.

I will update you on the preschool thing at another time too (this is how I keep you coming back).

Most of you know by now that Brady is particular about certain things. He likes them lined up, stacked up, and put in a certain order. I love it. It's just one of those things that makes Brady "Brady".

Take, for instance, these horses.

Do you notice how they are eye-to-eye standing directly in front of each other? Well, that is no accident. They are placed, adjusted, and tweaked until they are just right. Then, they are replaced, readjusted, retweaked (is that a word?)...you get the idea.

I got spotted lurking. Ignore the crazy-eyed expression. He was all hyped up on posing horses.

It's not just horses that get the attention.

And it's not just toys.

Everyday is something new with this little guy. Lately, he's been saying he's embarrassed. He puts a shy smile on his face, leans his head to the side, puts his hands by his head, and says in a quiet voice "embarrassed". Here's the pose, in all it's cuteness.

I'm not sure why he was embarrassed. It couldn't possibly be because he is wearing winter jammies in August, could it? Nah, I didn't think so either.

Friday's Favorite

Happy Friday!

Is it just me, or has this day taken forever to get here this week? I think it's felt extra long because we've been cooped up in the house because of the excessive heat. Thankfully, it rained yesterday and we were able to actually play outside for a little while yesterday. Brady was thrilled to be able to do one of his favorite pasttimes: picking flowers (or, as he puts it, "picking towpers").

We had a fun family outing to Lambert's last night to celebrate Brady's B-Pa's birthday. If you've never been, it's certainly quite the experience. They are famous for their "throwed rolls" where they actually throw fresh, hot rolls at you...you must be on constant alert or you may get beaned in the head...just ask my mom. The wait is always insane and they don't take debit (but accept checks-bizarre!) and the food style is downhome cookin'. And they bring you more food than you could ever possibly consume. It looked like Brady had eaten a bowling ball by the time we left.

They bring around pass-a-rounds in addition to your meal, one of which was fried okra, a first for Brady who thought they were tator tots (I'm slightly ashamed to admit he knows what tator tots are). At the end of our meal our waitress brought Brady a balloon-and he was delighted. It was orange, or, in Brady-speak, "oran juh juh". Believe it or not, I snapped a lot of pictures, but they didn't turn out so well due to the lighting. This was the best one and it's still not great...but you gotta love the barbecue sauce on the little guy's face.

After the meal we all headed back to our house for some birthday cake and ice cream. Not that anyone had enough room for cake or ice cream. Brady helped me make a German Chocolate cake and homemade vanilla ice cream earlier in the day and was very proud to share it with everyone. He announced (several times) that he was a "big helper" to mommy. And he was! The little guy is a blast in the kitchen. He was beside himself when I brought out the mixer and right away said "Mommy, up!" at which point he sat on the counter and helped me mix until his heart was content....or, at the very least, until the cake batter was light and fluffy!

Brady thought it was his personal duty to make sure the candle was blown out. Twice. The first time was midway through the Happy Birthday song and the second was promptly after the song ended. Hopefully, for B-Pa's sake, your birthday wish still comes true if someone else blows out your candle! 

The little trooper stayed up an hour past his bed time, and had a great night. We all went to bed with full bellies and happy hearts...loving life and each other.

Friday's Favorite

For this week's Friday's Favorite, I'm posting a picture of our trio taken last year at a Cardinals baseball game. The B-Man doesn't have the happiest expression, but it'll do.

Wishing you and yours a happy (and safe) Memorial Day weekend. I know here at the Butler household we are certainly looking forward to a three-day weekend!

Friday's Favorite

Mike and I had the rare opportunity to have a date night last night. Braden's Uncle A-Lay (Lance) watched over him as he slept, allowing us a night out on the town (downtown, to be exact). Our dear friend Keebee (Keri) gave us a gift certificate to Fedora's. It is by far the coolest place we've ever eaten. Everything about the evening was perfect. The food was delicious and the ambiance was just right. There was dim lighting, accented by the warm glow of candles, while a delightful arrangement of music played overhead.

It was truly a (much needed) grown-up evening that left us both with a feeling of euphoria. We were even able to change up our CD rotation from Raffi to romantic love songs.

Be warned: this next section is...mushy. I am so thankful to have Mike as a partner in life. Not only is he my best friend (sappy, but true) and a wonderful husband, but he's an amazing father...which makes me love him even more. When I watch him and Brady together, my heart swoons and I say a silent prayer of thanks.

Which, brings me to today's picture for the Friday Favorite. This was taken last year, but it's still one that makes me smile.

Two of my favorite people...goofy as can be. Wouldn't change a thing.

Friday's Favorite

I think you're going to like today's Friday's Favorite. I know I do.

The pictures were taken last July. I'm thankful I kept the unedited versions because back then I would have tried to diminish the traces of drool on his shirt. Now, I love the drool. It serves as a reminder of life back then...a time when drool was a part of life. A time where he had no teeth, had just started walking on his own, and was much more dependent on us than he is now.

He has changed a lot, but there are parts of him that have remained unchanged. I love that. And, I love my little guy. 

Friday's Favorite

It's the last Friday in April, and May is knocking at the door. I'm looking forward to sunshine and flowers, but I'm not sure how it's possible it's the end of April already.

Still, since it is still April for one more day, I'm posting some pictures from Easter (technically, the day before Easter) for this week's Friday Favorite.

I had mentioned in an earlier post (you can read it here) that Braden calls our church the party. The Saturday before Easter Sunday they had a HUGE Easter event for the kids. There were balloons, an Easter egg hunt, a petting zoo, crafts, train rides, jungle gyms, emergency vehicles and a school bus the kids could walk on and explore....and I know I'm leaving some things out.

It was a blast! Braden had a great time and we had just as much fun watching him. He was not intimidated by crowds or older kids, but he was also very well mannered and patient. We couldn't have been more proud.

One of my favorite parts of the day was a guy in a bear suit. This thing was enormous. Mr. Bear was handing out candy and giving the kids hugs, high fives, and photo ops. We weren't really sure what Brady would do, but we told him he could go see the bear if he wanted to, no pressure. Then the B-Man, all by himself, walked up to this big bear, gave him hugs and kisses, and just petted him ever so gently. It was such a sweet, tender moment.

I don't have any actual pictures from the "party" itself because I wanted to be able to focus on Brady experiencing it and not spend the day trying to capture pictures of Brady experiencing it. Maybe it's just me, but sometimes when you're concerned with getting good (or in my case, tolerable) pictures, you can lose out on living the moment. I didn't want to miss this moment.

So, here are the pictures...taken after the event with Brady sitting on our trunk.

Friday's Favorite

Happy Friday!

I've decided to dedicate Friday's to pictures I never got around to posting on Facebook or sharing with family and friends. I'm calling them Friday's Favorite.

These pictures were taken the very first (and so far, only) time Brady saw a frog. In typical B-Man fashion, he was fearless and pretty excited. Although, at the time he was also eating orange jello (which he made!), so the frog had some pretty stiff competition. Nevertheless, our little guy was excited. I can't help but feeling like this is an important event, even if it is just a frog.