You Know You Have Young Kids When....

After being a mom for almost a year and a 1/2, I realized that these are the top 10 ways that you know you have a young child. :)

• You talk about poop with your spouse A LOT!! :)
• You and your spouse's conversations revolve around the kids the majority of the time..even when you are out taking a break from being a parent. :)
• Your house looks like a tornado hit it 5 minutes after you have just cleaned it up!! :)
• You find yourself ordering off the restaurant menu thinking "I wonder if I should get something that my child will also eat...just in case they don't want to eat their kids meal that I am about to order". The best is when you still think that way and then you realize you are on a date! :)
• Your roadtrips revolve around "how many toys and movies can we cram into our car in order to make it ALL the way there?" A 2-3 hour roadtrip somehow turns into 1/2 a day!
• You are wiped out ALL the time...even when you sleep a full 8 hours. :)
• You find yourself singing to songs from Gymboree....even when the kids are not around. :)
• You often think "what activities can we plan before and after nap today to help the day pass more quickly, and keep the kids occuppied so they won't get restless?" :)
• You long for more vacations away with your spouse the older your kids get, however, you miss them TERRIBLY when you are gone.
• You marvel at what they learn, and laugh at something they do every single day b.c they are just SO DARN CUTE!! :)

You gotta love being a parent....what joy!! :) Two kiddos under age 2...here we come! :)

9 More Tuesdays To Go....

Well the countdown is on!! :) We are less than 9 weeks away from my due date and from meeting our new baby boy. :) I am 31 weeks along and FULLY into the 3rd trimester at this point. I still cannot believe labor and delivery is right around the corner. Holy cow!! I also know that we will probably be inducing a week or two early...so that means I am probably only 8 weeks or so from meeting my little one. I figured out that I have about 9 more Tuesdays at the most before Brant gets here. When I think about it like that I get a little freaked out!! HA! :) I feel like I have so much I want to do before we welcome another member into our family. I hope I can get it all done. :)

I am still feeling pretty good as we near closer to the due date. I feel like I am more active than I was when I was this pregnant with Braden, however, I can feel myself slowing down over the past few weeks. I get tired much quicker than before! Must be my toddler wearing me out! :)

I have been having more Braxton Hicks contractions lately...and I don't really remember having those too much with Braden. So that is something new. :) Unfortunately I have been having some pretty crummy hip and back pain as I get closer to delivery as well. I think as the pelvic bones spread and the baby continues to grow, it just causes much more pressure and issues with the hip and lower back area. I see a chiropractor at least once a week to try and help me manage the pain better when it strikes. I am thankful for that! :) I really hope that going to them on a regular basis will help to lower the chances that I will have a lot of pain after this labor and delivery. I am keeping my fingers crossed! :)

Babycenter tells me that my little man is measuring a little over 16 inches and about 3.3 lbs at this point. And they also tell me that he is about to go through a major growth spurt. YAY for me! :) HA! Looking forward to getting even bigger (not)!! :) We had our week 30 appt last week and the OB said he was measuring about a week and a 1/2 ahead...based on the belly measurements. She said that was not a very big deal at all but we would do an ultrasound at the next appt in order to get a more accurate size for him. She knows that I don't want to deliver a big baby. :) Braden was small at 6 lbs 13 oz...and I am really hoping for that size again! :)

I have been craving three things like crazy lately....iced tea, Double Daves pizza rolls, and Dairy Queen blizzards!! SO RANDOM..I know. :) I cannot explain it at all, and other than the iced tea, I really have not had the other two much at all. But for some reason I cannot stop thinking about them...lol! :)

We pre-registered at the hospital this week...so it is feeling more real for sure now. Soon we will be packing our bags, installing our car seat, going to OB appts every week, and washing up Brant's coming home outfit. :) In the meantime we are just checking things off our TO DO list, and trying to teach Braden about how wonderful life is going to be when he is a big brother. :) We are trying to soak up all of the special moments with him before he has to share us with another little person.

We feel so fortunate to have had a healthy pregnancy going into our 31st week.....and so blessed to be welcoming our 2nd baby boy in just a few weeks. Thanks to everyone that has been checking in on me to see how I am doing these past few weeks. You guys are the best! :) Cannot wait for you to meet Brant Christian!! :)

12 And 13 Years.......

I was just thinking about the fact that it is already February 1st...and I just cannot believe that!! :) That led me to think about two things signifigant things that have happened in my life during this month in the past. :)

The first was that I started my career at Dell back on Feb 11, 1999. I cannot believe that I will have been working at Dell for 12 years next week. WHAT? Did I just say 12 years? That seriously blows me away b.c I never thought that when I sat in New Hire Orientation all those years ago that I would still be working there 12 years later. I thought only older folks from a different generation worked places for that many years. HA! :) I have had a lot of different jobs and numerous experiences during my career, and while things at Dell have changed tremendously over the years, I am still grateful to them for giving me a chance at a Human Resources gig pretty much straight out of college. :) I have the most fond memories of my first 6 years at Dell, how much I learned, the different opportunities that I had, and the fact that I got to live in Austin, Nashville, and Dallas during that short time. :)

The second thing that happened 13 years ago in Feb of 1998 was that I asked my sweet hubby (who I had just met in the fall of 1997) out on a date. HA! :) I did not know Chris well but I took the plunge and asked him to my sorority formal in Houston coming up that March. :) He very sweetly agreed to go, and we ended up having a super fun time together. Who knew that one day about 9 years later we would dance again like that in a tux and a formal dress at our wedding. :) I love the way that date turned out! HA! :) I also love that Chris and I had 7 years from our date to become the best of friends, and to enjoy incredible lives as single people before we started dating. I love that we had another year and a 1/2 to date before we tied the knot...and then another 2 years before we had Mr. Braden. :) I often tease Chris about the fact that if we would have realized back in 1998 that we were supposed to be together then we would have probably been raising kids in our late twenties/early thirties vs. our early thirties/mid thirties. :) We chuckle and then remind ourselves that while we might not have the same energy today that we had in our 20's....God had a perfect plan for us, and we are thrilled to be living it now. :)

So February was a signifigant month for me 12 and 13 years ago...and I think back to those years with much fondness. :)

Graeme's Baptism.....

We headed to Fort Worth this weekend for our precious nephew's baptism. We love our little Graeme and we are so thrilled to be his godparents!! :) We were more than honored to stand up there on Sunday morning and pray over him. We look forward to do anything that we can to teach him all about Jesus, and to be there for him as he grows up. We do adore that little bundle of joy....as well as our other wonderful godchildren-Lainey and Riley. :)

Here are a few pictures from Sunday morning at Graeme's baptism.... The proud parents. :)
Godparent pic :) A family pic with the grandparents and cousins too. :) Cory, Jen, and Graeme with Pastor Pete. :) He did an awesome job in the service.
Cory decided he wanted to close his eyes for this shot. :) Mimi and Popple hanging out with Mr. B....

Lainey loving on Braden...... :) Sweet sweet cousins....Come on Braden...let's hang out. :)Miss Lainey is so cute. :) Precious Graeme......We decided to dress the kids up in their "letters" and take some fun photos. :) We tried so hard to get them to all look at the camera. :) Love how alert Graeme is in this first pic at 8 weeks old. :)Sister/Brother photo opp......Let's all look at Graeme! :)

We drove back on Sunday afternoon and decided to stop in Waco for a little while. Braden needed to get out of the car and burn some of his crazy energy, and the day was absolutely gorgeous out. So we headed to Baylor to let him run around...and he loved it! :)Love this face.....
Playing with Dad.....
Love the fish face..... Some guys started playing basketball and Braden was mesmerized!! He watched without moving for quite some time!! He sure does LOVE sports! :)

We made it back to Austin on Sunday evening after a fun time with family. :) We are so blessed!!

I Am 17 Months Old!!

Braden just turned 17 months old....so fun! :) I think this stage is my favorite one so far. We have had such a good time with him recently....he keeps us on our toes but he is such a blast to be around at the same time. He is an active, active boy....and he is becoming so independent. At the same time he is so sweet and so innocent. He is just such fun to watch. :)

Here are some things that are going on at 17 months old:

1) Braden puts puzzles together well now. He knows all the different pieces and can bring them to you or say their names. And he knows where almost all of the pieces go. We have also been working with him on his colors and numbers and he is doing so well. :) He often knows what number comes next in order and will shout it out.....and he always says "YAY" when we get to ten! :) It is amazing to watch his little brain work.

2) Like I have mentioned for quite awhile now....he talks A LOT!! He has so many fun words new words since I last posted about all of his talking. It is so cool to watch all of these new words emerge. :) Love that he can say "Bugbee" now too. :)

3) In addition to the new words, he is starting to put words into phrases. A few of his new ones are:
Hallelujah!
I love Jesus (yay!!)
Gig'em! WHOOP!
No no Obama-Chris taught him this one of course. Often it has turned into "No no Mama" though...so I am not quite as stoked about that one. :)

He still says the ones that he learned awhile back too..."I Love You" and "Happy Happy Day!!"

4) He is really starting to know himself. You can ask him "What is your name?" and he will say "Braden". You can ask him how old he is and he will say "One"...and hold up 1 finger. :) And we are working on "Where do you live?" With a little help he will say "Austin".

5) He is doing great identifying animals of all kinds-farm animals, artic animals, zoo animals, etc. He is doing very well with their sounds too....a snake goes "sssss", a lamb goes "baaa", a cow goes "mooo", a horse goes "neigh", a chicken goes "cluck, cluck", a rooster goes "cooka-doodle-do", a puppy goes "woof woof", a cat goes "meow". If you ask him what a fish says he gives you the cutest fish face. :) He can also do a few other fun ones that make us laugh so hard...."what does your bootie say?" and he will answer "toot toot", and "what does an Aggie say?" and he will answer "whoop!!". :)

6) We are to the point where we can almost have a real conversation with him and that is such a huge change. He understands MUCH more than he can speak.....but his words are pretty awesome. :)

7) He is very into testing boundaries right now. He is trying to figure out what all he can get away with. He oftens tries to test the limits just to see what pushes our buttons...and then he will smile of course. :)

8) Braden is starting to understand a little more about where Brant is and what that all means. You can ask him where Brant is and he will point to my stomach. He can say his name as well. And then sometimes I will find him just standing in Brant's room looking around...trying to figure it all out. I guess he must be thinking "why is there another crib in here?", and "why is MY glider in here?" :)

9) Braden's molars are coming in so he is starting to look like he has a lot more teeth. :) We are still keeping up the brushing twice per day. :)

10) He still loves books but you can really read them now. He is over just turning the pages all the time. He wants to curl up in your lap and actually listen to most of the books so that is fun. He is also starting to get more into paper books vs just the cardboard baby ones. :)

Couple of pics at 17 months. :)
Serious face.... Happy face.....I LOVE laughing with Daddy!!! He is so funny! :)

Baby Luke Is Here!!!

It was an exciting day on Wednesday, Jan 26th. :) My best friend of 22 years had her first baby that day...and I was THRILLED for her and her hubby Doug. :) It was a wonderful day in that I got to meet that sweet bundle of joy that we have been talking about since May. :) What a huge blessing he received by being welcomed into such a sweet family that will just love him to pieces. :)

I am so excited for Jenn and Doug, and for this miracle that they welcomed that day. I was so glad to be able to be there to share in their joy right after he was born. :) I am also more than stoked that baby Luke and baby Brant will be the best of friends...as they will only be about 8 weeks apart. I could not be more excited to raise our boys together....something that we have talked about for ages. :)

Doug, Jenn, and Luke-The Bugbees love the three of you, and we cannot wait to watch this little man grow up, and be there for all of his special moments. :) Welcome to the world Luke Steven Meyer!! :)

First moments with Dad........



Amy came to hang out at the hospital too...and to meet this sweet little bundle of joy. :) Awwww...I love you Luke!! :) Sweet Dad and son time........
Grandpa Tom and Dad with Luke.... :)
Grandma Pat and Dad with Luke.. :)

Women's Retreat Adventure

This past weekend I headed out to Camp Buckner in the Texas Hill Country for an awesome weekend of refreshment and renewal!! I went to the Women's Retreat that my church hosted from Friday-Sunday, and it was such an eye opening experience. :) I REALLY enjoyed myself and all that I learned. It was fun to have a relaxing time with girlfriends and just be real about life. The speaker really touched me, and I enjoyed the good mix of free time and planned activities. :) I got to take a really nice 2 hour nap on Saturday which was one of the highlights of the day. And I did not have to sleep with a baby monitor for two whole nights!! HA!! :) I even got to stay in a nice little chatueau with my girlfriends...so I did not have to rough it in a cabin with 20+ women. :) That was a nice perk for a 30 week preggo woman! LOL! :) Overall it was a really good experience and I would love to go back.

It helped that I have an incredible hubby that was willing to keep Braden all weekend. They had a fun time being boys and going to the gym, Children's Museum, getting B a haircut, etc. :) He even took him to church on his own...what a stud! :) Thank you so much Chris! I really appreciate you letting me go and get some much needed time away. :) You are the best!

Go Camp Buckner! :)
Our little chateau.. :)
And from the front. :)And some of my favorite rocking chairs on the property. :)I realized at the end that I did not even take any pics with my friends! There was so much good stuff going on that I forgot my camera during the days....and that takes a lot! :) Maybe I will remember it next time. :)