11 month pics : finally : we took the pics on Saturday but it's been a bit crazy around here. turns out D's sickness was some 24 hour bug but the diarrhea that is because of new teeth! yeah! the picture after the 11 month collage is a little something for grandpa Rick....."so big" Dealey's new favorite thing to do and to have you do with him. my next post : halloween in may : you're intrigued already i know... but you'll have to wait.

: SO BIG :

11 months old : and we're sick. Yup this morning and day has been interesting. D didn't want to get up this morning he ended up sleeping until 10:30 and the only reason he got up is because I got him up. I dressed him and we headed to Suz's for a trip to IKEA. Well, we get there and go straight to the bistro to get our food, get the kids settled and then it begins. I mean Dealey seemed off to me but he didn't have a fever just seemed really mellow and lethargic for him. But right as we sat down he began to throw up and I have never seen that much liquid come out of him, his clothes were drenched, seriously drenched....so Suz ran a grabbed napkins and we started cleaning and cleaning trying to get it all up, then we stripped D down to his diaper and he seemed to be better. Then I decided he had to be cold and yes, what you're thinking is right. I had no extra clothes so my kid was in the middle of the IKEA bistro in nothing but his diaper. Luckily Suz had an extra little hoodie for Mag's so we but it on D it was brown which is neutral with this nice little ruffled edge it was fabulous. We left shortly after that and headed home. Now D is sleeping which is all he's done today and after a chat with the nurse at his dr.'s office he's on pedialite through today and as long as he keeps it down then tomorrow morning we can try some cheerios and a half strength formula bottle. So needless to say I haven't gotten a bumbo pic yet today but maybe when Matt gets home and can help me.

Other new developments. D is one crazy chatter box and tells us the most fantastic stories all the time. He moves around like a mad man and will take a few steps now only holding one hand instead of two (he still prefers two, but he'll indulge us every once in a while). The big one...he is FEARLESS trying to climb anything and everything. He's eating everything well, he's had his first brisket, spaghetti & a chick-fil-a nugget this month! He's a very happy growing boy. He won't go in for a check up until he's 12 months but we guess he's grown about 2 inches in the last two months and is holding steady at about 20-21lbs.

I can't believe he'll be 1 in just a month! It's very exciting for sure we are loving this stage but are looking forward to what's to come. Watch for his pics later today or tomorrow.

: new find : you have to check out this great site ThreePotatoFour really fun and unique home decor, paper goods, kid stuff, etc. love it!

{ big thank you } to my Matty for making my first mother's day a wonderful one. Of course I wished and hoped for something sweet but now I have a lot to live up to for father's day although last year I gave him a son so not sure how top that! Matt gave me the sweetest card and it was filled with some of the most beautiful words but one word that stuck out most to me was the word "proud" he's so proud of me and I wish could adequately express to him how much it means to me to hear that from him.

Enclosed in the card was the first of 3 wonderful gifts. A book mark which I desperately needed just a few weeks ago he was making fun of me using the wrapper from a cough drop to mark my place in this book I'm reading { Eat, Pray, Love }. But what makes the book mark special is that it has part of the quote that's on my blog page "Believe in the beauty of your dreams." so sweet. My second gift was equally sweet an electric ice cream maker, which I know we will have fun with this summer! My third gift is a necklace that my good friend Jana has been commissioned to make for me. Matt had her make a necklace for me a few years ago for our anniversary with a saphire charm and I wear it almost every day. I don't have the necklace yet but I do know that it is Dealey inspired and he designed it with Jana with the thought that he wanted a cool/modern way for me to have my Dealey with me when I'm working or away from him. I'll definitely post a picture when I get it!

Matt took a picture of me singing a two weeks ago on stage and I just remembered I said I'd post a picture when I got one. I got to sing yesterday as well and each week it becomes more and more fun. love it! Hope all the mom's had a wonderful Mother's Day as well, don't forget to thank your husbands for remembering to make the day special!

I missed my Wordless Wednesday yesterday, but I swear I have a good reason. For those of you who don't know I started a new job on Monday. I used to be on staff full time at our church, Firewheel and last Friday Jeff, the pastor, called me in for what I thought was a meeting to chat about some freelance work. However he had a different plan in mind and he offered me my job back. Needless to say I was very humbled by the idea that I would even be asked back. Not that I left on bad terms or anything but you don't often hear of people being offered jobs back at prior places of employment no matter how they left. So with little thought I said yes. I'm still working out the details of what we're going to do with Dealey (thankfully my parents are here right now and have gracious stepped in to take care of my little man) but I am so far enjoying having adult and quite time again. So you see, it's been a very busy week and said events caused me to miss my Wordless Wednesday photo...so here it is, Wordless Wednesday on Thursday.


Dealey was telling and showing us how much he loves his milk. Boy can he pack the milk away I think he'd drink it all day if we would give it to him. We've started the transition from formula to milk and D loves it! He's definitely a boy after his daddy's heart matt's a milk lover in some way I don't even pretend to understand.

Last weekend we had a great day celebrating Dealey's friend Grayson's bday. They had it at a bounce house in McKinney. We'll definitely have to remember this for D's 2nd birthday! D had so much fun crawling around and up and down and around this first picture is particularly funny because D's got a funny look on his face but also if you look in the background you can see Maggie wiping out on this foam rocking duck...hilarious!

Dealey had a few first too. He wore a birthday hat for the first time, sat in a big kid seat with out a safety belt of any sort and had his first piece of pizza. He devoured it and would have eaten more if we had given it to him. We didn't let him have a cupcake because we're saving that first for his birthday. However Mag's went in full face to hers and these pictures are too great not to share!

OMG! I love singing. I wanted to update about my previous post. I have sang the last two Sundays at church. The first time was scary but really great. However, today was awesome. My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner. I'll get Matty to take a picture some Sunday so I can post it. I feel it's a huge step for me in many ways because there are so many things I'm scared to do because of failing at them and singing was on that list. But I definitely have a renewed sense of hope when I think about my "things I'm too scared to do but have to do someday" list.

Have you put yourself out there lately? You just might surprise yourself!

Today was an AMAZING day! We welcomed Ethan Douglas Brown into this crazy world. Thea had an awesome labor. Well, as awesome as it can be. Yesterday at her dr. appt. she was at a 3 but feeling good. This morning about 4 am she started having contractions. They went to the hospital this morning about 10ish and after admission they checked her out and she was a 7! They got her in fast and hooked up. She had Ethan after only 30 mins of pushing at 2:02. Welcome Ethan, we are so excited you're here. I know your mom and dad are too. Now the fun begins! You came out throwing peace signs, we knew you were going to be a cool kid! Here's some sweet pics of Ethan of course there will be more in the days, weeks, months and years to come!

where's dealey?

oh, there he is!

FEELING PUNCHY : Craftiness has seemed to ooze out of my mind lately I recently did another little project that actually turned out pretty cool. It was really easy. I got a butterfly punch and attacked scraps of paper and old crate & barrel magazines for cool textures and colors. Then using raised sticks I put them on this frame folding the edges up to give them some dimension. Friends keep asking where the idea came from and I'm not sure I know I saw it somewhere, wish it was my idea but it wasn't. I have a few other "punch" projects in the works and in my mind and will share when I see how they turn out!

10 MONTHS & all smiles : Dealey turned 10 months today and I am so excited we are approaching that beautiful 1 year mark! I think it's as much a celebration for the parents than anything. I mean Dealey doesn't care at least not yet, he might care when we set that big chocolate cup cake in front of him! We are planning the party and invites will be going out in a few weeks!

So if you saw last month you know D just wasn't too happy on his 9 month bday. He's much happier this month although we are pretty sure this week has been full of a growth spurt as if he needed that and teething (always a fun thing) He's talking more and more and has a new friend. We named him Roary after a friends toy we just thought it was such a cute name. Don't worry even though Hank (the monkey) has been quite lately he's been out and about with the D man he's just having a self image complex or something right now and won't let us photograph him....monkeys, can't live with them? can't live without them?

Anyways, how cute is D his hair is getting so curly in the back you can see it wisping out on the sides. He's totally on the move and will walk pushing stuff now too fun, we got some great video of him laughing so I'll post that in a few days!

After I got done taking his picture he was like "I'm out of here this thing can't hold me any longer. I WILL NOT be a slave to the bumbo!" Okay so he wasn't that forceful about it but he was very intent on getting out and it took only a matter of seconds and he was off with Roary in tow.....

But then he remembered it was 4:00 and we drop all things for Happy Hour! So my big boy set up on the couch by me and enjoyed his drink....wish it was my happy hour....oh well, maybe tomorrow....

more blocks! I finished some more blocks last week for our nephew Ethan that's due any day. I meant to take a picture of them hanging in the nursery too, but I'll have to do that later because yes, I forgot. Oh well, they turned out great, even better than the first ones! I'll shortly have a new set started for Dealey's room and then I have 3 request for blocks from a few of Matt's co-workers and his mom so I'll be doing blocks for the foreseeable future! Too fun!

Old Friends : New Memories

I have always felt very fortunate that I have stayed in contact with so many of my childhood friends. Relationships just don't usually last that long it seems but it's obvious we all really cared about each other and that's why we make efforts through all the craziness of life to get together and create new memories together now as wives, mom's & career woman! I can't wait to think about this in 20 years and see that my great friends in my life now are still some of my closest friends.

This picture is from a few weekends ago, some of the girls from my club league. Some of us started playing together when we were 10 and everyone had joined by the time we were 13. This isn't the whole team, but it's almost half and I think that's an amazing thing!

Here's to old friends, new friends, life long friends.......................

I had to blog about this very crazy moment in my life. Today after a long time of wanting to, I auditioned to sing on stage at our church. Our church is non-traditional and we have a full band for worship, so uh, yeah I'm going to be a total rock star! As a teenager I was full of confidence and had no problem getting on stage and singing in front of people but as an adult self consciousness rules my world.

But I did it! I auditioned and he (jeff) loved it and I'll be singing with the band in 2 weeks! I'm terrified and excited all in one breath, but the best part about it is that I'll get the chance to sing with my friend Andi before she moves to Cali. She is my biggest cheerleader when it came to singing. So Thanks Andi, for helping me believe I could do it...

I love this picture, Dealey's big blue eyes, he's clapping happy hands and most of all my white mixing bowl on his head! I've lost almost all my mixing bowls and most of my tupper ware to play time....oh well, I love the "baby legs" too these are my favorite the skulls crack me up, Matty says they're "gay legs" but whatever they're just darn cute and hello functional with all the concrete floors we have they protect and keep him warm on the hard cold floor....

: feeling crafty : Suz mentioned on her blog us girls have been working on a project we got inspired to do from a website called Etsy and an artist called SuZanna Anna. I finally got my blocks hung today and wanted to share a picture! I love them and they add such personality to the room.

I started some today for my (coming soon!) nephew Ethan's room and I can't wait to see how they turn out! Like Suz said if you haven't checked out Etsy you have to do it, you'll be inspired to do things you never thought you wanted to do! So everbody, go get crafty!

NINEmonth : UPdate

We went to the doc this morning for D's 9 mo check up and as expected his a very healthy little boy! He weighed in at 20lbs even, although I still maintain their scale must be off by at least a few lbs! His length was 29 1/2". He's 85th % on height and 40th % on weight our little long lean boy is getting so big! His bottom two teeth are still coming in as I mentioned and the doctor confirmed my thought that his top teeth were about to make an appearance (that should be fun)! Every day is filled with ups and downs by both Dealey and me but seriously Dealey just stands up and sits down all day long it's exhausting just to watch. Oh we must not forget the head he's in the 85th % on head too not the biggest in our circle of friends but I still think it's so funny how big kids heads are it's amazing they can walk or hold them selves up with such massive amounts of bone, tissue and whatever else is in our brains sitting on their shoulders.

She said we're good to eat almost anything which is fun I can stop buy so much baby food and introduce Dealey to wide world of table foods! The big day will come in a few months when I buy the last insanely expensive container of formula that will be a victory in my mind! It's funny and I'm not sure I've ever mentioned it before but the one thing and I mean ONE thing that is cheaper in NY is formula because it's all made up there and so shipping/distribution is so much less it's seriously like $10 cheaper and when you buy 4 cans a month that's a lot of money...oh well what are you going do...I'll tell you, nothing.