One

Brady turned one about two weeks ago. I cannot believe that my little peanut is one! We had a Willy Wonka themed party for him with all of our relatives. It was a great time. Shockingly Brady wasn't so sure about the cake smash. I mean the kid loves food, but had no idea what to do when we stuck a whole cake in front of him!



Brady is now pretty much walking wherever he wants to go. He's a little wobbly, but is getting better at catching his balance. I really love this stage. He's so much fun. He talks all the time and is starting to repeat what we say. He says hi, mommy, daddy, doggy, fish. Brad is positive that he is now saying hockey. I'm not so sure. I think he's just wishful thinking that the Blackhawks will win!

The sleeping issue is also getting better. This could coincide with the fact that he has recently started daycare. Grandma isn't able to watch him anymore. We scrambled to find a place that we both felt comfortable with. The last place that we visited was the one. It's been a struggle. This is an extremely hard age to start somewhere new, because they understand what's going on. He apparently cries every time someone comes in or out of the door, but it will get better. He will make friends and will probably eventually be happy when I leave!

I stopped nursing and we stopped the bottle right around his first birthday also. We were down to nursing only one time a day and I decided it was time. Brady really had no problem with it. I was definitely more sad about it than he was. He was doing well with the sippy so we figured we would just try to go a day with no bottle and he did great. We feel lucky about that. I was afraid bottle-weaning was going to be a long process. We're all doing great. I've kind of had having another one in the back of my mind, but I think that's still a ways away. We're enjoying Brady and I'm enjoying being not pregnant after having been for almost two years straight.

I also can't believe it's been two years since we've lost Claire. We had a special butterfly cake made for her since I was in labor with Brady last year on her first birthday. We felt awful that we weren't at least able to go to the cemetery on her first birthday, but she and her little brother had other plans. Love you Claire bear.

5 Months

I'm late, but he's technically still 5 months for another week. Two big things happened this month! Brady started eating solid foods and he's sitting on his own! He still resembles a feeble wobble at times, but he's doing great. For food, he's just had carrots and bananas so far. We're pretty sure he liked the carrots better,but we'll keep trying the bananas and other new things. He gets so excited when we put him in the high chair. It's crazy how much he looks like a big boy! He's very smart and wants to see and feel everything. We are putting up the Christmas tree this weekend and can't wait for him to see it. I also think we're going to see Santa tomorrow! Brady will most likely just try to put Santa's beard in his mouth, but it will still be fun to watch. We love him so much, even when he's screaming at the top of his lungs because he's not quite ready for bed! I had a moment today when I thought I might want to get pregnant again soon and then I realized how freaking crazy that is and how much I could not handle being pregnant right now. Here's a picture of B discovering The Christmas lights. This was short lived because he really just wanted to put them in his mouth.

10 Months

No one probably reads this anymore since I'm such a slacker, but I really need to update even if it's only for me to remember milestones, etc. Brady turned 10 months today. Seriously!? I can't even believe it. It makes me sad, but he's so much fun right now. Here's what's been going on the last couple months. 8 Months Brady was battling an ear infection for the longest time. After many trips to the pediatrician and about five different antibiotics, we were referred to an ENT in February who said he is finally clear, but if he gets another ear infection he will be getting tubes. The antibiotics didn't seem to work and it's a genetic thing. Brad had tubes when he was little. He also started loving books. Brady showed no interest at all in books before. We were afraid we were doing a terrible job of reading to him or something, but all of a sudden it just clicked and books are one of his favorite toys. He turns the pages and recognizes certain books/pictures. We have a nighttime routine where we read a book or two before he goes to sleep. 9 Months At his 9-month check-up, Brady weighed 20 lbs. 12 oz. and was 29 inches tall. He's in the 50th percentile for weight, around the 70th percentile for height and like 110th percentile for head circumferance. (Not really that much, but the kid has a big head!) He also has eight teeth. The doctor said most 9-month olds come in with only their two bottom teeth. I'll chalk that up as one of the reasons he doesn't sleep well at night. Ever since his ear infections, his sleeping has gone down hill. We're working on it and sticking to a nighttime routine, so that has helped a little bit. Brady started saying "dada" towards the end of 8 months, beginning of 9 months. He started saying "mama" towards the end of 9 months. He's getting in the crawling position, but not going anywhere. He also loves to hold on to our hands and walk around the house with him or push his cart around while we hold him. Our dog is warming up to him, which is a huge step for her. Brady knows now that if he picks up her toys and holds them out to her, she will come and get them. He loves her so much. I can't wait for the day when Callie is as comfortable with Brady as she is us. We took Brady to a water park for the first time. The water in the normal pool was way too cold, even for us, so we hung out in the kiddie pool the whole time. He had a great time just splashing around and people watching. We can't wait for his swimming lessons to start in a couple weeks. 10 Months Brady just turned 10 months today, but over the weekend he starting crawling! He also pulled himself up on the coffee table and bath tub. We're in trouble now!! He'll be walking before we know it. I'm not ready. Breastfeeding I am still nursing Brady on the weekends and in the morning and at night during the week. He gets two bottles of breastmilk while I am at work. We both enjoy it, and I figure I've been dealing with pumping for this long, I can make it another couple months until he's a year old. I pretty much love breastfeeding and get a little emotional when I think about not doing it anymore. I am pretty sure that as soon as he is one and can have milk, I will be done. I'm ready to get my body back. We'll see how it goes. I may continue nursing in the morning and at night if Brady wants to. I kind of want to start trying again for another baby in the not too distant future, but that's only if I can get Brad on board with having two more kids. If we decide to only have one more, we will probably wait until Brady is at least two.