The Brown Family - Me and My Boys!

Brown Designs

2011-06-28T21:20:00.004-05:00

Dave and I have decided to start a new adventure...Brown Designs. We custom design wood lettering, names, and different designs. We love being challenged with new things to make out of wood. Our "business" is doing quite well and we are staying VERY BUSY right now. Seeing as how we are both working full time and creating our master pieces every night...we are pretty exhausted but we are LOVING it!

Here are some examples of what we are doing:

If you would like for us to create something for you, please let me know!

Alexander Sutton - 2 months

2011-06-28T20:34:00.006-05:00

My sweet boy is now 2 months old. You are the smiliest baby in the world. You smile at everything and your entire face lights up. You have brought so much joy to our family and we love you so very much.

- You eat 4 to 5 ounces at a time about 5 to 6 times a day. You average around 30 ounces a day.
- We have taken the 1 tbsp of cereal back out of your formula. You haven't missed it at all.
- You sleep from 11:00 pm until 5:00 am.
- You still sleep a good bit during the day, but you are starting to have some great awake time.
- You love to be sung to. Sometimes you will "hum" along with us.

- You don't love tummy time, but you tolerate it for about 10 minutes at a time.

- You still LOVE your swing.

Stats:

You weigh in at 13 lbs. 12 ounces (75th percentile)

You are 23 1/4" inches tall (50th percentile)

Your head is 16 1/2 inches around (99th percentile)...yep, you have the same big head as your brother. :-)

We are soooo excited that you are part of our family, and we can't imagine life without you. You are Mommy's sweet little Boo Boo!

We love you,

Mommy, Daddy, and big brother Drew

30 Years Ago...

2011-05-22T17:45:00.003-05:00

On May 17th, 1981 I came into this world. WOW...thirty years went by really fast! I think I have decided to stay 29 for another year so we will call this year the second anniversary of my 29th birthday. ;-) I do love any excuse to have a party so I had 2 this year. Ha! That's right I am that special!!!

My actual birthday fell on a Tuesday and my precious co-workers threw me an "old lady" party. They took me out to lunch and when I got back, my office was decorated in black streamers, balloons, and old people signs. It was cute.

When I got home to my in-law's house (we are staying there for a few weeks because Dave's mom is keeping Alex while I'm at work) they had made me a steak dinner and Dave got me my favorite cake from Edgar's (white cake with buttercream icing). I went to bed early that night...Happy Birthday to me!!!

Friday night we went out to eat at Pancho's Mexican Grill in Moody. My dad, Tammy, and many of our best friends were there to celebrate. My mom stayed at home with Alex since we were going to be eating outside...thank goodness she did the bugs were pretty bad. I got a beautiful necklace and frame and lots of sweet cards. We had a great time, thanks to all who were able to join us!

Saturday night we went to Mellow Mushroom and Starz on Hwy 280 with the rest of our best friends that couldn't make it on Friday. We had a blast! I got money, suckers, sweet cards and a few birthday drinks from everyone. Thank you for everyone who came to celebrate my birthday with me. You are all the best friends a girl could ask for and I am truly blessed to have you all in my life. I don't know what I would do without all of you. Love you all!!!

Alex's Christening

2011-05-22T17:25:00.005-05:00

On May 15, 2011 we had Alexander Sutton dedicated to the Lord. The beautiful service was held at First United Methodist Church of Rainbow City (where Dave and I were married and Drew was Christened). Most of our family was able to make it, we missed those that weren't able to be there. Afterwards we went to lunch at The Fish Market for a delicious lunch and yummy cake. It was a beautiful (and unseasonably chilly) day and Drew asked after it was all over if Pastor Ricky had washed away all of Alex's baby sins. I love the innocence of a child.

Mother's Day

2011-05-22T17:09:00.003-05:00

I had an amazing Mother's Day this year. I woke up to a pancake breakfast (yummy) and my sweet Drewbie made me a pillow with his face on it and he wrote on the back. I got a picture with my Iphone and Dave is supposed to show me how to put those on the computer and when he does I will post pictures of my precious pillow. I also received several home made cards and pictures from my precious first born. Of course I got a sweet card from baby Alex and Dave. We went to church in Gadsden. It was a great service and all the Mother's got a rose.

After church we went to Ollie's in Gadsden to celebrate Mother's Day with the family. We did karaoke and had a delicious steak lunch. Here are a few pictures from the day.

It was an amazing day and I got to celebrate with my mother and my boys. It doesn't get any better than that!

April Fury - Tornado

2011-05-07T00:38:00.003-05:00

On Wednesday, April 27, 2011 a series of tornado's ripped through Alabama destroying homes, business and taking many lives. We were faced with one of these tornado's up close and personal and we are so blessed that we only received minor damage. I truly believe God's hand and guardian angels were surrounding us and our home that dreadful day.

It began at 5:55 am that morning. I had debated the day before on sending Drew to school or not Wednesday because I knew we were in for some severe weather...I just didn't know how severe until the next morning. Dave woke me up to tell me it was already thundering, lightning and raining really hard so he said he was going to head to work and leave Drew here with me. I don't know why, but I sat straight up and said, "have you checked the weather?" Of course he had not so I flipped on the TV while Dave went to make Alex a bottle. James Spann pops up and I knew it was serious, I am looking at all the red tornado warnings across the state when all of a sudden he says, "If you are in the Leeds, Moody or Trussville area be in a safe place now. A tornado is on the ground." WHAT?!? I jump up and Dave is on the couch feeding Alex I yell at him to get in the bathroom, about that time the power goes out. I grab Drew out of his bed and we all pile up in the front bathroom. Drew is still asleep at this point. While Dave is feeding Alex, I am on the phone with my friend Meagan to warn her. All of a sudden the sound of glass shattering and a loud whistling sound (like a freight train...ha) is all we hear. Dave yells, shut the bathroom door now. I shut the door, grab Drew and lean against the wall. The walls were shaking and we hear a loud BOOM! It seemed to last forever, but it was maybe 20 - 30 seconds and it was all over. After a few minutes we decided to go check out the house to see if we still had one. Praise the Lord, we suffered a few minor damages. Our storm door blew out, Drew's brand new wooden play set that he got for his birthday 2 weeks before had fallen over and broken, our tree was laying in the front yard and there were shingles from the roof everywhere.

I thank God everyday for keeping us safe that day. There were many that were not so lucky. We were without power until that Sunday May 1st. We were fortunate enough to have power and a "safe room" to go into that evening at Dave's parents house when another round of F4 and F5 tornados destroyed Tuscaloosa, Cullman, Fultondale, Pleasant Grove, Shoal Creek, Pratt City and many other areas I know I am forgetting about. We stayed there with them along with our nieces Mary Kate and Caroline. Dave's sister and her husband were safe in Orlando. Here are a few pictures from our house after the tornado.

God bless all those who are still missing, picking up the rubble that was once their home and for those who lost their lives.

Preschool Graduation

2011-05-07T00:23:00.004-05:00

It's official, Drew is growing up WAY TO FAST! My first born just had his preschool graduation and is now registered to start Kindergarten this fall. Where has the time gone? I blinked and my sweet baby boy is now five and about to start big school. I cry every time I think about it...a moment to wipe the tears. Ok, back to the subject. Drew's preschool graduation was on Sunday, May 1st at Eastside Baptist Daycare. They had an awesome teacher this year Mrs. Alicia who has done such an amazing job with our son. He has learned more in the past year than I thought possible for someone his age.

The program was awesome, all of the kids did great! They sang a bunch of songs including The Climb and I Can Only Imagine (complete with sign language). I was moved to tears. Mrs. Pat and Mrs. Alicia then presented them each with their very own graduation certificate. Thank you Eastside Baptist for being so amazing to Drew and for teaching him about God and getting him prepared for his first year of school, we are forever grateful. We are lucky to have such a wonderful place that our children can go to while we have to work. You will be losing Drew, but don't worry Alex is heading your way!!!

Drew will miss all of his friends and teachers very much, but he is very much looking forward to Kindergarten. I just hope I am too.

Easter 2011

2011-05-07T00:02:00.006-05:00

We had a wonderful Easter this year, it was Drew's fourth Easter and Alex's first. We started the day early. The boys got up to see what the Easter bunny had left in their baskets!

We then got ready and headed to Gadsden for church. It was a great service. Drew loves the story of Easter and how Jesus came back to life. It is really sweet to hear him tell the story. After church we went to Mee-Maw and Granddaddy's to eat lunch and hang out with the fam!

We then headed to Nana and Pa-Paw's to visit with more family.

HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY DREW!!!

2011-05-06T23:28:00.005-05:00

The month of April turned out to be Drew's Birthday Extravaganza!!! My special birthday boy ended up with 4...yes I said four birthday celebrations. That's okay because he is amazing and deserved every one of them! We started out celebrating at Nana and Granddaddy's with Nam-Maw and Mary Kate. The families April Birthday party was so much fun!

Drew wanted to have his birthday party at A Party Place in Trussville, and I am so glad we did. We had his party on April 16th the Saturday before his actual birthday. The place was awesome and everyone had a great time! It was a dress as your favorite Super Hero or Princess party. Drew is very much into Spiderman right now so Spiderman theme he got.

Thank you Aunt Nancy and Toni Marie for making an amazing (not to mention delicious) cake and cupcakes!

Spiderman himself!

Blowing out the candle...

Opening all of his presents, thank you everyone!!!

Baby Alex wishing his bubba a Happy Birthday!

Some friends from school came to Drew's party!

All in all it was a great time, thank you to everyone who got to make it!

Drew's actual birthday April 19th was on a Tuesday this year, so Mrs. Alicia let me bring cake to the class to celebrate. The entire class sang to Drew and we took pictures. We left school early and I took Drew to Target to get presents with his gift cards he received at his birthday party and we then headed home.

That evening we went to Drew's favorite restaurant "Old McDonald's" to eat with his best friend in the world Carter along with her parents Brent and Meagan (who just so happen to be some of our best friends). We had a great time until...

The Spiderman balloon that The Waldreps got him floated away. :-( Not to worry, we stopped on the way home and got another one!

Overall, I would say Drew had an awesome 5th Birthday! Happy birthday my sweet boy, we love you so very much and couldn't imagine our family without you. You are such an entertainer and you love to make us laugh. You are quite a funny dude and you are my precious Drewbie!

We love you so big,

Mommy, Daddy, and baby Alex

One Month Old

2011-05-06T22:53:00.006-05:00

Happy One Month Alexander Sutton!

At your five week appointment your stats were:

Your weight : 10 lbs. 10 oz - 50th percentile

Your height: 21.25 inches - 25th percentile

Your head circumference: 15.5 inches - 50th percentile

You are having a lot of issues adjusting to your formula. We have switched from regular Similac to Similac sensitve and finally you are on Soy. You are adjusting well to the soy formula. You still have quite a bit of gas, but you can tell a huge difference. You have become a little piggy now that your tummy is better. You are drinking six to seven 4-5 ounce bottles a day. At 7 weeks we started putting a TBSP of cereal in your 10:00pm bottle because you are soooo hungry. You go down for the night around 10:00 and sleep until 3-4:00 am. After that you eat every 3 to 4 hours. When you get hungry, you go from sleeping to screaming in about 2 seconds...no warning. You stop crying immediately after we put your bib on, it is so funny.

Big brother Drew loves to give you kisses.

You like tummy time for about 5 minutes, then you are over it.

Your belly button finally came off around 6 weeks. You got your first "big boy" bath. You love bath time. The water is very soothing to you. You LOVE to have your hair washed.

You have to have your paci and blanket to sleep. You are very particular how your blanket is held. If it is not just right, you will fidget and fuss. You have a bit of a temper...not sure where you get that from. ;-)

You have acquired a few nicknames: Mon (Monchichi - because you came out with the same hair line as a Monchichi monkey), Fatty and Buddah (because you have the sweetest chunkiest legs and belly) and Auntie Roo calls you Paulie D (from Jersey Shore) and Meatball (because you are Italian). You are such a sweet baby and we love you so very much. You are such an amazing blessing and addition to our family.

Love you big,

Mommy, Daddy and big brother Drew

Newborn Photo Shoot

2011-04-11T01:15:00.005-05:00

My friend Shannon (Studio 19), who is an amazing photographer came to the house on Thursday, March 24th for a Newborn session with Alex. She captured some amazing pictures. After and hour and a half Alex was over it...of course not before he could pee all over her backdrop first. :-) Bless Shannon she has done two photo shoots for our family and I would recommend her to anyone. She is awesome with kids. Here are some of my favorite pictures, I would love to post them all but there are 50.

Happy Birthday Alexander Sutton Brown - March 16, 2011

2011-03-27T14:21:00.007-05:00

The story of Alexander's Birth: Dave, Mom and I went to the hospital on Tuesday, March 15th at 9:45 pm due to contractions. They checked me twice and my cervix had not changed. They said they were going to wait one more hour and check me again, if I had not dilated they would send me home. At that point we told Dave to go home and get some rest. He left and one hour later, my cervix had changed. :-) Go figure! We told him to get some rest and come back in the morning. They admitted me, started my IV and called for the epidural. I had my epidural at 3:15 am. As soon as I got the epidural my blood pressure bottomed out, that was not fun.

Big Mama!

I rested for about an hour, and the doctor came in at 6:00 am. I had dilated to 4 1/2, so she broke my water and started pitocin. I then started feeling the contractions again so they called for a bolus on my epidural. Once again, my blood pressure bottomed out and I then decided that ride or die no more epidural bolus' for me. I would have to stick it out. Fortunately, I could only feel the tightening of the contractions but no pain. Whew! Dave arrived for the big event and all of a sudden I was feeling the urge to push, the nurse checked me again and I was dilated 9 1/2. She quickly started setting up the room. The need to push started getting stronger and stronger and before I knew it, she was calling out for the doctor. I pushed 4 times and she told me to stop. The doctor got there and I pushed three times for him and at 9:46 am out came my precious Alexander Sutton Brown. It was love at first sight. He has the most amazingly long eyelashes and headful of black hair. He is gorgeous!

Dr. McKee delivered Alex, he was awesome!

I will have to say that my labor and delivery was much easier with Alex than with Drew. Alex weighed in at 7 pounds and 1 ounce and measured 20 inches long. He was much smaller than anticipated. They had told me two weeks before that Alex already weighed 7 pounds and 5 ounces so we were thinking he was going to be at least 8 to 8 1/2 pounds. Sweet Alex then got his first bath by my labor and delivery nurse Susan Henry (love her).

He loved having his hair washed...he still does! :-)

Shortly afterwards, big brother Drew came to see baby Alex for the first time.

He loves him, but doesn't find him very interesting. Drew seemed more concerned for his mama and how she was doing. Bless my sweet boy, I love my Drew-B so big!

Next up was Baby Alex's first feeding. His GG did the honors!

Our nurse Susan brought me my water pitcher and had a little message on it. :-)

Daddy is in love!

Drew and Alex sporting their new big brother/little brother shirts that Mrs. Katie made them.

Our first picture as a family of four!

We are so blessed to have another happy, healthy baby boy! We are so happy and we love both of our boys beyond measure. We have had many visitors, and they are still coming. Thank you all for being a part of our boy's lives. Love you all!

Here is Baby Alex at home, happy as can be!

Disney World - Day 3

2011-02-17T19:00:00.007-06:00

On the last day of our trip we went to Hollywood Studios Park. This by far was Drew's absolute favorite park. It had every Super Hero that he loved there!

We had lunch with Handy Manny...Drew doesn't look very excited in this picture, but he really was.

After lunch and another parade, we headed over to meet some more characters. Drew was hesitant about meeting Lotso (since he was the bad guy in Toy Story 3), but he quickly realized
that only the sweet characters lived at Disney World. :)

Of course we had to meet The Incredibles!!! I do believe Mrs. Incredible had a crush on my husband. ;)

After that we went to the Toy Story section of the park and while waiting to meet Buzz and Woody there were plenty of photo ops so we took advantage.

After meeting all the Characters we headed to the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids exhibit. He LOVED playing in the giant back yard. We spent a bit of time here.

Drew thought the big magic hat was so cool!

When asked, Drew will tell you this was his favorite part of Disney World. Meeting Lightning McQueen and Mater. He was in HEAVEN!

We then caught the Indiana Jones Stunt show. It was pretty cool, but long. Drew was over it by the end, but I think Daddy enjoyed it!

We headed back to wait in the 2 hour long line for the Toy Story Mania ride.

Drew riding the Toy Story Mania Ride...

He loved it!!!

Finally after a long day we grabbed a souvenier and headed back to the hotel.

The next day we left, we were sad to leave but had enough fun to last for a while. A big thanks again to Nana and Granddaddy for making the Disney trip possible. We all had a BLAST! The memories we made at Disney World will last a lifetime for Dave and I and hopefully Drew (not sure if he will remember everything or not). We did take plenty of pictures and he looks at them often. Now Drew says when baby Alex gets here we can take him to Disney World. It might be a little while, but eventually we will take both boys back to Disney. Check back in about 5 years. :)

Disney World - Day 2

2011-02-17T18:16:00.007-06:00

So now that I am on bed rest I finally have time to update my blog!!! I am going to start where I left off and over the next week or two hopefully I can catch up. :)

Day 2 at Disney started early as Dave, Drew and I headed to Animal Kingdom. Nana needed some rest so she slept in while the three of us took off. We took the bus and Drew started meeting characters before we could get in the actual park.

Drew wasn't sure exactly who this was at first, but after reminding him that it was Timone from the Lion King he warmed up quickly. After we got in, we ate lunch and headed to Kilimanjaro Safari. I couldn't ride because I am pregnant, but Dave said Drew had a blast...here are pics from Dave's phone.

After that we caught the Lion King show. Drew was scared at first because it was dark and loud, but he ended up loving it by the time it was over.

After the show we got an ice cream, met some more characters and just goofed off. Drew got to explore what was in the log. It was pretty cute.

We then headed back to the hotel to rest for a minute and get Nana. We headed to Epcot that evening to the check out the food festival. We started out at the character spot and met everyone and got their autographs (again). Then Drew wanted to see the Finding Nemo exhibit. So we rode the Nemo ride and he had talk time with Crush the turtle (very funny).

After Epcot, we went back to the hotel and crashed! I was exhausted, and I knew we had one more day to pack in the rest of the fun and another park. :)

Disney World

2010-11-02T22:18:00.007-05:00

We just returned home from an amazing trip to Disney World! We had the best time ever. A special thank you to Mr. Roger and Mrs. Candis (my wonderful In-Laws)! I will have to post pictures in separate posts...I took over 600. Drew got to meet his hero Buzz Lightyear! The look on his face was priceless, and I wouldn't trade the swollen feet and exhaustion for anything! He cried the day we left because Disney World was his "favorite place in the world" and it "was much better than his house". Bless his heart!

We arrived on Thursday night, grabbed a bite to eat and hit the sack. Woke up on Friday and hit Magic Kingdom. We watched the Monsters Inc show and as soon as we walked out, Buzz Lightyear was there signing autographs. My child was in HEAVEN!

We rode the Buzz lightyear spaceship ride, Drew rode his first roller coaster and he drove a race car. We also ventured into Mickey and Minnie's houses, and a few gift shops. We caught the parade and headed back to the hotel to change for trick-or-treating.

Now mind you...Drew went as Buzz Lightyear last year so he insisted that he wanted to go as Mr. Incredible. I asked him about 20 times if he wanted me to pack his Buzz Lightyear costume and he said NO every time. However, we had a minor melt down because once we started getting ready he wanted his Buzz Lightyear costume (of course...why wouldn't he?) He finally got okay with being MR. INCREDIBLE and off we went.

We Trick or Treated, met many characters, and watched another parade.

While waiting to meet Donald and Daisy, we were in line behind this nice couple with a little girl Arianna. She and Drew became quick friends, and she told her mom she had met her prince. It was adorable!

We ended the day watching the AMAZING firework show then we headed back to the hotel to get some rest!

I'll be back with Day 2 soon!

It's a.....

2010-11-02T22:14:00.004-05:00

BOY!!! Alexander Sutton Brown (Alex) will join our clan in March. We couldn't be more excited.

We can't wait to meet our little man!

Top 10 Signs you are pregnant with your 2nd child...

2010-08-10T12:40:00.000-05:00

1.) Your current one and only child all of a sudden becomes the biggest brat. Back-talking, not minding, yelling, hitting, etc. What the crap? Where did this little demon come from?

2.) At 8 weeks your regular clothes no longer fit, but you make your pants fit with a rubber band around the button for that extra inch or two because you know what everyone is thinking...

3.) People are asking when you are due and when you say March, they give you "the look" (the holy cow you are only 2 months pregnant look).

4.) Someone down the hall is cooking something in the microwave that smells good, you get a whiff and think about stealing their food. Or the opposite happens and it smells terrible and you want to vomit in their food so they loose their appetite like you lost yours. (Blaming hormones)

5.) You are craving a peach milkshake from Chick-fil-A, you get one and you are savoring the yumminess of it when all of a sudden a chunk of peach (which is usually your favorite part) hits your mouth and you gag. Never wanting another peach milkshake again!!!

6.) You sit in your office in the dark hoping and praying no one looks at you, speaks to you or even breathes at you. (I am blaming hormones again!)

7.) You want this pregnancy to stretch as far as possible because there are so many things that need to get done before the new baby gets here.

8.) No matter how long you wish your pregnancy will last it seems to be flying by!!!

9.) You can't hang on the beach for very long because it is too freaking hot and you have to pee constantly!!!

10.) Your child tells everyone there are two babies in mommy's tummy. A brother and a sister, and they all believe him because well you are only 8 weeks and can't fit into your regular clothes.

March 2011

2010-08-04T09:34:00.002-05:00

Drew will become a big brother!!!!

Strange....

2010-06-08T13:41:00.002-05:00

I have to give you a little background before I go into the "Strange" story:

Ever since Drew turned 2 he has had an "imaginary ummm...not really friend so we will call him person" he calls Jack. Jack appeared when Drew started his first daycare and apparently Jack is not nice and he scares Drew A LOT. I mentioned Jack to Drew's doctor at a random visit and Dr. H told Drew that Jack isn't scary because he lives in his noggin and he can make Jack go away any time. That seemed to do the trick, and for the past 8 months believe it or not Jack has not been with us.

However, a couple of weeks ago I picked Drew up from school and the conversation goes like this:

ME: What did you do at school today?

DREW: I played with all of my friends.

ME: Great, who did you play with?

DREW: (Naming some random children in his class) Johnny, Zachary, Alyssa, Jackson, oh and I have a new friend Mommy!

ME: You do?! That's great, what is your new friends name?

DREW: Strange.

ME: What? Strange? (Lightbulb goes off) Where does Strange live buddy?

DREW: In my foot.

ME: Why does Strange live in your foot?

DREW: Because Jack lives in my noggin, so Strange lives in my foot. He is really nice to me and I like him.

ME: Well, I am glad Strange is very nice to you. (Holding back serious laughter, mind you!)

*Sidenote: When we went back to see Dr. H for Drew's 4 year old check up, I mentioned Strange and he got a kick out of that and said that Drew has a wonderful imagination and that was a good thing.* :)

DEEP THOUGHT:

Drew doesn't talk about Strange near as much as he talked about Jack. When you asked Drew what Jack looked like he described a little boy with brown hair. When you ask Drew what Strange looks like he just takes his finger and draw's "lines and circles" in the air and says that is what Strange looks like?!? HMMM...does anyone think Jack may have been an actual spirit?Besides Josh, who absolutely believes that Jack was a ghost! I believe that children and animals can see spirits (especially angels). What do you all think?

Last year in my 20's....

2010-06-03T22:06:00.005-05:00

On May 17th I turned 29. This will be my last year in my 20's and for some reason it is affecting me greatly. I am very sad that this is my last year in my twenties. I feel like my "youth" is being ripped away from me. Why is that?!? What is so bad about turning 3o? Is it the fact that I am starting to find random gray hair all over my head? Or maybe that it's much harder to shed weight than it used to be? Could it be that I am discovering the beginning stages of "crow's feet"? Is it that I don't want to tan anymore because I am afraid I will wrinkle earlier? STRESS!!!! Deep breath and we are going to move on now.

May is a big month for me. First, there's Mother's Day, followed by my birthday, then to wrap things up Dave and I celebrate our Anniversary on May 22nd. Bless my husband that is a lot of pressure!

My husband is amazing...let me tell you he exceeded all of my "expectations" and more this year! To start, we had a great Mother's Day celebrating with our Mother's. And of course I got to spend quality time with my precious son Drew. My birthday was on a Monday this year, but the Friday before my birthday my sneaky little husband told me he had a "meeting" for work in Trussville and wanted to meet me for lunch. I get up on Friday and Dave gets Drew completely ready for school (which is huge for me). I head to work and Dave heads to his "meeting". Around lunch time Dave shows up at my office with a big surprise...he had bought me an iPhone. I was so excited. I have been wanting one for a while. We go to lunch and then we pick Drew up from school and I go back to work while my boys head home.

I headed home after work and walked into a SPOTLESS house. Dave had cleaned up the entire house. BEST PRESENT EVER!!! He even left a bottle of wine on the table for me. He then hands me the most beautiful card with an Eclipse movie ticket inside (yes, I love the Twilight series) from him and a precious Mickey card from Drew that he picked out all by himself. I then proceed to the bedroom to change into my afternoon "uniform" (comfy pants, t-shirt, hair on top of my head...etc.) and Dave tells me to get ready for another surprise and don't change. Wait, there's more...what?!?!

About an hour later some of our very best friends show up at the house to celebrate. We ordered pizza, the kids entertained, we had cake and a few shots and enjoyed each other's company. I tell you what I was not excited about turning 29, but my wonderful husband made the blow much softer! Thank you my love for everything! You are truly AMAZING and I love you more and more everyday!!!

My dad, Tammy, Alison and Alex came over on Sunday and we went to dinner and had cake when we got back! My mom, brother and sister will be coming this weekend to celebrate with me. Hey, who says you can't celebrate your birthday for weeks at a time?! :)
I have an amazing family and equally amazing friends and for that I am truly blessed! I love you all very much!!!

Dave didn't feel well on our Anniversary so we took it easy and went out to eat. Then we went to visit Dave's parents, sister, nieces and cousin's (who were visiting from New Orleans). It was a wonderful evening! I enjoyed spending time with our family that night and meeting baby Camille (who is the most adorable baby).

Here are a few pics from my Birthday Surprise!

The best husband in the world!!!

Drew helping me blow out the candles!

Opening presents...thanks everyone!

I love my boy!

Entertainment!!!

FOR SALE

2010-06-03T21:54:00.005-05:00

Anyone want to buy our house?!? Do you know anyone looking to buy a house?!?

We have officially gone on the market. We will not give up this time, ride or die we will sell this house. It's time for an upgrade that is closer to Dave's job. Just thought I would post to see if anyone knows anyone that would be interested in purchasing our lovely 3 bedroom 2 bath home in a cul-de-sac in an AWESOME neighborhood. Fresh paint throughout...trust me it's very fresh (this past weekend fresh). :)

Master Bed

Master Bath

One of the secondary bedrooms

HUGE living room

Please pray that we sell our home quickly and for a good price. Thanks all!!!!

Six years ago today...

2010-05-22T13:57:00.005-05:00

I married my best friend! My husband is the most amazing man, husband, father, and friend. He has an amazing heart and I am truly blessed that he opened his beautiful heart to me. I cherish every day I have with my husband and I want to thank him for making me his wife and a mother to our beautiful son Drew. Dave you are an amazing blessing to me and Drew! I love you more and more every day. Happy six year anniversary and I am looking forward to many, many more! I love you BIG! :)

Our First Dance as husband and wife!

Amy, Mandi, Amanda, Andrea, Me, Alison, Natalie, Deanna, and Tina

Brandon, Rob, Tyler, Roger, Dave, Dan, Matt, Brad, and Adam

Jordan

Our honeymoon in Jamaica

David and Allison Brown

May 22, 2004

...Happily Ever After!

FOUR

2010-04-19T22:43:00.003-05:00

***Warning...I am very emotional and this post may not make sense to any of you, but it is what I am feeling right at this very moment. It's long and has lots of pictures. Read at your own risk. :) ***

My baby is four years old today! It is a very bittersweet feeling. I love his personality and that he is growing, healthy and happy. I am having so many mixed emotions because he is getting too big way too fast. What happened to my baby? Drew no longer has the "baby" look. He is the most precious, tender-hearted, smart, handsome, outgoing, and loving little boy. He is our pride and joy and I look forward to many, many more birthdays with my angel.

It is so easy to get caught up in our own busy schedules and one day I look up and realize that my baby, my precious little baby turned four today! I catch myself saying: Drew I will read that book to you in just a minute, but I have to do the laundry first or load the dishwasher or exercise or something to that nature.

He always wants to play this game:
Drew: "Mommy, when I say silly words, you look mad at me and I laugh."
Me: "Ok, go"
Drew: "Ooka, looka, pooka" (or something silly that makes no sense)
Me: Giving him mean eyes
Drew: Laughing hysterically, which in turn of course makes me laugh hysterically.

I will surely miss these days when one day I will want to play with him and he will be too busy for his dear old mom. I feel like I need to soak up every bit of him as long and as often as I can. There are days that I want to call into work so I can just stay home with him and snuggle, play, read and laugh, but of course that won't pay the bills. I can guarantee you this, the very next time my little boy wants me to stop and play or read him a book I will let the laundry go un-done or leave the dishes in the sink for a while* (side note below) because I will one day long for Drew to want to spend time with me. This is my New Year's Resolution (in April), and a promise to myself and my child.

*If you know me at all you know that of course I could not go to bed until all of these things are done so it will just be a late night that night. *

He tells me all the time, "Mommy don't be sad when I get big. When I get small again you can still hold me!" God love his sweet heart. I will hold him for as long as he will let me. I will rock him, play with him, read to him and laugh with him.

Here are a few (ahem...63 to be exact) of my favorite pictures from the birth of our wonderful little blessing to his birthday party this past Saturday!

Enjoy and shed a tear, I know I did!!! :)

Bible Verse

2010-04-05T22:08:00.002-05:00

Drew is learning so much at school. I love that he goes to a church daycare! He knows a ton of Jesus songs and now he's reciting bible verses. He can also tell you the story of how Jesus was born and just recently how he "woke up" for Easter. :) He is such a smart boy! I love him!!!

UGH

2010-03-30T13:35:00.002-05:00

Have you ever had one of those days where you wake up in a great mood and you decide right then and there that today is going to be an AWESOME day no matter what?

Today was one of those days for me. I was in the best mood this morning and then I got to work. *Before I begin let me just say this: I am thankful that I have a good job and I like most everyone I work with.* Why must everyone pass everything off to someone else? Why do I have to do everyone else's job? What are they doing? When do I have time to do my job? Why does everyone have to be in a pissy mood? UGH!!!!! That's all I have to say about that. My AWESOME day has been ruined and my mood is less than okay at this point, but I will make it my goal to leave it at work when I leave and my AWESOME day will pick back up when I pick up Drew from school and I am greeted with "MOMMY" as he runs into my arms for the best and biggest hug/kiss ever!

Thanks for letting me "vent" I will go back to doing everyone's job now.

Crack and Cheezers

2010-03-15T15:08:00.002-05:00

When I get frustrated sometimes depending on how frustrated I am, I will express that frustration with words. Seeing that I have an almost four year old that repeats EVERYTHING, I really have to be careful when choosing what words to express when I am frustrated. Keeping this in mind I tend to use the phrase, "cheese and crackers" a lot. Don't ask me why, I have no earthly idea where it came from I just say it. Hey, it beats the other choice (you know "naughty" words)! Yesterday I was on the computer and getting frustrated. Drew was in and out of the room and he could tell that I was getting frustrated so before I could even get it out of my mouth my baby looks at me and says, "Crack and cheezers mommy". My frustration melted as I laughed for a solid 5 minutes. I love my boy!!!

Seeking Your Advice Please!!!

2010-03-11T13:19:00.005-06:00

I have a few things that I would love some advice on:

1. I am trying to decide between buying a Netbook or a new Laptop. I know netbooks are really small, but I don't want another large laptop. I need this for downloading pictures, internet, and a few word/excel documents only. The only people I know with netbooks are children because they are really small. My concerns are this...will the netbook be too small, and will it have enough "memory" to store all the pictures and editing of pictures that I do? If anyone has any knowledge or experience with netbooks please share. :)

2. Buzz Lightyear...my son's favorite super hero but a pain in my neck. The reason I feel this way is this: Drew is obsessed with Buzz Lightyear (Toy Story) and wants a Buzz Lightyear birthday party. Doesn't sound terrible right? Wrong! No place in the greater Birmingham area carries Toy Story or Buzz Lightyear party supplies. I have found Buzz Lightyear party supplies online which is great, however I am still left with one small issue. CAKE. There are no buzz lightyear cake pans, cake decorating kits, toppers anything. I have found one "kit" and it is not cute and I think Drew would be disappointed. Any suggestions?!?!

I would also like to ask for your prayers for our dear friends and their beautiful new baby! Addi is 1 week old today in the NICU and needs God's healing touch right now. I ask that you keep baby Addi and her parents in your prayers.

Thanks!

No Cavity Club!!!

2010-03-10T15:54:00.003-06:00

I know, I know it's been a long time. I thought I would give a quick update. We took Drew to his first dentist appointment yesterday and he did amazing. My big boy sat in that chair and let them count, scrape, brush, and floss his teeth and did not move an inch. He had no cavities, which makes him a member of the No Cavity Club! He was so excited to have his picture made and put on the wall. He also got to pick a treasure from the treasure chest! While leaving he asked if we could go back tomorrow. :)

Later on the ride home Drew says, "Mommy you didn't have any cavities either." I said, "No baby, Mommy didn't have any cavities!" He asks innocently, " Why didn't you get your picture put on the wall?" That is a good question buddy, I will have to ask Dr. B. next time we go!

Three Thanksgivings!

2009-12-01T20:54:00.003-06:00

Hi Everyone! I am sure by now you have all seen or at least heard of the movie "Four Christmases" right?!? Well this year we had "Three Thanksgivings". Granted our Thanksgivings weren't as funny and disfunctional, however, we did travel more than we visited. :) Oh well, that's what happens when you have tons of wonderful family to celebrate with. We loved spending time with everyone this year. I will post some pictures of our awesome families soon. We are so thankful to have such a wonderful family. There are many things to be thankful for this year and I could spend an hour listing them but I will just say this: We are truly blessed and we thank our Savior everyday for first and foremost Him and our relationship with Him, our son, each other, our families, our health, and our jobs. I will move on now!

We also had Christmas pictures made, however, I am unable to post many on this blog. My mother in law visits this blog and the photos we had made with Drew and his cousins Mary Kate and Caroline are off limits for her viewing pleasure until Christmas...Sorry Nana! You will have to be patient! ;) I will post a few of Drew and Jordan, because my mom has already seen them.

Holidays are so crazy for us, but I will TRY to post more often. Have a great week!

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween...better late than never!

2009-11-10T22:31:00.005-06:00

Hi all...here are some pictures from the pumpkin patch.

My Family!!!

I love my boys!

Sister, J, Mom and Drew

Drew and his BFF Carter

Me and my love!

Drew and his Uncle J

My brother, me and my son!

Here are some pictures from Halloween. We had a great time with our family and great friends! Drew's LARGE wingspan kept knocking all of the children around but other than that I believe the night went very well! :)

BUZZ LIGHTYEAR!

The whole crew!!!

Just for fun, here is a picture of Dave and I going to a Halloween Party dressed as...wait for it...Edward and Bella. The picture came out blurry, but I thought that actually added something and looked pretty cool.

I have TONS of soccer pictures I will post later. :)

Sickness

2009-11-09T11:03:00.002-06:00

Sorry again for a delayed post. Drew has been sick since Tuesday night and out of school for 3 days. He has one of those 5-pack a day coughs that just won't go away. He is finally starting to feel better today. Although he did tell me this morning that he couldn't go to school because he is sick and he needs to go see his friend Dr. H. So I told him I would call Dr. H. and see if we could go see him later today. That seemed to work for a minute until he realized that we were heading toward his school. He then proceeds to start whining "Mommy, I said I was sick and I need to go to the doctor." Bless him! He didn't cry though so that's a good thing and he has been fever free since Friday night. So off to school he went. Hopefully I won't get a call today from the school saying Drew needs to be picked up.

Halloween went very well. We had lots of family and friends come over. We had yummy food and lots of trick-or-treaters. We went to the end of our street and back because it was so cold so Drew wasn't too overloaded with candy. Thank goodness! Overall, it was a very fun night. You will all be proud to know that I am in the process of editing over 1000 (yes that is an accurate number) pictures right now, including Halloween, soccer and just random events. I will post some as soon as I get them all sorted.

Hope you all have a fabulous week!

Congrats to my friend Morgan for her new bundle of joy Brooks. I am so happy for her and her family!

SOCCER

2009-10-29T13:14:00.003-05:00

So soccer is finally winding down and as happy as I am about that I can't help but be a little sad. I mean look at this picture. Drew's all happy and smiling.

Adorable right?!? However, when we are practicing or playing a game he looks more like this picture. You know the only kid NOT SMILING. :)

Bless him, it was a fun but I think we are holding off on sports for a little bit. We got these pictures back the other day and I thought I would share. I hope you all have a great weekend and a safe and fun HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Check out Drew's Halloween costume....

BUZZ LIGHTYEAR...to the rescue!

More to come....

I meant to post this Wahsterday!

2009-10-26T13:32:00.002-05:00

Good Afternoon to anyone who still checks my blog! I am sure there are very few of you left since I only update once in a blue moon these days. What can I say, there has been soccer, sickness, surgery, 2 jobs, house guests, birthday parties, Halloween parties, football...the list could go on and on. I had to stop for 5 seconds (at work...but don't tell anyone) and post my child's newest words.
Here is how the conversation went:

Drew: Mama, these are my Christmas pants (mind you these are just a pair of gray sweatpants)
Me: "What do you mean your Christmas pants?"
Drew: "I told you wahsterday that I have to wear these for Christmas."
Me: Laughing hysterically, "Sorry buddy, I will save them for Christmas."

The very same night he was looking and my hair and he told me that my hair was "cutiful"...how adorable is that. The child cracks me up! I can't wait to pick him up everyday to see what might come out of his little mouth.
As bad as I have been about updating my blog, I have been even worse when it comes to editing/posting pictures. I apologize, but I am going to make a conscious effort to post recent pictures very soon. We only have one more soccer practice and our last game is Saturday...praise the Lord. If I never sit on the sidelines of a rainy freezing cold soccer field with my three year old crying and not leaving my lap because HE HATES SOCCER...I will be okay with that. We shall try T-ball in another year or two...we are taking a break from sports for the time being. Til next time, hope you all have a great week!

All better...sort of

2009-09-25T16:10:00.002-05:00

Well if you haven't heard by now Dave's surgery went great. He made it through the surgery and out of recovery in 3 hours. My husband the over-achiever!!! :) Anyways, we left the hospital on Monday around 3:00 p.m. and I drove Dave to his parent's house so he could recover there without the threat of little man tackling or attacking him while he snoozed being on pain meds. It also made Dave's mom and I a lot more comfortable that she could be there with him all day in case he needed anything since I had to go back to work. So it worked out nicely.

Dave is doing much better, just trying to recover from the surgery. He is starting to swell now that the anesthesia has worn off and he is sore, but overall I believe he is doing great! The big question now is when is Dave coming home?!? Tonight, tomorrow, Sunday, next year(just kidding)...we are just not sure yet! Drew and I miss him like crazy, but his recovery is crucial so I want him to be completely certain that he will be okay.

I have had a great week with Drew. We have bonded and had lots of Mommy/Drew time and he is now a "Mama's Boy"...sort of. I started feeling really bad on Wednesday night and ended up going to the doctor yesterday during my lunch break to find out that I have a sinus infection and an ear infection in both ears, great timing huh?!? They gave me a shot and a bunch of medicine and today I feel SO MUCH BETTER!!! Now for a busy, busy weekend.

I am hoping I get to make it to the girl's night out that my childhood "Erwin" friends are doing tonight. I would love to see them all. I appreciate them inviting me and if I don't get to join them tonight hope they will extend another invitation soon so I can make the next GNO. :) I have a bachelorette party Saturday night and cleaning Sunday. I will try to post pictures soon of Drew playing soccer although they haven't played much in the past 2 weeks do to the rain. Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Update on Surgery

2009-09-14T14:04:00.002-05:00

Hi all...we have a date for Dave's surgery. He will be having his neck surgery on Monday, September 21 (one week from today). They won't tell us what time until Friday, but I am assuming we will be there very early. I will try to post as soon as he gets out to let everyone know how he is doing. Keep him in your prayers this week and especially next Monday. :)

On a different note, Drew had his first soccer game this past Saturday and it didn't go all that great. It didn't help that he got mud caked on his shoes when we first got there...that absolutely sent him into a tizzy. I guess I should have let him get "dirty" more often. ;) Once the game started, Drew was really into kicking the soccer ball when out of no where another child swooped in and with the fancy footwork of a 4 year old he swiped that ball right out from under Drew. Drew's reaction, crying and burying his face into Daddy's leg while Daddy is trying to coach the rest of the team and console little man.

After that little incident Drew wanted nothing more to do with the game, except of course during the 5 minute half-time where he was out there by himself kicking the ball up and down the field with his family cheering loudly. Of course I was no where near the video camera when this all took place, but I did take some cute pics. *I have to go through and edit around 300 pictures from practice and game day so I will post as soon as I get a few.* Drew with his accomplished little smile took his seat on the sideline after his little half-time show and sipped water until the game was over. Needless to say this may be our only soccer season...he may be more of a T-Ball player! ;)

After the game the whole family including Myself, Dave, Papa, G.G., Nana, Granddaddy, BB, Great Nana, Uncle J, Flower and Kelly (you know our wonderful family cheering loudly for my child at half-time) went to Seafood and Chicken Box for lunch and over to the Halloween store next door to purchase Drew's costume. I will keep you all in suspense for a little longer until I can post the picture with it.

Thank you all for coming to Drew's first soccer game, maybe the next time you come he will actually play with the team and not just at half-time by himself....although that was quite
entertaining! :)

Hope you all have a great week...stay dry!!!

SURGERY

2009-09-03T08:58:00.002-05:00

If you know my husband, you know that he has been in excruciating pain for the past 2 years with his back, shoulder and neck. He has had two spinal blocks that did not work. He took the advice of Dr. J and went to see a neurologist. The neurologist Dr. M did another MRI and we found out yesterday that Dave has to have neck surgery in the very near future. He has 2 bone spurs that are cutting into the nerves in his spine around the neck area. They will go in through the front of his neck and cut out the spurs and add some bone from the bone bank. He will be out of commission for about a month.

I am asking for prayers for my husband for his safety and that the surgery will be a success and he will finally be out of pain. I know this surgery will be well worth it especially if my husband obeys the doctor's orders (he's had a problem with this in the past). :)

I will keep you all posted about the surgery when we hear from the doctor and find out exactly when it will take place. Again, prayers are much appreciated for now. Thanks!!!!

Soccer Game Schedule

2009-08-31T11:08:00.000-05:00

Drew’s Soccer Schedule

Saturday, September 12 – 10:00 am

Saturday, September 19 – 9:00 am

Saturday, September 26 – 9:00 am

Saturday, October 3 – 9:00 am

Saturday, October 10 – 11:00 am

Saturday, October 17 – 10:00 am

Saturday, October 24 – 10:00 am

Saturday, October 31 – 11:00 am

They will all be held at the Trussville Soccer Fields! I hope you all can make it to at least one game…they will be hilarious! :)

Family

2009-08-30T15:44:00.003-05:00

We celebrated my Pa-Paw's 80th Birthday a few weekends ago so I thought I would share a few of the hundred pictures I took. I love family get togethers!

Me and my precious hubby!

Aunt Barbie and Uncle Macky...
aren't they adorable?!

Drew and Papa

Dad and Tammy...the gracious hosts!

Drew with Nana and Pa-Paw

My grandparents...I love them!

Me and my cousin Deanna

Drew with his BB

Drew's favorite part...riding in the boat with Papa!

Dexter and Drew

Have a great week!

Sister's Birthday!

2009-08-28T09:25:00.002-05:00

Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday Auntie Roo....Happy Birthday to you ~ Love, Drew

Happy Birthday Sister, I hope you have a fabulous day!

Happy Birthday!

2009-08-27T09:04:00.003-05:00

To my wonderful cousin Mandi, I know you are celebrating with the angels right now, but we all wish you could be here to celebrate with us. We love you and miss you and wish you the happiest birthday!!! XOXOXO

The Park

2009-08-26T16:02:00.003-05:00

Since it was so beautiful outside, we had a family day at the park this past Sunday. We took a picnic lunch, my camera and our neighbors and off we went...

Drew being adorable and trying to decide which slide to go down.

Drew and Carter getting ready to go play after lunch!

Speaking of Carter, look at this beast hanging on with one arm to the monkey bars...impressive huh?

Not really interested in climbing the "rock wall" but he will pose for a picture. ;)

"One, Two, Three...Blast-off"

Swinging

They do EVERYTHING together!

Have a great rest of the week!

Pics...

2009-08-20T18:07:00.006-05:00

I finally got some pictures edited and ready to post. These are from Caroline's 4th birthday party at Pump it up and our trip to the Chatanooga Aquarium. We had a great weekend last weekend and I have a ton of pictures to go through and edit. We also have some cute one's from Drew's 1st soccer practice (they are on the camera phone because I forgot my actual camera but hey, it worked). I will post more pictures as soon as I can. Enjoy!!

The Birthday Girl!

Happy 4th Birthday Caroline, we had fun at your party!

Here we are at the Aquarium...

This was Drew the enitre last half of the trip, bless him!

...and a random picture of Drew and his Papa doing what they do best entertain each other! :)

Sports Tumblers

2009-08-12T13:47:00.002-05:00

Hi All,
I wanted to let you know that I have these super cute Tupperware Sports Tumblers for sale. They will hold 30 oz. of liquid and they are backed by a Limited Lifetime Warranty. They are perfect if you know anyone in sports or if you enjoy watching sports and you are thirsty! They are available in Football, Soccer, Cheerleading, Baseball, Karate, and Music. Please let me know if you are interested. The cost is $15.50 each. I know that is a little steep, but it's a fundraiser and again it's Tupperware so you know it will last forever!
E-mail me at allisonbrownrs@hotmail.com or allison.brown@stvhs.com. I have attached a picture for you to see.

A little of this and a little of that...

2009-08-07T12:06:00.003-05:00

I know I use the excuse that it's been crazy busy and that's why I don't post as often as I would like, but today I will give you specific examples of the past few weeks and then maybe you will understand and forgive me! :)

Let's start where we left off shall we: We registered Drew for soccer and he seems more interested in the nifty little playground beside the soccer fields than in the actual soccer concept, so I will keep you posted on that. He should start the beginning of September. Wish us luck!!!
We had a great time at the aquarium (pictures to come) however, Drew didn't get much sleep the night before so he crashed after the tantrum in the I-Max movie and he slept through the entire 2nd half of the aquarium. Oh well, that didn't stop me from taking a TON of pictures so I could show him later what all he missed. I am good like that...always thinking ahead! AHEM! :)

We sold our couch and have been furniture-less in our living room for 2 1/2 weeks now...not fun, but our new couch will be delivered tomorrow!!! YAY!

A week ago yesterday a co-worker and I were walking through Target picking up a few things on our lunch break and after slipping repeatedly on the slick floor and catching myself, I busted. Not only busted, but BUSTED FACE FIRST by the check out lane. Fun times! I was more embarrassed than anything at first, but once I got up the embarrassment subsided and the PAIN set in. We filled out an accident report to claim all of my injuries (including my arm, wrist, leg, ankle, and chin...which I hit on the floor). I decided not to go to the doctor thinking I would just be sore. WRONG!!! By 9:00 p.m. that night my neck was tingling, I had a severe headache and my arm was throbbing. Off to the Emergency Room we went...good times!! By 3:00 am after CAT scans of my head and neck and X-rays of my arm, I walked away with a sprained wrist and arm, bruising and lots of swelling. No permanent damage that we could determine so far. We are now in communications with Target and that is all I will say about that! Another reason I haven't posted, it hurts my arm/wrist to type. I have taken Ibuprofin so don't be worried about me with this post! :)

Now on to the present. I started a new business on the side that is taking up a little more time than I thought, but I am really enjoying it and it is making us some great "spending" money. :) If you would like more details about my side business please email me at allie051781@cs.com or allisonbrownrs@hotmail.com you choose which one, I will check them both!

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend, ours will be busy as we have 3 parties, cleaning, furniture arriving, and somewhere in all that we will sleep...I hope!!! :)

Fourth of July Pics...and more!

2009-07-22T22:30:00.006-05:00

Pictures as promised...even though I will again get no sleep tonight, you're welcome!!! ;)

Jordan, Dad, and Drew

My family!!!

Mee-Mee, Papa, and Drew

Alie Grits and Drew

Fun watching Fireworks!

Jordan, Drew and Carter

This looks like it will end badly...but it didn't! :)

Spider-Monkey...he has to warm up to the water for a minute.

Isn't he adorable?

Drew's "sock puppet" he made at school

Drew and Bailee Bug

Cul-de-sac Buddies...Carter, Drew, and Collin. Collin and his parents just moved this week. We will miss you Stacy, Derek and little "Dennis the Menace".

FIREWORKS for the big Goodbye! Collin and Drew...see ya soon buddy!

Here is a little sneak peek of Drew in some of his soccer gear. I think he is going to be really good. I am excited!!!

Have a great rest of the week!

Soccer, Aquarium Trips and Remodeling OH MY!!!!

2009-07-22T14:01:00.003-05:00

Sorry it's been a while, we have just been covered up as usual.

***Breaking news***
We are signing Drew up for soccer tomorrow and we are SO EXCITED. Drew looks ADORABLE in his soccer "gear" and he asks us everyday if we are going to the soccer fields. I can't wait to be a "Soccer Mom" at the ballpark all the time! :)

***In other news***
We are taking Drew and Jordan to the Chattanooga Aquarium this Saturday and I think I am more excited than the boys. Hopefully I will get a lot of good pictures, not that I will post them anytime soon or anything. ;)

In the midst of chaos we are also currently re-modeling/re-decorating our house, which is only 5 years old, so some of you may be asking why? Well I am glad you asked. When the house was built they decided to put in the cheapest, lightest shade of cream-colored carpet in the world, so you add 5 years of wear and tear it is looking pretty rough. We are now trying to decide on new carpet or hardwoods. We are also re-painting because let 's face it I have a three year old...enough said. Along with that we recently got a new living room suit, (totally by accident but that is a story for a later date) new home decorations and we just finished re-painting Drew's dresser and chest of drawers. WHEW!

Speaking of a new living room suit, does anyone need a couch?!?!? We are now needing to sell our neutral three-piece sectional that includes 2 recliners and a bed. It is in really good condition. Let me know if you are interested! :)

I am having a picture editing session tonight with Tammy (my step mom) so I promise I will post some pics tonight!!!!

"Air Cut"

2009-07-13T13:16:00.002-05:00

We took Drew for a "air cut" (hair cut) yesterday. What a fun trip that was...for some reason Drew is not a fan of getting his hair cut anymore. So we pull into the parking lot and he starts screaming, "I don't want a air cut, I not going".

Needless to say, it was a struggle getting him out of the car and into the chair for the not-so-friendly lady to cut his hair. Dave being the brilliant daddy he is had stuck tigger (you know the tigger from the previous post) in his pocket along with a car. This pacifies Drew while the not-so-friendly lady starts to cut. A snip here, a snip there, and she's done. I look at him and realize she has hardly cut anything at all. So I say, "I think I would like for you to use a 6 guard on the back and trim around his ears please." She pulls out the clippers and gets to work. In no time at all she's done...one side of Drew's head was long and one was neatly clipped. I point this out to her, she huffs and pulls out the clippers again and finishes that side. Then she trims around his left ear and looks at me. I then say, "what about this side" obviously pointing to the right ear. Again, she huffs and trims that side.

Now here is where it gets interesting...if you have ever been around my child you know that he has a "rat tail" that we lovingly refer to as a "duck tail" because it is not really long enough to be classified as a "rat tail". I get very frustrated with his "duck tail" because it grows so fast. I usually trim it at home between cuts. Not-so-friendly lady had totally skipped his "duck tail" so I ask her to cut it. She says, "You really want me to cut this?" Of course, I am aware that we are in Moody and this woman probably has lots of children come in with "rat tails", but I am thinking did we just go back in time to 1984 but I respond "Yes please cut his rat tail." I then get the evil eye from not-so-nice lady as she cuts Drew's "duck tail".

Not really a point to this post, just thought I would share. No wonder Drew doesn't like "air cuts" anymore! :)

Princess

2009-07-09T11:22:00.003-05:00

Last night I am going through my closet and I pull out a short (and by definition short these days hits at my knee) pink skirt with white, dark pink, charcoal, and black daisies on it. Very cute skirt, and I totally forgot about it so when I discovered it in my closet I tried it on and started my search for a top. I found a simple black top to where with it and decided to "model" it for Dave and Drew to see if it would be appropriate for work. Of course the reaction from Dave is, "Yeah, it looks good"...typical male response. :) However, my precious baby boy said to me, "Mommy, you look like a princess!" So guess what I am wearing today?!? I love my boy!!!

Less is More...

2009-07-07T11:52:00.003-05:00

Why is it that we spend tons of money on expensive toys?!?

For the past month our child has done nothing but play with a dollar store Tigger figurine, a red stuffed dinosaur that came in a happy meal and a $2.00 el cheapo plastic airplane from Wal-Mart that he HAD TO HAVE! I swear the child has hundreds of dollars worth of really cool toys and those are the 3 favorites as of now. Occasionally he will pick up a Lightning McQueen, but for the most part it's Tigger, "Red" (dinosaur) and Airplane. He cracks me up!

Drew absolutely LOVES to read as well, so we read every single night. I don't know what we would do without books. If anyone is ever looking to buy him anything, clothing and books will suffice for a while. :)

More to come from this past weekend's 4th of July festivities. We had a FABULOUS weekend! Hope you all did too.

Pictures as promised!

2009-06-28T22:00:00.010-05:00

Well friends after an eventful Friday afternoon and busy Saturday, I finally had time to sit down today and edit some pictures. I hope you all enjoy!!!

We will start with a lake weekend at Papa and Mee-Mee's:
:

We will then move on to random pictures at the house:

They are just practicing!

We will end on our recent beach trip:

And finally Exhaustion/Sickness had set in!

There are many more pictures that I wish I could share with you, but that would take forever. I will however post more later! :)

It's been a minute....

2009-06-26T13:13:00.003-05:00

Since I have posted. I am sorry for my lack of commitment to keeping you all informed of our daily lives (because I know you all thrive on whether or not I have posted...ha ha!) I will try to keep it short and sweet and I plan to post pictures this weekend. We have been incredibly busy this month. We have had: father's day, a wedding, a beach trip (it totally counts as 2 different things even though the wedding was at the beach), ER visit (Drew had a severe viral infection, but he is much better now), Dave getting Drew's viral infection, working out, re-financing our house, working late, meetings, funerals, switching insurance companies, family visits, trips to the lake, etc. WHEW...I am exhausted! I am happy our lives are so blessed and full, but sometimes I get overwhelmed and tired. My new quote..."I am over worked and under paid!" But really, who isn't?!?

I didn't take a lot of pictures at the beach because we were only on the actual beach one day. Drew was sick the rest of the time. I also got NO pictures of Dave and I all dressed up, and we dressed up two nights in a row....What the crap?!? According to the pictures I didn't even go on that trip. That's okay, I am not fond of being on that side of the camera anyways. :) Anyways, I will absolutely make time to post pictures this weekend...I have some really good ones.

***Congrats to all of our friends who have had babies and who are expecting babies...there are quite a few of you. We are so happy for you all!!!***

TGIF

2009-05-29T08:49:00.004-05:00

I know it's been a while since I have posted, sorry 'bout that...it's been a little hectic.

Dave and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary last Friday. We both had to work and my mom and Mee-Maw came into Trussville around 2:00 to pick up Drew for a weekend in Gadsden. I loved on my boy and sent him on his way knowing he would be in wonderful hands for the weekend. Dave and I went shopping after work and then rented a few movies, picked up dinner and went home. Dave felt horrible all weekend (severe ear infection and sinus infection) so we did absolutely NOTHING Saturday. I was grateful for getting to lay around, but I tell you it gets boring after a while watching someone else sleep. :) Sunday we got up picked up the house and went to Gadsden to collect our little man from his weekend trip. He really enjoyed spending time with his GG, Mee-Maw, Uncle J, Granddaddy and Aunt Cindi on Friday and Saturday and BB, Uncle Mack, Nana and Pa-Paw and we also got a special visit from Aunt Nancy, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Lori, Lauren and Dylan on Sunday. He was very excited to see Mommy and Daddy and did not leave our sides all day Sunday, however, on the way home he asked us to take him back...we missed you too buddy! :)

Monday I had to work for a little while, but I got to leave around lunch time so Dave, Drew and I headed over to The Brown's for what I thought was a Memorial Day celebration, but later found out that they had a birthday party planned (So sweet...I have the best in-laws ever)! We got to spend time with Nana, Granddaddy, Nam-Maw, Aunt Amy, Uncle Taylor, Mary Kate and Caroline. We had a great day with everyone and headed home around 5:00 after a fun game of hide and seek. :)

Back to work on Tuesday and we also took our house back OFF the market again...we are going to re-finance, re-model and put it back up in about a year (hopefully the market will pick back up by then for sellers). I have learned that God has a plan for us all and it may not be exactly what we planned, but we are extremely blessed and more than willing to let Him guide our lives in the direction that He wants us. Our new plan is to gut, if you will, our house. By "gut" I mean get rid of a ton of stuff...we just have more than we need and I know there are families out there that can use a lot of it so we will share with them. :) So we will be busy for the next few months and eventually we are planning to put down hardwoods, and re-paint....a lot of work, but hopefully it will pay off.

We have a busy weekend ahead of us. My mom and Jordan are coming in town today and we are supposed to keep Princess Bailee tonight for our great friends the Tipton's. Saturday we will all be attending Carter's birthday party and then off to another birthday party that is a surprise so I will post more later about that (I have no earthly idea who reads this blog and who doesn't, so I don't want to ruin anything). Sunday should be relaxing...maybe we will get started "gutting" our house. At least it is supposed to be a beautiful weekend. :) 'Til we meet again!!!!

Oh yeah...A big CONGRATS to Phaidra and Hannon on their exciting news!!! We are so happy for you!

Surprise!!!

2009-05-19T11:15:00.004-05:00

I will recap my wonderful birthday weekend for you all:

Friday - after work Dave, Drew and I went to eat at Konomi (I think that's how you spell it) in Trussville. I love Japanese food! We then went home and watched "Taken" with Liam Neeson - Great movie, I highly recommend that you see it.

Saturday - Dave got up early and went to the Bruno's Memorial Classic with his dad...well it ended up raining the entire time they were there and they didn't actually get to the classic. :(
Drew and I vegged out all day, it was rainy and dreary so we just played and hung out. I started getting ready for my surprise around 5:00 p.m. We had to meet my dad and drop off Drew for an over-night stay. **Drew had so much fun with Papa and Mee-Mee that he didn't want to come back home on Sunday.**
Dave then took me to my bestest friend Alison McGriff's house where my surprise party was taking place. I had such a wonderful time and I really appreciate all of my wonderful friends for coming! A special thanks to my wonderful hubby and my "sister" Griff for putting it all together!!! We "partied" until about 1:30 am and then headed home.

Sunday (My actual birthday) - Got up and cleaned the house while little man was still at my dad's. My dad and Tammy then came over and we all went out to eat and shopping...fun for me and Tammy, not so much anyone else! :)

All in all it was a fabulous weekend, unfortunately the pictures didn't turn out very good so I won't be sharing them this time. :)

I almost forgot...

2009-05-14T19:03:00.003-05:00

...to show you all what Drew made for me at school for Mother's Day. I absolutely LOVE school projects. So PRECIOUS...I love my sweet boy!

Finally...pictures!

2009-05-14T18:34:00.003-05:00

I am so excited about the upcoming weekend. My hubby is cooking up a surprise for my birthday (which is Sunday) and I can hardly wait to see what it is!!! I will keep you all posted. Here are some pictures that I have been meaning to post that go with previous blogs...sorry they are so late! I will try to do better in the future. :)

Drew's first experience fishing!

Fishing with Poppy

Done fishing...didn't take long. :)

Reading a story with Poppy

I love this picture!

2009-05-14T18:26:00.002-05:00

Drew and his best friend Carter

Fun in the sun!

Drew and Daddy being silly!

Drew and his Poppy

Drew with Nana and Pa-Paw

Short and Sweet

2009-05-14T09:25:00.001-05:00

Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars...

I love that quote!!!

So...it's been one of those weeks!

2009-05-07T10:47:00.002-05:00

Yep, you heard it here first...Drew absolutely takes after his daddy in the accident prone department. :( Bless his heart he has had a rough week, hence why there have been no posts.
On top of our house being shown practically EVERY DAY and us not being at home I apologize for lack of posting.

We had a great time at the lake, despite all the rainy weather. We hung out with my dad and step-mom a.k.a. Poppy (used to be Papa) and Mee-Mee. Drew got to fish for the first time (pictures to come), and like his mama he was only interested for about 10 minutes. :) So let's get started on Drew's rough week:

Monday - Picked him up from school and another child had poked him in the eye and busted a blood vessel...he now has a red dot that has yet to go away!

Tuesday - After returning from our afternoon walk we went to play at our neighbor's house and he and Carter were riding on her jeep and it tipped over backwards and they bumped heads. The back of his head the front of her head...bless them both!

Wednesday - Consider yourself warned ***This is not for the faint*** The daycare calls me around 9:30 am and says that Drew has been hurt. I am starting to fill the panic rise as I ask what happened.
Director: You may want to go ahead and notify his doctor...
Me: Why? What has happened?
Director: Drew was using the potty and the toilet seat fell down and smashed his ****AREA****
and we can't get him to calm down. (I imagine that was not an easy task considering what had just happened!)
Me: I am on my way!!!!
So after holding urine for 10 hours, crying on and off all day, one doctor visit, and finally urinating Drew is much better...WHEW! No permanent damage, just bruising. I can't even imagine what my poor baby was going through with all of that, but thank goodness when we got up this morning he went to the potty like normal and never even mentioned it. :)
It did crack me up when I dropped him off this morning and the first thing that one of his classmates said to him was "Drew is your pee-pee all better?" :)

I promise I will post pictures again, but that would require me to sit in front of a computer for at least an hour or two and I just don't have enough time in the day, but soon I promise.
Have a great rest of the week...one more day, YAY!!!

MAY IS HERE!!!

2009-05-01T14:06:00.002-05:00

So many exciting things going on in May!!! Mother's Day, My Birthday, and Our 5-Year Wedding Anniversary, it's going to be a busy month.

Drew is recovering from his sinus infection so we are taking him to his Nana and Granddaddy's house tonight for a date night. YAY...a date night, can you stand it?!? Not sure what we are doing just yet, Crawfish Boil plans fell through, but we should be able to think of something! ;)

The plan is to head for the lake on Saturday so hopefully the rain will stay away Sunday! I will post pictures soon. Have a great weekend!!!

Tired!

2009-04-27T09:19:00.002-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days! It has been utter chaos at my house. Drew has been sick since Friday (sinus infection). He spent Friday morning here with Mommy at work and I can honestly say he was so precious. He just sat in the floor (on a blanket of course, thanks Jen) and watched "Wightning Aqueen" for those of you who need a translation that would be Lightning McQueen (Disney's Cars movie). Daddy took over at lunch time and took Doodlebug home. We spent the rest of the evening listening to an "hour" soft water presentation that turned out to be about 3 hours all for a $10 gift card to Wal-Mart, which is ironic because he didn't even bring it with him. It should be in the mail today...right!!! UGH!!!

Saturday was extremely busy: we woke up, cleaned house, left house (being shown by realtor), came back to house, cleaned ourselves up, Wal-Mart trip, Neighbor's house for hamburgers and good times, bed at 11:00 p.m.

So begins Sunday: woke up, cleaned house again, left house again for another showing, back to house to change clothes, off to Katie's baby shower, back home Dave gets spring/summer clothes out of the attic, start unloading, reloading tubs with winter clothes, back to the attic, dinner, bath, bed around 11:00 p.m.

I am tired and bless my boy he is a trooper! He was a good boy all weekend and for the most part went willingly everywhere we decided to drag him. :) On a positive note, Dave starts his new softball league Tuesday so that should be lots of fun for the whole Brown family!!!

Adorable!!!

2009-04-23T11:00:00.001-05:00

My son said the most adorable thing this morning and I had to share:

Drew: "Mommy, I am so happy!"
Me: "I am so happy that you are happy."
Drew: "I just want to dance!"
Me: Hysterically laughing..."Just dance buddy, just dance"

...So he did!

3 Year Appointment

2009-04-22T09:45:00.002-05:00

So now that my baby is 3 (tear, tear, sniff) we had to go to his 3 year check up. I am proud to say that my little man is growing big and strong and Dr. H is very proud of his progress. Drew is weighing in at 32. 5 lbs. (70th percentile) and is 37 1/2 inches tall (50th percentile). Bless my boy, he is just not a baby anymore. :( He had to have his blood pressure taken and a finger stick. I have to tell you, my child is quite the drama king...he whined about his "boo-boo" on his finger the ENTIRE way home (a good 30 minutes).

Dr. H also noticed that he is very head-strong...not sure who he gets that from! :) Drew kept telling Dr. H that he is not sick. He also proceeded to put his toy car on the exam table and told Dr. H that he is Lightning McQueens doctor, not Drew's. By the end of our visit with the doctor he actually had Drew smiling a little, and then in comes the nurse with the terrible little "boo-boo" maker (finger sticker).

Since my big boy is now 3 I suppose he has decided that fighting is now acceptable. Examples:
Monday - I go to pick Drew up from school and the boy has scratches all over his face (even one in his ear). I ask his teacher what happened and she says that he and another little boy just started duking it out for no apparent reason. She separated them and put them in time out, turned around to wipe another child's nose and by the time she turned back around they were at it again!!! I still can't get Drew to tell me what they were fighting about.
Tuesday - I turn into the parking lot to pick Drew up and the class is outside on the playground. As I am turning in I see Drew walk up to a little boy and just push him...for no reason. I am in shock. The little boy then turns to Drew and starts hitting him, and Drew of course hits him back. The teacher from across the playground runs over and separates them and is putting them in time out as I am getting out of my car. So I go collect Drew's things, etc. and come back out to get him. I ask him why he hit the other child and he says, "because he is a monster"!!! WHAT THE CRAP?!?

Now I ask you all what is a mother to do? How do I get him to understand that it is not acceptable to just walk up and hit another child? When I talk to him, he seems to understand what I am saying and yet the very next day...
Any suggestions from you parents out there would be greatly appreciated!!!

2009-04-20T21:33:00.002-05:00

Worn out after a fabulous birtday (again, I did not misspell this...see earlier post) party!

My little Chef

Getting ready for bed in his new "Cars" PJ's

This will be the last birthday picture post I promise!

2009-04-20T21:26:00.002-05:00

Prince Drew opening presents

Making a wish and blowing out the candles

Trying to get all the kiddos in one spot for a picture...what was I thinking?!?

AWESOME birthday cake compliments of Toni Marie and Aunt Nancy!

My family!!!

Birthday Fun

2009-04-20T21:15:00.003-05:00

Here are some pictures from the infamous (if you know my child you have heard about this birthday party for 4 months now) Drew "Car Birtday (no this is not misspelled, this is actually what he called it) Party". We had the party at Pump It Up in case you were wondering and couldn't figure it out from the pictures.

Watching the safety video...what they hear is "Blah, Blah, Blah" :)

Drew and Dave coming off the slide

These lovely ladies are who we refer to as "The Bench Warmers"

The Birthday Boy and Mommy

Drew and Uncle J

So begins another week!

2009-04-20T13:00:00.003-05:00

Mondays....blah! I am not a fan of Monday's, but who is right? Drew's "Car" Birthday party went very well considering it was a room full of ankle biters :) We had the typical party, lots of family and friends running around, laughing, crying, opening presents, eating cake and of course we had the kid that threw up (Bless you Garrett, I hope you are feeling better). Drew had a blast and no one left with injuries...that I am aware of :)

Yesterday was Drew's actual 3rd birthday and we had leftover birthday cake and yes we sang and blew out the same "Car" candle about 15 times. He also got to open his presents from Mommy and Daddy. He loved all of all of his birthday presents (even the clothes). Thank you to all who were able to join us in wishing Drew-B a Happy Birthday and thank you for all the wonderful presents. I will try to post some pictures tonight.

I guess I need to get back to work now, it is MONDAY! :(

2009-04-18T00:16:00.002-05:00

Here are a few pictures from Easter...enjoy!

Bless him...he loves the Easter Bunny!

Drew and his Uncle J

The Easter Bunny left lots of goodies!!!

So I've jumped on the band wagon!!!

2009-04-17T23:28:00.002-05:00

And so begins my journey of blogging...maybe! Thank you Alli DeArman. I am absolutely obsessed with reading blogs so I have decided to take the plunge and create one of my own. Not knowing how often I will update or if I will ever return to blog again, but at least I can say I tried! Seeing as how I am new to this I will keep this one short and update again after Drew's 3rd Birthday party on Saturday. Wish me luck!!!