Disneyland Vacation Day 2

Day 2 was all Disneyland. Since it was still the weekend, the park was the most crowded on this day. But, the lines weren’t too bad—usually 20 mins or so. Braxton did better than we expected waiting in line. Disneyland is so good about their lines constantly moving and lots of stuff to look at on every twist and turn; however, we still had to feed him a granola bar or fruit snack to help entertain him in almost every line.

The weather was a little chilly, but not bad this day. Being pregnant and naturally running a little hotter, it was perfect for me. Mom and Braxton got a little cold but only at night. It got a little windy right before the fireworks show, so it was cancelled. That was a bummer because it was the only one scheduled during our trip and we kept Brax up late for it.

It is hard to say which rides were his favorite—pretty much anything in a boat, train, horse, or flying contraption. He was very nervous for the first few rides because he’s never done anything bigger than a carousel before. He recognized a few things on the Jungle Cruise from our Disneyland video and he got to sit on daddy’s lap, so it was probably one of his favorites. The Pirates of the Caribbean was probably his least favorite because it scared him a bit. He had to hold both of our hands and often when I looked over at him he was staring at the floor of the boat. That night he woke up crying once and we wondered if it gave him nightmares.




Tarzan’s Treehouse

He loved the Big Thunder Ranch because of the goats. He could have pet them all day.



This face says it all!

He LOVES trains.

The teacups were not exactly his favorite. He wanted to stand the whole ride.

Waiting for the Tiki Room doors to open

Braxton wouldn’t fall asleep in the stroller, so we took him back for a nap. When we came back that night Goofy and Mickey were at the entrance for pictures. He loved them! He had no interest in looking at the camera because he couldn't take his eyes off them.

We were so surprised when Braxton just walked right up to Mickey by himself and gave him a hug. It was so sweet.


He really liked these rockets.

After the first night in the small pack-n-play, Braxton of course wanted to sleep on our bed. If he didn’t insist on taking up the whole bed himself, we probably would have let him sleep with grandma. But we didn’t want him to kick her off it and he ended up in the pack-n-play again.

Disneyland Vacation Day 1

We decided to take Braxton to Disneyland before the baby comes. We never planned on taking our children until they were much older than this, but Braxton loves Mickey and our Disneyland Sing-a-long video. I have been feeling stir-crazy and needed to go somewhere before I am tied down with a newborn again, so we bit the bullet and we are SO glad we did. Braxton was a perfect little angel the entire trip with only 1 or 2 minor (1 minute or so) tantrums per day when he didn’t want to be held or put in the stroller. He was so excited about every single thing we did from the rides to the fancy dinner we had at Club 33. He said hello and goodbye to EVERY airplane, bus, boat, or train. We also took Brian’s mom with us as an extra help since I am starting to feel really pregnant and didn’t know how my energy was going to hold up for the trip. We are so glad she came and we had so much fun with her there.

We took so many pictures and can’t decide how many to post, so I am breaking our trip down to a post per day. Day 1 was traveling to CA. Our flight was at 9 am and Braxton did so well. He was confused a little when he had to drink his milk in the car and eat breakfast at the airport, but was more than happy to walk around with ‘amma’, his word for grandma, looking out the windows at the airplanes. Once we explained that he had to sit in the seat with the seatbelt just like his car seat, he did great sitting still. He just watched movies and drove his cars on the tray tables. Luckily, it is a pretty short flight so he never got bored.

The week before our trip we came down with a nasty cold and we still had some congestion. Braxton was pretty well over it and Brian was able to take Dayquil, but I experienced the worst pain in my ears I’ve ever had during landing. I literally started crying and thought my eardrums were going to explode and have permanent damage. It ruined the first day for me because they just wouldn’t pop and I couldn’t hear until the next morning.

We couldn’t check into the hotel until later in the afternoon, so we drove to the Santa Monica pier and spent a few hours wandering around, eating lunch, and watching Braxton play in the sand and this mini playground. After we were done, we drove to Anaheim and hit a grocery store for breakfast and lunch stuff for the week. We finally checked into the hotel at 4 pm (5 pm our time) and Braxton immediately took a nap. That night we went down to a fun shopping center for dinner at Cheesecake Factory and went to bed early. Here are the pictures from day 1.

Santa Monica

Loves the Sand


They had a really fun mini playground that Braxton loved





What a good day at the beach. He was all smiles.

Pretty sure this will be his last time sleeping in a pack-n-play! He is just so tall; he couldn’t even stretch out poor guy.

Easter

Easter this year was a simple affair for our family. We had a little neighborhood Easter egg hunt Sunday morning before church. Braxton did much better this year; however, he was preoccupied with opening his eggs to see what was inside instead of picking up more eggs. Brian had to help keep him motivated to search for more. Here are some pictures. Enjoy!

He was pretty excited for his basket. He’s got a little of the crazy eyes going.


Ready to go

The group of kids—minus Braxton. Brian was outside hiding eggs and Braxton was throwing a fit that he couldn’t be out there with him.

Cheesy smile

Daddy help?

Finally we can go through the goods.

My big boy!

Braxton turns 2

We can’t believe how big Braxton has become. Sometimes when we dress him in the morning, he looks (and acts) like a big boy who is ready to go to school. It takes seeing him next to actual school-age children to make us feel better that he is still our little boy. At his 2-year doctor appointment he measured 96% for height and 45% for weight. He is so tall and skinny that his pants are either high-waters or fall off his waist. Luckily, all the 2T shorts I bought have adjustable waistbands for summer!

His favorite phrases are truck (sounds like duck), ball, bye bye, Daddy at work, snack, Aye (with a head bob, his word for yes. We think it is short for ‘all right’), Nemo, and Cookie (for cookie monster, not the real ones). His favorite toys are little trucks, golf clubs, balls of any kind, and any outdoor toy with wheels. If he could be anywhere, it is outside. If he could be with anyone, it would be anywhere with daddy.

Since Braxton’s birthday was over Easter weekend, we had a little party for him the Saturday before with a few of his best friends. Here are some pictures from the party:

Impromptu Sword Fight

He was the best birthday boy with screams of delight for every present he opened

A chair all for himself when we hang outside

The birthday cake—yes I made it. It actually turned out better than I hoped. Gotta love those whoopee pies!

He even knew to blow out the candle.


Sharing with Daddy

Blowing bubbles outside with his best friend Kennedy after the party

A train table from Grandma Coombs

A plasma car from Grandpa and Grandma Foster

What a GREAT birthday! We LOVE you Braxton!

Our Baby Isn't a Probably Anymore!

After three ultrasounds and over a month of waiting, we can officially say that we are having a GIRL! I swear I have the worst ultrasound luck. With Braxton, the cord was in the way and we had to go back a second time. With this little one, she is so modest that her legs are always closed so tight they can't get a good look. At the second ultrasound the doctor got a glimpse enough that he said it is 'probably a girl but if you buy anything girly, keep your receipts'. We accepted that answer and waited until my next appointment to do another ultrasound, where we finally have photographic evidence of a girl. This time she was trying to hide behind my belly button, so the doctor had to poke and prod her to move enough to see.

I am so excited to have one of each, but also scared because I'm not terribly girly myself. I don't know how to do little girl hair or buy matchy accessories. It will be an adventure, but we are excited.

Brian turns 28!

On Sunday we celebrated Brian's 28th birthday. I can't believe we are getting close to 30--crazy. It was so nice for Brian to have the day at home since he has been working non-stop this busy season. He slept in (as much as you can with a two-year-old), got a 3 hour nap, some wonderful conference, and cake and ice cream with neighbors. All-in-all it was a fun day. Happy Birthday Hon!

He's a Big Boy Now

Braxton is such a big boy! He officially spent his first night out of the crib and in his new bedroom. It went better than we expected. He was dead silent just looking around for a bit, then slowly and calmly said ‘mama . . . daddy . . . scared’. It was so sweet and genuine, we of course went in and told him we loved him and there was nothing to be scared of. After that, he quietly rolled around and kicked his legs for 30 minutes before he gave up and fell asleep. No crying, no climbing off the bed, no fight—fabulous!

Today for naptime it took him almost an hour to fall asleep with repeated attempts to soothe and keep him lying down, but again no crying, no fighting, and no getting off the bed. I am sure once the novelty of the new bedroom has worn off, the crying and fighting will begin and then will come the hard part. So far, all is wonderful! Here are some pictures from this morning of him actually modeling for the camera on his new bed.