Cousins

I brought the kids all outside again and I couldn't pass up taking these adorable pictures of the cousins all laying together on a blanket I put on the grass.

Don't you love how Gavin's arm is around Alexis and he grabbed her hand? I think he'll always look out for his little cousin.

Dylan wanted to join in on the fun. They all love to laugh together. Look at those big smiles.

Isn't it precious how Gavin and Lexi play together? I love to watch babies interact. It's like they have their own way of communicating that only other babies understand.

Sleeping babies

It was fun to have my nephew, Gavin, back at my house for daycare. I missed him so much while I was on maternity leave and it seems like he grew twice the size when he came back. I turned on the sprinklers for the older kids in the morning and while they played in the water, both of my babies, Lexi and Gavin fell asleep. So, I thought it was too priceless to pass up a Kodak moment.

Dylan loves having his cousin back, especially since now there are two babies to play with and help take care of. He is such a good big brother and big cousin. I bet Gavin and Dylan will have so much fun playing together as they get older.

Pictures from outside

I started watching kids in my daycare again this week. It was an adjustment at first, waking up early to get the house ready, and having to share my attention for my kids with the other kids I watch. However, it was fun to have Dylan's friends here again to keep him entertained and busy all day. Dylan is napping really well and getting really tired at night since he's been using so much energy playing with the kids this week, and I sure have been ready for bed at night too. Yesterday when I took the kids outside, I captured these pictures that I thought were so adorable. I just had to share them.




I let Dylan pick some of the flowers around our house. He loves to smell them and was trying to let Lexi smell them too.










Look at my beautiful baby girl. She loves being outside so much, she kept smiling on her blanket in the grass.

Baby's First Swim

Alexis went in the pool with me for the first time. Fortunately, my parents' pool is a warm 90 degrees, so it felt like a warm bath. Lexi fell asleep on my chest and slept the whole time we were in the pool. Who knew a swim could be so relaxing? That's my girl, lounging in the pool already. I can see who will be sunbathing with me in the summers, while her brother wears everyone out playing and swimming like a fish.

Big boy bike

My dad (Papa Mac) bought Dylan a bike with training wheels and he has been struggling with trying to make it go by himself. Finally, last Friday, he started to catch on to the idea of pedalling. Unfortunately, when he pedals, he forgets to steer, so we had some funny moments of him riding into the ditch. But, he was so proud to be able to ride his bike by himself, and we were all proud of him too.

Dylan's cookie day

Last week, while Lexi slept, I decided to do something special with Dylan. So, we made chocolate chip cookies. He loves to help me in the kitchen, but it was his first time making cookies and he loved helping me measure out the ingredients. (Even though he ended up with more of it on the counter than in the measuring cup.) The best part, of course, was eating the dough afterwards. I let Dylan sit on the floor with what was left in the bowl and on the beaters. Needless to say he was happy, and a little hyper all evening.

Alexis Joy Brady!!!

Alexis Joy was born on Tuesday, July 1 at 3:44 p.m. weighing 8 lbs, 4 oz., and was 21 inches long. She is absolutely the most beautiful little girl I have ever seen and I love her so much. Getting to her being born is another story, however. After almost 2 weeks of contractions and being sent home from the hospital once, my doctor finally had me come into the hospital to have my labor induced. I, of course not loving pain, wanted an epidural, so after the contractions were severe enough, I got some pain relief, until the pump on the epidural broke and it completely wore off. Unfortunately, the anesthesiologist was in surgery, so most of the worst of my labor was natural. I guess I'm tougher than I thought. Then, Alexis dropped so quickly into the birth canal that her heart rate dropped rapidly and the nurses all came in to put oxygen on me and try to bring her heart rate back up. Needless to say, that was the scariest moment of my life. Fortunately, Lexi recovered quickly. I think she just might be a bit of a drama queen. She may get that from me. After all of that drama, she was born perfectly healthy, and we were so excited to meet our beautiful girl. She is a little angel so far, sleeping 3-4 hours at a time at night, so I can actually wake up rested. She's very laid back, and loves to be held and watch everybody and everything in those few hours she's awake. Dylan loves having a baby sister, and wants to hold her all of the time. But, he needs extra attention from us right now, and is very attached to Terry. So, it's a balancing act to bring a new baby in, but I think our family is just perfect right now.



Terry, Dylan, and I went to the beach while I was having contractions, so here I am, very uncomfortable, but hoping to see my daughter soon.











Finally, meeting Alexis face-to-face is one of the happiest moments in my life. I am so blessed.











Alexis Joy ("Lexi") has beautiful blue eyes, that are very similar to Dylan's when he was born. and her hair is almost blonde. As you can see, she loves to suck on those fingers.

















Can you guess who the proud father is?















Our family when we first brought Lexi home from the hospital. Dylan was so excited to hold her.

God is good!

Hi everyone. I thought I would update you all a little on our family the last few weeks. Dylan is hitting those 2's with a vengeance. Of course, the only ones to see his stubbornness are Terry and I. He is a perfect angel for everyone else. I'm actually really glad that he is so good around others though. As much as we hate to do it, he is starting to get time-outs now for saying "no" and for disobeying us. But, we are trying to be tough. Sometimes it's hard to keep a straight face though. Even as a stinker, he still cracks us up.

Terry is getting ready to start softball season. He is practicing with the team for the next few weeks and then starts playing in the beginning of May. I'm so excited to bring Dylan to the games. They play just down the road, so Dylan and I are going to walk down to watch. Actually, Dylan will ride in his wagon while I pull him. At least one of us should get some exercise. :)

Now for our other baby news: This was a crazy weekend for us. I started out Saturday morning going to a prenatal swim class with a friend of mine, and came home to realize I had started bleeding. Being pregnant, I was very scared and called the Doctor right away. The Doc on call had us go into the hospital to put the baby on a monitor and make sure everything was okay. The scariest part was when we got there, the nurse and Doctor were thinking my water may have broken. Since I am only 28 weeks along, I would have to spend the rest of my pregnancy at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids to try to keep me from going into labor. Fortunately, they did an exam and had an ultrasound and found the fluid levels were all normal. We did have to stay overnight for observation and still don't know what caused the bleeding, but I have to rest a bit more now and no heavy lifting. Oh well, I guess I can't carry in those heavy groceries anymore. Shoot. On the positive side, we have been wanting to get another ultrasound to confirm the sex of our baby and she is definitely a girl. Yea!!!

God has really blessed our family and I know he is watching over our little Alexis right now, keeping her safe until she is born.

Dylan's Big Boy Bed

Dylan spent his first night in his "big boy bed" last night. It's actually his crib that's transformed into a toddler bed by removing one of the railings. He was so excited to try it out, and we were a little nervous, but he was great. We lined the floor with pillows, just in case, but Dylan didn't move all night long. I think it's an easier transition for Dylan than me. I can't believe my little baby isn't in a crib anymore. Can he be this big already?








Here Dylan is playing in the bed he can now climb in and out of by himself. Of course, he carries his baseball bat everywhere.

Easter 2008

Easter was another fun day for our family. We all had new outfits for church. Dylan got about 4 Easter baskets from family and the Easter bunny, which was great for Terry and I because we get the candy :) Dylan had an Easter basket hunt at my parents' house after church and in the afternoon, Dylan went on an Easter Egg hunt at Terry's Dad's.

Unfortunately, this is the best picture we have of Dylan's Easter outfit. He didn't want to stand still (could it be because of the candy?)









Dylan loved looking for Easter eggs at "Papa Brady's". He kept yelling "I found one!" Hopefully next year it will be a little warmer, so we're not looking for eggs with boots and snowpants on.

Dylan's Birthday Party

We had a family birthday party for Dylan on Saturday. He had a great time with all of his closest friends and family. Of course, he got to wear his Chuck E. Cheese's crown again. I love that he's at the age to really enjoy opening presents now.






Dylan was so excited to open his new bubbles.



















He sat on "Papa" Brady's lap to open most of his presents.












"Papa Mac" and Grandma got Dylan a big wagon. He loves it!! Here Dylan is trying out his new wagon with his friend, Carter.











Aren't I the cutest 2-year-old ever?


















I think Daddy is proud of his big boy.

Dylan wanted an Elmo birthday party, of course.

He put a lot of himself into blowing out the candles (including a little spit, sorry everyone that ate a piece)













Last year Dylan cried so hard when everyone was watching him eat his cake. This year, Dylan didn't care about anything but eating every bite!

Dylan Turns 2!!!

Dylan's birthday is on March 21, which happened to be Good Friday this year. I had the day off of work, and Terry took the day off too. We took Dylan to the Children's Museum in GR, then to Chuck E. Cheese, which were both a first for Dylan. We all had a blast, and Dylan was worn out by the end of the day. He didn't even open his presents until after his nap when we got home. It was a great family day and hopefully a day Dylan will remember for a while.


There was a "Bob the Builder" exhibit at the Children's Museum, which Dylan was so excited about.











Dylan got to use "tools" in the Bob the Builder workshop. Of course, he loved to hear them all make noise. He wants to be just like Daddy, using tools and making things.















They had a big car for kids to play in. Dylan saw it from the outside window before we even got in the museum and when we finally got to it, he could hardly wait to climb in and drive.











At Chuck E. Cheese's, Dylan got a birthday crown and sticker, which he never wanted to take off. We bought a lot of tokens so he could play anything he wanted, but his favorite things were free: watching Chuck E. Cheese perform on the stage, and playing on this slide.









By the end of our Grand Rapids trip, Dylan was so tired. It was past his naptime and he slept all of the way home. He didn't want to stay awake to open presents :)

Gavin Mark Tisdel!!!

We have a new nephew today! My sister, Krissi, had a baby boy. They are all doing well. Gavin was 21 1/2 inches long, 9 lbs. 1 oz. We went to the hospital as soon as we were done working and Dylan finally got to meet his new cousin. He said "I love Gavin." Here are some pics of the most beautiful nephew in the world. I may be a little biased, but you can see how cute he is for yourself.

Terry is a proud uncle.

I couldn't wait to be an aunt. Finally!

Dylan is meeting cousin Gavin with proud Daddy, Mark, and his "Papa Mac"

Dylan is giving baby Gavin a kiss.

Aunt Darcie and cousin Grace are so excited too.