Braylon is 4 Months!

Four month mark came way to fast. This month has been nothing but busy. Our days are filled with duties of our business and our nights are shared with peaceful moments.

Where to start...In Mid September we moved into another house! Our 2 year plan in our first home turned into a great 4 years. However, since adding Bray to our mix, we just needed more space. We were blessed to find a beautiful home just 2 miles from our current location. It has everything we wanted and more, including a pool! I look forward to the holidays this year and creating fun memories as a lil' family.

We have already started the memory making with Braylon doing many new things this month. The GOOD and The Ugly. Hmmm... Let's start with the Good: Rolling over, laughing out loud (litterly), pulling himself up, tasting (not really liking) baby food, and interacting with the baby shows on TV. And now for the Ugly: Teething and growing bald. Yes-its true, the pics of Bray as a newborn with this dark hair...well, those days are over. They have been replaced with "barley-there and very thin blond hair. Its so funny how that happens to babies. I'm really hoping for some cute curls to come in before his 6 month photo session. Braylon also seems to have all of his teeth coming in all at once! Why would I be surprised, of course--just get over the wanting-to-be-held-every-second-phase and puking-after-every-meal routine. Now, we are gonna drive mommy and daddy crazy by having 1/2 dozen teeth come in at once! That's our BOY!!!

Bray's 4 month doctor's appointment was a great one...besides getting more shots of course. He weighed in at 17.8 pounds (95 percentile) and 25 inches long (75 percentile). So we are safe to say we still have a growing boy on our hands. He is doing all the stuff he should be by now, so we are so blessed to have a healthy and active baby boy!

Later in the month Braylon will have his first plane ride (besides in mommy's tummy) as we are going to VEGAS for my birthday! So excited, last birthday of my 20's gotta go out with a bang right? We are also excited for David's family who will be visiting for a week from Augusta, GA. This will be another first for Bray as he gets to meet his grandparents and auntie from the other side of the fam. And finally, B's first Halloween! His costume is adorable, be on the look out for those pics when it's time!

Happy FALL everyone!

"I'm 4 Months"

"Eatin Time"

"Relaxin Time"

"Daddy Time"

"Mommy Time"

"Family Time"

"Tummy Time"


"Bath Time"

"Cuzzin Time"

Braylon is 3 Months!

Okay, so I guess it's confirmed that I am going to have to start off every new month post with a "I can't believe it" Braylon is now --- months old! I truly cannot believe how quickly time is flying by! Our little man is growing every day. It truly feels like yesterday I was sitting on the couch enjoying my Oreo cookies and milk while feeling him kick the crap out of me from the inside of my stomach! Bray is truly our angel and we are so blessed! David and I are having a ball with him. It is so true that life is so much better with these precious children a part of it.

Lets see, Bray is now 15 lbs and still in the 90 percentile for his height. He is our "chunky munky". Everyone who meets him can't believe he is only 3 months. They respond with "OMG, what are you feeding him". I chuckle as if its the first time I've heard it and say "ummm--enfamil"...I dunno, what am I supposed to say, other than "Yes, my baby LOVES to eat! Every 3 hours to be exact. However, the big accomplishment for the month is Bray is sleeping through the night! Well, I should say he wakes up at 4am to eat, but heck--I will take it! Oh, sleep--how I took thee for granted!

Bray still loves going to work with mommy on KC Property Group errands (even though he wishes he didn't have to ride in the car seat--yes--he's spoiled). His favorite pass time is bath time, although, he is outgrowing the bathroom sink. Guess we're going to have to pull out the ole' baby bathtub! When Bray's hanging with daddy, he loves to watch football--guess he better get use to it, right! After all, he is a Cardinal's season ticket holder =) It's so cute how he truly engages on what is happening on the TV. I often wonder what he's thinking while watching those men chase each other up and down the field. Mommy's favorite time of day is our playtime in the morning. Bray is bright eyed, bushy tailed, and full of laughs, coos, and the occasional scream. He loves to hear himself talk...hmmm wonder where he gets that from!

Bray has had quite the busy month...He's gained a new girlfriend, Charli Daphne was welcomed into the world on July 30th. Charli is Alana and Ronnie's baby girl, and she is such a doll. We have already pre-arranged their marriage...after all, Devin and Brooke, Jaiden and Greg are already destined for each other. Might as well add Braylon and Charli to the mix. Bray also survived his first road trip to Flagstaff to visit The Cardinals at training camp. It was a nice break and we all enjoyed the cold weather for a change. Braylon actually got to be bundled up for the first time, and I think he really enjoyed it! Braylon also attended the first of many birthday parties this month. Cousin Jaiden turned the big 3 and Auntie Quisha, the big 3+ =). Needless to say, this month has been adventurous, and I know this is just the beginning!

Well, I will stop for now--enjoy the pics and stay tuned for more updates on lil' man!

Uncle Cecil went to Heaven

My famous "Uncle Cecil" lost his battle to Cancer this week. Cecil went to be with the Lord while resting comfortably at home with Aunt Lyn on August 2nd. Cecil would have been 65 years old this October. Cecil was diagnosed with Cancer the same week as Grandginny, this past March. It was a tiresome battle for both, and we are happy to know they are now PAIN FREE! We are having a celebration of his life on Saturday, September 4th. I will always remember my uncle's booming laugh, hilarious stories, and big bear hugs. One of my favorite memories is taking him to his first Cardinals game last year. He truly enjoyed himself and became quite a fan these past few seasons. (Yes, it's true--he jumped on the Cardinal bandwagon with the rest of AZ). I was fortunate to have Larry Fitzgerald sign Cecil's jersey this summer while visiting the Cardinals at Training Camp. Larry wished our family the best, and was very sincere after hearing of his passing. Cecil never got a chance to wear the jersey, it will now become a very special item to us all. We love and miss you Cecil, you and Grandginny be good up there ;)

Braylon is 2 months!

Well, I can officially say mommy does have a "BIG BOY" on her hands. We had Braylon's 2 month check up and everything went great! He weighs 13.8 pounds and 24.25inches long! This makes him in the 90 percentile for his height and 75 percentile for his weight. The doctor looked at his chart to see his birth weight to comment "Normally he would be 4 months old before reaching this weight". LOL!!! What can I say, my kid LOVES TO EAT! Aside from being a healthy big boy he had his first 2immunizations and we will head back over the next few weeks to get the rest. I'm being an "overly cautious" momma and not giving him his shots all at once. I know Bray will do fine though with multiple visits, he only cried for a split second and went back to wanting his food. ;)
Some other milestones this month is now he laughs, giggles, coos, and kicks like a bull! It is so cute to see him crack up at me. Every morning when he wakes up I talk to him in my super annoying "mommy voice" and he throws his head back laughing silly. It melts my heart. He's also been such a great boy by sleeping 6 hours per night before needing a bottle! I think he sensed my crabbiness with daddy so he decided he would do what he could to give me some more sleep, and wow what a difference it makes =) He also still loves to stand up on our legs and bounce around. I think next week we will start giving him some tummy time. We look forward to being able to have some soon play dates with the other babies around.

Here's a video of Braylon's giggles...and a couple "bodily functions"

To catch you up...

Wow! I can’t believe 7 weeks from right this moment I was in labor, waiting for our one and only precious baby to arrive. When everyone would tell me that “being a mommy is the best thing ever” I had no idea it would be like this. Braylon is truly the love of our life’s’. He is amazing and continues to bring us more and more joy every day. We are so thankful to God for giving us this amazing blessing. To sum up the past 7 weeks will take forever, so let me just tell you a few “highlights”.

Braylon had a great 2 week check-up and his first round of shots at 4 weeks went smooth also. He is under the pediatric care of Melissa Smith or “Missy”. Missy and I went to Jr High and High school together and were basketball teammates. She is a great Physician Assistant and doesn’t “make fun” when I have the silly “first time mom” questions. We are really blessed that Bray will be under Missy’s care. His height is in the 75 percentile and he is growing like a weed every day. By the first week he gained 12 ounces! This was nearly double what the average baby gains which is 1 oz. per day. The best explanation for his rapid weight gain goes to the fact that the kid loves to EAT. He wakes us up every 3 hours to eat and if I wouldn’t know any better, I would swear the child has a built-in alarm clock in his belly. Litterly, rather it is morning-noon-or night; he is ready to eat by hour 3. Nursing was a challenge for me, so he is enjoying his Enfamil like a kid in a candy store. Whenever he sees his bottle within reach he gets very excited and “chomps” like a vulture the second we stick it in his mouth. We go back to the pediatrician for his “2 month check-up”. Daddy and I have bets on how much the porker is going to weigh. My estimation—12 lbs.

Some of Braylon’s favorite hobbies include standing up and bouncing on daddy’s legs, watching mommy work on the computer, and letting his puppy dog Shayla give him kisses. Bray has been spoiled by all and is so blessed to have an amazing family that loves him so much.








Braylon was excited to meet his cousins from San Jose, The Cupples Family. Tommy, Denie, Madison, and Taylor all came out for a weekend to visit. Braylon didn’t know what to do with all the attention and enjoyed getting spoiled by all. Braylon hopes to see his 2nd and 3rd cousins again very soon, who knows…maybe we’ll just make a trip up to Northern Cali for a visit!




Braylon’s first “vacation” was spent with daddy, mommy, and nana at a fancy resort in Scottsdale over July 4th weekend. It was soooo nice to get away and “relax” for a couple of nights. Braylon took his first swim and we were amazed at how much he enjoyed the water. While my mom and I were poolside, Braylon was keeping cool and relaxing in the cabana. He was also able to watch his first fireworks show and enjoyed every minute of it. If you’re ever looking for a nice relaxing and romantic getaway, check out The Sanctuary at Camelback. It was by far the best customer service I have ever received at a resort. We were litterly treated like royalty…I could have really got used to it.












33 days into Braylon’s life, his great-grand Ginny was taken home to be with the Lord. For those that don’t know, Grand Ginny was diagnosed with lung cancer in March. She stayed strong throughout the duration of my pregnancy and long enough to meet her one and only great-grandson. One moment I will never get out of my head was Bray sitting at gram’s bedside hours before she passed. Although gram was unresponsive, we put her arm around Braylon and felt that she knew he was there. Grand Ginny, you had a place in all of our hearts and you made a mark on everyone you met. You will be dearly missed, we love you. The picture below was taken just 1 week before Gram passed.



Last weekend Braylon was lucky to meet his “auntie” Brookie for the first time. Brooke flew to Phoenix all the way from Charlotte, NC to spend time with Braylon. She adores Braylon and was so happy to spend some time with him and even got to witness Bray laughing for the first time. Brooke and I had a great time while she was here. We enjoyed some great meals, lots of laughs, and even a little “rebel” time. We especially had fun meeting up with the Shipley’s for dinner who are also adding a baby boy to their family this December--we can't wait! It's so fun getting together with great friends. Brooke and her hubby Chad hope to make it out to AZ sometime before the year end. We also can't wait for Braylon to visit the Janecke's in HAWAII--that's next on our list!!!











Being “rebels”