Thank Goodness For Vacation!

Chris, Brendan, and I took a much needed trip to Florida to see my grandmother (Nonny), who has never met Brendan, and my aunt, uncle, and cousins. Coincidentally, my dad and other uncle planned the exact same trip and we had some travel buddies. I have to admit that besides getting to spend some time with them, it was VERY nice to have extra help with Brendan on the airplane! To think that I almost did this over the summer on my own...!

It was SO NICE spending time with everyone! Brendan loves Nonny and she even taught him a new "word!" You see, Brendan just loves her glass coffee table. Actually, he loves the sound it makes when his pounds it (yikes). Every two seconds we were telling him no and redirecting him, I swear! And he laughs when he is told no. Hmm. Not cool. I don't understand why the kids at school know I mean business, but Brendan thinks getting in trouble is hilarious. =/ Anyyyyway. Nonny didn't tell him "no" exactly, but a "nah-ah." So now Brendan says, "nah-ah"as he goes around the house. He does it usually right before he's going to do something he isn't supposed to do, of course!

Brendan and Nonny


Apparently the weather there was cold for the locals. We were feeling great in our shorts and t-shirts, but the Floridians were dressed in jeans, sweatshirts, and Uggs. It really was cute. I especially had to laugh at my cousins Shana and Natalie as they were getting ready to go to the beach with us- they brought their peacoats! Eventually they did take them off, but you'll notice they are still wearing sweaters...

Shana and Natalie

Us


Brendan especially loved the beach! The smile never left his face...even after he ate a handful of sand :)



I also got to spend some time with my cousins- Ollie, Shana, his wife, and his daughter Natalie. I wish they lived closer...we get along so well. Hopefully they will live by us sooner than later!



Somehow I didn't manage to get a picture of my aunt and uncle :( But it was so nice seeing them, as well. She's a teacher in Florida and we discuss the education system a lot. I think I'm going to take up a new cause, though (like I really need ANOTHER cause! LOL)...education in Florida. I found out some pretty unfortunate things about teaching in Florida, but I'll save that for a different post. It truly deserves a separate one.

A few final pics from our trip that I think are important.

Nonny With Her Three Kids- My Uncle, Aunt, and Dad

Our Four Generation Picture!

Our Happy Family

My Guy is 11-Months-Old and Had His First Haircut

I wasn't going to give in...

He was going to get his first haircut at a year...

He is a baby and I wasn't ready for him to have big boy hair...

But it kept growing, and growing...

It was in his face, and he'd get angry and cry...

So I could no longer be selfish...

My baby got his hair cut:

Before:


The First Snip:


Half Way Done:


All Done:


This was very hard for Mommy to see. She took pictures to keep herself from crying, actually. We kept a lock of his hair, of course. And he's cuter than ever, of course! He can see and he's happy, which is the most important thing. So we didn't make it quite to a year, but it was worth it.

Kimmie and Jonathan came over Sunday night for dinner and great discussions! In addition, we got help putting Brendan to bed! Jonathan read Brendan his bedtime story (The Very Hungry Caterpillar), 3 of us got his jammies on, and he fell right asleep. How easy is that?!



Finally, I have to share what Brendan is doing this month!

-He waves "bye bye"
-"soooooo big"
-Claps his hands if we say, "yay!"
-Uses all of his toys (especially the remote control) as a phone. He puts it up to his ear and says, "Dada?"
-Joined the Mommy Brendan Band. Mommy Plays the drum, Brendan plays the maracas. We're actually really good. You should come see us at our next gig. We perform nightly in his room.
-Cruises like crazy.
-Stands on his own for a couple seconds
-Climbs the stairs
-Drinks from a straw cup
-Has 6 teeth, working very hard on 7 and 8

He's getting to be such a big boy!

So, uh...

I think Brendan learns too much from Pepper. His new thing is to crawl around (he has no interest in walking, but that's okay- he's not even 11 months yet) and pick up toys in his mouth. He then proceeds to carry them in this fashion all over the house. This would all be fine, and mostly normal (normal, right????), but then he shakes his head back and forth and goes, "rrrrrrrrr." Well, maybe it's not "rrrrrrrrr" intentionally, but with his mouth filled with toy, it's hard to tell.

And Please Vote For Brendan

Not that he'll actually win...it's just for fun :) He wants to be the new Gap Baby.

Vote For Me!!!

IKEA: The Best Place in the World

At least it seemed that way yesterday. My friend since practically birth and I went shopping there yesterday while the kidlings played together with our moms. I haven't really been there since Brendan was born, and boy was I missing out!

First, let me talk about the adorable toys! So cute, and so much cheaper than other stores. I have Christmas AND the big 1st birthday planned already! Here's what I'm thinking:

A car mat:


A kitchen set (yes, my boy will have a kitchen, despite what daddy says):


Of course, many of the accessories that go with a kitchen

I would love to get this hanging chair, but there is (a) no space, and (b) I don't like the color with his room:


An easel:


Table and chairs:

Now that I've spent a ton of virtual money in my head, I'll post pics of the two little guys playing together! J did such an awesome job sharing his Kix with Brendan and Dodger the dog. One for J, one for Brendan, and one for Dodger. They had a busy day eating, playing in Grandma's living room, and going to the park. Brendan went down the slide by himself! Okay, kinda... ;)



Brendan did a great job sharing his musical table!




Someone needs a haircut...6 more weeks!




Grandpa helps Brendan down the slide:


Dinner time!