Our Brady Bunch

Now that I am one...

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

I have so many things to tell you about my life. First of all, I am very upset with my mother. I have been one for almost two months, and she has not had any time to put pictures of me on our blog for you all to see. I don't know why she doesn't have time. I'm a good baby and never get into things I'm not supposed to! She did have time to make me a birthday cake and invite some of my friends over to celebrate with me.

She also had time to buy me a few birthday presents and make me my very own birthday stocking. I got new pajamas and new sippy cups for my birthday, since I am too big for bottles now. I also got some yummy snacks, but as you can see, I have a hard time keeping my brother away from my stuff, especially my treats.

A few weeks after my birthday, Daddy and Mommy took me fishing. This was especially fun for me, since I was the only one who caught any fish.

Then they took us all on a walk down some beautiful trails. I got to ride on Daddy's shoulders--I love my Daddy!

I stay pretty busy most of the time. Mommy worries about me since I'm not really interested in learning how to walk. She keeps trying to get me to push this silly little toy around so that I can learn to walk behind it. I would rather push my high chair all over the house. Just because I can't walk yet doesn't mean I can't get what I want. I can crawl really, really fast. I can also climb things. Last week I learned to climb onto the couch. I do not like to stay where I am supposed to. Mommy moves things around to block the doorways so I can't get from one room to another. But I just move them back when she's not looking. I'm sneaky that way. I can say a couple of words now: Ma-ma and hi. I can wave hello and clap my hands when I do something I'm proud of!

Brother and Sister love this giant blue bathtub in the backyard. Today, I helped them fill it up with water. I wasn't sure that I wanted to get in when it was full--bathing in cold water doesn't seem like fun to me. I like to go outside, but the grass and concrete do not feel good on my knees. So I mostly get Mommy to push me around in my little pink car. I also like for Mommy to take me on walks around the neighborhood in my stroller.

And now, time for my nap. I love my nap. I have a little doll, a blanket, and sometimes a stuffed animal that I like to sleep with. I especially like to take a little cloth diaper to bed with me, because it is just the right size for me to hold on to while I'm sleeping. I'm a good sleeper now--I go right to bed and most mornings, I like to sleep late. Mommy thinks this is really nice!!

As you can see, my life is getting pretty interesting. I'm discovering new things every day, and life is so much fun! Next time you see me, I will have learned so much and will have so much more to tell you!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2010-03-31T08:56:00.002-05:00

It has been a crazy few weeks around the Brady house! Birthdays, birthday parties, our anniversary---I've hardly been able to keep up with it all! We're getting ready for our church Easter Egg Hunt and Easter Sunday this weekend, and after that I expect to have a little more time to post some birthday & Easter pictures! I hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Happy Birthday, Nathan!

2010-02-12T13:33:00.003-06:00

Imagine our surprise when we woke up on the morning of Nathan's 5th birthday to find 5 inches of snow on the ground! There was no snow in the forecast, so we were completely taken off guard. As one of my friends said, "I'm going to be busy this morning--I've got to shovel five inches of partly cloudy off my driveway!" Any snow in Southaven is a pretty special event, but to get snow on your birthday is really special! So, in honor of a very special day for a very special boy, here is a post dedicated just to Nathan!

Nathan doesn't really like to play in the snow. He likes to take long walks with Mommy when it snows and look at "other people's snow," but he doesn't want to roll around in it and get really cold, wet, and messy.

Nathan loves our (his) cat, Dorothy. We found Dorothy when she was just a kitten in the backyard of the empty house behind us. Matt likes to tell people that I stole her, but she had clearly been abandoned. Our previous cat hated Nathan, and her animosity towards him was the reason we had to give her away. Dorothy, on the other hand, adores Nathan. He carries her everywhere, and she lets him. No matter how badly he treats her, he is still the first one she runs to when she sees us. In fact, even after he threw her in the bathtub last night (he said he wanted to know if cats were buoyant) she waited until he was asleep and went to curl up in the bed next to him. I think poor Dorothy is a classic example of Stockholm syndrome.

Nathan is a little bit accident prone. When I saw this shirt that said, "I do all my own stunts," I had to get it for him! He has a tendency to hit his head in one particular spot--he has three different scars and a permanent knot all in the same place! Matt and I think we've done well if we can make it through a year without having to take Nathan to the ER!

He is an adoring big brother. Nathan is the early riser in our house, and each morning after he wakes up, he listens anxiously for the first sounds of stirring from Lily's room. As soon as he thinks she might be up, he opens the door and runs in. He got a little over-zealous a few times, so now we make him ask to make sure it's alright to go in! When he comes in from playing outside, one of the first questions he asks is "Where's Lily?" There was never a moment of resentment or jealousy when we brought her home from the hospital--he has loved her from the moment he saw her. He loves his big sister, too, and they spend hours playing together and coming up with creative ways to entertain themselves. I am so thankful to see the love that my children have for one another!

Nathan is also a big snuggler. I think that one of the reasons he gets up so early in the mornings is the hope that he will find Mommy or Daddy still in bed, so he will have someone to snuggle up and cuddle with. Sometimes this drives Lydia crazy, because when they sit down to watch a video together, Nathan expects her to snuggle with him!

He is the king of silly faces! It's so hard to get a picture with a serious expression or a real smile!

Notice his Auburn sweatshirt in this picture--Sunday night Lily and I came straight home from church and after I put her to bed, I turned on the Super Bowl. Matt, Lydia, and Nathan came home a few minutes later. Nathan walked in, glanced at the television, and ran to his room. In a few minutes he ran back in wearing his Auburn sweatshirt and hopped on the couch, ready to watch a ballgame!

This picture was taken the morning of his birthday. He wanted to sleep in his Auburn shirt after the Super Bowl, and since it was his birthday the next morning, we let him do what he wanted!

He is opening his "birthday stocking." Lydia and Nathan love getting their Christmas stockings so much that we made them a special stocking just for their birthday. I know, it's kind of odd, but they like it!

There are so many other things that make Nathan special. I remember watching "Where the Red Fern Grows" with him and Lydia. When Old Dan died and Little Ann was wasting away, Nathan jumped up and ran from the room. I was worried about him for a minute, but then he came running back in with a box of tissues--or as he calls them, "tennis-shoes." He has some adorable mispronunciations for words, and I know it will make me very sad when he quits calling buffalo "buffalopes" or meatloaf "meatwolf."

I can hardly believe my sweet baby boy is five years old. It's been a wonderful five years, and I have enjoyed every minute of watching God's hand at work on my son. In ways, it is sad to see him growing up, knowing that I will never have those baby days again. One day, he'll be too big to crawl in bed and cuddle with us. Even now, it happens less frequently. One day, he'll be embarrassed that he ever cried at the end of sad movies. I am looking forward to watching him grow into a godly young man, but I'm beginning to realize that he's not my baby boy anymore.

Traditon # 2: The Christmas Light Adventure

2010-01-19T11:47:00.003-06:00

Now I know that going to look at Christmas lights is something that almost every family does during the Christmas season. I don't claim that this is unique to our family! We do have a certain way that we do things each year, though, that makes this tradition special to our family.

First--Pajamas! (Don't worry--Matt and I wear our regular clothes!) Second, hot chocolate for Matt and the kids and coffee for me. Then it's time to load up the van.

Here's Nathan, hot chocolate in hand, all ready to go!

Lydia seems just a little sheepish about getting into the van in her pajamas, but she graciously consents to having her picture made.

Lily has no clue why she's getting in her carseat when she should be getting into her bed, but if we're happy, she's happy!

OUR FIRST STOP ON THE CHRISTMAS LIGHT ADVENTURE!

Yes, my friends, that is what you think it is. The "hot now" sign at Krispy Kreme. And not just any Krispy Kreme. This is the very spot where Elvis got his doughnuts. Nothing goes better with hot chocolate than a nice, warm doughnut!

This blurry picture is of the lights at Graceland. It's not the best part of town, so we didn't slow down long enough to get a good picture. Besides, neither of us has a huge affinity for Elvis Presley. They do put up a lot of lights and a huge Nativity every year (go figure), and it's just up the road from Krispy Kreme, so we drive by every year just to say we've done it.

Now that we've gotten our dougnuts and seen Graceland, it's time to check out the Christmas decorations. Several years ago, I told Lydia and Nathan that when they saw Christmas lights, they should call out "Merry Christmas!" This was when Nathan was very small, and the best he could do was "Bevvy Kwistmast!" He's big enought to say it right this year, but I have to admit that I miss that little voice piping up "Bevvy Kwistmast" from the back seat. In fact, whenever we see Christmas decarations now, they both say, "Look, they have their Merry Christmas up," or "They have a lot of Merry Christmas at their house!"

Now that I've written all this down, it doesn't seem like a very big deal. But there's a lot of excitement at our house on the day we know we're going to get dougnuts and look at Christmas lights. I hope that one day, the kids will come home from college for Christmas and ask when we're going to take our Christmas light adventure. But if they still want to do it in their pajamas, I'll be a little worried.

Brady Family Christmas Tradition #1

2010-01-13T14:08:00.001-06:00

The holidays are over and we are settling back into a normal routine! I had intended to write regular posts about our holiday "doings," but we got so busy "doing" that I never had time to post! So, here are our holidays in retrospect. (I plan on leaving the Christmas background on the blog until I'm done reliving our Christmas activities. It might be up for quite a while!)

Matt and I feel that it is very important to establish special traditions for our family. There's something about tradition that helps hold a family together. Because we travel so much during the Christmas season and are almost never home on Christmas day, our Christmas traditions invlove things other than the usual Christmas morning routine.

Tradition # 1 involves the decorating of the tree. Here's how we do it!

Step #1: Bake Cookies.
This should be done the morning before the designated tree decorating night. Any type of cookie will do, as long as you bake it yourself. We tried store-bought cookies one year, and even though they were really fancy little cookies from World Market, it just wasn't the same.

Lydia was a big help with all the baking.

Nathan wasn't a lot of help, unless eating the dough counts as helping!

It was all fun for Lily, even though she didn't get to eat any of the cookies.

Step # 2: Put up the tree.

Thanks to my parents, we have an absolutely massive Christmas tree. It must weigh a hundred pounds. Getting it out of the attic and setting it up is Matt's responsibility, but the kids get to help fluff up the branches.

Step # 3: Put on the lights.
When I was a child, this step took a LONG time. We had to stretch out all the lights, plug them int, then spend several hours pulling bulbs out and replacing them in order to get the whole strand lit and blinking at the same time. It was fun. Really. I would love to have some of those old lights, just for the memories. But, no--our fancy new tree also happens to be pre-lit, so we actually get to skip step 3. It's been done for us.

Step #4: Hang the ornaments.
When Matt and I got our first tree after getting married, I decided to decorate the entire tree in red and gold. A theme tree, if you will. We bought red and gold ornaments and made a fancy red and gold bow for the top of the tree. Then our good friend Regis decided that since we had just gotten married, we probably didn't have any ornaments. Since he owned a florist's shop, he had plenty of ornaments, so he gave us several. They didn't match my red and gold decorations, but I hung them on the tree anyway. Then our friend Ann decided that since we had just gotten married, we probably didn't have any ornaments. She gave us a bag full of them, and once again, they did not match my decorations. I hung them on the tree anyway, then stood back and looked at our tree. "I guess it's not a 'theme' tree after all," Matt said.
"Of course it is!" I replied. "The theme is love. All of these ornaments were given to us by people who love us, and we'll remember that every time we decorate our tree!"

Since our first Christmas, we've accumulated a lot more ornaments. Friends, family, church members, Sunday School parties, and endless games of "Dirty Santa" have resulted in almost more ornaments that we can fit on the tree. In addition, Lydia and Nathan are old enough now to make ornaments, all of which go somewhere on the tree. As we take each one out and hang it up, we talk about where it came from. Each year our list of "do you remembers" gets longer, and each memory grows more precious.

Lydia works hard at getting each ornament hung just right.

Step #4: Hang the kid's ornaments.
When Lydia was born, Matt and I decided that for every Christmas of her life, we would get her an ornament. When she gets married, we will give her the ornaments as a wedding gift. (Hopefully she won't want a theme tree.) As she got older, we let her choose her own ornaments. Some of the choices have been pretty interesting! We continued this tradition with Nathan, and will do the same with Lily. The last step of our actual decorating process is the kids unwrapping and hanging up each of their ornaments. This year, Lydia and Nathan both chose a baseball player jumping jack from our visit to the Louisville Slugger museum.

Lily hangs her first ornament.

Step #5 Drink hot chocolate and eat the cookies.
Of course, the hot chocolate has to be served in fancy cups. I saw this in a magazine when Lydia was not quite three, and made them to drink our hot chocolate out of that year when we put up the tree. The next year, she remembered and asked for the "candy glasses" again. These are made by dipping the rim of the mug in melted white chocolate, then in crushed peppermints. They make a huge mess when you're trying to drink out of them, but Lydia and Nathan like them, so they have become a part of our tradition!

I'm not sure what this sad face was about!

2009-12-01T14:47:00.001-06:00

Here are a "few" pictures of our Thanksgiving in LaFayette with my family. We had a great time visiting my parents, my brother & sister-in-law, and our precious niece Kayla. I don't have time to write too much about these, but I wanted to get them up before it was time to start taking Christmas pictures!
Lily found something she really enjoyed while we were there: a box of legos! These were the medium sized ones--too big for her to choke on, but not so big that she couldn't pick them up. She would pull a few out, then dump the entire box over. I don't know what was more fun for her--the blocks themselves, or getting to pour them out.

She also really enjoyed having people get down in the floor and play Legos with her!

The deck behind my parent's house is lizard heaven. We must have seen a dozen while we were there. I think that the colder weather had made them a little sluggish, because we were able to catch quite a few of them. Lydia and Nathan treated theirs like pets. Nathan named his lizard Charlie and Lydia named hers Lucy.

This looks like a touching mother-daughter moment, but that big grin on Lily's face is because she is about to reach out an yank a huge handful of my hair!

After Thanksgiving dinner, we decided to risk getting shot and go for a walk through the woods. Lydia put on Uncle Dave's old hunting vest so that no one would mistake her for a deer.

Gidget is pretty sure that no one is going to mistake her for a deer.

Matt might try to pretend he's not an Auburn fan, but he can't hide his true allegiance!

The great explorer leads the way!

When I was only a little older than Nathan, my parents would take David and me on walks through the woods. There were huge old hickory trees and massive rocks near the branch that was miles behind our house. I noticed on this walk that the branch wasn't quite as far back as it used to be. The hickory trees were big, but not the enormous trees that I remembered. The rocks seem to have shrunk over the years as well.
I noticed as we walked that Nathan kept a firm grip on my hand and a close eye on his surroundings. I can only hope that he was seeing the woods the way that I had seem them when I was his age.

David was determined to play football after we ate lunch. He finally talked Daddy into playing, while Matt and Lydia played Frisbee.

Then it was back inside for a wrestling match.

The day AFTER Thanksgiving is a big shopping day for a lot of people, but not for us. We had something else on our minds...Auburn football.

Nathan is ready for the Iron Bowl!

Cousin Kayla is ready for the Iron Bowl!

Lily is ready for the Iron Bowl!

Matt and I are ready for the Iron Bowl, too! As it turned out, so were the Auburn Tigers! The only thing that could have made that game any better would have been a win for Auburn.

And last, but certainly not least: The Thanksgiving special at our local grocery store. I used to think that nothing could be worse than having ham for Thanksgiving instead of turkey, but apparently, there is something much, much worse!

And Now, A Word From Lily

2009-11-17T19:30:00.002-06:00

Friends, it's been a while since I've had a chance to talk to all of you, and I have some things I'd like to say. First of all, I need to apologize for my mother. She does not post things on this blog nearly as often as she should. She says she's going to do better about that, but we're going to have to wait and see. Second, I would like to thank my Aunt Grace for the adorable outfit that I'm wearing. I look especially cute in this, so I made sure Mommy got plenty of pictures of me today!

I am eight months old today! It seems like just yesterday that Mommy and Daddy were bringing me home from the hospital. These past eight months have gone really fast. As you can see, I'm growing really fast, too. I am so tall that my doctor said I was "off the charts." I have finally learned to sit up on my own. It took me a while to get the hang of this--there's a lot of me to try and balance. And really, sitting up in one place is not that exciting. I've got places to go! I've just got to figure out how to get there...

I'm learning to get up on my hands and knees, and then I rock back and forth, back and forth, and then I push as hard as I can, and I go--backwards! I can scoot all the way across a room backwards, but I haven't figured out how to push myself forward yet. Mommy says she'd rather I wait until after Christmas to figure that out

I have finally decided that I like my baby food. It took me a little while to get used to it, but now I get really excited when Mommy puts me in the high chair and puts my bib on. I like most all my food, except for one thing. Green beans. Just when I think I'm going to get something yummy, like pears or sweet potatoes or yogurt, Mommy comes in with a jar of green beans! YUCK.

I'm doing much better about sleeping all night now. Sometimes I wake up and think that I need company and a little snack, so I call my Daddy. He's my favorite person to see in the middle of the night. At least that's what Mommy tells him!

The best thing about being me is all the love that comes with it. My days are filled with hugs and kisses. Mommy, Daddy, Lydia, and Nathan spend all day just loving on me. And when I go to church, my teachers there love on me some more. And then--there are the grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. Lydia and Nathan have been telling me all about Thanksgiving and Christmas, and I can't wait! Mommy did warn me about Uncle Bart, though. Apparently, I'm not supposed to eat ANYTHING that he tries to feed me!

Miss Lydia

2009-10-20T14:28:00.005-05:00

As I was getting ready to blog about a field trip we took this morning, I noticed that there were a few random pictures of Lydia that didn't seem to fit any particular catagory. These pictures, however, are a far more accurate glimpse into her personality than any of the other pictures I have taken recently, so I thought I'd dedicate a post just to her!

Every Wednesday when we get ready for ballet, Lydia begs for piggy-tails. Since we're usually running late, I never have time for them. Last Wednesday, I did, and she was so proud of her hair-do!

Lydia loves to take pictures. She started with a Fisher-Price camera that we got her for her birthday, and has moved on to asking if she can borrow my camera to make pictures. This is one that she took of our kitten sitting on the kitchen windowsill.

Oh, how silly she can be! I have probably spent a hundred dollars on hair clips and barrettes, none of which will stay in her super-fine hair. I finally gathered up all of those clips and told her that she could use them to fix her doll's hair. She had other ideas and spent all morning giving herself a fancy new look. Of course, she needed to wear the red sequined dress to match her hair!

After reading a book about King Tut's tomb, Lydia decided she was afraid of mummies. She insisted that she could not possibly go to sleep on her own in the dark--she just kept thinking about those mummies and she was so scared of them. Could we please let her leave the light on and have books in her bed? Now, it doesn't take a brain surgeon to realize that this was a ploy to get to stay up later and read. To Lydia's credit, she was smart enough to try it on a night when Daddy was home, and he fell for it! She read her Bible storybooks for well over an hour before finally falling asleep with the book open on her lap.

Back to the pig tails and ballet! These are the rest of the pictures I took of her before we left for ballet practice. She loves her ballet class. At the end of each class, her teacher lets the girl who has worked the hardest that day wear a fancy princess crown. Occasionally when I pick her up, another girl will have it on, but most often, Lydia is the one wearing it. She knows all the fancy French names for the steps and positions--there are some days when I feel like she really is speaking another language!

She is also excelling in school this year. Last year, we really struggled with a lack of focus. Some days it would take me twenty minutes just to get her to write her name at the top of her paper! Imagine my surprise when, this year, she completed an entire math assessment in 20 minutes and made a perfect score!

I hope that these pictures have given a glimpse of Lydia's personality. She is such a wonderful, unique little girl. I am looking forward to seeing all that God has in store for her in the coming years.

Beach Pictures, Part 1

2009-10-12T09:14:00.005-05:00

It's been a month since our trip to the beach, and I'm finally getting around to posting pictures!

Lydia has been to the beach twice before, once as a baby and once as a toddler, but this was Nathan and Lily's first trip. It was also the first time that my side of the family has gone on vacation together since David and I were in high school.
Between the pictures that I took and the ones that I copied from my mom's camera, I have well over 200 pictures to sort through, which is why it's taken me so long to get these online!

These are in no particular order, by the way!

Nathan had a great time playing with his Uncle Dave!

Lydia and Lily

Lydia, Papa, Kayla, and Nathan

Nathan loved the sand, but was not too sure abut the ocean itself. He like to dig in the wet sand, but would take off running if the waves got too close!

Uncle Matt is not as crazy as Uncle Dave, but I think Kayla had fun playing with him anyway!

This is our first day at the beach. Lydia and Nathan couldn't wait to build a sand castle!

Dad and Nathan walking on the beach--they had just stepped off the boardwalk when Nathan had to stop and play in the sand.

There were red flag warnings the first two days we were there. The waves were as big as I've ever seen them at Orange Beach. Lydia was not taking any chances--she was holding on tight!

Lily sees the ocean for the first time! I'm not sure she was impressed, although she did try to eat some sand.

The Fair's In Town!

2009-09-29T15:21:00.009-05:00

One of my favorite memories of when Matt and I were dating is the first time we went to the Mid-South fair together. A man from church had given us tickets, so one night when I got home from work, we headed to the fair. A freak cold front had come through Memphis earlier in the day and the temperature had plunged into the forties. I couldn't have imagined a more perfect night for fair-going! Fortunately, the rest of the city of Memphis disagreed with me and stayed home. Matt and I practically had the fairgrounds to ourselves. It was the first time I had been to a really big fair, and I had so much fun looking at the exhibits and livestock!
Since we moved back to the Memphis area, Matt and I have made a point of taking Lydia and Nathan, and now Lily, to the fair every year. Some years have been more fun than others, but we always look forward to the fair coming to town!

Look, Mom, it's Wilbur!

The petting zoo is one of our favorite parts of the fair. Lydia and Nathan love feeding the animals and petting them. This year's petting zoo was much smaller than usual. We missed getting to see camels and yaks, but we did get to pet this sweet baby pig.

Thanksgiving Dinner

Lily, Mama, and Lilly the Llama

The llama's name really was Lilly. I guess that's why she was the only one looking at the camera when Matt called out, "Lily!"

This hungry goat thinks Lily's sock just might make a good dinner!

Matt and Nathan enjoyed the John Deere tractor exhibited outside the petting zoo, and Lily even got her picture made on it! Grandpa, she's really looking forward to that first tractor ride!

What would a trip to the fair be without fair food? We had hoped to try some deep fried butter, but apparently it's exclusive to Texas! Nathan and Lydia enjoyed ice cream cones while Matt and I shared a funnel cake.

We even shared a little with Lily.

School Days

2009-08-24T20:14:00.003-05:00

First Grade

How can six years go by so quickly? Wasn't it just yesterday that we were putting the crib together and washing those tiny pink clothes? And now, here she is, a first grader! Since we home school, it didn't make sense to take the traditional first day pictures with a backpack and lunch box, but I still wanted to commemorate the day!

Preschool

We are blessed to have a wonderful preschool program at our church. Nathan will be going to preschool three mornings a week this year. These are pictures from his first day, and he was so excited! He came home and told me that he had made lots of friends at school. I asked him what their names were, and he replied, "I don't know." Oh well! I'm sure he'll learn their names before graduation!

What We Do All Day

No, we're not playing, even if that's what it looks like! There are so many wonderful things about homeschooling, and this is one of them. Our science lesson today was about vascular plants. We were supposed to collect and examine leaves to see the veins that carried water through them. Since it was a beautiful day, we moved our entire lesson outside. It's easy to collect leaves when you're sittting in the middle of them!

Nathan enjoys refreshments during the lesson.

Collecting science specimens. Somehow, our study of leaves turned into a study of dirt, bugs, and a really scary looking caterpillar.

I'm sure it won't be long until Lily is toddling around behind her sister with a book in hand, begging, "Read to me!" You can see the adoring look on her face as Lydia reads Dick and Jane stories to her.

One of the first science lessons we had dealt with how botanists separate plants into kingdom, phylum, class, etc. Our book suggested we try this with our shoes. Here is Lydia sitting beside our giant pile of shoes, getting ready to put them in order.

Here we've separated them into four phyla: Sunday shoes, everyday shoes, boots, and slippers. Lydia really enjoyed this experiment and insisted on assigning each of our shoes a "scientific name." For example, I'm wearing a Sandalicus mommius as I'm writing this!

This is just a small snapshot of all that we've done this week. We've had a great start to our year, and I cannot express how excited I am to be homeschooling! We had a wonderful experience last year, and I expect this year to be even better.

Nathan And The Biker

2009-08-14T08:48:00.000-05:00

I think the four most horrible words in any mother's vocabulary are these: "I forgot the camera!" Last weekend, Matt had to do a wedding in Henderson, TN. As I hastily packed for the trip, I forgot to pack our camera. Matt and I tried to do the best we could with our cell phones, but I'm afraid we missed some great photo opportunities.

We drove in Friday night for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The rehearsal dinner had a luau theme, and we had a great time! During the dinner, Nathan and Lydia were given sun visors that were shaped like a shark and a parrot. Remember that, because it will be important in the later part of this story! We spent the night in a local motel. The wedding was not until 3:00 the next afternoon, and since checkout at the hotel was at 11:00, we had to find something to fill the few hours in between.

On the drive down, we passed the Pinson Mounds Archeological Area. We had no idea what that was, but it wasn't too far away and it sounded both historical and educational, so of course we had to go! What a fascinating trip! We enjoyed it so much that we're already planning a second trip when Lily's a little older and we have better shoes on. (It's hard to climb mounds in flip-flops.) While we were prohibited from climbing the museum, one of the mounds had stairs built up the side so that we could climb to the top. This mound is the second highest mound in the Untited States. It's a ceremonial mound and not a burial site, so we weren't being disrespectful by climbing it.

After we left the mounds, it was time for lunch. We had heard that there was a little diner in Henderson that offered the "best burger in West Tennessee," so we decided to check it out. After all, we could eat at McDonald's anytime, but how often would we have an opportunity like this? When we found the diner, the first thing I noticed was that there weren't many cars. There were, however, lots of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. I looked at Matt. Suddenly, the best burger in West Tennessee didn't seem like such a good idea.

"It's a burger joint," he said. "They'll clear out quickly." We went in. Sure enough, the diner was packed with bikers. But they weren't your average bikers. Take a moment and imagine the sweetest little old lady that you know. Now imagine her in tight jeans with a Harley-Davidson doo-rag on her head. These bikers were all senior citizens!

The highlight of my dining experience came at the end, when Matt and Lydia had gone to pay for our meal. Nathan had swapped the shark hat he was wearing at the park for Lydia's parrot hat. He was so enjoying wearing the hat that he refused to take it off. As we were waiting on Matt and Lydia, a very large and scruffy biker approached our table. He was huge. He was hairy. He was a little bit scary. He walked up to Nathan and said, "Hey, buddy, I'll trade my hat for yours." He held out a plain black baseball cap. Nathan wasn't intimidated in the least. He looked at the cap. He looked at the biker. And without a second thought, he replied, "No. I like my hat. I'm gonna keep it!"

Fortunately for us, this man was much nicer than he looked!

We had a great time at the wedding and enjoyed catching up with friends that we hadn't seen for some time. It is, as always, good to be home for a little while!

Forgive Me!

2009-08-06T15:26:00.002-05:00

I wanted to take a moment to apologize to you all for not updating my blog recently! We've been busy these past few weeks! As soon as we got home from youth camp, Lydia and Nathan had two weeks of swimming lessons. Their lessons were supposed to be in the mornings, but due to lots of rain and an unusual cold spell, we ended up moving the lessons around on a regular basis, which meant that our days quickly fell into chaos! As soon as swimming lessons were over, it was time for Vacation Bible School, which is what we spent last week doing. Now that VBS is over, I'm desperately trying to get things in order to start school again. We are also going out of town this weekend for a wedding. One of the boys from Matt's first youth group at Merton Avenue Baptist is getting married, and Matt is doing the ceremony. So please forgive me for falling behind on my blog updates, and check back in a week or so. I hope to have some new pictures by then, and I'm sure that Lydia, Nathan, and Lily will provide me with plenty of entertaining stories!

Yum, Yum!

2009-07-21T21:23:00.002-05:00

As I glanced over my last post, I realized that I hadn't included any pictures of Lily. Since she turned four months old last week, I thought I'd post a few pictures of that all-important milestone--her first solid foods. (The lime popsicle Nathan let her lick doesn't count!)

"Mom? What is this stuff?"

When Lydia and Nathan started solids, they started solids! They both loved their first cereal and progressed quickly to eating fruits and vegetables. Lily has not been quite as enthusiastic about solid food. Most of her first (and second, and third) feeding ended up on her bib.

Part of Lily's problem with her first feeding may have been that she had some distractions. Two to be exact. Lydia and Nathan have been anxiously awaiting the day that Lily got to eat cereal. After all, cousin Kayla is already eating green beans and carrots, and it's high time Lily caught up with her. They waited patiently in the kitchen as I mixed up the bottle and pulled out the box of...wait...what is that? That's not cereal! When I told them Lily was going to eat cereal, they were thinking of their personal favorite--Raisin Bran. After I did a little explaining about what babies could and couldn't eat, they gathered around the high chair to watch the fun begin.

And what fun it was! You see, Lily has been working very hard on blowing little raspberries. She got one good mouthful of cereal and decided it was time to practice her new trick. You can make some great raspberries with a mouthful of mushy cereal. It wasn't fun for Mommy, but you can tell from the picture above that Lily thouroughly enjoyed it! Rice cereal is good for something after all!

Lily is doing great at four months. She's glad to be done travelling for a while, and seems to really enjoy sleeping in a bed instead of a pack-n-play. She's laughing--silly faces are especially funny. She's learned to reach and grab things--I'm seriously considering a haircut, since my hair seems to be her main target. She's learned to roll onto her back, thereby putting an end to the hated tummy time. At her four month check-up, she weighed 15 lbs, 10 oz. and was 26 1/2 inches long. Her pediatrician told me this puts her in the 95th percentile for length! She's such a sweet baby, and we thank God every day for blessing our lives with her!

Youth Camp In The Smoky Mountians

2009-07-14T15:31:00.010-05:00

Sometime before Christmas, our youth pastor asked Matt if he would be one of the speakers for our church's summer youth retreat. They had decided to skip the "canned" youth camp experience and partner with another local church to do their own retreat. The neat thing about it was that the whole family was invited to go along!
I love working with youth, and the girls in my Sunday School class at Carriage Hills are close to my heart. Even though I wasn't actually going to be a counselor on the trip, I was excited about the chance to be able to have the week to fellowship with them.
Of course, when I agreed to go, Lily was still several months away from being born and I hadn't really considered the logistics of taking an almost 4 month old off to camp. I am happy to say, however, that we had a wonderful time!
We had a little bit of a problem explaining to Nathan what "camp" in the "Smoky Mountians" would be like. For Nathan, camping involves a tent. He didn't understand how spending the week in an eight bedroom cabin with a hot tub on the porch could be called "going to camp." He was also very concerned about what made the Smoky Mountians smokey. Once he realized that he wasn't in any immediate danger of burning up, he lightned up a bit about the trip.

We knew the hike the youth were planning on taking Wednesday was more than our kids could handle, so we decided to do a driving tour through Great Smoky Mountians National Park instead. There were several places along the Roaring Fork Motor Trail where we could get out and see various things. The above pictures raise the following question, however: Will the Brady family ever be able to take a vacation that doesn't involve a log cabin? We visited two or three little one room cabins before reaching the last cabin on the trail, which I don't have a picture of. This cabin had three rooms, an upstairs loft, and was painted! Lydia realized how different this cabin was from the others she had seen and went on and on about what a fancy cabin it was. I hope that being reminded of how people used to live will help our kids be grateful for all that we have. So, chances are, if we're on vacation and there's a log cabin close by, we'll go see it!

Grotto Falls could be reached by hiking a mile and half from the motor trail. It was raining when we stopped, and I had forgotten to pack Lily's front carrier, so she and I waited ( and waited...and waited...) in the car while Matt, Lydia, and Nathan hiked up to see the waterfall.

Lydia realized how much fun it is to be an encourager on this hike. As she walked back down the trail, she told everyone she passed, "Only a little bit further. You're almost there!" As they neared the road, Matt finally had to make her stop, for fear her encouragement would turn to discouragement when whe people she passed realized they were no where near the falls!

This picture was taken in front of one of the scenic overlooks on the trail. Occasionally, Lydia decides that she doesn't want to participate in Mom's photography sessions. This was one of those times!

The best part of any youth trip is making new friends, and for my kids, it was no different. The pastor, worship leader, and youth pastor of the church we partnered with all brought their children. The adorable boys in the Davy Crockett hats are Cameron and Caleb Humphreys. Lydia and Nathan enjoyed playing with them all week. I was trying to get a picture of how dirty they were after climbing the "mountian " (hill of dirt) next to our cabin. I guess I should have taken the picture of their backsides.

Lydia and Jordan, the worship leader's daughter, quickly became friends. Lydia was terribly upset when we arrived at camp and she realized that our family would be staying in the boy's cabin, and that the other two children in our cabin were also boys. She was relieved to find out that there was a girl just her age next door in the girl's cabin!

While the youth went white water rafting Tuesday afternoon, we took the kids to the aquarium in Gatlinburg. Matt and I learned something about ourselves on this trip. We will never, ever, ever vacation along the beaten path. How anyone could think that driving in all that traffic and waiting in all those lines qualifies as vacation is beyond me! We are grateful that homeschooling will give us the opportunity to see and go places during the off season. Apart from the crowds, we enjoyed the aquarium. There was a long, glass tunnel where we were able to walk under sharks and other bizarre looking fish. This was not Nathan's favorite part of the trip. I could see in his eyes that he was trying hard to figure out just how thick the glass separating him and the sharks actually was.

I regret that I did not take any pictures of Lydia and Nathan's favorite part of our trip. On the way to Gatlinburg Monday, we stopped at the Natchez Trace State Park to feed and change Lily. While she ate, Matt and the kids went into the park headquarters to look around. Inside was a little museum and there, in a small glass case, was a little corn snake named Katy. Lydia and Nathan were enamored with Katy. They talked about her for the next five hours in the car. They told their new friends about her. And when we got in the car to go home, we were not out of Knoxville before they started asking about seeing Katy agian! Matt and I laughed when we thought about all the money and time we had spent so they could see sharks up close and personal, when the thing they like the most was a free trip into a dinky old building to see a common little snake!

This trip marks the last of our big summer travels. I've enjoyed it all, but I'm glad to be able to put the suitcase back in the closet for a few weeks!

Convention, Creation, and Caves

2009-06-30T19:41:00.001-05:00

Check out that alliteration! Can you tell I spent last week at a convention of Baptist pastors?
We had a wonderful week in Louisville at the Southern Baptist Convention! My only regret is that I don't have a lot of pictures from the week. I've learned something about what happens when Matt is in charge of the camera. He takes pictures of things, not people! My philosophy is that the 100 year old monument to Abraham Lincoln's birthplace will look exactly the same in twenty years as it does today. Our children won't! So on our next trip, I'll be confiscating the camera!
One of the best parts of going to the convention every year is that Matt's parents, his sister and brother-in-law, and their children attend as well. Although I enjoy getting to be a part of convention life, I have to admit that one of my main motivations for attending each year is getting to spend time with family.

We were even able to help Sarah celebrate her 3rd birthday while we were there. She makes such a cute cowgirl!

You call it the Executive Committee Report, I call it naptime!

I was a little worried about how Lily would handle the trip, but she was an absolute angel. We would take the shuttle to the convention hall in the mornings and attend a little of the session, then spend some time in the exhibit hall. Afternoons were reserved for naps, and in the evenings we played it by ear. What did Lydia and Nathan do during all of this? One of the great things about the SBC is the wonderful childcare that is provided. Lydia, Nathan and Jim went to a special children's conference each day. Lydia loved every minute of the conference and refused to miss a session. Nathan wasn't quite as excited about it as Lydia was, but at least he has a counselor who sympathized with his need for a nap!

No trip to Louisville would be complete without a trip to the Louisville Slugger Factory. I will have to say that Matt and Nathan enjoyed this trip more than Lydia and I did. Nathan hammed it up in front of the giant bat outside the factory, then he and his dad posed with Mickey Mantle's bat.

After leaving Louisville Thursday morning, we drove to Petersburg, KY to visit the Creation Science Museum. It's a wonderful place and certainly worth the trip. Our only complaints were that we didn't have enough time to spend there and that it was extremely crowded. The museum starts with Creation and the first Adam, goes through the fall of man and the flood, and concludes with the last Adam: Jesus Christ. I hope that when our kids are older and better able to understand all the subject matter that we will be able to take them back. It would be an incredible field trip! There is a petting zoo outside the museum, and I wish that my camera had been ready when this camel stuck his head into Lily's stroller looking for something to eat. He did get a mouthful of her burp cloth before Nathan showed up with some real food!

We had planned a stop at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky on our way to Louisville, but when we stopped and saw the crowds and that the tour we wanted was sold out, we decided to buy tickets in advance and stop on our way home. Everyone enjoyed the cave but Lily. I don't know if it was the cold clammy air or having to ride in the front carrier, but she let it be known that there wouldn't be many caving expeditions in her near future. Lydia's favorite thing about our tour was the "cave bacon," a rock formation on the cave ceiling that looks a lot like raw bacon. Nathan's favorite thing? Not the beautiful rock formations or the underground lake--oh, no! It was something dear to any four year old boy's heart--cave crickets!

I-65 between Nashville and Louisville is littered with tourist attractions. We didn't drive five miles without seeing a big brown sign directing us to this cave or that museum. Between Louisville and Mammoth Cave, we couldn't resist stopping in Hodgenville to see the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. After leaving Mammoth Cave, we stopped at the Shaker Museum and Historic Site. I would have included these stops in my alliterative title, but somehow "Confederacy Invading President" and "Convulsers" just didn't fit!

We had a great trip, but it was so nice to pull into our driveway Friday night and know that we were home!

On The Road Again

2009-06-19T14:26:00.002-05:00

Today has been a busy day at our house! We're getting ready for our first big trip since Lily was born, and while the population inside our van has grown, the storage capacity has shrunk.
We're leaving early in the morning and driving to Louisville, KY for the Southern Baptist Convention. On the way there, we're planning a stop at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. On the way home, we're planning to drive a little out of our way to visit the Creation Science Museum just outside of Cincinnati.
We are praying for safety as we travel, that the Lord would bless this time we have together as a family, and that He would be honored in the workings of our convention.
I don't know if I'll have time to post while we're there, but I'm sure there will be lots of stories to tell when we get home!

Prayer Request

2009-06-16T21:01:00.000-05:00

Paula Holliman is the grandaughter of one of our church members. She and her husband, Kirby, have visited our church several times and her daughter Bailey was on Lydia's t-ball team last year. Paula died in her sleep early this morning. She was 37 years old. She and Kirby had three children--Bailey, who is Lydia's age; Carlie, who is almost four; and Jackson, who will turn one in two weeks. Please be in prayer for this family as you read this. I cannot imagine the suffering that they are experiencing tonight. I keep thinking about those precious children, two of which may never remember their mother. They are so in need God's grace and comfort in this time of need. Thank you all for taking the time to read this and for taking the time to lift this family before our Heavenly Father.

Lily At Three Months

2009-06-16T12:27:00.000-05:00

I am three months old today, and a lot has changed since I was born! First of all, I've gotten kind of fat. I started out big and just kept going--just look at these chubby thighs!

I've realized that I've got it pretty good here at my house. I have constant love, hugs, and entertainment with my big sister and brother around.

I occasionally have to let them know when I've had enough, but most of the time they're pretty cool to have around.

I've discovered that I have hands and that they're good for lots of things. I can suck on them when I'm tired, which helps when I can't find my paci and mommy's not there to give it to me. I can also grab things with them, like my crib mirror or my sister's hair.

I can even rub my little eyes with them to let mommy know that I'm ready for a nap. Which is another neat thing that I've discovered in the three months I've been alive--I can take a nap! Mommy was especially excited when I made this discovery. I don't have to stay awake all day and fuss, fuss, fuss. Now that I'm a big girl, I go right to sleep when it's nap time! I am also learning to sleep all night long. I don't do it every night (I've got to keep those parents of mine on their toes) but more often than not, I let them get a good night's sleep! Mommy says I'm a pretty good baby. Not much upsets me. I love to look at me in the mirror. I also like to sit in my bouncy seat and watch everything that's going on around me. My bath is lots of fun, especially when Lydia and Nathan come to watch me.

There are a couple of things that I don't like. The first one is tummy time. I think it's a ridiculous idea, but I think I've found a way to get around it. I'm trying really, really hard to roll back over when Mommy puts me on my tummy! The second thing I don't like is the vacuum cleaner. It's so scary and loud.

There is one thing that I haven't quite managed yet, and that's laughing. I try so hard, because everything around here is prettty funny, but it just won't come out. But I'll keep trying. Well, I hear Mommy getting a bottle ready for me, so I had better go. Blogging is fun, but eating is better. And after that, I'll have a nice long nap--it's good being me!

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-14T15:47:00.000-05:00

I've never been great at keeping up a baby book. Instead, I write down my kid's milestones and cute sayings on our calendar. I save each year's calendar so that in years to come I can look back on a snapshot of what our life was like that year. A few weeks ago, I was looking at the calendar from 2005 and came across this gem.

Apparently, Lydia (who was 2 1/2 at the time) and I were discussing marriage.

"You need to marry someone like your Daddy," I told her.

"Okay." she replied. "I'll marry Jesus."

As Christians, our goal should be to be like Christ, but in the mind of my two year old daughter, Christ was like her daddy. If it is true that children form their perceptions of their Heavenly Father based on their relationships with their earthly fathers, then my children are blessed beyond measure to have Matt as their dad. I know that I am a better person because I am married to him! I am so thankful that my children have such a wonderful Dad to celebrate on Father's Day.

For those of you who are concerned about the timing of our Father's Day celebration, I know that Father's Day is actually next weekend. We are going to be out of town, so we decided to do our celebrating a week early!

Matt does a great job keeping our lawn up. He has lots of theories and strategies on how to keep the grass looking nice at all times. When the kids and I saw lawnmower cupcakes in a magazine, we knew they were perfect for Matt's Father's Day cake. I decided a layer cake would be easier than cupcakes, and Lydia and Nathan had fun making the little lawn mowers. We did manage to eat quite a few of the lawn mowers before they made it onto the cake!

Lullabyes

2009-06-08T20:55:00.000-05:00

What did you sing to your babies when you rocked them to sleep? What did your mother or father sing to you?

As I rocked Lily to sleep tonight, I found myself wondering about the songs we sing to our children; wondering why it is that some songs are so much more likely than others to be sung as lullabyes.

I don't remember, but I have been told that my dad sang "Rock of Ages" to me when I was a baby. Perhaps that's why I've found myself singing it to all three of my children. I wonder if his mother sang it to him? Or if one day Lydia, Nathan, or Lily will sing it to their children?

Another favorite of mine is "Near to the heart of God." Perhaps it's the first line, "There is a place of quiet rest" that makes it seem so appropriate as a bedtime song. Or perhaps it's the thought that, as I am holding my child close to my heart, my Heavenly Father is holding me close to His.

At the conclusion of particularly difficult days, when it seems like I've failed more than I've succeeded, I find myself in the darkness of our little nursery singing, "Grace, grace, God's grace. Grace that is greater than all my sin." These hymns are as much my prayers as they are Lily's lullabyes. How I need to be reminded that His grace is sufficient for all my needs!

I'm not much of a singer. It's hard for me to believe that the sound of my singing voice could soothe or comfort anyone. But perhaps as my children hear these great hymns of the faith, as they hear the name Jesus sung over and over again, they will start to realize that there really is "something about that name."

If you're reading this, and you have a moment, I'd love to hear your lullabye stories. What is or was it that you sang to your children, and why?

Forgive me for not posting a more recent picture to go with this post. I started to take a picture of Lily while she was sleeping, but sleep is hard to come by, and I'm not taking any chances!

I Hope This Won't Send Us To The ER

2009-05-31T16:28:00.000-05:00

It's amazing how many times those words have run through my mind since becoming a mother. When Lydia was born, I was a typical first-time mom. Any fever, cough, or strange rash would leave me wondering if it was serious enough to rush down to Jackson. When Nathan was born, the fevers and coughs didn't bother me so much. I had a pretty good handle on what was normal and what wasn't. But when he became mobile...that was another story! I found myself dealing with something that had never happened with Lydia--head wounds. Lots of them. Thanks to my sweet son, we've gotten up close and personal with three different emergency rooms. Now that Lydia and Nathan can go outside by themselves to play, I find myself looking out the window, sighing, and saying to myself, "I hope this won't send us to the emergency room" at least twice a week. Sometimes it's something Lydia and Nathan are getting into on their own. Sometimes their dad is helping. Here are just a couple of those moments from the past week.

These PVC pipes are a part of Matt's unfinished irrigation project. They've provided my kids with hours of entertainment. They've also provided Lydia with a little scar under her eye! I got a little concerned when I saw this pipe bridge being constructed across the swimming pool. But, they had a great time doing whatever it was they were doing and there were no major injuries.

Ever since we got the trampoline, Lydia has been convinced that it would make a perfect place to camp. Imagine my surprise when her dad actually gave in! There were numerous ways that this trampoline camp out could have ended in disaster, but the worst thing that happened was that Matt didn't get any sleep that night.

I thank God each day as I watch my children grow. I'm amazed at the depth of their imaginations. Even if some of their "ideas" scare me to death, I'm grateful to be able to encourage their creativity.

Sharing Jesus Without Fear

2009-05-27T16:02:00.001-05:00

At first glance, there's nothing really special about this picture. It's an average night at our house. It's getting close to bedtime and everyone is winding down from a busy day. It's the conversation that was taking place that I wanted to remember when I took the picture.

Nathan is telling his sister about Jesus. The conversation goes something like this.

"You know, we're all going to die. But Jesus, He's a real nice guy, you know. He died on the cross, but He came back to life. And when we die, you know, we can go to Heaven. And I'll be there with you..."

I have prayed for my children's salvation since before they were born. I have asked that God would make their little hearts tender towards spiritual things. Every night, we read Bible stories to them and pray with them, and I have seen their interest in the Lord and His Word grow. Have my children realized that they are sinners in desperate need of a Savior? I don't know that they have. But I am convinced that they accept everything about Jesus and His sacrificial death that they are capable of understanding. Nathan knows that Jesus loves him, and he knows that Jesus is so important that telling Lily about Him just can't wait.

Thank You, Papa!

2009-05-27T09:23:00.000-05:00

I love my new Auburn bibs! I like my new shirt, too! Let's just hope our team is as ready for football season as I am!

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-05-26T07:20:00.001-05:00

Last Wednesday Matt and I decided to take the kids to Missouri over Memorial Day weekend so that Lily could meet her great-grandparents and her Aunt Sharon. We knew if we didn't go this weekend, we wouldn't have another chance to see Sharon and the girls until Christmas. As soon as we decided to go, I was overwhelmed. Trips to Missouri require ALOT of packing, and that's without a new baby! I kept telling myself that it would be so much easier to just stay home! As I hurried to get things together, I remembered a conversation I once had with a dear friend from the first church that Matt pastored.
Mrs. Ruby and her husband had six daughters. When one of the girls (I'm not sure whcih) was a baby, she and her husband Leon decided to make a trip from Mississippi to California. This was before the days of disposable diapers, so they washed diapers in the motel rooms at night and hung them out the windows of the car to dry as they drove down the road the next day.

"We looked like the Joads!" Mrs. Ruby laughed as she told the story. I'm sure there were some moments on that trip that weren't very fun, but she didn't seem to remember any of them. I remember the joy on her face as she looked back what was now a wonderful memory. Mrs. Ruby was a great blessing to me during our time in Durant, and I hope that I have learned a little from her wisdom and her outlook on life. It would have been a lot easier for us to just stay home last weekend, but look at all we would have missed!

Lily's first meeting with her Great-Grandma Tracy was worth the trip! The minute we put her in Grandma's arms, her face lit up! It was also a good chance to get a picture of all the cousins with Grandma. Here she is with seven of her thirteen great-grandchildren.

Lydia and Nathan adore their Great-Grandpa Brady, and I'm sure that Lily will too. Today she didn't seem too sure about meeting another new person!

Aunt Sharon brought a slip & slide and some fun water toys for the kids to play with while they were at Grandma's. The side of the yard was a giant mudhole by the end of the day, but everyone had a great time!

Nathan has a scar just under his hairline from crashing into this birdbath when he was about 17 months old. That marked his first, but certianly not his last, trip to the emergency room. Now we stand him next to it to see how much he's grown!

Last spring, floods washed out one of the bridges across Roubidoux Creek near Grandpa Brady's farm. The kids enjoyed playing on the broken bridge and got to participate in one of their favorite pastimes--throwing rocks in the creek!

Matt unknowingly started a tradtion on our way home from his grandparent's this past Christmas when he stopped at this statue in Ravenden, Arkansas and let Lydia and Nathan get their picture made under it. They've always enjoyed looking for the big black bird as we're driving, but now they expect to stop for pictures every time we pass it!

Cousins

2009-05-19T15:15:00.000-05:00

Some of the most fun I ever had as a child, I had with my cousin. I remember how excited I would get when I knew that Uncle Richard, Aunt Grace, and Lauren were coming for a visit. As an older child, I would call my grandparent's house several times on the day I knew they were coming, asking, "Are they here yet?" Even the most boring family reunions were fun if Lauren was there.

Even though we live several hundred miles from all of our cousins, my children have a very special relationship with them. I see the same excitement in them when they know their cousins are coming for a visit or when we are going to visit them.
"How many more days, Mom? Will they be here when we wake up? Is it tomorrow yet?"
This morning, Lydia was so anxious for Uncle Bart, Aunt Tracy, Jim & Sarah to get here that she waited at the window, watching for them with binoculars!

Jim, Lydia, & Nathan enjoyed feeding the geese and goslings at the duck pond near our house....

But Sarah was not too sure about this big gander!

Little Auburn Tiger

2009-05-18T11:42:00.001-05:00

"Thank you for all the neat Auburn clothes, cousin Kayla. Now I just need some Auburn bibs to go with them. I wonder if they sell those at Tiger Rags? I bet I just gave my Papa a good excuse to make a trip to Auburn!"

Matt and I are committed to raising our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. I'm also committed to raising them to be good Auburn fans! War Eagle!

Gone Fishing

2009-05-17T22:28:00.000-05:00

Disclaimer: Nathan is being disobedient in the above picture. But I took the picture anyway.

Last summer, Matt had an irrigation meter installed at our house so we wouldn't have to pay sewer charges on the water we used for the lawn, etc. After the meter was installed, he decided it would be a good idea to run a pipe all the way around the house to the backyard so we could use the irrigation meter water to fill up the kid's pool. He only made it about halfway around the yard before winter came and hasn't had much time to finish it now that spring is here. Now, I'm not complaining about this. I'm just giving a little background so you'll all know why there's a big ditch full of water in our backyard.

Nathan has been expressly forbidden to play in the ditch or with the mud pile beside the ditch. But it's hard for a little boy to stay away from a big ditch full of water. Especially a little boy who just got a new fishing pole.

Our Little Ballerina

2009-05-14T19:36:00.001-05:00

The photos above are of Lydia getting ready for her first ballet recital. She's a skunk--one of the forest creatures of Narnia in The Lion, The Witch, and the The Wardrobe. Ballet has been a growing experience for Lydia this year. For months, she hated ballet. She didn't like having to repeat the same steps over and over again. She didn't like the stretches. Most of all, she didn't like having to FOCUS for an hour! When spring came and her class joined the older ballet classes to prepare for the recital, she found something else she didn't like: the teenage boys her teacher had recruited to play the parts of Peter and Edmund. There were quiet a few "Come to Jesus" meetings at our house over going to ballet during those weeks! It wasn't long, though, until Lydia became very insistent about going to ballet. She began to count the days until her next practice. When Tuesday would come and I reminded her it was her "ballet day," she got so excited! What changed? I'll never really know, but I think it was the realization that every monotonous stretch or boring repitition could eventually be put together to tell a fascinating story. All of a sudden, she got to be a part of something big, exciting, and fun! I've wondered in the past few days if I can learn something from my little ballerina. So many days my life feels like a repitition of the same tasks--over and over and over. I wonder at the end of the day if I've accomplished anything more than feeding children and folding laundry. But every once in a while, I look at my children and realize that, even in seemingly meaningless work, God is allowing me to be a part of three fascinating stories.

I'm proud of Lydia. Not only because she did a fantastic job at her recital, but also because she kept going through fears and frustrations to find something that she has truly loved doing.

Jumping In

2009-05-13T11:32:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the Brady family blog! I've really enjoyed following my friends blogs over the past few months, so I decided to start one of my own. Those of you who know me well know that I am about the least tech savvy person on the planet, so blogging is going to be a learning experience for me. Even though I love our lives here in Southaven, the one thing that I miss is being close to our families. I hope that through our blog, our friends and family can be a part of our everyday lives and enjoy the ups, the downs, and the general chaos that fill our days. I can't promise that I'll be posting every day, but please check in on us occasionally. I'm looking forward to sharing our lives with you.