GO, G-O, GO, GO BUTLER!

Okay, so you can tell by my title that I'm most definitely the cheerleader in the family and not the basketball player... I did that until 6th grade, but then I quit growing- haha! Anyway, I'm a total dork and the title probably gives away that my cheerleading days are quite a few years behind me (dorkiness of the out of date cheer), BUT I did have fun cheering on Brycen at his first ever basketball game yesterday! He plays Charger Cub (the title of the league) basketball. They are the Butler Bulldogs and Ryan is coaching him. He has made some new friends and is enjoying himself. It's kindergarten and 1st grade kids and they don't keep score so I enjoy the relaxed feeling of the game :)

Brycen guarding his girl (they wear a colored wristband so they can easily see who they are guarding on the opposing team).

they all did pretty well for it being their first game.

Again, B is just not aggressive so not ball stealing for him :) haha!

But he does a great job bringing the ball down the floor and dribbling with out traveling.

Before the game :)


I love how excited he was!

Updates on the boys!

I try not to go longer than a week with out posting... I do have some pictures on my camera from last week because it was American Education Week and B got to dress up for school each day for different themes... but my camera is at home and I've been slacking about uploading... partially b/c I guess I'm just slacking and partially b/c we now have a very mobile and busy baby! Yes, right after I posted that C wasn't crawling crawling yet he decided to surprise us! Last Tuesday evening B and I were sitting on the couch going over his papers from the day and Corbin was sitting on the floor playing toys... all at once I saw movement and B and I look up and C had thrown his toy across the floor (not uncommon- he loves to throw things!) and he is crawling- yes crawling to get it! B starts jumping up and down- soooo excited- screaming, "My brother can crawl, my brother can crawl"!! It was so sweet. The first couple days he would just crawl around whatever room we were in, but now he has figured out he can get everywhere and likes to explore :) I'm currently trying to figure out where to put the Christmas tree that he won't pull it down on himself b/c he gets up on his knees and pulls EVERYTHING down! He is def. keeping us busier these days. My favorite place to sit and do things (tutu making, computer, reading, etc) was on the floor- haha! No more sitting on the floor to do anything for me anymore b/c I have a little boy that wants right in the middle of it all! I love watching him do new things, but it also makes me sad that he has taken this next step of independence! His 5th tooth (eye tooth on top) is about to pop through. I'd say sometime this week it will. You can see white and it's just right under the gum. I looked in B's babybook and C was about a month older when he got his first tooth (but if you factor in that he was a month early it's about the same), but B didn't get his 5th tooth until he was 11 months. I also checked their weights and B was 20lbs 6oz at 9 months and C is 21 lbs 10oz- so not a huge difference. B was 29 in. long and C is 30. So they are pretty similar in size (although C just seems huge to me!). C still says three words- bubba, momma, and dada, but the one he says the most (all the time) is bubba! Brycen of course LOVES this! ha! B has figured out how to carry C around to get him wherever he wants to go. He's really careful with him and half drags him b/c he only weighs about 15 lbs less! haha! Brycen plays C's little toys with him and loves to help give him his snacks (cheerios or bananas). Oh yes, Thursday night we had family pictures done w/ my parents for my mom's Christmas cards and so my brother was home for the evening from school (we so miss him!) and we went out to eat at a bbq place in town. C thinks he has to eat when we eat so Ryan let him lick a pickle... he LOVED it. He wanted to bite them off, but we just let him chew on them. He ate/chewed 2 of them (big ones) until they were mush! They were pretty sour pickles too!


B has started basketball for this year. His first game is this coming Sunday. Ryan is coaching him. Brycen says he loves it... it's just so funny b/c he is not agressive at all. He def. won't be accused of being a ball hog ;) I love watching him play, but I hate that they play on Sundays. That's normally our day to be together- the 4 of us, but this kind of interrupts our day! It goes through January so I guess we'll live :). He is doing so well in school and we get midterms at the end of this week. Watching his reading skills improve is amazing to me! He wasn't very confident at first, but now everywhere we go he is trying to sound words out and read whatever he can. They have 3 reading series' in Kindergarten and he will be starting in the 2nd one today. They bring home a book and practice it for 2 days. They take it back to school and are tested on it (they read it and then have 3 comprehension questions). Today he will be tested on his last book in the first series. He's so pumped b/c he says the 2nd series has bigger words ;). I also bought the first four Boxcar Children book set and have been reading in those to him each night. We're on book 2 and he loves to try and read words in these too. I was kind of tired of reading story books all the time and I remember loving all the Boxcar Children books and thought B might enjoy the deeper story lines in them as well- sure enough- he does! And Ryan likes to listen too :) I love that family time before we put him to bed each night. Ryan has been working at the house and/or at work pretty late each night, but I can always count on story time :) C goes to bed at 7:30 each night and although I miss him and wish he would stay up a little later he is tired and wants to be put down- it's also a good thing too b/c B gets that one on one time. This is when he reads his reading series book and does whatever homework (if any) he has. He and I normally play a game or two of Yahtzee (last night it was Candyland) or some other game (but Yahtzee is my favorite). haha! He says, "Momma, you ALWAYS want to play Yahtzee"!

Brycen also had to pull his first card at school last week! It was for not putting his name on his paper! He was really upset at school when he had to pull it and he cried! His teacher spoke w/ him and told him it was okay and there wasn't a need to cry! When I picked him up that day he said, "Mom- I have baddd news" I was like, "Oh no, what happened" and B said, "I had to pull a card". I went on to ask him what it was for and when he told me it was for not having his name on his paper I could help but smile to myself. If that's the worst he does all year to get a card pulled I'll be happy! :)


The house is still coming along... Ryan got all the can lights installed this wk/end! My dad is on vacation hunting this week, but hopefully next he can get all our wire pulled into the house. The next steps are getting the garage doors up and insulation so we can get some heat in there so Ryan doesn't freeze out there working! The siding is really coming along and I just keep forgetting to take my camara out there to take pictures... I really need to do that!


If you have made it this far- kudos to you- I mainly wanted to do this update so I'd have it for my blog book (I've been working on my first years of blogging ('07-'08). I'm combining those two years b/c in '07 I only had a handful of posts! I'm excited about this work week b/c I only work today and tomorrow and then I'm off the next 5 days w/ my boys! What a treat!

Fall Fest

Brycen's school had a fall festival on Friday. The PTO does it as a fundraiser. Each class made up a basket that they had a silent auction on. Brycen's class decided on a "Family Night" theme! It turned out super cute and I know they raised a ton of money on all the cute baskets! The kids had fun w/ all the activities too! There were a ton of ppl there and I'm glad they had such a good turn out. Ryan was gone all weekend to the cabin hunting so it was just me and the boys!

Corbin enjoyed the fall fest too!

I think he looks so old in this picture!

B tried to win a fish...

unfortunately (for him not for momma!) he didn't win.

They had a cake walk!

Brycen and Mabry

These two are like brother and sister!

They are so funny and love each other.

They really watch out for each other!

They ride the bus together & are in the same class.

(Their grandpa's are cousins so they are also related).

Corbin clapping for B :)
We make him do it all the time b/c it's so darn cute!


Brycen hit our good friend Kent in the face w/ a pie :)

They had police officers volunteer for this booth- it was def. a hit!

I was so glad it was Kent though when it was B's turn b/c we just love him! hehe!

B and Kennedy

They are having their 6th birthday party together here in a few weeks and are sooo excited for it!

(Their grandpa's are also cousin's so they are related as well).

Batman

B had homework to dress up a turkey in disguise so he wouldn't get eaten for Thanksgiving! He wanted to do his as batman.

B and Batman Turkey!

He thought this project was fun! Ryan had the idea to take tulle from my tutu supply and make batman's cape. They hang these all out in the Kindergarten pod area and so B was looking at the other kids and said, "Well, mom there were two other batman's, but none were as cool as mine because mine was the only one that was a real batman with a real cape!". I think Ryan was just as proud as B! haha! :)

Tissue Paper

I got a gift a couple weeks ago and Corbin had so much fun playing w/ the tissue paper (until he started to eat it!) lol... he also likes to do this w/ any paper that is around and provides him with quite a bit of entertainment... he likes the newspaper ads too! haha

His face cracks me up in this one!

He was having so much fun!

Simple. Joy.
Corbin Fisher
Our sweet little baby.

9 months

Yes, my baby is 9 months... 3/4 of a year?! Well, we just got back from his 9 mo. check up and he is napping so I thought I'd go ahead and post his stats!

*Corbin is 21lbs 10oz (a little less than 75%).
*He is 30 (yes, you read that right) inches long (95%)!
*He is wearing 12 month and 12-18 month clothes.
*Corbin is in size 4 diapers.
*He still sleeps from 7:30pm to whatever time I wake him on work mornings- non work mornings usually somewhere between 7:30 and 8am. The past few nights he has gone to bed around 6:30 or 7, I think he isn't used to the time difference yet.
*He eats 4-5 bottles with 6oz of formula (depending on the time he gets up if he has 4 or 5). He has tried a lot of table food and loves it all. He gets fruit (baby food) still in the morning and a fruit and veggie at supper (of babyfood)... They are stage 2. I tried stage 3 and he spits it out... but yet he will eat table food? I think he actually prefers table food.
*He gets very mad if we are eating and don't offer him something. He likes snacks too :)
*He is a happy boy unless he is tired... then he just wants put down in his bed... makes me sad that he doesn't like to cuddle or be rocked, but I'm glad he knows how to put himself to sleep at the same time.
*I wouldn't say that he crawls a normal up on all 4 crawl, but he gets wherever he wants to go and we've had to baby proof everything! I've found him underneath the dining room table stuck, underneath his exersaucer stuck, half way IN the tv cabinet pulling the basket of wii games and remotes out... yep he is officially into everything! He loves to play toys and will entertain himself for quite awhile.
*He is a good natured baby, but he does not like to be told no... I have no doubt that he knows what it means either... example- He somehow always finds Brycen's matchbox cars even when we think they are all put away and I will take it away and tell him, "No, No." Or he will pull my hair (he does this a lot when he is mad) and I will take his hand off and say, "No, No" and he makes the most awful face and screams at the top of his lungs... wow... a biggg attitude. It's sort of cute now, but hopefully he won't still be acting that way in a couple years! yikes! Even if he is "crawling aka scooting" towards something he shouldn't have and I tell him no, he looks at me and screams.... I thought Brycen was a strong willed child... I think I'm really in for it this time.
*He claps for himself allt he time now and it's adorable! You give him a snack and he claps! You say, "Yayy Corbin" and he claps... you clap, he claps... it's very cute!
*He pulls himeslf up on his knees, but hasn't figured out how to get to his feet yet.
*He can go from laying on his belly to sitting up by himself now... imagine my surprise last week when I look up and he is suddenly sitting up! haha! He does it all the time and I love watching his determined little face! Then again if he gets stuck... he screams!
*will give "high five" sometimes.
*He now has four teeth (two top and two bottom). I love his toothy little grin!
*He is starting to have stranger anxiety I think.... Not all the time, but mostly if he is tired.



We are just so thankful for our healthy boy! I love watching him grow (even though it goes too fast) and do new things. He just keeps getting more and more fun :) I can't imagine life with out him!

Horton & The Basket

At school they had a pumpkin decorating contest. You were supposed to decorate a pumpkin like your favorite book character. Brycen wanted to participate and he decided he wanted to do Horton from Horton Hears A Hoo. I think it turned out pretty cute :)

Horton and B the night before taking it to school...

might I add that the morning it had to be there it was POURING down rain (when we had those storms)... Horton's trunk is made of tissue paper... Yikes!

He did get there safe and sound though.

Corbin has an obsession w/ the laundry basket... empty or full... he LOVES the laundry basket... I know most kids like them, but he gets excited and shakes all over when he sees it! haha! It's adorable. Here he is making a mess w/ my folded laundry :) So proud of himself!

Ideas

Here are some ideas for random acts of kindness! I was googling the web for ideas and found this list helpful!


Yesterday I really couldn't think of anything that was too feasible of doing at the time. Now I have lots of ideas. Sooo yesterday I complimented my co-worker A LOT. She is not the easiest person to compliment. She has a good heart, but is hard to get to know. I used to get my feelings hurt a lot by her... and a lot of people don't like her b/c of how she comes across. I can't even begin to tell you how her eyes lit up. She didn't say much at the compliments I gave, but I could tell she enjoyed them!

(Ninja) Turtles

So, I was going to start this blog by apologizing for the ugliness of the background of these pictures-aka- our rental... ya know b/c I don't really like brown shag carpet from 1970 (or the mis matched furniture everywhere), BUT then I realized I'm thankful for our rental (not so much for the ugliness), BUT for the what it provides for our family. That I really believe God brought it about for us at the perfect time (when B was starting school) and that we have already made some great memories there... so even though the carpet could go... I won't apologize!

Corbin Fisher was a happy little turtle!
(We re used B's 1st Halloween costume for C)

B was a homemade ninja turtle... not that I can take credit for the idea... my friend Whitney did it!

Here the boys were playing/talking just not cooperating in general! haha!

Corbin really just didn't want to hold still :)
And B has that frozen smile b/c I told him to just keep smiling and looking at the camera while we tried to make C hold still! haha!
turtle shells :)

Corbin wanted to beat on B's turtle shell b/c it made cool noises :)
B was kind of protective about the shell though! haha


This is about as good as the picture taking got, but they are still pretty cute in my book!

We only went to a few places (and when I say a few I literally mean a few... as in 3).

I've never been big on taking B to lots of places (except his first Halloween), but this year Corbin wasn't feeling the greatest (not that you can tell) and he was coughing and it was cool outside... well you get the picture!

So after our treating ( we didn't do any tricking!) we went and got movies and came home for a movie night :)

We really thought we'd have a lot of kids since we're living in town in the rental, but I'm not kidding you when I say we didn't even have ONE! B was disappointed!

Yesterday (the 3rd) the boys and I asked my mom on a date and went to Mi Pueblo... I had been craving it and Ryan was working late and I still needed to do something nice for the day! haha! So we bought my momma's supper b/c honestly, she never let's me pay for anything and I don't get to show her very often how much I appreciate everything she does for me (like getting B off the bus every.day (except Wed).

Still not sure what nice thing is going to happen today.... It is a little harder to think of ideas than I originally thought it would be! Anyone want to share some?!

Random

Today was election day... as everyone is well aware I'm sure! This election was pretty important to me personally because my boss was up for re-election as prosecutor! I love him to pieces as a boss and a friend. He's like an older brother (our families have been friends back to our great-grandparents). Last election four years ago I was super nervous, but for some reason I just had a very calm peace about this... even though I knew it would be a close race I was not concerned. I wanted him to win, but I was not worried... I know that only came from the Lord. I really do like my job, it's a great job and even though I'd rather be home w/ my boys, since that doesn't work for us due to health insurance coverage, this is the best job! I like what I do and the people I work with! He did win! Whoo hoo! Since election day was today we were off of work which is always a nice break to have an extra day off! Corbin and I went and voted and just hung out at home. Tonight while waiting for results to come in I baked to keep my mind off of it! I made Chcolate Peanut Buddy Bars. YUM!


For the thirty days of gift giving today I gave some coupons to a friend and she ended up having enough to buy TWENTY FREE boxes of cereal! She is donating them to the Toyota (where her husband works) food bank.

Yesterday Brycen and I made cookies and took them to our elderly neighbors (at our rental). They are also family friends. Honestly, I was in a hurry and just wanted to drop them off and leave, but they invited us in and I knew they wanted to visit w/ the boys... I ended up being so blessed by stopping and taking a few minutes to visit them. They are people who have been an important part of my entire life. I love them like family. I sometimes forget to take time to let people know I love them and appreciate them... visiting with them just warmed my heart and honestly made my day!


These things I'm doing aren't major, they aren't life changing things, BUT they still count! I want to be a nicer version of myself. I want to think of others needs before my own... in doing so I find myself feeling twice as blessed.


I am only posting these things to hold myself accountable. I think giving in secret is great and I love doing that as well, but for this challenge I want to post about the things we do so that I can hold myself accountable and see how the Lord is working.


I am off again tomorrow (whoo hoo!)... think I'll go eat another chocolate peanut buddy bar now :) just what I need! ha!


I have Halloween pictures to post, but blogger won't let me, that's why you're getting this very random post!

30 Day Giving Challenge

Challenge makes it sound like a contest- and it's not... it's about giving. We're doing it for HIM... to further the kingdom. If you guys want to participate go to this blog and get more information. We are all so blessed and I know that sometimes I get stuck in my own little world... Do you know that some mom's worry about putting clean diapers on their babies? I literally cannot imagine... that's here in America that babies are going all day in dirty diapers. It breaks my heart. I can't imagine worrying about feeding my kids or putting diapers on them. There are lots of ways to give... it doesn't have to be monetary- you could volunteer your time to help an elderly person who doesn't have family to help them or you could even just pick up a piece of trash that blew in your neighbors yard. It doesn't have to be big and the recipient doesn't even have to know about your giving, it's just going out of our own little comfort zone and doing for others instead of ourselves. HE paid the ultimate price- gave the ultimate gift so any sacrifice that we make is really nothing compared to what HE gave. We are saved by his Grace- let's pass on some blessings!