Chocolate

I wanted to check out the Chocolate Affair that the city of Glendale was hosting. Afterall, there are very few people who don't enjoy chocolate, so why not. Brayden and I headed down. I had a slightly difficult time finding a parking spot. Eventually I found a spot and we headed out among the masses. I was surprised to see that it wasn't only chocolate vendors but other vendors too. I know this may sound silly, but my expectation was to find a chocolate dinosaur for Brayden. I wasn't sure what to expect but hoped to find a sucker or boxed item of a dinosaur or even a truck. No such luck, most booths had dipped chocolate this or that or fudge. I was mulling over what to get when we decided to take the shuttle to the candy factory to get a tour. The tour was alright. Not too much to really see. Brayden was a bit ornery. We left without seeing anything that really caught my attention that I needed to buy or spend the money on. Brayden enjoyed ridding on the shuttle and seeing the horses. Eventually we got some fudge and split it. After finishing the fudge, we headed to the car. Brayden fell asleep in the car which was nice.

Last night

Brayden is feeling better, which is good. I took these pictures of him last night. I was playing with the camera a bit. These are my two favorites. David went to bed before all of us as it seemed he might be coming down with a cold. So I laid in bed with Brayden in his bed. The problem, I fell asleep before he did. I woke up around midnight to find that he wasn't in his bed. I headed to our room and found him sleeping next to David in my spot. I moved him over and joined them in bed.

Sick little boy

Our weekend started off with Brayden having a temperature and went downhill from there. Monday we had scheduled a wellness apppointment with a new pediatrician that turned into a sick visist as Brayden was miserable. Poor little guy didn't feel like moving at all and asked to be carried constantly or to have one of us lay with him with covers. A double ear infection was the diagnosis, although he threw up three times which is highly unusual for Brayden. David has been staying home with him the last couple of days but the lost of his productivity finally prompted him to call his parents who are in Arizona this time of year, to watch Brayden. I wish my family was closer but that is what Skype(free video conferencing) is for. So today, Brayden will go to Grandma and Granddad's house.

A quote for the new year

There comes a point in your life when you realize: Who matters, Who never did, Who won't anymore... And who always will. So, don't worry about people from your past, there's a reason why they didn't make it to your future. Quote taken from a friend's facebook page.

My all day project and cousins

I wish it hadn't taken me all day but the fact of the matter was, it took me from 11:30 till about 5:30 to hang 9 picture frames. It was the last of my things to do this weekend. I wanted to hang the picture frames I had gotten for Christmas and get them off of the floor. I calculated out and measured. I then remembered to check it with the level which meant additional checking and measuring. David picked up wall hangers and bumpers for me. I hadn't accounted for the additional inch the hanger added so it meant re-measuring. When I finally could hammer the hangers in, Brayden was napping. Finally they are up. While I wish there was more space between the frames, I think it turned out well. Now I just have to find a place that will print 12 x 12 photos. My plan B is to put fabric in the frames. We will see...
New Year's Day and yesterday were spent with the cousins. We went over to the in-laws house on New Year's and they came over last night. I must have been in a reflective mood.
Being a child of an only child came with its perks. We didn't have to share grandparents on my mom's side. I didn't see my Dad's parents all that much except for the holidays. My mom's parents were the everyday grandparents, picking us up, taking us where we needed to go and generally spoiling us. I saw my cousins but we weren't close. We enjoyed being together as we were generally all the same age and ganged up more on our siblings.
For some reason the year started out with fighting, tattling, bickering, not sharing, running, and a decimal level too high to be related to three small children. I hated hearing that Brayden was doing this or hearing his cries when he was being picked on or hurt. I realized that I have a hard time being an aunt sometimes as I wasn't largely exposed to this. Strangely this new facet of parenting really stood out. I hated that Brayden wouldn't share and set a bad example at times, in front of family. I tried to remain calm and not react too much when there were things that really bothered me. I realized that I really want Brayden to know how to act in other people's houses. We definitely need to work on sharing. Brayden was unhappy to have anyone else really using his toys which made me sad. In all fairness, he didn't like toys being ripped out of his hands either. I guess I can only hope that the kids get along better as they grow up and that I deal better with being an aunt.

Traditions and other thoughts this past Christmas

I honestly wish I would have recorded more of what was going on the month of December. It all seemed a bit crazy but there are a few items I wish to record.
We went out caroling one night, Brayden saw an inflatable of Santa and Rudolph, Brayden stated it was Jesus and a doggie.
This year I asked for the Little People Nativity set (didn't want the ceramic set to chance getting broken), my mother -in-law purchased it and gave it to us before Christmas. The Virgin Mary took her first plane ride in the Little People Airplane. Baby Jesus took a ride on the back of a Matchbox semi truck. For some reason Brayden playing with these items struck me a hilarious.
As for traditions...
I remember several growing up:
-Checking out Christmas lights
-Going to my grandparents for dinner (usually ordering pizza), going to Christmas Eve Service, then coming back to their house to open gifts
- Going to choir programs
-Each year both sets of Grandparents got us an ornament, when we left the house we took our box of ornaments with us

I especially liked this tradition. When I got married, I had all these precious memories tied to the ornaments and who had given them to me. I had something to hang on a tree when we didn't have money to purchase fancy ornaments for a tree. I was shocked when David didn't have ornaments. His family didn't have the same tradition. When Brayden was born, I continued the tradition. I ask my family to purchase a couple of ornaments for Brayden that have some sort of significance for the year or would be something he would like/be aware of. I record in a spreadsheet, each ornament (so as to not miss any off the tree) and who purchased the ornament. I have had some people state that they think it is silly to spend money on an ornament, when you could use the money to spend it on another toy. Perhaps, but ornaments don't have to be expensive and they last longer then that toy would.

New Traditions with David and Brayden
-Since David didn't have ornaments, I thought it would be neat to record each year we are married with an ornament. Each year, I ask David's parents for a crystal ornament. This year was the first year they came out of their box. I knew it was time to enjoy them. I purchased a metal ornament tree and put it in our bedroom away from small hands.
-We read a picture book regarding the birth of Jesus every night for the month of December.
-We checked out the Christmas Lights and found some spots to earmark each year
-We visited McCormick Stillman Park to check out the trains
-We watched the Polar Express and other Christmas movies
-We went caroling
-We sang Happy Birthday to Jesus on Christmas with a cake
-Helping those less fortunate

We had a wonderful Christmas. Brayden surprised me again this year by being singularly interested in one particular toy and ignoring others. In fact we took home wrapped gifts from the grandparents house. GG, got Brayden a large remote control dinosaur that he is still a bit afraid of. My family surprised me with one of the best gifts yet, they got me the camera that I had been wanting. I was so tickled. I am still learning how to use it but am very excited to expand my hobby in photography.
David and I didn't exchange gifts this year and that was fine. It was still an awesome Christmas.

Enjoying Snow and lights

Today proved to be quite a festive day. Our community brought in snow for the kids to play in. I was excited to see how Brayden would react. They had an area for the younger kids to play in which was nice. Brayden enjoyed the snow. I had to laugh when one mother expressed my sentiments when she said that she had to show her child how to play in it. We then decided to wait in line to go down the hill on a sled. Ironic that I never thought I would need a sled in Arizona and thought to leave ours with the grandparents when we moved so the grandkids could use them. Thankfully the HOA provided some for us. Brayden enjoyed going down the hill even after we crashed the first time. We ended up going down two more times and each time Brayden wanted more. However we could tell that he was getting tired. We came home and took a nap. Our evening plans changed from a party to going to Glendale Glitters. We felt we had to get out of the house and enjoy the holiday season. It was pretty packed. The lights were great. The crowds weren't my favorite. We took a hayride to see a live nativity. Brayden was enthused with the tractor that pulled us along. We walked into a few shops before heading back to see the lights. We took a break on our way out to the car to sit on a bench. Me, being the photo nazi that I am, wanted a few pictures with the lights in the background. We really didn't get pictures of the evening, but we ended up getting some funny footage of Brayden roaring like a dinosaur. We then saw some dancers take the stage from below as we were walking to the car. I liked the vantage point of being able to look down on them and watch their foot placement. I think Brayden enjoyed them two as we watched three dances before coming home.