Update

Things have been very busy lately...time is moving too fast! I thought I'd just let everyone in on our last/next couple of weeks:

-June 19th was PRC's 3rd Annual Family Night at the Park and it was a huge success! Last year when I went, it was ONE week from my water breaking and Brogan beginning his SLOW entry into this world. This year, he rode the train, grabbed our pizza and took some bites, and enjoyed Matthew, Emma and Kennedy's snow cones. I think he preferred this year :)

-Tadd just got back from preaching at Revolution Church in Canton, GA (where he used to be on staff). He had a horrible experience trying to get down there. I doubt he'll ever fly US Airways again. His checked bag didn't show up until he went back to the airport to come HOME! I have heard, though, that he did an incredible job on Sunday. God really gave him an excellent message to share with the people of Revolution.

-I found a bakery to bake both of Brogan's birthday cakes. They are reasonably priced and would do exactly what I wanted. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they turn out nicely! :)

-We are getting excited about Brogan's first birthday. Sad, but excited too. Sometimes when I look at him he looks like a kid. Other times he looks like a baby. Of course I'll always picture him as my baby, but he's starting to look older. His hair is growing super fast and he's getting taller and leaner each day.

-I'm getting my hair done on Thursday. WOOHOO! It's been since March and my hair is crazy right now, since I'm still taking prenatal vitamins. Three months is TOO long to go, but it's a good way to save money.

-Tadd was out of town for Father's Day this year...so we celebrated Thursday night at Cracker Barrel. He opened his present from Brogan in the van at the airport before he left. Brogan got him a coffee mug with a collage of pictures on it- all of him and Daddy together. And a bag of Reese's Pieces :)

-We are still deciding what we want to do for vacation this year. Traveling with a one year old kind of limits our options. I'm not sure I want to fly on a plane with him yet. He's not the "calmest" of children, that's for sure. We're looking into the Great Wolf Lodge, the beach, and Orlando as possible options. Any advice? Recommendations?

-Brogan has his one year portraits on the 29th! I am super excited. Andrea Halsey is doing them (andreahalsey.com) and she has her own little cottage. I know they will turn out great...if Brogan cooperates. I'm nervous about that. Brogan will miss having Tandy take his pictures this time, but we can't wait for her to take some more when we visit!

-My best friend, Rachel is visiting us in July! WOOHOO!!!! I can't wait to see her- it's almost been a year since the last time she traveled south to visit.

-Here are a few recent pictures of BroBro. He is hilarious! Always getting into something...just like his daddy and Uncle Bryan (uh-oh!) :)

Playing at the pool like a big boy!

Crawling around on mommy and daddy's bed

Playing with Anna Claire!

First Snow Cone!

Quiet baby=Trouble!

Four Years Ago...

I married my best friend. It was my idea of what a perfect wedding should be: outdoors in a rose garden, pink and green as our colors, summer time, and of course with the man of my dreams!

Our first kiss!

So excited to be Mrs. Tadd Grandstaff!

On our way to our honeymoon...and the rest of our lives!

On our honeymoon- Sandals Montego Bay

One year anniversary- Orlando, Ft. Lauderdale, Bahamas

Two year anniversary- Sandals Ocho Rios

Three year anniversary- we don't have a picture because I was hugely pregnant and not in the mood. We went to see Kung Fu Panda and I was in pain the whole movie...dumb bladder infection. Here's a picture of us a month before our 3 year anniversary

This year- PF Changs while my parents babysat Brogan

I am so blessed to be Tadd's wife. He is an amazing husband. He encourages me when I am down, tells me I'm beautiful when I don't feel it, loves to clean the house, irons his own clothes, will eat leftovers and never complain, encourages me to not work and stay home with Brogan, takes care of the yard, likes holding my hand, takes care of the bills, kills bugs, watches Jon and Kate plus 8 with me, even when a ballgame is on, always takes the trash out, never forgets an important day/holiday, listens to me when I talk about coupons (and acts interested), lets me choose which movie to see and where to eat, keeps quiet when the house is a wreck, lets me vent when I'm frustrated, lets me sleep in every Saturday, gives Brogan a bath almost every night and on and on and on! I am so thankful that God put Tadd in my life. We make a great team...and always have fun together- even when it means going grocery shopping on our anniversary :)

I love you Tadd! Thank you for being an amazing husband to me and awesome daddy to Brogan!

My baby is 11 months...

When the hay diddle diddle did that happen? I know I say that every month, but goodness! Last year at this time, I was cleaning out my classroom and having early contractions (caused by a UTI). A year later, my BroBro is a toddler! We are busy getting everything ready for his big birthday bash and trying to capture all of his firsts on camera and video. It seems like he does something new everyday.

Brogan...
-can say "dada", "dah" (dog), "babababa" (baby or byebye), and I've heard "mama" twice!
-waves byebye
-can sign "more" and "all done" when he's eating
-has taken a few steps without falling
-claps for himself when we say "Yay!!!!!"
-loves to laugh at our dog
-likes to play in the refrigerator and pantry
-tries to play in the dishwasher and dryer
-plays peekaboo with his lovey
-still nurses 5-6 times a day
-is almost DONE with baby food...give this child some MEAT (just like his daddy!)
-pops his thumb in his mouth the second he grabs his lovey...every single time
-will shake whatever is in his hand if we sing "shake your booty!"
-will bounce if we say "jump jump jump!"
-still suffers from bad eczema- especially on his hands and feet :(
-takes 2-3 naps each day
-weighs about 19lbs.

I really can't imagine our lives without our BroBro. The smile he greets us with each morning just makes getting up in the mornings so worth it. I've already started getting really emotional lately, looking at his newborn pictures, putting away clothes that no longer fit, and toys that he isn't interested in anymore. I can't imagine how I'm going to feel on his actual birthday. It will be very bittersweet I'm sure. Here's to hoping the next 23 days go by slowly.

Latest Obsession

I wish they would have made these plates when I was little! Aren't they fun? I'm planning on ordering one for Brogan...and maybe one for myself :) They are $10 at www.popdeluxe.net

Yay for Saving Money!

My mom and I recently started "couponing" and I have quickly gotten hooked! I've always done my main grocery shopping at Walmart because it's cheaper than anywhere else. But I've found that with coupons, I can get things very cheap or even free at Harris Teeter with their double and triple coupons. Now, I've always wanted to use coupons but either forgot to hand them to the cashier or forgot to take them to the store to start with. My mom and I got these notebooks and organized them with dividers and baseball card holders. SO MUCH EASIER! We look like some serious shoppers carrying these notebooks into the store, but it's so worth it.

Today was my best couponing day yet. I bought $45.36 worth of groceries and used 20 triple coupons. I love watching the total go down as the cashier scans the coupons. When I saw how much I owed I seriously just stood there in shock...$4.37!!! YES! Here is what I got for under $5!

I ended up getting both toothpastes, the sour cream, the grillmates marinade packet, and both croutons for FREE! Everything else was just cents. This is a new hobby of mine that Tadd just loves! :)

10 Months Already??

My baby boy turned 10 months old yesterday! He is so much fun to stay home with! We spend our days playing with all his toys in the living room, running short errands in between his 3 naps/day, pulling out all the tupperware in the cabinet, trying new finger foods, pulling the magnets off the refrigerator, going for walks around the neighborhood, pulling the food out of the pantry, and enjoying lots and lots of cuddle time. Brogan is ALL boy...getting into everything he can find. He's stopped the dinosaur grunting for the most part. He's now moved on to the "scream so high and loud that only a dog can hear me" phase. Hopefully it's a short-lived one. Personally, I think it's hilarious because he isn't mad- just discovering his voice. I'm sure others in restaurants and stores don't find it so humorous. We're still waiting for him to say his first word. He understands Mama, Dada, May May (our dog), more, high five, bye bye, baby, and fish. Here are some recent pictures of my sweet boy!

Growing up too fast!

Since the last blog entry, Brogan has turned 9 MONTHS OLD! It truly is amazing how fast time is flying by. He is a crawling machine and thinks that he is SOOO big now that he can pull up on anything. Of course, this makes for many more falls and boo-boo's.

Brogan is also doing much better sleeping. After months of me getting up 4-5 times a night to feed him, I had to re-train him. He typically goes to bed at 8pm and wakes up at 7am, getting up once or twice a night. I just change his diaper, give him a hug and put him back down and he's fine. He started sucking his thumb now and rubbing his lovey on his face.

Brogan is also eating just about anything we offer him. Spaghetti, yogurt, grilled cheese, chicken pot pie, and Miss April's lasagna are some of the most recent new foods he's loved. He's still nursing about 5 times a day along with solids at all 3 meals. With all this eating, he's still only in the 10th percentile for weight. At his 9 month check up, he was 17.10lbs and 27 inches long (25th percentile).

We had a great Easter! Brogan and I went to the Saturday night service to hear Tadd's message. (Brogan loves to watch his daddy on the monitor!) On Sunday, we headed to my Nana's house for lunch and an Easter egg hunt. We pushed Brogan around in his red car looking for his eggs, which were filled with cheerios and puffs. He was so adorable!