We grow babies not flowers

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Abbie

I have two flowerpots that I keep in the kitchen to make dirt cake (oh yes…and it’s good too). Bryant has found that these plastic flowerpots have another great use.

Bryant’s Hat Part 1 from justabunchofcharacters on Vimeo.

But wait, there’s more:

Bryant Hat pt 2 from justabunchofcharacters on Vimeo.

He not only likes to put it on his head so he can’t see. But, he also likes to run around the house, with it on his head (so he can’t see), making noises. At least we know when he’s coming and to steer him clear of any danger.

But he’s totally adorable when he does it!

(Pictures courtesy of Zoe).

We Like to Rock!

Posted on August 23, 2011 by Abbie

Occasionally, we’ll turn on some good Christian praise music and have at it. And this is what the kids do:

He’s four ya’ll. I’m no guitar expert but at four, I didn’t know how to hold a guitar…and he even plays chords on it and strums up and down. Do they make guitars small enough for a four year old?

Ceili Rain getting down!

And Bryant just thinks we all flipped our lid.

This rockin’ out session was provided by NeedtoBreathe who’s music we’ve been enjoying on their website (and they didn’t pay me to say that and I have no idea why NeedtoBreathe is all one word but it is. I’m goingtostartrightinglikethat Okayit’slate.). I will also say that our favorite songs are “Slumber” and “The Outsiders.”

Speaking of Rockin’ Out. Mark caught Josiah on tape doing Just Dance Kids! Let’s just say it’s fun-ny!

Happy Birthday Bryant!

Posted on August 10, 2011 by Abbie

So, Bryant turned one last month and we celebrated! First the prep:

We went simple…chocolate cake with chocolate icing. And chocolate cupcakes for the guests!

We got this adorable fondant topper from KidsCakes on Etsy. I got Ceili Rain’s and Josiah’s cake decorations from the same place! I loved it! And it was so worth it.

Now to the Birthday boy’s main attraction:

“May I have the cake please?”

Now, he actually went face first into it, so we cut off a piece and he was very happy.

“Can you believe they’re letting me eat the whole cake?!”

Sugar. High.

Pause for a bit of liquid refreshment

And then he couldn’t resist the fondant.

Needless to say, he loved it! He didn’t eat and grab the whole cake and only ate a couple of bites, but he enjoyed every bit of it.

Ceili Rain enjoyed the cupcakes.

And then it was bathtime.

Please don’t think we’re cruel. He had fun shortly after this was taken. It does hold a bit of a “what in the world are they doing to me” caption though.

Ceili Rain enjoyed making baby Maggie cry and then laugh.

Present time. This boy loves balls. About as much as big brother Josiah! He also can throw them. Hard and far!

Happy birthday to our sweet baby boy Bryant!

He’s been so much fun this first year of his life. From teeth at two months to crawling at five months to walking at eleven months (forgot to post on that…sorry). He’s a trip all the way around. He loves his brothers and sisters, getting into everything and climbing all over everyone. His brothers and sisters are equally enthralled with him. They love to carry him everywhere, “wrestle” with him, and have him chase them around. He can laugh in a quick minute and usually when he knows he’s doing something he shouldn’t. He says several words including, “uh oh,” “ba” for ball, “dada,” “hi,” “bye bye,” “mama” when prompted, “Papa” when prompted, and he tries to make some different distinct sounds for each of his brothers and sisters when we say their names. Regardless, he’s constantly making noise whether it’s babbling (loudly) or banging a toy on furniture. We never lose track of him for long! He is a light and joy and we praise God for each day we are given with him.

Here are his stats at one year:

20 lbs. 20% (at least he’s twenty pounds…the boy eats ya’ll…and he was getting mama’s milk from the freezer two to three times a day for about a month)

30 1/2 inches tall 75%

19 inches head 95%

And now you know the “after” of a one year old’s haircut.

How to Cut a One Year Old’s Hair

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Abbie

Tools:
Three adults, well, four if you count the one wielding the camera
Squirt bottle so little hairs don’t fly into baby’s face (and for the “fun factor”)
Scissors for two adults
Patience
Lots of Patience

Directions:
First, in the throes of morning sickness, forget to take before pictures until after you’ve sprayed the water and the one year old’s hair looks all scraggely.

“Oh yeah, this is gonna be fun!”

Next, position an adult over the baby, one adult on one side and one on the other. Adult over baby holds head down.

*Lastly, have a free for all and try to get hair as even as possible! It’s basically a cut-let go and relax-cut again cycle.

For the record, Bryant desperately needed a haircut and on the eve of his first birthday Grandmere and Papa were visiting so having a skilled adult with this still unskilled mama was a bonus…plus we had two extra adults for pictures and head control. Bryant’s the first of the bunch that does not have a cowlick in front. That means he has to have a bowl cut, no-doubt-about-it. And he looks adorable! Even if I cut around his ears too short…I always do that. I’m just starting him off with it early!

Check back tomorrow for the results of the cut and a celebration of all things Bryant as he turns one!
*No babies were harmed in this process. Not even on accident!

The Rest of July

Posted on July 29, 2011 by Abbie

We preformed plays in the hallway…

Decorated Josiah’s trains.

Had a brief visit with cousins.

Isn’t my niece is just beautiful!? She bribed her cousin with cookies and it worked.

Celebrated Daddy’s birthday (that’s 32…three candles, two in the next row). And it’s peach cobbler.

And Josiah enjoyed riding his birthday gift. A bike.

Free Food!

Posted on July 28, 2011 by Abbie

Of course we didn’t pass up the free food from Chick-fil-a this year! No way would we do that. I’ve just been delayed in getting this up.

Our Carr Friends did it right this year with reuseable shirts! We’re so doing that next year. Our spots wouldn’t stay on this year and our ears were a bit floppy…see???

But we still had some cute cows this year.

Reunited…

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Abbie

This year we were able to make it to the first of family reunions. We’re hoping to attend at least one more, possibly two if my side does it again. This is a great opportunity for me to meet relatives and hear stories about “the good ole days,” which I love!

So, here’s a photo dump of our day at a reunion we attended in June.

Before the reunion, we were reunited with the oldest two as Grandparent Camp came to an end. I was so excited to have my oldest two “babies” back. They celebrated by calling us Grandmere and Papa the whole weekend…and we still took them back home with us.

The younger kids enjoyed picking veggies from Papa’s garden.

And these next series of pictures I just have to comment on. They are too funny not to!

Bryant: Hey Papa, what’s so surprising???

Bryant: Oh, I see the bright light…that’s just mom, she does that all the time. What’s up mom?!

Bryant: Okay, mom, we’re done posing you can stop…any. time. now.

Bryant: Alright…just one more!

Sweet cuddle love ! (Note: This was the weekend before we found out #7 was on the way. This was also the weekend, I had massive heartburn that woke me up and had me up for a little while. And, I kept trying to figure out, this same weekend, why I just felt a little blah…the answer came the following Monday! You’d think I would know the symptoms by now…it was the heartburn that threw me for a loop)

Sweet Sibling Love! (aka Partners in Crime)

Bryant was very interested in another little girl there. She’s a cousin.

Ceili Rain thought she was adorable too.

Dirt. A girl’s best friend. Okay, a girl with three older brothers.

Swings can be pretend fliers

Sticks are pretty cool too.

This is his model stance.

And his sweet smile, Model pose.

Bryant standing. By himself. Pay no attention to his beautiful black eye. It’s healed nicely and he now knows how to climb down the two steps in our home.

Father’s Day Weekend

Posted on July 14, 2011 by Abbie

So, Father’s Day weekend we had planned for Mark’s parents to come up so that Papa could help finish up the deck. That was the plan.

That’s not what happened. Mark, who was not on call. Got a call from work (which never happens) and had to go to work on Saturday. I was committed to volunteer at a home school used book sale so that left his parents to watch the kids.

Fortunately, Mark only had to work in the morning and was able to get home and get to the wood store and back home to get up some railing before it started pouring rain!

Before the rain, the men were checking the radar on their “smart” phones.

And Sunday dawned beautiful and bright (and hot) and everyone actually looked at the camera for pictures!

And Ceili Rain posed with Papa.

Help!

Posted on July 13, 2011 by Abbie

in June….

We had lots of visitors in June and the first of July (that’s how we like it around here). And lots of visitors means lots to clean before and after. Here are two of my helpers in training (no, I did not make them clean the cabinets but they both wanted to and I let them do it…who’s going to refuse help?).

Yep, he’s the kid behind the clothe in the first picture. He really wanted a rag so I gave him, sprayed water on the cabinet and he went to town and was every bit as serious as could be.

Josiah enjoyed helping with making laundry soap. He’s becoming quite the chef and every time I step in the kitchen he is right there asking to help!

Ceili Rain learned to ask for help in putting on her underwear. She also learned it doesn’t go over your head. Oh, and she learned that toothpaste doesn’t go in your hair either. She did a lot of learning in June.

Blueberries…yummy!

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Abbie

Bryant likes blueberry coffee cake. See???

We’re here but blogging will be sporadic this week as we are enjoying some time with our dear friends from another state! Ten kids 8 and under all in one house! We are having a blast.

For now, enjoy Bryant’s sweet blueberry face. Yeah, we know we should have used a bib!

Just a Bunch of Characters

Musings of everyday life in a house full of Characters.

Tag Archives: Bryant