What's New with Braxton

There are a few things that seem to be popping up with my son lately. My favorite is his labeling. The other day he was watching Robin Hood (Disney version) and I heard him scream, "That's my mom." When I walked in to see what his mom was I saw Maid Marion on the screen. A moment later when Robin Hood was there too he squealed with delight, "Daddy!" So apparently Braxton thinks that Kent and I are foxy people...and might I add that it was during the "love" scene of the movie that he proclaimed this. That tells me that he views his mom and dad as being in love. I like that the idea is important to him. Lately he even tells me that daddy is Woody (the cowboy) because Woody has a horse. It seems that I may have been Cinderella and Kent the prince once too. But he's into labeling us with the Disney characters. As long as I'm not Izma I'm ok with the labeling.

Another Robin Hood thing that he does (besides watching it over and over) is when the movie starts and the minstrel rooster is whistling Braxton will sing that tune on a doot do do sound and bob his little head. There's a little jumping up and down and all kinds of excitement in anticipation of this movie.

Did you ever hear the term and he will lead them as a child? Well that apparently means you will be gently shoved around the house by a little child. It doesn't tell you that not only will you be told where to go, but also what position to put all your body parts in. Braxton will lead me into a room and then take my hand and try to place it on the DVD or something, or he will try and lift my leg to get me to step on something. Pretty much he figures he's the boss of everyone. It's cute and obnoxious at the same time.

My child is a self serve child most the time. For quite a while he will get in the fridge by himself and pull out something (usually yogurt) and get a spoon and take it over to the table to eat it. Sometimes that includes a bowl sometimes he eats out of the container. I always think of the episode of "yes, dear" where Kim watches Logan get his own yogurt while she feeds Sammy like a baby.

Braxton is already learning to be electronic savvy. He will turn on and off the stereo. He puts in his own movies (VHS, what did you think I was crazy). He will sit at the computer and watch the slide show and we have now taught him to use the arrow keys to move through the pictures. I mean my kid is savvy! The other day when we were at Grandma R's she was concerned because Braxton was touching the buttons on the TV. Kent and I just had to laugh because we know that Braxton works the TV just fine on his own. He's just a smart little cookie! I took this picture the other day because Kent put on his cowboy hat and when Braxton saw he has to follow. He's been doing a lot of copy cat lately. When he sees you brush your teeth has will brush his too. When he sees you get on your coat so must he. If you brush your hair he will follow suit. Often times he sees Kent taking off his clothes to take a shower and immediately Braxton is taking off clothes and running to the bathroom.

Finally his newest thing is needing a knife to eat, a butter knife of course. On Sunday we had some friend over for dinner and Kent got out knives for everyone when he set the table. Braxton saw this and needed his own knife and has needed one every meal since. He needs a knife with his yogurt, with cottage cheese, with toast, with every single meal. He is just growing up so fast and has so many funny things that he does.

6 Years and Counting!!!

...and YES Kent is still the one!!!

Have you seen me....?

The other night Kent and I were able to go visit with our new neighbors and it reminded me of something that I feel like I've been missing for far too long...loveable, fun, light-hearted, funny ME! Something about visiting with them brought belly laughing and so much fun that I seem to have been missing for a while. I don't know where that Marlies has been for so long, but I desperately want her back. I'm hoping that spring and new friends will bring her back. She's too great to be missing this long.

Times Change!

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It's interesting to me to think that in not too long (who knows perhaps now) kids will look at a newspaper and go wow what is that? I mean I admit that I don't recall my parents sitting down every morning to read the daily news, but we did take the paper and occasionally they took the time to read it. I also remember my Grandpa Holdaway sitting in his chair in front of the window at the kitchen table with newspaper in hand. He would be sitting there with legs crossed and reading. I'm sure that it was either the sports section or the obituaries.

It's a little sad to be seeing newspapers all over the country closing because no one wants to buy them. I admit I am part of the reason. If I want to know something I don't buy a newspaper I turn on the computer. I know that is the way of life that we are ever changing and rethinking things, but it doesn't mean that there isn't a little bittersweet with it as well. I think it is only fitting with this post to add an email I got about kids today. Enjoy...

30 and over...

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears With their tedious Diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking Twenty-five miles to school every morning

Uphill... Barefoot.

BOTH ways

Yadda, yadda, yadda

And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, There was no way I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!

But now that... I'm over the ripe old age of Thirty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today.

You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my Childhood, you live in Utopia!

And I hate to say it but you kids today you don't know how good you've got it!

I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have The Internet. If we wanted to know something, We had to go to the library and Look it up ourselves, in the card catalogue!!

There was no email!! We had to actually write Somebody a letter, with a pen!

Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!

Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our &$%! No where was safe!

There were no MP3' s or Napsters! You wanted to Steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!

Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio and the DJ'd usually talk over the beginning and mess it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and 'eject' it when finished and the tape would come undone cause that's how we rolled, dig?

We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you Were on the phone and somebody else called they got a busy signal, that's it!

And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, Your mom, your boss, a collections agent, you Just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!

We didn't have any fancy Sony Playstation video Games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games Like 'Space Invaders' and 'asteroids'. Your guy was a little square! You Actually had to use your imagination!! And there were no multiple levels or Screens, it was just one screen Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting Harder and harder and Faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!

You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your butt and walk over to the TV to change the channel! There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying!?! We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little brats!

And we didn't have microwaves; if we wanted to heat Something up we had to use the stove. Imagine that!

That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids Today have got it too easy. You're spoiled. You guys wouldn't have lasted Five minutes back in 1980 or before!

Regards,
The over 30 Crowd

Winter Beauty

Every now and again winter shows how beautiful she can be...

The night before it had snowed...

the sky had cleared by morning...

and the sun was shining...

it was an "Oliver" morning...

"Who will buy this beautiful morning?"

3/5/09

Picture Time

Kent asked me to take a picture as Braxton climbed on him to watch TV. lol

My little boy loves to snuggle with his dad!

This day it was really windy so I decided to teach Braxton about windy.
He thought it was pretty cool!


Wow. That is one crazy boy. He's starting to get that big boy aggression. YIKES!

He does have his soft moments still. I put Lion King on for him to watch and when I came back later I found he had brought some friends from his room to watch with him. He is really starting to make connections like this. The other day he was showing me a sticker and a balloon that both had the same image of Lightening McQueen on them.

Braxton burrito. What a cutie.

I just thought it was too cute not to take a snap shot or two.

I actually got a picture of me that I kind of liked.

He likes to look at himself in the mirror and watch his face as he pulls faces. lol

We are ALL Children of the Most High

Growing up my dad loved to watch Nature on PBS. I learned to love it as well. I have always been enticed by the age old scenario of the herd animals like the gazelle or the zebras being picked off by their predators. In these many documentaries it explained how the lions, tigers, or jaguars will pick off the smallest, the slowest, and the weakest of the herd, the "easy" food. The predators will lie in wait until the moment is right and the animal has it's guard down. Then quickly and powerfully he will lunge for the animal who more often than not becomes dinner for the predator.

I marvelled that the predator was so clever and so powerful. I also wondered at why these animals so well trained to beware of danger would let their guard down to allow the predator the opportunity to devour the prey. In life there is a very real "lion" who is waiting to devour us. Just like the predator he waits for us to lower our guard and then he attacks. The very lucky escape unscathed, but others are not so lucky.

There are many lessons to be learned from focusing on the predator, but to illustrate my point I would like to focus on the prey as well as the herd. As I mentioned before the predators often focus on the smallest, the weakest, and the slowest, but why? Because those are the ones who are less likely to find protection from the group. They are the easy targets because they are alone. Is this not one of Satan's greatest tools? Creating within us a feeling of being alone so that we will not find the protection of the group. Not only does he create that feeling within ourselves, but he also convinces those within the group to single others out so that they are alone.

Imagine how difficult it would be for the lion to pick off it's prey if there were no animals outside the group, not one. Imagine how difficult it would be for Satan is all were safely gathered in to the fold. How difficult would it be for Satan if we all went after the one and brought them home to safety! My question is this, what are we doing to create that feeling of unity?

One of my favorite movies is "West Side Story." The other day as I was watching it I noticed something that had not occurred to me before. In the movie there are two groups, the Jet's and the Sharks, who fight against each other. Their hate for each other is strong and intense. As I watched the movie it occurred to me that when we hate and isolate each other that we stifle the ability not only for ourselves to live, but we stifle it for others also. With hate comes bondage and death, but with love come freedom and life. If this is the case then surely the Devil is the "Father of Contention." (3 Nephi 11:29)

That evening after I watched the movie I had the opportunity to go to the temple. It was a wonderful experience. As I learned more about what God asks of us I was reminded of the scripture in Genesis 2:18 that says, "it is not good for man to be alone." The use of this comment is directed toward Adam's helpmate, Eve. I believe, however, that God means this in general. It is not good that we should leave each other alone to be devoured by the lions of this world. We need to strengthen and support one another.

The experience left me feeling the importance of truly loving all of God's children and seeing the Godlike attributes in each and every person. There are so many good people in this world. Why don't we focus on what we have in common instead of our differences as President Hinckley once said. He also said, "He [the Lord] expects us to be good neighbors, Christians in every sense of the word, those who follow the Golden Rule—’whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them’ (Matt. 7:12; 3 Ne. 14:12). My brothers and sisters, we must be good neighbors. We must be a friendly people. We must recognize the good in all people. We don’t go about tearing down other churches. We preach and teach in a positive and affirmative way” (meeting, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, 5 Aug. 1998).

Christ said, "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." John 13: 34-35 Finally we learn in 1 Jn. 4:12, "If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us." What a wonderful blessing it is to have love one for another. I recommit myself to learning to love as Christ did. My we all do our best to love one another.

Kids & The Temple

We've been doing a play group on Friday's and Braxton and his friend Bailey found the cars and wanted to take a drive together.

They look like little adults!
Crazy Braxty!

All the neices and Nephews for Brianna's baptism...with a cousin or two from the other side.

Can you see the Draper temple? Neither could we. Kent and I finally found it when we realized it was blending in with the snow!

This is the same picture it just a closer version of it. You can barely make out that there's a spire at the top of the circle. Interesting huh?

Making Better Use of Our Living Space

I'm on this organizing kick and the other day I got the idea to rearrange the furniture. Can I just tell you I LOVE IT!!!!!!! I now have an office AREA and my eating space is much better and more usable too. It is so nice to be able to look out the window while we eat. Even Braxton has taken to eating at the table more now. I love it!

it used to be that the table was against the wall where the computer is and the computer was in front of the window...how did that make any sense?
It really seemed to open this area up too.

Told you Braxton enjoyed it!

Now he has two windows to watch the construction out of!

See the dump truck?

This is the view he loves

He even likes to sit at the table and read.

Hi Mom!

Miracles Still Exist

It was only a few days ago I sat at this computer with my eyes filled with tears as a good friend reminded me that I needed to take some of my struggles to my Heavenly Father in prayer. I will forever be thankful for his reminder as well as all the other times that my friends have reminded my to take my struggles to the Lord. I will not name them all, but I am certain that I haven't forgotten even one of those friends or that time they reminded me where my true strength would come from. Having said that I would like to share the miracle that followed that prayer Thursday night.

In my prayer I asked for a few things. First I told the Lord of the way I felt. I told Him of my sorrows and my pains and I asked Him to help me though it. I asked Him for a miracle in my life as I could see that things were not going the way the Lord would want. I asked Him for the words to say so that I could express myself to the person I needed to work through this with. I also made an odd request. I asked that I could be accompanied by the love of my grandparents and that I would be able to feel their spirits and their love. I got up from my prayer and went to bed.

As I lay there in bed a handwritten journal entry I had made came to my mind and I remembered it as if it had been written only a few months prior. I grabbed my journal and found the entry dated a year and two weeks earlier. The entry came so clear to my mind that I thought I had written the wrong date for a moment. As I started to read my entry tears again streaked down my cheeks as the feelings were so raw it was as if I had written them that evening. I was amazed at how well it described what I was feeling. At the end of the entry it told me how much God loved me and it reminded me of things that I needed to hear to find comfort. I have no doubt in my mind that God gave me that impression to read those words and then in turn prompted me to share them with my spouse.

The next day I went about my chores and every now and again something would spark a reminder of a time I had spent with a grandparent. Something else would make me think of another grandparent. By about 2:00 pm I had had four separate instances where I was mentally engaged in some kind of memory or thought about each and every one of my grandparents. Were my prayers answered the way I thought they would be? No. Did the Lord answer my prayers? Yes, with exactness! I know that the Lord was aware of my challenges and I know that the Lord answered my prayers. I know that He will help us at any time in our lives all we have to do is take that small action and ask for His help!

In addition I want to add a little bit of help for anyone feeling the way I did that night. There were a few other things that helped me that night. I listened to the talk from last April's conference by M. Russell Ballard entitled, Daughters of God. He reminded me that I need to care for my own health in addition to that of my family's. I also read my patriarchal blessing which reminded me of how much the Lord loves me. Finally there are a few scriptures that I read. They are 2 Nephi 4:27 which talks about ALLOWING the Devil to destroy our peace and afflict our souls. Also 2 Nephi 4:34 Talks about placing our trust in God instead of in the arm of the flesh. We can solve any problem between two people if we allow God to mediate between the two. Without Him there are not many problems we can work out. The final scriptures my friend shared with me. Alma 7:11-12 reminds us that Christ suffered for our sins and ALL our pains so that he would know how to help us and how to succor his people. He suffered for all of us and that is why He is the great mediator because He literally knows how each and every one of us feels at each and every moment in our lives. What greater gift and miracle can we have than that!

Gratitude and Blessings in February

Sat 28 *I am thankful I was able to attend Brianna's baptism and share my testimony. I am thankful for a wonderful family that I love!
Fri 27 *I am thankful to know that the Lord answers prayers and that He is still a God of miracles!
Thur 26 *I am thankful for my home and safety!
Wed 25 *I am thankful for my husband and all that he does to try make me happy. He tries much harder than I give him credit for and I need to be grateful for it.
Tue 24 *I am thankful that I was able to get back in control after having Braxton make a poopy mess at naptime. I am also thankful to have found a way to save money on health insurance. I am thankful I went down and watched Brianna play basketball tonight. I enjoyed showing her that I love her.
Mon 23 *I am thankful to have enjoyed a fun night at our friends house eating dinner and playing games. It's so nice to have friends to spend time with and laugh!
Sun 22 *I am very thankful I was able to go with Kent to the youth fireside by Brother Walsh. He did a fantastic job (as always) and I learned so much.
Sat 21 *I am thankful for an entire day with Kent and Braxton. It was filled with working together (on cars), going for a walk, and enjoying a night out to dinner. What a great day!
Fri 20 *I am thankful that Kent received my frustrated message well and is willing to try and make changes.
Thur 19 *I am thankful I was able to get in a great workout and get the house cleaned as well.
Wed 18 *I am thankful for a fun time playing with Braxton today. I enjoy time spent playing instead of cleaning the house.
Tue 17 *I am thankful for a wonderful evening with my old roomate Robin and her husband and daughter as well as my old roommate Nikki. What a great time!
Mon 16 *I am thankful I was able to have my neighbor and kids over for dinner tonight. I am also thankful for the opportunity to visit with my friend whose sister passed away. She and her husband are amazing people and I am blessed to know them.
Sun 15 *I am thankful for great talks in Meadow's church today that reminded me of the importance of missionary work. I am thankful for a wonderful little boy who was able to entertain himself in the car for almost two hours without food, books, toys or anything else besides body parts. lol I'd say that's one great traveller!
Sat 14 *I am thankful for a fun activity of skating and basketball and birthday celebrations! It was a good day and a fun activity with the Robison family.
Fri 13 *I am thankful that I was able to get the most important things accomplished before we took off for Meadow. I am also thankful that no one came to play group so I could have that time to get ready!
Thur 12 *I am thankful for being able to get on top of keeping the house fairly organized and clean. I am also thankful to have had time spent enjoying Braxton today.
Wed 11 *I am thankful we were able to go to my friends sister's viewing. I am also thankful my husband is so good to want to support our friends at this time.
Tue 10 *I am thankful I have been able to get on top of keeping my house clean. I am also thankful that I was able to get out of the low slump of yesterday and a lack of sleep to being productive.
Mon 9 *I am thankful for homemade bread and the ability to make it. I am also thankful for my family.
Sun 8 *I am thankful for a clean house that was basically ready for company tonight. I am also thankful for a husband who is laid back enough for me to invite people over on a whim. I am thankful we had a fun game night.
Sat 7 *I am thankful for a nice evening with Kent watching a movie for date night at home.
Fri 6 *I am thankful to have a new and useful rearrangement of furniture.
Thur 5 *I am thankful I was able to go for a walk today and talk about colors with Braxton. I am also thankful I was able to get my house back in order!
Wed 4 *I know that the Lord blessed me to be able to get my Primary meeting in today as well as make it on time to work. Things seemed to take less time than usual and I was inspired to drive the opposite way to work which I know should have and could have taken me longer to get there. I am thankful for that as well as a fabulous workout!
Tue 3 *I am thankful that my Relief Society class on love languages went so well. I am thankful that the Lord inspired me to do it the way I did and also that he inspired me to leave out some of the things I had prepared.
Mon 2 *I am thankful that I was able to workout so well today. I am thankful the my son was so excited when I suggested singing songs for family night. He even started singing on his own. I am thankful for a wonderful husband who did the dishes, was willing to clean the oven after he made a mess and asked if I would teach him how to do it, and who finished dinner and then spent the remainder of his evening after family night making out a budget with me for the rest of the year. I am so blessed to have him!
Sun 1 *I am thankful our Primary pianist showed up even if it was a little bit late. I am thankful for a spirit filled sacrament with baby blessings, testimonies, and blessings bestowed by our brand new Stake President. I am also thankful I was able to enjoy a super bowl party without listening or watching pretty much anything except the last few minutes. It was much nicer than waiting to see something exciting only have feel like you had wasted 4 hours on a Sunday.