Christmas Morning

Santa Came! And Braylon must have been a very good boy this year.

Santa ate all of his cookies and drank all of his milk. All the proof Bray needed to be sure that Santa had visited our house.

Braylon got lots of "cool Star Wars", two robots as he had requested, the plastic zoo animals he asked for (meercat, zebra, lion, polar bear, and grizzly bear), the stuffed animal leopard he wanted, a talking/information sharing globe, some books, Kung Fu Panda DVD...and that was just from Santa. Funny story about the robots. All we have heard for months is that Santa needed to bring him two robots for Christmas (so they could fight each other). But anyway Santa came through. When Bray opened the second robot he said: "Two robots! Santa are you kidding me?" Then after looking in his stocking he busts out "Holy God!", which I am assuming he picked up from someone at preschool because no one else he is around uses it.
Even Lando got a visit from Santa. He had this and the other toy he received completely destroyed within two minutes.

Christmas Eve Marathon, Phase 4

Phase 4 of our Christmas Eve was an evening stop off to Drew's Gramps' house in Calhoun County. We got to visit with Gramps and with a lot of Boo Boo's family. But again, shame on me, I didn't get any pictures. Braylon and Gramps did make plans to do some tractor riding and fox chasing sometime this Spring. Here is an old picture of Braylon with Gramps. I can tell by Bray's balding/comb-over that he was five months old in this picture. The five month mark was not a good hair time for Bray.

Christmas Eve Marathon, Phase 3

The third stop on our Christmas Eve is MaMaw Helen's house. I didn't get any pictures of her this year. Shame on me. We are not as good about getting family pictures with Mom's family as we are with Dads. Some years it happens, but most years it doesn't. I did get some pictures of the kids though.

Cousin Kayli

Cousin Amara...just look at those big beautiful brown eyes!

Cousin Noah

Cousin Kelsi, or at least her eyes. I love this kids eyes. (Maybe because she is the only member of the family with gray/green eyes like me...although hers are much prettier!)

Cousin Aleigha. She is developing quite a sweet, with a splash of rotten, personality.

Christmas Eve Marathon, Phase 2

Bray's PaPaw Otto and MaMaw Edith. Also Uncle Ronald, PaPaw David, Aunt Cindy, and Aunt Kandy. Uncle Dale didn't get to make it in until Christmas day this year. Dad's family is so big and MaMaw and PaPaw's house is kinda small, so we rent out the fire hall to have space for us all.

Cousin Sabrina

Cousin Joshua

Cousin Christine

Cousin Isaiah

My Little Man

Cousin Caden

Cousin Aryka with her boyfriend, Zack

JoLee showing off a dance move.

Christmas Eve Marathon, Phase 1

Happy 30th Anniversary to my Mom and Dad! Every year we go out for breakfast on Christmas Eve morning to focus on Mom and Dad's Anniversary for a little while before all the Christmas madness starts. Aren't they such a beautiful couple? Another cute couple, if I do say so myself.
My brother and his new found chest hair (I can tease because D.J. never looks at this...no one show it to him, OK) and his wife, Jeni. Again, pretty darn cute, right!
But the cutest couple of the morning was definitely Braylon and my niece JoLee. Jeni got them the cutest sweatshirts. Jo's had Clarice and Bray's had Rudolph and they both said Santa's little helper. They were so perfect because Mom and JoLee have watched Rudolph approximately 500 times this year (they watch it all year round...poor Dad) and JoLee always says that she is Clarice and Braylon is Rudolph because she thinks he's cute.
The above picture turned out so nice and shows how much they love each other, but the picture below was actually taken first when I said "give each other a hug"...Miss JoLee doesn't mess around!

Question of the day...a break from the Christmas posts

Kooky Mama...(picture taken by Braylon)

...As my husband and son so often and affectionately call me. I know we all do crazy stuff just to put a smile on our kids faces, but what is the kookiest thing you have ever done to get your kid to do something without a struggle? I have recently started something that is so crazy that as I do it I say to myself "I can't believe you are doing this," yet I persist for lets see, I think this is the 4th night in a row. I'll tell you mine but I want to hear yours too (unless of course I am the worlds one and only kooky mama):

In order to get Braylon to pee in the potty one more time before bed (despite his insistence that he does not need to pee, MOM!) I have been moving the toilet seat like a big mouth and in a silly voice saying "Braylon, I am hungry for some pee!" Crazy? Yes. But it works every time.

Sometimes Christmas is a Pain in the Ear

Poor Bray! Last Monday, just one day after finishing up an antibiotic for an ear infection, we had plans to have our Christmas with Auntie April. Just before starting the festivities Braylon started complaining that his ear hurt. A few minutes later it was obvious that he was in a lot of pain. We offered to just head home and open gifts another day, but Bray wanted to open presents. We rushed through it and owe April another more pleasant visit soon. Contrary to the look of the picture above, Bray adores his Auntie April. As always April spoiled us all. She got Braylon a "Jedi Math" game for his Leapster and the mama duck to go with the baby duck she got him the last time she babysat for us. Braylon happened to mention to her recently that he "really needed a mama duck to go with his baby duck so it would not be lonely"...what a rat...he knew April, his Fairy Godmother, would not let him go around with a lonely baby duck!

He tried to push through, but the poor little guy really was in a lot of pain. We go tomorrow for a consultation to see about getting tubes put in his ears because he just can't seem to shake this ear infection.