The Bridgmans

Bailey's Christmas Tap

2011-12-17T22:05:00.000-08:00

18 Month Old Jaemus

2011-12-11T20:36:00.000-08:00

Jaemus Lee is 18 months with a new hair cut! Brandon took the clippers to the boy for a solid haircut. We have been keeping it long and stylish but it was too much upkeep. His hair grows ridiculously fast and is always in his eyes, and the thickness of it always make his head sweat. He is all animal.

Before

After

Cha-chi or Chach-man, as he is often called by Bailey, and now us, is full of personality and joy. He is easily entertained and quick to laugh and smile. The whole 'listening to your parents' thing is ignored by him with these sneaky little smiles, quick running, and laughing squeals. Seriously, really difficult to scold or punish such a sweet boy. He understand really well and is able to communicate pretty clearly, so we know this is all an act. I am often saying in a stern tone, "Jaemus Lee, please get down from there, " or "please don't touch that." And then comes the sneaky little ways of his and it melts my heart. I have to keep from laughing to follow through. He is good about cleaning up toys, putting his sippy cups in the sink, and throwing trash away- but sometimes not just trash. =)

He continues to be a squirrelly sleeper. On a normal night he rises early about 6:15a and on a more difficult night he will wake up in the middle of the night and then still rise at 6am! He just gave me a week of this. The best he slept was when we were having our driveway re-done and they began jack-hammering super early and he would sleep until like 7:30am!! I need a jack-hammer noise machine.

He has a nice bedtime routine though. He loves bedtime and is often the one taking me to his room and begins pushing the rocking chair. He snuggles with me while taking a bottle on the rocking chair then points to his crib. I place him down and he goes "mmm..mmm" as I crab his taggie blankie, and dog that plays "rock-a-bye baby" with glowing cheeks. Then he points to his airplane mobile and I push it so it turns for him. He falls asleep making little talking noises and playing his doggie toy over and over next to his face. Sweet boy.

Jaemus' personal preferences are clear. He loves Barney, guitars, balloons, balls, trash trucks, fire trucks, cats and dogs, meat, climbing everything, and wrestling me. He calls a guitar "aduur." He has a toy one that he carries around the house and the second Brandon gets home he is desperately yelling "aduur" and pointing to Brandon's guitar until he plays it. He plays the piano and drums often, but his guitar is nearly always by his side.

This is his new camera smile. A nice big scrunched-up face.

I get at least an hour of Jaemus time a day in the mornings. Bailey being a night owl and a late morning waker, and Jaemus my early to bed, early to rise guy. He is my alarm clock and our mornings consist of pj's, stories, coffee, and a shared banana. We read the same books currently every morning. He enjoys, "Puppy's Count", "10 Little Lady Bugs", "Spot" books, and recently, "Frosty the Snowman" has been added in. Yes, we read about 5-6 books every morning. I have come to love my early mornings with Jaemus. On weekends we often take early walks since Brandon is home. We snuggle up, I put him in the jogger, and we enjoy the early morning smells, crisp air, the birds, and talk about all we see. And sometimes come back with a starbucks.

18 months is one of my favorite kid ages, and I think, begins the real fun. Babies are great, but something about toddlers is pure joy for me. Bailey at 3 1/2 and Jaemus at 18 mos. bring me days full of smiles, cuddles, laughter, and manageable hang-ups. I love all the family affection and watching Bailey and Jaemus play and love each other is the best sight for Brandon and I. We often say that we recognize right now is the time of our lives.

Bailey still prefers the choke-hold

Oil Man of the Year

2011-10-10T10:07:00.000-07:00

My dad was honored this year as 'Oil Man of the Year.' The oil companies recognized my dad for all his years of hard work and his outstanding reputation. He is known for being a good friend, honest business man and his knowledge about oil production and building pumps. We are so proud of you dad and we love you so much!

Here was the bio they read about him:

"Mike was born 1-30-1956 in Bakersfield, Ca. He moved to Westminster at around age 3. Directly after graduating from Westminster High School in 1974, Mike went to work for US Steel- Oil Well Division in Long Beach; working in the pump shop, where he learned from the ground up. He then worked for Page Oil Tool as a salesman for a couple of years.

Mike, along with his partners Jim Hurd and Tom Cacek , opened Black Gold Pump & Supply on April 1, 1982. Mike had previously worked with Jim Hurd at US Steel, where Jim worked as a salesman. Mike had worked with Tom at Page Oil Tool, where Tom worked as a machinist.

Chevron had approached Jim and Mike with the idea of opening a pump shop and guaranteed all of Chevron’s business if they did."

How Jaemus Bowls

2011-09-27T18:58:00.001-07:00

Tanaka Farms

2011-08-16T15:42:00.000-07:00

We went to Tanaka Farms on Saturday and did their "Cook Out" tour with Rough-Fit. It was as Bailey said, "a blast!"

We brought out nephew Tank which was really fun. We enjoyed spending the morning with him. He and Bailey have a lot of fun together.

It was definitely our kind of thing. We did a walking tour of the vegetables that are currently in season and filled our own individual bags with kale, tomatoes, egg plant, onion, chard, basal, carrots, etc. None of their food is sprayed so you can taste the fruits and veggies right off the plant. The kids were popping tomatoes in their mouths and taking bites of kale. So fun to see what they will eat when they are picking it themselves.

After our bags were filled we went to a picnic area to wash our goods. We then proceeded to sort our veggies and have them cut. Then we wrapped our veggies in foil with oil and garlic salt and added tofu. Then they were cooked on big BBQs they had set up. The assortment of veggies after being cooked were delicious! We were also starving, so they tasted even better. Bailey, Tank, and Jaemus were all happily eating tofu and egg plant that I am sure was a first for them.

On the way home Jaemus crashed. Always a sign of a fun day.

We brought home a tone of leftovers and it was too much to eat all in a weekend. So, I took the cooked veggies and pureed all of them together. I froze it in little containers to use in smoothies for the kids. I made one for them by adding a banana, a peach, some frozen pineapple, blueberries and yogurt. It was super tasty. I love sneaking vegetables in my families meals.

Playing the Recorder

2011-08-11T08:36:00.000-07:00

Struttin' His Stuff.

2011-07-26T12:51:00.000-07:00

This past week Jaemus has been deemed an official "walker." He transitioned for a while between crawling and walking but he now prefers his feet and gets around pretty quickly.

He has been having a blast exploring new terrain and laughs when he experiencing crunchy leaves under his feet or a little up or down hill. In this video he gets stuck in some soft, tall grass and laughs his way out of it.

Jaemus is such a joy to spend the day with.

Jaemus is One!

2011-06-30T15:27:00.000-07:00

Our little guy was 1 year old on the 11th. He was born during a busy busy month! I remember last year he was born, it was 2 days after our wedding anniversary and I was in a wedding 2 weeks later. Well, this year it was even busier. We survived 2 stomach flues (separate weeks), a sinus infection, a wedding anniversary sadly celebrated sick on the couch, Jaemus' party, and a week vacation in Rock Creek Lake. I can't believe June is over tomorrow! I feel like I just woke up from what I thought was a long nap but actually was 3 weeks.

Jaemus is becoming a little boy. He loves to rough house by hitting everything around him with his toys, wresting us, biting 'playfully', and eating dog food and rocks. He is always carrying around a toy in his hand. His number one choice is a plastic bubble pipe, or you may see him strutting around with an orange shovel or toy golf club. Yes, dangerous I know. =)

His laughter is infectious. He has the cutest belly laugh that he does often. He laughs at himself playing the recorder or spraying the water on his toothbrush. He often laughs at the discovered noises of hitting different items and of course his number one comic is Bailey. Brandon often entertains with his music skills on the guitar and piano which makes Jaemus really hyper and excited.

He took his first steps a few days after his birthday. Everyday he is taking more steps but crawls for speed. He has a funny quirk of walking on his knees. He started doing this a while ago and it's hilarious. He has gotten pretty quick on those knees. Jaemus is saying more words and communicating pretty good. His first word was "up" and since then he says "momma", "dadda", "hot", and "ball". He says "all done" and "water" in sign language. He continues to be very vocal and makes lots of noises and grunts which somehow I can interpret.

Bailey and Jaemus are the cutest of friends and it is so sweet to watch their love for one another grow. They always want the other around and play really well together.

I love this age because I see so much personality coming out and I love watching Jaemus learn and experience so many new things. I also still have my baby. He is sweet, cuddly, and a momma's boy. His love for me melts my heart. He is the one who will turn my hair gray with his rambunctiousness that keeps me worried, his lack of responding to "no", and his still unpredictability of just how early he will wake me up. However, his smile and joy of being on my hip softens me and gives me more energy. I can't believe how much I can love these two kids.

Yes, there are better family pictures but this is to show how most of them turn out. We take about 10 and get maybe 1 when we are all looking at the camera. I enjoy the strand of randomness that can happen in 30 seconds. So, just to show some reality I guess.

Beautiful Day

2011-06-02T21:08:00.000-07:00

"Spring is when flowers are a bloomin'" Says Bailey.

11 11

2011-05-15T18:14:00.001-07:00

Jaemus had his "golden" month of being 11 months old on the 11th. hah

Jaemus' new smile. This is when he is so excited he just can't handle it. This last month has been the month of personality. He has really opened up and we are just loving his excitement and his developing way of communicating.

He began standing and even ambitiously attempted taking a step before crumbling to the ground. He says "Mama" and "Dada", "uh-oh" and "up." He wiggles on command plays peekaboo and claps his hands.

He decided he no longer needs a pacifier- that was a nice surprise. He started getting angry when we offered them and threw them out of his crib. Glad he took the initiative to ween himself.

It has been a really enjoyable month watching him surprise himself with new skills and we all love cheering him on. Jaemus is busy, busy, busy, as he is anxious to get around and explore everywhere.

Jaemus has also started pointing at items he is curious about. He points and makes this funny questioning noise like "oihh?" and cocks his head a little. He really loves pointing out airplanes and looking at you in amazement.

I can't believe he is going to be 1 next month! I think I baby him...he has been growing too fast and I am trying to treasure having a baby but he is beginning to feel like a kid in my arms.

3 Year Olds

2011-04-19T10:03:00.000-07:00

After putting Jaemus down for his nap, I walked into the living room and found this. Creative? Innovative? Artistic? Or just 3 years old perhaps?

Recent conversations with Bailey.

Jenni just planted a strawberry garden and Bailey's favorite thing to do lately is go to Auntie's to pick and eat her ripe strawberries. However, there has been something eating her strawberries lately.

"Bailey, what do you think is eating my strawberries?"- Auntie

Bailey responds, "hmm...I don't know, we have to figure this out! Maybe it's an elephant or something?"

"An elephant! Oh wow that would be crazy." - Auntie

"Or maybe a Rhino? Or a monkey? Monkeys are sneaky!" - Bailey

----------

Bailey and Brandon are driving home together at night and see a lot of people at a park with candles in a bag making a big circle. There are tents and a lot of activity.

Brandon says, "Hey, I wonder what's going on over there?"

Bailey answers, " Maybe there is a tornado? Or maybe they are all looking at a goose?"

----------

Never a boring day!

Jaemus is 10 Months!

2011-04-11T15:33:00.000-07:00

This has been the month of "firsts" for Jaemus. Even this morning, he had his first taste of dog food. Noticed some crumbs on his mouth; I didn't give him any food. Come to find two big chunks of Frani's food in his mouth. He wasn't even grossed out and was actually mad that I removed them.

The dog food was better than when I found him chocking on one of Bailey's hair rubber bands. She has those teeny tiny ones and he managed to find one on the ground. He was crawling around coughing a bit and then started gagging. I picked him up, opened his mouth, and grabbed the pink rubber band out of the back of his throat. Lovely.

Jaemus started crawling. He waited until he was strong enough to keep off his belly; he hates being on his stomach. One day, he just took off on all fours after a balloon we had gotten from the store that day. We cheered him on for his first escapade. He is now keeping us busy with his speedy moves and stealthy little hands.

He also grew two more teeth, had his third hair cut, started waving, had his first trip in the wagon, had his first ride in the bike, and went in the pool for the first time at swim lesson. It has been a really fun month with Jaemus. He has been full of joy experiencing these new activities and thus far is a good sport. It always helps to have Bailey with him because if Bailey is happy and having fun so is he.

Jaemus, luckily for me, has been sleeping much better! We are looking forward to having lots of rest to enjoy the spring and be outside. He has also been super cuddly and sweet. He gives me the best welcomes when I have been away from him and he often will crawl up to me just for some hugs and kisses. He has this thing about biting my shoulders though which really hurts. I think it is out of aggressive excitement and I am the only special one to receive these "love bites." But I seriously have bit marks on me.

Is it getting easier? Sleep definitely makes everything easier. However, as he grows it's not necessarily easier just a different type of busy. The two of them are really fun and I love the funny things that happen in my day. For example Bailey getting him to crawl after her so she can lead him into the hall, shut all the doors, and "make a fire" with him. I will then hear them both laughing at who knows what. I love watching them play more. But it definitely still feels draining at the end of the day but in a rewarding way.

Midnight Hour

2011-03-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

Midnight Hour played last tonight at the Spectrum featuring Brandon Bridgman on gimbe and tambourine. Check them out on facebook!

Bailey's 3rd Birthday

2011-03-23T21:15:00.000-07:00

Birthday: March 15, 2008

Bailey's Profile at age 3:

Favorite Color- Purple

Favorite Outfit- her pink and green stripped dress

Favorite Song- Coldplay, the Scientist. Each instrument comes in one at a time and she counts down and names which instrument comes in. (She did not learn this from me!)

Favorite Show- Go Diego Go!

Favorite Movie- Snow White

Favorite book- Children's Bible Stories and Fergus (which she will "read" to you due to her impressive memorization skills)

Favorite animal- baby animals

Favorite Bug- Lady Bug

Favorite Musical Artist- Jana Alayra

Bio:

These days Bailey likes to do everything herself and questions how things work. She is insistent in learning how to do things and can be difficult when it's things like using scissors or lighting a match which she is not ready for. We are very proud of her for her independence and confidence in her abilities. We admire her positive persistent attitude that we hope to guide in a positive direction. I have been amazed to watch her walk into a class of children and interact with kids and instructors, sharing, using manors, and making conversation. I have to hold myself back because sometimes I forget she can communicate her needs, make friends, and play without me. It's a proud yet sad feeling for me. Our little girl is her own person. And that is why age 3 is as old as I want her to be. haha...I love this age and having been feeling some sadness at her getting any older right now. I realized this is my last year before she is in pre-school. Ahh..this killed me! Where has the time gone! She even asks when she can go to school! So proud of who she is and who she is becoming.

Bailey loves the outdoors and adventure. She is really into Diego which supports her love for animals, outdoors, and adventure! She often is Diego saving baby animals, or hunting for bugs outside. She memorizes facts about animals and bugs and loves to teach you about them. She is very animated and talkative. Bailey also enjoys the Disney princess movies and has some of the dresses that she wears around and likes to re-enact when the princesses run away from the witch or the Prince and she hides away until we come save her. She likes being the damsel in distress- adventure. But she'll never neglect the "and they got married!" She makes couples out of everything. Everyone is a princess or prince and she often asks, "are they going to get married mama?" Recently she has been interested in Brandon and I's story about how we got married and how we had her after. Brandon enjoys to tell her how "right after we got married, you were in mommy's belly." Really annunciating on the "right after" or more like next day part.

Bailey continues to bless us with love and joy. She challenges Brandon and I to be better people and parent's and reminds us of self-sacrificing love and forgiveness. It melts our hearts that when we apologize to her for over-reacting or being frustrated, she says, "that's ok Mommy, I forgive you," and gives me a hug and kiss. She teaches us patience and humility. The Lord is perfect in his design of children for they are constant reminders of how God loves us and how we are children in his eyes. Bailey is very loving and nurturing, especially to Jaemus. She is such a great sister and I am so proud of seeing there love for each other.

Happy 3rd Birthday Luvies!

Jaemus is 9 Months Old!

2011-03-15T07:25:00.001-07:00

9 months is such a milestone age of babble words, crawling, teeth, laughter, personality...

I keep wondering where by baby went! Especially since Easton was been born I feel like Jaemus was never and infant. It went by so fast and it has been so much busier. My baby is nearly a toddler! Well, at least in size and by hair cuts; he just had his second hair cut.

Jaemus is getting around but not by crawling. He scoots on his bottom or lunges forward to his belly to get where he wants to go. Just the other day he learned to push himself from his stomach to his bottom. So great! This kids hates being on his stomach (hence the bottom scooting) and so now that he has the control to get back to a comfortable position he fusses much less. He is about to crawl any second! He rocks on his hands and knees and crawls backwards.

He has two more teeth coming in (top and bottom) which will make 7 total. I am hoping this has been the reason for his crazy sleep pattern the last month or so. 8 months was loss of my sanity. He was up two times a night and for the day by 6 am. I hit my wall of sleep deprivation and felt stuck in a cloud and was beginning to forget what sleep felt like. His sleep has been tough for longer than a month, but this month is when it really caught up to me. Lucky for him he has been super cuddly, happy, and playful which melts my heart to patience. Other wise, you may have seen him packed and ready on our lawn with a "For Free" sign pinned on him. The true love of a mother huh? haha

Like I said, his personality is really beginning to shine. He laughs really easy and is always smiling at whoever grabs his attention. He does great with strangers and enjoys being held and introduced around. Jaemus likes being out and about but in his heart, he is a home-body. I have seen him squeal with delight when we walk into the house and he gets to have his floor time in peace. He is great at eating of solids and loves feeding himself. His eyes grow wide over bananas, apples, and sweet potatoes. Puffs are an in the purse necessity as well.

Jaemus has also started dancing! Brandon plays guitar a lot for Bailey and she dances, runs around, or joins in with another instrument. So, Jaemus has now joined in too. As soon as music starts he begins to rock on his bottom to the music and smile, wave his hands and squeal. It is so cute and I love our family music time.

All in all, this little guy is perfect to us! I can say this with a well slept mind of 4 full nights of rest, but really, he brings us all so much joy and laughter. I treasure my alone time with him and rocking him to sleep and letting him sleep in my arms. He has a peaceful nature and loves our attention and affection.

Easton Michael Bair

2011-03-07T21:26:00.000-08:00

My nephew Easton was born Saturday March 5th at 9:46 p.m. He weighed 7.13lbs and was 20 1/2 in. He is healthy, tiny, and so so sweet!

I was very honored to watch the birth of Easton and it was so exciting!! I was thrilled to be able to actually "watch" a birth. You don't exactly see the baby come out when birthing one. So, having had two babies come out of me, I was ready to appreciate watching a birth. Tawnia was such a champ and made it look so easy. God 's design of pregnancy and birth is pretty incredible and all the sacrifice and pain involved is such a great picture of how Christ has sacrificed for us and continues to show us grace.

First time in Dad's arms.

Easton with his big brother Caden. Easton is very lucky to have Caden to look up to.

Bailey adores how tiny Easton is and is excited to have another cousin.

One day old.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-16T15:10:00.001-08:00

There may have been a lot of snot and coughing but there was still lots of love.

Bailey's finished Valentine for daddy. Such a good attitude when she is sick.

Brandon surprised us in the morning with baby pink roses for Bailey, red for me, and a potted plant from Jaemus. Brandon made us homemade cards as well. We also made Brandon homemade cards and a new framed picture for his office of the kids.

That night we got take-out Rutabegorz and played the Sigur Ros DVD and pretended to be apart of their marching band. Bailey was on the harmonica, Brandon on the penny whistel, and we all wore bucket hats. Jaemus and I mostly watched in entertainment at Brandon and Bailey and captured some quality video footage.

Such a fun family I have and a great husband that makes me feel very loved and cared for.

Thanks for a great Valentine's Day husband.

8 Months

2011-02-12T21:11:00.000-08:00

First off, this month has flown by! I hardly remember him being 7 months and I keep reminding myself that he is now 8 months!

Poor baby is experiencing his first sickness. Bailey has had a wretched cold all week and now Jaemus has it. It has been a really long week of coughing, snot, fevers, sleepless nights, Diego, and Imagination Movers. Last night perhaps was the most memorable of nights and I hope to always remember it. Poor Bailey was really achy and could not sleep and at about midnight she was really losing it. So, we took her into the living room and she was coughing so hard she was gagging and snot was just pouring out of her nose. She was nauseous and so tired. Once we got her calm Jaemus woke up clearly feeling similar. He was coughing and crying. Brandon and I took turns as we cared for out babies. He made Bailey toast while I nursed Jaemus, then Brandon played guitar for Jaemus until he fell asleep and I snuggled on the couch with Bailey until she was tired enough to go to bed. By 2:30 am we were climbing back into bed praying they will sleep. We made it until 6am- then Jaemus was up again. =)

However tiring that was, it was also sweet and special in that needy sick way. I love that Jaemus will fall asleep to Brandon's singing and music; and that Bailey will still snuggle in my arms and tell me she loves me and thank me for making her toast. I love that Brandon and I will both get up without hesitation to nurture our kids, and that Brandon and I get to share these moments together.

As for Jaemus' last month, he was grown in his two front teeth! These ones have made him ravenous for chew toys. He has been like a puppy biting everything he is near. His high chair tray, my chin, Bailey, and his favorite is apples in his pacy bag.

More of his personality is coming out as we have discovered he is a very happy morning boy. He wakes up ready to play and laugh. He also always wants something in his hands. While he eats he holds an extra spoon, in his stroller or car seat usually Sophie the giraffe or his lady bug. Going to sleep he holds his taggie blanket that he snuggles his face in and flips the little tags.

He is taking 2 naps a day now and sleeping from 8 pm to about 6 am. Really liking his sleeping routine. He usually goes back to sleep after his 6 am feeding and this gets me up and going so I get about an hour and half to myself in the mornings! I usually can get about an hour or two in the afternoon too.

He is rolling around more and getting warmed up for crawling. Jaemus rolled from his back to his tummy and now has figured out how to get from his bottom to his tummy. He has become frustrated in his desire to follow Bailey around or get to toys- all good motivation to crawl. He is very vocal and conversational and this makes for fun yet noisy meal times and we are all trying to talk. Jaemus learned to do raspberries from Bailey and it is really funny to watch them because they just laugh at each other.

Bailey and Jaemus' relationship grows richer each month as they create their own ways of playing and interacting. Bailey loves rolling Jaemus around and nothing makes him light up more than Bailey. Jaemus and Bailey create a really fun atmosphere.

Bailey's classic choke hold.

Convenient yet hilarious

2011-01-31T14:20:00.001-08:00

The Bouquet

2011-01-29T21:57:00.001-08:00

I brought my bouquet home from the wedding I was in last Saturday and I had not foreseen what a big hit it would be for Bailey.

When she saw the bouquet she lit up and said, "is that for me? Can I hold it and get married!!?" Oh, my - I was not expecting that. I laughed in surprise at how much she has quickly caught on too. All those disney movies and a summer of weddings.

This entire week she has been carrying the flowers around. She has kept them in a vase next to her bed and she sings disney songs and carries it around all smiles. When the petals fall off she takes them outside and makes a little pile "for the bees." She does this often. Bailey picks flowers on our walks and throws the petals around for the bees so they can make honey. She also pulls grass and leaves and makes a pile for the birds to make their nests with. Bailey takes such good care of the animals.

This morning Bailey and I did a finger painting project. I knew today needed to be the last day of the bouquet so instead of throwing it out when she was in bed, we incorporated it into our finger painting.

We used the petals on our pictures and with the remained of the roses Bailey pulled off all the petal, placed them in a bucket of water and made soup. Then she placed them in a large pile for the bees.

One of my favorite times with Bailey. Watching her get covered in paint, making little hand prints in her paper, and watching her imagine grow with her prized bouquet. I sure love my little girl.

And because he is so cute in his new chair. Easiest boy to get a smile out of.

Love the Luskos

2011-01-29T21:46:00.000-08:00

We had the joy of spending an evening with the Luskos this week. We hit up some of their favorite Orange County spots like Bear Flag Fish Co. and Pinkberry- yum yum.

Bailey had a blast with Olivia and Lenya.

Jaemus was infatuated with Daisy's flower in her hair and was reaching for it much of the night. Daisy is only 1 month younger than Jaemus. So, we went ahead and arranged their marriage too. Levi was the officiant for our wedding- it's kind of sweet in a weird way.

Always love seeing you guys! Can't wait to plan a trip to Montana one of these day.

Congrats Jenny and Ali!

2011-01-23T21:03:00.000-08:00

One of my best friend's Jenny got married Saturday. It was a beautiful wedding held at the Nixon library with warm sunny whether, great staff, good food, and great people.

The only awkward thing was the old ladies waiting for the house tour gawking at us with their mouths hung open saying that we are "defiling Nixon," and "why don't we just go take pictures on his grave." Since when are weddings offensive?

Anyhow, Brandon, Jaemus and I had a fun day and really enjoyed dancing at the reception. Jaemus joined us because he doesn't let his food too far out of his sight. He isn't ready for me to depart for more than one feeding. He was perfect though. He enjoyed the museum tour twice; once with Brandon and then again with my parent's.

A memorable guestbook picture.

Two of my besties. I have known Jenny and LeeAnne since we were 13 years old and it is surreal that we are all married now. LeeAnne was married 7 months ago and it has been a fun year of weddings with the two of them. Jenny sadly moved to North Carolina with her new hubby and LeeAnne and I were both a bit sad at her wedding knowing we had to say good-bye to her for a while. We will miss you Jenny! oh...and you too Ali. =)

The Girls

The Boys

The Drums

2011-01-19T20:02:00.000-08:00

Exciting day in the Bridgman household because Brandon finally has his drums set up!

Here is Bailey's first jamming session.

7 months

2011-01-17T07:13:00.000-08:00

Jaemus was 7 months old on the 11th and he has reached some milestones. He is sitting up! He loves his new found freedom of sitting in the middle of a room and watching Bailey and us move about. He seems to feel more apart of the activity and is laughing more and interacting with us.

Jaemus also got his third tooth and this one came with some middle of the night discomfort but it has broken through. Along with the tooth he got his first hair cut. 6 months old will a full on mullet in his eyes- time for a good boy hair cut. Aunt Jenni cut his hair in her salon and he did great!

Meal time has become easier since Jaemus has become more involved. He loves being in his high chair and loves his food. He eats 3 meals a day and will eat as much as I give him. Bailey and Jaemus often give us lots of meal time entertainment as they make funny noises at each other and laugh.

The last month has been a great one with celebrating Jaemus' first Christmas, moving into his own room, and sleeping until 6 am!! Ok, mostly has been so great because I am getting so much more sleep now that we are all on our own rooms!

I am beginning to see the early signs of sibling conflict. Jaemus wants everything Bailey is playing with. It surprised me to see this happen so young. She has these two stuffed animals that she is inseparable with. Her baby (a bear) and her puppy that she calls Fletcher after Uncle Ryan and Aunt Brie's new puppy. Jaemus will do everything he can to get ahold of these and squeals with delight when she allows him to nuzzle them. Jaemus loves toys but he definitely enjoys Bailey's favorites the most.

I have been told that the second one gets a lot easier after the first 6 months. We can see the light! It has been fun but there definitely is more excitement for the second one to have more independence than your first born. We can do more things and I get more rest. I am ready for the crawling!

First hike- Jaemus was all smiles.

Way Behind

2011-01-12T08:08:00.000-08:00

I went to do Jaemus's 7 month blog and realized I have not done any blogging in a month! Well, lets catch up first.

Holidays were wonderful, busy, and memorable. We really took advantage of the season and experienced a lot of holiday activities.

We went to the Riverside Mission which is decorated beautifully and rode in a Cinderella carriage pulled by a horse (Bailey loved that). We ate at the Old Spaghetti Factory and enjoyed a crowded but lovely night with my parents and the kids.

We visited Santa Clause at Irvine Park. The train takes you through a path of Christmas lights and ends at Santa who sits up on a decorated stage. It was super fun.

We also walked around many local neighborhoods that are known for their extravagant Christmas decor.

Bailey and Jaemus loved bundling up and enjoying the Christmas festivities. Bailey learned practically every Christmas song, the story of Kris Kringle, and the story of Jesus' birth. I was so surprised at how quickly she memorized so much! The best however was what she told Santa she wanted for Christmas. Every time she was asked she either said a Christmas tree (which she picked out again this year) or Apple Cider. Easy to please!

New Years. The eve was spent with the kids at the Spectrum having some carsaul and train ride fun. Then we put the kids to bed and Brandon and I enjoyed our tradition of steamed crab legs and baked brie. We watched Inception which was a great choice because it kept us awake until midnight. It was a relaxing and fun weekend spent together as a family.

Mountain Boys

Bailey and Auntie

We have been working a lot on our house the past few weeks. We moved around all of our rooms and now everyone has their own room! Brandon and I are sleeping much sounder now at night without being woken by Jaemus' wiggly, noisy, sleeping.

Bailey got a big girl bed! She loves it and the new independence is great.

6 Months!

2010-12-19T14:06:00.000-08:00

By how late I am in doing Jaemus' 6 month blog gives you an idea of how busy we have been. December has gone by too fast and I want a longer Christmas season! We have been having fun enjoying the festivities and loving this rain!

On the 11th our little "guy-guy" (what Bailey calls him) turned 6 months old and I cannot believe how fast he is growing up. The second child definitely grows up faster and I can hardly believe that he is already through half his first year of life.

He is eating baby food now and it has made meal times a lot more fun. He is usually pretty fussy when we eat but now that he sits with us and participates in meal times he is full of joy. He laughs at Bailey and loves when she feeds him too. So far he surprisingly prefers the veggies and actually will spit the fruity foods back, spraying the table and myself.

Jaemus' new favorite activities are his bouncer that he has gained some pretty good hops in. He also loves his feet! He will play with his feet by trying to eat them or taking off his socks and eating those or just holding them and rocking back and forth. If you do Yoga- you will be familiar with the "Happy Baby" pose- definitely know where that came from.

His favorite toys are his lady bug, Sophie the giraffe, and a soft ball that has tags on it.

Jaemus is a lot of fun and has a really sweet personality. He loves to cuddle and he laughs and smiles most of the day. He has been easy peazie with naps and eating and rarely gives us a hard time. He likes to be moved around a lot and have changes of activity and scenery so when he has the freedom to crawl, I think he will be feeling pretty good.

Thanksgiving at Apple Farm

2010-12-01T21:14:00.000-08:00

Our Thanksgiving morning began at 4:30am as we carried our sleepy kids into our heated minivan to begin our four hour drive to San Luis Obispo. Bailey actually stayed awake most of the drive full of excitement about our sneaky adventure in the break of dawn. We enjoyed the smooth and scenic drive up the 101 with our coffee's, quality conversation, and the sun rise over the ocean. A great time to reflect on all we have to be thankful for. The one thing we weren't thankful for was Brandon's first speeding ticket that he got on this same drive. The trick is to stay in the pack, because even as we were getting pulled over at 8:00am thanksgiving morning, other cars were passing us faster than 65 - it was a sass that kind of bummed out the morning for a bit - but things quickly got better as we arrived at Apple Farm.

Apple Farm Inn is an adorable country styled place which was fully decorated on every corner with Christmas decorations. Their shops are filled with endless amounts of items to look at that inspired me to want to host lots and lots of Christmas parties. We enjoyed a delicious traditional Thanksgiving meal and I was thankful that I actually was able to sit through the whole meal! Jaemus slept and Bailey didn't have to pee once!

Coffee, tea, and cider are served all day in the lobby and at night they put out hot chocolate and freshly made cookies. Just what we needed after some apple pie right? yum yum. They also had a fun activity of hunting for Dash their Christmas elf. He was hidden in the gift shop and if you find him you win a pie and t-shirt. We hunted down this elf for over and hour! This shop is huge and so full of decor that it really seemed hopeless. It probably would have been too if the nice lady who worked there had not been giving us clues and finally actually showed Bailey in a way that made Bailey believe she found him. We took home the t-shirt and boysenberry pie due to Bailey's cuteness.

Over the weekend we enjoyed Bikes rides

Gopher Glen Apple Farm- brought home yummy treats and baking apples.

Avila Valley Barn- they had the cutest cow. Yes, I said cow. It looked like a stroy book cow or like Clarabell the cow from Disney.

We went to Solvang for half the day on Friday and visited this adorable cute old fashion school that is still in use today.

Went on a hike to a waterfall that was tucked away in the back of the hills.

Thanksgiving was lovely and it was great to spend time with my parent's and have a refreshing weekend away.

Growing Up

2010-11-17T13:35:00.000-08:00

Lately I have been having a lot of those moments where I look at Bailey and think, "wow, this works...this while parenting and teaching things pays off!" Going through everything for the first time sometimes I just dive in and think, "I hope this works." It is encouraging to look at my 2 1/2 year old who has manners, language, joy, and personal interests and feel like a very blessed parent.

One of Bailey's biggest changes over the past few months has been language. She was always a quiet observer and now she talks my ear off. She knows what she wants and what her likes are and she does a great job at expressing herself and her needs. Bailey pronounces words a lot better now and it is funny to see her have conversations with other children or strangers in the store. She no longer calls Sleeping Beauty "P Pee Doo Doo" and our dog Frani is being called more and more by his name instead of "Rough." She pronounces her own name now instead of referring to herself and "dadda." Bailey struggled with the "B" words for some time. She can pronounce Jaemus instead of only calling him "Baby" or "baby JJ." Still though some words or phrases still come out funny. She calls her friend Ethan "E E" and her friend Emily "eye-lie."

Bailey's biggest miles stone recently has been her conquering of the potty. We have been casually potty training for a few months but I have been real laid back especially since Jaemus was new and I didn't want to deal with pee and poop all the time. I also was waiting for her to show me enough interest to really commit to a daily practice of no diaper. After a lot of wet panties and potty conversations Bailey began to tell us every time she went pee or when she had to go. The real clincher however was when she would yell to us at 9:30 at night, after she had been in bed for an hour, that she went pee and wants a new diaper. This for us was what pushed us to commit.

Last Tuesday I told her we weren't going to wear diapers at home anymore, only to bed or when we leave the house. Having us all committed to this has been a great success. One week later Bailey has not had any accidents for two days, goes pee and poop on the toilet and yesterday at church she went twice with the caregivers and this morning she went at the bank and Target! I was stunned at her initiative to want to go when we were out and about. I told her she could go in her pull-up when we were out or at church but she wanted the potty. I am very proud of her and so far the ease of her willingness. I am sure we will hit more bumps in the training process but so far I have been so relaxed and impressed with her ability to adapt.

However, it does make doing errands a bit more tricky. I was in no hurry to have her use public toilets and deal with Jaemus in the carrier and all but once you start you can't just stop.

Bailey's potty chart. She took months to fill up this one but filled up her second one in one week! When she fills up the potty chart she gets to ride a train at either the Spectrum or Irvine Park. Way to go Lucky Bug!

I just love this picture of these two! So much love.

5 Months!

2010-11-12T22:18:00.000-08:00

The past month Jaemus has grown two teeth and gave us a lot of interrupted sleep. However, the two bottom teeth are in and we are all sleeping a bit more. He takes three naps a day and is out by 8pm. Both kids asleep by 8 is quite glorious.

Personality is really growing in our little guy and he has become quite sociable. Jaemus loves people coming over and welcomes them with smiles. He seems to love guy time, especially attention from Brandon.

Jaemus' laugh is so sweet and he recently started laughing when Brandon talks in funny voices. My favorite time with him is after his early morning feeding, I bring him into bed with me and we hold hands while going back to sleep. He loves holding hands, eating, falling asleep, or just while snuggling. His little hands get cold at night so I hold them until they are warm and we are asleep.

Jaemus and Bailey's time together has grown as Jaemus has become more personable. Every morning and after nap I put Jaemus in Bailey's bed and they will be happy in there for a considerable amount of time. Bailey pretend plays with him, sings to him, or tells him stories. Jaemus just watches her and smiles and grabs ahold of her and tries to eat her. It is very precious.

Our home is full of laughter, joy, and thankfulness. Bailey is full of imagination, Brandon is always entertaining, we all enjoy making Jaemus laugh and smile and watching him grow. I sure love our little family and are full of Thanksgiving to the Lord that He has given us these two children.

Halloween's Cinderella and Gus Gus

2010-11-01T21:34:00.000-07:00

Bailey has been talking about trick-or-treating and wearing her Cinderella dress all month. She has been calling Jaemus Gus Gus instead of his name and she has been wearing her dress almost every day in anticipation. She even has the "glass slippers" that light up when she walks.

I managed to make Jaemus a little Gus Gus costume and looked so cute with that chubby little belly hanging out.

Bailey needed her Prince to escort her around for the night so we dressed up Brandon. We even had Bailey make a grand entrance to meet her prince by having her come down the stairs while Brandon sang her a song with his hand out to her. Bailey loved it!

I dressed up like the Fairy Godmother but looked really jank. I only had a blue bathrobe on with a grey hood and I tide a giant pink bow around my neck- it was pretty bad and I looked more like the homeless godmother. But it make Bailey happy.

We love dressing up and are glad that we have seemed to pass this trait on to our children.

He's 29

2010-11-01T21:03:00.000-07:00

Brandon turned 29 on the 30th and we celebrated his last year in his 20s by going to Down Town Disney and partying-it-up that night at the Johnson's 5th Annual Halloween Bash.

This picture comes with a funny story. What you miss out on is that Jaemus managed to grab a chunk of Bailey's hair while the picture was being taken. Bailey is on a plat form and jumped off while Jaemus kept a tight grip and she began to scream and try and escape his grasp. Brandon had to pry his fingers open and untangle her hair while Bailey continued to cry and Jaemus smiled proudly and successfully grabbing and holding on to something he wanted. Fun times.

Jenni and Tim's Halloween party is never a disappointment. This year all the classic WWF wrestle's showed up and performed a Royal Rumble. We had the band Kiss, the Power Team, popular U-tube videos such as Double Rainbow, and the "Climbing in yo' window" guy.

Jenni, Tim, Greg, Ryan, and Brie went as the Thunder Cats. Michael was Miguel the Chilean miner and Tawnia was his mistress. Brandon and I went as Bella and Edward from Twilight.

Brandon and I were out of time and resources this year but we enjoyed being Edward and Bella. We recently watched all the movies and were thoroughly entertained. We have since become "fans" and look forward to laughing through the 4th movie soon.

4 Months!

2010-10-13T15:39:00.000-07:00

Our little man is 4 months with wonderfully chunky legs and a smile on his face. Brandon actually measured Jaemus and Bailey's thighs the other day and Jaemus's thigh is 1 inch bigger than Bailey's. The other week I accidently put Bailey's sweat pants on Jaemus and thought, "these are kind of girly- but at least they are still a little big for him to grow into." Yay, well 3T pants should have a lot of growth room!

Jaemus has gained the skill of grabbing his toys, swinging them around and bringing them to his mouth. He loves mobiles (especially Bailey's butterflies) or looking up at trees and squeals with excitement. We have been able to get some good laughs out of him and he usually gives Brandon a warm welcome home filled with flapping arms and laughter.

He has been pretty consistent with 3 naps a day now and I can usually get him to take his longest nap with Bailey's which is glorious! However, his eating has not slowed down and still eats every 2 1/2 hours and maybe 3 if distracted. Jaemus continues to sleep well at night by going to bed at 8:30 pm at the same time as Bailey and wakes up once at about 5:30 or 6 and then goes back to sleep until about 8 or 8:30 am. I am going to ask his doctor about starting him on rice cereal to see if I can stretch out his feedings a bit.

Jaemus has become more sociable these days and is really comfortable with others and smiles at just about anyone. He fell asleep on Aunt Tawnia the other day and he adores my parent's and seems to enjoy being at their house.

Bailey is very protective over Jaemus and is always telling everyone to be gentle. She actually says, "come be gentle with me," and then gentle rubs his face and says, "ahhh...so cute." She does not like strangers getting too close and has at times tried pushing the stroller away from people looking in. Healthy instinct I guess but I explain that it is ok since we are here too. She also seems to know Jaemus's physical limits for when my dad asked Bailey if Jaemus can come swim in the pool she pointed her finger at him and said, "No, papa, he too little." Jaemus is going to be one pampered little boy by his very maternal sister.

Jaemus rolled over once a couple weeks ago by pure accident. Since then he rocks back and forth coming really close but doesn't have it down yet. He also doesn't particularly like tummy time and gets over it in about 60 seconds.

He is very vocal and personable. He loves making gaw-gaw eyes at you while cooing and smiling. He begs for attention now but waving his arms and legs and babbling until I come over and rub his belly. I love how cuddly and sweet he is and he melts my heart all day long.

Catching Up

2010-10-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

Life has not slowed down like I had hoped it would this Fall. From what I am told, it never will, and will only go faster! Yikes! The more kids, the more lives to maintain; and with our friends and families growing too, more parties, and it continues to grow. But we are lovin' it and having so much fun! We have been having more free weekends and family time which has been great!

Brandon has been really enjoying his job and being in the office. He gets to work close with the engineers and really enjoys all that he is learning. He will be starting school in the Spring to work towards his degree in Mechanical Engineering.

I have been working from home for my sister's company Rough-Fit. It is an outdoor fitness program in Tustin and I do some of their administrative work. You can check out their Blog too!

I am also teaching again the Bible class at Red Hill Lutheran on Fridays which is fun and challenging, and I enjoy the students a ton.

My Women's Bible study at Rockharbor, Nurture, started up again and it is a blessing to be involved with great weekly fellowship. They have a kids program now that does a bible study, music, and a craft-fun for Bailey!

Bailey is still doing swim lessons once a week and is getting more and more confident in the water. She is speaking a ton! She talks my ear off all day and is always asking "why" or "how" and repeats everything she hears. Bailey is very attentive to radio and T.V. and I am impressed with how much she understands and picks up. She still remains to have us all be a different character each day and lately her pick has been Pinocchio. Bailey is also potty training. She has a train-track sticker chart and it has been a success! She is doing great and is so proud of herself when she gets a sticker. She also applauds and sings for Brandon and I when we go to the restroom now too.

Jaemus has rolled over once by accident. He was on his tummy reaching and rolled over gripping the blanket with wide terrified eyes. He had no clue what he did but Bailey and I were pretty excited. He is happy about his new found ability in grabbing toys and bringing them to his mouth. It's really cute because he focuses real hard, sticks his tongue out, and goes a little cross-eyed. He loves attention now and squirms and flaps his arms and legs when he is in need. Jaemus seems to have a special liking to Brandon and gives him the best smiles when he gets home and often just stairs at him. Bailey continues to be a great source of entertainment for him as she dances and sings in the living room or runs circles around him.

Brandon and I are in the prime of our life with these two little ones. Exhausted but are counting our blessings.

Magic Castle with the Johnson's Part II

Great evening of some awesome magic.

Thanks again friends!

Family time with Shelby, Jennifer, Hollee, and Tank

Daddy and Son

Family beach day on that sweltering Sunday at the end of September.

2 1/2 Years Old

2010-09-16T07:01:00.000-07:00

My dad said to me the other day "can you believe that in another 2 1/2 years Bailey will be starting Kindergarden." Ahh- that hurt! These years have gone by so fast and time is only moving quicker. She will be in Kindergarden before I know it and I will be crying in my car as I watch her line up with her friends.

The story behind the dress. Bailey's dress she is wearing in these pictures is a prairie dress that was bought when I was 6 months pregnant with her. We were at the Knott's Berry Farm's christmas boutique and there were a bunch of homemade prairie dresses. My parent's had just gotten their ranch in Oregon and we were all imagining a little girl running barefoot in a prairie dress through a field. The dress looked huge and I remember thinking, "it's going to be forever until she can wear this." Well, I realized she has nearly grown out of it! It's not oregon, but my Mom and I took Bailey to Irvine Park for a picture shoot in her prairie dress.

Bailey is increasingly independent and so smart! I can't believe how much she remembers and notices in conversation or observation. She remembers things we say like, "in the morning we will go to the park" and she will be jumping in her crib bright and early chanting "park! park! park!" She also recalls memories from so long ago that it shocks me because she now puts language to memories she couldn't describe months ago! Bailey is counting to 20, saying her ABC's, recognizing words like her name, and sings throughout the day. She loves anything with a tune and will dance and began repeating the lyrics instantly. She is another dinner conversation for she talks constantly and some times my brain hurts after dinner because of all the little conversations we are all trying to have.

The most entertaining aspect of Bailey is her imagination. The past couple days she has been "Woody" from Toy Story and I have been Buzz Lightyear. A sample of our converstations:

Me- "Bailey eat your eggs please"

Bailey- "Momma, I Woody."

Me- "Oh right, Woody eat your eggs please."

Bailey- "Ok Buzz"

She will ask throughout the day, "Momma, what you be?" I then choose a character to be and then she will approve or not. Jaemus has been Gus Gus mostly and Frani either Bulls Eye or 'the new puppy!' Daddy is either Buzz or Prince that must kiss her to wake her up.

Sleeping Beauty has been her favorite princess lately. She sings the song, "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream..." and will dance with her toys or one of us. She actually started singing that song loud and clear in the middle of Ryan and Brie's wedding ceremony- it was pretty darn cute.

Bailey is entering the "why" phase of her life. But she prefers to say, "what that momma? or how that do momma?" Every where we go or any book she is looking at at home Bailey is full of questions. I find it a fun and creative challenge for me to try and explain electricity or where the water goes when it goes down the drain.

Bailey continues to be cuddly and endearing which Brandon and I can't get enough of. She loves "baby" everything and wants to eat "baby bites" of her food, carry around her "baby" animal critter toys, loves "baby" animals, and Jaemus is alway "baby" or "baby JJ." She gets in snugly moods in the day and will grab my hand and say "come momma, come cuddle on couch." Bailey also melts my heart when she comes to me randomly looks me in the eye and will rub my face and say, "I love you so much Momma." She kills me! I can see now when kids are graduating High School parent's are in the bleachers picturing their children as two year olds wondering where the years went and how much they wouldn't give for another day with them at the age of 2. Brandon and I will sometimes say, "this will be the moment I recall in 16 years."

Ok- I have done two updates on my little ones and feel emotional now as I sit here surprised in how fast Bailey and Jaemus are growing. Brandon and I love our season of life right now with our little snugly happy baby and our independent playful little girl.

3 Months

2010-09-14T15:24:00.001-07:00

Jaemus Lee was 3 months on the 11th but he is the size of a 6 month old baby now. I can't keep up with this kid's growth spurts. This picture on the left gives you some perspective of his size.

He has become a pretty relaxed happy little guy. He has his preferences, which is mostly his love for being home when he is tired or hungry- kind of tricky. He likes to eat in peace and quiet and he goes to sleep with ease in his bassinet for naps, but fusses up a storm if he has to fall asleep in a car seat or stroller. He enjoys outings when he has a full belly and after a good nap- then he is just thrilled to be out and about.

He currently has found a taste for his fist and Brandon worried the other night that Jaemus would manage to fit his fist in his mouth and choke. I assured him he wouldn't and if he did he wouldn't lay silent with a fist stuck in his mouth. What a sweet and concerned father Jaemus has.

No more swaddling. He likes his arms over his head and appreciates holding my hands when he falls asleep, love that. He also gives me a quality 7 hours of straight sleep! I only get up once in the early hours of the morning. If it is slightly light out and I am feeling energetic I enjoy staying awake and having some solo time in the wee mornings while the little ones are cozy in their beds.

He is coming close to rolling over from his tummy to his back. He really gets a rockin', and can hold his head up real high but hasn't quite figured out the skill yet.

He continues to eat frequently in the day, every 2 to 2 1/2 hours. A little demanding but he is giving me sleep at night. He is a bit random with naps and bedtime being that he is out and about at parks or doing errands and takes little cat-naps in the midst of it. However, we stick with Bailey's nap at 1 and he usually will take a long nap too.

This last month Jaemus accompanied us to two more weddings! He now has a few months break from weddings and parties. My little brother Ryan got married to the beautiful Brie Meade on August 14th. My siblings and I are now 4 for 4- all married! Ryan and Brie had a beautiful wedding and Brandon, Bailey, and I had the privilege of all being in the wedding. Jaemus was nurtured by Tim's mom at the wedding and I learned a few things from her skills in soothing infants. When a baby needs to burp and begins to cry to hard, it makes them stiff and hot, she recommends lightly blowing on their neck to cool them down and stop the crying and then they will usually burp. She said stopping the crying is key to a quality burp.

Jaemus had his first flight a few weeks ago; we went to San Jose for my dear friend Jaclyn's wedding. Bailey partied at Nana and Papa's house, and Jaemus did great on the short plane ride while being bustled around.

We also got great news that my brother Michael and his wife Tawnia are pregnant!!! Bring on the cousins!

Melt My Heart Smiles

2010-08-20T07:54:00.001-07:00

2 Months!

2010-08-12T07:44:00.000-07:00

Jaemus was two months old yesterday. He was extra sweet on his special day and gave me some great smiles and laughs. The past week he has really become social and after a good nap he smiles, and coos, and talks to Bailey and I. It has been really fun.

For now, I think I have this boy down. We had a few tough weeks of figuring him out because he is sensitive and specific with his needs. He is a home-body and appreciates quietness. He is very consistent with eating every two hours in the day, playing for about one hour, and then begins to fuss because he is ready for about an hour nap. When it is nap time, he will have a melt down if I am not quick to swaddle, lie him down, and place a pacie in his mouth. He also loves his head to be rubbed and falls asleep nearly instantly. At night he just started giving me a glorious 6 hours! He wakes up at either 4 or 5 am and then will go back to sleep for either 2 or 3 hours. It has made me feel so restful and I literally praise God for the sleep.

Jaemus favorite time of the day is bath time. He has always loved the warm water and is so happy we hate to take him out. It's funny to remember back when he was born and they were doing their routine checks he was fussing and crying but the second they stuck his head under the warm facet water he stopped crying and fell asleep. He remains to still be that way; if he is fussy he will calm down in the soothing water and enjoy kicking his legs and moving his arms.

Lucky for me he also enjoy walks now. I love getting out on family walks and I have been disappointed in his hatred for the stroller. He has been much better at allowing me to put him down now and so walks have become part of our routine; especially in the evenings. He still enjoys the sling but he has discovered the joy of laying on his blanket and moving his limbs or sitting in his swing while looking outside or watching Bailey play. It has been nice for me to not have to wear him 16 hours a day. =)

We still have two weddings this month one of which requires a flight. So, hopefully our little home body can hang in there!

Nothin' But a Blur

2010-08-09T14:02:00.001-07:00

I can't believe July has come and gone and Fall is quickly approaching. There are so many things I have been putting of until "the fall" and now I am realizing that is next month! My brain is mush and I am so tired. There have definitely been some days that I have been more tired than I have ever been in my life. That is saying a lot since I have pulled many all-nighters, studied for finals with little sleep, drove all night, but nothing beats mother-hood.

This month is busier than July for us so I am sure it will be a blur as well.

I feel like Jaemus should be 6 months old but he is only about to be 2 months! I have to remind myself on the difficult and confusing days that he is still such a little guy! He is doing great but has given us a few tough weeks of fussiness that has forced us to slow down and give him more quality attention. He easily gets over stimulated and is a bit of a home-body right now. He will completely melt down with too much noise, especially groups of people talking, and he really just prefers peace and quiet. Difficult to give that with a rambunctious two year old but he does not seem to mind Bailey in his face when he is happy. Jaemus has also gotten real smiley and responsive just this week. This last week has been the easiest with him and it has been rewarding to see him joyful and listen to him coo so sweetly.

The highlights of July included spending the 4th with the Johnson's Part II again at Eric's parent's home. It was a super relaxing day of Latter Ball, swimming, a nice walk, and fireworks. Bailey has not stopped talking about fireworks since! We were able to watch fireworks from their backyard that over looked a lake that had a firework show going on. It was perfect.

How cute are they? Taking a breather and watching some Jana Alayra.

Brandon's friend Jacob got married and requested that all the grooms men had mustaches. Well, if you know Brandon, you know he can't very well grow a mustache and envies all guys with scruff. So, he did the best he could and then filled it in with my eye brow pencil. It was hilarious and nobody noticed except his friends of course.

A wonderful picture of Jacob and Brandon

We also officially became a family and purchased a Minivan! It is quit glorious with all the space and I enjoy being a minivan mom. Here is our beautiful Kia Sedona.

I turned 25 on the 20th of July. I feel pretty solid at 25. A wonderful husband, two adorable children, and a minivan. What more can I want?

Bailey and I made Sleeping Beauty's cake and homemade apple sorbet with my new ice cream maker that I got from my parent's. It was a good day!

Bailey has been taking swim lessons at the Australian Swim school with Brandon. She is doing so great and loves it! She loves all the games and songs and it has been such a special time for Brandon and Bailey. Here is Bailey after she just dove for a ring.

And Jaemus is getting cuter and cuter all the time! He is also never not growing! I feel like I never got an infant as he is already wearing 3 month clothes and was nearly 12 pounds three weeks after he was born. He is always pulling really funny faces that we love capturing on camera.

Here are some cute kid highlights.

Watch it.

The Tourist.

Let me just add- Bailey is so much fun! I just love her age right now and enjoy listening to her thoughts all day long.

We are all about bed time cuddles.

Tummy time guy.

I just love these two!

1 Month!

2010-07-12T20:33:00.000-07:00

Jaemus was 1 month old yesterday! We feel like we have had him forever but at the same time he is growing up so fast! He has already gained almost 3 pounds and grew 2 1/2 inches! He fit in newborn clothes for about a day and has grown out of the 0-3 month size and I just put his 3 month clothes in his drawers today.

Jaemus has had a busy month of two weddings, two wedding rehearsals, and one Bridal Shower. It has been a tiring month of sleep deprivation, constant nursing, entertaining a two year old, and attending a lot of social events. I feel I will never catch up on normal things!

Bailey adjusted very well to having an infant around and she surprises me with the gentle patience she has with him when he is fussy. She lights up when she sees him after waking up or coming in after playing.

So far what I have learned about our little guy is that he is hungry a lot, loves to cuddle and be in the sling, will let us know when he is tired, hungry, uncomfortable, wet, or just needing to snuggle. He keeps me busy but he is so sweet and I love to snuggle him. He gives me about a 4 hour chunk of sleep in the night and then two or three hours after that. He is an early riser of about 5 am and then wants to eat every hour until about 8 am. So, I am tired! We have been very house bound because he is unpredictable with his feedings and it is difficult to time anything out.

He seems to be responding to Bailey in a positive way that is really sweet. He seems to light up when she is in his face and she sings to him, pinches his cheeks, and gives him "choo-choo kisses." Bailey likes to snuggle with him in the morning in her crib and talk to him about Peter Pan and her new obsession, fire-works. Their growing relationship melts our hearts.

We love our babies and our so blessed!

Congrats Leann and Patrick Reich !

2010-07-02T15:18:00.000-07:00

My dear friend since the 7th grade got Married June 25th. It was a super fun wedding and our favorite thing was the photo booth. Any reason to dress up and be goofy we are all about.

I was able to pull off being a bridesmaid and Bailey a flower girl with a two week old! It was smooth and only manageable with lots of help! Brie came with me and Jaemus to take pictures while my mom got Bailey ready for the wedding. My dad came with her and they took care of the kids during the ceremony. By the time the reception started I had Brandon there too and we had a lot of fun. Brandon and I actually got a whole hour and a half date! After dinner I nursed Jaemus and my parent's took both kids home and Brandon and I danced it up, ate cake, heard the speeches, and watched all the fun activities. Then we rushed home in time to feed Jaemus again. It was seriously a fun and relaxing hour and half.

Bailey loved dancing.
Congratulations you two and we wish you the best!

Father's Day

2010-06-23T14:17:00.000-07:00

Brandon was so excited to spend his Father's Day with the gift of his new little boy. He has been saying how content he feels with his sweet little girl whom he adores and now he has his son whom he has been enjoying snuggling and comforting. Brandon never ceases to impress me with his sacrificial love for his family. He is always putting us first with joy and never hesitates to chase Bailey around for "fishy kisses" or walk around singing to Jaemus until he falls asleep. And on top of that he always make me feel loved and cherished. We are truly blessed to have him every day.

Father's Day morning after I fed Jaemus, Bailey and I left in our PJ's to get starbucks coffee and a to-go order of breakfast from Mimi's Cafe. I am not savvy enough with the two kids to whip up a glorious breakfast without me making a huge mess, feeling stressed, and taking way too long. So, take-out it was!

Brandon taught Sunday School that morning and then we saw both sides of our family that day. So, it was busy but an all around good day.

Here we are taking a family photo and look closely at Bailey. She always wants to have a hand on Jaemus when we take a picture but this particular time we couldn't get her from either strangling him or blinding him- she adores her little brother.

This is Brandon's Bible study he taught the kindergarden through 5th grade on Father's Day. It is a great reminder of who our true Father in heaven is and how blessed we are to have a God that loves us.

God is Our Loving Father

Some people grow up with good dads, while others may not have a dad, or if they do, he may not be a good one - so to imagine God as a loving father can be difficult. The Bible teaches however that while God is holy and awesome, He is also a personal loving Father. His fatherlike characteristics include creator, provider, protector, comforter, disciplinary, and a father of who loves unconditionally.

While some parents may say “I brought you into this world... and I can take you out!” - it is a funny threat of sorts, but the truth is - sometimes we try to bring children into this world and cannot, and sometimes we do not try to bring children into this world and they come anyway - but God is truly the one who creates the miracle of life and brings children into the world

Psalm 127:3 - Children are a gift of the LORD, the fruit of the womb is a reward

Psalm 139:13 - For you formed my inward parts, you wove me in my mother’s womb

God provides for our needs great and small

Matthew 6:26 - Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?

God is our protector

Psalm 32:7 - You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

God is our comforter

Psalm 34:18 - The LORD is near to the brokenhearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

God disciplines HIs children out of love

Proverbs 3:11-12 - My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD Or loathe His reproof,For whom the LORD loves He reproves, Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.

God loves His children

Romans 8:38-39 - For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God will always be there for you as your Father

Psalm 68:5 -A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, Is God in His holy habitation.

The Arrival

2010-06-18T13:19:00.000-07:00

Jaemus came at a great time for us, since I had just had two days of fun and relaxation. I had been having contractions all week and they were beginning to frustrate me and distract me with their disappearance. So, on Thursday I put a lot of effort to put distractions aside and enjoy my last few days with Bailey and some time to myself. Bailey and I spent the morning at Irvine Park where we rode the train, Bailey rode Dan the pony and we went to feed the ducks but ended up feeding a gluttonous peacock instead that blocked us from the lake and ate all our bread- pretty funny. It was a really nice morning and I loved having some special time with her.

After that Bailey went to my mom's house for her nap and I went and got a manicure and pedicure treated by my dear friend Natalie. She had empathy for my frustration having just been through this a few months earlier herself. She sent me to a salon she enjoys where they massage your arms and legs with hot stones. It was super relaxing and I loved every minute of it. Plus, I had beautiful hands and feet for labor- pretty important.

My awesome day continued with a nice evening with Brandon and Bailey followed by the best nights sleep I have had in a long time.

I woke up Friday morning refreshed and early enough to kiss Brandon before he left for work

and Bailey happened to sleep in until 8:30am! This gave me an hour and a half to shower, watch the news, and eat breakfast. The morning kept getting better with an early morning visit from Natalie, Emily and Evan. They were in town early that day and came by for a couple hours. It was a fun morning to spend watching Bailey play with Emily and enjoy talking with Natalie totally enjoying the distraction. I never would have expected that by 1:00pm I would be having contractions that appeared promising.

By 3:00 pm I was convinced enough to tell Brandon and gave him the option to come home before traffic. He came home right away in a bit of a nervous frenzy trying to rush me off to the hospital but I assured him I was fine and that we were good to spend some time at home. I truly did not think that we would be going to the hospital until much later in the night but by 7 pm we decided to head over there. I was happy to have dinner with Bailey and time to repeat the hospital plan with her. She totally had it down- "mom and dad will go to the hospital to have the baby while she stays with Nana and Papa. Then we will come home with her baby brother." She was really cute when she repeated the whole plan.

We arrived at Saddleback about 7:30 and walked around before checking in. We had to check in by 8 pm to enter in through the women's hospital side, so I made Brandon walk with me until 7:55. When we got in I did not feel like Jaemus was going to be born soon. I was having consistent contractions but I didn't feel they were intense yet. However, I was so wrong and so was the nurse- when I checked in the nurse even said, "we'll see if we need to send you home for a little while." But I was 8 cm dilated and we were all very surprised so I was admitted into delivery right away. And 2 1/2 hours later I was holding Jaemus Lee.

It was exactly what we prayed for, a smooth, safe, and quick labor. The pain was intense but it was easier to get though it having had the experience. Brandon was the real champ. Using our previous experience he was really confident and encouraging. His energy kept my spirits up as he was able to motivate me and remind me it was almost over. He never let go of my hand and he rubbed by back or shoulders the entire time. It was much easier for the both of us this time knowing the signs that it can't be much longer.

The reward was a beautiful healthy baby boy. Brandon and I felt so humbled sitting there looking at our son realizing how good the Lord is to us. We were both surprised by his size, and dark skin and hair. Bailey too had dark hair but we both were for some reason expecting a light haired boy. However, Jaemus has soft dark hair on his back, side burns, and is tanner than both of us. He reminds me a lot of my younger brother, who too a big baby, tan, with a hairy body and full head of dark hair. Ryan (my little brother) is super cute though, so I can definitely live with that.

Jaemus Lee Bridgman

2010-06-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

Friday June 11th at 10:26pm Jaemus was born! He weighed 8lbs 15oz and was 20 3/4 in. long. All our prayers were answered in that we had a smooth, safe, and quick labor, and Jaemus is healthy and so sweet. Bailey adores him and we are loving life.

Thank you family and friends for all your prayers and support! Your prayers were felt and we are humbled by God's goodness in our life!

More to come but here is our cute little guy.

Quality Time

2010-06-05T14:09:00.000-07:00

We have had the pleasure of having some nice quality time with family and friends before the little one arrives.

Bailey and I went and had lunch with Brandon and my dad in Signal Hill at Hill Top Park. The park is on top of Signal Hill and overlooks the ocean, LA, and the mountains. There are also oil wells all over- surprise surprise.

We had a double-date with the Johnson's Part II at the Pancake House in Anaheim where we enjoyed some fancy pancakes, eggs, sausage and bacon. It was nice to have some adult time and relax with good friends and a good meal. Eric and Natalie continue to be such dear friends of ours as we have had the joy of sharing now two pregnancies together, daughters 3 days apart, and now boys that will be about 5 months apart. It has been fun sharing in our similar adventures and supporting and learning from each other.

While we were at breakfast, the girls and Evan played at my parent's house. My parent's recently finished making a play house that is incredibly cute and so the girl's got to play in there while Evan relaxed in the swing. My parent's loved having a house full of little ones.

Brandon and I have been a part of one of Rockharbor's Life Groups this past year and have enjoyed getting to know a great group of people. Brandon and I however are leaving the Life Group since having two little ones will demand more of our time for now. They were kind enough to take us out of BJ's Pizza and celebrate with pizza, pizookie, games, and baby presents galore! We will definitely miss seeing all of them each week! We have been blessed to have their friendship and prayers.

Poopie diaper game

My Mom, Tawnia, and Jenni took me out for a nice afternoon of tea at the 'Tea House on Los Rios' to celebrate the soon arrival of our little guy. We missed out on having Brie there but we had a nice afternoon of conversation, tea, and yummy food. The tea house is in down town San Juan Capistrano and is amongst quant shops and homes that has a really sweet atmosphere.

Our lack of having a person to take a group shot.

What the...?

2010-06-02T14:06:00.000-07:00

On our way to the Pancake House for a double-date with the Johnson's part II we saw this cruising through Tustin.

There are two full grown men in there- not midgets like we first thought.

Three wheels. European license plate.

A Month of Mania

2010-05-25T13:29:00.000-07:00

"Please no more projects" Brandon begs as we finished all "our" nesting goals today! Bailey is napping, and for the first time this last month I can relax knowing there is nothing pressing that needs to be done for me to feel settled when the little guy arrives.

Some of the big projects conquered included organizing the last 3 years worth of home videos. I have grown into a more mature Mac user and have learned to reformat my videos from my PC and convert them to be used in imovie. I then organized and burned all our videos to DVD so I have them saved and accessible. I then reformatted my back-up hard drive to be compatible with my Mac. I now can back-up all my computer info! This seriously took me a year to figure out... and a very dedicated 9 months to organize.

We also have organized all the closets, re-organized and re-decorated Bailey's room for her brother, organized Bailey's baby album, pre-pared all my Jr. high studies for the rest of the year and gave my sub everything she needs in-case I go into labor, moved and cleaned under all our furniture, we rented a carpet/upholstery cleaner and cleaned our rug and couch, cleaned all windows and screens, made our backyard more open and toddler proof, built a shed with a concrete foundation, planted an herb garden, ALMOST bought Bailey a sweet floppy-eared bunny and am really glad I didn't, and our biggest project - the Garage!

Our garage was a nightmare! It is so beautuful and organized! We organized our attic and rafters too. Brandon and I wanted to sleep in there when we finished we were so excited. We worked 4 non-stop days on it!

Brandon had nasal surgery! He had a deviated septum fixed and some other weird stuff done with a lazer in his nasal path-way making it so he can finally breathe through his nose! It was successful but it was a tough and painful weekend for him. Bailey was very gentle and sweet to her uncomfortable daddy. She especially liked helping him drink his smoothies!

But we have also had a lot of fun! Bailey has been doing a gym/music class this month and we have a blast each week! She is fantastic at the trampoline, balance beam, and bar. She also participates very well with all the songs and games we play. I am very proud of her!

Great times with friends.

Emily and Bailey (BFF)

Bailey and Ethan

Mother's Day was amazing. Brandon spoiled me with doing everything for me, Bailey, and himself and I got to relax in my parent's huge Jacuzzi bath tub!! We walked around the Orange Circle, ate at Rutabegorz, and got a frozen yogurt. It was a perfect day for me!

Brandon and I have been going on as many dates as we can! Going to the movies, reading at coffee shops, bike rides, and recently home-made fondue! Yum-yum

Brandon is working in the office now at work! No more 12 hour days, no more oil-stained husband, no more near-death experiences (I hope!), and many other perks. Brandon comes home earlier, cleaner, and a lot less tired these days! He just started as an Engineering Technician. He is basically an assistant to the engineers and does what is called "digitizing." Here is a picture of him on his first day of work in the office- so cute.

Other than that, my belly is huge and Bailey is cuter and funnier everyday.

Bailey talks all the time now! I am daily surpised with what comes out of her mouth and what she thinks about. She was such a quiet little thing and now that she figured out language, she talks constanstly and it cracks us up. She has a major crush on Peter Pan and usually talks about him and acts like he lives with us. She will even go as far as carry around the video case that has his picture on it and talk to him. She has a rich imagination which we love and have lots of fun with! She may even yell at you "watch out! the cannonballs are coming!" The scene in Peter Pan where Hook shoots cannon balls at Peter. Bailey likes to pretend that cannonballs are coming at us and we hide and make sounds like they are whizzing past us. I love reliving childhood.

One last picture just for fun. Bailey was "helping" me put away laundry the other day. She put on every pair of clean underwear I had. Two year olds are the best!

Bring on the boy!

Night Night Mama

2010-04-21T20:24:00.000-07:00

While enjoying some play time with Bailey today before her nap time, she suddenly stood up, grabbed her baby doll and blanket and said "night night mama." I asked "are you putting your baby to bed?" and she replied "yup." This is a normal occurrence of her placing her baby in my and Brandon's bed then coming back to me. Well, she didn't come back and it was very quiet so I went to find out what Bailey was up to. I found Bailey in our bed with her baby doll, head on Brandon's pillow with the blankets pulled up to her chest sucking her thumb. When I saw her I smiled and said "oh, are you ready for a nap too?" She said yup and pointed to the window saying "dark, dark." I shut the curtains for her and sat on the bed next to her. However, she said "no mama, night night." I was really entertained now so I asked her if she wanted me to leave so she can sleep and she said "yes." I kissed her head and left the room expecting her to get bored and come back in the living room. However, after about 5 minutes in went in to check on her because I never heard a peep and Bailey was sound asleep just as I left her. I barricaded her with pillows so she couldn't roll off and left very surprised at my little girl's independence.

Normally, before naps and bed time we rock Bailey for at least 5 minutes and she protests if we ever try and skip the rocking. However, today she did not need me or her own bed- my little girl is growing up too fast, but very responsibly.

Easter Weekend

2010-04-09T20:25:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Easter weekend of enjoying the blessings the Lord has given us. We enjoyed His creation on a hike, church at Rockharbor for Good Friday and Easter Sunday, and a nice time with family while coloring eggs and doing and egg hunt.

Caden and Bailey- quite a messy experience but fun. Bailey loved having her hands dyed for the day.

Bailey's Easter dress; she's packed to go to Nanna and Papa's with all her new toy items from her Easter basket. Oh, and of course the pearl necklace. Bailey has been wearing this pearl necklace every day for about a week now.

The Easter egg hunt was super fun! Bailey and Caden loved it. Caden looked for green and blue eggs which were hidden more difficultly while Bailey searched for yellow and orange eggs.
The highlight of the day was releasing Bailey's butterflies. We have had them since they were tiny caterpillars and watched them grow and make cocoons and eventually turn into Monarch butterflies. We had five butterflies to release and Easter was the perfect day to do it. They were so calm that we got to hold them in our hands for at least 30 seconds. Bailey was so excited and did great at holding still and watching the butterfly sit in her hand while opening and closing its wings. I want to make this a yearly tradition.

The Lord is good and Easter is a necessary time to reflect on His promises and His mercy.

The Death of Owl

2010-03-31T08:23:00.000-07:00

Bailey's pet Beta Fish 'Owl' died this week. Bailey picked him out about 8 months ago and named him, gave him 'fishy-kisses', and fed him regularly. We felt like we were good to the little guy but this was his third attempt at suicide and was successful this last time.

The first attempt was a jump out of the bowl but we were all in the kitchen to witness it and Brandon quickly swept him back into the bowl to safety. Bailey retold that story for about a week.

The second time, Brandon was cleaning out his bowl over the sink and Owl again made a flying leap out but managed to land in the garbage disposal. Brandon thought he was a goner but reached in and pulled him out by his tail. Owl was a bit disoriented and his tail was shredded but he bounced back.

Then this week I went to get some water before bed and saw a still Owl on the table. I gasped and told Brandon to come get him. His gills were moving very slightly so Brandon put him back in his bowl. Owl swam around a bit but kept floating to the top and then swimming a little more; it was a sad scene. Brandon even tried playing the guitar for him to motivate life but Owl was not looking good. So, we decided to give him through the night to see if he made a miraculous recovery.

However, in the morning when I woke up I came across this:

Although, I was deeply sad for our fish, I got at good laugh out of this. So, here is to Owl and the memories he gave us, and for us to explain to Bailey when she notices that Owl is in heaven now with all his fishy friends and Jesus.

Birthday Video

2010-03-18T00:13:00.000-07:00

Bailey's 2nd Birthday

2010-03-15T22:04:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful warm day today for Bailey's birthday with a couple hours of extra sunshine. Bailey is two years old today and we are winding down from a weekend long of festivities. Saturday we celebrated her birthday at Irvine Park with some members of the Bair family and today we went to disneyland with the girls; Nanna, Auntie Jenni, and Auntie Brie.

It is amazing to me to look at our little girl who is now running, talking, having an opinion, her own unique personality, all with her own beautiful original facial features that have a hint of Brandon and I in them. God truly is incredible in how He creates life and trusts us to love and mold His little children. We are such blessed parent's to have Bailey in our lives and we are daily grateful for the gift of a child and now a second on the way.

We have been loving this stage of Bailey's life. She is still our sweet cuddly baby when she is tired or wants some love but she is also tons of fun to run around with, explore news things, dance, and play games. She makes me laugh and smile all day and fills Brandon and I's lives with so much joy. Our most precious time of the day with her is at bed time when we are in her room and we pray as a family. She folds her little hands and sits real quiet as we pray. She will then list off people or animals that she wants to pray for. Then Brandon or I rock Bailey to sleep and she snuggles up, rubs our face with her hands and gives kisses and hugs while retelling her day of activities until she is tired enough to lay in her crib. She is so enduring and sweet when falling asleep and it is during these times that I never want her to grow up.

Bailey as a two year old has accomplished many things and definitely knows what she likes and does not like. She is weened off of the bottle, which to my surprise was no problem and she never once protested! Bailey is very socially conscientious and often interrupts conversations when she knows what we are talking about and will attempt to give her input. Most of her language is one or two word "sentences" but she gets her point across without the use of many pronouns and filler words.

She has also made up some of her own words for things such as calling Frani (our dog) "Ruff" and calling all babies "Rock" and that is because she used to do the rocking motion with her arms when talking about babies and that has turned into using the word "rock." She does an adorable fishy-face for fish and calls butterflies "flies" while flapping her arms.

Bailey continues to enjoy the outdoors and loves butterflies and ladybugs. Her favorite color currently is yellow, her favorite movie of the month is Peter Pan and she loves Carousals. She has become an excellent climber and climbs everything in sight to our fear. She has mastered many a park's climbing features and will attempt to climb anything in sight that seems possible. She really wants to climb trees but beyond a reachable sitting branch where we can hold her, we aren't ready for that one yet. Bailey also can climb out of her pack n' play now which we discovered over at the Johnson's house recently. Bailey was thought to be sleeping upstairs in their house when we heard a door shut. Brandon went upstairs and found Bailey smiling outside of the crib. We then set up their video monitor and watched her tricks from down stairs- quit entertaining.

Bailey repeats the alphabet one letter at a time with us and counts everything that is at least a double. She has also mastered taking off all of her clothes. When she was thought to be sleeping, we heard her saying "uh oh" and when we went in to check on her she had achieved taking off her pj's and diaper and was very proud of herself as she giggled and jumped up and down in her crib.

We are so proud of our little girl and we look forward to the two's and meeting her little brother soon! There is a new story every day and I want to remember as much as I can. There is always something new and entertaining when a toddler is in the home.

Our next goal is potty training!

Happy Birthday Lovies!

**More to come: A birthday video will be up soon**

To the Snow

2010-02-24T14:55:00.001-08:00

Last Monday we were in 80 degree weather at the beach and by Friday, after an hour and a half drive, we were in 35 degree weather playing in the snow! Is this the reason California is so popular?

We went up to the San Bernardino Mountains to Brandon's home town Twin Peaks. The first day we took Bailey sledding and to play in the snow. She loved sliding down the hills backwards on her belly and throwing snowballs at daddy.

Saturday morning Bailey was excited to wake up and be reminded that there was still snow outside.

Brandon and his younger brother Kenny went snowboarding while Bailey and I went to the Village at Lake Arrowhead. I loved driving in the mountains because I rarely get to since Brandon dominates the area when we are up there. It was so beautiful and peaceful and I only got a little lost, once. Bailey and I walked around the lake, fed the ducks and played in the little patches of snow. It was a really fun day with Bailey and I loved having that special time with her and watching her experience snow for the first time.

Brandon and Kenny had a really fun day snowboarding and Brandon especially enjoyed it since he has not been in 2 years! Bailey loved spending time with her Uncle Kenny. She has a special bond with Kenny and is ecstatic to be around him and never leaves him alone. She has been talking about him this whole week too.

Saturday evening we drove to Redlands and met up with Brandon's grandparent's (Mammer and Papa), Hollee, Tim, Tank, Brandon's Mom (Mammer Lee), Step-dad (Papa Mike) and Kenny for a birthday celebration at Red Robin for Hollee and Mammer Lee.

It was a nice to spend time with everyone since we do not get to see them that often.

So Silly

2010-02-17T14:58:00.000-08:00

Last Minute Beach Trip

2010-02-17T13:54:00.000-08:00

Monday morning Natalie called me with a last minute plan of going down to the beach. It was great because Brandon and I were trying to figure out something fun to do and the Johnson's had a plan.

We left within 2o minutes and I realized Bailey has no shorts or bathing suit she fits in and her sun hat is too small. I was a little unprepared for 80 degree whether in February but I already placed an Old Navy order for spring clothes for Bailey so we will be beach ready!

We had no problem parking or finding a comfortable place on the sand and the weather was gorgeous. Bailey has a blast jumping in the waves and running away from them.

Bailey and Emily played in the sand and watered each other's toes.

Eric and Natalie were successful in bringing their new little one Evan and a toddler to the beach without seeming tired and over-packed. A big encouragement! Natalie and I enjoyed sitting with little Evan and watching the dad's play with the girls. A perfect holiday.

Valentine's Date

2010-02-17T13:28:00.000-08:00

Brandon and I love any excuse for a date so we look forward to Valentine's Day. We decided to make a day and night of it so on Friday we took Bailey to my parent's house before her nap and headed down to Newport Beach.

Brandon used a gift card he had to Spa Gregory's to get a massage and I went and got a manicure. After we walked around Crystal Cove and got dinner at Javier's. That was our first time there and we really enjoyed the ambiance and food. We ate at 5:30 so it was not crowded yet and we got a beautiful window table next to the fireplace and were able to watch the sun set.

We headed over to Big Newport and watched the movie Valentine's Day. Cute and very appropriate for the holiday. It was fun to go out to a movie because that is definitely one thing we rarely do anymore.

But our favorite part of our day was going home alone. It's a weird feeling having no little one around the house but it is so relaxing! We made homemade gifts for each other and Brandon really impressed me with his creativity. He had noticed that I hang my necklaces on some frames in our room because I don't have a place to put them. So he made me a necklace rack out of a tree branch. He cut a small branch, made a base out of corn starch, sprayed the branch with a sealer and used green paint to highlight the ends of the branches.

What a creative and thoughtful man I have! I also got a very sweet homemade card and red tulips.

For my gift I edited our honeymoon video. We have had some technical difficulties with our video camera at this time so it was pretty messy and we have been procrastinating on doing this tedious project. However, I achieved a clean edited movie of our honeymoon and we enjoyed watching it together. I also made Brandon a crossword puzzle with questions about our relationship. I discovered this website where you can create any type of puzzle you want and they do all the work for you and you just come up with the questions. It was super fun and I think we might start incorporating this as a tradition.

We slept in until 9 am, got a breakfast burrito and french toast from Mini Cafe (one of our favorites) and went to the park for a picnic.

Our Valentine's could not have been better!

Disneyland

2010-02-04T15:16:00.000-08:00

We went to Disneyland recently and it was probably one of our most fun trips. We went in the evening and it was not very crowded and the weather was perfect. We rode Bailey's favorites; Dumbo and the Carousal, but unfortunately It's a Small World was closed. We also discovered the Dumbo train. I don't know how we have never noticed this ride before but it was the first time we saw it. We rode it at night which was a mistake. It was super dark and loud and Bailey was scared. She was really cute though and held it together on the ride but, I could tell she was stressed, and when the ride stopped she lost it and started crying saying, "all done!" It was her story for the next week, retelling the dark scary train ride.

We scored great seats for the evening parade and Brandon went and got us chocolate carmel corn to snack on. Bailey mostly just starred in awe of the over stimulating parade but she did dance a bit and follow some of the movements.

Birthday Bash

2010-01-11T21:14:00.000-08:00

We celebrated 3 birthdays on Sunday. My mom's birthday is on the 10th and Tim and Murphy share a birthday on the 11th (Murphy is Jenni and Tim's dog). Tim turned the big 30 and we enjoyed a fun Saturday of dinner at Auld Dubliner with friends and dinner with family on Sunday.

The evening was fun with yummy steak filets, carrot cake, and a family game of Apples to Apples which Ryan dominated.

We all pitched in and got Tim a banjo that he has wanted for some time. It was a fun surprise and we got to listen to some blue grass jams.

New Years

2010-01-11T08:26:00.000-08:00

New Year's Eve Brandon and I decided to have a date-night at home. Bailey went to bed and we got to cooking. Two years ago, when I was pregnant actually, we bought crab legs, brie, a baguette, and chocolate fondue and enjoyed a fun evening at home. So, we mimicked just that. We steamed and ate 2lbs of crab legs, cranberry goat cheese with a baguette, and we were so full we only shared a small ice cream sandwich for dessert. I only took one picture and I forget to get a "before" dinner picture so everyone gets to see the remains.

Brandon and I watched the "Friends" new years episodes which was a fun reminiscent time for us. While we date we watched all 10 seasons of Friends and had so much fun. Eventually we watched the ball drop and laughed when Dick Clark sadly messed up the count down. I admire him for hanging in there. Brandon and I shared our 6th New Years kiss together, fell asleep on the couch about 15 minuted later and woke up uncomfortable and scrambled to bed.

Here is Bailey on our first morning walk of 2010.

Christmas

2009-12-31T13:38:00.000-08:00

First off, we found out a week before Christmas that we are having a BOY!

We have had a super fun month of Christmas festivities. We enjoyed cuddling up and looking at Christmas lights, listening to Christmas music, watching Rudolph and Frosty the Snowman, seeing Tustin's Santa Claus come down our street on a float, making cookies. attempting caramel apples, watching the Boat Parade in Newport at a party and attending my school's Jr. high Christmas performance.

Our Christmas began by Brandon and I getting Bailey out of bed with the video camera and pumping her up for Christmas. She has gotten use to this word "Christmas" and something about a baby named Jesus, lights, scary Santa, Rudolph, and the presents that must wait for this special day. So, finally the day came and she was thrilled. We enjoyed our slow cozy morning with an excited toddler who finally got to open presents.

Christmas dress. Yes, those are shimmery tights and shoes with a tool skirt- you can only pull that off for a few very young years of your life.

We went to my parent's house for a late breakfast and more presents! My mom made a fantastic baked french toast and egg dish and Brie brought over for the 2nd year in a row her families wonderful homemade Tamales! It was quite a feast and held us over until dinner.

Caden excited to open presents.

One of her favorite presents that she has been taking every where with her.

Papa and Nanna's winter mittens.

After a nice morning with the Bair's we went home for Bailey's nap and Brandon and I played with our new toys.

That evening we went to L.A. to visit with Brandon's family. We enjoyed a relaxing evening of more yummy food and a fun game of Apple's to Apple's. Bailey and Tank played together the whole time and were talking to each other in a language no one else understood.

Bailey and Tank opening presents.

Bailey and Uncle Kenny cuddling.

Jenni's 30!

2009-12-31T13:29:00.000-08:00

Jenni turned 30 years old on December 8th and we had a week long celebration. We started off by going to 2nd street in Long Beach to eat at La Creperie which is a fun French Crepe restaurant that serves delicious food while listening to Jazz music.

The next day we went to my parent's house for a family celebration with one of Mom's (Nanna's) wonderful home-cooked meals with Peach Cobbler for dessert.

Friday, we went to Pinapple Grill for kereoke! All of Jenni's friends showed up and it was a super fun turn out with great entertainment.

Happy 30th Jenni!

Seasonal Highlights

2009-12-31T13:17:00.000-08:00

Playing in the rain.

Fall leaves.

Cute beanies.

Ready for anything with a dog on her back and a dog in her purse.

First Hair Cut

2009-12-31T13:06:00.000-08:00

Bailey got her first hair cut a few weeks ago. She definitely has an advantage of receiving hair cuts from her Aunt, in her living room, watching the boys play guitar hero. Bailey didn't even seem to notice Jenni cutting her hair.

Even and beautiful.

Christmas Tree

2009-12-06T21:02:00.000-08:00

Saturday we went out to the woods of Home Depot and picked out a Christmas tree. Bailey analyzed everyone grabbing trees and carrying them or dragging them out to their cars; so she ran over and started looking at the smallest trees, grabbed one, and began dragging it through the lot. It was so funny because she was completely confident and acted like she does this every year. We bought the little Bailey sized tree; for how could we have wanted any other one?

We went home, put on our sweats, played Christmas music, and decorated our little 3 1/2' tree. Doesn't get much better that this.

she knows just what to do.

Strung popcorn

One can hardly see our tiny tree,

but we love it all the same.

Christmas Banquet

2009-12-06T20:56:00.000-08:00

Brandon and I attended his company's annual Christmas party on Friday night at the Petroleum Club in Long Beach. It is a formal event with a nice dinner, drinks, a wheel that the employees get to win money from, and dancing. We enjoyed some fun company, non-alcoholic wine for me (which was interesting) and enjoyed gettin' our groove on.

Too Much Work

2009-11-30T13:48:00.000-08:00

Poor Brandon has been working very long hours at work. Working on a rig is a lot of hard labor as it is but working 13 hours days 6 days a week will definitely take an extra toll on him. Bailey and I have been sad for the lack of him but he is always intentional with his time at home. We hope these hours won't last much longer!

Here is a picture my dad took of him at work.

Note: check out how much smaller Brandon is than the guy next to him!

Brandon worked grave-yard shifts all last week and so he came home at 8am. He often collapsed on the floor and played with Bailey while I made breakfast. However, the other day he fell asleep on the floor and Bailey was very considerate and took good care of her sleepy daddy.

Coming this June

2009-11-30T13:38:00.000-08:00

I just realized with the lack of my posting this last month I have not announced that in early June Baby #2 will be born! I survived my first trimester sickness and tiredness and am enjoying food and energy again!

We explained to Bailey that there is a baby in mommies tummy and she gets really excited to lift my shirt and kiss my belly and she talks to my belly button. She then will say "out, out" and hold her hands out so she can hold it. She's really sweet and loves babies and dolls so I think she will be thrilled for a little brother or sister. The other day and she sat next to me with a book for me to read to her. Then she lifted my shirt a little and turned the book motioning that she wanted me to read to her and the baby. It cracked me up and broke my heart with how sweet and thoughtful she is.

We are looking forward to our new addition!

Thanksgiving

2009-11-30T13:15:00.000-08:00

I think we are still full from thanksgiving

and all the yummy leftovers. We had a wonderful family family day cooking and then went to my parent's house to eat.

Brandon, Bailey, and I made cranberry apple cider sauce, deviled eggs, and butternut squash with a mustard vinaigrette. Brandon and I love cooking together and we enjoy attempting new recipes like our butternut squash, which turned out great.

Bailey stayed entertained by eating yogurt with a rubber spatula and walking Frani around the house.

My family gets bigger every year and we now have 13 members from my original 6. Our family will only keep getting bigger and more fun!

We stuffed ourselves with all the thanksgiving classics and had plenty for the next couple days. After dinner we enjoyed a nice half mile walk to Michael and Tawnia's house for dessert. Tawnia had homemade pumpkin pie, berry pie, cookies, brownies, and coffee.

Then we had family fun with Beatles Guitar Hero. Bailey loved the game and preferred to either help daddy with drums or sing. She kept stealing the mic. from everyone and singing; very cute.

Halloween

2009-11-04T20:36:00.000-08:00

We love the fall and everything that comes along with it including Halloween! The hazy sun, cool whether, pumpkin pie, sweat pants, the smell of cinnamon, and the beginning of the holiday season.

We took Bailey to a pumpkin patch just for the fun festivities. The patch had bubble machines, animals, and games set out and Bailey had a blast running around and visiting the animals. She carried pumpkins around and tried to pick up ones twice the size of her.

That night we took Bailey trick-or-treating around my parent's neighborhood. She made an adorable dalmatian dog and it suited her personality perfectly in her love of dogs. All the neighbors we visited had dogs and so I think Bailey thought trick-or-treating was visiting people's dogs. She barked every time someone answered their door and laughed when the dog showed up too. Bailey was quite a hit.

And later that night when Bailey was sleeping at grandma and grandpa's house, Brandon and I transformed into Centaurs. It was the most I have ever worked on a Halloween costume and I don't want to do it again unless it is for my kids. It was super fun but Brandon and I were cramming to get it done all morning!

Jenni and Tim were Centaurs too, and this was Jenni's magnificent plan. She also thought up how to make the costume and it was really impressive. Jenni is very crafty and her horse was perfect! Mine barely survived the night! Brandon and I were "Midsummer Night's Dream" themed centaurs, while J&T were warrior themed.

Jenni and Tim's annual Halloween party was a huge hit and it was the most people that have ever shown up! It was packed and you could not even breathe in the dance room; so much fun! The costume creativity also definitely went up a notch.

Brandon's Birthday!

2009-11-02T14:35:00.000-08:00

Brandon is 28 years old and I love that he still wants to celebrate by going to Disneyland! For his birthday he got a disneyland pass and so we got to enjoy the fall decorations and D-land.

We started off the day with a family breakfast at the Original Pancake House. One just opened near our house and we have been excited for a visit. Brandon got to enjoy one of his favorite breakfasts of French Toast.

We then took the little one to my parent's house for a nap and to disneyland. It was a pretty crowded day so we enjoyed exploring the video rooms and walking through the shops. We did not get much time there but it was a good start to a year of fun.

For dinner Brandon's family came to visit and treated us to Red Robin; need to get that free birthday burger! We enjoyed Brandon's favorite, Pumpkin Pie, for dessert. It was a relaxing and fun day and a joy to spend time with family.

Happy Birthday my Love!

Family Lovin'

2009-10-11T22:01:00.000-07:00

So, I am failing at keeping up on my blogs. I also have been doing a poor job in taking pictures but I am going to get back into the game!

Lately, the Bridgman's have been enjoying their time dancing to the "Baby Bop Hop," hunting for our neighbors cat's, walking Bailey's fake doggies, changing her babies "poopie diapers" about 50 times a day, making smoothies and cuddling.

Cuddling with Frani and daddy.

Cuddling with Mommy.

Cuddling with her stuffed dogs.

I can't believe Bailey is about 19 months now! She is very animated and acts-out everything she wants to share with us. For example, she loves the trash man. Every thursday is trash day and we spend most of the day running outside to watch the truck. She says "trash!" and starts running to the door and she imitates the truck picking up the cans and dropping them; it cracks me up to see how this makes her day. She is silly, active, sensitive, and a joy to spend life with.

Owl the Fish

2009-09-17T15:31:00.000-07:00

Since Thursday is our new Friday, Bailey and I get excited for Brandon to come home and start our three day weekend!

Well, one particular thursday, about 2 weeks ago, Brandon called at five to say he was stuck at work and won't be home until close to 8pm. Always sad news on the much anticipated thursday night fun. So, with the extra time on our hands Bailey and I leisurely walked around Petsmart before getting Frani from the groomer.

They have a large fish section at this store and Bailey and I slowly looked at all the types of fish and their colors. Bailey was "ooing" and "awing" at all the fish and I had to refrain her from repeatedly hitting the glass to watch the fish scatter; entertaining I know, but terrifying for the poor fish.

Well, due to the extra time on our hands and missing Brandon, Bailey and I bought a fish. We have a blue and red male beta fish. I figured it is good cheap entertainment. Bailey picked out the color and we got rocks and a little plant for its home in one of my flower vases.

On the way home in the car I asked Bailey what her fishes name was. She kept saying "owel." After asking her a few more times later, we went with the name Owl. She has been watching Winnie the Pooh, and she says owl when she sees Owl in the movie, so why not; we have a fish named Owl.

Busy Busy

2009-09-15T07:17:00.000-07:00

Note: Loving the beginning of Fall!! We Bridgmans love the fall; the cool breeze, the smell of rain, the nostalgic feeling of school, pumpkin pie, Halloween, sweaters, sweat pants...oh so many cozy things!

Anyhow, the Fall always seems busier than summer too. I am a bit behind in my hobbies, like my blog, a quilt for Bailey, editing my home videos and cooking quality dinners, but I will get into the swing of things I am sure.

Brandon continues to work like a studly man on the oil rig 4 days a week for 10 hours and is enjoying it. He is also playing soccer on Wednesday nights with our church Rockharbor and taking our Life Group through a study of C.S. Lewis's book "Mere Christianity." Brandon is a very thorough teacher and is able to get everyone interested in the topics.

Yes, we joined a Life Group that meets Tuesday nights. A life group is a small group through our church that meets to discuss the sunday sermon in depth and our group decided to do a book study as well. It was been enriching to meet with others and talk about what God and support one another.

As for me, I unexpectedly got involved in a few different things but so far I love everything! I became a Life Care Counselor at our church. After a lot of training, interviews, and a few psychological tests, I get to meet one-on-one with individuals and talk with them about their lives and struggles. I meet with a supervisor to debrief the session and make sure we are on track. It is a wonderful ministry and I feel so blessed for this experience. It is humbling to be so available to someone and listen to their life story.

I am also teaching a Bible class at Redhill Lutheran School. I go for two periods on friday mornings and meet with the Jr. High. It is a small group setting, only girls, and I am there for them with their questions or concerns about God and general life. I love all my girls and I am enjoying getting to know them better. Plus its great time for Brandon and Bailey to get a couple hours of "daddy daughter time."

My mom's bible study (Nurture) starts at the end of this month and Bailey gets to go and play with her friends in the nursery.

We are enjoying our new responsibilities and Brandon and I enjoy some nights of studying again.

Here are some Bailey highlights:

Playing piano.

Snuggled up watching 101 Dalmatians.

Bailey reminds me a lot of my younger brother Ryan when it comes to movies. Ryan would always watch one movie until he had it completely memorized and it became old news. Bailey follows this same pattern. So far, her order of favorites have been Bambi, Strawberry Shortcake, Lady and the Tramp, and currently 101 Dalmatians. She really has a taste for classics.

Flowers for Mommy from Daddy-ahhh...so sweet.

Jenny on Broadway

2009-09-02T10:29:00.000-07:00

Well, not exactly Broadway but pretty close. My good friend Jenny has always been involved in theater and for the first time she and her friend, Lauren, wrote, directed, and performed their own play! They rented a small theater in Hollywood and made their own props, got their own music, lighting, programs, and hosts. It was quit impressive and everything went very smooth.

The play was entitled, "He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not," and it was about their humorous college years of dating, breaking up, and discovering what real love is.

Leann and I particularly enjoyed the play because we have been friends with Jenny through all of the scenarios and were able to recall the memories.

Some highlights: Jenny performing a "sexy" song and her and Lauren going on dates with their dads.

Good job Jenny!

Disneyland!!i

2009-09-02T07:59:00.000-07:00

Sadly Brandon and I's Disneyland passes expired on the 24th and so we had our last hurrah and made the best of it.

Luckily it was not too crowded and so we got to hit up many of the good kiddy-rides; It's a Small World, Dumbo, the Carousal, Jungle Cruise, and Winnie the Pooh. Peter Pan and Pirates would have perfected it but ah well, still did good.

For dinner Brandon finally got the long anticipated giant Turkey leg. The curious thing about it was that it looked and tasted like salty ham...do they lie? Is it really ham? How doe they get so many large Turkey legs? Does Disney have their own giant Turkey farm? My thanksgiving turkey has never had a leg that large.

We also ate bread bowls and picked out a treat. Brandon got his favorite Micky Mouse cookie and I got a candied apple that was 'apple pie' flavored; amazing.

We stayed for fireworks and it was Bailey's first firework show. She was not so sure about it; she kept shaking her head "no" when it got too loud but kept pointing in excitement. We started in front of the castle, moved to the middle of Main St., and ended at the far end of Main St.

It was a wonderful family day and it was definitely one of our best Disneyland trips.

She's just so pretty and cute I can't stand it.

What's not Right?

2009-08-19T21:09:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning Brandon got Bailey dressed for church. She came strolling out like this and I laughed and said, "why is Bailey's dress on backwards." Brandon responded, "what do you mean? I though bows always go in the back?"

The Bender Babies

2009-08-19T20:35:00.000-07:00

Ricky and Keri had twin girls at the end of May and we finally got a chance to drive to Oxnard to meet Jovie and Loretta. It was so good to visit with them and we always enjoy catching up.

Brandon and Caleb built a lego car and looked through truck magazines while Bailey played with all new toys and enjoyed crawling through the twin's tunnel play mat.

Brandon and I got to each feed one of the babies.

In the evening we walked along their bay view to Smokey's BBQ for a yummy meal. We shared an apple pie for dessert and hung out until it was past the kid's bed times. It was a great day and we are so happy to see so many Benders.

The Luskos and Harvest Crusade

2009-08-18T12:51:00.000-07:00

Levi and Jenny were in Orange County with their girls for the Harvest Crusade; Levi MCs the Harvest. Friday we spent some quality time together at our house and Ruta's.

Bailey loved Olivia and Leyna. Olivia was very helpful to Bailey, helping her drink water, and was able to lead the girls in ring around the rosie.

That night we met up with Jenny and the girls at the Harvest. We got to sit right behind home plate and enjoy the good view and watch all the people walk onto the baseball field to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior. This weekend was the Harvest's 20 year anniversary. It is amazing to see Angel Stadium completely filled with people all wanting to learn about Christ and praise him.

Bailey had a blast at the crusade. She got to walk around the deck area, play with friends, and dance to loud music. She clapped above her head with everyone and reached for t-shirts being shot out to the crowd; good times.

Uncle Kenny

2009-08-13T07:42:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Brandon's younger brother, Kenny, came to stay with us. This was the third summer Kenny came to stay with us and we enjoy this little tradition. Bailey loves Kenny and kept him busy all weekend with her play schedule.

Friday night Brandon and Kenny went to an Angel game.

The rest of the weekend there was lots of playing the Wii while Bailey slept and then we went to the Spectrum to play with the puppies and ride the carousel (stuff more for Bailey). We also went and saw Year One at the dollar theater, had Yogurt Land, and went to Irvine Park to play frisbee and ride bikes.

On Monday Kenny, Bailey, and I went to Laguna Beach and watch Bailey play in the waves and collect sea shells. That night Brandon and Kenny made homemade pizzas and we got to enjoy those with Grandpa Mike. I like this picture because they look so much a like.

It was great to have Kenny around and for him to be able to bond so well with Bailey. He is always great to spend time with and we are so proud of him.

Galaxy vs. Barcelona

2009-08-07T21:03:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Brandon and I went to our first professional soccer game accompanied by the Johnson's part II. The game was at the Rose Bowl and so we went early to spend some time in Old Town Pasadena.

The day was super fun and it was started off by learning that the Johnson's are having a baby BOY! We are so excited for them and a can't wait to meet their son come January.

In Old Town we hit up a pool hall and played three games of pool. None of us had played pool in a while and Natalie and I aren't exactly "learned" players. But we love games so we enjoyed it.

After some walking around we ate dinner at 'Bar Celona." Since the Galaxy was playing Barcelona, we kept with the theme of the soccer game and ate some quality Tappas.

The soccer game was great! Got to watch some excellent soccer players such as Beckham, Donovan, Henry, and Messi. We saw Beckham score a goal by a penalty kick but Barcelona won 2 to 1. The stadium was almost full! There were 94,000 people there and it was kind of insane. Soccer fans are fun because they love the game and are not shy to cheer and support their favorite team. We even saw a Chivas fan get three bottles of beer thrown at him by some Messi fans for starting trouble. We all really enjoyed the game and energy and I personally love how soccer games are 90 minutes and they never stop the clock. I like sporting games fine, but I also like to know when they will end.

After the game, those 94,000 people got in line to wait for the exact same shuttle as us! So, we waited in a two hour line but we made the best of it by playing Scramble on Eric's iphone. A very tricky and addicting game.

Another great day filled with fun memories. Brandon and I feel very lucky that we get to do so many fun activities.

Oh Bailey

2009-07-29T21:18:00.000-07:00

Bailey is so cute and pretty. She understands really well and is able to follow instructions and answer most questions directed towards her. She sadly doesn't feel like my little baby anymore but she remains snuggly and I love her hugs and kisses.

Bailey is trying to say more words and she imitates everything I do. Most of what she says probably only I understand. . Recently she says Momma, grandma, rice, stop, and yo-yo. Bailey loves to be read to and she acts out many of her favorite characters. She also loves her baby doll and often mimics how I take care of her with her baby. I found her smelling her babies bottom the other day. She also tries to feed her, play ring-around-the -rosie, and play patty-cake with her.

Bailey is obsessed with the original Strawberry Shortcake. Brandon and I found a DVD at Toys R' Us with the first two episodes on them. Since then, Bailey only wants to watch one of the two shows and Brandon and I have memorized all the songs and dialogue of both episodes. I wish they put more of the original shows in DVD.

It's 100 degrees out and so why is Bailey in a sweatshirt? She has a funny attachment to this pink polka dot sweatshirt. I don't know why but every morning she wants to wear this and she also must have the hood on.

We have been enjoying the summer weather with playing in the hose. I water a lot in the mornings and Bailey always ends up soaking wet from running through the hose spray.

Bailey loves helping me around the house and she is a quick learner! She follows me around the house with her own broom, she throws trash away, puts her toys away, and wears oven mitts when I do. She is such a good girl and I love spending every day with her.

Birthday

2009-07-29T20:56:00.000-07:00

I turned 24 on the 20th and I had a whole weekend of celebration.

Brandon and I had the perfect day on Saturday. We woke up early and took Bailey to my parent's house then headed to the beach. I got to run while Brandon followed me on the bike and then Brandon had a little surprise for me. For my birthday present he rented a sea-doo for us to take out in the ocean. It was super fun and we were laughing the entire time! It was my first time driving a sea-doo and I loved it!

After we enjoyed lunch at Taco Loco and lounged on the beach. It felt so good to lay in the sun with a book and my best friend; true luxury.

Sunday we went swimming at my parent's with all my family and enjoyed BBQ dinner.

I love this picture of Bailey with her cousin Caden. They are so cute together and Bailey adores Caden. It has been so much fun watching Bailey grow up looking up to Caden. They are starting to play together and they look like they are being so silly together here.

Monday morning, the day of my actual birthday, I woke up to Tulips and a poem written on a "treasure map" from Brandon. He always makes me feel special and loved on my birthday. Thanks luvies!

4th of July slumber party

2009-07-07T21:07:00.000-07:00

Yes, just like the good ol' days, we had a slumber party at the Johnson's part II's house. There were games, candy, tummy aches, and little sleep.`

We started off our holiday at Rockharbor's 4th of July event at Lake Hills Community Church. There were game booths, pony rides, snow cones, and a petting zoo. Afterwards, we headed over to the Ladera Ranch shin-dig and had a pizza picnic while listening to a live music in the park .

That night we did our own little firework show. We had giant sparkler's, a tree pin-wheel, and two piccolo petes. The girls were delighted by the bright sparkles, but I think the high-pitch scream of the piccolos was a bit much.

The girls went to sleep and then the adult party began. We ate Starburst and Joe Joe's (oreos) with milk while playing a mean game of Sequence. There was also a lot of Dr. Mario playing on the Wii and watching of Ali G, and some quilting. The Johnson's were very generous in sacrificing their bed to us for the night while they took the floor and couch in the living room. However, Bailey ended up in the bed with us and took up 90% of that comfy king sized bed. But there is nothing better than family snuggle time.

Brandon made delicious breakfast burritos in the morning and we enjoyed lounging in our pj's, a nice walk down the Paseo, - and once the girls were up from their naps, we hit the pool and water park!

Quite the weekend! We had so much fun and we always enjoy spending time with the Johnsons Part II.

Enjoy the video re-cap.

Who done it??

2009-06-29T13:07:00.000-07:00

Who T.P.'s a house on a Sunday night? Who would do this to a sweet mother of a beautiful 15 month old girl whose husband leaves the house at 6 am and was stuck cleaning it up alone? Have you ever tried cleaning wet toilet paper with a 15 month old? So, who is going to claim this late night mischief?

Not only did I get to clean up wet toilet paper but as I was finishing up and had a very nice pile of t.p.; I felt something wet splatter on me and noticed dripping on the concrete around me. It was a clear blue sky morning so I new it was not rain. I looked up above me and way up high two huge hawks were flying above me and yes-they were pooping! So now, I had pile of t.p., Bailey, and hawk poop on me.

I swiftly threw the toilet paper away, took Bailey in the house, and handed her a bottle and went to get in the shower. However, Bailey was not happy about my hurried state and followed me into the bathroom fussing. So, she stood there with the shower curtain open, drinking her bottle, watching me shower off hawk poop.

Once clean, Bailey, Frani, and I took a relaxing walk and I laughed about my unique crazy morning.

And-who did this!!!

Father's Day

2009-06-23T18:23:00.001-07:00

Brandon woke up to the smell of homemade cream cheese french toast topped with strawberries, orange juice, and an iced coffee from Starbucks. Bailey and I were up early and she helped me cook-what I mean is that she was on my hip the entire time eating bread and strawberries.

Bailey brought Brandon his card and present while he was eating breakfast. I made Brandon a scrapbook of pictures of him and Bailey over the past 15 months and all the major events that took place during that time- he says he wants to look at it every night.

We went to church in the morning then took Bailey to my parent's for her nap so Brandon and I could spend some time together. We enjoyed an afternoon of sushi, reading, and relaxing. It had been much too long since we had sushi, and boy was it good. Brandon and I used to enjoy sushi almost once a week when we were dating- a time when I made big tips and had little expenses.

In the evening we had a BBQ at my parent's and had some great quality family time. We all pitched in and bought my dad a night scope for Oregon. He was super excited. My dad is great because he loves gadgets and such things. He will definitely sit out late at night on the porch in Oregon with my mom and look for animals and things creeping around at night. And we joked that one day when playing hide-and-go-seek with the grandkids at night that he will cheat with his night vision.

Ponytail Time

2009-06-20T11:32:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to discover Bailey's hair fits in a ponytail now. It is a little tribal but oh so cute.

2 Years!

2009-06-13T14:54:00.000-07:00

Brandon and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary on June 9th. We took our first weekend get-away as parent's over the weekend. We put Bailey to bed thursday night at my parent's house

then drove to San Diego for 2 nights and 2 days all to our selves!

When we walked into our hotel room we were surprised to find a bottle of wine, a cheese board with apricot, bread, honey, and fog cheese laid out all nice. We figured this was some crude trick of the hotel to get an extra buck but then we noticed a card made out to "Mrs. Douglas." So, Brandon called the front desk and learned that Mrs. Douglas moved rooms and received new wine and cheese. Brandon then asked, "well, can we have it complimentary then?" They said YES. We were seriously super excited to get such a "hook-up." So, we sat looking out our window at the bay and the down town area of San Diego while drinking wine and eating delicious delicacies. Great start to a very nice and relaxing weekend. Thank you Mrs. Douglas!

Friday we attempted to sleep in, however, our body clocks are set to "Bailey time" so sleeping in past 7:3o am is impossible. I actually was up much earlier because it was weird not having Bailey near me. I was up at 6:30 am and so I snuck out of our room, walked to the nearest starbucks, got coffee and breakfast, and went back to surprise Brandon. It was wonderful to have slow lazy mornings.

We then took our bikes all over the town. We rode up through the Gaslamp Quarter to Old Town. We ate super yummy mexican food in Old Town and Brandon thought it would be fun to have the Meriochi band serenade us. It's like the longest 60 seconds of your life while three guys loudly sing and play music in a different language in your face; but when it is all over, it makes for a humorous memory.

The rest of the weekend was spent lounging by the pool, eating dinner in the Gaslamp Quarter, an early morning run by the bay, taking the troller tour all over San Diego and visiting Coronado Island and Balboa park. It was fun to feel "young" and spontaneous again but by saturday afternoon we really missed Bailey and could not wait to kiss her face.

Dedication

2009-06-02T10:29:00.000-07:00

Bailey was dedicated on Sunday May 31st, at our church, Rockharbor. The church tradition of baby dedications comes from the Biblical story of a woman named Hannah in the Old Testament who was so thankful that the Lord had blessed her with a baby that she prayed to the Lord that she would dedicate her newborn son, Samuel, back to the Lord all the days of his life - "for as long as he lives, he is given to the Lord" - 1 Samuel 1:28.

As Christians, we use dedication as a chance to thank the Lord for Bailey; and as parents, we make a commitment to be held accountable before our church that we will raise Bailey to the best of our abilities in accordance with the Love that God has demonstrated towards us.

Riding Ponies and Hugging Goats

2009-06-01T07:08:00.000-07:00

Irvine Park is my favorite Orange County park. It is beautiful, peaceful, and has fun activities. I have been coming to this park with my family as long as I can remember and some of my earliest memories include my 3rd birthday party and riding the ponies. I was really excited to take Bailey on her first pony ride here. She seemed to enjoy it but she got more excited by some dogs that went by.

We then took a stroll by the lake and eventually went to the zoo. Bailey loved the petting zoo and gave all the goats hugs.

Brandon and I had so much fun with Bailey and Bailey was very excited to have her grandparent's join; she sure loves them!

Update

2009-05-28T07:49:00.000-07:00

The long summer days are glorious. I enjoy the early sunrise and late sunrise. The weather has been beautiful! Warm enough to start swim lessons with Bailey but not hot enough to blast the air conditioner and dread an afternoon walk. Plus, Bailey is so adorable in her summer clothes.

My friend Haley is giving Bailey and Emily swim lessons. Sadly, Bailey has been having a rough time with the whole"dunking" part of swimming. She loves to play in the water but she has become a bit distrustful of the whole experience because she does not like going under. However, I have play days and other days when we revisit dunking and that seems to help; she is getting better. Emily however, is champ! She is the model swim student and Bailey enjoys watching Emily and I think it gives her courage.

Brandon's work schedule changed and he now works four, ten hour days and gets Fridays off! We love it because every weekend feels long and we have time to relax together. This past weekend felt like a vacation with 4 days together. We enjoyed two graduation parties, time at the park, and a nice Memorial Day BBQ.

Bailey is daily impressing me with her attentiveness and ability to learn practically everything I teacher her. She imitates most things I do and copies Brandon's funny noises. Some of our favorites lately include her playing "Ring Around the Rosie" with her baby doll and even tries to sing the song, she does many animal noises and our favorite is her Elephant and Leopard. She loves the book "Say Hello in the Jungle" and we read it at least twice a day and she does all the animal sounds. Bailey is great at sign language and communicates when she wants food, milk, help, water, more, and uses her manners and signs 'please'. Bailey might also think she is a dog. We take walks every morning with Frani (our dog) and we often see other dogs in backyards or out walking. Well, Frani enjoys barking at almost every dog we see and they naturally bark back, so fun, and well Bailey now too barks back at the dogs we pass. She sometimes gets really into it too; pointing her fingers, puffing up her little cheeks and lips and barking like Frani at the passing dogs. I don't think this will ever get old for me; I laugh every time.

The other day Bailey and I had Silas over for the afternoon so his parent's (Rob and Holly) could get organized in their new home! They played so well together and it actually felt easier for me! Silas is nearly two and is very well behaved and able to do most things on his own. Bailey loved watching him and following him around and it was nice to watch her play. Bailey likes my attention, naturally, and so during the day she wants me to play with her most of the time and follow me around helping me. I love it, but it also can be a bit difficult if I need to do something productive. So, it gave me some peace thinking that having another child would be a great playmate some day.

Bailey colored for the first time with Silas. I have never given her crayons but she has been trying to imitate me writing and so I thought she might enjoy it if she could withstand from eating them. I was super surprised in how enthralled she was with it. She colored all over her paper while switching colors.

Endless fun.

Mother's Day

2009-05-12T21:18:00.000-07:00

I love Mother's Day. It is the one holiday I feel I worked for and deserve. Plus, Brandon was very intentional, sweet, and did all the things he knew I would love.

In the morning he woke up before me and went to get us Starbucks. When I got out of bed there were flowers, coffee, and a nice note and he was making me my favorite omelette.

Brandon gave me some thoughtful gifts that he knew I would enjoy. One being this adorable apron. I had mentioned a while ago that I would like a full length apron because sometimes when I am cooking and holding Bailey I stain my clothes. He picked out a very cute one that I kind of wish I could wear as a dress. Can I make that a style please?

In the afternoon we to my parent's house to borrow their park pass t to go on a hike in Irvine Park. However, we learned that it is the most crowded day of the year and they close down the park and you have to hike in. So, in learning that we forfeited our planes and somehow Bailey ended up in her diaper, playing in the hose with Caden.

So, Brandon and I got away for a bit and read at the Lost Bean Coffee shop. We love reading at coffee shops and it is one of the things we miss doing together.

For dinner my family all met at Jenni's house. My dad supplied steaks and we all brought side dishes and it was a nice relaxing evening. Brandon and Bailey made me feel very appreciated and loved. I have so much to be thankful for and God has blessed me with such a wonderful family.

Graduate

2009-05-10T15:48:00.000-07:00

Brandon officially graduated from Vanguard University yesterday! It was a nice ceremony at the fair grounds; luckily in the evening so the weather was perfect. Tawnia also graduated yesterday so it was a combo celebration.

Mr. Smarty-pants graduated Summa Cum Laude which is the highest honors! Look at those fancy cords.

Our families came back to our house for dinner to celebrate. It was a great evening with everyone.

Cinco De Mayo

2009-05-10T09:50:00.000-07:00

Any excuse for Mexican food and margaritas sounds good to us! We had a last minute Cinco De Mayo party and I was impressed with the turn out. Everyone brought a dish and it turned out to be a very yummy and sociable even

ing. We had carne asada, buffalo chicken quesadillas, enchiladas, chips, salsa, and guacamole, and brownies and ice cream for dessert.

Friends

2009-04-22T18:14:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we enjoyed a fun filled day with friends. In the morning our good friends Levi and Jennie came over for breakfast. Levi is the one who performed our wedding ceremony and has been a fun and steadfast friend of Brandon's since Bible college.

They now live in Montana where they started a church, Freshlife, and were visiting Dana Point for their five year wedding anniversary. They left their two lovely girls at home for a nice get-away. Levi taught at Greg Laurie's church, Harvest, on Sunday morning and Brandon and I were happy to go and hear Levi teach.

It is always a good time with the Luskos!

In the afternoon we met the Johnson's Part II at Balboa Beach. It was a beautiful day at the beach, despite the crowd; and the girls loved the water. It was so cold that Bailey was shaking and turning blue but she did not want to come out of the water. Brandon and Eric were counting how many times they could pass the soccer ball back and forth using their heads only.

We then all came back to our house for showers, pizza, homemade cookies and ice cream and a movie; Goal 2. Good movie recommend it but must watch Goal 1 first.

We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends in our lives.

Easter

2009-04-13T21:03:00.000-07:00

We had a nice mellow Easter this year. We started off the day going to RockHarbor's Easter service at the OC fair grounds. We then had the day to relax and prepare for a small family dinner. My parents, Michale, Tawnia, and Caden were out of town; so Jenni, Tim, Ryan, Brie, and my aunt Peggy came over for dinner.

Bailey started walking (on her own) on the 6th of April and she is getting better daily!

Easter reminds us not only of new life in Christ but also the ways in which the Lord manifests His love for us through daily life.