Steyskal's Leave

It's hard to believe I ever fought with this girl. We used to do Billy Banks Tae Bo everyday during the summer, as well as this breathing exercise video (note picture below. This face was a part of the breathing exercises). We choreographed many dances together and if anyone knows where those videos are at, we would love to get a hold of them. I got to share her senior locker with her, in the SENIOR HALL, when I was only a Junior (ask me how hot-to-trot I felt about this).

Overall, she has been a great friend through the years. I don't know how I could of gotten through it without her. Fortunately she married a pretty cool guy and they produced an adorable little boy. I look forward to our many years of laughs, children, and little adventures. See you in 3 weeks, I can't wait!

(NOTE POST BELOW)

Klemgard Park

I wish I could say the boys slept in, but they didn't. Blake and Seth were out of the door by 7:30 for their 8 o'clock tee time. I can't tell you how excited both of these boys were to actually golf. I guess the course was practically empty, minus a group of older woman.

As for Jennie and I, we decided to venture out with the little ones to the Farmer's Market and garage sales. I scored three classic cars for Braden's new room (that we are in the process of painting and decorating, pics to come). And Jennie got a neat little water bottle for Blake, which has since been lost. Fortunately it was only 10 cents.

We came home and let the boys play and eat before bedtime.

We discovered they ate a lot better when they fed each other.

After the boys woke up from their nap, we headed off to Klemgard Park. I heard there was a nice little nature walk, which turned out to be a little hike, with a fun playground set. The boys had fun exploring, although they needed to be carried up the hills. At the top of the hill, we came upon a massive wheat field. We couldn't help but sneak on the property and take pictures.

Steyskal's

After the hike, we headed over to the park and let the boys (all of them), go crazy on the playground.
When they were all tuckered out, we headed over to the covered area for a picnic dinner. The boys did so well.
After a well deserved bath, the boys decided to read to each other. We figured we'd let them stay up a little late since this was their last night together (for the next 3 weeks).

The boys went down easily and we talked about playing games for hours, but ended up watching the WSU football game and visiting (about games).

Two Active Boys

By the time nigh time fell upon the Barnett home, the boys were inseparable.They played remarkably well together doing boy stuff like, tackling, tipping, and the occasional hit.
We have a spiderman tent (thanks Packer's) that the Blake insisted was a temple. They had way too much fun with it.

They even had fun chasing each other, sometimes with the temple, I mean tent.

Jennie and I left the little boys home with the big boys and headed to Shopko for some clothes shopping. All was a success. While we were away, the boys were kicking and throwing the ball. What talented little sports.

We were going to have a game night when the boys went to sleep, but we were all to tired and just sat around and talked for hours. Sometimes that is the best thing to do with friends.

Steyskal's Arrive

My best friend, Jennie, from Oregon came to visit me this weekend. She also brought along her adorable son, Blake (named after my Blake, jk), and her husband, Seth. We have had such a fun weekend. Friday morning Seth had some studying to do, so Jennie and I took the boys to the Conner Museum. It is a free museum up on campus that has taxidermy animals.

We had to see the WSU Bears
The boys were more interested in the rocks.

We had more time to kill, so we took the boys to McDonald's. The play area always wastes a good hour to hour and a half. The boys loved their free ice cream (it comes with every Happy Meal, in case you didn't know).

I love Blake's ice cream lips.

There are some even cuter videos and pictures we took that evening, but you will just have to wait. These two boys are absolute BFF's. Blake turns 2 next week, so he's about 5 months older than Little B. I think Braden appreciates playing with an older boy.

Birthday Recap

I don't know if you remember my birthday experience from last year, but let's just say it wasn't great. I am glad to report that my late mid-twenties birthday (26) was absolutely perfect. I woke up to a happy little boy and a sweet note written on my bathroom mirror. I got a great workout in and then headed off to Braden's Wiggle Worm gym class where I discovered he knows how to climb a ladder.

Braden took an excellent nap, which means I did too. Blake came home early so I could have a blissful and relaxing hour getting a massage. We discovered our insurance covers these, so I will be getting one every month until this baby is born (some every 2 weeks). I guess I was EXTREMELY tense. After the massage, I picked up Lizzie, the greatest babysitter.

Blake took me out for a delicious dinner at Winger's, where I stuffed myself way too full. I love Winger's. It reminds me of my time at Enterprise, especially Justin, Tommy and Klint. If it's your birthday they bring you a HUGE piece of Asphalt Pie. I ate too much of that as well. It was so nice to have an interruption free dinner. We headed to Wal-mart so I could get a new recipe book for my birthday present.

Overall, it was a perfect birthday. To top it off, Braden was SO happy to see me when I got home. He refused to leave my side. He's been clingy to daddy lately, so it was nice to have a mommy moment. I want to thank everyone for the phone calls, texts, flowers, cards, and books. I know I am loved. I look back on these 26 years and am so glad with where I am at.

The Penguin

My mom bought Braden this punch bag penguin a couple months ago. He was still too little for it, so I put it away. I rediscovered it last night and Blake blew it up. Braden has been attached to it ever since. He insisted the Penguin read nighttime stories with us, as well as pray and sing songs. When it came to putting him to bed, he gently laid the penguin next to him and put part of his blanket over the penguin to make sure he wouldn't get cold.

I thought the penguin would be out of the crib by morning time, but I was wrong. When I came in to snuggle him, I HAD to snuggle Mr. Penguin too. He had to eat breakfast with Braden.

And hang out on the couch.

I don't know what it is with this penguin, but Braden has a new best friend. He keeps telling us, "Balls stuck." And he calls it chicken instead of penguin, but that's ok.

There's Nothing Like a Little...

BROTHER! We are so excited. I am sure Braden will love beating up, I mean, playing with his new little brother. Our ultrasound went great, minus the fact that I had to drink 48 ounces of water so they could test something. The water didn't fill my bladder so they had to test another way. Now I find myself in the bathroom every 15 minutes.

The baby is healthy with a strong heartbeat. HE is moving around so much. Blake was finally able to feel him last night. We are excited for a boy because we already have EVERYTHING, clothes, shoes, etc. We had some girls names we liked, but no boys names. I guess we still have another 20 weeks to decide. Any suggestions?

Picture This

A woman has just had a fun, but exhausting day with the cutest toddler in the world. She grabs a blanket and curls up on the couch with the most gorgeous husband in the world and they turn on The Biggest Loser. Within minutes of the contestants stories, she is sobbing, especially over a woman who lost both her children and husband in a tragic accident.

She's thinking (with empathy), how can these people get to this point (a 27 year old woman was 476 pounds)? All the while, she's sitting on the couch, watching tv, eating her 2nd donut of the day with a big glass of milk. Blake couldn't help but laugh at me. Yes I am pregnant, but I think the diet starts tomorrow.

On a different note, I always knew Blake and my mom were similar in taste and opinion, but it was verified this week. I was telling my mom the 3 girls names that we like and she by far likes the name that Blake most likes. At that time she also told me of a boys name she heard and loved. It was pretty cute, but I just forgot to tell Blake.

On Sunday, Blake was flipping through Parents magazine and came across the same name. He just adored it as well. I told him my mom suggested that and all he could say is, "I guess she has excellent taste." All I know is that when you get those 2 together, I am in trouble!

Our Silly Boy

Saturday night Blake and I couldn't help but notice how silly our little boy was being. Maybe it was because I was so tired from the mornings events and I was a bit silly myself, but Braden was making us die of laughter.

The afternoon started off with Braden spending 45 minutes lining up his cars and then moving them one by one up the stairs. When he got 3/4 of the way up, he proceeded to move one by one car back down to the bottom.

So proud of his progress.

We decided to take him outside and let him play while I was finishing dinner and Blake was doing yard work. Before we knew it Braden had climbed half way up our hill and was chillin. He wouldn't let us come help him down. Mr. Independent!
I think the videos of the best. On Tuesday's I take Braden to a gym class. We have been working on log rolls. You can see from the video below how he's mastered these.

This just made us laugh. He kept falling down on purpose. What a silly boy.

By this time Braden had been watching us record him. Here is a prime example of true SHOWING OFF!

We love our silly boy. We can't wait to have another little one join our family, I am sure we will spend all our time laughing.

Palouse Sprint Triathlon 2009

I completed my New Year's Resolution Goal #2 today, compete in a sprint triathlon. The Palouse Sprint Triathlon (held in Moscow, ID) consisted of a 500 yard swim, 15k (10 miles) bike, and a 5k (3.1 mile) run. I was a little nervous, but was adamant about completing my goal.

I headed out early this morning and have nerves all in my stomach. I was worried about the transitions and my body. I was in a lane with 1 other person (other lanes consisted of 4 people). The other swimmer was really slow and I passed him like 4 times. I think my time was around 10 minutes. I was the first one out of the pool from my wave.

I made my way to transition to my bike. That went smooth until I started biking. I borrowed my friend Collette's pedals (thank you!) and couldn't get my left foot snapped in for the first mile. Once it was snapped in, it was nice riding. Although, since this was my first triathlon, I didn't attach my number properly to my bike. It kept rubbing against my leg. I had to slow down briefly and fix it. I won't make that mistake again. I think my time for this ride was around 45 minutes.

I was warned about the transition from bike to running. I was told my legs would feel wobbly and they did. The run was by far the hardest for me. I really had to go to the bathroom, but there were no facilities. Have you ever been 19 weeks pregnant with a full bladder running? Well, I DON'T recommend it. I have to say I walked a little more than I hoped, but it made my bladder not hurt. I was hoping my time would be 30 minutes, but with the hills and walking I came in around 40.

According to the person at the finish line, my total time was 1:37:37. I just wanted to get below 2 hours, so I am pretty happy.

Me in my racing shirt at home. I made the other novice mistake of not wearing sunscreen. I don't know if you can tell how red my face is, it's also probably still covered in dry sweat too.
For those who keep saying that I am not showing, I thought I would throw in a 19 week profile shot.
In other important business, we find out next Friday if Braden will joined by a brother or sister. I put up a little thing on the side where you can vote. As for Blake and I, we don't care either way. Would love another boy, but would be excited for a girl. Since we have a girls name picked out, we are pretty sure we will be having a boy. Let us know what you think.

Binky Weaning

You've seen it dangling from him since his birth. It's something we have had our hard times with, but overall are so grateful for. We love the binki, but it was time for it to go.

It's funny how much guilt a parent can have. For example, my neighbor has been telling me for the last month, "Maren, this is the last bottle you will see Isaiah have." Do I care that he uses a bottle to drink his milk (at 15 months), heck no, but she sure does. This is how I have felt about Braden's binki for the past 4 months. I am sure my neighbor heard me say a thousand times, "When vacations are overs... or When Braden's 18 months ..." Well, about a month ago, the time finally arrived. Blake wanted me to write this down so we'd remember for the next one.

After we got back from Coeur d'Alene we decided we needed to make a plan. After hearing all sorts of advice, we decided we would limit the areas of use until we got down to just nap/bedtime. We figured this would take several weeks. Well, the day came around when we were going to start. (We decided to start with the binki only in the house.) I went in to get Braden in the morning and decided, I was sick of seeing it and worrying about it all day. I asked Braden to place his binki on his bed. And that's where it has been ever since.

The first week he would ask for the binki throughout the day. We would sweetly remind him that it's only for nigh nighs. I am proud to say we have gone binki free (minus naps & bedtime) for the past month. We are so glad we don't have the panic of, "Did you grab the binki?" He has been great.

As for completely eliminating the binki, it doesn't bother us at all, as long as he's in his crib. Once he's asleep, it falls out within a minute, so we are in no hurry to fully eliminate it. I am sure we will do it before the baby comes, but as for now, you have guilt free parents on your hand.

Like Grandpa, Like Dad, Like Son

Just like his Grandpa Barnett and dad, Braden has discovered the finer things in life... Oreo's!

Game Night Resumes

Our good friends the Packer's moved up to Spokane a couple of months ago. This move was so hard for us because it meant we were back to boring Friday nights. Every Friday we headed over to the Packer's for a fun filled (and competitive) evening of games and food.

We decided to resume our game night last night. After Blake got off work we headed up north. Braden loved to see Sam & Grace again. Their new place was big and beautiful. And, although I can't claim any victories, game night was a sweet success, mixed with lot's of talking and A LOT of chocolate cake.

Saturday morning they were so kind to watch Braden while Blake and I attended the temple. Afterwards we met them at the Riverfront to attend Spokane's first Pig Out event. Grace & Braden were so cute walking around together.

At the entrance of the park there is the world's largest Radio Flyer Wagon. You can see Blake and Braden enjoying the view from the top. If you enlarge the photo you will get a good laugh at Braden's random face.

Sam, Grace & Braden

Braden loved chasing the geese, seagulls and birds. The highlight is when he fell right into some fresh poop. Thank goodness for hand sanitizer and wipes.

The wagon handle is a big slide that Braden loved to go down.

Family Photo (with Sam) of the biggest Radio Flyer in the WORLD

Doing pull-ups under the wagon

Overall it was a fantastic trip, minus the fact that Braden woke up for an hour and a half in the middle of the night just to talk. We were hoping to see our good friends the Flynn's, but Braden was too exhausted and grumpy for that to happen. Thanks again Packers and sorry for not getting pictures of you two (I am sure that bums you out). Next time we can bring out Ticket to Ride: USA and see who wins.

Lawn Mower

I told Blake about a month ago that if we ever found a little lawn mower, we would get it. We were at Shopko last Friday (yes, that's what we do on Fridays) and found the perfect little mower. It was only $15 and worth every penny. We don't get Braden tons of toys (because he has so many), but I have to say we do get him ones he won't set down. He has surprised us at how good he has been at sharing his mower with the neighbor boys.
(And for the record, I don't think my last post was that embarrassing. We all have little slips and Braden response was just way too cute not to post or remember.)

Braden's First Sentence

I was changing Braden this morning and let out a little toot. He looked at me with sincere eyes and said, "Mom, you toot." He was absolutely right. I am glad he's starting to recognize the difference between a toot and poop. Isn't he just so smart?