house hunt.

We have been on a long-drawn-out hunt for a lot to build on or a house to make our home. We have been searching, discussing, praying, and yearning for an entire year to be exact. There have been several houses that we really liked, but have been way over our budget. There have been lots that were the perfect size, but not on the most desirable street or vice versa. There was one house that we thought was the one, but it went under contract right before we could make an offer. The Lord definitely had different plans and because we know that His ways are always good (but not always easy), we moved on.

With a track record like ours, it is incredibly easy to get discouraged and there have been times when we were on the brink of losing hope. But, our faith remains. God has a plan for our little family and if He wants us to rent the townhouse for another year or two, or ten, then we have to trust that our work here, in Inverness Cove, is not done. We know that we are ready, but He may not be.

So, when we drove by a cute little cottage in Homewood with a For Sale By Owner sign in the front yard, we were optimistic, but not overzealous. John called the number on the sign and a sweet woman answered informing us that the house was still for sale and welcomed us to come by the next week to look at it.

That day was a Tuesday. Brooks and I met John in the front yard at 2:30. We walked up to the house and knocked, but nobody answered. John opened the door and hollered and from the back of the house Ms. Retha prompted us to come on in. We toured the house, had a nice chat, and left encouraged. We loved the house and could both see its potential. It felt like home, it really did. So much so, that before we reached the car, John turned around and headed back into the house to make a verbal offer.

Unfortunately, it wasn't that easy. You see, there was another couple extremely interested in the house. After we submitted a contract, they submitted a contract and for a week we countered against each other in hopes to get the house. We were put in a situation where we really had to rely on the Lord, whatever the outcome. I even found myself praying for the other couple because I knew that their hearts were invested, too, and I didn't want anyone to be dispirited. It was emotionally exhausting, but the possibilities were exciting.

The afternoon after we both presented our "best contract" Brooks and I went to the Fresh Market to pick up a few things for dinner. I was on the phone with my friend Sarah when a text message from John came through. When I got off the phone with her, I opened his message and our convo went a little something like this:

Yep, that's right! Ms. Retha chose us (and I cried in the produce section of the grocery store)! 

The contract is signed, the inspection is complete, and I may or may not have purchased drapes for the living room. We don't close until October 18th, but it is looking promising! Both John and I are so excited and cannot wait to get the keys and make this house our home.

She is perfectly imperfect...clearly needing some work! 

We are incredibly thankful and feel so blessed to even have the chance at homeownership. We are both looking forward to this next season in our lives!

nine month favorites.

1. Plum Organics Baby Super Puffs and Happy Baby Organic Puffs - We introduced finger foods and puffs to Brooks during month nine and he is a huge fan! He is especially a fan of Puffs—any and every flavor. Brooks has two snack times during the day and we give him a sippy cup of milk and puffs. He now says, "puh puh" when I pull them out of the pantry.

2. VTech Move & Crawl Electronic Activity Ball - This motorized ball rolls around, teaches numbers, shapes, animal names and their sounds. It is so fun to watch Brooks push it, roll it, and chase it around the house.

3. Earth's Best and Plum Organics Pouched Baby Food - These pouches are great for on-the-go meals. I am still making most of Brooks' baby food, but have not quite mastered prepping it for travel in reusable pouches. So, we use store bought pouched purees. They are easy to use and mess-free. And we haven't found a flavor that Brooks did not like.

4. Summer Infant Tiny Diner Placemat - Again, on-the-go means being flexible and sometimes we have to feed Brooks while we are enjoying a meal out of our own. The tiny diner placemat keeps messes in place with the built-in scoop, rolls up to fit in your diaper bag, and has suctions to keep it in place. Now that we are sharing some of the food on our plates when we are out to eat, this is a perfect way to give Brooks the freedom to explore new foods and textures without having to worry about germs and a colossal mess.

5. Garanimals Monkey Jack-in-the-Box - I don't think that this toy is still being sold (it was a hand-me-down from my brother and sister-in-law) and that is unfortunate because Brooks loves it. Surprisingly he is not scared of it, but it does startle him every single time the monkey pops up. You can find something similar here.

6. Short Sleeve Rash Guard - We spent a lot of time at the pool, beach, and lake this summer and protection from the sun's harmful rays was a must. I paired sunscreen with this rash guard that is made of specially treated  fabric with a UV protection factor of 50+ and the iPlay hat (from four month favorites).

7. MD Moms Sunscreen - Great for mommy and baby! It doesn't contain any fragrance, parabens, phthalates, lanolin, mineral oil, petroleum, or waxes. This sunscreen uses Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide as recommended as safest for young infants (even under 6 months). And lastly, it nourishes while it protects the skin from damage with antioxidant vitamins E & B5, grapeseed oil, and avocado oil. It also come in wipes! Great for impatient wiggle worms!

8. Fischer Price Apps - Brooks is mesmerized when we open one of the Fischer Price Apps on our phone or iPod Touch. This is HUGE for a child who never sits still. We typically don't let Brooks watch TV or play on our phones, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

thick as thieves.

On Saturday, September 14th, baby Samuel went home and cousin William turned TWO! My sister-in-law is my hero for throwing a birthday party the same day that she got home from the hospital, two days after giving birth. How?! She is a superwoman. That's how.

John was in Kentucky for the weekend so just Brooks and I were able to join in on the birthday fun. And by fun, I mean eating cookie cake and ice cream for the first time! When in Rome...

We had a great time celebrating William and are so thankful for his life. He is such a joy to us and the relationship that he and our Brooks share is so sweet and special. We cannot wait to watch all of these boys (FOUR!) grow up together. I pray that they are as thick as thieves. 

fallin' for fall.

Yesterday was the first day of Fall! Can I get a "hollaaaaa!?" The season of football, crock-pot meals, Pumpkin Spice Lattes, mums, the pumpkin patch, crisp days and cooler nights, boots, and falling leaves. It doesn't get much better...

Even though our sweet baby boy is sick with fever (going on three days now...it is breaking my heart), that didn't stop us from getting out for some family fun to welcome Fall and enjoy the amazing weather yesterday. We went to lunch at Mudtown, shopped around at the Summit, then went to Veteran's Park for a walk and to feed the ducks and turtles.

During Brooks' afternoon nap I did a little bit of crafting and decorating. I would say that we are ready for Halloween and Thanksgiving at the Bryant household!

HAPPY FALL, Y'ALL! 

scrubba dub dub.

...a baby with a mohawk's in the tub.

checked up.

Yesterday we had Brooks' nine month well check-up and it went great! He didn't have to get any shots this go around, thank goodness, but he did have his finger pricked. The prick did not phase him one single bit. He just stared at the nurse and then at his bandaged finger.

Brooks kept pulling his bandaid off, which resulted in a bloody mess. It would have been nice to have John at the appointment to help me keep our child tamed. Other than that, everything looked great and Brooks is healthy and right on track.

At nine months Brooks weighs 19.4 pounds (23rd percentile) and is 27 inches (15th percentile). His head circumference is in the 22nd percentile. Sounds perfectly proportioned to me!

nine months.

Nine months in, nine months out. Oh, how I cherished those days of carrying Brooks in my womb. But oh, how I cherish these days of carrying him in my arms.

The most common phrase uttered by John this month was, "Lauren, he is changing so much." And Brooks is, he really is. He is becoming a rambunctious, silly, adrenalized, spirited, loud baby boy. He adds a bump or two to his head daily. He is into every drawer and every cabinet, pulling lamps off of tables, shredding magazines, ripping off bibs, and throwing whatever he can get those little hands on across the room, or car. On August 18th Brooks managed to escape from the exersaucer. What?! How is that even possible? I didn't see him in action, nor did I hear a peep from the little Houdini. Now where am I supposed to put him when I need a break from the baby tornado? As of late, I have been referring to him as "wild man" and he lives up to that name daily. If we already have our hands full now, I cannot imagine what life will look like when he is walking...

And speaking of walking, Brooks has been cruising with the help of the coffee table and couch. We also have been practicing taking steps with the help of mommy and daddy's fingers. On September 11th Brooks took his first steps with the push walker. He walked all the way across his room without any help! I could not believe it. He doesn't do it every time, though. When he becomes uninterested he plops down on his bottom and reverts back to the trusty crawl.

Thankfully, Brooks has been a much happier baby this month than the last. And to be honest, I think it's because he was teething because on August 18th his first tooth popped through (bottom right—his right). A couple of days later the left one broke through too. Oddly, during those days he didn't show any signs of discomfort or pain. He started biting the spoon with his new teefies on the 24th.

When he is fussy or crying I sing Old McDonald and it makes him stop every single time, without fail. Twinkle Twinkle, Itsy Bitsy, Hickory Dickory? Nope. The tears keep flowing. Old McDonald? SILENCE.

Brooks is still the most ticklish on his neck and thighs. I find this quite ironic seeing that John hates for his collarbone to be touched.

On August 26th, we got the first belly laugh out of Brooks. I'm talking a laugh-so-hard-face-turns-red-and-eyes-water laugh. It was the most amazing sound my ears have ever heard and brings the biggest smile to my face every time I watch the video. We usually get this laugh right before bath time in the evening when Brooks is super giddy and slightly delirious.

He still loves couch time. We get a lot of smiles and giggles from flopping around the couch, jumping on the cushions, and burying his head in the pillows. Brooks' favorite game is still, "where's Brooks?" where he lays down and pretends he is sleeping or hiding—and then pops his head up and smiles. It is so cute. His new favorite is getting his legs pulled out from under him while he tries to crawl and to be held upside down by his ankles. Maybe this is why he is so rowdy?

On August 15th we switched over to the 8-10 month "Moms on Call" schedule, which means we added two snack times, got rid of the 5:00 nap, and now rely on the sippy cup instead of the bottle throughout the day. Brooks transitioned well, but he can't quite get the hang of the sippy cup. He does well when I hold it for him, but he is having a hard time figuring out how to tilt the cup and his head back to get a swig of milk. He tilted his head back once, which resulted in him tipping backwards and hitting his head on the kitchen floor. Poor thing. So, I give him a bottle of 4 ounces after each nap. If he doesn't finish it, I put it in the sippy cup and we go from there throughout the day. It's working for us for the time being.

On the 16th of August, we met some friends at Cracker Barrel for breakfast and Brooks had his first taste of hashbrown casserole. We were brave and let him eat it without cutting it up and he did great. Since then, we have added a lot of finger foods to his snack and mealtimes. He eats everything from egg yolk and avocado to zucchini and string cheese. He has grown to love every fruit, vegetable, grain, and meat that we feed him. The kid loves food. End of story.

Another "I can't believe it" moment happened on September 1st while we were at my parents lakehouse. Brooks crawled up the entire set of stairs! Of course, daddy was behind him ready to catch him in case he fell, but he didn't--and he was so proud!

On September 3rd I cleaned out his dresser drawers and his closet. Out with the 6-month sizes and in with the 12-month. I got a little emotional. Okay, a lot emotional. It was on this day too that Brooks discovered how to blow raspberries on my legs and shoulder. He thought that it was hilarious! And my wet leg thanked him. He now gets a kick out of blowing raspberries on his highchair tray, which is funny. Sometimes he blows raspberries mid-air with food in his mouth, which is not funny.

This month we took a lot of trips to the park to swing and play on the playground. It is one of my most favorite dates with my boy to date.

Brooks is doing better when I walk out of the room. Sometimes he follows me (this includes to the bathroom—gone are the days of privacy), but sometimes he remains on his mat and plays by himself. I just listen to see if it gets really quiet. If it does, he is up to something, like chewing on a mechanical pencil or eating paper.

Brooks loves to wave "hi" and "bye" and LOVES to play in daddy's truck. I think that the highlight of his day is waiting in the driveway for daddy to get home. When he hears and sees John's truck turning the corner he starts squealing and grunting, shaking his legs, waving his arms, and reaching for him. It is so sweet and slightly comical.

And lastly, baby B is into imitating everything that we do. If we shake our head no, he shakes his head no. If we scream, he screams. If we scrunch up our nose, he scrunches up his nose. If we clap, he claps. If we stick out our tongue, he sticks out his tongue. I guess it's time to be on our best behavior! Wink wink.

We are having so much fun with our little man these days...and at the rate we are going, yes, it will keep getting better and better. Hard to imagine! Brooks, we pray for you every day and thank God for allowing us to be your parents. It is the most remarkable thing to watch you grow. We are slowly getting glimpses of your uniqueness—those amazing details and quirks the Lord has knit together. Happy nine months sweet angel! We love you so much.