Be my Valentine!

This year not only did I have 1 but I had 2 Valentines! I just had to share these pics! how can he NOT make your day!! 

He was literally cracking himself up (and i actually caught it on camera!)

His foot obsession! He finally learned he can put them in his mouth!! 

OOHHHHH!

Hi ho, Hi Ho, off to the Park we go!

FINALLY two days in a row of nice warm weather!! Of course it's now cold again but I'll take a break when ever i can get it! Since it was so nice out we decided Brayden would get his first trip to the park! We had a great time!  He absolutely loved the swing and had fun going down the slide! We had a great time with Aunt Jill, Abby, Shahana and Maddie! Hopefully next time his other "girlfriends" will get a chance to come play too!
Brayden is just like his mommy and loves to people watch... he had a great time looking at all the kids and going for a walk.  He even got to sit in the "big boy" part of the stroller.  It's amazing what some nice weather can do for your mood! I cant wait for spring and summer!!!

LOVES the swing!! 

Going Down the slide!

Maddie, Abby and Brayden

Napping at the Park

"They see him rolling..."

Brayden has been "almost" rolling over for a month now but he FINALLY did it! This time he did it from tummy to back. What a great Valentines gift for mommy! OF COURSE he decided to be a little stinker and didn't let daddy see him roll till 4 days later! But I was lucky enough to catch it on video to share! Now he just needs to master back to tummy.. he's almost there, but his arm always seems to get stuck! My baby is getting so big!

16 weeks Rolling Tummy to back! 

Cakes, Cakes, Cakes!

I have SO many different types of crafty things that I love to do. Everything from photography to home decor to crafting.  My latest endeavor is making cakes/decorating. In the past I haven't really done too much in the decor department other than working with fondant. Even then my skills are solely self taught based on whatever knowledge I have gotten from online.  (gotta love you tube videos lol).  My first attemt at fondant was my sister Amy's baby shower cake almost 2 years ago. I did a belly cake and honestly i think it turned out great for never working with the medium before.

So I decided for Brayden's Christening I would take on the challenge of another fondant cake. It turned out okay. Of course being the hyper critical person that I am I am never fully satisfied. I definitely learned a few things.. like don't make fondant pearls by hand.... they are a huge PITA and are not "perfect" looking. Next time i'm looking on the plastic mold online! :)  So here's how it turned out.. Took me about 6 hours total. 

It's a 2 layer fondant cake. With diamond quilting and pearl accents. 

I also signed up for a Wilton Cake decorating class at my local AC moore. It's 4 weeks long. We have done  2 classes so far. Since i have NO expericne working with actual icing i thought it would be a great idea to take the course. Right now we are learning decorator basics and the other 2 courses you can take get in to the really fun stuff like gumpaste and fondant.For now we are learning basic piping and design. Here's what we have done so far. 

week 2: tracing designs on cakes and filling them

week 1: making icing, cake basics and using star tips

I can't wait to learn how to do much more... I really making things (when i can find the time) so pass the word on if you want me to make you a cake :)  

Our Little Blessing

Last Sunday Brayden had his "big day" and was baptized :)  He looked adorable in his white knit outfit and did a great job in church! The christening was actually part of the service and was a little different than other baptisms that i have seen but I think the pastor did a nice job.  He was a little stunned when the pastor poured water on his head and I was so proud he didn't even cry! 

After the service we headed back to my parents house for the reception where the rest of our friends and family met up to celebrate. It was wonderful for the rest of our friends/family to finally meet Brayden and spend some time together.  All in all we had a really great day and Brayden had a great time being the center of attention! What a little ham! 

The Godparents

Uncle Lee and Aunt Katie

Grammy and Pop Pop (Nolte)

Grandma and Grandpa (Keyser)

Aunt Amy, Uncle Tom and Makenzie

Uncle Rob

Uncle Rob and Makenzie

Uncle Lee and Aunt Laura

Uncle Marcin

Reflux, Milk protein Intolerance?, Alimentum... OH MY!

So I thought we FINALLY got braydens reflux meds all figured out to keep things under control and managable.  A week later things have take a complete 180!  He is in so much pain, constantly spitting up, has continual sour acid breath, has not been eating the amount he is suppose to and has completely regressed on a lot of his behavior. He's so uncomfortable that he constantly wants to be held and doesn't really want to nap anywhere but on mommy and daddy. I feel so awful! I know a 3 month old is not "suppose" to be napping on you all the time but at this point i'll do anything to make him feel better. On a positive note i do love all the cuddle time! It has made it really hard to get things done.. but those things can wait.  I really just can't bear to hear his screams anymore. He gets him self so upset he coughs, chokes and even gets sick. I can't stant to see my baby hurt...we have to do something about it!

In the meantime I've been  researching GERD (reflux) therapies, milk allergy, milk protein intolerance, and lactose problems.and I've been  thinking that there is a good chance Brayden has a milk protein intolerance on top of his reflux. With all of his symptoms it really seems like it fits.

So we had an appt with the pediatrican tonight. well the nurse practitioner. And we are definitely going to the gastroenterologists.  It breaks my heart but we need to just to "make sure" we aren't missing something bigger going on that we can't see.  I also discussed with her about the possibility of a milk protein intolerance and she said she was thinking along the same lines. and that the best way to test it is to use a NON milk based or soy based formula and see how he does. So that means alimentum. I asked her about good start because of the "comfort proteins" and she said that it is also a milk based formula so if that really is the problem it won't completely fix it.  ugggh. we got 4 little sample cans.. which is prob about 2 -2 1/2 days worth each. We are going to try it for 2 weeks and see how he is doing.  I really hope this works. It just sucks how crazy expensive it is!! I was looking at deals on amazon  mom and sites like that but if i do that i can't use coupons. So i think it may be slightly cheaper for me to get it at the store with coupons.

SO ... here we go.. on another adventure... In the mean time tomorrow I have to call a few gastroenterologists to see who can get us in the fastest!  WISH US LUCK!  I hope we can figure this out!

JUST LOOK AT THAT FACE! :)

The Packers Good luck charm! 

That MIGHT of been good to know!!

I'm so glad I am an advocate for my own child. With all of braydens reflux problems I decided the other night to do more research on the medications and see what our options are. And apparently the way we have been giving him his meds is ALL wrong! First off the prevacid must be taken 30 mins before the bottle...which I was never told. Second the prevacid and the zantac can not be taken together. Apparently the formula and/or the zantac break down the previcid before it gets to the intestines and is absorbed and counteract each other. So you have to wait 4 hours after the prevacid to take the zantac. All i can say is WTH!! I am glad neither the pediatrican or the pharmacist gave us any instructions on what to NOT do.  NO WONDER he was in SO much pain. I feel awful. I'm definitely talking to the pedes about this.

So yesterday I started him on a medication schedule and lo and behold things got much better...no spitting up, no acid breath no pain... thank god! And today was the same. I feel bad he has to get medicatoin 4x a day but it works and that's all that matters.

Then I think... "what would happend if I didn't do my homework?' SO FRUSTRATING! And to think he's been on both meds for a months and a half!   Ok enough ranting.. all that matters is he's feeling better and I pray things continue that way!

This HAPPY, GIGGLY and SMILEY baby totally makes my day!!