Snow Day

Photos taken 1/8/11:

Tee-Tee, Tee-Tee

In our household, the word for pacifier is "tee-tee". For the first year of her life, Brynley only used her tee-tee during naptime and bedtime. As she began to get more teeth, especially her canines, she started using it more and more. When it is bedtime, Brynley would look for her tee-tee in the living room...peering under couches and calling in a sing-song voice, "teeeeee-teeeee" as if calling a dog to come to you. It was very adorable.

So was this...the double tee-tee:


Then I looked through my Christmas photos and realized that nearly every photo I have of my precious girl on Christmas Day had a tee-tee in it. I was so disappointed that I hardly captured her precious face and sweet smile. I felt that Brynley was going to endure a lot of changes in 2011: a big girl bed, potty training, a new sibling, no more tee-tee so I figured we may as well get started.

So, on January 16th, we got rid of the tee-tee. I knew it would be tough, but I didn't know how tough. When she first wanted it, she called, "teeee-teeee" and I calmly told her "No more tee-tee. You are a big girl now". After a minute, she realized that I really wasn't going to give it to her and she began to cry...big tears rolling down her precious cheeks. And in a broken whisper, "tee-teeeeee!" Well, let's just say that I think I cried more than she did that day.

There are so many things that I didn't know about being a Mom until I became a Mom myself. One was how deeply you could actually love another human being. Another thing I learned is that when my child is hurting, I will do anything in the world to fix it. Not giving her the tee-tee when she was so upset about it was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, but I didn't give in. We are now 11 days tee-tee free!

Brynley, one day you will read this blog and I want you to know how proud I am of you and how I love you with all my heart!! I will always strive to do what is best for you even if it a tough road to take. You are my precious girl.

Christmas 2010

Daddy pointing out Brynley's new slide/basketball hoop.

She wasn't quite sure what to make of it at first.

She was timid, but tried the slide out a few times.

Wheeeee....????

After the trial run on the slide, Brynley emptied her stocking and started opening gifts. Santa was good to my sweetheart this year.

Nana likes to buy Brynley toys that make lots of noise or have many little pieces (haha!)
Exhibit A, a drum:

Exhibit B: a xylophone

About mid-day, Brynley decided to give the slide another try. Look at the crazy hair; is it me or does she look like Jack Nicholson's character in "The Shining" here? "Heeeerreee's Johnny!"
She began to love the slide...

Checking her email on her own "computer":
Running from the bottom of the slide back to the ladder:


Between Santa and relatives, Brynley got too many toys to list! A few of her favorites: the xylophone, Tag Jr reader and books, computer, and Elmo coloring books.

Christmas Eve

Nana and Grandpa came out on Christmas Eve to stay the night. Nana was very excited to see Brynley wake up on Christmas morning. We snapped these photos in front of the tree right before Brynley went night-night. She sat in her chair reading "The Night Before Christmas"... a recordable book that Nana got for her.

Festival of Lights

In early December, Rob & I took Brynley to the Festival of Lights...a local Christmas drive-through light show. I think we picked the coldest night of the year!! It was tough to get good photos, but here are a few that turned out ok.

Tyler's birthday party

On January 22, Brynley went to Tyler's 1st birthday party. Unfortunately, she skipped her nap that day so she wasn't completely in the party mood. She mostly wanted to sit on my lap, but she did participate in the pull-string pinata as well. A few photos from the day:

Tyler & his smash cake:

No smiles when she's that tired! She went to bed that night around 6:30 (2 hours early!) and slept through the night!

Thanksgiving weekend

I worked Thanksgiving Day so I have no pictures from the actual day. Brynley spent the day with Daddy at Nana and Grandpa's house. Uncle Doug, Jess, and Wesley came up for a few days and spent some time with us during the holiday.

That weekend, Rob & I bought a cabinet for Brynley's living room toys. As any parent can attest, the toys have multiplied and taken over the entire room. We were desperate for some storage. Rob fixed up some shelves on the right hand side (not shown in this picture). At first, Bryn thought it was a pretty cool place to sit.

As always, Brynley loved to spend time with her cousin Wes. They adore each other!

Trying on Mommy's shoes again...

The Christmas Star

Left: 2009, Right: 2010