Collin is growing!

So our little runt boy is finally growing. He had a doctors appointment yesterday and for the first time since he was a few months old he is above 1% in weight. In fact he is up to 10%!!! That's a big deal. His height is between 50-75% which amazes us, we think he's still a shorty, but hey, we'll take it. So he is growing.
He is also saying all kinds of words like car, puppy, doggy, bye, hello, more, baby, ball, book, cheese, and a few more I can't think of right now. He can make about 12 animals sounds on command, point to several body parts, and he almost always understands what we say. Whether or not he listens and obeys is another story, but he can understand us! It is so fun watching him grow.
I was watching a video we took of him when he was just hours old and I missed that little baby. But then I see this little toddler and play with him and I think I wouldn't trade that for anything. It's so fun actually knowing what he wants and having conversations, well almost. He is our little buddy and we are so lucky to have him!

Our little piece of heaven on earth

I realized that I posted pictures on facebook of our home, but none on the blog, so I better get with it. We love our first little home. Who knew you could find so much joy out of having your own home. We have worked in the yard and are constantly doing little projects inside. We're still waiting for tax returns to make any big purchases. I think I'll post the inside after it is decorated and has some furniture. It will be a process, but we love it!




As hesitant as I was about moving to Washington we are being so blessed and I know this is where we are supposed to be. This place is so beautiful and the people here are so nice. Spring is right around the corner and when the sun is shining it is hard not to be so happy. We have about 20 bulbs throughout the yard popping up and I just love it! I have also planted some seedlings inside and can't wait to have a little garden. Oh I love the spring and summer!!! Spring here we come...soon.
Well I guess I should post a pregnancy picture. This picture is about 25 weeks and I'm coming up on 28. Crazy to think I'm almost in my 3rd trimester. We can't wait to meet our little girl and our difficulty with the name continues. Now we're thinking Naomi or Alyssa. But it's still up in the air. It might just come down to seeing her. It is just hard to make this decision!
And of course, last but not least, what would a post be without our cute little stinky!!! Oh we love this little boy more than we could express. Every night when we check on him we just think we are the luckiest parents in the world. He is starting to say more words and really understand us. He is a sweetheart. Every once in a while he'll just look at me in the eyes and then rest his head on my shoulder like he really loves me. Oh the joys of parenthood!!!

It's a GIRL!!

As you can tell I'm pretty excited to be having a girl! I love our little Collin boy and as nervous as I was to have a boy, I have loved every minute of it, but I have to admit, I sure did want a girl at some point. We are so excited to be bringing a new little baby into this world. I am due around May 20th, so we'll see. I can't believe how quickly this pregnancy is going. Collin sure keeps me on my toes, plus having a new home, I have little time to think about her. I am starting to feel her move more and more and last night Adam got his first feel. She only moved when his hand was on my belly, like she either knew it was daddy and wanted to play or she thought he was encroaching on her space and wanted him to move. I can't wait to buy some cute little girl dresses and bows!

As you can tell from the poll at the top of our blog we are having a tough time naming her. That is always the hardest part for us, agreeing on a name. We have liked Alexandria for some time, but just don't know if it feels right for this little one. Last night we spent an hour looking through names and discovered that Adam likes N names. He liked Nadia and we both thought Naomi was a good possibility, a little different, but not weird. What do you guys think? Any other suggestions? What would sound good with the last name of Brandt?

Oh Christmas Tree

I completely forgot to put up this post about our Christmas tree. There are so many u-cut tree farms here in Washington that we thought we had to have the Washingtonian experience. We love our fresh Christmas trees so we were really excited to go and cut our perfect tree down. Collin loved running around the maze of Christmas trees and he even helped daddy cut it down, well sort of. Too bad we can't have Christmas trees up year round. It sure was a beautiful tree and it smelled wonderful. Until next year I guess...

A home at last!!!

So we have a home... we think.
After waiting for almost 3 months to hear back about the short-sale home we put a bid on shortly after moving here, our offer was finally accepted by the bank last Friday. We had the home inspection yesterday and are anxiously awaiting all the final things, including financing and closing, not to mention signing our lives away...

We are so excited!!! We had finally given up and were going to start looking at new homes when we got back from Christmas break, but then the call came and things are finally looking up.

I won't post pictures until it is all final and we know for sure we are moving in, because really it still seems surreal. But we'll find out soon ! Woo hoo!!!

These Boys are Trouble

One of our favorite things about living here in Washington is being so close to friends and family. We have been able to spend a lot of time with the Dietz family which has been wonderful. Collin and Lil' Martin are about a month apart and boy are they trouble (just like their dads). It is so fun to see these two crazy and cute boys. What fun little guys.

Ravioli Magnifico!

Well Adam signed me up to make raviolis for our ward Christmas party and so I figured it was about time to practice what my Grandma taught me. It was a fun little adventure and Collin loved helping. It was so fun having a little helper. We had some Christmas music going and decided it would be a new beginning of December tradition.
The raviolis turned out pretty good for my first time, but of course plenty of room for improvement. I sure wish I could have called Grandma with all my questions, but I know she would have been proud. I am so grateful that she took the time to teach me how to make some special Italian dishes. I will always cherish those memories and hopefully make some more yummy Italian cooking memories with my children.

He even helped me turn the crank on the pasta maker, with a little help of course.I love this picture. He was so interested. That sweet little boy.

YUMMY!!! Now if only I could send you all some in the mail. Wouldn't that be a pleasant surprise :)