Announcing...

Baby Maucotel #2! That is right, we are having another baby! Although I think Braden would like a little brother, Brian is determined we are having a girl. I guess come December, we will see who wins (Brian was right with Braden being a boy, though, so his method of determination is 100% accurate...so far).

So, for all you who are wondering, the due date is May 12. This is 2 weeks before Braden turns 2, and it also happens to be 5 days after Brian graduates. So..... let's just pray I don't have to miss his graduation ceremony! Or even more, let's hope Brian doesn't have to miss his graduation ceremony!!!

Geocaching

Brian is writing this blog post:

I've been getting into geocaching lately and have really enjoyed it. Geocaching is for people who like the outdoors and/or gadgets and/or treasure hunts (doesn’t everyone fall under at least one of these categories?). It’s basically a game where people hide “geocaches” (also called “caches”) all over the world, post the gps coordinates online, and people with internet access and a gps can go and find them. Caches are a container of some sort that contain a log book to be signed by everyone that finds it and little trinkets that you can take if you leave one of your own. There are over 900,000 caches in existence right now, so no matter where you are living, they are probably all around you and you never knew it. Within just 15 miles of our apartment there are over 1700 geocaches.

This is how it works:
1. Register for a free account on geocaching.com.
2. Look on geocaching.com for geocaches near you.
3. Write down the information, or print it off, or send it to your pda, or send it straight to your gps unit (some gps units are able to do this).

a. The information includes:
i. What the name of the geocache is
ii. How big the cache is
iii. How difficult the cache is to find

iv. How difficult the terrain is around the cache
v. Sometimes hints on where to find it
vi. People’s logs of whether or not they found it.
4. Go out and try to find it!

You can read more about it here - http://www.geocaching.com/about/

3 Years...

3 years of happiness knowing I am now with the one I love forever!
3 years of joy working to become and then becoming parents.
3 years of trying to figure out how to exist in the same space, keep that space clean, and sorta looking like a home.
3 years of trials and triumph over trials.
3 years of growing closer.
3 years of figuring out how to be grown-ups and dealing with grown-up responsibilities.
3 years of laughing together.
3 years of wondering how the rest of eternity will be...


I love you, Brian. I can't wait to spend the rest of eternity with you, no matter what that brings. Happy Anniversary!

26 Things I Love About Brian

1. I love the way he connects with Braden. When I can hear loud laughter in the background, I know Braden must be playing with his daddy.

2. I love the way that no matter what, Brian always treats me well. I may be in the worst mood ever, but he is always always always nice.

3. I love that he got over his fear of putting too many miles on his car and finally started dating me, back when we lived 35 miles apart. If he wouldn’t have done this, I wouldn’t be writing this right now.

4. I love that he works so. incredibly. hard. to succeed. I couldn’t be more proud of the time and effort he puts into everything he does.

5. I love that he is a handy man. I never imagined having a husband who could fix EVERYTHING, but I do. and he does. This has saved us thousands of dollars.

6. I love that he cooks. and is willing to do so. Food always tastes better when I’m not the one making it!

7. I love that he takes care of me. When I am sick or not feeling well, he always takes over. This proved to be a challenging task for him when I was pregnant (i.e. always sick), but he really did take over. Made my breakfast, lunch, and dinner and did all the dishes for nine months because I couldn’t go into the kitchen without being sick.

8. I love that he makes me laugh. We can play off each other’s jokes and laugh for hours together.

9. I love his brown eyes. They are unlike any other brown eyes I have seen. They are light and golden, and just gorgeous.

10. I love that he loves warm weather. He will never make me live somewhere cold, and that means a lot to me.

11. I love how excited he gets when he figures something out or accomplishes something he has been working on, and then he proceeds to tell me every detail of how he did it.

12. I love his hands, how strong they are from hard work, yet how gentle they are when playing with Braden or holding my hand.

13. I love that he can always find a way to get something cheaper. Whenever we need something, he always finds the cheapest way to get it. This has also saved us a lot of money!

14. I love the way I feel when I am around him because I know Braden and I are safe and protected.

15. I love how incredibly understanding he is.

16. I love the passion he has for his hobbies. He loves cars and is so excited when he talks about them, sees one he likes, or drives one he hopes to own one day. It is also pretty crazy how much of his brain space is being taken up with facts about all these different cars. Who knows that much about cars, anyway?

17. I love that after being undefeated at Monopoly his whole life, he was ok with the fact that I beat him at it like three times in a row. I wonder if he let me win?

18. I love how he rubs it in that he is always going to be tanner than me.

19. I love that he named me one of the best drivers he knows. That says a lot coming from someone whose passion is driving.

20. I love it that he regularly gives me pedicures, nail polish and all. (shh, don’t tell!)

21. I love how he constantly tries to tell me the better way to do something, even though he knows I am stubborn and want to do it my (slow, un-better) way.

22. I love that he honors the priesthood that he holds. Growing up without the priesthood in my home has really made me appreciate having it in my home now.

23.I love that he loves to spend time with me and Braden.

24. I love his little quirks. They may not make sense but they make him Brian.

25. I love the way he loves me, like nobody ever has before.

26. I love that he has now lived over a quarter of a century. Happy 26th birthday babe!

Trust

It's been one of those weeks. At the end of the week, I have nothing to say for what I have done.

I started the week feeling extremely blessed by the Lord. I bought a plaque a few months ago that says "In the strength of the Lord, I can do all things." I found this at a time when I REALLY needed to be reminded of that. Sometimes life feels so hard. Reading this every day helped me get through the day, the doctor appointments, the ear infections, the sickness, the fusiness, and the general stress these things create. With the Lord's help, I was able to get through it all, and now that Braden has been well (knock on wood), had ear tubes put in, is so much happier, I feel like the Lord is giving me a little sigh of relief, a little rest. I feel so grateful.

As a little disappointment got me down this weekend, I needed to be reminded of the blessings the Lord gives me. It was timely, because a few days prior I watched this mormon message:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kMToqJ8BaE

Its message is trust in the Lord. Whatever the circumstance may be, when the plans you make for your life don't work out the way you want them to, trust in the Lord's plan. He knows what we need more than we do. He knows what will help us grow and become the people we need to be. Thank goodness I can hand that worry over to the Lord, and know my life is safe in His hands.

Turning One

Braden turned one on May 26th! I can't believe his first year of life has already passed by. Braden has been such a blessing to our family. We always ask ourselves what we ever did without him. We must have been so bored with loads of time on our hands, because he definitely keeps us busy now!

In celebration of his birthday, we drove to St. George and had a birthday party for him. We went to a park where there was lots of water to play with! Here he is playing with his cousin Leera and his daddy in the splash pad.



We also ate birthday cake. Anyone who knows me knows that I am not creative or artistic, so this cake was a big accomplishment for me! Braden really enjoyed it, or rather enjoyed smearing it all over himself and the ground.



Right after a quick catnap (we couldn't keep him awake any more) Braden opened all his presents! Thank you aunts, uncles, and Nana for the amazing presents!


We ended up driving home on the 26th in order to miss the Memorial Day traffic from the day before, so as soon as we arrived home, we headed over to the nearby mall for some fun! There is a puppy store there, and Braden loves to watch those puppies, so we did that first. Then, we took him over to the little rides, and he had the time of his life playing on them. All the while, I made him wear his birthday hat, and he actually kept it on after I insisted over and over that he wear it!


After a long day of fun, it just feels good to go diggin'

Braden, please don't grow anymore. I like you just the way you are!

Surgery

Last Wednesday, Braden went on his first adventurous trip to the Operating Room. I had been sick to my stomach for about a month in anticipation of it all. But, we made it, and here he is in pre-op.

He went in to have ear tubes put in his ears after tirelessly fighting ear infection after ear infection since December. What a brave boy he was, because he went with the doctors as happy as could be (although this could be due to the meds they gave him) and even helped the nurse put on his oxygen mask.

After the surgery was done, Braden's amazing eye doctors (retina specialists) did a test on his eyes to see if his retinas are what is causing his Nystagmus. They confirmed that there is some degree of abnormality in the cones and rods of the retinas, and that is what is causing the Nystagmus. Time will tell how well he can see. There is no treatment at this time for these abnormalities, but a lot of research is being done in that area, so there may be treatment in the future. They are certain it is a genetic condition, so they are trying to find out what gene causes the abnormality.

As he woke up, he wanted to hold his oxygen mask again. Braden, we are so proud to be your parents, and are so lucky to have you as our boy. We love you and are glad you have these doctors in your life to help you with your challenges.