November 2008

Well, it's been awhile since I've sat down to fill you in on all the happenings of the Bryant family. There were a couple of interesting things in November that I'd like to reflect back on and tell you about.

The first is the Turkey Trot. The day after the Mustang 5K in October, we began training for the Plainview HS Turkey Trot 5K. Not only because we (me, Allison, & Paul) wanted a better race time on this next 5K, but mainly because of the hill at Chavies that is in the last mile. To say that hill is killer is to put it mildly! It is definitely rough! It is a challange in itself to not just want to stop running and walk up it. Well, my goals for the Turkey Trot were: #1- Run the entire way (and survive the hill!), #2- To place in my age division, & #3- To beat my previous race time.

As Meatloaf says, "Two out of three ain't bad!" I ran the entire way, placed first in the female 19-29 year old age division, but did not beat my Mustang 5K time. I finished in 30:31 (25 seconds slower than my PR). I blame it on the hill. :) Allison finished a few seconds after me and placed 2nd in our division. Paul finished in 27:32 and place 3rd in the Male 19-29 year old age division. I'm really proud of our efforts!

There were a lot of runners!

Allison, me, & Paul (pre race)

Paul finishing the final stretch!

Me & Allison sprinting to the finish line!


We did it!


WINNERS!

The next event was Logan's first haircut. We took Logan to The New You (Paul's cousin, Linda,'s salon) for his first haircut on November 29th. He did so well! The only time we really had trouble with him was when she needed to use the clippers to get it straight at his neck. He wasn't going to let something make that much noise behind his head without being able to see it and touch it! So she ended up having to use the scissors. He looks so handsome! Just like a big boy!

Before

Sitting in the chair with Daddy with a Cars cape on!

And the haircut begins...

Think we should style it into a mohawk? LOL!

Are you sure? It looks pretty cute...

He's checking out his new haircut in the mirror.

Logan & Linda

After

Halloween 2008

We had a great Halloween! Since Logan was only a couple of week's old last year, this was the first time he had ever gone Trick or Treating. He enjoyed it. We first went to April & Josh's house, then to see Paul's mother. Next we went to my parents' house. We dropped by Randy and Miranda's house and then to Donna & Jim's house next door. Everyone seemed excited to see Superman. Logan got a lot of candy. Check out the Halloween pics below.

SUPERMAN!!!

Cinderella (aka Courtney, Paul's cousin), Superman (aka Logan), Optimus Prime (aka Andrew) & Care Bear (aka Zoe, Paul's cousin's kids), Auburn Cheerleader (aka Ella, Paul's cousin), Auburn Fan (aka Emily, Paul's aunt & Ella's mom)

Paul, Superman, & Me


Superman hears a distress call and is about to fly to the rescue!


My Super Guys!

Logan's Party

Logan's 1st Birthday Party was Saturday, October 18th. Mom (aka Grammy) & I made his cake and cupcakes on Friday night and Alisha & I iced them on Saturday before the party. The original plans were to have the party at Fyffe Town Park from 2 to 4pm. Mom & Dad ended up having a meeting at our church that was to last until 3pm so I changed the party time to 3 to 5pm. This should have been an indication that things wouldn't go as planned, but I thought nothing of it. Saturday morning we worked in the Helping Hands Benevolence Ministry and it everything took longer than usual and things were a little crazy. I began to get a little nervous that we wouldn't be able to get everything ready for the party on time. It was a bit chilly that morning and despite suggestions from Paul that maybe we should change the location, I was laser focused on getting things ready and thoroughly convinced that the day would warm up and everything would be perfect. What I didn't account for was the wind. It was probably the most windy afternoon we've have this autumn! The sun was shining brightly, but it was no match for the huge gusts of wind whipping outside! We were attempting to set things up at the pavilion in the park when it became evident that we would need to do something. By this time most of the guests had arrived and were shivering as I made the annoucement that we were going to change the party location to our nearby church Life Center. So after transporting everything to the new location, we ate hot dogs (provided by Grammy & Papa) and ate cupcakes (decorated like pumpkins), chips, & ice cream.
For Logan's cake, I used the cake mold that my aunt used to make my 1st birthday cake and made him his own little bear cake. I used Mom's Icing Decorating Tips to ice the little bear to look furry. It turned out SO cute! Using my Aunt Martha's suggestion, I used cocoa to get just the right shade of brown for the bear. Logan loved it! At first he looked at it and just grinned. Then right off the bat, he took a finger full of icing and smeared it behind his left ear! Then, he began to pinch off icing and eat it. I pulled off both of the bear's ears and fed them to Logan. He got the idea after that and began to strategically eat the head. By the time he had finished, the head and most of the belly of the bear was gone. He really had a great time.
Logan got a LOT of presents! We got him a little Power Wheels Four Wheeler. Grammy & Papa got him clothes, socks, & a 2 seater wagon. He got a drum, xylophone, lots of pajamas, clothes, balls, T ball stand, bath toys, tractor toys, learning toys, play cell phone & keys, a little pair of Nike Shox, little Bear toys, a cap, and so much more. It was literally like Christmas! He never did get the hang of opening the presents, but he loved every minute of it!
The party didn't turn out like we planned, but it was fun anyway!

LOGAN'S 1st BIRTHDAY!!!

Paul, Logan, & me

Logan really loved his little bear cake!

Logan's 1st birthday cake!

Logan licking icing off his fingers.

He really dug into the cake!


We all really missed Kayla and were thinking about her all day.

A Lot About Logan... and a Little About Me!!!

Well, a lot as happened with the little guy that I need to catch you up on! First of all, on Wednesday, October 8th, Logan cut his 8th tooth! It came in on the bottom right hand side of the 2 middle teeth. He sure does have a mouthful now!

Last Friday, October 10th, Logan was sick. He was having diarrhea & was broke out with the yeast infection again. Poor thing! I took him to the doctor's office and I got a prescription for the infection. By that evening, he had continued to have diarrhea until he had had it over 15 times that day! I was terrified that he might become dehydrated and called the hospital. The after hours PedLine Nurse called me and asked a few questions and recommended that we take him to the ER 'just to be on the safe side'. They tested his poop and got a blood sample. Turns out he was fine. They gave him some medicine to help settle his tummy and said that the diarrhea should probably ease up on it's own in a few days, but the infection wouldn't clear up until the diarrhea does. He struggled with it the whole weekend and most of Monday. On Monday, his bottom wasn't any better either, so I called the doctor and they called him in a "custom butt paste" that has helped him better than the 1st prescription. He's feeling much better now! YAY!

On Saturday, I took him to Portrait Innovations in Huntsville and had his 1 year picture made. He did so good despite what a rough weekend he had! Check him out!

He looks a lot like me at that age in this picture!

I think he looks just like Paul in this one!

What a sweet little smile!

I just love this one! The background with his outfit made the perfect match!

On Wednesday, October 15th, I asked my Dad (aka Papa) if he would come by right after work and watch Logan so I could met up with my running buddy, Allison, and a few others to go run. I was only gone for an hour and a half (we did 6.25 miles) and when I came back, Logan had started walking on his own! I couldn't believe it! He was doing really great too! He was balancing himself and walking 5 and 6 steps at a time! I can't believe I missed it! He still is crawling and walking on his knees too, but he is way more mobile now!

Tomorrow is Logan's 1st birthday! Everyone told me to cherish every moment because it would go by too fast. It is so true! This has literally been the fastest year of my life! And the most blessed! I really love being a mother! I am so thankful to God everyday for the blessing that Logan has been to my life! I know now what people mean when they say that "Children will teach you more than you will ever teach them"... I have learn so much about myself, Paul, my family, my values, God, and love than I could ever put into words. As I reflect back over the past year I am in awe. I also look forward to the future with great anticipation and excitement for the journey that God has laid before me! But most of all, this last year has taught me--more than any other time in my life, to enjoy the present. So here I am... basking in the glow of the now. I am so thankful and so grateful!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOGAN!!!

Lucky Number 7

On Friday, September 19th, Logan cut his 7th tooth! He has had 4 on top and the 2 middle bottom ones. Number 7 is on bottom to the left. I can't believe how quickly he has gotten all those teeth! He got his first tooth at 4 months and he has gotten one a month ever since! We are beginning to plan his 1st birthday party now. So many people told me that this year would go by quickly, but I wasn't prepared for this to be the quickiest year of my life! ;)

Logan sporting Daddy's hat on game day!

I think he's trying to figure out the best way to get the camera out of my hands, but he looks adorable! LOL!

Sweet little cheeks!

It is very difficult to get a picture of an 11 month old's teeth! LOL!

Rough Week

This week has really been filled with a lot of highs and lows! To start off, I was really doing well with my training. This summer I've starting learning to run. For me (never being really an athletic person) this is really a big deal! Honestly, I never thought I'd enjoy running, but ever since I gave birth to Logan, I feel like I can do anything I put my mind to. There are several 5K Runs coming up and I plan on entering in as many as possible! I really think that I have found a sport that I can enjoy for the long haul and I'm getting better at it too!
Well, as I said before I was doing really well with my training this week, but on Wednesday Logan woke up with a low grade temp so I stayed home with him. To make a long story short, by mid afternoon Logan's temp was up to 103.8! I got him in to see his doctor. He had bronchitis and had to have an antibiotic shot. He was also given a prescription for cough/congestion and an antibiotic. Bless his heart! He did so well! I was really proud of him. Anytime Logan is feeling bad, the only thing that will do him, is for me to hold him constantly. After all day of holding my little man (I do need to mention that he is up to 21 lbs. & 14 oz.!), I'm pretty spent (too tired to go running on those days!). I stayed home with him on Wednesday & Thursday. And (as if he wasn't having a hard enough week already) Logan got a yeast infection from being on all those antibiotics!!! His little bottom was so red and tender that he would just scream and try to climb the walls when his diaper was changed. We got him some cream to put on it and it is getting better but it will probably be several more days before he is back 100%.
One good thing that happened this week was I was asked to go to a Conference for my work in... LAS VEGAS!!!! I'm so excited! I'm going with another lady from work and we leave out not this coming week but the next week! I've never been to Vegas before so it will be really interesting to check out all the lights and landmarks that are shown on TV. With that said, it does leave me thinking about all of those crime scenes that are in Las Vegas on CSI... lol! I watch too much TV! I'm not a gambler, as a matter of fact, I'm entirely too cheap (and I like to think too smart) to gamble. I know that the odds are astronomically stacked against the player and I am NOT a fan of throwing away my hard earned money. But who knows, I might just run into a celebrity! I look forward to traveling and seeing new places and things I've only heard about. I'll be sure to blog about it when I get back!