Alas, a tooth!

Brinley's first tooth finally poked through this week! She has been kinda cranky and drooling for quite sometime and we were wondering when we would finally meet the reason behind it all. It just barely surfaced, so I will take pictures when it is a little more visible.

Other news, I entered the couponing world about a month ago... and now I am leaving it. I saw friends getting major deals and thought I would be successful too. But, I found myself purchasing things that I normally wouldn't and ended up spending more for groceries than I usually did. Maybe I didn't give it enough time. I think I will try again later.

I went rock climbing yesterday for the first time in two years. I made it up one route successfully!!.. and not on another. It was cold and windy. My fingers were a little numb and I was jumping around to keep warm.. I think I will be more successful next time. I am lucky to have a husband that is willing to take me on easy routes. :)

Mike graduates in less than a month and has 14 more days of school left!!! We are so excited for him! Graduation party anyone??

Dream Cutter

Mike, Brinley, and I went to the Home and Garden Expo in Salt Lake today. We heard from a friend about an extremely discounted trip to Cancun and decided to go check it out. If all pans out with this travel agency we will be going for an all inclusive (air, hotel, AND food) trip to Cancun, Cabo, Cozumel or Dominican Republic for virtually 200 dollars total!!!! YES, PLEASE!!!

I can picture me on this beach in the near future..... sigh :)

While we were there we ended up watching a cooking demonstrating for about 45 minutes for Lifetime Cookware by West Bend. This cutter is A M A Z I N G. Seriously, we are talking about reducing your veggie prep time by about 80%. Maybe it only takes you 5 minutes to chop your veggies, well with this baby it will now take you 30 seconds. I didn't research a demo online, but if there is one, you will want to watch it!! And cutting vegetables has to be one of my least favorite things to do for cooking.

Yes, I want one. Very badly. But I can't seem to justify paying over $250 for one at the moment.

P.S. Huge fan of the expo. I totally recommend going if you have one in your area.

Better Bug

Brinley is doing just super now! She has barely coughed at all today and I have only had to wipe her nose once! Here Brinley is during a mini photo shoot taken today by me.

I can't believe how big she is getting!

Brinley: want do you want mom?
Are you happy now that you took my binkie away??
News: I bought an exersaucer. Sad as it is, I'm not sure if I'm sold on it. I researched it quite a bit before I went to pick it up. So far Brinley only likes it if I'm in the same room as her. Maybe that will change.

ER Action

Last night I had my first trip to the emergency room with Brinley, hopefully last.

Around 11 pm she woke up crying and gasping for breath. She kinda sounded like a seal when breathing. We picked her up, but as she continued to cry her breathing was hoarse and she had a barking cough. After she settled down a bit, her breathing was a little better, but not completely normal. Talk about heart stopping listening to your child struggling to breathe! I took her into the ER to have her checked out.

Diagnosis: Croup.

Apparently it is a thread of the common cold, but the main difference is that the child has difficulty breathing because the area around the voice box and vocal chords swells up. If you want more information on croup go here. I can't think of where she might have been exposed to it, but those in my area beware. Croup is on the lose!

She knows Him

She surprises me everyday, but this is time it meant more.

I play with Brinley in front of a mirror in our bedroom. I usually bounce her up and down or make faces at her. Sometimes I point to different things to help her learn about her surroundings. One day while I was doing it and I noticed she looked away from our play. I followed her gaze to see her looking at a picture of Jesus Christ hanging nearby. She was giving Him a big smile. Then she started to wave her arms up and down and get all stiff like she does when she gets excited. She looked back at me still smiling and then back to the picture doing the same thrilled motions.

I teared up a little, happy that she recognizes His face with very little teaching. She knows so much more than me. She is the reason I want to be the best mother I can be. Brinley helps me to reflect upon my relationship with Jesus Christ.

I know He lives, but I know I need to be better like my Brinley.