Remi...what did you do??

As if every day of my life doesnt have something more exciting happen then the last, last nights episode was pretty commical. Jonathan and I were writing out invitations to our Grady's baptism coming up at the end of this month. Remi was in the room with us than disappeared. About 20 minutes later we decided to go insearch for the missing fur ball. Jonathan found remi's paws peeking out of the bottom of Grady's crib. Remi had made it a priority to get the tennis ball that was lodged under the bed, meanwhile getting herself trapped and managing to free the lost tennis ball! I dont think i've laughed that hard in months...

WHAT...more batteries?

Jonathan and I seem to be changing Grady's batteries in his bouncer, swing, pac n' play, and toys just about as much as we change his diapers. and of course they can't be the relatively cheap double A's, they have to be the vacation priced fat D's. I think i'm going to have to start using grady's OSU piggie bank filled with lose change just to keep his play yards running!=)

Grady is a water shark. He LOOOVES the baths already. We spend about 30minutes every morning playing and singing in his tub. He found a new interest in bubbles today, so mommy had to have a little fun myself!=) The little moments like these are whats going to make going back to work so tough.

WHATS FOR DINNER?

We had my inlaws over this evening for some good home cooked roast, mashed potatoes, and pasta salad. I always feel right at home when you can laugh, drink, and fill our bellies together. I remember my mom cooking us dinner everynight and always thinking to myself "i dont know if i"ll ever beable to cook that"...where there's a will, there's a way!

I'm getting an itch to take some more pictures. I love taking pictures of family and friends, but i'm getting that itch to take more outdoor pictures. I want to decorate our house with more wall art and old stoney pathes. There's just not enough time in a day...or a week...or even a month. We're taking a trip to Indianapolis this weekend to watch my brother in law play basketball. There will be more than enough baby hogs there to relieve me of mommy duty, so i'll be sure to bring the Nikon!

My brother has been on my mind lately. I keep thinking of where he was a year ago. For some of you readers that don't know, and many of you who do and like to keep updated on J.T.'s status -he is now cancer free for a year and 1 month. JT was diagnosed twice with a rare form of kidney cancer. I can remember the day when the words were said to me. I can remember watching his hair fall out patch by patch, the small bruises he'd form from needle pokes, and the numerous staples and stitches he'd have to carefully cleanse. I however don't remember seeing my brother cry or even lose hope. I don't ever remember him saying "i can't do this", or "i'm to sick to try". He's such a hero at such a young age, it makes me wonder how I'll ever accomplsih that much in my own short lifetime. I could brag and brag for hours about my brother, but i think pictures and experiences speak for themselves. I never believed that prayers and strangers could build bridges over two large cracks in the road. I mostly think i can't stop thinking about him, because like all mothers do, you stare at your kids at night. You think about the day you've just had together as a family, and what the following days will later bring. You have goals that you've already set for them and they don't even know it yet. You look deep into their hearts, wondering how you could ever love them anymore. I lay at night looking at Grady thinking of how I will protect him from hurt, pain, and all bad things. But then i think of my brother, and how not even my mom could protect him from cancer or chemo or even the flu. How no matter how hard she tried, she had to let JT lead in the drivers seat. I can only hope and pray that my son will be as strong, as hopeful, and as inspirational as my brother has been to us, and to neighbors down the road who have yet to meet him. I've learned through many sleepless nights of thinking about motherhood, how no matter how hard i try, or how hard my mom tried...fait works in mysterious ways. I've learned that children are a thousand times stronger than grown adults, and that in the end everything will be ok, and if its not ok....then its not the end.

JT for a 5 day stay at the Toledo Children's Hospital receiving his chemo treatments and blood transfusions.

Relay for Life. 2 months later he would be diagnosed with kidney cancer for the 2nd time.

This is my all-time favorite picture of my brother. I knew the moment we took this that everything was going to be ok.

Thats it for now.

Love and laughter,

Britt