A Pumpkin, A Pirate, and A Puppy

We are so blessed to have wonderful friends, and it is so fun to have our boys so close in age. This week we finally made it to the Pumpkin Station in Bonita, after several foiled attempts (thanks to sickness and rain). Trevor {the Pumpkin}, Ryder {the Pirate}, and Jack {the Puppy} had so much fun together at the Pumpkin patch!!

It is always a challenge trying to photograph three 2 (and almost 2) year olds!! They have so much energy, they don't want to be bothered by poses and pictures! At one point, Jack was furiously drumming on one of the pumpkins, Ryder literally made a run for it (no certain destination in mind), and Trevor just wasn't sure what was going on. 

My little Puppy Boy

Of course the day we finally go, it ended up being almost 80 degrees!!! My lil puppy was over his very warm costume!!

{Pumpkin Station Train}

There was so much for the boys to do, and we were lucky enough to go on a weekday morning, so there was hardly anyone there. They had most of the things to themselves! I loved it too, because then we didn't have to worry about big kids, rude kids, or too many germs. The boys loved the Giant Pumpkin Slide and the Giant Pumpkin Jumpy! There was a tractor to sit on and a car & motorcycle merry-go-round type ride!

Our last stop was the petting zoo where the boy got to see the goats, chickens and bunnies! We had such a fun day! My friends Tawny (Trevor's mommy) and Heather (Ryder's mommy) are the best!! So thankful for sweet friends! 

Happy Halloween!!

Mmm D' Licious: Vita Mix Pumpkin Spice Latte

First Recipe Post!! My recipe posts are titled, "Mmm D'licious" as an ode to my tiny son, who so loves his food, that this is literally what he says at the beginning of almost every meal or snack. Although he doesn't really pronounce the "d."

In honor of Halloween weekend, I tried a recipe from my Vita Mix recipe book for a Pumpkin Spice Latte. I love all things Pumpkin, and I am also fully aware of my {probably unhealthy} addiction to coffee, so for me this recipe was a dream, complete with my "happy punkin" mug.

Recipe: {sorry- you have to have a Vita-Mix for this one}


1 Cup Milk
1/4 cup strongly brewed coffee (hot) or 1 1/2 tsp instant coffee granules
1/4 cup pumpkin
1 Tbs white chocolate chips
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg


Place all ingredients into Vita-Mix. Turn on and increase speed to 10 and then High. Blend for 6 minutes (or until steaming).


My Review: It was definitely not a Sbux beverage, and it was strangely thick, but it was tasty! Annddd it was pretty cool that it actually got HOT in the blender!


 Side note: the Vita-Mix is the best thing ever. I use it every day and highly recommend it!!!

Baby Bump: 22 Weeks

 Although the idea of documenting my growing belly kind of bothers me, I figure that it's fun to have a few pics along the way. I am more than FIVE months pregnant already, and finally have a bump to show for it! Just like with Jack, it has taken me a long time to really show, which is a good and bad thing. Good because hopefully I won't get too big and uncomfortable when its all said and done, and Bad because for the past several months I basically just looked like I was putting on the lbs. for no good reason. But luckily- there is a good reason. An amazing reason. There is a little miracle of a girl that is growing, kicking, punching, and turning in there.  It literally feels like womb gymnastics, but that is my favorite part of pregnancy. I love feeling her move all around!

 I'm Five months, and falling in love.

As American As Apple {or Pumpkin} Pie

 Last weekend we took a little trip up to Julian for the day. It was perfect weather for an autumnal adventure: big grey clouds looming int he sky, a little drizzle here and there, and a chill in the air.  When we left our house it was a pleasant 65 degrees or so. Once we reached the town of Julian, it dipped into the low 50's...Burr!! But that it is part of the fun! 

We had a great time walking around the town, finding little places to take pictures, going into Antique shops, and quaint used book stores. 

{Red hightop Converse = Love! }

We drove a little ways out of the town to find a quiet spot to have our picnic lunch. We found a picnic area surrounded by the beautiful trees and large boulders; which were great fun for a little boy
{and his daddy}.

No trip to Julian would be complete without some Famous Julian Pie! We like to get ours at the Julian Pie Co. in Santa Isabel. I was a little disappointed though, because they did not have my favorite pie (and honestly, the one of the main reasons we love going up there in the fall)  Pumpkin Apple Pie. We settled for regular Pumpkin Pie ala mode {with Cinnamon ice cream}. YUM! 

 Jack loved his "punkin pie."

It was the perfect ending to our little family outing!

Two.

Happy 2nd Birthday to my precious boy, Jack Hartley Bradford!! He was born on

  October 22, 2008 at 9:07 pm. weighing 7.2 lbs and 19 inches long!!!

{3 days old} 

We never could have imagined how amazing this little boy would be, and how he would change our lives forever.  He is the happiest, most joyful little person who just lights up the room. He has filled our hearts with love and our home with inexplicable fun, laughter, joy, amazement and thankfulness to the Lord for giving us the precious blessing. 

There is nothing sweeter than holding a tiny, innocent, beautiful new person and just seeing God's incredible craftsmanship all wrapped up in this little bundle of blue.  And there is nothing more humbling than knowing that their little life has been entrusted to your care. This is the single most important job that I will ever take on, and I pray every day that God might give Sean and me the wisdom, understanding and discernment to be Godly parents who raise their children in a joy-filled, secure home where they know they are deeply LOVED by us and by their Creator.

I'm a B.....

Our little family of three is growing...and so is my belly!! It is really an indescribable feeling to be a parent, but even more profound is the knowledge that there is a tiny, little miracle growing inside you. We found out in June that we were expecting again, and we were so excited!! We spent the next 15 weeks (or so) wondering, praying, and guessing...will it be a boy or a girl?? Of course my husband all along kept our focus on the fact that praying for a healthy, happy baby that would grow to love the Lord was the most important thing- regardless of the gender. But when you have one already, its only natural to want one of the other.

Love that face! {he bbq's like Daddy}

I love my little son more than I ever thought possible. Honestly, we lucked out with this one. He was this perfect, beautiful thing from day 1 {since his birthday is fast approaching, I'll resist the urge to post his adorable new born pics}, but more than that, he has been *SO* easy. He was a fantastic eater and still is, he slept through the night without any real "sleep training" by about 5 months, and our latest adventure has been potty training. He started potty training himself this summer....how did he do that? you might ask... well, he would tell us when he needed to go- and then run the potty. Doesn't get much easier than that! So once I hadn't changed a poopy diaper for like 2 weeks, I figured I better just go for it and "potty train" him. To make a short story shorter- he potty trained, completely in 2 days. I know...sorry. Now of course there are still occasions where he gets distracted and doesn't quite get there in time, but for the most part- we have zero accidents.

My Big Boy in his Thomas "underoos" 

Ok- I could go on and on about him, and I probably will- more than once, but for now- back to the point. I love my boy, and he is definitely a BOY. He loves every kind of ball, trucks, trains, bugs {where do they learn that} and running, and falling, and running, and falling. He is a bundle of blue, boy energy, and I love every second of it. But I'm a girl. I'm a girly girl. So when I found out I was preggo again, I couldn't help it- I wanted it to be a girl. I tried really hard to not think too much about it. I really didn't want to feel disappointed if it was a boy, because I know how much I love my boy and I knew I would love another just as much. But there it was- this major desire for a tiny little bundle of PINK.

So at 19 weeks pregnant, the day had finally come. We went to XDI  for our ultrasound. The tech was this really nice, relaxed guy- who apparently liked to toy with his patients a little. So there we were- so anxious to find out if it was a girl or a boy, and he was nice enough to not make us wait too long. He said he'd take a look so we could just start referring to the baby as "he" or "she"...he looked, we waited, and then he started typing....

I'm a B {I gasped...not sure if I said Boy out loud or not} I was so surprised

I'm a Baby....

{No way...I'm pretty sure I said that out loud. I didn't think he would trick us and put ...BOY }

As soon and we saw the "G" we knew!! and both of us cheered!!! Woo hoo!

I'm a Baby...Girl!!!!

  Yay! We are still so excited!  

  Claire Marie Bradford 

is due February 22, 2011!!

PINK cookies I made to celebrate...well, that's what was left of them.