Monday, May 19, 2014

Chattanooga Weekend Getaway

I decided I wanted to take Brayden somewhere before the baby comes to enjoy some time with just him before I'm consumed with all things newborn and don't have as much time for him. I knew I wouldn't want to take any time off work because I'm saving it up for maternity leave so I knew a weekend trip would be all we could do. I also knew I wouldn't want to spend a lot of time driving so I limited our choices to Chattanooga or Atlanta. In the end, Chattanooga was the winner.

We left Friday afternoon after I got off work, just the 3 of us. It seriously was such a great trip. We did all the sightseeing, eating, and swimming we could squeeze into 2 days. Our only negative of the trip was the weather was a little dreary. However, it didn't stop us from having fun!

On Saturday, we did the aquarium and the Chattanooga Ducks. Brayden has been to the aquarium before, but he still loved it. We actually got to see a diver in the biggest tank exhibit and it was awesome!


Diver in the background!



If you've never done the Chattanooga Ducks before, I highly recommend it! I think it was the favorite for everyone. It's an old military vehicle called a DUKW and it can ride on land and in water. We started off by driving through the streets of Chattanooga and then went down a ramp into the Tennessee River and rode in the river for a little while. Brayden even got to drive it in the river for a bit. It was so cool!



We did a little swimming when we got back to the hotel, and honestly, Brayden would have been happy if that's all we had done.

We toured Ruby Falls Sunday morning. It was very cool and even though I'd been before, that waterfall still took my breath away.
 
 

We were supposed to do Rock City after lunch, but it was still pretty rainy outside and the walking at Ruby Falls had just about done Brayden and I in so we decided to skip it and do it next time. We headed for the Tennessee Valley Railroad for a train ride instead!




This trip was everything I hoped it would be and more. Brayden was so well behaved the entire time, which meant I got to spend every second just enjoying him and doing everything he wanted to. I sure will miss all this time I've had with just him, but I am more than ready to welcome another sweet little boy into my life and heart who will be just as special!

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Life Lately

Well, I haven't blogged at all in 2014 - that's crazy! The main reason is because I don't have a computer anymore at home and I just don't like posting from my phone. So, I don't post at all! But since I like to do posts so I can look back at the memories, I figured I'd better update.

So, what have we been up to in 2014?

We took Brayden to his first Monster Truck show as a Christmas gift and he was so enamored by it. He loved it and still asks to go back on a regular basis.
Brayden experienced his first real snow. He was quite impressed, but realized when you pick it up without gloves on, it's not so good!
We took Brayden to the bowling alley for the first time to celebrate Tyler's birthday. He had a blast and actually did better than I thought he would.
We found out we're having another sweet BOY in July! Brayden is super excited about having a little brother. I can't wait for him to meet him.
Brayden got to watch a helicopter land and sit in it at the rescue station with Daddy. Every little boy's dream!

We celebrated our last Easter as a family of 3 with lunch at Nana & Papa's and an Easter egg hunt there and at Meemaw's.
Brayden and I have been squeezing in as many date nights as we can get before our world changes in July.
Brayden turned 4!! We celebrated with a day at Treetop playing Putt Putt, riding go karts, and playing arcade games. We ended the evening with pizza, dirt cake, and presents!

Brayden's last day of 3K was today. I can't believe he only has 1 year of preschool left. Why does time have to pass so fast?!
So, that's life lately. We're gearing up for a really busy next 2 months before the baby comes. First off is our last trip as a family of 3 to Chattanooga this weekend. I'm planning to savor every minute of time between now and then. I'm so excited to welcome a new baby to our family, but also a little sad that the dynamic will be changing. I know Brayden will love having a sibling to grow up with, but splitting my time and attention between the 2 of them will be hard.

I'm going to try my hardest to post more often!