Happy first birthday!!!!!

Happy Birthday, Braeden!!!! Today was Braeden's first birthday and let me tell ya, we can hardly believe it's been a year since this precious little boy came into our lives. A year ago today at 2:08pm (Central time), Braeden Josiah Estep was born weighing 7 lbs., 8 oz. and was 20 inches long. The first thing we all noticed about him was his beautiful dark hair. Matt and I also talk a lot about the first time we heard him cry and how he sounded like a squeaker toy! :) So much has happened in this year and I hope that we've done a good job of keeping you up to speed on the many things that have transpired. It's amazing how much he has changed and grown. Still our petite little one, Braeden is a fiesty ball of energy. It's awesome to see the way his interactions with us have changed over time. From a sleepy little bundle he has grown into a rambunctious, lovable "toddler". We can't wait to see what the next exciting year will bring!

(More pictures and posts to follow!)

On the road again...the finale

After a busy week of getting settled back in Pennsylvania, I have a moment to share some more pics from our time in Tennessee. Of course I do not have a photo of each and every wonderful memory we've made but here is a sampling of some of the highlights.
Check back for more posts about the weekend's events!

Trip to Disney (May '07) courtesy of Nick's family! Thanks, Nitsch crew! :)

The 2 of us in front of Expedition Everest at the Animal Kingdom

Our home first home which we purchased in June '07

Our first pet, Jack (you know, the one we owned for just over a month.)

The little cutie again

Heidi and the other Omega girls in Lindsey's wedding (July '07)

Early on in my pregnancy with Braeden.

Ryan and Ashley on their visit to Nashville (September '07)

Trip to Indiana for a great Penn State victory! (October '07)

My Matty at Christmas...silly guy!

Our AWESOME small group and the booth that definitely should've won! :)

My adorable cake from my baby shower

The precious little guy himself (one of my favorite pics)

So precious...Matt did an amazing job capturing this moment


Many things have happened since then and thanks to this blog, you've seen just about everything that's happened since Braeden was just a few months old. We were so blessed by our time in Goodlettsville, particularly by the people that welcomed us like we were family. Thank you for blessing our lives. We hope to see you soon on mutual visits! :)

O Shenandoah

Well, here I am back in my home town (hence the title on this post) and very relieved that Braeden and I made it through our what I thought would be crazy Saturday. We flew out just after 7 yesterday morning and my little man slept for the first hour of the flight! What a champ! Then, during the last 20 minutes he was awakened by what I'm assuming was the change in pressure during our descent. He was not too happy with it at first but quickly forgot his troubles once I peaked his curiosity a bottle of infant Tylenol!
My mom and dad were waiting for us at baggage claim and after a brief visit with mom, she boarded her plane to head to Nashville. Dad and I then headed to the Tyson's Corner area (near D.C.) and did some shopping. While we were down that way we also were able to catch up with Ryan and Ashley near Dulles Town Center! We got back home early yesterday evening and took some time just to relax and watch Braeden crawl up the steps over and over again! He's a persistent little guy!
Today we've taken it easy and we'll be heading over to visit with my Grandma, PopPop, Ashley and "cousin" Chanel (Ryan and Ashley's sweet dog). Matt, Ryan, and my mom are making the drive up to Winchester as we speak. Tomorrow morning we'll be heading up to Harrisburg! Can't wait! Look for more updates soon!

On the road again (Part 2)

In all of the hustle and bustle of moving, I haven't gotten to post more pics from our time here in TN. I promise I'll get them up as soon as things settle down for us! Love to all!

On the road again (Part 1)

Well, after much waiting I'm finally able to make a post about our recent piece of big news...we're moving! After almost three years here in Goodlettsville, God is paving the way for us to move back home to be closer to family. Our destination: Harrisburg, PA, which is just an hour and a half to two hours from my family in Winchester, VA.

So much has happened in the last 3 years during our time here that I really couldn't begin to make note of it all. Luckily, I found a few cds with pictures from our time here and have decided to use them to help tell our story.

Cake from our going away party with the family

Bocce Ball (sp?) game...a favorite spring/summer tradition!

Matt on the day of our big move

The first in a series of signs...State Line in PA

Maryland

West Virginia

Virginia (these signs all appeared within an hour or so of each other)

And after 5 or so hours of Virginia, we find ourselves in Tennessee

Our suite at Nick and Marcie's beautiful home! (Home #1 in Goodlettsville)

Matt's office

Trip to Willow Creek Worship Arts Conference-Matty being silly. :)



Our Lenoxgate Apartment (our 2nd home in Goodlettsville)

Dad, myself, and mom at Opryland Hotel during their visit in July '06

Church parsonage (Home #3)-what a difference new furniture can make!


Since this post is getting rather long, I'll extend it into several posts.
I'll be back soon with more pictures!

Pictures

Felt like sharing some more pics so here ya go!



I know, random...but seriously, look at all of the food! This was from the Ladies' Retreat weekend and our breakfast at the Apple Barn. Seriously, all of that was mine!


This may be a repeat post but he's just so cute in it!


Here's Nick holding Hudson and Braeden, the 2 little buddies!

11 months!

Our happy little family

Crazy eyes (and hair!)

Well, as you can see I have changed the page background to reflect our excitement that Braeden will be celebrating his first birthday at the end of the month! But before we can do that, I have to mention that he recently celebrated 11 months of being on this planet. He has definitely mastered the art of crawling and cruising. He will stand by himself and almost tease us as he looks as if he is about to take that first independent step toward us. Once that happens, you'll be the first to know! :) He's gotten very good at self-feeding finger foods and some of his favorites include Gerber Graduate yogurt melts, puffs, and lil' crunchies. We've also worked with him on using a cup but honestly he's more interested in chewing on the cup rather than using it to drink from. We'll get there one day! :) (I've learned that persistence is an important word when working with a small child!)

I'm including a video of Braeden and his new "trick". This is a truck that my mom and dad got for him for Christmas. It's amazing because he will keep himself entertained doing this for a pretty lengthy amount of time! Ah, the simplicity of it all! :)