There's No Place Like Home: Part 3

Thursday morning Kaiser, Daddy, Uncle Justin, and I all went together to wake up Porter. We walked in the door singing "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you..." (That is, except for his brother, who chose to sing, "Go Porter, it's yo birfday, we gonna pah-ty like it's yo birfday!" Ha!)

"What is going on here?"

Not used to seeing this many faces first thing in the morning!

In his b-day suit. :)

Showing his ornery one-year-old side at breakfast.

A sneeze? Or perhaps a yawn? 

Showing some tongue while I try to snap his "12 month" pic.

While the big boys were out golfing most of the morning, the little boys were pumped up for a playdate with this handsome guy:

Be still my heart!

Paxton's momma, Kassie, and I worked closely together for over a year at LifeChurch.tv, and boy do I miss this beautiful girl! I couldn't wait to bring Kaiser and Porter over to her house and meet Paxton for the very first time. (I had intended to connect with her when we were in town last March, but she was kinda busy...in labor!) We had a wonderful time catching up on mommyhood, marriage, church, etc. while our kiddos hung out together.

Fast friends!

Kaiser zoned out in front of PBS for a while.

Pax isn't so sure about these crazy brothers.

Though our lunchtime visit was awesome, it was not without its challenges. Paxton was clearly teething and grew increasingly fussy, Porter decided to turn on the tears for no apparent reason, and Kaiser had an accident that rendered him temporarily pantless. So, what did I do? Took a picture, of course!

Just gotta keep smilin'!

When it became apparent that naps were of utmost importance, we bid farewell to Kassie and Paxton (with promises of many more playdates in the future) and went back home. Uncle Justin was there post-golf, as Brett had borrowed his car for a follow-up interview from one of his Tuesday meetings. (Yay!) So, his nephews got to hang with him for a few minutes while I got things ready for them to lay down.

Lookin' sharp in their orange.

Later that evening, we had plans to go out with Aunt Cami and her crew, as well as Uncle Justin and his girlfriend, Amanda, for a very low-key dinner to celebrate Porter's first year.

Our happy Birthday Boy before we left!

We chose to eat Mexican food at Mama Roja on Lake Hefner, and it did not disappoint. Delicioso!

Emerson with the man of the hour.

Don't let him stab you with that fork, Uncle J-Bag!

Ellis loves to hold this hefty boy!

Then it was back to Pops's house, because a 1st birthday isn't a 1st birthday without CAKE!!!

"Let's get this party started!"

Thanks to Pops for picking up some sports-themed decor!

(Is it absolutely horrible that Mommy didn't prepare at all?)

Big Bro looked on excitedly in anticipation of "dess-uht".

So Amanda is just about the sweetest person on the planet, and the week beforehand had sent me an email offering to bake a cake or cupcakes for Porter's little celebration. Lifesaver! It was so nice not to have to worry about making or ordering and picking up anything amidst our other plans. We decided that cupcakes would be best for the occasion, and she whipped up some delicious ones with cute dinosaur toppers that her mom had randomly gifted her.

Adorable!

Of course, I insisted that we pose as a family with Porter's cupcake before officially getting started: 

Check out Mr. Hot Stuff's pose.

"All this fuss for me?"

I asked Uncle Justin to man our smaller camera (I had our Rebel, and Amanda had her fancy one, as well) while we sang "Happy Birthday" and as the dude took his very first bite of sugary sweetness. As you'll see, he seems at first uncertain about the new food that's been placed in front of him, but with a bit of encouragement from Mommy, he catches on rather quickly. :) 

The video cuts off before he really gets goin', but here are some still shots taken on Amanda's and my cameras of the messy monster in action.

Actually, the boy managed to remain fairly clean (Pops might say otherwise!), and most mess was confined to his person and his booster seat. He did try to spread the birthday joy by sharing some of his icing with family members who came near. 

Emerson keeps her distance.

Ellis narrowly escapes a wandering hand.

Watch out, Pops!

"Wanna bite?"

Truly, the cupcakes tasted scrumptious (Thanks again and again, Amanda!), and Porter and Mommy weren't the only one who enjoyed them.

They were that good!

Kaiser would have had a second...and a third...

Once Porter had demolished his cupcake, he was promptly placed in the bathtub with his brother to remove what didn't make it into his mouth. Then we let the fresh-smelling, pajama-ed babes return to the living room for some more playtime with their aunt, uncles, and cousins before finally peacing out for the night.

Tickle tickle!

Uncle Carl (a.k.a. "The Baby Whisperer") was getting big giggles.

He's just so darn funny!

The crew loungin'.

Kaiser showing off his mad jumping skillz to Miss Amanda and Uncle J.

Apparently he has mad hiding skillz, too.

He loves this duo! (And so do we.)

Early on Friday Pops left for a weekend with his siblings in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. So, the Bralys were left to house-sit! I couldn't help but wonder if, after the previous night's festivities, the morning was a bit anti-climactic for Mr. P:

"What, no large group of people coming in to sing to me today?"

"At least I have this balloon to play with."

Kaiser laments the loss of a balloon that detached from its string.

We were all looking forward to our late morning/early afternoon plans with friends. While Porter took his morning doze, Daddy and Kaiser were out in the front yard collecting these:

Double doozy!

"See da acown, Mommy?"

Crackin' those bad boys open.

You're welcome, Squirrels.

Geez I love that mug of his.

At 11:00 the Bralys headed out to hang with one of the coolest families you'll ever meet, the Bealls. I can't begin to explain the love, respect, and admiration we have for Chris and Cindy; plus, they and their sons, Noah and Seth, are crazy fun to be around! 

Seth made this sign and hung it on their front door for our arrival.

Jam session.

Chillin' in the grass, watching the big boys play.

He's a football star.

Chris and Brett went out to Sonic to pick up our lunch, and after eating we spent some time in the Bealls' awesome backyard. We couldn't have asked for better weather; between that and the company, it was absolutely heavenly!

I hope to be half the wife and mother Cindy is.

Seth takes a run on the zip-line.

Noah's turn.

Porter was content swinging with us for a good half hour.

"Mr. Chris, I can't help but notice that you have an open computer on your lap. That makes you my new best friend."

Seth and Kaiser spent plenty of time working the construction site.

Momma and son showing off their Dancing with the Stars moves.

Time to get our shoes back on and leave. :(

As I later texted Cindy, just being in the presence of their family is good for our souls. I'm convinced we walk away better people. Brett, Kaiser, Porter, and I love them so very much! 

That evening we were planning to have dinner with the Johnsons. Since Pops was out of town, we originally thought we'd just have them over and lay the boys down so we could visit; however, the night before, Justin and Amanda had offered to come stay with Kaiser and Porter so we could enjoy a kid-free meal, and we happily took them up on it. The boys woke from naps anxious to see their babysitters!

Staring contest with Elmo.

Kaiser and Daddy having way too much fun on his air mattress.

Porter wanted in on the action.

Man on a mission.

They're in good great hands!

Brett and I met Brandon and Beth at Charleston's and, as always, had a great time eating and catching up on life. We laugh a lot with those two. It's also so nice being able to relate to a couple who truly understands where we are in life. (Brandon is a 4th year ortho resident at OU, so he also works the hours and is applying to fellowships, talking jobs, etc.) The Johnsons agree that we need to come back to OK so we can do dinners like this more often!

After we got home that night, Brett and Justin turned around and went back out to go see Albert, a pledge brother of Brett's, play at VZD's. Meanwhile, Amanda and I stayed up at Pops's house chatting, until we were both just too tired and she left to go home. Since Brett had plans to meet up with Jefe and Patrick in Norman to golf the next morning, he just spent the night with Justin in OKC rather than driving all the way back up to Edmond.

Saturday morning I was anxiously awaiting the chance to see my KD Little Dana, who was driving in from Tulsa. She works for Cancer Treatment Centers of America and was going to be in town early for Race for the Cure in Bricktown, then planned to come visit us afterwards.

Playtime on Kaiser's bed. 

(Promptly ended by Mommy once jumping started.)

Fascinated with the air mattress pump.

Dana finished up earlier than expected and stopped by around 10:15. Porter was excited to meet her for the first time, and, upon playing with her, Kaiser fell in love all over again. (This is no surprise, as she is a rock star.) I was so thrilled when she and her hubby, Ryan, recently announced that they're expecting their first baby in mid-April! Little is going to be the most incredible momma.

One of the best smiles we got from Kaiser the whole trip. :)

It just so happened that Dana's sister and her family live in the neighborhood right across the street from Pops, and Ryan was helping her bro-in-law and dad build a gigantic treehouse over there that morning. So, Dana suggested that she take Kaiser over to their place for just a bit to check it out and say hi to her two nephews. Since we had no other plans and she already had a carseat available, I sent them on their merry way!

"See ya, Mommy!"

She had him back home by lunchtime, and I could tell he'd had fun with the boys and enjoyed the brief change of scenery. Little sent me this picture she took on her phone of Kaiser testing out a motorcycle he found:

Not in a million years (that is, if Mommy has any say)!

I knew I was going to have to wake the boys up early from their naps that afternoon, so I laid them down about half an hour early to try to ensure they got enough rest. Kaiser went to grab his Bible from his room and was very adamant about reading to me before naptime. Then he opened it up and told me some random story about dogs and sheep going in a river. :)

Preach it?

While the kidlets slept, Brett got back home from his morning out on the course. I was glad he got in some more quality time with his daddy and bro-in-law!

The Drs. Braly.

At about 3:45, we roused Kaiser and Porter, got them dressed, and all loaded into the car to drive to the OKC Historic Farmer's Market. I had arranged for us to meet up at 4:30 with my pledge sister Charity to take Porter's one year photos (and some of our family, as well). Though we've kept in contact through our blogs and Facebook, it had been 3 1/2 years since I'd seen Char, so it was wonderful to spend some time with her! (Side note: She's preggo, too, and due the day after my Little! Babies babies babies!) Charity made our shoot fast, painless, and even fun. I've gotten to peek at several of the edited pictures, and I can't wait to get them in my hands to share! But, I'll have to save that for another post...

We finished up our pictures much earlier than I expected and were home a little after 6:00. I got the boys' dinner ready and them fed before Aunt Cami and Emerson arrived. Uncle Carl and Ellis were out of town on a daddy-daughter camping trip, and my sister and niece had offered begged to watch Kaiser and Porter that night while Brett and I went to dinner with Justin and Amanda. (Emerson even turned down an invite to the Taylor Swift concert, so I knew she was serious!)

Finish up quick so you can play with the girls!

She loves her cousins so.

Kaiser and Cami watching some of Bee Movie.

Hooray for a double date!

The four of us drove away from the house not sure where we would be eating (P.F. Chang's? Red Rock?), but when I expressed my hunger for Asian food and we learned that Chang's was an hour wait, Justin steered us toward their favorite Thai food place, Tana Thai. He talked it up big, and fortunately, it delivered. We enjoyed a delicious meal and fun conversation, and afterward drove down the road to Orange Leaf for some frozen yogurt. (Only Brett and I partook, though. Hmmmm...) Then we made a quick stop at the Redbox before returning home; we needed to get back relatively early, as Cami had a long run the next morning and needed to get to bed at a decent hour. We settled in to watch the movie we'd rented, All Good Things. Not my absolute favorite Ryan Gosling flick (I far prefer "Lars and the Real Girl" Ryan), but it was interesting and a bit disturbing. By the time it was over, it was pretty late, so Justin and Amanda headed out, and Brett and I headed to bed. I was definitely not looking forward to sending my hubby back to Pittsburgh the next day...