Silent Night/Loving Boys

Though they are few and far between, I love silent nights. My favorite thing to do is tuck Brady in after he has fallen asleep, now I love doing it before too. However he is so peaceful. Blake is not the best sleeper at night, he's got it down during the day though. No matter how tired I am and how much I want to sleep there is something about a snuggly baby needing his mommy that almost gives you all the energy you need. I love my boys so much and I have enjoyed spending the past 8 weeks at home with them. It's trying at times but I wouldn't change it for the world. Sure there are times I think one baby would be easier but when I see them together my heart melts. I hope they are always this good together. Brady can always make Blake stop crying and you can tell Brady truely loves his brother.

Brady has his trying moments but he is the sweetest little boy ever. Always telling me thanks for cooking and I wuv you and gives lots of kisses. Now don't get me wrong, he is all boy and loves to play rough but sweet as can be. I can't wait to see Blake's personality.

One of the Smartest

K-State Department of Agronomy, Home>News

Jason had his Commissioning and Graduation this weekend. It was a great weekend with LOTS of family here to celebrate his big days. He was recognized as a Distinguished Military Graduate during Commissioning, which means he graduated top 10% in the nation, and prior to Graduation they interviewed him because of this huge honor. We just found a news article on the K-State website talking about him and 3 other Cadets who are graduating ROTC with honors.
I put the link above but not sure if it works so here is the story that we found. Hopefully we will come across the interview prior to graduation because there were pictures taken also. We are so so proud of Jason and can't wait to start this next step in our lives.


Source: Lt. Col. George Belin, 785-532-6754, gbelin@k-state.eduNews release prepared by: Katie Mayes, 785-532-6415, kmayes@k-state.edu
Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008
FOUR K-STATE ARMY ROTC CADETS AMONG THE SMARTEST IN THE NATION
MANHATTAN -- Four seniors in Kansas State University's Army ROTC WildcatBattalion are among the smartest cadets in the nation.
The four students recently ranked among the top 10 percent of the ArmyROTC's National Order of Merit List. They include Chance Moyer, seniorin history, Chanute; Jason Grams, senior in agronomy, and JustinHackett, senior in sociology, both of Manhattan; and ChristopherGarlick, senior in political science, Manassas Va.
"We place a lot of emphasis not only on military excellence but academicexcellence as well," said Lt. Col George Belin, professor and head ofK-State's department of military science. "The top priority for ourcadets is for them to be successful students first, because those whoare successful in the classroom also are successful as Army officers."
The National Order of Merit assessment judges thousands of cadets fromArmy ROTC programs across the nation on factors such as grade pointaverage, physical fitness, performance at a 33-day leadership camp atFort Lewis, Wash., extracurricular activities, and a rating provided bythe students' military science instructors.
"I am a firm believer in that success breeds success," Belin said. "Whenour underclassmen or prospects see the academic achievements of some ofour seniors, they understand how integral academic success is tohelping them achieve their goals in the Army. They then strive touphold the high standards of our elite program."
Enrollment in K-State's Army ROTC program has been experiencing betterthan expected growth over the last few years. This fall the WildcatBattalion stands at 155 cadets, up 20 percent from last year.

Bigger and Bigger every day

Just when you think you can't take anymore, you get a hug around you leg and an "I wuv you" and it all seems better. Brady has his moments but he is such a sweet sweet boy. The other night we were sitting down for supper, Brady was at the table already, Jason in the living room. When I gave Brady his food he said Thank you mommy, you are a good cook. Then after he took his first bite he said, "mommy this is yum." It just makes my heart melt.

Blake is starting to be a little more aware and interactive. He is starting to smile some and seems to enjoy just laying there not being held so he can kick and wave his arms. He is so handsome. He slept for 6 hours last night, which is nice for mommy. They are both getting so big.

As you can see, we got our tree up this weekend. Brady Loves it. He says "OH, look at that big tree" and it always has to be plugged in. He loves Christmas lights and always wants to look at the Christmas stuff when we go to the store.

A HUGE CRASH

The day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) Jason, Dad and Brady decide to go to Springfield to get some pellets for the wood stove. I stayed home with Blake for a little "break." I showered and feed Blake and sat around, played a little pinball on the Wii and just enjoyed Blake sleeping and having a little me time. Then the phone rings, it's mom, she asks where I am and I say in the family room. "Ok good" she says "your dad is on his way home" "why" I ask, "they were hit by a semi." Que tears here and by tears I mean full crying with trouble talking. "Everyone is ok, Brady is fine" she now tells me. I don't know what to say, I'm holding Blake and was just told my other son was hit by a semi. She of course doesn't know all the details except they are fine and are going to come home. Now you see, I don't like to let Brady go anywhere without me, but I know that he has too some day and what better day then when it's with his dad and Pop. I even said something like, I don't let him leave me and I didn't want him to go but I had too. I was so upset. I then calmed down, got off the phone with mom and sat there, my stomach in knots thinking of all the things that could have happened. Yes, they are all ok but until I got to actually see Brady I couldn't get the thoughts out of my head. What happened was this, the Semi was coming down the road, going to make a curve to head another direction but was traveling WAY WAY too fast. Dad and the boys were sitting at a stop sign getting ready to go across the highway to let Brady go potty. The semi was carrying 1/2 a load of waste water and as he tried to make the curve his semi turned over and slid into them. Dad said he knew when he saw the truck that it was going to hit them, then he saw it turn and knew for sure it was coming then sat and watched it hit them. Dad said the cab is what hit them, actually was pretty much on top of them. They said Brady didn't seem to mind but did cry when Jason got out to help the driver. He went to find out what he was carrying b/c they thought it was gas, then Jason had to help the driver by getting stuff off his chest b/c he couldn't breath.

So they got it all reported and headed back home. Dad's shoulder hurts and Brady says occassionally that his belbo (elbow) hurts but seems fine. They were all shook up because who can say they were hit by a semi and drove off.

Thanksgiving

I am so thankful for my family. My boys, my husband, my parents. We had a great Thanksgiving. My mom cooked a great meal, Dad, Jason and Brady got to play outside because it was a BEAUTIFUL day out and I got to hang out with Blake and the rest of the clan. It was a nice relaxing day.

4 weeks today

Ok, where does time go? Is it really possible that my littleist boy is already 4 weeks old. I feel like I just brought him home from the hospital. He is getting so big and becoming much more aware and alert. We are all still adjusting but everyone seems to be doing really well.
I want to hold him all the time and never let him grow up but as I'm holding him I know I can see him growing. I know they have to grow up but why does it have to be so fast? Darn circle of life.
He is sleeping really well, last night he didnt' get up until 4am and I think that was because that is when Jason's alarm went off. Jason had his last PT test for ROTC today. He got a 270/300. Not bad for not working out but a few days this semester. It's funny, exercise is a huge thing for me, probably because I have bad eating habits and without exercise I'd gain too much weight. However, for Jason it's not, if someone is not making him workout, he won't do it. I want that to be something we can share and maybe someday we can, like he says, if someone is making me do it, it's not that much fun and I don't want to do it on my own. Guess it's like reading was for me. I only enjoyed it when I got to pick out the book not when my teacher said I had to read.
Brady is getting bigger and bigger every day. I think we almost have this potty training thing down. Yesterday he stayed dry all day and was even dry when he woke up. In fact he went poop in the potty. Now today he was outside and had an accident but other than that he is starting to go on his own, without us asking him and staying dry all day. I'm so proud of him. He's 2 years and 4 months now, so I'd say that's pretty good. YEA BRADY!!!!

Getting bigger every week

We had a Healthy Start visit this week. Just something Riley County does (I guess I checked I'd be interested on my paperwork). They came over and gave me information on development and feeding and all that baby stuff plus they weighed him. The weight is all I really cared about and that is why I said yes when she called and asked if I was interested in a visit.

So at birth on October 22 he weighed 7# 10 oz and was 7# 6 oz at discharge

At his 2 week check on November 6 he weighed 8#10oz and on Wednesday the 12th (his 3 week birthday) he weighed 9#7oz. That's like a pound a week. Guess we don't have to worry if he's getting enough to eat. :)

All is well. He's a good baby, though we are having some sleep trouble. A baby who did nothing but sleep is now a baby who doesn't want to sleep. He got up at 8 this morning and will only lay down for a few minutes unless someone is holding him. Got to break that habit, though they (whoever they is) say you can't spoil a baby.

Fun times at Grandma and Pop's

We got to go to Grandma and Pop's this weekend. While it was pretty cold Brady and Pop still played outside. You have to understand, every time Brady talks to Pop (his grandpa) on the phone he says he was to ride the Blue Lawnmower, Red Lawnmower, Dunebuggy and other Dunebuggy. Well now Pop has a 4-wheeler which is a HUGE hit. He got to go for a few rides with Pop which he loved Brady even said they went fast.

They built a fire and roasted marshmallow's and Brady did some raking.

And one more makes a family of 4

The day we brought him home

Well I'm a little slow getting this posted but better late than never.

We had another little boy on October 22, 2008 at 2:05 pm. We named him Blake Coday Grams. Blake we just decided we both liked it (which is amazing we agreed) Coday is my dad's middle name and Grams well that just goes without saying. He weighed 7#10 oz and was 20.5 inches long, just perfect. Labor was very easy and I felt GREAT afterwards.

He is such a great baby, sleeps a lot and is happy when he's up. His big brother LOVES LOVES LOVES him (almost too much). Everyone is getting along wonderfully.

We went and visited Grandma and Pop this weekend just to get away and because Jason had Guard. It was nice to get out of the house and have a little extra help. Brady loves going to Grandma and Pop's because Pop has fun things too do. Blake did great, slept well and ate well (babies don't do much else).

Blake had his 2 week appointment on November 6 and had gained 1 pound but had not gotten any longer. He seems to be getting bigger every day. Here are a few pictures from the last couple weeks.

Brady turned 2

We finally got Brady's 2 year pictures taken, almost a month late but better late than never. He did a really good job and was a lot of fun to watch. He is such a ham (I think he gets that from me).

We have been so busy this summer we have hardly seen each other, certainly had to MAKE time for pictures.

Baby Grams #2

We had our 22

week Ultrasound today. Everything was great! The baby was SOUND asleep, would not move for anything. I think it's kinda funny but the US lady tried so hard to get it to move. The only thing we found out was it is a baby. We will find out in October what it is. Jason really really wants to know but I feel so strongly about waiting that he is starting to support that. The baby looked healthy. Brady and jason were able to be in there at the end so Brady could see his "sister" (that is what he calls the baby). He seems to understand some as he will say Mommy sister in Belly button. So we'll see how it goes. He said today he wants "sister home". Hope you can see the pictures ok.

Where have I been

It's like I've been living a different life the last few months. February 29, 2008 I found out I was pregnant and it seems like a whirlwind since then. I have been working a lot, which Jason doesn't really like but the money is nice. I tell him it's just for now to give us some extra money before the baby comes. I'm due October 29 and we are NOT finding out what we are having. Jason really wants to know and Brady calls it his sister. He will come up to my belly and say Hi sister and give it a kiss. Some times if I'm on the floor he will lay is head on my stomach and say hi sister, give it a big hug and then just say oh sister. It's so cute.

We haven't much of anything this summer, we just seem to busy. Brady and I were able to go to the lake the end of May but that's it. I wanted to go swimming this weekend but it doesn't look like the weather is going to allow for that today. Yesterday my parents came to visit, dad wanted to try out a couple guns to maybe buy and it was Father's Day weekend and I got him a Satellite Radio.

Jason started summer school last week and already missed a day because of a tornado. The school was shut down Thursday June 12, 2008 due to tornado damage. It was a scary Wednesday night as it didn't happen until after 11:00pm. No damage here. It hit the other side of town and campus. No deaths or even any injuries, we were very lucky. Brady didn't understand why he was out of bed and hiding in a room, he wanted to look out the window for funder (thunder). We didn't hear a thing.

We have been a busy busy family lately and I hope to be better about blogging. I will get some pictures of my ever growing belly, as I'm 1/2 way there, and some pictures of my ever growing son.

ROTC BALL 2008

We had our final ROTC Ball on Friday 2/22/2008. I never really look forward to these things as we are one of the oldest couples there. With that said I actually had a good time. I'm sure it helped that I felt really good in my dress and Jason always looks great in his uniform. We sat at a table of pretty great people so we had plenty to talk about. Usually I sit with people and they all smoke, or at least the girls do, so I get left alone with the guys most of the night.

Brady stayed home with his favorite sitter and didn't even care that we left, well I'm sure somewhere he cared. This Ball was different because we got to go under the Saber Arch since this is Jason's last year, they announced his name what he does in ROTC, his major and who he was escorted by, his wife Stephanie Grams. :)

We had a really nice time. I got to meet a lot of people and see just how popular Jason really is as people would take our name tags and put them on their table because they wanted us to sit with them. That was fun, being the "cool kids." All in all we had a really nice time and it was great to get out of the house without Brady even if for only a few hours.

Two Pacifier Day

Brady has been very upset lately, I'm sure it's a stage but the kid seems to cry all the time. We are trying to get him off the Pacifier but this almost seems like a bad time. It's like he's really upset about something. Tonight Jason and I went on a run and he fell asleep in the stroller so we brought the stroller inside and let him sleep. He woke up and cried for like 30 minutes and all he wanted to do was cuddle. The cuddle part is great for mom but the crying is no fun. I know it's a stage and like all stages it too shall pass but may this one pass just a bit sooner than some.

Brady in February

February is quickly going by. Brady is getting bigger and bigger every day. We have so much fun with him. He really does get into everything and there are some days I think I tell him no more than I don't. I can't believe he'll be 19 months tomorrow. He'll be 2 before I know it. He says so many words now. Even a few 2 word sentences though I think you have to really know what he is saying to know some things are words. It's fun to watch him grow. He is very independent and wants to do everything himself.

Jason is keeping very busy with school and doesn't seem to have a day to rest. I am staying busy with work and sometimes taking on more than I need. All in all work is good. There is a therapist there whom I don't care one bit for. Imagine, irrogent male who thinks women aren't as good as he is. That's why it's so much fun.

It's been over a month

Where does time go? I can't believe it's been over a month since my last blog. Wow. I guess you can tell how busy I have been.

Brady is getting quite the vocabulary and really speaks clear (when he does). He still likes to point and grunt but we are trying to make him use words before he gets what he wants. He is very smart and knows words and things that I don't know who taught him (all good words).

He is keeping us very busy since he is starting to really begin climbing. He will move anything to get it close to a counter or the table so he can grab anything he can.

He loves the fridge, every time we open it he has to be right there touching everything inside it and always asking for juice.

We got his 18 month pictures the other day, 18 months that is so hard to believe. It seems like just yesterday he was this precious baby boy who I didn't want to leave for a second. Now he's an 18 month old precious boy who I had to leave overnight for the first time. I had a conference in Wichita this last week and had to leave Brady for a day and a half. It wasn't as bad as I'd expected, could be because Grandma and Grandpa came to watch him along with Daddy or because I was SO busy the entire time I didn't have time to worry. I knew he would be fine but I'm his mommy and I like being here.

So nothing too exciting. Some words he says are tractor (that was a first), light, hot, Grandma, Grandpa,