BRAEDEN COLE

It only took 3 appointments to finally get 2 year pictures out of this stubborn little boy. Go figure! Once in front of the camera "NO" comes out very clearly. It took a box of cookies to convince him that smiling was a good thing. We had to talk him into feeding Lightening McQueen the cookies.

It''s amazing the things that happen once they turn 2. Braeden is as stubborn as his mommy but can melt your heart with his devilish smile. He likes to challenge us but we are holding our ground. I guess this is just preparing us for the teenage years.

Two year check up and NO shots!!! I think once he heard "No shots" he was much more relaxed. We saw Dr. Chatterjee whom he just loves. She is very motherly and just kisses all over him. Braeden is a flurt so this is right up his alley.

He is a typical 2yr old, refuses to eat and only wants to eat what he wants. Quality versus quantity is what the doctor said and we have been hiding veggies in things like pancakes.

Some things that we will be changing or starting are: switching him to skim milk instead of whole milk, changing his diaper in the bathroom and encouraging him to sit on the potty.

As for stats...he now weighs 25lbs 7oz (20%), height is 34 1/4 inches (25%), and his head is 54cm (90%).

Yesturday was Braeden''s second birthday and today we had a party with all his friends. Would you believe that the theme of the day was Cars?

Just like any two year old, he was not happy about sharing his toys as the other kids arrived. Yet once he began to open gifts he could have cared less if his old toys were being played with.

Braeden tore into his gifts like a pro. If it wasn''t a Car it was tossed to the side and he moved onto the next gift.

Braeden says thank you to everyone who could be there and for all the wonderful gifts.

We spent New Years in North Carolina with our friends Katherine, Kevin, Mia and Elizabeth. We left early saturday morning (12/29/07). Braeden got a little car sick on the way down. Nothing like stripping your kid on the side of 95 while trying not to get vomit all over yourself. Did I mention it was drizzling too?

We had loads of fun once we reached their home. Kevin is a civilian in the Air Force Fire Department and took us to the station so Braeden and Mia could see the fire trucks.

Braeden and Mia also had the chance to exchange birthday gifts. A little fact....Braeden and Mia were both born on the same day just 8hrs and 59minutes apart.